Roberto Mancini insists that a potential move to the Saudi Arabia national team is not the reason for his sudden decision to quit Italy which has sparked a contract row...

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff admits the team will soon have no choice but to give up on the development of this season’s car and focus on next year. Lewis Hamilton claimed a third-placed finish at the British Grand Prix, but was beaten to second by Lando Norris and was well adrift of challenging Max Verstappen – who extended his title lead to 99 points in pursuit of a hat-trick of world championships. Hamilton was unable to pass McLaren’s Norris following the safety car restart despite being on theoretically faster tyres in the closing stages and the seven-time world champion remains fourth in the drivers’ standings – a whopping 124 points behind Verstappen. Wolff knows they can not do anything to stop Verstappen and his dominant Red Bull and therefore says the time will soon come to switch focus to next season. “I think pretty soon,” Wolff said when asked when that time would come. “We have no choice. P2, P3 fundamentally doesn’t impact me and the team. “It is about coming back to being able to win a world championship. “That’s not going to happen this year so we need to set our eyes on next year and we will see with all the races to come how we can learn and develop and make sure that we can carry that forward into next year. “Having said that, the regulations are the same so we are not learning nothing by continuing with this car. So there is a balance to strike.” The safety car, which was deployed on lap 33, massively benefitted Hamilton, who was able to get a free pit-stop and retain third place after a raft of drivers had already pitted. With Hamilton, who started seventh, on soft tyres and Norris on hard tyres, it was expected the McLaren man would be a sitting duck but he was able to resist the advances of the Mercedes to clinch a brilliant second place. It was the same story behind, where Norris’ team-mate Oscar Piastri comfortably held George Russell at bay to clinch fourth. Wolff chose to view McLaren’s enormous progress in the last two races as a positive that they can achieve similar, but expected his drivers to be able to secure a double-podium finish. “To be honest, when the safety car was deployed, I was pretty sure, if not convinced, that we would be eating up the McLarens and finish with a P2 and P3 and maybe even challenge at the front,” Wolff added. “You see just how strong their car was. They both raced very strong. Their top speed through the corners and the straights, there was no way of passing them. That came as a surprise. “McLaren were not competitive at the beginning of the season and it is good to see because it shows if you make the right decisions, the car can jump up by a huge amount. “Do I believe we have upgrades which will fundamentally change the car? I don’t believe so but we have a few small steps to come and we can see if you find a tenth or two or three you can move up the grid. “Fundamentally I don’t care whether we finish second or third. It is about finding our way back to fighting for victories and the world championship. “To see that the car has potential fundamentally, all eyes are on the big prize. It is exciting to see that the McLaren was able to find a second in performance.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Lando Norris calls finishing runner-up at British Grand Prix ‘pretty insane’ Max Verstappen snatching pole ‘ruins everything’ for Lando Norris at Silverstone Max Verstappen pips Lando Norris to pole position at British Grand Prix

By Martin Coulter LONDON (Reuters) -Sweden's Ericsson reported a 62% fall in second-quarter adjusted operating profit on Tuesday, slightly beating

May 12-18, 2023

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Mike Pence cheered the end of affirmative action in US colleges and universities on Sunday in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling outlawing the practice. The former vice president discussed the issue on CBS’s Face the Nation and said that the time for policies aimed at improving outcomes for minority students in general had passed. A candidate for the presidency in 2024, Mr Pence is gunning for the GOP nomination against his own former boss, Donald Trump, and other conservatives like Florida Gov Ron DeSantis and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. His comments came as activists and authorities in the higher education field vowed to keep fighting to ensure that diversity would remain a core value in student recruiting. “Fundamentally, do you believe that there are racial inequities in the education system in the United States?” asked host Margaret Brennan. “I really don’t believe there is [racial inequality in US schools]. I believe there was,” Mr Pence said. “I mean, it’s — there may have been a time when affirmative action was necessary simply to open the doors of all of our schools and universities, but I think that time has passed.” His response drew immediate backlash on Twitter, with many questioning whether Mr Pence’s children had attended schools and colleges with diverse student bodies. The three Pence children, Michael, Charlotte and Audrey, attended Purdue, DePaul, and Yale Universities. The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that universities and colleges may not consider race as a specific factor when choosing to admit individual students. They may, however, continue to take into account how race plays into the individual experiences that those prospective students describe in their applications, such as in personal essay prompts. “[T]he student must be treated based on his or her experiences as an individual—not on the basis of race,” wrote Chief Justice John Roberts for the majority. The suit was brought on behalf of a group of Asian American students who argued that they were discriminated against by admissions staff at Harvard University. Critics of the ruling say it will gut efforts to improve representation of minority students in college classes. College enrollment rates remain noticeably lower among Black and Hispanic students compared to white and Asian American students. In addition, an analysis of US education data has shown that about 40 per cent of Black children attend schools where 90 per cent or more of the students are nonwhite. President Joe Biden responded to the ruling on Thursday after news of the decision broke, telling reporters simply: “This is not a normal court.” Read More Biden reveals ‘new path’ to student debt relief after Supreme Court strikes down president’s plan The Supreme Court risks inflaming the prejudices that America sought to banish In 370 days, Supreme Court conservatives dash decades of abortion and affirmative action precedents Mike Pence claims Biden is rehabilitating the Iran nuclear deal Trump returns to campaign rallies, draws thousands to small South Carolina city ahead of July 4 Biden blames GOP for student loan ruling as 2024 political consequences loom

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