London Irish are expected to be suspended from the Gallagher Premiership on Tuesday when the deadline to prove they have the finances needed to operate next season expires.
Irish have until 4pm to either complete a proposed takeover by an American consortium or for owner Mick Crossan to commit to the club for the entirety of the 2023-24 campaign.
As of Monday, the buyout was no closer to being finalised with key documentation including proof of funds yet to be supplied to the Rugby Football Union, while Crossan is intent on severing ties.
Only 50 per cent of the staff payroll for May was paid and the outstanding wages must also be settled if Irish are to take their place in next season’s Premiership.
It was Crossan’s failure to pay the salaries in full last week that persuaded the RFU to extend the deadline by six days in the hope that staff and players would get the money owed to them.
Irish’s outlook deteriorated further on Friday when they were issued with a winding-up petition by HM Revenue and Customs over an unpaid tax bill.
Petitions have been filed against London Irish Holdings Limited and London Irish Rugby Football Ground Limited.
The demise of the Exiles, who finished the Premiership in fifth place, would conclude the darkest season in the history of the English club game after Wasps and Worcester folded because of their own financial difficulties.
Wasps have been demoted to the foot of the rugby pyramid after their new owners failed to secure the funding needed to relaunch in the Championship, while Worcester have gone quiet on their plan of rebuilding from the fifth tier.
Irish have debts in the region of £30million and do not own their own stadium, instead playing at Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium after a 20-year spell at Reading’s Madejski Stadium.
Bill Sweeney and Simon Massie-Taylor, chief executives of the RFU and Premiership Rugby respectively, were accused by MPs of presiding over a “failure on an epic scale” following the collapse of Wasps and Worcester, but Irish have been given every opportunity to secure their future.
The governing bodies have been forced to weigh the desire to see the Exiles survive with the need to put plans in place for next season, with the reduction of clubs from 13 to 10 requiring a different league structure.
If a third club is lost, the bleak financial climate of the Premiership in the post-Covid era will be highlighted once again with teams able to operate through the funding of benefactors.
Andy Murray believes he remains among the elite grass-court players after he began his Wimbledon preparations with a comfortable victory over Chung Hyeon in the first round of the Surbiton Trophy.
Less than seven miles separate the Surbiton Racket and Fitness club and the courts of SW19 and Murray’s journey started with a 6-3 6-2 win as he attempts to be seeded in the men’s single draw next month.
The two-time Wimbledon champion skipped the French Open to focus on his grass season and this was his first match in preparation for the All England Club, where the championships get under way on July 3.
The 36-year-old is ranked 43rd and needs to climb around 10 places to be seeded for Wimbledon where Murray believes he will remain a difficult opponent for anyone.
Asked if he is in the top 10 players in the world on his favourite grass surface, Murray replied: “Yes, I think so.
“It is hard to put numbers on it like that but yes, I would fancy myself against a lot of them.
“Last year I won against (Nick) Kyrgios who made the final of Wimbledon, I won against (Stefanos) Tsitsipas – it is probably not his favourite surface but he is one of the best players in the world.
“I was a set all with (Matteo) Berrettini – who is quite clearly in the top few grass-court players – in the final of Stuttgart before I hurt my abs.
“I’m playing better this year than I was last year but it is kind of irrelevant if you say that you have to perform and win the matches on the court and it is up to me to show that in the next four or five weeks.”
That five-week push to Wimbledon began against Chung, with Murray hitting his stride early on to ease past the South Korean, whose own injury issues have limited his progress in recent years.
There were also signs of the vintage Murray – arguing more than one line call with the umpire and chuntering away to himself when missing shots he felt should have landed.
A brief collective holding of breath from the small crowd followed Murray taking a tumble over an advertising board at the start of the second set but he dusted himself off to finish the job at hand before insisting he cannot start thinking about what is required to be seeded at Wimbledon and instead needs to remain focused on his game.
“I still want to win, I want to compete and see how hard I can push my body,” added Murray, who made the semi-finals in Surbiton last year.
“The operations I had, I was told I might be able to play again so I just want to see how far I can go.
“I’ve got up to 41 in the world and I believe I can go higher than that. Obviously I did well here (Surbiton) and in Stuttgart last year and I think I need about 300 points (to be seeded) so I will have to do well the next few weeks if I want to do that.
“If I have a good tournament at Queen’s, if you make the final or win the tournament there then I would be seeded, but I need to just concentrate on the performances.
“If you starting just thinking about points it is not necessarily the best way to look at things. I will just try and win as many matches as possible and see if I can get in there.”
Dante winner The Foxes will drop back in trip for his next outing, with the Coral-Eclipse potentially on the cards, after connections felt he did not see out the distance in Saturday’s Betfred Derby.
The Andrew Balding-trained colt was a good winner of the Royal Lodge in September and was touched off by Indestructible in the Craven at Newmarket on his first run as a three-year-old.
