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UFC 303 paths to victory: How can Jiri Prochazka get revenge on Alex Pereira? ufc,paths,to,victory,how,can,jiri,prochazka,get,revenge,on,alex,pereira,sbnation,com,front-page,mma,ufc,ufc-events-ppv,golf-news

UFC 303 paths to victory How can Jiri Prochazka get
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Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka are set to run things back.

This Saturday, Pereira and Prochazka rematch their UFC 295 light heavyweight title fight in the main event of UFC 303. The first time these two met, Pereira knocked Prochazka out in the second round to become the UFC’s ninth two-division champion. This time, the two meet on short-notice as they step in to save the day following Conor McGregor’s withdrawal from the event due to injury.

How will each man approach this fight, and how do they take home the win? Let’s take a look.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Paths to Victory for Alex Pereira at UFC 303

When these two first fought, I picked Pereira to win with relative ease because Prochazka’s offense, while potent, is not backed up by elite defense, meaning Pereira would have ample opportunity to counter. That’s less than ideal for Prochakza given that Pereira is one of the hardest punchers in the sport. And I was half right. Yes, Prochakza did walk headlong on to Pereira’s offense repeatedly, but what actually did him in was the low kicks.

Pereira is perhaps the best calf-kicker in MMA. He’s so adept at kicking the legs without any setup, making it extremely hard to read. And that’s especially bad for Prochakza who operates from a long stance with a lot of weight on the front foot. Aleksandar Rakic chopped the lead leg out from Prochakza, and was dominating the fight, until Prochazka went wild man on him and simply overran him with offense. That’s a much more difficult proposition against someone with the firepower and technique of Pereira.

What this means is that for Pereira, the path forward is simple: make this fight like the first one. Chop the front leg, defend takedowns, and clip Prochazka when he starts to get wild. On top of that, Pereira also should look to double jab, setting up the straight right hand. Because Prochakza fights with his hands down, his first instinct on defense is to slip and then slide back. The double jab with a follow up puts Prochakza in the tough spot of being at the end of his defense when the power shot comes in. Double jabs and calf kicks, that’s the name of the game on Saturday for Pereira.

UFC 300: Pereira v Hill

Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

Paths to victory for Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303

Despite the fact that he got stopped in the first matchup, Prochakza enters Saturday saying he’s not going to change the gameplan. That seems like a bad idea. After all, the definition of crazy is doing the same thing and expecting different results.

In the first fight, Prochakza approached it in the same way he approaches most people, a little bit of everything. He shows Pereira a ton of different looks on the feet, scored one takedown, and even stunned Pereira in the second round with a barrage of long punches that “Poatan” didn’t see coming. It’s a smart way to fight most people: but Pereira is not most people.

Keeping opponents on their toes is usually a good strategy. The more they have to consider, the harder things get for them. Except in this circumstance, when Prochakza spent the second round consenting to a striking battle with Pereira, that was just playing to his opponent’s strength. Sure, you can win that way. But it’s wiser not to.

The simplest way to beat Pereira is to take him down. That almost entirely negates his offense, meaning Prochakza has the best chance to win the fight. And while Pereira is better than many believe at wrestling and grappling, Prochakza proved he can do it. His first plan of attack should always be getting this to the floor and once it’s there, it should be about control. Prochakza’s wild tendencies extend to the ground as well and that’s how Pereira stood up in the first fight. The focus should be getting Pereira down and then keeping him there. Let offense come afterwards.

Of course that doesn’t mean be afraid of Pereira’s striking. No fighter can win a fight if they just punt on one phase of the game entirely. Prochakza had a good amount of success on the feet using a ton of feints to keep Pereira off balance. Using plenty of that, plus more body work should be the focus in striking. Prochakza has a sneaky front kick to the body that would serve him well, and the body work should open up other opportunities both up top and into clinches, where Prochakza than then look to take things to the floor.

X-Factors

According to Prochakza, the biggest x-factor is Pereira’s use of “spiritual forces” to gain an unsporting advantage in the fight. But any good samurai should be able to negate the mystical powers deployed against him, so I’m calling that a wash. No, the x-factor in this fight is the short-notice.

Per most reports, Pereira was not originally keen on stepping in to save this event on just a few weeks’ notice, and was in fact in Australia at the time. Add in that he’s recovering/still dealing with some broken toes (coincidentally the same issue that led Conor McGregor to withdraw from the event) and it’s fair to wonder what version of Pereira will step into the cage on Saturday. No fighter competes at 100 percent, but is Poatan even at 75? We’ll see.

