Stephen Curry is aiming to help the Golden State Warriors "peak at the right time" after Thursday's 132-95 rout of the Portland Trail Blazers.
Fresh from the All-Star break, where he hit 16 threes in a 50-point showing, Curry provided 14 assists and put up 18 points in Portland.
Steve Kerr's side had lost four of the previous five games, but Curry hopes the Warriors are set for a strong run leading into the playoffs.
"I'm just trying to enjoy the process, I'm trying to peak at the right time with my guys," he said.
"It's a strong start to the last home stretch and we've got to keep building.
"There's 22 games left where we've got to be our best selves come playoff time, and it's going to be nice to be back on that stage."
The dominant nature of the performance provided plenty of room for optimism for Curry, whose team shook off a slow start after trailing at the end of the first quarter.
"I'm very encouraged," he said. "I thought defensively we asserted our will after the first quarter, really understood how to get stops and turn it into easy offense.
"Portland's different now but they still require your attention, they've got a couple of guys that can light it up."
Curry's display helped seven of his team-mates reach double-figure points tallies and coach Steve Kerr was thrilled with his star man.
"Steph was brilliant," said Kerr. "I loved his patience and the way he ran the team. He played a beautiful game."
Scotland denied France glory in last year's Six Nations, with their dramatic victory in Paris meaning Les Bleus missed out on the title.
Now, France will be out for vengeance as they head to Edinburgh at the top of the standings with two victories from their opening two matches.
England, meanwhile, bounced back from their defeat to Scotland in round one with a hammering of Italy, and Eddie Jones' second-placed team host Wales at Twickenham.
Wales lost convincingly to Ireland in their first game, yet defeated Scotland 20-17 last time out, though the defending champions are down in fifth place as it stands.
The final match of the weekend sees Ireland take on Italy in Dublin. The Azzurri are staring down the barrel of a 100th Six Nations defeat.
Ahead of the third round of fixtures, Stats Perform previews each match with help from Opta.
SCOTLAND V FRANCE
FORM
Scotland have won four of their last six games against France in the Championship, including the last two in a row and a first win in Paris since 1999. They have not won three in a row against Les Bleus in the tournament since 1956-1958.
This will be the 99th meeting between Scotland and France in all competitions, with Les Bleus leading the head to head with 56 wins (L39, D3). However, honours are even across the last 10 clashes, with both sides picking up five wins each.
France opened their campaign with a pair of wins, something they also managed in 2021. The only time since 2011 when they have won their opening three games was in 2020, when they missed out on the title and a Grand Slam after a fourth-round defeat to Scotland at Murrayfield.
ONES TO WATCH
Darcy Graham has beaten a Championship-high nine defenders so far. He is just ahead of French duo Gabin Villiere, Damian Penaud, and Marcus Smith.
France's Gregory Alldritt has made more carries (30) than any other player, while he has also gained 83 post-contact metres, the most of any forward and fourth most of any player, after Ireland's Mack Hansen (107), Scotland's Graham (86) and team-mate Penaud (84), as well as hitting 10 more defensive rucks (36) than anyone else.
ENGLAND V WALES
FORM
The last four Six Nations matches between these sides have been won by the home side on the day. Indeed, England have won their last four home games against Wales in the Championship, only once since 1930 have they enjoyed a longer such streak, a nine-game run between 1990 and 2006.
England have lost just two of their last 24 home games in the Six Nations (W21, D1), defeats to Ireland in 2018 and Scotland in 2021. Wales' last win at Twickenham in the Championship was in 2012. Since the start of the 2016 tournament, Wales have picked up just one away victory outside of Scotland or Italy, a 24-19 win in Paris in 2019.
England (49) and Wales (34) have made more maul metres than any other sides so far in this edition of the Six Nations.
ONES TO WATCH
Jones has named Ben Youngs on England's bench. If he comes on, Youngs will win his 115th Test cap, overtaking Jason Leonard as the country's most capped men's player. The scrum-half has been involved in five tries in his last six starts against Wales (three tries, two assists).
Alex Cuthbert is set to play for Wales for a 50th time. He is looking to score his first try in the Six Nations since crossing against Italy in 2014.