Owned by King Power Racing, the son of Churchill improved on that display at York, taking the extended 10-furlong Dante in his stride, beating subsequent Derby third White Birch by a neck.
However, things did not go to plan at Epsom, with Oisin Murphy’s mount stumbling at the start before recovering to become a threat in the straight.
Having gone briefly third over a furlong out, he tired and finished fifth, just over eight lengths behind Auguste Rodin.
King Power’s racing manager Alastair Donald said: “It was 100 per cent the case that he didn’t stay the trip. He got a little further back than ideal, but I don’t think it made a massive difference.
“He came with a good run to look like he was going to finish a nice third, and then didn’t get home in the last furlong and a half. Looking at the sectionals, it clearly shows that.
“We hoped he might stay a bit further, but he is the same as his half-brother Bangkok – it looks like he will end up being very much a 10-furlong horse.”
Connections are considering options for The Foxes, who was sent off the 7-1 fourth favourite in the 14-strong field.
“We are just weighing things up at the moment. The Eclipse is in the thinking for his next race, but we will certainly look at international options as well,” added Donald.
“But I definitely think he will be campaigned at 10 furlongs and we wouldn’t be afraid to drop him back to a mile.
“In the Craven, he travelled the strongest of any horse over a mile, so we wouldn’t be afraid to drop him back.
“We think we still have a very good horse and I think it will prove to be a pretty strong Derby.
“Sometimes you have a good first three and the rest don’t tend to do much in future, but I think quite a lot of good horses will come out of that race over various different distances.”
Andy Murray’s bid to be seeded for the men’s singles draw at Wimbledon began with a convincing victory over Chung Hyeon in the first round of the low-key Surbiton Trophy.
Less than seven miles separate the Surbiton Racket and Fitness Club and the courts of SW19 but Murray’s journey has started with a 6-3 6-2 victory in the sunshine.
The two-time Wimbledon champion skipped the French Open to focus on his grass season and this was his first match in preparation for next month.
Murray, 36, is currently ranked 43rd and needs to climb around 10 places to be seeded for Wimbledon, looking to build on his clay-court victory at Aix-en-Provence Challenger earlier this year – his first title since 2019.
The Surbiton Trophy is another Challenger event and gave Murray a chance to get into his stride against his South Korean opponent.
Chung reached the Australian Open semi-finals in 2018, beating Novak Djokovic en route, but has struggled with his own fitness issues in recent years.
A fine ace in the third game was the first glimpse of Murray ratcheting up through the gears and his first break followed a game later.
The gulf between the pair began to show as the opening set progressed, Murray taking it 6-3 with his fifth ace.
There were also signs of the vintage Murray – arguing more than one line call with the umpire and chuntering away to himself when missing shots he felt should have landed.
A brief collective holding of breath from the small crowd followed Murray taking a tumble over an advertising board at the start of the second set but he dusted himself off to take the game on his fourth break point courtesy of a double-fault from Chung.
Largely untroubled on his own serve, Murray – a semi-finalist in Surbiton 12 months ago – broke for a second time in the seventh game and wrapped up a comfortable win.
Three-time Olympian Hannah Miley wants to banish dangerous euphemisms for periods that could leave young athletes feeling “dirty” or ashamed.
A study by period and pregnancy tracker app Clue and the International Women’s Health Coalition uncovered over 5,000 alternative terms for the monthly cycle across 10 different languages – yet conversations around the topic still remain taboo.
Miley finds when those rare discussions do happen, they are filled with unhelpful metaphors that recall adverts featuring blue liquid poured on pads and overjoyed women wearing all-white outfits.
“It all comes back to that simple word of just saying ‘period’,” said the swimmer, who competed at Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016.
“A lot of people struggle to say it. It’s ‘shark week’, ‘leak week’ so many different words. The fact that we couldn’t even say ‘period products’, it was hygiene, sanitary products – that in and of itself creates that invisible barrier of being able to talk about it.
“If you can’t say the word, then how can you actually talk about the topic?
“It’s just a very deep-rooted societal view that they’re dirty, they’re inconvenient, you’re emotional, you’re not in control of your body and you’re weak.
“In sport there’s a great advocacy in the sense that we can prove female athletes can be strong, we can prove that female athletes can be in control of their emotions, but it’s making sure that these athletes remain healthy.”
Some of the euphemisms on the Museum of Menstruation and Women’s Health’s exhaustive list include “the communists have invaded the summer house” and “get the crime scene tape”.
There’s also the classic, “mother nature’s gift”, which as Miley distinctly recalls featured in a 2009 print advert campaign for Tampax starring Serena Williams.
The series sets up Mother Nature – portrayed as a sort of stern schoolmarm-slash-Stepford Wife – against the 23-time Grand Slam winner.
In one, Williams smashes a ball through Mother Nature’s (literal) gift box, while another reads “Mother Nature has met her match”.
