Lewis Hamilton became possibly the most arrogant and outrageous sports star over the course of this Bank Holiday weekend. Hamilton has been in and out the headlines, for the right and wrong reasons, ever since he came onto the Formula One scene. He has been cited for numerous driving offences and even tax evasions in his short career that saw him win the World Driving Championship in 2008 at the age of 23. After winning the championship he decided to release an auto-biography which, at the age of 23, sounds like an absurd thing to do. He was then awarded an MBE in 2009 in the New Year's Honours list.
Since his World Championship win, Hamilton has become one of the most irritating figures in sport. His constant moaning when things don't go his way shows a spoilt attitude especially when he blamed the McLaren car for not being ready at the start of last season and again this season. However when Hamilton won the Chinese Grand Prix this year, he quickly changed his mind on the readiness of the McLaren car and suddenly the car was now able to win Championships.
This weekend was the Monaco Grand Prix and it served its usual dose of drama but it also highlighted the prima-donna attitude of Lewis Hamilton. During the third stage of qualifying, Hamilton was setting out on his first lap, which coincided with the crash of Perez, he had Felipe Massa ahead of him but he wasn't causing Hamilton to slow down. As there are limited obvious passing places, Massa waited a few corners before letting Hamilton pass and although Hamilton still hadn't been forced to slow down, he threw his hand up in the air in annoyance to Massa.
It got worse on race day as Hamilton caused two crashes during the race. The first was a collision with Massa as Hamilton tried to under-cut the Ferrari by going through a kerb:
Paul Di Resta did the same sort of manoeuvre a few laps earlier on Sebastien Buemi and was duly given a drive through penalty. The stewards shown consistency by also giving Hamilton a drive through penalty, much to Hamilton's disgust. A few corners later Hamilton over-took Massa in the tunnel, causing Massa to go onto the dirty side of the track and ultimately crash into the barrier. If that wasn't enough for Hamilton, he decided to go one better and cause Maldonado to crash just two laps after the red flag. Again Hamilton ignored the kerb before sailing into Maldonado and causing the Williams car to go into the barrier:
After the race, the stewards again duly awarded Hamilton with a penalty. This time it was a twenty second penalty but it didn't actually change the race result. For some reason Hamilton thought it unfit to be brandished yet another penalty and decided that the stewards were ganging up on him. What was worse was that Hamilton then decided to play the race card and claimed that the stewards were ganging up on him because 'he is black'. Not only is this an outrageous statement to make, it could land many people in hot water. Since his outburst he has now threatened to quit Formula One which, after this weekend's antics, will not be a huge miss as no-one likes seeing an over-paid sports star acting like a spoilt kid especially when he clearly caused both of those avoidable collisions. But, unfortunately, everyone knows it is an empty threat before he calms himself down and just gets on with racing again. Please just grow up.
Tuesday, 31 May 2011
Monday, 30 May 2011
Sinclair Is Swansea's Superhero
It's not often you see a cup final, of any kind, that is blessed with an array of goals from two teams that are completely attack minded. Well today we were given six goals at Wembley as Swansea and Reading battled for the final place in next season's Premiership.
Reading ultimately started the game off better and had the best opening chances to take the lead. But football isn't always a kind game and Reading found themselves 1-0 down just after twenty minutes; Khizanishvili brought Dyer down in the box and referee Phil Dowd had no choice but to point to the spot and arguably should have sent the already booked Khizanishvili off. Former Chelsea youngster Scott Sinclair stepped up and sent Federici the wrong way. Reading were reeling and a quick breakaway saw Swansea double their lead a minute later with Sinclair getting his second goal of the game. It looked to be all but over when Dobbie tapped home to make it 3-0 Swansea five minutes before half-time.
Reading showed signs of distaste at half-time as substitute Jay Tabb and Reading's assistant manager were both sent off for dissent towards Dowd in the tunnel, although Dowd seemed to have done nothing wrong throughout the game. But Reading were fired up for the second half and came out the better side, they managed to pull a goal back four minutes after the restart when Hunt headed a corner past De Vries and the unattended front post. Swansea didn't learn their lesson and Reading made it 3-2 when captain Mills headed from another corner eight minutes later. It should have been 3-3 but Jimmy Kebe was denied by the post before Hunt's follow up was blocked by the toe of Williamson. The match was sealed though, ten minutes from time Andy Griffin decided to lunge in on Borini and Dowd had no choice but to award another penalty. Again Sinclair stepped up and went the same way with Federici millimetres away from saving it, but Sinclair had his hat-trick and Swansea will become the first Welsh team in the Premiership.
