DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Tyler Reddick will lead the NASCAR Xfinity Series field to the green flag during Friday’s Circle K Firecracker 250 at Daytona Int’l Speedway.

Reddick paced Friday’s qualifying session with a 47.938-second lap at 187.743 mph to earn his third pole of the season and the fifth of his NASCAR Xfinity Series career.

A.J. Allmendinger, making his return to NASCAR competition for the first time since last November, will start second for Kaulig Racing.

Michael Annett, who won the season opener at Daytona in February, will start third. Ross Chastain qualified fourth ahead of Gray Gaulding in fifth.

Austin Hill, Mike Harmon and Joey Gase failed to qualify for Friday evening’s race.

Circle K Firecracker 250 Starting Lineup:

1. Tyler Reddick
2. A.J. Allmendinger
3. Michael Annett
4. Ross Chastain
5. Gray Gaulding
6. Joe Graf Jr.
7. Justin Haley
8. Christopher Bell
9. Sheldon Creed
10. Chase Briscoe
11. Riley Herbst
12. Justin Allgaier
13. Caesar Bacarella
14. Ryan Sieg
15. Cole Custer
16. Noah Gragson
17. Brandon Jones
18. Timmy Hill
19. Austin Cindric
20. Jeff Green
21. John Hunter Nemechek
22. Chris Cockrum
23. Scott Lagasse Jr.
24. Landon Cassill
25. Stephen Leicht
26. Josh Williams
27. Vinnie Miller
28. Matt Mills
29. Stefan Parsons
30. B.J. McLeod
31. Chad Finchum
32. Shane Lee
33. Brandon Brown
34. David Starr
35. Garrett Smithley
36. Ray Black II
37. Jeremy Clements
38. Joe Nemechek

The Gold Cup final is here, with old foes Mexico and the United States squaring off Sunday at Soldier Field in Chicago. While it will be their first Gold Cup meeting since 2011, there is plenty of familiarity between these two great rivals who are once again battling for regional supremacy.

Here's everything you need to know, from the superheroes and the sidekicks who can decide the ties to the keys for victory.

The backstory

How much time do you have? This is one of the most storied rivalries in world football, and for the sixth time, the two neighbors will meet in a Gold Cup final to determine who is the king of CONCACAF.

Mexico is a seven-time champion of the tournament, its most recent title coming in 2015. In the five previous Gold Cup final meetings between the two nations, El Tricolor has been the dominant side, with four wins.

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Since its perfect group stage, it has been a tough road for Mexico in the knockout stage of the tournament, as it needed a penalty shootout win to eliminate Costa Rica in the quarterfinals, then edged a gutsy Haiti side in extra time in the semifinals to reach this point.

The U.S. is the reigning champion of the Gold Cup, capturing the 2017 title with a 2-1 win over Jamaica. With a victory Sunday in Chicago, it would equal Mexico for most Gold Cup crowns.

Like Mexico, the U.S. picked up three wins out of three in the group stage, but was less than impressive in the quarterfinals, barely scraping past Curacao 1-0. However, it was a much improved side in the 3-1 semifinal victory over Jamaica and appears to have settled on its best starting XI for Sunday.

How they match up

Historically, when these two teams meet, Mexico is the team that owns the majority of the ball, while the U.S. will defend and look to break on the counter. Sunday won't be any different, with the likes of Andres Guardado and Jonathan dos Santos patrolling the midfield for El Tri. This won't bother the U.S. a bit. Coach Gregg Berhalter's team has allowed just one goal during the tournament and has improved its defensive shape as the tournament has progressed.

Mexico star to watch: Raul Jimenez

The Wolves forward is peaking at the right time. He has a goal in Mexico's past three games and is also very crafty with his playmaking, possessing a delicate touch that is a dream for Mexico's overlapping wingers.

U.S. star to watch: Christian Pulisic

No surprise here. The new Chelsea man has a knack for coming through in big matches, with 10 goals and nine assists in 21 competitive games for his country. With his pace, movement, touch, passing and power, Pulisic will have to be at his best for the U.S. to win.

