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Askew Makes It A Six-Pack In Indy Lights

Published in Racing
Sunday, 28 July 2019 12:55

LEXINGTON, Ohio – There’s no stopping Oliver Askew right now in Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires competition.

The 22-year-old from Jupiter, Fla., celebrated the news he will soon test an Indy car for the first time by dominating the field this weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Askew not only won both 30-lap races from the pole position for Andretti Autosport, he was never headed on the race track and capped an impressive performance by posting the fastest lap of the race – without the benefit of the AER turbo engine’s push-to-pass feature – on his final trip around the 2.258-mile circuit.

“I think that was one of the best drives I’ve ever had. It was a matter of me putting everything together, and I did,” said Askew. “Some tracks I just click with, and this is one of them. I got a good jump at the start and was able to extend before the yellow. I wasn’t that concerned about the yellow, it was just like yesterday. I try to do something different each restart so the other drivers don’t catch on and I catch them off guard. That seems to work. Also we had new Cooper tires so we had more grip than some of the other cars in the beginning and that helped with traction coming back to green.

“Once I got away from push-to-pass range, it was smooth sailing. The team let me know Toby was getting close, so I put the hammer down late,” he added. “I was happy with my performance at the end of the race and my consistency, and happy to come away with maximum points. The guys at Andretti Autosport and I will just keep on pushing.”

With Askew long gone, the focus of Sunday afternoon’s race – once again held in perfect summer weather in front of a bumper crowd in advance of the Honda Indy 200 – instead was on the battle for second.

Englishman Toby Sowery couldn’t match Askew’s pace, especially in the second half of the race, but he just managed to fend off the attentions of Askew’s primary title rival, Rinus VeeKay, after a race-long battle.

Askew laid down a marker to the field on Saturday, winning the opening race of the weekend and ensuring himself of the pole for race two by posting a new record qualifying lap of 1:10.8079 (114.801 mph).

He duly led the field into turn one at the start, although behind him there was drama as fourth and fifth-place qualifiers Robert Megennis and Dalton Kellett barely touched wheels at the apex of the corner.

The impact was enough to pitch Kellett into a spin and cause both Megennis and a following Aaron Telitz to run wide through the grass and gravel.

After a brief full-course caution, Askew took off into the lead and then took advantage of a tight scrap behind him between VeeKay, who started second, and Sowery to complete the first lap of green-flag racing a commanding 2.6 seconds clear of his competition.

The next time around, as Sowery made use of his push-to-pass feature to power past VeeKay on the main straight, Askew’s lead was extended to more than three seconds.

He settled into a comfortable pace for a while, but as soon as he realized Sowery had closed almost to within range of the push-to-pass activation gap, Askew put his head down once again and began to edge away.

Askew’s string of impressively fast and consistent laps – plus his last flourish to reclaim the fastest lap from VeeKay on the final tour – ensured he crossed the finish line a comfortable 5.2430 seconds in front.

VeeKay was unable to displace Sowery, despite an intense effort, but still finished well ahead of Ryan Norman. David Malukas recorded his second top-five finish of the weekend and also collected the Tilton Hard Charger Award.

Next up was Telitz, who recovered from a second incident with Megennis immediately after the early restart, to catch and pass Brazilian teammate Lucas Kohl in the closing stages.

Askew’s commanding weekend was the first time any single driver had swept both poles, race wins, fastest laps and led every lap since the introduction of the Dallara-AER IL-15 in 2015.

Jack Harvey was the last man to accomplish the feat, also at Mid-Ohio, in 2014.

Ankrum Backs Up Recent Win With Pocono Runner-Up

Published in Racing
Sunday, 28 July 2019 13:00

POCONO, Pa. – Tyler Ankrum showed the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series field that his recent victory at Kentucky Speedway wasn’t a fluke with a strong runner-up finish in Saturday’s Gander RV 150.

Ankrum, who missed the first three races of the year due to age restrictions but has come on strong in recent weeks, trailed eventual winner Ross Chastain for the entirety of the final stage and was in position to pounce had Chastain encountered any issues in the closing laps of the 150-mile event.

While Chastain stayed perfect and delivered Niece Motorsports its third win of the season, Ankrum kept him honest by finishing just one second adrift in the No. 17 Railblaza Toyota Tundra for DGR-Crosley.

