Thrilling Daytona 500 finish a major win for Hamlin, NASCAR

 The official margin of victory is .0010 seconds, a figure that was rounded down from .0011, which was the number that the electronic implements which calculate such things produced on its first pass at estimating the space between Denny Hamlin’s victory and Martin Truex’s loss in the 58th running of the Daytona 500. That’s the finest finish since the incorporation of electronic scoring. That’s three times faster than the blink of an eye, hardly quick enough to take in Hamlin as he nudged his black Joe Gibbs machine inches ahead of Truex’s Furniture Row car on the final laps of a race that was long on dramatic twists.

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Most who saw that photo finish live will be forgiven for thinking that Truex was the victor. That includes the New Jersey boy himself, who was fairly convinced that his positioning on the low line of the track would prove his E-Z Pass to Victory Lane. “I knew it was really close,” he said. “I just said [to myself], ‘Damn, that was close.’ [I] tried to look at the big screen, as you do.  My spotter was going absolutely ballistic on the radio, screaming. I couldn’t tell what the heck was going on. [We] did our best to beat him at the line, but just came up short.”
RELATED:  Daytona 500 results
While Truex did not get the ending he had hoped, the final act he co-authored with Hamlin transformed NASCAR’s premier event into a certified blockbuster—and in its very first show following a massive renovation to their grandest stage, no less. Keep in mind: this was a result achieved without any fettling from the Cup series’ myriad new rules for the upcoming season,making it something for the sport’s many hard-line fans to truly savor. What’s more, this conclusion drew a massive general audience without a bankable star in a headlining role. The retired Jeff Gordon watched from the FOX booth, the retiring Tony Stewart joined the broadcast via phone and Dale Earnhardt Jr. spiraled out of the race after botching a drafting move in the middle of the pack. Surely NASCAR’s corporate wards are still pinching themselves, still.

The Great American Race made itself. How did this come to be? Hamlin still can’t quite explain it. “It just all happened so quickly,” he said. “Usually in these things, you’re leading with five laps to go. And usually whoever's leading wins the race. You have time to think about it. You’re getting emotional while you're still racing. For me, I was so caught in the moment. And when we won the race, it was like, OK, now what just happened?”
As with most automotive mysteries, it’s best to start under the hood. Those thousandths of a second might belong to Hamlin but, let’s be clear, the day belonged to Toyota Racing Development. Celebrating its 10th year in NASCAR, the manufacturer’s imprimatur was all over this contest, “the single biggest race in our company’s history,” according to TRD majordomo David Wilson.
So it was a special race then, one Hamlin, echoing the Toyota majordomo, called “the biggest race of my career as far as stature is concerned.” And yet, “Realistically, this is a team victory. It’s the best I’ve ever seen any teamwork together for the Daytona 500. My name will be on the trophy, but it should probably be cut up four or five different ways.”
Would he have preferred to win by a larger margin? “No. You want to win the tight ones—well, it would be fun to win by a lap. But [this is], like, storybook. You make a pass on the last corner of the last lap of the Daytona 500. That’s what makes it so cool.”

Jury selection to begin in Erin Andrews' nude-videos lawsuit

  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Jury selection begins Monday in the case involving sportscaster and TV host Erin Andrews, who filed a $75 million lawsuit against the franchise owner and manager of a luxury hotel and a man who admitted to making secret nude recordings of her in 2008.

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In 2009, Michael David Barrett pleaded guilty in a Los Angeles federal court to renting hotel rooms next to Andrews in three cities, altering peepholes and shooting videos in Columbus, Ohio, and Nashville.

Andrews was staying at the Marriott at Vanderbilt University in 2008 while covering a football game for ESPN. She alleges that someone affiliated with the Nashville hotel told Barrett where Andrews was staying and allowed him to stay in the room next to hers.

This is the one player your favorite NFL team has to cut

With free agency approaching, many teams are already clearing space and saving up money to pay players. Whether that's new contracts for players already on the team or gearing up to make a run at some of the biggest free agents, sometimes big-name players have to be released to save some money.These players are known as "cap casualties." Essentially, they are players who are released because the savings that come with the move are more valuable to the team than the player's contributions on the field.