Yesterday saw Peterborough become the latest boing-boing club. They met Huddersfield at Old Trafford in the League One playoff final and Darren Ferguson's secured a late victory. Goals from Tommy Rowe (78), Craig Mackail-Smith (80) and Grant McCann (85) made it 3-0 within seven minutes to secure their Championship place after being relegated from there last season.
Reading ultimately started the game off better and had the best opening chances to take the lead. But football isn't always a kind game and Reading found themselves 1-0 down just after twenty minutes; Khizanishvili brought Dyer down in the box and referee Phil Dowd had no choice but to point to the spot and arguably should have sent the already booked Khizanishvili off. Former Chelsea youngster Scott Sinclair stepped up and sent Federici the wrong way. Reading were reeling and a quick breakaway saw Swansea double their lead a minute later with Sinclair getting his second goal of the game. It looked to be all but over when Dobbie tapped home to make it 3-0 Swansea five minutes before half-time.
Reading showed signs of distaste at half-time as substitute Jay Tabb and Reading's assistant manager were both sent off for dissent towards Dowd in the tunnel, although Dowd seemed to have done nothing wrong throughout the game. But Reading were fired up for the second half and came out the better side, they managed to pull a goal back four minutes after the restart when Hunt headed a corner past De Vries and the unattended front post. Swansea didn't learn their lesson and Reading made it 3-2 when captain Mills headed from another corner eight minutes later. It should have been 3-3 but Jimmy Kebe was denied by the post before Hunt's follow up was blocked by the toe of Williamson. The match was sealed though, ten minutes from time Andy Griffin decided to lunge in on Borini and Dowd had no choice but to award another penalty. Again Sinclair stepped up and went the same way with Federici millimetres away from saving it, but Sinclair had his hat-trick and Swansea will become the first Welsh team in the Premiership.
Yesterday saw Peterborough become the latest boing-boing club. They met Huddersfield at Old Trafford in the League One playoff final and Darren Ferguson's secured a late victory. Goals from Tommy Rowe (78), Craig Mackail-Smith (80) and Grant McCann (85) made it 3-0 within seven minutes to secure their Championship place after being relegated from there last season.
Sunday, 29 May 2011
Congratulations Wimbledon and Stevenage
This time last year Stevenage Borough were celebrating the fact they had just earned promotion into the Football League for the first time in their history. This year that accolade went to AFC Wimbledon who formed via disgruntled fans when the original Wimbledon moved and became MK Dons. But Wimbledon have made their way up and earned themselves a place in next year's League Two after beating Luton in the Blue Square Premier playoff final.
Yesterday saw the League Two playoff final between Stevenage and Torquay at Old Trafford. John Mousinho scored the only goal of the game four minutes before half-time to earn Stevenage back-to-back promotions into the NPower League One.
Yesterday saw the League Two playoff final between Stevenage and Torquay at Old Trafford. John Mousinho scored the only goal of the game four minutes before half-time to earn Stevenage back-to-back promotions into the NPower League One.
Monaco Massacre
After the incidents in yesterday's qualifying, no-one could guess what on earth would happen in today's Monaco grand prix. Before the race had even started there was drama as a suspicious package caused a bomb scare, luckily nothing came of it and the race was able to start as normal. After his big crash yesterday, Perez was unable to participate in the race but both Hispanias were allowed to race despite not setting any times in qualifying.
From the start, Alonso again pipped Webber to the first corner making it to fourth place. The big battle early on was between Hamilton and Schumacher and lap ten saw Hamilton over-take Schumacher into ninth place. Red Bull were slow with the initial pit stops as a sticky blanket meant Vettel couldn't get a rear tyre on quickly. This meant that Button had taken the lead after lap eighteen with the all the pit stops taken care of.
The first incident of the race came in lap 27 when Di Resta tried to overtake Buemi around the tightest corner in F1. The Force India had no room to manoeuvre and caused front wing damage as he cut across the kerb, Di Resta was given a drive through penalty for causing a collision. The first retirement saw Glock suffer rear-suspension collapse on lap 33, Button pitted in anticipation of the Safety Car but it didn't arrive until a lap later and it cost him dear.
