I Dig Sports
Stadium Super Trucks Expand, Add Australian Series
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Robby Gordon’s SPEED Energy Stadium Super Trucks have gotten so popular in Australia that the country will play host to its own separate series.
The Australian series will be known as the Boost Mobile Super Trucks and events will be held in conjunction with existing Virgin Australian Supercar events.
The Australian campaign will kick off Feb. 20-23 with the SuperLoop 500 in Adelaide, South Australia. The opening event of the Boost Mobile Super Trucks schedule will be co-sanctioned with SPEED Energy Stadium SUPER Trucks and will feature both drivers from the United States and Australia competing.
The next two events will feature new tracks for the Super Trucks, with Symmonds Plains Raceway in Launceston, Tasmania, hosting an event, April 3-5. A week later the trucks will be loaded on a ship for the trip to Pukekohe Raceway, April 24-26. This will be the first event in series history New Zealand.
The remaining schedule will feature the Boost Mobile Super Trucks returning to venues that have hosted the Super Trucks previously. Making a third appearance at the Barbagallo Racway in Perth, Western Australia, the Super Trucks will take to the track on May 15-17 for the first of two night events on the schedule. Following Perth, the trucks will make the cross-country journey for the second appearance at the Townsville Street Circuit in Townsville, Queensland, on June 26-28.
Traveling to the north for the second time in the Super Truck history, Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin, Northern Territory, will be part of all the action on July 17-19.
For the second co-sanctioned event with the SPEED Energy Stadium SUPER Trucks, the drivers from the North American series will join the Australians for a twilight shootout on Aug. 28-30, at Sydney Motorsports Park in Sydney, New South Whales.
The closing event in the inaugural Boost Mobile Super Trucks season will see the high-flying trucks return to the streets of Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast. Similar to Adelaide and Sydney, both drivers from Boost Mobile Super Trucks and SPEED Energy Stadium SUPER Trucks will be in action for the final event in both series. Two champions will be crowned the weekend of Oct. 30-Nov. 1.
In addition, the North American-based SPEED Energy Stadium Super Trucks have also announced a full schedule of events for next season.
As noted, the tour will open on Feb. 20-23 in a co-sanctioned event with the Boost Mobile Super Trucks during the SuperLoop 500 in Adelaide, South Australia.
The longest-running event on the Stadium Super Trucks schedule will also be back for the eighth consecutive year as the trucks take to the streets of Long Beach, Calif., on April 17-19, for the 47th running of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.
After a successful return to the Honda Indy Toronto in 2019, the tour will be back on the bill alongside the NTT IndyCar Series on July 10-12.
Starting the stretch of four race weekends in a month, the trucks will the make a stop for a third time at Wisconsin’s Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., on Aug. 7-8, in conjunction with the NASCAR Xfinity Series Henry 180.
After making two visits to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in 2019, the loyal fans of Ohio will be treated to a return trip of the Stadium Super Trucks as part of the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio weekend on Aug. 14-16.
The second of three events co-sanctioned with the Boost Mobile Super Trucks will see the American drivers head back to Australia on Aug. 29-30, for a return to Sydney Motorsport Park in Sydney, New South Wales, for a race under the lights.
Returning to the Pacific Northwest for the second straight year, Portland Int’l Raceway will be host to Stadium Super Trucks again along with the NTT IndyCar Series on Sept. 4-6.
Finally, the Stadium Super Trucks will again unite with the Boost Mobile Super Trucks to close the season on the Surfers Paradise Street Circuit in Australia.
Officials from the SPEED Energy Stadium Super Trucks are also hoping to announce an event in Southern California in early February. Additional details are expected to be announced later.
2020 Boost Mobile Super Trucks Schedule
Feb. 20-23; Adelaide Street Circuit; Adelaide, SA, Australia**
April 3-5; Symmonds Plains Raceway; Launceston, TAS, Australia
April 24-26; Pukekohe Raceway; Auckland, New Zealand
May 15-17; Barbagallo Raceway; Perth, WA, Australia
June 26-28; Townsville Street Circuit; Townsville, QLD, Australia
July 17-19; Hidden Valley Raceway; Darwin, NT, Australia
Aug. 28-30; Sydney Motorsport Park; Sydney, NSW, Australia**
Oct. 30-Nov. 1; Surfers Paradise Street Circuit; Gold Coast, QLD, Australia **
2020 SPEED Energy Stadium Super Trucks Schedule
Feb. 1; Southern California Stadium *
Feb. 20-23; SuperLoop 500; Adelaide, SA, Australia **
April 17-19; Long Beach Grand Prix, Long Beach, California
July 10-12; Honda Indy Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Aug. 7-8; Road America; Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin
Aug. 14-16; Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course; Lexington, Ohio
Aug. 28-30; Sydney Motorsport Park; Sydney, NSW, Australia**
Sept. 4-6; Portland International Raceway; Portland, Oregon
Oct. 30-Nov. 1; Surfers Paradise Street Circuit; Gold Coast, QLD, Australia**
TBA *
* Additional dates and details to be announced later
** Co-Sanctioned
ENSENADA, Mexico — Hometown heroes and brothers Alan and Aaron Ampudia made some lasting history Sunday by winning the overall and SCORE Trophy Truck title in the BFGoodrich Tires 52nd SCORE Baja 1,000.
