Martin Truex Jr. will pause his retirement and attempt to qualify for next month's Daytona 500 with Tricon Garage, the team announced Thursday.
Truex, 44, retired from full-time racing after the 2024 season. The 2017 Cup Series champion collected 34 wins and 291 top-10 finishes across 21 years on NASCAR's top circuit.
Tricon Garage confirmed that Truex will be behind the wheel of the No. 56 Toyota sponsored by Bass Pro Shops, a longtime sponsor for the New Jersey-born driver.
"Having raced against Martin for many years, I can confidently say there's no stronger competitor I'd want behind the wheel for our first Cup Series entry at the sport's most prestigious race," team owner and former driver David Gilliland said. "As an open entry, we know the road ahead will be challenging, but I have no doubt that Martin will put us in the best position to succeed. I've had the privilege of sitting on the pole at Daytona, but my next goal is to celebrate in Victory Lane."
Truex has never won the Daytona 500 in 20 previous attempts, finishing runner-up to Denny Hamlin in 2016 by just 0.010 seconds.
In order to make the field for the Feb. 16 running of the "Great American Race," Truex will have to qualify through the Daytona Duels on Feb. 13.
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The journey of Emma Raducanu and Elena Rybakina in the DC Open doubles came to an end after the unprecedented pairing retired during their semifinal match against Taylor Townsend and Shuai Zhang. It was a difficult match on paper against the second seeds, which unfortunately didn't even manage to finish the first set. The duo had surprised many when their entry into the doubles draw was announced, and they debuted with an impressive win against Tereza Mihalikova and Olivia Nicholls, overcoming a set deficit to secure a 2-6, 7-6(7), 11-9 victory in the super tie-break of the third set. Then, in the quarterfinals, they seemed to gel as a team, defeating Giuliana Olmos and Aldila Sutjiadi, two other specialists in the category. Both Rybakina and Raducanu took to the court earlier today, both with wins that propelled them to the semifinals of the DC Open singles draw. They nevertheless decided to show up for the doubles match – barely an hour after Rybakina's singles triumph. Townsend (Doubles No. 2) and Zhang (No. 15) entered with a certain favoritism, considering their extensive experience as doubles players and both being Grand Slam champions in the category in the past. They had just defeated the duo of Venus Williams and Hailey Baptiste in a tight encounter. Not much happened in the match, which began with the first service game in favor of Rybakina and Raducanu. However, Townsend and Zhang showed their experience, easily holding their service games and securing two consecutive breaks. The match stood at 4-1 in favor of the doubles specialists when Raducanu/Rybakina – with everything against them and realizing they would have to work extremely hard for a victory – decided to retire from the doubles, opting to physically preserve themselves for their singles semifinals matches scheduled for this Saturday. Singles focus for Raducanu and Rybakina The pairing of Rybakina and Raducanu surprised at the beginning of the week, partnering up to gain match practice on hardcourts amidst a demanding swing and after the surface change from the grass-courts at Wimbledon a few weeks ago. However, for both, the main objective was singles, where both delivered this week. Indeed, during the day, former US Open champion Raducanu reached the semifinals of the tournament after convincingly defeating Maria Sakkari in straight sets. There is little doubt that Raducanu is achieving consistency at the top level, with wins this week against strong opponents like Marta Kostyuk, Naomi Osaka, and Sakkari, returning to a tournament semifinal. Since winning the US Open title in 2021, the Brit has never returned to a final, and now she is just one win away from breaking a nearly four-year final drought. She will face Russia's Anna Kalinskaya, who surprised 4th seed Clara Tauson earlier in the afternoon, in what will undoubtedly be a thrilling match for a spot in the final. Raducanu has also secured a climb of 14 positions in the rankings and is currently positioned at world No. 32 in the live ranking, her best ranking since 2022 – when a good portion of her points were still from her Flushing Meadows triumph. Rybakina, for her part, has also achieved convincing victories this week. After receiving a first-round bye, she defeated young star Victoria Mboko in her debut and then Polish 5th seed Magdalena Frech in the quarterfinals, both victories in straight sets. The 3rd seed is preparing to face Canadian Leylah Fernandez – who has found inspiration at the DC Open. They have two previous encounters, both in 2024, with one win for each, the last of which was in favor of Fernandez in Cincinnati. Although the Kazakh will not see a ranking movement for now – where she is No. 12 – the possibility of reaching the final would place her in the WTA Race top 8, meaning she would return to a WTA Finals qualification spot, just before the start of the WTA 1000 doubleheader in Canadian and Cincinnati Opens. Rybakina has 14 wins in her last 18 matches and will look to reach the 21st final of her career against Fernandez. Match Statistics Raducanu E / Rybakina E vs. Townsend T / Zhang S
According to some, throw out the idea that the Edmonton Oilers should pursue Max Pacioretty. A veteran forward who has earned over $63 million over the course of his NHL career has yet to sign an NHL contract and was recently mentioned in a post by David Staples as a possible fit. In a recent post, the Journal noted, “All of the top NHL unrestricted free agents have already signed contracts, but there’s one big name player still available that makes good sense for the Edmonton Oilers to pursue.” Responses have been varied, with a few quite vocal about the Oilers not following Staples’ advice. “In what world does this make sense?????” writes a commenter on a recent post for The Hockey Writers. Another commenter wrote, “Pacioretty is a good journeyman player but he is injury prone now, late in his career. Oilers might be lucky to get 40 games out of him. They should look elsewhere instead of taking a chance on Patches.” Tyler Yaremchuk of Oilers Nation chimed in and said, “He scored five goals in 37 games last year with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Can’t stay healthy, very old, very slow.” Yaremchuk then went on a rant, listing several Oilers forwards who would be better than Pacioretty. What About Pacioretty on a PTO? Is there any reason that a team that is looking to get younger and faster, and move out depth pieces that were older and less productive than expected, would revert back to last summer’s strategy? It seems like an odd choice on the surface. Something would have to happen that would make giving Pacioretty a look risk-free. That means only a PTO. Even at that point, should he agree, it would require him to be willing to sign a two-way contract for the league minimum.
