AUTO RACING
FORMULA ONE: Valtteri Bottas insisted before the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday that he has what it takes to win the Formula One world championship.
That’s a tall order with six-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton as his teammate at Mercedes. Especially as Hamilton needs one more title to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of seven.
But Bottas showed impressive composure to win Sunday’s race with Hamilton just a half-second behind him for spells. Not easy for Bottas when Hamilton’s among the best drivers at overtaking in F1 history, and when a chaotic race restarts three times behind a safety car.
Hamilton crossed second but finished fourth after getting a late time penalty.
SOCCER
PREMIER LEAGUE: Liverpool kept alive its bid to finish the Premier League season with a perfect home record after laboring to a 2-0 win against relegation-threatened Aston Villa in its first match at Anfield since winning the title.
A 17th straight home victory this season – and surely the most underwhelming – was secured by goals from Sadio Mane in the 71st minute and substitute Curtis Jones in the 89th.
Three days after Liverpool lost 4-0 at Manchester City in its first match as champion, Jürgen Klopp’s team again lacked the intensity, snap and precision that brought it the title in such devastating fashion this season.
• West Ham inched closer to safety despite twice throwing away the lead to draw 2-2 at Newcastle.
Jonjo Shelvey’s 67th-minute strike for the hosts canceled out a goal by Tomas Soucek only 92 seconds earlier, denying West Ham back-to-back wins after its surprising victory over Chelsea in midweek.
West Ham is 16th in the 20-team league, four points above two teams in the relegation zone – 18th-place Aston Villa and 19th-place Bournemouth. Newcastle is in 12th place and safe from relegation.
• Sheffield United’s unlikely hopes of qualifying for the Champions League were further reduced after a 1-1 draw at Burnley in the Premier League on Sunday.
John Egan earned United a point with an 80th-minute equalizer at a virtually empty Turf Moor that left Chris Wilder’s side seven points behind Manchester United in fifth place, which could be enough to get into next season’s Champions League.
BUNDESLIGA: The German men’s soccer league is working with the government on a plan to get fans back into stadiums during the coronavirus pandemic, its CEO says.
Christian Seifert, CEO of the German Football League which runs the top two divisions, told German weekly Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung that ideas were being discussed with the government.
Germany was the first major European soccer league to resume in empty stadiums amid the pandemic on May 16. Only one more game remains in the season — a promotion-relegation playoff second leg on Monday between Werder Bremen and Heidenheim.
SPANISH LEAGUE:
Sergio Ramos scored his fifth goal since the season resumed as Real Madrid beat Athletic Bilbao 1-0 to move closer to its first Spanish league title in three years.
Ramos converted a 73rd-minute penalty kick to give Madrid its seventh straight league victory and open a seven-point lead over second-place Barcelona, which visits fifth-place Villarreal later Sunday.
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