Sato atop speed chart on the first day of Indy 500 practice
Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato shot to the top of the speed chart late Tuesday on the first day of preparations for “The Great American Race.”
Sato went 228.939 mph around Indianapolis Motor Speedway to bump six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon as fastest on opening day. Dixon's lap of 227.768 mph had topped the scoring pylon for several hours until Sato's big run in a Dale Coyne Racing entry.
Jimmie Johnson was third fastest followed by teammate Marcus Ericsson. Chip Ganassi Racing drivers were second, third, fourth and sixth fastest (reigning IndyCar champion Alex Palou).
It was a strong day for Honda, which has been beaten by Chevrolet in four of five races so far this IndyCar season. Honda scored its first win of the season Saturday with Colton Herta on the road course at Indy.
Ten Honda drivers cracked the top 12 on Tuesday. The fastest Chevy driver was Rinus VeeKay of Ed Carpenter Racing in fourth. VeeKay was the fastest driver without a tow at 221.552 mph.
There are seven rookies in the 33-driver field and several impressed Tuesday.
David Malukas, the 20-year-old teammate to Sato at Coyne, was seventh fastest. Devlin DeFrancesco was 11th as the Andretti Autosport driver attempts to prove to his competitors he's settled down since a rocky race at Texas Motor Speedway in March. DeFrancesco was part of three incidents and penalized by IndyCar for his role in a three-car crash.
Not rookies but still strong in their first true competition of the season were 2013 winner Tony Kanaan in ninth, 2020 pole winner Marco Andretti in 10th and JR Hildebrand, who nearly won the race as a rookie in 2011, was 14th. None has raced an IndyCar event yet this season.
SOCCER Shaqiri highest-paid player in MLS history
Chicago Fire midfielder Xherdan Shaqiri is MLS's highest-paid player, jumping past LAFC attacker Carlos Vela and breaking Zlatan Ibrahimovic's league record.
The 30-year-old Swiss international, who joined Chicago this season from Lyon, has a base salary of $7.35 million and total compensation of $8,153,000, according to figures released Tuesday by the Major League Soccer Players Association.
He is expected to be passed by Italian winger
Lorenzo Insigne, who joins Toronto this summer from Napoli.
Ibrahimovic had the previous high of $7.2 million with the LA Galaxy in 2019.
Galaxy forward Javier Hernandez began this season in second at $6 million and Inter Miami striker Gonzalo Higuaín third with a $5.1 million base and $5,793,750 in total compensation.
Toronto midfielder Alejandro Pozuelo is fourth ($3.8 million, $4,693,000), followed by New England forward Jozy Altidore ($3,706,139 $4,264,963), Atlanta forward Josef Martínez ($3.75 million, $4,141,667), Vela ($2.25 million, $4.05 million), Atlanta midfielder/ forward Luiz Araújo ($3.6 million, $3,941,667), Columbus midfielder Lucas Zelarayán ($3.1 million, $3.7 million) and New England midfielder Carles Gil ($3,25 million, $3,545,833).
Atlanta has the highest payroll, with guaranteed compensation of $20,999,272, followed by the Galaxy at $20,128,040, Miami at $18,882,628 and New England at $18,141,886. Salt Lake is last at $10,477,859, with Charlotte at $10,708,858.
• Lionel Messi will come to play for Inter Miami CF with a 35% ownership stake when his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expires in June 2023, according to a report.
That would be roughly $225 million based on current valuation of the team. Per the report, Messi would sign the deal in August.
Messi's camp denied the claims, per French outlet Le Parisien.
• Eintracht Frankfurt and Rangers will get a chance to end decades of despair when they meet in the Europa League final today.
For Frankfurt, it will be an opportunity to win its first European trophy in more than 40 years. For Rangers, a chance for its first continental title in 50 years.
Triumph in the secondtier competition in the Spanish city of Seville will also guarantee the winner an automatic spot in the group stage of next season's Champions League.
“For Eintracht, for the fans, for the club, for the players, (winning again after 42 years) would be the most important thing ever,” Frankfurt coach Oliver Glasner told UEFA.com. “It has extraordinary significance, great significance, and that's why we're going to try our best so that we come home with the trophy and spend one or two nights celebrating with our fans.”
It will be Frankfurt's first European final since beating Borussia Mönchengladbach in 1980 in an all-German matchup in the UEFA Cup, the predecessor to the Europa League.
Rangers was close to European glory when it played in the UEFA Cup final in 2008, but it lost to Zenit St. Petersburg. The Scottish club is looking for its first European trophy since earning the Cup Winners' Cup in 1972.
Both clubs have huge fan bases, and tens of thousands are expected to swarm into southern Spain this week to try to see their team succeed again, prompting concern from local authorities and UEFA.
TENNIS No. 2 Medvedev loses in his return to court
Second-ranked Daniil Medvedev lost his comeback match after a six-week injury layoff, beaten 6-2, 7-6 (5) by Richard Gasquet in the second round at the Geneva Open.
Medvedev, who underwent hernia surgery last month, cautioned Sunday he was often a slow starter on clay courts. So it proved in his first match on the surface this season, in the last tournament before the French Open.
Medvedev double-faulted for the seventh time on Gasquet's first match point, as the Frenchman ended a 36-match losing streak against opponents ranked No. 1 or 2 after beating Roger Federer 17 years ago at Monte Carlo.
“It's tough. I don't play my best tennis on clay courts,” Medvedev said. “I kind of need to be in the zone, which I was not today.”
HOCKEY Austria stuns Czech Republic at worlds
Austria pulled off a major upset at the IIHF World Championships, stunning the Czech Republic 2-1 after prevailing in a penalty shootout.
It was Austria's first victory over the Czechs at a major tournament. Austria's Peter Schneider was the only player to convert his penalty in the shootout.
It was Austria's first win of the tournament after two losses, moving the team up to fifth place in Group B with three points, trailing the Czechs in fourth by a point.
The Czechs are hoping David Pastrnak will boost their attack when he arrives in Finland after his Boston Bruins were eliminated from the NHL playoffs by the Carolina Hurricanes. He should be available for the next game against Latvia on Thursday.
In another Group B game, Sweden routed Britain 6-0 to join Finland atop the standings.
In Group A, Switzerland made it three wins in a row, defeating Kazakhstan 3-2 to join Canada on nine points. Also, Denmark beat Italy 2-1 for its second win.
• Toronto Maple Leafs star Mitch Marner was the victim of a carjacking in Toronto. Marner was not hurt in the carjacking that took place Monday evening, the team said.
CYCLING Girmay's victory big for African cycling
It's been a season of firsts for Biniam Girmay, and the Eritrean rider added a stage victory in the Giro d'Italia in his first Grand Tour to raise the profile of African cycling.
The 22-year-old Girmay outsprinted none other than Mathieu van der Poel — one of the top riders in the sport — to win the 10th stage.
“I realize I'm making history but it's thanks to my team and my family,” Girmay said. “I'm really grateful to them.”
Girmay was then taken to a local hospital after getting injured when he popped a champagne cork into his eye during the podium celebration.
Spanish rider Juan Pedro López of the Trek-Segafredo team maintained his 12-second lead over João Almeida in the overall standings as the three-week race approached the half-way stage.