Colton Herta became the first two-time pole winner this season in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, earning the NTT P1 Award for the Honda Indy Toronto on Saturday.
Herta’s top time was 59.2698 seconds on his last flying lap in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda, as he added this pole to his No. 1 spot at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in April. The first nine races of this season featured a different pole winner, and Herta was happy to spoil a chance for the INDYCAR SERIES to tie a record of 10 different pole winners to start a season set in 1952.
“That was an intense session,” Herta said. “We hadn’t really found that time until right at the end. I was really happy with that lap. It all kind of came together. The car was working brilliantly. You don’t see that usually, guys going faster on the used reds (alternate Firestone tires) instead of the new. Something to think about for tomorrow, but I’m happy with my Gainbridge Honda.”
The 85-lap race is scheduled for Sunday. Live, exclusive coverage of the race starts at 3 p.m. (ET) on Peacock Premium – with limited commercial interruptions – and the INDYCAR Radio Network. Both outlets also will cover live the morning warmup session at 10:55 a.m.
Six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon will join Herta – who also led the morning practice – on the front row after a best qualifying lap of 59.3592 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. It was the best non-oval qualifying performance this season for Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge pole winner Dixon, whose previous best road/street qualifying effort was fifth at the last race, The Honda Indy 200 on July 3 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
Two-time series champion Josef Newgarden, who leads the series this season with three wins, qualified third at 59.5257 in the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet. He will share Row 2 with Alexander Rossi, who qualified fourth at 59.5544 in the No. 27 NAPA AUTO PARTS/AutoNation Honda.
David Malukas was the top-qualifying rookie with a career-best starting spot of fifth after a lap of 59.6140 in the No. 18 HMD Honda. Scott McLaughlin rounded out the Firestone Fast Six at 59.9558 in the No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet.
NTT P1 Award qualifying provided a mixed bag of results for contenders for the Astor Challenge Cup as series champion on the 11-turn, 1.786-mile temporary circuit on the streets of Exhibition Place in Canada’s largest city.
Points leader and 2021 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Marcus Ericsson qualified ninth in the No. 8 Huski Chocolate Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
Ericsson’s closest pursuer, 2014 series champion Will Power, endured a third consecutive event with a frustrating qualifying result. He will start 16th in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet after his final hot lap in the first qualifying session was halted when Kyle Kirkwood crashed his No. 14 Sexton Properties Chevrolet in Turn 8, triggering a red flag and ending the group’s session.
Power has qualified 15th or lower in the last three road course races on the schedule yet has rallied to finish first and third in two of them, at Belle Isle and Mid-Ohio, respectively.
“I should know that you must stay in the top six every time because this can happen,” Power said of losing his lap to Kirkwood’s incident. “I had a really fast car again. It is crazy. That’s three races in a row we’ve been like P2 in practice before qualifying and then between 15th and 19th. Frustrating, man. Frustrating. I got to Turn 6 and was up four-tenths. That would have got us through.”
Newgarden, third in points, is in good shape to possibly gain ground on Ericsson and Power with the third starting spot Sunday.
But the next two drivers in the standings, fourth-place Alex Palou and fifth-place Pato O’Ward, have a lot of work to do.
Reigning series champion Palou slowed on track and stopped in his qualifying group in the first session and will start 22nd in the 25-car field in the No. 10 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. O’Ward clipped the wall with his No. 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet during his first group, didn’t advance and will start 15th.
There was bright spot for the enthusiastic crowd of Canadian fans, back in droves under sunny skies after this event was put on hold in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Toronto area native and series rookie Devlin DeFrancesco qualified a career-best 12th in the No. 29 PowerTap Honda.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
