Chris Godwin has revealed his uncertainty over his Tampa Bay Buccaneers future before a message from Tom Brady helped him decide to re-commit to the side.
Godwin recently agreed to a three-year deal worth $60million with the Bucs after being franchise tagged with the Super Bowl LV champions.
Had the Buccaneers failed to agree a long-term deal with the wide receiver before the July 15 deadline, he would have played under a one-year, $19.18m franchise tender.
Godwin, who suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament injury in Week 15 of the 2021-22 season, agreed to the deal after superstar quarterback Brady confirmed he would come out of retirement to keep playing with the Bucs.
"It was a definitely a whirlwind of emotions," Godwin told reporters. "It was a lot of uncertainty at different points and sometimes it leaves you questioning just like why things happen.
"But you can't control what happens to you. You can just control your personal response to it and how you choose to go about it."
He added: "This last week has been a whirlwind for a lot of people. I think it just restores faith in the Bucs' fan base. 'We're back, man, and we're not laying down for nobody. We're coming back to try to make it to the top of the mountain, and you need great players and great people to do that, and obviously Tom coming back was a huge piece."
The 26-year-old wide receiver admitted his decision on his future was crystallised once Brady declared his intentions to come out of retirement and revealed their text exchange in a group chat with the QB and teammate Mike Evans.
Brady wrote: "Yo...just letting y'all know...I'm coming back and I'm excited for another year."
Godwin said: "Me and Mike were so gassed up, like, 'Yo, what are you talking about? You just retired?! It's hard to walk away from the game when you're as dedicated as Tom is."
Though his 2021 campaign was ended prematurely by his ACL injury, Godwin still finished the year with 98 receptions for 1,103 yards - both career highs - and five touchdowns.
According to Stats Perform data, Godwin registered a burn, which is when a receiver wins his matchup with a defender on a play where he is targeted, on 70.4 per cent of his targets.
That ratio was third-best in the NFL among wideouts with at least 100 targets behind team-mate Mike Evans (72.7) and Tyreek Hill (70.8).
Super Bowl-winning quarterback Matthew Stafford has indicated his long-term future is with the Los Angeles Rams stating it is where he wants to "put some roots down".
Stafford recently agreed to a four-year extension with the Super Bowl champions, with the deal worth $160million according to ESPN.
The 34-year-old QB spent 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions where he never won a postseason game before joining the Rams last year.
Stafford led the Rams to the Super Bowl LVI title over the Cincinnati Bengals, with the new deal reward for that, yet he said there was never any doubt for him.
"I just had so much fun playing for this team this year, playing for this organisation, this coaching staff, and I wanted to make sure I was able to do this for a long time," Stafford told reporters.
"I obviously wanted to say thanks to the Rams for giving me that opportunity. It was a lot of hard work getting to this point.
"I'm just happy where we are and to know what the future looks like for me and for our team. It's an exciting thing as a player to kind of know where you are going to be and be able to put some roots down and really go try to make something really special for a while.
"I was just trying to find something that felt good for both sides where we are able to continue to add players and pieces around me.''
Stafford completed 404 of 601 passes at a 67.2 completion rate for 41 touchdowns last season with 17 interceptions.
The Rams have bolstered their ranks with the addition of free agent wide receiver Allen Robinson II from the Chicago Bears.
"I'm eager to get out there and get to work with him and see what it's like throwing to him," Stafford said.
Formula One chief executive Stefano Domenicali is buoyed by Ferrari's resurgence, saying it is ultimately good for the sport.
Charles Leclerc's win in the 2022 season opener in Bahrain on Sunday was Ferrari's first since 2019, and the last time Ferrari claimed a win from pole position in the season opener was with Kimi Raikkonen in 2007, who went on to win that year's driver's championship.
Along with passing on his congratulations to the team, Domenicali - a former team principal with Ferrari - believes it will invigorate interest in the sport.
