When Goran Dragic came in as a second-round pick, nobody thought he would last well over a decade in the NBA. Not even himself. Now officially retired, Dragic will be on hand for the NBA’s 33rd game in Mexico since 1992, featuring his favorite …
When Goran Dragic came in as a second-round pick, nobody thought he would last well over a decade in the NBA. Not even himself. Now officially retired, Dragic will be on hand for the NBA’s 33rd game in Mexico since 1992, featuring his favorite franchise, the Miami Heat, going up against the Washington Wizards on November 2.
The former All-Star jumped at the chance to travel to Mexico City to participate in numerous NBA-hosted events, including a Jr. NBA coaches event, prior to Saturday’s matchup. Dragic spoke with HoopsHype about his 15-year career, what separates the Heat from other teams, Luka Doncic, and more.
Pato O’Ward is set to appear at Formula E’s Mexico City race in January, where he is understood to be driving his Arrow McLaren IndyCar in a demonstration run, as well as sampling NEOM McLaren’s Formula E car. The move is part of a continued effort …
Pato O’Ward is set to appear at Formula E’s Mexico City race in January, where he is understood to be driving his Arrow McLaren IndyCar in a demonstration run, as well as sampling NEOM McLaren’s Formula E car.
The move is part of a continued effort to increase collaboration across McLaren’s extended racing portfolio, and was teased by Formula E on social media on Monday, and subsequently confirmed by RACER.
O’Ward has been the most notable of McLaren’s roster to branch out across disciplines – others being the team’s former Extreme E drivers Emma Gilmour and Tanner Foust, as well as David Malukas and Tony Kanaan, all of whom have sampled historic sports cars and grand prix cars in demonstrations in recent seasons.
News of O’Ward’s planned Formula E visit comes after his latest free practice outing for McLaren’s Formula 1 team at last weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix, which took place at the same venue as the Mexico City E-Prix – Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez – although the Formula E uses an alternate track layout to the Formula 1 race.
O’Ward made his second F1 free practice appearance in Mexico City last weekend. Steven Tee/Motorsport Images
While IndyCar continues to explore the possibility of a race in Mexico City, nothing is on the immediate horizon. If it were to transpire, Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles stressed to RACER last month that it would be an “NTT IndyCar championship points race” and not as part of a standalone international series, which had been mooted.
Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez was last a part of the American open-wheel picture between 2002-2007, when it hosted the Champ Car World Series.
McLaren’s Formula E driver lineup comprises 12-time race winner Sam Bird and Taylor Barnard, who became both the youngest starter and youngest podium finisher during a stand-in stint last season when he filled in for Bird during a brief injury layoff. The season begins in Sao Paulo, Brazil on December 7.
Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein dominated the Formula E season opener in Mexico City, leading home Sebastien Buemi, with the victory being investigated for an unspecified technical infringement until officials later cleared Wehrlein’s car after the …
Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein dominated the Formula E season opener in Mexico City, leading home Sebastien Buemi, with the victory being investigated for an unspecified technical infringement until officials later cleared Wehrlein’s car after the post-race inspection.
The Porsche driver started from pole, making a clean getaway. Buemi, who started besides Wehrlein on the front row, had to fend off Maximilian Guenther’s play for second going into Turn 1.
The first change for the lead came on lap three when Wehrlein took the wider Attack Mode line, ceding position to Buemi who did the same on the following lap, but maintained the lead.
Five laps later, the race’s only safety car period came, as Buemi’s Envision Racing teammate Robin Frijns lost control on the exit of Turn 16, coming out of the Foro Sol stadium section, then smacking the Turn 17 wall. When the race resumed three laps later, Buemi took his remaining Attack Mode time, ceding the race lead once again to Wehrlein who was untroubled for the rest of the race, eventually crossing the line 1.164s ahead of Buemi.
While it was a dominant win, being able to control the race from pole position provided the German with the most satisfaction.
