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ABU DHABI — Fernando Alonso has hit back at Ferrari principal Marco Mattiacci for saying that Sebastian Vettel would bring “the utmost motivation and commitment” to the Formula One team when he replaces the Spaniard next season.

“I heard the comments and I don’t think they were very good,” Alonso told reporters ahead of his last race for the Italian team at Sunday’s season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

“If he tried to mean that I was not motivated, he arrived too late at Ferrari.

“He has a few months here and didn’t see probably all the five years that I’ve spent here and how I’ve fought every single race in the championships,” added the double world champion.

Ferrari have not won a race since Alonso’s last victory at his home Grand Prix in May last year and are facing their first blank season since 1993. They are currently fourth in the standings.

Alonso was quick also to point out that only one driver, himself, has won a race for the sport’s oldest and most successful team since 2009.

He also made clear that he had decided to leave rather than Ferrari opting to replace him with Red Bull’s four-time champion Vettel.

“Probably I was too old when he [Mattiacci] tried to renew me until the Monza race, and he kept pushing and pushing and had a lot of talks,” said the Spaniard, who is set to return to McLaren.

“Even in the last moment again we had a lot of phone calls and
e-mails that I still have in my computer. Probably at that time I was not so old, but again when I took my decision I guess he had to find another driver.”

Mattiacc1 took over as principal in April after Stefano Domenicali stood down.

Meanwhile, Formula One’s commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone has denied saying he was not interested in the youth audience because they did not buy expensive watches or bank with the sport’s sponsors.

“I never said younger generation, I said children. The question to me was children,” the 84-year-old told Reuters at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

“I don’t know how many six- or seven-year-old kids there are with a Rolex [watch], which their parents have probably bought for them. It’s not the six year olds that buy the product we advertise,” he added.

“I answered a question. The question was about children. That was it.”

An interview in Campaign Asia-Pacific magazine caused a rumpus last week when Ecclestone was quoted as saying: “I don’t know why people want to get to the so-called ‘young generation’.”

Speaking at the Yas Marina circuit after presenting the ‘Bernie Ecclestone Trophy’ to the winning British team of the Formula One in Schools competition, Ecclestone clarified his remarks.

“We want to attract a teenage audience. That’s what we want to do. So people grow up like the guy who’s 30 years old now,” he said.

Ecclestone’s comments have been a talking point in Abu Dhabi, even if team principals have refrained from open criticism.

“Educate the children and you grow them into being customers,” said Mercedes motorsport head Toto Wolff, whose team have won both Formula One titles this year.

“For an aspirational brand like Ferrari definitely our demographic is from the moment they can switch on TV or they can enter in a Ferrari store until when they can afford a car,” commented Ferrari principal Marco Mattiacci.

Red Bull’s Christian Horner added that his brand was “very much about youth and absolutely the team has a huge following from the youth segment, that’s male or female. It’s irrelevant of sex, or age or race.

“But what you have to remember is that when you’re 84, a 70-year-old is still pretty young.”

BARCELONA, Spain — Lionel Messi has yet another reason to be considered among the very best to have played football as he became the Spanish league’s all-time leading scorer with 253 on Saturday.

Messi notched a hat-trick to lead Barcelona’s 5-1 rout of Sevilla and surpass the previous mark of 251 goals that Athletic Bilbao’s Telmo Zarra set in 271 La Liga games from 1940-55.

Playing in his 289th league game, the 27-year-old Messi first equalled Zarra’s record in the 21st minute and then beat it in the 72nd at Camp Nou Stadium. The Argentine went on to get his treble in the 78th minute with his 253rd league goal.

In a league that has featured some of the world’s most talented attacking players through its 83 seasons, including Alfredo di Stefano, Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff and Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi stands alone as its most potent scorer after bettering a milestone that had stood untouched for almost 60 years.

Messi thanked his supporters on Facebook and posted a video of his first league goal scored on May 1, 2005.

“When I scored this goal, I couldn’t imagine I could break any record, let alone this one previously held by the great Telmo Zarra” Messi wrote. “I was only able to achieve this because of the support I have had from so many people during my time here and I would like to dedicate this achievement to you all.”

