WELCOME, N.C. – Richard Childress Racing and Lenovo announced a strategic technology partnership on Friday afternoon.

Lenovo will collaborate with the team to provide innovative technology products designed to transform motorsports. The global technology company will kick off the relationship with primary branding on the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE driven by Tyler Reddick during this year’s Daytona 500 on Feb. 14.

“We view Lenovo as a vital technology partner that will contribute first-hand to Richard Childress Racing’s on-track and off-track successes through close collaboration and the direct use of innovative technology products,” said Torrey Galida, president of Richard Childress Racing. “RCR welcomes an Intelligent Transformation through Lenovo and we look forward to having Lenovo on board the No. 8 Chevrolet with driver Tyler Reddick at this year’s Daytona 500.”

Reddick, 25, enters his second year of full-time competition in the NASCAR Cup Series for Richard Childress Racing this season. He is a two-time NASCAR Xfinity Series champion. Although Lenovo has been involved in multiple forms of motorsport over the years, this will mark their first foray into NASCAR team sponsorship.

“This partnership will allow the RCR team to see first-hand Lenovo’s commitment to innovation and solution optimizations that will transform the racing experience for their team, engineers and spectators,” said Thomas Hurlbut, Global General Manager, Lenovo OEM Solutions.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes have hired retired captain and three-time Stanley Cup winner Justin Williams as special adviser to the general manager.

"The knowledge that he brings just getting off the ice a short time ago is going to be very valuable for us," team president and general manager Don Waddell said Friday in a virtual news conference.

Williams said it was "just an opportunity to stay within the game" and that his goal "is really to learn as much as I can" about team operations.

"It's just something that's already interests me," Williams said, adding: "Am I going to be good at rating players, at grading players? I don't know. So I'm just kind of learning what I need to see in a player because when I went out there, I could just do it. ... I'm just going to do my best to learn from the guys that are very, very well-experienced in it."

The 39-year-old forward announced his retirement in October after 19 NHL seasons and a second stint with Carolina, where he won the Cup for the first time in 2006. He later won the Cup with the Los Angeles Kings in 2012 and 2014, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in that second run while earning the nickname "Mr. Game 7" for his success in postseason-deciding games.

Williams had 320 goals and 477 assists in 1,264 career regular-season games.

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says he has held showdown talks with Paul Pogba about the midfielder's future but has refused to be drawn on whether he will sign a new contract at Old Trafford.

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Pogba has less than 18 months left on his current deal and agent Mino Raiola said publicly in December the Frenchman will not sign an extension.

The 27-year-old has hit a good run of form and was voted United's player of the month for January, which prompted hope he may perform a U-turn over his future.

But even after talks with the World Cup winner, Solskjaer is giving nothing away.

"Our conversations remain private," he said. "Speculation about Paul is always going to be there, we've got a good open dialogue with Paul so what we talk about and how we see that situation remains between us.

"I'm just happy he's focused and playing really well and he's happy within himself and that's important, you can see Paul enjoying football himself with a red shirt on."

Sources have told ESPN that Real Madrid and Juventus are interested in Pogba but there are doubts at United about whether either club could afford him this summer as the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic continues to bite.

Speculation surrounding Pogba's future is likely to continue throughout the second half of season but Solskjaer is not concerned that the issue may become a distraction.

"Paul is a Man United player through and through," said the United manager. "He's been here in two spells; he came as a kid he's learnt about the history of the club, the passion of the club he wants to do the best for Man United when he's here and I think we've seen that, that he really cares for his team and he's trying to be as successful as everyone else."

With the January transfer window closed, Solskjaer and his staff have already turned their attention to the summer market. Regardless of whether Pogba stays or goes, or where United finish in the league, the club are set to spend again at the end of the season and Solskjaer has warned his players that they will face more competition for places as the squad continues to evolve.

"We're doing the same planning, preparation but of course the pandemic has changed the market and it's changed the world and it might affect what we can do," said Solskjaer. "We just have to see where we're at in the next few months of course but we're looking at players and targets as we normally would do.

"We have done some very good business in the last few windows I feel and it's not like wholesale changes we need to make, it's the odd contribution and addition to the squad.

"If you can't deal with competition and you want to be successful you're at the wrong place.

"Nobody is guaranteed a place in the team like a season ticket card here you've got to perform to be part of the success of Man United and I've been part of it myself with strikers coming in and you've just got to take the challenge head on.

"We've signed players that we believe in but that's also kicked some of the other players up the backside to perform and make sure they keep performing."