“It was a pretty good day with pole position and the race win,” said Wehrlein. “I think our focus in the off season was especially on qualifying. That was one of our weaknesses in the last half of the season last year and I hope we did a good step forward. Let’s see if it’s just a Mexican topic or if we can confirm that in the next couple of events.
“Nevertheless, really happy about the pole position — probably as happy about the race win to be honest. The race was not an easy one. It probably looked easier than it was because I was leading almost the whole race and couldn’t save a lot of energy, just always a little bit to increase my targets.
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“I saw Seb doing one mistake behind me which then opened up a gap and put him out of the slipstream and from there the race was a bit easier.”
Nick Cassidy took third in his first race for Jaguar TCS Racing, being the only driver in the top five to gain a spot in the race, having started fourth after a one-place grid penalty. He also set the fastest lap, being the only driver to break into the 1m14s during the race.
“I think it’s really hard at this circuit to stay close,” said Cassidy. “The tires get very very hot. It’s very difficult to overtake and we were stuck. I think the grid position penalty probably really hurt me, but I can’t complain. It’s a nice start for us as a team.”
After his early flirtation with the podium positions, Guenther eventually finished fourth ahead of Mitch Evans who slipped back from the frontrunners but resisted a push from Jean-Eric Vergne in the latter stages of the race.
NEOM McLaren’s Jake Hughes split the two DS Pesnkes, taking seventh ahead of Stoffel Vandoorne, while Jake Dennis recovered from a dismal qualifying to finish ninth ahead of his Andretti Global teammate Norman Nato – although, as with Wehrlein, both Andretti cars’ results are dependent on a post-race investigation.
While Frijn’s shunt brought out the only safety car, it wasn’t the only incident in what was a rather tame race by Formula E’s standards. Abt Cupra’s Lucas di Grassi retired on the first lap after going off on the way into the stadium section, while Antonio Felix da Costa’s race ended two laps later as a result of suspension damage from contact with Nico Mueller, who was eventually the last finisher on the lead lap, beating only Dan Ticktum who finished off the pace and a lap down.
If you look up the word “fast” in a thesaurus, you’ll find Usain Bolt listed beneath it. No human on earth has ever run faster, but in Mexico City, the 100- and 200-meter world record holder finally met his match. “It’s the first time in my life I’m …
If you look up the word “fast” in a thesaurus, you’ll find Usain Bolt listed beneath it. No human on earth has ever run faster, but in Mexico City, the 100- and 200-meter world record holder finally met his match.
“It’s the first time in my life I’m comfortable saying something is faster than me,” Bolt conceded after a run in Formula E’s GENBETA car, a prototype based on the current GEN3 racing machine, with an increased battery power output of 400kW (up from 350kW in the GEN3) and softer Hankook tires.
Bolt sampled the machine ahead of the first free practice session at the season-opening Mexico City E-Prix, an opportunity that initially caught him by surprise.
“There’s no words to explain. For me, that was just the experience of a lifetime,” he said. “I never knew I was actually going to get to drive the car. I remember when they hit me up and said, ‘You need to get a suit made,’ I thought we were going to a dinner until I saw the measurements.”
A dinner table might have been a touch more comfortable, at least at first, with Bolt noting that he felt somewhat claustrophobic after he squeezed his 6 foot 5 inch frame into the compact single-seater.
“There’s no space; it was really close,” he said. “It was the first time I’ve ever been claustrophobic because it was so close, [but] for me, the moment I got going, it was gone. I was just enjoying myself.”
Ahead of his run, Bolt received training from Formula E safety car driver Bruno Correia and 13-time grand prix winner David Coulthard, who was impressed by Bolt’s application.
Bolt in the Porsche Taycan safety car with Correia. Formula E photo
“I was very impressed with Usain’s focus and desire to put in a strong performance,” the Scot said. “Put the world’s fastest man in this incredible race car and he was always going to push it to the limit. Once a champion, always a champion.”
