Author: Ryan Dyrud

Team HRC’s Ruben Fernandez will be absent from the starting line for the second round of the 2024 MXGP World Championship due to his ongoing recovery from a leg injury sustained during the series’ opening round. However, his teammates Tim Gajser and rookie Ferruccio Zanchi will represent two-thirds of the team at the Spanish GP, hosted at the Arroyomolinos circuit near Madrid.

Five-time world champion Gajser aims to maintain his early-season momentum after a strong showing in round one at Patagonia-Argentina. Despite missing out on the top spot by just three points in the championship standings, Gajser’s victory in the qualifying race and the second moto showcased his competitive edge. Now, he eyes an overall victory at a track where luck hasn’t always favored him.

Regrettably, Spanish rider Fernandez won’t join Gajser due to a torn ACL suffered during the qualification race in Argentina. His absence is deeply felt, especially considering this race is both his home GP and a podium-earning event for him last year. Fernandez will undergo surgery to address the injury, aiming for a swift recovery and a return to racing.

Seventeen-year-old Zanchi, fresh from a commendable sixth overall finish in South America, eagerly anticipates the Spanish GP. His performance in Villa La Angostura showcased his potential, and he’s determined to build on that success. While expectations rise for Zanchi, the team remains cautious, aiming to nurture his talent gradually.

Gajser expressed his anticipation for the upcoming challenge in Spain, highlighting the importance of maintaining his strong start to the season. Meanwhile, Fernandez, despite his disappointment, remains grateful for the support and looks forward to returning to the track. Zanchi, buoyed by his previous performance, is optimistic about his prospects in Spain.

Team HRC acknowledges the mixed news of Fernandez’s absence but remains upbeat about Gajser and Zanchi’s prospects. With both riders carrying confidence from their previous performances, the team anticipates a thrilling GP in Spain, fueled by enthusiastic crowds and, hopefully, favorable weather conditions.

DaRon Holmes II and the seventh-seeded Dayton team made an impressive comeback in March Madness, finishing with a 24-4 run to overturn a 17-point deficit and defeat 10th-seeded Nevada 63-60 in the West Region on Thursday.

Holmes, who was named the Atlantic 10 player of the year, scored 18 points, including a crucial three-point play with 2:01 left that gave Dayton their first lead since the first half.

The Flyers (25-7) were behind 56-39 with 7:36 remaining, but they responded with 17 unanswered points. This included three 3-pointers from Koby Brea, who ended with 15 points.

“In such situations, it’s tempting for someone to try to make a big play alone,” Brea said. “But in our situation, we did a good job of sticking together and working as a team, taking it one possession at a time.”

Enoch Cheeks’ layup with 34 seconds to go put Dayton ahead for the win, and he made two free throws for the final score. Cheeks contributed 12 points as the Flyers secured their first NCAA Tournament victory in nine years.

“That’s been our team’s spirit all season,” Cheeks said. “When faced with situations like this, we show resilience. We have a great group of guys who always fight. Having been in this situation before, we know that as long as there’s time on the clock, we have a good chance to come back.” Dayton, who scored their final seven baskets, will face No. 2 seed Arizona in the second round on Saturday.

Jarrod Lucas scored 17 points, and Kenan Blackshear and Nick Davidson each scored 15 for the Wolf Pack (26-8), who took control with a 16-0 run to close the first half. Nevada seemed to be in control, especially when they held Holmes without a basket for almost 14 minutes in the second half.

However, Nevada only managed to score two baskets in the final 7 1/2 minutes. They had a chance to force overtime, but Davidson and Blackshear both missed 3-pointers just before the buzzer.

“They played better towards the end,” Lucas said. “We didn’t execute as we were supposed to.” Nevada, who finished second in the strong Mountain West conference, has not won in the first round of the NCAA Tournament since reaching the Sweet 16 in 2018.

Dayton coach Anthony Grant secured his first March Madness win with the Flyers in his seventh season. He had previously won one NCAA Tournament game with VCU in 2007.

