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Craig Williams keen to return for 2026 Finals Day

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Although Craig Williams doesn’t hold the record for most wins in the Winter Championship Final, no jockey has dominated the day it is run quite like the popular veteran rider.

His sole success in the $200,000 Listed Flemington feature came aboard Magic Consol, part of a record haul at the 2018 Finals Day meeting.

It resulted in six wins for the day, the most by any individual rider at a Melbourne meeting. This surpassed the record he shared with several other riders, achieved with five wins at the same fixture two years prior.

He also rode a treble at the 2015 meeting and a double in 2020. Much to the dismay of Williams’ jockey room rivals, that significant meeting was the last time he participated in the event that has risen to become the jewel in the Victoria Racing Club’s winter crown.

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He missed three editions, from 2022 to 2024, due to his humanitarian efforts in Ukraine. This followed being stood down from the 2021 meeting due to an inadvertent Covid protocol breach.

In that year, Williams returned from Brisbane three days before parts of Queensland were declared a Covid red zone, back-dated to days when Williams was still in the Sunshine State, meaning he was unable to ride.

Williams has only himself to blame for missing last year, and his mind was far from Flemington while the Finals Day features were being decided.

‘I was suspended last year, so I went and did some (ten pin) bowling,’ he said.

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That’s the way Williams operates when forced to miss a major meeting due to suspension. He was famously at the movies when the 2011 Melbourne Cup was run, in which he was scheduled to ride the winner, Dunaden.

The 49-year-old’s focus is now firmly on Finals Day this year, as he strives to secure his 10th Victorian Metropolitan Jockeys’ Premiership.

Williams leads Jamie Mott by five wins with eight metro meetings remaining before the season concludes on July 31.

He has rides in all nine races at Flemington, seven of which are on either the first or second line of betting.

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Al Duca is the $2.90 favourite for the 1600-metre Winter Championship Final, entering the race off a narrow second to Seafall in The David Bourke at the same track on June 20.

‘He’s only had one blemish and I think they blamed the track being a bit firm at Bendigo,’ Williams said of the gelding now in the care of Clayton Douglas.

‘He had a freshen up going into the other day, when he went down fighting.

‘He was great, he’s tenacious and he’s going to take a lot of beating.’

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Williams’ shortest-priced ride of the day comes up in the first race, the $150,000 Next Generation Sprinters Series Final (1200m), in which he rides Stars Of Dom.

It will be his first ride on the Lindsay Park-trained daughter of Exceedance, who has metro second placings to her name from her only two starts to date. Williams was buoyed by a trackwork report from fellow rider Blake Shinn.

‘Blake actually worked her on Monday or Tuesday and said that she’s going really well,’ Williams said of the $2 favourite.

‘She’s had two starts, really good form references and been beaten by nice horses when she was beaten both times.’

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Williams’ other favourite is Losesomewinmore, who he will reunite with for the first time since partnering the Richard and Chantelle Jolly-trained gelding to victory in July last year.

‘He’s won five times down the straight, so he’s a great straight horse,’ Williams said.

‘If he produces the acceleration that he did two starts ago they’ll have to beat him and, his run the other day, they felt there were excuses for him the way the track conditions were.’

Marwooba is challenging Star Of Macedon for favouritism in Race 2, Decalogue is second favourite for Race 4, as is Wuddzz in Race 6 and Lucky Lucky Boom is an equal second elect in the last race.

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Miss Aria is on the $5 third line of betting in Race 3, while Blethyn Williams’ roughie for the day is a $15 chance in the Creswick Sprint Series Final, which is Race 8.

Check out the latest racing odds from top Australian betting sites for the Winter Championship Final.

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Man United latest: Marcus Rashford addresses future as ‘number one’ target named

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Manchester United have been linked with various transfers in the summer window, while Marcus Rashford has addressed his future

Manchester United face a pivotal transfer window as Michael Carrick seeks to bolster his squad. The club are preparing to return to the Champions League next season but must recruit effectively to compete across multiple competitions.