Second generation desert racers from Ensenada, brothers Alan, 28 and Aaron, 26 split the driving in their No. 10 Monster Energy Papas & Beer Ford Raptor built by ID Design to a winning time of 16 hours, 10 minutes and 36 seconds while averaging 49.48 miles per hour over the rugged, rain-soaked race course.
Their older brother Rodrigo Ampudia, 34, was a navigator for both his brothers during parts of the race.
Alan Ampudia started the race and drove to race mile 350. Aaron Ampudia then drove from race mile 350 to race mile to 695. Alan Ampudia got back in and drove from race mile 695 to the finish line.
Both class winners in different classes, it was their first SCORE Trophy Truck race win as the Ampudia brothers became just the third team of Mexican Nationals to win the legendary race.
First to accomplish it was the father/son team of Gustavo Vildosola Sr. and Gustavo ‘Tavo’ Vildosola Jr. in 2010 and the son/father team of Carlos ‘Apdaly’ Lopez and Juan C. Lopez at the 50th anniversary race in 2017.
“It was the gnarliest day ever,” said Alan Ampudia. “This is a dream come true. This has been a dream for us since we were little. Watching Ivan Stewart, Robby Gordon and all the legends in this sport has inspired us. To be able to come out here with a stacked field like it was today and come out on top through all the elements Baja threw at us this year with the rain and the mud, it was crazy. There are so many stories to be told and this is the greatest desert race in the world. Me and Tavo (Vildosola Jr.) battled for miles. Our truck was amazing. It was on rails today. The puddles were insane.”
“Alan gave me the truck in first place physical and on time,” Aaron Ampudia said. “When I got out we had a 14 minute lead on Luke (McMillin) and about an hour on everyone else. We pushed and made a little mistake. We had to stop and got some help from the MacCachren team so we really appreciate those guys. We got back to our pit and fixed the issues. It was a great day. We knew we had to put in a clean, solid race to have a chance to win and that’s what we went out and did.”
Joining the Ampudia brothers on the podium were reigning Dakar Rally champions Nasser Al-Attiyah and Toby Price and Luke McMillin and Larry Roeseler.
Al-Attiyah and Price, finished second with a penalty-free time of 16:21:06 (48.96 mph) in Jesse Jones’ new Mason-Built No. 76 Ford F-250. Jones was scheduled to drive as well but a leg injury forced him to the sidelines.
Finishing third overall and in SCORE Trophy Truck after leading much of the race, McMillin and Roeseler covered the unforgiving course in a penalty-free 16:21:33 (48.93 mph), just 27 seconds behind the Dakar Duo.
Riding the No. 1x Honda CRF450X, Justin Morgan, 27, and his four-rider team raced to the overall motorcycle victory for his eighth consecutive overall motorcycle win in the SCORE World Desert Championship.
The trio crossed the finish line in 17:34:28 with an average speed of 45.55 mph.
Morgan split the riding with Shane Esposito, Max Eddy Jr. and David Kamo.
Morgan started and rode to race mile 35. Shane Esposito rode from race mile 35 to race mile 200. Eddy rode from race mile 200 to race mile 350. Kamo rode from race mile 350 to race mile 540 and Morgan rode again the final 260 miles to the finish line.
For Morgan it was his second overall win in the SCORE Baja 1,000 while it was also the second for Esposito, third for Eddy and fourth for Kamo.
Starting first among the motorcycles and never relinquishing the physical lead, the No. 1x team held off the field with Mexico’s Santiago Creel and his No. 66x team finishing second overall among the motorcycles in the elapsed time race.
Riding on KTM motorcycles, as rider of record, Creel’s teams also won the Pro Moto Limited class and were also second in Pro Moto 30.
The victory was also the 29th overall motorcycle win in this legendary race for American Honda.
Sixth overall and winning the Trophy Truck Spec class was A.J. Jones, while Rolf Helland was ninth overall and the winner in the SCORE TT Legend division.
Second generation SCORE desert racer and NASCAR veteran Brendan Gaughan captured the unlimited Class 1 win by more than an hour while finishing 20th overall among four-wheel vehicles. Sharing the driving duties with Gaughan where two other desert racing veterans in R.J. Anderson and Buddy Feldkamp.
Defeating 27 starters in his class and 48 total UTVs to win the overall UTV win title in this year’s race was Justin Lambert. He also won his Pro UTV FI (Forced Induction) class.
Jason Truby won for the third time in four SCORE events this year by capturing the Pro Moto 40 division. Winning the Pro Moto Ironman class over a field of 15 solo riders was Arthur Babcock.
Among the other class winner in 4-wheel vehicle classes were: Casey Currie (Hammer Truck Unlimited), Darren Skilton (SCG Boot-Chevy), Chase Warren (Class 10), Greg Sullivan (Class 5), J. David Ruvalcaba (Class 1/2-1600), Jim Butler (SCORE Lites), Kristen Matlock (Pro UTV NA), Herman Johnson (Pro UTV Unlimited), Lance Clifford (Baja Challenge), Mike Cafro (Pro UTV Stock), Gerardo Novelo (Class 7SX), Ruben Garcia (Class 5-1600) and Dennis Hollenbeck (Class 11).
Among the other motorcycle class winners were: Francisco Septien (Pro Moto 30) and Jeff Kaplan (Pro Moto 50).
Winning the Pro Quad class for the second straight race was Adolfo Arellano.
This year’s Baja 1,000 included 31 Sportsman racers competing in six classes. The fastest Sportsman class winners were Carlos Silva (SPT M/C), Danny Magdalena (SPT Quad) and Oscar Ramirez (SPT UTV Stock).
