SILVERSTONE, UK: Carlos Sainz claimed his first Formula One victory in his 150th race on Sunday when he drove his Ferrari to a spectacular triumph in a furious and crash-hit British Grand Prix.
The 27-year-old Spaniard, starting from his maiden pole position, resisted a charging Sergio Perez of Red Bull, who recovered from 17th, to take the flag by 3.7 seconds in front of a record 142,000 crowd at the high-speed Silverstone circuit.
Home hero seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes took third, to claim a record 13th podium finish on home soil, an unprecedented total by any driver at a single event.
Drawing on his fresher tires in the closing stages, Hamilton resisted and passed Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari, who finished fourth ahead of two-time champion Fernando Alonso of Alpine and Lando Norris of McLaren.
World champion and series leader Max Verstappen finished seventh for Red Bull, recovering after picking up debris and suffering a puncture, ahead of a revitalized Mick Schumacher of Haas, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Aston Martin, who had started 18th and Kevin Magnussen in the second Haas.
“I don’t know what to say,” said a beaming Sainz. “It is amazing. My first win in Formula One on my 150th race and for Ferrari at Silverstone! It’s amazing.”
Perez was also delighted. “It was a great comeback,” he said.
“We never gave up and we kept pushing. We kept trying. It was epic in some of those final laps.”
Hamilton paid tribute to the crowd, saying Silverstone was unmatched around the world for the scale and depth of enthusiasm demonstrated at the British event, which on Sunday provided stunning entertainment.
“I gave it everything today,” said Hamilton. “I tried to chase, but the Red Bull and the Ferraris were too quick on the straights.”
Verstappen remained on top of the title race with 181 points ahead of Perez on 147 and Leclerc on 138 and Sainz on 127.
After a long delay following a high-speed multi-car collision at the start of the race, which saw Zhou Guanyu make a remarkable escape after his car skidded upside down through a gravel trap, the contest re-started an hour later using the original grid order.
Three drivers were missing — Alfa Romeo’s Zhou, Williams’ Alex Albon and George Russell of Mercedes — as the lights went out and Sainz, in ferocious fighting mood, boldly resisted Verstappen to retain the lead from his maiden pole position.
Leclerc also made an aggressive start and banged wheels with Perez, who suffered front wing damage, and Verstappen before the order settled on lap five.
Hamilton, who had lost an early position to Norris, swept past him to the delight of his army of fans to regain fourth on lap six as Perez re-joined 17th at the back after a slow pit-stop.
In a frantic spell of action, Sainz ran off-track and across the grass at Becketts on lap 10, gifting Verstappen the initiative again, but two laps later the Dutchman slowed and pitted with a puncture.
Sainz led again as a 3.1 seconds stop for Verstappen, who reported he had hit debris, dropped him to sixth.
Amid this drama, Hamilton closed on Leclerc before, on lap 21, Sainz pitted from the lead, Leclerc taking over ahead of Hamilton with the Spaniard re-joining third ahead of Norris.
Clearly inspired, Hamilton pushed again as Verstappen pitted again before Leclerc pitted on lap 25. He returned in third, behind Sainz, while Hamilton stayed out on his ‘mediums’ and revelled in leading a race for the first time this year.
Behind him, Ferrari told their drivers they were “free to fight” as Leclerc chased second-placed Sainz, who was 18 seconds adrift of Hamilton, but warned that a swap was needed. It duly came on lap 31 when Sainz let Leclerc by on Wellington Straight for second.
This left Hamilton 18.7 seconds ahead, before he pitted on lap 34 for ‘hards’, emerging third 3.4 seconds behind Sainz, but with tires that were 13 laps fresher until a Safety Car intervention with 12 laps to go when Esteban Ocon’s Alpine came to a halt.
On the re-start, Perez surged past Hamilton and Sainz overtook Leclerc to lead again, but it was tense stuff and as the Spaniard pulled clear, the trio behind him scrapped and swapped places with ferocious abandon.
