BBC agrees to fund local newspaper reporting
After more than a year of talks, Highfield says regional media groups and the BBC have agreed in principle a new partnership. Highfield highlights four areas of focus with the BBC: funding for more journalists, potentially employed by local media groups; a video bank that would make BBC regional content available to local media partners free of charge; a shared data journalism unit; an agreement on better linking to local media content on BBC news sites and attribution to content originated in the local media.
We still need to work through the numbers and we’re under no illusions how difficult that might be. [Local media would benefit from] a proper commercial framework for use of this content by the BBC. We are trying to reach an agreement on how it is going to work – how much, and when and where…All we ask for is a fair eco-system.
Jerez podium ‘a must’
Rossi says a podium finish at Jerez is a must.
I am very happy that now we go to Europe. The race in Texas was not very lucky for me, but even after a race like that we have to look at the positive side. We were having a very good weekend when we improved in qualifying and I felt very good on the bike and also with the Michelins. Austin has always been a very difficult track for me, but this year it was good. Now we go to Jerez, a track that I like very much. It’s very different from the first three rounds of the championship. We’ll have to work well, like we have done in these first races, finding the best setting for the tyres, continue working on the Michelins, and above all we must try to get onto the podium on Sunday.
White: If McGregor calls ‘they could figure out’ UFC 200
UFC President White says McGregor’s management asked to move the media promotions to May but that wasn’t an option. At that time, White said it was “weird”. He also says McGregor needs to clear up his status soon because if he remains retired Aldo v Edgar will be for the featherweight title. White adds that if McGregor called him today to clear the air they could figure it out UFC 200.
I’m not mad at Conor. Conor made a decision and a choice to not fight on this card. That’s on him, man…Conor delivers. But he wasn’t planning on delivering this weekend, and I had to pull him. It’s what had to be done.
Father confirms retirement
McGregor’s father confirms his son’s retirement, but says that his son had not told him directly.
The last word we heard is he’s retired. That’s the latest word. The news broke to us at the same time as everyone else. We have spoken but we can’t disclose anything. He’s in Iceland. Go and talk to him.
‘I have decided to retire young’
McGregor posts to Twitter that he has decided to retire young.
I have decided to retire young.
Thanks for the cheese.
Catch ya's later.— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) April 19, 2016
Coach: Diaz will stop McGregor inside two rounds
Diaz’s boxing coach Richard Perez says that Diaz will beat McGregor.
I believe that Nate is going to tap him out or knock him out. I mean because once he gets him to the ground McGregor doesn’t stand a chance. I mean standing up either. Sure he goes out kicking and trying to be fast but Nate already knows what he can do and he’s going to be in better shape and a lot sharper. So yea, I think Nate will stop him inside two.
Needs more acceleration for European rounds
Marquez says the European circuits will pose new challenges.
I’m happy with these races but in another side I want to arrive in Europe. Different kinds of racetracks, more narrow, different kind of tarmac, it’s the older style tarmac. Honda is working hard and I keep pushing a hundred per cent, every practice, every lap and it looks like [in Austin] we could manage, but the question mark will be Europe…We understand more things, and still Honda is working hard to bring us some acceleration. Especially in fourth, fifth, sixth gear, I can’t follow Suzuki, Yamaha or Ducati… so they are doing a big effort and they are starting to bring already some new parts.
Faber wants McGregor fight
In response to a comment by Faber’s teammate, Cody Garbrandt, that Faber could envisage the 36-year-old walking away from the sport in the event of a bantamweight title-victory over Dominick Cruz, Faber says that instead he wants to go out by fighting McGregor.
I’m not sure you are interpreting that right from Cody or not. I mean I know that he did say it would be a picture-perfect way for me to go out, but what I would like to do is beat Cruz and then fight Conor at 145[lbs]…You never know in this sport. I actually like Conor. You know, we got into it on the show, about he wanted to fight me and I wanted to fight him in Ireland. Then Dana said ‘you guys will never fight’. Then Dana called me and said ‘you know what, I told you that you would never fight but this is your opportunity. We want to give this to you’ blah, blah, blah. And I said ‘let’s do it’. But then I got a call from Dana saying that Conor wanted to fight Nate. So is it foreseeable? For sure.