Season of giving: A story of Anthony Kim's generosity
We're just hours into Thanksgiving week and we've already been treated to a wonderful story of giving.
Not only is the tale heartwarming, but it also involves the mysterious Anthony Kim, who hasn't played competitively – or been seen much publicly – since in eight years.
Talking to Chris Como on the latest episode of "Swing Expedition," which airs 7 p.m. Monday on Golf Channel, one of Kim's former swing coaches, Adam Schriber, recalled a lunch that he and Kim went to at a California Pizza Kitchen in Palm Desert, California, in 2008, the same year that Kim won twice.
As Schriber tells it, their waitress was pregnant and Kim made a comment congratulating her on her upcoming arrival.
"Your husband must be so excited," Kim said, per Schriber.
At that moment, the waitress broke down in tears, sharing a story of how her boyfriend had just left her and how she was scared to have the baby.
"My goodness, I didn't see that coming," Kim told Schriber.
A few months later, Schriber and Kim were eating at the same restaurant when the same waitress came running out to greet them, giving Kim a hug and photo of the baby.
"They looked like they had known each other for 30 years," Schriber said of the moment.
That's when Kim revealed that he had left the waitress a sizable tip.
"I can't remember, it was either a $10,000 or $20,000 tip," Schriber estimated. "To see him give back and do things for other people ... that's what it's all about."
Jose Mourinho has ruled out signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic, saying a move for the striker "doesn't make sense" because Tottenham have Harry Kane.
The Portugese, who took over as Tottenham coach last week, hours after the dismissal of Mauricio Pochettino, said: "I have more than a connection [with Ibrahimovic]. Amazing player, amazing guy, but I would say no chance.
"We have the best striker in England. It doesn't make any sense for a striker of Zlatan's dimension to come to a club where we have Harry Kane."
Mourinho coached Ibrahimovic at Inter Milan and Manchester United, where the former Sweden international played before joining MLS side LA Galaxy in 2018. Ibrahimovic left the club earlier this month.
Speaking at a news conference ahead of his side's Champions League clash with Olympiakos on Tuesday, Mourinho was full of praise for his new squad, and while he said he was optimistic about their chances in this year's edition of the tournament, he said patience was needed.
"With these boys I will never be afraid of any Champions League match," Mourinho said.
"[But] we have to qualify [for the knockout phase] first, that is our focus ... It's only when my teams arrive in the quarterfinals that I start thinking that we have a chance -- in this moment we are far from it.
"Give me time, give me time to develop my ideas and we will have no problem going to play any team in Europe. We are not afraid of anyone."
Pochettino's Spurs side finished runners-up to Liverpool in the Champions League last season after the Argentine said that winning the competition would be a "miracle."
But two-time winner Mourinho said such a feat was more achievable than Pochettino had suggested.
"I change miracle to very hard," the 56-year-old said.
"If Mauricio says that [losing the final affected the players] then he's been here and he's sharing his feelings. It's like landing on the moon, but you don't do it. Look at Liverpool had the frustration of not winning and then the next season they reached the final and won it."
Tottenham earned a 3-2 win away at London rivals West Ham on Saturday in Mourinho's first game in charge of the north London club after succeeding Pochettino, to whom Mourinho said he has not reached out.
"I haven't spoken to him," Mourinho said. "I've been there and I know what he's going through. I spoke to his son, in our academy, and I will call him.
"I told the players here to tell him he's free to come here whenever, to have a meal with the players. If he wants me here or not, that's fine."
Cellino racial Balotelli remark a 'joke' - Brescia
Brescia president Massimo Cellino's suggestion that Mario Balotelli's recent issue at the club was because the player is black was "a joke," the club have said.
Balotelli was dropped from the matchday squad for the trip to Roma this weekend due to an apparent lack of enthusiasm, Brescia manager Fabio Grosso said on Sunday.
And, when asked what was wrong with Balotelli, Cellino on Monday replied: "He is black. He is trying to clear himself."
#TMW - Che ci dice su #Balotelli? #Cellino: "Che è nero. Lavora per schiarirsi..."
— Tuttomercatoweb (@TuttoMercatoWeb) November 25, 2019
Intervista completa su ?https://t.co/xyIiVp307g
? @AntoVitiello pic.twitter.com/o9ZdNIuAAk
However, soon after, Brescia released a statement which read: "Following the comments from president Massimo Cellino, in regards to our player Mario Balotelli, Brescia clarify it is quite clearly a joke, patently misunderstood, made in an attempt to de-dramatise an excessive media episode with the intention of protecting the player."
Reached by ESPN FC for comment, anti-discrimination organisation the Fare Network condemned Cellini's comments, saying in a statement: "Cellini should look at himself and examine his attitude towards Balotelli and people of African heritage, the denials can't hide the truth.
"If he did not mean what he said, If he did not mean to insult, why did he say it? The reality is that if it looks like racism and it sounds like racism, it usually is."
The comments come three weeks after Balotelli, 29, threatened to walk off the pitch after he was racially abused during a match away at Verona.
Verona were initially handed a one-match by Serie A, which was later overturned.
ESPN FC has contacted Brescia for further comment.
Missed any of the action around Europe this weekend? Have no fear: Gab Marcotti is here to catch you up with all the talking points in the latest Monday Musings.
