title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: On February 17, 2009, Rumble the Bison was introduced as the Oklahoma City Thunder mascot during halftime of a game against the New Orleans Hornets. Rumble was the winner of the 2008–2009 NBA Mascot of the Year.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: During the 2012 NBA Finals, sportswriter Bill Simmons published a piece on the team's fan base in his ESPN-sponsored Web outlet, "Grantland.com", in which he noted the unusual enthusiasm of the city for its team:


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: Simmons speculated that the Oklahoma City bombing played a major part in the team's culture, noting that Thunder general manager Sam Presti has every new Thunder player visit the Oklahoma City National Memorial, and encourages players to look into the stands and consider that many of the team's fans were personally affected by the event. He also noted, however, that the fact that the Thunder is the only team from Oklahoma City (or indeed the state of Oklahoma) in one of the nation's four major leagues contributes mightily to the city's devotion.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: Thunder fans are also reportedly much more likely to attend major home games than most other NBA fanbases. According to a source in the ticket industry, only five percent of tickets to the 2012 NBA conference finals listed for sale on secondary market sites such as StubHub were for Thunder home games, and for every ticket listed for a Thunder home game in the 2012 NBA Finals, 10 tickets for Heat home games were listed.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: The team and its fanbase regularly use the slogan "Thunder Up!" which was prominently displayed on T-shirts during the 2012 playoffs.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: However, as of late the attendance has suffered. They ranked 28th out of 30 in attendance in the 2021-22 season, only filling under 82% of their arena.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: The Thunder hold the draft rights to the following unsigned draft picks who have been playing outside the NBA. A drafted player, either an international draftee or a college draftee who is not signed by the team that drafted him, is allowed to sign with any non-NBA teams. In this case, the team retains the player's draft rights in the NBA until one year after the player's contract with the non-NBA team ends. This list includes draft rights that were acquired from trades with other teams.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: Since relocating from Seattle to Oklahoma City, the Thunder have officially retired one jersey number. On March 20, 2019, the club officially retired number 4 in honor of Nick Collison, who played for the team from 2003 to 2018.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: As the Thunder's original iteration, the Seattle SuperSonics had retired six numbers. In addition, the SuperSonics awarded an honorary microphone to longtime broadcaster Bob Blackburn, who had called the majority of the team's games from 1967 through 1992.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: The Oklahoma City Thunder unveiled their first logo on September 3, 2008. According to majority owner Clay Bennett, the team's logo takes several of its elements from other Oklahoma sports teams, such as the Oklahoma Sooners and Oklahoma State Cowboys and Cowgirls. The uniform design was unveiled on September 29, 2008.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: An alternate uniform was unveiled on November 8, 2012, featuring only navy blue and white colors. Unlike their regular uniforms, the wordmarks on the alternate are written vertically.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: A second alternate uniform was unveiled on March 1, 2015. A white uniform with sleeves, it features the Thunder partial logo in the center of the chest, and the shorts showcase bolts in light blue and sunset colors.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: A third alternate uniform was unveiled on September 25, 2015. A sunset-colored uniform, it features the Oklahoma City abbreviation "OKC" in navy block letters trimmed in white. On the back of the jersey, player names sit below the numbers. The shorts display a sunset base with navy panels down the side showcasing the Thunder partial logo on each leg. The Thunder wore the sunset alternates for 18 games in the 2015–2016 season, including all 13 of its Sunday games.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: Moving to Nike in 2017, the Thunder kept their existing white ("Association") and blue ("Icon") uniforms almost intact with the exception of the "OKC" abbreviation on the beltline and truncated shoulder stripes. The team also released a new alternate "Statement" uniform with an italicized "OKC" lettering in sunset orange and a navy base with blue gradients that evoke sound waves generated from the team's fan base.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: The Thunder also collaborated with Nike to produce annual "City" edition uniforms that intend to pay tribute to local cultures or team traditions. The 2017–18 "City" uniform featured a grey base with sunset orange and blue lines that were inspired by the Thunder's uptempo style. For 2018–19, the Thunder's "City" uniform featured a turquoise base and bold white lettering with navy and sunset orange trim; the uniform was inspired by Oklahoma's Native American heritage.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: Nike also released an "Earned" uniform starting with the 2018–19 season and were only given to the 16 teams who qualified in the 2018 NBA playoffs. The Thunder's "Earned" uniform was a basic palette swap of the team's "Statement" uniforms, featuring a sunset orange base and navy letters.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: Beginning with the 2019–20 season, the Thunder unveiled new uniforms. The white "Association" uniform now featured the city name in front along with the outline of the state of Oklahoma on the beltline. The front of the blue "Icon" uniform now reads the team name in front while keeping the OKC acronym on the beltline. Their sunset orange "Earned" uniforms from the previous season became the basis of their new "Statement" uniform, albeit with lighter blue lettering. A new "City" uniform for the season commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing and it featured a black and gold palette.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: The "City" uniform for 2020–21 contained a black base along with the Thunder's signature blue and orange colors splashed throughout. The uniform featured the state name "Oklahoma" in front as homage to the state itself. As in 2019, the Thunder's appearance in the 2020 NBA playoffs gave them an "Earned" uniform for the 2021 season. The uniform featured a navy blue base with "Thunder" written in white with light blue drop shadows. Orange was noticeably absent on the uniform.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: The Thunder's 2021–22 "City" uniform mixed various elements from their previous and current uniforms. The white and gray uniform featured the vertically arranged "OKC" lettering on the right chest (taken from the 2012–16 navy alternates), the white and gray patterns within the "OKC" lettering (taken from the 2017–19 "Statement" uniforms), the white and gray sash on the left leg (taken from the 2018–19 "City" uniforms), and the generic logo the Thunder first used in 2008 on the waist.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: For the Thunder's 2022–23 "City" uniform, they went with a black base, blue letters and red, orange and white accents in honor of the people of Oklahoma.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: All Thunder games are broadcast on the Thunder Radio Network, fronted by flagship stations WWLS-FM 98.1 and KWPN AM 640 in Oklahoma City. Matt Pinto is the radio voice of the Thunder.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: For their first two seasons, the Thunder's TV broadcasts were split between Fox Sports Oklahoma (a regional fork of Fox Sports Southwest), which broadcast most of the games, and independent station KSBI (channel 52), with around 65 Thunder games airing during the season and more than half of the games available in HD on Fox Sports Oklahoma, along with other team-related programming such as pre-game shows. Around 15 to 20 regular-season games were broadcast over the air on KSBI, which had a network of re-broadcasters spanning the entire state. All televised games are called by Brian Davis on play-by-play and Michael Cage as color commentator. During the 2009–10 season, KSBI telecast all Thunder games it aired in high definition (KSBI had previously aired in HD the first regular-season game played at the Ford Center – against the Milwaukee Bucks on October 29, 2008 – while all other games during the 2008–09 season were telecast on KSBI in standard definition).


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: On August 3, 2010, the Thunder signed a new exclusive multi-year agreement with Fox Sports Oklahoma (since rebranded as Bally Sports Oklahoma as of 2021), beginning with the 2010–11 season, ending the team's broadcasts on KSBI. On October 22, 2012, the Thunder announced that Lesley McCaslin would be the new Thunder sideline reporter. On July 21, 2014, the Thunder announced that Long would not return to be its TV color commentator on Fox Sports Oklahoma. On September 17, 2014, the Oklahoma City Thunder announced that 15-year NBA veteran Michael Cage would be the new color analyst, joining Brian Davis on television and Matt Pinto on the radio when the game is exclusive to a national television broadcast.


