● Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo was third past the post at the Malaysian Grand Prix in Sepang last week but that was enough for him to claim his first world MotoGP title. Especially after his closest competitor, Dani Pedrosa, had to withdraw from the motorbike race because of an injury. TeammateValentino Rossi, who performed brilliantly, won the race while the second position went to Italian Andrea Dovizioso on a Honda. Lorenzo gave Doviziosi close chase till the last minute. Former world champion Casey Stoner had a bad race, crashing out in the second lap.

Sweet revenge

● Danish tennis star Caroline Wozniacki celebrated her mint-fresh world No. 1 status by winning the China Open in Beijing recently. This is the 20-year-old’s sixth title of the year and was especially sweet because the 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 win over Vera Zvonareva avenged her loss to the Russian in the semi-final of the US Open. Having just taken over American Serena Williams’s top WTA player spot, the Dane star seems set to shine her way through!

Classic victory

● American golfer Heath Slocum won his fourth career PGA title recently at the inaugural US PGA McGladrey Classic at Sea Island, Georgia in the US. He finished one stroke ahead of compatriot Bill Haas. For the 36-year-old Slocum, this is his first victory since last year in the PGA playoffs in New York. The win earned him $7,20, 000 and makes him 29th on the money list. If he keeps at it, he can expect an invitation to a Masters tournament next year. That should be a cool start to the new year.

Awesome Brazil!

● Brazil may have performed miserably at the recent Fifa World Cup football tournament but it has proven that it is still the best in volleyball. The Brazilian volleyball team beat Cuba to win the World Volleyball Championship in Rome — for the third time in a row. The only other country to have this record is Italy, which clinched three world championships in a row in the 1990s. The favourite’s latest one-sided victory — in straight sets 25-22, 25-14, 25-11 — continues the team’s monopoly on international wins! It has won 15 of the last 17 major tournaments. That sure is an awesome record.

You can’t get through this week without…

● …catching up with the last one day international between India and Australia at the Nehru Stadium in Goa. It’s been a great series with some excellent performances by V.V.S. Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar. If you have missed out on the fun, make sure you keep yourself free for this final day of excitement!