Max Verstappen lamented Red Bull's changes that left the RB20 "uncontrollable" at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday.
Verstappen could only manage fifth place around the streets of Baku, but remains 59 points ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris, who finished one place in front.
But the Dutchman was the beneficiary of a collision involving Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz on the penultimate lap of the race.
Verstappen has now gone six grand prix without a pole position and seven without a victory, last winning at the Spanish Grand Prix in June.
The three-time world champion cited issues with his car during qualifying that seemed to carry over into the race, but is confident Red Bull can respond in Singapore next time.
"I think the changes we did to the car were positive, but then you still need of course to do the set-up on the car," Verstappen said.
“I think we were heading in the right direction but then the changes that we made before qualifying tipped it over the edge.
"We paid the price for that in the race unfortunately.”
The Dutchman was able to further detail the difficulties he experienced on track, saying: “My wheels were literally coming off the ground.
“Then of course you lose contact patch with the tarmac which you don’t want.
"That then caused me to slide a lot more, overheat the tyres more and there was no way to drive around it so the pace was just a bit all over the place.
“I had to box and then it was just a bit unfortunate I got stuck behind Alex and Lando.
"I was in that fight, George passed me, and then we actually had good pace, the two of us.
"We were catching the leaders but then as soon as I got close to George again within that window where you have the dirty air, because of the jumping that I’m dealing with I’m sliding already quite a bit.
“And then when I get close to him I’m sliding even more and that just tipped it over the edge where it becomes quite uncontrollable towards the end of the race, which was very difficult again.”
Luke Littler is eyeing redemption at the World Championship finals later this year after securing his maiden World Series of Darts Finals title in Amsterdam on Sunday.
Littler, who won the Premier League in May, comfortably dispatched Michael Smith 11-4 in the final on Sunday with a 102.21 average after losing the first two legs.
The 17-year-old began the day with a quarter-final triumph over Chris Dobey before turning on the style against home favourite Michael van Gerwen in the semis.
Littler took home the £80,000 prize money but remains behind Dirk van Duijvenbode in the world rankings due to the tournament being an invitational one.
The teenager rose to fame earlier this year with his impressive run at the World Championships, reaching the final but losing to world number one Luke Humphries.
And Littler, who avenged Humphries in the Premier League final, wants to go one better at Alexandra Palace later this year.
"I'm playing well so I will go back home and practice even more. There is no time to sit about, it's a busy winter coming up," Littler said.
"Everyone wants to win everything but I've learned you can't do that. I would like to win another major [title].
"I want the Worlds as anyone else does but another major would mean the world."
Charles Leclerc pledged to learn from his mistakes after squandering pole position at Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix, finishing second to Oscar Piastri.
Leclerc started at the front of the grid in Baku for the fourth time in a row, having also claimed a memorable triumph for Ferrari at their home circuit of Monza last time out.
However, Piastri passed Leclerc on a straight on the 20th lap, and a spirited fightback was not enough for the Monegasque driver as the McLaren held on for his second win of the year.
The result means Leclerc remains third in the drivers' championship standings with 235 points, behind Max Verstappen (313) and Lando Norris (254), while Ferrari remain third in the constructors' table.
Speaking about his battle with Piastri after the race, Leclerc said: "It is enjoyable when you've got many opportunities every lap.
"I think maybe McLaren had less downforce and in the straights they were very quick, in the corners we were a bit quicker.
"I couldn't get as close as I wanted and eventually we lost the race when I didn't defend as well as I could have at the end of the straight. Sometimes you make mistakes and I'll learn from it."
Asked at what stage he realised victory was unlikely, Leclerc said: "I think as soon as we put the hard tyres on. On the medium we were very competitive, and the car felt good.
"Unfortunately for me, we didn't do any high fuel running in FP1 and FP2. We went for a setup direction which in the race was a bit more difficult to manage.
"McLaren and Oscar have done an exceptional job and done better than us."
Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz, meanwhile, was pushing for a podium finish when he crashed with Baku specialist Sergio Perez, taking both drivers out of the race.
"It's a huge shame for Carlos on the last laps," Leclerc said. "Hopefully everyone is okay, and obviously it's not a great day for the team."
McLaren's Oscar Piastri labelled his victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix the most stressful afternoon of his life after claiming his second career win in Formula One.
Piastri, who started second on the grid, emerged victorious ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc to put McLaren at the summit of the constructors' championship.
The Australian's team-mate, Lando Norris, managed a fourth-place finish in Baku having endured a difficult qualifying that saw him start in 17th on Sunday.
Piastri's triumph saw him move up to 222 points in the drivers' championship, and he is now 13 points behind Leclerc in third place.
The McLaren driver performed a huge lunge on the inside on lap 20 to take the lead from the Monegasque, defending admirably to secure the victory in Azerbaijan.
“I tried at the start of the race to get in front but once I dropped out of DRS I just didn’t have the pace,” said winner Piastri.
“After the stop, I saw we were pretty close again and I felt like we had a little bit of extra grip.
"I had to go for it because I knew that if I didn’t get past at the start of the stint, I was never going to get past.
“I went for a pretty big lunge but managed to pull it off and then hang on for dear life for the next 35 laps.
"The last couple of laps, once [Leclerc] dropped out of DRS, were a little bit more relaxing, but there’s no such thing as a relaxing lap around here so it was hard work.
"It definitely goes down as one of the better races of my career.”
Piastri (two) and Norris (two) are the first pair of drivers to get two wins in the same season for McLaren since 2012 (Lewis Hamilton, four, and Jenson Button, three).
The Australian's victory also continued the British-based team's record of having one or both of their drivers on the podium in each of the last 13 races.
It equalled their second-best run in the competition (13, which they recorded on two other occasions, between the United States and Portugal in 1990, and Germany 2011 and China 2012).
Up next on the F1 calendar is the Singapore Grand Prix, a race that saw Norris claim second last year, with Piastri finishing down in seventh.
Oscar Piastri held off Charles Leclerc to claim his second win of the Formula 1 season in a dramatic Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
And the Australian's victory means McLaren have leapfrogged Red Bull in the constructors' championship after an impressive run.
Leclerc started on pole in Baku for the fourth time in a row, and, after winning in Monza last time out, put himself in a good position to get a second consecutive win after a strong start.
However, Piastri took advantage on a straight in the 20th lap, stealing in front of the Ferrari, who he managed to hold off in the latter stages despite a spirited fightback from Leclerc.
Meanwhile, Lando Norris started in P15 after struggling in qualifying, but after a brilliant opening stint, he then slipped in front of his championship rival Max Verstappen with two laps remaining, eventually finishing fourth.
There was still a thrilling finish, as Sergio Perez, who has scored the most points in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, and Carlos Sainz both pushed to clinch the final podium spot and tangled in a huge crash on the penultimate lap, taking both of them out of the race.
George Russell benefitted from that to claim third, while his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton finished in ninth after a pit-lane start for taking a new engine ahead of the race.
Data Debrief: McLaren gain the edge
McLaren now have a 20-point lead over Red Bull in the championship. It is the first time the team have held the lead after at least 17 Grands Prix since Brazil in 2005.
It was quite the result for Piastri, who has now finished in the top two in four of his last five F1 races (winner in Hungary and Azerbaijan, runner-up in Belgium and Italy). That is more than he managed in his previous 34 Grand Prix.
Norris will be pleased with his own exploits though, given where he started on the grid, and by nipping in front of Verstappen, he keeps his hopes alive in the drivers' championship. The gap is now 59 points.
Top 10
1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
3. George Russell (Mercedes)
4. Lando Norris (McLaren)
5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
6. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
7. Alex Albon (Williams)
8. Franco Colapinto (Williams)
9. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
10. Oliver Bearman (Haas)
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Drivers'
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 313
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 254
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 235
Constructors'
1. McLaren - 476
2. Red Bull - 456
3. Ferrari - 425
Novak Djokovic "can't say" if he will compete in the upcoming ATP Finals in November as he becomes more selective about which tournaments he participates in.
