SPORTS - UFC headed to Fox networks in landmark 7-year deal (AP)

SPORTS - UFC headed to Fox networks in landmark 7-year deal (AP)

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SPORTS - Durant scores 44 as DC All-Stars topple LA (AP)

SPORTS - Durant scores 44 as DC All-Stars topple LA (AP)

AFP/Getty Images – Gael Monfils of France reacts to a lost point against Radel Stepanek of the Czech Republic during the …

by Jim Slater Jim Slater – Mon Aug 8, 12:12 pm ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Flamboyant leaps and an athletic frame that allows him to scramble after balls for spectacular shots in rallies have made Gael Monfils one of the best entertainers in tennis.

Thus far that has not translated into Grand Slam success for the 24-year-old Frenchman, who came away a loser to Czech Radek Stepanek 6-4, 6-4 in Sunday's ATP Washington Classic final, falling to 3-11 in ATP title matches.

But seventh-ranked Monfils, whose longest Grand Slam run was the 2008 French Open whee he reached the semi-finals, says a greater belief in his style of play rather than deeper focus is what will propel him into his first Grand Slam final.

"Have confidence in myself. Have a stronger belief," Monfils said. "I'm a believer but to reach the top I have to believe more, endure more. When I do two hours of practice, I need to add 30 minutes more.

"I need to feel something inside to go further. I think I show too much respect to my opponent. Maybe I can be more selfish. If I do that, I believe I can reach the finals."

Monfils split with Australian coach Roger Rasheed last month following three years together, saying at Washington that he was unhappy and that he and Rasheed had different goals.

Patrick Chamagne, who had been Monfils' fitness coach, is now his main coach as he heads into ATP Masters Series events at Montreal and Cincinnati ahead of the start of the US Open later this month.

"I think he can handle it," Monfils said. "I can trust in him."

That coaching comfort zone comes as critics say Monfils needs to be less of a showman on court and adopt a more tactical and focused approach in order to maximize his potential.

But Monfils also says he loves the role of entertainer, drawing roars and applause from crowds with amazing efforts on particular points.

"I want to show my passion to the people," Monfils said. "I'm pretty natural on the court. Always I remember what my parents told me. 'It's a gift to be on the tennis court.' Since I was three years old I keep it like this.

"I love playing games with my friends and trying tricky stuff. I try two percent (of those tricks) on the court. I like to try crazy stuff so I do it in a match."

The trick is turning flair into victory more often. Monfils gives a nod to such needs, but says he only needs fine tuning despite having lost a Washington final to a rival who was 2-5 against him, one he beat two weeks before on clay.

"My game is not far to be ready for big challenges against the big players," Monfils said. "I need to get back to work, be more aggressive, be more comfortable about small details, make my serve percentage a little higher.

"Physically I'm happy with where I am. Now I need to work to be stable and hopefully I can make a final."

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SPORTS - Cardinals, Fitzgerald agree to $120 million deal (AP)

SPORTS - Cardinals, Fitzgerald agree to $120 million deal (AP)

AP – In this photo taken Aug. 11, 2011, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald (11) smiles in the …

By BOB BAUM, AP Sports Writer Bob Baum, Ap Sports Writer – 47 mins ago

TEMPE, Ariz. – The Arizona Cardinals and Larry Fitzgerald have agreed to an eight-year deal that could pay the star receiver as much as $120 million, making it one of the richest deals in the NFL.

The agreement, with guarantees near $50 million, is by far the biggest in the franchise's history.

Fitzgerald and team president Michael Bidwill appeared at a hastily called news conference Saturday night to announce the agreement.

Fitzgerald insisted he "hates this part of sports," but he certainly has made a boatload of money. This is the third major contract he has signed, and he doesn't turn 28 until Aug. 31.

"Growing up, since I was 7 years old, this has been the game I love and something I have been so passionate about," Fitzgerald said, "and to have to talk about it on the business side is a little bit uncomfortable. But I am really happy to put it behind us and it wouldn't be possible if it wasn't for the Bidwill family's hard work in making this thing happen."

The Cardinals had said they wanted Fitzgerald's new contract wrapped up by the start of the regular season, and they made it with two weeks to spare.

Bidwill, son of the team's owner Bill Bidwill, said the Cardinals' intent is to have Fitzgerald retire as a Cardinal "but not anytime soon."

