I Dig Sports
BARBERVILLE, Fla. As Justin Peck lined up eighth on the starting grid of Saturdays main event, the sprint car world watched intently as he attempted a third win in three nights. Thirty laps later, all doubters were silenced.
Peck, 27, of Monrovia, Ind., completed a sweep of the American Sprint Car Series (ASCS) National Tour action at Volusia Speedway Park, leading the final 14 laps of the feature to claim the $12,000 grand prize and the Big Gator trophy as division champion of the 54th Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals.
In doing so, Peck became the third driver in ASCS National Tour history to win the first three races of the season, joining Jason Martin (2023) and Sam Hafertepe Jr, who won the first five races in 2017.
Unlike his wins on Thursday and Friday, Peck was forced to come from deeper in the field on Saturday after drawing the 10 pill in the dash draw. He was able to move forward two spots in the dash to put him eighth on the feature starting grid. Still, Peck and the Rudeen Racing No. 26 refused to be hindered, driving by four of the seven cars ahead of him on the first lap.
Basically, what happened was, the whole outside row let go to the middlebottom and I was able to kinda have the top lane to myself in (Turns) 1 and 2, Peck said. That was kinda my plan to try to pick off a car or two in Turns 1 and 2 and then just kinda file out and pick them off as we went. Luckily, it worked out. I was able to pick off four of them right off the rip.
After getting around polesitter Austin McCarl for second on Lap 9, Peck set his sights on leader Brian Brown and quickly took the spot away with a single slide job maneuver in Turn 1 on Lap 16.
I was able to get such a run on him off of (Turn) 2 that I was way too close to him, and it was such a slick transition to try and to go from the top off of 2 to get to the bottom down into 3, Peck said. I could carry enough momentum, but Id spun my tires through that slick trying to peel across. I just had to set that gap going down the backstretch, that way I could get into 3 with clean air and try to get that big run down the frontstretch. Luckily, I was able to time it pretty good.
When (Peck) passed me, within reason, he made a really good move and cleared three lapped cars at the same time and that really was a race-winning move because now I have to race those lapped cars, Brown said.
Brown and the rest of the field got one final chance to make a bid for the lead when the caution flag was displayed with three laps left, erasing the near six-second lead Peck had amassed. However, not to be denied, Peck sped off before his opponents could catch him on the restart.
I knew I needed to get a good restart and get down the frontstretch with speed, that way I didnt open myself up for the slider, Peck said. It was such a slick bottommiddle that if I just had speed going down the frontstretch, I figured I was probably gonna be fine because there wasnt any traffic. There wasnt any dirty air, and Brian (Brown) had to be in my dirty air.
Brown crossed the stripe second, and while he applauded his teams efforts over the three-day stretch, he conceded to Peck.
Hes been the class of the field since we unloaded on Thursday, Brown said. I thought maybe with him getting buried hes been close to the front the last two nights, so I was thinking maybe a bad pill draw in the Dash and then him getting a row there and having him start eighth I was thinking it would take him too long to get there.
McCarl was able to hold onto the third spot after a fierce battle with Cole Macedo in the closing laps.
Lapped traffic got hairy, and me and Cole had a couple really good sliders, damn near banging wheels off of (Turn) 2 one time up in the stuff, McCarl said. Thats what this place should be. You watch a lot of old videos and its wide up on the fence. Ive always said I thought Volusia was one of the most underrated tracks in the country.
The finish:
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 26-Justin Peck[8]; 2. 21-Brian Brown[2]; 3. 88-Austin McCarl[1]; 4. 2C-Cole Macedo[7]; 5. 48-Danny Dietrich[6]; 6. 51T-Scotty Thiel[5]; 7. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[4]; 8. 44-Chris Martin[11]; 9. 20-Brady Bacon[9]; 10. 27A-Emerson Axsom[3]; 11. 36-Jason Martin[12]; 12. 28F-Davie Franek[13]; 13. 52-Blake Hahn[21]; 14. 2J-Zach Blurton[18]; 15. 24M-Danny Martin Jr[14]; 16. 34-Sterling Cling[16]; 17. 95-Matt Covington[22]; 18. 88R-Ryder Laplante[15]; 19. 6G-Bryan Gossel[23]; 20. 4-Cameron Martin[19]; 21. 16TH-Kevin Newton[17]; 22. 63-Josh Weller[20]; 23. 2-Whit Gastineau[24]; 24. 13P-Daison Pursley[10]
West Ham head coach Graham Potter has described being sacked by Chelsea as the "best thing that happened to me" ahead of the Premier League clash between the two sides on Monday.
