Neues/Ankündigungen/Anregungen » They are really even keel

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Denny Hamlin promised he would be a factor in Sundays NASCAR race at Martinsville Speedway, and he went out and proved it by leading a parade of drivers who smashed the track qualifying record. Hamlin turned a lap at 99.595 mph around the 0.526-mile oval, the oldest and shortest in the Sprint Cup Series. Its his 17th career pole, third at Martinsville and career-best fifth this season. "I knew we were going to be pretty strong," Hamlin said about the track where hes won four times. "I knew we had a shot at the pole and, beyond that, I think our car is pretty good in race trim as well." Hamlin later also won the pole for Saturdays truck race, where hell seek his third straight victory at the track. Johnson, a five-time champion for Hendrick Motorsports, will start the race with a four-point lead over Matt Kenseth in the championship, and surrounded by Kenseth and his teammates -- Hamlin and Kyle Busch. "No," Johnson said when asked if being surrounded made him nervous. "Maybe I should be, but not as of now. We will all race hard Im sure. We have all been, at least so far, have been a lot of situations with each driver and been able to race hard and take it right to the line, but not cross it." Johnson and Busch actually tied in qualifying at 99.344 mph, but Johnson was awarded the second spot based on the owner points tiebreaker, moving Busch to the third spot with Kenseth alongside. Johnson, who has won eight times at Martinsville, including the last two, said his team struggled for much of the day in practice, but "we found some direction there at the end and made some adjustments." The top 10 in the starting grid features half of the top 10 in points with just four events to go. Busch and Kevin Harvick (starting 10th) are third, 26 back, and Jeff Gordon (9th) is fifth, 34 back. Hamlin, who is in danger of seeing his streak of seasons with a victory end at seven if he cant claim one of the final races, said he will race hard for at victory, and to be a good teammate. "I think both my teammates and the guys who are around will know that Im racing for a race win and thats it," Hamlin said. "Ill take more risks, obviously, when racing for a win. I will be a lot more aggressive with a non-teammate than I will with a teammate, so that part of it is a little bit different, but that would be the only way I dont givbe 100 per cent racing for a win." Wholesale College Jerseys . Pearce had a career-high four hits and drove in two runs, and Wei-Yin Chen shut down Texas again as the Orioles completed a four-game sweep of the Rangers with a 5-2 victory on Thursday night. Authentic NCAA Jerseys .Hammel pitched inside more and it helped him get into the seventh inning as the Colorado Rockies beat the San Diego Padres 3-2 on Friday night. https://www.cheapncaajerseysjustwholesale.com/.Fucale will not only be one of the local boys, he is also a Montreal Canadiens draft pick and will have a huge cheering section when Canada opens the tournament Dec. College Jerseys .com) - A chant of Zeke reverberated around AT&T Stadium before Ezekiel Elliott powered into the end zone for his fourth and final touchdown. College Football Jerseys . Hes the same player he always was, only now his efforts are being rewarded. The rookie manager has made a habit of heaping praise on others when things are going well, and accepting criticism when they arent. But in the case of Hurtado, its what the coach is NOT saying that may be the secret to a superb run of form.Despite not scoring a goal yet this season, Vancouver Whitecaps forward Darren Mattocks is a happy man these days. "He is in a good place – his work rate has been fantastic and when centre forwards work that hard they will get their rewards and his are coming," head coach Carl Robinson told me. The 23-year-old Mattocks has started all four games for the Whitecaps so far, coming off in both home victories, but when he has been withdrawn he has been a very active, lively member of the bench, cheering a team on that he finally feels a part of. He told me: "We are playing really well, we just have to keep working on things, improving, making space for each other, do the simple things right and then getting the results. "The simple things in soccer will make the biggest difference – everything else will then fall into place. The cohesion in the group right now is really good, we added not only some fantastic players but fantastic people...fun, loving guys and thats helped contribute to our success." As Mattocks tells me about the winter additions he nods his head over towards Robinson in a way of recognition for what the Welshman was able to do before a ball was even kicked this season. It is easy to see the relationship between coach and player is an important one. Happy Mattocks + Happy Robinson = A focused player on the field. When Robinson was given the job in December many saw his adoption of Mattocks as a negative storyline, with some expecting the Whitecaps to trade the inconsistent striker. Robinson disagreed. He went to work on how to get the best out of the Jamaican immediately. "He was one of the first phone calls I made, after I got the job. I know he has fantastic attributes, he lost his way a bit last year and I knew confidence was a problem with him because I saw in training what he can be, but