Mercedes hope they will be prepared for the 2022 Formula One season, in which technical director James Allison is forecasting "a terribly painful year" for teams who get their car "really badly wrong".
F1 is belatedly introducing its game-changing new regulations in the coming year, shaking up the sport after an epic 2021 season.
The 2022 car has been designed with the aim to end the dominance of any one team and ensure closer racing.
Mercedes, whose Lewis Hamilton was agonisingly pipped to the title by Max Verstappen in the previous campaign, will expect to again be at the forefront of a title tussle, but Allison recognises some outfits will be caught unaware.
The price for making mistakes this year is a significant one, he believes.
"Everyone in our team, and everyone in every other team, will have done our level best to try to find a design and an approach that will be a happy match to this new regulation set," Allison said in a video posted by Mercedes.
"And we'll all get to find out together at the start of this season, in the races that unfold from there, exactly how that shakes out.
"I would imagine, given that the cars are so new and so different, that one or two cars on the grid will have got it really badly wrong. And they will have a terribly painful year.
"I would imagine that all of us to some degree will have left things on the table that we just didn't anticipate. And we will look at other cars and think, 'Oh, why didn't we think of that?'
"Then we'll be scrambling around to try to get that idea onto our car as fast as possible, so that we can claw our way, from whatever position we land in that first race, forwards. Or, if we're lucky enough to be in front, to keep the attacking wolves behind us.
"It's going to be quite a rush and definitely something that's going to keep us all from having too much sleep for the whole of the season."
George Russell is joining Hamilton at Mercedes this year, replacing Valtteri Bottas after impressing with Williams.
Anthony Joshua insists he "ain't signed no contract" amid reports he has agreed to step aside for Tyson Fury to face Oleksandr Usyk in return for £15million.
The alleged agreement was reported by The Telegraph on Sunday, claiming Joshua would forego a rematch with Usyk for the three heavyweight title belts he lost to the Ukrainian in September.
Such a move would allow Usyk to instead take on Fury in a huge unification bout.
Promoter Eddie Hearn told Sky Sports he has a meeting planned with Joshua to discuss "a number of proposals and options", but the British fighter has dismissed talk of a £15m deal.
Indeed, Joshua, describing himself as "the man who handles my business", also revealed frustrations at some of the reporting around his situation.
In widely reported quotes, he said: "You know what's bad about all these interviews I see?
"I see certain interviews that quote what I said, and I think to myself: 'I ain't done no interviews. Where did this person get this information from?'
"I'm hearing people saying, 'AJ accepts £15m to step aside'. I ain't signed no contract, I ain't seen no contract.
"I'm the man in control of my destiny, I'm a smart individual and I make calculated decisions every step of the way."
Mario Balotelli has been called up for a three-day Italy training camp and Joao Pedro is among the new faces given the nod by Roberto Mancini.
Balotelli has not played for his country for over three years, but the in-form striker was named among 35 players who will assemble for a camp in Coverciano from Wednesday to Friday this week.
The enigmatic 31-year-old has scored nine goals for Adana Demirspor since joining the Turkish Super Lig side in July, including three in his past four matches.
Brazil-born duo Joao Pedro and Luiz Felipe are among seven uncapped players brought in by Mancini two months before the European champions face North Macedonia in a World Cup qualifying play-off.
Marco Carnesecchi, Giorgio Scalvini, Nicolo Fagioli, Davide Frattesi and Samuele Ricci were also called up for the first time.
The Azzurri do battle with North Macedonia in a play-off semi-final at Stadio Renzo Barbera on March 24.
If they come out on top in Palermo, Italy will then face Portugal or Turkey knowing a victory will seal their place in the tournament in Qatar this year.