Potter replaced Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea in September 2022 but his tenure proved to be ill-fated, lasting just seven months before being dismissed with the team in the bottom half of the table.
"You know in a football life you're going to get ups and downs," Potter said when asked about the stint.
"I didn't want to lose my job. But at the same time I look back now and maybe it's the best thing that happened to me.
"Maybe the next 10 to 20 years is going to be great because of the experience I've had. I just look at it as a learning experience. I've got no bad feelings towards Chelsea, I've still got a lot of good relationships with the people there."
Potter replaced Julen Lopetegui at West Ham in January, his first job after leaving the west London club. Since his arrival, West Ham have earned four points in three games having beaten Fulham, lost to Crystal Palace and drawn with Aston Villa.
"I'm just looking forward to the journey I'm on now with West Ham at this great club and getting that connection with the supporters, working with the team and building something that we're really excited about and proud about here," Potter said.
West Ham are 14th in the standings with 27 points. Chelsea sit sixth having struggled for form in the league, winning one of their last seven games.
United States striker Ricardo Pepi has extended his contract with PSV through to 2030.
Pepi was subject of a $26 million (25m) bid from West Ham last week, an approach PSV rejected, according to ESPN sources. News of that interest came soon after he played a starring role in PSV's 3-2 win over Liverpool, where he scored the winner.
But it was a bittersweet couple of days for Pepi, as he suffered a knee injury in that triumph which will keep him on the sidelines for between one to three months. The news came as a blow to Pepi, who has been in remarkable form for PSV this season.
Pepi, 22, has 11 goals in 18 Eredivisie appearances, and 17 goals in 27 appearances across all competitions. That form has seen several teams take notice of him in the January window, but he has opted to prolong his stay with PSV. His original contract was up in 2028, but that's now been extended through to 2030.
"It's a difficult week for me, but I'm still very happy at the moment and that's because of this deal," Pepi said. "Thanks to the enormous amount of love and opportunities PSV gives me and the special club that PSV is, I had no doubts about extending my contract. We have already experienced many unforgettable moments together and hopefully many special milestones will follow."
Talking about his knee injury, Pepi said: "At the time it happened, I thought the injury wasn't too bad. But the next day I knew something was wrong. This is unfortunately the risk of our profession, but I assure you that I will be back as soon as possible."
Manchester United have completed the signing of full-back Patrick Dorgu from Serie A club Lecce, the Premier League club have announced.
Sources told ESPN that United agreed a fee of 30 million ($31.1m) plus a possible 5m in performance-related bonuses with Lecce. The 20-year-old has signed until 2030 with the option of an additional year.
The Denmark international becomes Ruben Amorim's second signing since he took charge and fills a major need on the left in the Portuguese manager's system.
A source has told ESPN that United also explored the possibility of re-signing Álvaro Fernández from Benfica but Dorgu was their top target in January after impressing in Italy in recent seasons.
Dorgu, who has been capped four times by his country, was snapped up as a teenager by Lecce from FC Nordsjælland and made his debut for the team in 2023-24, going on to make 32 appearances in that campaign.
He has also been a mainstay of the lineup this season and has contributed three goals and an assist.
England's mental and physical resilience under scanner in Ashes inquest
A failure to cope with pressure and physical preparation will form key lines of inquiry during a review of England's 16-0 Ashes drubbing aimed at turning performances around in time for the 50-over World Cup in October.
"It's been very evident that the Australia women's cricket team are setting new standards of athleticism in our sport and that's obviously one area where we have been out-shone," Connor said.
"One thing I think will be true is that our players will have to look at that level of athleticism and speed and power and the athleticism that is evident in their fielding and see that as a new benchmark.
"Credit to Australia for taking the standards of international women's cricket to another level over the last month. Their ruthlessness in doing that is admirable and I think will give us a huge amount to think about as we go home and reflect."
They were dominated physically and mentally by the Australians, who suffered several injuries to key players yet were able to adapt and crush their opponents.
