Fantastic victory for Stoner at Laguna Seca

The young Australian who started from second on the grid, dropped to third place at the start and took his time before launching his attack on Repsol Honda team mate Dani Pedrosa on lap eighteen of thirty two. After passing Pedrosa, who was suffering from fatigue and fitness problems, Stoner chased down Lorenzo for nine laps and wasted no time in passing him around the outside of turn one on lap twenty seven. From this point, he controlled the race comfortably, finishing five and a half seconds ahead of the Spaniard. Stoner has now increased his lead in the World Championship standings to twenty points over Lorenzo.

After being passed by Stoner, Dani Pedrosa retained third position comfortably. He knew his fitness would be tested here, at a track that demands a huge physical effort. He has now moved above Valentino Rossi in the Championship standings to 4th position with 110 points.

Andrea Dovizioso who had a great start, jumping from sixth to fourth, maintained this position for the majority of the race. He struggled to maintain his consistency for the long race in Laguna and with three laps to go was passed by Ben Spies. He remains third in the Championship standings with 143 points.

On this high note, the Repsol Honda Team will now enjoy a well deserved break before the next race in the Czech Republic on August 14.

Casey Stoner:
"All weekend we've been struggling a little so we weren't too confident that we could run with Jorge and Dani in the race. However, this morning in warm up we found something I was a little happier with. Before the race I felt relaxed, confident and generally calm, we started a little slower to get the tyres warm gently but also with a full tank of fuel, the bike didn't feel that great. So I was patient and took my time, staying with Jorge and Dani to control the gap and make sure they didn't get too far away. I felt I had more speed but decided to wait and watch. I saw Dani struggling a bit and he started to drop back from Jorge so I had to attack at this point. Once I caught up to Jorge, I watched to see if he made a mistake and kept the pressure on him, then chose my moment to make the move and was able to slowly open up a gap and bring the race home. It's really fantastic to come from such a difficult weekend and get a great win and I'm very thankful to all my team".

Dani Pedrosa:
"I'm very happy with another podium, the second after my come back from injury. I could have predicted this result before coming to Laguna because I knew it would be physically very tough for me and it has been great to keep up with the pace of Casey and Jorge in these past two races. Today, by the middle of the race, I was very tired, almost finished, I couldn't get my left arm strong enough and here at this track you don't rest for a moment, so I had to drop. It's been quite difficult to set up the bike this weekend, I had a lack of grip generally, but the team worked very well. Now we have some holidays and it will be good for me to have some days off to rest and relax my muscles and be back training to arrive fully fit in Brno".

Andrea Dovizioso:
?We knew that it was going to be a tough race because this track is short, with very strong braking and it's also very demanding. I made a good start and I was able to move into fourth position. In the first laps I pushed hard to stay with Casey, Dani and Lorenzo. I was loosing a lot in some corners, such as T3 and T11 and to recover I was pushing in the other areas. I used up a lot of energy and I couldn?t be consistent for the 32 laps. I?m disappointed because today we had the speed to fight for a good result, in fact I lapped two tenths behind the fastest lap, but I couldn?t be consistent. I lost the battle with Spies and this is the first time I've lost a battle this year. The good point is that we were able to be fast. Now we have to focus and continue working, we are third in the Championship and we want to keep on fighting. We will take advantage of the three week break to recharge the batteries and return in Brno more determined. My congratulations go to Casey and Dani?.

Repsol Honda press release.

Source: http://www.motogp.com

Source: http://www.zimbio.com/MotoGP/articles/ltIX3SbepFZ/Fantastic+victory+Stoner+Laguna+Seca

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Strikeforce fighter St. Preux once snubbed Bobby Bowden

Ovince St. Preux hits the big stage in Las Vegas tomorrow night at Strikeforce Challengers 17. With 14 pro fights under his belt, he won't be nervous. It doesn't hurt either that he played football in front 100,000-plus during his days in the SEC at Tennessee.

OSP would love to get recruited to the UFC at some point in the future. If offered, it won't be a tough decision. It wasn't as easy when he was a star athlete in high school. All the big guns came after the 6-foot-3, 220-pound linebacker/defensive end prospect.