Bolt, a noted gearhead, added, “I drive fast so I take notes of how people drive and I listen to commentators and stuff so I understand how to go into a corner, get out of a corner. It was a beautiful experience.”
While Bolt is no stranger to driving fast, a Formula E car isn’t a typical car – “It’s different,” as he appropriately put it.
“It’s like a rocket ship on wheels,” he said. “The power that I got, the surprise that I got, the launch and everything just gives a different feel and the adrenaline that you get from this is on another level, easily.
“I said this earlier to the camera and I said I wasn’t going to say it out loud again…I’ve never, ever said something is faster than me, but that car there was mind blowing.”
Aside from being merely a rare opportunity to drive a racing car on a track, Bolt pointed out the educational value of his run, explaining that it’ll give him a different appreciation for racing drivers from now on.
“For me now, I’ll look at racing a little bit differently,” he said. “I’ve always told people that you see people do sports and you go, as a regular person, ‘Ah, that’s easy.’ Only if you actually get in the position to actually experience it, you gain a lot more respect for the drivers and what they do.”
Expanding on the subject, he added, “You see on TV, on Twitter, on Instagram, when people play basketball, motorsport, every other sport, and you might mess up, they go, ‘Oh, I could’ve done that.’ You don’t know what they have to go through in that moment to get to that level, or the work they have to put in behind the scenes.
Formula E photo
“I understand that because I’ve been there, but every time I experience a different sport, I still gain so much more respect because I know the work you have to put in. When you actually go in and feel the difference and feel what they have to go through and how tight the car is and how hard they have to brake, the speed they have to hold… The late braking is very impressive because you see the corner coming up and you think, ‘If I brake just a second earlier, the guy there is going to pass me.’ So for me, the respect and the love that I have for these motorsport people goes up high, trust me.”
When asked by RACER whether he could begin a second career as a professional racing driver, much like British cyclist Sir Chris Hoy (who competed at Le Mans in 2016 after two years in British GT and two years in the European Le Mans Series), Bolt didn’t rule it out.
“If they can fit me in a car, it is possible,” he said. “Listen, I’m very competitive, and the second lap I went around, I went faster. That’s why I wanted more laps — to get more confident so I could really push myself. You never know with me. I like to try doing things I enjoy and I really enjoyed this experience.”
Involvement in Formula E in a different capacity is also an option for Bolt, who, when asked if he’d be interested in investing in a team, said that, “After the experience that I had, anything is possible.
“It’s something I have to talk to my team about, but I’d love to be a part of it. I’d love to promote it because [of the experience I had today]. I really enjoyed it,” he said.
Above all else, the Olympian just wants to get back behind the wheel of a Formula E car. After hitting 100kph in just 2.89s, despite a loss of traction — something he also experienced with a dramatic moment going into the first turn on his first lap – he’s certain he can do better if he gets given another run, or “three more tries,” as he put it.
“If they allowed me, I would drive all day,” he added. “I was that impressed and enjoyed it that much.”
Jake Hughes was fastest in the opening Formula E practice of 2024 in Mexico City, despite bringing the session to an early end with a crash at Turn 1. The NEOM McLaren driver understeered through the first turn before colliding with the outside …
Jake Hughes was fastest in the opening Formula E practice of 2024 in Mexico City, despite bringing the session to an early end with a crash at Turn 1.
The NEOM McLaren driver understeered through the first turn before colliding with the outside wall, however his best time of 1m14.364s, set on his 14th and final lap of the session, was 0.381s quicker than Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein, with Nico Muller of Abt Cupra a further 0.01s back in third.
Envision’s Robin Frijns was fourth quickest, with the reigning champion, Andretti Global’s Jake Dennis, completing the top five.
Antonio Felix da Costa made it two Porsche drivers in the top six, bettering Jaguar’s Mitch Evans, with Nissan duo Sacha Fenestraz and Oliver Rowland, and Andretti’s Norman Nato rounding out the top 10.
