Jeff Gordon announces 2015 will be final full season
(AP) — Jeff Gordon, with a nagging back injury, a young family he wanted to spend more time with and a phenom waiting in the wings at Hendrick Motorsports, knew midway through last season that he had one more year in him.
NASCAR’s most charismatic driver, the man behind the wheel of the famed and sometimes feared No. 24, had decided it was time to call it quits on one of the most successful careers in motorsports history. The four-time champion conferred with Rick Hendrick, the only team owner he has had over 23 years of Sprint Cup racing, and settled on a date.
The 43-year-old Gordon announced that 2015 will be his final season as a full-time driver.
Lawsuit filed against Saints, Pelicans owner by relatives
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Relatives of New Orleans Saints and Pelicans owner Tom Benson have filed a lawsuit opposing their ouster from ownership positions.
Benson’s daughter, Renee, and her two children allege in a lawsuit that Tom Benson’s physical and mental health are failing and he’s being manipulated by his wife of 10 years.
The lawsuit was filed in civil district court in Orleans Parish. It comes less than 24 hours after the 87-year-old owner announced he has rewritten his will to give wife Gayle Benson control of the Saints and Pelicans upon his death.
Tom Benson also has named his wife as a current owner of the clubs while removing from ownership his daughter and her children, Rita Benson LeBlanc and Ryan LeBlanc.
In a statement posted on the Saints’ website, Benson said he is “extremely disappointed by the lawsuit” and adds that the “allegations regarding my mental health are completely meritless and their allegations against my wife equally unfounded.”
Hernandez associate pleads guilty to federal charges
BOSTON (AP) — An associate of former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez has pleaded guilty to federal charges of lying to a grand jury, witness tampering, obstruction of justice and gun conspiracy.
Oscar Hernandez’s plea in U.S. District Court in Boston on Wednesday came as jury selection continued in Bristol County Superior Court, where Aaron Hernandez is charged with murder for the June 2013 killing of semiprofessional football player Odin Lloyd.
The two Hernandezes are not related.
The indictment to which Oscar Hernandez pleaded guilty says a grand jury in Massachusetts began investigating the transporting of guns from Florida to Massachusetts after authorities discovered three guns during the investigation of Lloyd’s killing. None of the guns was the murder weapon.
Sentencing for Oscar Hernandez is scheduled for April 27.
Braves agree to deal with Gomes
ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Braves and outfielder Jonny Gomes agreed Thursday to a one-year contract with a vesting option.
Gomes, who played for Boston and Oakland in 2014, could be part of a left field platoon in a new-look outfield. He could share time with former Yankees prospect Zoilo Almonte, a switch-hitter who signed as a free agent.
Gomes, 34, hit only .234 with a career-low six homers for Boston and Oakland last year. He hit .276 with four homers against left-handers.
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