Remco Evenepoel rubber-stamped his Vuelta a Espana title on Sunday, safely negotiating the procession into Madrid.

The 22-year-old joins an illustrious list of names from his native Belgium to have won a Grand Tour, albeit his triumph in Spain marks the end of a long drought for the nation.

Evenepoel's success, however, came at the expense of Primoz Roglic's shot at history.

Roglic was hunting an unprecedented fourth straight Vuelta title, and looked set to overtake Evenepoel in the general classification in stage 16, only to suffer a crash 100 metres from the line.

The Slovenian was unable to carry on due to the injuries he sustained and abandoned La Vuelta for the first time in his career. Roglic has had awful luck in recent Grand Tours, having had to abandon three of the last four he has appeared in.

There were 49 withdrawals across this edition of La Vuelta, the highest number since 2013.

But of the riders that did finish, there were plenty of records and statistics to dive into, courtesy of Opta data.

Belgium's long wait is over

Formula One world champion Max Verstappen shrugged off the jeers and boos he received after triumphing at The son of former pro cyclist Patrick Evenepoel, a young Remco actually started his sporting career in football, with one of his old clubs – Dutch giants PSV – among those to offer their congratulations as he became Vuelta champion.

It marks Evenepoel's first Grand Tour crown, in what was his first appearance at La Vuelta. He led the race for a remarkable 16 stages, which is more than any other rider has led it for since two-time champion Chris Froome managed 19 stages in red back in 2017.

Belgium has produced some fantastic riders, not least the great Eddy Merckx, who counts one Vuelta crown among his 11 Grand Tour titles, yet shockingly Evenepoel is the nation's first GT champion since 1978, when Johan de Muynck won the Giro d'Italia.

Evenepoel is the eighth Belgian to win the Vuelta – the first since Freddy Maertens in 1977. Only Spain (32) and France (nine) have produced more Vuelta champions than Belgium (eight).

Out with the old...

Alejandro Valverde won La Vuelta in 2009, but on his farewell appearance at his home Grand Tour, the 42-year-old was never going to compete for top honours.

Instead, this was his goodbye lap, as Valverde completed his 14th Vuelta, matching the record tallies of Federico Etxabe, Chente Garcia Acosta and Inigo Cuesta.

Spain did have a GC contender to cheer on in the form of Movistar's Enric Mas, but after Roglic's crash, he was unable to close the gap on Evenepoel, finishing over two minutes back. No Spaniard has now won it since 2014, which is the longest streak in the race's history without a home champion.

Mas has finished second in three of his four Vuelta appearances, and came in ahead of Juan Ayuso, with two Spanish riders finishing in the top three for the first time since 2014, when Valverde joined champion Alberto Contador on the podium.

Ayuso, who contracted COVID-19 early in the race but carried on, is the youngest rider to achieve a podium finish at La Vuelta (19 years and 360 days). Spain's future seems in good hands.

Carapaz caps personal best, Pedersen a rising star

The red jersey was, of course, not the only one up for grabs. Richard Carapaz and Mads Pedersen both finished with three stage victories to their name.

Carapaz became the first cyclist from the Americas to win the mountain classification since Felix Cardenas of Colombia in 2004, while the INEOS Grenadier rider also marked his best effort at a Grand Tour, surpassing the two stage wins he managed at the 2019 Giro d'Italia.

Vuelta debutant Pedersen, meanwhile, became the first Dane to win the points jersey in any Grand Tour.

It has been a brilliant year for Denmark, with Jonas Vingegaard having claimed the yellow jersey at the Tour de France, and Pedersen is among their best riders. Indeed, the only Dane to have won more stages at La Vuelta than the sprinter is Magnus Cort (six), though the latter has made three appearances in the race.

The worst game of Joe Burrow's NFL career almost turned into a memorable Week 1 win for the Cincinnati Bengals, who instead blew their chance for an overtime victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Bengals went down 23-20 to the Steelers after missing kicks at the end of regulation and in the additional period that would have secured a winning start.

Instead, Chris Boswell kicked the game-winning field goal for the Steelers in the final seconds of overtime.

Burrow had put the Bengals in position to succeed despite his dismal start, looking nothing like the 2021 Comeback Player of the Year who led Cincinnati to the Super Bowl.

The quarterback had four turnovers before half-time – a career high for an entire game – including a pick-six for Minkah Fitzpatrick from his very first pass.

