The All-Star forward exited the New York Liberty’s 101-99 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday less than four minutes into the first quarter after suffering an apparent non-contact injury as she ran up the court in transition. Stewart immediately called for a substitute with 6:33 remaining and went back to the locker room.

Stewart, 30, did not return and was ruled out for the remainder of the game with a lower leg injury. She finished the night with three points and one rebound in 3 minutes of play at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Following the game, Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello said she had ‘no update’ on Stewart’s injury.

The Liberty’s matchup against the Sparks on Saturday marked the second game of a back-to-back. New York defeated the Phoenix Mercury 89-76 on Friday evening, extending the team’s win streak to five games before falling to the Sparks on Saturday.

Stewart’s injury comes on the heels of the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game, where she recorded eight points, four rebounds and two assists in Team Napheesa Collier’s win on July 19. The Liberty resumed play on Tuesday with a 98-84 win over the Indiana Fever, the start of a daunting stretch of four games in one week.

The defending champion Liberty start a four-game road trip on Monday with a matchup against Dallas, followed by games against Minnesota on July 30 and Connecticut on Aug. 1 and Aug 3.

Stewart entered Saturday averaging 19.0 points (tied for fifth-highest in the league), 6.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.4 blocks, shooting 46.9% from the field in 23 games (all starts) this season.

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Jared Verse challenged future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald to a workout this offseason. Donald announced his retirement after the 2023 season, but the session went about as expected.

‘I tried to test a legend… and he responded with a workout from hell. Learned my lesson,’ Verse posted on social media accompanied with a picture.

While Verse lost a workout challenge to an all-time great, the mere fact he wanted to compete against Donald shows his mentality.

Verse desires to be the next Rams star defensive player.

Last year Verse became the first Rams player to win the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award since Donald in 2014 and the third player overall in franchise history. Shortly after winning the award, Verse told the media he’s not satisfied.

‘I think it’s a small step towards (becoming) one of the best players ever,’ Verse said. ‘But there’s a lot of people that have won this award that after they win it, they get satisfied. That’s the main thing, you can’t get satisfied. This is just a small step to a big goal.’

Verse led all rookies in QB hits (18) and pressures (77) last season. He’s a confident and more comfortable player going into Year 2 as the Rams conduct training camp.

“He’s got a relentless energy. I think he’s understanding how to be able to use that to his advantage. He’s continuing to mature. We used to hear Aaron Donald talk about controlled aggression and how consistent he can be,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “He has high standards for himself. He is getting better but he’s also very coachable…I love the guy’s approach. I love his energy.”

The Kansas City Chiefs are still AFC West favorites. But two things could sink them

On paper, the Rams appear to be improved from the team that pushed the eventual Super Bowl 59 champion Philadelphia Eagles to the brink during the divisional round of the 2024 playoffs. The Rams replaced Cooper Kupp with Davante Adams, drafted tight end Terrance Ferguson in the second round and added defensive tackle Poona Ford.

The Rams offense is generating a lot of buzz with Matthew Stafford, Puka Nacua and Adams, but the team’s defense could be a lot better, especially upfront with a more experienced Verse and Braden Fiske.

“For one, we’re young. And two, we’re relentless. We get after it. I think we’re just hungry. We got a lot of guys that are hungry to take that next step in their career and just get after it. As a whole, as a team and as a defense, we just appreciate being able to go out there together because these things don’t come often when you have a group like we have,” Fiske said this week. “I’m just excited to get after it with these guys. We got a really, really solid group.”

The defending NFC West champion Rams are entering this season as the division favorite. The Rams have only won the NFC West in back-to-back years once under McVay (2017-2018).

Los Angeles had the NFL’s 26th ranked defense a year ago. An improved defense could be the key ingredient to another division crown. They have an emerging defensive star who’s not complacent and hungry for more. And thanks to Donald, Verse has a new workout regime as he prepares to lead the defense into the regular season.  

“That workout was psychotic. I’m never doing that again. He did change my workout routine. Now my workouts don’t hit anymore. So, I had to go a little harder,” Verse said. ‘It was insane to see that’s the level it takes to be in the discussions of best defensive player ever or best player ever. So that’s the level I have to reach on a consecutive basis. That’s what I’m striving for now.’

Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.

The IndyCar Series takes on one of the most legendary tracks in the world this weekend with the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

It’s an unforgiving track with little margin for error around the 2.2-mile lap. It features one of the most challenging turns in the racing world, commonly known as ‘The Corkscrew’, a blind left-right combination that drops 59 feet in elevation in a second.

‘It’s very old style. It doesn’t allow you to have mistakes,’ Chip Ganassi Racing driver Alex Palou said after securing pole position in qualifying. ‘It rewards you a lot when you can be right there on the limit … as soon as you go off, you can crash quite easily.’

