Sports

BARCELONA — Formula One wrapped up pre-season testing on Friday with Kimi Raikkonen keeping Ferrari on top of the timesheets for the second day in a row.

The Finn’s lap of one minute 17.221 seconds around Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya was the second fastest of the eight days of winter testing and slower only than teammate Sebastian Vettel’s best on Thursday.

McLaren’s Fernando Alonso had a rollercoaster day, sidelined for nearly five hours by an oil leak and engine change before charging back out to set the second quickest time on the same hypersoft tyres.

The Spaniard, who completed 93 laps after failing to set a time in the morning, was 0.563 slower than Raikkonen.

Compatriot Carlos Sainz was third fastest for Renault, after losing time to a gearbox problem in the morning.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo was fourth in a Red Bull and Frenchman Romain Grosjean completed an impressive few days for Haas in fifth.

“I think we will be close enough to be in the hunt,” said Ricciardo, who now heads to a season-opening home race on March 25. “It’s been a better winter than last year.

“Ferrari turned it up the last couple of days but we are there or thereabouts. It looks like Ferrari can challenge Mercedes if we can’t and it could be quite close.”

Grosjean did a marathon 181 laps in the Ferrari-powered car on Friday, more than anyone else on a day that started cool but warmed up, while compatriot Esteban Ocon put in 163 for Force India.

Four times world champion Lewis Hamilton shared the Mercedes with Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas, the pair doing 97 and 104 laps respectively as they focused on long runs rather than outright speed.

McLaren have defended their “ambitious” car design after Alonso suffered more reliability problems on testing.

Former world champions McLaren have switched from Honda to Renault engines this season and are hoping to move back up the grid after sinking to ninth of 10 teams last season.

“We have an ambitious design around the car and you can see that the car is a little bit different from the other Renault-engined cars,” racing director Eric Boullier told reporters at the Circuit de Catalunya.

“So far we had minor issues but I think that was because we didn’t do a good job enough to prepare the car.”

McLaren have lost time to a variety of problems, starting with a wheel nut issue that sent Alonso spinning into the gravel after just six laps of the very first day of testing in Barcelona.

On Tuesday Belgian Stoffel Vandoorne was twice stopped by battery and hydraulic failures while Alonso lost about seven hours after an oil leak forced another engine change on Wednesday. 

Boullier said McLaren had adjusted the car’s cooling systems, but conceded that the lack of running meant reliability would remain a concern for the season opening race in Australia on March 25.

“We had only minor issues which were all different. A good rebuild of the car for Australia will help us to fix a few issues,” added the Frenchman.

“We have not lost our capability of designing fast cars and I hope you will see it on track soon. We have to be ambitious, and to be ambitious you have to take risks.”

LONDON — Juventus produced a Champions League smash-and-grab raid as Paulo Dybala’s goal earned them a 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley to send the Italians through to the quarter-finals 4-3 on aggregate on Wednesday.

Son Heung-min’s first-half effort had put Tottenham in control after they had drawn 2-2 in Turin last month and there was little sign of a Juve response until Gonzalo Higuain and Dybala struck in three second-half minutes.

Higuain poked in from close range to equalise in the 64th minute before fellow Argentine Dybala, who missed the first leg with an injury, curled past Hugo Lloris after bursting clear.

“An amazing night, it was very difficult. We believed in the win,” Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini told BT Sport.

“We said keep calm and the chance will arrive. We have to be concentrated and score when we have the chance,” Chiellini added.

“Experience is important and we used ours tonight. We are growing up year by year and match by match.”

It was tough on Tottenham, who will rue several missed chances in the opening period and hit the post with a Harry Kane header in the 90th minute, but proof that Massimiliano Allegri’s experienced Juventus, runners-up in two of the last three seasons, remain one of Europe’s toughest nuts to crack.

Son was given the nod ahead of Erik Lamela on the left side of Tottenham’s attack and fully justified manager Mauricio Pochettino’s faith as he ran Juve’s experienced defence ragged before halftime.

