Formula 1: Hamilton qualifies with record 69th pole position to set the pace at Italian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton will start the Italian Grand Prix from pole position following his wet-weather masterclass in one of the longest qualifying sessions in Formula One history.

Hamilton’s excellence at a rain-hit Monza, following a delay which lasted two hours and 36 minutes, sees him stand alone as the sport’s all-time one-lap specialist with his 69th career pole.

The Englishman, 32, held his nerve in the shootout for pole as the rain, which wreaked havoc with Saturday’s schedule, returned with vengeance in the closing moments.

Hamilton was the last to cross the line, and his lap was an incredible 1.1 seconds faster than Red Bull’s Max Verstappen with his team-mate Daniel Ricciardo third.

It marks Hamilton’s fourth consecutive pole at Monza and moves him above Michael Schumacher’s tally which he matched in Belgium last weekend

Hamilton however, will be joined on the front row by the Canadian teenager Lance Stroll with both Verstappen and Ricciardo to serve grid drops following engine penalties. And to cap a remarkable day for Hamilton his title rival Sebastian Vettel will start only sixth.

The British driver is unlikely to forget his record pole in a hurry following a frenetic qualifying session which lasted more than three-and-a-half hours.

The delay was caused by Romain Grosjean after he crashed in the wet and criticised the conditions as ”dangerous”.

Despite persistent rain, the one-hour session had started on schedule, but it was suspended after only five minutes when Grosjean lost control of his car at speeds approaching 190mph.

The Frenchman narrowly avoided contact with the barriers on both sides of the main straight, but with his Haas car in a precarious position qualifying was immediately suspended.

”I told you it was f****** dangerous,” an exasperated Grosjean yelled over the radio. Veteran English race director Charlie Whiting called for the session to be red-flagged at 14:05 local time.

A number of track inspections were subsequently carried out, but with standing water still on the main straight, qualifying was no closer to getting under way as the clock hit 16:00.

Fans, who sought cover from the inclement conditions by wearing ponchos and huddling under umbrellas, jeered the on-going delays, and the lack of action – indeed only seven drivers posted a competitive lap in practice earlier on Saturday – will have left the sport’s new American owners Liberty Media red-faced.

It was down to Ricciardo to provide the entertainment as he took control of a television camera and headed straight for the Mercedes garage. His shoddy camera work was beamed around the world.

Meanwhile, Hamilton spent the delay engaging with his supporters on social media before sitting down with Valtteri Bottas and playing computer games from the comfort of the Mercedes team’s hospitality suite.

When the session eventually got under way at 16:40, Hamilton, who so often revels in the wet, looked on course to get the job done. But his record pole came under threat in the closing moments as he sat in third place behind both Red Bulls.

Hamilton however, delivered a quite brilliant lap of one minute and 35.554 seconds to roar to pole. Stroll, 18, will line up in second for Williams and Frenchman Esteban Ocon is bumped up to third with Verstappen and Ricciardo to serve grid drops.

Vettel, whom Hamilton trails by seven points in the title race, was nowhere to be seen on Ferrari’s home turf. He qualified only eighth, but will move up two spots following the Red Bull penalties.

Tennis: Serena Williams gives birth to baby girl: coach

(Reuters) - Serena Williams has given birth to a baby girl, the first child for the former world number one tennis player, her coach Patrick Mouratoglou said on Twitter on Friday.

The 35-year-old American, who is engaged to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, has not competed since winning the Australian Open in January but has posted several videos to social media showing her hitting balls during her pregnancy.

"Congratulations @SerenaWilliams for your baby girl. I am so happy for you and I feel your emotion," Mouratoglou wrote.

"Btw ... I wish you a speedy recovery... we have a lot of work ahead of us," he added.

Williams and Ohanian have yet to officially confirm the birth, but the reports she had quickly became the talk of the tournament, which Williams has won six times.

"A baby girl? Well, I hope she doesn't play tennis," world number three Garbine Muguruza said with a smile during a news conference.

Fellow American Sloane Stephens said she expected to see a lot of the newborn.

"I am very happy for her," she said. "I cannot wait to see the little baby girl on tour because I am sure she will be around."

Williams confirmed her pregnancy in April hours after triggering frenzied speculation when she accidentally posted a short-lived selfie on social media with the caption: "20 weeks".

Williams, the world's highest-paid female athlete, was about two months pregnant when she captured her 23rd grand slam singles title at the Australian Open, one short of the all-time record held by Australian Margaret Court.

She told Vogue magazine last month about her "outrageous plan" to defend her title in Australia, where the year's first grand slam will be played from Jan. 15-28.

Other women have left the tour to have children and returned at a high level, although none has done so at Williams' age.

Kim Clijsters of Belgium retired and had a child before coming back at age 26 and winning three grand slam titles.

Australians Evonne Goolagong Cawley and Court also won grand slam titles after having children.

