Fabio Quartararo won a MotoGP race for the first time this season, sending him top of the championship after a routine victory in the Portuguese Grand Prix, with Johann Zarco in second and Aleix Espargaro third.
Quartararo won the last Portuguese Grand Prix in 2021, although failed to finish in the top 10 in his other two MotoGP appearances at the Algarve International Circuit (14th in 2020 Portuguese GP and did not finish at the 2021 Algarve GP).
However, despite winning last year's championship, the Frenchman's previous race win was at the British Grand Prix in August.
Quartararo eased past Joan Mir early in Sunday's race in Portimao, though, and never looked back as he cruised to the win, while all the drama happened behind him.
Previous championship leader Enea Bastianini crashed out on lap 10, appearing to clip the seam of the curb at turn eight before sliding off the track while in 10th place.
Mir was left fighting for second place and was eventually overtaken by a determined Zarco, but things were to get worse for the Spaniard as Jack Miller, while attempting to pass on the inside, slid his bike and took both of them out of the race at the start of lap 16.
Mir has now gone six races in a row without a podium, which was already his worst run in MotoGP since his first 20 races in the top category between 2019 and 2020.
It was a performance to remember from Alex Rins, though, as he took his Suzuki from 23rd all the way up to fourth, making up a remarkable 13 places on the opening lap alone.
Elsewhere, there was some good old-fashioned racing between the Marquez brothers near the end of the race, with Marc ultimately getting the better of Alex to take sixth place.
TOP 10
1. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha)
2. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) +5.409
3. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) +6.068
4. Alex Rins (Suzuki Ecstar) +9.633
5. Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM) +13.573
6. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) +16.163
7. Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) +16.183
8. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo) +16.511
9. Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda) +16.769
10. Maverick Vinales (Aprilia Racing) +18.063
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Riders
1. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha) 69
2. Alex Rins (Suzuki Ecstar) 69
3. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) 66
4. Enea Bastianini (Gresini) 61
5. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) 51
Teams
1. Suzuki Ecstar 115
2. Aprilia Racing 91
3. Monster Energy Yamaha 86
4. Red Bull KTM 81
5. Pramac Racing 79
Carlos Alcaraz's incredible season continued as he saved two match points before going on to beat Alex De Minaur in their semi-final tie at the Barcelona Open.
Alcaraz, who will become the first teenager since Andy Murray in 2007 to move into the top 10 of the ATP rankings when he does so next week, was staring down the barrel of an exit in Sunday's delayed tie when his Australian opponent had two shots of sealing victory in the second set.
Yet the 18-year-old salvaged both match points and then immediately broke back to take the set to a tie-break, which he won 7-4.
Alcaraz carried the momentum into the decider, breaking twice to seal a 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 success and progress to his third final of 2022. He has won the other two showdowns, in Rio de Janeiro and Miami respectively.
He will face fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, who had a rather easier time against Diego Schwartzman, winning 6-3 6-4.
The players faced a short turnaround ahead of the final, which was to be played later on Sunday.
Miguel Cabrera described his 3,000th career hit as "really special" after the Detroit Tigers defeated the Colorado Rockies 13-0 in the opener of a day-night double-header on Saturday.
After driving up right-center field off Antonio Senzatela in the first inning, the 39-year-old was embraced by Rockies shortstop and former Tigers teammate, Jose Iglesias.
Cabrera became only the seventh player in the history of the major leagues with at least 500 home runs and 3,000 hits over their career.
The Rockies claimed the second game of the double-header at Comerica Park, winning 3-2, but it was nonetheless Cabrera's day.
"I couldn't even feel my legs in the first at-bat," he said afterwards.
"They left me that hole open [on the right side of the infield], so I want to put the ball there. Thank God they do it. When I see the second baseman play almost behind second base, I'm like, 'OK, you have to shoot the ball there.'"
Cabrera also went past Roberto Clemente to 32nd on the all-time hit list, sitting on 3,002 career hits in all, just five from tying the late Al Kaline – who was the last Detroit player to make 3,000 – for 31st.
