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| Presented By SiriusXM |
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| Axios Sports |
| By Kendall Baker · Sep 26, 2022 |
| 👋 Happy Monday! Welcome back. Today's word count: 1,343 words (5 minutes). Let's sports... |
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| 1 big thing: ❤️ Storybook endings |
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| No. 700. Photo: Harry How/Getty Images |
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| Sports often play out like movies. But even Hollywood couldn't script better endings for Albert Pujols and Roger Federer. Driving the news: The two legends made Friday, Sept. 23, 2022 a day to remember, with Pujols hitting his 700th home run and Federer saying farewell to tennis. Source: Giphy The big picture: Plenty of athletes have ridden off into the sunset, but few have ended their careers with the sense of closure that Pujols and Federer appear to have. Both seem so at peace. - "I'm not chasing anything," Pujols, 42, said last week when asked if the march to 700 was wearing on him.
- "It's been a wonderful day," said Federer, 41, who chose to end his career surrounded by his peers. "I told the guys I'm happy, I'm not sad."
The bottom line: Whether through historic achievement or poetic design, Pujols and Federer sent emotional shockwaves through the sports world on Friday. How lucky we were to witness it. Go deeper: |
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| 2. ⏱ Kipchoge does it again |
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| Photo: Tobias Schwarz/AFP via Getty Images |
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| Two-time Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge shattered his own world record by 30 seconds at Sunday's Berlin Marathon, finishing in 2:01:09. By the numbers: The second-place finisher was nearly five minutes behind the 37-year-old Kenyan superstar, who has won 15 of the 17 official marathons he's entered. His previous world record was also set in Berlin in 2018. "Limits are there to be broken. By you and me together. ... I am beyond happy today that the official world record is once again faster. Thank you to all the runners in the wold that inspire me every day to push myself." — Kipchoge The big picture: In the early 1900s, the men's marathon world record was 2:55:18. Over a century later, the record is nearly an hour faster. |
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| 3. 🏈 NFL Sunday: Juggernauts go down |
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| Photos: Megan Briggs/Getty Images, Michael Hickey/Getty Images |
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| The Bills and Chiefs both fell on Sunday, proving their stranglehold on the rest of the league isn't as tight as we thought, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. More from Sunday: - Goose eggs: The Dolphins (3-0), Eagles (3-0) and Giants (2-0) are the only remaining undefeated teams. The Raiders (0-3) and Texans (0-2-1) are the only winless teams.
- GOAT battle: Aaron Rodgers' Packers beat Tom Brady's Bucs, 14-12, after the Bucs failed to convert their game-tying two-point conversion. Brady leads the all-time series, 3-2.
- Dual threat: Lamar Jackson joined Cam Newton and Randall Cunningham as the only players with 4+ passing TDs and 100+ rushing yards in the same game.
- Jacksonville rising: Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars snapped an 18-game road losing streak with a 38-10 win over the Chargers — the first time they've won consecutive games by 20+ points since 2000.
- Battle of the punters: Sunday night's Broncos-49ers game was an absolute snoozefest dominated by punters. Corliss Waitman and Mitch Wishnowsky combined for 17 punts and 838 yards.
🎥 Watch: Every touchdown from Week 3 (YouTube) |
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| 4. ⚡️ Lightning round |
| Source: Giphy 🎶 Riri's return: Rihanna will headline the Super Bowl LVII halftime show. She last performed publicly at the 2018 Grammys. ⛳️ USA wins again: Jordan Spieth won all five of his matches to help the Americans win their ninth straight Presidents Cup against an International team depleted by LIV Golf defections. ⚾️ Clinched: The Guardians clinched the AL Central title on Sunday (first since 2018), while the Dodgers clinched the NL's No. 1 seed and tied a franchise record with 106 wins. 🏁 NASCAR fight: Things got heated on the racetrack this weekend, with a fight breaking out after an accident. ⚾️ Mattingly out: Don Mattingly will not be back as the Marlins' manager next season. He's not retiring but believes the team needs a new voice. |
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| 5. 🚫 WADA keeps marijuana ban |
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| Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios |
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| THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, will remain on the World Anti-Doping Agency's list of prohibited substances next year, Jeff writes. The backdrop: This decision was the result of a scientific review initiated last year in the wake of American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson's one-month ban. - Richardson missed last summer's Olympics after testing positive for marijuana, which she said she used to cope with her mother's death.