Sings with Cork footballers
McGregor bumps into the Cork senior footballers on return from training in Portugal. McGregor chants ‘Up The Dubs’ which was met with ‘Up The Rebels’ from the Munster men.
https://www.facebook.com/thenotoriousmma/videos/1258051917596438/
Brolly: Ban UFC
Joe Brolly writes an editorial in The Sunday Independent saying that following the death of Carvalho, UFC and other violent sports should be banned.
The truth is that violent sports are a rich man’s play thing, where poor men try to put each other into a coma for our amusement. These violent life-and-death sports are fun. They bring us to somewhere primitive inside us. It is why the spectators in the Colosseum gasped and cheered as the knife was thrust home. The law permits it. And it shouldn’t. Time to ban these violent pro sports. Sometimes, human beings have to be protected from themselves…Is it good enough that a young man be beaten to death in a cage for our amusement? Is it good enough that as he begins the slow process of dying, lying on the canvas like a tranquillised cow in the abattoir, Conor McGregor, our most famous sportsman, is giving high fives all around, laughing, and beating his chest? Is it?
Uses different riding style for Michelin tyres
Marquez says MotoGP’s switch to Michelin tyres prompted him to try to adopt a smoother riding style during pre-season testing.
During the pre-season I was thinking a lot about riding style, trying to find another way to ride with Michelin and all of these things. Also the balance of the bike didn’t feel great, so I tried to change many, many things. But in the end, when I felt well on the bike – the first time in the last day of pre-season [testing in Qatar] – I tried to use again my normal riding style. Some slides, I tried to control these slides, because if not I will overheat the tyres. In the end, when a rider feels comfortable with the bike and everything is working well, it comes naturally. Your style is one [style] and you cannot change. I always have an aggressive style, sliding a lot, but in the end, OK, you can improve in terms of the condition of the track, but it comes natural…We must understand that this year it’s different tyres and the riding style is different. Of course I arrived [in Austin] and on the first day I was braking on the same point like on Bridgestone and I was not able to stop the bike. We must understand that this tyre works in a different way and have some worse points and some points that are much better.
Edgar wants McGregor NYC fight
Edgard talks about his upcoming fight with Jose Aldo.
It’s kind of silly. It doesn’t really make sense. But I get to fight a five-round fight, I get to fight a legend in Aldo and be on one of the biggest cards in UFC history. There’s a lot of plus sides to it. And also, the interim’s going to guarantee me a shot at the title. If I hold the interim, there’s no if’s, and’s or but’s about it. I have to be fighting that guy for the title, or my title becomes the title if [McGregor] doesn’t come down. The momentum is on my side. Last time I was coming off of two close losses up at lightweight, losing the belt and everything. This time, I’m the one with the five-fight winning streak. He’s coming off of a devastating loss. Three years went by. I’m much more experienced, I’m much more mature as a fighter and I’m much more comfortable in there…I’d love to get a win here in July and then fight McGregor for that real title in [Madison Square] Garden in November. If not McGregor, then I’ll be defending my title in the Garden.
Diaz: McGregor’s brand won’t be hurt by defeat
Diaz says that even if McGregor is defeated by him, it won’t hurt McGregor’s brand.
I’m sure he’ll be all right when I beat him. I’m top of the food chain. I’ve been fighting top 10 competition for eight years. Losing to me is not so bad. You can lose to some lame ass or you can lose to a real f–king G fighter. I don’t think it will hurt him too much. He’ll be all right…I feel bad for Frankie Edgar, that’s my dude right there. I like him. He was supposed to fight Conor McGregor a long time ago. This was his fight, too, and he got f–cked around a little bit. I hope he gets what he wants in the future…I’ll do the fights but I’m not going to put in the weight cutting work for chump change. Now I’m getting paid so I’m like I’ll make weight…Fight’s coming, we’ll see what happens. I don’t make predictions, we’ll see what happens. I don’t care, it’s whatever. I just want to go do what I gotta do and get the show cracking.
Honda bike ‘getting better with every session’
Marquez credits Honda’s improvements to his bike.
