Jorge Lorenzo moved into the MotoGP championship lead with a masterful victory at Le Mans, while Valentino Rossi defeated Casey Stoner in a thrilling last-lap duel to take his best ever finish with Ducati in second. As Lorenzo’s Yamaha dominated from the front, a resurgent Rossi thrived in the adverse conditions and was always in the fight for the podium.
Yuji Ide Jesús Iglesias Taki Inoue Innes Ireland Eddie Irvine
Casey James Mears Juan Pablo Montoya Joseph Francis Nemechek III Ryan Joseph Newman Kyle Eugene Petty
American Honda announces today that Tommy Hahn will be filling in for Team Honda Muscle Milk?s Trey Canard throughout the entire 2012 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship series. Hahn will join Justin Brayton aboard a factory CRF450R for all 12 rounds of the nationals.
Timo Glock Helm Glöckler Paco Godia Carel Godin de Beaufort Christian Goethals
Kamui Kobayashi thinks Sauber could be in the hunt for a podium finish at the Monaco Grand Prix with the team having delivered a good step forward in pace with its latest update. The Japanese driver bounced back from a hydraulic issue in qualifying for Spain, which left him ninth on the grid, to finish fifth – and he reckons the team can expect even more on the streets of Monte Carlo. “I think our car will be better in Monaco than it was last year because it has improved in slow corners,” said Kobayashi
Divina Galica Nanni Galli Oscar Alfredo Gálvez Fred Gamble Howden Ganley
Every Friday night now through July 13th, Betfair Hollywood Park is bringing you not only some great horse racing, cheap beers and food, but an incredible concert series as well – Friday Night Live Roq At The Races. Tonight, G Love & Special Sauce will be performing on the outdoor stage after the races. If [...]
Source: http://kroq.radio.com/2012/05/18/roq-at-the-races-featured-artist-spotlight-g-love-special-sauce/
Leslie Johnson Bruce Johnstone Alan Jones Al Keller Joe Kelly
Every year I’ve used this statistical framework for evaluating teams in the preseason, there’s one team that is sort of a wild card, a team that could either win their conference or finish in the lottery.
A large part of that is simply the shortcoming of using statistics to say anything about a fluid sport like basketball, but part of it is telling – it’s a team that is solid, but maybe not particularly outstanding in enough ways to be considered dominant.
Two years ago, that was the New York Liberty. Last season, that was also the New York Liberty. This season the Liberty are sort of the wild card, but in a different way – their chances of making the 2012 playoffs might depend on others.
2011 Season Review
Click here for an explanation of this framework and here for our statistics glossary.
eFg% Tov% Oreb% FTRt NYL 47.59% 16.62% 31.13% 21.86% Opp 47.26% 19.11% 28.92% 29.99% Weighted Diff 0.03 0.21 0.09 -0.17
2011 Four Factors summary for the N.Y. Liberty.
When you look at the Liberty on paper, what immediately stands out is a lack of glaring needs – they were better than their opponents in three of the Four Factors in 2011. Their one dominant strength was forcing and scoring off turnovers, finishing the season second in the league in points off turnovers (18.74). The problem was that after that dominant strength, the Liberty’s other statistics were somewhat misleading.
For example, the Liberty were quite a good offensive rebounding team, ranking 4th in the WNBA in both offensive rebounding percentage and second chance points. But they also gave up a lot of offensive rebounds to their opponents, tying for fourth from last in defensive rebounding percentage and thus narrowing a margin that could have been a major advantage. So while they were an above average total rebounding team by percentage, their poor defensive rebounding almost helped to mitigate their strong offensive rebounding.
Overall, the Liberty were quite solid defensively, both in forcing turnovers and limiting fast break points – they sat among a cluster of three teams jockeying for second-best defensive rating in the Eastern Conference. However, their own offensive efficiency was only average, with the Liberty’s shooting efficiency barely better than their opponents’.
And as you look across the most significant statistics for the Liberty in 2011, that’s sort of what begins to stand out: this team was average. Good enough to get into the playoffs as the fourth seed with few really significant injuries, but making it tough on themselves to advance.
Key personnel losses
So one way to look at the Liberty’s 2012 season is to say that with no changes to their rotation and the presence of center Kara Braxton – who helped on the defensive rebounding front – set to play for a full season is to say that this team should be able to maintain their level of play from last season and continue coming together as a unit under coach John Whisenant. Their two losses were Sydney Colson and Ta’Shia Phillips who played about 100 minutes per game combined last season. Perhaps the rookies needed more time to develop, but it’s difficult to make a case that it will impact how they play this season.
The most significant “loss” is really the absence of 6’5″ center Quanitra Hollingsworth, the best rebounder – offensive and defensive – to finish the season with the team, who will be helping the Turkish national team in their effort to qualify for the 2012 Olympics during June. She has been placed on the suspended list and the Liberty will retain her rights. Certainly having Braxton acclimated to the team and Whisenant’s style of play helps, but in the meantime they could struggle against the league’s stronger rebounding interior players.
Key personnel additions New veterans SPI Style Min/G VCR TS% Tov% Oreb% FTR Usg% Value Added 4-yr RAPM Kelly Miller D 27.74 < 0.76 < 51.91 > 15.33 =2.74 < 16.88 14.56 -0.93 -1.65 DeMya Walker IU 16.30 < 0.68 < 45.30 < 19.18 > 11.05 = 34.02 19.54 -1.02 -1.2
2011 statistics for the New York Liberty’s new additions.
The other way to look at the Liberty’s 2012 season is to say that with no changes to their rotation they didn’t exactly get a whole lot better than the average levels they were at last season.
With Hollingsworth out, Walker’s rebounding ability becomes significant for the Liberty as she comes to the team with a 2011 offensive rebounding percentage higher than anyone’s except Kia Vaughn, who had a breakout season last year. But her minutes can be expected to decline if she remains with the team when Hollingsworth declines.
Kelly Miller is likely to see more time at point guard than Colson did last season, which could help increase their offensive efficiency just in terms of adding another distributor with a positive pure point rating. With Miller in the fold, it’s quite likely that Cappie Pondexter will also see less time as the lead ball handler, which is probably a good thing – although Pondexter is a capable ball handler, she’s clearly a scorer first and the Liberty’s offense was much more fluid when she was on the wing looking to score instead of bringing the ball up to initiate the offense for others. And with Miller shooting 44.44% from the 3-point line last season, she could help spread the floor for players like Braxton and Vaughn to work inside or Pondexter to drive.
That could help address the scoring efficiency problem, but given that Miller is a low usage point guard it might be a somewhat lateral move in that regard – Leilani Mitchell is a career 40% 3-point shooter and was a more efficient ball handler than Miller, even in a down season. Again, it’s a solid addition but doesn’t move them a whole lot more beyond average because they were already a decent ball handling and 3-point shooting team.
Rookie projections Rookies S P I Projected SPI StyleWNBA Style Kelley Cain 4.10% 3.40% 99.20% IU
NCAA SPI tendencies from Cain’s 2010-11 season at Tennessee, her final year there.
All of the above helps to put Liberty fans’ frustration with the selection of Kelley Cain in context.
Cain could end up being a solid rebounder in the WNBA, but it remains to be seen whether she can earn enough minutes to be a major factor – based upon her numbers from her last season of play at Tennessee, she projects into an interior player who could make an impact on the boards but struggle to do much else.
Given that the Liberty needed rebounding help, Cain isn’t necessarily a bad pickup for them with the 7th pick in the draft. But again, given that they were picking #7 it’s not exactly a great pick either, at least strategically – Sasha Goodlett, who projects as the better player at the same position, was still on the board at that point.
Ultimately, when we look back on their draft at the end of the year, we might say the pick ended up being average in a weak draft.
Preseason highlights
Leilani Mitchell has played extremely well in every other year of her career thus far and after a down year last year, perhaps this will be her good year. In two preseason games she 9 assists and 1 turnover in about 45.5 minutes (4.39 pure point rating), which is very good for a point guard and more in line with her rookie year ball handling efficiency. The Liberty could use her 48.6 3-point shooting again, but even the ball handling efficiency would help considerably.
Kara Braxton turned in a dominant defensive rebounding performance in their first preseason game, which – as stated previously – is something the Liberty will need this season.
2012 Outlook Returners Returners SPI Style Min/G VCR TS% Tov% Oreb% FTR Usg Value Added 4-yr RAPM Braxton IP 16.84 > 1.21 > 53.56 > 16.40 > 10.49 < 25.61 23.96 -0.11 -0.95 Carson SP 22.64 > 1.18 > 51.10 > 10.17 > 5.09 > 25.15 24.90 -1.73 0.45 Hollingsworth IU 16.91 > 0.83 > 56.99 < 24.40 > 12.26 > 51.45 14.68 1.00 -3.6 Mitchell DU 25.41 < 0.77 < 50.15 > 12.97 =2.34 < 5.43 12.10 1.42 -0.3 Montgomery IU 9.02 < 0.68 < 40.54 > 14.34 < 6.60 < 20% 18.61 -0.21 -1.6 Pierson S 28.64 > 1.18 > 52.70 < 12.10 > 7.81 > 27.07 22.33 -0.61 3.6 Pondexter SP 33.87 >1.16 > 50.34 =11.07 < 2.27 > 25.37 26.68 -3.75 -0.1 Powell P 28.32 > 0.93 > 52.80 > 14.67 =4.07 < 11.11 17.75 -0.32 -0.4 Vaughn IP 28.10 > 1.15 > 52.67 > 14.36 > 11.97 < 18.66 18.24 2.27 -2.55
Strengths
So for all that talk about the Liberty being average, one thing that does stand out about their roster is that they do have some versatility in terms of style of play – assuming Cain can contribute on the boards, they have a good mix of interior, perimeter, and scoring types.
All but Mitchell were more efficient scorers than average relative to similar types of players and if Mitchell does get more efficient again, they should be able to increase their offensive efficiency.
Obviously, Cappie Pondexter is a strength as someone who is becoming a perennial All-WNBA, MVP candidate.
Questions:
Will Pondexter need another All-WNBA, MVP-caliber season just for the Liberty to make the playoffs? I have no answer for that and am only left wondering what the most reasonable alternative scenario would be.
Which point guard will give them more offensively? Neither Miller nor Mitchell is coming off a particularly strong point guard year. Mitchell gets the edge because of her ball handling efficiency, but Miller’s 3-point shooting has to count for something on this team. Last year, with Colson not earning minutes, point guard minutes went to Pondexter and Alex Montgomery in addition to Mitchell. If either of the team’s two distributors can become more efficient players in starter’s minutes, the team should be better offensively.
Does the negative free throw rate differential really matter? A number of very good teams have been very successful with a negative free throw rate differential. In fact, it’s almost like the statistical weakness of champions. But the one issue it does highlight with New York is that they have a roster with 6 players with below average free throw rates for their style of play – including Mitchell’s extremely low 5.43% free throw rate – which is generally indicative of a lot of jump shooting players. Obviously Pondexter is capable of driving to the basket and Carson’s continued improvement on offense might include more of that, but they’re not just losing that free throw rate battle because they’re fouling a lot or moving the ball extremely well to find open shots; they’re just not drawing that many free throws.