Brazilian midfielder Ederson has virtually completed his move from Atalanta as the club addresses Casemiro’s departure. Further midfield additions are expected, but United have seen several of their targets, including Mateus Fernandes, choose to join their Premier League rivals.

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Carrick will be looking to strengthen multiple areas of his team this summer, with United’s wide options also facing scrutiny. Marcus Rashford’s future remains uncertain after Barcelona opted not to make his loan spell permanent.

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The England international is currently due to return to United for pre-season following the World Cup. Meanwhile, the club have been linked with a potential move for West Ham United winger Crysencio Summerville.

The winger delivered strong performances for the Hammers last season, despite the club’s relegation, and also made his mark on the international stage with the Netherlands this summer. Here, MEN Sport summarises some of the major stories surrounding United.

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Marcus Rashford speaks out

Marcus Rashford has made clear that he will not make any decisions regarding his future during the World Cup. The England forward remains a United player after Barcelona opted against triggering their £26m purchase option earlier this summer.

“I was very clear with everyone involved before the World Cup, I wanted it (a move) done before,” Rashford explained. “If it’s not, I wanted it to wait until after. I want to be fully present in the moment. We’re fighting for something special.”

Rashford earned his place in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad after netting 14 goals and registering 14 assists for Barcelona. Meanwhile, United manager Michael Carrick relied on Patrick Dorgu and Matheus Cunha as his left-sided options in Rashford’s absence last season.

Top wide target named

West Ham’s Crysencio Summerville is reportedly United’s primary wide target. The 24-year-old can now turn his full attention to his club future after the Netherlands were eliminated by Morocco on penalties in the round of 32 at the World Cup.

Sky Sports reports that Summerville is United’s “number one target” on the left flank, though they face competition from other Premier League clubs for his signature. The Dutchman has previously been valued at £50million.

The report states that United have held exploratory discussions with the Hammers, with clarity over Summerville’s future expected following his World Cup exit. The Dutchman contributed two goals and two assists across four appearances at the tournament.

Thousands of Man United fans upgraded their matchday last season. This is how they did it.

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MLB Roundup: Bell has two homers as Twins beat Yankees

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NEW YORK — Josh Bell homered in consecutive at-bats and Minnesota hit six homers in a game for the first time in nearly three years to pull away for a victory over slumping New York.

Kody Clemens, Luke Keaschall and Alex Jackson homered in the first two innings off New York starter Brendan Beck (0-1) as the Twins raced to a 6-0 lead. Trevor Larnach also homered.

Bell homered to left field off Ryan Yarbrough in the seventh inning for a 7-4 lead, then homered to right-center off Camilo Doval for an 11-4 lead in the eighth. It was Bell’s 13th career multihomer game and second this season.

The Twins hit six homers for the first time since a 20-6 win at Cleveland on Sept. 4, 2023.

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SEATTLE — Logan Gilbert gave up one hit and struck out seven in 7 1/3 innings, Randy Arozarena hit a grand slam, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Toronto Blue Jays 11-0 on Saturday.

Cal Raleigh and Dominic Canzone also homered for the Mariners.

The Mariners planned on having Gilbert and Emerson Hancock share pitching duties in Saturday’s game as part of a “piggyback” blueprint they’ve implemented this season, but they decided before the game to and have Gilbert start Saturday, with Hancock getting the ball Sunday.

Gilbert (7-5) retired his first 14 batters before Yohendrik Piñango blooped a single to center field with two outs in the fifth inning. Gilbert got the next eight hitters out before being removed at 91 pitches. He did not walk a batter.

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He got all the run support he’d need when the Mariners sent nine to the plate against Blue Jays starter Shane Bieber (0-1) in a five-run second inning.

Bieber retired the first two hitters, but Cole Young doubled and Victor Robles singled him in to give Seattle a 1-0 lead. Colt Emerson followed with a single and J.P. Crawford walked to load the bases before Arozarena’s ninth homer of the year.