Burrow finished with four interceptions, a lost fumble and seven sacks, but he also threw two touchdown passes, including one for Ja'Marr Chase that appeared to set up a stunning Bengals win.

However, Fitzpatrick blocked Evan McPherson's PAT, and McPherson missed his target again in overtime.

Boswell similarly squandered a chance to win the game, hitting the left post, but he made amends just as it looked as though the NFL would see two ties in the same week for the first time since Week 2 in 1973, with the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts also tied 20-20.

Browns deny Baker's Panthers

The Bengals were the only team not to win in the AFC North – a division that had it all on Sunday. While Lamar Jackson guided the Baltimore Ravens to victory over the New York Jets, the Cleveland Browns celebrated their first Week 1 win since 2004 as former QB Baker Mayfield saw his Carolina Panthers beaten 24-23 by a late field goal.

The Miami Dolphins' 20-7 win over AFC East rivals the Patriots was far more straightforward, with Tua Tagovailoa becoming the first QB to remain unbeaten against Bill Belichick in the regular season having started at least four games against New England.

49ers flounder at sodden Soldier Field

Miserable conditions in Chicago hampered the San Francisco 49ers as they suffered a shock 19-10 loss to the Bears, with Trey Lance's miserable 13-of-28 passing including an awful fourth-quarter interception for a quarterback rating of just 50.3.

Elsewhere in the NFC, Jalen Hurts also did not throw a single touchdown pass in the Philadelphia Eagles' 38-35 victory over the Detroit Lions – he contributed one of four rushing scores – but the QB connected with A.J. Brown for 155 yards on 10 catches. Marquee offseason trade signing Brown had 128 receiving yards before half-time, the most in the first half of a team debut by any non-rookie since at least 1991.

Formula One world champion Max Verstappen shrugged off the jeers and boos he received after triumphing at the Italian Grand Prix.

Verstappen won behind a safety car on Sunday, having capitalised on Ferrari's questionable tactics, which left Charles Leclerc having to settle for second place on the team's home race.

The victory moves Verstappen – who had never won at Monza – 116 points clear of Leclerc in the driver standings, with Red Bull also safely at the summit of the constructor table.

Yet after celebrating an 11th win of the season, Verstappen had to contend with jeers from the stands during his post-race interview.

"It happens, everyone speaks to me about it with the booing and stuff but at the end of the day I am here to try and win the race which we've done," Verstappen subsequently told reporters.

"Some people of course they cannot appreciate that because they are very passionate fans for a different team. It is what it is.

"It is not going to spoil my day, I am just enjoying the moment."

Leclerc, however, was disappointed, telling reporters: "Nobody likes booing and I think it shouldn't happen. That's it."

Verstappen, who had to overcome a grid penalty to seal his maiden Monza success, has won the last five races and the Dutchman could wrap up his second world title when F1 returns in Singapore in October.

Remco Evenepoel hailed his Vuelta a Espana win as an "historic moment for the team, my country and myself".

The 22-year-old on Sunday became Belgium's first Grand Tour winner since Johan De Muynck took the 1978 Giro d'Italia title.

The Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl rider safely came through Sunday's 96.7km procession from Las Rozas to the finish in Madrid, which was won by UAE Team Emirates rider Juan Sebastian Molano.

Colombian Molano was the lead-out man, and he claimed his first Vuelta victory ahead of Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) and his team-mate Pascal Ackermann.

Evenepoel, who led the Vuelta for 16 stages, longer than any other rider has held the red jersey since Chris Froome in 2017 (19 stages), was joined on the podium by Spaniards Enric Mas and Juan Ayuso, and put the victory down to his team and how they managed three gruelling weeks of racing.

"Yesterday the emotions were quite high because you could feel that we were actually there, but you still have to finish the race here [on stage 21] safe and in a good way," he told reporters.

"I think we did it perfectly. We enjoyed it as much as possible and now we can really enjoy it.

"I didn't have much time to think today because it was a technical course and it was getting more nervous on every lap, so it was not that nice. I'm happy we survived and that we are here now.

"It's an historic moment for the team, for my country and for myself. I think we can be really proud of what we did during the last three weeks."

Mas the nearly man

Mas and Ayuso took second and third, with this year the first time since 2014 that Spain has had two riders finish on the podium.

Movistar leader Mas, who also finished on the podium in the points and mountain classifications, had vowed to push Evenepoel in the wake of Primoz Rolgic's abandonment, but could not quite manage to do so. He has finished second in three of his four Vuelta appearances.