His stinging shot tested Juve keeper Gianluigi Buffon in the third minute and another lightning burst into the box ended with Chiellini making a crucial block.

Tottenham hounded Juventus as they did in the opening leg and Kane should have scored in the 14th minute when Dele Alli played him in, but the England striker fired his shot into the side-netting.

It was not one-way traffic, though, and the hosts had an enormous let-off shortly after Kane’s miss when Douglas Costa drove into the area and was tripped by an out-paced Jan Vertonghen and sent sprawling.

Vertonghen looked a picture of innocence as Juve’s furious players surrounded Polish referee Szymon Marciniak, who opted against pointing to the spot despite replays confirming the Tottenham defender had taken Costa’s legs and not the ball.

Confused Buffon

Son then drove a left-foot shot wide when he should have scored but his persistence finally saw him break the deadlock in the 39th minute courtesy of a slice of fortune.

Kieran Trippier picked out Son with a low cross and despite completely missing the ball with his right foot it cannoned off his standing left leg and dinked over the confused Buffon.

It was only the third goal Juve had conceded in 12 games — all against a vibrant Tottenham side — and left them needing to score twice to stay in the competition.

Dybala missed the first leg with injury and was largely anonymous at Wembley — his first sight of goal not arriving until just past the hour when he drove wildly over.

A minute later, however, his fellow Argentine Higuain sparked the tie back into life when he stuck out a leg to touch home Sami Khedira’s knockdown.

Two minutes later Tottenham’s defence was caught square and Dybala was played through on goal, calmly advancing before curling past Lloris to send the 4,000 travelling fans wild.

A stunned Tottenham responded with Kane, who hit the post with a header that bounced up off the turf, Christian Eriksen and Son all going close, but Juve’s vast European experience saw them home.

“In less than three minutes we conceded two goals — two big mistakes — and that is why we are out,” Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino said.

“In both legs we deserved more. I feel proud. We played fantastic football until that first goal and we dominated.

“Of course we are very disappointed but it is part of growing. We will keep going.”

PARIS — Holders Real Madrid cruised into the Champions League quarter-finals with Cristiano Ronaldo’s second-half goal helping them to a 2-1 victory at Paris St Germain on Tuesday, as the 12-time European champions went through 5-2 on aggregate.

Ronaldo headed home seven minutes into the second half and Casemiro added a second 10 minutes from time against a toothless PSG, who were without their injured talisman Neymar and had Marco Verratti sent off for a second booking in the 66th minute.

Ronaldo scored for the ninth Champions League game in a row, matching Ruud van Nistelrooy’s record in the competition, before PSG striker Edinson Cavani equalised with 19 minutes left, only for Casemiro to give Real victory at the Parc des Princes.

Zinedine Zidane’s side, who are 15 points adrift of arch-rivals Barcelona in La Liga, but aiming for their third straight Champions League crown, were solid throughout as the home side rarely threatened and fully deserved their win.

With Toni Kroos and Luka Modric starting on the bench after returning from injury, Real struggled to control the midfield but PSG did not threaten in a dull start to the game.

Real had a great opportunity in the 20th minute, but PSG goalkeeper Alphonse Areola pulled off a superb save as he parried Sergio Ramos’s effort from close range.

The visitors had another chance in the 38th minute when Karim Benzema’s curled shot was saved by Areola.

PSG had their first big chance on the stroke of halftime as Kylian Mbappe burst down the right flank, only for his low shot to be blocked by Real keeper Keylor Navas.

Dangerous Real

The stadium announcer asked the PSG fans to stop lighting flares at the start of the second half, with smoke having covered part of the pitch.

But that did not stop Real being the most dangerous side again, Ronaldo’s header from near the penalty spot shaving Areola’s right-hand post.

The Portuguese was spot on in the 52nd minute, beating Areola with a downward header from Lucas Vazquez’s cross from the left.

PSG coach Unai Emery, who is under pressure a year after his side lost 6-1 at Barca in the last 16 following a 4-0 home win in the first leg, replaced holding midfielder Thiago Motta with the more creative Javier Pastore on the hour.

