List of All Articles with Tag 'f'

Formula 1 will race at Spa-Francorchamps in 2025 after the Belgian Grand Prix’s contract was extended by a further year. The sport has raced every year at the famous circuit in the Ardennes Forest since 2007, while it was an original track having held a grand prix back in 1950. Max Verstappen won this year’s race. The circuit’s future on the F1 calendar has been in some doubt in recent years due to the unique track layout and an increase in races and interest worldwide, making a spot on the calendar even more prized. But with Spa having undergone refurbishments to maintain its highly-valued status among drivers and fans - including a 10,000-capacity increase at the circuit through the addition of two new grandstands - F1 confirmed on Friday it will stage a race in ‘25. This also likely means that a mooted return to South Africa, at the Kyalami Circuit outside Johannesburg, has been put on the back foot once again. F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said: “Spa is synonymous with Formula 1 having been one of the circuits in our first ever season and is much-loved by fans and drivers alike, so I am delighted to extend our relationship with them until 2025. “The promoter has taken big strides in the last few years to improve the fan experience and infrastructure, and work is ongoing between all the stakeholders with a clear focus on delivering safe and exciting racing.” In July, Dilano van ‘t Hoff was tragically killed during a Formula Regional European Championship at the circuit in wet conditions. This raised questions surrounding the famous Eau Rouge and Kemmel Straight, with F2 driver Anthoine Hubert killed in 2019 in a similar position on the circuit. More to follow... Read More Nicolas Hamilton interview: ‘Lewis has never put a penny into my racing’ The highs and lows of Bernie Ecclestone ‘More teams, less races’: FIA boss outlines aspirations for future of F1

The UFC has hit out at the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) for its statement on Conor McGregor this week, calling the agency’s words ‘false’, ‘garbage’ and ‘trash’. McGregor returned to the Usada testing pool on Sunday (8 October), as he prepares for his first fight since suffering a broken leg in July 2021, when he lost to Dustin Poirier for the second time in a row. However, Usada’s announcement of McGregor’s return to the pool was accompanied by a revelation that the agency would be ending its partnership with the UFC in January. Usada CEO Travis Tygart said the relationship between both parties had become ‘untenable’, and that he could not be sure whether the UFC would honour its stipulations when it comes to McGregor. In order to compete in the UFC, athletes must have been in the Usada pool for six months while returning at least two negative test results and zero positives. The UFC and McGregor hinted earlier this year, however, that Usada might grant the former champion an exemption. Tygart took exception to that suggestion this week. Now, the UFC’s Senior Vice-President of Athlete Health and Performance, Jeff Notitzky, and the promotion’s CBO, Hunter Campbell, have taken aim at Usada over this week’s developments. Campbell said at a press conference on Thursday (12 October): “At no point in time did Jeff, myself, or any other UFC representative, Dana [White, UFC president].... Not a single person ever went to Usada and told them anything other than Conor McGregor would reenter the program when he was healthy. “And in doing so, we would require him to be in the program for six months; there would be no exception to the rule. And what I said to Travis on multiple occasions, including the call on Monday, was there would never be a situation where Conor would fight until he had been in the program for six months, and my words were: ‘I don’t give a s*** if he has 37 clean tests.’ “[Conor has] conducted himself with integrity and honesty. He’s done everything right, and he’s – as you can imagine – very upset at the moment for the way that they’ve sort of used him. And they’ve never done that with any other athlete in history, and I think that’s a really important point. “I’ll say it one last time: What they’ve done to him is disgusting. And for an entity that holds themselves out to have a level of honour and integrity, using him as a media vehicle to advance a fake narrative is disturbing, disgusting, and I think they have some legitimate legal liability that they should be very concerned with. “They use him the way they have because he has allowed them to get a level of media attention that they can’t get on their own. Usada puts some s*** out, no one cares. You connect Conor to it, and all of a sudden it explodes, whether it triggers the algorithms or whatever. And truthfully, that’s why I’m most disappointed about the way that they’ve handled the last 48 hours. They used an athlete as a vehicle to advance a false narrative. I think it’s incredibly unethical – incredibly.” Meanwhile, Novitzky alleged: “The narrative that Usada put out yesterday is false, it’s garbage, trash. I can’t sit up here and come up with enough adjectives [for] what they said and what that’s done to this programme currently.” The UFC also said it would move forward with Drug Free Sport, which works with the NBA, NFL and MLB. The Independent has contacted Usada for comment. Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos. Read More Usada ends UFC partnership over ‘untenable’ Conor McGregor situation When will Conor McGregor return to the UFC? Alexander Volkanovski admits it’s ‘crazy’ to fight Islam Makhachev on short notice Usada ends UFC partnership over ‘untenable’ Conor McGregor situation Alexander Volkanovski admits it’s ‘crazy’ to fight Islam Makhachev on short notice When will Conor McGregor return to the UFC?

Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing said commercial real estate is facing tough times in the

The Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary policy tightening is prompting U.S. banks to slow the flow of credit and

Authorities said the driver of a "suspected smuggling vehicle" attempted to evade police before losing control.

BEIJING China's new bank loans came in softer than expected in September, figures from the central bank showed

By David Lawder MARRAKECH, Morocco World Bank president Ajay Banga on Friday laid out ambitious plans to widen

Republicans are confronting a deepening leadership crisis that has left the House paralyzed with no clear path to elect a new speaker, after an effort to replace Kevin McCarthy following his historic ouster was derailed by entrenched opposition and deep divisions within the party.

Hydrogen projects involving Amazon.com Inc., Exxon Mobil Corp. and Air Products and Chemicals Inc. are among those set

UK antitrust officials have approved Microsoft's planned takeover of Activision Blizzard, the maker of "Call of Duty" and other hit games, greenlighting one of the biggest tech deals of all time.

KARACHI, Pakistan Pakistan's central bank has met an end-September deadline for a forward book target of $4.2 billion

MARRAKESH Inflation in Germany is on a downward trajectory, Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said on Friday on the