Can they improve their rebounding situation? Having Braxton for a full season as well as adding Cain and Walker should give them some bulk to help them better compete on the defensive boards this season, which could also help them score in transition more often. But figuring out a rotation that accommodates that will be tough with Vaughn and Plenette Pierson being the better scorers and generally more productive players as of last season.
Breakout player
Given that Essence Carson was an All Star last year, it’s hard to call her a breakout player. Given that Leilani Mitchell has already won the Most Improved Player award, it’s hard to call her a breakout player. Given that anyone else on the roster who has shown promise in the league has already been an All Star, a significant contributor to a WNBA championship team, won a Most Improved Player award, or declining, it’s sort of hard to identify any Liberty player as a potential “breakout player”. But if we’re just looking for players who could improve over last season, both Mitchell and Vaughn could improve – Vaughn because she had a strong VCR for her style of play last year and could probably play an even more significant role for the team and Mitchell because we know she’s capable of more than what she did last year.
Projection: Playoff contender Any time a team makes the playoffs in a close race and then does little to improve, you have to assume they could make it back. Any combination of another team struggling due to injury (or Olympic absence) or someone just having an off year could help the Liberty get back to the playoffs. But the problem is that this was also an average team statistically that really didn’t help themselves in any significant way whereas you could argue that other Eastern Conference teams did or at least tried to. Maintaining the status quo might not be enough to make the playoffs when Chicago made big moves to make themselves a real player this season and the Atlanta Dream still have Angel McCoughtry. So it’s very possible that the Liberty find themselves missing the playoffs but also playing their way out of the probability of landing the first pick in the highly-anticipated 2013 WNBA Draft. It’s also possible that everyone plays to their full potential and ends up riding Cappie Pondexter’s coat tails to the playoffs, thus missing out on a lottery pick in the highly-anticipated 2013 WNBA Draft and remaining about average. If there is a team that should be looking to shake things up via trade this season, it might be the Liberty.
Click here for an explanation of this framework and here for our statistics glossary.
Poll How far will the New York Liberty go in 2012?
WNBA champion
Eastern Conference champion
Playoffs
2013 WNBA Draft Lottery
Too soon to tell
9 votes | Results
Source: http://www.womentalksports.com/items/read/267/1348430
Trevor Bayne Out! Pet Care Toyota Jason Leffler David Carl Allison Kerry Dale Earnhardt
Obviously, who cares what Lance Stephenson thinks? Dude is a bench warmer whose Brooklyn glory days are well behind him. But he happens to be thinking what basically everyone else in the sports world is thinking: LeBron and the Heat are choking. Video after the jump.
Source: http://www.sportsgrid.com/nba/lance-stephenson-choke-sign/
John James Jean Pierre Jarier Max Jean Stefan Johansson Eddie Johnson
Rep. Yvette Clarke, a Brooklyn Democrat who is facing a primary challenge from Sylvia Kinard, ex-wife of former NYC Comptroller/2013 mayoral hopeful Bill Thompson, has picked up the endorsement (via press release) of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. “Yvette Clarke is a strong leader and a vital voice for all New Yorkers,” Gillibrand said in a statement released…
Source: http://www.capitaltonight.com/2012/05/gillibrand-for-clarke/
Kevin Harvick Clint Bowyer Zaxby s Chevrolet Brad Keselowski Kyle Busch
Some are calling Bobcat Goldthwait’s new film “God Bless America” a modern day “Bonnie & Clyde” and Bobcat agrees…sort of. This flick is as dark as it gets: robbery, violence, cancer, revenge and death…And I promise you’ll laugh your ass off through the whole thing. Diagnosed with a deadly tumor, Frank (Joel Murray) is about [...]
Source: http://kroq.radio.com/2012/05/18/rubin-reviews-bobcat-goldthwaits-new-movie-god-bless-america/
Ernst Klodwig Kamui Kobayashi Helmuth Koinigg Heikki Kovalainen Kevin Harvick
Ryan Morais’ goal for a 2010 West Coast Lites Supercross championship came to a screeching halt in just the 3rd round of the series, when another racer landed on the back on his bike, sending both riders crashing to the ground. This unfortunate crash would sideline Ryan for a few rounds, but he would eventually return to racing action in Seattle and finish the season 10th overall points. When the AMA Motocross Nationals came into around, Ryan was ready to get back to racing, but going into the second round he was once again out with an injury. Ryan has been busy the past few months, but is back and ready to set some new goals for the upcoming 2011 series. I spoke with Ryan about what he learned over the past year and his prospects for the new season.
Angela: Well Ryan, here we are just a few short weeks until the first Supercross race of the season; let’s talk about sponsors and the bike?
Ryan: Yeah, DC Shoes stepped up recently and is sponsoring the entire Rockstar Energy Suzuki Team, so I am really excited to be a part of it. I have only been with this sponsor for a few days now and they’re really taken care of the team. I’m with the same team as last year, Rockstar Energy Suzuki, with the same mechanic (Rene Zapata), and the same team manager, and owner, everything is pretty much the same, but Suzuki really is stepping up this year. Last year we were on a 2009 carburetor bike, so we were kind of behind the ball, but this year we are on the new 2011 fuel injected, the whole new chassis and everything, and Suzuki has really helped us out with factory support. Our bikes are pretty much in house bikes, running Shoei Suspension, so everything is looking great. Everyone has been doing a great job and the people at Yoshimura have been doing a lot of testing and getting our bikes dialed in, so I’m excited for Anaheim 1. Our bike should be one of the best ones out there, making things really competitive, and that is very cool.
Source: http://www.supercross.com/rss-features/dc-moto-tf-day-with-ryan-morais
Dick Gibson Gimax Richie Ginther Yves Giraud Cabantous Ignazio Giunti
Up and coming GP3 racer — and iRacer — Conor Daly, will get to enjoy his first taste of Formula One power this week when he gets behind the wheel of the VJM05 tomorrow. The 20-year-old American will help the team with its aero testing program, which takes place at Cotswold Airport in Gloucestershire, England. Fresh from his race win during the opening round of the GP3 season at Circuit Catalunya last weekend, Conor visited the team’s Silverstone headquarters on Tuesday for a seat-fit and to familiarise himself with the systems on the car. It was a chance to meet his engineering crew and run through the functions on a Formula One steering wheel. The test program on Thursday is one of four full-size aerodynamic tests that teams are allowed [...]
Gerino Gerini Peter Gethin Piercarlo Ghinzani Bruno Giacomelli Dick Gibson
Peter Sauber has announced he is transferring a third of the stake in the Sauber Group to CEO Monisha Kaltenborn. Sauber, the founder, team principal and president of the board, will retain the other two thirds. India-born Kaltenborn, 41, was appointed CEO of the Swiss squad in 2010, following BMW’s exit from Formula 1
Zaxby s Chevrolet Brad Keselowski Kyle Busch Toyota Kimmy Z Line Designs Toyota
If you’ve got the cash to place on the hood (or nose cone, as it were), most any Formula One team will sell you one of their old race cars. After all, they’re not using them anymore, and it’s a good way to raise funds to develop next year’s car. But not McLaren. The team from Woking – one of the most successful in the series – doesn’t sell its old cars, though with 176 grand prix victories, twelve drivers’ championships and eight constructors’ titles, you can bet they’d fetch a pretty penny. Instead, it keeps them all warehoused at a facility, location undisclosed, simply called Unit 2.
The warehouse contains some 75 grand prix cars, an untold number of the team’s sports cars from other racing series (like Le Mans, Can-Am and Indy), and various road cars it’s produced over the years, like the legendary McLaren F1, the SLR it built for Mercedes-Benz, and the new MP4-12C. But while none of these cars are for sale, Unit 2 will soon be depleted of much of its stock.
Their destinations? The 35 global dealerships that McLaren Automotive has opened or will open by year’s end, like the one pictured above in Düsseldorf. Each showroom is to get a racing car to display alongside the road cars it has for sale, and many of them will be location-specific. The dealer in Monte Carlo, for example, will display the 1993 MP4-8 that Ayrton Senna drove to victory at the Monaco Grand Prix. The dealer in Brussels will reportedly display the 2004 MP4-19 with which Kimi Raikkonen won the 2004 Belgian Grand Prix. And the Philadelphia showroom will display the 1976 M26 that James Hunt piloted to victory at the US Grand Prix that year.
So if you want to see a piece of McLaren racing history, better call up your nearest dealership and find out when their show car is due to arrive. Just don’t go looking for Unit 2, because even if you can find it, chances are they won’t let you in.
McLaren dispersing top-secret Unit 2 collection to showrooms originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 19 May 2012 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/19/mclaren-dispersing-top-secret-unit-2-collection-to-showrooms-aro/
Bertrand Gachot Patrick Gaillard Divina Galica Nanni Galli Oscar Alfredo Gálvez
Endurocross. It’s something you have to see to fully appreciate. The opening round of the 2012 Endurocross series took place recently at the Orleans Hotel and Arena in Las Vegas. Below you’ll find our photos and video from Round 1 in Las Vegas.
As always, the track design keeps improving and getting more and more difficult. This track had extreme obstacles, an ‘over-under’ bridge … and the arena was sold out.
Endurocross is once again going to be part of ESPN’s X Games Los Angeles this year, both men’s and women’s classes.
Source: http://www.supercross.com/features/2012-endurocross-opener-in-las-vegas
Gus Hutchison Jacky Ickx Yuji Ide Jesús Iglesias Taki Inoue
Updated 2pm Pacific Time, Wednesday May 9th.
Hi Friends,
I am sending this message to let everybody know what is going on with my wife Kim and my family. As you may or may not know, about two years ago Kim was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She had a number of different surgery’s, underwent chemotherapy for many months, and handled the processes like a true champion. Kim was feeling great.
Kim was 15 months removed from her last treatment, about a month ago she noticed a couple of small blotches on her skin. Due to her great instincts she went and got them biopsied. That biopsy came back as “Leukemia Cutis”, which is Leukemia of the skin. Naturally we were blown to pieces by this news.
As I said, Kim was feeling great and due to her good instincts we caught this in the Pre Leukemic stage. The bad part is the doctors have to treat “Leukemia Cutis” the same way as if you came in the hospital at the later stages of leukemia. Which sucks ?
This means more chemo, she is currently in the hospital and has completed her seven days of chemo and they are saying a BONE MARROW transplant is next … THIS IS WHERE ALL OF YOU GUYS COME IN ? We really need your help with going and getting on the Bone Marrow registry, the idea is to find a Marrow match.
Its as easy as finding a Bone Marrow Drive and getting your mouth swabbed, or having the kit sent directly to you at your house, and you can send it back. I ask all of you to do this ASAP, this is something that is time sensitive. In order to help Kim, we have to be willing to help anybody, which is the right thing to do.
Go to http://marrow.org/Join/Join_Now/Join_Now.aspx?promo_code=mcgrath
This is the biggest challenge of my and my family’s life … You guys have never let me down, so PLEASE help us with this one ? Thank you.
Sincerely,
Jeremy McGrath
Source: http://www.supercross.com/news/a-personal-message-from-jeremy-mcgrath Ignazio Giunti Timo Glock Helm Glöckler Paco Godia Carel Godin de Beaufort
Novak Djokovic is quietly having a down year.
After winning three Grand Slams and losing just six matches all of last year, Novak has already lost four times in 2012.