Italy training squad:
Marco Carnesecchi, Alessio Cragno, Alex Meret, Salvatore Sirigu; Alessandro Bastoni, Cristiano Biraghi, Davide Calabria, Giorgio Chiellini, Mattia De Sciglio, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Alessandro Florenzi, Luiz Felipe, Gianluca Mancini, Luca Pellegrini, Giorgio Scalvini, Rafael Toloi; Nicolo Barella, Bryan Cristante, Nicolo Fagioli, Davide Frattesi, Manuel Locatelli, Matteo Pessina, Samuele Ricci, Stefano Sensi, Sandro Tonali; Mario Balotelli, Domenico Berardi, Federico Bernardeschi, Ciro Immobile, Lorenzo Insigne, Joao Pedro, Giacomo Raspadori, Gianluca Scamacca, Mattia Zaccagni, Nicolo Zaniolo.
Comoros have been forced to name defender Chaker Alhadhur in goal for their Africa Cup of Nations last-16 clash with Cameroon.
The island nation are competing at their first AFCON and caused a major upset in getting out of the group stage, but their fairytale has swiftly turned into something of a nightmare.
An injury to first-choice goalkeeper Salim Ben Boina was followed up by back-ups Ali Ahamada and Moyadh Ousseini testing positive for COVID-19.
Comoros confirmed on Monday that Ahamada had returned a negative coronavirus test and rejoined the squad, sparking hope that Les Coelacantes might be able to face hosts Cameroon on something of a level playing field.
But reports soon began to emerge claiming the Confederation of African Football (CAF) was insisting Ahamada could not compete because he still needed to adhere to a five-day period of isolation.
CAF did not respond when contacted by Stats Perform, however Comoros' starting XI included Alhadhur as the team's starting goalkeeper, with the team's official Twitter account saying: "Following the decision of CAF not to authorize Ali Ahamada to play, it is Chaker Alhadhur who will be the goalkeeper of the team."
The 30-year-old, who represents French club Ajaccio, is nominally a left-back but will start arguably the biggest match of his career between the posts.
A strong all-around performance from Andre Russell helped Minister Group Dhaka to their first win in the Bangladesh Premier League on Monday when they defeated Fortune Barishul by four wickets at Mirpur.
Inter coach Simone Inzaghi has tested positive for coronavirus.
The Serie A champions confirmed the 45-year-old returned a positive test on Monday following routine testing.
In a brief statement, Inter informed supporters that Inzaghi "will now follow the protocols set out in the healthcare guidelines".
Nevertheless, the news is not expected to result in major disruption for the club given they are not to be in action again until February 5, when they host neighbours Milan in the Derby della Madonnina.
Under Italian Football Federation (FIGC) guidelines, players and staff only need to isolate for three days if they are showing no symptoms.
Similarly, any players deemed to be a close contact of Inzaghi's will still be able to train as long as they have not tested positive for the virus.
Measures were introduced at the start of the month that meant players, staff and fans had to have received at least two doses of a coronavirus vaccine to be allowed into stadiums.
However, even before that rule was brought in, Serie A was reported to have had as many as 98 per cent of players already double vaccinated.
Claudio Ranieri has been sacked by Watford after their loss to relegation rivals Norwich City left them in the Premier League's drop zone.
Watford went down 3-0 at home to Norwich on Friday, extending their winless run in all competitions to nine games – their worst such stretch since December 2013.
It proved to be the final straw, with Ranieri having only claimed seven points from a possible 39 since taking over from Xisco Munoz in October.
He became Watford's 15th manager since Giampaolo Pozzo bought the club in June 2012 and leaves without having much of an impact.
The club released a statement confirming the news on Monday.
Watford praised the "integrity" of the 70-year-old, but explained they felt a change was required to give Ranieri's replacement enough time in their fight against relegation.
"Watford Football Club confirms the departure of head coach Claudio Ranieri," it read.
"The Hornets' board recognises Claudio as a man of great integrity and honour, who will always be respected here at Vicarage Road for his efforts in leading the team with dignity.
"However the board feels that, with nearly half of the Premier League campaign remaining, a change in the head coach position now will give a new appointment sufficient time to work with a talented squad to achieve the immediate goal of retaining Premier League status.
"No further club comment will be made until this new appointment is confirmed in due course."
Watford will hope to end a run of 30 Premier League games without a clean sheet when they travel to Burnley on February 5.
Claudio Ranieri has been sacked by Watford after their loss to relegation rivals Norwich City left them in the Premier League's drop zone.
