After a season in which Cup drivers dominated the Xfinity Series and had an impact on the Truck Series, NASCAR announced rules changes for its premier series participants who step down in competition. MORE: Gibbs’ Talledega strategy criticized | Creates big advantage Could NASCAR’s adjustments be called the Kyle Busch rule? It wouldn’t be a stretch, considering how Busch won more than half the Xfinity Series races he entered this season....

The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing driver enters the season finale at the 1.5-mile Florida oval in perfect position for his first NASCAR Sprint Cup championship. MORE: Ford EcoBoost 400 schedule, times, TV info In addition to leading the Cup Series in laps led at Homestead (568), Edwards has won there twice (2008 and ‘10). Kyle Busch is the only other contender who has recorded a win at Homestead (2015)....

After all, Indianapolis Motor Speedway isn’t located on the West Coast. Well, it turns out there is an answer, and it involves the elephant in the room. Or should we say the peacock? MORE: Jeff Gordon, France to Indy | Last call for Tony Stewart NASCAR’s television contract the rest of the season is with NBC and its cable operation, NBC Sports Network. One look at Sunday’s schedule reveals the answer to the stock car question....

Throughout this week, Kids Drive NASCAR will feature news, events and social content geared toward kids and helping them learn about the sport in the days leading up to the races at Michigan International Speedway and Road America. Included in that is the launch of the Acceleration Nation app with racing-themed games and activities. In 2017, kids 12 and younger will get in free to all NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck series races....

Diaz, The Ultimate Fighter 2007 winner, has recently described his experience as being held hostage, and he “wants out.” During an appearance on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Hour, Diaz slammed the UFC for not booking him against fighters he desires. With his contract ending soon, Diaz wants to explore other options outside the UFC. He believes contract negotiations are not in his favor. “I was trying to get this s— on the road, but they don’t want me out of contract and they’re keeping me in there and they’re holding me hostage,” Diaz said, via MMA Fighting....

By the time he finally got to play at the highest level more than five years later — and even then, only for seven games — he had asked another tattoo artist to cover up the logo with a Chinese dragon. “That’s the last thing I needed to worry about, was people telling me it should be a NBDL tattoo or a CBA tattoo,” he said in 2003, shortly after his stint with the Raptors was cut short by an injury....

With the shot clock winding down, Robinson picked up a loose ball a couple steps in front of halfcourt and threw it up. Even with the Bulls’ Kirk Hinrich challenging on the shot, it appeared that Robinson knew he would hit as soon as he released the ball. Robinson leapt about and walked away in celebration after beating the shot clock. See it for yourself: MORE: NBA TV deal includes ads on jerseys | Westbrook: What is a meme?...

Just over two minutes into Colorado’s matchup with Boston in Denver, Hall extended his left shoulder and collided with MacKinnon at the Avs’ blue line. The hit caused MacKinnon’s stick to whack him directly in the face. MacKinnon grabbed his head before blood began flowing onto the ice. Trainers rushed to attend to him. MORE: All-Star Game rosters, captains, coaches for each division MacKinnon was able to skate off the ice with the trainers....

The coffee drink is made up of a double shot of espresso and steamed milk foam. It also sometimes comes with cream or non-dairy alternatives and can be flavored with syrups, cinnamon or chocolate powder. In the U.S., buying a cappuccino isn’t cheap, as the graphic from Statista shows below. In New York, Boston and Chicago, it is more expensive to buy a cappuccino than some places in Italy—the home of the cappuccino....

New York County Supreme Court Justice Melissa A. Crane held off announcing a final decision at the end of the hearing, though the fractious nature of the disagreement and the potential consequences of Attorney General Letitia James’s probe loomed large over Thursday’s arguments. James has been trying for months to get the NRA’s former public relations firm, Ackerman McQueen, to send her office documents related to the voluminous services it has provided to the NRA over the pair’s decades-long relationship....

Rice once seemed a surefire bet to move to the State Department. But associates now insist she has no interest in State’s sprawling diplomatic bureaucracy and is keen to step out of the limelight after a grueling five years as Bush’s chief foreign-policy adviser (including more than a year on the 2000 campaign). Possible replacements include Robert Blackwill, Rice’s strategic adviser, and Paul Wolfowitz, the deputy Defense secretary, who were both advisers on Bush’s 2000 campaign....