"Roberto Clemente's one of our heroes. We wear 21 one special day in the big leagues, so that means a lot," Cabrera said. "I can't even say; I don't have words to describe the great feeling I'm feeling right now.
"Al is one of my heroes... It's really sad he's not here to see it. Hopefully somewhere he's happy and smiling.
"This one was really special for me because I wanted to do it here in front of my family, in front of my hometown here in Detroit. I'm happy I hit it here. I'm happy people in Detroit could see it. Hopefully I can get more hits here. Thank God."
Cabrera is close to another career milestone, just one double away from 600.
Tigers coach A.J. Hinch added his kudos, saying: "For a veteran, 39 years old, 20 years [in the Majors], done everything in the game, it's fun to watch him be nervous. I think it's awesome. I think the kid in him is realising what it means."
Detroit's chairman and CEO Christopher Ilitch also released a statement in honour of Cabrera's achievement.
"Congratulations to Miguel Cabrera on his 3,000th career hit," he said. "Like Tigers fans, I've been proud to witness Miggy's amazing and historic 3,000 hit and 500 home run milestones, putting him among a select few MLB legends.
"I thank Miguel for a career of exciting, Hall of Fame-calibre play towards our objective of championship baseball for Tigers fans. Miggy has and continues to build his status as one of the greatest Tigers of all-time."
Cleveland Guardians outfielder Myles Straw called New York Yankees fans the "worst on the planet" after rubbish was thrown at him and his team-mates on Saturday.
The tension began after rookie Steven Kwan crashed into the outfield wall trying to save Isiah Kiner-Falefa's hit, and Straw confronted hecklers who appeared to applaud what could have been an injury.
The Yankees ultimately walked off to win 5-4 at Yankee Stadium, but unsavoury scenes saw home fans in the right-field throwing missiles at the Guardians outfielders, which led to players from both teams reacting.
"I'm not talking. I'll let the fans talk for me. Classless... Worst fan base on the planet," Straw said immediately after the game.
He later elaborated: "It got to me a little bit. I said what I said. If I were to do it again, I probably would've said the same thing.
"That's my guy. At that point, just cheer. Be happy your team tied the game up. Be a normal baseball fan and just enjoy what's going on."
Straw climbed the outfield fence to remonstrate with the fans shortly before the end of the contest but could not remember exactly what he had said in the heat of the moment.
"I don't remember, I was just hot at the point," he added. "Just basically telling them, 'Be quiet. Shut up. There's no business, what you're saying to this guy right now.'"
Cleveland's Oscar Mercado also reacted to the Yankees fans, saying afterwards: "You can celebrate your team walking it off all you want, but don't throw s*** on the field. Sorry for cussing, but that's how people can get hurt. I should have probably walked away."
Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant believes "thinking too much" is partly to blame for his struggles in the NBA playoffs against the Boston Celtics.
The Celtics extended their series lead in the Eastern Conference first round to 3-0 after a 109-103 victory at Barclays Center, and Durant was again unable to do much about it.
Despite averaging 29.9 points per game during the regular season, Durant is averaging just 22.0 in three postseason games and only scored 16 in his latest outing on Saturday.
Bruce Brown was the highest scorer for the Nets with 26 points on 10-of-19 shooting, but he and Durant contributed to 10 of the team's 18 turnovers.
"I was just thinking too much to be honest, this whole series," Durant said after the game. "Like how I approach the game. We got another game to play, another opportunity, and I'm looking forward to that.
"I feel like the first two games I was trying to be too aggressive. A team that's loading up on me, that's trying to take me out of all my actions."
A starring role from Jayson Tatum was the difference for Boston as the 24-year-old scored 39 points, with six assists and five rebounds, while Robert Williams returned from injury to play 15 minutes and help stifle Durant and Kyrie Irving, who himself also managed just 16 points.
