IMOLA, Italy – Jonathan Rea paced both practice sessions on the opening day of World Superbike action at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Friday.

Riding for Kawasaki, Rea topped the overall practice charts thanks to his lap time in the second practice. His best lap of 1:46.374 put him at the top of the charts over Ducati’s Chaz Davies, who was .155 of a second off the pace set by Rea.

Much like Rea was fastest in both practice sessions Friday, Davies was second fastest in both sessions aboard his Ducati.

Third belonged to 2013 World Superbike champion Tom Sykes, who rode his BMW bike to a best time of 1:46.766.

Alvaro Bautista, who is thus far undefeated in World Superbike competition this season, was fourth fastest overall aboard his Ducati thanks to his quick lap during the second practice.

Toprak Razgatlioglu of Turkish Puccetti Racing completed the overall top-five during World Superbike practice Friday afternoon.

Team Goeleven’s Eugene Laverty, a 13-time World Superbike race winner, crashed during the opening practice Friday and broke both his wrists. No timetable for his recovery has been announced.

CONCORD, N.C. — Getting jazzed for the Indianapolis 500 has never been my problem.

Back in the days when I attended the race — circa 1970 through 2000 — there was no bigger time of the year for me or my family. It began to build when the weather changed, and in central Indiana, that was a slow change indeed.

As the weather got warmer, so did the feeling that it was time for another installment of the spring classic. Better yet, it meant hours of watching, listening and just plain luxuriating in the month of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Everyone who has ever been to Indy, I would guess, falls in love with the history, the ambiance and the fact that there’ve been more than 100 Indy 500s run on the same ground. For me, it was the Holy Land. Thanks to my dad, who grew up within sight of 16th Street and Georgetown Road and was immersed in the lore and ceremony that it entailed, I followed in that tradition.

Like Christmas, there was an interminable wait for the doggone race to get there. Practice was cool and Pole Day was a big deal — where else can you and 250,000 of your closest friends hang out all day and watch cars turn 200-mph laps?

My favorite day was the last day of qualifying: There were so many cars and drivers trying to make it in the field that you just sort of hung on every story. Roger Rager’s valiant attempt to get in with a stock-block Chevrolet engine comes to mind. Shoestring didn’t even begin to describe that effort, but he made the field.

The story is, quite frankly, equivalent to the movie “Hoosiers,” a small-time team goes to the big dance and wins a lot of hearts before slaying the giants of the sports. It didn’t quite end that way, but it is very similar.

Back in 1980, the Minnesota open-wheel driver took advantage of USAC rules that allowed more turbo boost for stock-block engines, and his effort became quite the story.

“When USAC said we were going to run the stock block here, we had to find a motor that had been well-used …,” Rager told The Associated Press in 1996. “It all starts with the block.”

Without a big budget, Rager and his team got creative.

“My theory was if I got a block out of a truck or a heavy unit that had been hot and cold and pulled a lot of weight, that block would have already done everything it was ever going to do,” he told AP. “So we were at the junkyard, and there sat a bus, and it was a Chevrolet and it had what we wanted. We pulled two or three motors out of different vehicles, but that one looked to be in the best shape, so we used that block. After the thing was bored and line-bored and oil passages cleaned out and aligned, that was the one we felt most confident in.”

With good reason, it turned out.

Qualifying 10th at 186.374 mph, Rager was ahead of four-time winner A.J. Foyt in the field, as well as 1973 winner Gordon Johncock and the first man to top 200 mph at Indy, Tom Sneva, all in well-funded rides that had engines purpose-built for the race.

The way it went, you knew Rager was going to do something spectacular, and he did: he led two laps early in the race. That’s right … the engine block that had hauled countless tots to school on a daily basis led two laps at Indianapolis.

Alas, the Cinderella story reverted to a pumpkin 40 laps later. Jim McElreath spun and hit the wall in turn one — right in front of my family’s seats in the Southwest Vista — and Rager tried to avoid him. That sent his machine into the inside wall and out of the race with a 23rd-place finish.

That was also the day Sneva and Gary Bettenhausen, who started 33rd and 32nd in the field, finished second and third, respectively.

Stories like these, and there are thousands of them, are one of the main reasons it’s never a problem for me to get jazzed about the Indy 500 every year.

BARCELONA, Spain – Valtteri Bottas continued his strong start to the season by leading both Formula One practice sessions Friday at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Bottas set the overall fast time of the day in his Mercedes entry during the second practice session. His fast lap of 1:17.284 was .049 of a second better than that of his teammate and reigning Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton.