But PSG finished the match with 10 men after combative midfielder Verratti picked up a second yellow card. 

They levelled in the 71st minute when the ball deflected into the net off Cavani to give the home fans a glimmer of hope.

However, that was short-lived as Casemiro’s shot in the 80th minute took a slight deflection off Marquinhos to earn the win, as Real made the quarter-finals for the eighth straight season.

Aggregate victory

Liverpool eased into the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a goalless draw against Porto on Tuesday, completing a routine aggregate victory after their 5-0 first-leg win in Portugal.

Despite facing old rivals Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday, Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp fielded a strong side although top scorer Mohamed Salah and record signing Virgil van Dijk both started on the bench.

In a predictably low-key game, Liverpool striker Sadio Mane, whose hat-trick in Porto helped ensure there was little at stake at Anfield, came closest to breaking the deadlock.

Mane was off target with an effort at full-stretch from a Joe Gomez cross in the 18th minute and then hit the post in the 31st minute after taking down a ball from James Milner and releasing a low diagonal drive.

While the night lacked drama, the passion was brought by Porto’s supporters who, despite the heavy loss from two weeks ago, travelled to Merseyside to fill the away section and sang their hearts out all night.

AMMAN — Wihdat face Ahli and seem poised to retain the lead with the aim of retaking the title as Week 18 of the Jordan Professional Football League kicks off on Thursday.

Wihdat’s 2-0 win over Baqa’a boosted their lead as Ramtha were held 0-0 with Shabab Urdun and had their chase slashed.

Ramtha next play Faisali, who are still fourth, as their match with Ahli was postponed, while Jazira taking on Manshieh as both teams played the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup.

Shabab Urdun are fifth and next play Baqa’a while Ahli who stayed sixth have a tough one against Wihdat. That Ras who climbed to seventh after they beat Aqaba 1-0 as the latter dropped to last, next play Hussein who need to win and move out of the relegation zone.

This week, Jazira beat Oman’s Suweiq 3-2 while Faisali beat Oman’s Dhofar 2-0 in stage 3 of the 15th AFC Cup. Both teams boosted their leads atop groups A and C as the two Jordanian clubs now lead the second-tier Asian club competition after Jazira held Iraqi Air Force Club 2-2 and beat Bahrain’s Malikieh 1-0, while Faisali held Syria’s Wihdeh 2-2 and upset Lebanon’s Ansar 3-1.

So far this season, reigning league and Jordan Cup champs Faisali beat Jazira to win the 35th Jordan Super Cup. Wihdat beat Jazira to win the Jordan Football Association Shield. In the Jordan Cup, Jazira ousted Faisali while Shabab Urdun eliminated Wihdat to reach the final.

Last season, Faisali won their 33rd league title after a four-year break and combined it with the Jordan Cup. Ahli beat reigning league champs Wihdat to win the Super Cup, Shabab Urdun beat Faisali to win their second Shield title after they first won in 2007. Sarih and Sahab were r

elegated and replaced by Aqaba and Yarmouk from the First Division.

Tony Parker scored a season-high 23 points off the bench, as the San Antonio reserves were the difference in a taut 100-98 Spurs’ victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday at the AT&T Centre in San Antonio, Texas.

San Antonio got 67 points from their bench, including 17 from Davis Bertans and 15 points from Danny Green. The Spurs ended a two-game losing streak, but won for just the second time in eight games.

Parker scored four straight baskets over a two-minute stretch midway through the fourth quarter that turned a game tied at 85 into a 93-87 San Antonio lead with 4:01 to play.

Kyle Anderson, with 11 points, was the only Spurs starter in double figures. LaMarcus Aldridge returned to the line-up for San Antonio after missing a game and a half with a sprained right ankle and was largely ineffective, scoring seven points and grabbing eight rebounds in more than 31 minutes of court time.