"Every team I've been on, you're just trying to figure out the best way to play," Durant added. "When you got good team-mates around you as well, you're trying to figure out, I try to figure out how I can be the best version of myself and also not getting in my teammates' way.
"Sometimes I think too much about it. Sometimes I need to go out there and just [have] no thoughts in my head and just play.
"I feel like I prepared myself the right way. It's a matter of the small decisions in the game that may not go in my favour. I thought I found my teammates better than I did the last two games. I just need to score more."
The Nets must win Game 4, which takes place at Barclays Center on Monday, to keep the series alive.
The Boston Celtics inched closer to sweeping the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday, claiming a 3-0 series lead with a 109-103 victory at the Barclays Center.
Jayson Tatum notched up 39 points on 13-of-29 shooting, six assists, five rebounds and six steals in the win for the Celtics, who continued to lock down Kevin Durant.
Though Durant shot 54.5 per cent from the floor, moving him to 17-of-52 for the series, he did it on 11 shots on Saturday as the flexible and intense Celtics defensive scheme continued to force the ball out of his hands. Kyrie Irving also went six-of-17 from the floor.
Bruce Brown was the highest scorer for the Nets with 26 points on 10-of-19 shooting, but he and Durant contributed to 10 of the team's 20 turnovers, from which Boston scored 25 points.
The Celtics led for the whole of the second half and whenever the Nets would threaten with a scoring run, managed to make timely buckets and secure a big road win.
Gobert gets up for Jazz win
Luka Doncic's return from injury was not enough for the Dallas Mavericks as the Utah Jazz evened up their series at 2-2, earning a 100-99 win.
Rudy Gobert gave Utah the lead with an alley-oop dunk with 11 seconds remaining in Game 4, before Spencer Dinwiddie missed a three-ball at the buzzer for the Mavs.
While Doncic had 30 points in his first game back from a strained calf, Dallas were kept to just 18 points in the fourth quarter, shooting six-of-18 from the floor.
Siakam sizzles as Raptors avoid sweep
Pascal Siakam scored 15 of his of 34 points in the fourth quarter as the Toronto Raptors avoided a series sweep, defeating the Philadelphia 76ers 110-102.
Despite a 19-point deficit in points off turnovers, Toronto continually managed to penetrate and get on the break, holding a combined 25-point advantage for points in the paint and fast-break points.
Nursing an injured thumb, Joel Embiid shot seven-of-16 from the floor for his 21 points to go with eight rebounds, but also coughed up five turnovers.
Timberwolves level series with Grizzlies
Karl-Anthony Towns bounced back from a disappointing Game 3 to help the Minnesota Timberwolves even their playoff series with the Memphis Grizzlies, winning 119-118.
After going missing in Game 3, taking only four shots as the Grizzlies overcame a 26-point deficit, Towns was more assertive from the outset, adding 13 rebounds to 33 points.
Anthony Edwards' fingerprints were all over the game however, coming up with 24 points on seven-of-14 shooting, four rebounds, four assists, two steals and three blocks.
Miguel Cabrera achieved his 3,000th career hit as the Detroit Tigers defeated the Colorado Rockies 13-0 in the opener of a day-night double-header on Saturday.
After getting intentionally walked in the eighth inning against the New York Yankees on Thursday, Cabrera did not have to wait long, claiming his milestone hit in only the first inning, driving up right-center field off Antonio Senzatela.
The 39-year-old was embraced by Rockies shortstop and former Tigers teammate, Jose Iglesias, before going on get a second hit from four at-bats.
Adding the proverbial cherry on top to a Hall-of-Fame career, Cabrera became only the seventh player in the history of the major leagues with at least 500 home runs and 3,000 hits over their career.
The Rockies claimed the second game of the double-header at Comerica Park, though, winning 3-2.
Yankees win marred by fan controversy
New York Yankees fans pelted Cleveland Guardians outfielders with bottles, cans and other missiles, as their team rallied in the ninth inning for a 5-4 win.