IRELAND V ITALY
FORM
Ireland have won 21 of their 22 previous Six Nations matches against Italy, their sole defeat coming in 2013 (15-22), in what was the Azzurri's last home victory in the Championship.
Italy's next defeat will be their 100th in the Championship, they are currently on a record 34 match losing run, almost seven years since last claiming a victory (22-19 v Scotland, 28 Feb 2015).
Ireland hold a 100 per cent win rate against Italy at home in the Six Nations (W11), with the Azzurri the only side that has never won at the Aviva Stadium or Croke Park. Indeed, Ireland have scored 50 or more points in each of their last three home games against the tournament's whipping boys.
ONES TO WATCH
Hansen, Jamison Gibson-Park and Bundee Aki are three of just six players to both score and assist a try, the trio all scoring once and assisting one try after two rounds.
Italy's Federico Ruzza has won more lineouts (16) than any other player, including one steal, and team-mate Michele Lamaro has made the most tackles (41) in the tournament.
New world number one Daniil Medvedev says Friday's Mexican Open semi-final against Rafael Nadal is his "chance to get my revenge" after last month's epic Australian Open defeat.
Medvedev progressed to the final four in Acapulco on Thursday with a routine 6-2 6-3 victory over Yoshihito Nishioka, while Nadal triumphed 6-0 7-6 (7-5) over Tommy Paul to set up their semi-final meeting.
The Russian's win capped a fine day after Novak Djokovic's loss to Jiri Vesely at the Dubai Tennis Championships meant he would next week become the new world number one for the first time in his career.
Before then, however, Medvedev must take on Nadal in Acapulco, with the pair having not faced off since last month's epic Australian Open decider, where the Spanish fought back from two set downs to clinch a record-breaking 21st major title.
"It’s always special to play against him,” Medvedev said following his win over Nishioka. “Kind of a chance to get my revenge.
“I have to learn from the best, which is him, Roger [Federer], Novak [Djokovic], Andy [Murray]. Always when they were losing a tough fight, they were trying to get their revenge. Sometimes they managed to do it, sometimes not. That’s what I’m going to try to do if I play Rafa."
Medvedev revealed he did not realise that Djokovic's loss would mean he would become number one until he started receiving congratulatory messages on Thursday.
"It’s not easy to play a match when you get this news during the day," Medvedev said.
"The first goal for me was to still win today because I’m here to try to win every match I play. But it’s definitely some great news."
Nadal was full of praise for the new world number one, admitting his excitement at their re-match.
The Spaniard prevailed in five hours and 28 minutes over Medvedev in Melbourne, winning 2-6 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 6-4 7-5 and was ready for the re-match.
"Everybody knows how difficult it is to play against Daniil," Nadal said after Thursday's win over Paul.
"I know I have to play at my highest level if I want to have any chance, and that's what I'm going to try. I have to play my game.
"Everybody knows how difficult the final was in Australia. Tomorrow is going to be another battle.
"I know he's playing well, plenty of confidence... I am excited to play that match."
Rafael Nadal set up a semi-final meeting with new world number one Daniil Medvedev after cruising past Tommy Paul 6-0 7-6 (7-5) at the Mexican Open in Acapulco on Thursday.
The Spanish fourth seed, who won last month's Australian Open against Medvedev in a five-set epic for a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title, beat the American in two hours and three minutes.
Nadal was at his tenacious best early, winning the first set 6-0 for the second consecutive match, before Paul hit back in the second.
The Spaniard dropped only 10 points in the opening set with errors creeping into his game early in the second set allowing Paul to get 2-1 up a break.
The pair exchanged a string of four games against serve, with Nadal breaking again with Paul serving for the set, before triumphing in the tie-break.
Top seed Medvedev secured his spot in the last four with a 6-2 6-3 victory over Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka.
Medvedev, who will officially become world number one for the first time in his career next week after Novak Djokovic's loss to Jiri Vesely in Dubai, brushed aside the Japanese in one hour and 10 minutes.
The Russian sent down 12 aces and won 69 per cent on his first serve, while he converted six of eight break points across the match.
Third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas will meet Briton Cameron Norrie in the other semi-final after both triumphed on Thursday.