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto and Rory Carroll in New York, editing by Greg Stutchbury)

Football: Why did so many top players REJECT Chelsea?

There won’t be many more bizarre deadline day stories than Ross Barkley. Chelsea and Everton agreed a fee for the England international, before he agreed personal terms ahead of a move to Stamford Bridge. Then, depending on who you speak to, he either left before, after or during the medical, deciding the move was off. Whatever happened, it’s clear he was set to sign for the champions before the window closed and he must have had second thoughts.

Alone, it would have been frustrating for Chelsea, but it just added to an endless list of rejection by top players this summer. It started with Romelu Lukaku, who seemed set to rejoin his old club before teaming up with former Blues boss Jose Mourinho at Manchester United. That in itself seemed strange, as the Belgian always seemed to want a second chance at Stamford Bridge. Speaking after his move to Everton, he said: “I will always be a fan of that club. It’s not because I left in the wrong circumstances, that feeling disappears. But a footballer wants to play.”

What’s more, he seemed not to get on with Mourinho, who let him go from Stamford Bridge. The Portuguese manager must have turned on the charm, and perhaps the lure of playing alongside good friend Paul Pogba was too much to ignore for the forward. It has definitely worked out for Lukaku too, with United sitting top of the league having won each of their opening three games.

Chelsea were able to move on from that though, going for Alvaro Morata, who’s also had a good start at his new club. If Lukaku was alone, it would not have been a massive issue for the Blues, occasionally transfer deals fall through and it has been Chelsea who have swooped in for players before – as they love to remind Tottenham Hotspur whenever they serenade their Brazilian winger Willian.

Yet after Lukaku, then came Virgil van Dijk. Antonio Conte reportedly wanted the centre-back, but he made it clear to Southampton that he only wanted a move to Liverpool. That fell down after Saints reported the Reds to the FA for an illegal approach to the defender and he has remained at St Mary’s – that’s despite talk that Southampton were willing to sell him to Chelsea in retaliation to Liverpool’s behaviour. Yet, the player was insistent he wanted a move to Anfield rather than one to Stamford Bridge.

Then the transfer window came to a close and the Blues started to make their moves to keep Conte happy, with the Italian manager frustrated at the size of his squad. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fernando Llorente and Barkley were all targets, but they all chose not to move to Stamford Bridge. The talk is Oxlade-Chamberlain preferred to play in midfield, while Chelsea wanted him to play at wing-back, so perhaps they can justify missing out like that. But Llorente is bizarre.

Dean Ashton tried to explain the 32-year-old moving from Swansea City to Tottenham Hotspur ahead of Chelsea without much luck on Sky Sports. The former West Ham United striker said: “I can’t get my head around why he wouldn’t go to Chelsea ahead of Tottenham. That’s my own opinion, I think he’s more likely to win something at Chelsea, I think he’s more likely to play at Chelsea. I wonder if he just doesn’t like Conte or I wonder what Tottenham have said to convince him.”

It would seem strange if he didn’t get on with Conte, considering the talk is that the Italian manager has been keen to reunited with the Spanish striker for the last two transfer windows. Perhaps Chelsea offered less money than Tottenham, but with Daniel Levy’s reputation for being stingy, that seems unlikely.

While they have won their last two games, it does feel like Conte is at war with the Chelsea hierarchy over transfers. Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool and Mauricio Pochettino at Tottenham seem much happier. It would make more sense for players to go to a club where they believe the manager’s job is safe. They don’t want to turn up somewhere and for a new manager to come in next season. With that, there’s a possibility they would fall out of favour as the new man looks to bring his own faces in. It’s hard to deny Chelsea don’t have a history of that either – Roman Abramovich doesn’t hang around when things start to go bad – who else would have sacked a manager with the history Mourinho had at Chelsea?

RONALDO PASSES PELE WITH WORLD CUP QUALIFYING HAT-TRICK

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The Real Madrid forward was at his awesome best once again in a meeting with the Faroe Islands, with his international goal return now standing at 78

Cristiano Ronaldo has passed Brazil legend Brazil in the international goalscoring stakes after moving on to 78 for Portugal.

The Real Madrid superstar was at his unplayable best once again on Thursday as he dominated a World Cup qualifying clash with the Faroe Islands.

The European minnows were unable to contain the 32-year-old as he plundered a hat-trick.

In collecting another match ball for his collection, Ronaldo has moved to fifth on the list of all-time international goalscorers.

The four-time Ballon d’Or winner had entered the midweek round of fixtures two behind the iconic figure of Pele, but has now swept past him.

Only Ali Daei (109), Ferenc Puskas (84), Kunishige Kamamoto (80) and Godfrey Chitalu (79) sit above Ronaldo.

His latest efforts have also seen him reach another milestone in terms of World Cup qualifiers.

Ronaldo’s treble against the Faroes has taken him onto 14 for the current campaign, with that haul matching that of former Real striker Predrag Mijatovic.