"One of the main things that is evident is the ability to play under pressure," Connor said. "We have shown glimpses of being able to do that, certain individuals have, but as a collective we have to be honest and say that we haven't handled the pressure of this series in the way that we want to and we'll need to compete in future Ashes and a World Cup every year. That'll be a key area of focus, and how we fast-track that capability."
But those attempts to accelerate learning against sides which otherwise posed little challenge fell flat against the mighty Australians, and at the T20 World Cup before that, where England exited in the group stages after a shocking fielding performance against West Indies.
"One of the reflections, immediate reflections, and I'm sure it'll evolve over the coming weeks, is the sort of scarcity of time when our players are under pressure," Connor said.
"The run-in to the T20 World Cup last October, we'd dominated all of the cricket we'd played in for almost 18 months. Within that were two white-ball series wins against Australia in the home Ashes in 2023 where we got onto a run of confidence and performance and skill that exposed Australia under pressure and showed some of their vulnerability when you can get into them."
"Heather [Knight] and Jon [Lewis] are more disappointed and frustrated than anybody."
Connor recognised that England's leadership is under pressure
While Connor spoke of trying to find more ways to put players under pressure, including through the domestic system and A-team tours, another theme emerged.
England seem to struggle with tempering the confidence gained from successfully navigating those situations with the reality of facing a superior side. They need to move beyond the satisfaction of pushing Australia in 2023 and focus on ways to dominate them.
Hosting India this summer before big crowds could prove a helpful test ahead of October's 50-over World Cup in India, and Connor believes there is no alternative but to turn England's form around by then.
"We have to do that," she said. "We have to use time wisely. We've now got the opportunity to really hold the mirror up to where we are and what has gone well and what hasn't gone well and what needs to happen and when, by whom, to take the team forward."
"I think there's a lot of collective learning for us around leadership," Connor told a media briefing by phone from Melbourne. "Heather and Jon are more disappointed and frustrated than anybody.
"Everybody on this call knows what Heather Knight pumps into being England women's captain. So that will form part of discussions over the coming weeks, all of the areas of accountability in our set-up, with the ultimate goal of, in the short term, being ready for this summer and then being ready to get on a plane to the World Cup in India.
"With any team sport defeat or success, responsibility for that and accountability lies with lots of us. It's not just the captain and the head coach, it's people who are all in leadership positions making decisions. We won't shy away from difficult and honest conversations about how to take the team forward because that's our jobs, for several of us."
The absence of a clear-cut successor to Knight amid a four-pronged leadership group that also includes Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amy Jones and Sophie Ecclestone, or beyond, should also be considered when assessing the captaincy position.
That followed Hartley's comments after England bowed out of the T20 World Cup, in which she said that a handful of players were "letting the team down" with their fitness levels.
"Our players in general embrace their media obligations," Connor said. "It matters to them to be good role models for women's cricket and the England women's cricket team. As professional women's cricket has developed at the rate that it has over recent years, that scrutiny is something that we will all have to embrace and accept."
Valkerie Baynes is a general editor, women's cricket, at ESPNcricinfo
World Cup ecstasy for Indian teens who want to create 'legacy of winning ICC trophies'
"Coming at the start of the tournament, I think I mentioned one thing that we are here to dominate, we are here to make sure that India stays on top."
India had chased in four of the six games before the final, and they won all those matches comfortably, never losing more than two wickets. After South Africa won the toss and chose to bat in the title bout, India just replicated the template that served them so well through the competition, their spinners playing a pivotal role in getting the opposition out for 82.
"We are definitely going to create this legacy of winning ICC trophies, winning a lot of trophies for India," Prasad said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
Prasad had to put behind her the disappointment of not making the squad for the previous Under-19 World Cup, which India won under the captaincy of Shafali Verma in 2023, but she's soaking it all in now.
"I think I'm feeling really happy that I am right here standing, making sure that India stays on top. And it's obviously a special moment that we're playing the World Cup and doing this for India," she said.
India lost the toss and were asked to bowl. Prasad said India drew from their experience bowling first in most of their matches in the competition.
"I think all of us just tried to stay calm and down-to-earth and just stick to doing what our job is," she said.
"I think if we would have won the toss we would have definitely chosen batting but you know throughout the tournament we've been bowling well and we've been bowling first [more] so nevertheless we just wanted to go out there and show what we can do."