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The Los Angeles Rams already cleared plenty of cap space by releasing Chris Long, Jared Cook and James Laurinaitis, and other teams have already cut ties with veterans before free agency begins.
Here's one player on each NFL roster who could be in danger of hitting the free agency market even though they are currently under contract for the 2016 season:
Arizona Cardinals - Daryl Washington
There really aren't many contracts on the Cardinals' roster that make sense to part ways with to free space, but Daryl Washington's is one that has drawn attention. The consistently suspended linebacker hasn't played since 2013 and Arizona can save $4.5 million in cap space for 2016 by designating him as a post-June 1 cut.
It's possible, but Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap thinks it's more likely that the Cardinals keep him on roster while they wait for suspension rulings that could recoup the team some of the money he collected while not playing.

Atlanta Falcons - Paul Soliai
The Falcons could also look at the contracts of Roddy White and Devin Hester, but getting rid of Paul Soliai's contract is a move that would free up nearly $5 million in space. And it's one they're expected to make at the start of the new league year.
The nose tackle hasn't been a bad player for the Falcons, but his play hasn't matched the five-year, $32 million contract he received in March 2014. Run stoppers aren't too difficult to find and the Falcons could use $4.94 million of savings elsewhere.
Baltimore Ravens - Dennis Pitta
Two hip surgeries have put Pitta's entire career in jeopardy, so it seems unlikely that the Ravens will want to keep the tight end and his $7.2 million salary cap hit for the 2016 season. He has played in just seven games over the last three years and recorded just 36 receptions for 294 yards over that span.
If Pitta ever returns to the field again, it would be a tough battle to return to the promising talent that made him a fourth-round pick in 2010. Either way, the Ravens can save $5 million by designating him as a post-June 1 cut, which is an expected move at this point.
Buffalo Bills - Mario Williams
Williams had just five sacks in 2015 and generally looked like he didn't care to be on the field for the Bills. That makes the $12.9 million in potential savings for Buffalo look like a complete no-brainer.
The 31-year-old defensive end is due a $2.5 million roster bonus on March 13, so his release should come soon. He will mean big savings for the Bills, although the team will have to eat $7 million in dead space for the 2016 season with the move. Still, after Pro Bowl seasons in 2013 and 2014, the connection between Williams and Buffalo has gone sour and the release is something that should benefit both  parties.

Ronda Rousey's boyfriend finalizes his divorce

Ronda Rousey may feel more comfortable about her current relationship with Travis Browne moving forward after what happened in recent weeks.

According to TMZ Sports, Browne officially was granted a divorce on Feb. 8.

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Browne married fitness model Jenna Renee Webb on Jan. 9, 2015. By July she had posted photos on Instagram alleging Browne beat her. Browne denied all allegations and said Webb was trying to get revenge for him cheating on her. Based on the timeline, it seems the woman he was with was Rousey.

The timeline isn’t exactly super clean here — Browne was divorced 13 months after marrying and was with someone else within six months of marrying — but Rousey and Browne seem to be happy, and that’s really what matters the most.

UFC star Ronda Rousey may have played coy about her romance with fellow UFC fighter Travis Browne in the beginning, but the 28-year-old isn't exactly hiding her relationship with her new beau anymore.

Indeed, these days, it seems the loved-up pair struggle to keep their hands off each other - even when out and about in public, with Ronda and Travis, 33, spotted out together twice this weekend. First, the couple was caught canoodling on Thursday, with Ronda throwing her arms around Travis as she gave him a kiss.

Then on Sunday, the pair was snapped leaving a Santa Monica Starbucks, both with a Venti iced coffee in-hand.

5 keys to Denny Hamlin's thrilling victory in Daytona 500

Denny Hamlin beat Martin Truex Jr. to win  Sunday's 58^th Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, giving Toyota its first victory in NASCAR's biggest race and Joe Gibbs Racing its first since 1993.

