Future Hall of Famer Manny Pacquiao is still a world champion. Well, kind of.

Pacquiao was designated by the WBA as a "champion in recess," the sanctioning body said in a statement on Friday night. With the vacancy, Yordenis Ugas has been promoted to become the WBA's top titleholder in the welterweight division.

The WBA's guidelines state that the recess can be invoked "when a champion is unable to defend the belt for medical, legal or other reasons beyond his control." No specific reasons were given for the change in the WBA's statement.

Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) hasn't fought since July 2019, when he beat Keith Thurman in a split decision to win one of the four major belts in the 147-pound division. Pacquiao's name has been floated for future bouts against WBO champion Terence "Bud" Crawford and junior lightweight contender Ryan Garcia.

Ugas (26-4, 12 KOs) has won three straight fights since a split-decision loss to Shawn Porter in March 2019. Ugas most recently won a split decision over Abel Ramos last September.

Manuel Charr (31-4, 17 KOs), who held an inferior version of a WBA heavyweight belt, also was named a champion in recess. He hasn't fought in more than three years. The governing body also stripped cruiserweight Beibut Shumenov (18-2, 12 KOs) of his version of the division's belt because of inactivity since his last bout in July 2018.

Anthony Joshua holds the top WBA heavyweight belt, while Arsen Goulamirian has the WBA's best cruiserweight title.

Three tries in 10 second-half minutes saw Northampton beat Gloucester to put more pressure on the bottom side.

Willi Heinz's try extended Gloucester's 12-11 half-time lead but a Rory Hutchinson try and two from Shaun Adendorff saw Saints take control.

Matias Alemanno then went over to earn Gloucester a losing bonus point.

Saints move up to sixth place in the Premiership while Gloucester stay three points behind 11th-placed Worcester after they got a losing bonus point against Exeter.

An early Dan Biggar penalty for Saints was cancelled out by a trio of three-pointers from Billy Twelvetrees as Gloucester, who, inspired by the return of England scrum-half Willi Heinz after injury, had the better of the early moments.

But Saints, who had not played since Boxing Day after a Covid-19 cancellation, went ahead after 10 phases on the Cherry and Whites line ended with the ball being sent out wide where Naiyaravoro had an overlap and walked in.

They could have gone further ahead but David Ribbans was held up over the line before a sickening collision between Furbank and Carreras as they jumped to try and catch a box kick left both players unconscious before Biggar and Twelvetrees each added another penalty.

The hosts started the second period brightly as Heinz went over under the posts after a good break by Ollie Thorley, but that score kicked Saints into action as they exposed Gloucester's defensive frailties.

Hutchinson went in after some quick hands, then Adendorff grabbed his pair of tries - the first an unchallenged walk in from a Hutchinson cross-field kick and then a dive into the left corner as Saints went almost the entire length of the field in double-quick time.

Alemanno's close-range try in the closing moments secured what could be a crucial losing bonus point for Gloucester as they lost for a fifth successive league match.

Gloucester head coach George Skivington told BBC Radio Gloucestershire:

"I think early on particularly, when we had some good momentum, Saints did a good job of targeting our lineout.

"Set piece has been a real strong point for us and they took the approach to take that away and they did a really good job of that and we got more flustered than I would have liked and I think that cost us capitalising on any pressure that we had.

"It was really good and then a couple of people clocked off and Saints are too good of an attacking team for that and just found the obvious gaps that we gave right to them.

"I'm not sure why we're clocking off, it's not necessarily been a consistent thing, but it's something we'll have to look at."

Northampton forwards coach Phil Dowson told BBC Radio Northampton:

"I think it was a good team performance.

"I thought first half we made them work incredibly hard in defence and I thought we put them under a ton of pressure and that comes to fruition in the second half.

"I thought the last 10 minutes we didn't manage as well as we could, lost a couple of lineouts and lost the ability to exert pressure and gave them an opportunity in the game.

"The most frustrating part of that game was the last 10 minutes, I thought the rest of it - the effort, the application and the detail - were all outstanding."

Gloucester: Woodward; Carreras, Twelvetrees, Atkinson, Thorley; Evans, Heinz; Rapava-Ruskin, Walker, Balmain, Garvey, Alemanno, Reid, Ludlow (capt), Ackermann.

Replacements: Gleave, Ford-Robinson, Knight, Craig, Gibson, Chapman, Seabrook, Moyle.