Tsitsipas won his quarter-final against Marcus Giron 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 17 minutes, while sixth seed Norrie made light work of Peter Gojowczyk 6-1 6-0.
At the Chile Open in Santiago, local top seed Cristian Garin was stunned by countryman Alejandro Tabilo 6-3 6-3.
Sixth seed Miomir Kecmanovic won 6-2 6-0 over Matheus Pucinelli de Almeida, while Yannick Hanfmann eased past Thiago Seyboth Wild 6-1 6-3.
The short-handed Brooklyn Nets slumped to their 13th defeat from their past 15 games as Jayson Tatum led the Boston Celtics to a 129-106 victory on Thursday.
Tatum scored 30 points including four three-pointers along with seven rebounds and four assists for the Celtics who have won 10 of their past 11 games.
The Celtics' hot form is in contrast to the Nets, who have slumped to a 31-29 record in the absence of the injured Kevin Durant, unavailable Kyrie Irving and unfit Ben Simmons.
Boston led from start to finish, opening up a 35-22 quarter-time lead, with good support from big men Robert Williams III (12 points and 11 rebounds) and Al Horford (11 points and 13 rebounds).
Seth Curry top scored for the Nets with 22 points but only made two-of-seven from beyond the arc, while Patty Mills struggled with one point from 28 minutes, shooting none-of-nine from the field.
Morant hurt in tight loss
Ja Morant airballed a game-tying three-point attempt in the dying seconds and had a third-quarter injury scare as the Memphis Grizzlies lost 119-114 to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Morant finished with 20 points and eight rebounds but seemed to pick up a leg injury on a drive which impacted his final quarter. D'Angelo Russell scored 23 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter for the Timberwolves.
The ladder-leading Phoenix Suns had no issues without Chris Paul as they extended their winning streak to eight games with a 124-104 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Devin Booker scored 25 points with five rebounds, 12 assists and a career-high six steals.
Stephen Curry was benched late after 18 points and 14 assists as the Golden State Warriors won 132-95 over the Portland Trail Blazers, while Nikola Jokic had 25 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists in the Denver Nuggets' 128-110 triumph over the Sacramento Kings.
Trae wayward in Hawks loss
Trae Young struggled as the Atlanta Hawks went down 112-108 to the Chicago Bulls. The Hawks guard made three-of-17 from the field in his 14 points for the game. For the Bulls, who have won six in a row, in-form DeMar DeRozan scored 37 points while Zach LaVine returned from injury with 20 points.
Former US Open champion Sloane Stephens progressed into the quarter-finals at the WTA Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara after a hard-fought win over Chloe Paquet on Thursday.
Stephens won in straight sets but it took almost two hours, triumphing 7-5 6-4 over the Frenchwoman ranked just outside the top 100.
The 28-year-old American was dominant on her first serve, while she broke her opponent five times throughout the match.
Stephens, who is the sixth seed, will play Daria Saville in the last eight after the Australian eased past qualifier Caroline Dolehide 6-1 6-3 in one hour and seven minutes.
Third seed and defending champion Sara Sorribes Tormo made light work of Poland's Magdalena Frech 6-0 6-2 to set up a quarter-final meeting with Marie Bouzkova.
Colombian fourth seed Camila Osorio needed just over two hours to get past Hailey Baptiste 1-6 6-3 6-3, fighting back after a lopsided first set.
Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash concedes his side must have urgency to arrest their slide after Thursday's 129-106 loss to the Boston Celtics left them with a 31-29 record.
The Nets were billed as title contenders earlier this season but have endured a tough midseason period, winning only two of their past 15 games with Kevin Durant out injured, Kyrie Irving unavailable for home games and James Harden traded out.
Harden swapped places with Ben Simmons from the Philadelphia 76ers, with the new acquisition still yet to debut as he re-conditions having not played this season.
Nash admitted having a healthy roster would go a long way to fixing his side's issues but conceded they needed urgency as their season slips away.
"We understand the situation we're in. We know there's urgency," Nash said at the post-game news conference.
"We're not going to have half a season to figure this thing out. We're up against the clock.