The Serbian has struggled with injuries and a lack of form in 2024, and he will finish a calendar year without a grand slam title for the first time since 2017.
His last major triumph came at the US Open last year, but he failed to defend his crown, suffering a shock early exit to Alexei Popyrin in the third round at Flushing Meadows.
Djokovic is just one grand slam trophy away from becoming the outright record holder, currently sitting level with Margaret Court on 24 titles.
He reached the Wimbledon final in July, only to lose out to Carlos Alcaraz, though he did win his first Olympic gold in Paris by beating the Spaniard the following month.
The 37-year-old is currently representing Serbia at the Davis Cup and stressed that he will be prioritising certain tournaments over others.
"Torino is not my goal at all, to be honest, I am not chasing ATP Finals, I am not chasing the rankings etc," he told Serbian reporters after beating Greece's Ioannis Xilas on Saturday.
"As far as I am concerned, I am done with those tournaments for my career. Whether I will play other tournaments this year or in the future, I can't say right now.
"My main priorities are playing for the national team and slams, everything else is less important.
"Weeks like these represent another motivation, they inspire me to keep going, they awake those butterflies in my belly.
"I thought that I would never have to seek motivation anywhere, it all used to come naturally – automatically – but that has not been the case in the last few years.
"In order to prolong my career, I need to enjoy, I need to choose wisely tournaments I am going to play."
Following the Davis Cup, Djokovic will play in an exhibition tournament in Sofia and in the ATP 1000 event in Shanghai at the start of October.
"After that [Shanghai], I am going to see what I am going to do," Djokovic added.
"Usually in my career I used to have my schedule ready six months in advance, but nowadays, that's not the case. Now it's more spontaneous.
"Firstly, I need to physically, emotionally and mentally rest in order to even start thinking what I want to do next, in what way, how much and where."
Max Verstappen was left frustrated in qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, saying that the changes made by Red Bull had "made the car worse".
Verstappen could only manage sixth place for Sunday's race, while he was outqualified by team-mate Sergio Perez, who finished fourth, for the first time this season.
The three-time world champion has made his feelings clear about the team's performance of late, citing balance issues as a main cause of concern.
The team seemingly took a step forward in their performance following an imperfect weekend in Monza, with Perez finishing just 0.006s behind pole-sitter Charles Leclerc in FP2.
However, their improvements appeared to diminish in qualifying around Baku, with both drivers unable to stop Leclerc from taking his fourth pole position in Baku.
Verstappen has now gone six Grands Prix without a pole, his worst streak since 2021, and detailed the reasons for their slight downturn in performance.
"From the first lap that I did in qualifying I was not happy with the car, and I just tried to drive around it," Verstappen said.
"When you're not confident and comfortable with the car on a street circuit, you cannot push to the limit and I think basically that's what happened.
"As soon as it matters, people start risking more.
"I just didn't feel comfortable to attack because the car was just very difficult, jumping a lot, losing contact with the tarmac, so not very nice.
"Of course, I went off in the last corner, which also didn't help, so all in all quite disappointing.”
The Dutchman's team-mate was similarly disheartened despite producing his best qualifying performance since the Belgian Grand Prix.
Perez has historically flourished in Baku and is the only driver on the grid who has won multiple times at this circuit.
While the Mexican has the opportunity to add to the 100 points he has already accumulated in Azerbaijan, he acknowledged the enormity of the task of toppling the two Ferraris.
"First of all, I'm a bit disappointed because I felt like P2 on a perfect lap should have been possible," Perez explained.
"I had a scrappy sector two where I probably missed a tenth, a tenth and a half. It's probably the same for everyone though.
"Ferrari were in another league, but I think a further lap would’ve been good. We'll see tomorrow.