Jump to: Solskjaer's terrible tactics | Madrid win, Bale jeered | Barca still not firing | Man City still contenders | Liverpool concern | Leicester a threat | Ronaldo-less Juve win | Gabigol's Copa heroics | Eyes on Mourinho | Flick worth a chance | Nagelsmann, Leipzig for real | Arsenal are confusing | Conte's magic | Favre hanging on | Napoli nightmare
Solskjaer's terrible tactics
Maybe what is most telling is that, strictly speaking, it's not a bad result. Manchester United are below Sheffield United in the table, so drawing 3-3 at Bramall Lane -- as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's crew did on Sunday -- is no big deal. And, hey, they would have won if the ball hadn't stood up perfectly for Oliver McBurnie's injury-time finish.
That's the most rose-tinted reading you can have. Here's another one: Solskjaer lined up in a 3-4-3 formation that made sense only to him. It left Fred and Andreas Pereira on their own in the middle of the park against three opponents. (And we're talking Fred and Pereira here, not Roy Keane and Paul Scholes).
It also meant that centre-back Harry Maguire became United's de facto deep-lying playmaker. (Yes, he's good on the ball for a six-foot-four-inch defender, but football doesn't grade on a curve.) It left Aaron Wan-Bissaka bearing the attacking burden down the right. Then there's Phil Jones, who was responsible for Sheffield United's first goal and was hooked at half-time.
Solskjaer has a zillion mitigating circumstances, from injuries (Paul Pogba, to name one) to the club's supposed lack of interest in running a rational transfer campaign in the summer to the inflated expectations after he took over the cluster mess a year ago.
But he also makes his own messes and this misguided tactical approach was a prime example. After the game he noted that "sometimes football is beyond tactics," which does at least speak to the fact that his players battled to the end. It should be a given, but sometimes was not under his predecessors; indeed, Solskjaer referenced a thrashing last season at Everton as being a contrast to what unfolded on Sunday.
And then there's Brandon Williams, the 19-year-old left-back. I have no idea if he has the skill set to be a long-term United player, or even a Premier League player, but what I do know is that the kid has guts. In just his second league start, with 20 minutes to go and his team on the ropes, he has the courage to shoot from distance with his weaker foot, risking an earful from veteran teammates. Williams' shot halved the deficit and cued up United's comeback. Talk about taking responsibility.
Real Madrid win amid jeers for Bale
Hislop: Bale's past the point of caring at Real Madrid
Shaka Hislop believes Gareth Bale has nothing to lose with his current approach at Real Madrid.
Eden Hazard told L'Equipe that he weighed around 175 pounds this summer, which isn't great if you're 5-foot-9. Maybe that's why it took him some time to get off the blocks at the Bernabeu at the start of thise season. Whatever the case, he's fit and sharp now. Hazard showed it on Saturday in the 3-1 top-of-the-table clash against Real Sociedad, along with his countryman (and former Chelsea teammate) Thibaut Courtois. The latter made a couple huge saves, the former drove La Real bananas at the back.
It could have been different. Madrid went a goal down on a Sergio Ramos brain fart, the crowd were angrily booing Gareth Bale (he was on the bench, but still) and it could have turned ugly quickly. But Zinedine Zidane's crew managed the game, rode Hazard and Karim Benzema, as well as Luka Modric, who turned in arguably his best performance of the campaign, and made their experience and quality count.
The way Federico Valverde performed, it's hard to see him out of the side even when Toni Kroos returns. Rodrygo may need a breather soon, but that's what the tall Welsh guy is for. In fact, Bale looked good when he came on, as if the jeers -- the usual ones this time augmented by those incensed by his trolling "Wales. Golf. Madrid" banner -- only spurred him on.
A word on the banner. How we perceive such things is often based on how we perceive the guy who does them. If you like Bale, you see it as banter, a way of poking fun at himself and the hysteria in Madrid. If you dislike Bale, if you see him as a distant, money-grubbing figure, then, yeah, the banner is an insult.
Barcelona must go back to the drawing board
For the first time this season, Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde shoe-horned Antoine Griezmann, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele into his starting lineup. The result was a 4-2-3-1, which saw the vaunted front four bunching centrally or on the left, with nothing coming down the right.
That helps to explain why Barca had to come from behind against cellar-dwelling Leganes, who had won once so far this season. Suarez equalised in the second half before Arturo Vidal's winner, which only stood because he was fortuitously onside after the ball came off a Leganes defender.
Back to the drawing board for Valverde, then. Hopefully, he'll realize that unless he puts in more work to get the movement right, 4-2-3-1 with this group of players is only going to work if you're desperately chasing the game.
Man City are not out of the title race
Man City 'desperately needed' win against Chelsea
Ale Moreno says Man City's comeback win over Chelsea kept the door to the Premier League title slightly open.
You get beaten by your arch-rival of the past 18 months and you go nine points back of the league leaders. Everybody scatters because it's international break and your next opponent are Chelsea, who haven't lost in two months (nope, the Carabao Cup doesn't count) and had won seven straight on the road.
That was Guardiola's reality and you'd have forgiven him if, after the first 25 minutes or so, he had become convinced the Gods were conspiring against him and his Manchester City players. Chelsea were bossing the game, Frank Lampard's trio of Jorginho, N'Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic were ruling the middle of the park and streaming forward at every opportunity.