Watford went down 3-0 at home to Norwich on Friday, extending their winless run in all competitions to nine games – their worst such stretch since December 2013.
It proved to be the final straw, with Ranieri having only claimed seven points from a possible 39 since taking over from Xisco Munoz in October.
He became Watford's 15th manager since Giampaolo Pozzo bought the club in June 2012 and leaves without having much of an impact.
The club released a statement confirming the news on Monday.
Watford praised the "integrity" of the 70-year-old, but explained they felt a change was required to give Ranieri's replacement enough time in their fight against relegation.
"Watford Football Club confirms the departure of head coach Claudio Ranieri," it read.
"The Hornets' board recognises Claudio as a man of great integrity and honour, who will always be respected here at Vicarage Road for his efforts in leading the team with dignity.
"However the board feels that, with nearly half of the Premier League campaign remaining, a change in the head coach position now will give a new appointment sufficient time to work with a talented squad to achieve the immediate goal of retaining Premier League status.
"No further club comment will be made until this new appointment is confirmed in due course."
Watford will hope to end a run of 30 Premier League games without a clean sheet when they travel to Burnley on February 5.
Cape Verde are plotting an Africa Cup of Nations upset when they do battle with Senegal in a round-of-16 derby and Morocco are strong favourites to beat Malawi on Tuesday.
Senegal won Group B despite scoring only one goal in three games, while Cape Verde qualified after finishing third in Group A.
Morocco topped Group C and will be expected to advance to the quarter-finals at the expense of a Malawi side that were third in Group B and will be playing their first AFCON knockout match.
Senegal v Cape Verde (16:00 GMT)
This will be the first Africa Cup of Nations clash between the two nations and Cape Verde will be playing only their second ever knockout match in the tournament.
The Blue Sharks were beaten 2-0 by Ghana at the quarter-final stage in 2013 and they will have to defy the odds at Kouekong Stadium to reach last eight once again.
Cape Verde coach Pedro Brito believes his players can spring a big surprise in Bafoussam.
He said: "We have worked hard in our training and facing a team like Senegal is an added motivation, because the match is like a derby.
"They have to respect us as a team the same way we respect them.
"The competition has seen a lot of surprises, and we hope to be the other team that will cause an upset as our mission is to win the game and move to the next round."
The Lions of Teranga have not been firing on all cylinders, but they are the only side in the tournament not to have conceded a goal.
The three sides to have faced Senegal have only been able to muster three shots on target between them, so Cape Verde must grasp any chances they are able to create.
One to watch: Idrissa Gueye (Senegal)
Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Gueye is a key man for Senegal, getting through so much work in the middle of the park.
Gueye has played a big part in his side being so solid and the industrious former Everton man can boss the midfield battle.
Morocco v Malawi (19:00 GMT)
Malawi and Morocco will also lock horns for the first time in the AFCON at Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo.
Underdogs Malawi will be playing only their 10th game in this competition and they have only won two Africa Cup of Nations matches.
They are unbeaten in two games, though, having remained in the tournament courtesy of a 2-1 win over Zimbabwe and a battling goalless draw against Senegal.
Morocco beat Ghana and Comoros en route to last 16 before a 2-2 draw with Gabon.
Vahid Halilhodzic's side will under pressure to progress in Yaounde by dispatching a Malawi side that had an average of just 31.5 per cent of possession in the group stage, the lowest of any team.
One to watch: Sofiane Boufal (Morocco)
Boufal is Morocco's leading scorer in the tournament with two and he also created 10 chances
Only Algeria’s Youcef Belaïli created more opportunities in the group stage with 12 and Morocco will expect the winger to step up again.
Africa Cup of Nations debutants Gambia have continued their impressive run with a shock 1-0 defeat of Guinea that sent the Scorpions into the quarter-finals.
Gambia caused something of an upset just by getting out of their group, as they finished second to Mali, but their campaign shows no sign of stopping after they saw off their West African rivals on Monday.
A tetchy first half had few highlights but both sides did eventually threaten just before the break, as Guinea's Mohamed Bayo was denied at point-blank range by goalkeeper Baboucarr Gaye and Ebrima Darboe shot agonisingly wide at the other end.
