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Max Verstappen on pole in Jeddah as Lando Norris crashes in qualifying

JEDDAH: World champion Max Verstappen put Red Bull on pole position for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in track-record time on Saturday as McLaren’s Formula One leader Lando Norris hit the wall and qualified 10th. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, bidding to become the first Australian to lead the standings since Mark Webber in 2010, joined the four-times world champion on the front row for Sunday’s night race. Mercedes’s George Russell and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc will share the second row in third and fourth at the super-fast Corniche circuit where the winner has come from pole three out of four times previously. “The car came alive in the night,” exclaimed Verstappen after pipping Piastri by a mere 0.010 of a second. The pole position changed hands three times in a final flurry of flying laps before the champion settled matters with a time of one minute 27.294 seconds. “I think in the race it will be difficult to keep them behind.

Man City boost top five bid, Southampton snatch late leveller

LONDON: Manchester City bolstered their bid to qualify for the Champions League with a dramatic 2-0 win at Everton, while Southampton’s last-gasp equalizer at West Ham ensured they will not have sole possession of the lowest points total in Premier League history. City were heading toward a damaging draw before Nico O’Reilly’s 84th minute strike put them on course for a vital victory that was sealed by Mateo Kovacic’s goal in the final seconds. Pep Guardiola’s side climb to fourth place, four points ahead of sixth-placed Chelsea, who face Fulham on Sunday in their game in hand. Fifth-placed Nottingham Forest, who travel to Tottenham on Monday, are one point adrift of City. At a stage of the season when they are usually embroiled in a battle to win the title, City — champions in six of the previous seven campaigns — have been reduced to scrapping for a Champions League berth after a dismal season. They remain on course to achieve their bare minimum target after a hard-fought success on Merseyside. In the 84th minute, Matheus Nunes’s low cross into the six-yard box was met by the 20-year-old O’Reilly, who got in front of Michael Keane to poke home from close range. O’Reilly has emerged as an unlikely hero for City after the Manchester-born midfielder scored last week in the win against Crystal Palace and netted twice against Plymouth in the FA Cup. Kovacic wrapped up City’s victory on their last visit to Goodison Park before Everton move to a new stadium next season. The Croatian guided Ilkay Gundogan’s pass into the bottom corner to give City a third win from their last four league games. “To win here at Goodison Park, where Liverpool and Arsenal couldn’t, is massively important,” Guardiola said. “Now it is in our hands.

Morocco U-17 make history after winning their first AFCON title

BEIRUT: Morocco’s U-17 national football team made history on Saturday by winning their first Africa Cup of Nations 2025 title after edging past Mali 4-2 on penalty shootouts. The final match saw little in the way of clear chances, with both sides struggling to break the deadlock throughout 90 minutes of a goalless draw. In the second half, the Atlas Lions increased their tempo, obviously paving their way for a breakthrough, but could not hit the Malian net. With no goals to separate the two, the match went to penalties, where Morocco held their nerve.

Rajasthan unleash Suryavanshi, 14, as youngest IPL player but lose thriller

JAIPUR: Vaibhav Suryavanshi made an explosive 34 off 20 balls as he became the youngest player in IPL history aged just 14 on Saturday but finished on the losing side as Lucknow Super Giants beat Rajasthan Royals by two runs. In the first match of the day, England’s Jos Buttler smashed an unbeaten 97 to power Gujarat Titans to the top of the IPL table with a seven-wicket win over Delhi Capitals in Ahmedabad’s intense heat. But it was the evening game that drew eyeballs after Rajasthan turned to Suryavanshi as their impact substitute and he opened the batting alongside India star Yashasvi Jaiswal following Lucknow’s 180-5. Suryavanshi stole the limelight after belting his first ball for six in a much-awaited debut after he was bought for $130,500 in the November auction when he was still just 13. Jaiswal and Suryavanshi, who hit three sixes and two fours in an electrifying knock, put on 85 for the first wicket before the youngster was stumped by Rishabh Pant off the bowling of South Africa international Aiden Markram. Stand-in captain Riyan Parag came in and made 39 but Rajasthan lost their way as he departed shortly after Jaiswal fell for 74. Avesh Khan dismissed both in the 18th over to turn the match on its head and Rajasthan finished on 178-5 after the Lucknow fast bowler defended nine off the last over to pull off a stunning victory for his team in Jaipur. “These kind of matches build character,” Lucknow skipper Pant said after his team moved up to fourth in the 10-team table. “It was an amazing win.

Lando Norris crashes in qualifying as Max Verstappen takes Saudi Arabian pole

Lando Norris crashed out of qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as Max Verstappen claimed a brilliant pole position.

'Idiot' Norris says he let down himself and McLaren

JEDDAH :McLaren's Formula One leader Lando Norris called himself an idiot after crashing in Saudi Arabian Grand Prix qualifying on Saturday, and he stuck by the self-criticism when talking to reporters afterwards.

Verstappen takes Saudi pole after Norris crashes

JEDDAH :World champion Max Verstappen put Red Bull on pole position for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in dramatic style on Saturday as McLaren's Formula One leader Lando Norris hit the wall and qualified 10th.

Max Verstappen Edges Oscar Piastri For Pole In Jeddah

Red Bull's Max Verstappen nailed pole from McLaren's Oscar Piastri for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in a gripping qualifying session on Saturday. Piastri's teammate, championship leader Lando Norris, crashed in the top 10 shoot-out and will start on the fifth row of Sunday's race. Four-time world champion Verstappen was in unstoppable form under the floodlights on the high-speed Jeddah Corniche Circuit, grabing the front of the grid by one hundredth of a second. It was a huge turnaround for the Dutchman after he and his Red Bull team had struggled in Bahrain last weekend.

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Saudi Arabia Sport News

Max Verstappen on pole in Jeddah as Lando Norris crashes in qualifying

Man City boost top five bid, Southampton snatch late leveller

Morocco U-17 make history after winning their first AFCON title

Rajasthan unleash Suryavanshi, 14, as youngest IPL player but lose thriller

Lando Norris crashes in qualifying as Max Verstappen takes Saudi Arabian pole

'Idiot' Norris says he let down himself and McLaren

Verstappen takes Saudi pole after Norris crashes

Max Verstappen Edges Oscar Piastri For Pole In Jeddah