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence is set to undergo a left labrum repair that is not expected to affect his readiness for the 2021 season, his representatives at MGC Sports told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The procedure, on his non-throwing shoulder, is set to take place after Lawrence -- the projected No. 1 pick in this year's draft -- throws for NFL teams Feb. 12, the representatives said.

Doctors are confident that Lawrence will have recovered in time for training camp, the representatives said, adding that Lawrence will not take part in Clemson's pro day in March.

The Jacksonville Jaguars hold the No. 1 pick in the draft and are expected to select Lawrence, which would mean he'd play for new NFL coach Urban Meyer.

NEW YORK -- Yankee Stadium was opened as a COVID-19 mass vaccination site Friday by officials trying to boost inoculation rates in surrounding Bronx neighborhoods hit hard by the pandemic.

The home of the New York Yankees is being restricted to residents of the New York City borough with the highest percentage of positive coronavirus test results. Mayor Bill de Blasio called it "a different kind of opening day" hours after a long line formed outside the stadium on a damp morning.

"This is about protecting people who need the most protection because the Bronx is one of the places that bore the brunt of this crisis of the coronavirus" he said at a stadium-side news conference. "The Bronx has suffered."

De Blasio, a Red Sox fan, donned a Yankees cap in gratitude to the team and declared himself a fan of Boston's archrival "for one day only."

The site established with help from the city and state has registered about 13,000 of the 15,000 appointments available in its first week, officials said. It will initially be open seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Officials encouraging people to get vaccinated enlisted former Yankees star relief pitcher Mariano Rivera to help. The Hall of Famer said he wanted to support the people who supported him for so many years.

"We saved so many games here," Rivera said, "but now it's about saving lives."

Second baseman Jonathan Schoop has reached a one-year, $4.5 million deal to re-sign with the Detroit Tigers, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan on Friday.

Schoop paid dividends for the Tigers after signing a one-year deal last offseason, providing solid defense up the middle in 2020 while hitting .278 with 23 RBIs and eight home runs, which ranked second on the team.

In 2019, Schoop, 29, batted .256 with 23 homers, 59 RBIs and a .777 OPS in 121 games during his only season with the Minnesota Twins. It was his fourth consecutive season with more than 20 home runs.

His best season came with the Baltimore Orioles in 2017, when he was a first-time All-Star and hit .293 with 32 homers and 105 RBIs. He has a .259 career batting average with 141 homers and 415 RBIs.

TRENTON, N.J. – The Atlantic City NAPA Auto Parts race weekend has officially become the fourth and final COVID-19 victim of the Indoor Auto Racing Championship Series fueled by VP Racing Fuels season.

The 19th annual event promoted by Len Sammons inside Boardwalk Hall had originally been planned for Jan. 29-30.

The race weekend was then postponed a month to the end of February in hopes that conditions would improve and restrictions be loosened allowing the event to held. However, strict New Jersey State gathering restrictions have remained in place for large seating indoor arenas.

While a recent trend of improving COVID-19 cases and a growing number of vaccinations gives hope for the future, it has come too late to salvage the Indoor Auto Racing Championship Series fueled by VP in 2021.

“It’s with great regret that we canceled the fourth and final scheduled race on our indoor series this year because of the virus,” said Len Sammons, who brought the return of indoor racing to Atlantic City in 2003 when Canadian Andy Mackereth won the first ‘Gambler’s Classic’.

On Friday, just two days before the NFL Super Bowl, Gov. Phil Murphy announced plans loosen gathering limits, however the new restrictions still do not allow an event the magnitude of the Indoor Races to be held.

“We have been waiting and hoping for conditions to improve to a point that the Governor would feel comfortable relaxing restrictions. On Wednesday when it was announced that restrictions would be lifted we were hopeful that the event could be a possibility, but unfortunately we aren’t there yet.”

The latest guidelines call for slightly relaxed indoor restrictions in New Jersey by increasing capacity limits from 25 percent up to 35 percent for indoor dining and other businesses, while allowing restaurants to stay open past 10 p.m.

The Governor, however, did not remove or lessen a cap on the indoor gathering size which remains at 150 people. Despite the size of Boardwalk Hall and the adjoining West Hall where the pit area is set, that’s simply not enough allowed into the buildings to present a race no less allow spectators to attend.

Atlantic City now joins previously cancelled concrete events featuring the TQ Midgets, Slingshots and Champ Karts in Allentown, PA’s PPL Center and the New York State Fairgrounds Exposition Center in Syracuse. The East Coast Indoor Dirt Nationals scheduled for Feb. 19-20 at the CURE Insurance Arena was also a victim of the gathering restrictions.

Dates for all four ventures will be announced in the coming weeks. They are expected to be on the same, or close to the same, weekends as planned in 2021.

