Each offseason, right before free agency, we asked VikingsTerritory writers to pick one free agent apiece they expect Minnesota to sign — the guy they’re staking their reputation on for a prediction’s sake. As always, our contributors were all over the board.

These picks focus on realistic fits, contract costs, and where the Vikings still need help.

Question to our staff: If you had to put money on one external free agent signing with the Vikings, what’s that guy’s name? This is your prediction, not your preference.

Our Predictions in Free Agency Largely Target Defensive Backs

Here’s what they said — our official free-agent predictions for the 2026 Vikings.

1. Trevon Diggs | CB, DAL

Predictor: Janik Eckardt

The Minnesota Vikings need at least two more cornerbacks, and they have a limited budget this offseason. Diggs has an impressive track record in the NFL, but injuries have limited him in recent years, which should significantly lower his asking price. The corner is a low-risk, high-reward type player and ideal for a franchise that has taken risks with injured athletes in the past.

2. Coby Bryant | S, SEA

Predictor: Tony Schultz

With Harrison Smith either retiring this year or shortly after, the defense’s backend needs to be shored up. Smith is a smart player and still almost always in position at his age, and you need a guy who can bring veteran presence along with youth.

Bryant not only brings those attributes but also the stats to back them up. At 26, he’s young enough to team up with Theo Jackson for a nice duo roaming the zones and man coverage looking for picks and break-ups, and he brings Super Bowl credentials as well. Depending on the draft, he might be playing back there with Dillon Thieneman, and they could be a deadly pair for years to come.

Safety isn’t a highly coveted position, but Brian Flores’s defense needs big, smart players there to make calls and tackles. While the cap is tight, they should be able to wiggle him in and get the most impact, rather than players who might not be attainable.

Breece Hall and Tyler Linderbaum would be nice, but an expensive running back might not add enough to the offense, and I think the team already has its center in Blake Brandel or Michael Jurgens.

3. Lloyd Cushenberry III | C, Free Agent

Predictor: Henrique Gucciardi

The Vikings need a new center to complete their offensive line. If they decide to stick with J.J. McCarthy as QB, an experienced center makes more sense than a rookie, and Cushenberry has a case to be the best available.

4. Cade Mays | C | CAR

Predictor: Wes Johnson

The Vikings couldn’t have predicted the awful season that last year’s free-agent signing, Ryan Kelly, would have; a string of head injuries has likely ended his career. Minnesota, which enters the offseason in desperate need of depth, finds help on the O-line in Mays. With this draft deep at WR, DT, LB, S, and CB, shoring up other positions should be critical.

5. Kamren Curl | S, LAR

Predictor: Steve Hoikkala

Curl is decent-sized at 6’2, only 27 years old, and after 6 years in the league, the big question will be if the Vikings can pry him away from the Rams. If we are going by Pro Football Focus grades, he has put together some solid seasons that put him in the Top 20 at his position, and he allowed only 1 TD in 2025 while also being known for his run defense.

The Vikings are likely to need to fill two safety spots, and Curl can play both FS and SS, with the ability to play in the box, which gives Brian Flores a versatile tool in the backfield.

6. Leo Chenal | ILB, KC

Predictor: Kyle Joudry

Great size, young, isn’t likely to break the bank, fills a need, and is coming out of a sophisticated, aggressive defense. Note that free agency is often used to address major needs ahead of the draft, ensuring a team doesn’t have to reach. In Mr. Chenal, the Vikings do so at linebacker.

7. Reed Blankenship | S, PHI

Predictor: Ted Schwerzler

Reed Blankenship, you are a Minnesota Viking.

He will be 27 this year and has played in a strong Philadelphia Eagles defense. Regardless of Harrison Smith’s situation, Flores needs help at safety. That’s an immediate answer and plays both now and into the future.

8. Travis Etienne | RB, JAX

Predictor: Ali Siddiqui

The Vikings will likely move on from Aaron Jones, given his age and cap number. Jordan Mason is a good complementary back to have, but is not an RB1.

9. Tutu Atwell | WR, LAR

Predictor: Brevan Bane

Minnesota may be able to get this Jalen Nailor replacement a little bit cheaper than the namesake, but Atwell comes with more big-play and gadget-play potential.