“This is an awesome day,” noted Ankrum. “I think having a run like we did today really shows that we can still race with the best of them and that it’s not all about fuel strategy for our team. I’m really proud for this team; they gave me a great truck and I just fought myself a little bit at the beginning of the race. I was just overdriving the truck, stepping on my own toes … and it got us a little behind.

“Bono called a great strategy, though, by having us pit before the end of the second stage, and that put us on the front row so that Ross and I could run away from the field after that final restart,” Ankrum added. “I thought I had a good enough truck to chase him down, but just with the air and everything works, I couldn’t get close enough to him to catch the draft and I burned my tires up trying.

“Overall, this was a great effort for us and gives us something to build on going down the stretch.”

Chastain’s win delivered some good news to Ankrum, however, as it officially locked the San Bernadino, Calif., teenager into the Truck Series playoffs on the strength of his Kentucky victory.

With only two races remaining before the playoff reset, the maximum number of different winners possible is seven, meaning Ankrum is guaranteed to chase his first Truck Series championship starting next month at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

That’s a designation that’s both a relief and a motivator for Ankrum, who just slipped through an opening-lap crash on Saturday that took out his teammate Anthony Alfredo, as well as Stewart Friesen.

“Now that we know we’re in, we can focus on what we need to do to go all the way to Homestead,” Ankrum said. “That’s a weight off our shoulders and a huge deal for this team. It’s an honor to know we’re going to be in that field of eight and have a chance to fight and maybe win a championship.

“We know we have some work to do yet, but we’re excited to have the opportunity and now I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can do with it as a group.”

From Lexi Thompson being "thankful" to miss the cut at the Evian Championship to Stacy Lewis criticizing the event's pace of play to Ian Poulter getting into it with a fan at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational, enjoy this edition of Quotes of the Week:

“I’m actually very thankful I don’t have to put myself through that for another two days.” – Lexi Thompson, appearing to criticize the course on Instagram after missing the cut at the Evian Championship. She later deleted the post and attempted to “clear up any confusion” with another post saying, “My words were only directed at my frustration of not playing well in a major and at the unfortunate bounces we all get while playing this crazy game of golf.”

“I hate to do that [kick someone out], but we shouldn’t be getting abused in this day and age. Unfortunately it happens quite often. Most of the time we just ignore it and let it go … It is a real shame, we’re here at a WGC tournament, it is a great field, has a great purse and has got everything we want to come here and compete [for], apart from one idiot who decides to be silly.” – Ian Poulter, after a run-in with a fan during the first round of the WGC-FedEx St. Jude.

“I will never understand 5 hours and 50 minutes to play a round of golf! It’s not fun for us as players, can’t be fun to watch!” – Stacy Lewis, on Twitter after the second round of the Evian Championship, blasting the pace of play.

“Sad to report but had to disqualify myself this morning for using a non-conforming greens book during [the Barracuda Championship] (USGA rule 4.3). Why I didn’t think of it before the tournament started, I have no idea... ...the confusion for me was that my 2014 greens book fit in my yardage book so I didn’t think that it wouldn’t comply with the scaling limit of 3/8” to 5 yard. Mine was 1/2” to 5 yards. I used it a few times only but once is too many. Live and learn!” – PGA Tour veteran Mark Wilson, after being disqualified prior to the final round of the Barracuda Championship for using an improperly-sized greens book.

“I've never played more than four in a row and I might be doing six in a row, but going home for some breaks in between. East Lake's my No. 1 goal at this point, I really want to get back there. I didn't like missing that last year and coming in further behind this year than I was last year.” – Jordan Spieth, on adding the Wyndham Championship to his schedule next week in an effort to qualify for the Tour Championship.

“The why is pretty simple: I can’t compete against these guys anymore. I don’t hit the ball far enough, and when you can’t compete, there’s no sense ­– I’m a realist. I understand how to play the game, and I just don’t have enough tools in the tool box to compete against these guys out here.” – Tom Watson, announcing that he will be retiring from The Senior Open and U.S. Senior Open starting next year.

“I don’t think the R&A leaked the information. The fact is it was leaked, some way or another, to caddies or other players on the range. During the testing time the door was wide open. I don’t know how it happened. [But] their intentions weren’t to ruin any player.” – Xander Schauffele, clearing the air on his failed driver test at The Open.