Lucas and Davidson made consecutive shots during a run of seven straight field goals for Nevada, turning a 25-18 deficit into a 34-25 halftime lead while effectively limiting Holmes’ opportunities. The Flyers struggled before halftime, missing four shots and committing three turnovers.

“Sometimes shots go in, sometimes they don’t,” Grant said. “I think in the first half, we let that affect our energy on the defensive end. They managed to go on a run to end the half.”

Nevada maintained their momentum into the second half, extending their lead with back-to-back baskets from Lucas. But Dayton’s defense tightened, and their shots started to find the mark, leading to their comeback victory.

“We lacked offensive rhythm,” Nevada coach Steve Alford said. “I wasn’t happy with our offensive performance at all. Defensively, we couldn’t get any stops.”

Terry McDonough, a former executive with the Cardinals, who is already in a legal battle with the team, faces new legal trouble.

McDonough’s neighbor accused him of assault after an incident on March 12. The neighbor claims McDonough chest-bumped him and tried to choke him. McDonough is scheduled for a hearing on April 11.

The neighbor stated in a criminal affidavit that McDonough was upset about tractor equipment damaging his lawn. The neighbor also mentioned McDonough’s past legal issues with the Cardinals, saying McDonough has a history of volatile behavior.

Although McDonough’s dispute with the Cardinals is unrelated to the assault accusation, the Cardinals might try to use it for PR purposes. Some reporters have claimed that the Cardinals sent them the article regarding the alleged assault.

It’s a common strategy for companies facing legal claims from former employees to deflect blame and shift attention away from their actions.

Agent Scott Boras defended himself and the leadership of the Major League Baseball Players Association against a faction pushing to replace the union’s lead negotiator.

“When you have inexperienced people who haven’t been doing this for a long time, they make statements that are just not supported by facts,” Boras said Wednesday after a news conference held by the San Francisco Giants to introduce pitcher Blake Snell, one of his clients.

During an online meeting Monday, players pushed for union executive director Tony Clark to remove deputy executive director Bruce Meyer, who led talks for the 2022 collective bargaining agreement.

Some in the group pushing for change want to replace Meyer with Harry Marino, who helped minor leaguers organize and join the players’ association in late 2022. Marino was hired for the union staff in September 2022, helped reach the first minor league labor contract with Major League Baseball, then left last July.

“The players who sought me out want a union that represents the will of the majority,” Marino said in a statement. “Scott Boras is rich because he makes — or used to make — the richest players in the game richer.” Marino added that it was “alarming” for Boras to be defending Clark and Meyer. Boras, the sport’s most high-profile agent, backed the union’s leadership.

“Veteran players have not been approached on this,” he said. “You don’t see guys who have been through a couple of collective bargaining agreements or guys who’ve served on the executive board. None of them are supportive of this.”

After minor leaguers joined the union, it restructured its executive board to include 38 players with major league contracts and 34 with minor league contracts. The executive board makes decisions by majority vote, such as hiring the executive director, and the staff reports to the executive director.

Some players have expressed concern over a drop in club spending this offseason. Several teams that traditionally spend big have not, some because of a high luxury tax payroll and tax rate, and others have been concerned over regional sports network revenue following the bankruptcy filing of Diamond Sports’ Bally Networks.

“All of our models have predicted there are market lulls after spending,” Boras said. “We’ve had two years when they’ve spent $3.5 (billion) to $4 billion. Usually in a five-year model, we’re going to see ownership use that in their consideration.

“We also look at the idea of the demand. These are $30 million players. How many teams are going to be involved (for a Cy Young or MVP player)? That is a small group of owners. It’s not about 30 teams, it’s about five or six.” Marino responded Wednesday with more criticism of Boras.

