AUSTIN, Texas - Nico Rosberg earned a chance to tighten his Formula One championship duel with Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton by winning the pole position Saturday for the U.S. Grand Prix, while the race faced an early threat of a boycott by several teams that are struggling financially.Rosberg edged Hamilton by .376 seconds at the Circuit of the Americas. Valtteri Bottas of Williams will start third.Hamilton leads Rosberg by 17 points in the drivers championship with three races left.Saturdays qualifying was clouded by the roiling tensions between Formula Ones wealthiest teams and those struggling to survive. Two teams, Marussia and Caterham, had already dropped out of Sundays race because of financial problems, reducing the grid to at most 18 cars, the smallest in nine years.For most of the day, it looked as if it could get much smaller.Sahara Force India deputy principal Bob Fernley said his team, Sauber and Lotus discussed a potential Sunday boycott or pulling out after one lap, and insisted both options could happen.But the threat seemed to fade by late afternoon.Lotus officials dismissed the chance of sitting out the race. Sauber team principal Monisha Kaltenborn declined to comment on a boycott, but later said her team wanted to maximize driver Adrian Sutils first top-10 qualifying position this season.Then Formula One commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone and Circuit of the Americas Chairman Bobby Epstein said the teams will race.Forget all that, Ecclestone said. They will be racing, I give you a guarantee, but I worry if they will be racing next year.The mere threat of action conjured images of the disastrous U.S. Grand Prix of 2005, when a boycott over tire safety left only six cars racing. Winner Michael Schumacher was booed on the podium, the traditional champagne celebration was cancelled and the public address announcer implored fans not throw things.The current conflict between top teams and those struggling to survive reached the critical stage this week with the collapse of Marussia and Caterham.Lotus, Sahara Force India, and Sauber sparred with Mercedes and McLaren officials in a contentious news conference Friday, arguing whether Formula One should adopt spending caps or other means to help smaller teams survive.Ecclestone further enflamed the situation by telling Sky Sports that small teams are needed only if they are going to be there performing properly and not moving around with begging buckets.Rosberg and Hamilton, who have waged a season-long duel for the title, declined comment on the boycott threat.Former Formula One world champion Jackie Stewart said a boycott would harm the teams, their sponsors and Formula One just three years into the sports re-emergence in the American market.I cant imagine that would be a sensible thing for any team to do, Stewart said. Formula One is the largest commercial sport in the world. Thats the last thing you want to be playing around with.The small teams dont want to damage Formula One but want to be heard, Fernley said.The last thing anybody wants to do, particularly the owners of these three teams, who are pure racers, would be to damage anything, Fernley said. But youve also got to understand that Formula One is also damaging them at the moment. There has to be some form of coming together.On the track, Rosberg earned his ninth pole of the season as Mercedes locked up the top two spots for the 10th time.First place today is awesome, Rosberg said, but its the race that counts.Hamilton posted the fastest times in all three practice sessions, only to have problems with locking brakes in qualifying. Hamilton is chasing his ninth victory of the season. He has won three times when starting outside of the pole and won here in 2012 with McLaren.Rosberg has four wins this season.Defending race and world champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull will start Sunday from pit lane after incurring a penalty for using his sixth engine this season. He participated in only the first of three qualifying rounds. Pittsburgh Pirates Jerseys .com) - Scott Parel carded a 5-under 65 on Thursday and he grabbed a 1-stroke lead after one round of the season-opening Panama Claro Championship. Roberto Clemente Jersey . Forward Iker Muniain scored the winner in the 70th minute after Bilbaos incessant pressure recovered the ball and sparked a counterattack inside Barcelonas half. Neymar was once again tagged to pick up Messis goal-scoring duties, but when he wasnt frustrated by slippery footing Bilbaos defence got the better of him. http://www.piratesrookiestore.com/Pirates-Tyler-Glasnow-Kids-Jersey/ .I shared with him how much I appreciated all he had done for us, Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said of that Thursday night farewell. Felipe Vazquez Jersey . -- Louisville backup quarterback Reggie Bonnafon ran for two touchdowns and passed for another and the No. Colin Moran Jersey . The above paragraph could be rewritten, verbatim, with Marcus Stromans name in place of Romeros. After both men had disastrous outings in Tuesdays 18-4 mauling at the hands of the Tigers, its clear that neither is the best option to begin the season in Toronto.ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Marcell Dareus and the Buffalo Bills defence made life miserable for Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. Dareus had two sacks, rookie linebacker Kiko Alonso and converted safety Aaron Williams had two interceptions as part of a 23-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Dareus was pleased with the new-look defence that finally began playing up to its attacking style under new co-ordinator Mike Pettine. "It surprises people, but we controlled it the way we needed to," Dareus said. "We were not going to let them push us around." The Bills pushed back in limiting Baltimore to 15 first downs and 345 yards. It was a stifling performance that came a week after Buffalo gave up 513 yards in a 27-20 loss to the New York Jets. And the Bills (2-2) won despite an injury-thinned defensive backfield that opened the game missing three starters, and closed it minus Williams, who couldnt finish because of a sore back. "These guys have answered the bell, and they played their behinds off," defensive tackle Kyle Williams said. "It doesnt get any better than this." Alonso sealed the victory by making a diving catch to pick off Flacco for a fifth time with 57 seconds remaining. Facing third-and-8 at the Bills 48, Flacco forced a pass over the middle intended for tight end Dallas Clark. Clark and safety DaNorris Searcy both got their hands on the ball, and Alonso came up with the interception. Fred Jackson had 87 yards rushing, and scored on a 16-yard run for the Bills, who are off to a 2-2 start under rookie head coach Doug Marrone. C.J. Spiller added 77 yards rushing in helping Buffalo combine for 203 yards on the ground against a defence that had allowed just 224 in its first three games. The Ravens (2-2) took a big step back after an impressive 30-9 win over Houston last week. "A lot of that falls on me today and just throwing the ball to the wrong team," said Flacco. "If we dont do that, then this game probably looks a little different." What it resembled instead, was another lacklustre performance by a retooled offence still searching for an identity after several off-season changes to its group of receivers. Thhe Ravens are still a work in progress after trading Anquan Boldin to San Francisco, and with Jacoby Jones (hip) and tight end Dennis Pitta (hip) injured.dddddddddddd Torrey Smith had five catches for 166 yards and a touchdown, but Flacco had difficulty finding any chemistry with his other receivers. And the Ravens running attack struggled, even with Ray Rice returning after missing last weeks game with a hip injury. Rice finished with 17 yards rushing and backup Bernard Pierce managed just 7 against a Bills defence that gave up 182 to the Jets last week. "We wouldve liked to run the ball better. We wouldve liked to execute a lot better," Rice said. "You get behind, you cant pound the rock. You just cant do it." Trouble was, the Ravens couldnt get their offence on track even when the game was close in the first half. Baltimore managed just three first downs and 45 yards offence on its first seven possessions. Flacco finished 25 of 50 for 347 yards and two touchdowns, including a 10-yarder to Marlon Brown. But he has five touchdowns and seven interceptions this season. The five interceptions were the most by the Bills defence since it had six in a 16-13 overtime win over the New York Jets on Oct. 18, 2009. "It feels great to win," said safety Jim Leonhard, who also had an interception. "Obviously, weve had our share of adversity, and I think weve proven through four weeks that we a room full of guys on the back end that will fight." The Bills face a short turnaround. They travel to play at Cleveland on Thursday. NOTES: Alonso, a second-round pick out of Oregon, has four interceptions on the season. And he became the teams first rookie linebacker to have an interception in three consecutive games. ... Marrone said he expects CB Aaron Williams to be healthy to play this week. ... Jackson (knee) and Spiller (left ankle) both returned after missing parts of the third quarter. ... Ravens WR Deonte Thompson sustained a concussion after being hit along the sideline by safety Jim Leonhard. ... Ravens coach John Harbaugh said both Brown and starting CB Lardarius Webb hurt their thighs and are still having their injuries evaluated. Wholesale MLB Orioles JerseysRed Sox Jerseys From ChinaDiscount Yankees Jerseys OnlineRays Jerseys For SaleBlue Jays Jerseys From ChinaWholesale MLB White Sox JerseysIndians Jerseys For SaleTigers Jerseys From ChinaWholesale MLB Astros JerseysCheap Baseball Angels JerseysAthletics Jerseys From ChinaMariners Jerseys For SaleCheap Baseball Rangers JerseysBraves Jerseys For SaleDiscount Marlins Jerseys OnlineDiscount Mets Jerseys OnlinePhillies Jerseys From ChinaWholesale MLB Nationals JerseysCubs Jerseys From ChinaDiscount Reds Jerseys OnlineBrewers Jerseys From ChinaWholesale MLB Pirates JerseysWholesale MLB Cardinals JerseysDiamondbacks Jerseys For SaleRockies Jerseys For SaleDiscount Dodgers Jerseys OnlineDiscount Padres Jerseys OnlineGiants Jerseys For Sale ' ' '