"Next week there will be another race, then there is Melbourne and then Imola," he told Sky Sport. "I am convinced that we will find the [stands at the] Tosa and Rivazza corners as full as in the good old days.
"The satisfaction for the new regulations lay in seeing a beautiful, intense and interesting race for everyone.
"Then seeing Ferrari so competitive is an extraordinary sign. I say this with caution, but I am very happy. I was certainly pleased for Mattia [Binotto, the current team principal], for the drivers and for everyone who works there."
Ferrari's return to the top step on the podium has come with changes to Formula One regulations, which Domenicali and managing director Ross Brawn were tasked with implementing.
The 56-year-old believes technical regulations have allowed for unprecedented variety in design and engineering, which will positively impact the championship.
"The new F1 brings the technological challenge back to the centre. Last year I remember how many people said F1 would flatten out and talked about the cars all the same," he said.
"I have been in F1 since 1991 and there has never been such a great diversity between the cars, from a technical and technological point of view. This will also affect the competitiveness of the championship. There will be faster cars on some tracks and some faster cars on others."
Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash remains optimistic that Ben Simmons will play at some point this season but has revealed the new signing has a herniated disk in his back.
Simmons is yet to debut for the Nets following his February trade from the Philadelphia 76ers, whom he fell out with over the off-season. The Australian guard has subsequently not played all season.
The former All-Star had an epidural last week to alleviate pressure in his back as he struggles to build his conditioning up to a level fit enough to see him return to action.
The Nets, who appear headed for the Play-In Tournament with a 37-34 record sitting eighth in the east, have only 11 regular-season games remaining, meaning the clock is ticking on Simmons.
"He's had this [herniated disks] a couple years ago, so he's had them throughout his career at some points," Nash told reporters prior to Sunday's game against the Utah Jazz.
"I guess there was a flare-up. I'm not sure when they recognised it was beyond a back flare-up and a herniated disc or what not, but somewhere along the line there, that was the reason for the epidural."
He added: "From what I know, he trained pretty hard for five, six months. He was in a great place. Unfortunately, I think there was a little flare-up at some point in there and it's just never quite turned the corner since.
"I think he had months of five, six days a week on court and was doing very well, so just unfortunate, but we stay the course. Hopefully a good resolution to this in the near future."
Simmons is yet to be cleared to return to practice although Nash said surgery had not yet been discussed.
"We still have high hopes that he can come back," Nash said. "He's had moments during his rehab where he's on the court doing some things and it looks like he's about to turn a corner, and then there's a little setback so I still feel optimistic that he can play for us."
Phil Mickelson will not be competing in this year's Masters tournament, according to the organisers' official website.
The 51-year-old had been among the list of participants until Monday, but he has now been moved to a section listed as "past champions not playing".
A three-time Masters winner, this would have been Mickelson's 30th appearance at the major event.
Mickelson has been the subject of criticism since he claimed a proposed Saudi Arabia-backed Super Golf League could give players "leverage" as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to "reshape how the PGA Tour operates".
The American suggested he and others had paid lawyers to construct the proposed breakaway competition's agreement, despite acknowledging Saudi Arabia has "a horrible record on human rights".
Mickelson later apologised for what he described as "reckless" comments following huge criticism and is now taking a break from the sport.
The six-time major champion was also a notable absentee from The Players Championship.
The Philadelphia 76ers confirmed star pair Joel Embiid and James Harden were sitting out Monday's game with the Eastern Conference-leading Miami Heat.
Embiid was out with back soreness and Harden was missing as part of his right hamstring recovery amid the 76ers' sequence of three games in four nights.
Philadelphia head coach Doc Rovers had replied "possibly" when asked on Friday if either of the pair could be rested during their busy run of games.
However, Harden said after Sunday's 93-88 loss to the Toronto Raptors he was expecting to face the Heat.
The Heat lead the East with a 47-24 record, with the 76ers third ahead of Monday's games at 43-27.
Embiid is in MVP contention this season, averaging a league-high 29.8 points, 11.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists.