On the other side of things, Prochakza is also stepping in on short notice but rumor has it he was training like normal. If so, that’s definitely an advantage heading into this fight.

Could all of this be nothing? Of course! It’s rumor, speculation, and conjecture. But if Pereira shows up and can’t move as well or runs out of gas in the later rounds, everyone will look back and think we should have seen this coming.

Prediction

Because of the short notice, I do believe this fight is closer than last time, but I’ll guess the same result happens. Prochakza has some tools to make things difficult, but his insistence that he’s not changing the plan and his odd obsession with Pereira’s “spiritual powers” makes me think “BJP” didn’t learn any real lessons from the first encounter. In that case, Prochakza is basically hoping to high-roll a knockout blow against Pereira, which could always happen, but the more likely outcome is another fight where Jiri runs headlong onto Pereira’s best weapons.

Alex Pereira def. Jiri Prochazka via knockout (punches) — 4:34, Round 3.

Poll

Who wins the rematch at UFC 303?

5 NFL coaches who deserve to be on the hot seat before the 2024 season even starts nfl,coaches,who,deserve,to,be,on,the,hot,seat,before,the,season,even,starts,sbnation,com,front-page,nfl,dot-com-grid-coverage

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The 2024 NFL season is nearly upon us, and it’s shaping up to be an exciting one. While we’re all looking ahead to how our teams will look and hopefully improve this year, it’s important to remember one of the constants of the NFL: While some teams will get better, others will regress. Not everyone will be taking the anticipated step forward, and some will be taking a step back.

On that note, it’s a good opportunity to check in on some of the most volatile coaching situations in the NFL. I delved through the 32 head coaches to come up with my top-five hottest seats in the league heading into 2024. Many of these names won’t be terribly surprising, as several were considered candidates to be let go this offseason, but a couple were a little more challenging than others.

Mike McCarthy

I think I speak for most NFL fans when I say that we were shocked when Mike McCarthy wasn’t fired after the Dallas Cowboys’ most recent playoff defeat. He’s back for 2024, coming off the loss of another key coordinator in Dan Quinn and a thoroughly disappointing offseason marred by a failure to take action on quarterback Dak Prescott’s contract. To put it simply, the Cowboys have been suspiciously lax in addressing veteran departures and the multiple holes on the roster.

While I think the draft class has the potential to be good, it’s a tough assignment for any rookie offensive lineman to come in and play right away. Tyler Guyton and Cooper Beebe could be thrust into the spotlight immediately to plug holes, and I’m not sure that will produce great results — at least, not right away. The receiving corps is incredibly thin after CeeDee Lamb, and the lack of urgency to address running back led to an uninspiring reunion with late-career Ezekiel Elliott.

I’m not sure any of these things are explicitly McCarthy’s fault, but we all know who will get the blame if Dallas regresses in 2024.

Matt Eberflus

Matt Eberflus is in a strange situation with the Chicago Bears. In many ways, it would’ve made sense for the Bears to make a clean break and start fresh with a new head coach in 2024. The team is very much in the midst of what feels like a perpetually ongoing rebuild, and Eberflus’ abysmal 10-24 record through two seasons doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. At the same time, the roster has been far from competitive and Eberflus can argue that he didn’t get any say in the previous quarterback decision. Sure, fair enough.

All that being said, expectations will be through the roof for Chicago in 2024 thanks to an aggressive offseason headlined by the addition of No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams at quarterback. If things don’t take off quite as fast as hoped and the Bears are once again picking near the top of the NFL Draft, the pitchforks will come out — and Eberflus will be the one on the pointy end.

Dennis Allen

Have you noticed a theme so far? The first three coaches on this list, Dennis Allen included, are all guys who were in danger of being fired at the end of the 2023 season. Allen has been a largely uninspiring coach for the New Orleans Saints, clawing his way to an under-.500 record over two seasons despite possessing one of the oldest and most expensive rosters in the NFL and playing in a division that has been pretty much wide open for the taking.

The expensive acquisition of Derek Carr was supposed to be the necessary move to get the Saints back on top in the NFC South, but the team ultimately fell short once again. Allen likely has a Week 18 Falcons collapse to thank for keeping his job heading into 2024, but things are looking considerably more dire for the Saints this season. The roster has continued to age and thin out thanks to years of cap shenanigans. New Orleans has an even tougher path to the playoffs this season, and three straight misses would almost certainly mean the end for Allen.