title: Oklahoma City Thunder

text: Davis was replaced as the television play-by-play announcer by Chris Fisher prior to the 2018–19 season.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start of the twentieth century and large national events were often given the title Grand Prix. The foundation of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme as the international governing body for motorcycle sport in 1949 provided the opportunity to coordinate rules and regulations in order that selected events could count towards official World Championships. It is the oldest established motorsport world championship.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: Grand Prix motorcycles are purpose-built racing machines that are unavailable for purchase by the general public and unable to be ridden legally on public roads. This contrasts with the various production-based categories of racing, such as the Superbike World Championship and the Isle of Man TT Races that feature modified versions of road-going motorcycles available to the public. The current top division is known as MotoGP since when the four-stroke era began. Prior to that, the largest class was 500cc, both of which form a historical continuum as the official World Championship, although all classes have official status.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The championship is currently divided into four classes: the eponymous MotoGP, Moto2, Moto3 and MotoE. The first three classes use four-stroke engines, while the MotoE class (new in 2019) uses electric motorcycles.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The most successful rider in Grand Prix history is Giacomo Agostini with 15 titles and 122 race wins. In the top-flight series, Agostini holds the title record with eight, followed by Valentino Rossi with seven and active rider Marc Márquez with six. As of 2020, Rossi holds the record for most top-flight race wins with 89.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: An FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix was first organized by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme in 1949. The commercial rights are now owned by Dorna Sports, with the FIM remaining as the sport sanctioning body. Teams are represented by the International Road Racing Teams Association (IRTA) and manufacturers by the Motorcycle Sport Manufacturers Association (MSMA). Rules and changes to regulations are decided between the four entities, with Dorna casting a tie-breaking vote. In cases of technical modifications, the MSMA can unilaterally enact or veto changes by unanimous vote among its members. These four entities compose the Grand Prix Commission.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: There have traditionally been several races at each event for various classes of motorcycles, based on engine size, and one class for sidecars. Classes for 50 cc, 80 cc, 125 cc, 250 cc, 350 cc, 500 cc, and 750 cc solo machines have existed at some time, and 350 cc and 500 cc sidecars. Up through the 1950s and most of the 1960s, four-stroke engines dominated all classes. In the 1960s, due to advances in engine design and technology, two-stroke engines began to take root in the smaller classes.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 1969, the FIM—citing high development costs for non-works teams due to rules which allowed a multiplicity of cylinders (meaning smaller pistons, producing higher revs) and a multiplicity of gears (giving narrower power bands, affording higher states of tune)—brought in new rules restricting all classes to six gears and most to two cylinders (four cylinders in the case of the 350 cc and 500 cc classes). This led to a mass walk-out of the sport by the previously highly successful Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha manufacturer teams, skewing the results tables for the next several years, with MV Agusta effectively the only works team left in the sport until Yamaha (1973) and Suzuki (1974) returned with new two-stroke designs. By this time, two-strokes completely eclipsed the four-strokes in all classes. In 1979, Honda, on its return to GP racing, made an attempt to return the four-stroke to the top class with the NR500, but this project failed, and, in 1983, even Honda was winning with a two-stroke 500.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: Previously, the championship featured a 50cc class from 1962 to 1983, later changed to an 80cc class from 1984 to 1989. The class was dropped for the 1990 season, after being dominated primarily by Spanish and Italian makes. It also featured a 350cc class from 1949 to 1982, and a 750 cc class from 1977 to 1979. Sidecars were dropped from world championship events in the 1990s (see Sidecar World Championship).


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: From the mid-1970s through to 2001, the top class of GP racing allowed 500 cc displacement with a maximum of four cylinders, regardless of whether the engine was a two-stroke or four-stroke. This is unlike TT Formula or motocross, where two and four strokes had different engine size limits in the same class to provide similar performance. Consequently, all machines were two-strokes, since they produce power with every rotation of the crank, whereas four-stroke engines produce power only every second rotation. Some two- and three-cylinder two-stroke 500s were seen, but though they had a minimum-weight advantage under the rules, typically attained higher corner speed and could qualify well, they lacked the power of the four-cylinder machines.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2002, rule changes were introduced to facilitate the phasing out of the 500 cc two-strokes. The premier class was rebranded MotoGP, as manufacturers were to choose between running two-stroke engines up to 500 cc or four-strokes up to 990 cc or less. Manufacturers were also permitted to employ their choice of engine configuration. Despite the increased costs of the new four-stroke engines, they were soon able to dominate their two-stroke rivals. As a result, by 2003 no two-stroke machines remained in the MotoGP field. The 125 cc and 250 cc classes still consisted exclusively of two-stroke machines.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2007, the MotoGP class had its maximum engine displacement capacity reduced to 800 cc for a minimum of five years. As a result of the 2008–2009 financial crisis, MotoGP underwent changes in an effort to cut costs. Among them are reducing Friday practice sessions and testing sessions, extending the lifespan of engines, switching to a single tyre manufacturer, and banning qualifying tyres, active suspension, launch control and ceramic composite brakes. For the 2010 season, carbon brake discs were banned.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: For the 2012 season, the MotoGP engine capacity was increased again to 1,000 cc. It also saw the introduction of Claiming Rule Teams (CRT), which were given more engines per season and larger fuel tanks than factory teams, but were subject to a factory team buying ("claiming") their rival's powertrain for a fixed price. The sport's governing body received applications from sixteen new teams looking to join the MotoGP class. For the 2014 season, the CRT subclass was rebranded Open, as the claiming rule was removed. Also, all entries adopted a standard engine control unit, with factory teams being allowed to run any software, and Open entries using a standard software. For the 2016 season, the Open subclass was dropped, and factory entries switched to a standard engine control unit software.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2010, the 250cc two-stroke class was replaced by the new Moto2 600 cc four-stroke class. In 2012, the 125cc two-stroke class was replaced by the Moto3 250cc four-stroke class with a weight limit of 65 kg with fuel. For the 2019 season Moto2 introduced the 3-cylinder, 765cc Triumph production engine, while Moto3 and MotoGP still use prototype engines.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The starting grid is composed of three columns and contains approximately 20 riders. Grid positions are decided in descending order of qualifying speed, with the fastest on the pole or first position. Races last approximately 45 minutes, each race is a sprint from start to finish without pitting for fuel or tires.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2005, a flag-to-flag rule for MotoGP was introduced. Previously, if a race started dry and rain fell, officials could red-flag (stop) the race and either restart or resume on 'wet' tyres. Now, when rain falls, a white flag is shown, indicating that riders can pit to swap the motorcycle on which they started the race for an identical one, as long as the tyres are different (that is, intermediates or wets instead of slicks). Besides different tyres, the wet-weather bikes have steel brake rotors and different brake pads instead of the carbon discs and pads used on the 'dry' bikes. This is because the carbon brakes need to be very hot to function properly, and the water cools them too much. The suspension is also 'softened' up somewhat for the wet weather.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: When a rider crashes, track marshals up the track from the incident wave yellow flags, prohibiting overtaking in that area; one corner farther up the track, a stationary yellow flag is shown. If a fallen rider cannot be evacuated safely from the track, the race is red-flagged. Motorcycle crashes are usually one of two types: lowside, when the bike loses either front or rear tire grip and slides out on the "low" side, and the more dangerous highside, when the tires do not completely slide out, but instead grip the track surface, flipping the bike over to the "high side", usually catapulting the rider over the top. Increased use of traction control has made highsides much less frequent.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The Riders' World Championship is awarded to the most successful rider over a season, as determined by a points system based on Grand Prix results.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: Giacomo Agostini is the most successful champion in Grand Prix history, with 15 titles to his name (8 in the 500 cc class and 7 in the 350 cc class). The most dominant rider of all time was Mike Hailwood, winning 10 out of 12 (83%) races, in the 250 cc class, in the 1966 season. Mick Doohan, who won 12 out of 15 (80%) of the 500 cc races in the 1997 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season also deserves an honourable mention. Valentino Rossi is the most successful contemporary rider, having won nine titles including seven 500cc/MotoGP titles (2001–2005, 2008–2009), and one each at 250 cc and 125 cc levels. The current champion is Italian rider Francesco Bagnaia.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The following shows the key technical regulations for each class. It was also introduced for the 2005 year, that under rule 2.10.5: 'No fuel on the motorcycle may be more than 15 °C below ambient temperature. The use of any device on the motorcycle to artificially decrease the temperature of the fuel below ambient temperature is forbidden. No motorcycle may include such a device.' This stops an artificial "boost" gained from increasing fuel density by cooling it.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: At the beginning of the new MotoGP era in 2002, 500 cc two-stroke or 990 cc four-stroke bikes were specified to race. The enormous power advantage of the twice as large displacement four-stroke engine over the half the size two-stroke meant that by the following season, no two-stroke bikes were racing. In 2007, the maximum engine capacity was reduced to 800 cc without reducing the existing weight restriction.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: MotoGP-class motorcycles are not restricted to any specific engine configuration. However, the number of cylinders employed in the engine determines the motorcycle's permitted minimum weight; the weight of the extra cylinders acts as a form of handicap. This is necessary because, for a given capacity, an engine with more cylinders is capable of producing more power. If comparable bore to stroke ratios are employed, an engine with more cylinders will have a greater piston area and a shorter stroke. The increased piston area permits an increase in the total valve area, allowing more air and fuel to be drawn into the engine, and the shorter stroke permits higher revs at the same piston speed, allowing the engine to pump still more air and fuel with the potential to produce more power, but with more fuel consumption too. In 2004 motorcycles were entered with three-, four-and five-cylinder configurations. A six-cylinder engine was proposed by Blata, but it did not reach the MotoGP grids. Presently four-cylinder engines appear to offer the best compromise between weight, power, and fuel consumption as all competitors in the 2009 series used this solution in either 'V' or in-line configuration.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2002, the FIM became concerned about the advances in design and engineering that resulted in higher speeds around the race track; regulation changes related to weight, amount of available fuel and engine capacity were introduced. The amended rules reduced engine capacity to 800 cc from 990 cc and restricted the amount of available fuel for race distance from in year 2004 to in year 2007 and onwards. In addition, the minimum weight of four-cylinder bikes used by all participating teams was increased by .