Novak isn’t taking the struggles well. During a tough semifinal match against Juan Monaco at the ATP Rome, he smashed his racket into a twisted jumble of plastic. He lost the first set, but went on to win in three sets.
Here’s the video (via Outside The Boxscore):
A far cry from how he was feeling at the Aussie Open:
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Paco Godia Carel Godin de Beaufort Christian Goethals Gene Hartley Masahiro Hasemi
Last night was the official launch of FMF Apparel at the La Jolla Group and also kick off of the 2012 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship. Some of the industry folks in attendance included: Davi Millsaps, Coy Gibbs, Jeff Emig, Kyle Loza and many more. There was also a custom FMF Tee pressing station and live music performed by 80′s cover band “Flash Back Heart Attack”. To purchase the new FMF Apparel visit: www.FMFRacing.com
View the gallery from the FMF Launch Party:
Source: http://www.supercross.com/features/fmf-full-throttle-launch-party
Jeremy Allan Mayfield James Christopher McMurray Casey James Mears Juan Pablo Montoya Joseph Francis Nemechek III
There was a very short delay in today’s Colorado Rockies-Arizona Diamondbacks game in Denver.
Why?
Well….
It got so bad, the TV camera man had to run from his spot:
And for good reason…
The Rockies’ players don’t seem to care, though.
We’ll keep you posted.
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Carel Godin de Beaufort Christian Goethals Gene Hartley Masahiro Hasemi Naoki Hattori
Chris Vermeulen says he hopes he can at least help Forward Racing with its development programme on his return to MotoGP in this weekend’s French Grand Prix. The Australian is substituting for Colin Edwards at the leading CRT squad while the latter recovers from the broken collarbone he sustained in a qualifying crash at Estoril a fortnight ago.
Parker Kligerman Trevor Bayne Out! Pet Care Toyota Jason Leffler David Carl Allison
I decided to take a look at the an often-overlooked statistic: “games started”. Instead of looking at which players in WNBA history have started the most games, I decided to look at start percentage. Were there players who have started every game they have played? To me, this was an interesting stat because the mythical lifespan of players moves from rookie working her way off the bench to starter to returning to the bench in old age. This magical graph of start percentage per season would look like a parabola, or a hill. I was more interested in players whose graph was a plateau – players who started at the top of the hill and stayed there.
Top Ten Career Start Percentages, WNBA History (Minimum 100 Games)1. Sue Bird (2002- SEA) – 324 per 324 games (1.000)2. Lauren Jackson (2001- SEA) – 308 per 308 games (1.000)3. Diana Taurasi (2004- PHO) – 261 per 261 games (1.000)4. Sophia Young (2006- SAS) – 200 per 200 games (1.000)5. Cappie Pondexter (2006-09 PHO, 2010- NYL) – 197 per 197 games (1.000)6. Cheryl Ford (2003-09 DET) – 196 per 196 games (1.000)7. Vicky Bullett (1997-99 CHA, 2000-02 WAS) – 186 per 186 games (1.000)8. Seimone Augustus (2006- MIN) – 164 per 164 games (1.000)9. Cynthia Cooper (1997-2000, 2003 HOU) – 124 per 124 games (1.000)10. Lindsey Whalen (2004-09 CON, 2010- MIN) – 263 per 264 games (0.996)Whalen missed one game in her first season. She must be kicking herself.But as you can see, the above list could be someone’s short list for Hall of Fame candidates. Clearly, these are all great players. There are two teams – Seattle and Minnesota – that have two of the players on this list on their current roster.Okay, there are some players who are just great. But let’s go back to our example. What about the players in the middle of this list? What kind of players are there who have played 100 games and have a starting percentage of approximately 50 percent?Middle of the Pack Career Start Percentages, WNBA History (Minimum 100 Games)1. Tamera Young (2008-09 ATL, 2009- CHI) – 62 per 119 games (0.521)2. Essence Carson (2008- NYL) – 69 per 134 games (.515)3. DeMya Walker – (2000-02 POR, 2003-09 SAC, 2010-11 CON, 2011 WAS) – 154 per 302 games (.510)4. Erin Phillips (2006, 2008-09 CON, 2011 IND) – 53 per 105 games (.505)5. Brooke Wyckoff (2001-02 ORL, 2003, 2005 CON, 2006-09 CHI) – 121 per 242 games (.500)6. Vanessa Nygaard (1999 CLE, 2000-01 POR, 2002 MIA, 2003 LAS) – 53 per 107 games (.495)7. LaToya Thomas (2003 CLE, 2004-06 SAS, 2007-LAS, 2008 DET, 2008 MIN) – 74 per 150 games (.493)8. Janell Burse (2001-03 MIN, 2004-07, 2009 SEA) – 114 per 233 games (.489)9. Chantel Tremitiere (1997 SAC, 1998-99 UTA, 2000 IND) – 49 per 101 games (.485)10. Mery Andrade – (2000-02 CLE, 2004 CHA) – 67 per 140 games (.485)DeMya Walker will be with her fifth team this year, the New York Liberty. Young is best described as a “mixed/utility” player. Only three of these players are on a WNBA roster, although Erin Phillips was on a team that was a WNBA Finals contender last year.So what about the players with 100 games that have the fewest number of starts?Bottom Ten Career Start Percentages, WNBA History (Minimum 100 Games)1. Laurie Koehn (2005-08 WAS) – 0 per 120 games (0.00)2. Tricia Bader-Binford (1998-99 UTA, 1999-2002 CLE) – 0 per 100 games (0.00)3. Nicky McCrimmon (2000-03 LAS) – 1 per 125 games (0.01)4. Sandora Irvin (2005-06 PHO, 2007-08 SAS, 2010 CHI, 2011 ATL) – 2 per 111 games (0.02)5. Jamie Carey (2005-08 CON) – 3 per 105 games (0.03)6. Kisha Ford (1997-98 NYL, 1999 ORL, 2000-01 MIA) – 4 per 124 games (0.03)7. K. B. Sharp (2003-04 NYL, 2006-07 IND, 2008-09 CHI) – 6 per 178 games (0.03)8. Shay Murphy (2007-08 MIN, 2008 DET, 2008 WAS, 2009-10 IND, 2010-11 CHI) – 4 per 109 games (0.04)9. Kelly Mazzante (2004-06 CHA, 2007-09 PHO, 2011 ATL) – 9 per 200 games (0.05)10. Kristin Haynie (2005-07 SAC, 2008 ATL, 2009 DET, 2009 SAC) – 8 per 160 games (0.05)Murphy is still with the Chicago Sky. The rest are pretty what you’d expect, even though Sandora Irvin and Kelly Mazzante both saw time on a roster last year. Haynie’s start count might be smaller if she didn’t spend a full season in Atlanta. Nicky McCrimmon was on the first season of American Idol – I might be wrong about that, though.Murphy should be known as “Ms. WNBA” – America’s Guest. She’s worn five uniforms with WNBA teams, and with three teams in the same year (2008).
Two factors I noticed: players either had blocks of time with one team (Koehn, McCrimmon, Carey) – this suggests that their coaches liked them as bench warmers as long as they could pay them rookie salaries, but no one wanted to pay them for realsies. Other players (Bader-Binford, Ford) had the advantage (?) of playing either in the expansion era or with awful teams that couldn’t be choosy.
It just goes to show you that you can make WNBA history – whether you start every game, carry Gatorade and towels on the bench, or, well, just be somewhere in the middle.
Source: http://www.womentalksports.com/items/read/267/1347401
For those who want to ball so hard, but don’t like changing out of their pajamas — the University of Washington and UW alum Jon Brockman present, the basketball onesie, aka the “Swagga Suit.”
Source: http://www.sportsgrid.com/weird-but-true/basketball-onesies-swagga-suits/
Zaxby s Chevrolet Brad Keselowski Kyle Busch Toyota Kimmy Z Line Designs Toyota
? Ukrainian pig fills void left by Paul the Octopus
? It will give daily forecasts at the tournament
A psychic pig is set to take over where Paul the Octopus left off at the 2010 World Cup by predicting the results of matches at the European Championship in Poland and Ukraine.
Kiev’s city government said on Friday it would wheel out the porky tipster to give daily forecasts once the tournament kicks off next month.
“A unique oracle hog, a real Ukrainian pig and a psychic which knows the mysteries of football,” a statement said. “Every day at 16.00 it will predict the result of the upcoming match.”
Paul, who has since passed away, shot to fame at the 2010 World Cup after his feeding behaviour was used to correctly predict the winner of each of Germany’s seven matches.
He also tipped the World Cup winners Spain to beat Holland in the final in South Africa from his tank at an aquarium in Oberhausen.
Kiev officials said they wanted bring similar excitement to Ukrainians by bringing the telepathic pig to the city’s fan zone before matches.
“Psychic” creatures have become the rage since Paul blazed his tentacled trail. A rare two-headed tortoise called Magdalena embarked on a new career as a tipster at last year’s ice hockey world championships in Slovakia.
Germany discovered a cross-eyed opossum called Heidi, who made an appearance on American television earlier this year to predict the Oscar winners. She died last September.
The hog will be eager to sniff out the correct result himself to avoid the chop as pork is a staple of the local cuisine.
Source: http://feeds.guardian.co.uk/~r/theguardian/football/rss/~3/VlICTCM8Rbs/psychic-pig-tipping-euro-2012
Boy Hayje Willi Heeks Nick Heidfeld Theo Helfrich Mack Hellings
IndyCar series returnee Sebastian Saavedra topped the second day of practice for the Indy 500 with a lap of 40.6272s (221.526mph) in the AFS Racing/Andretti entry. The Colombian, who returned to Indy Lights this year after a full IndyCar season in 2011, led a day dominated by young drivers, with Sarah Fisher Racing duo Bryan Clauson and Josef Newgarden completing the top three. Saavedra said that his laptime was made possible by how well the five Andretti drivers are working together in preparation for the May 27 race.
Jackie Holmes Bill Homeier Kazuyoshi Hoshino Jerry Hoyt Nico Hülkenberg
Filed under: Etc.
The University of Michigan has had one of the preeminent solar car teams in the world for more than two decades, but a new group of students is looking to make its own mark in the world of green engineering. The school will be fielding its first entry in the annual SAE Supermileage competition this year.
If you think a bunch of newbies would launch their effort somewhat low-key, you probably aren’t from Michigan or familiar with the Wolverine Way. Michigan has set its goal at nothing short of the North American record of bettering 3,169 miles per gallon with its single-cylinder, Briggs & Stratton lawnmower engine. The expectation is that the Michigan car will hit 3,300 mpg.
The Supermileage competition has been held since 1980, requiring students to design and build extremely lightweight, single-seat vehicles. The competition itself involves circling the Eaton Corporation Proving Grounds test track. Last year, 27 teams competed, with Quebec’s Universite de Sherbrooke dominating the competition, recording 2,158 mpg, over 500 mpg more than its cross-province rival, Universite’ Laval.
The 2012 Supermileage competition is scheduled for June 7-8 in Marshall, MI. Scroll down to read the press release and watch Michigan’s promotional video.