Robert Saleh

It seems like the signing of Aaron Rodgers, and his subsequent injury, probably saved Robert Saleh’s job in 2023. Perhaps Rodgers really would have lifted the New York Jets to playoff contention and renewed faith in Saleh’s leadership, but his injury essentially gave Saleh a free pass. While it’s clear Saleh is a great defensive mind and he’s put together a top unit in New York over the past two seasons, the offense has continuously held the team back.

Saleh is an abysmal 18-33 over his three seasons, and you’d expect pretty much any other coach to be shown the door in that situation. That means that 2024 is probably “playoffs or bust” time for both Saleh and the entire regime in New York. The Jets will obviously be better with a healthy Aaron Rodgers, but can they really compete with the top contenders in the AFC? Are they a better team than the Chiefs, Ravens, Bills, or Texans? Can Aaron Rodgers actually stay healthy? Will he retire mid-season to do ayahuasca and go on darkness retreats? A playoff berth alone may not be enough to save Saleh’s job given the expectations around the team.

Brian Daboll

It’s pretty unusual to see a coach coming off an AP Coach of Year award just two seasons prior entering the season on the hot seat, but the New York Giants are an unusual team. Brian Daboll worked magic in New York to get the team to a 9-7-1 record, playoff berth, and upset victory over the Vikings in 2022, but things completely fell apart in 2023. The Giants were among the league’s worst offenses and were near the bottom defensively as well, with Daniel Jones performing poorly coming off his extension before spending the majority of the season on IR.

New York is in a difficult spot heading into 2024, as the team chose to pass on a quarterback upgrade for another huge need, a wide receiver upgrade. That might have been the best choice for the team, but it probably wasn’t the best choice for Daboll’s job security. I still believe Daboll is a good coach and wouldn’t be shocked if he bounces back this season, but he’ll have to pull out some more of that 2022 magic to overtake the Eagles or Cowboys in the playoff race.

NBA Draft 2024 second round grades on every pick, including Bronny James and more nba,draft,second,round,grades,on,every,pick,including,bronny,james,and,more,sbnation,com,front-page,nba,nba-draft,draftkings

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The 2024 NBA Draft marks the first time the league has split its draft over two days. After the full round was full of surprises on Wednesday night, the second round follows on Thursday afternoon with some talented players still on the board.

Check out our list of the 30 best players still available after the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft. There are three players still on the board who were mocked as top-20 picks at various points in this cycle in Tyler Smith, Kyle Filipowski, and Johnny Furphy. Marquette point guard Tyler Kolek is another big name expected to come off the board early in round two, and there’s also some fun sleepers with San Francisco wrecking ball Jonathan Mogbo, UCLA big man Adem Bona, and Serbian wing Nikola Djurisic.

Bronny James is also still available. Why isn’t anyone talking about this? Just kidding.

We already graded every pick of the first round. Now let’s grade every pick of round two.

31. Toronto Raptors: Jonathan Mogbo, F, San Francisco: Mogbo is a super long forward (6’6 with a 7’2 wingspan) who plays with great energy and can impact the game as a rebounder and passer. He can’t shoot, but he finds a way to get in on the play in a bunch of different ways. Grade: A

32. Utah Jazz: Kyle Filipowski, C, Duke: How did Filipowski not go in the first round? Flip lacks ideal length and athleticism for an NBA center, but he’s still a 7-footer who can make plays as a passing hub, stretch the floor as a shooter, and even put the ball on the floor as a handler. This is a great value: Grade: A

33. Milwaukee Bucks: Tyler Smith, F, G League Ignite: I had Smith ranked as a lottery-caliber prospect, so this is obviously an amazing value in my mind. Smith is a 6’10 forward who can rip three-pointers and is athletic enough to hammer dunks on the inside. A tall shooter with good athleticism who was productive against G League competition is always a good bet, especially in the second round of a weak draft. This makes up for the Bucks’ bizarre first round pick. Grade: A

34. New York Knicks: Tyler Kolek, G, Marquette: Kolek is a tough four-year college point guard who can space the floor and run the pick-and-roll effectively. He was one of the best playmakers in college hoops and made 38.8 percent of his threes this past year. Grade: A