Northampton: Furbank; Proctor, Hutchinson, Francis, Naiyaravoro; Biggar, Mitchell; Waller (co-capt), S Matavesi, Hill, Ribbans, Ratuniyarawa, Isiekwe, Ludlam (co-capt), Adendorff.

Replacements: Haywood, Van Wyk, Painter, Moon, Coles, James, Dingwall, Freeman.

Referee: Karl Dickson (RFU).

WELCOME, N.C. — The U.S. Air Force has extended its sponsorship agreement with Richard Petty Motorsports in the NASCAR Cup Series.

As part of the agreement, the U.S. Air Force will serve as the primary partner of Jones’ No. 43 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE in the NASCAR Cup Series at the Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway (April 25) and at the Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway (Sept. 18).

The U.S. Air Force will also be an associate sponsor for the entirety of the NASCAR Cup Series season with Richard Petty Motorsports.

“I am looking forward to this weekend in South Dakota with the U.S. Air Force, and checking-out what they have going on at the U.S. Air Force Snocross National,” Jones said. “Partnering with them, I think, is a really good fit. I have always been supportive of our military in this country and the people who serve. Personally, I have a connection with friends who are members of the U.S. Air Force and have had great careers.

“I think it is a great partnership with Richard Petty Motorsports, one that I feel really comfortable with and am really thankful for.”

The 24-year-old, hailing from Byron, Mich., is no stranger to the thrill of the cold, the snow, and the speed that can be found at the U.S. Air Force Snocross National. The brisk winter sport is a hobby of Jones. On Saturday, Jan. 30, he will be introduced to other U.S. Air Force athletes – Lincoln Lemieux and Hunter Patenaude with Scheuring Speed Sports.

“We are excited to continue our partnership with Richard Petty Motorsports and welcome driver Erik Jones to the team,” Maj. Jason Wyche, Air Force Recruiting Service chief of national events branch, said. “Our involvement in motorsports allows us to highlight the connections between racing and the Air Force, such as speed, teamwork, competition and technology. We’re grateful for the opportunity to host Erik Jones at the 2021 U.S. Air Force Snocross National. This cross-promotion initiative is a great way to fully immerse
Jones in the Air Force Racing team.”

The U.S. Air Force utilizes the Richard Petty Motorsports partnership to attract the most talented Airmen and Guardians to preserve the security of America.

“It’s an honor to be associated with the U.S. Air Force,” said Brian Moffitt, chief executive officer at Richard Petty Motorsports. “We understand that the success of Air Force recruiting relies on a multi-layered marketing campaign at the local, regional and national level. They see the Richard Petty Motorsports partnership as an opportunity for a positive impact on generating public awareness about the career opportunities the U.S. Air Force provides, its people, and its mission. As we go into the 2021 NASCAR season together, we will continue to focus on the performance of the program both on and off the track.”

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Sebastien Bourdais calls endurance racing “my first love.”

Not a surprising declaration from a racer who was born in Le Mans – that Le Mans – has raced in the 24 Hour of Le Mans 14 times and will be adding a 12th Rolex 24 At Daytona start to his prolific career on Saturday.

But Bourdais also has an extensive résumé – and current full-time career – in IndyCar racing, and he’s not the only driver preparing for the 59th Rolex 24 whose day job lies in open-wheel competition.

At least 10 drivers in this year’s Rolex 24 will compete in the IndyCar Series this season, and all – Bourdais included – race at Daytona for the love of the event. Among many other, more practical reasons, of course.

“You have a toolbox of skills,” Bourdais explained. “The more complete a driver you are, the better you are – the faster, the more reliable, the quicker you get up to speed and the more able to adapt to conditions. There is always a crossover between different types of championships and races.”

He knows what he’s saying. Bourdais, 41, has won the Rolex 24 twice – in 2014 (Daytona Prototype and overall) and 2017 (GT Le Mans) – and finished second twice. In the past seven years, he has finished on the podium in his class five times.

At Le Mans, he helped Chip Ganassi Racing win the GTE Pro class in 2016 and has four other podium finishes.

In IndyCar racing, Bourdais won four Champ Car championships and has 37 victories in 15 years. In September, he announced that he’ll return to the IndyCar Series on a full-time basis with A.J. Foyt Racing.

But there’s something about endurance racing, with its constantly changing conditions, challenges and teamwork, that appeals to one of racing’s most diversely decorated drivers.

“There is a lot to be said about being able to drive as much as you do in a 24-hour race in very, very treacherous conditions,” Bourdais said. “Between the traffic and the cold and the rain and the night – it really heightens your senses and gets you going for the season. It really sharpens your skills. It’s always kind of helped me to step up my game. It’s also my first love, so I’ve always enjoyed doing it.”

