MOTOGP
Jorge Martin takes pole
Jorge Martin of Pramac Racing yesterday set a lap record and stormed to his second pole position of the season at the Japanese Grand Prix, with championship leader Francesco Bagnaia and last year’s winner Jack Miller joining the Spaniard on the front row. Martin secured his spot atop the timesheets by improving on Brad Binder’s Friday mark with a time of 1 minute, 43.198 seconds. “I feel strong and making the record in Motegi is always special. I really enjoy this track, so I’m really happy,” Martin said.
SOCCER
Own-goal hands Barca win
Sergio Ramos’ own-goal on Friday handed Barcelona a narrow 1-0 win over Sevilla in La Liga, taking the Catalans to the top of the table ahead of the rest of the weekend’s games. Veteran centerback Ramos deflected Lamine Yamal’s header into his own net in the 76th minute to break the deadlock in a tight clash. The 37-year-old said this week he had planned a special goal celebration if he scored against Barca after his summer return to Spain from Paris Saint-Germain, but putting through his own net was not part of the plan. “Ramos is a spectacular defender, today he had the misfortune of scoring an own-goal, but he had a good game,” Barcelona coach Xavi told reporters. “It was unlucky for him, but for us it was good.”
SOCCER
Dortmund win with 10 men
Borussia Dortmund on Friday held on with 10 men to beat TSG 1899 Hoffenheim 3-1 in the Bundesliga. The win put Dortmund top of the table ahead of the remainder of the weekend’s games. Ramy Bensebaini was sent off for a second booking after kicking the ball away at a routine throw-in in the 71st minute with the score 2-1. Marco Reus had scored Dortmund’s second goal, but was later booked for throwing a water bottle onto the field from the bench. Niclas Fullkrug opened the scoring in the 18th minute Andrej Kramaric converted a spot-kick for Hoffenheim.
SOCCER
Gnomes placed at stadium
Mysterious gnome statues appeared this week in the surroundings of the Estadio Pedro Bidegain in the run-up to yesterday’s derby between San Lorenzo and Huracan in the Argentine Primera Division. Local media reported that this “witchcraft,” aimed to get a positive result in the derby, was not claimed by any club fan and the statues were removed late because no one dared to touch them. “In this type of match there are no favorites. The dummies appeared, I read about it and I thought it was funny. I don’t think those things influence a match,” San Lorenzo coach Ruben Insua told reporters on Friday. After the incident, coffin-shaped posters with red drawings of ghosts with the faces of fans Ulises Fernandez and Rodrigo Silvera, who lost their lives in violent clashes between supporters, appeared in the vicinity of Huracan’s headquarters. “Regrettable. Nothing to do with what represents the folklore of one of the most beautiful matches in Argentina,” local media firm Ole reported, criticizing the response of some San Lorenzo fans to what happened at the stadium. Tickets were sold out for the game — which was to be played after press time last night. The rivalry has more than 100 years of history in the so-called “neighborhood derby.”
‘SOURCE OF PRIDE’: Newspapers rushed out special editions and the government sent their congratulations as Shohei Ohtani became the first player to enter the 50-50 club Japan reacted with incredulity and pride yesterday after Shohei Ohtani became the first player in Major League Baseball to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. The Los Angeles Dodgers star from Japan made history with a seventh-inning homer in a 20-4 victory over the Marlins in Miami. “We would like to congratulate him from the bottom of our heart,” top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo. “We sincerely hope Mr Ohtani, who has already accomplished feat after feat and carved out a new era, will thrive further,” he added. The landmark achievement dominated Japanese morning news
When Wang Tao ran away from home aged 17 to become a professional wrestler, he knew it would be a hard slog to succeed in China’s passionate but underdeveloped scene. Years later, he has endured family disapproval, countless side gigs and thousands of hours of brutal training to become China’s “Belt and Road Champion” — but the struggle is far from over. Despite a promising potential domestic market, the Chinese pro wrestling community has been battling for recognition and financial stability for decades. “I have done all kinds of jobs [on the side]... Because in the end, it is very
No team in the CPBL can surpass the Taipei Dome attendance record set by the CTBC Brothers, except when the Brothers team up with Taiwanese rock band Mayday. A record-high 40,000 fans turned out at the indoor baseball venue on Saturday for Brothers veteran Chou Szu-chi’s first farewell game, which was followed by a mini post-game concert featuring Mayday. This broke the previous CPBL record of 34,506 set by the Brothers in early last month, when K-pop singer Hyuna performed after the game, and the dome’s overall record of 37,890 set in early March, which featured the Brothers and the
With a quivering finger, England Subbuteo veteran Rudi Peterschinigg conceded the free-kick that sent his country’s World Cup quarter-final into extra-time before smashing his plastic goalkeeper on the floor in frustration. In the genteel southern English town of Tunbridge Wells, 300 elite players have gathered to play the game they love. “I won’t say this is the best weekend I’ve ever had in my life, but it’s certainly in the top two,” said Hughie Best, 58, who flew in from Perth, Australia, to compete and commentate at the event. Tunbridge Wells is the “spiritual home” of Subbuteo, which was invented there in 1946