Newgarden notches his second title in IndyCar racing
Josef Newgarden won his second championship in three years with a smooth drive in the IndyCar season finale, where he played it safe and watched rookie Colton Herta dominate the road course at Laguna Seca.
Newgarden needed only to finish fourth or better to give Roger Penske his 16th IndyCar title and his drive clearly indicated he wouldn’t get aggressive and risk throwing it away. The American from Tennessee finished eighth Sunday — good enough to beat teammate Simon Pagenaud by 25 points in the championship race.
“I am so happy, I was crying that entire last lap,” Newgarden said. “This has been my dream since I was a kid.”
The championship gave Team Penske a season sweep of the crown jewels of IndyCar; Pagenaud won the Indianapolis 500 in May for Penske’s record 18th victory.
VETTEL SNAPS F1 LOSING STREAK >> Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel took advantage of an early pit stop to win the Singapore Grand Prix and end a 13-month winless streak in Formula One.
Vettel, who started third on the grid, crossed the finish line at the 5-kilometer (3.1-mile) Marina Bay street circuit 2.641 seconds ahead of teammate Charles Leclerc.
It was the four-time F1 champion’s first win since the 2018 Belgian Grand Prix.
Golf
COLOMBIAN WINS FIRST PGA EVENT >> Sebastian Munoz of Colombia made a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to force a playoff, and then beat Sungjae Im with a par on the first extra hole to win the Sanderson Farms Championship at Jackson, Miss., for his first PGA Tour victory.
Munoz, who closed with a 2-under 70, made it two straight weeks for South American winners, following Joaquin Niemann winning last week at the Greenbrier.
MEDIATE TAKES CHAMPIONS TOUR TITLE >> Rocco Mediate birdied his last two holes for a 6-under 64 and won the Sanford International at Sioux Falls, S.D, when Ken Duke took double bogey on the final hole.
Mediate won by two shots for his first PGA Tour Champions title in three years.
Duke was tied for the lead until taking four shots to reach the green on the closing hole at Minnehaha Country Club. He closed with a 69 and tied for second.
WILLETT WINS ON HOME SOIL >> Former Masters champion Danny Willett outplayed Jon Rahm in the final group at Wentworth and closed with a 5-under 67 to win the BMW PGA Championship by three shots for his first victory on home soil in England.
College football
UCLA MOUNTS HUGE COMEBACK >> Coach Chip Kelly says he never lost faith in his UCLA team, even as it was losing its first three games.
Kelly said the Bruins played hard all 12 quarters of those losses, and that paid dividends when they fell behind at No. 19 Washington State late Saturday night.
Dorian Thompson-Robinson threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Demetric Felton with 1:07 left in the game as UCLA overcame a 32-point secondhalf deficit to claim a wild 67-63 victory over the Cougars.
The Bruins (1-3, 1-0 Pac-12) overcame a record nine TD passes by Washington State’s Anthony Gordon.
High school
RACIST TAUNTS MADE AT SOCAL FOOTBALL GAME >> Students and fans were subjected to a racist taunt and other verbal abuse during a high school football game in Southern California, according to a school investigation.
San Clemente High School officials said its probe found a racial epithet was directed at a student from visiting Lincoln High of San Diego on Sept. 13, the Orange County Register reported Sunday. The slur was made inside a restroom.
“In addition, statements we collected confirmed that derogatory words were heard in our bleachers” directed to visiting fans and students, San Clemente Principal Chris Carter wrote in a letter to both school communities.
Lincoln students and others alleged that several Lincoln cheerleaders and students were the targets of racial slurs and insults at the game.
Tennis
MEDVEDEV A STRAIGHT-SET WINNER >> Daniil Medvedev continued his storming run of form by beating Borna Coric 6-3, 6-1 to win the St. Petersburg Open final. On a run of playing in five consecutive finals including his U.S. Open defeat to Rafael Nadal, the Russian never faced a break point against Coric.
EUROPE RETAINS LAVER CUP >> After Roger Federer secured a must-win victory for Team Europe, Alexander Zverev ensured the Laver Cup was retained in a title-deciding super-tiebreaker against Milos Raonic of Team World.
Zverev fired a cross-court forehand winner to clinch a 6-4, 3-6, 10-4 victory in the decisive singles match and give the Europeans a 13-11 win in points.
Figure skating
CHOCK, BATES CLAIM ICE DANCING TITLE >> Olympians Madison Chock and Evan Bates claimed the ice dance title at the U.S. International Classic at Salt Lake City, with a stunning Egyptian-themed free dance.