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It was the closest finish in Daytona 500 history, with Hamlin winning by 0.01 seconds. Kyle Busch was third in another JGR entry, giving Toyota the top three spots.
Here are five  keys to his victory in the Daytona 500.
5. It takes a fast car -- All through Speedweeks, the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas were wicked fast and that continued in the Daytona 500, where the team drubbed the competition for virtually the entire race. JGR won the Sprint Unlimited, one Can-Am Duel and the big prize on Sunday.
They were the class of the field by a wide margin, combining to lead 154 of 200 laps.
4. Be there at the end -- Rookie pole-sitter Chase Elliott learned an important lesson: You can't win the Daytona 500 in the first 50 miles, but you can lose it. A spin in Turn 4 on Lap 19, send Elliott spinning through the infield grass, which tore his splitter off.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., the pre-race favorite, crashed out in an nearly identical incident to Elliott's, but with 30 laps to go .
3. Have wingmen -- With all of the four JGR Toyotas up front, the team managed to control the race and keep the competition  from getting to the lead and challenging for the victory. And that was a huge help when the race went down to the wire, because it was all Toyotas fighting for the victory.
2. Stay out front -- The current NASCAR restrictor-plate aero package gives the leader a huge advantage, so you want to get out front as soon as possible. Dale Earnhardt Jr. took the lead on Lap 4, with Hamlin and Logano right behind. Clearly, the lead pack was the place to be, and it stayed that way all race long.
Conversely, once Earnhardt fell back in the back, he never got back to the front for the rest of the race.
1. Time your move. -- In winning his first Daytona 500, Hamlin timed his move perfectly, waiting until the very last lap to jump to the outside and make a bold move by his teammate Matt Kenseth. "I don't know what happened," said a jubilant Hamlin, who drove the No. 11 Toyota to victory in his 11^th Daytona 500. "I can't figure it out."
"They don't get more crushing than that," said Kenseth.

Pro12: Ulster v Scarlets (Sun)

Pro12: Ulster v Scarlets
Venue: Kingspan Stadium, Belfast Date: Sunday, 21 February Kick-off: 14:30 GMT
Coverage: Live on BBC Two Northern Ireland, S4C, BBC iPlayer and online; live score updates online plus highlights on Scrum V, BBC Two Wales from 18:20 GMT on Sunday and later on demand and online

Fly-half Paddy Jackson will lead Ulster for the first time in Sunday's crucial Pro12 match against the Scarlets.

The 24-year-old has been disappointed at not being involved in Ireland's Six Nations campaign, but his availability is a boost to table-toppers Ulster.

Welsh squad player Aled Davies starts at scrum-half for the Scarlets after being released by Warren Gatland and he partners Aled Thomas at halfback.

Thomas replaces injured Steve Shingler as two of the Pro12's top four meet.

Fourth-placed Scarlets, just a point behind leaders Ulster, drop Rhodri Williams to the bench to accommodate uncapped Welshman Davies.

Ulster pair Ruan Pienaar and Ian Humphreys, who had to go through 'return to play' protocols following concussion, are on the replacements' bench.

Rob Herring has a slight hamstring injury so John Andrew will make his first senior start at hooker

Rory Best, Jared Payne and Andrew Trimble are not available to Ulster as they are on international duty..

Ulster go into the 15th round of league action top of the table while Scarlets lie fourth, but only a point separates the two sides, who both won last week.

Pro12 form guide
Ulster (1st ): 12 Feb: Ulster 13-10 Glasgow; 5 Feb: Ulster 17-15 Dragons; 30 Jan:Treviso 13-32 Ulster 2 Jan: Ulster 7-9 Munster
Scarlets (4th): 12 Feb: Scarlets 22-21 Edinburgh; 30 Jan: Connacht 30-17 Scarlets;10 Jan: Scarlets 21-19 Connacht; 1 Jan: Cardiff Blues 29-27 Scarlets

Scarlets beat Edinburgh 22-21 and Ulster triumphed 13-10 over Glasgow last Friday.

The west Wales region have not won away in the Pro12 since beating Trevisoin December, 2015.

Meanwhile Ulster have secured centre Stuart Olding until the end of the 2018-19 season and prop Rhodri Jones is to depart Scarlets for Ospreys at the end of the current campaign.

Ulster: S Olding, C Gilroy, D Cave, L Marshall, J Stockdale, P Jackson (capt), P Marshall; A Warwick, J Andrew, R Lutton, A O'Connor, F van der Merwe, R Diack, C Henry, R Wilson.

Replacements: J Murphy, K McCall, B Ross, P Browne, C Ross, R Pienaar, I Humphreys, S Arnold.