10. D.J. Reader | DT, DET

Predictor: Josh Frey

Reader has never been overly productive by the box score numbers, but he’s an all-around solid veteran in the trenches. The Vikings will be looking to rebuild their defensive tackle position again, and Spotrac projects his contract to be worth just under $3.9 million. For a team that needs to be fiscally responsible this spring, the move makes sense.

11. Asante Samuel Jr. | CB, PIT

Predictor: Dustin Baker

Samuel Jr. met with the Vikings on his free-agent tour midseason last year, but he picked the Steelers. There, he was coached by Gerald Alexander — who took over this offseason for Daronte Jones in Minnesota. Given the double connection here, plus Mike Tomlin gone from Pittsburgh, Samuel Jr. will sign with the Vikings for two years and $11 million.

With Byron Murphy Jr., Isaiah Rodgers, and Samuel Jr. in the house, the Vikings aren’t pigeonholed into drafting a Round 1 corner.

t12. Bryan Cook | S, KC

Predictor: Adam New

The Vikings need help in the secondary, and free-agent fits don’t come much better than Bryan Cook. He can fill the need for a deep safety, coming from a blitz-heavy defense in Kansas City, making him perfect for Flores’ defense.

t12.Bryan Cook | S, KC

Predictor: Cole Smith

The former Chief was one of the league’s best safeties last year, and the Vikings need to revamp their secondary.

The final round of the 2026 Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches gets underway Sunday, March 1, at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. You can find full Cognizant Classic tee times for Sunday’s final round at the bottom of this post.

Featured tee time for Round 4

Shane Lowry hasn’t won an individual event on the PGA Tour since his marquee victory at the 2019 Open Championship and hasn’t won on U.S. soil in nearly 11 years.

But that could all change on Sunday as Lowry’s 63 on Saturday thrust him into a share of the 54-hole lead at the Cognizant Classic. All three of Lowry’s PGA Tour victories came with at least a share of the 54-hole lead.

He’ll have to contend with journeyman pro and 36-hole leader Austin Smotherman, who birdied his final hole at PGA National Saturday to join Lowry at 13 under.

Lowry and Smotherman will play alongside each other in Sunday’s final grouping at 1:45 p.m. ET.

You can watch Sunday’s final round of the 2026 Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches from 1-3 p.m. ET on Golf Channel and then 3-6 p.m. ET on NBC. PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ will provide exclusive early streaming coverage beginning at 7:45 a.m. ET on Sunday, in addition to featured group and featured hole coverage.

Check out the complete Round 4 tee times and groupings for the Cognizant Classic below.

Hoping to wager on the Cognizant Classic? Sign up for Fanatics Sportsbook with code “SUBPAR” to receive a special welcome offer.

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2026 Cognizant Classic tee times for Sunday: Round 4 (ET)

Tee No. 1

8:05 a.m. – Joe Highsmith
8:10 a.m. – Tom Kim, Dylan Wu
8:20 a.m. – Emiliano Grillo, Adam Schenk
8:30 a.m. – Davis Thompson, Carson Young
8:40 a.m. – Alex Smalley, Danny Walker
8:50 a.m. – Billy Horschel, Max McGreevy
9:00 a.m. – Haotong Li, David Ford
9:10 a.m. – Jackson Suber, Seamus Power
9:20 a.m. – Chan Kim, John Parry
9:30 a.m. – Michael Brennan, Hank Lebioda
9:45 a.m. – Patrick Fishburn, Chandler Phillips
9:55 a.m. – Matt Wallace, Adrien Saddier
10:05 a.m. – Dan Brown, Austin Eckroat
10:15 a.m. – Jordan Smith, Christiaan Bezuidenhout
10:25 a.m. – Garrick Higgo, Pontus Nyholm
10:35 a.m. – Eric Cole, Daniel Berger
10:45 a.m. – Brooks Koepka, Ben Silverman
10:55 a.m. – Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Ryan Gerard
11:05 a.m. – Nicolai Højgaard, Mackenzie Hughes
11:20 a.m. – Kevin Roy, Zach Bauchou
11:30 a.m. – Max Homa, Kevin Streelman
11:40 a.m. – Steven Fisk, Lee Hodges
11:50 a.m. – Matthieu Pavon, Sudarshan Yellamaraju
12:00 p.m. – Sudarshan Yellamaraju, Adrien Dumont de Chassart
12:10 p.m. – Rasmus Højgaard, Thorbjørn Olesen
12:20 p.m. – Kristoffer Reitan, Mark Hubbard
12:30 p.m. – William Mouw, Aaron Rai
12:40 p.m. – Matti Schmid, Takumi Kanaya
12:55 p.m. – Patton Kizzire, Zecheng Dou
1:05 p.m. – Beau Hossler, Keith Mitchell
1:15 p.m. – A.J. Ewart, Joel Dahmen
1:25 p.m. – Jimmy Stanger, Ricky Castillo
1:35 p.m. – Nico Echavarria, Taylor Moore
1:45 p.m. – Shane Lowry, Austin Smotherman