Trisha, who was named Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament, dedicated the latter award to her father, who was in the audience.
"Because of him I started playing cricket. I don't think without him I would have been here," said Trisha, who was also part of the team in 2023.
Trisha, who said she idolises Mithali Raj, has been working on her power game in recent times and credited India's batting coach Apoorva S Desaii for giving her role clarity before the competition.
"So we've been working on [my power game] since a while. For this tournament our batting coach Apoorva sir he has kept telling 'you are going to open the innings and make sure you're ready for it'," Trisha said.
Apart from her heroics with the bat, Trisha also returned seven wickets from the six games she bowled in.
India's left-arm spin trio 'like a family'
While Vaishnavi topped the charts with 17 strikes, Shukla and Sisodia were not far behind with 14 and 10 wickets respectively.
According to them, the three are close and have developed a great understanding between themselves.
"I guess back in the room in the hotel, what all three we talk about is nothing related to our bowling," Sisodia said after India's win. "All our bowling just came and, you know, in the game coming on we just enjoyed ourselves.
"We keep telling each other a little bit of, you know, what the batters are doing, helping each other [on the field].
"At this point, I guess, we are just, you know, eye contacting and we are understanding each other now."
With all of them being left-arm spinners, is there competition or does this fact not affect them?
"We are like the best friends," Sisodia was quick to respond, with emphasis on the "best". Vaishnavi, who was too overcome with emotion to speak a few minutes earlier was quick to interject: "We are like family actually. We all are family."
Asked about their plans for the future, Sisodia said: "I guess all of us... I mean, not just us [three] but the whole team, we all want to just go ahead and, you know, never look back from here."
Wicketkeeper and opener G Kamalini, who was animatedly photobombing the interview, then came in and summed up the feelings of the team in a line in Tamil: "World Cup-pa thookittom [We have lifted the World Cup]."
ITTF Task Force Engages Players and Stakeholders in Wide-Ranging Consultations
The ITTF Task Force, established to address players concerns, has been actively gathering feedback from all key stakeholders of the table tennis community. Over the past weeks, it has consulted directly with players, coaches, Member Associations, entourage representatives, and manufacturers to ensure a comprehensive review before finalising its recommendations.
Including Sharath Kamal Achanta, Co-Chair of the ITTF Athletes Commission, ITTF Executive Vice Presidents Dr. Alaa Meshref and Wahid Oshodi, as well as Mounir Bessah, WTT Executive Director of Events, and Polona Cehovin, WTT Head of Player Relations, the task force is reviewing current WTT event regulations and will present its findings and recommendations
Jean-Michel Saive, Chair of the ITTF Entourage Group, and Andreas Hain, President of the Federation of International Table Tennis Manufacturers (FIT), have also been officially added to the Task Force. Their inclusion ensures that perspectives from key stakeholders are directly integrated into the review process, further strengthening the Task Forces comprehensive approach.
A key milestone in this process took place today at the Singapore Smash, where the Task Force hosted a dedicated Players Forum.
ITTF President Petra Sörling, ITTF Deputy President and WTT Chair Liu Guoliang, and ITTF Group CEO Steve Dainton were also in attendance, reinforcing the organisations commitment to open dialogue.
Addressing the players, President Sörling stated: WTT was created to elevate the professional pathway for players, but building a circuit takes time. We need your input to keep improving and growing the sport together. This is your platformshare your thoughts, voice your concerns, and help shape the future of table tennis.
Achanta echoed this sentiment, Our goal is to ensure that players and the structure around them evolve together, creating a stronger and more sustainable table tennis ecosystemnot just for us today, but for future generations of players.
The Forum provided a platform for players to voice their thoughts on key regulations, including participation rules and ongoing adjustments to the 2025 WTT Handbook. Discussions also highlighted the need for more frequent and detailed communication with players.
Beyond the Players Forum, the Task Force has actively engaged with Member Associations, gathering direct feedback on the regulatory landscape. In addition to receiving spontaneous contributions from several associations, a dedicated meeting was held with the Chinese Table Tennis Association. The Task Force also reached out to Ma Long, Chen Meng, and Fan Zhendong to hear their specific situations.
With these extensive consultations, the Task Force is ensuring that upcoming decisions reflect the voices of those most affected. The finalized recommendations will include immediate actions and strategic long-term improvements with a clear timeline.