Palou will start the race from pole position for the second year in a row. That’s how much of the season has been for a driver on the brink of history entering the final four races of the IndyCar season.

Here’s how the Spaniard become the most dominant driver in the world in 2025.

Palou vaults to the top

Palou began racing after seeing a go-kart track on the walk to school with his father as a 6-year-old in Barcelona. Within five years, he’d won multiple national titles in karting and transitioned to open-wheel racing series across the world.

His results in the likes of Formula 2, Formula 3 and Japanese Formula 3 earned him an IndyCar test in 2019. Dale Coyne Racing signed him for the following season after the test.

Strong drives during his rookie season – notably a podium finish in his third-ever IndyCar race – caught the eye of Chip Ganassi, head of one of the best teams in series history.

Chip Ganassi Racing signed Palou for the 2021 season and it paid off immediately.

He won the IndyCar Series title in his first season with Chip Ganassi Racing, becoming the first Spanish driver to do so. A tumultuous 2022 campaign gave way to a methodical championship win in 2023.

Last year was an improvement again with 14 top-five finishes in 18 races behind an incredible attention to detail.

“He’s in pretty rarefied air right now,” Ganassi said after Palou won the 2024 title in Nashville. “His name has to be among and certainly in the conversation of the great drivers. He’s certainly in the conversation of the greatest.”

That title made Palou the 13th driver ever to win three American open-wheel racing championships. His Chip Ganassi Racing teammate, Scott Dixon, is the only other active driver to do so with his six championships.

‘Having [Dixon], probably one of the best if not the best IndyCar driver that we’ve ever had, being able to see so much that’s been teaching me so much about everything,’ Palou said. ‘How to work, how to stay focused, how to never give up, just push it and always be able to adapt.’

He has adapted and evolved into even more of a force in 2025.

Palou’s dominant 2025 campaign

IndyCar is known as a ‘spec series,’ meaning all teams buy their cars from the same manufacturer (Dallara) and have two choices for an engine supplier: Chevrolet and Honda. Both offer the same total power.

There’s no advantage from a top designer or dominant engine supplier seen in Formula 1. It’s down to the drivers and teams to set up their cars and consistently perform, something Palou relishes.

‘The love of the sport pushes me,’ Palou said. ‘Obviously I want to win more and get more championship wins and race wins, whatever, but for me it’s coming every single weekend, working with my engineers trying to figure what’s the best to do with the car. How we can we improve it, how I can improve myself and push a little bit more?’

IndyCar challenges its drivers by racing on road courses (such as Laguna Seca), street courses and ovals. Each format puts different demands on the drivers: the small margin of error on road courses, tight quarters of street races and high-speed challenges of ovals.

Palou established himself as a consistent contender on road and street courses early on but there were still questions about his acumen on ovals. He won four of the first five races in 2025 ahead of the biggest race in the series: the Indy 500.

He started sixth but took the checkered flag in first place.

‘It’s the only win that can change your life,’ Palou said. ‘Your face is going to be on the trophy forever. Even if IndyCar ends in 10 years, that trophy’s going to have my face forever.

‘Or even if it goes for 1,000 more years, my amazing face and my amazing nose is going to be there forever, right?’ he added with a smile.

Through 14 races, Palou has seven wins. That’s one less than his total from his last two seasons combined.

There’s a chance he could surpass the record for wins in a single season with 10, currently held by icons A.J. Foyt (in 1964) and Al Unser Sr. (in 1970). Sweeping the final four races would give him 11.

Palou could get one step closer to that record on Sunday. Laguna Seca is by far his best track on the calendar; he never has finished lower than third and won from pole position last season.

Can anyone catch Palou?

The 2025 IndyCar grid features four multiple-time champions, Palou included, but he’s been far ahead of the rest of the field.

Dixon, a six-time champion who holds the record for most IndyCar wins (59), offered Palou a ‘gift’ after the Spaniard won the Indy 500.

‘I’ve also got a surprise for Alex,’ Dixon joked at the Indy 500 awards ceremony. ‘I’ve bought yourself, your wife, all your family a summer vacation. Starts this Thursday, it’s for five weeks. I hope you really enjoy it, it’s all included, whatever you need.’

With a five-week break, he could have still led the standings. Mathematically, Palou could win the 2025 title this weekend. With a win and most laps led plus Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward finishing 25th or lower, Palou would win his fourth championship in five years.

O’Ward has been on a hot streak lately with two wins in the last three races, separated by a Palou win at Iowa Speedway, and starts second on the grid for this weekend’s race.

O’Ward has the best chance to catch Palou before the final checkered flag flies at the Nashville Superspeedway on Aug. 31. It’s still an uphill battle as Palou holds an 100-point lead in the championship entering race day from Laguna Seca.