Messi debuted in the league on October 16, 2004 at the age of 16. And just over 10 years later he has eclipsed Zarra.

“I never thought anyone would reach Zarra, who played in an era with more forwards than defenders,” Barcelona coach Luis Enrique said.

“[Messi] is beyond comparison, one of a kind, never to be seen again. We are lucky to have him here, to enjoy him and to see where he leaves this record.”

Messi’s latest scoring feat comes after he equalled Raul Gonzalez as the Champions League all-time scorer with 71 goals this month.

The record also arrives at a perfect time to thrill Messi’s fans who were worried by his recent remarks that he might be questioning his long-term commitment to the club. His father-agent has since dismissed such concerns.

“Messi! Messi! Messi!” rang out through the Camp Nou in the final minutes, and again after a post-match video in Messi’s honour.

The team lined up to form an honour guard as Messi jogged off the pitch smiling broadly.

“I’m happy for Leo,” Barcelona captain Xavi Hernandez said. “It’s an incredible record. He deserves it as a person and as a player. He showed again that he is happy here.”

Messi’s 22nd treble for Barcelona increased his club record to 365 goals in all competitions. He also holds the Spanish league’s single-season scoring record of 50 goals in 2011/12, and his 91 goals in 2012 broke Gerd Mueller’s 40-year-old milestone of 85 goals in one year.

After having been denied his record-equalling goal during a rare three-game streak without scoring, Messi finally broke through with an elegant free kick after he had earned the foul.

He then tapped in a cross from Neymar to set the new mark, leading to an impromptu mid-match celebration by his teammates, who tossed him in the air.

“It was spontaneous,” Neymar said. “For me it is an honour to play beside him.”

Once back on his feet Messi added another goal with his trademark move of dribbling across the edge of the area with his left foot before firing home.

Messi may have come one win short of leading Argentina to a World Cup title this summer, but he continues to excel for the club he joined as a teenager.

Besides his record four world player of the year awards, Messi has led Barcelona to three Champions League titles and six Spanish league titles among many other trophies.

Messi can focus on breaking Raul’s mark in Europe, with Ronaldo on his heels. His first chance will be at Cypriot club APOEL on Tuesday. Ronaldo is right behind with 70 goals.

The rival forwards will also likely vie for the Ballon d’Or award which they have divvied up for the past six seasons. Ronaldo won it last season.

Messi, however, has always insisted that his main goal is winning team titles. Last season Barcelona failed to win a major title for the first time since 2006/07. Saturday’s win kept it in second place behind Madrid.

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Nico Rosberg has pole position for the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Now he just needs someone to get in the way of title rival Lewis Hamilton.

The Formula One (F1) world championship will go to one of the two Mercedes rivals on Sunday, and Rosberg put himself in a competitive position by edging a nervy-looking Hamilton in Saturday’s qualifying to secure a third straight pole and fourth in the past five races.

Hamilton, however, still holds the advantage.

He has a 17-point lead and only needs to finish second to guarantee a second F1 title. But with double points on offer — 50 points for the winner — Rosberg can clinch his first title if he wins and Hamilton crosses the line in third place under floodlights at the Yas Marina circuit.

“Of course pressure is one of the hopes I have. If Lewis feels the pressure and makes a mistake as a result,” an upbeat Rosberg said after securing the 15th pole of his career. “I push flat out, all the time, to try and keep the [pressure] level extremely high. That’s all I can really do.”

Hamilton was quicker than Rosberg in the first two qualifying sessions but almost went off track as his brakes locked heading into the final corner on Q3.

“I didn’t have the best of laps,” Hamilton said. “[I] couldn’t put a comfortable lap together.”

Rosberg set a leading time of 1 minute, 40.48 seconds, with Hamilton clocking 1:40.866 and Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas third, ahead of his Williams teammate Felipe Massa. Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo finished fifth, ahead of teammate Sebastian Vettel.

“It’s only one small step. This weekend is about the championship, not pole position,” Rosberg said. “It would have been great if there had been a Williams between us, but that could always happen tomorrow.”