A lap later Hamilton caused a collision with Massa in an exact incident to Di Resta's, however the two continued to squabble and Hamilton tried to over-take in the infamous tunnel. This forced Massa onto the dirty side of the track causing the Ferrari to lose control and crash into the side barrier. Also in that lap Michael Schuamcher had broken down just outside the pit lane meaning the Safety Car had to come out.
The incident between Hamilton and Massa was investigated and Hamilton received a drive through for the collision on the bend. The biggest incident of the race saw Sutil lose control and crash into the barrier which resulted in a loss of a rear tyre, this caused Alguersuari to go up the back of Hamilton and cause rear-wing damage to the McLaren, Petrov also crashed into the barrier and was supposedly knocked unconscious. Right behind the incident was the leader Vettel who was being closely chased by Alonso and Button because Vettel didn't stop again and his tyres were degrading. The crash caused an initial Safety Car before the race was red flagged due to Petrov's injury as he complained of back problems. Fortunately Petrov is okay and just has bruising to his legs.
The red flag was shown on lap 72 which meant a result could have been called there and then. However the officials decided the race would continue once given the all clear, this meant that all the drivers had to wait on the grid but car repairs are allowed up until three minutes before the restart. This worked perfectly for Vettel as he had no intention of pitting before the crash despite his tyres reaching 'the cliff', the leader was now able to change his tyres which would win him the race. The first lap after the restart was led by the Safety Car before racing resumed for the final five laps. Hamilton caused a second crash just a lap later when he undercut Maldonado, Hamilton was behind the kerb for the first corner and sent Maldonado into the barrier, the latest news was that the incident was under investigation. The results are as follows, pending that investigation:
1.Vettel (Red Bull), 2.Alonso (Ferrari), 3.Button (McLaren), 4.Webber (Red Bull), 5. Kobayashi (Sauber), 6.Hamilton (McLaren), 7.Sutil (Force India), 8. Heidfeld (Renault), 9.Barrichello (Williams), 10.Buemi (Toro Rosso), 11.Rosberg (Mercedes), 12.Di Resta (Force India), 13.Trulli (Lotus), 14. Kovalainen (Lotus), 15.D'Ambrosio (Virgin), 16.Liuzzi (Hispania), 17.Karthikeyan (Hispania) DNS: Perez (Sauber) DNF: Glock (Virgin), Massa (Ferrari), Schumacher (Mercedes), Petrov (Renault), Alguersuari (Toro Rosso)
From the start, Alonso again pipped Webber to the first corner making it to fourth place. The big battle early on was between Hamilton and Schumacher and lap ten saw Hamilton over-take Schumacher into ninth place. Red Bull were slow with the initial pit stops as a sticky blanket meant Vettel couldn't get a rear tyre on quickly. This meant that Button had taken the lead after lap eighteen with the all the pit stops taken care of.
The first incident of the race came in lap 27 when Di Resta tried to overtake Buemi around the tightest corner in F1. The Force India had no room to manoeuvre and caused front wing damage as he cut across the kerb, Di Resta was given a drive through penalty for causing a collision. The first retirement saw Glock suffer rear-suspension collapse on lap 33, Button pitted in anticipation of the Safety Car but it didn't arrive until a lap later and it cost him dear.
A lap later Hamilton caused a collision with Massa in an exact incident to Di Resta's, however the two continued to squabble and Hamilton tried to over-take in the infamous tunnel. This forced Massa onto the dirty side of the track causing the Ferrari to lose control and crash into the side barrier. Also in that lap Michael Schuamcher had broken down just outside the pit lane meaning the Safety Car had to come out.
The incident between Hamilton and Massa was investigated and Hamilton received a drive through for the collision on the bend. The biggest incident of the race saw Sutil lose control and crash into the barrier which resulted in a loss of a rear tyre, this caused Alguersuari to go up the back of Hamilton and cause rear-wing damage to the McLaren, Petrov also crashed into the barrier and was supposedly knocked unconscious. Right behind the incident was the leader Vettel who was being closely chased by Alonso and Button because Vettel didn't stop again and his tyres were degrading. The crash caused an initial Safety Car before the race was red flagged due to Petrov's injury as he complained of back problems. Fortunately Petrov is okay and just has bruising to his legs.