Both Mercedes drivers were testing out new parts during the opening day of practice for the Spanish Grand Prix, but it didn’t appear to slow either driver down.

“It’s always an interesting day when you’re bringing new parts to the car to get a feel for it and see if they bring the performance they should,” said Bottas. “The car felt really good today, completely different to how it was in winter testing, and it seems like our cornering performance has improved. The balance around the lap is also better, so it looks like we’ve taken the right direction since the winter. Today was good, but it’s only Friday and Ferrari are very close. It feels like we’ve made a good step forward, but we need to wait and see what tomorrow holds.”

Charles Leclerc was third overall for Ferrari based on his fast lap in the second practice. Sebastian Vettel, Leclerc’s Ferrari teammate, was fourth overall. Max Verstappen’s Honda-powered Red Bull ended the day fifth overall.

The only major incident in either practice saw Lance Stroll crash his Racing Point entry in turn nine. The team was able to get his car back on track for the second practice, but without some of the upgraded parts the team planned to utilize.

CATAWBA, N.C. – Mountain Creek Speedway has announced two key partners of their annual outlaw kart showcase event.

The newly-rebranded Nitro Karting Clash at the Creek presented by QRC rolls off May 19 with title sponsorship from two giants in outlaw karting, Nitro Karting and QRC Karts.

Nitro Karting is based in Mooresville, N.C., and manufactures a wide variety of components found in the pits of any major karting event including gears, pit tools, smaller karting components and trailer accessories. Red Bluff, Calif.’s, QRC Karts has over three decades of outlaw kart manufacturing experience, essentially building the discipline in its early years with their innovations and involvement in the sport.

“Our goal since last year’s inaugural Clash was to continue to build the event and improve it every single year,” said Adam Stewart of Mountain Creek Speedway. “With everything that has finally come together in the last few weeks, racers and fans should be optimistic for not only this year’s event, but also future editions of the Clash. We’ve got a lot of great people beginning to take interest and get involved in what’s going on here in Catawba County.”

In addition to new event partners, MCS also announced the race director for this year’s event. Known for his long-time involvement in outlaw karting around Red Bluff and other areas on the west coast, Christopher Rowling has been retained to run the May 18-19 event. Rowling has been active in outlaw karting events on the west coast for years and has also worked in the industry’s manufacturing and distribution side, giving him an in-depth understanding of the sport from all angles.

Adding to the event’s momentum in only its second year, MCS has announced two of its contingency partners for the event, Sparco USA and Van-K Wheels. Sparco is a leading manufacturer of safety equipment and Van-K manufactures a substantial portion of the aluminum wheels used on various race vehicles including karts and outlaw karts like those which will be racing during the 2nd Annual Nitro Karting Clash at the Creek presented by QRC.

“We’re really looking forward to this year’s event,” Stewart continued. “Our phone is ringing with competitors, sponsors, fans, and I’d like to believe this is quickly becoming a showcase race for outlaw karts. We’ve got a slimmed down schedule with more racing and racers who are excited for the event again, that’s always a good thing. We certainly are appreciative of everyone’s support.”

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Gabriel Landeskog returned to the Colorado Avalanche bench and sat down just as teammate Colin Wilson put the puck behind San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones. Game 7 on Wednesday night was tied, 2-all, in the second period. The Avalanche had new life.

Or so Landeskog believed.

"I didn't think anything of it, to be honest with you. And then we were wondering why they weren't dropping the puck," the Avalanche captain said.

The Sharks have a video coach, Dan Darrow, who is tasked with quickly assessing plays to see whether there's an opportunity for a coach's challenge. Most people watching the game saw Derick Brassard make a sweeping one-handed pass into the Avalanche's attacking zone and Nathan MacKinnon speed to the puck to set up Wilson, and all of them appeared to be onside. Darrow saw something else: Landeskog, standing at the door to the Avalanche bench, his skates appearing to land inside the attacking zone before the puck did.

Based on Darrow's suggestion, the Sharks challenged the play with 12 minutes, 11 seconds left in the second period. Lose the challenge, and they would have been assessed a delay of game penalty.

"He's the lead on it, every night. Ballsy call," Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said of Darrow.

The on-ice officials discussed the play with the NHL War Room in Toronto.

The decision: No goal.

"I saw some replays on the bench. From what we saw, it could have gone either way," Landeskog said.

The NHL didn't issue an explanation of the call until after the Sharks' 3-2 victory to eliminate the Avalanche, an uncharacteristic move given the importance of the decision and the game.

