Sports quiz of the week: big contracts, friendly rivalries and ‘scorigami’

Britain’s Abbi Pulling has won the F1 Academy world title – but why was her victory unusual? Photograph: Pauline Ballet/Formula 1/Getty Images

1. The 2024 Sports Personality of the Year shortlist was announced this week. Which of these Paris gold medallists was not nominated?

   1. Keely Hodgkinson

   2. Tom Pidcock

   3. Dame Sarah Storey

   4. Alex Yee

2. New York Yankees star Juan Soto has signed the biggest contract in sports history, worth $765m (£600m) over 15 years, with which rival team?

   1. Boston Red Sox

   2. Los Angeles Dodgers

   3. New York Mets

   4. Philadelphia Phillies

3. Which football club has the most players in this year's Fifpro men's World XI?

   1. Bayern Munich

   2. Liverpool

   3. Manchester City

   4. Real Madrid

4. Lucy Bronze was included in the women's Fifpro World XI, marking her seventh appearance and matching whose record?

   1. Marta

   2. Alex Morgan

   3. Alexia Putellas

   4. Wendie Renard

5. British driver Abbi Pulling has won this year's F1 Academy title. What was unusual about her victory?

   1. She didn't win a grand prix all year

   2. She has been out injured since August

   3. She had to clinch the title twice after the schedule was expanded

   4. She switched constructors mid-season after her original team went bust

6. Who is currently top scorer in the Women's Super League this season?

   1. Alessia Russo (Arsenal)

   2. Guro Reiten (Chelsea)

   3. Khadija 'Bunny' Shaw (Man City)

   4. Kiko Seike (Brighton)

7. It was another lively week in the NFL, but which game produced a 'scorigami' – a final score never seen in the league before?

   1. Bills 42-44 Rams

   2. Chargers 17-19 Chiefs

   3. Jets 26-32 Dolphins

   4. Seahawks 30-18 Cardinals

8. 

   Where in the world was this picture taken?

   1. Almería, Spain

   2. Antalya, Turkey

   3. Antwerp, Belgium

   4. Athens, Greece

9. Who said the following this week about his 2024? 'It's like a relationship that you've told [them] you're leaving but you're living together for a year.'

   1. Erik ten Hag

   2. Lewis Hamilton

   3. Novak Djokovic

   4. Tom Pidcock

10. What did Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella blame for two defensive slips against Tottenham?

    1. His hair

    2. His boots

    3. His socks

    4. A sprinkler on his side of the pitch

11. Ben Curran, the brother of England internationals Sam and Tom Curran, has been called up for which national ODI side?

    1. Ireland

    2. Scotland

    3. South Africa

    4. Zimbabwe

12. Which US women's sport star was named Time's Athlete of the Year for 2024?

    1. Caitlin Clark

    2. Gabby Thomas

    3. Ilona Maher

    4. Nelly Korda

13. Who is currently the Premier League's leading assist-maker?

    1. Amad Diallo (Manchester United)

    2. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)

    3. Cole Palmer (Chelsea)

    4. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)

14. Who said this, and who were they talking about? 'There’s nothing to dislike about him. He’s quite placid and down-to-earth and that’s why you see a friendly atmosphere when we play.'

    1. Carlos Alcaraz, on Jannik Sinner

    2. Luke Humphries, on Luke Littler

    3. Ronnie O'Sullivan, on Judd Trump

    4. Rory McIlroy, on Bryson DeChambeau

15. On this day in 1983, the Detroit Pistons and Denver Nuggets contested the highest-scoring NBA game of all time. How many points were scored in total?

    1. 299

    2. 313

    3. 351

    4. 370

Solutions

1:B - Cyclists Pidcock and Mark Cavendish both missed out on the six-person shortlist, which also features darts star Luke Littler, England cricketer Joe Root and footballer Jude Bellingham., 2:C - It's cross-city rivals the Mets, who were one series win away from competing with the Yankees in the World Series this year., 3:D - Only three clubs are represented, with six Real Madrid players in the XI, including new arrival Kylian Mbappé and the now-retired Toni Kroos. Manchester City have four, with Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk completing the team., 4:D - The Lyon centre-back has also been shortlisted seven times; Alex Morgan has six nominations, Marta four, and Putellas only two., 5:C - Pulling was crowned champion in Qatar after the second race there was cancelled, but organisers then added three new races in Abu Dhabi to the calendar. She secured the title again by claiming all three poles and two of the three races. , 6:C - The Jamaican forward has scored nine goals in nine league games for City this season., 7:C - Miami's overtime win produced a unique NFL scoreline; somewhat surprisingly, it is the fifth 'scorigami' in the league this season already., 8:B - The runners were taking part in a race at the European cross-country championships in Turkey last weekend. Great Britain won six golds to top the medal table., 9:B - The Mercedes driver, who is joining Ferrari for next season, was reflecting on a difficult final season that ended with a fourth-placed finish in Abu Dhabi., 10:B - After twice slipping to allow Tottenham to score in the early minutes, Cucurella changed his boots – and later posted a picture of the original pair in the changing room bin. Chelsea came back to win the game 4-3., 11:D - The brothers' father, Kevin Curran, played for and coached Zimbabwe. If he impresses in the white-ball side, Ben could face Sam in a one-off Test match next May at Trent Bridge., 12:A - The former college basketball phenomenon was drafted at No 1 by Indiana Fever, and was the WNBA's rookie of the year., 13:B - Saka has 10 assists, ahead of Salah (eight), Palmer and Diallo (six each)., 14:B - The world darts champion was determined not to stir up the sport's big rivalry when he talked to the Guardian this week., 15:D - Detroit won 186-184 in triple overtime. The record has stood for more than 40 years, with Sacramento's 176-175 win over the LA Clippers in 2023 the second-highest aggregate score (351).

Scores

1. 0 and above.

   Thanks for playing, and enjoy your weekend