With Wednesday being National Signing Day, it obviously wasn’t an ideal situation for these teams. Luckily for the Longhorns, the matter was resolved pretty quickly, as their account was regained the same day. Georgia’s, Missouri’s and USF’s respective accounts were restored early Wednesday morning as well. Still, it took a while for their followers to fully regenerate. MORE: Who is the best high school football player you ever saw?...

Could the FA Cup final be held at National Stadium, Bukit Jalil? Perbadanan Stadium Malaysia (PSM) on has seemingly offered the National Stadium to be the host of the cup final that is scheduled for 20 May. Previously, Football Malaysia Limited Liability Partnership (FMLL) had announced that Shah Alam Stadium would be the venue for the final but this offering could possibly alter the decision. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of PSM, Azman Fahmi Osman said in a statement to Astro Arena that his side has offered themselves up to host the final but any decision would depend on FMLLP and Football Association of Malaysia (FAM)....

The first cupcake recipe was published in 1796 in American Cookery, which was written by Amelia Simmons. In the cookery book, it refers to a light cake baked in small cups, which uses the ingredients of sugar, butter, flour, wine, rosewater, nutmeg, cinnamon and currants. The first use of the term “cupcake” dates back to 1828 in Seventy-five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes and Sweetmeats, by Eliza Leslie. There are two theories regarding how the name came about, but both are viable....

Initially, the day was celebrated on September 4, but the additional date in February was added to honor the birthday of famed Australian conservationist and broadcaster Steve Irwin, who was killed in 2006 after being pierced in the heart by a stingray barb. At a time when the Trump administration is seeking to weaken key regulations protecting endangered species in the U.S. and a landmark U.N. report has warned that one million species around the world are at risk of extinction due to human pressures and climate change, now is a better time than ever to turn our attention to this issue....

Harper won by a unanimous vote, earning all 30 of the possible first-place votes. It’s the first MVP in franchise history for the Nationals, including their years as the Expos in Montreal. MORE: Must-see photos from Bryce Harper’s career | Josh Donaldson named AL MVP | Worst MVP snubs in baseball history Harper sported a .330/.460/1.109 slash line this season with 42 home runs and 99 RBIs. He also drew an 124 walks, stole six bases and led the NL with a 9....

O’Brien, who replaced John Bolton in September as President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, responded to infighting among NATO allies including France and Germany, saying the U.S. is still committed to the 29-member, 70-year-old North Atlantic Treaty Organization. O’Brien’s “fair share” criticism of Germany comes amid widening cracks and public sniping about imbalance between NATO countries. O’Brien and other NATO leaders say they hope to rectify such issues during next week’s Heads of State and Government summit in London....

But the Slovakian system alone is not enough to replenish Ukraine’s mauled anti-aircraft network. As Kyiv prepares to face Russian President Vladimir Putin’s renewed offensive in the eastern Donbas region, Ukrainian leaders are still stressing the need to defend their airspace and the importance of Western support in doing this. Slovakia’s Defense Ministry confirmed to Newsweek that it had sent one S-300 system to Ukraine. The transfer was facilitated by Germany and the Netherlands that sent Slovakia U....

After anglers caught two of the non-native trout in the lake this summer, park officials figured the aliens were slipped into the lake by someone who wanted bigger fish to fry (well, catch: Yellowstone is a catch-and-release lake). “This was done in a very deliberate way,” says park scientist John Varley. Yellowstone has offered $10,000 for information leading to the arrest of the eco-saboteur. Meanwhile, park officials are debating whether to destroy lake-trout spawning areas or release a sterile male, ensuring that the aliens die out after this generation....

For now, Wagoner has his hands firmly on the wheel. GM’s board on Friday issued their second endorsement of him in four months, saying it “continues to fully support” his turnaround strategy of the sputtering automaker that lost $10.6 billion last year. But it also gave the greenlight for Wagoner to conduct exploratory talks with Ghosn about forming a limited partnership with Nissan and Renault. While there is no deadline for determining if a deal can be done, a GM spokeswoman said the board had asked Wagoner to move “expeditiously....