Perez muscled his way to second, Leclerc and Hamilton fought and both Alonso and Norris closed to within a second, setting up a furious finale.
Carlos Sainz claims maiden F1 win in epic British Grand Prix
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Carlos Sainz claims maiden F1 win in epic British Grand Prix
- The 27-year-old Spaniard, starting from his maiden pole position, resisted a charging Sergio Perez of Red Bull
- Verstappen remained on top of the title race with 181 points ahead of Perez on 147 and Leclerc on 138 and Sainz on 127
FIA President Ben Sulayem welcomes Trump to Miami Grand Prix
- The former US president witnessed maiden Formula 1 win for McLaren’s Lando Norris
MIAMI: Former US president Donald Trump was welcomed to the Miami Grand Prix by FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, where he saw McLaren’s Lando Norris notch up his first Formula 1 victory.
Sunday’s race saw British driver Norris take the checkered flag from three-time world champion Max Verstappen in the Red Bull Racing car. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc came third.
Trump, along with a number of famous athletes and other celebrities, delighted the audience by engaging with fans and attendees. He was also invited behind the scenes to tour the McLaren pit garage accompanied by the team’s CEO, American Zak Brown.
A spokesman for the Miami Grand Prix said the race weekend had sold out, with more than 275,000 fans in attendance to witness the high-octane atmosphere and exciting result.
Sandhagen to face Nurmagomedov at UFC fight night in Abu Dhabi
- The event will take place at the Etihad Arena on Aug 3
ABU DHABI: UFC has announced that its return to Abu Dhabi will see No. 2 ranked bantamweight Cory Sandhagen face No. 9 ranked Umar Nurmagomedov on Saturday, Aug. 3 at Etihad Arena.
Tickets for the event, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism — Abu Dhabi go on sale from on Tuesday, May 7
Sandhagen, with a record of 17-4 and fighting out of Aurora, Colorado, returns to the UAE capital to cement his status as top contender in the bantamweight division. The Colorado native boasts wins over Rob Font, Chito Vera, and soon-to-be UFC Hall of Famer Frankie Edgar. He now hopes for a convincing win over rising star Nurmagomedov to make his case for a title shot.
Nurmagomedov, 17-0, fighting out of Chelyabinsk, Russia, looks to put the division on notice by taking out a top-ranked opponent and making his first Octagon appearance in Abu Dhabi. He made his mark in the division after delivering dominant performances over Raoni Barcelos, Brian Kelleher and Sergey Morozov.
Now, he sets his sights on securing the biggest win of his career by getting his hand raised against Sandhagen.
Al-Itttihad fined $37,000 for King’s Cup misconduct
- The reigning Saudi Pro League champions lost 2-1 to Al-Hilal last week in the semifinals of the Kingdom’s renowned competition
RIYADH: Al-Ittihad Football Club have been fined $37,000 (SR140,000) for misconduct by players and fans in its recent 2-1 defeat by Al-Hilal in the semi-final of the King’s Cup.
A statement issued by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation’s disciplinary and ethics committee said Abderrazak Hamdallah and Saad Al-Mousa were each fined around $5,300 for not fulfilling their post-match media duties.
The committee also imposed a fine of $27,000 on the Jeddah club after fans threw bottles at opposition players from the stands. Nobody was harmed as a result of the incidents.
The authorities stressed that the three decisions are not subject to appeal.
Mitchell rallies Cavs for series-clinching Game 7 win over Magic
- Cavs move on to second round a year after a stinging first-round loss to the New York Knicks
- The Celtics will host Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Tuesday
LOS ANGELES: Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers silenced the young guns of Orlando, beating the Magic 106-94 in Game 7 of their NBA playoffs first-round series Sunday to book a meeting with Eastern Conference top seeds Boston.
It was another magisterial performance from Mitchell, who scored 39 points two days after pouring in 50 in the Cavs’ Game 6 defeat.
This time he had plenty of scoring support from teammates as the Cavs erased an 18-point second-quarter deficit to clinch a series in which the home team won every game.
