The Telegraph Two of the surprise packages of this clay-court season have been British – initially Dan Evans, who made a deep run in Monte Carlo, and more lately Cameron Norrie, who played his second final in three weeks on Sunday. Unfortunately, Norrie wasn’t able to land a maiden ATP title in Lyon. But then he was up against Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has been the dominant force of 2021 outside the slams, and now stands at No 1 in the table of most rankings points gained since January 1. Nevertheless, it had been a hugely creditable effort for Norrie to go this far, especially when you consider that he took out top seed Dominic Thiem on Thursday, and then trounced big-hitting Russian Karen Khachanov in Saturday’s semi-final, losing only two games in the process. Norrie has come to clay late in his career, but it feels like this is developing into his favourite surface. He has one of the heaviest left-handed forehands in the game, loaded with top-spin, and uses it like a miniature version of Rafael Nadal. The result has been a tally of 14 wins and only four losses since he began his European clay-court swing in Barcelona. So while the French Open, which starts next Sunday, has traditionally been a graveyard of British hopes, there are reasons to hope that this year’s event could deliver some more positive results. Norrie’s previous final in Estoril had been a nervewracking affair which he eventually lost on a deciding-set tie-break to the more experienced Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas. Sunday was more straightforward for Tsitsipas, who needed only 69 minutes to hammer home a 6-3, 6-3 victory. It was Tsitsipas’ second title of the clay-court sequence, after he won Monte Carlo in mid-April, taking out Evans in the semi-final along the way. He has become a serious contender to upset the establishment – specifically Nadal and Novak Djokovic – at Roland Garros over the next few weeks. “I felt in good shape from the beginning of the tournament,” said Tsitsipas afterwards. “I am proud of today’s match, I knew it would be a difficult one against Cameron, who has been showing great tennis this week. He has been winning against good players and showing what the left hand can do on clay. “It was not an easy match today. I had to handle the nerves and I am proud of my performance and the way I stayed focused towards my goal.” On this year’s results, meanwhile, both Evans and Norrie stand among the world’s 20 most successful men. Evans is at No 16 and Norrie No 14. The next challenge for them both is to convert that ATP Tour form into a deep run at a major.<doc-sep>Kevin Harvick is not a fan of the "millennial-inspired" Busch Beer-sponsored Ford Mustang he'll be driving during the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 18. "It's a lot pinker than I thought it would be," said Harvick. "I don’t know what ‘yeet’ means but it’s with an avocado and a couple pieces of toast.” I still don't know what most of this stuff means. But I'll indeed be driving this "lit" #MillennialCar during the #AllStarRace. pic.twitter.com/ANs19jcDX9 — Kevin Harvick (@KevinHarvick) May 9, 2019 MORE: Bucks fan buys Danica Patrick a drink in front of Aaron Rodgers The hilarious paint-scheme is the result of a lost bet. Last November, Busch Beer tweeted that "old guy" Harvick would win at Homestead — or face the consequences of having to drive a car with a millennial-themed paint scheme. Old guys will rule again at Homestead. In fact, Busch is so confident that Harvick will win that if he doesn’t, we’ll give millennials the v lit paint scheme they always wanted in a race next year. Don’t @ us. pic.twitter.com/uZ63oc8wa2 — Busch Beer (@BuschBeer) November 15, 2018 Busch lost the bet because Harvick finished third. Busch let Twitter help design the car: Which of these should the other drivers see when Kevin is passing them by in the #MillennialCar — Busch Beer (@BuschBeer) March 21, 2019 OK. Getting started on #MillennialCar FOR REAL this time. As they say, "Help us out, fam." Which phrase should we slap on the car? — Busch Beer (@BuschBeer) March 19, 2019<doc-sep>NASCAR will be giving fans a sneak peek into its future at this year’s all-star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway by modifying the cars with two features that may be incorporated into the all-new Gen-7 models currently under development for 2021. NASCAR often uses the non-points event to test out new rules before incorporating them into the series. This time around, the Cup cars will be equipped with a single-piece front splitter and radiator pan combination designed to tweak the aerodynamics to make them more consistent to drive in traffic, along with a radiator vent exiting the hood that is aimed at creating downforce parity across all of the vehicles and improving engine cooling. HERE'S WHY NASCAR BRISTOL RACE HAD SO MANY SEATS Many high performance sports cars, including the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and upcoming 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 feature vents that reduce pressure under the hood, which helps reduce lift and drag. One of the goals for Gen-7 cars is to make them more relevant to the production models they are based on. The May 18 race will again have four stages, with a five-lap increase in the final stage from last year. The stages will be 30, 20, 20 and 15 laps. Both green- and yellow-flag laps will count in Stages 1-3, with only green-flag laps counting in the final stage. FOLLOW FOX NEWS AUTOS ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE NASCAR NEWS The Associated Press contributed to this report<doc-sep>
NASCAR sponsor Busch lost a bet with themselves; Now, Kevin Harvick is heading to the track with a pink race car full of emojis View video and photos of Kevin Harvick’s millennial car below. At the end of the 2018 season, Busch Beer lost a bet against themselves. They wagered on Kevin Harvick to win the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Championship. If he didn’t win, they promised to come back with a Millennial inspired paint scheme for the 2019 racing season. Then it went all sideways and shitty… Harvick lost the championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He finished 3rd in the event as Joey Logano won the race and claimed the title. Kevin Harvick reacts to the Millennial car “I think the car and the program are a lot of fun,” Harvick said. “It sucks losing a bet, but I’m willing to live up to my end of the deal. Through the process of the car design, I’ve learned a lot of new words, none of which make sense to me, nor could I ever use in the right context. However, it’s the All-Star race, and we have a great partner in Busch, who always like to have fun and keep things fresh.” “In the end, I want to win. Whether I’m driving a millennial pink car, a purple car or my normal car, it’s all about winning.” The Millennial car will be run in the 2019 NASCAR All-Star race. The race will be hosted at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 18th. Most of the phrases featured on the car were chosen by the fans. Busch Beer put up several polls in previous months asking fans which phrases to use via the social media polls. Now, the Kevin Harvick Millennial car is here and it’s pink. “It’s a lot pinker than I thought it was going to be,” Harvick said with a laugh. “Aside from the words that don’t make sense… Why did we leave letters out of everything? I don’t understand.” “Thanks for designing an absolutely horrible looking race car.” Phrases featured on the Millennial Car: Busch Beer AF, Turnt Left, Skrrrt Skrrrt, Busch Beer Is Bae and Squad Goals. Regarding the AF portion on the hood. Harvick asked, “Did legal approve that?” Kevin Harvick Millennial Paint Scheme Photos Kevin Harvick and his Millennial NASCAR paint scheme Harvick Busch AF paint scheme Kevin Harvick Millennial car photos Kevin Harvick Millennial paint scheme Busch Beer Millennial Paint Scheme Video More Busch Beer will make good on the promise to run the Millennial scheme Harvick will run this millennial paint scheme if he doesn’t win the championship Kevin Harvick on NASCAR wind tunnel costs Greg Zipadelli of Stewart-Haas Racing says no NASCAR race car is 100% legal Harvick comments on the new NASCAR inspection process Links Kevin Harvick | Busch Beer | Homestead-Miami Speedway | NASCAR