“I hadn't drank a brandy since 2009 - drank two yesterday, it's nearly killing me.” – Shane Lowry’s grandmother, describing her grandson’s victory celebration after winning The Open.

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England - Bernhard Langer beat Paul Broadhurst by two shots to win The Senior Open on Sunday for his record-extending 11th senior major title.

Starting three shots off the overnight lead held by Broadhurst, the 61-year-old German fired a 4-under 66 to finish at 6-under 274 for his fourth Senior Open title, a tournament record.

After heavy rain delayed the round by almost six hours, the two-time Masters champion opened with four birdies on the front nine and added two more on Nos. 13 and 14 at Royal Lytham & St. Annes to build a four-stroke lead. He completed the round with a couple of bogeys on the 15th and 17th.

Broadhurst shot 71 to come second.

Retief Goosen of South Africa closed with a 66 to tie for third with American Tim Petrovic (68) with a 3-under 277.

In his last appearance at the tournament, three-time champion Tom Watson (73) finished tied for 64th at 9 over. On Saturday, the 69-year-old American announced he wouldn't be playing at the event again. In his 18 appearances, he never missed the cut.

Man United's preseason tour: What we learned

Published in Soccer
Sunday, 28 July 2019 02:46

Manchester United are back home after a gruelling preseason tour to Australia and the Far East, but what did we learn from it?

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's team ended their summer tour with a 2-1 victory over Tottenham in Shanghai on Thursday after wins over Perth Glory, Leeds United and Inter Milan. The United boss has just two weeks and two games -- against Kristiansund in Oslo and AC Milan in Cardiff -- to finalise his plans for the opening game of the Premier League season against Chelsea at Old Trafford on Aug. 11.

Solskjaer has dropped a few hints about how his new United team might look next season, so here's a look at some of the key talking points from the summer.

- Solskjaer Q&A: Playing style, transfers, catching top clubs
- Dawson: Inside Man United's preseason tour

- EXCLUSIVE: Lindelof - In my head I'm a No. 10
- Stream ICC live on ESPN networks in the U.S.

One or two more signings needed

Solskjaer has not been shy about saying he still wants more players but there are unlikely to be wholesale changes.

The phase the manager has used to answer almost every transfer question during the tour has been: "We're working on one or two things we think could improve us."

The situation is complicated by Romelu Lukaku, and Inter Milan's reluctance to meet United's £80m asking price. If the striker goes, Solskjaer will be short of goals up front and he's hinted the club may have to act quickly to bring in a replacement. Juventus' Paulo Dybala, Inter Milan's Mauro Icardi, Lyon's Moussa Dembele and Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have been linked.

Martial used down the middle

Anthony Martial started his United career under Louis van Gaal as a central striker but has spent most of the past three seasons on the left wing. The assumption heading into this summer was that Marcus Rashford would be Solskjaer's first-choice centre forward but during the tour it was often Martial used down the middle.

It makes sense to put the Frenchman in more goal-scoring positions because he's the most natural finisher at Old Trafford, while Rashford has more of the defensive discipline to play out wide.

James was thrown straight in

Daniel James, the £15 million summer signing from Swansea, has never played a Premier League game before but there has been nothing on tour to suggest Solskjaer wants to ease the winger in gently next season.

James played a lot of minutes this summer -- on both the left and the right -- and he hasn't looked out of his depth.

At 21, there's plenty of time to improve areas like his finishing, but his pace is frightening. One 40-yard sprint during the 4-0 win over Leeds would not have looked out of place in a 100-metre Olympic final. It shouldn't be a surprise to see him start the first game of the season against Chelsea.

play
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Why Man United need to give De Gea the contract he deserves

With David De Gea reportedly close to a new Manchester United deal, the FC crew discuss his merits for a big contract and a shot at the captaincy.

Lingard is key

Jesse Lingard had a difficult summer after a holiday video posted on Instagram caused some unwanted attention. Reports from United's camp suggest he's been keen to keep his head down during the tour -- he hasn't spoken to any media outlet -- but he's been one of the stars in training.

Solskjaer has worked the players hard and it's been Lingard who has topped all the stats. The Norwegian wants his team to press and put pressure on the ball and Lingard is key to that.

This season, it's likely he will play at the top of United's midfield and will have a lot of responsibility both going forward and when United don't have the ball.