"We are very different to everyone else, so we'll see what we are able to do come tomorrow and see what we are able to achieve.
"I think definitely on the first stint I should be strong.
"It will be down to the amount of progress I’m able to make, and then from then on just head down, and hopefully we are able to be as strong in the race.
"That will be very important.”
Chris Sale pitched six strong innings to become the first 17-game winner in the majors and Matt Olson drove in four runs to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 10-1 rout of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night.
Sale (17-3), who hasn't been charged with a loss since June 27, became the first player in Braves franchise history to allow no more than two earned runs in 17 straight starts, passing Hall of Famer Greg Maddux's previous record of 16 starts. He also surpassed Padres starter Dylan Cease for most strikeouts in the NL this season with 219.
Atlanta is now a season-high 14 games over .500 and pulled even with the Mets for the final NL wild-card spot. New York lost to the Phillies 6-4 on Saturday night.
Shohei Ohtani went 0 for 2 with a walk and has stalled in his quest to be the first player in MLB history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season, going 0 for 6 in his last two games since hitting his major league-best 47th home run on Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs.
Atlanta scored six runs in the sixth inning, which featured Olson's bases-loaded double and RBIs from Whit Merrifield and Michael Harris II.
Harper’s blasts rally Phillies
Bryce Harper homered twice, Cal Stevenson hit a two-run, go-ahead double in the seventh and made a run-saving, highlight-reel catch in the eighth and the Philadelphia Phillies rallied to cool off the New York Mets with a 6-4 victory.
J.T. Realmuto added an RBI double for the Phillies, who have won 10 of 13 and lead the Mets by eight games in the division. The teams will wrap up the three-game series on Sunday afternoon before the Mets host the Phillies for four games from Sept. 19-22.
Starling Marte singled, tripled and drove in three runs and Luisangel Acuña had a pair of singles in his major-league debut for the Mets, who lost for just the third time in the last 15 games. New York dropped into a tie with Atlanta for the final wild card spot in the National League.
With the Phillies trailing 4-0, Harper launched the first of his two drives off starter Luis Severino with one out in the fourth, a 397-foot opposite-field drive off an 85-mph changeup. He pulled Philadelphia within 4-3 in the sixth with a two-run shot off an 87-mph slider that came on a 3-2 count. The two-time NL MVP, who hadn't homered since Aug. 9, has 28 home runs on the year.
Philadelphia went ahead in the seventh. Danny Young surrendered a pair of singles to Bryson Stott and Realmuto to start the frame, with both advancing on Brandon Marsh’s sacrifice bunt.
Reed Garrett relieved and struck out pinch-hitter Weston Wilson before Stevenson clubbed a 3-2, 92-mph cutter to the wall in right to score Stott and Realmuto.
Adames stars as Brewers outslug Diamondbacks
Willy Adames hit a grand slam as part of a two-homer night, Garrett Mitchell added a two-run homer and the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 15-8.
Milwaukee's magic number to win the NL Central is down to 3.
Arizona still has sole possession of the second NL wild-card spot, but is just one game ahead of the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets with 14 games to play.
The Brewers took a 1-0 lead in the first on William Contreras' sacrifice fly that scored Brice Turang, who reached on a leadoff walk. They kept their advantage when Sal Frelick robbed Corbin Carroll of a solo homer, leaping to reach over the fence and make the catch.
Milwaukee scored seven runs in the second inning, all with two outs.
Brandon Pfaadt retired the first two batters of the second before the next seven batters reached base. Turang and Jackson Chourio hit back-to-back RBI singles, Contreras walked to load the bases, Garrett Mitchell walked to force in a run and then Adames launched a sweeper into the left field seats for an 8-0 lead.
Adames had five RBIs, pushing his NL leading total to 107. Mitchell reached base five times, including three walks. Contreras hit a two-run homer in the ninth to make it 15-8.
The San Francisco 49ers placed star running back Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve Saturday, ensuring that he will miss at least the next four games with calf and Achilles injuries.