He’ll be surrounded by drivers who share his other love. Current IndyCar regulars like six-time champion Scott Dixon, 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Alexander Rossi, three-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves, two-time Indy 500 winner and 1999 season champion Juan Pablo Montoya, 2016 IndyCar champion and 2019 Indy winner Simon Pagenaud, Rinus VeeKay and Colton Herta will be competing in the Rolex 24.

You could even add in Jimmie Johnson, who’s transitioning to IndyCars after his NASCAR retirement, and Ed Jones, whose return to the sport was announced this week.

More than a dozen other drivers with IndyCar experience — including two-time Indy 500 champion Juan Pablo Montoya, Ryan Briscoe, Spencer Pigot, Mike Conway, Katherine Legge, Tristan Vautier and AJ Allmendinger – also are ready to race in the Rolex 24.

The differences between the two forms of racing might appear subtle, Bourdais said, but they’re often starker than assumed.

“In IndyCar, the weekends are so quick, and it’s just you,” Bourdais said. “In endurance racing, you have to make compromises on setups. Sometimes you have to drive a car that is evolving quite dramatically through the race as conditions change. You get the wide spectrum and range of experiences in those long events. It definitely sharpens you.”

Of course, IndyCar drivers converging on the Rolex 24 is nothing new. No fewer than 11 Indianapolis 500 winners have also taken the overall victory at the Rolex 24. The list includes Dixon, Montoya, Foyt, Mark Donohue, Dario Franchitti, Arie Luyendyk, Bobby Rahal, Buddy Rice, Al Unser, Al Unser Jr. and Dan Wheldon.

SAN TAN VALLEY, Ariz. – Chris Kearns had a very busy January.

Promoting the Wild West Shootout, which covered a 10-day span, then jumping right into the initial Wild Wing Shootout event, Kearns literally lived at Arizona Speedway for much of the month.

While preparation for the Wild West Shootout started shortly after the 2020 version was completed, the on-site work can only be started as opening day nears. As team leader of both events, Kearns is the person who lives and breathes Wild West racing once the calendar is turns to a new year.

The Wild West Shootout that is headlined by super late models is promoted by Kearns, Michael Rigsby, and Matt Curl while the inaugural Wild Wing Shootout was under the promotion of Kearns, Jonah Trussel (Arizona Speedway promoter), Michael Rigsby and Matt Curl.

Two other people who play a major role in the events are Jolene Kearns (Chris’ wife) and Jason Babyak, who took care of a myriad of things before, during and after each race day. One of those tasks is getting every driver and employee paid after each race, nine times in a 16-day stretch. The Wild West Shootout portion also has Ben Shelton playing a large role in event preparation.

This year’s Wild West Shootout event was record setting with the car count obliterating the old record. The fourth of six races drew 187 entries in the three divisions, super late models, modifieds and x mods. This year’s average was 172, a large increase over last year’s average of 120.

There also seemed to be better super late main events than before with mods and x mods certainly holding up their end of things also. It is generally thought that one super late model main was the best ever in this series.

You might think the team leader would be thrilled with the big car count increase, but not necessarily so with Kearns.

“All in all I think it was a success,” said Kearns. “The car count was a little overwhelming. I don’t need that many cars to put on a great event but I appreciate how that many racers wanted to come and race for us. If you take the percentage of keeping that many teams happy for six nights, I think we did pretty damn well. I got pretty much only compliments from the fans, so I think it was a success.

“I think this year was a fluke with car count,” Kearns further explained. “No one got to race a lot last year, no one knows how much they are going to race this year. I think it’s a 140-car event and I’m totally fine with that. I don’t see this year’s turnout happening again, I really don’t. We try to pay these guys well, but it has to be expensive for them. They are not only out here spending money, they aren’t home making money.”

The crowd size was in line with previous years despite the question of how would the COVID-19 situation would play out with fans. Two days before opening night’s practice session, the county’s wishes were met when a mandatory mask rule was installed and numerous hand sanitizers stations were placed around the facility. Temperatures were checked before fans could enter with three EMTs on site. Compliance by fans and teams on the mask rule was very well supported, as everyone understood what was needed to not create issues with the county.

Only a three-day break following the Wild West event gave Kearns a chance to catch his breath, and then Wild Wing Shootout began its initial year with a Thursday night practice before three nights of racing for winged 410 sprint cars and IMCA modifieds.