City went a goal down and it could have been more. Suddenly, though, the rub of the green went their way. Three different deflections played a part in Kevin De Bruyne's equalizer. Riyad Mahrez scored an out-of-the-blue wonder goal. And City hung on in distinctly un-Pep like fashion to win 2-1. The fact that they were out possessed at home for the first time since he became City manager tells its own story.
Manchester City don't fold. The fact that they've taken 238 of the past 279 points at stake in the Premier League it's a pretty good hint that there are no white flags on the bench. More simply, they got back into the match because they got a good bounce on the equaliser and have enough individually gifted stars that somebody can pull something out of the hat at any minute.
That's part of being a great side and it's why, even as they climb back to third and continue to sit behind Leicester City, they're unlikely to collapse. City might even turn this league back into a two-horse race.
As for Chelsea, hats off to Lampard. He's at the stage where formation and, especially, team selection, become critical. He opted for Emerson over Marcos Alonso, Christian Pulisic over Mason Mount (and Pedro) and he changed formation again. And he got it right, though, if you want to nitpick, the continued faith in Kurt Zouma, especially when Chelsea are called to build from the back, is a bit of a question mark. Surely, in Antonio Rudiger's absence, you'd think someone like Andreas Christensen might be a better option.
Still, as Lampard himself conceded, Chelsea are far ahead of the curve. But making the right decisions to continue to progress will only get trickier.
Should Liverpool be worried?
Moreno: It feels like destiny now for Liverpool
After another dramatic win, Ale Moreno says there's too many signs Liverpool will win the title.
You may have seen this one before. Liverpool fail to impress, their opponents squander all sorts of chances and have a goal disallowed by VAR (in this case, James Tomkins' goal, which was ruled off after Jordan Ayew was adjudged to have fouled Dejan Lovren) and then they notch a late, scrambled winner. Tough-as-nails stuff of champions who don't need to play well but find ways to win? Or worrying signs that the tempo -- 37 points of a possible 39 points so far -- is unsustainable?
Maybe a bit of both. This is Jurgen Klopp pacing himself. It's not that he wants to play badly, it's that he knows his side won't last the season if they go all out in every game. And when they don't go all out, they can struggle. The bright spot for Liverpool, other than the win, was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain filling in for the unavailable Mohamed Salah. While he's done well in midfield, he's a more natural replacement on the flank than Divock Origi when one of the front three - Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane -- is missing. I suspect you might see this again.
Could Leicester become Liverpool's biggest threat?
Leicester City remain second in the Premier League table after their 2-0 win at Brighton. What a story it would be, given manager Brendan Rodgers' history, if they end up being the biggest challenger to Liverpool.
No, I'm not holding my breath either. But Rodgers has done a phenomenal job and it is easy to forget just why so many were turned off by him during his time at Anfield. It wasn't his coaching -- he's been exceptional in that department for most of his career -- it was the way he presented himself and the things he said. Rodgers 2.0 is much more measured, letting his team do the talking.
Ronaldo absence no alibi for Juventus
One of the stated reasons for replacing Max Allegri with Maurizio Sarri was that Juventus wanted to "play better". Not just play more aesthetically pleasing football, but also better football in the sense of creating more goal-scoring opportunities and conceding fewer, which when you think about it, is the point of the game. Saturday's trip to face Atalanta underscored just how far Juve have to go.
Juventus came from behind to win, 3-1, but by virtually every metric (expected goals favoured the home side 2.58 to 1.32) they were thoroughly outplayed by Atalanta's breakneck approach. Gian Gasperini's side took the lead, missed a penalty along the way and were ultimately outdone by three goals in the final 15 minutes: two from Gonzalo Higuain and one from Paulo Dybala. Great players score great goals, sure, but the degree to which Juve were outplayed has to be worrying.
Nor can Cristiano Ronaldo's absence -- he's being kept fresh for Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, apparently - serve as an alibi. These days, Ronaldo may help you score goals, but he doesn't necessarily make you play better. In fact, when he's there and Juve win, he's usually an alibi for why they did not play well.
"Gabigol" stars in Copa Libertadores final
He did it his way. Which is about as unorthodox as it gets, right down to breaking the cardinal rule of superstitious footballers: when playing in a final, do not touch the trophy on your way on to the pitch.
Well, Gabriel Barbosa -- AKA Gabigol -- did exactly that, giving the Copa Libertadores a little pat as he trotted out for Flamengo to face Marcelo Gallardo's River Plate in the competition's first-ever one-legged final. Gabigol proceeded to do little or nothing for about 88 minutes, though here you have to also credit Horacio Pinola's marking and River's precise, effective press.
Suddenly, though, Gabigol came alive. First, he materialised at the far post to tuck in the irrepressible Giorgian de Arrascaeta's low cross. Then, before River realized what hit them, he pounced on a ball over the top, befuddling two markers, and slammed the ball past Franco Armani for the injury-time winner. You want numbers? That's 33 goals in 42 games for Flamengo in all competitions this season. Plus, of course, three red cards, including the second yellow he got after notching the winner in the final.
While Gabigol, 23, became the punchline to a joke at Inter after they signed him in 2016 -- he was known as Gabi-no-gol according to his ex-manager Frank de Boer, who lasted just three months at San Siro himself -- this is second straight prolific campaign back home: he had 23 goals last year at Santos.
Inter paid $35 million for his services and he's still under contract through 2021. He looks anything but an Antonio Conte-type player, yet you wonder if maybe he doesn't deserve another look. Inter have to either extend his deal or sell him in January, otherwise they lose whatever leverage they have.