The move is a shocking departure from the optimism of less than two weeks ago, when McCaffrey was a last-minute scratch for the 49ers’ season-opening win over the New York Jets.
McCaffrey missed the entire pre-season with what was reported as calf soreness. In the regular season, teams are required to submit official injury reports, and McCaffrey’s designation included Achilles tendonitis.
Last year’s rushing champion will miss a minimum of four more games, with the earliest possible return date coming on Oct. 10.
The 49ers face the Minnesota Vikings, Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals over their next four, but there is no guarantee that McCaffrey will return when first eligible.
San Francisco ruled McCaffrey out for Sunday’s game in Minnesota on Friday, with head coach Kyle Shanahan publicly acknowledging for the first time that the 2023 Offensive Player of the Year could end up on IR.
“Yesterday was his worst day,” Shanahan told reporters. “It's on and off, but with yesterday having the most pain. It's something we're going to be discussing together in the next 24 hours.”
The loss is a massive one for the reigning NFC champions, who went 12-5 in McCaffrey’s first full season with the team last year.
With Elijah Mitchell already placed on IR before the start of the season, the only trusted running back on San Francisco’s roster is Jordan Mason, who ran the ball 28 times for 147 yards and a touchdown.
McCaffrey’s extended absence could also result in Deebo Samuel getting more snaps at running back, a look that was more common before the 49ers traded for McCaffrey during the 2022 season.
This is McCaffrey’s first IR stint since joining the 49ers. The Stanford product played a combined 10 games in the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to ankle and hamstring injuries.
McCaffrey led the NFL with 2,023 yards from scrimmage last season and tied with Raheem Mostert for the league lead at 21 touchdowns.
Novak Djokovic marked his return to action with a dominant 6-0 6-1 victory over Greece's Ioannis Xilas to put Serbia in control of the Davis Cup tie.
The 24-time major winner was playing his first match since his US Open third-round defeat by Alexei Popyrin at Flushing Meadows a fortnight ago.
And Djokovic, who helped his nation win the Davis Cup in 2010, looked close to his best as he dropped just a single game, while converting five of the seven break points he forced.
Wrapping up a dominant victory in just 45 minutes, he put Serbia 2-0 to the good in the World Group I tie.
Elsewhere in that group, Casper Ruud helped Norway wrap up a 3-1 win over Portugal.
The three-time major finalist, who put his nation 2-1 to the good alongside Viktor Durasovic in the doubles rubber, was a 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 victor over Jaime Faria in their singles clash.
Later in the day, Argentina booked their place in the final eight after Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni saw off Finland in the doubles decider.
Pierre Gasly has been disqualified from the results of qualifying at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as stewards deemed his Alpine car over the fuel flow limit.
Gasly was eliminated in the second qualifying session, after posting a time which was good enough for 13th, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg of Haas and Lance Stroll of Aston Martin.
However, shortly after the session's end, stewards summoned Alpine and Gasly over a possible breach of Article 5.2.3 of the FIA Formula One Technical Regulations, which covers fuel mass flow.
This punishment means Gasly will start Sunday's race at the back of the grid alongside Sauber's Zhou Guanyou, who also suffered a penalty this weekend, as the Chinese driver had exceeded the allowance of power unit components.
Gasly's teammate, Esteban Ocon, will start the race just ahead of both in 18th, with the opportunity of Alpine gaining points in Baku this weekend looking very slim.
This is the fourth time a driver has been disqualified from qualifying results in 2024, with Gasly following Willliams' Alex Albon and the Haas duo of Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc is the Azerbaijan Grand Prix pole-sitter for the fourth year in a row after a stunning showing on the streets of Baku.
Leclerc, who emerged victorious in Monza last time out, is in a good position to close the gap to both Lando Norris and Max Verstappen in the drivers' championship.
Norris will need an unlikely turn of events to close his 62-point gap to the Dutchman as he encountered yellow flags on his final lap in the first session and will start Sunday's race in 17th.
