List of All Articles with Tag 'eppersons'

Daniel Ricciardo has said he needed to fall back in love with Formula One before taking the opportunity to return to racing with AlphaTauri. The eight-time grand prix winner has not driven in anger since he was axed by McLaren at the end of last season, but will make a surprise return to the grid at the Hungarian Grand Prix next week after replacing Nyck De Vries at Red Bull’s junior team AlphaTauri. The 34-year-old Australian’s career looked to be all but over after he was deemed surplus to requirements by McLaren following two underwhelming seasons with the British team. Ricciardo did return to Red Bull as a reserve driver, but said he needed the enforced time off to ask himself if he really did want to return to racing. “Falling out of love with it took a hit on my confidence and of course if you’re competing in a sport where you’re trying to be the best at something, the best in the world at something, obviously you need full confidence and belief,” Ricciardo said in an interview on F1’s YouTube channel. “When that starts to diminish a bit, your enjoyment drops a bit as well. There’s a lot of factors. Getting back to Red Bull, just the reception I had walking back into that team was in a positive way a little bit overwhelming. “Getting back on the sim, I was a bit unsure how it was going to go, if the car would feel like it used to, if I was going to be like – for the lack of better words – ‘the old me’. “But once I’d done a few sim sessions and started feeling like myself again it brought me back to normal Daniel where I was falling back in love and ready to go again.” Ricciardo said attending the Super Bowl in Arizona in February reminded him of the buzz of a competitive environment, while being at his home grand prix in Melbourne and then the Monaco race helped him get the Formula One bug back. “I’ve enjoyed these six months off and it was really good for me but the more races I started to attend, the more sims I’ve started to do, I was getting the bug back. And then jumping in the car a few days ago I thought, ‘Oh yeah’. It all felt very normal, very familiar… “I didn’t really need to think too much about (accepting the call to return). I think being back in this family, I’m kind of going through it all again…there was no question I was going to say yes.” Ricciardo said joining AlphaTauri for the rest of the season was like going “full circle” given he raced the team, then known as Toro Rosso, in 2012 and 2013, after starting his F1 career with HRT Racing in 2011. AlphaTauri sit last in the constructor’s championship after the opening 10 races of the season and Ricciardo is under no illusions that he will be racing a top-end car any time soon. “I’m excited about it,” he said. “It’s a challenge for sure to jump in and try to hit the ground running. But also I guess I feel like I’ve been through a lot in the last few years where I’m not really scared of anything that’s going to be thrown my way – so I actually really do like the challenge. “It will be a challenge but I don’t know if I’d have it any other way.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live How does Max Verstappen and Red Bull compare to the greats of Formula One? Lando Norris ‘honoured’ to join Lewis Hamilton in battle for Formula One glory Lando Norris calls finishing runner-up at British Grand Prix ‘pretty insane’

Juan Martin Gonzalez scored a last-minute try as Argentina clocked back-to-back victories over the Wallabies for the first time Saturday, in a stirring 34-31 win to ramp up...

England midfielder Declan Rice has completed his transfer to Arsenal, the club announced on Saturday, for what is reportedly a record fee between two British clubs of 105...

Declan Rice has become the most expensive British footballer in history with his long-awaited transfer from West Ham to Arsenal finally being completed. Rice was dropped from Chelsea’s academy aged 14 but he was picked up by West Ham where his determination and dedication shone through. He made his senior debut for the Hammers aged 18 before establishing himself as a key player in the team. After the retirement of Mark Noble last year, Rice was his natural successor as club captain, and finished his West Ham career lifting the club’s first piece of silverware since the 1980 FA Cup when they won the 2022/23 Europa Conference League. Now, after years of speculation, the energetic midfielder – who is a cornerstone of Gareth Southgate’s England team which reached the European Championship final in 2021 and World Cup quarter-finals last year – will make the step up to a club playing Champions League football when he joins Mikel Arteta’s Gunners. Here is a closer look at the eye-watering numbers involved. A record sum Arsenal are paying £105m for Rice to make the five-mile switch from the London Stadium to the Emirates Stadium, surpassing the £100m Manchester City paid Aston Villa for their captain Jack Grealish and setting a new record for a British player. And it will be narrowly short of the most expensive signing by a Premier League team, after Chelsea paid £105.6m for Argentina’s World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez in January. City played their part here, though: they fought for Rice’s signature and the ensuing bidding war forced Arsenal to come up with a huge, unrejectable offer. Clearly Arteta had made Rice his top priority to lead another title challenge this season, and after falling short to Pep Guardiola’s City in the league, he wasn’t going to be beaten in the transfer market too. That £105m fee is an initial £100m with a further £5m of potential add-ons, depending on Arsenal’s success during Rice’s stay at the club. A giant pay rise Rice will be getting a chunky bump in salary too. He was paid only £60,000 per week at West Ham, a generous annual salary for most but a small paycheque compared to many of his England peers, like Tottenham’s Harry Kane (£200,000 per week), Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford (£200,000), Chelsea’s Raheem Sterling (£350,000) and Grealish (£300,000). Rice turned down a new contract reportedly worth around £100,000 per week to stay at West Ham and is now set to earn £250,000 per week at Arsenal. That will see him vastly increase his annual salary from around £3m to £13m, and that is before endorsements and other earnings. He will be Arsenal’s second-highest earner behind only Brazilian forward Gabriel Jesus (£265,000). Hourly rate Rice’s new £250,000-a-week salary works out at £36,000 per day, and £1,488 per hour. That’s not just during the working day but every hour round the clock, even when he’s asleep. And presumably, he sleeps well. Top earners For all Rice’s riches, he remains some way short of the best-paid Premier League stars. Manchester United’s Casemiro earns £350,000 per week, and even he is eclipsed by Manchester City’s star duo, Erling Haaland (£375,000) and top dog Kevin De Bruyne (£400,000). And yet De Bruyne seems thoroughly mistreated when you compare his pay packet to the three global superstars taking home far more. Kylian Mbappe is paid £1.6m per week by Paris Saint-Germain, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi both take home around £3.5m each week, at Inter Miami and Al-Nassr respectively. Rice has some catching up to do. Read More Declan Rice signs for Arsenal in record £105m transfer deal How Declan Rice’s move to Arsenal compares with other big-money transfers Kai Havertz, Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber – this is Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal now How Declan Rice’s move to Arsenal compares with other big-money transfers Declan Rice confirms ‘tough’ West Ham departure with Arsenal move imminent Declan Rice leaves West Ham for record fee with Arsenal move imminent

Declan Rice capped a remarkable rise from the crushing disappointment of being released by boyhood heroes Chelsea as a teenager as he joined Arsenal from West Ham on Saturday for a fee...

Declan Rice explains how Arsenal won the race for his signature.

The last Test Pakistan won began a year ago on Sunday against Sri Lanka in Galle, and captain Babar Azam hopes to finally record another win in the match starting...

Real Madrid have confirmed the departure of a defender on a season-long loan.

Declan Rice said his desire to play at the "very highest level" lay behind his decision to leave West Ham for Arsenal in a transfer that is set to make him...

Chelsea & Crystal Palace are both interested in signing Flamengo's Matheus Franca.

Key quotes ahead of the Wimbledon men's singles final between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak...

Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will meet for the Wimbledon championship