It’s the sort of outdated antagonistic attitude Miley is hoping to change through her work with UK Coaching’s Duty to Care campaign, which is providing support and resources for participants who want to better understand the way menstrual cycles affect athletes – and not just negatively.
The double Commonwealth Games champion said: “A regular cycle is an indicator of health. It’s like a report card. Also being on your period, there is a benefit in cognitive function, being able to learn new skills.
“It’s all about that management strategy. Pain tolerance has increased, so whilst your oestrogen and progesterone levels are lower, your testosterone is higher, so the ability for strength and power is actually really good.”
A May 2023 Project RED-S survey of 159 elite, junior and senior athletes in Britain revealed significantly more respondents received menstrual health education and support from social media (57 per cent) than coaches (6.9 per cent).
Miley is adamant that needs to change and hopes more information and research will not just eliminate awkwardness between coaches and athletes, but actually inspire tailored training and open dialogue beyond elite level.
She added: “It all comes back to being able to read and understand your body. It’s not something you’re taught in school.
“It’s the basics of you’re on your period, you’re not pregnant. You’re not on your period, you’re pregnant.”
“But there’s so much more to it, the ability to track, understanding the peak and flow, working with your body to prime important training types, being able to map and plan it.”
“That’s why it’s so important for coaches to be on board with this, so they can help their athletes reach their full potential, so that the person who is menstruating to get the most out of their sport, but not come away from it broken and damaged, so they can have as long a career as they want to.”
Max Verstappen said he would welcome the challenge of an “amazing” championship rematch with Lewis Hamilton.
Verstappen raced to a crushing victory at the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday following yet another one-sided display in his dominant Red Bull machine.
Hamilton finished runner-up to Verstappen with George Russell third in the other Mercedes.
Verstappen has won five of the opening seven rounds to establish a commanding 53-point title lead over team-mate Sergio Perez.
But Mercedes’ upturn in form at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya has provided Hamilton with renewed hope that his dream of a record eighth world title is not over.
Hamilton, who has not won a race since his contentious championship defeat to Verstappen at the 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi, said in Barcelona that he would continue in Formula One for as long as possible in order to fight Verstappen for the title again.
Verstappen is on course to race to a hat-trick of titles this season, but when asked how excited he would be about the prospect of going toe-to-toe with Hamilton next year, Verstappen replied: “It would be great for the sport.
“If there are more teams fighting upfront, and that is what they want to achieve, then honestly that would be amazing.
“Hopefully throughout the year it will get closer, and maybe next year there will be more teams up there.”
Hamilton has only six months to run on his Mercedes contract and the British driver, 38, met with team principal Toto Wolff on Monday in the hope of rubber-stamping a new deal.
The meeting is understood to be one of a series of discussions between Hamilton and Wolff, and not thought to be a definitive moment in negotiations.
It is anticipated that Hamilton’s extension will be a multi-year deal, extending Hamilton’s stay in F1 beyond his 40th birthday.
“I am focused on making sure we have the car next year to challenge Red Bull from day one,” said Hamilton, who is already 83 points behind Verstappen in the standings.
“I am working as hard as I can with this team and I see so much strength with the team. They are still so hungry.
“These guys will take two seconds to enjoy themselves on Sunday and then they will be back in the books trying to figure out how we can win the next race and that is what I love about them.”
Alfie Hewett is enjoying being the man to be shot at in wheelchair tennis as he prepares to bid for a fourth French Open title.
The retirement at the beginning of the year of Hewett’s big rival Shingo Kunieda after one of the great tennis careers left the Norfolk player as world number one.
Hewett first won the French Open as a teenager and has been used to being the relative new kid on the block but now he finds a host of younger players challenging him.
View this post on InstagramTop of that pile is Kunieda’s Japanese compatriot, 17-year-old Tokito Oda, who was beaten by Hewett in the Australian Open final in January.
Hewett told the PA news agency: “It is strange. I’m 25 so I don’t see myself as being the experienced one when you have the likes of Gordy (doubles partner Gordon Reid) and some of the others who are five to 10 years older than me.
“But I guess this is my eighth year on tour so I do have experience. I’ve been fortunate enough to play in some big moments and I thought the Australian Open final demonstrated that, managing the occasion probably in a better way than Tokito did, but he’s such an unbelievable talent.
“To be playing at his level at (his age), it’s just ridiculous – it just shows the talent and the potential that he has. And he’s bringing a new style to the sport as well. Other players are having to learn, having to get better.
“I see a lot of myself in him in terms of his attitude and his fearlessness. It’s great to have someone fresh on the scene. I’m sure he’s going to be winning a lot in the future but I’ll try and stop him.
“That’s a big reason why my level this year has been so high because he beat me in the Masters last year and I didn’t like it. I went home and I trained hard and I worked hard and it’s made my game a lot better.”
Hewett’s Australian Open triumph was part of a 16-match winning singles run between January and March that brought his four successive titles.