“It is concerning that Scott Boras is taking responsibility for aspects of the last major league CBA,” he wrote in a statement to The Associated Press. “It is more concerning that he is referring to himself, Tony Clark and Bruce Meyer as ‘we’ and major league baseball players as ‘them.’ At this point, the MLBPA should make all communications between the union and Scott public.”

Several of Boras’ clients remained on the market well into spring training, and pitcher Jordan Montgomery and designated hitter J.D. Martinez remain without deals.

Three failed to get long-term agreements that had been speculated and accepted shorter deals that allow them to opt out and again become free agents: Snell struck a $62 million, two-year contract with the Giants and third baseman Matt Chapman a $54 million, three-year agreement. Outfielder Cody Bellinger reached an $80 million, three-year deal with the Chicago Cubs.

During the negotiations in 2022, MLB and the union agreed to a $50 million bonus pool for pre-arbitration players, incentivized prospect promotion with the possibility of additional amateur draft picks, and raised luxury tax thresholds while agreeing to a new fourth tax rate as high as 110% and lifted the minimum salary.

Management dropped its proposal to eliminate salary arbitration.

“The right of free agency for mid-level players is there for them. I’ve had several pitchers in their 30s who have very good contracts because the demand for pitching is great,” Boras said. Over the longer term, Boras didn’t think the luxury tax would prevent clubs from pursuing the players they desire.

“Revenues are also going up to support the payment of the tax. So it doesn’t affect profitability or the net gain because there is significant revenue,” he said. The bonus pool was a key. About 100 players received pool money in each of the last two offseasons.

“We created a $50 million pool for them that didn’t exist before, and the arbitration right has been preserved. Any of those players can seek any value they so desire,” Boras said. “Having those rights is the best thing you can do in any system. Boras was optimistic about finding deals for Montgomery and Martinez.

“Thirty-three homers in 113 games, who does that? And Monty has three years of being durable, playoff winner, he has the full resume of excellence that you want, and no draft picks when you sign him,” he said. “This is like the perfect free agent.”

The F1 Driver Academy managing director, who happens to be the spouse of Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, became embroiled in a media frenzy in December when the FIA announced it was investigating a potential conflict of interest involving them.

This came after a media report suggested that confidential information had been exchanged between them and that teams had raised concerns with the FIA. However, both allegations were vehemently denied.

The issue came to light publicly when the FIA released a statement acknowledging media speculation about the alleged sharing of confidential information between an F1 team principal and a member of FOM personnel. The FIA Compliance Department subsequently initiated an inquiry.

Although the Wolffs were not explicitly named in the statement, it was widely understood who the governing body was referring to, and their identities were later confirmed to the media.

However, faced with significant backlash, including denials from all nine of Mercedes’ competitors that they had lodged complaints with the FIA, the governing body swiftly reversed its position.

Just 48 hours after its initial announcement, the FIA declared the matter closed, stating that there was no evidence warranting a formal investigation.

Despite this reversal, Susie Wolff, in particular, felt that considerable damage had already been done to her reputation by the FIA’s decision to publicize the matter.

In a social media post at the time, she expressed her frustration, suggesting she might have been collateral damage or a target of personal discrediting, but emphasized that her hard-earned reputation should not be tarnished by unfounded allegations.

Questions have also arisen regarding the source of the original media report that prompted the FIA’s action and whether it originated from within the governing body itself.

With no public apology from the FIA for its handling of the situation, Susie Wolff has taken legal action by filing a criminal complaint in French courts to address the allegations made against her.

In a statement released ahead of the Australian Grand Prix, she underscored the importance of holding individuals accountable for improper behavior and vowed to seek transparency and justice.

Recent revelations about the FIA’s policy of maintaining confidentiality in such matters have raised further questions about its handling of the Wolff case.

Amid ongoing investigations by the FIA Ethics Committee and Compliance Officer, including inquiries into complaints involving President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the governing body reiterated its commitment to maintaining strict confidentiality.

This stance has reignited concerns about the FIA’s approach to handling sensitive issues like the Wolff incident.