"After reviewing all available replays and consulting with the Linesman, the Situation Room determined that Gabriel Landeskog did not legally tag up at the blue line prior to the puck entering the offensive zone," the league said. "The decision was made in accordance to Rule 83.3 (i), 'All players of the offending team clear the zone at the same instant (skate contact with the blue line) permitting the attacking players to re-enter the attacking zone.'"

Essentially, after Landeskog went offside, his skate touched the blue line at one point, so he wasn't offside. Then his skates both went back to the right of the blue line as he slowly entered the Colorado bench, putting him offside again.

To have this type of offside called was uncommon, the Avalanche said.

"I would say it's pretty rare," Colorado coach Jared Bednar said with an exasperated laugh. "In a Game 7, even more so. That player has nothing to do with the play that's going on. It seems like such a minute detail, whether he's onside or offside. So it's strange, you know? It's strange. And it's something we could have done without tonight, no question."

Controversial officiating in a Sharks Game 7 is officially a trend in these playoffs. They also eliminated the Vegas Golden Knights thanks in part to a five-minute major penalty on which they scored four goals and for which the NHL eventually apologized to Vegas.

The decision left Colorado despondent. Just under five minutes later, Joonas Donskoi scored to make it a 3-1 lead for the Sharks.

"We thought it was 2-2, and then we kinda got caught sleeping. And then it was 3-1," Avalanche defenseman Ian Cole said. "No matter what that call is, we have to keep playing. We have to learn that when things don't go our way, we have to take momentum back as quickly as possible."

If that sounds like the dulcet tones of personal responsibility, that's because the Avalanche took it after Game 7. In the same dressing room where Vegas forward Jonathan Marchessault said the NHL should be "embarrassed" for the controversial major penalty in the Knights' Game 7 loss, Landeskog took the officials off the hook and shouldered the blame for the critical overturned goal.

"It's a clumsy mistake, you know? 'Get off the ice.' If I could have done something different on that play, I would have jumped the boards a lot quicker," Landeskog said.

"Hopefully, the linesmen got it right. I haven't been in that position at all, to have to make that call in a Game 7. It's a tough job. It's a tough call to make. Hopefully, they got it right. I'll take the blame for that. Ultimately, it's my skates on the ice. But there was a lot more to the game than that."

Landeskog and his teammates pointed to a variety of other factors that went into their Game 7 defeat. There was MacKinnon's unfortunate shoulder injury in the first period that limited his ice time; MacKinnon said it's an injury he'll need to rehab, but that "they shot me up with something, and I came back." There was the slow start, as captain Joe Pavelski's return from injury energized the Sharks and propelled them to a 2-0 lead in the first 11:35 of the game. There was the Avs' push at the end when the score was 3-2 that produced several good chances but not the equalizing goal they needed.

"In the last minute, we could have tied it up. But nothing would go in," said MacKinnon, who played 20 minutes, 58 seconds in Game 7. "It's unfortunate. But we felt with the way the East is shaking out, and the West as well, we could have won the Cup this year. It truly felt like we could have won everything. It was up for grabs. It sucks."

The Avalanche have a young core of players and more prospects on the way. Their window to win extends beyond this postseason.

What veteran players such as Cole hope is that the experiences from a Game 7 loss -- from the frustrating overturned goal to the missed opportunities -- are the learning experiences they'll need to eventually win a series like this.

"There's always turning points in every game. I think, hopefully, if we can learn from them and better recognize those situations, then maybe we can continue to grow as a team," he said. "Because we did a ton of growing this year."

Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares will miss the world hockey championships for Team Canada after suffering an oblique injury during practice in Slovakia, it was announced Thursday.

Hockey Canada said Thursday it contacted the Maple Leafs and it was agreed it was best for Tavares to return to Toronto for further evaluation of his oblique.

"We are disappointed that John will not be able to participate as a member of Team Canada," Hockey Canada official Jason Botterill said in a statement. "We know John was excited about the opportunity to wear the Maple Leaf once again, and we were excited to have John as a member of our team and to welcome his many years of NHL and international experience."

Canada opens play in the world championships on Friday against Finland. The event runs through May 26.

Tavares, 28, has played on three previous world championship teams for Team Canada. He won a gold medal at the 2014 Olympics, where he injured his left knee and missed the rest of that NHL season.

He had a career-high 47 goals and 41 assists while playing all 82 games this season, his first with the Maple Leafs after signing with Toronto as a free agent.

He also played all 82 games in 2017-18, his final season with the New York Islanders.

The six-time All-Star has 272 goals and 349 assists in 10 NHL seasons.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.