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Previous series champions Sebastien Buemi and Jean-Eric Vergne finished the session just outside the top 10. Nick Cassidy — racing for Jaguar for the first time this weekend after matching 2023’s highest win tally driving for Jaguar customer outfit Envision — was mired in the midfield as well.
Another driver making his debut for his new team, NEOM McLaren’s Sam Bird, could only manage the 16th-fastest lap despite his teammate topping the timesheets, while Nyck de Vries, returning to Formula E after his stint in Formula 1, drove his Mahindra to 20th.
Hughes’ late off wasn’t the only red flag incident of the session. Maserati MSG’s Maximilian Guenther ran wide at the final turn early in the session, brushing the wall and coming to a stop at the top of the start-finish straight.
Guenther had already managed to set a time, but it was only good enough for 21st, with his teammate — the only rookie in the field, Jahan Daruvala — in 22nd.
The NFL is targeting Brazil for a 2024 International Series game. Which stadium could play host? Would you want the Saints to make the trip?
Now this is interesting. Multiple reports from NFL ownership meetings in Dallas say the league’s decision-makers will be voting on a potential 2024 regular season game to be played in Brazil, with a verdict coming as soon as Wednesday afternoon.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has made the league’s International Series a point of emphasis on his annual agenda — we may never see a Super Bowl played overseas or have an NFL team headquartered outside America, but Goodell clearly sees room for expansion in international markets. After kicking off games in the United Kingdom, Germany, and Mexico, he’s looking to Brazil as the next hotspot in 2024 (plus Spain in 2025, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports).
So where could that game be played? Venues used for recent international NFL games include London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (seating over 60,000) and Wembley Stadium (seating more than 85,000), Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca (capacity for 78,000 seats) as well as Germany’s stadiums in Munich (the 69,000-seat Allianz Arena) and Frankfurt (Deutsche Bank Park, seating about 51,000).
That’s an average capacity of about 68,600 seats. If that’s in the ballpark of what the NFL is looking for in a venue, São Paulo has one clear option: the Estadio do Morumbi (which opened in 1960, easily seating 66,000). The city is also home to the Arena Corinthians (opened in 2014, seating 49,000) and Estádio Prudentão (built in 1982, seating 45,000) as alternative sites.
Now, what you’re really here for: could the Saints be involved? The answer to that is a soft “maybe.” New Orleans will not lose another home game to an international game in 2024 after doing so in 2022’s matchup with the Minnesota Vikings in London. NFL ownership previously agreed that every team would play a “home” game overseas once every eight years, but they’re voting soon on whether to shorten that to a four-year gap, so the Saints could make the trip as visitors.
An NFC team is expected to host the game in Brazil (if approved by league ownership), per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, and the Saints have away games scheduled in 2024 with the following opponents in their conference:
Atlanta Falcons
Carolina Panthers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Dallas Cowboys
New York Giants
Same-place NFC North team (right now, the Green Bay Packers)
We can rule out the Packers, Falcons, and Buccaneers because they have “hosted” international games in recent years, leaving the Panthers, Cowboys, and Giants as options to host. We should acknowledge the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, and Chicago Bears are eligible to host the game in Brazil if the Saints end up playing a difference NFC North team in 2024, depending on how the final divisional standings shake out.
But there’s another factor to consider: the NFL’s international marketing rights for Brazil have been awarded to just one team, the Miami Dolphins. It’s likely they would want the Dolphins to be involved because of that (or at least, the Dolphins would want to be involved), even if they’re playing as visitors. Miami has made a number of overseas appearances including a game in Frankfurt this year. They’re a likelier fit than the Saints.
Guess crickets are off the menu for Jimmy Butler now
When you go to another country you absolutely have to take in that country’s culture. It’s part of the whole experience.
That’s why nobody can really blame Jimmy Butler for trying crickets when the Heat took a trip to Mexico City to play the Spurs. Athletes are supposed to watch what they eat, but can you blame him for this?