St. Preux joined ESPNRadio1100's DC and the Sunshine Man on Wednesday to talk about his fighting and football background. He said he chose Tennessee over schools like Miami, Florida State, Notre Dame and Clemson. The decision to turn down Bobby Bowden and FSU was made easier when OSP had a little incident go down at his job.

While St. Preux was working at a Burger King in the Immokalee, Fl. area, his boss got a call asking for the star athlete. The manager asked who was calling and thought it was a prank when the voice on the other end said, "it's Bobby Bowden." The BK boss hung up the phone. That wasn't really the make or break moment in St. Preux's recruitment, but it made for a memorable story. OSP went to have a productive career along sides the likes of Kevin Burnett, Erik Ainge, Robert Peace, Cedric Houston and Gerald Riggs Jr.

Now he wants to be mentioned with names like Jon Jones, Quinton Jackson, Rashad Evans, Mauricio "Rua" Shogun and Lyoto Machida. OSP looks for his seventh straight win tomorrow night against Joe Cason in Las Vegas.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Strikeforce-fighter-St-Preux-once-snubbed-Bobby?urn=mma-wp4911

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Coker video: Is Overeem ever fighting again for Strikeforce?

This is a bizarre position for Scott Coker. The Strikeforce CEO is technically under the umbrella of Zuffa. In a recent interview with SI.com, Dana White swore up and down that he has absolutely no hand in decisions with Strikeforce. Yet when you watch or listen to Coker talking about the future of his fighters and future cards, there seems to be a hesitance about answering questions. That could be the nature of the business or he simply can't promise anything because its out of his hands.

Coker did a 12-minute interview with AOL.com and had some interesting takes on what comes down the road for Dan Henderson and Fedor Emelianenko. A small part of the convo revolved around Alistair Overeem and his future with Strikeforce.

"I mean that's something we're going to sit down with his manager Bas [Boon] and have a conversation about," said Coker (8:00 mark).

That's not a yes or a no, but it seemed pretty curt. White recently said Overeem is definitely sticking around so it was odd for Coker to ride the fence on the question.

Coker also explained that Overeem sort of forced the bold move in the Strikeforce heavyweight Grand Prix. When the Strikeforce heavyweight champ and tourney favorite said he was out for a fight on Sept. 10, Strikeforce had no choice but to replace him.

"We've been very good to Alistair. We've been very patient. It just didn't work out," Coker said. "If we could've took this fight to October or November we definitely would've done it."

Coker said between the busy UFC schedule, Showtime's boxing slate, the Floyd Mayweather fight in November and MLB's World Series, there weren't many dates that made sense.

On other matters, Coker said Fedor vs. Hendo is not a make or break fight for either fighter's future with Strikeforce. Even with a Henderson loss, he definitely wants to keep Henderson around. He's jazzed about Marloes Coenen vs. Miesha Tate being the first female title fight under the Zuffa banner. Coenen was a no-show at the Thursday press conference. Coker joked that he had no idea what happened calling it a "makeup issue or breakfast issue or wardrobe malfunction."

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Coker-video-Is-Overeem-ever-fighting-again-for-?urn=mma-wp5140

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Scott Coker Discusses Overeem vs. Werdum, Gina Carano's Health Status - Strikeforce

Scott Coker Discusses Overeem vs. Werdum, Gina Carano's Health Status Video by Strikeforce

Source: http://mmalice.com/strikeforce/scott-coker-discusses-overeem-vs-werdum-gina-caranos-health-status-video_0d2529a6d.html

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Tate grinds her way to women?s 135-pound title, finishing with a side choke

Miesha Tate wrestled with the boys in high school, so there's little mystery to her game. She wanted to get Marloes Coenen down, and down often.

After spending 10-plus minutes on her back, a warn down Coenen found herself in a nasty arm-triangle choke in the middle of the fourth round. Referee John McCarthy called a stop to things at 3:03 of the round giving the Strikeforce women's bantamweight title to Tate.

At just 24 years old, Tate (12-2) may be the future of the division, but the women's 135 class has another young lady in her mid-20's. Sarah Kaufman, 25, beat Tate back in 2009 on a Strikeforce Challengers card and will probably get the next crack at the title holder.