"Our guys have been great. There's a lot of pressure and circumstances that make it difficult as you're dropping in the standings but their spirit has been outstanding.
"That's the spirit of taking it day-by-day game-by-game trying to improve. At the same time, we recognise the situation we're in."
Jayson Tatum starred for the in-form Celtics with 30 points and seven rebounds, while the Nets' best were Seth Curry (22 points and seven rebounds), Bruce Brown Jr (15 points, seven rebounds and five assists) and Kessler Edwards (13 points and five rebounds) off the bench.
Nash was pressed on ways to fix their struggles without their key players, with no timeframes on Durant and Simmons' availability but he reverted to a healthy roster.
"That's number one, two, three and four really," Nash said. "We could've played better tonight, but we can play better on nights when we have everybody too.
"In this league, you flip it, take four of the Celtics starters out, it's a different look."
Kurt Kitayama managed four straight birdies on his back nine to claim the lead ahead of Daniel Berger in a group of three after the opening day of the Honda Classic in Florida on Thursday.
The little-known American carded a six-under-round of 64, starting the day with three straight birdies, before his hot run on his back nine at Palm Beach Gardens.
Kitayama has enjoyed a good recent period, making the cut at his past five starts before Thursday's impressive feat as solo leader.
"I think when you're struggling, I think just that self-motivation to find keep getting better and finding a way to figure it out, it's kind of how you've got to keep going," Kitayama told reporters.
The 29-year-old leads by one stroke from Rory Sabbatini, Chris Kirk and hometown hero Berger who are five-under.
World number 20 Berger started his round brilliantly, with three birdies on his first four holes, while he also sunk a 28-foot birdie putt on the ninth hole with no ill-effects from a back problem that has been plaguing him lately.
Slovakian veteran Sabbatini made birdie on the 18th to jump into a share of second, with Kirk having eight birdies and three bogeys in an entertaining round.
Danny Willett, Matthias Schwab, Andrew Kozan, Aaron Rai and Peter Uihlein are all next tied for fifth at three under.
Four-time major winner and current world number 15 Brooks Koepka managed three birdies in his round of two-under-68 to be four shots off the pace.
Last week's Genesis Invitational winner Joaquin Niemann had an even round of 70, despite leading early after four birdies on his front nine, with a double bogey holding him up on the fourth hole.
Pre-tournament favourite Louis Oosthuizen will battle to make the cut after five bogeys on the front nine before a double bogey on the 17th hole left him with a five-over-75.
England will be without Manu Tuilagi for their Six Nations clash with Wales after the centre suffered a hamstring injury.
Tuilagi had been set to return from an injury lay off to feature at Twickenham on Saturday, having been named in the team that Eddie Jones confirmed on Thursday.
However, England have been dealt a blow as scans after training revealed a hamstring problem for the 30-year-old.
England have recalled Joe Marchant, who will train with the squad on Friday. However, an updated team will not be confirmed until the day of the game.
Tuilagi had been set to play alongside Henry Slade in midfield for Jones' team, who bounced back from their defeat to Scotland in the opening match by beating Italy last time out.
He has represented England in 46 Tests so far since making his debut in 2011.
Novak Djokovic has not lost any motivation for tennis, but believes he needs time to find some rhythm after a long break, as he conceded the world number one spot.
Djokovic's 86-week reign at the top of the ATP rankings will end on Monday, after the Serbian lost to qualifier Jiri Vesely 6-4 7-6 (7-4) in the Dubai Tennis Championships.
That means that Daniil Medvedev will leapfrog Djokovic regardless of whether or not he wins in Acapulco.
Using his official Twitter account, Djokovic congratulated both Vesely – who won his only previous meeting with the 20-time grand slam champion back in 2016 – and Medvedev.
"Well played @jiri_vesely, that was a great game. Wish you the best of luck for the rest of the tournament," Djokovic wrote, accompanying his post with a thumbs up emoji.
"Congratulations also to a very deserving @DaniilMedwed, who will now become world number one."
His appearance in Dubai was Djokovic's first competitive action of 2022, after he was unable to feature at the Australian Open due to his refusal to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
While suggesting he is still working his way back to full sharpness after not playing since December, Djokovic insisted he is fully motivated to carry on playing.