Scarlets: M Collins, G Owen, R King, H Parkes (capt), DTH van der Merwe, A Thomas, A Davies, P John, K Myhill, P Edwards, G Earle, D Bulbring, A Shingler, W Boyde, M Allen.

Replacements: R Elias, D Evans, R Jones, M Paulino, R Pitman, R Williams, D Jones, S Evans.

Referee: Ian Davies (WRU)

Assistant referees: Nigel Correll, John Carvill (IRFU)

Citing commissioner: Eddie Walsh (IRFU)

TMO: Alan Rogan (IRFU)

Premiership: Saracens 25-12 Gloucester

aracens (13) 25

Try: Ransom Con: Hodgson Pens: Hodgson 6

Gloucester (6) 12

Pens: Hook 4

Relive Saturday's Premiership action

Premiership leaders Saracens hung on to beat Gloucester, despite playing more than 50 minutes with 14 men.

Schalk Brits saw red on the half-hour mark for a punch on Nick Wood, leaving Saracens temporarily with 13 men, Brad Barritt having been sin-binned earlier.

The hosts led 13-6 at the break, Ben Ransom grabbing an early Saracens try.

James Hook kicked all of Gloucester's points while Charlie Hodgson's six penalties helped Saracens bounce back from last week's big defeat by Wasps.

The win moves Sarries eight points clear at the top of the table, with second-placed Exeter Chiefs facing London Irish at the Madejski Stadium on Sunday.

Saracens boss Mark McCall wanted a reaction from his side following that record loss, and full-back Ransom was the man to deliver with a try inside four minutes, chipping over the defence before gathering in space to score.

It was an ideal start by a north London side that included Scotland centre Duncan Taylor, who returned to club duties during the Six Nations break, although McCall was still without seven England internationals, including George Kruis, Billy and Mako Vunipola and Owen Farrell.

A Barritt tip tackle on Ross Moriarty saw the hosts reduced to 14 men as he was sin-binned and, after Hook and Hodgson traded penalties, Saracens had Brits sent off.

Hook reduced the deficit from the tee, but Hodgson ensured the defending champions took a seven-point lead into the break with his second three-pointer.

Saracens lost scrum-half Richard Wigglesworth and prop Rhys Gill to injury late in the first half, but drove forward and piled pressure on Gloucester after the interval.

The Cherry and Whites did well to resist and leave Hodgson opting to slot over another penalty. All the visitors could do at the other end was line Hook up for another penalty of his own.

While Hodgson's boot delivered the win, an immense display by the Saracens pack - including replacement prop Juan Figallo, who raced to the game following the birth of his child earlier in the day - proved the difference in the gritty win.

Ryder Cup, Olympics, majors: Sergio Garcia's ambition still burns

The next European Ryder Cup side looks a difficult one to predict but, even so, there are a few names everyone expects to see on the team sheet.

Questions surround the participation of many of the old guard with so much young talent around, but there appear four certainties to retain their places: Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Henrik Stenson and Sergio Garcia.

This quartet remain in the upper echelons of the world rankings and have been regulars during Europe's recent, unprecedented run of success. There is little to suggest they won't form the engine room for the continent's trophy defence at Hazeltine this autumn.

But for all four, the Ryder Cup only becomes a priority when we get to September and head towards the Minnesota match.

Before then there are big individual goals to be satisfied. McIlroy and Rose aim to add to their major tallies and Stenson and Garcia seek to break their ducks in the four biggest tournaments.

Sergio Garcia facts
Born: 9 January 1980	Turned pro: 1999
Height: 5ft 10in (1.78m); Weight: 73 kg (160lb)	Best major championship results: The Open (2nd/T2 - 2007 & 2014), US PGA Championship (2nd/T2 -1999 & 2008), Masters (T4 - 2004), US Open (T3 - 2005)
Nationality:Spanish	Wins by Tour: European (11), PGA (8), Asian (5), Other (5)

It is extraordinary to think that Garcia has now turned 36 and is still waiting. Remember the callow, precocious bundle of energy who ran Tiger Woods so close on his US PGA Championship debut back in 1999?