Mexico's X factor: Uriel Antuna

There was a clear difference in the intensity of Mexico's attack in the semifinal against Haiti when Antuna came on for Roberto Alvarado. The LA Galaxy man has breathtaking pace and a good left foot to boot. His speed coming down the right flank will create plenty of chances for Jimenez. Antuna going against U.S. left-sided center-back Tim Ream could evoke memories of Pablo Barrera destroying Jonathan Bornstein in the 2011 final.

U.S. X factor: Jozy Altidore

It took only about 10 minutes for all to see how much better the U.S. is with Altidore as its center-forward. His positioning, touch and movement is better than what Gyasi Zardes can offer. He absolutely has to start for the U.S., especially considering his very good history in working with Pulisic in attack.

Mexico needs to ...

Take advantage of the U.S.'s sloppiness. While conceding just one goal in the tournament, the U.S. can periodically be careless in its own half, allow too much space or fail to clear lines. A team like Mexico will be more than happy to make it pay.

U.S. needs to ...

Hit Mexico on the flanks. El Tri has been susceptible on the wings in this tournament, which coach Gerardo Martino has acknowledged. That is where the U.S. can do its damage.

Prediction

Mexico 3-1 United States: The combination of Mexico capitalizing on U.S. mistakes, plus the playmaking of Antuna and Rodolfo Pizarro on the wings, will provide a goal-scoring feast for Jimenez.

Sarfaraz Ahmed's comments from the eve of the match, about putting up "600, 500 or 400", had become social media fodder. But as is wont to happen depressingly often these days, the rest of his answer got lost in the jokes and memes. Sarfaraz wasn't just saying that he hoped Pakistan scored as many against Bangladesh, but that the expectation to post a humungous total and then bowl out their opponents so cheaply, all to ensure they overtook New Zealand in the net run-rate stakes, was not going to be easy on the same pitch.

"We will do our best but we need to be realistic," he said on Thursday. "If you score 600, 500 or 400 score on a pitch then you think you can get the other team out for 50? It will be tough but we will still give it a try. The target is in front of us, there are no secrets that [we have] to score 500, 550 and then win by 316-run margin."

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The technically obvious point, which said much about how they actually felt about such an impossible task, got lost in the way the rest of the press conference panned out, particularly when Sarfaraz said "no comments" gruffly to one question about their progress as a team. Overnight, the comment got out of hand, and it was suggested that Sarfaraz was being daft. But he wasn't. He was right. He was thinking much the same way any other captain would have.

But when Pakistan came out of the blocks with a jog, and not a sprint, the approach shifted the spotlight from Sarfaraz's words. Imam-ul-Haq and Fakhar Zaman, partly because of the way Mehidy Hasan bowled in the first Powerplay, didn't - or couldn't - push on. For a team so desperate to be in the last four, there might have been more urgency, however ridiculous it sounded. "We did have a discussion about trying to get 400, but the first ten overs were crucial, and then Fakhar told us that the wicket is slow," Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur said afterwards.

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Sarfaraz add that Pakistan needed something miraculous. "I said yesterday it would be a miracle if we scored 400-500. I said yesterday if you are realistic about it, this tournament has seen average first innings scores around 280-300. I didn't say we'd score 500.

"We read the pitch and knew it was slow. Our target was to score as much as possible, and we scored as many as we could. Our target was to win this match and finish on a high note, which we did. Everyone executed their role well and that satisfies me."

But ending up on 315 for 9 in their 50 overs also drove home the point that, had they been a bit more adventurous, they may well have got closer to 350, if not 400. They batted at 4.6 per over for the first 25 overs, and only when they had overs producing 14, 15 and 14 between the 27th and 32nd, did they attempt to push on for a substantial score. The first time they reached more than six an over was at the end of the 46th, but Mustafizur Rahman played his part in slowing them down during the death overs.