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The highest speed for a MotoGP motorcycle in 125 cc category is by Valentino Rossi in 1996 for Aprilia and the top speed in the history of MotoGP is , set by Jorge Martín during the race session of 2022 Italian Grand Prix with a Ducati Desmosedici GP22.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: On December 11, 2009, the Grand Prix Commission announced that the MotoGP class would switch to the 1,000 cc motor limit starting in the 2012 season. Maximum displacement was limited to 1,000 cc, maximum cylinders were limited to four, and maximum bore was capped at . Carmelo Ezpeleta, the CEO of Dorna Sports, indicated that the projected changes were received by the teams favorably.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: From 2012, teams not entered by one of the major manufacturers could seek "claiming rule team" (CRT) status. Claiming rule team were intended to allow independent teams to be competitive at a lower cost and increase the number of entries in MotoGP. Claiming rule teams benefitted from less restrictive rules on the number of engines that could be used in a season, and with larger fuel allowances during the races. Under the claiming rule, CRTs agree to allow up to four of their engines per season to be claimed, after a race, by one of the major manufacturer teams at a cost of €20,000 each including transmission, or €15,000 each for the engine alone. From the 2014 season, the CRT class was dropped in favour of an "Open Class" specification - allowing teams using the control ECU hardware and software certain benefits to increase their competitiveness.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: From 2023, Ride height – or holeshot – devices will be banned. These devices have been common place in MotoGP since the back-end of 2018, when Ducati first introduced a system that could lower the rear of its bike to help with acceleration off the line for race starts.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: Moto2 was initially a 600 cc four-stroke class introduced in 2010 to replace the traditional 250 cc two-stroke class. Engines were supplied exclusively by Honda, tires by Dunlop and electronics are limited and supplied only by FIM-sanctioned producers. Carbon brake discs are banned, only steel brake discs are allowed. However, there are no chassis limitations. Until 2019, only 600 cc four-stroke Moto2 machines were allowed.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2019 Triumph replaced Honda as the sole supplier of Moto2 engines. The Triumph's engine configuration is 765 cc displacement with three cylinders, contrasting with the previous Honda's 600 cc in-line four.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The 125 cc class was replaced in 2012 by the Moto3 class. This class is restricted to single-cylinder 250 cc four-stroke engines with a maximum bore of . The minimum total weight for motorcycle and rider is . The minimum age for the Moto3 class normally is 16, and cannot be older than 28 years, or 25 years for new contracted riders participating for the first time and wild-cards. A change of rules was introduced in 2014, allowing under-age FIM CEV Repsol Moto3 (junior) champions to participate in a subsequent Moto3 series at World Championship level. The first beneficiary of this rule-change was double (2013 and 2014) CEV champion Fabio Quartararo.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The "MotoE World Cup" was introduced in 2019 and features all-electric motorcycles. The series uses a spec Energica Ego Corsa motorcycle, manufactured by Energica Motor Company. The first season was contested over 6 rounds (at 4 Grand Prix weekends).


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: Tyre selection is critical, usually done by the individual rider based on bike 'feel' during practice, qualifying and the pre-race warm-up laps on the morning of the race, as well as the predicted weather. The typical compromise is between grip and longevity—softer compound tyres have more traction, but wear out more quickly; harder compound tyres have less traction, but are more likely to last the entire race. Conserving rubber throughout a race is a specific skill winning riders acquire. Special 'Q' or qualifying tyres of extreme softness and grip were typically used during grid-qualifying sessions until their use was discontinued at the end of the 2008 season, but they lasted typically no longer than one or two laps, though they could deliver higher qualifying speeds. In wet conditions, special tires ('wets') with full treads are used, but they suffer extreme wear if the track dries out.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2007 new MotoGP regulations limited the number of tires any rider could use over the practice and qualifying period, and the race itself, to a maximum of 31 tyres (14 fronts and 17 rears) per rider. This introduced a problem of tire choice versus weather (among other factors) that challenges riders and teams to optimize their performance on race day. This factor was greeted with varying degrees of enthusiasm by participants. Bridgestone had dominated in 2007 and Michelin riders Valentino Rossi, Nicky Hayden, Dani Pedrosa, and Colin Edwards all acknowledged shortcomings in Michelin's race tires relative to Bridgestone. Rossi, disappointed with and critical of the performance of his Michelin tires, switched to Bridgestones for 2008 and won the world championship in dominant fashion. Pedrosa controversially switched to Bridgestones during the 2008 season.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: In 2008, the rules were amended to allow more tires per race weekend—18 fronts and 22 rears for a total of 40 tires. The lower number of tires per weekend was considered a handicap to Michelin riders. The only MotoGP team using Dunlop tires in 2007, Yamaha Tech 3, did not use them in 2008 but switched to Michelin.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: For 2009, 2010 and 2011, a 'spec' tyre supplier, Bridgestone, was appointed by the FIM (with Michelin no longer supplying any tyres to MotoGP and returning to the category in 2016). For the whole season Bridgestone provided four specifications of front tyre, six of rear, and a single wet specification—with no qualifying specification. For each round Bridgestone provided only two specifications for front and rear. Tyres are assigned to riders randomly to assure impartiality. Jorge Lorenzo has publicly supported the mono tyre rule.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: At the end of the 2015 season, Bridgestone withdrew as tyre supplier of MotoGP. Following a formal tender, French tyre manufacturer Michelin became the official supplier for the 2016 season, marking their return to the series and testing began in Aragon immediately after the end of the 2015 season.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: Early Grand Prix video games include "Grand Prix 500 cc" (1987), "" (1989), "Grand Prix 500 2" (1991) and "GP-1" (1993). The first simulator was "GP 500", launched in 1999. In the early 2000s, THQ published five video games for Windows and Xbox platforms, whereas Namco published five video games for PlayStation platforms. In 2007, Capcom became the new PlayStation publisher. In 2008, THQ lost the MotoGP licence and Capcom became the exclusive publisher.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: "MotoGP 2010", an iOS game made in 2010 by I-Play, released on 3 September 2010 and was not received well by critics after having a 43% rating on Metacritic. "MotoGP 10/11" was released by Capcom on 15 March 2011, for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Metacritic gave the game a rating of 72%.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: As of 2013, Milestone srl have had the license for MotoGP video games, a contract that will now last until at least 2026.