Harden, who switched to the 76ers from the Brooklyn Nets in February, is averaging 22.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 10.2 assists across the season.
The Atlanta Falcons have moved quickly to replace the outgoing Matt Ryan by signing quarterback Marcus Mariota in free agency.
The Falcons confirmed Ryan's departure to the Indianapolis Colts on Monday, with the 36-year-old traded for a third-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Mariota – who was the second overall draft pick in 2015 – signs on a two-year contract in Atlanta having left the Las Vegas Raiders, where he was back-up to Derek Carr.
The 28-year-old is already familiar with Falcons head coach Arthur Smith, with whom he worked when Smith was tight ends coach and then offensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans.
Mariota mostly acted as an alternative rushing option for the Raiders in 2021, with his last significant game time coming in Week 15 of the 2020 season when he threw for 226 yards, one touchdown and one interception against the Los Angeles Chargers. He also had nine carries for 88 yards and a touchdown in a 30-27 Raiders defeat.
It is expected the Falcons will still bring in another QB, so it remains to be seen whether Mariota is Ryan's long-term replacement or merely a stopgap. Atlanta have the eighth pick in this year's draft.
The Falcons previously had been interested in Deshaun Watson, who instead joined the Cleveland Browns in a trade with the Houston Texans.
It is widely thought negotiations for Watson played a role in Ryan leaving the team, although Falcons owner Arthur Blank released a statement following confirmation of his trade to the Colts, thanking the player and explaining the decision.
"Matt Ryan has been the epitome of a franchise quarterback during his time here in Atlanta," Blank wrote.
"He has represented this organisation with great class, professionalism and leadership, both on and off the field, over the past 14 years.
"It is difficult to overstate what he has meant to me personally, our organisation, his team-mates and our fans. From his first day in the building, Matt has given his all in the pursuit of winning a championship for Atlanta.
"This business is not without its difficult decisions, and while this is one of the most difficult decisions we have faced as a club, we feel it is in the best long-term interests of both the Atlanta Falcons and Matt Ryan.
"On behalf of the entire Falcons organisation, I wish him success as he continues his career and know that he will bring the same dedication and professionalism to his next club."
Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard will miss the remainder of the NBA season, the team confirmed on Monday.
This news comes despite Lillard progressing well through the reconditioning phase of his rehabilitation, following successful surgery in January to repair a lingering abdominal injury.
Lillard has met "several key performance benchmarks" and will continue end-stage rehabilitation over the next few weeks, the team added.
The 31-year-old first missed a game this season due to the injury in November and also missed game time in December as a consequence. The team officially called it lower abdominal tendinopathy.
In 29 games this season, Lillard averaged 24.0 points, 7.3 assists and 4.1 rebounds while shooting 40.2 per cent from the floor.
Three and a half games outside a play-in place in the Western Conference, the 12th-placed Trail Blazers are 26-44 on the year and 14-27 without Lillard.
Jameis Winston has re-signed with the New Orleans Saints on a two-year deal, according to reports.
The Saints had been in the race to sign Deshaun Watson before he opted instead for the Cleveland Browns, leading New Orleans back to Winston, whose contract expired at the end of last season.
Reports suggest the player has signed a two-year deal with a base value of $28million, of which $21m is guaranteed.
The 28-year-old quarterback was the first overall draft pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2015, but he left in 2020 when the team brought in Tom Brady, landing in New Orleans as back-up to Drew Brees.
Winston played four games in relief of Brees, before being named the starting QB over Taysom Hill after Brees' retirement in March 2021.
He played seven times for the Saints last season, throwing for 1,170 yards from 161 attempts, including 14 touchdown passes and just three interceptions.
Winston looked to be in for a far more consistent season than in his final year as a starter in Tampa, which saw him become the first player in NFL history to throw 30 TD passes and 30 picks in the same campaign.
But Winston, who started 2021 by throwing five TD passes in a crushing Week 1 defeat of the Green Bay Packers, saw his campaign ended early by an ACL tear in the Week 8 win over the Bucs.