The speed of Williams is encouraging for Rosberg, who needs one to get between Hamilton and himself. But if Rosberg finishes second, he needs Hamilton to cross the line no higher than sixth.

Although Hamilton leads Rosberg 10-5 in race wins, Rosberg is up 11-7 in pole positions this season, although he has not often made the most of them.

“[The] mind set is that I need to get the job done and continue the form I had in Brazil,” said Rosberg, who ended Hamilton’s five-race winning run by beating him two weeks ago in Brazil.

Hamilton, the 2008 F1 champion, insists he is not feeling under any pressure here, but he made a couple of mistakes in both Q1 — where he went wide on turn 14 — and Q3. Rosberg, his childhood friend and teenage go-karting rival, showed no signs of nerves.

Hamilton appeared tense in the post-qualifying news conference, giving terse answers when asked how he will approach the race.

“I’m looking forward, so drive the same as always,” he said.

Toto Wolff, head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, was surprised by Hamilton’s run in Q3.

“It was a messy lap from Lewis, which was not expected because he had a very good lap in the second qualifying session,” Wolff said. “I won’t tell them anything anymore, they are in their own little bubble and concentrating on the race. I think we should leave them in peace.”

Massa, who lost the 2008 title to Hamilton by one point, was third quickest in third practice.

Six years ago, at the season-ending Brazilian GP, Massa won on his home track and the title was only seconds away, but Hamilton advanced from sixth to fifth right at the end to deny him.

“I don’t remember much from 2008,” Hamilton said. “Hopefully I’m older and wiser, although it’s a bit different when you are racing your own teammate.”

There will be jubilant scenes alongside sad farewells on Sunday night — with four-time F1 champion Vettel competing in his final race for Red Bull before replacing Fernando Alonso at Ferrari.

Red Bull placed a giant sticker on the garage floor which said “Danke Seb!” (“Thanks Seb!”).

British driver Jenson Button, the 2009 F1 champion, could be leaving the sport entirely with Alonso widely touted to replace him at McLaren.

AMMAN — Jordan finished its participation at the 4th Asian Beach Games with a bronze medal in the Muay Thai event, according to a statement from the Jordan Olympic Committee.

The medal came on a dramatic penultimate day of action in the tournament which has been taking place in Phuket, Thailand. And it went to Mohammad Salama who lost his semifinal match against Kazakhstan’s Vadim Loparev in the 75kg middleweight category.

Meanwhile, the ladies have provided us with some excellent entertainment this week and finished on a high with a nail-biting win on penalties against Turkmenistan to secure seventh spot overall in the competition.

It looked to be going well for Jordan after securing the first round 13-6 but they let Turkmenistan back in by losing the second leg 11-7. However, Jordan held its nerve in the shoot-out with a 10-9 verdict to win.

AMMAN – The Jordan national football team strives to be among the top four teams at the Asian Football Confederation’s 2015 Asian Cup in Australia, the team’s head coach Raymond Wilkins said. 

The coach’s minimal goal is to reach the quarter-finals, the Englishman told The Jordan Times in an exclusive interview on Thursday. 

Jordan plays in Group D and takes on Japan, Iraq and Palestine.

“The group is tough, but not impossible. We have to finish in the top two to progress. So with a bit of luck, and we need luck in football, we can progress forward. Whenever I look at the players they give me the impression they are confident,” he said. 

Wilkins’ aim is to go far at the tournament.

“We have to reach a level where we are competitive against whoever we play,” he added. 

The head coach is enjoying his job in Jordan very much although the experience of coaching an Arab team and dealing with Arab players is different from what he is used to back in England.

“At the end of the day it is human beings we are dealing with. Obviously, we have different coaches and different way of playing in Europe, but I enjoyed it immensely,” he added. 

Wilkins, who took over as national team coach in September, said he is very fortunate that the Jordan Football Association (JFA) is really supportive. 

“The players also do everything asked of them. They do not always succeeded, but they do try,” he added. 