Continue reading University of Michigan hopes to set new 3,300-mpg record in SAE Challenge [w/video]
University of Michigan hopes to set new 3,300-mpg record in SAE Challenge [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 May 2012 18:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/17/university-of-michigan-hopes-to-set-new-3-300-mpg-record-in-sae/
Terrence Lee Labonte Randy Joseph Lajoie Kevin Paul Lepage William Ashton Lewis Jr Sterling Burton Marlin
DMACK will introduce a new specification gravel tyre for next week?s Acropolis Rally of Greece which features a closed tread pattern and newly-developed compounds. The new DMG+2 features a tread pattern similar to the successful DMG+ gravel tyre, which took DMACK to its best-ever finish of fourth place a few weeks ago at Rally Argentina, [...]
Source: http://www.rallybuzz.com/dmack-plays-joker-with-new-gravel-tyre-in-greece/
Naoki Hattori Paul Hawkins Mike Hawthorn Boy Hayje Willi Heeks
The Gaslight Anthem played to a sold-out crowd Wednesday night at Brooklyn’s Music Hall of Williamsburg. While several hundred lucky fans got an in-person view of their set others could watch the entire show as it webcast live around the globe. A preview of what’s to come on their new album Handwritten, due in stores [...]
You probably know of Chad Reed. He’s originally from Australia, but has raced primarily here in the USA for over 10 years. He won the 2004 AMA Supercross Series Championship, the 2008 AMA Supercross Series Championship, and the 2009 AMA National Motocross Championship. And before all that, he raced in the World MX GP’s.
Chad had a fall at the recent Dallas Supercross. Here is my video message to Chad.
Source: http://www.supercross.com/rj-says/rj-says-video-blog-message-for-chad-reed
Scott Russell Riggs Hiroshi Fushida Beppe Gabbiani Bertrand Gachot Patrick Gaillard
Round Two of the iRacing.com V8 Supercars Series presented by BigPond took the teams and drivers to the famous Watkins Glen International which is a 4km in length. With race one controversy out of the way it was time to get ready for the main race. ANZ Motorsports Scott McLaughlin would take the pole with a blistering 1:10.816 getting his first pole position in the main event with Rens Broekman second, making these two sim-racers the only two into the eights. George Maris would take third with Richard Hamstead and Mitchell McLeod only .02 behind. When the lights went green, Broekman?s car was nowhere to be seen as Internet trouble saw his race over before it had even started. With Broekman a no show it was McLaughlin having a nice [...]
Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/iracing-news/mclaughlin-takes-control-at-the-glen
Peter de Klerk Christian Klien Karl Kling Ernst Klodwig Kamui Kobayashi
Renault Sport F1 managing director Jean-Francois Caubet has admitted that he didn’t expect the revived partnership with Williams to yield wins so quickly. Pastor Maldonado’s surprise victory in the Spanish Grand Prix came in only the fifth race since the Williams-Renault link-up was renewed and although Caubet was always confident that wins would come, he saw it as a longer-term project. “We thought we needed three years to win and after five races we did,” Caubet told AUTOSPORT
Chris Irwin Jean Pierre Jabouille Jimmy Jackson Joe James John James
Charles Pic – DNF: “I didn’t get a very good start today. From then on I was working well on my pace and got the right side of the HRTs again. Things were going well for me then on lap 26 I suddenly lost drive and came back into the pits, where unfortunately I had to retire
Masahiro Hasemi Naoki Hattori Paul Hawkins Mike Hawthorn Boy Hayje
Filed under: Concept Cars, Performance, Hatchback, Volkswagen, Misc. Auto Shows
The annual GTI festival at Lake Wörthersee in Austria has exploded over the years into a celebration of all things hot-hatch in the Volkswagen Group – including concept cars and new debuts from Audi, Seat and Skoda – but the event has always been about VWs at heart. And the brand central to the empire isn’t about to sit it out.
At the heart of VW’s motorcade for this year’s pocket-rocket fest is the Polo WRC Street, a preview of a special edition modeled on the actual rally car which Volkswagen Motorsport will be fielding in the top-level rally series next year. The street version features a 220-horsepower 2.0-liter TSI four-cylinder – significantly more than the existing 180-hp Polo GTI and a whole lot of muscle for such a little car – with an aggressive aero package and of course the requisite decals. In other words, it is, for all intents and purposes, a Polo R with some stripes.
VW will also be showcasing the competition-spec Polo R-WRC. And Wörthersee being centered around the Golf GTI, is also bringing the GTI Cabriolet that debuted in concept form at the same location last year and in production form at the Geneva Motor Show just a couple of months ago, plus a pair of black and white GTI concepts. Keep reading for the full press release and scope out the trio of images previewing the Polo WRC Street for a closer look at what Wolfsburg is driving eastwards.
Continue reading Volkswagen previews 220-hp Polo WRC Street special ahead of Wörthersee debut
Volkswagen previews 220-hp Polo WRC Street special ahead of Wörthersee debut originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 May 2012 13:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/17/volkswagen-previews-220-hp-polo-wrc-street-special-ahead-of-wort/
Ernst Klodwig Kamui Kobayashi Helmuth Koinigg Heikki Kovalainen Kevin Harvick
McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh has admitted that he should have told Lewis Hamilton to abandon his Spanish Grand Prix qualifying lap as soon as the team realised it had not put enough fuel in his car. A mistake in the garage prior to Hamilton’s final run in Q3 meant that the British driver did not have enough fuel to be able to complete an in-lap and provide a mandatory sample for the FIA
Jason Leffler David Carl Allison Kerry Dale Earnhardt Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr
We asked the Supercross industry folks: Jake Weimer, Marvin Musquin, Tyla Rattray, Mitch Payton, Blake Wharton, the Rockstar Energy Girls and Monster Girls what their ‘Highs and Lows’ were of the 2012 Supercross season!
Baltimore Ravens Pro Bowl safety Ed Reed hinted at possible retirement during a radio interview earlier today, according to SiriusXM NFL Radio host Adam Schein.
Reed told Schein he isn’t 100 percent committed to playing football this season and is more concerned about his health and long term future than anything else.
Asked if the Ravens are aware of his stance, Reed replied:
“I’m sure they will after this interview.”
Reed’s interceptions may have gone down last season, but he still played at an elite level.
These statements continue the off season trend of players voicing concerns over their long-term health.
Of course, come training camp and pay day time, there’s a good chance Reed will decide that whatever percentage his commitment is at it will still be enough to keep playing.
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Marc Gené Elmer George Bob Gerard Gerino Gerini Peter Gethin
This Season for the NASCAR iRacing.com Class A Series (NiCAS) is off and rolling, and it rolled right into quite possibly the toughest oval track in the world for Week Two of the twelve week season. The famed Darlington Speedway is known for its rough and tumble racing, and this week did not disappoint. Making laps around the 1.366 mile, one groove, egg of a track is hard enough when practicing all alone, add 30+ cars into the mix and you have a recipe for mayhem. As to be expected, the yellow flag was out early and often in the majority of races and drivers struggled to find any grip or room to race. Even the best setup slips and slides all over the place, which is why experience always [...]
Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/iracing-news/off-and-rolling-in-darlington
Travis Wade Kvapil Robert Allen Labonte Terrence Lee Labonte Randy Joseph Lajoie Kevin Paul Lepage
Gov. Andrew Cuomo will not be in Albany after all, opting to attend the wake of longtime New York City labor leader Edward Malloy who died at the age of 77 this week. The wake is at 2 p.m. at the Frank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel on Madison Avenue in Manhattan. Malloy, a member of…
Source: http://www.capitaltonight.com/2012/05/cuomo-to-attend-malloys-wake/
Marc Gené Elmer George Bob Gerard Gerino Gerini Peter Gethin
Endurocross. It’s something you have to see to fully appreciate. The opening round of the 2012 Endurocross series took place recently at the Orleans Hotel and Arena in Las Vegas. Below you’ll find our photos and video from Round 1 in Las Vegas.
As always, the track design keeps improving and getting more and more difficult. This track had extreme obstacles, an ‘over-under’ bridge … and the arena was sold out.
Endurocross is once again going to be part of ESPN’s X Games Los Angeles this year, both men’s and women’s classes.
Source: http://www.supercross.com/features/2012-endurocross-opener-in-las-vegas
Filed under: Classics, Performance, BMW, Luxury
When we think of the BMW M division, the 1978 M1 comes instantly to mind, followed by the E30 M3 and then the 2001-2002 M Coupe. But the company’s in-house hot rod shop actually dates back to 1972, when it was formed as a subsidiary to manage the company’s racing operations, dubbed BMW Motorsport.
It was this month 40 years ago that what is known today as BMW M GmbH was launched. So to celebrate its anniversary, BMW has offloaded some 50 lustworthy images celebrating that performance history. See them all in our gallery.
Pics Aplenty: BMW celebrates 40 years of M originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 19:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/16/pics-aplenty-bmw-celebrates-40-years-of-m/
You probably know of Chad Reed. He’s originally from Australia, but has raced primarily here in the USA for over 10 years. He won the 2004 AMA Supercross Series Championship, the 2008 AMA Supercross Series Championship, and the 2009 AMA National Motocross Championship. And before all that, he raced in the World MX GP’s.
Chad had a fall at the recent Dallas Supercross. Here is my video message to Chad.
Source: http://www.supercross.com/rj-says/rj-says-video-blog-message-for-chad-reed
Loris Kessel Bruce Kessler Nicolas Kiesa Leo Kinnunen Danny Kladis
Erin has been doing a great job noting all the 40th anniversary coverage that has been going on nationally. They haven’t all been happy, happy, rah-rah events, however.
Former USWNT player, Brandi Chastain, was participating in one such event last week. The California Assembly was marking the anniversary by honoring Chastain and others. The event was conducted in the form of a resolution (my guess was that it was simply a resolution to honor Title IX). An assemblyman, Chris Norby, used the opportunity to decry the ways Title IX has been interpreted. (One of my all-time favorite excuses: we like the law, we just don’t like the way it has been put into effect.) It was his right, of course, as a member of a legislative body passing a resolution. Takes a fair amount of…something…to speak out in front of one of the most celebrated female athletes of the modern era, who is also a noted advocate for girls and women in sports.
Chastain wanted to offer a rebuttal of some sort. Alas it was not her right to do so because the event was not a public hearing.
Fortunately other legislators defended the legislation and offered examples of the why they provide their support and of continuing inequities.
Source: http://www.womentalksports.com/items/read/35/1345981
Kasey Kenneth Kahne Matthew Roy Kenseth Alan Dennis Kulwicki Travis Wade Kvapil Robert Allen Labonte
The Williams team is working with the fire services and the police to determine the root cause of the fire that broke out after the Spanish Grand Prix. Williams said the fire, which erupted some 90 minutes after the team had won its first race since 2004, had originated from the fuel area. The Grove squad confirmed four members of the team were injured in the incident
Nanni Galli Oscar Alfredo Gálvez Fred Gamble Howden Ganley Frank Gardner
? Nasri mocked those who said he joined City for money
? Wilshere hopes Arsenal will ‘rub his face in it’ next season
Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere has responded dismissively to Samir Nasri’s broadside at his old club, aiming to “rub his face in it next year”.
Nasri had followed winning the Premier League with Manchester City by telling fans at his old club to “celebrate their third-place achievement and I will focus on winning titles”.
The French midfielder was accused by many Arsenal fans of leaving for money last summer, when he swapped the Emirates for the Etihad in a £24m deal which doubled his wages to around £170,000 a week.
