Rafael Nadal says winning his 12th French Open is extra special after a turbulent year where he considered taking an extended break because of injury problems.

Nadal, 33, played just three events in 2019 prior to the clay-court season.

But it ended with a 6-3 5-7 6-1 6-1 win over Austrian fourth seed Dominic Thiem in Sunday's final at Roland Garros.

"I've had too many issues. So that makes these last few weeks very, very special," he said.

"One possibility was to stop for a while and recover my body.

"And the other was to drastically change my attitude and my mentality.

"I was able to change and fight for every small improvement that I was able to make."

World number two Nadal has been hampered by injury problems over the past two seasons, pulling out of 10 tournaments last year because of a combination of hip, knee, stomach and ankle problems.

After retiring from his US Open semi-final against Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro in September with a knee problem, Nadal did not play for the rest of the year.

The Spaniard had ankle surgery in November, returning at the Australian Open in January when he lost in straight sets in the final to world number one Novak Djokovic.

He did not play again until March at Indian Wells, where he was forced to pull out before his semi-final against Roger Federer with another knee problem.

A five-week break leading up to the clay-court season followed, with Nadal reaching the semi-finals in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid.

That meant he did not win a tour title in 2019 until the Italian Open - the final Masters 1,000 tournament before Roland Garros.

"After Indian Wells, as I said couple of times, mentally I was down," he said. "I lost a little bit of energy, because I had too many issues in a row.

"It is tough when you receive one and then another.

"Mentally I was not enjoying things. I was too worried about my health and, being honest, I was being too negative.

"After the first round in Barcelona, I was able to stay alone for a couple of hours in the room and think about what's going on, what I need to do. And since that first match in Barcelona, I think things have been improving every single day."

His coach Carlos Moya says his fellow Mallorcan has shown he is "mentally a genius" after battling through his injury troubles to triumph again at Roland Garros.

"It's been the toughest period for sure since I've been there. It was really hard. He really had to push himself to the limit to be back on the court, to practise, to be motivated," said Moya, who linked up with Nadal in 2017.

"He had an unbelievable attitude in those bad moments and that's what took him to victory today."

'You can't be frustrated if your neighbour has a bigger house'

Nadal's victory over Thiem on the Paris clay is his 18th major title, moving him within two of long-time rival Roger Federer's all-time men's singles record.

But Nadal has again said catching the Swiss is not on his mind.

"If I catch Roger or not, I am not very worried about it," he said.

"You can't be frustrated all the time because the neighbour has a bigger house than you, or a bigger TV, or a better garden.

"That's not the way that I see the life.

"If, by the end of my career, I am able to win a couple of more Grand Slams and be closer to Roger, it will be unbelievable.

"I am going to try my best to keep enjoying tennis, giving myself chances to compete at the highest level and we will see what happens."

I was closer than last year - Thiem

Thiem believes he is on the right path towards a Grand Slam title, despite again falling to Nadal in his second major final.

The 25-year-old Austrian lost in straight sets to the Spaniard in last year's Roland Garros showpiece.

He has been reaping the rewards of his partnership with new coach Nicolas Massu, who replaced his childhood coach Gunter Bresnik earlier this year.

Thiem won his first Masters 1,000 title in March - the tier of tournaments behind the Slams - by beating Roger Federer in the Indian Wells final, and then claimed the Barcelona Open title in April, having defeated Nadal in the semi-finals.

"Even though I didn't win this tournament, two finals in a row, it's nice," he said after his defeat on the Paris clay.

"I think that I have developed my game. I was also closer than last year in the final. So I'm on the right way.

"I failed today, but my goal and my dream is still to win this tournament or to win a Grand Slam tournament."

Thiem matched Nadal for large parts of an intense opening set, breaking for a 3-2 lead before the Spaniard fought back to win the final four games.

Thiem responded by winning the second set before Nadal took control.

"He played outstanding because especially in the first two sets I played very good tennis," the Austrian said.

"What he was performing I think is unbelievable.

"I played very good the first two sets, and then I had a little drop, which is against most of the players not that bad.

"But he took the chance and stepped right on me."

Thiem had 24 hours fewer than Nadal to prepare after his weather-delayed semi-final against Djokovic finished on Saturday afternoon.

He had also played on four consecutive days because his quarter-final against Russian 10th seed Karen Khachanov was pushed back to Thursday after rain led to play being cancelled on Wednesday.

"I didn't feel tired in the match," he said.

"But at the same time, a match like yesterday, beating Novak over two days with all the interruption, it leaves traces on the body and also on the mind. That's 100%."

Reaction to Nadal's 12th title

Women's doubles champion and Thiem's girlfriend Kristina Mladenovic: "12th Roland Garros titles is absolutely unreal! Very proud to see Domi standing next to this legend of our sport! Your turn is coming soon..."