didnt see it enough on a regular basis in games. If you are not playing, as a young player, if you are not handled correctly then you dont develop. I told him I would help him with this, I said it wont be easy but it was important for me to make his base stronger so he understands that he has support in different situations." Robinsons Mattocks Project was not exclusively about the player himself. "I spoke to (Portland boss) Caleb Porter at the draft and he knew a bit about Darrens background and how he dealt with Darren when he was with him at Akron and I used that and philosophy and have taken his advice and it seems to be working. I have to say, he has come back with a renewed attitude and we are seeing the results." Mattocks acknowledges he is different this season and doesnt think twice as to why. "For him to take time for me, it says a lot for you as a player, of course, but also as a person because Carl knew me outside of soccer and thats really important. If you want to get more out of a player, perhaps some coaches take it for granted not knowing more about players outside of soccer, but Carl got to know me that way and thats translated now into our relationship back into soccer as well. Its a big confidence booster to know the coach has got your back, and is willing to play you game in, game out. We have a really good relationship." When asked if that is what he lacked in 2013, Mattocks refuses to be drawn on last season and his issues with then-coach Martin Rennie, saying: "I mean, I wouldnt say it wasnt there – just some things were missing last year and Carl has taken care of that and helped me focus more on my game." Despite playing sparingly under Rennie last year, the thing most people will remember Mattocks for last year was that interview he did in Jamaica wheree he certainly didnt help the image of himself or his club.dddddddddddd. Five months on, Mattocks says he has long since forgotten about it, saying: "I am an honest person, you know, it came out the wrong way and I take full responsibility for what I did, but its long gone and I have looked past it. I have learned from it, it will never happen again and I just need to keep looking forward." The Jamaican did admit that he prayed about the situation and leaned on his relationship with God afterwards. "Faith is the biggest thing for me. I have always put God first in everything, good and bad. There are times when people go through some trials and tribulations but I genuinely believe that if you have faith in God and you are a strong believer, everything else will take care of itself." During the off-season, Mattocks, who says he never goes out to party, spent a lot of down time with a small support group he trusts, including his girlfriend, mom and two elder brothers. However, he didnt need time away from the game. "I love soccer, I watch all the leagues but the Premier League is very big in Jamaica – they love it there – as a boy growing up there you dream of playing in the Premier League and hopefully, one day, I can play there but I dont want to get too far ahead of myself, for now I want to help this league grow and do my best for Vancouver." Mattocks doesnt hesitate when asked about his favourite player, almost breaking away from his quiet tone to shout Steven Gerrard. "My favourite team is Liverpool. Gerrard is a fantastic leader and role model and I try to emulate him on the field as much as I can. Its been a great season, amazing and hopefully we can get the title, we have a pretty good chance." We talk more about the Premier League and when we talk about when Robinson was playing at that level, his eyes widen in awe of his new mentor. "Hes a lucky guy eh? Thats why he is really good as a manager because he is played there and in MLS and as a young coach he is really fantastic, I know he is going to be a really good coach for a long time." As well as helping Mattocks to one day reach another level, Robinson has helped him get his passion back for the game. "Firstly, I have to be grateful to God for giving me this opportunity and I need to thank God for giving me this talent but, to be honest, it is a fantastic feeling to play professional soccer game in, game out, it is great. "I tell my girlfriend all of the time I just dont think I could do a 9 to 5 job, take nothing away from those who do it, but I am really happy with what I am doing and I am so grateful to God and I hope I continue to have success and making sure I do the small things right." Now a Jamaican international goalscorer, Mattocks dreams of making it to the 2018 World Cup in Russia but his priorities for 2014 are firmly set on the ground in Vancouver where the maturation process continues to be in effect, on and off the field, as he learns from experienced players like Jay DeMerit, Kenny Miller and Andy OBrien. "They know what it takes, they have played at the highest level and they bring their leadership and experience but, importantly, they are so humble and its a real credit to all of those guys that they want this club to grow. They are really even keel – they dont get too high or low and thats rubbing off on the young players, and it is most definitely, rubbing off on me." A smiling Mattocks leaves the interview with a spring in his step. The only thing to make him happier would be a goal to ignite his season. Oh, and a certain player lifting a certain trophy at Anfield in May. ' ' '