Butler actually credited the crickets for his performance against the Spurs. He said they were good. Good enough for him to come back and try a thousand crickets? No, absolutely not. But good enough for him to play well — at least in that game. That’s all that mattered.
Why didn’t the #49ers just practice in Mexico City?
The 49ers spent their week of practice in Colorado Springs with the hopes of getting their players acclimated to the more than 7,000 feet of elevation they’ll play in Monday night at Estadio Azetca in Mexico City.
While there’s no tried and true method for bodily acclimation to the thinner air at elevation, head coach Kyle Shanahan said the team is standing by their choice to spend the week preparing at nearly 6,000 feet above sea level in Colorado Springs.
“That’s what science says and we had our biggest practice on Thursday, I think that’s where they really felt it,” Shanahan said. “Wednesday’s not quite as much and today’s not quite as much, but Thursday, which was Friday to the rest of the world, they really felt it then. And that was the first time they’re like, oh this, this is pretty real.”
So why didn’t the team just head directly to Mexico City? Shanahan explained that the accommodations at the Air Force Academy where they practiced gave them everything they needed.
“I heard Air Force has really good facilities,” Shanahan said. “I heard they had everything that could accommodate us. I talked to New England coaches and Chargers coaches and they said that. We flew our guys down here to check all of that. They thought it was pretty nice. I’ve been here, I think it’s pretty nice. I didn’t have the same connections in Mexico City. [OL] Alfredo [Gutierrez] didn’t know the people, so it’s hard to trust.”
Whether practicing in the elevated climate is actually beneficial isn’t necessarily known, so it makes sense that they’d at least make sure they went somewhere where they knew the facilities would be adequate for what they needed to prepare.
In the later portions of Monday night’s game we’ll see whether the week at altitude actually helped the 49ers. If they fall apart late, it could be a sign that going anywhere at elevation wasn’t necessarily the right move.
The New Orleans Saints, Jacksonville Jaguars and Green Bay Packers will play home games in London, England. The Tampa Buccaneers will play a home game in Munich, Germany. The Arizona Cardinals will play a home game in Mexico City, Mexico.
While opponents haven’t been announced for these games yet, the Kansas City Chiefs have been linked to the game played in Munich. Not only were they awarded NFL international marketing right for Germany, but the team has a bit of a partnership with FC Bayern, who will play host to the game in Munich. There’s also, of course, the appeal of a Super Bowl rematch being playing in the first-ever regular-season game in Germany.
Kansas City also makes sense as opponents in another international game. The team was also awarded international marketing rights for Mexico along with Arizona and seven other NFL teams. They could very well be the Cardinals’ opponent in Mexico City in 2022, as the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams are the only other teams playing Arizona at home with marketing rights in Mexico.
The Chiefs last played internationally in 2019, facing the Los Angeles Chargers at Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca. K.C. won that game 24-17 ahead of their run to become champions in Super Bowl LIV.
It seems like the Chiefs could just as easily be the road opponents against the Cards in the upcoming Mexico City game as they could be the road opponents against the Bucs in Germany. If K.C. plays in Mexico City in 2022, look for them to potentially be the home team in the next game played in Munich in 2024.
There’s a chance that may finally change this year, though.
The NFL has sent a number of teams to play games outside of the United States in recent years as they attempt to grow their brand around the globe. As of yet, the Seahawks have not played in one of them. There’s a chance that may finally change this year, though.
The league just announced that five teams will be “hosting” international games during the 2022 season. Three of them are on Seattle’s schedule for away games this year: the Cardinals are playing in Mexico City, the Saints will host a game in London, and the Buccaneers will play in Munich.
The full schedule for the 2022 NFL season is set to be released in May.
There’s no way to know for sure, but it’s a heck of a flight-time from Seattle to Europe and jet fuel is expensive. Our guess is they’ll visit Arizona in Mexico City if it does happen.