The pandemic hit in March of 2020 after the indoor racetrack at the New York State Fairgrounds Exposition Center had been built. The closure of the Fairgrounds was announced 24 hours before racing was scheduled to begin that Friday night and it has yet to open.

“I feel so bad for our dedicated racers, our staff that take such great pride in presenting the event and most of all our loyal fans who support the Indoor Racing Series,” said Sammons.

“I can guarantee you we will all work hard to make our return to Indoor Racing bigger and better than ever in 2022. Our racers will be more eager than ever to bring home a win, if that’s possible, and the staff of each of the venues has been working during their dark times to make building improvements.”

Indoor racing in Atlantic City, N.J., was scheduled to make its debut under the promotion of George Stockinger on Saturday, Jan. 16, 1965 but a blizzard snow storm forced its cancellation. A week later, however, the event was held and Dick DeYoung became the first TQ Midget winner there.

Stockinger’s promotion of Atlantic City events came to an end when Nick Fornoro Jr. was the race winner on Feb. 1, 1981.

Under Sammons leadership racing returned 22 years later and had been held annually until this year’s event. Andy Jankowiak was the most recent winner in 2020.

“I am dying with all of the AC memories popping up on my feed right now. Can’t wait to get back at it,” said Jankowiak, the 2020 Indoor Auto Racing Series champion as well, last week, a time he should have been spending in Atlantic City.

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Officials from Rette Jones Racing announced Friday that Max Gutiérrez has joined the organization for the full ARCA Menards Series East season beginning with Monday night’s Jeep Beach 175 at Florida’s New Smyrna Speedway.

Gutiérrez, 18, will pilot Rette Jones Racing’s No. 30 Ford Fusion with support from TOUGHBUILT, Telcel, TekNekk and Avaya.

Gutiérrez enters the ARCA Menards Series East scene an accomplished racer, including as a six-time Super Kart Champion (2008–13).

Continuing to excel at his craft, Gutiérrez won Rookie of the Year honors in Mikel’s NASCAR Truck Series in Mexico in 2017 before capturing the series’ championship a year later in 2018.

In 2019, he advanced to the NASCAR Mexico Challenge Series where he won two races in 10 starts, while also competing in select Late Model Stock Series events.

Last season, he continued his dominating ways in the NASCAR Mexico Challenge Series where he won five of his 12 races and earned 10 top-five finishes. During the summer he traveled to the United States to compete in the ARCA Menards Series East where he made two starts at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway and Five Flags Speedway respectively, earning a career-best 12th at Five Flags in October.

“First, I’m very happy to be running for the ARCA Menards Series East championship with Rette Jones Racing,” said a jubilant Gutiérrez. “I don’t have the words to express how thankful I am.

“I cannot thank my partners TOUGHBUILT, TekNekk, Telcel (Jimmy Morales) and Avaya enough for this chance and of course for Rette Jones Racing for the opportunity – and to all the people behind this project who made it possible, I can’t wait for the green flag.”

To prepare Gutiérrez for his New Smyrna debut, the Mexico City, Mexico, native recently participated in a private test at the Central Florida short track, where he spent the day with co-car owner and crew chief Mark Rette and the rest of the RJR team working on setup, qualifying runs and race pace – all getting their rookie driver ready for the 175-lap battle on Feb. 8.

“We made a lot of gains during the day and everyone left the track pleased,” offered Rette. “Max didn’t leave anything on the table and continued to provide exceptional feedback that allowed us to keep adjusting the handling on the No. 30 TOUGHBUILT | Telcel Ford Fusion with the hope of contending for a top-10 finish on Monday night.

“It’s going to be a stacked tour in 2021, but I feel that Max will be a quick learner and we can compete for not only Rookie of the Year – but the overall ARCA Menards Series East championship.”

Even though Gutiérrez realizes a learning curve awaits him in 2021, his faith in himself and his Rette Jones Racing has him upbeat about overcoming any early season hurdles.

“It is great to be involved in the ARCA Menards Series East to help my development for a path in NASCAR,” added Gutiérrez. “The cars are more powerful than in Mexico and a Late Model, but I feel I can control the car better than any other series I’ve competed in.

“There are goals to be conquered in 2021 and with the help of Rette Jones Racing and my partners, they are helping me make my dream a reality.”

Rette believes his rookie driver can contend for a top-10 finish in his ARCA Menards Series East debut.

“We’re a winning team in the ARCA Menards Series East and we plan to continue that tradition with Max Gutiérrez in 2021,” sounded Rette.