WASHINGTON — Braxton Ashcraft won his fourth consecutive start and Pittsburgh defeated Washington.

Henry Davis and Brandon Lowe both drove in two runs for Pittsburgh, which got back to .500 at 45-45 after dropping three of its past four.

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Pirates rookie Konnor Griffin stole home as part of a double steal with two outs in the first inning to open the scoring. Griffin earlier stole second after a leadoff single and the Pirates had four stolen bases for the game.

James Wood hit a leadoff homer for the Nationals, whose three-game winning streak ended.

Ashcraft (9-3) allowed a run and six hits in 5 2/3 innings and struck out seven. The 26-year-old right-hander has a 3.04 ERA and 32 strikeouts in four starts since June 17 and has won eight of his past nine decisions.

ARLINGTON, Texas — Riley Greene hit a two-run homer in the first inning, Jack Flaherty pitched three-hit ball over 5 2/3 innings and the Detroit Tigers beat the Texas Rangers 3-0 on Saturday.

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Tyler Holton retired the only batter he faced after relieving Flaherty, before Keider Montero pitched three no-hit innings with one walk for his first career save and to finish off the seventh shutout by the Tigers this season.

Flaherty (2-8) struck out five without a walk, but did hit a batter. The right-hander has gone at least five innings not allowing a run in both starts since coming off the injured list because of a left-foot strain. He is 2-1 in his last five starts after going into June with an 0-7 record his first 12 starts.

Cal Quantrill (3-1) made his third consecutive start for Texas in the spot of injured Jack Leiter, Quantrill struck out two, walked one and hit a batter while allowing three hits and three runs — two earned — over five innings.

CLEVELAND – Colson Montgomery hit a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning off Tim Herrin for the second of his two RBIs, helping Chicago beat Cleveland.

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Chicago reclaimed first place in the AL Central by percentage points over the Guardians, who won the first two games of the series on walk-off hits.

Montgomery, who leads all shortstops with 22 homers, led off the eighth with a 402-foot shot to center off Herrin (1-4). It came on the first anniversary of his major league debut and gave the White Sox a 2-1 lead.

All-Star Miguel Vargas tacked on a sacrifice fly against Matt Festa in the ninth, scoring Tristan Peters with an insurance run.

Brandon Eisert (2-1) earned the win with two clean innings of relief, while Grant Taylor worked the ninth for his third save in six opportunities. Taylor allowed Brayan Rocchio’s game-ending two-run homer Friday.

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CINCINNATI — Samuel Basallo hit a three-run homer in the first inning and Baltimore roughed up Hunter Greene in his first start of the season for a win over Cincinnati.

Gunnar Henderson extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a single on the first pitch of the game, Pete Alonso walked, and Basallo hit his 14th home run of the season.

The Reds pulled ahead 4-3 with a three-run second inning. Jose Trevino doubled home Spencer Steer, TJ Friedl followed with a triple to tie the game, and Elly De La Cruz put the Reds in the lead with a single against Brandon Young (7-2).

But the Orioles scored five times against Greene in the fourth. Adley Rutschman hit his second double of the game to drive in two runs and scored on Alonso’s second hit.

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Greene (0-1), returning after surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow in March, lasted 3 1/3 innings, allowing eight runs, which ties a career-high, on seven hits. He walked four and struck out seven.

Young, who has won four of his last five decisions, allowed four runs on eight hits and three walks in five innings. He struck out five.

HOUSTON — Yordan Alvarez hit a two-run homer off Casey Legumina with no outs in the ninth inning to cap a big night and give Houston a victory over Tampa Bay.

The Rays had won nine in a row, the longest winning streak in the American League this season.

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Named to his fourth All-Star team before the game, Alvarez homered twice and drove in six runs. He leads the AL with 29 homers and has four multi-homer games this season.