But Gabigol was the cherry on top of a Flamengo side that was built to win. From the manager, Jorge Jesus, onwards there's quality throughout the side, but especially plenty of European experience. Nine of the starting XI have played abroad and the tally includes the likes of Rafinha, Filipe Luis and Diego Alves, long-time stalwarts at Bayern, Atletico Madrid and Valencia, respectively. They've done the league and Libertadores double and now they dream of next month's Club World Cup where the opposition will include Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool.
As for River, Marcelo Gallardo comes up short of winning his third Copa Libertadores and joining the legendary Carlos Bianchi in the history books. Old-timers will recognize his brand of football is antithetical to Bianchi's, which is why he has no shortage of suitors from across the Atlantic.
He ticks all the boxes, not just for managerial quality, style and charisma, but also because he played in Europe for five seasons, making it less of a transition. At 43, Gallardo is in no hurry to leave River and indications are he'll do so only if and when the time is right. Good for him, if that's the case: football exists beyond Europe.
Pochettino who? All eyes on Mourinho
Burley: Spurs looked like their old selves under Mourinho
Craig Burley feels Jose Mourinho will get the most out of Tottenham based on the players' effort vs. West Ham.
Usually, when a manager is sacked, stories emerge -- presumably emanating from the club -- to illustrate just why getting rid of him was such a good idea. Where Tottenham and Mauricio Pochettino are concerned, though, we've had almost no negative leaks.
That can mean many things. Maybe the reasons for his forced departure were so obvious that Spurs found no reason for negative reinforcement. Maybe his popularity with players was so great that it has hard to find anyone to play along. Or maybe, given the speed with which he was booted and replaced by Jose Mourinho, the club were eager to shift the spotlight to the new boss.
Maybe it's all of the above. But such is Mourinho's outsized personality that a lot of the conversations around what the club could have done differently and how the situation deteriorated fell by the wayside. Instead, it was all eyes on his Spurs' debut away to West Ham. Tottenham won, 3-2, Mourinho dusted off a formation that saw his nominal 4-2-3-1 turn into a de facto 3-2-4-1, with Ben Davies tucking in, Son Heung-min offering width on the left and Serge Aurier doing the same on the right.
It was Tottenham's first league win in two months and their first away victory in the Premier League since New Year's Day. I wrote about Mourinho's appointment last week and while you're not going to draw serious conclusions based off two training sessions, a walk-through and a game against a free-falling West Ham side, what's evident is that all the eggs are now in his basket. Mourinho is expensive to hire and even more expensive to maintain. Only committing to him half-way is a recipe for disaster.
Bayern should give Flick a chance
I floated the possibility before: What if Bayern stick with interim manager Hansi Flick through the end of the season? It's not just a reaction to three straight wins (and three straight clean sheets, despite a defensive crisis at the back) and the fact that Bayern trail Bundesliga leaders Monchengladbach by one point, it's the fact that Bayern look hyper-charged in a way they haven't in a long while.
Some of that lift no doubt comes from Flick putting his faith in "Mister Bayern," Thomas Muller. He's been back in the starting lineup and leading the sort of ferocious press that dismantled Fortuna Dusseldorf, 4-0. Flick managed to cram Philippe Coutinho in the lineup as well, putting him out wide.
Coutinho on the wing means you lose some of his playmaking and, against certain teams, that's not ideal. But it's worth trying. The basic concept is getting your best players out there and this system certainly achieves it.
Believe the Nagelsmann hype
Leipzig have notched 24 goals in their five match win streak across all competitions, so the 4-1 thumping of Cologne on Markus Gisdol's debut actually hurt their average a little bit. Not as much as the visitors heads were hurting after a first half shellacking that highlighted why the Julian Nagelsmann hype may well be justified.
Timo Werner opened the scoring in his 200th Bundesliga appearance (nobody has made that many so young; he is 23) and Emil Forsberg showed he is continuing his path to being the player he was two years ago. Like Bayern, Leipzig are a point back and just as a credible a contender.
Arsenal continue to confuse
Emery won't be sacked 'any time soon' despite poor results
Julien Laurens says Arsenal's board is still backing Unai Emery, but unhappiness is mounting at the club.
Once again, I'm at a loss of words when it comes to Arsenal. The 2-2 draw with Southampton extends the winless streak to six games in all competitions. It's not surprising that chunks of the Emirates were calling for Unai Emery's head. That's what you get when you're facing a team that had taken one point out of the previous 21, line up at home with five defenders and two defensive midfielders and have to rely on last-ditch equalizer to avoid defeat.
Those of us who remember what Emery did with Valencia and Almeria (and to a lesser degree Sevilla and PSG) are inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt. But it's hard. The guy has serious messaging problems and he has to carry the communications burden single-handedly, even though it's evidently not his forte. Right about now might be a good time for those above him -- Technical Director Edu Gaspar and head of football Raul Sanllehi -- to take some responsibility and speak out.
Conte works his magic touch
Antonio Conte's Inter faced a classic "trap" game away to Torino. Juventus had extended their lead atop the Serie A table earlier in the day, their opponent was the kind of prickly defend-and-counter outfit that is about as much fun as a visit to the dentist and with a key Champions League clash coming up in midweek, you ran the risk of having a distracted team.
But this is what Conte often does best. He focuses his players and they ran out 3-0 victors, while pretty much dominating the game. Losing Nicolo Barella to injury until the New Year is another setback. It's up to Conte whether he'll become just another excuse or whether his coaching creativity extends to finding a solution.