“I was a little disappointed with the sprint car count, but I was happy with the caliber and we had a pretty good main event for Arizona at that time of year,” Kearns said. “We had some phenomenal hitters, I was happy with the support, the crowd, not the weather on Sunday. For the first year, it was good.

“The late model and modified people have learned that I do whatever it takes to get a show in and I needed the sprint car people to see that. Travelers like Dewease, the GSR team out of Indiana, I don’t want people to look at the weather and think there is a chance I will cancel so they don’t go. I knew racing Sunday was a bad idea, but in the big picture of building the event, it was worth the hit to race on Sunday. We rushed it through which took away the pizzazz of the final race. I don’t want a race to just be a race, I want it to be an event.”

Kearns hopes that much like sponsorship has helped grow the Wild West Shootout, the same will happen for the Wild Wing Shootout.

“The sponsorship on the Wild West is amazing which allows us to keep putting back into it,” Kearns said. “That’s how you build an event. That’s how we made the Wild West so big, but I think since we are in January many are looking at us and we give back which helped us with sponsorship on the Wild West. I’m hoping it happens on the Wild Wing side.”

Kearns works very hard to make January special and some of the seemingly little things he does show his determination. The track has no running water, so they have to go the portable route. A nicer facility on wheels is available for women, and Kearns spent $200 on decorations for the inside. He spent $1,600 on large, heavy duty trash bags and paid someone to replace trash bags inside the barrels all around the property before they overflowed. Drivers were given nice looking western style face masks for their post race interview instead of wearing some generic looking thing, something that was important to Kearns.

The 2022 dates for Wild West Shootout are set for Jan. 7-16 and the Wild Wing Shootout will be on the following weekend. And one guarantee you can take to the bank: with Kearns serving as the leader of the group, both events will continue to grow and be very well presented.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Nine legends from the world of motorsports, including an unprecedented three female honorees, were named to the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America as the 33rd class was unveiled on Saturday at Daytona Int’l Speedway in advance of the Rolex 24.

The class of 2021 includes NASCAR Hall of Famer Davey Allison (Stock Cars), three-time land speed record holder John Cobb (Historic), three-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon Jr. (Drag Racing), Indy and NASCAR trailblazer Janet Guthrie (Open Wheel), 2006 MotoGP World Champion Nicky Hayden (Motorcycles), legendary Indy correspondent Robin Miller (Media), seven consecutive APBA Gold Cup winner Fran Muncey (Powerboats), multi-time USAC and NASCAR champion Ray Nichels (Historic) and world class timer/scorer Judy Stropus (Sports Cars).

“The Class of 2021 is history-making in so many respects,” said Motorsports Hall of Fame of America President George Levy. “Janet Guthrie, Fran Muncey and Judy Stropus comprise the first ever class with three female inductees. Fran joins inaugural class inductee Bill Muncey as the only husband and wife inductees. And Davey Allison, Bobby Allison and Donnie Allison join Bobby Unser, Al Unser and Al Unser Jr. as the only families with three individually inducted members.”

The Motorsports Hall of Fame of America class of 2021 was unveiled in an on-line press conference at DIS featuring Levy, new-class representative Stropus, 2005 inductee Hurley Haywood and Daytona Int’l Speedway President Chip Wile.

Each of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America’s inductees is elected by a straight vote of 200 motorsports experts — half of them inductees themselves. Regular voters include Hall of Famers Mario Andretti, Tom D’Eath, Chip Ganassi, Don Garlits, Parnelli Jones, Scott Parker, Richard Petty, Don Prudhomme and other titans of the sport.

Each year, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America classes are formally inducted in a celebration featuring motorsports legends and fellow Hall of Fame members at a black-tie gala. Plans for the 2020 induction ceremony, postponed last year at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the class of 2021 celebration will be announced in the near future.

Including the 2020 and 2021 classes, 269 Heroes of Horsepower are in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. The induction of Guthrie, Muncey and Stropus increases to 10 the number of women enshrined in the Hall.

United States defender DeAndre Yedlin is set for a move to Galatasaray from Newcastle United, sources have told ESPN.

Yedlin, 27, is to travel to Turkey for his medical after both clubs agreed on a fee for the right-back.

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Yedlin's contract was up in June and his original preference was to stay at Newcastle, but with no new deal on the table, he has taken up a three-and-a-half-year deal with Galatasaray.

The two clubs were locked in negotiations for much of last week. Galatasaray tabled the contract offer to Yedlin on Tuesday, leaving it up to the two clubs to agree a deal.

Newcastle approved Galatasaray's latest approach on Saturday and gave Yedlin permission to travel to Istanbul.

Yedlin will now bolster Galatasaray's push for the Super Lig, with the club sitting third in the Turkish top flight.

He is hugely experienced, with 62 caps for the U.S., and will leave the Premier League having played for both Tottenham and then Newcastle.

He joined Newcastle in 2016, and made 125 Premier League appearances. He broke into Steve Bruce's starting lineup in December but his progress was then hampered by visa issues. Those are now solved, but with no fresh contract on offer from Newcastle, he will continue his career in Turkey.

Moeen Ali has urged people to take the Covid-19 vaccine and ignore "consipracy theories" amid concerns over low vaccination rates among ethnic minority groups.

Scientists are still trying to determine what level of immunity, if any, comes from having had Covid-19 but, having spent two weeks confined to a hotel room with the illness, which forced him to miss England's two-Test victory in Sri Lanka, Moeen said he would "definitely" take the vaccine when it is eventually made available to him.

"At the minute I'd take it and urge others to do it," he told reporters via Zoom from Chennai, where England are preparing to face India in four Tests. "Having spoken to people who know quite a bit about it, I'd take it and get my family and others to take it.

"It's like any vaccine, there's a lot of conspiracy theories out there, but it's just medicine evolving. In our community, people are sometimes not sure whether to take something - a bit cautious - but for things to get back to normal, it's important that we do it."

His comments follow reports earlier this month that Muslim leaders around the UK would seek to reassure people about the safety of Covid-19 vaccines amid some scepticism and anxiety within their communities.

A study based on patient records in England this week revealed that among the one million people aged over 80 and not living in care homes, 43% of white people had received their first vaccine dose compared with only 30% of the Bangladeshi and Pakistani people in that group. The figure dropped to 21% among black people. That is despite black people being four times more likely, and those from Pakistani and Bangladeshi backgrounds being twice as likely to die with Covid-19 than their white counterparts.

Moeen, who is Muslim of Pakistani descent, tested positive for Covid-19 upon arriving with the England squad in Sri Lanka and spent 13 days in isolation with fairly mild symptoms as his team swept the series 2-0. Chris Woakes, who travelled from Birmingham to Heathrow in the same minibus, was in isolation for a week and continued to return negative tests, leading Moeen to believe he may have contracted the illness either "at the airport or on the plane".

Speaking publicly for the first time since his ordeal began, Moeen described his symptoms, initial fears and recovery.

"I didn't sleep much on the plane and felt a bit jet-lagged and then in the evening I started to get splitting headaches," he said. "The test was positive. I was not surprised, I had a feeling because once I landed I didn't feel great.

"I had loss of taste for a day or so, splitting headaches for three days, my body was very sore and the fatigue was.... I've never experienced that sort of tiredness before in my life. It was three days feeling pretty rough and the rest was fine.

"When I initially got it, I thought, 'the next five days will be crucial here', I didn't want the cough and fever and thankfully I didn't have that. There's part of you that's worried and anticipating it would be bad."

Pointing out that he came through with "no major issues", Moeen found being in isolation tough, particularly once he started feeling better physically. But he credited his team-mates with keeping his spirits up with phone calls to check on him throughout and believed he wouldn't be the last to go through the experience.

"The 14 days felt like they were dragging," he said. "The last four days in particular were very tough because I felt fine but I was just stuck in a room.

"I wouldn't wish it on anyone to be honest with you, just stuck there, especially when you land on a tour and then you're positive, and then you get out and towards the end you're watching the wicket spinning and you want to be out there.

"Once I was positive I wanted to get it over and done with really. It's just the way it is now, I think I'll be the first of a few guys on future tours maybe. It's one of those things. It has been tough but I'm a big believer in 'after hardship comes ease'. Hopefully there is some ease after this."

Moeen re-joined the England squad midway through the first Test against Sri Lanka and returned to daily training during the second Test after an initial period easing back into physical activity. Now he is preparing for what could be his first Test in 18 months after being dropped one game into the 2019 Ashes series and then taking an extended break from red-ball cricket.

"When I got out, for four or five days, we had to be careful because I think heart-rate can be an issue after Covid for people who do a bit of running," Moeen said. "From my point of view I'm good now, but I have no match practice or anything. When we get out of here I'll train as hard as I can, spend time on my feet and try to be ready."

Chris Silverwood, England's head coach, said this week that Moeen was in contention to play the first Test in India, starting on February 5.