Driver tries to fight other driver, gets dragged along racetrack

Drivers, word to the wise: we get it that when you're ticked off at someone else, you want immediate and total retribution. However, you have to remember: your targets are often driving freaking cars. So if you go crazy trying to exact revenge, it may not work out exactly how you'd like.
Our scene: Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C., scene of weekly racing. And in one race this past weekend, a fella named Derek Stoltz somehow decided to get an entire family mad at him.

On the race's final lap, he spun race leader Bryant Robertson, then turned Bryant's brother Mike.
During Stoltz's victory lap, Mike Robertson then decided to do what Tony Stewart, Robby Gordon, Danica Patrick and so many others have done before him: rage at Stoltz while the race is still going on. Unfortunately, Robertson got hung up on Stoltz's car and got flung into the wall. Bryant Robertson, meanwhile, was held up by security and unable to catch up to Stoltz.
Moral of the story, then: careful about when you fight somebody. Maybe wait until they're in the Port-A-Potty or something.

MUST SEE - Fox sideline reporter gets run over by WR prospect at major summer event

Amy Campbell is on the road to being a big-time sports reporter. She's already on Fox Sports, she has all the makings of a potential future Erin Andrews. And the athletes she deals with as a field reporter for Fox Sports Next (i.e. Fox Sports' recruiting coverage) seem to genuinely like her. That's a good start.

Now, Campbell can say she's finally made it as a reporter. She's been completely dump trucked by a player who was rushing toward the sideline while conducting an interview.

The on field obliteration -- which was brought to Prep Rally's attention by Bob's Blitz -- occurred during The Opening, a Nike-backed prep football combine and training session in Oregon. While Campbell was interviewing a Fox Sports recruiting analyst, rising senior Ermon Lane, one of the top receiving prospects in the Class of 2014, came rushing toward the interview while running out a play.

What happened next was practically made for TV history. Lane and Campbell collided, and when Lane and Campbell collided there could only be one winner.
If you have to guess who would come out on top there, let's just reconsider that Lane is 6-foot-2 and 172 pounds. Campbell is 5-foot-not-a-lot and even less on the scale.
Luckily, Campbell popped back up and, like a Timex, she kept on ticking. Right on cue she kept delivering news, on Twitter and online and other sources all over.

That's the sign of a real reporter.

New York Jets already seem intent on screwing up Geno Smith, toying with ‘change-of-pace’ role

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(USA Today Sports Images)

We already know the New York Jets have struggled a bit to develop quarterbacks.

At least drafting Geno Smith in the second round was a chance for the Jets to hit the reset button, and start over. Maybe mold the quarterback who looked so good at times at West Virginia into a player they could build around. Learn from their mistakes and do it the right way with Smith.

But no, this is the Jets. They apparently figure that Smith might work well as a "change-of-pace" quarterback as a rookie. Because they used Tim Tebow so well in that role last year.

It's almost like the Jets are actively trying to screw up the process of developing a quarterback.

As you read this tidbit from ESPNNewYork.com's Rich Cimini, it's practically impossible to not shake your head while you do so:

"The coaches are toying with the idea of turning Smith into what Tebow was supposed to be last season -- a change-of-pace quarterback (assuming he doesn't win the starting job). Smith would have a package of plays, mainly read-option runs that could exploit his speed," Cimini wrote.

What??? The only appropriate response to this is: No, no, no. A thousand times no. Someone please step in and stop this.
Smith is not a runner. That's not a small thing, when your plan is to use him as a runner. He rushed for 342 yards on 245 college carries. Yes, Jets, that 1.4-yard average surely does scream "change-of-pace read-option quarterback," but resist the temptation.

Not only would this use Smith completely out of position (he was a pocket passer who threw for 73 touchdowns the last two seasons and ran for four), but it stunts his growth. Having Smith learn to run a package of read-option plays just to get him on the field as a gimmick would take up a huge part of his rookie season. When he should be, you know, learning to play quarterback in the NFL.

The best coaching staffs understand their players' strengths and put them in the best position to succeed. The Jets have apparently never seen Smith play, because based on this plan for him they have no idea what he does well. They're considering forcing him into a role that doesn't fit anything he did in college, while pretty much wasting a year of development for a player they desperately need to become a franchise quarterback. You should mock this just like if the Eagles were thinking about playing Matt Barkley at receiver as a rookie. It makes no sense.

Good luck, Geno. If the Jets actually follow through on this horrendous plan, you're going to need it.