Dortmund's Favre hanging on
Borussia Dortmund were twice booed off the pitch, once at half-time, 3-0 down at home to Paderborn, and again at the final whistle, despite taking it back to 3-3. It's not surprising given the first half performance and some ill-advised rotation from manager Lucien Favre, who left out Achraf Hakimi for Nico Schulz.
Favre's job is hanging by a thread and he's showing exactly the kind of weaknesses that an experienced manager like him shouldn't: indecision and overreaction top amongst them.
Napoli's nightmare continues
The good news is that, for all the negativity, Napoli are five points off fourth place after getting a point on the road against an improving Milan side. The bad news is that Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis seems unflinching in his desire for self-destruction. He's keeping his lawyers busy, filing two separate legal actions against five of his players: Khalidou Koulibaly, Dries Mertens, Allan, Jose Callejon and Lorenzo Insigne. First, there's an attempt to fine them via the Italian FA's arbitration chamber and then there will be a full-blown lawsuit.
It all stems from the "mutiny" after the home draw with Salzburg in the Champions League, when the players simply went home instead of reporting to the club's training complex, where they were supposed to sleep all week (one of those archaic conventions straight from the 1970s that is meant to motivate players but which nobody uses any more).
Not only is all this unnecessary, you suspect there's more behind it. Like maybe giving yourself an excuse to cash in on assets (Koulibaly, Allan, Insigne) and not handing out big contracts to veterans approaching free agency (Callejon, Mertens). This story will not end well.
England hopefuls head to training camps in India, South Africa
A clutch of prospective England batsmen and spin bowlers will embark on a specialist training camp in Mumbai this week in an effort to hone their skills in unfamiliar conditions.
On the day England fell to an innings defeat in New Zealand, the ECB announced that batsmen Will Jacks, James Bracey, Dan Lawrence, Keaton Jennings and Sam Hain would travel to India with spinners Dom Bess, Mason Crane and Amar Virdi for a three-week camp starting on Tuesday.
Jacks, the 21-year-old Surrey batsman, produced a jaw-dropping 25-ball century during a pre-season T10 clash with Lancashire in Dubai in March and, on the other end of the spectrum, Jennings is hoping to resurrect his international career having played the last of his 17 Tests against West Indies in February.
The batsmen will work with Surrey assistant head coach Vikram Solanki, while the spinners will train under the guidance of Gloucestershire head coach Richard Dawson and former Sri Lanka spinner Rangana Herath.
The camp encompasses a series of so-called "Individualised Programmes" of training for players aimed at "delivering better prepared players" to England head coach Chris Silverwood, according to ECB Performance Director Mo Bobat.
"The Individualised Programmes are a great opportunity for some of our best young cricketers to focus on specific areas of their game in unfamiliar and challenging conditions around the world," Bobat said. "Some of the players involved are in England's immediate plans, while others will be working on areas that will benefit the national team's medium and long-term needs."
The ECB also confirmed that Jonny Bairstow would attend a training camp in South Africa from December 1-14, working with former England batsman Jonathan Trott in his bid to return to England's Test squad. Bairstow, who averaged 23.77 during the Ashes, was dropped for the two-Test tour of New Zealand. He was briefly called back into the Test squad during the T20 series against New Zealand as cover for Joe Denly but returned home when Denly recovered from an ankle injury in time for the first Test at Mount Maunganui.
Earlier this month, Ashley Giles, the managing director of England's men's cricket, revealed that James Anderson would take the next step in his return from injury at the camp in Potchefstroom. Anderson will be joined by fellow quicks Mark Wood, Olly Stone, Craig Overton and Ollie Robinson.
Anderson and Wood have been undergoing intensive rehabilitation with ECB staff with a view to being available for selection for England's tour of South Africa starting next month.
Anderson has been sidelined since he broke down after bowling just four overs in the first Ashes Test in August with a recurrence of a calf injury he suffered while playing for Lancashire in early July. Wood was ruled out for the remainder of the season after suffering a side strain during the World Cup final and he has since had surgery on his right knee. Stone, meanwhile, is recovering from a stress fracture to his back.
UFC's new drug policy fights tainted supplements
The UFC and United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) have made significant revisions to the promotion's anti-doping policy in an effort to address concerns over an alarming rate of cases involving contaminated supplements.
The two major revisions, which the UFC announced on Monday, include an adoption of a "UFC prohibited list," which sets threshold limits on what constitutes a positive drug test for several banned substances, as well as a list of "certified supplements" that offer immunity to athletes in the event they are found to be contaminated.
"The policy needs to be a living, breathing document that's progressive and allows us to pivot our stance, based on what the science supports," UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell told ESPN. "Testing measures have gotten so good and the types of contaminants are changing constantly, you're seeing a rise in these types of cases."
Since the UFC partnered with USADA and launched its year-round drug testing program in 2015, a significant percentage of the cases involving failed drug tests have ultimately been linked to the ingestion of contaminated legal supplements, according to UFC senior vice president of athlete health and performance Jeff Novitzky.
Essentially, the UFC and USADA have found that as drug testing technology advances -- and is capable of detecting extremely trace amounts of banned substances -- it is resulting in the punishment of athletes who have unknowingly consumed contaminated supplements and received no performance-enhancing benefits from them.
