I Dig Sports
BROWNSBURG, Ind. Alexis DeJoria is headed to Joe Maynards JCM Racing team for the upcoming NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season, it was announced by both parties Tuesday afternoon.
DeJoria will join Maynards multi-car operation where she will pilot the Bandero Premium Tequila Funny Car. DeJoria previously drove for Del Worsham and the DC Motorsports team where she advanced to the final round seven times including powering to victory at the 2021 Bristol, Tenn. event during the teams run from 2020 through the 2024 season.
Prior, she competed under the Kalitta Motorsports banner from 2011 through 2017.
First and foremost, I want to share my appreciation for Del Worsham and all he has done for me and my career, DeJoria said. He has been with me since day one. I licensed in his Funny Car way back in 2011. He was my first crew chief at Kalitta Motorsports. Del and I have really been in the trenches as teammates.
Hes my mentor, my closest confidante, and really, my brother. We had several candid conversations over these last few months about the future of the team. He expressed wanting to take some time to reevaluate the direction of his career, and I wholeheartedly support that.
Im really looking forward to this next chapter in my career, competing as a member of the JCM Racing team, DeJoria added. Its been many years since I was part of a multi-car operation and Im excited for that opportunity. From my very first conversation with Joe about us potentially teaming up, I knew this was going to be a good fit. His enthusiasm for the sport is incredible, and the impact he has made on this industry in just a few years time is undeniable.
I have unfinished business on the track, and I have no doubt our Bandero team will be dialed in and ready to perform when we get to Gainesville for the Gatornationals season opener in two months.
DeJoria is a six-time Funny Car national event winner including her victory from the prestigious 60th annual U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, and brings nearly two decades of experience to JCM Racing. Before making her professional debut at the 2011 Dallas event, DeJoria also found success competing in the NHRAs Super Comp and Top Alcohol categories. With her two Sportsman wins, she is an eight-time race winner overall and is the only driver to own the trifecta of Super Comp, Top Alcohol Funny Car, and Funny Car victories. She also became the first woman to clock a sub-four-second Funny Car pass during the 2014 NHRA Winternationals.
Its clear to me that Alexis is a racer through and through, said Maynard, who successfully launched his JCM Racing team at the 2022 NHRA Northwest Nationals and went on to win that event in his first weekend of team ownership. Were both here for the love of the sport and thats important to me. Thats why my family and I first started our team to begin with. We were fans first, then sponsors, and then team owners. Thats how we felt we could best support NHRA Drag Racing, and Alexis shares that same love of the sport. I also want to share my gratitude to Del for making this transition process so smooth. As a fellow team owner and friend, I have nothing but respect for him.
Were very excited to have Alexis in our stable this year. Shes hungry for race wins and a championship, and wed love nothing more than to give her the tools and support to go out there and become NHRAs first female Funny Car world champion.
DeJoria will make her JCM Racing debut at the NHRA pre-season test session scheduled for March 4 5 at Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville, Fla. Her crew chief, along with the full 2025 JCM Racing driver lineup, will be announced at a later date.
Shell join JCMs Top Fuel drivers Tony Schumacher and Ida Zetterström.
Blair Targets Volusia Success as Signed World of Outlaws Driver
CONCORD, N.C. Three years removed from his rookie season in 2022, Max Blair is again signed as a World of Outlaws Late Model Series driver.
Blair and Centerline Motorsports will commence the World of Outlaws season at Volusia Speedway Park during DIRTcar Sunshine Nationals (Jan. 22-25) and Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals (Feb. 13-15) with an eye on the full World of Outlaws season.
Last year, Blair finished third in the DIRTcar Nationals finale one of his five Super Late Model top five finishes at the track between World of Outlaws and DIRTcar competition. This year, hell continue his search for his first win at the Worlds Fastest Half Mile.
I love the place, Blair said. I was absolutely awful all through Speedweeks last year and we still ran really well at Volusia. The place just seems to fit me well, Im really excited about racing there.
This season marks Blairs second year competing with Centerline Motorsports after scoring four regional Super Late Model wins in 2024. With a full year under their belt, Blair believes he has everything he needs to deliver a World of Outlaws victory to the Centerville, Pa.-based operation.
Its been great, really happy that I fell into that deal, and its been good so far, Blair said. I dont see any reason why it isnt going to be a long-term partnership.
Blair picked up his first victory with The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet in 2017 at McKean County Raceway, less than two hours down the road from his Titusville, Pa. home. That kicked off a run of three wins in four years while running a partial schedule with the Series, which led up to his maiden full-time season in 2022.