35. Indiana Pacers: Johnny Furphy, F, Kansas: Furphy is a 6’9 wing who can space the floor and make plays in transition. He was an efficient scorer once he got a chance at real minutes for Kansas in the second half of the year. Grade: A

36. San Antonio Spurs: Juan Nunez, G, Spain: Nunez is a 6’5 Spanish point guard who lacks athleticism but has tremendous passing vision and creativity. He doesn’t get to the rim and isn’t yet a reliable shooter, but it’s hard to find players with his size and passing combination still available in the second round. Grade: B+

37. Detroit Pistons: Bobi Klintman, F, Sweden: Klintman is a 6’10 forward who shows a projectable spot-up three-point shot and some rebounding ability. The Pistons need all the shooters they can get, and Klintman is a nice value at this point in the draft after getting first round hype for much of the last year. Grade: A-

38. Oklahoma City Thunder: Ajay Mitchell, G, UC Santa Barbara: Mitchell is a crafty 6’4 guard out of Belgium who can mix scoring and playmaking. He averaged 20 points per game on his way to Big West Player of the Year honors after making a big leap as a shooter this past season. Grade: A-

39. Memphis Grizzlies: Jaylen Wells, F, Washington State: Wells was playing D2 ball before transferring to Washington State and hitting better than 41 percent of his threes. He’s one of the better front court shooters in this class. Grade: A-

40. Phoenix Suns: Oso Ighodaro, C, Marquette: Oghodaro is a gifted playmaking center with plenty of athleticism to finish dunks around the rim. He’s weird little push shot became a deadly weapon at Marquette. He’s a little small for an NBA player, but his IQ and leaping is appealing. Grade: B+

41. Philadelphia 76ers: Adem Bona, C, UCLA: Bona was one of my favorite second round bets as a long, strong, and explosive center. Bona crushed the glass and hammered dunks throughout his sophomore year at UCLA, and showed off his physical gifts by jumping 40-inches at the combine. He’s short for a center and doesn’t have much perimeter skill, but Bona is a freak athlete and that’s worth betting on. Grade: A

42. Charlotte Hornets: KJ Simpson, G, Colorado: Simpson was one of the best guards in college basketball this past year. He’s a high volume three-point shooter who can score from all three levels and make plays for his teammates. His just very small and will struggle to defend at the NBA level. Grade: A-

43. Atlanta Hawks: Nikola Durisic, F, Serbia: Durisic is a tall wing out of Serbia with a nice scoring package who has been productive in multiple settings. Grade: B+

44. Miami Heat: Pelle Larsson, G, Arizona: Larsson is a 6’5 off-ball guard who can rip three-pointers. He hit 39.7 percent of his threes across four years of college hoops, as well as better than 81 percent of his free throws. Grade: B

45. Toronto Raptors: Jamal Shead, G, Houston: Shead is the best guard defender in this class. He plays with a wildly high motor on every possession, making multiple efforts and showing tremendous toughness despite his lack of size. His offense is a work in progress, but his defense will endear him to coaches. Grade: A-

46. Los Angeles Clippers: Cam Christie, G, Minnesota: The younger brother of Lakers wing Max Christie, Cam has a little bit more of a scoring bag than his brother and made 39 percent of his threes on high volume as a freshman with the Golphers. He can rip shots off the catch or pull-ups. Grade: B+

47. Orlando Magic: Antonio Reeves, G, Kentucky: Reeves was an awesome scoring guard at Kentucky after transferring in from Illinois State. He has a quick trigger and NBA range on his jump shot, but he’ll have to work to defend at the NBA level. Grade: B

48. San Antonio Spurs: Harrison Ingram, F, North Carolina: Ingram is a big forward with shooting ability. He hit 38.5 percent of his threes on 169 attempts this year. He also showed impressive rebounding ability this past year at UNC. He doesn’t create much and he’s not an elite athlete, but he has the strength and shooting to have a chance in the NBA. Grade: B

49. Indiana Pacers: Tristen Newton, G, UConn: Newton will go down as one of the best transfers ever after leaving East Carolina for UConn and helping the Huskies win back-to-back national titles. He’s a 6’5 guard who reads the game at a high level and has some fascinating passing flashes. He’s also a pretty good shooter. After being named Final Four Most Outstanding Player, Newton gets his NBA shot. Grade: B+

50. Indiana Pacers: Enrique Freeman, F/C, Akron: Freeman made Akron’s basketball team as a walk-on and eventually became MAC Player of the Year. He shined in multiple pre-draft settings and got an invite to the NBA Draft Combine, where he again impressed scouts with his energy, toughness, and developing jump shot. What a cool story. Grade: B+