“I didn’t expect it,” he said. “It’s just a sign of good work behind the scenes. It was new territory for me really. I struggled towards the end of it.
“It makes me appreciate the likes of Novak (Djokovic) and (Daniil) Medvedev when they go on ridiculous runs of not losing for however many matches and back-to-back events – it’s not easy to do.
“You feel the pressure that people are expecting you to win. The level I was playing at in Australia and Rotterdam was probably the best I’ve ever played but then I went to the States and it dropped, and I was like, ‘Hang on a minute, I’m not used to this, why’s my level not where it was’.
“But that’s just normal, you go through these periods. I enjoyed it while it lasted. I got beaten in the end but it hasn’t dampened my spirit with where I’m at. To win eight titles out of 11 is not bad.”
Since the end of that run, Hewett has led Great Britain to the World Team Cup title before a narrow loss to Spain’s Martin De la Puente, another younger player, in the semi-finals of the Barcelona Open.
In Paris, he will be favourite to add to the singles titles he won in 2017, 2020 and 2021, while he and Reid will bid for a 17th grand slam doubles title.
After that, Hewett’s focus will turn to Wimbledon, where he made his first singles final last year only to lose a dramatic encounter to Kunieda.
“Of course it’s one I want to win, there’s no secret,” he said. “I can’t sit here and lie. But the goal for now is the French and trying to get as strong and fit and healthy as I can.”
Ascot officials will liaise with authorities in the coming days over security plans for the Royal meeting following the attempted disruption to Saturday’s Betfred Derby at Epsom.
Police arrested 31 people on Saturday, including 12 on the racecourse grounds, after Animal Rising announced their intention to “cancel or severely delay” the Derby in the lead up to the race, which went ahead as planned.
Surrey Police confirmed on Sunday that Ben Newman, 32, from Hackney, east London, had been charged with causing public nuisance after running onto the track during the Derby itself.
The protest occurred after the Jockey Club, which owns Epsom, was granted an injunction prohibiting the group from intervening in the event, claiming the organisation had made “explicitly clear” that it intended to breach security.
Ascot are looking closely at all security options ahead of the five-day meeting which starts on Tuesday, June 20.
The Berkshire track’s director of racing and public affairs, Nick Smith, said: “Epsom did a fantastic job and kept the protesters under control.
“Anyone who saw the efforts of all involved could not fail to be impressed. Swift and decisive action was taken.
“We will be holding internal discussions and will be liaising with the Jockey Club and the police to develop and deliver our plan over the next few days.
“Watch this space is all I can say at the moment.”
Oliver Sherwood will hand in his training licence in the coming weeks to take up a position as assistant to Harry Derham.
A former champion amateur rider, Sherwood began training in 1984 with the 2015 Grand National winner Many Clouds providing one of the highlights of his near 40-year career.
During his 27 races, Many Clouds also won the Hennessy at Newbury in 2014 and two Cotswold Chases at Cheltenham.
Oliver Sherwood and Many Clouds (Andrew Matthews/PA)Sherwood trained plenty of other high-profile competitors too, not least dual Grade One-winning hurdler Large Action and 1990 Hennessy hero Arctic Call.
Other familiar names to have passed through his yard include the likes of Cruising Altitude, Coulton, Young Snugfit, Silver Wedge, Cenkos, Rebel Song and The West Awake, while Listed bumper winner Queens Gamble proved his flagship horse last term.
Sherwood has endured a testing couple of years, having been given the all-clear from cancer last spring following multiple rounds of chemotherapy.
His health troubles, combined with dwindling numbers in his yard and the recent death of close friend Richard Aston, has prompted Sherwood to reassess his priorities, with the trainer and his wife Tarnya content to draw stumps at this point.
Sherwood said: “There’s no way I can get out of the game, it’s in my DNA, I’ve got to be involved with horses.
“It’s something which has been bothering me for the last four or five months, knowing I didn’t have the horses, so you’ve just got to be realistic.
“Obviously with my illness and with Richard Aston passing, that rather frightened me – not my illness because I never thought I was going to go – but Richard’s did and you’ve got to be realistic.
“When you are involved in racing it is 365 days a year, 24 hours a day and there’s more to life than training racehorses. Our son lives out in New Zealand and there are one or two things we want to do before it is too late, if you know what I mean.
“Racing is not a job. We are very lucky to earn a living out of a hobby, working with horses there couldn’t be a better job in the world but it does take its strain. Things go wrong nine times out of 10 but we are very lucky to work with them, that’s a certainty.”
Sherwood will relinquish his licence next month and hopes to take many of his current inmates with him to Derham, who enjoyed a fine start last term in his first season with a licence.
He explained: “I’m planning on carrying on until July. The majority of the horses, I don’t have many in the summer anyway, when they come in off grass will hopefully go to Harry. I’ve spoken to all of the owners and they have all been very positive, Queens Gamble is certainly going to go.”
Sherwood reflected on a career that has seen not only equine stars in his yard, but also plenty of future star trainers.