“When you have a determined driver and team, you’ve already have conquered half the battle before you even enter the garage.

“Max will utilize practice to his advantage and hopefully we can have a strong qualifying effort that will keep us near the front and allow Max to have a strong and clean race.”

Twenty-four years ago, Justin Marks got his first taste of The Great American Race.

At 16, not yet an entrepreneur and ex-NASCAR driver, Marks and his father attended the 39th Daytona 500 on Feb. 16, 1997. Marks remembers it as “one of the best days of my life.”

On the day Jeff Gordon claimed his first Daytona 500 victory, Marks navigated the garage area, having pictures taken with the likes of Ricky Rudd, Dick Trickle, Sterling Marlin and Rick Mast.

“I go back to that moment and just think; could I imagine telling that kid that (24) years from that moment, he was going to own one of those cars in the race?” Marks said.

This month, now 39, Marks will be back on the Daytona 500 starting grid. Instead of driving, as he did in 2018, he returns as the owner of one of the newest NASCAR Cup Series teams —Trackhouse Racing.

The team will field the No. 99 Chevrolet in partnership with Richard Childress Racing, essentially serving as the organization’s third car.

But Marks didn’t jump into the NASCAR ownership game for giggles.

For Marks, the “catalyst” for Trackhouse Racing’s creation is something that won’t arrive until 2022 — the Next Gen car.

The car’s introduction, delayed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is vital to Marks for several reasons.

“I think one is automotive relevancy,” he said. “These cars need to be built with more modern materials like carbon fiber. Single lug, sequential gearbox, independent rear suspension, these are all things that are relevant to the modern automobile. There’s no reason why in 2020 we should be running solid-axle rear ends in these cars. It just doesn’t make sense.

“The other big piece is vendor supplied parts, (which allows a team to become) much more of a sporting enterprise, and less of a manufacturing and engineering enterprise.”

Before fully committing to the ownership path, which he started down in the middle of 2019 with former team executive Ty Norris, Marks had to “challenge” NASCAR on its commitment to rules enforcement on the car before he was satisfied.

“You don’t want to fall in love with a notion that seems like in theory, it’s going to work out really well,” Marks explained. “But then NASCAR leaves these black holes to where Toyota and some of these owners will just drop $30 million of money and we’ll just get our asses kicked in perpetuity.”

For Marks’ interests, it helps to pair yourself with the team that’s been helping develop the car — RCR.

“They’ve got the Next Gen car sitting there, it’s a big part of it,” Marks said.

LAUNCH PLAN

Andy Petree says if he could do it all over again, “I would do it” the Justin Marks way.

In 1996, after three years as Dale Earnhardt’s crew chief at RCR, Petree began climbing a “pretty big hill” to launch Andy Petree Racing. The team fielded cars for drivers such as Bobby Hamilton Jr., Ken Schrader and Kenny Wallace.

Unlike NASCAR of the early 2020s, the Cup Series garage then wasn’t the multi-car wonderland of today with technical alliances between large and small teams.

“You basically had to do it all,” said Petree, now RCR’s vice president of competition. “We built every engine. We built every single race car right out on the rack. We built chassis, we built the bodies, it was just really, really difficult to compete as a small team going up against super established teams back then.”

When Petree left RCR, its Welcome, N.C., headquarters was home to one Cup Series team.

Petree returned in 2017. Four years later, the campus will house RCR’s two Cup Series teams and an Xfinity Series car, Richard Petty Motorsports, Kaulig Racing’s three full-time Xfinity Series cars and Trackhouse Racing.

Throw in engine builder ECR, which is now partnered with Hendrick Motorsports’ program, and that’s a lot of infrastructure for Marks to plug into.

“He’s really smart about this, because he just basically tapped right into everything that we’re doing,” Petree noted. “And from day one, hour one, that is a huge advantage.”

For Marks, it’s the “most efficient and intelligent and responsible way” to launch his team with an eye toward post-2021 when the Next Gen car arrives.

Part of Marks’ thinking: What had befallen some Cup Series teams during recent hard times?

“The conversation started with the fact that that there are a number of organizations in this sport right now that have infrastructure and shops and support systems built out to field more cars than they’re fielding right now,” said Marks, who points to Roush Fenway Racing “still sitting” on a campus built for five full-time Cup Series teams when it only has two.

“Why invest in building that yourself when all that is sitting there, and it’s being underutilized and under monetized by those teams?” said Marks. “I think that the new car that’s coming in ’22 is going to provide an opportunity for such a paradigm shift in the business model of the sport, that I didn’t want to just set myself up for the headache of sitting on all these depreciating assets and this inventory that I don’t think I was going to need.”

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