Fitzgerald, the third overall park in the 2004 draft at the age of 19, spoke of the opportunity to spend his entire career with one team.

"It is an honor," he said. "I am so fortunate. Not many players have that opportunity but Michael has allowed me that opportunity and I just want to repay him with great effort and winning. That is what is important."

The 6-foot-3, 218 pound receiver has become the franchise's career leader in receptions with 613 and needs just 294 yards to surpass Roy Green for career yards receiving. In Arizona's surprise run to the Super Bowl in the 2008 season, Fitzgerald shattered most of the NFL playoff receiving records.

Fitzgerald has topped 1,000 yards receiving in five of his seven NFL seasons, including the last four. He caught 90 passes for 1,137 yards last season even though Arizona had one of the worst offenses in the league while struggling to a 5-11 record, in large part because of poor quarterback play in the wake of the retirement of Kurt Warner.

While Fitzgerald said he never insisted the team make a big move for a quarterback — "I am not anyone to hold a hammer over anyone's head" — the Cardinals traded for Kevin Kolb from the Philadelphia Eagles, then signed him to a five-year, $63 million contract, with $21 million guaranteed. Fitzgerald, who organized team workouts during the lockout, had a practice session with Kolb long before the trade.

Fitzgerald will be under contract to the Cardinals through the 2018 season. It is not known whether the deal contains the kind of terms that gave him huge leverage over the team under its current deal — specifically a ban on making him a franchise player and a no-trade clause.

The contract could have widespread ramifications around the NFL, particularly in the case of running back Chris Johnson, who is holding out for a new deal with the Tennessee Titans.

Johnson tweeted "congratulations to (at)LarryFitzgerald god is good" and Fitzgerald responded with "thanks CJ you up next my guy."

___

AP Sports Writer Teresa Walker in Nashville, Tenn., contributed to this report.

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SPORTS - AP Interview: Cycling president sees 'golden era' (AP)

SPORTS - AP Interview: Cycling president sees 'golden era' (AP)

AP – Dana White, UFC president, announces a multi-year, multi-platform agreement between Ultimate Fighting …

By GREG BEACHAM, AP Sports Writer Greg Beacham, Ap Sports Writer – Thu Aug 18, 5:26 pm ET

LOS ANGELES – The UFC has made it to network prime-time.

Mixed martial arts' dominant promotional company announced a landmark seven-year deal with Fox on Thursday, putting four UFC shows on the main network each year and an extensive array of programming on its cable networks. The UFC will become a prominent feature on FX, with live fights on most Friday nights and a revamped version of "The Ultimate Fighter," the UFC's popular reality show.

UFC President Dana White said the deal is the biggest step yet in MMA's transformation from a banned fringe sport into a mainstream entertainment property. The UFC already is wildly popular among young men, but Fox will put the sport in front of an enormous new audience with its first regular slot on a broadcast network.

"This is what I always wanted, what I always thought was the pinnacle for us," White said. "This partnership is going to take this sport to the next level. Those people that thought I was a lunatic, saying this was going to be the biggest sport in the world, this is the next step."

Fox will allow the UFC to control its own production, a longtime stumbling block in White's negotiations with network TV over the past several years. Although the UFC is still in charge of the product, White said he wants "to make a fresh start" in every aspect of UFC's programming, working with Fox to improve even its pay-per-view broadcasts.

Fox Sports Chairman David Hill said the network won't have trouble selling network advertising for a violent, high-testosterone sport that's still viewed with an arched eyebrow by much of the public and media.

"TV is all about the next big thing, and that's what we're here for," Hill said. "We would not have gone into this deal if we had not canvassed a large pool of advertisers ... and found they were behind it."

Hill also had no problem leaving the UFC in charge of its own broadcasts.

"I think their production is first-class, and I doubt there's anything we could bring," he said.

The UFC's first prime-time fights on Fox will air Nov. 12. White is still working out details of the show, which likely will be held at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Networks have flirted with MMA for most of the past decade, and CBS has aired cards by the EliteXC and Strikeforce promotions in recent years to mixed success. Strikeforce fights still air on Showtime, CBS' premium cable network, but the UFC bought the Strikeforce promotion earlier this year, absorbing its only significant competitor.

