Fernando Alonso thinks Honda is currently ahead of where Mercedes at the same stage of its own V6 project and remains confident of returning to the front of the grid next season.Honda has clearly made improvements this season and in recent races McLaren been a regular fixture in the Q3 shootout. The Japanese manufacturer has been playing catch-up after joining the V6 turbo in 2015, a year later than Mercedes, Ferrari and Renault.Alonso thinks that a comparison between Hondas current position and Mercedes last year could show the Japanese manufacturer to be ahead.When asked what he was doing to push Honda forward, he joked: Apart from punch them I cannot do anything more! I am trying to push everyone. I am aware of their hard work and I understand that they are doing their best. They are working 24 hours in Sakura, they are bringing all their knowledge from people, but unfortunately in F1 there isnt a magic button you can touch from one day to the other you can reach a certain level.If you can imagine we are in our second year, if you see the power we have, the deployment we have and the reliability we have, I dont think there have been many teams in this position in their second season, maybe Mercedes and we are maybe ahead of Mercedes in the second year. I am impressed with what Honda is doing with the little time they had. The biggest problem was the starting point, we were a bit behind last year.?Alonso also used 2015 to illustrate why McLaren is happy with its current form, saying the troubles he and teammate Jenson Button encountered show just how far it has come in a year.It has changed a lot I think we are definitely moving forward and in the right direction. Last year the project was not mature enough because the power unit was not ready.Everyone remembers here we had 105 positions penalty between Jenson and myself which was a sign we were not ready to compete so we are a little bit behind compared to the other manufacturers, but in terms of organisation and on the chassis-side we are comparable ot the top teams, which is a good sign.Now we are in a situation which is much better than last year that makes us more confident than about next year. Last year we needed to solve many problems, now we need solve just one only, which is easier. Ketel Marte Jersey .com) - The women will also have a new champion at the Australian Open. Luis Gonzalez Jersey . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. http://www.cheapdiamondbacksjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-jarrod-dyson-jersey . - Derek Wolfe says hes finally healthy after suffering a seizure in November that doctors now believe was related to the spinal cord injury he suffered in the preseason. Cheap Diamondbacks Jerseys . Fred Couples, captain of the U.S. side, put it all into perspective. "We know whos in charge," he said. Robbie Ray Jersey . The 20-year-old Pelicans big man glanced up and smiled widely at the well-wishers -- a fitting end to a day he wont soon forget. Davis responded to his selection earlier in the day as a Western Conference All-Star with 26 points and 10 rebounds, and the New Orleans Pelicans overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves 98-91 on Friday night. KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- When the Oakland Athletics open a four-game series on Monday night at Kansas City, they will be sans Billy Butler, who was released Sunday.Butler was a 2012 All-Star, hitting .313 with 29 home runs and 107 RBI that season with the Royals, who drafted him in the first round in 2004. Butler played with Kansas City from 2007 to 2014 and was the designated hitter on the team that won the 2014 American League championship.Butler became a free agent after the 2014 season and signed a three-year, $30 million contract with the As but hit a career low .251 last season. This year, he was relegated to mostly DH duty against left-handed pitchers.Butler had only a dozen at-bats since Aug. 17 and was in a 1-for-15 funk when released.I knew it was a possibility because I wasnt playing, Butler said. Its been like that all year. Theyre the ones that make the decision. I know that now that Cocos (Crisp, trade to Cleveland) gone, I was the highest paid player. Theyre not going to let guys making that much just sit around and not make a move eventually.Ive been in this game long enough to know that moves like these happen. Unfortunately, the last two seasons as a team it has not gone the way as expected. Your higher paid players end up taking the brunt of that because I was expected to come in to keep this organization where it was at.As general manager David Forst said this was the right time to move on without Butler.Its something weve discussed, Forst said. With a lot of the younger players here now, potentially more coming once Nashvilles done, the at-bats just werent there. Its time to move our focus beyond.Obviously, he didnt perform last year up to what we expect, and then coming into this year it was tough for him to ever get going. We made some moves this last offseason that took away from some of his opportunities this year. There were times, frankly, right before the incident with him and Danny (Valencia clubhouse fight) when he was swinging the bat well. He obviously still has ability. It just wasnt going to be a fit here.The As are 13-27 in their past 40 games and have dropped to a season-worst 22 games below .dddddddddddd500 after a 3-2 loss Sunday to the Seattle Mariners. Overall, the As are 60-82, assuring them of a losing record in back-to-back years.Three other former Royals with the As are Brett Eibner, who had a RBI triple Sunday; Ryan Madson, a reliever who suffered the loss Sunday, and Valencia.The defending World Series champion Royals shut out the White Sox 2-0 on Sunday to complete a 4-2 trip to Chicago and Minnesota. They remain on the fringe of the wild-card race, but theyll need a great eight-game homestand against the As and White Sox to stay viable in the postseason hunt.The Royals Ned Yost is one victory shy of 1,000 in his managerial career.Win two series on the road, which was big, Yost said. Weve got to win series. Each win is crucial right now. It feels good when you match up against a guy like Chris Sale and end up on the winning side of it. Just keep grinding them out and keep winning ballgames.Eric Hosmer and Kendrys Morales homered for the only runs off Sale, but that was enough for Royals right-hander Ian Kennedy and the bullpen. Wade Davis logged his 24th save of the season.Definitely huge, Hosmer said to capture the series at Chicago. We needed this. We need every series from here on out, and every game is huge. Well head back home. We play good in Kansas City. Well see if we can take it a day at a time against Oakland and get things shaken up here at the end.Royals right-hander Dillon Gee will start the series opener, his 14th start and 30th outing of the season. He is 0-2 with a 6.39 ERA in three career outings, including two starts against Oakland.The As will start left-hander Ross Detwiler, who is 1/3 with a 5.06 ERA in five starts and one relief appearance since called up from Triple-A Nashville.Detwiler has faced the Royals once, on May 14, 2015, while with the Texas Rangers. He took the loss, allowing three runs, nine hits and one walk with three strikeouts in five innings. ' ' '