Commenting on the negative results the team achieved since he took charge of the team, Wilkins said despite the results they had in the friendlies, he is sure once the team wins one game players’ confidence levels will rise.

Under Wilkins Jordan, better known as Nashama, has so far played four matches, losing three and drawing one. 

“The Jordanian fans are right to be worried as I am very worried. Once the team wins one game, we will win more games and the confidence will come back to the team. In Estonia, we had four to five chances to score but we did not. This is life and this is football,” he added.

He stressed that the team’s trip to Estonia was very important because it gave him a chance to see how players handle external factors, such as the freezing temperature. 

“In Estonia it was very, very cold. And you see a different character came out in different players and that for me was very important and it was really a good exercise,” he added. 

He noted that the purpose of playing in Estonia was also to test the physical fitness of his players. 

“The physicality of Europeans is totally different and I also wanted our players to have a different kind of experience with a European referee,” he added. 

Wilkins said he spoke to some of the players to find out about this new experience. 

“I said, what did you think of the referee? The players were astounded because the referee did not give out many fouls. In Europe, you do not give a foul every time a player goes down. I wanted the team to experience that because if we achieve our goal of playing in the World Cup we will have referees not only from Asia, but from anywhere in the world,” he added.

He noted that Asian referees are totally different. 

“I watched the games when we played in Jordan, I asked myself what was the referee doing? But I had to remember that I was not in Europe and referees here are different. I think the Estonia match was a good experience for the players because every time they get hit, they say it is a foul and I tell them it is not a foul, you have to compete,” he added. 

He said many of the national team footballers who play in other Arab leagues do not play a lot.

“Fitness is one of the things I noticed with the games. When we play for one hour, we are very good but by the end of the match, we have a problem. Players are not fit enough to keep the momentum going,” he added. 

He noted that he feels sorry for the players because they come back to Jordan, they train very hard and get better, but when they go back to their clubs they don’t play.

“I asked some players, whom I hadn’t seen for three months, ‘When was the last time you played?’. They replied, ‘It was with you coach’. So their fitness level is down and we have to work on that. It is really important for them to keep playing. Some players are physically strong because they play,” he added. 

He noted that the team’s level of technique is fine yet it has to improve, but the most important thing for him is fitness as the players cannot physically play 90 minutes at a high level. 

He said for the Kingdom to move forward, officials have to sit down and restructure the league in a better way because it is important to have a good Jordanian league. 

“For example, do not allow young players at the age of 19 or 20 to go outside the country. For them to get more experience one can allow them to leave at 21 or 22 years of age. The biggest tip I have for the Jordanian league is to keep players in Jordan,” he added. 

Regarding the Jordanian goalkeeper Amer Shafia, who was kept out of the team’s line-up, Wilkins said he is thinking about many players but certainly Shafia is “in my head”.

“The door is still open to him,” he added. 

In the meantime, he noted that the other goalkeepers who are working hard should be given a chance. 

“We try to give everyone an opportunity,” he added.

Wilkins won 84 caps for England during his playing days, which spanned more than two decades, according to Reuters. He played as a midfielder for a handful of different teams, including Manchester United, Chelsea and Queens Park Rangers.

He began coaching in 1994 and worked as an assistant coach with several teams, including Fulham, Chelsea, Watford and Millwall.

He returned to Fulham as an assistant coach in 2013 before leaving the post earlier this year, according to Reuters.

KUALA LUMPUR — Nick Heidfeld and Nicolas Prost will take their new rivalry to Malaysia this weekend after their spectacular crash threatened to overshadow the inaugural Formula E electric car race in Beijing.

As Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg contest Formula One’s championship decider in Abu Dhabi, Heidfeld and Prost’s season is just getting started as Formula E heads into race two.

Their first outing ended in fireworks as leader Prost cut off Heidfeld’s attempted pass at the final corner, sending the former F1 driver’s car cartwheeling into the air.

“My victory was stolen. It is really hard,” said Prost, son of Formula One great Alain, who was confronted by Heidfeld after the accident.

Prost later apologised for causing the crash, which allowed Brazil’s Lucas di Grassi to slip through and become Formula E’s first winner.