title: Grand Prix motorcycle racing

text: The first game in this run of their contract was "MotoGP 13", which was released on 21 June 2013 on PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. The game received mixed reviews and scored 73%.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Kill Bill: Volume 2 is a 2004 American neo-Western martial arts film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars Uma Thurman as the Bride, who continues her campaign of revenge against the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad (Lucy Liu, Michael Madsen, Daryl Hannah, and Vivica A. Fox) and their leader Bill (David Carradine), who tried to kill her and her unborn child.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: "Volume 2" is the second of two "Kill Bill" films produced simultaneously; the first, "", was released six months earlier. They were originally set for a single release, but the film, with a runtime of over four hours, was divided in two. Tarantino conceived "Kill Bill" as an homage to grindhouse cinema including martial arts films, samurai cinema, blaxploitation, and spaghetti westerns. Like its predecessor, "Volume 2" received positive reviews. It grossed $152.2 million worldwide on a production budget of $30 million.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: The pregnant Bride and her groom rehearse their wedding. Bill − the Bride's former lover, the father of her child, and the leader of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad − arrives unexpectedly and orders the Deadly Vipers to kill everyone at the wedding rehearsal. Bill shoots the Bride in the head, but she survives and swears revenge.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Four years later, the Bride, having already assassinated Deadly Vipers O-Ren Ishii and Vernita Green, goes to the trailer of Bill's brother and Deadly Viper Budd, planning to ambush him. Having been warned by Bill beforehand, he incapacitates her with a non-lethal shotgun blast of rock salt and sedates her. He calls Elle Driver, another former Deadly Viper, and arranges to sell her the Bride's unique sword for $1 million. He seals the Bride inside a coffin and buries her alive.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Years earlier, Bill tells the young Bride of the legendary martial arts master Pai Mei and his Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique, a death blow that Pai refuses to teach his students; properly used, the attack is reputed to leave an opponent able to take only five steps before dying. Bill takes the Bride to Pai's temple for training. Pai ridicules and torments her during training, but she eventually gains his respect. In the present, the Bride uses Pai's techniques to escape from the coffin and claw her way to the surface.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Elle arrives at Budd's trailer and kills him with a black mamba hidden within the money for the sword. She calls Bill and tells him that the Bride has killed Budd and that she has killed the Bride, using the Bride's real name: Beatrix Kiddo. As Elle exits the trailer, Beatrix ambushes her and they fight. Elle, who was also taught by Pai, taunts Beatrix by revealing that she killed Pai by poisoning his favorite meal in retribution for him plucking out her eye after she called him "a miserable old fool". Enraged, Beatrix plucks out Elle's remaining eye and leaves her screaming in the trailer with the black mamba.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: In Acuña, Mexico, Beatrix meets a retired pimp, Esteban Vihaio, who helps her find Bill. She tracks him to a hotel, and discovers that their daughter B.B. is still alive, now four years old. Beatrix spends the evening with them. After she puts B.B. to bed, Bill shoots Beatrix with a dart containing truth serum and interrogates her. She explains that she left the Deadly Vipers when she discovered she was pregnant to give B.B. a better life. Bill explains that he assumed she was dead; he ordered her assassination when he discovered she was alive and engaged to a "jerk" he assumed was the father of her child. The two begin to fight, but Beatrix traps Bill's sword in her scabbard and strikes him with the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique. Surprised that Pai taught her the attack, Bill reconciles with her, then falls dead as he walks away. Beatrix leaves with B.B. to start a new life.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: "Kill Bill" "Volume 1" and "Volume 2" were planned and produced as a single film. After editing began, producer Harvey Weinstein, who was known for pressuring filmmakers to shorten their films, suggested that Tarantino split the film in two. The decision was announced in July 2003.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: As with Tarantino's previous films, "Kill Bill" features an eclectic soundtrack comprising many musical genres. On the two soundtracks, music ranges from country music to selections from the Spaghetti Western film scores of Ennio Morricone. Bernard Herrmann's theme from the film "Twisted Nerve" is whistled by the menacing Elle Driver in the hospital scene. A brief, 15-second excerpt from the opening of the "Ironside" theme music by Quincy Jones is used as the Bride's revenge motif, which flares up with a red-tinged flashback whenever she is in the company of her next target. Instrumental tracks from Japanese guitarist Tomoyasu Hotei figure prominently, and after the success of "Kill Bill" they were frequently used in American TV commercials and at sporting events. The end credits are driven by the rock and roll version of "Malagueña Salerosa", a traditional Mexican song, performed by "Chingon", Robert Rodriguez's band.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: "Kill Bill: Volume 2" was released in theaters on , 2004. It was originally scheduled to be released on , 2004, but was rescheduled. "Variety" posited that the delay was to coincide its theatrical release with "Volume 1"s release on DVD. In the United States and Canada, "Volume 2" was released in and grossed on its opening weekend, ranking first at the box office and beating fellow opener "The Punisher". "Volume 2"s opening weekend gross was higher than "Volume 1"s, and the equivalent success confirmed the studio's financial decision to split the film into two theatrical releases.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: "Volume 2" attracted more female theatergoers than "Volume 1", with 60% of the audience being male and 56% of the audience being men between the ages of 18 to 29 years old. "Volume 2"s opening weekend was the largest to date for Miramax Films aside from releases under its arm Dimension Films. The opening weekend was also the largest to date in the month of April for a film restricted in the United States to theatergoers 17 years old and up, besting "Life"s 1999 record. "Volume 2"s opening weekend was strengthened by the reception of "Volume 1" in the previous year among audiences and critics, abundant publicity related to the splitting into two volumes, and the DVD release of "Volume 1" in the week before "Volume 2"s theatrical release.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Outside of the United States and Canada, "Volume 2" was released in 20 territories over the weekend of , 2004. It grossed an estimated and ranked first at the international box office, ending an eight-week streak held by "The Passion of the Christ". "Volume 2" grossed a total of in the United States and Canada and in other territories for a worldwide total of .


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: In a December 2005 interview, Tarantino addressed the lack of a special edition DVD for "Kill Bill" by stating "I've been holding off because I've been working on it for so long that I just wanted a year off from "Kill Bill" and then I'll do the big supplementary DVD package."


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: The United States does not have a DVD boxed set of "Kill Bill", though box sets of the two separate volumes are available in other countries, such as France, Japan and the United Kingdom. Upon the DVD release of "Volume 2" in the US, however, Best Buy did offer an exclusive box set slipcase to house the two individual releases together.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Both "Volume 1" and "Volume 2", were released in High Definition on Blu-ray on September 9, 2008 in the United States.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: At the 2008 Provincetown International Film Festival, Tarantino announced that the original cut of "Kill Bill", incorporating both films and an extended animation sequence, would be released in May 2009 as Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair. Screenings began on March 27, 2011 at the New Beverly Cinema.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, "Kill Bill: Volume 2" holds an approval rating of 84% based on 244 reviews, with an average rating of 7.80/10. The website's critical consensus states, ""Kill Bill: Volume 2" adds extra plot and dialogue to the action-heavy exploits of its predecessor, while still managing to deliver a suitably hard-hitting sequel." At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score to reviews from mainstream critics, the film received an average score of 83 out of 100 based on 41 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, a grade up from the "B+" earned by the previous film.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Roger Ebert gave the film 4 stars out of 4, writing: "Put the two parts together, and Tarantino has made a masterful saga that celebrates the martial arts genre while kidding it, loving it, and transcending it. ... This is all one film, and now that we see it whole, it's greater than its two parts." In 2009, he named "Kill Bill" one of the 20 best films of the decade.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: Uma Thurman received a Golden Globe Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama nomination in 2005 for her role. David Carradine also received a Best Supporting Actor nomination in the same year. "Kill Bill: Volume 2" was placed in "Empire" Magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Films of All Time" at number 423 and the Bride was also ranked number 66 in "Empire" magazine's "100 Greatest Movie Characters".


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: At the 2006 San Diego Comic-Con International, Tarantino stated that, after the completion of "Grindhouse", he wanted to make two anime "Kill Bill" films: an origin story about Bill and his mentors, and another origin starring the Bride. Details emerged around 2007 about two possible sequels, "Kill Bill: Volume 3" and "Volume 4". According to the article, "the third film involves the revenge of two killers whose arms and eye were hacked by Uma Thurman in the first stories." The article adds that the "fourth installment of the popular kung fu action films concerns a cycle of reprisals and daughters who avenge their mother's deaths". In 2020, Vivica A. Fox, who portrayed Vernita Green in the first film, suggested original actress Ambrosia Kelley would reprise her role as the grown up Nikki in the film, expressing interest in Zendaya being cast in the role if Kelley would be unable to return.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: At the 2009 Morelia International Film Festival, Tarantino stated that he intended to make a third "Kill Bill" film. The same month, he stated that "Kill Bill 3" would be his ninth film, and would be released in 2014. He said he wanted 10 years to pass after the Bride's last conflict, to give her and her daughter a period of peace.


