The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Red Bull to change pit procedure at Monaco GP
- Lisicki taken away on stretcher at French Open
- Butcher Booth determined to hack it in Formula One
| Red Bull to change pit procedure at Monaco GP Posted: 25 May 2011 05:34 PM PDT MONACO (AP) - Red Bull will change its pitstop procedures during Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix amid concerns that rival Ferrari was doing copycat stops during last week's race in Spain. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner claims Ferrari was mimicking Red Bull in Barcelona because it appeared that two-time former F1 champion Fernando Alonso was pitting for Ferrari immediately after Red Bull had called in Mark Webber. "Pitstops are all part of the game, and Ferrari's only way to beat Mark was to cover him in the pitstops," Horner said Wednesday ahead of Thursday's first practice session. "So we've changed our procedure this weekend to ensure we are less transparent." Horner said Red Bull's pit crew gave away signs during the last race that a pitstop was imminent, like "putting their hands in their pockets at the wrong time or somebody was picking a tire up" - and this gave Ferrari an inkling to do likewise. "They obviously saw something we were doing that was giving away when we were going to stop and would call in Fernando," Horner said. "It wasn't coincidence because every time we called Mark in, then Fernando would come down the pit lane, which is quite within the regulations." Defending F1 champion Sebastian Vettel of Germany aims for his fifth win of the season in Monaco. The Red Bull driver already has a commanding 41-point lead over McLaren's Lewis Hamilton. Ferrari has had a tough start, with Alonso securing the team's only podium finish when he finished third at the Turkish Grand Prix in Istanbul. Alonso is fifth overall, but is already 67 points behind Vettel. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| Lisicki taken away on stretcher at French Open Posted: 25 May 2011 05:34 PM PDT PARIS (AP) - Overcome by dizziness and muscle cramps during a 2 1/2-hour match, German qualifier Sabine Lisicki was helped onto a stretcher and taken off Court 1 at the French Open on Wednesday after losing to Vera Zvonareva 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 in the second round. A trainer examined the 21-year-old Lisicki at least twice during third-set changeovers, even wrapping a black gauge around her right arm to check her blood pressure. When the match ended shortly before 9 p.m., Lisicki didn't go shake hands, instead crouching down on court. Zvonareva - the runner-up at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open last year - walked around the net and checked on Lisicki, putting a hand on her shoulder. A sobbing Lisicki then lay down on a towel placed on the red clay, and a trainer massaged her back until the stretcher arrived. As she was carried off, Lisicki covered her face with her left hand. She met with a doctor, and was to get additional medical tests Thursday, the tournament said. "I started cramping at the end of the second set, and this continued in the third," Lisicki said in a statement released by the WTA. "From 4-2 in the third set, I began to feel dizzy and had problems seeing the ball clearly. At no point did I think of retiring, and I kept fighting until the end." Lisicki, a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon in 2009, held serve for a 5-2 lead in the third set and in the next game was one point away from winning the match. But she sent a forehand return long there and never again held a match point, dropping the last five games. After getting broken while serving for the match at 5-3, Lisicki asked to see a trainer. During an extended break, she ate an energy bar and banana and drank liquids; Zvonareva bounced around at the baseline to stay warm, then eventually took some practice serves. When action resumed, the third-seeded Russian won eight of the next nine points to go up 6-5. Across the net, Lisicki began crying. She did keep playing, though, and managed to fend off two match points, including the second with a forehand winner. But Lisicki barely sent a backhand wide at the end of a 22-stroke exchange, then crouched down, nearly taking a seat on the court. On Zvonareva's third match point, a backhand sailed long off Lisicki's racket. "I hope she feels OK. I heard she's feeling OK now. She's seeing a doctor," Zvonareva said. "That's what happens sometimes. It's part of the sport," Zvonareva added. "No matter what, I had to keep doing my job." Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| Butcher Booth determined to hack it in Formula One Posted: 25 May 2011 05:22 PM PDT MONACO: When John Booth (pic) looked back on Virgin Racing's debut last season, the team principal could only wonder what kind of madness had led him to get involved in Formula One. Creating a Grand Prix team from scratch, with limited resources and little time, was no light undertaking. "We massively underestimated the task," the 56-year-old said in an interview ahead of Sunday's showcase Monaco Grand Prix. "Who the hell did we think we were, to build an F1 team from scratch in six months? We must have been crazy, insane to even attempt it." • Full story in The Star today. • If you have a similar story to share e-mail us at |
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