PATRICE EVRA left Ligue 1 side Olympique de Marseille by mutual consent and has been banned from UEFA competition for the rest of the season "for kicking one of his own fans." The former Monaco, ManU and Juventus full-back, 36, is banned by UEFA until June '18, the same month his Marseille deal would have ended. He was also fined €10,000 ($11,664) (BBC, 11/10). ... Former Barcelona and Spain midfielder XAVI HERNÁNDEZ is "to retire at the end of the season and is keen to pursue a coaching career." The 37-year-old, who won eight La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues trophies at Barcelona, is currently captain of Qatari club Al-Sadd (REUTERS, 11/10). ... SHANSHAN FENG will become the first male or female Chinese golfer to "top the world rankings" after her victory at the Blue Bay event "in her homeland." Feng beat MORIYA JUTANUGARN by one shot to "claim back-to-back wins after her success in defending her Japan Classic title last week" (BBC, 11/12). ... UFC’s "push into mainland China has been dealt a body blow" with the news that UFC China headliner ANDERSON SILVA failed another drug test. In a statement posted on its website, UFC said that Silva "failed an out-of-competition drug test" given on Oct. 26 (SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST, 11/11). ... MARC MÁRQUEZ won his fourth MotoGP world title in five years on Sunday after ANDREA DOVIZIOSO crashed during the season-concluding Valencia GP. Márquez "only needed to finish in 11th place or better to seal the title." Starting from pole, the Spaniard "steered his Honda to a third-place finish" behind race winner DANI PEDROSA (AP, 11/12).
KEEPING THE FUNDING: MO FARAH will "continue to get UK Sport's top level of support despite uncertainty as to whether he will represent Great Britain again." The 34-year-old four-time Olympic champion will "concentrate on marathon full-time for the first time next year." British Athletics Performance Dir NEIL BLACK said, "There is the possibility that he could represent the British team at a major championship over the marathon distance in the future, so we will monitor this first year and continue to support him in his ambitions" (BBC, 11/10).