Tate's explained that her experience with the boys in high school was the genesis of this title run.

"It made me tough. It's a big, huge reason why I'm here today," said Tate, who wrestled in Olympia, Washington. "That toughness got me through that fight. Marloes is no joke."

Her recent path to the cage was far from easy.

"I had a good start to my training camp, a rough finish. That's what makes the heart of a champion, it's tough times. Tough times only make you tougher," said Tate.

Coenen (19-5) is a very solid fighter with good striking and submission skills, but her stiffness on the feet and lack of� side-to-side movement killed her chance of defending takedowns. She was too often a sitting duck for Tate, who was good on 5-of-6 takedown attempts.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Tate-grinds-her-way-to-women-s-135-pound-title-?urn=mma-wp5198

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Paul Daley talks Woodley, wrestling, and ?Marq-fart?

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. -- Paul Daley's loss to Nick Diaz in April a back-and-forth fight, with Daley looking close to the win during the bout, but Diaz coming back for the win. At the Strikeforce open workouts, he talked about how he got over that loss.

"The usual way that we do in England. Go out, have a drink, party."

Cagewriter mentioned that it's also how we get over losses in America.

"I've drank with Americans, and I think us Brits do it a little bit better. Nah, I'm joking. I just relaxed, tried to take my mind off the loss, and look at a way that I can come back stronger. The goal is to be a champion."

His path to be a champion in Strikeforce started when he was cut from the UFC after 113, when he threw a punch at Josh Koscheck after their fight had ended. It's not a moment that he's particularly proud of, but it's one that fans continue to congratulate him on.

"Everybody saying they hate Koscheck and saying well-done for hitting him? That's what I keep getting greeted with in the lobby. Obviously, I'm sorry for what I did, it's not something I'd repeat, and it's not something that I'm proud of, but I think the fan backlash is a little bit twisted. If I had a pound for every time somebody said well done for hitting Koscheck, I'd be a millionaire."

The Brit is hoping to create more memorable moments against another wrestler. In his first fight since losing to Nick Diaz in April, Daley will face Tyron Woodley at Strikeforce this weekend. Woodley was an All-American wrestler at the University of Missouri.

"Obviously, being the top fighter that I am, my least favorite fight is going to be against wrestlers, so I have to look at improving that area. It's something that I've continuously done. It's not something that I've stopped just because in recent fights I haven't faced wrestlers. I have to find all the best wrestlers I can and continue to improve in that area. I think I'm going to be there, and I think that Woodley is going to be surprised at the improvements I've made since my last fight with a wrestler.

With his unceremonious dismissal from the UFC after 113, you would expect that he would be in an awkward position after Zuffa, the UFC's parent company, bought Strikeforce. Instead, Daley was surprised by overtures from Lorenzo Fertitta.

"Lorenzo came to my dressing room before the Diaz fight, and he's a very cool guy. I've always said that. Very humble and approachable. He came to my fight and wished me good luck. He came out of his way to say hello, and he doesn't have to do that."

That quick cut from the UFC means that Daley has something in common with Nate Marquardt, the former UFC fighter who was released when he not allowed to fight on the UFC on Versus 4 card by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission. But don't look for any camaraderie between the two.

"I voiced my opinions about what he did and what he got caught for, and he comes back calling me a coward and a bully. I'm sure that's what he used to call people in the playgrounds. I aired my views in a sophisticated and direct manner, and he came back with that bullshit. If I am able to fight Nate 'The Great' Marq-Fart, then I will."

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Paul-Daley-talks-Woodley-wrestling-and-Marq-f?urn=mma-wp5110

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Felipe Massa - classic F1

Ferrari's Felipe Massa is the latest driver to choose his five all-time favourite grands prix for BBC Sport's classic Formula 1 series. The idea of this series is to whet your appetites for the race coming up. And, for better or worse, the Brazilian will always be linked with the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Massa produced one of his best performances at the Hungaroring in 2008. An intense battle with Lewis Hamilton ended when the Englishman's McLaren suffered a puncture, seemingly handing victory to Massa. But, with only three laps to go, the engine in his Ferrari failed. The points from that win would have made the Brazilian world champion that year, rather than Hamilton.