"My goal is to keep on playing tennis," Djokovic said in his post-match news conference.
"That's the ultimate goal. For as long as I really feel like it and as long as I can play. As long as my body allows me, as long as the circumstances in my life as well, the people that surround me [and] support me.
"I'm still motivated and I'm still p***** off when I lose a match. I care about it. I care about winning every match, as anybody else on the Tour, regardless of the age. I'm actually glad that I'm feeling a lot of emotions every single day because it means that I really want to be part of this sport, part of the Tour.
"Unfortunately, [it] wasn't my day. I congratulate Jiri. He played better.
"The more matches I play, the more comfortable I get on the court. I need the match play. I didn't have many matches at all last few months.
"I don't look at the age really as a restricting factor for my career. I still feel great in terms of my body and the way it's holding on, the way it's recovering. It's been serving me well, so to say. That's something that obviously encourages me to keep going."
Seth Curry does not want an apology from Ben Simmons as the pair start a new chapter with the Brooklyn Nets.
Curry and Simmons were team-mates on the Philadelphia 76ers, although the former first overall pick had not played this season.
Simmons has now cited a difficult period with his mental health as his reason for staying away from the 76ers until a trade was agreed with the Nets.
The Australian was the subject of intense criticism following the team's playoff defeat to the Atlanta Hawks last season, in which he was deemed to have shirked responsibility and passed up shooting opportunities.
With James Harden leaving the Nets for the 76ers, Curry and Andre Drummond joined Simmons in the deal going the other way.
It means Simmons must now play with team-mates he abandoned earlier in the season, but Curry does not see that as a problem.
"Business is business," Curry told ESPN on Thursday ahead of the NBA's resumption after the All-Star break.
"I said from day [one], even when he was out early in the season, people were asking me if I feel like, if Ben comes back, should he apologise to us or whatever?
"I understand the business; he doesn't need to apologise to anybody. When he's on the court, I know he's going to do his job and he's going to do what he does. So I understand the business.
"He was doing what he felt was best for himself business-wise and personal-wise. And the team's going to do the same thing as far as making trades or whatever, so I understand it, I've been around it; I don't take anything personal.
"When we're on the court, we're team-mates. Everything's fine, and we depend on each other to do good things. There's been nothing negative he's done to me personally, so I'm fine."
Anett Kontaveit remained on course for a sixth title in seven months, progressing to the Qatar Open semi-finals after defeating Ons Jabeur in straight sets.
Champion in St Petersburg two weeks ago, Kontaveit extended her winning run to eight matches following a 6-4 6-1 success.
The opening set was neck and neck until Kontaveit won 15 out of 16 points from 30-30 at 4-4 to draw first blood and establish a 2-0 lead in the second.
The Estonian, who registered just 12 unforced errors throughout the contest, then took 12 of the last 15 points to advance to the last four.
"At times, it was just kind of fun because I felt like the level was really good, and I was playing really well," said Kontaveit, who has won nine of her last 13 matches against top-10 opposition.
"I think I have this confidence that I can go deep every week that I'm playing, and I'm not setting these mental barriers to myself that I used to do.
"I'm very happy with being in the semi-finals, but I also feel like I can still go deeper, I can still do more. So, I'm not too satisfied yet with this result. I feel like if I play well or if I'm consistent, I have a chance with anyone.
"I'm really happy that I'm bringing a good level of tennis consistently every tournament. I think that's something that I'm just most pleased with."
In the semi-finals, Kontaveit will face another in-form player in Jelena Ostapenko, who saw off Garbine Muguruza in straight sets.
Having triumphed in Dubai last week, the 15th seed has now recorded nine successive victories for the first time in her career after prevailing 6-2 6-2.
Ostapenko struck 39 winners and claimed 15 of 18 points on her opponent's second serve as she moved a step closer to a maiden title in Doha, having reached the final six years ago.
Meanwhile, Iga Swiatek is through to her first WTA 1000 semi-final on a hard court after a 6-2 6-3 win over Aryna Sabalenka.
The former French Open champion won seven out of eight breakpoints, while reeling off six successive games in the second set to secure a comfortable victory.