Greenwood will be a regular in the squad

Of the youngsters Solskjaer brought on tour, Mason Greenwood is the one who has made the biggest impression.

Still only 17, he scored his first two senior goals, including a fantastic strike against Inter Milan, and Solskjaer has said Greenwood could start against Chelsea.

That's probably a step too far, but he's likely to be in the squad and if he keeps scoring goals it will be very difficult to keep him out of the team.

Sussex 184 for 8 (Carey 78) beat Somerset 171 for 5 (Babar 83, Banton 51) by 13 runs

Alex Carey marked his Sussex Sharks debut with a brilliant 78 to set up a 13-run Vitality Blast victory over Somerset at Taunton.

Australian Carey cracked seven fours and four sixes in a 46-ball innings that entertained a crowd of 7,400. Laurie Evans and David Wiese gave good support in a score of 184 for 8 after losing the toss, while Lewis Gregory claimed 3 for 30.

In reply, Somerset could make only 171 for 5, despite an opening stand of 96 in less than 12 overs by Babar Azam, who struck 83 off 50 balls, and Tom Banton, who reached 51 off 45. Tymal Mills was the most economical Sussex bowler with 1 for 27 from 4 overs.

The Sharks had managed only 34 for 2 in their six-over power play, losing the wickets of Phil Salt, caught at extra cover off the second ball of the innings, sent down by Max Waller, and Luke Wright, bowled off stump by Jerome Taylor, who had dropped him off Gregory two overs earlier.

But the arrival of Carey soon changed the tempo of the innings. The left-hander hit the first six of the match over mid-wicket off Roelof van der Merwe in the eighth over. Soon Carey was timing the ball sweetly and he took a particular liking to the left-arm spin of van der Merwe, lofting him for two straight sixes in the 11th over.

Evans provided positive support, claiming a maximum off Craig Overton's bowling before being caught at deep cover off Somerset's young left-arm seamer Tom Lammonby, having faced 27 balls and added 73 with Carey.

The Aussie went to an impressive fifty from 30 deliveries, with four fours and two sixes, in the 14th over. And, with Wiese also striking the ball cleanly, 49 runs came off just four overs before Carey was brilliantly caught by Lammonby at long-off.

It had been an eventful week for Carey, who played in the World Cup but missed out on selection in Australia's final Ashes squad then had to fly to Geneva to renew his visa so that he could play for Sussex.

"It was a crazy build-up to the game for me," Carey said. "Australia's Ashes camp in Hampshire did not end until Thursday night and on Friday I travelled to Sussex, but could only watch the game because I didn't have my visa stamped. To get that done, I had to fly to Geneva at 8 o'clock Saturday morning. I flew back last night and travelled to Taunton today.

"Although things did not work out for Australia in the World Cup, I really enjoyed the experience and have been loving my time in England. Today has built on that."

Gregory was the successful bowler at the start of the 19th over, which also saw him dismiss Weisse with the next ball after the batsmen had crossed, caught at deep mid-wicket, and clean bowl Delray Rawlins with the fourth delivery.

Sussex lost two late batsmen to run outs by Somerset wicketkeeper Tom Banton but still added 15 to their total off the last over.

Somerset were given an encouraging start by Banton and Babar, the pair taking the score to 49 after six overs.

Both players quickly gauged the pace of the pitch. Banton swept Danny Briggs for a flat six over deep square in the seventh over and soon Babar cleared the ropes too with a big hit over long-on off the same bowler.

At the halfway stage, Somerset were well placed at 85 without loss. But Mills stemmed the flow of runs by conceding only three from the 11th over.

Banton hit six fours and a six on the way to his fifty, but the next delivery saw him caught at short fine-leg top-edging an attempted pull off Ollie Robinson.

Babar then brought up his second Blast half-century in as many home games, having faced 32-balls and hit five fours and a six.

Peter Trego smashed Rashid Khan for a maximum over mid-wicket, but with five overs left Somerset still required 67 and when Babar fell to Khan in the 18th over, the home side's last chance had gone.

Defensive tackle Mike Daniels said Sunday that 13 teams contacted him after he was released by the Green Bay Packers, but Detroit Lions coach Matt Patricia had him at hello.

"Coach Patricia, flat out," Daniels told reporters, according to the team's website, when asked why he chose to sign with the Lions.