His first full season racing nationally was undoubtedly a success, as Blair added two more World of Outlaws wins to his resume at Cherokee Speedway and Bloomsburg Fair Raceway on the way to a third-place points finish behind Dennis Erb Jr. and Tanner English.
That Bloomsburg win stands as his most recent triumph, although he has had some close calls over the past two years, including a runner-up to Nick Hoffman at Stateline Speedway in 2023.
After rebuilding his notebook following a swap to Longhorn Chassis in the early portion of 2024, getting back to Victory Lane at the national level sits as his top priority entering 2025.
We switched chassis brands last year and it took a long time to get rolling, Blair said. I feel like we keep getting better and better. There were a couple of races we probably should have won that I made a mistake in. Just got to put it together. Hopefully those three or four close ones are definite wins this year and we get a few more than that.
Jets' Miller has fractured larynx after hit by puck
Winnipeg Jets defenseman Colin Miller will be sidelined at least two weeks due to a fractured larynx, coach Scott Arniel said Tuesday.
Miller sustained the injury after taking a puck to the throat during the first period of Winnipeg's 4-2 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday. He immediately clutched at his throat, retreated to the locker room and did not return.
"A dangerous situation, but he's doing better now," Arniel said.
Miller, 32, has eight points (two goals, six assists) and a plus-8 rating in 34 games this season.
He has totaled 174 points (41 goals, 133 assists) in 546 career games with the Boston Bruins, Vegas Golden Knights, Buffalo Sabres, Dallas Stars, New Jersey Devils and Jets. He was selected by the Kings in the fifth round of the 2012 draft.
The Minnesota Wild signed goaltender Dylan Ferguson to a one-year, two-way contract on Tuesday.
The deal is for $775,000/$130,000 and runs through the remainder of the 2024-25 season.
Ferguson, 26, is 3-4-0 with a 3.30 goals-against average and a .900 save percentage in seven starts this season with the AHL's Iowa Wild.
A seventh-round pick by the Dallas Stars in 2017, Ferguson played in one game for the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017-18 and two games for the Ottawa Senators in 2022-23. He is 1-1-0 in the NHL with a 2.81 GAA and a .929 save percentage.
PITTSBURGH -- Penguins center Evgeni Malkin missed Tuesday's home game against the Columbus Blue Jackets with an upper-body injury.
The team announced before the game that Malkin is considered day-to-day. Malkin participated in Tuesday's morning skate, but not the pregame warmup.
Veteran forward Anthony Beauvillier drew into the Pittsburgh lineup for coach Mike Sullivan, replacing Malkin. Beauvillier had nine goals and 12 points leading into the game.
It's the first time the 38-year-old Malkin has missed a game since the 2021-22 season, a streak of 209 games, which was the 12th-longest in team history.
Malkin, who scored his 500th goal and 1,300th NHL point earlier this season, has eight goals and 32 points in 41 games played.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
NHL betting: Can the Maple Leafs win the Presidents' Trophy?
Midway through 2024-25, the Toronto Maple Leafs sit atop the Atlantic Division, four points clear of the Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers. Not a jarring surprise, considering this group, led by last year's Rocket Richard Trophy winner Auston Matthews, was considered a competitive bunch even before management made some not insignificant moves in the offseason. In the East, only the Washington Capitals have a greater winning percentage. So, is it too ridiculous to consider Toronto a legit contender for the President's Trophy?
President's Trophy Winner, Toronto Maple Leafs +1200
The oddsmakers don't seem to believe so, setting the current line at Even for Toronto to wrap up the season leading the Atlantic. Not unattractive odds, but less fun than the number set for Craig Berube's bunch to finish with more points than any other team in the league. While it always requires a greater leap to side with one club versus the field, it's also, obviously, much more rewarding.
Ramping up their physical play and committing to their new coach's system, the Maple Leafs are tougher to compete against this season. The additions of defenders Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, forward Max Pacioretty -- who has 79 hits in 28 contests -- and goaltender Anthony Stolarz have all improved the makeup of this squad. John Tavares resembles his dominant self of years past, while Matthew Knies is developing into an excellent, well-rounded competitor in front of our eyes. Mitch Marner sits fourth with 56 points while, rather quietly, serving as one the game's best two-way forwards. The newish line of Max Domi, Nicholas Robertson, and Bobby McMann is providing valuable depth the lineup previously lacked.