Wilshere, speaking to Talksport, said: “Fair play to him, he’s won a trophy but over the next couple of years that’s our goal ? to win a trophy. I can really see Arsenal winning a trophy, so maybe he spoke too soon and we can rub it in his face next year.”
After City’s first league title in 44 years Nasri told the French television channel TF1: “People at Arsenal tried to make out that I came here for the money. I hope they are watching me now, collecting my Premier League winner’s medal. I believe they have not won a trophy for many years now.
“I made the hard choice to come and fight for my place at a big club, and I have proved it correct. I now hope the Arsenal fans can get on with their lives and forget me.
“If all that I was interested in was money, the easiest decision would have been to stay at Arsenal, picking up my money every week and walking into the team. There are many people doing this right now at Arsenal.”
Johnny Herbert Al Herman Hans Herrmann François Hesnault Hans Heyer
A federal judge granted class-action status to a lawsuit challenging the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk tactics, saying she was disturbed by the city?s “deeply troubling apathy towards New Yorkers? most fundamental constitutional rights.” Hillary Clinton is getting a pass on gay marriage – for now. Greg David urges a “single standard” for all special interests – including
Source: http://www.capitaltonight.com/2012/05/extras-540/
Nanni Galli Oscar Alfredo Gálvez Fred Gamble Howden Ganley Frank Gardner
Bassist Flea Balzary and guitarist Josh Klinghoffer from the Red Hot Chili Peppers joined the multi-genre, multi-dimensional music maker, Damon Albarn, as part of Africa Express. The music project has helped bring Western musicians to Africian nations and African musicians to perform collaborations in the United Kingdom. Flea and Klinghoffer were two of the lucky [...]
Dani Sordo scored the biggest win of his career so far by cruising to victory on his Intercontinental Rally Challenge debut in Corsica. Driving an SMG-run Mini, Sordo spent the first part of the rally in a close fight with A-Style Ford driver Giandomenico Basso and championship leader Andreas Mikkelsen (Skoda UK).
Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/real-world-racing/3rdparty/sordo-wins-the-tour-de-corse
Peter de Klerk Christian Klien Karl Kling Ernst Klodwig Kamui Kobayashi
Filed under: Etc., Ferrari, Design/Style
This post isn’t for the weak of stomach or faint of heart. The sad truth of being an automotive enthusiast is that we’re all hoarders on some level. We yearn to collect various bits of paraphernalia plucked from our favorite race teams and derelict junkyard hulks. Now Charly Molinelli Design has elevated our pack rat tendencies to high art. Or at least clever interior design. Using the cubed remains of an indistinguishable Ferrari, the designer set about crafting a coffee table that doesn’t look like it belongs tucked away in a tacky man cave.
Behold, the Crashed Ferrari Table. The designer calls wedging the squared remains into the glass case “a dead hero placed into a coffin.” Sounds fitting to us. There’s no word on how much one of these would cost you if you wanted to take it home. Then again, there’s something more than a touch depressing about seeing all that red crammed into a pine box. Head over to the Molinelli Design site for a closer look at the table’s creation.
Crushed Ferrari makes for world’s most tragic coffee table originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 16 May 2012 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/16/crushed-ferrari-makes-for-worlds-most-tragic-coffee-table/
James Christopher McMurray Casey James Mears Juan Pablo Montoya Joseph Francis Nemechek III Ryan Joseph Newman
Washington Nationals pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg had a rough outing yesterday. And according to his manager, at least part of the problem was some stray “hot stuff” in a very sensitive area.
Johnson would not reveal exactly what happened to Strasburg, but according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post, it would seem that Strasburg accidentally applied some ointment to a sensitive part of his body.
You know, down there.
That led to this post-game press conference in which Johnson tries his best to explain what happened without explaining what happened (via MASNSports.com)…
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Gimax Richie Ginther Yves Giraud Cabantous Ignazio Giunti Timo Glock
? Manager Brian McDermott preparing for Premier League
? McCleary was Forest’s player of the year last season
Reading have made their first signing of the summer as they prepare for life in the Premier League by bringing in the Nottingham Forest winger Garath McCleary on a free transfer.
The 25-year-old was Forest’s player of the year this season, but his contract expired and he has signed a three-year deal at the Madejski Stadium.
Reading’s manager, Brian McDermott, said: “It’s important we have brought a player of Garath’s quality through the door. It’s an early signing for us, and a great one. We are absolutely delighted to get him.
“He’s young, he’s got an eye for goal, he’s very quick and has got a real energy about him. He wants to work hard and improve and, in all the players we have got here, that is a key attribute. And he’s a nice lad, so he’ll fit in well with what we’re trying to do at this club.”
Loris Kessel Bruce Kessler Nicolas Kiesa Leo Kinnunen Danny Kladis
Hey, you have to respect the dedication. Usain Bolt wants to win more Olympic gold medals, even if that means breaking up with his super fine Slovakian girlfriend in order to focus on training. Something tells us that sounded like a much better idea in theory than it will be in practice.
Source: http://www.sportsgrid.com/tabloid-fodder/usain-bolt-prefers-gold-to-girlfriend/
Scott Russell Riggs Hiroshi Fushida Beppe Gabbiani Bertrand Gachot Patrick Gaillard
Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, BMW, Chrysler, Ford, GM, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Toyota, Volkswagen
Before financial Stargate opened in September of 2008 and transported us to an entirely new economic dimension, it was oh so common to read about domestic automakers hammering Tier One suppliers to lower their prices. Of course, suppliers are still asked to find efficiencies, but pre-2008, it seemed a point of honor to hold a supplier’s feet to the fire. No more: in the latest Working Relations Index survey of suppliers by Detroit firm Planning Perspectives Inc., General Motors and Chrysler rocketed up the charts to bring the bunch much closer together.
Admittedly, the two companies are still in last place, with GM just ahead of Chrysler and Toyota and Honda still up top. But perspective and improvement is the issue here: in 2005, Toyota scored 415 and GM scored 114. In this year’s survey, Toyota scored 296 and Chrysler scored 248. It is the first time in the 12 years of the survey that the six automakers covered have been separated by less than 50 points. Chrysler’s jump was led by the efforts of the the late Dan Knott, whle GM’s improvement has been led by Bob Socia.
And yes, this is also a matter of the perennial leaders, Toyota and Honda, suffering a dip: in 2010 Toyota scored 327 and Honda 309, two years later, Toyota has dropped 31 points. Every automaker, however, from top to bottom acknowledged that they still have work to do with supplier relations. The benefits of good feelings are that suppliers tend to present their newest tech to, and make better parts for, the automakers with whom they have the best relationships. Naturally, it has been found that the reverse is true as well.
Nissan and Ford make up the middle two spots, where they’ve been for years. BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Hyundai aren’t on the list yet; PPI feels it doesn’t have enough data on the Germans to yet to officially include them, and it doesn’t have enough data on Hyundai to rank it at all. If the data gathered on the Germans was included, though, they would sandwich the rest of the field: BMW and Mercedes at the top, Volkswagen at the bottom a point shy of Chrysler.
Toyota, Honda top supplier survey with lower results, GM and Chrysler improve originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/15/toyota-honda-top-supplier-survey-with-lower-results-gm-and-chr/
Bill Homeier Kazuyoshi Hoshino Jerry Hoyt Nico Hülkenberg Denny Hulme
? Manager in the dark following meeting with FSG in Boston
? John W Henry assessing club’s eighth-place league finish
Kenny Dalglish is waiting to discover whether his second Liverpool reign is over having failed to receive assurances over his future from Fenway Sports Group during face-to-face talks in Boston.
Dalglish arrived back in England on Tuesday morning following a meeting with the principal owner, John W Henry, and the chairman, Tom Werner, in the United States at which he delivered his end-of-season review and outlined his strategy for much-needed improvement next season. The Liverpool manager instigated Monday’s talks in response to the uncertainty that has surrounded his position since defeat in the FA Cup final on 5 May.
FSG, however, is continuing to assess Liverpool’s poor eighth?place finish in the Premier League and the prospects of Dalglish and Steve Clarke, the assistant manager who accompanied his fellow Scot to Boston, returning Champions League football to Anfield. Contrary to the fevered speculation surrounding Dalglish’s brief trip, the Liverpool manager was not sacked and did not offer to resign.
But as Dalglish prepares to go on holiday on Wednesday, it is in the knowledge that the meeting with Henry and Werner, his explanation for Liverpool’s lowest league finish for 18 years and insistence that a major summer overhaul is unnecessary has not resolved the critical issue of whether he will remain as manager next season. FSG has refused to give assurances on Dalglish’s future since the FA Cup final and the lack of them during direct talks with the Liverpool manager demonstrates the extent of the owners’ reservations over the progress of his squad.
Henry stated at the start of the season that it would be “a major disappointment” should Liverpool fail to finish in the top four after a £120m investment in new players. Dalglish’s team did not mount a challenge for the Champions League places, although they did win the Carling Cup, Liverpool’s first trophy for six years, and reach the FA Cup final, and next season will be the club’s third consecutive campaign outside the European elite. The agent of Martin Skrtel, Liverpool’s player of the year, has claimed the Slovakian defender is concerned at the lack of Champions League football as he considers his options with two years remaining on his current contract.
Dalglish remains in limbo despite attempting to clarify FSG’s position by travelling to the United States. The Liverpool manager has identified several transfer targets for the summer but, without confirmation that his job is safe, the club would struggle to proceed in securing their signatures in the absence of a director of football or chief executive at Anfield. Dalglish does not negotiate transfer deals or contracts as the Liverpool manager.
FSG sacked Damien Comolli as director of football 48 hours before the FA Cup semi-final against Everton on the basis they needed to appoint a replacement as quickly as possible. Almost five weeks on, and two weeks before the transfer window officially reopens, the position remains vacant. The owners have also parted company with Liverpool’s head of sports science, Dr Peter Brukner, and head of communications, Ian Cotton, in recent weeks. In addition there has been no decision on whether to rebuild Anfield or proceed with a new stadium on Stanley Park since FSG replaced Tom Hicks and George Gillett as owners in October 2010.
Dalglish was handed a three-year contract when he replaced Roy Hodgson on a permanent basis 12 months ago and his departure would increase the vacuum at Liverpool, plus increase the pressure on FSG to appoint a proven successor to an Anfield legend who retains widespread support among the club’s fanbase.
The Liverpool manager responded to the uncertainty over his future by launching a staunch defence of his second tenure during his final pre-match press conference of the season on Friday. Dalglish cited the Carling Cup, Europa League qualification and the dramatic improvement since returning in January 2011 with Liverpool languishing four points above the relegation zone as evidence of progress. But he has received no indication from Henry or Werner that they share that assessment.
Carl Michael Edwards III William Clyde Elliott Jeffrey Michael Gordon Charles Robert Hamilton IV Charles Robert Hamilton V
Just the Facts, Ma’am: Five Chicago players went into double figures, led by Epiphanny Prince’s 15 points, and the Sky never trailed as they knocked out the New York Liberty 89-57 in a preseason matchup. Shey Peddy and Carolyn Swords each had 14 off the bench for the Sky, with Swords notching a double-double with ten rebounds. Plenette Pierson led the Liberty with 14 points.
For a lack of chemistry, a need for nametags, the urge to go bra shopping, OH GOD MY EYES, and a cute kid in a Kym Hampton jersey, join your intrepid and successfully caffeinated blogger after the jump.