Verstappen, meanwhile, will start in sixth after being outqualified by team-mate Sergio Perez, who finished fourth, with Mercedes' George Russell sandwiched in between.
Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso came next, with Williams producing an excellent display with drives from Franco Colapinto and Alex Albon to complete the top 10.
Leclerc's performance saw him record the best pole streak for a Ferrari driver in a Grand Prix since Michael Schumacher in Spain from 2000 to 2004 (five).
Speaking after qualifying, the Monegasque was confident about his chances of becoming the first driver since Felipe Massa to achieve consecutive victories on at least two occasions.
“It’s one of my favourite tracks of the season, I really like it, it hasn’t been an easy weekend because of the crash in FP1," Leclerc said.
"It didn’t make me lose confidence as I knew that the pace was there, but you’ve got to be back up to speed.
“In Q3 and qualifying it was all about trying to stay as far as possible from the walls and on the last lap I went for it a bit more and the lap time came very nicely.
“The car felt really good and everything felt great, so it’s amazing to be on pole."
Norris was on course to make it through into the second session comfortably but a yellow flag as he approached the final straight saw his flying lap ruined.
“The lap was easily good enough, but there was a yellow flag so I had to back off," Norris said.
“Following is pretty much impossible around here and overtaking is a lot worse than everyone thinks.
“I am not expecting much from 17th, but we will put in a good plan tonight and do our best of course.
"I have been wrong, and I hope there are plenty of chances, but I’m not expecting so.”
But when asked, McLaren team-mate Piastri was confident that the team have the pace to score some big points in the race for the constructors' championship.
"I think from where we are starting, yes," Piastri said.
But following around here is really tough, we saw yesterday, it was pretty tough once you get behind someone, hopefully get some clean air, which will be good.
"We'll see what we can do. I think our race pace is good, but again, the Ferraris are certainly not slow.
Qualifying results
1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
2. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
4. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
5. George Russell (Mercedes)
6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
7. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
8. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
9. Franco Colapinto (Williams)
10. Alex Albon (Williams)
The Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia Grange, has said that Sheldon Clarke former student of Munro College, deserves hearty congratulations and best wishes for his history making advance to the National Football League's International Player Pathway (NFL-IPP) Combine in the United Kingdom.
The NFL International Player Pathway programme offers the opportunity for athletes to bridge the gap between their current skills and the demands of professional American football.
The Combine is scheduled for October 10-12, 2024.
If successful at the Combine, Clarke who is 21, could earn a place in a training programme designed to prepare international athletes for the rigours of the NFL.
Minister Grange said, “This selection is not just a personal triumph for Sheldon, but an inspiration for every young athlete in Jamaica who aspires to play American football."
At the Combine, he will undergo rigorous physical tests, skill evaluations, and interviews with NFL personnel.
The San Francisco 49ers are considering placing star running back Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve as he continues to battle calf and Achilles issues.
McCaffrey missed the Niners' season-opening victory over the New York Jets on Monday, having struggled with soreness in his right calf and tendinitis in his Achilles.
On Thursday, head coach Kyle Shanahan ruled McCaffrey out of the team's Week 2 trip to face the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, and conversations are now taking place about placing him on the injured reserve list.
If they do so, he will have to sit out at least four more games, leaving San Francisco without one of their foremost offensive weapons for a significant period of the season.
"It's something we're considering now," Shanahan told reporters. "Yesterday was his worst day.
"It's on and off, but with yesterday having the most pain. It's something we're going to be discussing together in the next 24 hours."
McCaffrey won the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year award for 2023 after helping San Francisco reach Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, where they suffered a dramatic overtime defeat against the Kansas City Chiefs.
He led the NFL in rushing with 1,459 yards with 14 touchdowns in his first full season with the 49ers, having arrived in a blockbuster trade from the Carolina Panthers in 2022.
McCaffrey admitted his injury problems were causing him plenty of frustration earlier this week, telling reporters: "My mindset every week is that I'm going to play.
