Greg Wood

Dual Gomes goals ensure Wolves beat Aston Villa and unwanted points record At the end of the season, how costly might this untimely slip prove for Aston Villa? Judging by the way Unai Emery fumed on the touchline, this defeat by near neighbours Wolves will hurt for a while yet and, significantly, it could have major implications on their hopes of returning to the Champions League. Wolves understandably savoured every moment of just their second Premier League win of the season, every outfield player joining the celebrations as João Gomes fired in his first goal in a year just after the hour, and then again joyously when Rodrigo Gomes made it 2-0 in the 98th minute. The win meant Wolves at least can say they have beaten Derby’s record Premier League low points tally of 11 from 2007-08. Continue reading...

Dual Gomes goals ensure Wolves beat Aston Villa and unwanted points record

Betfair market suggests that Constitution Hill won't be running in the Champion Hurdle...

Crampons, crashes and creativity: Tom Jenkins’ best photos from the Winter Olympics Our well-travelled photographer shares his favourite images from the Games in Italy

www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...

Constitution Hill could switch to Flat full-time after triumphant debut Trainer Nicky Henderson shocked by his horse’s easy win at Southwell and admitted he would ‘have to think long and hard’ about its future

www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...

Constitution Hill could switch to Flat full-time after triumphant debut Trainer Nicky Henderson shocked by his horse’s easy win at Southwell and admitted he would ‘have to think long and hard’ about its future

www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...

It was a privilege to be at Southwell this evening to see Constitution Hill produce an astonishing performance on his Flat debut. Report/quotes on Guardian Sport shortly. Hope that this draws a line under hurdling and opens up a host of possibilities on the Flat, though I'm sure many will differ.

One phone call and John Roberts had the full story – there was an air of amazement in the room The football and tennis writer, who has died aged 84, was a major force in changing the Guardian’s sports coverage, alongside long stints at the Daily Express and Independent

Superb obit of John Roberts by Matthew Engel. JR was incredibly patient & helpful to this clueless 20-something when the Indy sent me to Wimbledon for the 1st time in the early 90s, during the busiest 2 weeks of his year. Brilliant reporter and a lovely man, RIP. www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/j...

Another year, another manager – but it is unfair to paint Chelsea’s project as a flop | Jacob Steinberg Enzo Maresca got the sack because of his actions. That does not mean the club’s structure needs a complete overhaul Some clubs build around their manager. Eddie Howe is hugely influential at Newcastle and Aston Villa are pretty much Unai Emery FC these days. Chelsea, though, have adopted an alternative model. They have a team of five sporting directors, led by Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, and do not want one person to hold all the power. Yet the question many are asking in the wake of Enzo Maresca’s demise is whether the template will yield success at the very highest level. It is never quiet at Chelsea. They are often busy in the transfer market, meaning there is an element of players coming and going, and they are now looking for their fifth permanent head coach since a consortium led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, a private equity firm run by Behdad Eghbali and José E Feliciano, bought the club from Roman Abramovich in 2022. Continue reading...

Another year, another manager – but it is unfair to paint Chelsea’s project as a flop | Jacob Steinberg

Tom Jenkins’s best sport photographs of 2025 The Guardian sport photographer selects his favourite images he has taken this year and recalls the stories behind them

An astonishing collection of pics by the legendary Tom Jenkins
www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/d...

Attendance is not all that matters, plenty of tracks rely on a handful of big days to get by. And Kempton is also backed up by the extensive AW programme which makes it the third-most profitable track on the JC books.

Jockey Club behaves like old-style lord of the manor over secretive Kempton sale plans There is a hint of feudalism about the way the unelected body has treated those who love the track like its serfs

www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/d...

Brighton’s struggling independent stores: ‘The nation of shopkeepers will go on the dole’ City’s small shops are reaching tipping point amid higher business rates, staff costs and big chains eager to move in

www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Epsom reveal £6m, five-year plan to revive flagging fortunes of the Derby Epsom racecourse has announced a £6m, five-year plan to revive the flagging fortunes of the Derby

Epsom’s £6m plan to bring the buzz back to Derby.
www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/d...

Andreas Whittam Smith, co-founder of the Independent, dies aged 88 Journalist and editor also led British Board of Film Classification and served as senior lay member of the Church of England

Worked at the Indy for 12 years without ever meeting AWS, but he always felt like the leader with a vision that everyone could rally behind. The Independent (plus my marriage/children) would never have happened without him. RIP Andreas, a giant of journalism.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

'The mechanics of this horse are just unbelievable' - Francis Graffard aims to scale another summit as Calandagan gets into Japan Cup mood Galloping in the shadow of Mount Fuji is perhaps the most apt metaphor available to European challengers ahead of the modern Japan Cup, which has not... Read More

Direct from Tokyo, all the latest news from camp Calandagan ahead of the Japan Cup.
@agakhanstuds.com
@graffardracing.bsky.social
@rpbloodstock.bsky.social
#JapanCup #Calandagan

www.racingpost.com/news/interna...

