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Ross Chastain has faced his share of setbacks over the past two seasons, particularly after Rick Hendrick issued a pointed warning about wrecking his drivers. While he’s still working to regain his footing on the track, he doesn’t consider this the most trying period of his life. For Chastain, the real test came in 2019.
Reflecting during the 12 Questions segment with Jeff Gluck, Chastain pointed to the fallout from the DC Solar scandal as the toughest chapter he’s navigated. He openly said the fallout of his Xfinity Series ride with Chip Ganassi Racing after the sponsor’s downfall impacted him.
Back in 2019, the FBI raided the home of DC Solar’s CEO, who had been one of Chastain’s biggest advocates. Chastain had driven three races in a DC Solar-sponsored car in 2018, winning one, which helped him land a full-time seat for 2019. But just days before the new year, Chip Ganassi Racing pulled the plug on its Xfinity program, leaving him without a ride.
Chastain admitted he didn’t take the news well at first. “Initially, I was probably not very proud, because I didn’t handle it very well for the first couple weeks,” he said, recalling how he jumped in his truck and drove back to North Carolina, needing time to let it sink in. It wasn’t until January 2 that he drew a line in the sand and told himself, “I’m gonna go keep doing this.”
Upon returning to CGR’s shop after the holiday break, he was met with an outpouring of support. From the shop floor to upper management, everyone reassured him he wasn’t done yet. “Hey, you’re going to be back in a race car for us,” they told him.
Though it didn’t happen overnight, Chastain eventually found his way back. In 2020, he ran five races in the No. 77 car for Spire Motorsports. By 2021, he had earned a full-time Cup Series seat with Chip Ganassi Racing.
He credited the people at CGR who rallied around him, many quite literally putting an arm around his shoulder and saying, “You’re gonna drive a Cup car next for us.”
It took time, but he made good on that promise.
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Rory McIlroy's controversial decision leaves PGA Tour 'very concerned'
Seventy players qualified for the first round of the playoffs at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis, but only 69 will tee it up at TPC Southwind this week. That's because Rory McIlroy, who ranks second in the FedEx Cup standings behind only Scottie Scheffler, is skipping the first playoff event to prepare for the BMW Championship and Tour Championship. The PGA Tour isn't thrilled with his contentious decision. Peter Malnati, a PGA Tour pro and player director on the PGA Tour Policy Board, told Golfweek he's "very concerned" the new playoff format allows top players in the standings to skip playoff events. "I think there is stuff in the works, and I'll leave it at that," he said. The PGA Tour must make changes because McIlroy won't face any repercussions for skipping the FedEx St. Jude Championship. As the No. 2 player in the FedEx Cup standings entering the postseason, McIlroy is guaranteed to qualify for the Tour Championship. Before this year, he would've been incentivized to improve his spot in the standings because of the advantage the starting strokes format gave the No. 1 player. That's no longer the case. This year, the Tour Championship will operate like every other tournament on the PGA Tour schedule. There will be no starting strokes advantage for the top players, so every player from No. 1 to No. 30 will have an equal chance to win the $10 million prize. It doesn't matter where McIlroy resides in the standings. It just matters that he makes it to East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, and he's already locked up his spot in the season finale. Why spend a week in scorching-hot Memphis when you could stay home and prepare for the tournament that actually matters, right? The new playoff format will make the Tour Championship more entertaining for fans, but it renders the other two playoff events irrelevant for the PGA Tour's top players. The Tour must make playoff events mandatory to prevent other stars from following McIlroy's lead.