- The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency urged WADA to reconsider THC's place on the list, but WADA's expert advisory group concluded on Friday that the substance is "against the spirit of sport."
State of play: WADA's approach is at odds with the way most major U.S. sports leagues have started to handle marijuana. The NHL, for example, doesn't punish players for positive tests. Yes, but: WADA governs the world, not America. And while marijuana legalization sweeps the nation here at home, it remains illegal in most countries. "WADA is aware of the diversity of opinions and perceptions related to this substance around the world. We are also conscious that the laws of many countries ... support maintaining cannabis on the list." — Olivier Niggli, WADA director general Details: WADA regulations are used by dozens of international federations, including FIFA (soccer), FIBA (basketball) and FINA (swimming), as well as the English Football Association. - Bans are only triggered if an athlete tests positive during competition (not training).
- WADA notes that the threshold to test positive remains high, saying it is "consistent with a significantly impaired athlete or a frequent user."
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| 6. 🏈 AP poll: Sunflower State on the move |
 Data: AP; Table: Axios Visuals Spirits are high in the Sunflower State after statement wins from No. 25 Kansas State and Kansas, which just missed cracking the rankings (first team out) for the first time since 2009, Jeff writes. - Kansas State: The Wildcats' 41-34 win over then-No. 6 Oklahoma made them the only team in the last 30 seasons with a winning road record (minimum two games) over the Sooners (6-5 in that span).
- Kansas: The Jayhawks' perfect season (4-0) continued with a 35-27 win over previously unbeaten Duke. They already have more wins this year than in any full season since 2009.
Notes: - 63 and counting: No. 5 Clemson's 51-45 victory over No. 22 Wake Forest was their 63rd straight win when leading at half (longest active streak) and Wake's 63rd straight loss vs. a top-10 team (longest streak ever).
- Vols look good: No. 8 Tennessee has its best ranking since 2006 after hanging on to beat then-No. 20 Florida, 38-33. They also have a legit Heisman contender in QB Hendon Hooker.
- Absurd blowout: FCS program Stephen F. Austin destroyed NAIA school Warner University, 98-0, in a game that clearly shouldn't have been played. What are we doing here, folks?
📆 Looking ahead: What's next for each ranked team (ESPN) |
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| 7. 📸 Pic du jour: "Butt Punt" |
Screenshot: @NFL (Twitter) Yes, it is. ICYMI ... Dolphins punter Thomas Morstead somehow kicked the ball off his teammate's butt from his own end zone, resulting in a safety. |
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| 8. 📺 Watchlist: Giants host Cowboys |
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| Photo: Rich Schultz/Getty Images |
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| The Giants host the Cowboys tonight (8:15pm ET, ESPN), and franchise legend Eli "Chad Powers" Manning will call the action on ESPN2's "Manningcast." - Notes: New York is 2-0 for the first time since 2016; Dallas has won nine of the last 10 meetings.
- Lines: Spread: NY -1 | O/U: 39 | Money: NY -115, DAL -105
More to watch: |
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| 9. 🏈 NFL trivia |
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| Photo: Mike Christy/Getty Images |
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| Aaron Donald recorded his 100th sack on Sunday, becoming the seventh active NFL player to reach triple digits. - Question: Who tops the list with 117.5 sacks?
- Hint: He's won two Super Bowls.
Answer at the bottom. |
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| 10. 🍿 Top plays: Weekend edition |
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| Photo: Tom Pennington/Getty Images |
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| 🏈🏈⚽️⚾️⚽️⚾️🏈⚾️🏈🏈 Watch all 10 (plus a bonus play). |
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| A message from SiriusXM |
| Stream SiriusXM today and get 3 months free |
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| With SiriusXM, stream expertly curated ad-free music on your devices with channels dedicated to your favorite decades, hits, styles and genres. The deets: Get access to more than 425 channels on the SXM app, plus podcasts, sports talk, Howard Stern and more. See Offer Details. |
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| Talk tomorrow, Kendall "98-0?!?!" Baker Trivia answer: Von Miller 🙏 Have a great day! Follow us for more (@kendallbaker and @jeffreytracy). Friends can sign up here. Thanks to Bryan McBournie for copy edits. |
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