STAGE RESULT 

1. Juan Sebastian Molano (UAE Team Emirates) 02:26:36
2. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) same time 
3. Pascal Ackermann (UAE Team Emirates) same time
4. Mike Teunissen (Jumbo-Visma) same time
5. Danny van Poppel (BORA-Hansgrohe) same time

CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS

General Classification

1. Remco Evenepoel (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) 80:26:59
2. Enric Mas (Movistar) +2:02
3. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) +4:57

Points Classification

1. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) 409
2. Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious) 186
3. Enric Mas (Movistar) 138

King of the Mountains

1. Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) 73
2. Robert Stannard (Alpecin-Deceuninck) 36
3. Enric Mas (Movistar) 28

An emotional Shane Lowry described his victory at the BMW PGA Championship as "one for the good guys".

Lowry finished ahead of Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy by one shot at Wentworth to win the sixth DP Tour title of his career in a tournament that had caused some controversy with the inclusion of players from the breakaway LIV Golf series.

One of those players, Patrick Reed, was the clubhouse leader after going round in 63 on Sunday to finish on 14 under overall, before an even better round from Rahm of 62 gave the Spaniard a two-shot clubhouse lead.

Lowry managed to catch Rahm on 16 under with six holes remaining, but struggled to edge ahead as he could only score par on his next five holes.

He eventually managed to add that elusive birdie on the par-five 18th to secure the win, and admitted afterwards it was a tournament he particularly wanted to succeed in.

"It means a lot," he said. "It's been a good year but I felt like I've been close a few times and I only have a few tournaments left this season and I really wanted to try and win one.

"Obviously this one is right up there at the top of the list. I love it here, I've contended in the past and even going down the back nine today… the bad shots I've hit down the years when I've been in contention actually started to creep into my head. It's amazing what this game does.

"I'm so happy, words can't [describe] how happy I am, how much this means to me, how much I love this tour, how much I love this tournament, and I'm the happiest man in the world right now."

The Irishman recalled the 2017 tournament when he had been in contention against eventual winner Alex Noren, only for the Swede to shoot 62 in his final round just as Rahm did on Sunday.

"I remember Alex Noren did that to me one year, the year he won he went out early and shot 62 and that came into my head," he added.

"I got to 16 [under] and tried to get past that but I also had to worry about Rory behind me because he could do anything down the last few holes, you know how good he is.

"I said to my coach this morning 'I need to just allow myself to play golf today, I'm playing the best golf of my life and I need to just allow myself to do that', and I did."

When asked if the circumstances around the tournament heightened his emotions when he won, Lowry conceded it had been a factor, having been among those who openly criticised the inclusion of LIV Golf members.

"I think so, yeah. I made no secrets as to how I feel about the whole thing at the start of the week and I wanted to go out and win this tournament for myself first and foremost, but I think for this tour and everyone who has stayed loyal to this tour and everyone that's done everything for this tour," he said.

"I really feel like this is one for the good guys."

Shane Lowry clinched victory at the BMW PGA Championship on the final hole at Wentworth, pipping Jon Rahm despite a historic final round from the Spaniard.

Following the suspension of play on Friday due to the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, the tournament was reduced to 54 holes.

Rahm's round of 62 on Sunday gave him the clubhouse lead on 16 under par, and it could have been even lower had he not narrowly missed some birdie attempts early on.

His total of 29 on the back nine, which included two eagles, was the lowest in the tournament's history, despite a bogey on 15.

It looked likely that Lowry would overtake him when the Irishman also reached 16 under with six holes remaining, hitting an eagle on the fourth, and birdies on the seventh, eighth, 10th and 12th.

However, Lowry – the 2019 champion at The Open Championship – went on to par the next five, leaving a nervous wait to see if he could take advantage on the par five 18th.

Lowry did just that after an excellent approach shot that left him with two putts for birdie, which he executed to seal a sixth DP Tour win of his career.

Rory McIlroy finished joint-second with Rahm after carding a final round of 67, while overnight leaders Viktor Hovland and Soren Kjeldsen both slipped to T5 after only being able to go round in 70.

Patrick Reed had set the bar early in the day with his impressive round of 63, before Rahm overtook him, and the American also finished joint-fifth alongside Thomas Detry on 14 under, with Talor Gooch able to earn outright fourth after an eagle at the 18th.