The following year, Massa suffered a terrible freak accident in qualifying for the same race. He was hit on the head by an errant spring from the car of his friend, Brawn driver Rubens Barrichello, and taken to hospital in, what doctors called, a "life-threatening but stable condition". Amazingly, he made a full recovery, returning to Ferrari for the start of the 2010 season.

Massa, like many Brazilians of his generation, grew up idolising the late Ayrton Senna, so it comes as no surprise that three of his five choices feature the former world champion. The other two reflect key moments in Massa's own career.

Massa's choices are as follows, in chronological order:

The 1991 Brazilian Grand Prix.

It was a quite brilliant drive from Senna, who was recording his first victory in his home race. He held off the faster Williams of Riccardo Patrese despite spending a significant portion of the grand prix struggling with no fourth gear. He also lost the third and fifth gears in the final two laps.

After taking the chequered flag, Senna had to be lifted from his car, exhausted and in agony. When he finally did make it on to the rostrum, his face contorted by a mixture of pain and unadulterated joy, he sent fans - and the country that loved him - wild.

The 1992 Monaco Grand Prix

This was the race in which Senna brought to an end Nigel Mansell's dominant start to the season, although the Briton would go on to claim the championship.

At Monaco, like the five races before it, Mansell and the ground-breaking Williams-Renault FW14B were controlling the race before a late pit stop caused by a loose wheel nut put him behind Senna. Mansell tried everything to pass in the closing laps but was beaten by Senna's guile and experience in the tight confines of the track.

The 1993 European Grand Prix

The one race that has come to epitomise Senna - and therefore the inevitable choice by any driver who is a Senna fan.

The race at a wet Donington Park has passed into F1 folklore. A quite brilliant first lap lifted Senna from fifth at the first corner to first by the last - and he proceeded to drive at a higher level to the rest of the field on his way to one of the greatest of his 41 wins.

The 2006 Turkish Grand Prix

This was Massa's first F1 victory, an impressive and dominant performance from the front after taking pole position ahead of Ferrari team-mate Michael Schumacher.

Dig below the surface, though, and it was not quite as impressive or dominant as it looked. This race is often held up as evidence that Massa was occasionally fast enough to get on terms with Schumacher, who was in the final year of his first F1 career.

That's what it looked like from the outside. But Schumacher would have beaten Massa to pole, despite a higher fuel load, had he not made a mistake on his qualifying lap.

In the race, too, Schumacher was on target to win until the advent of the safety car meant Ferrari had to 'stack' their drivers in the pits. The German rejoined behind Renault's Fernando Alonso and failed to get past the Spaniard for the rest of the race.

The 2006 Brazilian Grand Prix

Massa has chosen this because it was his first win at home - and it was a victory that was as dominant as it looked. He took a comfortable pole and never looked like losing the race, winning by 18 seconds from Alonso, who claimed his second consecutive title.

The action was all behind them - and it centred on Schumacher, for whom this was the last race before retirement. The German, whose faint hopes of winning the title ended when he suffered an early puncture, fought back from 18th to fourth to end what turned out to be his first F1 career in style.

Highlights of the race, not broadcast since the day itself, are embedded below. Beneath them are links to short highlights of last year's Hungarian Grand Prix.

In order to see this content you need to have both Javascript enabled and Flash installed. Visit BBC Webwise for full instructions. If you're reading via RSS, you'll need to visit the blog to access this content.

CLICK HERE FOR SHORT HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2010 HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX

CLICK HERE FOR LONG HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2010 HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX

The classic grands prix will be available on the BBC red button in the UK as follows:

Satellite and cable viewers will be able to watch them from 1500 on Wednesday 27 July until 0850 on Friday 29 July.

On Freeview, they will be shown from 2200 on Wednesday 27 July until 0600 on Thursday 28 July, from 2110 on Thursday until 0245 on Friday 29 July and again from 0435 until 0600 on Friday.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/andrewbenson/2011/07/felipe_massa_-_classic_f1.html

Estella Warren Esther Cañadas Eva Green Eva Longoria

Sakara Out, Philippou in against Rivera at UFC 133

Source: http://www.ufc.com/news/ufc-133-fight-card-updates

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