After Gleyber Torres followed Isiah Kiner-Falefa up and scored a walk-off RBI hit with two outs in the ninth inning, Yankees players in Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton had to calm the crowd down instead of celebrating the win.
It all came after rookie Steven Kwan crashed into the outfield wall trying to save Kiner-Falefa's hit, and Guardians center-fielder Myles Straw confronted hecklers who appeared to applaud what could have been an injury.
Giants march on Washington
The San Francisco Giants claimed their third win in four games and moved to within a game of the Los Angeles Dodgers atop the National League West, defeating the Washington Nationals 5-2.
Wilmer Flores and Joc Pederson each had two hits for the Giants, while Alex Wood allowed two runs and four hits in 77 pitches over five innings.
Nationals starting pitcher Aaron Sanchez was pulled in the fifth inning, giving up six hits and four runs. Sam Clay gave up the fifth run and lasted only 13 pitches before he was also called to the bench.
Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele are on track to win the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, closing the third round of play with a five-stroke lead.
After a record opening-round score of 59 in the first day of four-ball play on Thursday, the Presidents and Ryder Cup teammates scorched the back nine at TPC Louisiana with eight birdies to finish with a 12-under 60 for the day.
The two lead the field at an extraordinary 29-under after three rounds, with the South African duo of Garrick Higgo and Branden Grace five strokes back in second, improving on a solid second day to put themselves in the frame from Presidents Cup selection this year.
The pair will be seeking to go one better than their countrymen Louis Ooosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel, who finished second at TPC Louisiana last year to Australian pair Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman.
Another Australian pair looking to work their way into calculations for Quail Hollow in September are Jason Day and Jason Scrivener, who improved on scores of 65 over the opening two rounds with a nine-under 63 on Saturday, birdieing the final four holes to sit on 23-under.
They're joined by the team of Aaron Rai and David Lipsky, along with Sam Burns and Billy Horschel, who bounced back from a bogey on the par-three ninth to close the back nine with five birdies.
Cantlay and Schauffele have been the stars of the weekend, however.
After blitzing the 54-hole record, only a catastrophic final round of alternate play would deny the reigning FedEx Cup and Olympic champions from smashing Kevin Kisner and Scott Brown's 72-hole record of 27-under.
Closing out on Sunday would make for maiden PGA Tour win this season for both Schaffele and Cantlay, with the latter coming into this weekend off a playoff loss to Jordan Spieth at the RBC Heritage.
Though Schauffele claimed the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics last year, his last tour win came in 2019.
Tyson Fury reiterated he is ready to quit boxing after beating Dillian Whyte at Wembley to retain his WBC heavyweight title.
A sixth-round knockout gave Fury an emphatic victory, but it remains to be seen whether he can be tempted back into the ring.
This was Fury's first fight since beating Deontay Wilder in the final part of their trilogy last October in Nevada.
The undefeated 33-year-old, who improved his career record to 32-0-1, told BT Sport Box Office: "I promised my lovely wife Paris of 14 years that after the Wilder III fight that would be it, and I meant it.
"But I got offered to fight at Wembley, at home, and I believed I owed it to the fans, I owed it to every person in the United Kingdom, to come here and fight at Wembley.
"And now it's all done, I have to be a man of my word and I think this it. This might be the final curtain for the Gypsy King, and what a way to go out."
He was thrilled with the manner of his win, saying: "I think Lennox Lewis would even be proud of that right uppercut tonight."
Fury is confident there will remain quality fighters in the heavyweight ranks if he retires, praising the man he beat on Saturday night in London.
"Dillian Whyte is a warrior and I believe Dillian will be a world champion," Fury said. "But tonight he met a great in the sport. I'm one of the greatest heavyweights of all-time and unfortunately for Dillian Whyte he had to face me tonight.
"He's as strong as a bull and has got the heart of a lion, but you're not messing with a mediocre heavyweight, you're messing with the best man on the planet, and you saw that tonight with what happened."