Marc Gasol, originally listed as out in the pregame injury report, led the Grizzlies with 23 points and took 10 rebounds. Memphis, who owns the NBA’s worst record, have lost 14 games in a row and 12 straight contests on the road, dating back to December.

Memphis, who owns the NBA’s worst record, has lost 14 games in a row and 12 straight contests on the road, dating back to December. But the Grizzlies did not go down without a real fight.

Marc Gasol, who was listed as out of the game in Memphis’ pregame injury report, instead started and led all scorers with 13 points in the first half.

Celtics 105, Bulls 89

Jaylen Brown scored 21 points, and Boston thrived despite the absence of Kyrie Irving to notch a victory over host Chicago.

Jayson Tatum added 14 points, Al Horford and Terry Rozier scored 13 apiece and Greg Monroe contributed 10 points and nine rebounds, as Boston won for the fifth time in the past six games. Irving was held out due to a sore left knee, but the Celtics built a 26-point halftime lead and were never threatened by the Bulls.

Denzel Valentine matched his career best of 20 points for Chicago, who lost for the sixth time in the past seven games. Lauri Markkanen added 12 points, and David Nwaba and Cameron Payne scored 10 apiece.

Cavaliers 112, Pistons 90

LeBron James racked up 31 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in three quarters, and Cleveland pounded struggling Detroit in Cleveland.

Larry Nance Jr. supplied 22 points and 15 rebounds after being inserted into the starting lineup. He replaced starting centre Tristan Thompson, who suffered an ankle sprain against Denver on Saturday that will sideline him for multiple games.

Blake Griffin led the Pistons, who have lost three straight and nine of their last 11 games, with 25 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Andre Drummond contributed 15 points and nine rebounds, and Reggie Bullock tossed in 11 points for Detroit.

Pacers 92, Bucks 89

Bojan Bogdanovic matched a season high with 29 points to help Indiana hang on for a victory against Milwaukee in Indianapolis.

Victor Oladpio added 14 points, both Lance Stephenson and Domantas Sabonis had 11 and Thaddeus Young totalled 10 and seven rebounds, as the Pacers won for the third straight game and the seventh time in nine contests.

Eric Bledsoe scored 26 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo had 18 with 12 rebounds for Milwaukee, which fell back to the loss column after Sunday’s come-from-behind win against Philadelphia snapped a season-high-tying four-game skid.

Trail Blazers 108, 

Lakers 103

Damian Lillard scored 19 of his 39 points in the fourth quarter as visiting Portland came from behind to defeat Los Angeles.

Lillard knocked down four straight 3-point shots, as the Trail Blazers rallied from an 11-point deficit in the final 5:26 to win their seventh game in a row.

CJ McCollum added 22 points and Jusuf Nurkic collected 16 points and 16 rebounds, as Portland beat the Lakers for the 15th consecutive time dating to March 2014. Julius Randle had 21 points and nine rebounds and Isaiah Thomas chipped in 19 points despite a 5-for-21 shooting performance for the Lakers, who saw the end to a five-game win streak.

Heat 125, Suns 103

Hassan Whiteside scored 24 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and blocked three shots as host Miami defeated Phoenix.

Suns star guard Devin Booker scored a game-high 31 points. It was his eighth straight game scoring at least 20 points. It was also his 21st game this season scoring at least 30 points.

Point guard Goran Dragic, a former Suns star, scored 17 points as Miami tied the Milwaukee Bucks for seventh place in the Eastern Conference. Miami have the tiebreaker over Milwaukee, having won the season series.

Jazz 94, Magic 80

Rudy Gobert scored 21 points and collected 17 rebounds for his third straight double-double to help lead Utah past Orlando in Salt Lake City.

Donovan Mitchell tallied 19 points, five rebounds and four assists for the Jazz. Joe Ingles added 18 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Utah won its third straight game.

Nikola Vucevic scored 15 points and collected 12 rebounds while Aaron Gordon chipped in 13 points to lead Orlando. The loss snapped a two-game winning streak for the Magic, who shot just 29-of-85 (34.1 per cent) from the field.