Cinderella stories are part of golf. Usually, though, they involve players, not places.

For years, Inverness Club — a six-time major championship venue and Donald Ross design in Toledo, Ohio — seemed an unlikely candidate to rejoin the modern U.S. Open rota. As the national championship increasingly gravitated toward a small circle of anchor sites and the modern game rendered many older courses obsolete for the best male players, Inverness came to be seen as a relic of an earlier era: a great design but not a national championship stage.

On Saturday, that changed.

The United States Golf Association, gathered in New York for its annual meetings, confirmed that Inverness will host the 2045 U.S. Open, the headliner in a trio of additional championships rounded out by the 2033 U.S. Girls’ Junior and the 2036 U.S. Women’s Amateur. The announcement had been anticipated after reporting by the Toledo Blade, which called the news a “monumental” coup, and a statement by Toledo mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz, who said the decision dispelled the “myth” that the Toledo market wasn’t strong enough to merit such an honor.

The 2045 championship will mark the fifth U.S. Open contested at Inverness and the 13th USGA championship held at the club overall. The course is already scheduled to host the 2027 U.S. Women’s Open and the 2029 U.S. Amateur, underscoring what has become a renewed partnership between the governing body and one of the Midwest’s most storied venues.

USGA CEO Mike Whan said in a statement that Inverness provides a championship setting consistent with the organization’s competitive standards, noting its history of staging events ranging from national opens to elite amateur competitions.

For Inverness, the award represents a striking championship revival.

The club first hosted the U.S. Open in 1920, when Ted Ray captured the title in an event notable for featuring the U.S. Open debut of Bobby Jones. Subsequent U.S. Opens, in 1931 and 1957, ended in playoffs, before Hale Irwin won at even par in 1979, two strokes ahead of Gary Player and Jerry Pate.

Despite that résumé — which also includes PGA Championships in 1986 and 1993 — Inverness gradually faded from the championship spotlight. As professional golf entered an era defined by distance and infrastructure demands, the course was regarded by some as too short to challenge modern players, while Toledo found itself competing for attention with nearby major-championship markets such as Detroit’s Oakland Hills Country Club and western Pennsylvania’s Oakmont Country Club.

Inverness’s prospects seemed to dim further when the USGA began emphasizing anchor venues for the U.S. Open — returning repeatedly to sites such as Pinehurst No. 2 and Pebble Beach Golf Links — with championships scheduled through 2044 already spoken for. Against mounting odds, though, Inverness pushed to reestablish itself as a championship stage.

Key to that effort was a 2017–2018 renovation by architect Andrew Green, who reworked the course to better reflect the strategic principles of Ross’s Golden Age design. The project reopened playing corridors, expanded greens, and reinstated design characteristics that had been altered during a 1970s overhaul undertaken ahead of the 1979 U.S. Open.

The changes helped reshape perceptions. Inverness hosted the 2019 U.S. Junior Amateur and the 2021 Solheim Cup. Then came the USGA’s decision to award the club the 2029 U.S. Amateur. There was growing indication that the course was back in the governing body’s sights.

The latest announcement extends that trajectory while also delivering a significant moment for Toledo, a Rust Belt city hit hard by a waning industrial economy and decades-long population decline.

Saturday’s news is also another notch in the golf belt for Ohio. Through 2025, the state has hosted 41 USGA championships overall, among the highest totals in the country.

The Inverness announcement came as part of a broader slate of future championship site selections unveiled by the USGA. National Golf Links of America on Long Island will host the 2040 Walker Cup, while Cypress Point Club in California is slated to stage the 2042 Curtis Cup and the 2048 Walker Cup. Seminole Golf Club in Florida was awarded the 2046 Curtis Cup and the 2052 Walker Cup.

The WIAA state individual wrestling tournament continued on Feb. 28 across three boys divisions and one girls division at the Kohl Center in Madison.

Manitowoc and Sheboygan counties had eight wrestlers reach the state finals in their weight classes.

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The busiest division was the boys Division three which had three finalists and multiple wrestlers going for state medals.

The three finalists were in Division 3: Cedar Grove-Belgium’s Seth Race (175), Oostburg’s Liam Richards (165) and Mishicot’s Owen Schacht (190).

Schacht dominated his opponent in the state championship, winning a 14-5 major decision.

He became Mishicot’s fifth-ever state champion and first since Brant Cracraft in 2022.

Richards also capped his season by winning a state championship, rallying from a point down to earn a 4-1 decision.

He becomes the sixth state champion in Oostburg history and 11^th-overall individual title.

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Race was among the first matches of the evening with the state tournament beginning at 175 for the boys, losing a 5-0 decision for silver.

Cedar Grove-Belgium saw four Rockets earn medals after losing in the semifinals on Feb. 27 as Chase Heimerman (113) and Landon Heimerman (120), Carsen Voskuil (138) and Josh Anzia (215) all finished fourth.

Also in Division 3 and winning state medals were five area wrestlers.

Placing fifth were Ozaukee’s Sterling Schanen (106) and Random Lake’s Simon Schwabe (190).

Reedsville’s Tristen Verbeten (165), Random Lake’s Caleb Schreiber (120) and Cedar Grove-Belgium’s Syrus Anderson (190) each placed sixth.

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More Bianchi and Neumann: WIAA state wrestling: Two Rivers’s Bianchi, Manitowoc Lincoln’s Neumann make history

On the girls side seniors Angie Bianchi and Emjay Neumann, from Two Rivers and Manitowoc Lincoln were competing in their fourth finals of their high school careers.

Bianchi’s quest for an 11^th state title for her family ended with an extremely close 4-3 decision which saw her opponent pick up a takedown with a minute left in their match to finish with a silver medal at 120 pounds.

More Bianchi: Angie Bianchi commits to Oklahoma State, eyes Olympic wrestling dreams

Neumann, too, fell in the championship match via a 10-5 decision.

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There were three semifinalists in Division 2, Kiel’s Logan Schad (132), Plymouth’s Sawyer Dailey (190) and Two Rivers’ Max Matthias (215).

All three would finish second at their weights as Dailey was pinned in one minute and 48 seconds while Matthias dropped a 7-1 decision and Schad lost a 4-1 decision.

Rounding out Division 2, Plymouth’s Landen Fick (144) made the consolation semifinals and won the fifth-place match via an injury default to finish with a state medal.

Contact Tom Dombeck at 920-686-2965 or tdombeck@htrnews.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Tom_Dombeck.

This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Mishicot’s Owen Schacht, Oostburg’s Liam Richards win WIAA titles

Women’s tennis legend Martina Navratilova weighed in on the U.S-Israeli strikes against Iran Saturday. 

Navratilova, a frequent critic of President Donald Trump, labeled him a “psychopath” for the decision to attack Iran in a post on X. 

“OMG… Trump is a psychopath- he totally doesn’t give a damn how many people he is personally responsible for killing,” Navratilova wrote in response to a post by Marjorie Taylor Green criticizing Trump for the strike. 

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Navratilova also expressed support for the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in a later post.

“That would be good news,” she wrote in response to an earlier news report that Khamenei might be dead. 

Khamenei was confirmed dead on Saturday after an Israeli strike in Tehran after his compound was reduced to rubble. Khamenei ruled the Islamic Republic for more than three decades and oversaw an era of harsh internal repression and confrontation with the United States and Israel. 

Navratilova previously joined a coalition  of athletes, along with Riley Gaines, signing a letter in November condemning the Iranian regime for its death sentence of boxing champion Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani.

Still, Navratilova levied similar criticism against Trump after the military strike on Venezuela and the capture of Nicolás Maduro in January. 

“He is absolutely insane. Not to mention this is completely illegal,” Navratilova wrote on Jan. 4 of Trump after the Venezuelan strike. “Peace president my a–! Trump is breaking more laws than all the previous presidents combined. A serial criminal on so many different fronts!”