A round of 65 from Lee Westwood saw him climb to T13, where he was joined by world number 443 Matthew Southgate, who carded his second round of 67 in a row.

Charles Leclerc expressed his frustration at finishing under the safety car as Ferrari's hopes of a home success at the Italian Grand Prix were shattered by Max Verstappen.

Leclerc began on pole for the eighth time this season after a strong qualifying performance on Saturday, but was subjected to a familiar sinking feeling at Monza as Verstappen brushed aside his pre-race five-place grid penalty.

The defending world champion – who could now seal successive titles at Singapore next time out – took advantage of another Scuderia gamble to power home, as Ferrari subjected Leclerc to an early change of tyres.

A late safety car brought on by Daniel Ricciardo's retirement then left Leclerc to sit behind Verstappen as the chequered flag approached, much to the frustrations of a partisan crowd in Italy.

The Monegasque driver made his frustrations clear over team radio as he awaited a restart which never came, shouting: "Come on! It's clear," and was still agitated after the race.

"The end was frustrating. I wish we could have ended up racing. It's a shame," he told Sky Sports.

"I gave my all, but we got P2 today. I wish I could've won in front of the amazing Tifosi we have here, I just couldn't today."

Red Bull's team principal Christian Horner also believed the race should have been allowed to restart, telling Sky Sports: "We don't want to win a race under a safety car.

"That's something that we've talked about for many, many years, that they should finish racing. There was enough time to get that race going."

Verstappen now boasts a 116-point lead over Leclerc in the drivers' championship standings, while Ferrari trail Red Bull by 139 points in the team rankings, with a series of high-profile mistakes from the Scuderia costing them dearly this campaign.

But Leclerc refused to hit out at the team's strategy when discussing his early pit stop, adding: "We didn't know what they [Red Bull] were going to do behind so we took that choice. 

"Obviously we finished P2, so I'm not happy with the race. We will work on that.

"I don't know, the pace was strong. We will have to look into it, but I think we were quite strong. It just wasn't enough."

Lewis Hamilton enjoyed a "fun" Italian Grand Prix after securing an impressive points finish, while Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff made a pointed jab over the race's safety car finale.

Seven-time world champion Hamilton started at the back of the grid after taking new parts but drove a fine race to secure a fifth-placed finish, as Max Verstappen secured a maiden Monza win.

The podium always looked a long shot for Hamilton, but he still recovered points and actually found a less trying race weekend something to relish.

"It was a good race," Hamilton stated. "The guys were saying that anything between sixth and fourth was possible, and that felt a stretch for me. But I had fun.

"I struggled at the beginning, but I'm really, really grateful that I made my way through and got those points. I think at the end, the two cars behind had fresher tyres, so I'm kind of glad it finished like it did."

The late mechanical failure of Daniel Ricciardo's McLaren meant the race finished behind the safety car.

Hamilton was not in contention this time, but he lost last season's title decider in similar circumstances when then race director Michael Masi ended the safety car early on that occasion and saw Verstappen pass his title rival at the last.

Apparently referring to that incident, Wolff said: "The race directors are always going to be under criticism, but I think this time they followed the rules – maybe they could have done it a lap sooner – and they accepted the race ends under the safety car. This is how it should be."

With a 35-point deficit to Ferrari now for second in the constructors' championship, Wolff has a clear target in his sights ahead of the end of a difficult campaign.

"It's all to play against Ferrari; we just need to do the best every single weekend," he added. "It would [soften the blow] of this year's car a bit."

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was frustrated by the decision to end the Italian Grand Prix under a safety car.

A late breakdown for Daniel Ricciardo's McLaren meant any chance for late drama was dashed at Monza, as Red Bull's Verstappen sealed his fifth successive victory.

Verstappen is now 116 points ahead of Charles Leclerc in the driver standings, and seems all set to wrap up a second straight world title when Formula One returns in October.

Yet Horner was not satisfied with how the race ended, believing it could have been finished properly.

"We don't want to win a race under a safety car," Horner told Sky Sports F1. "It's something we've talked about for many, many years, that they should finish racing. 

"There was enough time to get that race going. We had the faster car, we would have liked to win the race on the track, not behind the safety car. We share the disappointment of all the fans, because it took away a grandstand finish.

"It goes against the principles of what we've discussed previously. The biggest losers were the fans. We need to look quickly to address that.