"There's been weeks when I'll go the full week, not even feeling good enough to do the walk-through, and then I wake up and the body's capable of a lot of cool things.
"Mentally, I'm always prepared to play, and then I woke up and it was a group decision, a very tough one.
"I hate not playing, but I look at it as a chess move and something that hopefully you can benefit from the rest of the season."
Tiger Woods has undergone surgery to address the back spasms and pain that hampered him throughout 2024.
Woods has struggled for fitness throughout the last few years, having suffered serious leg injuries in a car crash in 2021.
He appeared at all four majors this year but missed the cut at three of those events, also finishing 60th at the Masters, while illness forced him to withdraw from the Genesis Invitational in February.
The 15-time major champion has also undergone several surgeries on his back throughout the last decade, and he revealed on Friday that another procedure was required to rectify issues that plagued him this season.
"Earlier this morning Tiger underwent micro decompression surgery of the lumbar spine for nerve impingement in the lower back," read a statement posted to Woods' X account.
"Dr Sheeraz Qureshi of Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach performed the surgery and deemed it successful."
Woods added: "The surgery went smoothly, and I'm hopeful this will help alleviate the back spasms and pain I was experiencing throughout most of the 2024 season.
"I look forward to tackling this rehab and preparing myself to get back to normal activities, including golf."
Gunnar Henderson tripled with two outs in the ninth inning to break up the Tigers’ combined no-hit bid and Detroit held on for a 1-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night.
Beau Brieske and Brant Hurter combined to retire Baltimore’s first 21 batters before Adley Rutschman’s eight-pitch walk leading off the eighth.
Brenan Hanifee retired the next three batters and Tyler Holton relieved to start the ninth.
Emmanuel Rivera flied out and pinch-hitter Coby Mayo took a called third strike before Henderson pulled a first-pitch sweeper into the right-field corner for the Orioles’ second baserunner.
Henderson became just the second batter to end a no-hit bid with a two-out triple in the ninth, joining the St. Louis Cardinals' Bernard Gilkey against the Chicago Cubs' Frank Castillo on Sept. 25, 1995.
Holton then struck out Anthony Santander to remain perfect in eight save chances.
Kerry Carpenter homered on the third pitch of the game from Zach Eflin, who allowed five hits in 6 2/3 innings.
The Tigers have won five of six to pull within 2 ½ games of Minnesota for the final AL wild card.
Brieske was planned to start as an opener and retired four batters while throwing 11 of 16 pitches for strikes.
Hurter struck out eight in 5 2/3 innings while throwing 53 of 71 pitches for strikes. He started 17 of 18 batters with strikes, including his first 14.
Hanifee relieved after Rutschman’s walk and got a pair of strikeouts around a forceout.
Judge ends homer drought with slam
Aaron Judge ended the longest home run drought of his career with a go-ahead grand slam to lift the New York Yankees to a 5-4 win over the Boston Red Sox.
The star slugger had gone 16 games and 75 plate appearances without a longball before launching a clutch drive into the lower left-field seats off reliever Cam Booser in the seventh inning to give the AL East leaders a 5-4 advantage.
Judge's eighth career slam and second this season sent the Yankee Stadium crowd of 45,292 into a frenzy, and he came out of the dugout for a curtain call.
It was the 52nd homer of the season for Judge, who also leads the majors with 130 RBIs. He hadn't gone deep since Aug. 25, when he homered twice against Colorado.
New York moved three games ahead of Baltimore for the AL East lead, its largest cushion since it led by 3 ½ games before a June 15 defeat at Boston that started a 4-14 slide.
Mark Leiter Jr. got four outs in relief of starter Clarke Schmidt for the win. Luke Weaver struck out five in two scoreless innings for his second career save.
Mets use homers to rout Phillies
Francisco Alvarez, Brandon Nimmo and Harrison Bader hit three-run homers, Jose Quintana allowed three hits in seven shutout innings and the New York Mets routed the Philadelphia Phillies 11-3 for their 12th win in 14 games.