51. New York Knicks: Melvin Ajinca, F, France: Ajinca is a 6’6 Frenchman who can really shoot it from the perimeter. He’s been productive in different settings and shows some ability to make some plays off the bounce. Grade: B+

52. Golden State Warriors: Quinten Post, C, Boston College: Post is a stretch center who can really shoot it. He hit better than 40 percent of his threes in each of the last two years, and shows decent rebounding and playmaking ability. Grade: B+

53. Memphis Grizzlies: Cam Spencer, G, UConn: Spencer is a crazy competitive guard as the younger brother of lacrosse legend and Warriors G League guard Pat Spencer. He was an incredible addition for UConn this past year as a transfer from Rutgers, adding movement shooting and a little more playmaking than expected. Grade: B

54. Boston Celtics: Anton Watson, C/F, Gonzaga: A versatile big man out of Gonzaga who can hit the glass, set hard screens, and show solid defensive versatility. Grade: B

55. Los Angeles Lakers: Bronny James, G, USC: James’ freshman year at USC started with a terrifying heart episode early in the offseason, and he never really found his footing after that. James is short for a guard at 6’1.5 barefoot, but he has long arms, a strong chest, and a good mentality for a role player. James isn’t a big scorer, but he fights for loose balls, defends bigger players, and spaces the floor as a three-point shooter. He needs to shoot it at a high level to stick in the NBA, but he’s shown enough at the high school level at Sierra Canyon to have a chance to stick. Grade: B

56. New York Knicks: Kevin McCullar Jr., F, Kansasa: McCullar is a really well rounded role player who finally made strides as a shooter this past year at Kansas. He was getting first round hype before a late season injury ended his campaign. McCullar is a tough defender, a good passer, and does all the little things that help teams win. This is a nice value at No. 56. Grade: A

57. Toronto Raptors: Ulrich Chomche, C, NBA Academy Africa: Chomche has a 7’4 wingspan, moves well, and plays with tons of energy. He’s the youngest player in the draft and first player to ever be drafted out of the NBA Africa Academy. He has great tools but has a long way to go in terms of his skill and feel for the game. Grade: B

58. New York Knicks: Ariel Hukporti, C, German: A big German center who plays with power, Hukporti is a rim roller who once won MVP at Basketball Without Borders. His stock has seemingly dropped over the last year, but he has great size and he’s been on the radar for a long time. Grade: B

Tom Brady aiming for spot on US Olympic Track and Field team tom,brady,aiming,for,spot,on,us,olympic,track,and,field,team,sbnation,com,front-page,olympics,draftkings

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Tom Brady, from the University of Michigan, is hoping to clinch a spot on the United States Olympic Track and Field this week, competing in the men’s 5000 meters.

Of course, we are not talking about THAT Tom Brady.

No, we are talking about Tom Brady, the member of the Michigan Track and Field Team who is the school’s record-holder in both the indoor 5000 meters, as well as the outdoor 10,000 meters. That Tom Brady gets his Olympic quest underway later today, in the opening heat of the men’s 5000 meters.

However, there are some eerie similarities between the two athletes, beyond the University of Michigan. Consider this: Brady’s personal best in this event, the 5000 meters, came at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational back in February.

That event was held at Boston University.

Brady’s other focus is the 10,000 meters, and as indicated above he holds the Michigan record in that event. Where did he set that record?

Stanford University, in the San Francisco Bay area, near where the other Tom Brady grew up.

One thing the two do not share, however? Their NFL allegiances. Obviously Tom Brady the NFL quarterback has his ties to the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But Tom Brady the Olympic hopeful?

He is a Chicago Bears fan, through and through.

“Growing up in Chicago, for some reason there’s some kind of rivalry with Tom Brady there. I don’t know why but I think it’s because he destroys us every time we play him,” Brady said in a profile of him back in 2023. “Except for the last time, that was a good time.”

Included in that profile was this bit: “Brady will never root for the 20-year NFL veteran because of his “unhealthy” Chicago Bears obsession, but he respects Brady’s work ethic, and for that, he admits Tom Brady is the greatest NFL player of all time.”

But that Tom Brady never made an Olympic team, even though his mom once said he was the fastest player in the NFL.

The other Tom Brady might do just that this weekend.