Jose Altuve drew a walk to open the ninth against Legumina (2-2). Altuve was 2 for 3 with two walks and three runs.

After Hunter Brown allowed a season-high seven runs over four innings, Houston’s bullpen combined to hold the Rays to a run over the final innings, with Josh Hader (3-0) earning the win.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jesús Luzardo struck out nine in six innings, J.T. Realmuto, Gabriel Rincones Jr. and Alec Bohm hit home runs, and Philadelphia beat Kansas City.

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Luzardo (7-4) outpitched Royals All-Star selection Michael Wacha, dominating the Royals lineup through the first three innings, striking out six — five with his sweeper — while allowing only an infield hit. He allowed a run on four hits overall.

Luzardo has allowed fewer than three earned runs in nine of his last 10 starts, lowering his ERA from 5.77 on May 8 to 3.75.

The Phillies have won eight straight starts by Luzardo.

Wacha (5-6) escaped unscathed from an adventurous first inning, including throwing Bryce Harper’s checked-swing single down the right-field line and walking Bohm on 12 pitches to load the bases after Bohm successfully challenged a third-strike call.

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ATLANTA — Michael Harris II had three hits, including one of five Braves home runs, as Atlanta gave Chris Sale plenty of support in a blowout over New York.

Eli White, Mauricio Dubón, Mike Yastrzemski and Austin Riley also homered for Atlanta, which hit four home runs off Mets pitching in a 5-3 win on Friday night.

Harris drove in two runs. White had four RBIs, Riley had three and Dubón and Yastrzemski had two each.

Sale (9-6), who was named an All-Star for the 10th time just before the game, gave up three runs on seven hits, including two home runs, and he matched a season-low with three strikeouts. Rookie JR Ritchie picked up his first save after throwing three scoreless innings to close the game.

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The last-place Mets have lost 12 of their last 14 and have dropped to 36-53. No team has ever reached the postseason from 17 games under .500, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

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Possible Reason The Bloodline WON’T Get Involved in Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins at SummerSlam

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WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns is all set to make his next official title defense at SummerSlam 2026. On the post-Night of Champions edition of Monday Night RAW, Seth Rollins interrupted The Original Tribal Chief’s closing-segment promo.

The Visionary, who is coming off a major win over Bron Breakker, tried to convince his former Shield brother that he is the best of their generation and said he would be there to induct him into the Hall of Fame when the time comes.

The Shield saga’s final chapter

Rollins also reminded Roman Reigns of his decorated career and suggested this may be their final chance to settle their long-running rivalry.

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The OTC didn’t waste time and agreed with what The Visionary had to say, telling him that he was ready to defend his title against him at SummerSlam 2026. Therefore, WWE is now billing this bout as the Shield’s final dance.

Potential reason why The Bloodline may not get involved in Reigns vs Rollins

With Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins booked, many are predicting that The Bloodline could play a vital role in Roman vs. Seth’s World Heavyweight Championship match at SummerSlam.

However, the match may not feature Bloodline interference if Reigns wants to handle Rollins on his own. The theory is based on a fan-shared clip from Raw and social-media transcriptions claiming Reigns told Jacob Fatu that Rollins was his fight and that he did not want help.

If that interpretation is accurate, The Tribal Chief could pass the same message to The Usos. Hence, that could be one reason why The Bloodline may not get involved in the Shield’s final dance.

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The “Final Dance” billing also suggests that WWE may want Reigns and Rollins to settle their rivalry directly, which could point towards a cleaner finish.

Roman Reigns’ recent WWE streak

Since winning the Royal Rumble 2026, The Original Tribal Chief has been riding a major streak this year. He defeated CM Punk clean at WrestleMania 42 to capture the World Heavyweight Championship, then he defended his title twice against Jacob Fatu.

That booking gives WWE a reason to keep Reigns looking strong heading into SummerSlam. A clean win over Seth Rollins would allow him to close another chapter of The Shield saga while strengthening his run as World Heavyweight Champion.