Tyson Fury successfully defended his WBC heavyweight title with a stunning sixth-round knockout of Dillian Whyte at a packed-out Wembley.
Fury's camp had been adamant the fight would not go beyond the sixth round, and their man made good on those predictions in devastating fashion.
He controlled the opening five rounds with ease, demonstrating a gulf in reach and gulf in class between the fighters.
Whyte had struggled to make any kind of impression and his chance to do so in his maiden world title fight was taken away when Fury landed a crushing right uppercut.
The end result never looked in doubt, and the only question now is whether Fury will make good on his promise to end his career on the back of this victory.
Fury, returning to the United Kingdom after five fights in the United States, left the door open for another bout in the post-fight interview in which he suggested he would likely still walk away.
Yet he never opened the door for Whyte to take the WBC and lineal belts away from him.
Indeed, the only time Fury ever looked perturbed was during a tempestuous fourth round in which Mark Lyson had to repeatedly get involved, warning Whyte for following in with his head and Fury for hitting on the break.
The two fighters exchanged words and that episode perhaps increased Fury's desire to end things quickly, doing so with one of the finest punches of his professional career and perhaps his last.
Carlos Alcaraz will chase a first home title on Sunday at the Barcelona Open but must do it the hard way after rain held up both semi-finals.
The tussle between Spaniard Alcaraz and Australia's Alex De Minaur was locked at 2-2 in the first set when play was abandoned for the day, and it was the same score in the last-four clash between Argentinian Diego Schwartzman and Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta.
Both clay-court semi-finals at the ATP 500 tournament are due to resume at 11:00 local time (10:00 BST) on Sunday, followed by the final not before 16:00 (15:00 BST).
Eighteen-year-old Alcaraz has won ATP titles in Umag, Rio de Janeiro and Miami in the past 12 months but has yet to triumph at an event in Spain, and potentially having to play two matches on the same day complicates his task.
On Monday, the fast-rising youngster will become the first teenager since Andy Murray in 2007 to enter the ATP top 10 rankings.
Luka Doncic will return for the Dallas Mavericks for Game 4 of their NBA playoffs series against the Utah Jazz on Saturday.
Mavs point guard Doncic missed the first three games of the Western Conference first-round series with a left calf strain.
However, the organisation confirmed on Saturday that Doncic is available for Game 4 at Vivint Arena.
Dallas lead Utah 2-1 in the series despite being without their star man, with Jalen Brunson stepping up with 96 points in the three clashes so far.
The return of Doncic will still undoubtedly be a big boost for the Mavs, who have not progressed beyond this stage of the playoffs since they won the 2011 championship.
The Slovenian has been one of the most impressive players in the league this season, averaging 28.4 points per game in his 65 regular season appearances, as well as 8.7 assists and 9.1 rebounds.
Novak Djokovic will chase the first title of his chaotic season when he tackles Andrey Rublev in the Serbia Open final on Sunday.
Playing in his home city of Belgrade, world number one Djokovic will be expected by many to carry off the trophy for a third time.
He scored a 4-6 6-1 6-2 victory over Russian Karen Khachanov in the first of Saturday's semi-finals.
Djokovic has made a habit of losing opening sets this week, rebounding from early deficits to beat fellow Serbians Laslo Dere and Miomir Kecmanovic on his way through to the last four, where it happened again.
The 34-year-old was able to recover and improve his career win-loss record to 13-2 at the clay-court tournament.
Djokovic, who has been prevented from playing events in Australia and the United States this year after refusing to be vaccinated against COVID-19, believes he is gradually building up form and match fitness.
He said in an on-court interview: "I'm already feeling quite comfortable on the courts. I think the three matches that went all three sets gave me enough of the match play.
"I was running enough in order to be at my optimum best. I don't think the lack of matches now plays a role. Maybe it was the case three or four days ago, not today.
"But in terms of the audience, of course that's going to be a huge motivation boost for me, so I'm going to enjoy the crowd's support as much as I can and hopefully bring the title to Serbia."