One of the highest-profile cases occurred last month, involving UFC star Nate Diaz. Diaz submitted a drug test that showed a very trace amount of a banned selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM), which entered his system through a contaminated organic, vegan multivitamin. Diaz was cleared of any wrongdoing and still fought Jorge Masvidal at UFC 244 on Nov. 2, but had that instance occurred during the first year of the program, the fight would have almost assuredly been canceled.
"We're thrilled with these changes and hope it becomes the model for all sports organizations," USADA CEO Travis Tygart told ESPN. "We believe it looks at the advances in technology coupled with the marketplace for supplements. We've had a number of cases both in our Olympic program and UFC program where we demonstrated trace levels of substances coming from totally innocent sources. We've seen a gummy multivitamin that had a SARM in it."
The UFC's new prohibited list still follows most of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code, but establishes thresholds for certain substances, including SARMS and diuretics. The UFC and USADA relied on testimony from multiple anti-doping experts to set these levels. The promotion also identified five independent supplement certifiers. Should an athlete fail a test due to a contaminated supplement that's been certified by one of those agencies, that athlete would not receive any sanction, whereas that was previously not the case.
"If the athletes adhere to this, if they only use these certified supplements, I believe it will virtually eliminate the contaminated supplement issue," Novitzky said.
According to Novitzky, the new policy goes into effect immediately and would apply to any open cases still pending.
This is the third, and arguably most significant, revision of the UFC's anti-doping policy since 2015. The UFC and USADA extended its partnership for multiple years in December 2018. In 2019 thus far, USADA has administered 3,756 tests involving 696 UFC athletes, according to online records.
According to Campbell, the process of these latest revisions began in earnest last year, around the development of another high-profile case involving UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Jones has submitted multiple drug tests that have produced atypical findings for a trace amount of a steroid metabolite. Experts have found, however, the atypical findings are likely the result of a "pulsing" effect of that metabolite, which means it could remain in Jones' system indefinitely, even if he never re-ingests the parent substance.
"Jon Jones was a moment where we all sat down and said, 'We need to take a look at what the science is, as it pertains to the prohibited list,'" Campbell said. "And I want to give Jon some credit because he took criticism like no one else has during that case, but everything that occurred in that case turned out to be true and helped result in where the policy is today."
Duke keeps top spot in AP poll; Terps move up
Duke solidified its grip on No. 1 while Maryland jumped North Carolina into the top 5 in the AP Top 25 men's college basketball poll after a relatively quiet week on the schedule.
That could change with an abundance of holiday tournaments tipping off this week.
The Blue Devils blew through California before beating Georgetown 81-73 on Friday to win the 2K Empire Classic at Madison Square Garden. Those performances on back-to-back nights helped earn Duke 53 first-place votes from a 65-member media panel in The Associated Press poll released Monday.
Louisville received seven first-place votes and remained second, followed by Michigan State with four No. 1 nods. Kansas remained fourth while Virginia received the other No. 1 vote and was seventh.
Gonzaga, Kentucky and Ohio State rounded out the top 10.
Florida reentered the AP Top 25 at No. 24 while Texas fell out.
Anxiety forced Eagles RG Brooks out of game
PHILADELPHIA -- Eagles right guard Brandon Brooks was forced out of Sunday's game against the Seattle Seahawks due to an illness related to anxiety.
Brooks, who has been open about dealing with anxiety, took to social media Monday to address what happened.
"I'd like to address what happened yesterday," he wrote. "I woke up, and did my typical routine of morning vomiting. It didn't go away like it normally does, but I figured it would calm down once I got to the stadium. It did, but I felt exhausted. The nausea came back, and I tried to battle through it and went out for the first drive. The nausea and vomiting came back until I left the field, and tried everything I could to get back for my teammates but just wasn't able to do it.
"Make no mistake, I'm NOT ashamed or embarrassed by this nor what I go through daily. I've had this under control for a couple of years, and had a set back yesterday. The only thing I'm upset about is that when my team needed me, I wasn't able to be out there with and for them. Lastly, I appreciate the support of my coaches, teammates and fans. It doesn't go unnoticed."
Brooks has missed five games during his career as a result of anxiety-related illness. Before Sunday, the most recent absences came in 2016, when he missed two games in three weeks. It was then that he really began to try to get to the root of the issue. He was diagnosed with an anxiety condition and began to take proactive measures, including seeing a psychologist once a week. He went a full two-plus seasons without missing a game.
Brooks has been helped by his friendship with right tackle Lane Johnson, who missed Sunday's game with a concussion. Johnson also deals with anxiety. The two have shared that they'll often vomit at the same time pregame, and text each other to joke about it.
"This is not a football issue with Brandon; this is a real-life issue that he has come out and publicly acknowledged and kind of shared his story a few years back," coach Doug Pederson said during a radio appearance on 94.1 WIP on Monday. "It's something that he's dealing with each and every day of his life. You never really know what triggers it. We're here to support him. We love him. It is unfortunate that it happened, but it's something that he deals with every single day. We're just going to continue to support him."
Brooks, a 2012 third-round pick of the Houston Texans, has developed into one of the best linemen in football since joining the Eagles in free agency in 2016.
The Eagles made him the highest-paid guard in the NFL by signing him to a four-year extension in November that is worth $56.5 million and contains $30 million in guarantees. The deal runs through 2024 for the 30-year-old Brooks, who is in the midst of arguably his best season as a pro despite coming off an Achilles rupture suffered last January in a playoff loss to the New Orleans Saints.
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