Weekend news roundup 17/06: Big box office & F1 rule changes

Monday 17 June 2024 by Jonathan Victoria  News

England squeak through to T20 World Cup next round

 

 

 

 

 

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England has successfully claimed a spot in the next stage of the T20 World Cup after beating Namibia and seeing Australia down Scotland.

There was a lot in the way to try to prevent the defending champions from advancing, first in the form of rain delays threatening their must-win game against Namibia. Luckily they managed to get 10 over each side, with England posting a solid score that their opponents were unable to better.

Then over in the other game where England needed Scotland to lose to Australia, it got close to the result they didn’t want, with the Aussies only just finding their way past the Scots with two balls remaining.

Both results mean England goes through, level points with Scotland but with a superior net run rate. They now find themselves in the slightly favourable Group 2 in the second group stage of the competition, along with South Africa plus the two hosts USA and West Indies.

Inside Out 2 surprise hit at box office

Credit: Inside Out 2 | Official Trailer (Pixar, YouTube)

Inside Out 2 has had a surprisingly massive opening weekend in North America, earning $155m this weekend, making it the second-biggest opening for an animated film of all time, behind The Incredibles 2 ($182m).

Along with that distinction, the film also secured the biggest domestic opening of the year and became the first movie to surpass $100m in its first few days since Barbie last summer.

What’s more, Inside Out 2 also saw strong international numbers, bringing in a further $140m for a best-ever global opening for an animated film $295m.

In second place this weekend was Bad Boys: Ride or Die with $33m domestically ($112.2m domestic total, $214.6m global total), and in third it was Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, which saw $5.2m added this weekend ($157.8m domestic total, $374.5m global total).

McIlroy collapse gives DeChambeau US Open win

Credit: DeChambeau edges McIlroy in final round THRILLER | US Open Highlights (Sky Sports Golf, YouTube)

Bryson DeChambeau claimed his second major win and US Open title after Rory McIlroy collapsed down the stretch to gift the American the one-shot victory.

DeChambeau started the day with a healthy three-shot lead into the day but it was McIlroy who stormed out in front and gave himself a two-shot lead early on.

He maintained the lead until he reached the 15th, where he proceeded to pick up back-to-back bogeys before agonisingly bogeying the 18th to give Bryson the chance to win by simply making par.

And that he did, showing his quality by making a fantastic par save after finding his tee shot in a tough area under a tree and playing his third shot out a bunker, a shot which got a roar from the crowd as he got up and down to stick the ball four feet from the pin.

He holed out and celebrated a hard-fought victory, while cameras cut to McIlroy looking disheartened in the waiting room as he watched on. DeChambeau earned his second major win after close wins at the Masters and PGA Championship this season, while Rory’s wait for his illusive fifth major title continues.

House of the Dragon renewed for third season

The Dance of the Dragons continues.#HouseOfTheDragon has been renewed for Season 3 on @StreamOnMax. pic.twitter.com/XnoaDEHfdH

— House of the Dragon (@HouseofDragon) June 13, 2024

House of the Dragon has been given the green light for a third season before the second has even premiered.

The Game of Thrones prequel had a strong first season, leading to a lot of anticipation for the second season to come. 

But before we even got to the first episode of season two, HBO Programming Executive Vice President Francesca Orsi released a press release to announce the show's renewal.

Expectations are understandably very high for this season, but with this announcement, HBO may have just piled more on. See how the new season gets underway, with the first episode out today, available to watch via Sky Atlantic.

FIA moves goalpost by getting rid of ‘Verstappen rule’

The FIA has decided to modify its rules, changing the super licence age limits that have been in place since Max Verstappen debuted on the grid in 2015 at the age of 17.

This has come at the request (and benefit) of Mercedes, who are looking to bring in their young driver Kimi Antonelli to potentially partner George Russell for next season.

Antonelli turns 18 this August, so there wouldn't have been a problem giving him a seat for next year, but Mercedes wanted to give him as many opportunities running in the current car as possible to see how he fares, how he adapts and if he could handle the drive for next year.

The FIA was stopping them previously, as the rules stated that drivers must be at least 18 and hold a valid driving licence, a rule that was introduced after Verstappen arrived in F1 at the tender age of 17.

The minimum age for a driving licence in Italy, where Antonelli is from, is 18, but now the FIA has not-so-quietly got rid of that rule to allow Mercedes to give Kimi a run in the car at this weekend's Spanish Grand Prix’s Friday first practice, as well as potentially some more European circuits that he knows over the next couple of months.