Next up for her is Maria Sakkari, who recorded her third win against Coco Gauff in four meetings after prevailing 6-3 6-3.
The sixth seed is through to her sixth semi-final at WTA 1000 level or above – and targeting her first such title.
Daniil Medvedev will become the new world number one after Novak Djokovic was beaten by Jiri Vesely at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Medvedev entered this week knowing victory at the Mexican Open would see him move to the top of the ATP rankings for the first time.
But the Russian was still waiting to play his quarter-final on Thursday when his ascension was confirmed courtesy of Djokovic's last-eight defeat in Dubai.
Djokovic, a seven-time year-end number one, had led the rankings for 86 consecutive weeks, boosting his record total to 361 weeks.
In his first tournament since missing the Australian Open, however, the five-time Dubai champion struggled to match 123rd-ranked Vesely and went down 6-4 7-6 (7-4).
Djokovic might have known what to expect, having lost his only prior meeting with Vesely in Monte Carlo in 2016.
The Serbian looked like getting to grips with his opponent at the start of the second set, applying pressure, but was then broken again and had to respond strongly to reach a tie-break.
Again, Vesely led, and Djokovic's match was summed up by a double-fault immediately after winning back the mini-break, allowing the Czech to prevail.
The victor hailed the end of Djokovic's reign, saying in his on-court interview: "It's great for tennis to have somebody new as world number one again.
"We all know Novak missed the Australian Open, but he's been such a champion, as world number one for 361 weeks.
"Tennis needs new number ones, new generations coming up, so I think it's just great."
As Vesely advances, second seed Andrey Rublev will fancy his chances of a second straight ATP Tour title after his win at the Open 13 Provence.
Rublev stretched his winning streak to seven matches in coming from behind to beat Mackenzie McDonald and make the semi-finals, where he will play Hubert Hurkacz, who defeated Jannik Sinner.
Rafael Nadal hopes Alexander Zverev's withdrawal from the Mexico Open will "serve as a lesson" for him and other players when it comes to controlling their emotions on the court.
The world number three was pulled out of this month's tournament in Acapulco following an outburst where he hit the umpire's chair with his racquet in a tirade following a doubles defeat.
The ATP subsequently barred him from competition for a second-round singles clash, with several leading players, including Novak Djokovic, condemning the German's actions.
Speaking ahead of his own quarter-final this week, Nadal - who won a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam in at the Australian Open last month - stated he hoped the 24-year-old and other young players would learn that such behaviour is not acceptable.
"It's unfortunate, without a doubt," the Spaniard said. "I feel sorry for him as I have a good relationship with Alexander.
"In the end, he deserves the sanction because you can't act in this way.
"I think Sascha is aware of that and I hope this will serve as a lesson for him and for other young players who sometimes lose control on the court.
"I am not going to enter into what is or is not fair in terms of sanction," Nadal said. "But in the end you have to stop that type of attitude from becoming fashionable."
Zverev had been due to face Peter Gojowczyk in a singles encounter before he exploded at the end of his match with partner Marcelo Melo against Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara.
Following an over-ruled decision from the umpire that handed the latter pair match point in a super tie-break, the duo decided the game with an ace the very next serve.
That led to Zverev smashing his racquet against the umpire's chair on multiple occasions in quick succession, punctured by a foul-mouthed tirade.
The Tokyo 2020 champion subsequently apologised for his behaviour. The Mexico Open continues until February 26.
Sebastian Vettel claims he has already decided not to participate in September's Russian Grand Prix after Russia launched an attack on neighbouring Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to attack Ukraine comes just days after Moscow elected to recognise the independence of two breakaway regions in the east of the country, and has led to Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy severing diplomatic ties with Russia and declaring martial law in the country.
The attack has drawn widespread international condemnation, and has already impacted the sporting world, with UEFA likely to strip St Petersburg of May's Champions League final and the Ukrainian Premier League being suspended.
Now Vettel claims he has already made up his mind on whether he would participate in the Russian Grand Prix, currently scheduled for late September in Sochi.
"I woke up after this morning's news, [and was] shocked," the four-time Drivers' champion said.