Travelers Championship: Fans’ sensational trolling after protest on 18 travelers,championship,fans,sensational,trolling,after,protest,on,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,golf-pga-tour,golf-fan-reactions

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The Travelers Championship saw another playoff finish, but before Scottie Scheffler could earn his sixth PGA Tour win, a distraction happened on the 18th green.

A group of protestors from the Extinction Rebellion interrupted Scheffler, Tom Kim and Akshay Bhatia’s group to run onto the course with colored smoke and powder substances.

Police tackled them and quickly put the group into custody. However, they still were able to cause some damage on the 18th green. The protestors did not stop once in handcuffs, though; they challenged officers all the way off the course.

As the agronomy team cleaned up the 18th green, fans chanted USA-USA-USA, sang the Star-Spangled Banner, and chanted profanities at the disrupters. The situation caused the agronomy team and officials to change the hole location for the playoff.

While things settled and the crew made the changes, golf fans on social media took the incident and ran with it. They were quick to make jokes about the situation at hand and even made a dig at the expense of Scheffler.

Check out some of the top-notch reactions to the protest at the Travelers Championship.

The Scheffler tracker gave a live look at the whole incident.

No Laying Up made jokes at Kim for playing slow and blamed the protest on him. Kim seemed to slow things down as the round continued, and watching him over the ball was brutal.

Another hilarious tweet was directed at Canadian golfer Adam Hadwin. Nick Taylor won last year’s RBC Canadian Open. Hadwin tried to celebrate by running onto the green, but instead, a policeman tackled him.

A reaction to this protest would not be the same without Kyle Porter’s “normal sport” joke. There are so many moments in golf that make fans scratch their head, and this protest was one of them.

Thankfully it does not seem anyone in attendance was harmed. The golf course took most of the blow, but nonetheless, fans got a good laugh as the Travelers Championship ended.

Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.

Spanish Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton ‘focused’ on fighting for victory spanish,grand,prix,lewis,hamilton,focused,on,fighting,for,victory,sbnation,com,front-page,formula-one,2024-formula-one

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The last time Lewis Hamilton reached the top step of a Formula 1 podium, Max Verstappen had yet to win a Drivers’ Championship.

Could that change tomorrow?

Hamilton’s last victory came at the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, the penultimate race of that campaign. As readers likely know Verstappen went on to claim the win — and the 2021 Drivers’ Championship — in the following race, the still-debated 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Since then Hamilton and Mercedes have struggled to return to form, but recent upgrades by the team to their 2024 challenger, the W15, have improved performance on the track. Now Mercedes is coming off their best weekend of the season at the Canadian Grand Prix. Saturday in Barcelona Hamilton delivered his best qualifying performance of the year, finishing third behind Lando Norris and Max Verstappen.

Following the session, Hamilton made it clear: He is “focused” on fighting for a win.

“I am going into tomorrow focused on trying to fight for the win. We are in a good starting spot with that long run down to turn one,” said Hamilton in the team’s post-qualifying report. “Degradation will also play a key role tomorrow and I think our long runs in practice looked strong in that respect. I hope that translates into Sunday and we can have a good afternoon.”

Hamilton will not be the only Mercedes on the second row Sunday, as teammate George Russell qualified right behind Hamilton in fourth. On the other side of the garage, Russell also believes the team can fight at the front.

“On a circuit like this, the ultimate race pace of a car will always win out. I think our race pace looked good throughout the weekend so far and I hope we can fight for the podium and potentially victory,” said Russell. “The recent steps we’ve taken with the car are clearly helping and we’re looking forward to building on that momentum.”

It will be interesting to see how Mercedes handles the strategy options on Sunday. While both Norris and Verstappen are starting in front of the Silver Arrows pair, having both Russell and Hamilton in the second row gives Mercedes some options. Do they go with a split-tire strategy, or will we see both Hamilton and Russell on the same compound to begin the Spanish Grand Prix?

Hamilton hinted at some strategy options available to the team in Saturday’s FIA Press Conference.

“I think these two [Norris and Verstappen] will be very quick, but position is everything … You know, also there’s two of us, so hopefully we can apply pressure as a team to both of the cars ahead in order to maybe play out something in strategy and slowly climb up,” said Hamilton. “I think it’s all about degradation tomorrow and how you look after the [tires], so we won’t know until we get into that first run.”

Mercedes enters Sunday’s race in the strongest starting position of the season. Can they turn that into their best day of the F1 campaign?