"He's just a genius. He really is. He understands the game of football. He knows what it takes. So to be able to play for a coach like that, it means everything. I'm really trying to be restrained right now because I'm so excited. If I could do a backflip right now, I'd do one, but I can't. I'm really excited."

Daniels went as far as to say he's happy the Packers cut him loose so he can now play for Patricia.

"I thank God that I got cut and I have an opportunity to play for a genius," he said.

Daniels signed a one-year deal with the Lions on Friday. A source told ESPN's Adam Schefter the contract is worth $9.1 million with $7.8 million fully guaranteed.

Daniels, a Pro Bowler in 2017, has 29 career sacks, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles.

Source: Bengals' Green likely out 6-8 weeks

Published in Breaking News
Sunday, 28 July 2019 14:04

An MRI revealed that Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green has torn ligaments in his left ankle that are likely to sideline him six to eight weeks, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Green is not expected to be ready for the regular-season opener Sept. 8 at Seattle.

He was carted off the field Saturday during the Bengals' first training camp practice of the season at Dayton's Welcome Stadium.

The Bengals were practicing at Welcome Stadium as part of the NFL's 100th anniversary celebration. The conditions of the field were considered subpar but the Bengals cleared the football field for use in the end, a source told Schefter.

Green's left shoe was removed before he departed the field. Last season, he missed seven games with a right toe injury.

That campaign marked only the second time Green did not have at least 1,000 receiving yards in a season during his eight-season career. Green, a seven-time Pro Bowl selection, participated in Bengals minicamp in June.

Green, 30, only missed four games in his first five NFL seasons, but he has missed 13 games in the past three seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

He is entering the final year of his contract.

ESPN's Ben Baby contributed to this report.

Lin fears that NBA has 'kind of given up on me'

Published in Basketball
Sunday, 28 July 2019 12:47

More than one billion dollars in contracts were agreed to in the first 24 hours of the NBA's new league year, but free agency isn't a feeding frenzy for all players.

"Every year it gets harder," free-agent point guard Jeremy Lin said of his uncertain NBA future.

"In English there's a saying and it says once you hit rock bottom, the only way is up," an emotional Lin said as part of a motivational speech in Taiwan for Christian outlet GOOD TV. "But rock bottom just seems to keep getting more and more rock bottom for me. So, free agency has been tough. Because I feel like in some ways the NBA's kind of given up on me."

Lin, 30, won a championship with the Toronto Raptors this past season after a midseason trade, but he averaged just 3.4 minutes in eight total playoff appearances.

"After the season I had to get ready for this Asia trip and it was the last thing I wanted to do," Lin said. "Because I knew for six weeks I would have to just put on a smile. I would have to talk about a championship that I don't feel like I really earned. I would have to talk about a [basketball] future I don't know if I want to have. And honestly, it's just embarrassing. It's tough."

Once the talk of New York during the Linsanity craze, Lin has since battled injuries and played for a total of eight different teams in nine seasons.

He has averaged 11.6 points and 4.3 assists in his career, but he has not started more than three games in a season since 2016-17 for the Brooklyn Nets.

Lin's speech, called "The Waiting Game," focused on resilience, and despite the feelings he expressed, Lin offered hope for those who can relate to his issues.

"I'm here to just tell you don't give up," Lin said. "For those of you who are working hard but you don't see results -- don't give up."

Upset pitcher Bauer throws ball over CF fence

Published in Baseball
Sunday, 28 July 2019 14:56

Trevor Bauer showed his frustrations after surrendering the Cleveland Indians' lead to the Kansas City Royals on Sunday by throwing a baseball from the mound over the center field fence at Kauffman Stadium.

Bauer threw the ball as manager Terry Francona was coming on the field to take him out of the game. The Indians manager appeared upset at Bauer's actions and pointed to the dugout as he met the right-hander at the mound. Bauer appeared to acknowledge that he was in the wrong, putting his hand on his chest as Francona met him.

Bauer's actions surprised his teammates. especially second baseman Mike Freeman, who flinched as Bauer threw the ball.

Bauer allowed a single to shallow right by Chesler Cuthbert that tied the score at 5 and then a two-run single to center by Nicky Lopez that made it 7-5, ending his day. After Lopez's hit, Bauer tossed the ball at the backstop. He then made the throw over center field.

Bauer matched career highs in runs (8) and earned runs (7) allowed on Sunday, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

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