The Indianapolis Colts hope they have found the quarterback that can help them contend in the AFC, after striking a deal with the Atlanta Falcons for Matt Ryan.
According to multiple reports, the Colts will send a third-round pick to the Falcons in exchange for the 2016 MVP.
It comes after the Colts parted with Carson Wentz, whom they acquired last year, after just one season, trading him to the Washington Commanders in a deal that saw the two franchises swap second-round picks and Indianapolis acquire a pair of third-rounders.
The Colts are viewed by many as having a roster ready to challenge for a deep playoff run, yet their inability to find an answer at quarterback following Andrew Luck's shock retirement in 2019 has prevented Indianapolis from reaching such heights.
Philip Rivers helped them to the playoffs in the 2020 season but retired after one year with Indianapolis. It was hoped Wentz's past relationship with Colts head coach Frank Reich would revitalise his career, yet a dismal end to the 2021 campaign in which they missed the playoffs after a blowout loss to the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 18 helped convince Indianapolis to move on swiftly.
Ryan appears to have a much better chance of proving to be the solution for the Colts. Though Atlanta missed the playoffs last year with a 7-10 record, Ryan completed 67 per cent of his passes, his highest completion rate since 2018, for 3,968 yards and 20 touchdowns. He did, however, throw 12 interceptions.
He remains a very accurate quarterback, delivering a well-thrown ball on 80.7 per cent of his throws in 2021, according to Stats Perform data, tied for the sixth-best rate among QBs with at least 200 attempts.
No player in the NFL has thrown for more passing yards than Ryan's 59,735 since he entered the NFL as a first-round pick of the Falcons in 2008.
Prior to 2021, Ryan threw for 4,000 yards in 10 consecutive seasons, the high point coming in 2016 when he led the Falcons to the Super Bowl.
He threw for a career-high 4,944 receiving yards, averaging 9.3 yards per attempt, 38 touchdowns and just seven interceptions.
However, that season ended in bitter defeat as the Falcons gave up a 28-3 lead in their Super Bowl LI loss to the New England Patriots. The Falcons have won just one playoff game since.
Given his achievements, a third-round pick seems like scant compensation for the 36-year-old, with the Falcons agreeing to a trade that will see them incur the largest dead cap hit in NFL history ($40.52million).
The Falcons, who decided against taking a quarterback with the fourth overall pick in last year's draft, are believed to be interested in signing former second overall pick Marcus Mariota as an immediate replacement for Ryan. Malik Willis, one of the top quarterbacks in the 2022 class, was born in Atlanta and could be a developmental option for the Falcons with the eighth pick in this year's draft.
Atlanta had been interested in Deshaun Watson even before dealing Ryan, but he instead joined the Cleveland Browns in a trade with the Houston Texans.
Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant has said Kyrie Irving is "frustrated" at still not being allowed to play home games for the team.
New York City mayor Eric Adams recently removed restrictions requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination to enter establishments including bars, restaurants and sports arenas, but the mandate for private sector employees remains in place.
As a result, Irving – who is unvaccinated – is only able to attend home games as a spectator, which he recently did when the Nets beat the New York Knicks at Barclays Center.
After Monday's shootaround, Durant said Irving thought restrictions on him would have been lifted by now, stating: "He's frustrated in not being able to play.
"He figured this stuff would be rolled back by now, we'd be way past this. But it's the situation we're in, we've got to deal with it, he's got to deal with it. We're trusting that it'll get figured out there soon.
"I have no clue what may happen, but I'm just trusting that things will work itself out. But I'm sure he misses playing in front of a home crowd and the home crowd; vice versa, they miss him. So, hopefully we get it figured out soon."
Irving has played 19 games for the Nets this season, all on the road, averaging 27.7 points per game, and recently hit 60 in his team's win at the Orlando Magic.
Mayor Adams said at the time that allowing Irving to play home games "would send the wrong message" to the people of New York, despite wanting to see the Nets win an NBA championship.