Slower than the MTA at rush hour! More ponderous than a locomotive in molasses! Able to leap to giant conclusions in a single game! It’s… the Game Notes of Doom, back from their brief hibernation and cranky like a night owl in the morning!
So far, I am pleased with their choice of the center sections, or at least part of them, for the season ticket holders. We were placed pretty much dead center. I am much less pleased with the new floor. The first problem is that the endcourts and sidelines are now seafoam green. The second, much larger, problem is that Spoon’s number is missing from the floor. Look, guys, you couldn’t even properly respect her number by putting it in the rafters- now you don’t even leave it in its perverse place of honor? I have my issues with the Tropical Skittles color scheme, and with this gods-awful cover of Kurtis Blow that is playing right now. But forgetting your own history… that’s a bigger problem.
If this were Blaze, I would assume they were thinking of new ways to hack off the season ticket base. But this isn’t Blaze. This is a regime that was supposed to be better. The Detroit Shock were better than this. The Monarchs were better than this. It doesn’t make any damn sense. (According to data garnered from Melissa {our season ticket rep, henceforth known as “that poor unlucky wretch”}, the decal will be back for the regular season, so we’re standing down from orange alert, but it’s still not great forward thinking.)
I like the new shield design on the Sky shirts.
I try not to jump to conclusions based on preseason games, but it’s very hard not to. And if those conclusions are true, then we’re on an express train to Failville, with only the promise of a lottery pick that doesn’t quite fit waiting at the station.
Rosters only given out to season subscribers of a certain level, I suspect, since Melissa, that poor unlucky wretch, stopped by and never gave us one. Kind of a bummer when you don’t know who everyone is.
Carolyn Swords came off the bench and went into the paint like her life depended on beating up the New York Liberty. Professionally, it probably does, but it looked like there was a lot more at stake. She was very physical, which is about dang time, as far as I’m concerned. Shey Peddy did a lot more than I realized while looking at the floor; every so often I looked at the stats and did a double-take when I realized she was in double figures. (I think I was mixing her up with Epiphanny Prince. You can smack me upside the had later, Sky fans.) Ticha Penicheiro looked a lot older than she did last year. Still has a little of the old magic, but only in very brief flashes. Tamera Young’s giant elbow sleeve was a bit distracting, and she still has that bizarre hitch in her shot. Otherwise, she is who we have always thought she was. Felicia Chester got a fair bit of time, especially in the second half, and I don’t remember her being so much of a slue-footer/tripper, but I think she’s playing for her career. I don’t think it’s going to work, based on that game. Sydney Carter played a bit, but her primary goal seemed to be to get Plenette Pierson into a frothing fury.
I have come to a surprising conclusion, one that I suppose has been building for a few years and through quite a bit of travel: I really like Eshaya Murphy. She seems to be in the right place at the right time. She’s a hustle player. She seems protective of her teammates. At least from what I’ve seen on the court, she seems like someone who would be a good locker room presence. She probably shouldn’t have been taking as many shots as she did, and that’s her fatal flaw. Ruth Riley set screens and boxed out. She seems to have recognized what her role will be when Sylvia Fowles comes back. Epiphanny Prince was a nightmare for us on the offensive boards, and her shots always seemed to be coming from late in the clock or unlikely positions that resulted in a general deflation of the screaming kiddies. Le’Coe Willingham mostly played in the first half, and somehow managed to sink what I felt was the dagger- her second three was an off-balance mess of a shot that managed to catch nothing but net, and I knew we were pretty much toast if that kind of thing was going in for Chicago. Courtney Vandersloot disappointed me. She looked unsure of her teammates and unsure of herself. As old as Ticha looked, she’s going to have to shape up in a hurry when Options 1 and 2 return from National Team duty.
A team with Courtney Vandersloot and Ticha Penicheiro shouldn’t be committing two eight-second violations and a shot-clock violation. I’m just saying.
Kelley Cain, you have three reasonable options and one less reasonable option: 1) lose a bit of upper body weight; 2) gain strength and bulk in your calves; 3) let mama drag you and Kara Braxton to Orchard Corset so at least you won’t be falling out; 4) do nothing and eventually break some part of your lower body because you are top-heavy. She’s got the ability to board, and she’s certainly got the ability to be physical- her first play was to check Penicheiro into the stanchion- but I fear for her durability, especially when the West Coast Swing Of Doom approaches. Maybe I’ll be more optimistic about her when her team actually knows who she is. Laura Broomfield played long enough to miss a couple of shots, get a couple of offensive rebounds, and generally show that she wasn’t going to have a place on this roster. Raffaella Masciadri didn’t look half-bad for someone who just arrived. I’m usually impressed with someone whose first touch results in free throws. She does seem to be primarily a shooter, so if she can’t play Whiz’s defense she’ll be gone no matter what we in the stands thought of her. Alex Montgomery looked awful. Unless the Knicks and her buddy Iman exert a metric ton of pressure, she’s gone. Kelly Miller was better defensively than I remember, but she didn’t look like the point guard we needed. Also, I fear that someone’s going to stage an intervention for what’s left of her legendary bangs. The horror, my friends. The horror. Plenette Pierson played well in fits and starts, but she was whaling on Sydney Carter something fierce. I’ve come to the conclusion that Carter must have been whispering a constant stream of “Gig ‘em” at her. Essence Carson looked like one of the few players who gave a genuine damn about the game for the Liberty. Don’t let the +/- fool you. She was playing pretty good defense and getting on the boards.
I don’t know if Nicole Powell didn’t play because she had a hand problem, because Whiz already knows he’s keeping her, or because she was pretty bad today. But except for one shot and the first rebound of the game, she looked pretty awful. Which, sadly, is what we have come to expect from Nicole Powell. Kia Vaughn oscillated between being a presence in the post and a decorative light fixture unable to go after a simple rebound without screwing it up. I do wish she’d get it together already, though. DeMya Walker looked a little fuzzy at the start of the game, but then she got her offense going and starting hitting the floor with her usual regularity. (It’s been a while since we’ve had a Libkid. Zachara’s adorable and seems ready to steal Liberty fans’ hearts.) Leilani Mitchell was pretty solid- looked a little rusty communicating with her teammates, but we’ll get to that later. Cappie Pondexter started slow, but she got revved up at the end, and she was reaming her teammates out during one particular timeout. Trust me, they deserved it. I usually think Cappie can take a long walk off a short pier, but her teammates deserved every second of what appeared to be a lot of yelling.
Kara Braxton did not dress. Well, in basketball terms. I mean, she was wearing clothes and everything. I didn’t see her on the bench in the first half, but I might have been hallucinating.
Monique Ambers has the little scooter for her… Achilles? Now, the important question: does she have the little horn that she can toot at people to get them out of the way? Seattle fans might remember Wendy Palmer and her scooter. Lady Grooms is still part of the bench crew, at least at home. The new guy really needs to up his dress style.
Kelly Miller did not appreciate Peddy’s hands to the face that went uncalled. Things got sloppy late, but the refs were pretty much on top of things.
Tamera Young came up hobbling at one point in the second half, trying to play the possession on one leg. For whatever reason, Chatman wasn’t calling timeout. Yes, it turned out to only be a cramp, but if a player is hopping up and down on one leg, don’t pass her the ball. Murphy looked steamed at Chatman after that possession.
Stringer and the rest of the Rutgers coaches were there. (I admit, I spotted Chelsea Newton at first and assumed she’d come as a Monarch… then I saw Stringer.)
As you’ll see, the place was absolutely packed with school groups. (I am being a bit disingenuous. For whatever reason, they emphasized putting more people on our side, leaving those sections across from us empty. I think there was a camera involved somewhere.)
I do not agree with the push towards Times New Roman Italic. This is the Sparks’ font, kids. (Please, God, if You are mischievous, let Hollingsworth come back just so we can issue a #9 jersey in Sparks font and Lib colors.)
Overall, I am exceedingly disappointed in the Liberty’s performance against a Sky team missing both Fowles and Cash. Either get it together or fail in such epic fashion that Jim Lewis and Nolan Richardson can only shake their heads in awe.
Source: http://www.womentalksports.com/items/read/267/1345276
Kevin Michael Harvick Virgil Ernest Irvan III Kenny Dale Irwin Jr Dale Arnold Jarrett Jimmie Kenneth Johnson
Noora Naraghi recently traveled from Iran to the USA to pursue her motocross racing dream. Her MX dream? To learn how to ride and race motocross from Stefy Bau, former 2 time Women’s World Motocross Champion and owner/instructor of 211 MX school. 211 MX is the elite world wide motocross academy based in Florida, and designed specially for women riders and racers.
Source: http://www.supercross.com/mxgirls-feature/noora-naraghi-from-iran-chasing-her-motocross-racing-dream
Dave Kennedy Loris Kessel Bruce Kessler Nicolas Kiesa Leo Kinnunen
Victor Guerin will replace Brendon Hartley at Ocean Racing Technology for this weekend’s GP2 round at Barcelona.
Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/other-news/formula-cars/gp2/guerin-replaces-hartley-at-barcelona
Ingo Hoffmann Bill Holland Jackie Holmes Bill Homeier Kazuyoshi Hoshino
Filed under: Performance, Europe, Crossover, Infiniti
When it comes to supercars, the sky is the proverbial limit. You can literally spend millions. And with vehicles like the Rolls-Royce Phantom, Bentley Mulsanne and Maybach, you can spend hundreds of thousands on a top-of-the-line luxury sedan, too. But when it comes to SUVs, prices seldom if ever breach the $100K mark fetched by the likes of the Range Rover Autobiography Ultimate and the Porsche Cayenne Turbo.
There are a handful of automakers aiming to break that barrier though. Like the upcoming SUVs from Lamborghini and Bentley, the on-again, off-again Spyker D12, and this, the Infiniti FX Sebastian Vettel Version.
Based on the Infiniti FX50 S, the Vettel edition has had the output from its 5.0-liter V8 upped to from 390 horsepower to 414 for a 5.6-second sprint to 60 and a 186 mph top speed. The suspension is said to have been set up by the reigning two-time world champion himself, with the carbon fiber aero kit developed by his Red Bull Racing team. The only change we’ve heard of from the concept car pictured above to the production version will be a more conventional pearl white paint job instead of the matte white of the show car.
Only 200 examples will be produced, with 50 earmarked for continental Europe, and most of the rest likely heading to the Middle East. The price for such a high-end performance crossover? 120,000 euros, or about $155,000 in American greenbacks (if it were actually offered here). Of course if that still seems too slow and too cheap, you could always order a custom Juke-R from Infiniti’s parent company Nissan and smoke some supercars in the process.
Infiniti prices Sebastian Vettel edition FX at $155K originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 11 May 2012 17:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/11/infiniti-prices-sebastian-vettel-edition-fx-at-155k/
“>Floyd Anthony Raines Scott Russell Riggs Hiroshi Fushida Beppe Gabbiani Bertrand Gachot
Charles Pic – 21st: “I am quite happy to be honest. I think for me all round it is quite a good qualifying. We managed to improve the package for this weekend, but the gap to the cars in front today did not reflect that.
Yves Giraud Cabantous Ignazio Giunti Timo Glock Helm Glöckler Paco Godia
Noora Naraghi recently traveled from Iran to the USA to pursue her motocross racing dream. Her MX dream? To learn how to ride and race motocross from Stefy Bau, former 2 time Women’s World Motocross Champion and owner/instructor of 211 MX school. 211 MX is the elite world wide motocross academy based in Florida, and designed specially for women riders and racers.