Fifteen-time golf major winner Tiger Woods: "The King of Clay does not like to share his wealth. Congrats Rafael Nadal on #12!"

Former world number one and two-time Grand Slam champion Lleyton Hewitt: "I see it but I don't believe it... someone can win 12 Roland Garros singles titles. Rafael Nadal what a performance!"

Eleven-time Grand Slam singles champion Rod Laver: "Simply magnificent Rafael Nadal. Winning a grand slam isn't easy. Winning 12 French titles is beyond belief. Congratulations King of Clay!"

Former world number one and 12-time Grand Slam singles champion Billie Jean King: "There will never be another Nadal. Congratulations to Rafael Nadal on an incredible 12th French Open win. A genius on clay, with a tremendous work ethic, he's a role model both on and off the court. Well done!"

MONTREAL – Sebastian Vettel looked well on his way to his first Formula One victory during Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix, but a penalty handed Lewis Hamilton his fifth victory of the season at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Vettel started from the pole in his Ferrari and was in control for much of the race, but a mistake in turn four caused Vettel to overcook the chicane. Hamilton, who was right in Vettel’s tire tracks, attempted to overtake Vettel at that moment but Vettel rejoined the track and blocked Hamilton’s advance.

Stewards promptly looked at the incident and after several laps they handed Vettel a five-second penalty that would be assessed after the race. In order for Vettel to win, he would be forced to get to the finish line five seconds ahead of Hamilton.

Hamilton was aware of Vettel’s penalty and stayed glued to the bumper of the Ferrari, refusing to let Vettel escape. At the checkered flag Vettel crossed the finish line less than a second ahead of Hamilton, meaning Hamilton would be declared the winner of the Canadian Grand Prix.

“Naturally this is not the way, absolutely not the way I wanted to win,” Hamilton said. “I was pushing to the end to try and get past. Obviously I forced him into an error, he went a bit wide but then obviously I had the run on that corner and we nearly collided. It was unfortunate, but that is motor racing.”

Vettel initially parked his car well away from the podium, but was later convinced by team officials convinced him to walk to the podium. Upon reaching where the top-three cars were typically parked, Vettel took the No. 1 sign that was placed in front of Hamilton’s car and replaced it with the No. 2 sign that would have been put in front of Vettel’s car had he parked it with the other podium finishers.

It was a clear sign of Vettel’s frustration as the Ferrari driver remains winless this year while the Mercedes duo of Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas have won each of the seven Grands Prix contested this year.

“The people shouldn’t boo at Lewis,” Vettel said. “Lewis was a bit faster, but we were able to keep him behind. Ask the people what they think.”

Ferrari has since informed officials they plan to appeal the penalty against Vettel.

Charles Leclerc finished third to give Ferrari two cars on the podium. Bottas finished fourth in the second Mercedes, followed by the Red Bull of Max Verstappen in fifth. The Renault duo of Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg were sixth and seventh, with Red Bull’s Pierre Gasly, Racing Point’s Lance Stroll and Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat completing the top-10.

BROOKLYN, Mich. – Continued showers throughout the day have forced NASCAR officials to postpone Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Firekeepers Casino 400 at Michigan Int’l Speedway.

The race, originally scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. Sunday afternoon, will now take place Monday at 5 p.m. EST with television coverage on FS1.

NASCAR officials managed to get the track dry shortly before 3 p.m. and teams were on track preparing to begin the race, but another storm hit the track and prevented the race from getting started.

The field was brought back down pit road and NASCAR continued working to dry the track, but another storm shortly after 4 p.m. ended any hope of getting the race in Sunday afternoon.

Once the race begins on Monday afternoon, Joey Logano and Aric Almirola will lead the field to the green flag.

MONTREAL – He had to work a bit harder for it on Sunday, but Roman De Angelis once again found his way to the top step of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge by Yokohama podium at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Coming off a pole position and win on Saturday, De Angelis started from the first spot in the No. 79 Mark Motors Racing Porsche, but surrendered the lead to Parker Thompson shortly after the drop of the green flag on lap one.

Thompson opened a gap between his No. 3 SCB Racing machine and De Angelis, but the latter kept Thompson within striking distance. With 20 minutes remaining, Thompson made a minor mistake heading into the hairpin, locked up the brakes and went wide into the turn, allowing De Angelis to sneak by. De Angelis drove pressure-free for the rest of the race.

“The start was a bit interesting,” said De Angelis, who earned points this weekend in both the GT3 Cup Challenge Canada and GT3 Cup Challenge USA championships. “I obviously didn’t get the jump I got yesterday due to some other outside factors, but I was able to chase down Parker, pressure him for four or five laps and eventually just kind of led him into a mistake.