He said: “I was very lucky to have a great apprenticeship with Arthur Moore in Ireland and then I took over from Nicky (Henderson) as Fred Winter’s assistant before starting on my own.
“I’ve had some incredible success which showed I learned a fair bit from those two and I’ve been lucky enough to have some really nice horses and some great people working with me.
“I had the likes of Donald McCain, Ben Case and even Tony Martin was my assistant for a bit. John Durkan, god bless him, was too and he found Istabraq for JP McManus – I’ve had some fun times. I didn’t have many jockeys either so I must have put up with them. I’ve had a lovely time.
“I’m still going to be around horses but they’ll be running under the name of H Derham.”
While Many Clouds and Large Action were Sherwood’s highest achievers on the track, the handler felt Coulton – a winner at Cheltenham and Aintree in 1995 – was probably the most talented horse he trained.
He added: “Many Clouds would certainly be the gutsiest horse I’ve ever trained but Large Action was placed in two Champion Hurdles, he just didn’t jump fences well. Probably the best I ever trained, with due respect to all the others, was Coulton who won a Cathcart at Cheltenham and a Red Rum up at Aintree but he wasn’t a natural jumper – he had the most natural ability.
“I was very lucky to have some good horses, trainers are only as good as their horses and that is another reason of why I’m having to stop. Barring Queens Gamble and one or two others, we’ve had an average bunch of horses and that happens.”
Karl Burke’s Craven winner Indestructible will aim to leave a disappointing showing in the 2000 Guineas behind him when he heads to Royal Ascot for the St James’s Palace Stakes.
The Kodiac colt was an ultra-consistent performer when trained by Michael O’Callaghan as a juvenile, chasing home Chaldean in both the Acomb and the Champagne Stakes last term, and threw his hat in the ring for the opening Classic of the summer when striking first time out for Burke in the Craven.
However, testing ground at Newmarket on 2000 Guineas day blunted any chance he had of figuring as old rival Chaldean took home the spoils and Indestructible’s connections are now hoping for a sounder surface when they lock horns for a fourth time at the Royal meeting.
“He’s come out of the Guineas very well,” said Tom Pennington, racing and operations manager for owners Amo Racing.
“The ground probably didn’t play to his strengths at Newmarket. We’ve always said he is not a soft ground horse and it was decent ground when he won the Craven.
“He’s in decent form and is working well, Karl is happy with him, and it is all systems go for the St James’s Palace at Royal Ascot.
“Quick ground round a bend should see him at his best, he’s a nice horse and you don’t do what he did in the Craven without being a nice horse. I think getting on better ground will see him replicate what he did at Newmarket in the Craven.
“You can’t knock his form and his only disappointing run before the Guineas was when he was second to Chaldean at Doncaster last season. The ground was hock deep that day as well and he’s just not as effective on that sort of ground. He’s much better on a sound surface.”
Daria Kasatkina has hit out at the French Open crowd after she was booed off court following her defeat by Elina Svitolina.
Knowing Ukrainian players’ stance of not shaking hands with Russian or Belarusian opponents at the end of matches, Kasatkina gave Svitolina a thumbs up, which was reciprocated, before walking to her chair.
Some of the fans on Suzanne Lenglen then responded by booing the Russian as she walked off court.
Kasatkina wrote on Twitter: “Leaving Paris with a very bitter feeling.
“All this days, after every match I’ve played in Paris I always appreciate and thanked the crowd for support and being there for the players. But yesterday I was booed for just being respectful on my opponent’s position not to shake hands.
“Me and Elina showed respect to each other after a tough match but leaving the court like that was the worse part of yesterday.
“Be better, love each other. Don’t spread hate. Try to make this world better. I will love RG no matter what, always and forever. See u next year.”
The world number nine has been the most outspoken Russian or Belarusian player against the invasion of Ukraine, provoking a strong negative reaction in her home country.
Kasatkina is also one of the few Russian athletes to have come out as gay and she earned praise from Svitolina, who said of her anti-war stance: “I’m really thankful for her position that she took.
“She’s a really brave person to say it publicly, that not so many players did.”
Known as one of the most uncompromising crowds in tennis, the spotlight has been on the Roland Garros patrons this year as sport has mixed with politics.
Svitolina and fellow Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk were also booed after not shaking hands, while Novak Djokovic hit out at fans who jeered him while he took a medical time-out.
Svitolina faced another Russian player in the third round, Anna Blinkova, and next she will take on Belarusian second seed Aryna Sabalenka.
Sabalenka has been criticised by Ukrainian players for not speaking out strongly enough against the war and has refused to do press conferences after her last two matches following tense exchanges with a Ukrainian journalist over her previous support for Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko.
Middleham Park Racing are not shying away from a sprint rematch at Royal Ascot between Shouldvebeenaring and Little Big Bear.