The red flag was shown on lap 72 which meant a result could have been called there and then. However the officials decided the race would continue once given the all clear, this meant that all the drivers had to wait on the grid but car repairs are allowed up until three minutes before the restart. This worked perfectly for Vettel as he had no intention of pitting before the crash despite his tyres reaching 'the cliff', the leader was now able to change his tyres which would win him the race. The first lap after the restart was led by the Safety Car before racing resumed for the final five laps. Hamilton caused a second crash just a lap later when he undercut Maldonado, Hamilton was behind the kerb for the first corner and sent Maldonado into the barrier, the latest news was that the incident was under investigation. The results are as follows, pending that investigation:
1.Vettel (Red Bull), 2.Alonso (Ferrari), 3.Button (McLaren), 4.Webber (Red Bull), 5. Kobayashi (Sauber), 6.Hamilton (McLaren), 7.Sutil (Force India), 8. Heidfeld (Renault), 9.Barrichello (Williams), 10.Buemi (Toro Rosso), 11.Rosberg (Mercedes), 12.Di Resta (Force India), 13.Trulli (Lotus), 14. Kovalainen (Lotus), 15.D'Ambrosio (Virgin), 16.Liuzzi (Hispania), 17.Karthikeyan (Hispania) DNS: Perez (Sauber) DNF: Glock (Virgin), Massa (Ferrari), Schumacher (Mercedes), Petrov (Renault), Alguersuari (Toro Rosso)
Veteran's Performance In Prague
The third round of the Speedway GP series headed to Prague in the Czech Republic. The weather was fine and we got a full meeting full of the thrills and spills that speedway has to offer. Chris Holder won the last meeting in Gothenburg and set out his stall early by winning the opening heat of the night. Current leader Gollob won heat two with Artem Laguta earning his second point in two meetings and a heat. Jason Crump suffered a dislocated shoulder in Gothenburg but was able to race yesterday and won his opening heat which saw Chris Harris retire from after his bike packed up. The wildcard Matej Kus took to the track in heat four but finished last with the veteran American taking the flag.
The second set of heats saw Hampel take heat five before Holder and Crump secured their second heat victories. Heat eight saw the first restart as Lindgren moved before the tapes rose, Gollob won the restart to also make it two heats from two.
Heat nine was won by the wildcard Kus, this saw him temporarily overtake Laguta in the standings, Crump finished second in that heat. Holder also blinked in heat ten as he finished third with Hancock securing his second win. Heat eleven saw Sayfutdinov get squeezed out and he fell, the heat restarted with the Russian excluded and Gollob won his third consecutive heat. Hampel won his second heat in the twelfth.
Kenneth Bjerre became only the seventh heat winner in the thirteenth. Heat fourteen saw Hampel beat Gollob, Crump and Holder to claim his third victory. Rune Holta won the fifteenth heat. Lindback was sent flying off his bike in heat sixteen but thankfully didn't require the on-track ambulance, all four riders were able to restart and Hancock won his third heat of the night.
Heat seventeen was a battle between Hancock and Gollob, the American again won the heat with the Pole finishing third. Nicky Pedersen won heat eighteen with Holta earning his second victory in the nineteenth. The final heat saw Emil Sayfutdinov take the chequered flag.
The first semi-final saw Hancock and Crump beat Bjerre and Pedersen into the final. Gollob and Hampel also made it into the final after a restart when Holder crashed and got himself excluded, Lindgren could only manage third. Crump was squeezed out in the final and he put his bike down, all four riders restarted the race and the veteran American won the final with Hampel second, Gollob third and Crump fourth.
On the night Hancock won the meeting and the points tally with 23. Hampel came second with nineteen and Gollob seventeen. Crump finished with thirteen with Holder, Bjerre, Pedersen and Lindgren all winning nine points. The overall standings see Hancock now overtake Gollob into the lead with 47 points, Gollob has 41. Hampel is third on 36 with Pedersen on 30. Holder and Sayfutdinov have 28 points, Lindgren has 26 and Crump is currently eighth on 24. Artem Laguta remains seventeenth in the standings despite there only being fifteen continuous riders.