Ultimately, though, given how their World Cup has gone, it was also practical that they settled to play for a win rather than going for broke for what appeared to be a nigh-on impossible dream. Beating Bangladesh would mean that they finished with 11 points, the same as New Zealand, only to miss out on net run rate, a metric that, in itself, has proven a hot topic of discussion over the past few days. If they had done slightly better against West Indies and Australia, the story would have been different for Pakistan.

It may speak of their limitations as a team, but not being able to win this game by 300-plus runs was never the central reason they must pack their bags and look for a flight out of London at the same time as Bangladesh. If anything, the performance of their three youngest players -Shaheen Afridi, Imam and Babar Azam - bodes well for their future. The only hope is by the time the next World Cup rolls around, they will have done enough early on not to need to set ridiculous records in the final game to claw their way to a final-four berth.

But then again, with Pakistan, could it really be any other way?

Fielding is one of cricket's grey eras even in this age of data. It is debatable how much it matters, clearly being the least important of the four main skills, behind bowling, batting and wicketkeeping. Then there is no agreement on how to measure or assess fielding. It is mostly subjective, and on occasions good fielding - reaching but failing to catch a ball that another fielder would have struggled to get near - can count as a drop.

Does fielding have an intangible effect on the energy you see in other skills? There are bowlers known to lose heart if catches keep getting dropped off them, especially at slip. Or do other skills have that intangible impact on the fielding? If bowlers are known to keep creating chances, fielders are less likely to lose energy at missing one catch. Some observers tend to look at fielding as an indicator of where a team is at, but then again if a team is good enough at the other three disciplines it can keep bouncing back from dropped catches.

Aaron Finch, Australia's captain, looks at it as a barometer himself. "It is not always the outcome," Finch says. "It's just about the intent, the intent with which you throw the ball, you attack the ball, cutting off ones in the circle. So it's always been a big part of our DNA of how we play our best one-day cricket and it says a lot about the attitude that the team brings on that day. We know [that] when we are playing our best, we are in the ring, we are cutting off ones, we are making the opposition feel uncomfortable with our movement in the ring and angles that we are moving."

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Catches are not the only part of fielding when it comes to limited-overs cricket. Runs saved are important; they can at times create wickets if they combine well with good bowling. Ground fielding, how well you back throws up, how you anticipate balls, it all adds up. While arguments can continue over the importance of fielding, teams continue to talk about its importance, about how much pride they take in fielding well.

Australia, for example, are proud they have made their way back to the top of the fielding ratings. It can be arguable if they really have, but it is not an outrageous claim by any stretch of imagination. Fielding has three complex components: catches, runs saved and run-outs. Run-outs are the most complex because they are the most prone to be considered as missed chances just because you got to the ball sooner. Also while there is a lot of practice involved in direct hits, a lot of luck goes in too.

To look at ground fielding and catching more than run-outs won't be amiss. According to ESPncricinfo's data, Australia are not on top of either of these disciplines. That doesn't mean they are not the best team, though, because those ahead of them on each count are not the same sides. Australia have saved 42 runs in the field (79 saved and 37 missed), and have taken 89.3% of their catches.

Prepare yourself for a big surprise, if you haven't followed this side closely, but West Indies have saved more runs in the field than Australia, and they have taken two catches - Sheldon Cottrell and Fabian Allen - that can possibly compete for being the grab of the tournament. England have saved five more runs than West Indies' 51, but both these sides have also been less efficient than Australia when it comes to catching. The only team more efficient than Australia with their catching is India, who have dropped only two of the 37 chances that have come their way, but their ground fielding stands at a negative of 23. New Zealand have saved 41 runs but they have also dropped 18 out of 65 catches.

"Fielding is great fun when you are doing it well. If you look around our group, we have got some of the best fielders in the world" Australia captain Aaron Finch

Clearly Australia were not this tight in the year leading up to the tournament because Finch sounds chuffed with the turnaround. "We put a lot of emphasis on our fielding," Finch says. "We pride ourselves on it. We work very hard on it. We are judged extremely hard from our coaches, JL [Justin Langer, head coach], Punter [Ricky Ponting, assistant coach], Hadds [Brad Haddin, fielding coach], on our fielding.