The incident provided an explosive start for Formula E, the battery-powered series billed as a more environmentally friendly alternative to Formula One.

The second race is on Saturday in Putrajaya, seat of Malaysia’s government where the single-seaters with the distinctive whine will race close to the prime minister’s office at speeds of 225kph.

The 10-race championship concluding in London next June pits 10 teams and 20 drivers in one-hour, urban-centre races and is being touted as the future of F1-style racing.

It also is seen as a potential boon to the electric car industry by showing “green” cars can also be sleek speedsters, while top-flight racing expertise and competition will help develop the technology.

“Slowly, we’re building something. It’s quite interesting,” Alain Prost, four-time F1 world champion and co-team principal of the e.dams-Renault team, told AFP this week. 

“We’ve done only one race but there’s a lot of interest everywhere in the world.”

Drivers are using identical vehicles this season, a collaboration between Formula One’s Williams, McLaren and Renault, but will be able to design their own next season.

High-profile proponents of Formula E include British tycoon Richard Branson and Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio, who are each backing a team.

Formula E was developed by motorsport’s governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA), which also sanctions F1, and features distinguished names including Prost, Bruno Senna and Nelson Piquet Jr.

Its birth comes with F1 mired in problems as the Marussia and Caterham teams have declared bankruptcy and other teams are also complaining of financial difficulties.

AMMAN — Jordan’s hopes of a medal in the Muay Thai events at the Asian Beach Games were delivered a blow after Mohammed Al Barri was beaten in his quarter-final match on Thursday, according to a statement from the Jordan Olympic Committee. Barri was beaten 5-0 by Mahmoud Sattar of Iran in the heavyweight category, leaving the last Jordan medal hopes in the hands of Mohammad Salameh, who competes in the 75kg category on Friday with a match against Vadim Loparev of Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, the women’s beach handball team was edged out in a fifth place play-off after losing a penalty shoot-out against Japan. The ladies lost the first half 13-11, but then played to win the second half 15-13 before losing the deciding penalty shoot-out 9-6. They have one final match to determine their final position on Friday against Turkmenistan, who they beat earlier this week in the group stage.

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — With double points on offer in the Formula One finale, there could yet be a bitter twist to the fascinating title duel between Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The childhood friends have scrapped for supremacy all year in often tense circumstances, with Rosberg in command before Hamilton roared back to take the initiative after the summer break with five consecutive wins.

Rosberg stopped the rot with a timely win in Brazil two weeks ago, profiting from a Hamilton error.

Hamilton, who leads Rosberg by 17 points, can clinch his second F1 title if he finishes second to Rosberg at the Yas Marina circuit on Sunday.

If Rosberg wins, with Hamilton third or lower, Rosberg earns his first title.

“Double points. Bit of a strange one, definitely, a bit artificial. But in the end, if that keeps the championship alive, so be it,” Rosberg said. “It’s good for the excitement. It’s the same for everybody... [I] just need to make sure to make the most of it.”

Rivals in their go-karting days, they have fallen out at times this season, and there have even been pointed accusations of unsportsmanlike conduct.

Hamilton was furious with Rosberg after an incident late in qualifying cost him pole position in Monaco. He was even more livid with the German driver in Belgium, where the team was plunged into crisis mode after Hamilton accused his rival of deliberately nudging into him and bursting his tyre.

Those rifts have been repaired, thanks largely to a strong public rebuke to both drivers from Mercedes management, but the tension simmers.

It remains to be seen how Hamilton will react if Rosberg leapfrogs over him right at the end.

A Mercedes win appears likely — the pair have won 15 of the 18 races; 10 for Hamilton, five for Rosberg; and taken 17 pole positions.

Only Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo has broken the stranglehold, winning the other three races and relegating teammate Sebastian Vettel to irrelevancy. Vettel, world champion the last four years, is poised to join Ferrari next season to replace Fernando Alonso.

Although Hamilton does not need to win the Grand Prix on Sunday, curbing his natural aggression and driving cautiously may not be the British driver’s best option.

