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| England holding the aces after Alastair Cook wins game of patience A hot wind blew in from the north, a portent, the locals say, of gloom and doom for the bowlers. And apart from two wickets in the first session, which raised their hopes briefly, this was a day of unrelenting, morale-sapping toil for South Africa, England closing with a lead of 43, their noses well and truly in front. feeds.timesonline.co.uk |
Briatore's life ban overturned by court • Pat Symonds' five-year ban also quashed• FIA lawyers say they are likely to appealThe former Renault principal Flavio Briatore had his life ban from Formula One overturned today when a French court ruled that the punishment was illegally imposed by the sport's governing body.The Italian was banned in September by the FIA for a plot to rig the outcome of the 2008 Singapore grand prix by staging a deliberate crash. "The court ruled the sanction was illegal," said a judge at the Tribunal de Grande Instance.Briatore had also sought damages of €1m (ÂŁ899,956) as well as demanding the sentence be lifted but was awarded €15,000 in compensation. "It is almost exactly what we had asked for, this is obviously an exceptional outcome for Mr Briatore," his lawyer, Philippe Ouakrat, said.He did not know whether Briatore, who did not attend the hearing, would try to return to the sport where he won championships with Benetton and Renault in a career spanning more than two decades."Mr Briatore wanted to be free to do what he wants and he did not want an outrageous sanction taken in his absence [to be imposed] and without being able to defend himself," said Ouakrat.The FIA's lawyer, Jean-François Prat, said the FIA would "very likely" appeal the decision. He declined to make any further comment.The Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet Jr triggered Formula One's biggest scandal when he was dropped by Renault in July and then told the FIA that he had been ordered to crash deliberately at the 2008 Singapore grand prix.He said he had done so to bring out the safety car and help his Spanish team-mate, Fernando Alonso, the double world champion who has now joined Ferrari, win the race. Alonso has been cleared of any knowledge of the plan.Renault were handed a suspended ban while the engineering head, Pat Symonds, who left the team at the same time as Briatore, was banned for five years. The court overturned Symonds' sentence, too, and awarded him €5,000.Briatore had launched his legal case in October, claiming he had not been given the right to a free and fair defence to the charges. The Italian had highlighted his strained relationship with the former FIA president Max Mosley and described the FIA procedure as a "sham hearing".The court upheld Briatore's complaint in a written statement: "The decision was taken while the [motor sport] council was chaired by [Mosley], who had notoriously come into conflict with Mr Briatore," it said. "Mr Mosley played a key role in launching [both] the inquiry and the legal process, violating the principle of a separation of the bodies that are responsible for the investigation and for the judgment."The panel of three judges noted Briatore had been summoned via an email only three days before the FIA hearing, had not been told why he had been charged and that the governing body had not sent him any document regarding the scandal.Today's ruling had ramifications beyond Formula One, with Briatore also the co-owner of Queens Park Rangers. Had the ban been upheld, Briatore could have been forced out of the Championship club under league rules aimed at ensuring ownership is in the hands of fit and proper persons. ReutersFlavio BriatoreFormula OneRenaultMotor sportguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Hatton to return for 'one more fight' • Opponent and date still to be decided• Amir Khan looks the most interesting prospectRicky Hatton, after eight months of agonising but to the surprise of few, has announced he is returning to the ring "for one more fight". He did not name an opponent, date or venue but suggested it would take place "some time in the summer".The options are limited. There is no chance of his returning to the upper echelons against the likes of Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather Jr, the only men to beat him, or flirt with the risk of taking on any of the several rising young stars at or about his 10-stone division."It's got to be a top-10, pound-for-pound fighter or a world champion," he said on HattonTV. "I've fought at such a high level I couldn't have people look at me and say, 'well, he's just fought someone to knock them over.' If I'm going to end my career, I want to end my career at the top."The contest that would generate the most domestic interest, against Bolton's world light-welterweight champion Amir Khan, is also dangerous for the 31-year-old Hatton, whose punch resistance has clearly diminished.Khan last week repeated his willingness to fight Hatton and that seems the logical contest for both of them, if Hatton is not to have a warm-up fight.When Pacquiao brutally knocked out Hatton in round two of their fight in May there seemed little likelihood the former world light-welterweight and welterweight champion would fight again. "It's nice to hear people who say they're worried for your health," he conceded, "but a lot of these people said I shouldn't have fought Kostya Tzsyu [in 2005]."I've listened to the people who are closest to me and know Ricky Hatton best. You don't want your last fight to be like [the knockout by Pacquiao]."Hatton feels he has been able to "really get over it and put my mind straight".He added: "There's been no opponent that's been confirmed yet, there's been no date confirmed yet, but I have made my mind up."Ricky HattonBoxingKevin Mitchellguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
NBA All-Star game at Cowboys Stadium will be a dress rehearsal for Super Bowl With the North Texas Super Bowl a year away, local planners are getting a big-time dress rehearsal when the NBA All-Star game comes to the region on Feb. 14 and plays the same venue — Cowboys Stadium in Arlington. feeds.bizjournals.com |
Bruce blasts 'disrespectful' Liverpool • Manager upset by rumours of striker moving to Anfield • 'I keep reading this nonsense that he's going on loan'The Sunderland manager, Steve Bruce, has attacked Liverpool over their behaviour in the pursuit of Kenwyne Jones. Bruce insisted there has been no contact between the two clubs despite repeated speculation on Merseyside that the Trinidad & Tobago international is to join the Liverpool on loan before making a permanent switch during the summer."I find it hugely disrespectful, the antics of Liverpool," he said. "I have huge respect for Liverpool and the way they have done their business and the way they have conducted themselves. But this constant badgering of Kenwyne Jones when we as a club haven't heard anything, and then I keep reading this nonsense that I'm going to allow him to go on loan because it's a tax advantage for both clubs is the biggest load of rubbish I have read for weeks."As if I'm got to let our big, big player, one of our big, big assets, go on loan - I find it hugely disrespectful and I can't understand where Liverpool are coming from."SunderlandLiverpoolTransfer windowguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |