I AM amazed referee David Coote overturned his decision — a penalty should not have been awarded.

It was nothing more than a coming together and resulted in a game-changing decision that cost Manchester United.

4

4

Advertisement

4

Danny Ings lost the ball and then Matthijs de Ligt made minimal contact with the West Ham striker’s shin.

The Premier League’s Match Centre said Man Utd defender De Ligt made “sufficient contact” on Ings to merit a penalty.

But it is a contact sport — this should never be enough for a foul.

Coote had a great view and he was initially spot on not to award a penalty.

Referees’ chief Howard Webb does not want VAR intervening with subjective calls that are not clear and obvious.

This was a classic case of that — the incident was re-refereed.

VAR Michael Oliver recommended a pitch-side review, then Coote crumbled and changed his decision, like so many other referees do in that situation.

Something is not right with the training and education at the PGMOL.

CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERS

4

Premier League statement

The Premier League released a statement on the decision after the match.

It read: “The referee did not award a penalty to West Ham for a challenge by de Ligt on Ings.

“The VAR deemed there was sufficient contact on Ings’ lower leg and recommended an on-field review.

“The referee overturned his original decision and awarded a penalty.”

With UFC 308 in the books, the promotion’s attention turns to its yearly New York pay-per-view.

UFC 309 takes place Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden and is headlined by a highly anticipated heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones and former champion Stipe Miocic.

During the UFC 308 broadcast Saturday, the promotion officially announced the full 13-fight lineup with five main card fights and eight prelims. The main card takes place on ESPN+ pay-per-view after prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.

In the co-main event, lightweight stars Michael Chandler and Charles Oliveira throw down in a five-round bout. The main card rounds out with Viviane Araujo vs. Karine Silva, Paul Craig vs. Bo Nickal, and Eryk Anders vs. Chris Weidman.

The featured prelim is currently half-unknown with Mauricio Ruffy in need of a replacement for the withdrawn Charlie Campbell.

Other notable prelims include Nikita Krylov vs. Azamat Murzakanov, Jonathan Martinez vs. Marcus McGhee, and Damon Jackson vs. Jim Miller.

Check out the full UFC 309 lineup below:

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)

• Champion Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic – for heavyweight title
• Michael Chandler vs. Charles Oliveira – five-round bout
• Viviane Aruajo vs. Karine Silva
• Paul Craig vs. Bo Nickal
• Eryk Anders vs. Chris Weidman

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPNews, 8 p.m. ET)

• Mauricio Ruffy vs. TBA
• Nikita Krylov vs. Azamat Murzakanov
• Jonathan Martinez vs. Marcus McGhee
• Damon Jackson vs. Jim Miller

EARLY PRELIMINARY CARD

• Lucas Almeida vs. David Onama
• Ramiz Brahimaj vs. Mickey Gall
• Oban Elliott vs. Bassil Hafez
• Veronica Hardy vs. Eduarda Moura

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 309.

Max Verstappen says the lack of race pace in his Red Bull Formula 1 car was the main factor in his incidents with Lando Norris at the Mexican Grand Prix, which led him to serve 20 seconds’ worth of penalties.

Verstappen ran Norris off the road twice on lap 10 at Turn 4 and Turn 7, repassing the McLaren driver off-track in the meantime and earning a 10-second penalty for each incident.

These were served in Verstappen’s pitstop, which put him back on track in 15th; although he recovered to sixth, he could make no inroads into the two Mercedes ahead and was being closed down by Kevin Magnussen and Oscar Piastri.

Verstappen was more bothered by the lack of pace he had in the 71-lap race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, suggesting that this led him to being ‘put in those positions’ for a penalty.

“You know, honestly, 20 seconds is a lot, but I’m not going to cry about it and I’m also not going to share my opinion,” Verstappen explained.

“The biggest problem that I have is that today was a bad day in terms of race pace. That was quite clear again on the mediums and on the hard tyres. 

“I just felt that the Turn 4 [penalty] was a bit more of, like, a question mark. Turn 7 is what it is.

“Honestly, those two things are also not my problem. The problem is that we are too slow, and that’s why I’m being put in those kind of positions. That is my problem.”

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Reflecting on his race, Verstappen felt that he had very little grip on the hard tyre and suffered further struggles with getting his brakes to bite – thus costing time to the Mercedes duo.

He remained curt when discussing the implications of the racing guidelines, feeling that it was simply hard racing and that it was up to him to drive as he saw fit.

“I mean, to get back to sixth was alright, but then I couldn’t even fight the Mercedes cars in front. I just had no grip, I was just sliding a lot, I couldn’t brake. So yeah, it was a very tough one. 

“We’re trying [to improve], but I mean, also it was more promising. Here again, it was a bit more tough, so it’s a bit odd. But a few things to look at, and hopefully, of course, Brazil, we can be more competitive. 