The defensive corps -- including the new stifling duo of Tanev and Jake McCabe -- has helped the team maintain a 2.76 GA/GP. They've won with and without their superstar captain and best netminder in Stolarz. Matthews is back now. Stolarz is scheduled to return before January's end. Excuse the obvious, but this team is even more capable with one of the game's best netminders. And you can count on Toronto only bringing Stolarz back when he's fully fit and ready. There's no rush here.
So while the Golden Knights lead the league with a .731 point percentage, and the Jets, Wild, Avalanche, Capitals and others deserve their due for recent or season-long success, the Maple Leafs appear poised to battle with the best of them. And, fully healthy, can't be discounted as a contender to finish ahead of all others by mid-April.
Bonus bet: New York Rangers To Make The Playoffs (+240): There's no question it's been ugly on and off the ice in the Big Apple of late. But please remember this club, with similar personnel, won The President's Trophy just one year ago. Far too skilled to flounder week after week, they still sit just four points out of a Wild Card spot, with a game in hand. Conceding -- at least today -- that the Capitals, Hurricanes, and Devils appear favored to emerge from the Metropolitan, there leaves one last position up for grabs (riding the assumption four teams advance from each Eastern division). So who? The Penguins? Blue Jackets? Flyers? Or, again, the team that accrued more points than any other only a year ago.
New York management won't put up with stumbling through the rest of 2024-25, that's clear. Whether the fix is internal, or some key bodies are shipped in/out, this club won't settle with settling. Igor Shesterkin, the best-paid goaltender in the NHL, isn't expected to be out forever (although more clarity on that injury would be nice). Adam Fox remains one of the game's superior defenseman. Enduring disappointing campaigns, Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck, and Chris Kreider (IR) aren't simply crummy all of a sudden.
Following Saturday's lively affair with the Capitals -- a 7-4 loss in which they never tossed in the towel -- the Rangers turned matters around and resoundingly beat the Blackhawks 6-2. It's something at least, and perhaps a start of a more positive stretch. Which is all they need to crawl back into the playoff conversation.
Latest odds as of publication. For latest odds movement, go to ESPN BET.
Featured game
Toronto Maple Leafs at Philadelphia Flyers,
7:30 p.m. ET, Wells Fargo Center
Maple Leafs (-1.5, +185), -130 money line
Flyers (-1.5, -250), +110 money line
Total 5.5: (Over -145, Under +120)
Despite coming off a rambunctious 6-4 result against the Bruins the previous day, and rolling out a rusty Dennis Hildeby between the pipes, the Maple Leafs still managed to beat a well-rested Flyers club 3-2 on Sunday. I would expect a more lopsided affair in favor of Toronto this time around. While Samuel Ersson remains hurt, projected starter Ivan Fedotov hasn't been great (.877 SV%, 3.42GAA). Philly has won only four of their past 11, beating the Red Wings, Sharks, Ducks, and Blue Jackets. All non-contenders. Take the Leafs at -1.5 for +185.
Matthew Knies Total Goals Over 0.5 (+250). Knies clearly enjoys having Auston Matthews back in the lineup. Skating on a line with one of the league's most dynamic forwards and Marner (no slouch himself), Knies potted a hat trick before scoring against the Flyers on Sunday. This recent flurry reminds me of when Knies potted five goals in six games back in late October.
Auston Matthews Total Shots Over 0.5 (-150). Lousy odds, but that's because the captain likes to shoot on net a lot. He also rarely registers under 3.5 shots/game in subsequent contests. After rifling only three versus the Flyers on Sunday, I expect a larger haul in this rematch.
Tyson Foerster Total Goals Over 0.5 (+320). One of the more productive performers for the Flyers of late, Foerster has three goals in his past four games, including the opener against the Leafs over the weekend. Apparently in John Tortorella's good books today, he's seeing quality minutes on a scoring line and power play with Noah Cates. However, if looking to take a more conservative route, Foerster Over 1.5 shots at -165 is rather attractive.
Former Mexico coach Miguel Herrera was announced as the new manager of the Costa Rica men's national team on Tuesday.
The 56-year-old will return to the international stage with the Ticos for the first time since coaching Mexico from 2013-15.
"Following an exhaustive selection process that concluded with a final shortlist, the FCRF [Costa Rican Football Federation] Executive Committee, together with the new sports director Ignacio Hierro, made the decision to hire Herrera as the national team's manager," the federation said in a statement.
Herrera is expected to be presented in the coming days and could be on the sidelines for Costa Rica's friendly against the United States on July 22.
According to ESPN Mexico, three Mexican candidates were on the final shortlist, including former Liga MX manager Ignacio Ambriz.
