The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Amirul riding high – thanks to dad’s drive
- Nick Watney starts the race for US$10mil FedExCup prize in pole position
- Ruslan and Povetkin square off for the chance to fight Klitschko
| Amirul riding high – thanks to dad’s drive Posted: 25 Aug 2011 06:52 PM PDT PETALING JAYA: There is an adage saying that champions are not born, but are made. From the tender age of five, Amirul Hafiq Azmi has been exposed to motorcycle racing by his father, Azmi Yaacob when he bought him his first minibike. Every weekend, without fail, Azmi would bring Amirul to the Speedway Plus track in Subang to let his son practise on the bike. Just a year after getting his first minibike, Amirul won his first race and was soon sponsored by Comma Motorsports to participate in the Malaysian Minibike Championship. He went on to finish third in the championship in 2008. • Full story in StarSport today. • If you have a similar story to share e-mail us at |
| Nick Watney starts the race for US$10mil FedExCup prize in pole position Posted: 25 Aug 2011 06:51 PM PDT EDISON (New Jersey): Nick Watney starts the race for the US$10mil FedExCup playoffs prize from the pole position as overall points leader heading into today's opening round of The Barclays at Plainfield Country Club. Lurking just off the pace are heavyweights, including world number one Luke Donald, number three Steve Stricker and the world's sixth–ranked Phil Mickelson among the 123–man field. Watney, twice a winner this year on the PGA Tour, begins the four–event, season–ending series with an edge, but the 30–year–old Californian knows how quick things can change. "Pole position is a good analogy, because you have to play well to stay there," Watney said. "It's nice to start there, but obviously a lot can happen." Just two years ago, unheralded American Heath Slocum crept into a 125–man field as the 124th–ranked player but edged Tiger Woods on the final hole for The Barclays victory and catapulted to third in the standings. The top 100 players in the points list qualify for next week's Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston, with the leading 70 there reaching the BMW Championship. The top 30 qualify for the Tour Championship finale. The overall points winner pockets the eight–figure bonus. Mickelson, winner of four Majors, views the FedExCup crown as something special after calling his 2009 Tour Championship victory one of his better wins that year. "But it wasn't enough to win the FedExCup," lamented Mickelson, who finished behind Woods in the playoffs. "It would be pretty cool to be able to do that. I have not done that yet and I would like to." Winning The Barclays would be a great first step, but will require mastering a course the features fast, sloping greens, tree-lined fairways, heavy rough and a reachable par–four 18th that could produce high–drama at the finish. "It will be real exciting," Watney said about the uphill hole. "A guy leading by one shot, a lot can happen. If he hits a poor shot, he can lose a tournament outright." Mickelson, known to go for broke on the golf course, predictably raved about the finishing hole. "It's terrific," the big left-hander said. "If I ask anybody to think of your favourite hole, it's (usually) either a par-three under 150 yards or a drivable par-four, occasionally a reachable par-five." Last week's winner of the Wyndham Championship, Webb Simpson, said the opportunity to post an eagle at the last hole would increase the tension. "When you're two back coming to the last hole, you're certainly not out of it," he said. – Reuters |
| Ruslan and Povetkin square off for the chance to fight Klitschko Posted: 25 Aug 2011 06:49 PM PDT BERLIN: Heavyweights Ruslan Chagaev (pic) and Alexander Povetkin square–off in Erfurt, Germany, tomorrow with the WBA world title up for grabs and the chance to fight undisputed champion Wladimir Klitschko. Klitschko earned a unanimous decision over Britain's David Haye in Hamburg at the start of July to add Haye's WBA belt to his IBF and WBO crowns. After his victory over 12 rounds, the WBA promoted him to super champion status, meaning the belt is now vacant and whoever wins at Erfurt's Messehalle will have a chance to challenge Klitschko for the Ukrainian's belts. "Saturday is finally the moment for which I have been waiting so long, I want to fulfill my dream of winning a world title," said Russia's Povetkin, the 2004 Olympic heavyweight champion, who is unbeaten from 21 fights with 15 knockouts. "Ruslan is a strong-willed athlete who never gives up, he has a real warrior spirit." This is a curious bout between two boxers who have struggled with injuries in recent years. Chagaev, 32, won the WBA heavyweight title in Stuttgart in April 2007 when he beat Russian giant Nikolai Valuev with a majority decision. But a torn achilles tendon injury in 2008 saw him lose the belt before he lost a title fight to Klitschko in Gelsenkirchen in June 2009 after retiring in the ninth round. "I've been waiting for a second chance to win the title and it is imperative that I use it," said Chagaev, who hails from from Uzbekistan. Povetkin, 31, has twice lost the chance to fit Klitschko: the first time he missed out with an ankle injury, the second time he did not sign the final contract. "It was not about money at that time, both sides could not agree on the details of the contract," the Russian said. "But for now only the fight against Ruslan counts." Unusually, neither fighter opted to take Wednesday's final press conference into a war of words with an air of respect between the pair. "We will only duel on Saturday," said Chagaev, who has 17 knock-outs from 27 victories with just the one defeat. – AFP |
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