Breaking records in Baku

This years Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be one of the most memorable races of the 2025 calendar breaking all kinds of records.

Qualifying on Saturday was the longest ever qualifying session due to having 6 red flags and multiple yellow flags, the session lasting 1 hour and 58 minutes.

Sundays race marked Williams first ever podium under James Vowles as team principal. With Carlos Sainz getting his first podium since leaving Ferrari after qualifying P2 on Saturday with a flyer of a lap.

Championship leader Oscar piastri crashed out on lap 1 after hitting the barrier at turn 5. His teammate Lando Norris finished P7, still gaining valuable points in the championship battle. 

Liam Lawson finished in a career best with P5, with Kimi Antonelli beating him just to clinch P4. Kimi’s teammate George Russell secured P2 after having a difficult start to the weekend due to ill health, he later said that if the race had been in Singapore he would’ve had to pull out with reserve driver Valterri Bottas taking his space. 

Yuki Tsunoda claimed a career best finish with Red bull finishing P6. With his teammate Max Verstappen winning the race, his 4th win of the season and is still firmly in the run to take the drivers championship away from both Mclaren drivers. 

Ferrari had a better weekend than previously, but still a tough day at the office as both cars struggled in qualifying. Lewis finished P8, with Charles taking P9. 

Next we head to Singapore, the most physically demanding race in the calendar, with Singapore becoming a sprint race next year, a decision a lot of fans are unhappy about. Drivers can lose a lot of weight in this race compared to other tracks due to the humidity and the length of time they are in the car.

As we head into the final stretch of the 2025 season, theres still a lot of racing and hopefully a lot of surprises still to come. 

Why do players transfer from rugby to NFL?

With the news of Louis Rees-Zammit returning to rugby in the uk after an 18 month journey with NFL in the U.S, its time to ask, why do players move across the ocean to try a completely different sport while at their height of successNFL and rugby have some similarities but for the majority, they are two completely different sports. They both have the same shape ball, and the same goal, get to the opposite end of the pitch. But there are a lot of differences, so why are players so attracted to it?

The most successful case of this was Aussie-Samoan Jordan Mailata, he played in rugby union and was a promising player until he left due to NFL executives inviting him to try the international player pathway. He signed for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2018, and signed a 4 year contract-extension deal in 2021 worth $64 million. 

One of the most common names to come up when discussing the move from rugby to NFL is Christian Wade. He played for England and the wasps until he signed for the Buffalo bills in 2019 through the international player pathway. He scored a 65-yard touchdown in his first pre-season game, however he never played in a regular season NFL game. He returned to rugby in 2022 playing for Gloucester. 

In 1989-2007 NFL Europe was created as a separate league to help promote NFL to a wider audience, one of the most notable players who tried NFL during this time was former Scotland player Gavin Hastings. IN 2007 they decided on the closure of NFL europe due to a loss in earnings, deciding to focus on holding regular-season games outside of the US instead. 

Most players fail to hit the mark when trying to bridge the two sports, some of the specific skills differ significantly between them. NFL skills demand specialised techniques built from a young age which can make the late transition harder. 

But what are some of these skills that differentiate the two? 

A big difference is the layout of the two games. Rugby is played in 2x40 minute halves, with American football being played in 4x15 minute quarters, with longer breaks in between. 

American football is very finely tuned and choreographed, a lot of it is to do with strategy and a plan. Where as rugby you have to be prepared for the unpredictable, players have to be ready to run tackle and pass in any part of the field, with American football players having more of a role and staying in their specialised area. 

In American football, each team has two quarters to score, the opposition can intercept but primarily the attacking team has 15 minutes to advance the ball as far as they can. Reaching the end zone to score a touchdown is the equivalent of a try in rugby. The ways teams can score are similar.

Another difference is the level of safety. Rugby players can wear gum shields or scrum caps for protection. Whereas American football players wear helmets, shoulder pads and knee pads. This doesn’t mean American football players are any less tough, rugby players are just more prepared and more dedicated to throwing themselves in without knowing what comes next. 

When a ball goes out of line, or out of touch, rugby players can play a scrum or a throw in. Neither of these exist in american football. A scrum is where both teams forwards or in American football terms their “offense and defensive line”, will go head to head to push as far down the field as possible while their fly half puts their ball in the middle of the scrum so players push the ball out and continue their attack. A throw in is where a player throws the ball into the field with each team throwing a player into the air to catch it. Some american football teams have adopted the “tush push” or “brotherly shove” move, where the offensive shove the player with the ball as far as they can, some similarities to a scrum but not entirely. But the NFL are looking into banning this technique due to its high success rate and players safety concerns. 

As well as the financial differences between the two. NFL has heavy advertising and sponsorships involved in its game, with many brands and companies fighting for an advertisement slot during the game, especially in the superbowl game due to the sheer volume of viewers it brings in each year globally. 

So could any nfl players come try out rugby? Definitely. But there are a lot of differences between the two and different skills to adapt.

Why Red roses X Barbie is so important to the women’s game

The England women’s team have partnered up with Barbie to create a limited edition collection ahead of the women’s RWC which started this week. The collection features shirt designs and a pink rugby ball, but unfortunately no dolls are included in the collaboration. 

This is the first time Barbie have collaborated with a sports team in the U.K. This is a part of Barbies dream gap project, funding projects to inspire girls and young women. Barbie are donating £20,000 to help fund the RFU including their girls activity days which helps introduce girls 6-12 to rugby.

 It comes as Barbie researched into women’s sports finding that a third of girls disengage in sports by the age of 14 due to body confidence issues, and a lack of visible role models in their sport. Only 28% of girls believe sports are made for both men and women. With 38% of girls thinking that rugby is a sport more suited to boys. 

With the women’s rugby World Cup starting on Friday, I hope this boosts the amount of young women and girls having an interest in rugby, wether that be watching or being inspired to play in their own local team. 

I always enjoyed rugby from a young age, and tried to play through high school but to no avail. I enjoy watching games through all leagues, but can’t help but notice the lack of advertising of women’s leagues. I’ve seen my fair share of men’s games at an international and premiership level but can’t say the same for women’s. The women’s game has gained more traction in the last few years but still isn’t enough for the sacrifice and hard work all these women put in to inspire the next generation of players. 

Its time for the girls and women to get the love and support they give for this game.

Lions 2025 tour review

The British and Irish lions ended their tour of Australia on saturday with a 22-12 defeat to the wallabies but still claim the victory 2-1. This tour was not short of dramatic decisions and the effects are still happening today. Dan Sheehan was cited for his tackle on Lynagh which saw him fail a HIA assessment, Sheehan has since been given a 4 match ban due to the incident.

Bundee Aki also revealed that his wife gave birth to their 5th child in a car just hours before the first test match against the wallabies as he spoke about how excited he was to re-unite with his family and finally meet the little one. 

Finn Russell was named player of the series, rounding of his excellent season in style after winning the premiership, challenge cup and Gallagher cup with Bath rugby followed by being selected for another tour with the lions. With his fellow Scotland teammate Duhan Van Der Merwe taking the crown for most tries, despite never being selected for a game against the wallabies. 

Many people are now discussing how good this team have been in comparison to past lions with some saying its been the worst lions squad in 20 years. Farrell hopes to be leading them again to another tour in 2029, with the possibility of a New Zealand tour against the likes of Japan. 

And with Louis Rees-Zammit announcing his return to rugby, could he be in contention for a selection in the next tour?

Overall this lions series has had its ups and downs, but they’ve come away with a victory and some unforgettable experiences. They’ve broken records and taken Australia by storm.