"For myself, my opinion is I should not go, I will not go.
"I think it's wrong to race in the country.
"I'm sorry for the innocent people that are losing their lives, that are getting killed for stupid reasons and [because of] a very, very strange and mad [Russian] leadership.
"I'm sure it's something we will talk about, but as the GPDA [Grand Prix Driver's Association, the trade union representing Formula One drivers], we haven't come together yet."
Aston Martin driver Vettel, who won four consecutive world championships between 2010 and 2013, has been a director of the GPDA since 2010, and has previously spoken out on several other issues, being reprimanded for donning a pride flag at last year's Hungarian Grand Prix, before hosting an all-women's karting race prior to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix later that year.
Two-time champion Fernando Alonso also called on Formula One to "do the best thing", while reigning world champion Max Verstappen echoed Vettel's sentiments.
"When a country is at war it is not right to race there," Verstappen said on day two of pre-season testing in Barcelona.
Formula One had earlier refused to comment on the potential for the race to be relocated, issuing a statement which claimed it "was closely watching the very fluid developments, and at this time has no further comment on the race," and added that it will "continue to monitor the situation very closely."
Rory Darge will make his first start for Scotland in their Six Nations clash with France on Saturday after Gregor Townsend was forced to reshuffle his pack.
The Glasgow Warriors flanker is named alongside Hamish Watson and Magnus Bradbury in an all-new back row, with the latter making his first Scotland start since 2020.
A slew of injuries have forced a clutch of players – including Cam Redpath, Rory Sutherland, Javan Sebastian, Jonny Gray and Scott Cummings – to drop out of contention.
Six more faces have been called up to the wider squad, though only prop Oli Kebble makes the matchday party from those added following Scotland's 20-17 defeat to Wales last time out.
Sam Skinner moves up to partner Grant Gilchrist at lock while WP Nel drops to the replacement bench in what is ultimately two direct changes to the starting line-up.
France meanwhile make just the one change to their starting XV, after Gabin Villiere was ruled out with a sinus fracture sustained against Ireland.
Jonathan Danty comes back into the side after dropping out for the 30-24 win over Andy Farrell's side, while Yoram Moefana moves over to the wing to cover the Toulon star Villiere's absence.
Les Bleus remain the only side unbeaten in this year's Championship, but now face consecutive matches on the road after enjoying home advantage in their first two games.
Both teams will be out to make metres, with Scotland duo Stuart Hogg (843) and Finn Russell (747) having accrued more kicking metres than any other players in the 2022 Six Nations so far.
However, it is France (2,261) who have made the most as a team, with three different players having made 500+ metres with the boot for them in Antoine Dupont (682), Melvyn Jaminet (564) and Romain Ntamack (501).
This will be the 99th clash between the two nations in all competitions, with France claiming victory on 56 occasions and Scotland winning 39 times.
However, the honours are evenly split across their last 10 meetings with both sides picking up five wins apiece during that period.
Scotland team: Stuart Hogg, Darcy Graham, Chris Harris, Sione Tuipulotu, Duhan van der Merwe, Finn Russell, Ali Price; Pierre Schoeman, Stuart McInally, Zander Fagerson, Sam Skinner, Grant Gilchrist, Rory Darge, Hamish Watson, Magnus Bradbury.
Replacements: George Turner, Oli Kebble, WP Nel, Jamie Hodgson, Nick Haining, Ben White, Blair Kinghorn, Mark Bennett.
France team: Melvyn Jaminet, Damian Penaud, Gael Fickou, Jonathan Danty, Yoram Moefana, Romain Ntamack, Antoine Dupont; Cyril Baille, Julien Marchand, Uini Atonio, Cameron Woki, Paul Willemse, Francois Cros, Anthony Jelonch, Gregory Alldritt.
Replacements: Peato Mauvaka, Jean-Baptiste Gros, Demba Bamba, Romain Taofifenua, Thibaud Flament, Dylan Cretin, Maxime Lucu, Thomas Ramos.
Manu Tuilagi and captain Courtney Lawes will make their returns from injury in England's Six Nations showdown with Wales at Twickenham, while forward Taulupe Faletau will make his first appearance since last year's competition for the visitors on Saturday.