Navratilova has cited her background as a refugee who fled the former Czechoslovakia to escape a totalitarian communist government in her criticisms of Trump. Navratilova has said she left her homeland in 1975, citing her experience under Soviet rule, resenting the limitations on personal liberties.

Navratilova has compared Trump to her home country’s authoritarian rule in the past, including in the tennis legend’s pinned post on X.

“I lived in a totalitarian authoritarian country growing up and I will not vote for that now or ever,” she wrote in October 2024, referencing Trump. 

Saturday’s strikes on Iran prompted a growing bipartisan push in Congress to rein in Trump’s war powers, with lawmakers in both parties demanding votes on resolutions aimed at limiting his authority to use military force in the region.

Members in both chambers had already planned to force votes before the first bombs fell Saturday. Now, they are doubling down on calls to restrict the president’s military authority.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., has repeatedly forced votes to curb Trump’s war powers abroad, and he was nearly successful in halting further military action in Venezuela until Republicans blocked the effort earlier this year.

In the House, Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., are preparing their own war powers resolution for a vote.

Massie said in a post on X he opposed “this war. This is not ‘America First.’”

Trump has called for the people of Iran to “take control” of the country’s government. 

“This is the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country,” the president wrote. “We are hearing that many of their IRGC, Military, and other Security and Police Forces, no longer want to fight, and are looking for Immunity from us. As I said last night, ‘Now they can have Immunity, later they only get Death!’”

Trump said he hopes the IRGC and police will “peacefully merge” with Iranian patriots to stabilize the country.

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“That process should soon be starting in that, not only the death of Khamenei but the Country has been, in only one day, very much destroyed and, even, obliterated,” he wrote. “The heavy and pinpoint bombing, however, will continue, uninterrupted throughout the week or, as long as necessary to achieve our objective of PEACE THROUGHOUT THE MIDDLE EAST AND, INDEED, THE WORLD!”

Fox News’ Efrat Lachter, Ruth Marks Eglash, Alex Miller and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.  

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File photo of Mushfiqur Rahim.© AFP

Team USA Olympic hockey hero Jack Hughes spoke about his support for his country’s women’s hockey team after his team was the subject of backlash for laughing at a joke by President Donald Trump about the women’s team. 

During an interview on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show” Friday, Hughes opened up about his respect for the women’s team after McAfee appeared to reference the controversy by joking that Hughes and his teammates “hate” the women players. 

“We are hanging out with them so much, the women’s team. We were supporting them. Like, we were at their games, they were at our games,” Hughes said. 

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Jack Hughes of the United States celebrates after a gold medal win during against Canadaat Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games Feb. 22, 2026, in Milan, Italy.  (Elsa/Getty Images)

Hughes then appeared to address the recent criticism of his team for its response to Trump’s joke.

“Like all these people talking, how many of them watched their gold medal game? Me and Quinn Hughes were at the game. We were at the game until like overtime ended on the glass, and we were jumping up and down so excited for these girls, so excited they won,” Hughes said. 

“And how many of these people watched the gold medal game, watched their semifinals game? Like 10 of the 10 of our players went to their game in the round-robin. Like, we supported them so much, and we’re so proud of them. We’re so happy that they won, and they brought a gold medal back and that, you know, I said it, the men’s and women’s team both brought gold medals back. So, just unbelievable for USA hockey.”

Hughes, who scored the game-winning overtime goal against Canada to win gold, reflected on his interaction with the player on the U.S. women’s team who did the same, Megan Keller.

“Me and her had a great moment in the cafeteria after her gold medal game. We played Slovakia the next night, and it was like a late game. And we were in the pasta line — me and Megan. They were just getting ready to go out again, and I just gave her a massive hug, and I said, ‘I’m so happy for you. I’m so proud of you,’” Hughes said. 

“A couple nights later, saw her again in the [cafeteria], and we took a great picture and, uh, she just gave me a big hug and was so pumped for me as well.” 

Hughes told reporters after the game the first thing he thought about when the puck went in was Keller, who scored the golden goal for the United States women’s team against Canada three days earlier.

US WOMEN’S HOCKEY GOLD MEDALIST SAYS IT’S ‘SAD’ MEN’S TEAM HAD TO APOLOGIZE FOR OLYMPICS CONTROVERSY

The controversy surrounding the men’s team stemmed from a locker room phone call between the players and Trump right after their gold medal win over Canada. 