The two horses contested the Sandy Lane at Haydock when last seen, with Little Big Bear prevailing as the even-money favourite with Shouldvebeenaring giving him a run for his money a length and a quarter back in second.
Having started at 11-1 for Richard Hannon and Sean Levey, the runner-up ran a mighty race and continued what is proving to be an incredibly fruitful season for him.
Though his Haydock performance was something of a pleasant surprise for the grey’s owners, Hannon was less shocked as the colt had impressed him in his work beforehand.
“It did catch us a little bit by surprise but we felt he warranted his place in the race, he deserved his shot at the big time,” said Tim Palin of Middleham Park.
“He’d been crashing around in Listed races and doing that particularly well and we just thought we’d pop his head above the parapet and see where he ended up.
“He did it in spades, didn’t he? He stepped up to the plate in spades.
“I was pleasantly surprised, to get so close to the champion two-year-old is an immense achievement for a £40,000 yearling that we bought from Goffs UK.
“Richard had said to me on the Tuesday after his final piece of work, ‘Tim, this horse is better than ever. He’s never done what he’s just done there in front of me’.
“It probably wasn’t as much as a surprise to Richard that he was able to step up because he’s seen it in front of his very eyes.”
Shouldvebeenaring is now pencilled in for the Commonwealth Cup, a Group One sprint where he will likely cross paths with Aidan O’Brien’s Little Big Bear again.
Palin said: “It’s great to be mixing it in these lofty places, where do we go now? There’s some talk about the Jersey, but Sean (Levey) did say that he wouldn’t mind another go at the winner when he got off.
“That’s what we may well do, if he’s (Little Big Bear) the 13-8 favourite and we’re just a couple of lengths off him then he would probably deserve a place in the Commonwealth Cup.
“He’d have to mix it with even more blue-blooded types and time will tell but he does deserve it, a stiff six furlongs is probably Shouldvebeenaring playing at home.
“With a nice patient ride we’ll see where we end up and if we could nick a place, that’d be great. If he did happen to turn it around with the winner then it’s a stallion-making opportunity.”
A £40,000 purchase, Shouldvebeenaring has earned over £250,000 in prize money already and is quickly becoming a popular horse as his ability is matched by his consistency.
“He wears his heart on his sleeve, he has the heart of a lion and puts so much effort into all of his races, even the days he’s been beaten,” said Palin.
“He still has that enthusiasm and he’s still improving, he’s not the biggest, he’s a bit of a pony.
“His diminutive stature is certainly belied by his heart and tenacity, he’d run through a brick wall for you, he’s a superstar.”
Novak Djokovic beat Andy Murray to win the French Open for the first time at Roland Garros on this day in 2016, handing Murray his eighth Grand Slam final loss.
The 3-6 6-1 6-2 6-4 victory meant Djokovic became the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to be the holder of all four titles at the same time.
It was the Serb’s 12th Grand Slam victory and moved him to within five titles of Roger Federer’s record of 17.
For Murray it was the fifth time in those eight losses that he had lost out to Djokovic, with the pair first having met when Murray was just 11.
“It’s a very special moment,” said Djokovic. “Perhaps the biggest of my career.”
He had lost out in the final of the 2015 edition to Stan Wawrinka, despite having overcome Rafael Nadal in the last four.
“To Novak, this is his day,” said Murray, who was the first British man in 79 years to reach the final in Paris before finally going down in the fourth set.
“What he’s achieved the last 12 months is phenomenal, winning all four of the Grand Slams in one year is an amazing achievement and this is something that is so rare in tennis.
“It’s going to take a long time for it to happen again.
“Everyone here is extremely lucky to see it. Me personally, being on the opposite side, it sucks to lose the match but I’m proud to be part of today.”
Gabe Vincent scored 23 points and helped spark a fourth-quarter rally that propelled the Miami Heat to a 111-108 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, evening the championship series at 1-1.
The Heat overcame an eight-point deficit to start the fourth quarter to snap the Nuggets' seven-game winning streak and send the series to Miami all tied. Game 3 will take place Wednesday.
Denver also was handed its first loss in 10 home games during this postseason despite another big effort from two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić, who poured in 41 points on 16-of-28 shooting along with 11 rebounds.
Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each contributed 21 points for the Heat, while Duncan Robinson scored all 10 of his points during a pivotal 15-2 run to open the fourth quarter that sent Miami ahead to stay.
Jokic scored the final six points of the third quarter to give the Nuggets an 83-75 lead that turned out to be short-lived. Robinson had the first eight points of Miami's momentum-shifting surge, and Vincent later added a 3-pointer before hitting two free throws that put the Heat up 90-85 with nine minutes remaining.
Miami held a 107-95 advantage after Caleb Martin's 3-pointer with 3:39 left to play, but the Nuggets responded with a late charge to put the outcome back in doubt.
Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray hit 3-pointers to ignite an 11-2 run Murray capped with another triple that pulled Denver within 109-106 entering the final minute.