Rublev, another Russian, beat Italian Fabio Fognini 6-2 6-2 in the second semi-final, saying it had been his best performance of the week.
The world number eight is relishing playing Djokovic, saying: "It's going to be fun. Tomorrow I have nothing to lose, I can go out and enjoy it. He plays at home, so it will be his moment. The best I can do is fight and try to do my best."
Iga Swiatek had to come from a set down to book her place in the Stuttgart Open final with a hard-earned victory over Liudmila Samsonova.
The world number one produced a 22nd consecutive victory as she scraped a 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 7-5 win in a contest that lasted more than three hours.
The Pole will face third seed Aryna Sabalenka in Sunday's final on the German clay.
Swiatek broke early to race out to a 3-0 lead, but was pegged back by her Russian opponent, who fought hard to claim the first set on a tie-break.
The 20-year-old was looking to break the record of Serena Williams, equalling a feat of winning 28 sets in a row, but Samsonova prevented her from doing so.
It was the first time Swiatek had dropped a set since her Indian Wells Open last 16 match against Angelique Kerber in March, but she soon got back into her rhythm and clinched the second set 6-4.
She broke early again in the decider, but was once more broken back by a determined Samsonova, and Swiatek showed frustration with herself as she struggled to put away her opponent.
However, an unusually sloppy service game from Samsonova gave Swiatek another break in the 11th game of the set, which she closed out to seal her place in the final.
The other semi-final in Stuttgart saw Sabalenka overcome second seed Paula Badosa 7-6 (7-5) 6-4.
There were 14 double faults (seven each) in the match, but it was Sabalenka's big serve that ultimately led her to victory, hitting nine aces and winning 76.9 per cent of points on her first serve.
The Belarusian also saved six of eight break points faced as she ultimately eased past her Spanish opponent.
At the Istanbul Cup, third seed Veronika Kudermetova will play Anastasia Potapova in the final after seeing off second seed Sorana Cirstea in straight sets, 6-3 6-3.
Potapova had earlier come from a set down to beat Yulia Putintseva 2-6 6-2 6-2 in the other semi-final.
Aleix Espargaro conceded he was fearful heading into the final session of Saturday's qualifying ahead of the Portuguese Grand Prix.
A crash-laden Q1 at Portimao saw Remy Gardner and Francesco Bagnaia, who has finished on the podium in his last two races at the Algarve International Circuit, crash, with the latter failing to set a time.
Johann Zarco produced a stunning lap to come out on top in Q2 to take pole and spare Ducati's blushes, finishing ahead of Joan Mir and Espargaro, who across four races this season has collected 50 points, more than in two of his previous five whole seasons with Aprilia (44 points in 2018 and 42 in 2020).
Reigning champion Fabio Quartararo – the winner at Portimao last year – also struggled in the wet, though the Yamaha driver overcame a tricky moment to clinch fifth on the grid, while Marc Marquez, chasing his 100th MotoGP podium this weekend, was left to rue a yellow flag, having initially set the fastest lap.
After negotiating the difficult conditions, a relieved Espargaro was thrilled with his efforts.
He said: "I hate to say it – I was scared! Today I was scared, the wet patches were very slippery.
"When you are sitting in the garage and see many crashes, and all the crashes have been huge. You have to be very focused but you cannot be.
"I tried to feel perfectly the whole track to see where I could push in the last five minutes. I am very happy, this is like a victory because I hate these conditions, so I'm super happy."
Having recorded a time of 1:42.003, Zarco, too, acknowledged the state of the track made assessing where and when to push hard difficult.
"Pretty, pretty happy. I did not expect it to be so good. It was so tricky," the Frenchman said.
"I was pretty happy to go straight through Q2. I couldn't analyse the Q1 well. The best strategy was to stay on track, do the full 15 minutes with the same tyre to get confidence with the track, it worked pretty well for me."
Mir, meanwhile, revelled in taking a place on the front row for just the second time in his MotoGP career.
