MOTOR SPORTS
Cindric earns Xfinity victory
Austin Cindric won the first of two NASCAR Xfinity Series races at Kentucky Speedway, charging past Chase Briscoe on an overtime restart Thursday night for his first victory of the season and first on an oval. Cindric spent most of the first two stages chasing Noah Gragson, the pole-sitter who seemed poised to dominate all three segments. Cindric then took charge on a series of restarts in Team Penske's No. 22 Ford Mustang. On the last one, he went around Briscoe on the outside and pulled away before a last-lap wreck ended the race. Cindric, 21, had eight top-10s on ovals before breaking through on the 1.5-mile Kentucky layout. Riley Herbst was second in a Toyota, followed by Ross Chastain in a Chevy.
SOCCER
Nashville out of tournament
Nashville SC has withdrawn from Major League Soccer's MLS is Back tournament in Florida after nine players tested positive for the coronavirus, the league announced Thursday. Nashville is the second team to withdraw from the tournament. FC Dallas had to pull out after 10 players and a coach tested positive for covid-19. Nashville arrived in the Orlando area for the tournament on July 3. One player tested positive upon arrival, and eight others tested positive over the next few days.
BASKETBALL
Williamson mired in lawsuit
The legal fight over NBA rookie Zion Williamson's endorsement potential now includes an allegation that his family received $400,000 from a marketing agency before his lone season for Duke. Prime Sports Marketing and company president Gina Ford filed a lawsuit last summer in a Florida state court, accusing Williamson and the agency now representing him of breach of contract. That came a week after Williamson filed his own lawsuit in a North Carolina federal court to terminate a five-year contract with Prime Sports after moving to Creative Artists Agency LLC. In court filings Thursday in North Carolina, Ford's attorneys included a sworn affidavit from a California man who said the head of a Canadian-based firm called Maximum Management Group told him he paid Williamson's family for his commitment to sign with MMG once he left Duke for the NBA. The documents include a marketing agreement signed by Williamson with MMG from May 2019, a December 2019 "letter of declaration" signed by Williamson and his stepfather agreeing to pay $500,000 to MMG president Slavko Duric for "repayment of a loan" from October 2018, and a copy of Williamson's South Carolina driver's license.
FOOTBALL
NFL bans exchanging jerseys
NFL teams will be prohibited from post-game interactions within 6 feet of each other, so players won't be allowed to exchange jerseys after games as part of the guidelines to help limit the spread of the coronavirus. The restrictions are outlined in the game-day protocols finalized by the league and NFL Players Association on Wednesday. The 11-page document sent to each club and obtained by The Associated Press includes several changes for the upcoming season: 1.) Players and coaches are not required to wear masks, but everyone else on the sideline is. 2.) Everyone with access to the bench area is prohibited from sharing any personal items, including cups, food, towels and clothing. 3.) Anyone who records a temperature at or above 100.4 degrees on game day will not be permitted to enter the stadium. 4.) Inactive players must either be in the designated bench area or must remain in the locker room, an empty suite or some other designated isolated location in the stadium during pregame and throughout the game to avoid interactions with any non-team personnel. 5.) On-field fan seating is prohibited. 6.) Cheerleaders, mascots, flag runners and other entertainers must be approved by the NFL in advance and, if approved, must meet physical distancing and screening and testing requirements. 7.) Media is banned from the locker room.