After Jokic countered two Butler free throws with a short turnaround jumper with 35.6 seconds left, Butler missed a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession to give the Nuggets a chance to tie.
Murray misfired on a step-back 3-point try with 1.9 seconds left, however, and Martin grabbed the rebound as time expired.
Denver, which led by as many as 15 points in the first half, had been 11-0 this postseason when holding a double-digit lead.
The Miami Heat produced a fourth-quarter comeback to win the second game of the NBA finals 111-108 and even up the seven-match series against the Denver Nuggets.
The Heat trailed by eight heading into the final period, having trailed by 15 earlier in the game in the wake of another massive performance from Nikola Jokic.
Jokic scored 41 points, scoring 16 of 28 shots from the floor including one with 36 seconds remaining which cut the Heat’s lead to three points.
But after Jimmy Butler missed on Miami’s next possession, Jamal Murray was unable to tie the scores with an effort on the buzzer.
The defeat was Denver’s first since May 7 and they had won all 11 play-off games in which they had opened a double-digit lead.
They had trailed 21-10 in the opening quarter before a barrage of three-point scores helped them to a 44-32 advantage which had been trimmed to six points at the break.
And Miami held on through the third quarter before the late surge that takes the series to Miami all square.
Gabe Vincent led the way for Miami with 23 points as Butler and Bam Adebayo each grabbed 21.
Rose Zhang enjoyed a dream start to her professional career with victory in her first event in the Mizuho Americas Open.
Zhang, who only joined the paid ranks nine days ago, defeated Jennifer Kupcho on the second hole of a play-off after the pair had finished tied on nine under par at Liberty National Golf Club.
Kupcho set the clubhouse target after a closing 69 and Zhang needed to par the 18th to win in regulation, but found a bunker off the tee and was unable to get up and down from short of the green.
The 20-year-old American is the first player to win on the LPGA Tour in their professional debut since Beverly Hanson in 1951.
“What is happening? I just can’t believe it,” said Zhang after two putts for par on the second play-off hole were enough to beat Kupcho.
“It was just last week when I won NCAAs with my teammates. To turn pro and come out here, it’s just been amazing.”
Zhang confirmed she will be taking membership on the LPGA Tour which comes with the victory – after finishing her finals at Stanford and moving next week.
“I understand there is going to be a lot of bumps in the road and I’m expecting a lot of obstacles,” she said. “But I think this is just the start. This is just a stepping stone.
“It’s crazy that this is my first win, first professional win already, but no doubt there is going to be a lot more things happening down the road.
“I’m just going to be continuing to learn inside the ropes.”
Zhang spent a record 141 weeks at the top of the women’s amateur rankings, surpassing the previous best of 135 set by Ireland’s Leona Maguire.
She became the first women’s player to win two NCAA individual titles following her successful title defence at the end of May, a victory which saw her exceed the number of wins Tiger Woods achieved at Stanford.
Zhang also won the Augusta National Women’s Amateur in April and the US Women’s Amateur two years ago, as well as helping the United States to Curtis Cup wins over Great Britain and Ireland in 2021 and 2022.
Mojito expectedly produced a devastating performance to claim the 49th running of the Jamaica 2000 Guineas, a native-bred three-year-old Futurity race for colts and geldings, over a mile (1,600m) at Caymanas Park on Sunday.
Conditioned by Hall of Fame trainer Richard Azan and ridden by reigning champion jockey Dane Dawkins, Mojito again underlined his credentials as the best among his lot at the moment with this, a fifth-straight win on the trot, in his seven-race career. His other two runs were second-place finishes.
Having won the Prince Consort over seven furlongs (1,400m) by 5 1/2 lengths, in 1:26.2 and, The Kingston by 15 lengths in a flat 1:33.0, over seven and a half furlongs (1,500m) on his way to the Guineas, it was a matter of how far Mojito would romp the $3.75-million Classic event.
The answer was a resounding 12 ½ lengths in a time of 1:37.2, behind splits of 24.1, 46.3 and 1:10.3.
Running from post position number two in the nine-horse field, Mojito left the gates well but suffered early traffic problems and, as such, was relegated to the back of the pack.
However, room opened up on the inside rails which Dawkins gladly accepted and soon joined Awesome Anthony (Javaniel Patterson) on the headline at the six-furlong point.
When Dawkins gave the signal, Mojito made big move and took the lead heading toward the five and later slipped away by three lengths leaving the half mile.
The gap widened coming in the stretch and Mojito continued to power away from rivals with Dawkins barely moving a muscle.
Money Miser (Reyan Lewis) was second with Ability (Linton Steadman) and Rhythm Buzz (Anthony Thomas), completing the frame.
Given the manner of his victory, Mojito is now heavily favoured to secure Triple Crown honours with the 12-furlong Jamaica Derby and 10-furlong St Leger to come.
Azan, who along with Alexander Haber, bred and own Mojito, is already rating the grey colt among the top horses he has conditioned in an illustrious career.