"In normal conditions we always struggle to make one lap but in tough conditions we can give a little but more," the Suzuki Ecstar rider said.
"My feeling is improving. We are following good steps, we are improving and it looks like when we make a good step [forward], we don't go back. So it's important. Let's see if we can go faster tomorrow, but it will be a hard race."
Ferrari's tyre strategy could be key to preventing Max Verstappen from cutting into Charles Leclerc's championship lead after Red Bull's reigning world champion triumphed in the sprint at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Having been passed by Leclerc at the start, pole-sitter Verstappen ensured he will start Sunday's 63-lap race first on the grid after overtaking Leclerc on the penultimate lap of the 21-lap sprint.
Leclerc and the raucous home Ferrari fans were denied a victory to cheer as his right front tyre grained in the closing laps, Verstappen taking advantage by sweeping around the outside into Tamburello.
It meant Verstappen collected eight points while Leclerc took seven to extend his championship lead to 40 points, with Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz his closest challenger after finishing fourth behind Red Bull's Sergio Perez in third.
Ferrari, like most of the grid, were on the soft tyres for the sprint, but Leclerc is unsure what compound they will initially select on Sunday after his fast start resulted in that critical degradation.
He told Sky Sports: "I pushed hard at the beginning to try not to be too vulnerable with Max having the DRS behind and I felt like I paid the price of doing that at the end of the race.
"It felt also like they had maybe something more today and he kept it until the end of the race and overtook me when it mattered.
"We'll work on ourselves for tomorrow and try to maximise our package and hopefully the same start as today without the degradation that we had at the end.
"I think with today's data it will help us make the right decision for tomorrow, but whether we will go for the hard compound or not I'm not sure yet."
Only three drivers went with the medium compound for the sprint, including the Haas drivers of Kevin Magnussen (eighth) and Mick Schumacher (10th), both of whom had impressive pace in the final laps.
And Verstappen conceded he may not enjoy the same fortune on Sunday with the harder compounds set to play a more prominent role.
"The start was very bad. I don't know exactly what happened or why it was so bad, just too much wheelspin," he said at the post-race presentation.
"After that we had to stay calm. It initially looked like Charles was having a bit more pace but I think he ran out of tyres and we could close the gap and go for the move into turn 2.
"I know tomorrow it might be again a bit different, but for sure today it worked out for us to be on this compound, so I'm very happy to have a clean sprint race in the end.
"I'm happy about today, but I know it might be different tomorrow with those other tyre compounds coming into play."
Max Verstappen recovered from a slow start to Saturday's sprint race at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix to prevail and ensure he will start Sunday's race in first.
The Tifosi at Imola are hoping for a weekend-long celebration amid Ferrari's resurgence, led by Charles Leclerc, in 2022.
He was on course to give them something to cheer in the sprint, getting past pole-sitter Verstappen and, for most of the 21 laps, looking set to claim the maximum eight points.
But Leclerc's front right tyre grained in the final laps as Verstappen closed quickly in an impressive Red Bull, the reigning world champion retaking the lead on the penultimate lap to claim victory.
Leclerc extended his championship lead to 40 points as Mercedes' George Russell finished outside the eight points places on another dismal day for the Silver Arrows, while Ferrari's Carlos Sainz moved into second in the drivers' standing as he took fourth behind Red Bull's Sergio Perez.
An abundance of wheelspin at the start saw Verstappen surrender top spot to Leclerc and he was not close to the Ferrari at a safety car restart following a collision between Pierre Gasly and Zhou Guanyu.
But, as Leclerc's right front faded, Verstappen struck a blow for Red Bull as he got himself within a second at the DRS zone on the start-finish straight and swept around the outside of the Ferrari into the Tamburello chicane.
Perez got himself up from seventh to third while Sainz improved from 10th to fourth after his crash in qualifying, with the McLarens of Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo claiming fifth and sixth.
The final points places went to Alfa Romeo's Valtteri Bottas and Haas' Kevin Magnussen, with Russell and Lewis Hamilton non-factors who will start 11th and 14th respectively.