Source: http://www.supercross.com/mxgirls-feature/noora-naraghi-from-iran-chasing-her-motocross-racing-dream
Yves Giraud Cabantous Ignazio Giunti Timo Glock Helm Glöckler Paco Godia
Vitaly Petrov – 19th: “I am very happy with today’s performance. It feels great to have it all come together in qualifying today and I want to thank the team for doing a great job and helping me put together a final lap like that. There was even more time to come as I made a small mistake in sector two that maybe cost me two or three tenths, but between FP3 and qualifying we found a good balance on the softs and a KERS map that I could really get everything out of, so it’s great to see it pay off with that sort of performance.
Jackie Holmes Bill Homeier Kazuyoshi Hoshino Jerry Hoyt Nico Hülkenberg
? Victory for hosts in first game at BBVA Compass Stadium
? Long range Brad Davis goal gives Houston victory over DC
Here at the Guardian, we are obviously at the forefront of modernity, as anyone currently bashing an F5 key (in the hope that some better commentary might miraculously appear if they just persist…) will tell you. And one only has to look at my blogging surroundings of Parker Field at ParkerPlex Park (brought to you in association with I Can’t Believe it’s not Ribs), to know that our surroundings are part of a holistic design for life that inspires us forward into a brave new future. It’s also why our prose is cramped and all our metaphors smell of cats.
So imagine our excitement at the prospect of greeting yet another new stadium to MLS this afternoon, as Houston Dynamo finally finish their road trip and move into the brand spanking new BBVA Compass Stadium – where if the 2010 form of the Red Bulls and the 2011 form of Sporting Kansas City in their new stadiums is anything to go by, the Dynamo will now proceed to sweep the Eastern Conference before them (at least until Montreal’s Saputo Stadium finishes its overhaul this summer, if this logic is to be believed). Sporting KC had a ten game road trip before Livestrong Park opened last summer, winning only one of them, before a backlog of games at their new home propelled them to win the regular season conference title – though they finally fell in the play-offs to this afternoon’s hosts. Houston did a little better on their road trip to start this season – starting with two tight wins at Chivas and San Jose and picking up a few draws along the way, though they’re winless in five and are coming off a 1-0 defeat to the Red Bulls in midweek.
But to be in the middle of the standings, with games in hand and having played all your games on the road, is a position Dominic Kinnear would gladly have taken at the start of the season – as last season showed, he’s a coach who understands that the MLS season is all about still being in contention when the play-offs come around and peaking at the right time. His Dynamo side rode the set piece plays of Brad Davis all the way to the MLS Cup Final last season – though their eventual loss to the Galaxy was slightly anti-climactic, not only for the defeat, but for the loss of Davis, to injury, in the Conference Final. This season, the returning Brian Ching and Will Bruin have led the front line with more nuisance value than consistent firepower – the Dynamo have generally competed in each game without looking like they have the pace and multi-dimensionality to blow anyone away. Anyway, Ching and Bruin were both rested for the New York game – the former, Mr Dynamo, would not want to miss this stadium opening for anything.
Another Houston Dynamo legend returns with the opposition today, as Dwayne De Rosario arrives to face the team he ended his mini-scoring drought against just a few weeks ago at RFK Stadium. That game was a thrilling 3-2 victory for DC, with both Dynamo goals coming from Bruin and Maicon Santos, a player who seems to have found the right team and the right form at the right time, scoring twice for DC.
.
Santos has been a revelation this season, alongside Chris Pontius, who has found his own rich vein of scoring form. DeRo has been a constant threat and supplier all season, but now that he has added goals back into the mix and the designated player Hamdi Salihi has started scoring too, after a muted start, there should be no shortage of threat up front from this DC side (even without the set piece service of the impressive rookie DeLeon – out with a hamstring strain). If we get another game like the last one we could be in for a treat.
Team news, and more on the new stadium, shortly, but for now, get cracking on your predictions, thoughts, and architectural name-dropping and send them to @KidWeil or GuardianUSsportslive@gmail.com and stay with me for the game itself.
If you’ve not already done so, do yourself a favor and read Tom Dart’s article on the new Houston stadium and some great context on what it represents for the team and the league. Then go to your inbox, where I’ve emailed you my notes for this game, hit Select All and Delete, since Tom’s done a far better job than I could and has saved me valuable time to hover over my keyboard trying to remember where the Return key is?
Since the Red Bulls went on their recent mini streak with a back four with a total of something like -3 games between them, it’s been all the rage. DC started their last game with 3 out of 4 of their backline playing out of position ? including winger Andy Najar getting a start at right back (where he briefly played in his Academy years). United promptly kept a clean sheet for the first time in six games.
Houston of course aren’t new to this converting players business, and aside from the contribution of Davis last season, a big part of their late season form was the conversion of Geoff Cameron from a midfielder to a center back, where he stabilized the back four and proved to be a revelation in that position. With that in mind, team news in a moment?
Houston Dynamo:
Hall; Taylor, Boswell, Cameron, Hainault; Carr, Moffat, Watson, Davis; Ching (C), Bruin
DC United: Hamid; Russell, McDonald, Woolard, Korb; Cruz, Kitchen, De Rosario (c), Najar; Santos, Pontius
As expected, the preferred Dynamo front line of Ching and Bruin return for the first game in “The House that Ching built”.
Najar looks to have been pushed up from defense to a more familiar wing position, while Santos and Pontius lead the if-it-aint-broke-don’t-fix-it attack – with that man DeRo hovering just behind them.
Getting close to kick off now as the NBC Sports Network coverage kicks in – the Unflappable Arlo White? is in front of a very orange background extolling the virtues of the stadium’s downtown location.
Speaking of new homes, we always mention Arlo White – and he and the NBCSN team have had a very solid start to leading the MLS tv coverage for the first time this season.
DeRo got a generous welcome from the home fans in the warm up by the way. Let’s see if he’s feeling equally generous after kick off…
Cameras showing footage of the pillars honoring Dynamo legends, which are a key architectural feature of the new stadium.
We’re being reminded that Ching scored the first ever goal for the franchise at Dynamo’s previous home Robertson Stadium (he actually got 4, with 4 assists from…De Rosario). He scored the last goal at the stadium too – are the stars lined up for him to score first at their new home? Or will the other team legend (also honored on one of those pillars) spoil the party?
Products I didn’t know I needed and driving rock as we await the teams. Just time to glance over at the other afternoon’s game where Montreal are beating an ever more hapless Galaxy 1-0 – scoring after just 8 minutes through Davy Arnaud. Just over half an hour gone in that one.
The 2006-2007 MLS Championship banners are unveiled (with just a hint of comedic struggle that the cameras mercifully cut away from) to complete the final touches for the stadium and we’re ready for the teams to emerge.
Lots of it… The teams walk out in front of a packed stadium that’s covered in a single hue of startling color. Brian Ching looks somewhat emotional. Brad Davis looks somewhat…sweaty. It’s pretty hot looking down on the field (more on that later).
Time for the national anthem – sung by Jessica Clemmons – who also performed the honors at Houston’s first ever home game. She delivers it with admirable lack of free styling and we’re ready for the off.
It really does look warm out there…
Ben @dickersonpk writes in to say: “@kidweil Red Bulls, who I am cursed to support, opened their park with skydivers. We would have preferred championship banners as in Houston”
And we’re off. DC United kick off, just after Ching and Davis have tapped in a couple of ceremonial ‘opening goals’ into the net at their own end. Fireworks explode and this stadium is open…
Almost a dream start as Taylor gets Davis free down the left. But his dangerous looking cross evades everyone in the center.
Houston understandably looking to harry early on, though don’t expect the pace to stay high all game. DC taking early chances to hold possession where they can though.
Hamid, back in favor in goal for DC after his Olympic qualifying nightmare, shanks a kick into touch.
Hall is a little slow to come out as Cameron tries to shepherd a DeRo through ball back to him. No shots on goal yet as the sides feel each other out.
Another overhit Houston cross from the left as Houston look to pressure a makeshift DC central defense, trying to cope without Dudar.
Houston trying to press the issue but De Rosario intercepts – he’s so clearly the fulcrum of this DC side. Houston can’t afford to allow that to happen too often. Cruz drifts offside though and DC’s attack breaks down.
Hamid and McDonald make a bit of a hash of a routine defensive play, but get away with it. Now DC try to get forward, but Houston are pressing them well. Santos gets clear down the right however and forces a corner of Boswell.
Corner comes in and Houston get a foul from McDonald, who claims he was being held. As Houston go up the other end Ching tries to release Carr on the edge of the box, then a moment later sprints in on a dangerous looking low cross and Hamid has to get down sharply to deny him in the 6 yard box. That’ll help Hamid’s confidence.
DC trying to get on the ball and silence the crowd, but there’s not much room on a narrow pitch. But Najar does get wide and flashes in a dangerous cross that Boswell just nips in front of Santos to clear for another DC corner…
Sorry, actually a goal kick. Seems it was Santos who did the ‘nipping’, just not the ‘directing on target’…
Pontius goes down in the box and appeals to the ref, but nothing doing. Despite Houston’s pressing, the best chances so far have gone to DC.
Now De Rosario gallops forward with his head up and releases Cruz. Taylor has to dive in to concede the corner…
…Houston head it clear, from Najar’s cross. DC maybe missing the set pieces of DeLeon today.
DC pressure now. An attacking throw near the corner flag comes into the box. Houston get it clear and knock it forward, but their front line is not really made for sprinting for balls in space and DC get the ball back. They’ll be happy with their start.
Houston getting a little frustrated at not being able to stay in advanced positions. A little spot of possession ends with Davis hitting a cross too close to Hamid, who gathers easily and without pressure.
Carr looks to get behind the DC defense down the right and he manages to turn and get a cross in towards the lurking Ching, but it drifts out.
In no way bitter communication, part 2, as Jason (“a mate of a DC United supporter”) writes in to say:
“Dynamo debut their new stadium while their opposition is stuck in a rapidly deteriorating pit with no hope of escape soon.”
RFK is pretty infamous. Team’s looking good though…
Cutaway shot of Ching’s “pillar”. He’s not had much chance to do more to affect the game than it has, so far. Still Houston 0 DC 0.
Long ball forward looking for Santos, which Taylor is forced to hack clear for a throw in in a threatening position for DC.
In the resulting play DeRosario lashes one into the stands. Perry Kitchen down in a little bit of trouble after landing awkwardly a few minutes ago. We may see a DC sub.
King on for Kitchen to take the holding midfield role. From the restart there’s another DeRo surge but his attempt to spread the play is cut out – no question of which of the big players on display is dominating this game though.
Finally, a dangerous cross from Houston as Hainault hits a low diagonal ball that Korb has to be alert to. More Dynamo men in the DC half than for some time in this game. A low harmless Bruin drive ends the attack, but this is a little more promising.
Now Dynamo have a throw in the DC half and players amble forward for it. Now a DC handball gives Houston a dangerous free kick to the right side of the box…
…dangerously whipped in by Davis. Hamid punches clear before Boswell attempts an improvised kick goal wards from behind him. Hamid gathers easily. That set piece galvanized the crowd though.
