News » if that means sitting out the rest of the seas

VAL DISERE, France -- Bidding to win the downhill at Val dIsere for the third time in her career, defending World Cup champion Lara Gut looked in dominant form as she posted the fastest time in a training run on Wednesday.The Swiss skier powered down the 2.9-kilometer Oreiller Killy course in French Alpine resort in 1 minute, 46.90 seconds -- finishing more than 1 second quicker than Slovenian rival Ilka Stuhec and Austrian Ramona Siebenhofer.Italian Sofia Goggia was fourth quickest, 1.27 seconds behind Gut -- who won the downhill here last year and also in 2012 at the French Alpine resort.Gut is second in the overall standings heading into this weekends races, 105 points behind American Mikaela Shiffrin.But considering that Shiffrin is not competing in downhill, Gut has a good chance to reclaim first place.After another training run on Thursday, there is an Alpine combined race on Friday, a downhill on Saturday and a super-G on Sunday.The 25-year-old Gut clinched a downhill and Alpine Combined double at Val dIsere last year.So far this season, she has won a GS and a super-G race, taking her career tally of wins to 20 from a total 37 podium finishes. She has 11 podiums in downhill.In the absence of American downhill star Lindsey Vonn -- who broke an arm in training last month -- Gut stands a good chance of winning her first downhill of the season this season, having finished fourth and second at Lake Louise, Canada earlier this month. But she faces stiff competition from the rapidly improving Stuhec, who won both of those races for her breakthrough wins on the World Cup circuit.Gut, who has also twice won the overall super-G World Cup title, has a good record at Val dIsere with five podium finishes.Back in December, 2010, she placed third in downhill and then finished second in GS three years ago.American Laurenne Ross was eighth fastest on Wednesday, nearly two seconds behind Gut. Air Max Tn Scontate . Bryzgalov stopped 25 shots on Saturday in the Oklahoma City Barons 4-1 victory over the Abbotsford Heat. The Oilers signed Bryzgalov to a one-year $2 million contract last Friday after shedding payroll by dealing defenceman Ladislav Smid to the Flames. Yeezy 700 Italia . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. http://www.outletscarpesaldi.it/air-force-1-prezzo-basso.html . Having already announced that the race will start May 9 with three stages in Northern Ireland and Ireland and finish in Trieste on June 1, the rest of the route was unveiled Monday. Air Max 720 Donna Scontate . Pierce was ejected in the third quarter of Indianas 103-86 win Monday. George Hill stole a bad pass and was going in for a layup, and Pierce hustled back and appeared to be trying to wrap him up. Air Max 720 Saldi . 8 Iowa State on Saturday, sending the Cyclones to their third consecutive loss. The Longhorns (14-4, 3-2) got their biggest win of the season with their third in the row in the Big 12. Our experts weigh in on four of the biggest questions in NASCAR:Turn 1: Hendrick Motorsports hasnt had a top-10 finish in three straight Sprint Cup races for the first time since 2000. Is that a cause for concern?Ricky Craven, ESPN NASCAR analyst: Its certainly cause for concern, but better now than in September. Sometimes being in this position can be the catalyst for change, one?that helps get an organization to a different place in terms of its procedures. One thing that appears alarming: Jimmie Johnson is working hard -- too hard -- based on what Ive seen the past three weeks. Driving that hard leads to bad habits. Hendrick without the 48 is like a ship without its sail.Ryan McGee, ESPN.com: Yes and no. Its certainly not fun going through a drought like this, but if you go back and retrace the way recent seasons have gone for the superteams, in-season streaks and slumps are just kind of the way it is now. Remember last spring when Joe Gibbs Racing was totally lost and Hendrick couldnt be beaten? July isnt the time for panic. If this is still the case one month from now, then itll be time to start freaking out.John Oreovicz, ESPN.com: Yes, because as a whole, Hendrick Motorsports is no longer the gold standard among teams. Jimmie Johnson is in the Chase but hasnt looked close to winning a race in months, Dale Earnhardt Jr. hasnt been Dale Jr. (and maybe now we know why) and Kasey Kahne has been Kasey Kahne, which is to say not all that spectacular. Youd have to say that Chase Elliott has been the teams most consistently competitive entity in 2016, which suggests maybe its time for some fresh thinking at HMS.Bob Pockrass, ESPN.com: The cause for concern doesnt revolve around top-10s. The cause for concern: Hendrick has won only two races this year. This organization doesnt strive for top-10s. This organization strives for wins. It should have some concern but no panic -- it doesnt appear that far off and Jimmie Johnson has to experiment, as he should, for the Chase. This organization should rely on its depth and good people and have faith it will land on something that will