Every time, we find something, something new, in the electronics or in the bike. We are improving step by step. [At Austin] we improved the start, the electronics on the start, so the start was much better than the other ones. Also we improved a little bit the engine braking, we found something after Argentina, so step by step we are improving. On Friday I tried some wings, I tried a different fairing, so we are working. OK it’s possible to be [going the] wrong way, but I hope that now we are in the correct way and we must follow this way and try to work with the same style…I remember the feeling of Malaysia that I was pushing 100 per cent in the first day [of pre-season testing] and I was 1.5 seconds slower per lap than Jorge [Lorenzo]. That feeling was really frustrating. But the key I think is I always believed in Honda, in my team. They worked a lot. They are still working because we are not at our 100 per cent level with the performance.
Says Michelins demand more concentration
Rossi says Yamaha and Michelin should work to improve his bike’s situation, but the only way he can avoid more crashes is to ride more precisely.
I think I have no solution. I think that the tyre will remain like this, and I think Michelin can work, for sure, but especially we have to work on the bikes to improve them. Try to make a better match with these tyres. But especially not try to make any mistakes. For sure, the situation is different for us [than to Honda] on these tyres. Last year, the Bridgestone maybe had some other problems, but are very safe on the front. This year, if you make a small mistake, you pay. In that corner I entered with the same speed, there are two bumps, and maybe I was more inside, maybe I lost concentration, maybe I wanted more, and I lost the front.
Carvalho fight ‘could have been stopped earlier’
Speaking before the death of Carvalho, McGregor says the fight with Ward should have been stopped earlier.
My teammate Charlie had a good win just there. Hell of a fight. Your man took some big shots. Thought it could have been stopped a little earlier. I feel these referee’s need to be on the ball a little bit…To see the way it’s all progressed, the regulations and everything, all the medical staff and everything. It’s proper now. To see this is great.
Diaz: Real MMA fans knew I could beat McGregor
Diaz criticizes fake fans:
A lot of people like [Justin] Bieber, Drake and [former NFL star] Jerry Rice were saying all of these things. Anyone who is a real fan of the sport — and not just what is blasted over social media — knew I had a better chance of winning the fight. I have a lot of fights and they were making it out like I was a new guy getting a chance. But he [McGregor] was actually the guy getting the chance with a real fighter who has been in the game and is a real opponent.
Wants changes to celebrity injunction law
Prompted by the ongoing debate over a celebrity couple’s attempts to keep their names out of the English newspapers, Highfield tells BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme that the law regarding celebrity injunctions should be changed.
I think in a digital world it’s increasingly unsustainable where one quick Google search will reveal the person in question.
Tyre ‘destroyed’ in race
Marquez says Michelin helped in his choice to chose a soft front, going against the rest of his rivals, saying he pushed as hard as he could early in the race because he was unsure how long the rubber might last.
During warm-up I tried a different front tyre [the medium], the same as everybody was using, but I didn’t feel good,” Marquez said after the race. I want to thank the Michelin guys because they helped me to make the decision [to use the soft]. Until lap 12 the tyre was perfect but after the race it was completely destroyed. I knew it would be on the limit, but I try to use this potential in beginning of the race, try to open this gap. I kept pushing during all the laps because I didn’t know when the drop would arrive. When there were five laps to go, I start to feel a big close feeling at the front.
On his championship lead:
Of course I’m happy with this advantage that we have. Okay, it’s only the third race, but we already have 21 points so this is really important for me and the team. The other riders make a few mistakes, but you must be there – and now in Europe we will see, because Jorge will be really strong.
Cruz: McGregor avoiding ‘hard fight’ with Edgar
Speaking at a media day for UFC 199, Cruz says that McGregor is using the higher weight fight against Diaz as a strategy against Edgar.
Conor’s going up to fight Diaz at 170[lbs] again, leaving the featherweight belt for Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar to fight for. Okay, what if Conor McGregor goes back down and fights Frankie Edgar at 145lbs? Which is an extremely terrible style match-up and a hard fight and then he loses? Now he’s lost all his push, whereas if he stays at 170, fights Diaz and he happens to lose again, he still has it because he’s like; ‘Well, but it was it 170′. So there’s still excuses to make for it, to say why he’s the best. If he loses to Frankie Edgar at 145, you pretty much kill the excuses. It doesn’t necessarily take away legitimacy but it buys time.