Formula One chiefs announce major update to 2026 calendar
Azerbaijan is the 17th race of the 24-race season and all team have been informed of the move. It comes after the Azerbaijan race promoter and government stakeholders formally requested the change of date.
The official update also provided fans with confirmation of the dates of the three pre-season sessions.
Test one will be a private event and will take place at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya between January 26-30.
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The Independent
40 minutes ago
- The Independent
Jannik Sinner breaks his Carlos Alcaraz curse with stunning Wimbledon title
At the end, Jannik Sinner lofted his arms aloft after a victory which must have felt like some time coming. The 23-year-old, in his typical unostentatious manner, crouched down in reflection before heading to his euphoric team in the east stand. Unlike the most devastating of defeats five weeks ago on the red brick of Roland Garros, when three championship points passed in a flash, the Italian had his crowning moment of the season this Sunday evening in south-west London. No longer bewitched by his adversary, Sinner claimed his first win over Carlos Alcaraz in six attempts and 20 months. The world No 1 had finally triumphed against his biggest foe. Despite dropping the first set here, the Italian kept his composure, stopped Alcaraz's three-peat quest and 24-win streak in its tracks and prevailed 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. Of course, for some, it is a result with a bitter taste. It would be remiss not to mention Sinner's three-month doping ban earlier this year, suspiciously timed so he did not miss a major. Some argue, therefore, that Sinner should not even be playing this fortnight in SW19. And they may well be right. But the 'inadvertent contamination' of an anabolic steroid was seen by most as purely accidental. A costly mistake, but one in which Sinner's integrity was rightly not questioned. And so, scalpel-gate or not, Italy has its first Wimbledon champion, male of female. Sinner has his first non-hard court Grand Slam. And tennis has its next generation rivalry, thrust into the present-day, with 23-year-old Sinner the victor in their latest spellbinding duel. 'It's so special, seeing my parents here, my brother, my whole team, it's amazing,' Sinner said, on court, after the presentation ceremony. 'I had a very tough loss in Paris. At the end of the day it doesn't really matter how you win or lose, you have to understand what you did wrong, try and work on that. That's what we did, we accepted the loss. This is one of the reasons I'm holding this trophy here. 'I'm very happy I held my nerves, it's an amazing feeling. I never thought I'd be in this position, this was a dream of mine when I was young, I'm just living my dream.' Sinner stated beforehand that he wasn't sure whether a replication of their French Open epic was possible. 'We'll do our best,' he chuckled. Regardless, the sense of anticipation, of expectation, was tangible as the clock ticked past 4:10pm on a sun-drenched Centre Court. A slightly delayed start made the occasion all the more suspenseful; save for a plane overhead, you could hear a pin drop amongst 15,000 captivated onlookers. Yet that early serenity in the stands was contrasted with the adrenaline-fueled athletes on-court. If a statistic was needed to illustrate this, in just the third game of the match, Alcaraz thumped down the biggest serve of his career at 139mph. He'd later beat it by clocking 140mph. Sinner drew first blood as Alcaraz went astray with his groundstrokes in the fifth game. It's not an uncommon sight: the spectacular Spaniard often needs a wake-up call, a dip in quality, to spark into life. And indeed it transpired here. The defending champion kicked supremely into full throttle, reeling off four games in a row with an initial break back – winning a hard-hitting 18-shot really in the process – before a raucous final game of the opener. Serving to stay in it, the Italian was forced out of his comfort zone, unable to react to Alcaraz's dazzling variety. A slip at the back of the court from the world No 1 presented a set point chance, which Alcaraz took in remarkable fashion. Sinner was sent out wide and ripped forehand down the line for what, against anyone else on tour, would have been a clean winner. But Alcaraz, incomprehensibly, stretched and scooped a backhand back into the open court, with Sinner nowhere to be seen. In a fashion he has now trademarked, Alcaraz raised his finger to his ear, forever a showman. Centre Court wasn't mute anymore. The touchpaper had been lit. Yet for his brilliance, Alcaraz has a tendency to fluctuate sporadically. The Spaniard was playing catch-up at the start of the second, throwing in a shocker of an opening game, but was evidently making Sinner – usually a cool-headed, methodical monster of a player – double guess his every move. In fact, it's highly unusual for the Italian to show emotion, but he did so within an hour here. Hands-on-hips after a routine backhand pass went wide, he then shouted 'let's go!', in English no