The second set of heats saw Hampel take heat five before Holder and Crump secured their second heat victories. Heat eight saw the first restart as Lindgren moved before the tapes rose, Gollob won the restart to also make it two heats from two.
Heat nine was won by the wildcard Kus, this saw him temporarily overtake Laguta in the standings, Crump finished second in that heat. Holder also blinked in heat ten as he finished third with Hancock securing his second win. Heat eleven saw Sayfutdinov get squeezed out and he fell, the heat restarted with the Russian excluded and Gollob won his third consecutive heat. Hampel won his second heat in the twelfth.
Kenneth Bjerre became only the seventh heat winner in the thirteenth. Heat fourteen saw Hampel beat Gollob, Crump and Holder to claim his third victory. Rune Holta won the fifteenth heat. Lindback was sent flying off his bike in heat sixteen but thankfully didn't require the on-track ambulance, all four riders were able to restart and Hancock won his third heat of the night.
Heat seventeen was a battle between Hancock and Gollob, the American again won the heat with the Pole finishing third. Nicky Pedersen won heat eighteen with Holta earning his second victory in the nineteenth. The final heat saw Emil Sayfutdinov take the chequered flag.
The first semi-final saw Hancock and Crump beat Bjerre and Pedersen into the final. Gollob and Hampel also made it into the final after a restart when Holder crashed and got himself excluded, Lindgren could only manage third. Crump was squeezed out in the final and he put his bike down, all four riders restarted the race and the veteran American won the final with Hampel second, Gollob third and Crump fourth.
On the night Hancock won the meeting and the points tally with 23. Hampel came second with nineteen and Gollob seventeen. Crump finished with thirteen with Holder, Bjerre, Pedersen and Lindgren all winning nine points. The overall standings see Hancock now overtake Gollob into the lead with 47 points, Gollob has 41. Hampel is third on 36 with Pedersen on 30. Holder and Sayfutdinov have 28 points, Lindgren has 26 and Crump is currently eighth on 24. Artem Laguta remains seventeenth in the standings despite there only being fifteen continuous riders.
Barcelona Overwhelm United
Barcelona line-up: Valdes, Alves (Puyol, 86'), Pique, Abidal, Xavi, Iniesta, Mascherano, Busquets, Villa (Keita, 86'), Messi, Pedro (Afellay, 90')
Manchester United line-up: Van Der Sar, Evra, Ferdinand, Vidic, Fabio (Nani, 69'), Giggs, Park, Carrick (Scholes, 76'), Valencia, Rooney, Hernandez
Wembley hosted the 2010/2011 UEFA Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United. On the paper the teams couldn't be closer; both teams had previously won three European Cup trophies, both teams won their first trophy at Wembley and they had identical goals scored/goals conceded records in their European history. The big news was that Mascherano would play centre back in replace of the injured Puyol who was on the bench. As for United, Berbatov was not even included in the squad and the disconsolate Bulgarian left the stadium.
United made it three finals in four seasons, Barcelona's second but Barcelona beat United in the 2009 final. The match started in the same vain as in Rome with United enjoying the early parts of the game. They pressured Barcelona for the opening ten minutes and forced mistakes. But it didn't take long for Barca to get a stronghold and start barraging the retiring Van Der Sar's goal. The opening goal was coming and Xavi fed in Pedro, who had slipped in between Vidic and Evra, to tap in past the Dutchman to make it 1-0 after twenty-seven minutes. United were able to regain some control following the goal and equalised seven minutes later; United pressuring Barcelona from their throw-in, Rooney stole the ball and played a couple of one-twos before Giggs played it back to him and Rooney smashed it home. There was the slightest hint of offside when Giggs received the ball but the goal stood in a move that Barcelona would have been proud of.
United came out earlier before the second half, but it did them no good whatsoever. Barcelona took full control after the restart and their second goal was just as imminent. It came nine minutes into the half when Messi was given time to turn and blast his shot past the surprised Van Der Sar from twenty five yards out, the ball nestled into the back of the net. United still couldn't get into the game and Fabio had to be replaced due to an injury. This saw Nani enter the fray with Valencia now at right back. Nani's first involvement was to defend a short corner, he failed to get rid of the ball when he had the chance before the ball fell to David Villa who placed a fantastic shot into the top corner to end the game and give Barcelona their fourth European crown.