make it more competitive with the Toyotas and Stewart-Haas Racing.Turn 2: Indianapolis Motor Speedway built a temporary dirt track for Tony Stewart inside speedway grounds a couple of weeks ago. Should IMS have a permanent one?Craven: No. This track can live on its history. It proved that in May.McGee: Yes! I believe it was one year ago this week that as part of my World Series of Motorsport idea I proposed a dirt track inside Turn 3. So ... youre welcome, America!Oreovicz: No, unless they build it outside the track in the North Forty lot. Infield spectator space is already at a premium for the Indianapolis 500, and building a permanent track at the same location in Turn 3 would use up valuable real estate. The entire infield of IMS could use a reorg, but I dont believe another racetrack should be part of the plan.Pockrass: No. Enough tracks exist in Indiana, and those tracks do a fine job in fulfilling a racing fans desire to see good short-track, dirt and asphalt racing. Indianapolis Motor Speedway should partner with those tracks for promotions so they all can energize race fans.Turn 3: Should Jeff Gordon even have considered coming back to replace Dale Earnhardt Jr., or should he not even think about getting in a Sprint Cup car again?Craven:?Jeff is the ultimate substitute for Hendrick Motorsports this weekend. Beyond Indy, I just dont know. It depends on how much he has missed it. If the desire to compete has been front and center the past six months, cool. Jeff Gordon at 44 is still better than 85 percent of tthe drivers in todays field.ddddddddddddMcGee: Im not going to be very popular with this answer, but I always wince when retired drivers come back. I love Jeff Gordon. I love the idea of Gordon winning another Brickyard 400. But theres always an uneasiness that I feel in these situations. Its no secret that some percentage of the reasoning for Gordon hanging up his helmet was that he wanted to walk away while he could still walk away. Part-time rides at high-speed racetracks, even when shared among all-time greats, always feel like they have more opportunities for downside than benefits.Oreovicz: Not my call to make, but I think he should have stayed on the sidelines. My guess is that two things swayed him: One, I doubt he would have come back at any track other than Indianapolis, or maybe a road course, and two, my suspicion is that hes doing it more to help the Hendrick team work out of its current slump than for personal gratification. I dont believe Gordon is that ex-smoker for whom one cigarette turns back into a pack-a-day habit, but if he drives this weekend at Indianapolis, I guess well find out.Pockrass: It is hard to argue with Gordon wanting to race at Indianapolis again, and no doubt Gordon and his fans (most of them, anyway) will relish him racing again at the Brickyard. Beyond that, it appears he enjoys non-racing life enough that he should definitely question whether anything he could accomplish on the track outweighs the risks of racing.Turn 4: If Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets to a point where he isnt going to make the Chase, should he just sit out the rest of the year?Craven: The Chase isnt the determining factor. Its how long do the symptoms last while you are outside the car??If they persist another three or four weeks, I would shut it down. With the offseason you would have six-plus months to heal and prepare for a solid 2017. The risk of another concussion changes the dynamic going forward. I believe you require more time the older you get -- not just because of your age, but the cumulative effect of impacts.McGee: Yes. The science of brain injuries is a complicated, highly-nuanced world. But the one treatment that everyone agrees on is that rest is a huge key to recovery. Forget 2016. Give yourself a chance to come back and run the 2017 Daytona 500 -- not to mention live the rest of your life -- at as close to 100 percent as possible.Oreovicz: Yes. As we have learned from football and other contact-intensive sports, head injuries are not to be trifled with. Rest is important, but even more critical is protecting the brain from additional blows during a period of healing. Athletes across the spectrum of sports want to play hurt out of a sense of duty to their teams and fans, so it takes great courage on the part of someone like Earnhardt to admit he might be having a problem preventing him from performing at his best. He correctly understands that his long-term quality of life is more important than winning a NASCAR championship, and if that means sitting out the rest of the season or even retiring, I hope fans will support his decision.Pockrass: Sitting out appears as the logical thing to do if doctors tell him that additional rest would help Earnhardts readiness for 2017. But the question then becomes: What does sitting out do for him mentally? If he can get over the guilt of not being in the car, and if he believes he could step into the car and perform at a high level next February without racing the rest of the year, then he should sit out. ' ' '