Reiseplan » Rosenberry, Mattocks attempted a 12-yard shot, whi

While the official 2017 calendar will not be ratified until 30 November, rumours about the shape the calendar will take are flying thick and fast in the Abu Dhabi paddock.Germany is out for the year, and that has been confirmed by the race promoter and by F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, so no surprises are expected on the German front next week. But in previous races there were whispers that, in the event Hockenheim was not on the final calendar, another European venue was waiting in the wings, circuit and money ready to step in should the need arise. That venue? Imola.It remains to be seen whether the World Motor Sport Council will present the waiting world with a 20- or a 21-round calendar for the next F1 season, but if the Imola rumours are true it would be a pleasant way to mark an end to the summer season, leaving the travelling circus to start the summer shutdown with bellies replete with carbohydrates and wine.Should the San Marino Grand Prix not make a reappearance in 2017, there will be some adjustments made to the calendar as it currently stands, with Hungary expected to take the place currently occupied by Germany, robbing the paddock of a potential four-week summer break.Further on, there are also expected to be changes to the version of the calendar published in Q3, with Singapore and Malaysia moving around to leave the F1 night race as a standalone event rather than the former (insane) schedule that saw the travelling circus heading out to Asia and sitting on Asian time for a week before returning to European time for Singapore and then back on to Asian time for Suzuka.At last, a decision that made sense.And there may still be further tweaks to come. In a round-table interview at Yas Marina, Baku race promoter Arif Rahimov told F1 journalists that -- in addition to ongoing negotiations regarding renaming the event the Grand Prix of Azerbaijan -- discussions regarding the repositioning of the race on the calendar were also under way.While the first race in Baku was certainly damaged -- in both media coverage and TV viewership -- by its positioning on this years calendar, which saw the grand prix competing with the 24 Heures du Mans endurance race, the practicalities were also a challenge, Rahimov acknowledged.The time difference works against us, he said. To be honest we havent discussed changing the date with Canada, but we want to move it forwards a little bit. It is a logistical nightmare for ourselves as well -- we have six jumbo jets to unload on the Tuesday. That is 900 tonnes of cargo in 24 hours to bring to the circuit. We did it, and F1 cargo was happy with what we did, but it is a tough job.But for a race determined to have a long-term future in F1 -- Azerbaijan has a 10-year contract to host the race, with a break clause after five years -- media exposure and increased turnout are key, and to achieve those aims a date shift is vital.My personal position is that we are not entirely happy with this date, Rahimov said. We missed a lot of press coverage due to Le Mans. I still think in the motorsport world we were on top of the priority and watch list this year in June, but obviously we want to have more. If we manage to change the date, so not clashing with the [Le Mans] date, it will be more exposure.Further on in the calendar, there have been suggestions of date changes in the Austin-Mexico-Brazil window, irrespective of whether or not Interlagos manages to salvage its place on the calendar. While there is an awful lot of goodwill around the Brazilian Grand Prix, with the track beloved by most despite the condition of the facilities and surrounding area, the race itself appears to be a patient on the final hours of life support.The retirement of Felipe Massa followed by this weeks announcement that Banco do Brasil had withdrawn their financial backing for Felipe Nasr means that it is unlikely that we will see a Brazilian driver in Formula One in 2017 -- the first time since 1969 that the sport has not had a single entrant from South Americas geographical behemoth.No driver means diminished local interest and diminished funding. Add to that the ongoing problems surrounding former title sponsor Petrobras and the nose-diving value of the Real, and it looks as though a 2017 Brazilian Grand Prix is little more than a nice idea with no real support.From where Im standing, at the tail-end of a 21-race season and with the stamped passport to prove it, a 19-round calendar sounds like manna from heaven. Potentially losing two historic rounds -- including one on a still legendary track (Hockenheim was sadly neutered) -- is a crying shame. But change is inevitable, and these changes are not just as good as a rest: they represent the potential for real R&R.Looking to the future, another rumour doing the rounds in recent months takes in potential replacements for those races soon to fall. While the F1 fanbase has (understandably) moaned about endless Tilkedromes in unheard of countries looking to boost their global profile, the rumour is that a popular and current race promoter is currently hard at work on a second US race in the area around Palm Springs. Cheap Shoes NZ . The Hall of Fame defenceman told Landsberg that he believes fighting still has a place in todays game, but thinks staged fighting needs be outlawed. Shoes NZ 2020 . Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek defeated Nenad Zimonjic and Ilija Bozoljac 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (4) on the indoor hard-court at Belgrade Arena. The victory improved the Czech pairs impressive cup doubles record to 14-1. https://www.shoesnzonline.com/ . After a lengthy wait, persistent rain finally forced the postponement of the Nationals game against the Miami Marlins on Saturday night. The teams, and a few thousand fans, waited nearly four hours from the 7:05 scheduled start time before an announcement was made shortly before 11 p. Shoes NZ Online .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Shoes NZ From China . But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle. PORTLAND, Ore. -- Diego Valeri and Fanendo Adi scored second-half goals to give the Portland Timbers a 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Union on SaturdayThe victory gave Portland (11-11-8) 41 points and moved it ahead of Sporting Kansas City for fifth place in the Western Conference. The loss kept Philadelphia (11-11-8) at 41 points. The Union are fourth in the Eastern Conference.I couldnt be more proud of these guys, Portland coach Caleb Porter said. The nice thing is were starting to get that continuity and that consistency, like we always do. We smell the postseason and you can see it in the performances at home.In the first minute of the half, Portlands Darren Mattocks turned past defender Keegan Rosenberry on the Philadelphia end line, then delivered a driven pass to Valeri a couple yards from goal. From that close, it was a simple task for the forward to redirect the ball past goalkeeper Andre Blake for his 12th goal of the season.You see how hard (Mattocks) works. Three or four times, he was able to press the back line. If you look at the first goal, it all comes from his workrate, Porter said.Less than a minute later, Philadelphia evened the score. Fabian Herbers drove toward the edge of the Portland penalty area, where two defenders forced him into overrunning the ball. Fortunately for the Union, Chris Pontius was following the play and jumped on the stationary ball, slamming a left-footed shot past Portland goalkeeper Jake Gleeson for his 11th goal.ddddddddddddPortland regained the lead in the 53rd minute, with Mattocks again setting things up. After collecting a poor clearance by Rosenberry, Mattocks attempted a 12-yard shot, which deflected off Adi standing on the 6-yard line and into the goal for his 15th goal of the year.Even with two assists, Mattocks admitted he would have really enjoyed scoring. Its special against Andre Blake. We get together with the (Jamaican) National Team. That would have been icing on the cake, said Mattocks.A lot of chances created on the day. We made a couple mistakes. I think they made a couple mistakes. We got punished for ours, Philadelphia coach Jim Curtin said. Adi and Valeri were a handful and they made us pay.Valeri and Adi have scored 27 of Portlands 45 goals this season. The next highest scorer on the team is Jack McInerney with five, the last on July 13.Philadelphia finished the match with 10 players, after defender Joshua Yaro received his second yellow card of the game in the 85th minute.Disappointing that Josh gets sent off. If you watched, the first yellow card is a mistake, Curtin said. ' ' '