It was a doubly painful night on Friday for Miami Heat point guard Kyle Lowry, limping out of Game 3 against the Atlanta Hawks with a hamstring injury, before seeing the Hawks win it late on.
Lowry pulled up in the third quarter of the 111-110 defeat for the Eastern Conference's number one seeds at State Farm Arena.
The Hawks win brought the series margin back to 2-1, but it required some late-game heroics from Trae Young to get the job done.
Trailing by one point with 12 seconds to go, Atlanta did not call a timeout, which enabled Young to put his side up by one with less than five seconds on the clock.
Not hiding his feelings post-game, Lowry told ESPN: "I'm pissed the f*** off," before referring to himself as the X-Men character "Wolverine," famous for his ability to heal quickly.
The 36-year-old suffered the injury with around two minutes left in the third quarter and with Miami leading by 13 points, before Atlanta produced a fine comeback to steal it at the death.
"All I know right now is it's a hamstring," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "But I do not know the severity of it and we'll find out more tomorrow."
Lowry made just two of seven field goal attempts on the night, and two of six from beyond the arc, as well as registering four rebounds and five assists before his game came to a premature end.
Heat team-mate Jimmy Butler added: "I know we love that guy as our point guard. If he's with us, yippee-ki-yay. If he's not, somebody has got to step in and do his job.
"It's very, very hard to do. But we got enough in that locker room to try to bring to the table what Kyle does. He'll get his treatment and we'll see where he's at."
Game 4 takes place on Sunday in Atlanta.
Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul was all smiles after his side's crucial 114-111 road win against the New Orleans Pelicans, in a city that holds a special place in the heart of the 'Point God'.
With Devin Booker out for the game with a hamstring injury, Chris Paul assumed a greater offensive load on Friday and took it in stride.
He posted a gaudy playoff stat line of 28 points on 10-of-18 shooting, with 14 assists, while Deandre Ayton was superb, riding a hot start to a 28-point (13-of-20 shooting), 17-rebound showing.
Paul, who was drafted by the New Orleans Hornets back in 2005, dismissed a question in the post-game press conference about whether he heard fans in the arena chanting their displeasure for their former favourite son, and wrapped his arms around the city he once called home.
"These are my people, man. I grew up here," he said. "Six of the best years of my life I played for New Orleans.
"I know how I am with this city, that will never change. I have my parents here, my family here.
"There's nothing like it, it will always be so much love between me and the city here."
Touching on the game, Paul was full of praise for both Suns centers who played key roles in Game 3.
"[Ayton's start] was huge, it was big-time," he said. "You can't replace everything that Devin [Booker] does for us, so it's going to be different spurts, where guys get going.
"[Ayton] kept us in this game in order to bring it home down the stretch… he kept telling me he was going to get me loose, and to stop passing and just shoot the ball.
"JaVale [McGee] was amazing. We talked about it – this was the third game where Larry Nance came in and they started to switch everything – so we wanted to try and punish them on the inside.
"JaVale's energy is contagious – him rebounding and getting those put-backs kept us in the game, too."
The Suns were a top-10 team in three-point percentage during the regular season, but shot just four-of-26 from downtown on Friday.
Paul went into detail about why he feels that stat bodes well for his side going forward in this series, and why he thinks they are built to handle adversity and win tough games.
"We got a lot of good looks," he said. "I was one-for-six, and I didn't realise we were four-of-26 [from three-point range] – but the thing about it is we got great looks.
"All season long we've been a really good shooting team, so to win this game without shooting well, that's a plus for us, because if we can get the same shots next game, hopefully we can knock them down.
"We've got a good group who have been together – we're sort of battle-tested when it comes to things. We went on an incredible run last year, and we're still building.
"I don't know the amount of playoff games our team has under our belts, so everything is still new to a certain extent, but guys know what to expect, and we know what we want to get to [offensively] down the stretch."
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