Lewis Hamilton to ‘unplug from matrix’ after worst season of F1 career at Ferrari

A despondent Lewis Hamilton said he could not wait to get away from Abu Dhabi after enduring what has been the worst season of his Formula One career. He finished in his lowest ever championship position of sixth place and is looking forward to the winter break and disconnecting from the sport as he attempts to reset and regroup.In the final race of the season in he qualified in 16th place and finished in eighth, while the young British driver Lando Norris claimed his first world championship, the first Briton since Hamilton last did so in 2020.“I can’t wait to get away from all this,” Hamilton said afterwards as he faced the media. “Every week, photoshoots and all that kind of stuff

Standing up for Alex Carey, undoubtedly the finest wicketkeeper in world cricket right now | Brendan Foster

Just after lunch on the fourth day of the Centenary Test at the MCG in 1977, the classroom speaker at my Perth primary school crackled into life with the muffled voices of the ABC radio.Our teacher demanded we stop what we were doing because history was about to be made. Perhaps Queen Elizabeth, who was in Australia on her Silver Jubilee tour of the Commonwealth, was about to address her colonial subjects with a momentous announcement?A thunderous bluster from the tiny speaker filled the room as the teacher proudly declared that Rod Marsh had just become the first Australian wicketkeeper to score a Test century against England.The pugnacious Western Australian, who had the reckless bravery of a bare-knuckle fighter at a travelling agricultural show, revolutionised world cricket because he was the first player to be selected for Australia for his batting ability rather than his glovework. It’s a template that most cricketing nations have been copying ever since, with varying degrees of success

Packers edge Bears and Bills topple Bengals in thriller: NFL week 14 as it happened

(2-11) Las Vegas Raiders 17-24 Denver Broncos (11-2)(3-10) Arizona Cardinals 17-45 Los Angeles Rams (10-3)(9-3-1) Green Bay Packers 28-21 Chicago Bears (9-4)Big shift in the NFC with these results. LA take over at the top of the conference with an absolute rout of Arizona while Green Bay jump to the top of the NFC North above Chicago as the Bears just fall short. Goodnight!Green Bay Packers 28-21 Chicago BearsNot like this, not like this! Chicago go for it all on 4th down as Williams rolls out on the boot leg to the left but he under throws the pass straight into the arms of Keisean Nixon. Game over.Packers 28-21 Bears 0:27, 4th quarterOn 3rd down in the red zone Monangai gets the hand off but is short! Huge play by the Green Bay defense to stop him

Lando Norris proud of winning first F1 drivers’ championship ‘my way’

Lando Norris said he is proud of the way he went about winning his first Formula One world championship, stating after an emotional celebration with his McLaren team and family that he was glad he “won it my way”.Norris emphasised that he felt he had raced fairly and without being overly aggressive, an approach for which he has received criticism in not demonstrating the much eulogised “killer instinct”, which he believes he has proved is not necessary by claiming the title.Norris finished in third at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, enough to secure the world drivers’ championship by two points from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who won the race but could not overcome Norris’s 12-point advantage.The 26-year-old Briton has been explicit all season that he felt he could win the title and still drive clean, and he felt he had made his point.“That’s one of the things that makes me most proud,” Norris said

Britain’s Norris pips Verstappen to win maiden F1 world title after third place in Abu Dhabi – as it happened

Time to wave the chequered flag on today’s live blog, and a thrilling F1 season. I’ll leave you with Giles’ Richards race report. Thanks for joining me – see you in March for the Australian Grand Prix. Bye!And here’s Oscar Piastri, who won four of the first six races but ultimately came up short. “We gave it everything, a bit of a gamble on strategy to try and win the race and the championship

Steel, courage and a sense of humour: how Lando Norris claimed his first F1 title | Giles Richards

“Just want to go have a burger and go home,” was the disconsolate entreaty from Lando Norris when he felt his Formula One world championship hopes had taken a mortal blow after he failed to finish at the Dutch Grand Prix in August. Yet it was testament to the resolution he has shown all season that while down he was far from out, as he proved in going on to claim the title that he felt had slipped away.When Norris took the world championship with his third‑place finish in Abu Dhabi on Sunday he became the first British champion since Lewis Hamilton took his last title in 2020 and, similar to Hamilton for his first win in 2008, he had to show his absolute determination to close it out after a rollercoaster ride for the 26-year-old.Quite apart from what has been a gruelling test of his driving ability across a season marked by intense competition, the level of emotional and psychological control that Norris has had to demonstrate must not be underestimated.He had gone in as favourite back in Melbourne for the opening race but for great swathes of this season he has been under the cosh