We will know soon enough.

Wyndham Clark’s unexpected hot take on the Olympics over the Ryder Cup wyndham,clark,s,unexpected,hot,take,on,the,olympics,over,the,ryder,cup,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,olympics,ryder-cup-golf,golf-pga-tour,golf-news

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Wyndham Clark likes to give his opinion, even if the majority does not like it.

Last year, he attempted to call out Rory McIlroy and Team Europe before the Ryder Cup in Rome. He also missed the cut at The Masters earlier this year after calling out LIV Golf for its 54-hole tournaments.

However, his comment about the Olympics may be the hottest take ever.

Clark is one of the four Americans who will represent the United States in the Olympic golf tournament. He joins Scottie Scheffler, Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele.

“The Ryder Cup in golf is kind of the biggest thing, but now that golf’s in the Olympics, it’s probably even bigger than that because you’re representing your country at such a bigger level,” Clark said.

“Hopefully, all four of us can try to snag some podium spots and give medals to the U.S. to win that total medal count. But, yeah, it’s pretty awesome. This probably ranks as the coolest team I’ve ever made, for sure.”

The 2023 U.S. Open winner is entitled to his opinion. However, to call the Olympics a bigger country representation than the Ryder Cup as a professional golfer is quite interesting.

Clark made his Ryder Cup debut last September. Team Europe embarrassed Team USA in Rome. He scored 1.5 points for the Americans at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club.

“It is a nice weight lifted off my shoulders knowing that I made the team versus feeling like if I was trying to hold on,” he said. “So now that I made it, it doesn’t matter if you’re the No.1 guy or the fourth guy, as long as you make the team. So, it’s pretty awesome that I finally made it.”

Becoming an Olympian is quite an honor, so it makes sense for him to be this excited. Clark could also just be enthusiastic about wearing those patriotic J. Lindeberg outfits.

It is still odd to see a professional golfer rank any team over the Ryder Cup because it is one of the only times a golfer can play for his country alongside teammates.

Maybe Clark is just different, and becoming an Olympian is that special to him.

Is the Olympics a bigger deal than the Ryder Cup? Let us know in the comments.

Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.

Olympics: LIV golfer calls out PGA Tour players on South African team olympics,liv,golfer,calls,out,pga,tour,players,on,south,african,team,sbnation,com,front-page,golf,golf-news,liv-golf

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This past Monday, the International Golf Federation released the golfers who will represent their home countries at the 2024 Olympics in Paris later this summer. That list includes seven LIV Golf players who will represent their nations.

Then, on Thursday, ahead of the LIV Golf Nashville event, Louis Oosthuizen, Branden Grace, and Dean Burmester—all South African players—detailed what it felt like not to make the South African Olympic team. PGA Tour players Erik van Rooyen and Christiaan Bezuidenhout will represent the country instead.

Grace felt strongly that the Olympic committee got it wrong.

“These are the two guys [Burmester and Oosthuizen] that should be representing South Africa this year,” Grace said ahead of the Nashville tournament.

“I think that’s maybe a good call for each country to pick or try to get their own solution on how they get the criteria right for guys to qualify. But the system at this stage is not very accurate. We all know that. We all talk about it, week in and week out, but these should be the two guys probably representing South Africa.”

Burmester won his first LIV Golf title in Miami earlier this year. Not to mention, he has three other top-10 finishes. The worst performance came at LIV Las Vegas, but for the most part, he has played well.

At the two major championships, Burmester tied for 12th at the PGA Championship. He then captured 69th place at the U.S. Open last week.

Oosthuizen, meanwhile, has two runner-up finishes this year at LIV Adelaide and LIV Jeddah. Two more top-10s followed suit at Mayakoba and Miami. While he has been successful, the Olympics are not high on his radar.

“I grew up with the four majors being your main events, and I don’t really see the fit of professional golfers playing golf in the Olympics,” Oosthuizen said.

“I had the opportunity to go to one of the Olympics and pulled out at the end. It was more getting scheduling-wise getting everything—I think it was close to a major, and that was my main focus always, majors, so the Olympics didn’t fit into my schedule that year.”

Oothusizen represented his country at the World Cup and in the Presidents Cup before, so missing the Olympics is not a big deal to him. Regardless of tour affiliation, he wished the two participants good luck.

“I hope the boys play well and that they perform well, and it’s still going to be a strong South African team playing,” Oosthuizen said.