Durant – who returned from a knee injury at the start of March and is averaging 29.4 points this season – added there is no judgement of Irving from him or his team-mates.
"We love Kyrie as a human being," he said. "I don't think we were ever upset at him as much as people on the outside were. We get that it may affect the outcome of some basketball games, but that's not the only reason why we love Kyrie as a person, because of what he can bring to the court.
"He made the decision [not to be vaccinated] for himself, so you've just got to respect it and move forward. We weren't coming in here every day p***ed off at him because he wasn't around."
When asked if being without Irving would have an impact on their championship aims, Durant said: "We'd be missing a huge piece of our team, but we've still got to go out there and play the game.
"We've been saying that no matter who's on the floor, you've still got to go out there and play and hoop. We'd love to have Kyrie out there, being out there, but if they aren't, the rest of the guys have just got to go play and live with the results. I think we're all comfortable with that."
JuJu Smith-Schuster has confirmed the prospect of playing with Patrick Mahomes was a key factor in his decision to join the Kansas City Chiefs.
The one-time Pro Bowler had spent his entire NFL career to date with the Pittsburgh Steelers but announced his departure on Friday.
On social media, Mahomes soon welcomed the arrival in Kansas City of a wide receiver with 323 catches for 3,855 receiving yards and 26 receiving touchdowns across 63 games in five seasons.
After Smith-Schuster secured a one-year, $10.75million deal, Mahomes sent him a Twitter message, which read: "Turn me up brotha!!!"
His new Chiefs team-mate replied: "Can't wait to get after it my boy!"
But that was not their first conversation around the move, as Smith-Schuster revealed when facing the media as a Chief for the first time.
"I had talked to a couple of guys, obviously, to make this happen. I talked to Pat a couple of times. I'd talked to Pat multiple times before even all this. I've known Pat for a while now, so, yeah, of course.
"You go into free agency, and you find out who's going to be throwing you the ball next year. It came down to Pat, and I'm excited. I'm happy with my decision."
Taken in the second round in the 2017 NFL Draft, Smith-Schuster was an instant hit with seven receiving TDs in each of his first two seasons, including a pair of 97-yard scores – becoming the first player in NFL history to have multiple offensive TDs of that distance or more.
There were 1,426 receiving yards in 2018, before a step back in 2019 was followed by a career-high nine receiving TDs in 2020.
Limited to five games by a shoulder injury while the Steelers toiled on offense with the retiring Ben Roethlisberger still at quarterback, Smith-Schuster's only score last season was his first career rushing TD.
The 25-year-old is confident the Chiefs are a good fit for him, though.
"I just thought that this opportunity fit more for me in the sense of coming here, playing for Andy [Reid] and obviously the OC [Eric Bieniemy], Joe [Bleymaier] and everyone else," he said.
"I've seen an opportunity that I can take on and where I can improve my skills and see what I can do.
"I'm a physical guy coming in here to showcase those talents. That's what I bring with myself, in the package.
"I'm here to work. We have a great team, there are some great guys, and this is why I came to be a part of this. I came here to win."
The Rugby Football Union's (RFU) claim England made progress during a tough Six Nations campaign has been criticised by ex-international Ugo Monye, who called their statement "dishonest".
Eddie Jones' side finished a distant third behind Ireland and Grand Slam winners France, managing just two wins from their five games.
It marked a second successive dismal Six Nations, far removed from reaching the final of the 2019 World Cup that marked the high point of the Australian's tenure in charge.
Now, a year-and-a-half out from the 2023 World Cup in France, the RFU has sought to frame their results as stepping stones, but Monye – a 14-time England international – believes such claims are untruthful.
"I want to know who in the RFU thinks that signifies progress and are happy with how things are," Monye told BBC Sport's Rugby Union Daily podcast.
"Fundamentally it's just dishonest. There isn't progress. With the financial backing, the player pool and the coaching staff they have you cannot be winning two out of five games two years in a row.