‘Maybe now it doesn’t feel as special as probably in 10, 15 years whenever I look back and see that it’s opening minds of some people in Europe and especially Spain,’ Palou said.

‘People knowing that it’s not only possible to come to the U.S. and IndyCar and have fun and have a career, but also to win and fight for championships and Indy 500s. Hopefully that inspires one, two, 10 drivers in Spain and they see that there’s a future for them here.’

How to watch the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey

It’ll be Palou vs. O’Ward into Turn 1 at Laguna Seca with championship implications. Here’s how to catch the action:

• Date: Sunday, July 27, 2025
• Time: 3 p.m. ET/noon local
• Location: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey County, California
• TV: FOX
• Streaming: FOX Sports App, IndyCar App, Sling

Stream the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey on Sling

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL – Lionel Messi appeared far from ‘very upset,’ while watching his Inter Miami teammates from an on-field suite in his one-game absence for skipping the MLS All-Star Game.

Messi sat between his wife, Antonela Roccuzzo, and best friend/new Inter Miami teammate Rodrigo De Paul. He was seen often pouring hot water out of his new Stanley Flow Mate System into his mate cap, hydrating or passing it for others to drink.

On the pitch, Inter Miami and FC Cincinnati played to a scoreless draw despite the final minutes being filled with drama at Chase Stadium on Saturday, July 26.

Cincinnati’s Miles Robinson scored a header (90’+3’), but appeared to hit Inter Miami defender Noah Allen in the head during the score. The play was ruled a foul on the field, and VAR wasn’t enough to overturn it to a goal.

Luis Suarez tried his best to lead Inter Miami without Messi and Jordi Alba against first-place FC Cincinnati. But neither side was able to find the back of the net.

Suarez set several teammates up for shots towards the net to no avail, while Cincinnati’s Evander took several shots toward the net but was unable to deliver a standout performance like he did when he scored twice against Inter Miami in Cincinnati on July 18.

Both sides earned one point in the standings after the draw. Inter Miami maintained fifth place in the MLS Eastern Conference with 42 points, while Cincinnati (49 points) dropped to second place behind Philadelphia (50 points).

This is how the quirkiest week of MLS’s Messi era ended.

Messi and Alba served a one-game suspension for not traveling to the July 23 All-Star Game in Austin in a ruling handed down by MLS commissioner Don Garber on July 25.

Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas said Messi and Alba were “very upset” about the decision. Maybe, Messi’s mood changed as he got much-needed rest after playing every minute in 22 of 23 matches since April 2.

Inter Miami debuted their new baby blue Riptide jerseys Saturday, and introduced De Paul, the Argentine World Cup champion and Messi’s close friend.

It’s unclear when De Paul could debut, but Messi’s return will come when Inter Miami begins the 2025 Leagues Cup tournament against Liga MX side Atlas FC on July 30. Messi led Inter Miami to the 2023 Leagues Cup title shortly after his arrival to MLS.

Check out these highlights from USA TODAY Sports: 

Messi watches Inter Miami match next to Rodrigo De Paul

Messi watched his Inter Miami teammates take on Cincinnati, while sitting next to his newest club teammate Rodrigo De Paul.

Inter Miami introduces Rodrigo De Paul before Cincinnati match

Another World Cup champion joins Inter Miami as Rodrigo De Paul was introduced to fans. De Paul won the World Cup with Messi, and is one of his closest friends. Here’s more on his acquisition, announced a day before the match.

Inter Miami lineup vs. FC Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati starting lineup vs. Inter Miami

What time is the Inter Miami vs. FC Cincinnati match? 

The match begins at 7:15 p.m. ET.

How to watch Inter Miami vs. FC Cincinnati on TV? 

The match will be broadcast on FS1. 

How to watch Inter Miami vs. FC Cincinnati on live stream? 

The match will also be available to stream on AppleTV+ and MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.

Is Lionel Messi playing tonight? 

No, Messi is not playing against FC Cincinnati. 

Why is Lionel Messi not playing tonight? 

Messi was disciplined with a one-game absence by MLS commissioner Don Garber for skipping the MLS All-Star Game earlier this week in Austin, Texas.

Inter Miami vs. FC Cincinnati betting odds

Inter Miami still favored to win vs. Cincinnati, even without Messi, according to BETMGM.

• Inter Miami: +130
• Tie: +270
• Cincinnati: +175
• Over/under: 3.5 goals

When is Messi’s next game? Inter Miami upcoming schedule

Inter Miami will begin the 2025 Leagues Cup tournament after facing FC Cincinnati. 

• July 30: Inter Miami vs. Atlas FC, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Aug. 2: Inter Miami vs. Club Necaxa, 7 p.m. ET
• Aug. 6: Inter Miami vs. Pumas UNAM, 7:30 p.m.