less, after saving a break point. He repeated the war cry, after a brief pause for a champagne cork shooting onto court, when holding serve a few games later. The set then swiftly moved to 5-4, Sinner serving to level the match, when the Italian produced his own range of fireworks. By this point, the exchanges were of an extraordinary nature, and the world No 1 produced four sensational winners to seal the set: a backhand crosscourt winner, repeating the trick a point later, crisply finding the line with a forehand winner before sealing it with a stunning forehand cross-court angle, on-the-run again. Sinner simply stopped, fist raised, in an intense fixation at his coach Darren Cahill in his player box. This was the Italian remaining all who surveyed that he was also capable of spellbinding artistry on this stage. The conclusions to the first two sets were a perfect snapshot of the stratospheric level required to win the biggest points between these two. As somewhat expected, it was turning into an instant classic. Best-of-three from here on in, both swatted away chances against their serve with stunning efficiency. Alcaraz saved two break points in his opening game, while Sinner wooed the arena with a tweener volley at the net. On the grandest stage in tennis, it was circus stuff. Yet much like the second, Sinner edged ahead. Finding his range peerlessly, Sinner carved out break point at 4-3 with a sweetly struck forehand. Alcaraz, having spent nearly five more hours on court this tournament than his opponent, suddenly looked a smidge weary and Sinner sealed the break as the Spaniard slipped out wide. The Italian held, comfortably, his constant depth overpowering the defending champion, and was a set away from victory. Alcaraz said to his team, in Spanish: 'He is playing much better than me.' Sinner was flying now, grasping control of the rallies, and crisply claimed an early break in the fourth with two razor-sharp backhands down the line. But could Alcaraz, like Paris last month, somehow claw back victory from the jaws of defeat? No sequel on that front. 'Finish him Jannik', one overzealous punter roared. Sinner saved two break points at 4-3 and soon, a mirror image scenario from Roland Garros was at play. A game from victory, Sinner could see the finish line ahead. With three hours on the clock, he was serving for the title at 5-4. In Paris, he was broken to love. But in London, on match point No 2, a final thunderous serve down the T sealed it. And Sinner, finally, could put to bed his Alcaraz curse.
The Guardian
44 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Jannik Sinner roars back to beat Carlos Alcaraz for first Wimbledon final win
For most tennis players in the distinguished history of this sport, a defeat as excruciating as Jannik Sinner's loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the French Open final would have taken years to recover from. In Sinner's case, it simply made him stronger. One month on from the toughest loss of his life, Sinner entered the Spaniard's territory and turned the tables at the earliest possible opportunity, demonstrating his resilience in full flight as he recovered from a set down to win his first Wimbledon title with a spectacular performance, toppling the two-time defending champion 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 6-4. With his fourth career grand slam title, Sinner is the first Italian player to win a Wimbledon title and he breaks his overall tie with an assortment of famous names, including Arthur Ashe, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka. Perhaps most important, he ends his great rival's run of five consecutive wins against him, adding a new dimension to a rivalry that seems set to decide the majority of major titles in the near future. In their own personal grand slam race, which still feels like it has only just begun, Sinner victory ensures that Alcaraz, who owns five major titles, remains within touching distance. This is also Sinner's first slam title away from hard courts, after two victories at the Australian Open and last year's US Open title. A month ago, a shell-shocked Sinner stared blankly into space from his seat on Court Philippe-Chatrier while Alcaraz celebrated his triumph in their French Open final with his family in the stands. He held three championship points, the match on his racket, before losing one of the greatest finals in history. Sinner entered Centre Court on Sunday afternoon having lost his last five matches against Alcaraz. It is a reflection of the Italian's tenacity, resilience and mental strength that he has found his path again so quickly. This final also showcased Sinner's toughness in full. Despite how he frustratingly ended the first set, conceding four games in a row, he just kept on moving forward. Sinner saved his best for the decisive moments, serving brilliantly under pressure in the essential third set and, unlike in Paris when his arm stiffened under pressure, Sinner maintained his relentless aggression until the end, smothering the Spaniard with his constant pressure. Deep in the fourth set, as he faltered, this time Sinner held on. It had not started well