Lewis Hamilton admitted he does not think Mercedes will be more competitive at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, but believes his podium finish in Bahrain has still boosted spirits.
Mercedes struggled with their new W13 car through much of the weekend at Sakhir, but came away with a surprise third-place finish after both Red Bulls failed in the final laps, allowing Hamilton – who had qualified fifth – to capitalise.
While Hamilton has already stated their result was "the best result we could have got" in the circumstances, the seven-time world champion doubts they will be up to the pace in Jeddah.
"No, I don't think so," he said in a news conference. "Of course we've learned a lot from this week. The car was very hard to drive but it could always be worse.
"I’m hoping for the next race we manage to find some improvements but it's a fundamental issue that's going to take a little bit longer I think to fix."
Mercedes previously considered their objective in Bahrain to be damage limitation given their disadvantage, but Hamilton agreed they had been lifted by their unexpected reward.
"I think [it is] incredibly motivating for the whole team," he added. "Everyone’s stayed positive, everyone's just kept their head down and kept working. No one moaned.
"In terms of our processes, in terms of squeezing absolutely everything out of the car, I think that's what we did today. I think that's a true showing of strength within.
"It is such a long season. It's going to be such a hard battle but we love a challenge. I really do enjoy a challenge."
Hamilton would have missed third without the double retirement that hit both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, but the seven-time world champion refused to consider it karma for last year's Abu Dhabi final.
"I don't have a response to it," he added. "I just focused on our job. Obviously it was unfortunate for them today but, yeah, I just focus on positives."
Charles Leclerc and Carlos claimed a Ferrari one-two to emerge as the early pacesetters of the season.
Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was surprised about long-time team-mate Carlos Correa's move to the Minnesota Twins.
The pair, who won the 2017 World Series together and were part of the Astros' side that lost last year's edition 4-2 to the Atlanta Braves, will be split up after Correa inked a bumper deal with the Twins.
Correa was declared a free agent for the first time in his career in November and rejected a qualifying offer from the Astros, before the Twins won the race to land him amid interest from several top teams.
Despite that interest and two-time All-Star Correa arguably being the most coveted free agent left on the market, the 27-year-old ended up with the Twins, who finished last in the American League (AL) Central last season with a 73-89 record.
"I was surprised. I wasn't expecting that," Altuve said. "Obviously we're going to miss him. He's a great player and a great guy inside the clubhouse. He was one of our leaders."
Altuve, who played alongside Correa since 2015, added: "Now that he's on another team, I'm happy for him. He got a great deal. Happy for him. I know he's going to play good. He's going to make the Twins better."
Shortstop Correa has reportedly signed with the Twins on a three-year, $105.3million deal, making him the MLB's highest paid infielder on average annual salary.
Correa is a career .277 hitter with 133 home runs, batting at .279 with 26 home runs and 92 RBIs last season, along with claiming his first Gold Glove. Puerto Rico-born Correa finished fifth in AL MVP voting last season.
Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone has slammed his side claiming that they "gave in and quit" in Sunday's 124-104 loss to the Boston Celtics.
The Nuggets trailed 68-43 at half-time after a 46-21 run to the Celtics, leading to Malone benching several starters for the third quarter, including MVP Nikola Jokic who shot eight-of-23 from the field for his 23 points.
Malone was livid with his side, who slipped to a 42-30 record and seventh spot in the Western Conference.
"To me, it appeared we just kind of gave in and quit. I didn't want to reward that behaviour," Malone told reporters after the game.
"I thought the bench unit was at least going out there and competing and fighting."
Malone added: "If somebody’s kicking our ass and we’re fighting and competing, and they’re better than us, so be it,"
"They’re a very good team, but if we’re getting our butts kicked, and we’re just taking it, possession after possession, heads are dropped, body language giving in, I’m not going to reward that behaviour.
"There’s principles in life, and that goes against every principle inside my body."