Having been in an on and off relationship for over two years, Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas are quite familiar with each other and their families. It comes as no surprise when the Spanish WTA star appeared to be in agreement with a statement by former player Ivan Ljubicic, where the Croat urged parents of tennis stars to focus less on tennis and more on raising their kids. The high-profile couple made their relationship public in May 2023, and were seen at each other's matches. A year later, they would take to social media to announce they had split ways, only to get back together three weeks later. Known for his volatility on the court, Tsitsipas would engage in a rather heated exchange with his father Apostolos during an opening round loss against Kei Nishikori at the 2024 Canadian Open. The elder Tsitsipas was acting as Stefanos coach at that point, and the Greek star would later take shots at his father in his post-match conference. However, Tsitsipas would later reveal he had apologized to his father soon after the incident. In an interview with SDNA, Tsitsipas stated both men had a long conversation, during which they aired their grievances and the former World No.3 admitted to apologizing to his dad. Badosa co-signs statement by Ljubicic "We discussed it, from my side I had to apologize because it was a big mistake on my part," said Tsitsipas to SDNA. "We have found a new line of communication and a way to talk to each other, so that such things don't happen again and such tensions don't arise again." Ivan Ljubicic, former player who would later coach Roger Federer during the tail end of his career, would chime in on the role of tennis parents, a day after Jannik Sinner dethroned Carlos Alcaraz at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships. "Following last night, second note to parents: your role is CRUCIAL," said Ljubicic. "Your responsibility is to build independent, responsible, strong human beings. Let the professionals do their job, make sure they have all they need. I promise that this is the best formula." Soon after Tsitsipas' interview with SDNA was published, Badosa would return to Ljubicic's post and express her support. "Soooo good ", wrote the Spanish WTA star on Twitter. Although Badosa did not mention Apostolos specifically, the elder Tsitsipas has received backlash for being overbearing towards Stefanos.
On Thursday, wrestling icon Terry "Hulk Hogan" Bollea died at the age of 71. "WWE is saddened to learn WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan has passed away," the company said in a statement. "One of pop culture’s most recognizable figures, Hogan helped WWE achieve global recognition in the 1980s... WWE extends its condolences to Hogan’s family, friends, and fans." Hogan was the first true superstar to emerge in the wrestling industry, capturing a casual audience worldwide and bringing new eyes to the sport. He was an unbelievable draw, both as a baby face and as a heel. From his time as an All-American hero to leading the New World Order and teaming with Randy Savage as part of the "Mega Powers," he has been a staple of the scene for decades. Who can forget his WrestleMania III moment, where he defied the laws of physics to body-slam a 520-pound Andre the Giant? Or, more recently, his match with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson at WrestleMania 18? His last appearance on WWE RAW on Jan. 6 saw him booed throughout, highlighting the rocky legacy Hogan leaves behind. Hogan's universal popularity has plummeted in recent years, primarily due to a racism scandal that led to his removal from the Wrestling Hall of Fame, only to be reinstated in 2018. Nevertheless, the damage had been done. Hogan's outdated and unwelcome outlook on specific aspects of life derailed the final stanza of a legendary career. Still, there's no denying that without Hogan, the wrestling we know and love today wouldn't exist. There wouldn't be WWE on the world's largest streaming platform, or All Elite Wrestling, which is developing into one of the most successful challenger brands. Instead, there would be smaller, more localized promotions, all competing for a sliver of television time. Hogan popularized the sport by bridging the gap between the wrestling ring and Hollywood. During his time in the spotlight, Hogan appeared in movies such as "Rocky III," "No Holds Barred" and "Suburban Commando," all of which helped bring his larger-than-life persona to a new audience. It's no surprise, then, that The Rock, John Cena and Dave Bautista have all made similar jumps in recent years. Hogan leaves behind an everlasting imprint on the wrestling world. Unfortunately, it comes with multiple asterisks; however, that doesn't change what he achieved as the first global wrestling star.
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