title: Kill Bill: Volume 2

text: In December 2012, Tarantino said there would "probably not" be a third film." However, in July 2019, Tarantino said that he and Thurman had talked again about a possible sequel, and added "If any of my movies were going to spring from my other movies, it would be a third "Kill Bill"." In December 2019, Tarantino said he had spoken to Thurman about an "interesting" idea for a new film: "It would be at least three years from now. It is definitely in the cards". In June 2021 Tarantino stated that the potential film would take place 20 years following the original volumes, and was excited about the possibility of Thurman and her daughter Maya Hawke playing the Bride and B.B. respectively. He also noted the possibility of Elle Driver, Sofie Fatale, and Gogo's twin sister Shiaki also appearing in the film. Later that month, Tarantino said that none of the potential sequels or prequels had come to fruition, due to his reluctance to take on more "Kill Bill" films following the fatigue he endured in the making of the first two volumes.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Rio Gavin Ferdinand (born 7 November 1978) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-back, and is now a television pundit for BT Sport. He played 81 times for the England national team between 1997 and 2011, and was a member of three FIFA World Cup squads. He is one of the most decorated English footballers of all time and regarded by many as one of England's greatest ever players.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand began his football career playing for various youth teams, finally settling at West Ham United where he progressed through the youth ranks and made his professional Premier League debut in 1996. He became a fan favourite, winning the "Hammer of the Year" award the following season. He earned his first senior international cap in a match against Cameroon in 1997, setting a record as the youngest defender to play for England at the time. His achievements and footballing potential attracted Leeds United and he transferred to the club for a record-breaking fee of £18 million. He spent two seasons at the club, becoming the team captain in 2001, before he joined Manchester United in July 2002 for around £30 million, breaking the transfer fee record once more.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: At Manchester United, he won the Premier League, his first major club honour, in a successful first season at the club. In September 2003, he missed a drugs test and was banned from football for eight months from January until September 2004, causing him to miss half a Premier League season, Manchester United's FA Cup triumph, and the Euro 2004 international competition. Upon his return, he established himself in the Manchester United first team and received plaudits for his performances, featuring in the PFA Team of the Year four times in five years. More club success followed with another Premier League win in the 2006–07 season and a Premier League and UEFA Champions League double the following year. His career at United, in which he won six Premier League titles and 14 trophies, ended when his contract expired in 2014, and he subsequently joined Queens Park Rangers where he played for just one season before being released from the club as a result of their relegation from the Premier League. He announced his retirement from professional football on 30 May 2015.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In September 2017, Ferdinand announced his intention to become a professional boxer, partly to help him cope with the death of his wife. His brother, Anton, also a centre-back, last played for St Mirren. Former England international striker Les Ferdinand and former Dagenham & Redbridge midfielder Kane Ferdinand are his cousins.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Rio Gavin Ferdinand was born on 7 November 1978 at King's College Hospital in Camberwell and grew up in Peckham. He is the son of an Irish mother, Janice Lavender, and an Afro-Saint Lucian father, Julian Ferdinand.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand grew up in Peckham in a large family, his mother was one of six children and his father arrived in Britain with ten other family members. Both parents worked to support the family, his mother as a child carer and his father as a tailor. His parents never married and they separated when he was 14 years old. His father remained close, moving to a nearby estate, and took the kids to football training and to local parks. Ferdinand attended Camelot Primary School. At school, he focused on maths and revelled in the opportunity to perform before an audience during a school production of "Bugsy Malone".


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: "I always as a kid wanted to do something different, I'd get bored very easily – even playing football or hanging around with my mates. So travelling away from home, meeting new people. ... I enjoyed it."


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: He chose to attend Blackheath Bluecoat School to make new friends and settled in well, feeling his confidence growing. His second year was marred by the death of a fellow pupil, Stephen Lawrence, and the event demonstrated the ever-present threat of violence. Ferdinand enjoyed physical expression, taking part in not just football and gymnastics classes but drama, theatre and ballet too. He was an able child: he represented Southwark in gymnastics at the London Youth Games, by age 10 he had been invited to train at the Queens Park Rangers academy, and at age 11 he won a scholarship to attend the Central School of Ballet in London. Ferdinand attended the ballet classes, travelling to the city centre four days a week for four years.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand's superior footballing abilities were evident even as a child: when he was 11 years old a youth coach, David Goodwin, remarked "I'm going to call you Pelé, son, I like the way you play." Ferdinand was regularly playing in youth teams and at Eltham Town he played as an attacking midfielder but team scouts saw the young player had the physical potential to be a centre-back instead. Teams vied for the young footballer's services and during his youth he trained with Charlton Athletic, Chelsea, Millwall and Queens Park Rangers. Ferdinand was ever curious of different places and even travelled north to Middlesbrough's training ground, spending a good part of his school holidays in a bedsit just to be there.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: London team West Ham United was to be his footballing home, however, and he joined their youth system in 1992. He signed his first Youth Training Scheme contract in January 1994 and played alongside players such as Frank Lampard at the academy. Success pending at club level, international football also began for Ferdinand; at 16 he joined the England youth-team squad to compete in their age group's UEFA European Championship, gaining his first experience of international competition.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Originally scouted by Frank Lampard, Ferdinand progressed through the youth-team ranks, earning a professional contract and a place in the first-team squad in the process. On 5 May 1996, he made his senior team debut, as he came on as a substitute for Tony Cottee in the Hammers' last game of the season, a 1–1 home draw against Sheffield Wednesday. During the summer of 1997, Manchester United made enquires about Ferdinand before they turned to Henning Berg after West Ham rejected any sale.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In November 1996, Ferdinand joined AFC Bournemouth on loan. He made his debut on 9 November in a 1–1 away draw against Blackpool. He played 10 games for Bournemouth before returning to West Ham in January 1997.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand joined Premier League club Leeds United in November 2000 for £18 million, then a British transfer record as well as becoming the world's most expensive defender. Despite an uncomfortable start to his career at Elland Road, beginning with a 3–1 defeat at Leicester City on his debut, Ferdinand settled well and became an integral part of the Leeds team that reached the semi-final stage of the UEFA Champions League, scoring with a header in the quarter-final against Spain's Deportivo La Coruña. Other highlights during his spell in Yorkshire included goals against Liverpool at Anfield and a scoring return to Upton Park.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: The following season, in August 2001, he became the club captain after replacing Lucas Radebe and turned in an impressive second campaign, despite Leeds' failure to break into the top three and secure qualification for the competition they had figured in so prominently during the previous season. During the 2002 FIFA World Cup, rumours began circulating that the club were in dire financial trouble and that new manager Terry Venables would be forced to part with his star defender for a substantial amount of cash. Later that summer after Ferdinand's impressive World Cup for England, Leeds accepted a bid of £29.3 million with possible performance related add-ons up to £33.3 million due to their perilous financial position. Years later, Rio admitted he sat in the office of Leeds chairman Peter Ridsdale for almost six hours to force the transfer through.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 22 July 2002, Ferdinand joined fellow Premier League side Manchester United on a five-year deal to become the most expensive British footballer in history at the time and the world's most expensive defender for a second time, a title he had lost in 2001 to Lilian Thuram. Ferdinand went on to win the Premier League title with Manchester United in his first season at the club. He collected a winner's medal in the 2006 League Cup, with runners-up medals in the 2003 League Cup and the 2005 FA Cup.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In September 2003, he failed to attend a drug test scheduled to take place at United's Carrington training ground. Ferdinand had left after training to go shopping, only to remember and attempt to return, only to be told it was too late. He later undertook the test and passed, and also later offered to have a hair follicle test, but the FA turned down the offer. The Football Association (FA) Disciplinary Committee, chaired by Barry Bright, imposed an eight-month ban from January 2004 at club and international level and a £50,000 fine, meaning he would miss the rest of the season and some of the next along with all of Euro 2004. United appealed against the verdict and sought to draw parallels to the case of Manchester City player Christian Negouai, who was fined £2,000 for missing a test. In the end, the original verdict was upheld. In September, it was announced that he would make his return against Liverpool; Alex Ferguson praised his "assuredness and composure" as United won the match 2–1.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In a fixture against Charlton Athletic in May 2005, United supporters booed Ferdinand amidst his refusal to sign a new contract. Ferdinand still hadn't signed a new contract in July and faced pressure from Ferguson to sign it, taking away his position as vice-captain. Ferdinand was booed during several pre-season friendlies in July and August, before finally signing a new four-year contract. Ferdinand later reflected on the saga, saying how he used it as motivation to change the views of United's supporters from negative to positive.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 14 December, in a game against Wigan Athletic, Ferdinand scored his first goal for United, en route to a 4–0 victory. He followed this later in the month with a powerfully headed goal against West Bromwich Albion. On 22 January 2006, Ferdinand scored a last minute winner against Liverpool at Old Trafford. In the corresponding fixture in the following season on 22 October, Ferdinand scored again in a 2–0 victory.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Following impressive and consistent performances in the league, Rio Ferdinand was named in the 2006–07 PFA Premiership Team of the Season, alongside seven of his Manchester United teammates.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand started the 2007–08 season well, he was part of a United defence that managed to keep six clean sheets in a row in the Premier League, before conceding an early goal to Aston Villa at Villa Park on 20 October 2007. It was also during this game where Ferdinand scored his first goal of the season, which was United's third goal of that game, with a left foot strike which took a very strong deflection off one of Villa's defenders. Just three days later, Ferdinand scored his first European goal for United by opening the scoring against Dynamo Kyiv, with a superb header. United dominated the game and won 4–2.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 12 January 2008, Ferdinand bagged a rare Premier League goal in a 6–0 hammering of Newcastle United at Old Trafford. In their FA Cup quarter-final match against Portsmouth on 8 March 2008 when Manchester United dominated, Ferdinand made a rare appearance as a goalkeeper, after Edwin van der Sar left the pitch with a groin injury and the replacement keeper, Tomasz Kuszczak, was sent off after conceding a penalty. Despite diving the right way, he was unable to save Sulley Muntari's spot kick, and Manchester United were eliminated from the FA Cup. On 6 April 2008, against Middlesbrough, Ferdinand limped out of the match due to a foot injury. He was rated doubtful whether he would face A.S. Roma in the UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg on 9 April 2008. He would play the full 90 minutes, though he received three stitches at half-time.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: After United's 2–1 loss to Chelsea in the Premier League in April 2008, Ferdinand swore at Chelsea stewards and tried to kick a wall in the tunnel, but instead kicked a female steward, Tracy Wray. Ferdinand claimed to have merely brushed her with his foot. He said he had apologised and sent the steward some flowers. However, Wray showed the bruise on her leg to the media, and her husband claimed that Ferdinand had not apologised or sent flowers.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: It was announced on 18 April 2008 that, along with Michael Carrick and Wes Brown, Ferdinand had agreed to sign a new five-year contract, worth around £130,000 a week, that would keep him with United until 2013. On 21 May 2008, Ferdinand captained Manchester United to a Champions League Final victory versus Chelsea. He accepted the trophy together with Ryan Giggs, as Giggs was the on field captain for most of the matches during that season during Gary Neville's absence due to injury.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live he criticised FIFA's approach to tackling racism in football, stating that not enough was being done to punish those guilty of homophobic or racist abuse at matches. Regarding taunts aimed at Emile Heskey in England's 4–1 victory against Croatia in Zagreb, Ferdinand remarked:"Croatia were fined a few thousand quid. What's that going to do? That is not going to stop people shouting racist or homophobic abuse...If things like this keep happening you have to take points off them. Then the punters will realise the team is going to be punished."