Saturday, 28 May 2011
Dangerous Monaco
This weekend Formula One is in Monaco, the tightest track in the calender and arguably the most dangerous. This morning's practice session certainly proved its case as both Liuzzi and Rosberg suffered major crashes. Luckily for Rosberg he was able to participate in Q1 whereas Liuzzi was not and may suffer from the 107% rule. Liuzzi's teammate Karthikeyan was also unable to set a time in Q1 due to a rear suspension failure and could also be ruled out of tomorrow's race. The usual six plus one applied in Monaco although Toro Rosso's Alguersuari will start behind both Lotus' in twentieth place, depending on a steward's enquiry as Alguersuari contacted with Kobayashi during the session. The two Virgins will start behind Alguersuari with Glock ahead of D'Ambrosio and Kovalainen beat Trulli to eighteenth. It was looking to be a good session for McLaren as Hamilton went fastest.
Hamilton again went fastest in Q2 as both Force Indias and Renault cars were eliminated. Buemi rounded off a miserable qualifying for Toro Rosso and will start seventeenth, behind Heidfeld in sixteenth. The Force Indias will start side by side with Di Resta out-qualifying Sutil yet again. Kobayashi will start thirteenth again pending that possible steward's enquiry. Williams looked good in qualifying as Maldonado made it to Q3 for the second consecutive race and Barrichello will start twelfth with Petrov eleventh.
Monaco again proved why it is one of the most feared race tracks in the world. With two minutes and twenty-six seconds of Q3 remaining the session had to be red flagged. This was because Sergio Perez suffered a horrible crash; it was a carbon copy of Rosberg's in practice as Perez also lost control as he came out of the tunnel. He then crashed into the barrier before careering side-on into the pro-tech safety barrier whereas Rosberg had just missed it. There was a thirty eight minute delay as everyone sent their prayers to Sauber, Perez and his family. Fortunately, he was conscious and talking when paramedics got him out of the car and into the ambulance and, perhaps luckily, he suffered no broken bones, only concussion so may be able to participate in tomorrow's race where he would start tenth. Once the barrier had been put back in place the final minutes of qualifying resumed but Hamilton and Maldonado hadn't put a time in before the crash and suffered for it. Maldonado will start ninth and Hamilton seventh with Rosberg in between them. The Ferrari's looked improved again with Massa sixth and Alonso remaining fourth, Schumacher claims his best start by providing the meat in the Ferrari sandwich. Webber will start third from Button, meaning that Vettel claimed yet another Pole position but his first in Monaco and the German will be looking to win his first Monaco grand prix tomorrow.
Hamilton again went fastest in Q2 as both Force Indias and Renault cars were eliminated. Buemi rounded off a miserable qualifying for Toro Rosso and will start seventeenth, behind Heidfeld in sixteenth. The Force Indias will start side by side with Di Resta out-qualifying Sutil yet again. Kobayashi will start thirteenth again pending that possible steward's enquiry. Williams looked good in qualifying as Maldonado made it to Q3 for the second consecutive race and Barrichello will start twelfth with Petrov eleventh.
Monaco again proved why it is one of the most feared race tracks in the world. With two minutes and twenty-six seconds of Q3 remaining the session had to be red flagged. This was because Sergio Perez suffered a horrible crash; it was a carbon copy of Rosberg's in practice as Perez also lost control as he came out of the tunnel. He then crashed into the barrier before careering side-on into the pro-tech safety barrier whereas Rosberg had just missed it. There was a thirty eight minute delay as everyone sent their prayers to Sauber, Perez and his family. Fortunately, he was conscious and talking when paramedics got him out of the car and into the ambulance and, perhaps luckily, he suffered no broken bones, only concussion so may be able to participate in tomorrow's race where he would start tenth. Once the barrier had been put back in place the final minutes of qualifying resumed but Hamilton and Maldonado hadn't put a time in before the crash and suffered for it. Maldonado will start ninth and Hamilton seventh with Rosberg in between them. The Ferrari's looked improved again with Massa sixth and Alonso remaining fourth, Schumacher claims his best start by providing the meat in the Ferrari sandwich. Webber will start third from Button, meaning that Vettel claimed yet another Pole position but his first in Monaco and the German will be looking to win his first Monaco grand prix tomorrow.
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