Jokic was well down on his usual output with eight rebounds and four assists along with his 23 points, while starters Aaron Gordon (13 points, four rebounds), Monte Morris (seven points, four rebounds and four assists), Will Barton (eight points and five rebounds) and Jeff Green (six points and one rebound) struggled for impact.
"Tonight I can't point to one thing we did well," Malone said.
Jokic added: "Overall, they had a really good defensive game and I had a really bad offensive game."
Jayson Tatum, who was serenaded with "MVP" chants from the Celtics crowd, was joint top scorer with 30 points along with Jaylen Brown.
Boston's win improves their record to 44-28 and fourth in the east, having won three in a row and 10 of their past 12 games.
Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said his team needs to appreciate a decreased margin for error with Stephen Curry injured, after their 110-108 home loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
Curry is in a race to return to the court before the playoffs begin in April, and the Warriors felt his absence, getting out-shot from long range by the 28-44 Spurs, currently 11th in the Western Conference.
The Warriors have been undermanned all season with their big-man stocks as James Wiseman, the second pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, is yet to make his season debut.
Coach Kerr stressed this point, and pointed out that he did not feel like his team brought the requisite intensity before it was too late.
"We have to understand – and I told the guys this at half-time and after the game – that we're undermanned," he said.
"There's 11 games left now, and we're looking at the playoffs, and there's gotta be a sense of urgency.
"There's gotta be a sense of competitive fight that we take to the other team from the very beginning of the game, and I did not see that until we were really late in the game.
"We were great in that fourth quarter, fighting like crazy, but we need to fight like crazy from the start."
Formula One managing director Ross Brawn is tentatively satisfied by the racing impact of new regulations, following the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday.
Following an era dominated by the Mercedes team, significant regulation changes have been made for the 2022 season, to allow for closer racing.
Brawn, who was tasked with implementing the regulation changes by Formula One, praised the "raceability" of the current cars in comparison to previous years.
"We're delighted," Brawn told Sky Sports F1 post-race. "It is the first race so we have to be careful but all the signs are that we have moved in the direction that we wanted to move in, and the ability of the cars to race each other has improved.
"In the past we have always focused on car safety and performance. Now we should focus on raceability. That should be in there as well, because there's never been any attention paid to it."
Some of the biggest regulation changes for 2022 relate to aerodynamic output and cleaning up the turbulent wake that quickly overheated following cars in recent past, affecting the potential of wheel-to-wheel racing, despite the optimal increase in performance.
Though lap times during winter testing reflect slower overall performance, Charles Leclerc's win at Sakhir on Sunday didn't come until after a closely fought battle with reigning world champion Max Verstappen.
Brawn believes Formula One is on the path to finding balance.
"We could see from previous cars, you could simply see the downforce or the aerodynamic performance of the car that was following degrading hugely when it was behind another car," he said.
"We (Formula One) can't see the data because we're the commercial rights holder, but the FIA will now look at all the data of the cars and from that, put that into the research program to see how we can improve it further.
"I think anecdotally, you could see the cars can race a lot better."
The ascending Boston Celtics added another scalp to their resume, holding reigning MVP Nikola Jokic to his season-worst shooting percentage in a 124-104 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.
In a stunning year-on-year improvement, the Celtics have been the best defence in the NBA this season after finishing 17th in that department this past season.
With new coach Ime Udoka going all-in on a switching defensive system, it was theoretically going to be tested against the best passing big man in league history, and arguably the league's most dominant offensive force.
However, Jokic was bottled up similarly to everyone else the Celtics have played in 2022, going 8-of-23 (34.7 per cent) from the field in the blowout loss.
Jokic, who is shooting 57 per cent from the field for the season, had previously had his worst shooting performance when he went 6-of-17 (35.3 per cent) in an early-December loss against the Chicago Bulls.
Boston's two superstar wings combined for 60 points, as Jayson Tatum posted 30 points (11-of-17 shooting, 6-of-10 from three) with seven assists, while Jaylen Brown had 30 points (12-of-19 shooting, 3-of-6 from three) with six rebounds.
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