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand had an injury plagued 2009–10 season, a number of back and knee injuries kept him on the sidelines for months. He returned to action on 28 January 2010, but was banned for four games after being found guilty of violent conduct for elbowing Hull City's Craig Fagan.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Due to a knee injury he suffered in the summer of 2010, which ruled him out of the World Cup for England, he missed all of pre-season, the Community Shield and the first four games of the 2010–11 Premier League season. He returned to first-team football in the opening game of the Champions League group stage against Rangers on 14 September. He captained the side and played the full 90 minutes in a goalless draw. He started the season opening game in August 2011, the 2011 FA Community Shield, where United found themselves 2–0 down at half time to city rivals Manchester City. Ferdinand was taken off after 45 minutes along with defensive partner Nemanja Vidić and replaced by Jonny Evans and Phil Jones respectively. United went on to win the game 3–2 and Ferdinand claimed his fourth Community Shield medal of his career. Ferdinand started in the opening Premier League match of the season at West Bromwich Albion, a game United won 2–1, but he went off with a hamstring injury after 75 minutes. After the match, Alex Ferguson confirmed that Ferdinand would be out for six weeks. Ferdinand however recovered much quicker than initially diagnosed and returned to take a place on the bench two weeks later at Old Trafford in United's 8–2 demolition of Arsenal, although he did not play a part in the game. Ferdinand made his return to competitive action in a 1–1 draw against Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 9 December 2012, Ferdinand was struck and injured by a coin thrown from the home crowd during United's 3–2 derby victory away from home against Manchester City.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 5 March 2013, Ferdinand, unhappy with the referee Cüneyt Çakır's decision to send off Nani during a 2–1 Champions League defeat to Real Madrid at Old Trafford, clapped sarcastically in the referee's face after the game. He escaped any punishment from UEFA for the incident.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 12 May 2013, Ferdinand scored the winner and final goal of the Alex Ferguson era at Old Trafford in a 2–1 victory over Swansea City. After a corner was missed by everyone, the ball found its way to Ferdinand at the back post and he hit it on the volley to seal the win. On 23 May 2013, it was announced that Ferdinand had secured a new one-year contract that would see him stay with the club until the end of the 2013–14 season. He was not offered an extension when that contract expired, and agreed to leave Manchester United on 12 May 2014. In a letter on his official website, he said "I am feeling fit and healthy, ready for a new challenge and looking forward to whatever the future holds for me."


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 17 July 2014, Ferdinand signed for newly promoted Premier League club Queens Park Rangers on a one-year contract. He returned to Old Trafford for the first time since leaving Manchester United on 14 September 2014 to face his former club in the Premier League in which his side was beaten 4–0.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In October 2014, Ferdinand confirmed in an interview on "The Jonathan Ross Show" that he would retire at the end of the season, saying "I'm not fearful of retirement, I'm looking forward to it, I can see some good stuff hopefully happening ahead". In May 2015, following their relegation, Queens Park Rangers announced the release of Ferdinand in the summer. He made only 12 appearances for QPR in his only season with the club.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 30 May 2015, Ferdinand announced his retirement from professional football, three days after his departure from QPR.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand was capped 81 times for England, making him England's second most capped black player behind Ashley Cole with 107. Although Ferdinand was named in four consecutive England World Cup squads (albeit without playing in 1998 and missing 2010 through injury), he never went to a European Championship due to a ban for missing a drugs test and due to England's failure to qualify for UEFA Euro 2008.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand scored three goals for England, the first in the 2002 World Cup second round match against Denmark (although some sources credit this goal as a Thomas Sørensen own goal). The second was a near-post strike that beat the Russian goalkeeper Vyacheslav Malafeev in England's Euro 2008 qualifier against Russia on 12 September 2007 at Wembley Stadium. The third on 11 October 2008 in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match at home to Kazakhstan. England won 5–1.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: At the age of 19 years and 8 days, Ferdinand earned his first full England cap as a substitute in a friendly against Cameroon on 15 November 1997, making him the youngest defender to play for England at the time (a record broken in 2006 by Micah Richards). Ferdinand would have made an even earlier debut in September had he not been charged with drink-driving in the build-up to England's 1998 World Cup qualifier against Moldova. Ferdinand was named in the squad for this game and was a likely starter; however, the public mourning for Princess Diana – whose chauffeur had been suspected of drink-driving – left Glenn Hoddle with little choice but to drop the teenager from the squad. After an impressive 1997–98 season he was selected for the 1998 FIFA World Cup squad as a back-up defender. However, he was not selected in Kevin Keegan's 22-man squad for UEFA Euro 2000.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: After his £18 million move to Leeds United, Ferdinand was named in the starting line-up by caretaker manager Peter Taylor in a friendly match against Italy and quickly established himself as a first-choice player under Sven-Göran Eriksson. He was selected as one of England's two first-choice centre-backs at the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups, wearing the number 5 shirt.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: John Terry (with whom Ferdinand would later partner in central defence) replaced Ferdinand in the England side throughout his eight-month ban until his return on 9 October 2004 in their World Cup qualifier against Wales. Ferdinand played ten World Cup finals matches for England, recording clean sheets against Argentina, Nigeria and Denmark in 2002, and Paraguay, Trinidad & Tobago, Ecuador and Portugal in 2006.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 25 March 2008, it was announced that Ferdinand would wear the captain's armband for Fabio Capello's second game in charge of the national team, ahead of John Terry, Steven Gerrard or David Beckham, who some believed would be named captain to mark his 100th cap for his country. An FA statement suggested that the decision to name Ferdinand as captain was part of Capello's plans of rotating the captaincy before naming an official captain for September's World Cup qualifiers. On 19 August, however, Ferdinand lost out to Terry in retaining the captain's armband but was named vice-captain by Fabio Capello.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: A mistake in the match between England and Ukraine in Dnipropetrovsk on 10 October 2009, which led to the sending off of Robert Green, caused some to question his inclusion in the squad. A lack of match practice for his club and a series of errors such as he suffered in his early days as a footballer led to criticism of his inclusion from several corners.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Although back and groin injury problems forced him to miss much of the 2009–10 domestic season, Ferdinand was selected to captain England at the 2010 World Cup. However, he suffered a knee ligament injury during the team's first training session in South Africa on 4 June and was subsequently ruled out of the tournament. On 19 March 2011, ahead of England's Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales, Capello announced that John Terry was to be re-instated as permanent England captain and that Ferdinand would return to his role of vice-captain.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand was left out of Roy Hodgson's squad for Euro 2012, leading to strong speculation this was to avoid potential conflict with John Terry, who was included in the squad, due to Terry's upcoming trial for racially abusing Ferdinand's brother Anton. Further controversy arose after Gary Cahill was ruled out of the tournament, with 22-year-old Martin Kelly with only two minutes of international football being called up as a replacement instead of Ferdinand. This led to Ferdinand's representative Jamie Moralee accusing Hodgson of showing a "lack of respect".