Both sides have posted a win and a loss in their two games so far to trail early leaders France in the table.
England bounced back from a 20-17 loss to Scotland by thrashing Italy 33-0 last time out, while Wales beat Scotland 20-17 after opening their title defence with a 29-7 defeat in Ireland.
Lawes returns from a concussion-enforced layoff which has kept him out of action since January, and regains the captaincy he held against South Africa last Autumn, replacing stand-in Tom Curry in the role.
Tuilagi also makes a welcome return from injury, but Ben Youngs will have to wait to win a record 115th cap after being named on the bench, as Eddie Jones makes four changes to the team which impressed in Rome, with Luke Cowan-Dickie and Kyle Sinckler also coming in.
Looking ahead to the match, Jones told England Rugby that he was content with his side's preparation, and was excited ahead of the showdown.
"We've prepared very well for this game, the squad have really come together on and off the pitch," said Jones.
"Wales are a good, tough side and Six Nations champions, and it will make for an exciting Test match in front of a full Twickenham crowd.
"We've got a talented, young, hungry squad who have trained with real intensity this week. We're ready to go at them and can't wait to play in front of our supporters again."
Marie Bouzkova is through to the quarter-finals at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara after beating Lucia Bronzetti in straight sets.
The Czech, ranked 96th in the world, will play either number three seed Sara Sorribes Tormo or Magdalena Frech in the last eight after sealing a 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 win against Bronzetti.
Anna Kalinskaya is also through after following up her impressive first-round win against eighth seed Qinwen Zheng by beating another Chinese opponent, Xinyu Wang 6-4 0-6 6-4.
The Russian had a mixed outing and looked to be on the ropes after losing the second set, but recovered and will go up against either fourth seed Camila Osorio or Hailey Baptiste in the quarter-finals.
One last eight match that has been finalised will be between Qiang Wang and Anna Karolina Schmiedlova after they beat Harmony Tan and Anastasia Potapova respectively.
Wang overcame her French opponent – who had eliminated second seed Madison Keys – 6-4 6-2, while Schmiedlova also won in straight sets against Potapova, 6-3 7-6 (7-5).
Rafael Nadal sealed his 12th consecutive win of the new season after a straight sets victory over Stefan Kozlov at the Mexican Open.
Nadal's 12-0 record to begin the year is the best of his illustrious career, and he never looked in any trouble as he eased to a 6-0 6-3 win against the American to advance to the quarter-finals in Acapulco.
The Australian Open champion's next opponent will be Tommy Paul after he beat Dusan Lajovic 7-6 (8-6) 2-6 7-5.
"A little bit of a strange match," Nadal said following his win. "Kozlov has a different style than most other players, so you need to be very careful. Sometimes you are able to win points in a row, but then if you start to play at his rhythm, it's very difficult because he has great control from the baseline and he's very smart."
Number one seed Daniil Medvedev is also safely through after comfortably defeating Pablo Andujar 6-1 6-2, and he will now go up against Yoshihito Nishioka after his victory against Feliciano Lopez.
Stefanos Tsitsipas managed to finish his match against J.J. Wolf in less than 48 minutes as he romped to a 6-0 6-1 win, while his quarter-final opponent Marcos Giron had a much tougher time of it getting past eighth seed Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7 (7-9) 6-4 7-6 (7-4).
Cameron Norrie also came from a set down to beat John Isner 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 6-4, and the sixth seed will now face Peter Gojowczyk after the German received a walkover following his compatriot Alexander Zverev being "withdrawn" from the singles competition after attacking the umpire's chair at the end of his defeat in the doubles.
Meanwhile, in the Chile Open, second seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas beat fellow Spaniard Carlos Taberner 6-2 7-6 (7-4) and will face eighth seed Facundo Bagnis in the quarter-finals after the Argentinian secured a win against Hugo Dellien 6-2 6-2.
Thiago Monteiro fought hard to get past third seed Federico Delbonis with a 3-6 6-4 6-1 victory, and will go up against seventh seed Sebastian Baez in the last eight, who defeated Juan Ignacio Londero 6-3 6-3.
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