Last week the Spaniard began his 18th European Tour season in a windswept Qatar, where he finished in a reasonable share of seventh place. The highlight was a second-round 66 but, worryingly, his putting again failed to match the prowess of his long game.

No-one finishing ahead of Garcia bettered his statistics tee to green but an average of 31.5 putts per round proved his undoing. By the final round the popular Spanish star was again experimenting with his putting grip, ditching the claw technique of recent seasons to go back to a more traditional method.

"I just wanted to try something different," Garcia said. "Obviously I putt with a normal grip on the long putts, probably over 25, 30 feet.

"But I just wanted to go the whole way because I haven't felt great this week with the claw. It actually worked better. I made some good putts. I was quite good and I was quite confident on the short ones."

Garcia ended last year on an encouraging note, finishing fourth in Thailand andcelebrating his 28th professional victory by prevailing in a four-way play-off at the inaugural Ho Tram Open in Vietnam.

While such victories are wonderful for the bank balance, they do little to alleviate a sense of career under-achievement. Yes, Garcia has been a fixture in the world's top 10 almost his entire career, but his 2008 Players Championship remains the most notable success.

How different the story would have been had he holed the 12-footer on the 72nd green at Carnoustie in 2007 that would have given him The Open. Instead he went into a play-off won by Padraig Harrington.

The Irishman was again Garcia's nemesis the following year, beating him into second place at the US PGA at Oakland Hills and since then the Spaniard has failed to contend for an American major.

Indeed, the impact of those disappointments contributed to a rankings slump that led to him missing the 2010 Ryder Cup. His commitment to the cause remained evident, though, as he turned up at Celtic Manor as one of Colin Montgomerie's vice-captains instead.

Garcia was too talented to remain outside Europe's top dozen golfers for too long and reclaimed his place for the subsequent victories at Medinah and Gleneagles.

Energised by the 2016 prospects of an eighth Ryder Cup and an Olympic debut, Garcia is approaching this year with enthusiasm and he is not giving up on his major dream either.

"I guess every year that goes by, it feels another chance that has kind of gone by," he recently admitted.

"But like I said, if I get to 45 and I haven't won any, then I will probably feel a lot of pressure then. But I still feel like I'm young enough to be able to do it, hopefully several times.

"If I keep playing well, I'm still going to have a lot of majors to come, so a lot of opportunities are there for me. So we'll see."

Garcia was once the young pretender with the game at his feet - the McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Jason Day or Rickie Fowler of his day - but there is a production line of young talent emerging on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as in Asia, and uncomfortable as it may seem, Garcia must now be regarded as an old hand on the back nine of his career.

"My appetite is the same," he insisted. "Obviously it's nice to see a lot of these young guys playing and playing well, because that means that the future of the game is in good hands.

"I love playing golf, I enjoy every minute of it, and I try to push myself to become better every year, better and more consistent. That hasn't changed."

That outlook can only be good news for Ryder Cup captain Darren Clarke and European golf in general. Despite so much young talent around, an in-form Garcia always enhances proceedings. His experience at Hazeltine could prove invaluable.

And who knows? Maybe, if he can sort out how to hold his putter most profitably, this might just be his year

Russia anti-doping ex-chief Nikita Kamaev dies

The ex-head of Russia's anti-doping agency, Nikita Kamaev, has died, Tass news agency reports.

His reported death comes two months after he resigned his post at Rusada following the doping scandal which engulfed Russian athletics.

It appeared to have been a massive heart attack, Tass quoted Rusada's former director general Ramil Khabriev as saying.

Russia was suspended from international athletics last November.

A commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) accused Russian athletics of state-backed doping, corruption and extortion in an extensive report.

"It looks like a massive heart attack," Tass quoted Mr Khabriev as saying.

"He complained of heartache after a skiing session. He has never complained about heart problems, at least to me. Maybe his wife knew about such problems."

Russia was provisionally suspended from international athletics, including the Olympic Games, in November by the International Association of Athletic Associations (IAAF).

The IAAF took action following the Wada report.

The suspension will remain in place until Russia convinces athletics authorities it has sufficiently changed its practices.

Along with Argentina, Ukraine, Bolivia, Andorra and Israel, Russia was deemed in breach of Wada codes.

Rusada was prohibited from carrying out any Wada-related anti-doping activity.