Alvarez and Nimmo homered in a three-run fifth inning off Aaron Nola, Alvarez's second three-run homer in a span of three at-bats.
Bader homered in the eighth against Tyler Gilbert and Pete Alonso went deep in the ninth off infielder Kody Clemens. It was the first big league homer allowed in 12 career pitching appearances by Clemens. His father, seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens, gave up 363 in 24 seasons.
New York All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor had an RBI double and left in the middle of the seventh because of lower back soreness. Manager Carlos Mendoza said it was precautionary and Lindor likely would've stayed in the game had the score been closer.
Philadelphia leads the NL East by seven games over New York, which remained one game ahead of Atlanta for the last wild card. The series opener began a stretch of seven games in 10 days between the rivals.
Caitlin Clark set the WNBA single-season record for assists with 320 in the Indiana Fever's 78-74 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Friday night.
Clark scored all 18 of her points in the second half and finished with nine assists and eight rebounds. The rookie broke the mark of 316 set last season by Alyssa Thomas of the Connecticut Sun.
Clark was scoreless on 0 for 5 shooting in the first half and picked up her third foul when she was called for a charge late in the second quarter as the Aces took a 43-35 lead into the break. She scored 14 points in the third quarter to help the Fever trim a 13-point deficit to 60-57 heading into the fourth quarter.
Clark has continued to make history throughout her first year in the WNBA, surpassing the single-season three-point record among rookies on Aug. 28. She also dished out 19 assists in a loss to the Dallas Wings in July, setting a single-game record.
Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel has said the team will bring in another quarterback in the absence of Tua Tagovailoa.
Tagovailoa suffered a concussion in Thursday's 31-10 loss to the Buffalo Bulls in the third quarter, the third of his career with all of them occurring in the past 24 months.
The 26-year-old was 17-for-25 passing for 145 yards against the Bills, with one touchdown and three interceptions, one of which was returned for a Buffalo score, before he got hurt.
Until they can bring in a new recruit, Skylar Thompson will be considered the Dolphins' starter, and McDaniel believes he can perform well in the absence of his main man.
He said: "The team and the organisation are very confident in Skylar."
McDaniel was unsure about whether to place Tagovailoa on injured reserve, suggesting his chances of featuring in their next match against the Seattle Seahawks on September 22nd were very slim.
"I have no idea, and I'm not going to all of a sudden start making decisions that I don't even see myself involved in the most important parts of!" McDaniel said.
"There won't be any talk about where we're going in that regard, none of that will happen without doctors' expertise and the actual player."
Thompson feels ready to step up in Tagovailoa's absence and be an important member of the side for the foreseeable future.
He said: "I feel like I'm ready for whatever's to come. I'm going to prepare and work hard and do everything I can to lead this team and do my job."
Rafael Nadal says he cannot commit himself to future tournaments after his withdrawal from the Laver Cup.
Nadal shared news on Thursday that he would not make an appearance at the annual event in Berlin, stating that it would not be in the best interests of Team Europe if he were to participate.
The Spaniard was last in action playing doubles at the Paris Olympics with Carlos Alcaraz, and while he says he is in a good space mentally, he was not able to confirm when he would next make a professional appearance on a tennis court.
He said: "Mentally, I’m good, no problems. I'm at home enjoying other things, training as much as I can every day.
"No drama, obviously these are decisions [the Laver Cup withdrawal] that are being made, and this was a possibility - it's been a while without competing. There will be someone else who can do better.
"Right now I’m not in a position to put myself down for anything.
"I said [I would play] until the Olympics and then we would see, and I'm in that period of rest."
Nadal has endured a difficult 2024 so far, playing just 21 competitive singles matches with a record of 13-8.
He has only one grand slam victory to his name this year, beating Jack Draper in the Australian Open, but he lost in the first round of the French Open to eventual finalist Alexander Zverev.
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