Trump told the men’s team after inviting them to Tuesday’s State of the Union address that he’d “have” to invite the women’s team, otherwise “I probably would be impeached.” The team laughed in response, prompting immense backlash. 

Several mainstream media outlets penned op-eds condemning the men’s team for laughing at the joke and then visiting the White House to celebrate and Trump’s State of the Union address. 

The United States’ Jack Hughes (86), who scored the winning overtime goal, celebrates after defeating Canada in the men’s ice hockey gold medal game at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy Feb. 22, 2026.  (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

U.S. women’s hockey captain Hilary Knight said on Wednesday’s edition of ESPN’s “SportsCenter” that Trump’s “distasteful joke” has “overshadow[ed]” the women’s success.

“I thought it was sort of a distasteful joke, and, unfortunately, that is overshadowing a lot of the success, the success of just women at the Olympics carrying for Team USA and having amazing gold medal feats,” Knight said.

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“We’re just focusing on celebrating the women in our room, the extraordinary efforts, and continue to celebrate three gold medals in program history as well as the double gold for both men’s and women’s at the same time. And really not detract from that with a distasteful joke.”

Hughes’ mother, Ellen, a former Team USA player and current player development staff member, said the players only cared about “bring[ing] so much unity to a group and to a country.”

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Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has broken his silence amid rumours that he is planning to get married for the third time. In a detailed statement, the veteran all-rounder strongly refuted the claims, which he described as “false and fabricated” stories. He also condemned the trolls targeting his wife, Sana Javed, saying that his silence has been taken for granted. Malik’s marriage with Indian tennis great Sania Mirza, with whom he has a son, ended in 2023 by mutual consent.

In 2024, he married Pakistani actress Sana Javed on January 19 in a private Nikah ceremony in Karachi.

“It was early 2023 when my first marriage ended. With mutual consent, it was decided that we will co-parent our child. It was only after this that I got remarried. I’ve always sought to keep my private life private, out of respect for my family. However, my silence seems to have been taken for granted,” Malik said in the statement.

Shoaib Malik decline all the rumors about his marriage and also announce a legal action against false propagation pic.twitter.com/mfNaEFFIOT

— Ali (@FAheemAli_14) February 28, 2026

Malik insisted that his son is old enough to read such stories, which was one of the major reasons for him to address the fabricated narrative that has caused “distress” to his loved ones.

“I feel this has reached a point where it must be addressed, as my son is now at an age where he’ll be reading these false and fabricated stories, spread for views for mere pennies of earnings. These lame accusations are causing distress to those who I care about,” his statement added.

Malik also urged individuals to respect his privacy, threatening legal action in case of failure to do so.

“Act responsibly; there is much more to life than just a few likes and views. I have a family just like you all do. I hope this message is taken positively, and assumptions/jokes about my personal life will stop. Failure to do so will result in strict legal action from my team against individuals and firms,” the statement added.

Tom Sherry’s commitment to riding King Of Roseau with a light impost has borne fruit, as the rapid type stormed to success in the Group Three Liverpool City Cup at Randwick in 2026.

“He had 54 (kilos) today, so he tested me a bit this morning. I was glad it all worked out OK,” Sherry said.

“We had the right run in the race today. He quickened extremely well.”

Previously fourth behind the winner in the 2024 Canonbury Stakes (1100m) during his juvenile year and runner-up twice in Listed company at three, King Of Roseau’s prime has arrived later in his career.

He lifted the Group 3 Aurie’s Star Stakes (1200m) at Flemington in August and once more showcased his devastating close to claim the $2 million Magic Millions Cup (1400m) at the Gold Coast last month.

“We saw what he did down in Melbourne in the Aurie’s Star and in the Magic Millions. He has been an absolute revelation his last couple of preparations,” trainer Peter Snowden’s assistant, Aaron Lau, said.

“When he’s on song, he’s got a lethal turn of foot.”

Having raced steadily since November under Snowden’s spaced-out schedule, Lau is weighing options for prolonging the campaign with prestigious carnival events on the horizon.

“We’ll have a good think. The races only get tougher from here and he’s probably a few rungs behind those topliners,” Lau said.

“But if we set him for the right races, he will certainly make his presence felt.”

Launching a blistering run from the tail of the field, King Of Roseau ($8.50) prevailed by 1-1/4 lengths over Enriched ($7.50), with Axius ($4.40) a mere head behind in third.

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