The breakthrough arrived 19 minutes from time – Musa Barrow profiting from a fortunate ricochet before bursting into the box and coolly slotting home.
Guinea briefly thought they had levelled soon after, only for Ibrahima Sory Conte II to be flagged offside – he was then caught in the face accidentally as Yusupha Njie was somewhat harshly sent off for a second booking.
The Syli Nationale piled pressure on in the latter stages, hitting the frame of the goal twice in quick succession, but Conte then received his marching orders for a similar offence to Njie and Gambia held out for a famous win that will in all likelihood see them face hosts Cameroon in the last eight.
Kaia Kanepi surprised even herself by holding her nerve to eliminate second seed Aryna Sabalenka in a final-set tie-break and reach Australian Open quarter-finals for the first time.
The world number 115 edged a topsy-turvy battle 5-7 6-2 7-6 (10-7) on Margaret Court Arena to set up a meeting with Iga Swiatek in the final eight.
With Monday's impressive comeback win, Kanepi has now completed a clean sweep of reaching the quarter-finals of all four majors, making her the 15th active player to do so.
But after squandering four match points in the 10th game of the deciding set, Kanepi admits she struggled to keep her nerves in check when the match went the distance.
"I thought I was going to lose it after the match points I had on my serve," said the 36-year-old, who finished with 30 winners and 30 unforced errors.
"It was really difficult to come back. I don't know how I managed to do it.
"I was really tight. My hand was shaking when I started serving. I didn't make any first serves in, and that added to the pressure.
"It was quite crazy. I think I would be more happy if I won after two, three match points. It was really close that I lost the match. I feel a bit exhausted right now.
"The Australian Open was the only quarter-final grand slam I was missing. Given my age, I didn't actually believe I was going to do it. I'm really happy."
After sealing a 14th career victory over a top-10 opponent, with her second win in a row against Sabalenka, Kanepi is now relishing Wednesday's battle with Swiatek.
That will pit the youngest and oldest remaining players left in the draw against each other, with 20-year-old Swiatek having earlier defeated Sorana Cirstea in three sets.
"I haven't watched her, I never played her, and I don't know how her ball feels, so we'll see when I play her," Kanepi said of her next opponent. "What I expect is to play good."
Kanepi is one of six Australian Open quarter-final debutants remaining, with top seed Ash Barty and Madison Keys the only two to have previously reached this stage.
West Indies Under-19s will play Papua New Guinea Under-19s on Wednesday in Trinidad & Tobago in a quarter-final of the ICC Men's Under-19 Cricket World Cup Plate Tournament.
Cayman Islands’ Aaron Jarvis created history on Sunday when he became the first golfer from the Caribbean to win the Latin America Amateur Championship (LAAC) that concluded at the Teeth of the Dog Golf Course in the Dominican Republic.
Ansu Fati feels he is living through the worst part of football after he sustained yet another injury that is likely to keep him out for a while.
The Barcelona talent had to be substituted during Thursday's Copa del Rey defeat to Athletic Bilbao, with the club confirming he had suffered a muscle strain to his hamstring.
It is still to be decided if the 19-year-old has surgery, but it is widely reported that he is expected to be out for at least a couple of months.
Such an absence would be a crushing blow for Fati, who appeared to be in tears as he left the pitch against Athletic, with this the latest in a series of problematic injuries.
The teenager has featured in just 10 games across all competitions this season, and he had only recently returned from a two-month hamstring injury lay-off.
Fati previously spent 10 months on the sidelines due to a serious knee injury, resuming his Barcelona career in September this season.
Prior to his return, Fati was seen as the poster boy for the post-Lionel Messi era at Camp Nou, even inheriting the Argentina great's number 10 jersey.
Despite his woes, he has vowed to keep on fighting.
Writing on his official Instagram account, Fati said: "Unfortunately, I am having to live through the worst part of football.
"But I will never give up! Thank you very much for your messages of support and love!"
It is expected to be announced on Monday whether Fati has surgery or not.
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