CBS never had access to the UFC's peerless roster of fighters, instead building its prime-time shows around glorified bouncer Kimbo Slice and now-faded stars Fedor Emelianenko and Dan Henderson. White wouldn't say which UFC stars will appear on prime-time shows, but UFC champions Anderson Silva, Georges St. Pierre and Jon "Bones" Jones all could get the widest television audiences and biggest paychecks of their careers starting next year.

White declined to reveal the deal's total value, saying, "nobody gets rich doing a TV deal except the NFL. But if we do things the right way, it should be huge for us, for the fighters, for Fox, for everybody."

"The Ultimate Fighter" will move from Spike to FX next spring for its 15th edition, and the show will evolve from a taped reality show into a live sports program with reality-TV elements, according to FX Executive Vice President Chuck Saftler. The show's competitive fights will air live on Friday nights, and its episodes will be filmed and released within a week — much faster than in its previous incarnation, which starts its 14th cycle on Spike this fall.

Most of the UFC programming currently airing on Versus also will move to FX, as will the behind-the-scenes reality shows leading up to major fights. Fuel, a lower-profile Fox cable channel, also will broadcast UFC programming.

Although the four Fox shows are the centerpiece of the deal, the bulk of the UFC's programming will be on FX in its nearly 100 million homes. FX President John Landgraf and Saftler have built a powerful lineup of critically acclaimed and highly rated dramas and comedies over the past decade, but the network has spent years looking for sports programming to complement its scripted lineup, dabbling with NASCAR and college football in recent years.

"The UFC has a certain sensibility and tonality that falls right in line with that brand that we've built," Saftler said. " We're also able to keep our programming message simple now: You can see UFC fighting live on a Friday night on FX."

Saftler actually sees a natural fit for the UFC among viewers of FX's cerebral dramas, like "Justified" and "Sons of Anarchy," and raucous comedies like "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" and "Archer."

"There's a great intelligence to the fighters, how they have to adapt and adjust and train," Saftler said. "This isn't just dumbed-down punching. This is really a sport with well-conditioned athletes who have to put great study into their opponents. This is both brain and brawn working in the octagon."

And while weekend programming has long been a problem for FX and most major cable networks, Saftler said, "sports are the one thing that always seems to break through."

Saftler believes recent flat ratings of UFC programming on Spike, a division of MTV Networks, reflect more on the UFC's former network than its product.

"Spike has really let themselves become one-dimensional," Saftler said. "The only thing they've had is UFC. They've in essence known they were letting UFC go for quite a while. I guess that becomes less of a priority as they try to figure out what their next priority will be. They'll find a way to make that network relevant in a different way now, but we see this as just a great complement to an already robust lineup of programming."

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SPORTS - Qatar buys stake in 2012 London Olympic Village (AP)

SPORTS - Qatar buys stake in 2012 London Olympic Village (AP)

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SPORTS - Boomer Sooner! Oklahoma No. 1 in AP Top 25 (AP)

SPORTS - Boomer Sooner! Oklahoma No. 1 in AP Top 25 (AP)

AP – FILE - In this Aug. 6, 2011, file photo, Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops looks on during Oklahoma football …

By RALPH D. RUSSO, AP College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo, Ap College Football Writer – Sat Aug 20, 8:27 pm ET

NEW YORK – Being voted preseason No. 1 is a tradition at Oklahoma, and this season is no different.

The Sooners will start out top-ranked in The Associated Press college football poll for the 10th time, more than any program in the country.

The defending Big 12 champions received 36 of 60 first-place votes and 1,464 points in the Top 25 released Saturday.

Auburn, last season's national champion, will start the season No. 23, one spot behind where it began in 2010.

If the rankings are any indication, the national title race could be a scramble.

No. 2 Alabama, one of a record eight Southeastern Conference teams in the preseason poll, wasn't far behind OU, receiving 17 first-place votes and 1,439 points.

No. 3 Oregon got four first-place votes, No. 4 LSU received one and No. 5 Boise State got two.

Florida State was No. 6, the Seminoles' best preseason ranking since starting the 2004 season at No. 5.

Heisman Trophy favorite Andrew Luck and Stanford were No. 7, matching the best preseason ranking for the Cardinal since 1950, the year of the first AP preseason poll.