NFL Hall of Famer reveals why he chose to join Deion Sanders' Colorado coaching staff
Marshall Faulk is Colorado's new running backs coach, and the Buffaloes could not ask for someone with better experience for the job. That's, of course, because this is Faulk's first coaching gig. As a player, though, there were few better than the Pro Football Hall of Famer. In 12 seasons in the NFL, he rushed 2,836 times for 12,279 yards and 100 total touchdowns. He was a league MVP, a seven-time Pro Bowler and a Super Bowl champ. Faulk was the real deal, and now he has a chance to pass his experiences on to the running backs at Colorado. For him, it's more than just the opportunity to coach football, though. He gets to coach under Deion Sanders, whom he views as a major difference-maker for the game of football. "You guys know him in a different way than I know him," Faulk said in a recent media availability (h/t On3). "We’ve been friends for many years. We worked together in television. We always talk just about the game and probably more about kids coming up in the game. How do you affect and make sure they come into the game the right way? He’s one of those way makers. When you pay attention to kids that’s gonna leave this program and go to the next level, they’re gonna do it in a certain way and you’re gonna say, 'Wow, they were coached by a guy who understands how to get it done.' I identify with that." Colorado can certainly use Faulk's expertise heading into 2025. There are several players battling for the starting role after Isaiah Augustave transferred to South Carolina. Even then, he was Colorado's leading rusher last season while rushing for just 384 yards and four touchdowns, so it's not like the Buffs have a big gap that they're trying to replace. Dekalon Taylor transferred in from Incarnate Word, where he rushed for 909 yards and nine touchdowns last season, so he'll be a player to watch. Dallan Hayden, Micah Welch, Simeon Price and Charlie Offerdahl are also names to know. Faulk will have his work cut out for him, but he seems excited to make a difference both on and off the field for these young Buffaloes. "So coming here not just to win games on the field, but to win the game off the field, which is to make sure that these young men in life become what they want to become outside of football. They become the father that they want to be, the brother, the husband. Making sure that they do that, that’s the important part. That was attractive," he said.
Green Bay Packers: Slo-Mo Video of Jordan Love’s Insane 55-Yard TD Bomb to Romeo Doubs Goes Viral
Much has been said about the Green Bay Packers’ wide receiver room in the offseason, but there is also still a lot to discover about the group. For one, rookie wide receiver Matthew Golden, for all the hype he’s been getting, has yet to show what he can do downfield in an official NFL game. He will get his chances soon, though, with the NFL preseason coming up for the Packers and the 2025 NFL regular season just around the corner. Meanwhile, other wide receivers like Romeo Doubs are a known factor for the Packers, as he enters his fourth season in the NFL. Still, he must be motivated to have a big season ahead, considering that he has no contract beyond the 2025 campaign. Selected in the fourth round (132nd overall) of the 2022 NFL draft by the Packers, the former Nevada football star is hard at work in the offseason, improving his chemistry with his teammates, most importantly with star quarterback Jordan Love. Jordan Love, Romeo Doubs connect for spectacular touchdown at Green Bay Packers training camp During a recent training camp session, Doubs beat defensive backs Javon Bullard and Evan Williams downfield and caught a pass from Love for a huge 55-yard touchdown. A slo-mo video of that play was posted by the Packers on social media, particularly on X, leaving Green Bay and football fans buzzing. Last season, Doubs finished fourth on the team with 601 receiving yards to go along with four touchdowns on 46 receptions and 72 targets. He only played in 13 games, as he missed four games due to a concussion he suffered in a Week 12 matchup against the San Francisco 49ers.
Ex-Heat employee charged with selling stolen team items for millions in profit
A former Miami Heat employee has been accused of stealing more than 400 game-worn jerseys and other items and selling at least 100 of those items for profit, according to reports from The Athletic’s Brooks Peck and the Miami Herald’s Anthony Chiang and Charles Rabin. According to a Department of Justice press release, Marcos Thomas Perez faced federal charges of transporting and transferring stolen goods in interstate commerce on Tuesday. Among the items Perez allegedly stole was LeBron James’ jersey from Game 7 of the 2013 NBA Finals, which he sold for approximately $100K. The jersey was later sold in 2023 at a Sotheby’s auction for $3.68M. The federal investigation was launched in early 2024 after game-worn jerseys from James, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade — among many other items — went missing from the Heat’s arena, the Kaseya Center. Perez worked for the City of Miami Police Department from November 1992 until he retired in April 2016. The Heat employed him as a security officer from 2016-21, then worked for the NBA as a security employee from 2022 until this year. According to the DOJ press release, “During his tenure, Perez worked on the game-day security detail at the Kaseya Center, where he was among a limited number of trusted individuals with access to a secured equipment room. This equipment room stored hundreds of game-worn jerseys and other memorabilia that the organization intended to display in a future Miami Heat museum. During his employment, Perez accessed the equipment room multiple times to steal over 400 game-worn jerseys and other items, which he then sold to various online marketplaces. Over a three-year period, Perez sold over 100 stolen items for approximately $2 million and shipped them across state lines, often for prices well below their market value.” Law enforcement executed a search warrant at Perez’s home in April and seized almost 300 items that the Heat confirmed had been stolen from their arena. Meadowlark Media’s Amin Elhassan first reported the news of the investigation on “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz” last week, according to the Herald. The Heat organization and the league have declined to comment during the ongoing investigation.
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