A top contender has been scratched from the Preakness 36 hours before the Triple Crown race

Lionel Messi was once again lauded as the “best in the world” by his teammates after his scintillating start to life at Inter Miami continued as the club picked up their first piece of silverware after a Leagues Cup victory against Nashville. The Argentine opened the scoring with a superb left-footed curling effort from outside the box before Miami were pegged back and sent to penalties after a second-half strike from Fafa Picault. After a drawn-out shootout, it was Miami who would eventually emerge victorious when Drake Callender saved his opposite number’s spot kick to secure a 10-9 victory. “It’s a huge honour to play a role in our first win in a final,” Callender said speaking after the match. "It’s pretty surreal. Very emotional. This team works so hard day-in, day-out to be able to perform like this on a night like this. And to have it come down to the very end, it was amazing to see the grit, just the belief of what we’re capable of. It’s something special and I’m just blessed to be a part of it.” The victory also serves as another reminder of the remarkable transformation in the team’s fortunes since Messi’s arrival. Rock bottom when he joined, the 36-year-old has scored 10 goals in just seven games, leading his team on an unbeaten run which saw them capture the club’s first silverware. Mess’s former Barcelona teammates - Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets - have reuinted with the Argentine in Miami, with the latter lauding him for his influence on the side. "We have infected the team with our spirit, our work, our character and experience,” the Spaniard said after the game. “We are making a solid team and then we have Leo [Messi], who makes a difference because he’s the best in the world. "I am very happy to win our first title in just one month, the club’s first. The team is growing by leaps and bounds and we are very happy." The result also serves as vindication for co-owner David Beckham who spent a great deal of time convincing Messi to make the move and join his team in MLS. “A lot can happen in five weeks,” Beckham joked after the victory. “A lot has changed for us, we will enjoy tonight and then we have to look to the future and continue to build. “We have some of the best players, if not the best player, in the world out there for us wearing pink. We have a bunch of academy players out there too and that is incredibly important. “It’s an emotional night for all of us. It has been a long journey for me. It has been a long journey, I always knew there would be bumps in the road along the way and there was too many, to be honest. Tonight is a night we are going to enjoy. “People ask ‘is it a fix?’ and it is the biggest compliment you can give these players because it is like a movie. You watch them play and it is emotional. Everything about their play is beautiful.”

The MLB standings by pitching whiff rate give us a good sense of which teams are throwing the best stuff.Few sporting acts can capture the poetry of motion quite like pitching a baseball. Every pitcher operates as their own unique pace. Each wind-up has its own cadence, each release its own moti...

Super-lightweight boxer Campbell Hatton spoke with The Independent ahead of his fight on the Anthony Joshua undercard against Tom Ansell. The Manchester-born fighter spoke about how it felt when Dillian Whyte pulled out of the headline fight and the relief when Robert Helenius was announced as a replacement. Hatton also spoke about the challenge of taking on a fighter like Ansell, fighting in some of the UK’s biggest arenas and how his dad, Ricky Hatton, reacted to his son following him into the ring. Stay up to date with all the latest boxing news with Independent Sport.

New York Yankees star Aaron Judge revealed Saturday that his right toe injury is a torn ligament, and there's no timeline for his return...

The 2023 FIBA World Cup is almost here, and the field of teams who could potentially win the gold medal is larger than ever.FIBA has long struggled to make the World Cup a marquee basketball tournament comparable to its soccer counterpart. The Olympics remains the top prize in international bask...

Syracuse has fired coach Dino Babers after eight years with the Orange that included just two bowl appearances

Chelsea sacked manager Carlo Ancelotti on this day in 2011, one year after he had led the club to a domestic double. The Italian, then 51, won the Premier League title and the FA Cup with the Blues in 2010, but was ruthlessly dismissed by club owner Roman Abramovich after failing to deliver a trophy the following season. The Blues finished second in the title race, nine points adrift of Manchester United, after exits in the Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup and Ancelotti fell victim to his earlier success. Chelsea finished empty handed for the first time in three years and a club statement read: “This season’s performances have fallen short of expectations and the club feels the time is right to make this change ahead of next season’s preparations.” Loyalty to managers was never one of Abramovich’s characteristics. After a 1-0 defeat at Everton on the final day of the season, Ancelotti had just given his post-match press conference when chief executive Ron Gourlay was reported to have taken him to one side in the corridor of Goodison Park and delivered the news. Ancelotti’s dismissal left Chelsea in the hunt for their seventh manager in the eight years since Abramovich took control of the club in 2003. The Russian billionaire ended Jose Mourinho’s first spell in charge four months after he had delivered back-to-back trophies. Both of Ancelotti’s predecessors, Avram Grant and Luiz Felipe Scolari, and the man who succeeded him, Andre Villas-Boas, were all dispensed within eight months. Ancelotti, who had twice won the Champions League with former club AC Milan before arriving at Stamford Bridge, went on to manage Paris St Germain, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Napoli and Everton. He returned to Real Madrid in 2021 and, after leading them to their domestic crown, became the first manager to win the title in each of Europe’s top five leagues – Serie A, Premier League, Ligue 1, Bundesliga and LaLiga. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Christian Watson's dad criticizes Packers fans amid Green Bay's losing streak, highlighting the frustration and hostility towards the team.

NSW Waratahs coach Darren Coleman said he was "embarrassed" by their defeat to Super Rugby Pacific wooden-spooners Moana Pasifika, with a string of injuries adding to his woes ahead of...

Jalen Brunson scored 32 points and Immanuel Quickley added 27 to lift the New York Knicks to a 120-99 victory over Washington, eliminating the Wizards from contention in the NBA In-Season Tournament

Tennessee quarterback Ryan Tannehill says he felt fine in the Titans' season opening 16-15 loss in New Orleans