Rounding out the top 10 are Oklahoma's Big 12 rivals, Texas A&M (No. 8) and Oklahoma State (No. 9), and Nebraska (No. 10), in its first season in the Big Ten after leaving the Big 12.

No. 16 Notre Dame is ranked for the first time since early November 2009.

As for Oklahoma, no matter where it lands in the preseason, it always expects to make a run at a national championship in the end. It hasn't won it all, however, since 2000.

That's when coach Bob Stoops led the Sooners to their seventh AP national title in his second season in Norman. Since then, Oklahoma has lost three BCS championship games.

The Sooners have won the AP national title four times when they were preseason No. 1 (1956, 1974, 1975 and 1985). The last time they started a season top-ranked was 2003. That season, they lost the BCS championship game to LSU.

"We're very matter of fact," Stoops said this week. "All we think about is doing the work.

"We're also very aware we're not much different than about 12, 15 other teams that'll be competing for it that have legitimate chances to win it. What are we going to do differently to separate ourselves?"

Having the combination of quarterback Landry Jones and receiver Ryan Broyles is a good place to start.

Jones passed for 4,718 yards and 38 touchdowns last season, his second as a starter, and Broyles was his favorite target. The senior had 131 catches for 1,622 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Jones was forced into a starting role two years ago as a redshirt freshman when Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford went down with a shoulder injury. That was a tough season for the Sooners, who started ranked third but finished it 8-5.

Bradford was one of several key players Oklahoma lost to an injury that season, and Jones wasn't the only underclassman who played a bigger role than expected.

"Now two years from that they have benefited from the maturity and the experience gained from being on the field at an early age," Stoops said. "Our (offensive) line was young and now two years later they've got experience and some maturity to them. Same with Landry Jones. Same with Ryan Broyles."

Earlier this month, Sooners fans must have had flashbacks to Bradford's injury when linebacker and leading tackler Travis Lewis hurt his left foot in practice. He likely will miss at least the first four games, including a road trip to Florida State on Sept. 17.

"It's a big blow to us, there is no denying it," Stoops said.

Oklahoma has also been coping with the death of linebacker Austin Box, a would-be starter who overdosed on prescription painkillers in May.

"He's very close to so many guys and ... it wouldn't be right to brush it to the side," defensive coordinator Brent Venables said. "We're trying to move forward and deal with it as best we can."

The SEC has won five straight BCS title games and has plenty of candidates to make it six.

"We want to come out and win a national championship, to be undefeated," Alabama safety Mark Barron said. "Every time we step out on the field, one of our motivating factors is to be special."

South Carolina (No. 12), Arkansas (No. 15), Georgia (No. 19), Mississippi State (No. 20) and Florida (No. 22) give the SEC more teams in the preseason poll than any previous conference. In fact, the SEC West alone has more teams than any other conference.

The Big Ten placed four teams in the rankings. Joining Nebraska are Wisconsin (No. 11), Michigan State (No. 17) and Ohio St. (No. 18).

With No. 21 Missouri, the Big 12 had four teams, too.

The Pac-12 had three teams, with No. 25 Southern California joining Oregon and Stanford.

The Atlantic Coast Conference placed two teams (Florida State and No. 13 Virginia Tech), as did the Mountain West Conference (Boise State and No. 14 TCU)

The Big East, which finished last season with no ranked teams, had one team in the preseason poll, No. 24 West Virginia.

Notable by its absence is Texas. Coming off a 5-7 season, the Longhorns are missing from the preseason Top 25 for the first time since 1998.

For now, ranked or not, every team is chasing Oklahoma.

"Who doesn't want to be No. 1?" Sooners cornerback Jamell Flemming said.

____

AP Sports Writer Jeff Latzke in Norman, Okla., contributed to this report.

___

Follow Ralph D. Russo at http://www.twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP.

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SPORTS - Golden: Miami depth chart on way, despite concerns (AP)

SPORTS - Golden: Miami depth chart on way, despite concerns (AP)

AP – Miami's head football coach Al Golden walks away following a news conference before football practice …

By TIM REYNOLDS, AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds, Ap Sports Writer – Sat Aug 20, 10:28 am ET

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – For Miami coach Al Golden, the waiting game continues.

The only certainty on his schedule is Sept. 5 — the date of the Hurricanes' season-opener at Maryland. A depth chart will be completed sometime in the coming days, a process that grew more difficult when several presumptive starters had their eligibility jeopardized after being implicated by former booster Nevin Shapiro for allegedly accepting extra benefits.