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 3 October 2012, the "Daily Mirror" reported that Roy Hodgson had revealed to fellow passengers on the London Underground that Ferdinand would no longer be considered for England duty, despite the retirement of John Terry. Hodgson later apologised for these comments and denied that he was ruling Ferdinand out of playing for England again.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 14 March 2013, Ferdinand was recalled to the England squad for the first time under Hodgson for England's 2014 World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Montenegro, though subsequently Ferdinand pulled out of the squad on 18 March due to 'fitness concerns'. Ferdinand said he was "gutted" at having to withdraw but said it was the "right decision". However, Roy Hodgson assured Ferdinand he still had an international future despite the withdrawal.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In May 2013, Ferdinand announced his retirement from international football, saying that "it's the right time to make room for young players and focus on the club career".


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand was considered an atypical defensive product of English football due to his more elegant, graceful, and "continental" rather than physical style of defensive play; in particular, he was singled out for his unique technical ability, skill, balance, and confidence on the ball, despite his height, as well as his composure in possession, distribution with either foot, and his ability to carry the ball forward or play it out from the back on the ground. As such, due to his mobility and ball–playing ability, he was often paired with a more physical centre-back throughout his career, such as Nemanja Vidić with Manchester United, or John Terry with England. Although he often played in a central defensive pairing in a back–four throughout his career, he was also capable of playing in the centre of a three–man back–line, in which he essentially functioned as a sweeper, courtesy of his technique and passing. Due to his ball skills, he occasionally drew criticism from pundits and his managers in his youth for taking unnecessary risks in possession, and committing mistakes, although he improved upon this aspect of the game as he matured with age and experience.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: A world-class defender, who was considered to be one of the best stoppers in the world at his peak, Ferdinand is regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation, and as one of England's, Manchester United's, and the Premier League's best ever centre-backs. In his prime, he was also praised for his pace, work-rate, and tackling, in addition to his positioning, consistency, intelligence, and ability to read the game. He was also an athletic and physically strong defender, who was reliable in the air, although at times he was criticised in the media for his aerial game, as well as his ability to defend high balls and set pieces, in particular in his youth. In addition to his defensive skills, he also possessed significant leadership qualities. Despite his ability, however, his later career was marked by injuries, which led him to lose the exceptional pace which had characterised him in his early career, and which previously allowed him to compensate for the occasional lapses in concentration he experienced in his youth; as such, he occasionally struggled against faster opponents with his advancing age.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In September 2017, Ferdinand announced that he was launching a career to become a professional boxer. His move into the ring was sponsored by betting company Betfair, who assisted him in attempting to qualify for his British Boxing Board of Control (BBBC) licence before he began training and competing. Ferdinand stated that "I'm doing this [boxing] because it's a challenge, I've won titles and now I'm aiming for a belt." It was announced in May 2018 that Ferdinand had been refused a professional boxing licence by the British Boxing Board of Control. BBBofC general secretary Robert Smith told BBC Sport."There are a lot of things we take into consideration. He never had a competitive fight and although he has been in the gym, there is a difference between being in the gym and boxing. We do not deem it beneficial for him to have a licence." Following the rejection, Ferdinand announced that he was "hanging-up his gloves".


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 20 October 2013, Ferdinand and Roy Hodgson were appointed to the Football Association's commission to improve the state of the national game.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand grew up in the Friary council estate, Peckham. He has several brothers and sisters: one brother and three sisters on his father's side and a brother and sister from his mother's remarriage. His brother, Anton Ferdinand, also played as a defender, while his cousins are Les Ferdinand and Kane Ferdinand. Although he spent the majority of his career with Manchester United, he grew up supporting rivals Liverpool.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In 2006 in Manchester, Ferdinand's girlfriend Rebecca Ellison gave birth to their first son. The couple had two more children. In 2010, Ferdinand unsuccessfully sued the "Sunday Mirror" to prevent the publication of a story about an alleged affair with Carly Storey. During the case, it was alleged that then-England captain Ferdinand had affairs with 10 different women.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ellison and Ferdinand married in 2009. Ellison died of breast cancer on 2 May 2015, aged 34. Ferdinand's memoir of his wife's illness and subsequent bereavement, "Thinking Out Loud", was co-written with Decca Aitkenhead, and published in October 2017.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 27 September 2019, Ferdinand married for the second time, to Kate Wright. The ceremony was attended by his children, along with the couple's other close family members. In June 2020, Ferdinand and Wright announced that they were expecting their first child together, the child, a boy, was born on 18 December 2020.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand set up the Live the Dream Foundation charity in December 2009 to provide education and employment opportunities for children.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Although Ferdinand has never voted before in a general election, he backed a Remain vote in the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In 2000, Ferdinand briefly appeared in a sexually explicit video filmed at the Ayia Napa resort in Cyprus along with fellow English footballers Kieron Dyer and Frank Lampard. Channel 4 aired a brief clip as part of their 2004 documentary "Sex, Footballers and Videotape", claiming it was used to "remind the viewer that this is based on real life".


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In 2002, during the rape trial of their acquaintance Martin King, Ferdinand and former Leeds colleague Michael Duberry denied allegations that Duberry had molested the woman and Ferdinand had threatened her in the Leeds nightclub Hi-Fi on the night of 22 January, as well as further allegations of scuffling and drunkenness. Both men were interviewed by the police but the Crown Prosecution Service announced in April 2003 that they would not face charges. King was found guilty of indecent assault and attempted rape.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: During a radio interview on "The Chris Moyles Show" in October 2006, Ferdinand attracted two listener complaints and criticism from gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell when he called Moyles a faggot, followed by "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm not homophobic", after Moyles had jokingly suggested he was homosexual. BBC Radio 1 later dismissed the exchange as banter, while Tatchell said "since [he] very promptly apologised, I am happy to accept his regret and leave it at that".


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In the wake of a court case involving John Terry and Rio's brother Anton, in which Terry was found not guilty of racial abuse, Rio Ferdinand sparked media controversy by expressing amusement at the comments of a Twitter user who referred to Ashley Cole, who had testified in Terry's favour, as a "choc ice", a slang term which is commonly understood to mean "black on the outside, white on the inside". Ferdinand deleted the tweet shortly afterwards and denied choc ice is a racist term, adding, "And if I want to laugh at something someone tweets...I will! Hahahahaha! Now stop getting ya knickers in a twist!" Cole's lawyers released a statement in response, stating that he would not be taking the matter further. Ferdinand's words were condemned as "insensitive and untimely" by Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) chief Clarke Carlisle. In August 2012, Ferdinand was fined £45,000 for his Twitter remarks after an Independent Regulatory Commission found him guilty of bringing the game into disrepute with an "improper" comment which included "a reference to ethnic origin, colour or race."


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In October 2014, Ferdinand was again charged by the FA for using offensive language on Twitter, after referring to the mother of a critic as a "sket", a Jamaican slang word for a promiscuous female. Ferdinand was fined £25,000 for the offence and banned from playing for three games. The FA considered Ferdinand's position as a "role model" to be an aggravating factor for the penalty, in addition to it being his second Twitter offence within three years and no admission of wrongdoing.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In March 2015, it was announced that Ferdinand would be the new face of online casino Casino Floor. The announcement provoked strong criticism on Twitter from a number of Ferdinand's followers, who suggested it was inappropriate that a role model for young people should endorse gambling particularly given the well documented struggles of many of his peers with problem gambling.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In September 1997, Ferdinand was convicted of drink-driving and given a one-year driving ban. He had been breathalysed after driving on the morning after a night out, and was found to be one point over the limit. As a result, England manager Glenn Hoddle dropped Ferdinand from the squad to face Moldova in a World Cup qualification match on 10 September, meaning Ferdinand lost out on the chance, at 18 years and 10 months of age, of becoming the youngest England international since Duncan Edwards.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In March 2003, Ferdinand was given another six-month ban from driving, and fined £2,500 and six penalty points for driving at an average of along the M1. In May 2005, he was criticised by a magistrate as he received his fourth ban from driving and a fine of £1,500, after being caught by traffic police "travelling at an average of over a distance of nearly two miles" on the M6 motorway. Upon setting the penalty, the magistrate said Ferdinand "should be a positive role model for young people in society and this does not give out the right message". It followed two previous bans for speeding, in 2002 and 2003.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In August 2020, Ferdinand was banned from driving for six months after he admitted speeding on the A27 at Hangleton in Hove. Ferdinand was reported to have driven at 85 mph. He was ordered to pay a total of £822 in fines and costs.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: He was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2022 Birthday Honours for services to association football and charity, having set up the Rio Ferdinand Foundation in 2022, a charity which works with young people and aids community development.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: The Duran Duran song "Rio" has been used in football chants both for and against Ferdinand; in 2002, fan Simon Le Bon (Duran Duran's lead singer) promised to re-record one of the football chants if the England team (featuring Ferdinand) won their World Cup quarter-final against Brazil.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: Ferdinand was sponsored by sportswear company Nike and appeared in Nike commercials. In a global Nike advertising campaign in the run-up to the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, he starred in a "Secret Tournament" commercial (branded "Scorpion KO") directed by Terry Gilliam, appearing alongside football players such as Thierry Henry, Ronaldo, Francesco Totti, Ronaldinho, Luís Figo, Fabio Cannavaro, and Hidetoshi Nakata, with former player Eric Cantona the tournament "referee".