Calandagan got a feel for the Tokyo turf on Thursday morning. Jérémy Lobel wasn't pushing too many buttons but the world's highest-rated horse looked his usual smooth self ahead of Sunday's Japan Cup.
@rpbloodstock.bsky.social
@agakhanstuds.com
@graffardracing.bsky.social
#JapanCup #Calandagan

Get that headlines are tricky things to fit but this is simply not true. The focus was on gaming profits not betting, sad that the sport’s trade paper can’t celebrate the win.

Given that racing was facing duty harmonisation with gaming/slots just a few months ago, the changes in the #Budget - assuming OBR leak is correct - feel like pretty much the best result anyone could have hoped for. Shows what can be achieved when the various factions co-operate for a change.

Bryony Frost makes flying return but is thriving in new French home Bryony Frost has made a brief trip to England and says she is enjoying the racing scene across the Channel

www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/n...

Breeders’ Cup 2025 horse racing: day two – live Join Greg Wood for updates on nine more races including the Breeders’ Cup Classic

Willie Mullins wins the Breeders' Cup Turf with Ethical Diamond! Follow all the action and reaction here on the Guardian's live blog from Del Mar
www.theguardian.com/sport/live/2...

Breeders’ Cup 2025 horse racing: day two – live Join Greg Wood for updates on nine more races including the Breeders’ Cup Classic

Post time for the first of nine G1 races on the main card at the Breeders' Cup is 45 minutes away, and the Guardian's live blog from trackside at Del Mar is out of the gates .... All RTs much appreciated ...
www.theguardian.com/sport/live/2...

Breeders’ Cup 2025 horse racing: day two – live * Updates from day two of the showpiece in California * Day one: O’Brien sets new record | Sign up for The Recap Hello from Del Mar racetrack near San Diego, where it is day two of the 2025 Breeders’ Cup and it is also, in case you’ve just returned from Mars, Frankie Dettori’s final day as a top-level jockey. His mutterings about taking a few rides in South America before finally calling it a day spoil the sense of finality just a little, but there is no doubt that Khaadem, in the Turf Sprint (19.41 GMT), Wimbledon Hawkeye in the Turf (21.41 GMT) and Argine, in the Mile (23.05 GMT), will be the last Grade One rides of a remarkable 40-year career. All three fall into the category of live each-way chances, and all three were winners at a high level last time out. Even so, Dettori will need to conjure up a career-best performance from somewhere among them if he is to bow out with one last flying dismount. Continue reading...

Breeders’ Cup 2025 horse racing: day two – live

Breeders’ Cup 2025 horse racing: day one – live Join Greg Wood for updates as one of the most prestigious events on the horse racing calendar gets under way in California

Live blog from day one of the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar is off and running here:
www.theguardian.com/sport/live/2...

Danny Welbeck scored for Brighton about 10 seconds before Tony Bloom’s Crown Of Oaks crossed the line in front in the Balmoral Handicap at Ascot.

Oisin Murphy: ‘I found escapism but also an awful lot of trouble in the bottle’ The champion jockey tells Donald McRae about his pursuit of sobriety, his April car crash, a voracious need to win – and the poetry of Sylvia Plath

The brilliant Don McRae talks to Oisin Murphy ahead of Champions Day at Ascot tomorrow.
www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/o...

Big thanks to the artist(s) who brightened up my walk to the seafront this morning.

Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe 2025: horse racing – live Rolling report: Join Tony Paley for updates as Flat racing convenes at Longchamp for one of its biggest days of the racing calendar

Just under an hour until the 2025 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp, follow all the action on Arc day on the Guardian’s live blog ….

www.theguardian.com/sport/live/2...

Kia Joorabchian's Poker, 4.3m gns colt by the recently-deceased Wootton Bassett, declared to make his debut in the 4.00 at Haydock tomorrow, also has an entry in the G1 Futurity at Doncaster.

Cheltenham woos back racegoers with cheaper Guinness and return of Ladies Day Cheaper beer at all meetings, the return of an official “Ladies Day” at the festival meeting in March and reduction to crowd numbers are among the ‘enhancements to the customer experience’ announced b...

News of fresh changes at Cheltenham ahead of the new jumps season (and an absolute shocker of a rogue apostrophe)

www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/s...

Step back and take it in: the US is entering full authoritarian mode | Jonathan Freedland Trump’s dictator-like behaviour is so brazen, so blatant, that paradoxically, we discount it. But now it’s time to call it what it is, says Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...