“[Lando and I] didn’t touch. So, just racing hard. But at the end of the day, everyone speaks for themselves [in the drivers’ briefing]. 

“Of course, can the rules be better? Maybe yes, maybe not. It’s always the same thing. I mean, I just drive how I think I have to drive. Last week that was all right, this week, 20-second penalty. That’s what it is. Life goes on, you know.”

“[The lead is] still 47 points. Hopefully we can just be a little bit more competitive.”

At the front, Sainz made it three Ferrari wins in the past five races after taking pole position, despite losing the lead to Verstappen on the first lap.

The race was immediately put under the safety car after a collision between Williams’ Alex Albon and Yuki Tsunoda’s RB led to the Japanese crashing at the first corner and Albon pulling off with damage after Turn Three.

When the race resumed, Sainz took just a lap before he passed Verstappen into Turn One, after which Norris closed in, leading to all the drama between the title contenders.

That allowed Leclerc through into second place and initially he tracked Sainz closely, and was within a second by lap 14.

But he dropped back a second the following lap, whereupon Sainz came on the radio to make an unspecified complaint about Leclerc, using bad language.

Leclerc stayed within two seconds of Sainz for a further three laps, before starting to drop back rapidly, slipping to nearly eight seconds behind before they made their single pit stops.

No further communications were broadcast and there were no replays of whatever might have happened, so it remains to be seen whether the drivers will discuss it after the race.

From that moment on, Sainz was untroubled out front, and Leclerc was equally comfortable in second for a long time.

But after the pit stops, Norris began to eat into Leclerc’s lead. The Ferrari was 4.7 seconds in front initially but Norris cut it back by 0.2secs or so a lap until he was on Leclerc’s tail with 10 laps to go.

Coming around the final corner on lap 62, Leclerc ran wide, onto the dusty outside of the track, and then off the circuit, and Norris swept by into second place.

Behind the top three, the Mercedes drivers were locked in combat throughout the race. Russell overtook Hamilton on lap 14 and stayed ahead until the pit stops, but the seven-time champion came back at Russell in the second stint and was on his tail with 20 laps to go.

They battled closely for many laps and eventually Hamilton found a way by into the first corner with five laps to go.

Behind them, Verstappen had no pace after his penalty and had a lonely race to sixth place.

Haas’ Kevin Magnussen took seventh, ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, eighth from 17th on the grid, Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.

Fernando Alonso, celebrating his 400th grand prix, retired early on with overheating brakes.

Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez had a race to forget. He was penalised for a false start, after lining up well forward of his grid slot, and then damaged his car in an incident with RB’s Liam Lawson in Turn Four.

He finished last after Red Bull stopped him for fresh tyres late on for a failed attempt to take fastest lap.

Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid are interested in signing Trent Alexander-Arnold, Liverpool enquire about Amar Dedic’s availability, Wolves make Giorgi Chakvetadze their primary January target.

Paris St-Germain have joined Real Madrid in the race to sign Liverpool’s 26-year-old England right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold. (Fichajes – in Spanish), external

Liverpool, meanwhile, have enquired about the availability of RB Salzburg‘s 22-year-old Bosnia and Herzegovina right-back Amar Dedic, as a potential replacement for Alexander-Arnold. (CaughtOffside), external

Wolves have made Watford’s Georgia attacking midfielder Giorgi Chakvetadze, 25, their primary target in January. (Sun), external

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is preparing the ground work to replace manager Carlo Ancelotti next season with Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso. (Sport – in Spanish), external

Former Italy striker Mario Balotelli, 34, has a medical booked on Monday before signing for Serie A side Genoa. (Fabrizio Romano), external

West Ham are interested in Atalanta and Nigeria forward Ademola Lookman, 27, as manager Julen Lopetegui hopes to boost his attacking options in January. (GiveMeSport), external

Manchester City are set to offer Croatia defender Josko Gvardiol, 22, an improved contract worth £150,000-a-week to extend his stay at Etihad Stadium by two years until 2030. (Star), external

England and Chelsea attacking midfielder Cole Palmer, 22, remains committed to the Blues despite being linked with a move way, including a return to Manchester City. (Football Insider), external

AC Milan are interested in offering 27-year-old Liverpool and Italy winger Federico Chiesa a route back to Serie A. (CaughtOffside), external

Former Germany defender Mats Hummels, 35, could leave Roma in January despite only joining the Serie A club as a free agent in the summer. (Nicolo Schira), external

Continue reading with advertising …

… or with a subscription

Visit motorsport.com as usual with advertising and tracking. You can revoke your consent at any time via the data protection page.¹

Use motorsport.com without any advertising banners, personalized tracking and commercials for a small fee.

Accept and continue

More information about advertising and tracking in our Data protection notice, the List of our partners and in Data protection information center.

Already a subscriber?

Log in here