Herrera's run with Mexico remains as his only previous experience at the international level. After being hired in 2013, and later qualifying for the 2014 World Cup, he then helped secure a Concacaf Gold Cup title in 2015. Shortly after earning the trophy, he was fired by the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) after an alleged altercation at an airport with a journalist.
At the club level, Herrera has a lengthier resume with stints at Atlante (2002-04, 2011), Monterrey (2004-07), Veracruz (2008), Tecos (2008-10), Club America (2012-13, 2017-20), Tigres (2021-22), and Club Tijuana (2015-17, 2023-24).
The coach found success with Club America thanks to titles in the 2013 Clausura and 2018 Apertura. Herrera left Tijuana in May last year after being unable to qualify for the playoffs in his last three seasons with the Liga MX side.
Ange Postecoglou has said that even Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah would struggle in his Tottenham side.
Salah has been one of the most in-form players in Europe this season, scoring 21 goals in 27 games and helping Liverpool top the Premier League after 19 games.
However, he would be unlikely to repeat that level of play had he played for Tottenham this season, Postecoglou said a day before the two sides meet in the Carabao Cup semifinal first leg.
"Mo is a world-class player, but if you put him in our team now I'm not sure he'll have that same level of performance because of the situation we're in as a group," Postecoglou said.
"His attacking play, who do you need? You need a team that's kind of in good form, creating opportunities, playing on the front foot, having a really solid foundation of a defence that is cohesive. None of these things exist at the moment."
The Australian coach has come under fire at times this season amid lacklustre form that sees them with just two wins in their last 11 games in all competitions.
Arteta laments 'different' Cup ball in Arsenal loss
Mikel Arteta has suggested Arsenal's failure to adapt to the Carabao Cup ball was a factor in Tuesday's 2-0 semifinal, first leg defeat to Newcastle United.
Goals from Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon put Eddie Howe's side in a commanding position ahead of the return match on Feb. 5. The Gunners wasted a catalogue of chances and ended with an expected goals figure of 3.12 -- the highest number by a Premier League team in any game without scoring this season.
Asked what he could do to avoid the missed chances becoming a psychological problem, Arteta referenced the change in ball as per the competition regulations with a Puma offering used instead of the regular Nike ball.
"Just try and show them, give them tips of what we can do better," Areta said. "I think we kicked a lot of the balls over the bar and it is tricky: this ball flies a lot. We discuss that as well so there are details we can do better. But at the end, that's gone. This is no way back, it is about the next game. That is our world."
Pushed on what the issue was with the ball, Arteta continued: "It is just different, very different to the Premier League ball and you have to adapt to that because it flies differently. When you touch it, the grip is very different as well and you have to adapt."
Arteta was part of Manchester City's coaching staff when Pep Guardiola complained about the ball after a fourth-round tie in October 2017. Guardiola claimed "to score with that ball is a miracle" of the Mitre ball after beating Wolves 4-1 in a penalty shootout following a goalless draw.
The EFL later produced a statement which read: "The Mitre ball used in this season's Carabao Cup is of exactly the same technical specification as the balls used in the Sky Bet EFL and Checkatrade Trophy, all of which are tested in accordance with the FIFA Quality Programme for Footballs and meet the FIFA Quality Pro standard.
"All balls used in the professional game are required to meet this standard."
Didier Deschamps will leave his role as France head coach at the end of his current contract culminating in the 2026 World Cup cycle, sources have told ESPN.
The 2018 World Cup winner will depart after the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico if Les Bleus qualify, or he will leave after the end of the qualification campaign if they fail to make it.
Zinedine Zidane, 52, the former Real Madrid manager, winner of three Champions Leagues in a row and a former Deschamps' teammate with the France team, is the heavy favourite to replace him.
Deschamps, 56, took over from Laurent Blanc 14 years ago on the French bench in the summer 2012 and brought unprecedented success to the national team. As well as winning the 2018 World Cup and the 2021 Nations League, he reached the 2016 Euros and 2022 World Cup finals and the 2024 Euros semifinal.
He is by far the most successful France head coach ever, with a 64.2% win percentage and reaching at least the semifinals in the last four big tournaments. He is also one of the longest-serving and most successful national team coaches in history.
He is only the third person to have won the World Cup both as player (in 1998) and manager, joining Germany's Franz Beckenbauer and Brazil's Mario Zagallo.
France will find out their group position for qualifying after finishing Nations League competition, which begins with a quarterfinal match against Croatia in March.
Deschamps is expected to make his announcement on Wednesday.
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