Golden doesn't know when Miami president Donna Shalala and athletic director Shawn Eichorst will decide if it's worth the risk of using players who may eventually be declared ineligible by the NCAA. So when Golden says he doesn't know which 60 players he's taking to Maryland, he means it.

"We're just moving forward," Golden said. "We'll deal with whatever comes down or whatever the issues are as they come. Right now, we're moving forward and we're going to select our team accordingly. You know, I know you guys obviously are here because there's a sensational story out there, but this is a critical time for our football team."

Golden, who was hired in December, wouldn't discuss if his contract has a clause that would allow him to leave if the Hurricanes face major NCAA sanctions.

"My family and I are excited about being here, OK? This is a great place and we're going to get this fixed," Golden said.

Though neither the university nor the NCAA will confirm, it's believed the 12 current players named by Shapiro — Jacory Harris, Vaughn Telemaque, Ray Ray Armstrong, Travis Benjamin, Aldarius Johnson, Marcus Forston, Olivier Vernon, Marcus Robinson, Adewale Ojomo, Dyron Dye, JoJo Nicholas and Sean Spence — have all met with investigators in recent days about Shapiro's allegations, which were published by Yahoo Sports on Tuesday.

Shapiro claims he provided 72 players bwith cash, cars, prostitutes and other gifts from 2002 to 2010. Those allegations could bring major sanctions from the NCAA, which has spent the past five months investigating the claims.

University officials have confirmed the NCAA had investigators on campus for several days, starting on Monday.

Shapiro first made some allegations a year ago, though at least one of the names he listed then was not among the 72 he cited in a series of interviews with Yahoo Sports.

Miami has made four players available for interviews since the scandal broke publicly. None of the current 12 players listed in the article have been available for comment. On Saturday, linebacker Jimmy Gaines — who plays the same position as Spence, someone he cites as a mentor — said his teammate has seemed unaffected by the situation.

"Sean's the same guy," Gaines said. "You wouldn't even know. He's been focusing still. He's still our leader. He's still doing the things that he's done before, before everything has happened."

Golden said Harris and Stephen Morris at quarterback are still alternating with the first-string offense, a clear sign that no determination has been made about a starter at that position. Harris, Golden said, has been "nothing short of excellent." And Spence was among the few players wearing a black jersey in practice Saturday, an honor reserved for those players who are excelling at the highest level in Golden's system.

"I'm waiting for information," Golden said. "I'm confident that our kids did a great job in terms of being open and honest. That's going to allow everybody to move forward."

Miami players and coaches will not be available to reporters again before Thursday, barring any change in schedule. Most of that gap was announced weeks ago, a break of sorts to coincide with the start of the academic year.

A number of former Miami players have spoken out in recent days about Shapiro, and Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen added his name to the chorus of those offering a similar refrain: "Consider the source," Olsen said.

"It's obviously unfortunate," Olsen added. "Miami means a lot to all of us who went there. It's pretty well-documented the kind of family that we have there and the tight-knit group that we all are. To see your fellows that you really care about go through something like this and the allegations that have been proposed are hard. But at the same point, we have to remember where all this is coming from, a convicted felon who's made his bed by being a liar."

Late Friday, the chairman of the university's board of trustees released a letter saying it's "especially important that the alleged misconduct not overshadow our current leadership and institutional values."

Leonard Abess' letter also served as a strong vote of confidence for Shalala, who told the student newspaper, The Miami Hurricane, that she has no intention to leave the school anytime soon.

"Without a doubt these allegations are troubling and demand a thorough and honest evaluation of Hurricane Athletics," Abess wrote. "President Shalala has taken a strong position, insisting on full cooperation with the ongoing NCAA investigation. The process will be long, and in the ensuing months the Board of Trustees and the university administration will provide both leadership and unwavering support for our great institution."

Shapiro is serving a 20-year prison sentence. He has also been ordered to pay more than $82 million to bilked investors. His claims pushed Miami onto the growing list of schools with major football programs to be investigated by the NCAA for rule-breaking in the past 18 months. Others include Southern California, Ohio State, Auburn, Oregon, Michigan, North Carolina, Georgia Tech and LSU.

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