"I think they had more than enough time to get going. We need to go through details, but for me there was enough time, we had a car that wasn't in a barrier, it was just by the side of the track."

Leclerc had been attempting to close the gap on Verstappen, having been cost by another questionable decision by Ferrari on their home track.

Starting in pole, Leclerc found himself behind the Dutchman when Ferrari elected to switch him onto long-distance medium tyres early on.

It allowed Verstappen, who started with a five-place grid penalty on Sunday, to cruise to an 11th win of the season, albeit his maiden success at Monza.

"We had a great race," Verstappen said. "On every compound we were good. Unfortunately we didn't get a restart at the end but overall we had a really good day.

"It was really enjoyable to drive today. A great day for us. It took a bit of time to be on a great podium like this."

It is widely expected Tom Brady will play the first game of his final NFL season on Sunday, but the legendary quarterback explained in a social media video why he has returned for another year.

Brady briefly retired in the offseason and then missed part of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' training camp ahead of his 23rd NFL season.

However, the 45-year-old is set to line up under center against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1 as he continues his remarkable career.

Sunday brought a report from NFL Network's Ian Rapoport that suggested "the end is coming" for Brady, and "this is the final year".

Brady did not dispute that as he posted on Twitter ahead of the Cowboys game, but he clearly still feels he has plenty to offer in 2022.

The seven-time Super Bowl champion said: "It's been a unique offseason, and lately I've been seeing the same question on social media: 'Why d'you come back?'

"I can give you a long speech, but the answer is actually pretty simple. We've got a hell of a team, I'm still feeling pretty good, and an arm is a terrible thing to waste.

"I've been reminded for almost a decade now: 'You're headed for extinction.' And maybe so, but not today. I'll see you in Dallas."

The Bucs are not expecting to get another year out of Rob Gronkowski, however, according to ESPN.

Brady's long-term team-mate with both the New England Patriots and the Bucs retired in June. The tight end has already retired once previously and will reportedly not return a second time.

Max Verstappen took advantage of another Ferrari tactical blunder to score a maiden Italian Grand Prix victory and extend his championship lead to 116 points.

The reigning Formula One champion edged closer to securing his second consecutive world drivers' crown in glorious sunshine at Monza, after brushing aside a pre-race five-place grid penalty.

But the Dutchman's success came once again with the helping hand of a failed gamble from Ferrari, who lost their home race after opting to throw Charles Leclerc onto long-distance medium tyres early on.

Leclerc, foiled in his bid for a taut title race with Verstappen this year, was pitted with a dozen laps on the board during a virtual safety car brought on by a mechanical failure for Sebastian Vettel's Aston Martin.

Having blasted through the pack from seventh at lights out to emerge near the front again, the decision pushed Verstappen to the front and from there he seldom looked troubled by his rival.

Leclerc went onto softs to try and trim a near-twenty second gap, but it was to be in vain, leaving Ferrari to ruminate on another weekend where they lost the advantage.

Carlos Sainz at the very least impressed after a sweeping slate of grid penalties saw him cut through from the back to challenge for a podium, ultimately coming home in fourth behind the Mercedes of George Russell.

The latter's team-mate Lewis Hamilton likewise impressed with a fine drive from the rear of the grid to finish sixth, in another affirmation of the seven-time world champion's talents amid a tough season.

A late breakdown for Daniel Ricciardo's McLaren meant any chance for late drama was neutered under a safety car, and with three weeks to Singapore, Verstappen might start clearing his trophy cabinet for the big one again.

Robert Lewandowski has paid tribute to "great champion" Iga Swiatek following his compatriot's US Open triumph.

Swiatek became the first Polish singles champion at Flushing Meadows after defeating Ons Jabeur in straight sets on Saturday.

It was the world number one's second grand slam success of a brilliant season, having won a further six WTA titles including the French Open in June.

The 21-year-old became the first woman to triumph at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows in the same campaign since Serena Williams in 2013.

Swiatek and Lewandowski are among the pre-eminent Polish sports stars of this generation and shared an embrace on Court Philippe Chatrier following the former's success in Paris.

The Barcelona striker, who was on target in the Blaugrana's 4-0 win at Cadiz this weekend, celebrated his compatriot's latest victory, hailing the 10th WTA title of her career on social media.

"Congratulations Iga!" he tweeted. "You're a great champion, and you've proven it yet again on the biggest stage. I am so happy for you."