'All-round package' Jones makes difference for Scotland
The build-up to the game was dominated by Jones' usual centre partner, Scotland captain Sione Tuipulotu, being ruled out of the championship with injury.
Tuipulotu is a world-class operator, a leader who combines both power and precision. He was a key part of Glasgow's URC triumph last season and is a shoo-in for this summer's Lions tour if he finds fitness in time.
However, alongside another Glasgow man in Stafford McDowall, Jones delivered a reminder of his capacity to trouble any defence in world rugby.
"Huw was outstanding today," co-captain Finn Russell said. "I thought Stafford was really good at 12 as well.
"The backs worked really well together, created a lot of chances and if we're going to do anything in this tournament we have to try and finish those off."
When Jones first burst onto the international scene he had all his attacking verve, but lacked the defensive steel to go with it.
Teams targeted his channel to good effect and Jones lost his Scotland spot as a result, missing the 2019 World Cup.
He went away and worked it out, though, returning to the national team set-up a more complete package.
"Huw is such an all-round player now," head coach Gregor Townsend said.
"He runs brilliant lines, finishes well and is a very good defender. Today he supported very well and it's great he got those tries."
'We kicked on' - Ireland into the groove as England suffer
Rather than allow mistake to beget mistake, as they so often did across the autumn, Ireland moved slowly through the gears before finally reaching cruising speed.
Aided by Marcus Smith's yellow card, the men in green were showing signs of getting to grips with proceedings before the turn, but it was only in the second half that they truly looked like two-time reigning champions of this competition.
England's Borthwick said it was "hard to quantify" how much the effort expended in negating Ireland in the first half had left his side fatigued but, as their challenge faded, Ireland's energy levels only seemed to rise.
England got little from their six-two bench as Ireland's replacements turned the game in the home team's favour.
Benefiting from forward depth that meant last year's skipper Peter O'Mahony did not even make the Irish 23, Easterby was able to call upon two players who missed the autumn through injury in hooker Dan Sheehan and back row Jack Conan.
Both were superb after coming on in the 50th minute to highlight a quality bench effort across the board.
"I thought the guys that started laid a really strong foundation and it wasn't easy going. It was tough at times," said Easterby.
"The guys that came off the bench benefited from the work that had been done in the first 50, 55 minutes.
"To be fair, the guys that came off the bench were brilliant, they really impacted the game."
The two late tries conceded to allow England a losing bonus point will be a source of consternation for Easterby.
As will the injury to Finlay Bealham that means, with Tadhg Furlong already struggling with a calf complaint and Tom O'Toole suspended, Ireland could be going to Murrayfield next week with their fourth and fifth choice tight-heads.
Of course, Ireland are currently enjoying a 10-game winning run against Scotland, and when they last visited Edinburgh two years ago they needed flanker Josh van der Flier to throw into the line-outs with prop Cian Healy scrummaging at hooker and still managed to come out on top.
The Six Nations is often said to be a tournament where momentum is paramount.
Having struggled to find it all autumn long, after such an emphatic second half on Saturday, it suddenly feels Ireland have plenty once again.
Tottenham have boosted their defensive options with the signing of defender Kevin Danso from Lens.
Danso has joined the north London side on loan until the end of the season with an obligation to sign him permanently. Sources have told ESPN that Spurs agreed to pay a fee in the region of 25 million ($25.9m) for the defender's services.
The 26-year-old centre-back's arrival comes amid Spurs' ongoing injury crisis that has prompted them to scour the transfer market for opportunities to add to their beleaguered squad.
Fellow centre-back Radu Dragusin is the latest member of head coach Ange Postecoglou's team facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines after the Romania international suffered a worrying-looking knee injury in Spurs' Europa League win over Elfsborg on Thursday.
Danso was an integral member of the Lens side that finished second in Ligue in 2022-23 and started all six of their Champions League games the subsequent year. The centre-back featured for Austria at Euro 2024 and has made 14 appearances for Lens in all competitions this season.
A source told ESPN that Danso will be available to play against Liverpool on Thursday in the second leg of their Carabao Cup semfinal, provided his international clearance and work permit are finalised.
He will wear the No. 4 jersey for the club.
Information from ESPN's James Olley contributed to this story.
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