“We took the lead and did what we did yesterday and I pulled a big gap. It’s pretty cool to win double duty with both teams with the American and Canadian championship and it’s a huge points advance for us. I’m looking forward to keeping the points gap going.”

Behind De Angelis, it was a dramatic finish for the remaining two overall podium finishers – Max Root and Riley Dickinson, both GT3 Cup Challenge USA drivers.

Root in the No. 7 Wright Motorsports Porsche claimed his second podium of the weekend after finishing third Saturday and second Sunday. Yet, Root never saw the checkered flag as he was involved in a late-race incident with the No. 74 TPC Racing Porsche of Tom Kerr. Root and Kerr made contact in turn 11 that sent Root into the grass and Kerr into the inside wall. The incident brought out a race-ending red flag, but Root maintained his second-place position.

For Dickinson, the checkered flag initially awarded him a fourth-place finish behind Root and Thompson. However, Thompson’s move past Dickinson for third place resulted in a 29-second penalty equivalent to an in-race drive through and promoted Dickinson to the podium.

Thompson was relegated to a 10th-place finish overall. Like De Angelis, Thompson also earned points this weekend towards both the GT3 Cup Challenge Canada and USA championships.

Root’s Wright Motorsports teammate Fred Poordad collected another podium finish for the team in Race 2 driving the No. 20 Porsche. Poordad scored the Platinum Masters victory over GT3 Cup Challenge Canada and USA competitor Alan Metni in the No. 99 Kelly-Moss/AM Motorsports Porsche, who bounced back from a retirement in Saturday’s race.

In the Gold Class, it was a battle between the No. 27 NGT Motorsports Porsche of Sebastian Carazo and the No. 91 FMS Motorsports Porsche of Angel Benitez Jr. While Carazo started from the pole, the two swapped positions throughout the race, with Carazo ultimately coming out on top.

Rounding out the GT3 Cup Challenge Canada podium were Patrick Dussault in the No. 77 Lauzon Autosport Porsche and rookie Ethan Simioni in the No. 40 Porsche for Policaro Motorsports.

The runner-up result matches Dussault’s best of his GT3 Cup Challenge Canada career, which he first recorded at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park last month. It also comes on the heels of a frustrating Saturday at Montreal for the Quebecker, who was spun early but salvaged a ninth-place finish.

For Simioni, a rookie in GT3 Cup Challenge Canada, the third-place finish is his best to date. Teammate Jeff Kingsley in the No. 16 Porsche – who also earned points towards the GT3 Cup Challenge USA championship with JDX Racing – finished just behind Simioni in fourth.

In the Platinum Masters class, Marco Cirone was seeking a weekend sweep of his own in the No. 88 Mark Motors Racing Porsche. However, a spin due to contact from another competitor demoted his Porsche down the leaderboard.

Taking the Platinum Masters win in his first weekend this year with GT3 Cup Challenge Canada was Michael Levitas in the No. 37 TPC Racing Porsche. Levitas was the highest finishing Masters driver in the field on Sunday.

Sam Fellows earned both the GT3 Cup Challenge Canada Gold Class victory and Yokohama Tire Hard Charger Award in the No. 35 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche.

Brazil's Cristiane became the oldest player to score a hat-trick in the women's World Cup as the former finalists sealed a superb 3-0 victory over debutants Jamaica on Sunday to kick off their campaign in convincing fashion.

At 34 years and 25 days, Cristiane eclipsed the record of American Carli Lloyd who was 32 years and 355 days when she scored three times in a 5-2 win over Japan in the 2015 final.

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo holds the men's record, having scored three goals in a 3-3 draw with Spain in the 2018 World Cup in Russia at 33 years and 130 days.

Victory at Stade des Alpes in Grenoble meant Vadao's Brazil maintained their perfect record in World Cup openers and also snapped a run of nine straight defeats in the lead-up to the tournament since a 2-1 win over Japan last July.

Cristiane, starting in place of fellow forward Marta who was ruled out of the game with a thigh problem, gave Brazil the lead in the 15th minute by meeting Barcelona midfielder Andressa's cross from the left with a header past Sydney Schneider.

The South Americans continued to create chances and could have doubled their lead after earning a penalty for handball by Jamaica defender Allyson Swaby, but Schneider saved Andressa's tame effort on goal seven minutes before the break.

Cristiane tucked in her second goal from a tight angle following the restart as Andressa provided the assist again, before she completed her hat-trick with a powerful freekick that rattled the underside of the crossbar and landed in.

It was the first hat-trick for Brazil in the women's World Cup since Sissi and Pretinha scored three goals each in a 7-1 thrashing of Mexico in 1999.

Brazil, who are aiming to surpass their best-ever finish in 2007 when they were beaten by Germany in the title clash, take on Australia in Montpellier in their next Group C contest on Thursday. Jamaica play Italy in Reims on Friday.