Second place IndyCar trophy crashes in Toronto

The IZOD IndyCar Series' much-hyped introduction of standing race starts never materialized, but the finish of the Honda Indy Toronto made up for that disappointment.
Scott Dixon and Target Chip Ganassi Racing continued their resurgence as Dixon won for the first time in Toronto, pulling away to lead Sebastien Bourdais of Dragon Racing across the line by 1.7007 seconds following a green-white-checkered finish. Dixon backed up his victory last Sunday at Pocono Raceway with the 31st victory of his IndyCar career.
Remarkably, Dixon shared the podium with Bourdais and Dario Franchitti on a day when he tied both on 31 victories.
Four-time IndyCar Series champion Franchitti crossed the line in third place, but as he was celebrating on the podium, temporary Race Director Brian Barnhart announced that Franchitti would be penalized by 25 seconds for blocking Team Penske's Will Power on the last lap, dropping him to 13th. Andretti Autosport's Marco Andretti inherited third place.

As the celebration on the podium started-up once more, it was Bourdais who retained second place who took the spotlight, but his trophy didn't fare so well. Check out what happens as he receives it.

Bobby Keppel’s catch in a Japanese League game is amazing

While Arizona Diamondbacks third base prospect Matt Davidson earned Futures Game MVP honors at Citi Field Sunday, former New York Mets minor leaguer Bobby Keppel was making news half a world away. Making his first start since April 2012 following shoulder surgery, the 31-year old right-hander took the mound for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of the Japanese League Sunday in a game against the Chiba Lotte Marines at the Sapporo Dome. As you can see from this clip, Keppel's reflexes are as sound as ever.

German TV station getting backlash over sexist washing machine ad for women’s Euro 2013

German public broadcaster ZDF has drawn the ire of viewers and members of their national team for an ad promoting coverage of the women's Euro 2013 tournament. The spot depicts a female footballer kicking a dirty ball into a washing machine, setting it to "leather" and then sitting on top of it while she waits for the cycle to finish.

Viewers have labeled the video as being sexist and chauvinistic for its odd combination of women's football and washing machines. The German squad isn't very fond of it either. From the Telegraph: 

Midfielder Fatmire Bajramaj, who was voted world player of the year in 2010, said it had not gone down well within the Germany squad.

"The advert was not a good idea," said the 25-year-old.

"You'd like the advert to have something to do with women's football, not with a washing machine.

"They should change things for the next advert."

In an interview about the ad, ZDF spokesman Alexander Stock told Bild:

"There is a sensitivity in Germany, which is higher than in other countries in terms of these stereotypes."

"It is not about housewives, but powerful women. We wanted to make an advertisement for the tournament. It is clear to us that we hit on sensitivity, I'm sorry. This is unfortunate, but it was not meant that way. We are not cheesy men, there are many women who worked on it. The clip is not meant to be misogynist."

Stock added that ZDF has no plans to pull the ad.

MLS Team Will Pay Fans To Drop Hateful Chant

If New York Red Bulls fans can avoid saying three words at their team's games next season, the team will pay them $500.
Sounds simple enough, right?
Except these aren't just any words. No, these are somewhat of a tradition. And a nasty one, at that.
Red Bulls fans, along with select supporters of other teams, have been yelling "You Suck, A------" at opposing teams during free kicks. Not only is the chant hurtful, it is also not helping the league's cause with television networks. And as Barry Petchesky of Deadspin points out, MLS' deals with ESPN, NBC, and Univision all expire after 2014, so this is a crucial season for the league to show that it can be family friendly.
"They need to stop it in New York, and they need to stop it in a handful of other markets. And if they don't stop it, we're going to have to find a way to eradicate it from our game," MLS commissioner Don Garber told The Sporting News of the chant. "It's just so uncreative and ridiculous, and we need to stop it. Our broadcast partners don't like it. When vulgarity is going over the air, it's an issue with the FCC and we've got to stop it."
The league has tried threats and even punishment, but the Red Bulls are looking to take a softer approach.
For each game that New York's fan clubs (the Empire Supporters Club, the Garden State Ultras and the Viking Army) go without uttering the chant, the Red Bulls will give the groups $500 each. However the catch is that the Red Bulls will only distribute the reward in $2,000 chunks, so the groups must go four games without saying the words.
Sure, it's hard to break from old traditions. And perhaps some fans will have to watch themselves a bit more carefully. But $500 to refrain from three simple words? This is like taking candy from a baby.