"So we have always prided ourselves on it, and touch wood, it's been very good in this tournament so far. There's been a lot of work that's gone into that over quite a long period of time. A lot of blood, sweat and tears in some fielding sessions that have happened over the last couple of months in particular.

"Fielding is great fun when you are doing it well, and I think that is one thing. If you look around our group, we have got some of the best fielders in the world. Obviously Davey [Warner] is not throwing like he was a few years ago [because of a previous shoulder injury], but Maxie [Glenn Maxwell] is as good as anyone in the world, Smithy [Steven Smith] is right up there. Nathan Lyon is seriously as good as anyone. And when you have got a lot of guys that can field in a lot of different positions, I think that inner circle becomes really crucial, and we are able to create a lot of energy and a lot of indecision in the ring."

It can't be denied what a joy it is to watch a smooth fielding unit where everyone knows their role and performs it perfectly: the keeper running in if a ball is hit to point, two fielders chasing that ball should a relay throw be needed, square leg behind the keeper to collect the over-throw, the ball reaching the bowler quickly and saving over-rate hassles. Whether it is the cause or the effect, it is that joy that sides are after.

University of Hawaii linebacker Scheyenne Sanitoa died Thursday, athletic director David Matlin said in a statement.

Sanitoa was 21. No cause of death was released.

A redshirt junior from Fagatogo, American Samoa, Sanitoa appeared in 12 games last season, including two starts, and finished with 30 tackles.

"Scheyenne was a tremendous young man, and we are devastated by this news," Matlin said in the statement released Friday.

According to Matlin, the football team met Friday to discuss Sanitoa's death. Campus counselors were present at the meeting and will continue to be available to the team, Matlin said.

"It's always heartbreaking to lose a member of our UH ohana, particularly when it's one of our young student-athletes," Matlin said. "Our deepest thoughts and prayers are with his family, his friends, his teammates and to all those who knew and loved him."

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- For the final time in his illustrious career, CC Sabathia will be going to the All-Star Game.

Major League Baseball announced Friday that Sabathia, the New York Yankees' left-handed pitcher who will retire at the end of this season, will be participating in events associated with next week's game at Cleveland's Progressive Field.

A Cleveland Indians first-round draft pick in 1998, Sabathia spent parts of the first eight seasons of his career pitching at the ballpark before he was traded to Milwaukee late in the 2008 season. The next year, he signed as a free agent with New York, helping lead the Yankees to their most recent World Series.

"Major League Baseball normally doesn't do things like this," Sabathia said. "So to be the guy that they're honoring is good. It feels awesome."

Although he was not voted into the All-Star Game, Sabathia and his family were invited to the game by the commissioner's office to be "recognized for his contributions to the game and his longtime service to the community." He'll be honored before the game Tuesday.

Sabathia first learned about the league's hope to have him at the game through American League team manager and Boston Red Sox skipper Alex Cora. On a phone call a couple of weeks ago, Cora asked Sabathia if he'd like to be at the game. The 38-year-old pitcher said yes.

He still isn't sure what his full role will be at the game, but Sabathia envisions it will entail being the league's primary ambassador of various events during the week.

"I just know I'll be there," Sabathia said. "Maybe, I guess, like Alex said, to be like an honorary coach or something, just to be around. Be there for the Home Run Derby, be there for the game. But just to be around and to have MLB want to recognize my career is a good thing."

Sabathia's current manager and former Indians teammate, Aaron Boone, said he knew something was in the works for a while to get the southpaw back to his first big league city for the Midsummer Classic.

"Very deserving, very fitting," Boone said. "It'll be a lot of fun to watch it from afar."

Added commissioner Rob Manfred in a statement: "We are delighted that CC and his family will join us in Cleveland, where his major league career began. We look forward to celebrating his many accomplishments during our All-Star Game festivities."

Sabathia has made six All-Star Game appearances throughout his career and has won a Cy Young Award. Earlier this season, he surpassed the 3,000-strikeout plateau and earned his 250th career win. Having accomplished both feats could be enough to make him an eventual Hall of Famer.