“I said he is one of the best because I have trained some really good horses so now he ranks up there right with them,” Azan said in a post-race interview.
“To be honest, I was a little worried at first but the jockey knows the horse very well, I was actually surprised that he went so quickly to the lead but then he relaxed after that and you know the rest was history. It is just about maintaining him from here because we still have two-more races to go for the Triple Crown,” he added.
Meanwhile, leading rider Reyan Lewis topped his peers with three wins on the 10-race card. He won the opening event aboard Carl Anderson’s Tocatbetheglory, the fourth aboard the Phillip Feanny-conditioned Inspire Force and the seventh race with Life Is Life, trained by Jason DaCosta.
Viktor Hovland defeated Denny McCarthy in a play-off to win the Memorial Tournament as Rory McIlroy suffered a disappointing final round in Ohio.
Hovland parred the first extra hole at Muirfield Village to win his fourth PGA Tour title after he and McCarthy had finished tied on seven under par.
The 25-year-old Norwegian had birdied the 15th and 17th to set the clubhouse target following a closing 70 and then saw McCarthy drop his first shot of the day on the 18th.
McCarthy then bogeyed the same hole in the play-off to miss out on a maiden PGA Tour win.
Hovland, who finished runner-up to Brooks Koepka in the US PGA Championship after a costly double bogey on the 16th hole of the final round, told CBS: “It feels even better after a few close calls the last few months.
“I didn’t really feel like I hit it my best the whole week, I just played really smart, played conservatively, really relied on my short game and I putted awesome this week.
“It’s fun to win one of these things without just ball-striking it to death. Now I can kind of rely on some other strengths as well.”
Hovland and McCarthy finished a shot ahead of world number one Scottie Scheffler, who surged through the field with a closing 67, despite ranking dead last in putting of those players who made the cut.
McIlroy began the day in a tie for the lead and was out in front when he chipped in for birdie on the fourth, but bogeyed three of the next four holes on his way to a 75 and a tie for seventh on three under par.
“I did what I wanted to do,” McIlroy said. “I thought if I could stay patient and put my ball in play off the tee, which I did pretty much all day, I only hit it in the long rough once…
“I was in the first cut three times and then the rest of the time I was in the fairway. So I did what I wanted to do, I just missed a few shots and those two bogeys on the par fives on the front nine were unforced errors.
“Once I was one over through nine holes and Denny was at eight under for the tournament, it’s hard to chase on that golf course the way it’s playing.
“I hit a couple of loose shots on the back nine that at least I know where they’re coming from, which is good, but it’s a step in the right direction.
“I feel a little better about everything compared to where I was a couple weeks ago at Oak Hill. So it’s obviously not the result that I wanted today, but I feel like there was a few more positives than there was a couple weeks ago.”
Two-time major winner Collin Morikawa, who was two off the lead heading into the final round, withdrew shortly before his tee time after suffering back spasms.
“We were doing some reflex stuff, trying to reach down and try to pick something up like quick and low,” Morikawa explained.
“I’ve hurt may back briefly before, but nothing has been this bad. I think it’s the first tournament I’ve ever withdrawn from in my entire life. It sucks because this is a tournament that I love.
“I’ve played well and put myself in contention. But I have to look out for myself and got to be smart.”
Police have charged an animal rights activist who ran on to the track at the Betfred Derby.
A man was filmed jumping the fence and sprinting on to the course at Epsom as the race – which was won by the Aidan O’Brien-trained Auguste Rodin – began on Saturday.
He was pursued by police as the crowd jeered, with some shouting “get him”, before officers tackled him and pulled him away.
Surrey Police confirmed on Sunday that Ben Newman, 32, from Hackney, east London, had been charged with causing public nuisance.
The protest occurred after the Jockey Club, which owns Epsom Downs, was granted an injunction prohibiting the Animal Rising group from intervening in the event, claiming the organisation had made “explicitly clear” that it intended to breach security.
Newman is one of 31 people arrested on Saturday including 12 on the racecourse grounds.
They included two women who were arrested as they tried to climb the fence and get on to the track.
A police spokesman said: “A total of 39 arrests were made over the course of the two days. Thirty-one of these arrests were made in connection with planned criminal activity at the Epsom Derby Festival, including two women who were quickly detained moments before they were able to get on to the track.
“Thirty have since been released on bail pending further inquiries.”
Chief Superintendent Clive Davies, who was in charge of the policing operation for the Derby, added: “I am incredibly proud of every single officer, staff member and volunteer who worked in the run-up to the event and at the event itself.
“They played a vital role in protecting the public and preventing and responding to criminality.”
After the Derby, the chief executive of the Jockey Club, Nevin Truesdale, praised the “swift and decisive” action of police in putting an end to the “deplorable and mindless actions” of the protesters.
Newman, who was named by Animal Rising on Saturday, has previously appeared on GB News.
He will appear at Guildford Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
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