Burmester followed suit, praising van Rooyen and Bezuidenhout for their performances. Van Rooyen has one runner-up finish, three top 10s, and seven top 25s. As for Bezuidenhout, he has second place at the American Express. He also has three top 10s and nine top 25s. Bezuidenhout was solo fourth at The Memorial in one of his most recent starts.

“Christiaan and Erik are going to do South Africa proud, and they’ve also played some great golf in their own right,” Burmester said.

“I think Louis and I look like Olympians, first of all,” Burmester said. “It would be an honor to go to the Olympics and represent your country. I think it’s the field we have, and those two guys are going to have that opportunity, so it’s super special, and we can only wish them well.”

Taking the high road and wishing two of their fellow South Africans luck in Paris is the proper way to handle it. While they did not get chosen to play in the Olympics, it seems they understand why.

Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.

Travelers: Tom Kim fires another impressive round on 22nd birthday travelers,tom,kim,fires,another,impressive,round,on,nd,birthday,sbnation,com,golf,golf-pga-tour,golf-news

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Tom Kim is in complete control of his game in Connecticut.

He fired a 5-under 65 on Friday, one day after posting an 8-under 62 at the Travelers Championship—an event that marks his eighth straight start on the PGA Tour. He now leads Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele by two.

“I think the work I’ve been doing over the past few months has just been kind of like making sure that I feel confident out in the competition, not practice rounds, right?” Kim said.

“I think this stretch is making me sharper and more ready, and I think it’s time to show it.”

Kim has confidently waltzed around TPC River Highlands, making 13 birdies to zero bogies through 36 holes. Every aspect of his game is working for him, as Kim currently leads the field in total strokes gained.

Yet, despite Kim shooting the lowest round of the season on Thursday, he still spent 30 minutes on the range afterward.

“I know what I need to do, like what my tendencies are, so just need to make sure after the round I’m doing the right things to keep myself sharp,” Kim explained.

“It’s my eighth week, so swing-wise, just physically, things could get off pretty quickly, so just trying to be in just a sharp form and just doing the right things to kind of keep the momentum going.”

Kim, who turned 22 on Friday, kept the pedal to the medal but was not focused on his score.

“I’m playing really well, and I know what I’m doing on the golf course, so just really executing my game plan, that’s just how I’m doing it, and the score is the score,” Kim added.

“I’ve been playing really, really solid, and I’ve been saying that it’s not about this week, it’s about keep building these momentum blocks for the rest of the season.”

After the Travelers Championship—the final Signature Event of the season—the Open Championship will be the focus for every professional, including Kim. Then, the FedEx Cup Playoffs take center stage after the Olympics in August.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.

Joe Mazzulla jumping off a duck boat roof on a torn meniscus is most unhinged moment of Celtics’ parade joe,mazzulla,jumping,off,a,duck,boat,roof,on,a,torn,meniscus,is,most,unhinged,moment,of,celtics,parade,sbnation,com,front-page,nba,nba-playoffs,nba-playoffs-powerhouse-2024,dot-com-grid-coverage

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Anyone unfamiliar with Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla has certainly become more aware of one of the NBA’s strangest characters in the wake of Boston’s championship celebrations.

Mazzulla, likely the only head coach in the league who had to be told by his bosses to stop trying to block opposing player’s shots this year, has taken over the internet in the wake of the Celtics’ title celebrations. In addition to carrying the championship trophy around the city to various restaurants, Mazzulla went on an absolutely bonkers celebratory podcast tour that included him breaking down how he would plan to rob a bank, among other wild anecdotes.

Mazzulla has done it all, including coaching the Celtics to banner No. 18, on a meniscus he has apparently needed surgery on since tearing it in March during a loss to the Hawks, because of course he did. After all, this is a man who once tried to turn down health insurance while working in the G League because he “didn’t have time to get hurt.”

Well, he certainly put that mindset to the test during the Celtics’ championship parade, jumping both off the roof and out the window of the duck boat carrying him multiple times — again, on A TORN MENISCUS THAT WILL REQUIRE SURGERY — to celebrate with fans:

Mazzulla’s son even got in on the fun, showing he’s well on track to matching his father’s delightfully chaotic energy:

Perhaps fittingly, all this comes on a day the governor of Mazzulla’s native Rhode Island has officially dubbed “Joe Mazzulla Day.” That was obviously in the works before Friday, but after watching Joe Mazz at the parade, it would be hard to call the day anything else.