Mr Kamaev resigned from Rusada in December along with all the organisation's other top executives as Russia began work on lifting the ban in time for its athletes to compete at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in August.

Messi & Suarez score outrageous penalty

.Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez combined to score an audacious penalty as La Liga leaders Barcelona thrashed Celta Vigo to move three points clear.

With Barca leading 3-1, Messi nudged the spot-kick forward and to his right for Suarez to run into the area and side-foot in to complete his hat-trick.

Messi opened the scoring with a sublime free-kick before Celta striker John Guidetti drilled in a penalty to level.

After Suarez's second-half treble, Ivan Rakitic and Neymar sealed the rout.

The defending champions still have a game in hand on nearest rivals Atletico Madrid, with Real Madrid four points adrift of Barca in third.

Barcelona had not been beaten in 29 previous matches in all competitions before the visit of a Celta team which had won two of the past three meetings between the sides.

Celta, who Luis Enrique left to manage Barca in May 2014, earned a surprise 1-0 win at the Nou Camp last season and thrashed their former boss's side in a 4-1 home success in September.

And they will have been quietly confident of causing another upset as they held their hosts 1-1 at the break.

Barca failed to find their rhythm in the first half, giving no indication to the virtually silent home supporters of what excitement would unfold in the second half.

Suarez clipped in Messi's pass to put Barca back in front just before the hour and bundled in Neymar's cross on the goal-line for his second.

The Uruguay striker completed a 22-minute hat-trick by converting Messi's audacious penalty, before substitute Rakitic's lob and Neymar's cool finish extended their unbeaten run to 30 matches.

If Messi had converted the penalty, it would have been his 300th La Liga goal for Barcelona.

But did his selfless act in teeing up Suarez mean that he would gain an unwanted statistic - another 'missed' penalty?

It was a tongue-in-cheek question posed by former Spanish referee Eduardo Iturralde on Twitter, where it was spread to a wider audience by Guardian football writer Sid Lowe

Adam Voges: Australia batsman takes Test average over 100 in New Zealand

First Test, Wellington (Basin Reserve), day two: New Zealand 183: Craig 41 not out, Hazlewood 4-42 Australia 463-6: Voges 176 not out, Khawaja 140

Australia's Adam Voges has been likened to legend Sir Donald Bradman after lifting his average to more than 100 in the first Test against New Zealand.

Voges, 36, ended day two in Wellington on 176 not out to move ahead of Bradman, whose career average of 99.94 from 52 Tests is the best of all time.

Voges' average is 100.33, although that would drop to 92.4 if he did not score any more runs in his 19th Test innings.

Usman Khawaja hit 140 as Australia closed day two on 463-6, a lead of 280.

The pair put on 168 runs for the fourth wicket and Khawaja, who has scored four centuries in his last six Test innings, said he may start calling his batting partner "Sir Voges" in a nod to Bradman who is considered to be Test cricket's greatest ever batsman.

Voges has scored three successive centuries, adding to the 269 not out and an unbeaten 106 against West Indies in December to take him past India legend Sachin Tendulkar's record of most Test runs between dismissals, which stood at 497.

He has extended that to 551 runs but he should have been out for seven in the final over of Friday's first day at the Basin Reserve when he was bowled by Doug Bracewell - but English umpire Richard Illingworth called a no-ball, when television replays showed it was a legitimate delivery.

Khawaja described Voges' innings as "almost faultless", adding: "He's batted very sensibly, patiently at the start. He was hitting a lot of good shots straight to fielders but didn't get frustrated with it.

"The way he's been batting lately it feels like he's not going to get out sometimes, and he's making big hundreds which is important for the team."

Voges, who will play for Middlesex again this summer, became the oldest player to score a Test century on debut, at the age of 35 against the West Indies eight months ago, and has now compiled five.

If he is dismissed in this Test innings, he will need to have scored 272, eclipsing his current highest score of 269 not out, to keep his average above 100.

Bradman v Voges - as things stand
	Sir Don Bradman	Adam Voges
Statistics correct at close of play on day two
Tests (innings)	52 (80)	14 (19)
Runs	6,996	1,204
Highest score	334	269*
Average	99.94	100.33
Centuries	29	5