for Sinner. After establishing a 4-2 lead by pinning Alcaraz behind the baseline with his destructive aggression off both wings, Sinner watched his lead evaporate as Alcaraz reeled off four consecutive games to take the set, closing it off with a sickening angled backhand slice winner at the very end of his range. Minutes after demonstrating the stratospheric heights his game can reach, however, Alcaraz showed how quickly his level can drop. An unfocused start to set two immediately left him trailing 0-40 and he eventually lost his serve. While his opponent's level wavered, Sinner regained his rhythm on serve, which had faltered at the end of the first set, then he calmly continued to put Alcaraz under pressure on every point with his relentless aggression off both wings while displaying an unusual amount of emotion throughout. Just as the Spaniard ended the opening set with an exclamation mark, the Italian closed off the second at 6-4 with two outlandish running forehand winners, showing his own combination of devastating ball-striking and athleticism in full flow. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion At one set all, with everything to play for, both players held on to their serves until deep into the set, fearlessly attacking behind their deliveries. The set would be decided by their serving under pressure. While Sinner saved some of his best serving for key moments, following up a searing 117mph second serve ace at 3-4, 30-30 with another service winner to hold, Alcaraz faltered. The Spaniard paid for his missed first serve at the end of the subsequent game as Sinner fearlessly connected with two brilliant second-serve returns, snatching the decisive break of the set. The last time Sinner led two sets to one, all hell broke loose. As was the case in Paris, Sinner maintained his momentum early in the set as he established an early break lead. At 4-3 on Sinner's serve, however, the Italian finally felt the pressure of the moment as a series of unforced errors sent him down two break points on his serve. This time, he refused to let Alcaraz back in, digging himself out of a difficult hole and into the history books with the brand of bold, destructive shotmaking that marked him as the best player in the world.
BBC News
44 minutes ago
- BBC News
Sainz leaves Norwich to join Porto on five-year deal
Winger Borja Sainz has left Norwich City and joined Porto for £ 24-year-old has signed a five-year deal with the 30-time Portuguese champions following a two-year spell at Carrow was the club's top scorer last season with 18 Championship goals despite missing six games through suspension as a result of a spitting Spaniard joined the Canaries from Turkish side Giresunspor in June 2023. Norwich sporting director Ben Knapper told the club website: "During his time with us, his performances and impact have been brilliant. He gave us all many memorable moments, scored some spectacular goals and was often the deciding factor in many of our games."This is a fantastic move for all parties, with Borja now progressing onto the next stage of his career with a top European club in FC Porto."It also demonstrates once again our ability to identify and develop players for the highest levels of the game, and everyone involved deserves huge credit for their work."The Canaries were bracing themselves for Sainz's departure and have brought in Denmark international Mathias Kvistgaarden who can operate as a striker and remains to be seen if forward Josh Sargent will follow Sainz out of club - the United States international has been linked with a move to Premier League new boys Burnley but has three years left on his contract. In his first season at Norwich, Sainz scored on his debut in an EFL Cup tie against Fulham and went on to add another seven goals in all competitions, including a memorable FA Cup goal against Liverpool at began the 2024-25 season in blistering fashion scoring 16 goals from 20 appearances in all competitions, a run including two hat-tricks against Derby County and Plymouth his form dipped in the second half of the campaign and he only added two more to his tally, finishing second in the Championship top scorer list behind Leeds United's Joel dip in form was compounded by Sainz receiving a six-match ban for spitting at Sunderland defender Chris Mepham in the game at the Stadium of Light in December made a full apology for the incident, saying in a statement: "Spitting at an opponent is completely out of character for me, and my reaction in that moment was unacceptable....I am deeply disappointed in myself and for letting all of you down through my conduct."Speaking following Norwich's 3-1 pre-season win over Northampton Town on Saturday, new head coach Liam Manning told BBC Radio Norfolk that Sainz's move was a "terrific deal" for the added: "It allows us to improve the team, and that's part and parcel of football now. "My job is to concentrate on what we've got here and how we get the group ready for next week and beyond. We're working hard behind the scenes to add. "There are still a few faces we need to add and will add so we'll keep pushing on that and make the squad as strong as we can."