Ching picks the ball up deep and Houston press up behind him. They can’t quite get a shot off though and eventually Cruz slides the ball out for a first corner for the Dynamo…
Davis whips a near post cross in that Cameron flicks on for Boswell at the back post – but the ball comes at him too fast for him to adjust and he flashes his shot over the bar. Best chance yet for Houston though, who are getting in to this.
Always a gamble for the Dynamo. They need to commit men forward, given their style of play, but are very aware of how quickly DC can surge forward on the counter. They’re looking more adventurous as the half goes on though. More defensive problems for DC, as McDonald goes down under a challenge from Davis. He’ll continue though. Still Houston 0 DC 0.
Game getting a little scrappy for the moment. Both sides perhaps happy to go in level at the half.
20 minutes to go in the Montreal vs LA game by the way. David Beckham has equalized for the Galaxy (who says he can’t play on turf?). Corner for the Dynamo here…
…headed clear for another corner by Russell…
…yet another whipped near post cross that Hainault is able to glance on target with his foot. Hamid dives down to grab it. DC go up the other end and now they have a corner…
…Bruin almost heads the ball back into trouble as he tries to clear. Houston eventually break forward but some bad first touches let them down on a promising break.
Last scheduled minute of the half. Cruz is barged hard by a mistimed Taylor challenge in front of the benches. Naturally both coaches are quick to complain/blog/tweet their responses to this turn of events – though neither of them saw the same incident, evidently. Taylor is booked.
As the half looks to be drifting scrappily to a close, Houston, who looked to be seeing out the half without much ambition, suddenly get men in the box and the ball breaks for an unmarked Watson – who should have done way better than to drive the ball just over the bar for the last action of the half (and the best chance). Half time: Houston 0 DC 0. Half time thoughts in a moment.
DC United showed up with little pressure on them and in the early exchanges it showed – as they got forward and tried to move the ball well through De Rosario.
Houston looked pretty subdued and cautious as DC stretched them, though as the half went on (and Kitchen went off) they began to press that bit further up the pitch and commit some players in the final third. When they did they looked like getting some joy. The set pieces of Davis were a constant menace, and you’d imagine Houston would fancy their chances on 50-50 balls in the heart of the DC box. Sure enough, with the last kick of the half, Watson had a great chance to open the scoring but couldn’t get his shot on target.
So not the goal fest we might have been hoping for from their last game (yet…), but the stage is still set for Ching to do something story book in the second half.
Amid the obligatory “OOH”s and “AAH”s of appreciation for Houston’s striking new stadium, there have been one or two murmurs of dissent about the lack of breezeways in the ground. This feature, or lack of it, means that in the midsummer months, the field will essentially become a big Texas oven (as the first half showed, it’s already very hot down there at pitch level). The mesh grilles you see in the picture above are designed to allow air flow to move round and cool the fans down, but the consensus is that that’s not really the case down on the field.
Whether this constitutes home advantage or a mutually limiting environment for both teams to negotiate in the hottest months, is a moot point, but it will doubtless have an influence on the tempo of games. And with the current Houston side relying less on speed then physical dominance on a narrow pitch, perhaps the stadium will favor their game in the short run at least. Other sides will have to find ways to deal with the heat ? hopefully with slightly more elegance than this lot.
In the other game, the Galaxy look to be once again dropping points against an Impact side who are developing some quietly impressive home form. Deep into injury time there.
And we’re off again. Straight away Moffat hammers a 35 yard shot that Hamid has to tip wide for a corner. DC eventually get it clear. Bright start from the hosts though.
Houston showing more intent/numbers up front at the start of the half. The word on the Perry Kitchen injury is that it’s “not good” by the way.
A DC United corner is cleared for a Houston break but Korb is alert to the danger and sprints across to poke the ball out for a throw. Now Houston are pressing again, but once again the final cross is poor and Hamid gathers easily.
Dangerous diagonal ball comes in to the Houston box, where Hall is beaten to the cross, but it goes for a goal kick.
Cruz goes over in the box with what looks like a dive over Boswell. Nothing given (no Yellow card for Cruz for that matter)
De Rosario takes a bit of a knock as he’s squeezed between two DC players. A moment later a poor Hmaid kick almost becomes a chance for Houston, but Ching overhits his through pass for Bruin. Still Houston 0 DC 0.
Come onnnnnnnnnnnn. Give us a goal. Carr once again gets clear down the right and throws in a dangerous cross towards Ching, which Hamid does well to get to. He tries to set Pontius clear at the other end, but his barging run is blocked and he’s forced off the ball. Tempo lifting a little though.
Pontius and Santos break and the latter manages to get free on the left of the box, but he pulls his shot wide of the far post without working the keeper. Olsen has seen enough from his attacking tandem and brings off Pontius for Salihi.
Foolish back heel from De Rosario is intercepted by Davis who starts a move that almost ends with Ching bundling a close range header home. DC get the lucky break however and the ball deflects back for Hamid. Houston pressing though and now they have another corner…
…Davis crosses but Santos heads it clear. Big sense of anticipation from the crowd every time Davis gets one of those set pieces. Game becoming stretched as Salihi almost gets free on the counter.
McDonald has to make a timely block as Davis tries to curl in a shot from outside the box. Moffat follows up on the rebound and strikes a ball wide with the outside of his boot. Definitely the most lively period of the game.
Watson gets up to head the ball goal wards from the edge of the box, but his header has no power. Now DC try to build and Najar crosses from the left. Hall dives and gathers though. But it’s a rare chance for DC in this half.
DC trying to kill the tempo of the game as the heat begins to tell. De Rosario pops up in the left of the Dynamo box, but it just serves to remind how deep he’s been playing since Kitchen went off. DC move the ball around at walking pace for a moment. Santos looks to be in trouble.
Wolff warming up for DC, in what would be their final substitution, with the game still poised at 0-0. Camargo comes on for Watson to try and spark the attacking midfield position.
Davis (67 mins) Houston 1 DC 0
Absolute screamer from Davis! Left foot strike from outside of the box that Hamid can only parry into the net. Houston have the lead and it’s game on.
So it wasn’t Ching who got the first goal at the stadium, but Davis is just as big a story book scorer. Stadium noise lifts a decibel or twenty as Houston press again.
Now Watson flashes a long shot past the DC post. Clark comes in for Carr.
DC trying to both calm themselves down and increase the urgency as they search for an equalizer. De Rosario spreads a great ball wide, but when the return eventually comes in it’s too close to Hall.
Houston surge forward again and Moffat slips the ball to Bruin on the right of the box. He fires straight at Hamid who can only parry, but noone is there for the rebound. All Houston this half.
Now we get a yellow card for simulation as Josh Wolff is booked for diving. That looked harsher than the Cruz offense that went unpunished in the box earlier.
Houston looking more confident in moving the ball around now. Clark getting lots of space down the right and he crosses in for Ching, whose shot is blocked at point blank range. Then a minute later the ball is squeezed through to him again and he stretches to put the ball over from 6 yards. Surprisingly it’s still only 1-0 to Houston.
No doubt which side is coping better with the heat in the second half, as DC look to have wilted. Camargo tries to chip the ball through to Ching when Clark looked a better option out wide. Kinnear is less than pleased.
Clark causing havoc down the right hand side and his ball into the box makes its way to Davis, who wriggles clear to force DC into a hashed clearance.
Ching tries to force a back heel into the net but it’ll be another corner regardless. Another near post corner, that Cameron fails to get his header on target from and some welcome relief for DC.
Korb is struggling but manages to flick a Davis cross clear. De Rosario has a free kick in the Houston half…
Kandji set to come on for Houston, as Hall claims what turns out to be an overhit Najar free kick.
Huge roar as Kandji comes in for Ching, who’ll maybe be disappointed not to get his goal, but after his move to Montreal pre-season, he’ll probably be glad just to be here at all. Kandji’s pace will help keep that DC back line stretched.
DC throwing the ball up front but Salihi is offside as Houston look to defend pretty easily. Kandji gets clear down the right, then some Bruin trickery sets up Davis for a shot that deflects off Russell for a corner, with the defender not knowing much about it…
…Davis launches another dangerous corner into the DC box, but after a little pinball Hamid is able to dive on a scuffed Hainault shot.
DC looking a little out of ideas, and very out of breath. Still only 1-0 though and Houston can’t over commit at this late stage.
Looking back on the game, Kitchen’s loss really took the momentum away from DC’s midfield and De Rosario has been quiet since. And as I type that Kyle Martino is saying the same thing. I thought of it first, I swear…
Kandji does a little juggling to hold the ball up, and an unimpressed Woolard barges him off the ball. 4 minutes time added on for DC to salvage something.
It’s Houston who are attacking though. A Bruin surging run comes to nothing, but Houston are able to stroke the ball around to a chorus of “Ole”s.
Stupid free kick conceded by Moffat just outside the box. Moffat booked. DeRo over it…
…DeRosario curled it in for Woolard, whose header is straight at Tally Hall – that may have been DC’s best, last chance.
It’s all over. Houston Dynamo 1 DC United 0. Final thoughts in a moment.
DC came into the game without fear and left it with barely a whimper, as the Texan heat seemed to sap their strength and ambition.
As we said before the game, Dominic Kinnear knows all about getting a team to peak at the right time – including, it would seem, during games. Houston dominated the second half and deserved their goal – a Brad Davis long range special to delight the fans. It wasn’t their easiest chance and if anything they were a little profligate in front of goal, but the Dynamo fans won’t care. They have a new home and a win to christen it.
That’s all from me. Thanks to those of you who wrote in. See you on Monday for Five Things We Learned This Weekend…
Source: http://feeds.guardian.co.uk/~r/theguardian/football/rss/~3/s9mof6zJmRo/houson-dynamo-dc-united-live
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Filed under: Concept Cars, Frankfurt Motor Show, Hatchback, Volkswagen
Volkswagen worked with Fender, its stereo partner, to put together the concept Beetle shown at last year’s Frankfurt Motor Show. The concept had an iPod dock set into amp-like mesh, a tube amp, sunburst-patterened wood trim and a trunk-mounted sub you could plug your guitar into.
Car and Driver reports that a production version is coming, perhaps before the end of the year, but it will be missing several of the components that made the concept that much cooler, like the mesh-decorated dock, the tube amp and the port in the sub. Oh, and the sunburst-pattern trim might not be made of wood.
There’s plenty that could remain, though. The black concept featured special red and chrome trim, a leather roof, and sat on a lowered suspension with 19-inch wheels. Those could make it through the production transition, as well as the high-end Fender stereo system, naturally.
Volkswagen to offer Fender edition Beetle originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 12 May 2012 18:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/05/12/volkswagen-to-offer-fender-edition-beetle/
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Antonio Felix da Costa gave Carlin the first pole of the 2012 GP3 season at Barcelona. The Portuguese driver edged out Lotus duo Conor Daly and Aaro Vainio in a top three covered by just 0.090 seconds
Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/real-world-racing/3rdparty/da-costa-on-pole-for-gp3-opener
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Johnny Herbert will contest three Superstars rounds this year, the championship has announced. The three-time grand prix winner raced in the saloon series in 2011, taking sixth in the standings, and had been expected to return for this year’s Donington Park event on 19-20 May
Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/real-world-racing/3rdparty/herbert-gets-three-superstars-outings
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