Four years ago, Abu Dhabi was also the scene of the title decider between Alonso, Vettel, Hamilton and Mark Webber. Alonso was favourite, holding an eight-point lead over Webber, but his team gambled on checking Webber instead of worrying about the other drivers.

After Webber pitted early on, Alonso did the same, and when he came back out he was stuck in traffic behind Vitaly Petrov. The move backfired badly, as a frustrated Alonso could not get past Petrov, and Vettel raced to the first of his four successive titles.

Last-race dramatics also cost Nigel Mansell the title in 1986, when his tyre blew near the end in Australia, and Alain Prost won to take the title away from him.

Yas Marina is built on a man-made island, and the race has a unique feel, as it begins with the sun setting and ends under floodlights.

The glitz and glamour of the track is in stark contrast to the financial plight affecting several teams, with Caterham and Marussia missing the last two races in Brazil and the United States after going into bankruptcy. Caterham, however, will race on Sunday.

AMMAN — Jordan’s top two speed test drivers for 2014 are promising a showdown to remember at Friday’s sixth and final round of the Kumho National Speed Test Championship in Aqaba, according to a statement from Jordan Motorsport.

Rami Kaghado and Mohammad Tayseer are first and second in the championship standings after a thrilling head-to-head battle throughout the year.

But championship victory is in Kaghado’s hands should he finish anywhere in the top three. However, any slip up Tayseer, who won last time out in Madaba, said he is ready to pounce.

“Mohammad is an excellent driver and has been putting the pressure on me all season, as have a number of other very strong drivers,” Kaghado, who is suffering from flu this week, was quoted as saying in the statement.

“I feel relaxed though. I’m leading the championship and will try to finish the season with a win on Friday
in Aqaba.”

Meanwhile, Tayseer said that he will go “all out” to win the event and hope that other drivers will beat his main rival to the podium places.

“I want the 2014 title so will do my best and go all out for the win,” he said. I have prepared very well. The event is very exciting and I am looking forward to putting on a show in front of a big crowd,” Tayseer said in the statement.

Action on Friday morning gets under way at 8:30am in the middle of the Red Sea resort which has closed its roads especially for the event.

The 6th round of the Kumho National Speed Test Championship will provide an exciting finale to what has been a thrilling season of motor sport featuring national championships in karting, drifting, rallying and speed tests.

Jordan Motorsport’s traditional season ending Aqaba showdown has attracted 65 cars for what promises to be an event to remember.

AMMAN — The all awaited Wihdat-Faisali match is among the highlights for this week’s matches as Week 8 of the 63rd Jordan Professional League starts on Thursday.

The league was on break for the past 10 days allowing the national team to play two friendlies in which they lost by 1-0 to both South Korea and Estonia as the squad prepares for the 2015 Asian Cup.

Fans of both teams anticipate much excitement as it will be the 76th encounter between the teams. Wihdat has won 27, Faisali 26 and they tied in 22 matches. One match, won by Wihdat, was later taken off the records when the league was discontinued in 1998. Wihdat have scored 73 goals and Faisali 69.

Saturday’s match will be a chance for Wihdat to further boost their lead after they beat Baqaa 1-0. Faisali are fourth after a 1-0 win over third-placed Jazira.

Ramtha lost their shared lead with Wihdat after they were held 1-1 by former champs Shabab Urdun. They will play Baqaa who have dropped to tenth. 

Hussein are up to sixth place after a 2-0 win over Ahli. They will play Ittihad Ramtha, who are last after a 1-0 defeat to That Ras. Sarih are up to 7th spot after a 2-1 win over Manshieh. They will play Shabab Urdun who have been dropping in the standings.

Wihdat’s Mahmoud Zaatara and Ramtha’s Rakan Khalidi top the scorers list with five goals each.

Wihdat won the first major competition of the 2014/15 football season after they beat Baqaa 2-0 in the 32nd Super Cup.

Last season, Wihdat won the Jordan Professional League for the 13th time, and beat Baqaa to win the Jordan Cup while Shabab Urdun beat That Ras to win the Super Cup. The Jordan Football Association Shield was not held.