He has found plenty of speed in practice but Shane van Gisbergen is still chasing more as he closes in on a maiden Supercars title in Sydney.The Holden driver set a new lap record in the last of two sessions on Friday in sweltering heat at the Olympic Park circuit.His time of 1min 27.07secs was nearly 0.3 secs faster than Red Bull Racing teammate Jamie Whincups mark set in 2011.Whincup was also under record time and finished third quickest.It came as little surprise, though, with teams allowed to use soft tyres - which have more grip - in practice for the first time.Today was about getting the car fast and comfortable, and we managed to achieve that, the Kiwi said.Theres a few little things to tweak, but were in a good position.Van Gisbergen is 119 points clear of Whincup in the series standings and is in the box seat to take out his maiden Supercars championship this weekend.A total of 300 points is on offer over the two-race, season-ending round - the first starting late Saturday afternoon.Its obviously not done, the championship. It still can be lost on Saturday, van Gisbergen said.Our objective for tomorrow is to qualify up front, stay out of trouble and see how it goes.Van Gisbergen, with a reputation of being a gung-ho driver, said he had no plans of taking it easy out on the track this weekend in a bid to stay out of trouble and cruise his way to the 2016 crown.If you need to conserve at some point, I guess I will - but Im not just going to pull over and let people past.Whincup said the conditions were difficult in the two practice sessions, which were both interrupted by red flags to clear cars from the track.It was hard work out there, the six-time champion said.The car was pretty ordinary at the end there.It was a frustrating start to Mark Winterbottoms final weekend with the No.1 sticker on his car.The reigning champions Ford suffered an electrical issue inside the first few minutes of the opening session, limiting his time on track, and was only 16th quickest in the second run.A number of drivers felt the wrath of the concrete-lined track, including Holden veteran Craig Lowndes, Nissans Michael Caruso and Dale Wood, Chris Pither in a Ford and the Commodore of Shae Davis.Qualifying begins just after midday on Saturday, followed by the race at 3.45pm. Tzu-Wei Lin Jersey . Barcelona also left injured defenders Carles Puyol, Javier Mascherano and Jordi Alba out of its squad for the trip to Glasgow. That means that Marc Bartra will probably start again in the centre of the defence alongside Gerard Pique. Jimmie Foxx Red Sox Jersey . The news was first reported on Gonzalezs Twitter account and confirmed by the Rockies. Gonzalez has a six-week window before position players have their first workout at spring training in Arizona. https://www.cheapredsox.com/2371z-jason-varitek-jersey-red-sox.html . Ferrer, trying to win his fourth title on Mexican soil, will next play South Africas Kevin Anderson, who eliminated American Sam Querrey,7-6 (2), 6-4. Also Wednesday, Gilles Simon (6) of France beat Donald Young of the United States 6-4, 6-3, Ukraines Alexandr Dolgopolov downed Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-3, 6-4 and Croatias Ivo Karlovic defeated Dudi Sela of Israel 7-6 (4), 6-2. J. D. Martinez Red Sox Jersey . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. Chris Sale Jersey . -- The Bishops Gaiters are showing they belong among the countrys top varsity football teams. TEQUESTA, Fla. -- Charles Howell III has removed his name from the alternate list at the British Open because of a medical procedure that will sideline him for about a month.With two more players withdrawing Wednesday, Howell would have been next in line for Royal Troon next week.Howells management company, 4Sports & Entertainment, did not say what the procedure was except that it was not major. It said Howelll will be out of competition for four to five weeks and hopes to return in time for the start of the FedEx Cup playoffs on Aug.dddddddddddd. 25 at The Barclays.Howell is No. 31 in the FedEx Cup.He has five top 10s this season and has moved up 50 spots in the world ranking to No. 87. ' ' '