Peru will host a Davis Cup match between itself and Venezuela after the Int'l Tennis Federation decided that "concerns over security in Venezuela, the original site for the event, required a change of venue." The Sept. 16-18 match will be held "in Lima instead of Barcelona, Venezuela." Venezuelan Tennis Federation President Luis Contreras said, "We're surprised because we have never had negative comments about security. It's an unfair decision from every point of view." Government officials said that "security problems have been exaggerated by the media" (REUTERS, 9/8).
HEADLINE ACT: Former world junior surfing champion Laura Enever is "a headline act at mate Sally Fitzgibbon’s new women’s surfing event at Cronulla in November with more big names of world surfing expected to join the Sydney surfer on the start list." The inaugural Int'l Beach Festival at Cronulla features a "crucial leg of the women's world qualifying surf series." The world qualifying surf event at the Int'l Beach Festival from Nov. 3-6 is the "final opportunity for female surfers to either requalify for the WSL tour or to snare a spot on the 2017 event as a rookie" (Sydney DAILY TELEGRAPH, 9/10).
SELL-OUT: Tickets for the UFC event in Manchester next month "sold out in six minutes on Friday, despite the fact that the main card will not start until three o'clock in the morning local time." UFC 204 will be headlined by the first title defence by middleweight Michael Bisping, "who became the first British UFC champion when he scored a surprise knockout victory over Luke Rockhold in June." The start time for the main card, organized for the "benefit of the lucrative North American pay-per-view audience, did not deter fans who quickly snapped up tickets" costing between £40 ($53) and £200 ($265) each (REUTERS, 9/9).
STAYING PUT: The Classic Riviera di Rimini venue signed a new agreement to host MotoGP for a minimum of another 4 years. The new agreement sees the event stay on the MotoGP calendar until at least '20 (MotoGP).