Caris LeVert scored 15 points off the bench and Max Strus scored 11 of his 13 points in the third quarter, when the Cavs outscored the Magic 33-15 to take charge.
Evan Mobley scored 11 points with 16 rebounds and five blocked shots and Darius Garland chipped in 12 points to help Cleveland withstand a 38-point performance from Paolo Banchero.
The Cavs, with starting center Jarrett Allen sidelined a third straight game with bruised ribs, moved on to the second round a year after a stinging first-round loss to the New York Knicks.
“I didn’t want to go home,” Mitchell said of the mindset that saw him score 17 points in the third quarter as he virtually willed Cleveland to the lead.
The Magic delivered a strong first punch, Banchero scoring 10 points in the first period as Orlando grabbed a 24-18.
In the face of Orlando’s suffocating defense the Cavs connected on just six of 22 shots in the first quarter and didn’t make a three-pointer until Sam Merrill drilled one midway through the second quarter.
The Magic pushed their lead to as many as 18 points in the second quarter before the Cavs clawed back to cut the lead to single digits.
Banchero’s layup in the closing seconds of the first half saw Orlando take a 10-point lead into the break, but momentum was on Cleveland’s side and they overwhelmed the Magic in the third.
“I didn’t feel our confidence waver much, even when we had 18 points in the first quarter,” Mitchell said.
“They came out and jumped on us,” he added, saying the key was for the Cavs “to respond the way we did, keep plugging, just keep chipping away.”
Mitchell, again relentless in the paint, tied it at 64-64 with a floater and LeVert drained a pair of free throws to give the Cavs their first lead since the first quarter.
Strus hit back-to-back three-pointers as Cleveland built a 76-68 lead going into the final period.
The Cavs pushed their advantage to 14 points in the final frame, fans chanting “We want Boston” as the final minutes ticked off.
The Celtics will host Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Tuesday, and Mitchell vowed the Cavaliers will be ready for the team that posted the best record in the regular season.
“We didn’t make the group we made just to win the first round,” he said. “We accomplished one goal. Now we have to do it again.”
It was a crushing end to a strong season for the Magic, collectively the second-youngest team in the playoffs behind the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Wendell Carter Jr. scored 13 points and Jalen Suggs added 10 for the Magic, but Franz Wagner was held to just six as Orlando remained in search of a first playoff series victory since 2010.
Mitchell heaped praise 21-year-old Banchero, the top pick in the 2022 draft.
Banchero himself said the Magic’s fight back from 0-2 down in the series to force game seven “just shows where we’re headed.”
Sporting Lisbon win Portuguese league after Benfica stumble
- Last season’s victors stumbled 2-0 at Famalicao to complete Sporting’s triumph after Ruben Amorim’s triumphant side thrashed Portimonense 3-0 on Saturday
- Sporting will face Porto in the Portuguese Cup final on May 26, aiming to secure a double
LISBON: Sporting Lisbon were crowned champions of Portugal for only the second time in 21 years on Sunday after second-placed Benfica lost.
Last season’s victors stumbled 2-0 at Famalicao to complete Sporting’s triumph after Ruben Amorim’s triumphant side thrashed Portimonense 3-0 on Saturday.
Sporting, the division’s top scorers by far with 92 goals in 32 matches, are eight points clear of Benfica with just two games remaining.
Amorim’s side have lost just two times this season on the way to securing the club’s 20th league title, trailing Porto on 30 and record winners Benfica on 38.
Swedish forward Viktor Gyokeres’ goals have powered Sporting’s title success and he netted his 27th of the campaign on Saturday to wrap up their victory.
The striker signed from Coventry City last summer for a club record fee of 20 million euros ($21.5 million) plus add-ons.
It is the second league trophy brought to the club by former Benfica player Amorim, who led Sporting to glory in the 2020/21 season.
Sporting will face Porto in the Portuguese Cup final on May 26, aiming to secure a double.