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In 2005, Ferdinand, along with an old school friend, created the record label White Chalk Music. To date, there are two artists signed to the label: Melody Johnston and Nia Jai. The latter released an album on 6 October 2010, which features Ferdinand rapping.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In June 2006, ahead of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Ferdinand presented the TV show "Rio's World Cup Wind-Ups", in which he carried out a series of practical jokes on his England teammates. It was broadcast immediately after England's opening World Cup game against Paraguay.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: He made his first foray into the world of cinema in late 2008, financing and becoming an executive producer of Alex de Rakoff's film "Dead Man Running". The film features Danny Dyer and 50 Cent in a gangster-themed plot. Ferdinand will share production credits with England teammate Ashley Cole.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In 2008, Ferdinand filmed a documentary about Peckham, aiming to persuade youngsters away from a life of crime.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: On 16 January 2009, it was announced that he would working with publishing company Made Up Media to launch a digital magazine. In conjunction with this, Ferdinand was guest editor of the February edition of the "Observer Sport Monthly", providing interviews with people ranging from Gordon Brown to Usain Bolt. The magazine, called "#5 Magazine", had its first issue published in April of that year.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In 2015, he joined BT Sport as a pundit for their coverage of the Premier League, FA Cup, UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.


title: Rio Ferdinand

text: In March 2017, Ferdinand discussed strategies for coping with bereavement in the BBC One documentary "Rio Ferdinand: Being Mum and Dad". The programme won the Robert Flaherty Award for Single Documentary at the 2018 BAFTA Awards.


title: Kmart

text: Kmart Corporation ( , doing business as Kmart and stylized as kmart) is an American retail company that owns a chain of big box department stores. The company is headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States.


title: Kmart

text: The company was incorporated in 1899 as S. S. Kresge Corporation and renamed Kmart Corporation in 1977. The first store with the Kmart name opened in 1962 in Garden City, Michigan. At its peak in 1994, Kmart operated 2,486 stores globally, including 2,323 discount stores and Super Kmart Center locations in the United States. As of April 16, 2022, that number was down to nine, including just three in the continental United States. From 2005 through 2019, Kmart was a subsidiary of Sears Holdings Corporation. Since 2019, Kmart has been a subsidiary of Transform SR Brands LLC, a privately held company that was formed in 2019 to acquire assets from Sears Holdings.


title: Kmart

text: S. S. Kresge, the founder of the company that would become Kmart, met variety-store pioneer Frank Winfield Woolworth while working as a traveling salesman and selling to all 19 of Woolworth's stores at the time. In 1897, Kresge invested $6,700 saved from his job into a five-and-dime store in Memphis, Tennessee. He jointly owned the first store with his former tinware customer, John McCrory. Kresge and McCrory added a second store in downtown Detroit the following year. These were the first S.S. Kresge stores. After two years of partnership, he traded McCrory his share in the Memphis store, plus $3,000, for full ownership of the Detroit store, and formed the Kresge & Wilson Company with his brother-in-law, Charles J. Wilson.


title: Kmart

text: In 1912, Kresge incorporated the S.S. Kresge Company in Delaware with 85 stores. In 1916, Kresge incorporated a new S.S. Kresge Company in Michigan and took over the operations of the original company; the new company in Michigan is the modern day Kmart company. The company was first listed on the New York Stock Exchange on May 23, 1918. During World War I, Kresge experimented with raising the limit on prices in his stores to $1. By 1924, Kresge was worth approximately $375 million and owned real estate of the approximate value of $100 million. Growth early in the 20th century remained brisk, with 257 stores in 1924, rising to 597 stores by 1929. Kresge retired as president in 1925. The Great Depression reduced profitability and resulted in store closings, with the number rising to 682 in 1940. After the war, shopping patterns changed and many customers moved out of the cities into the suburbs.


title: Kmart

text: Under the leadership of executive Harry Cunningham, S.S. Kresge Company opened the first Kmart-named store, at , which was referred to by Kresge as a "bantam" Kmart and was in fact originally intended to be a Kresge store until late in the planning process, on January 25, 1962, in San Fernando, California, just six months before the first Walmart opened, while the first ground-up full-size Kmart with , opened on March 1, 1962, in Garden City, Michigan. Cunningham and Sam Walton were both inspired by Ann & Hope, which they each visited in 1961. Sixteen more Kmart stores opened in 1962. Kmart Foods, a now-defunct chain of Kmart supermarkets, opened in that decade. Though the store chain continued to open Kmart branded stores, the store chain was still officially called S.S. Kresge Company.


title: Kmart

text: Around the time of the opening of the first Kmart, some poorly performing S.S. Kresge stores were converted to a new "Jupiter Discount Stores" brand, which was conceived as a bare-bones, deep discount outfit. During the 1970s, Kmart put a number of competing retailers out of business. Kresge, Jupiter and Kmart stores mainly competed with other store chains like Zayre, Ames, Bradlees, Caldor, Hills, and those that were operated by MMG-McCrory Stores (McCrory, McLellan, H.L. Green, J.J. Newberry, S.H. Kress, TG&Y, Silver's and eventually G.C. Murphy Co.). In 1977, S.S. Kresge Company changed its name to K Mart Corporation.


title: Kmart

text: In 1981, the 2,000th Kmart store opened. By the end of 1981, there were 2,055 Kmart stores across the United States and Canada.


title: Kmart

text: In 1987, the Kmart Corporation sold its remaining 76 Kresge and Jupiter stores in the United States to McCrory Stores, and the brands were almost entirely discontinued, although Canadian Kresge and Jupiter stores continued to operate until 1994.


title: Kmart

text: Kmart experimented with co-branding in 1985, when the in-store cafeteria at the store in Canton, Michigan, was converted to a Wendy's.


title: Kmart

text: Until November 1990, when it was passed by Walmart, Kmart was the second-largest retailer in the United States, after Sears. During the 1980s, the company's fortunes began to change; many of Kmart's stores were considered to be outdated and in decaying condition. In the late 1980s and into the 1990s, the corporate office shifted much of its focus from the Kmart stores to other companies it had acquired or created, such as Sports Authority, Builders Square, and Waldenbooks.


title: Kmart

text: The Blue Light Special was a sale promotion within the store for a short period within store hours only. It was advertised using a rotating blue light, in the same style a police car used, and was announced over the store public address system with the phrase "attention Kmart shoppers", a phrase which became a pop culture reference. The original Blue Light Special limited-time offers to sell slower moving merchandise was first introduced in 1965, was retired in 1991. The company brought back the Blue Light Special in 2001, but again discontinued it in 2002. The concept was briefly revived in 2005, though Kmart at that time had no plans to use the concept long-term. Blue Light Specials were revived again in 2009 on Saturdays, offering surprise hour-long sales on selected merchandise, but were discontinued again. Blue Light Specials were revived once again in November 2015.


title: Kmart

text: In 1990, in an effort to update its image, Kmart introduced a new logo. It dropped the old-style italic "K" with a turquoise "mart" in favor of a red block letter K with the word "mart" written in script and contained inside the "K". Kmart then began remodeling stores shortly thereafter. This logo was replaced in 2004 with the current logo. In 1990, Little Caesars Pizza opened its first in-store Kmart restaurant in Rochester, Michigan (coincidentally, both Little Caesars and Kmart were founded in Garden City, Michigan, in 1959 and 1962 respectively). In 1995, Kmart also tried to reinvent itself by using the short-lived name Today's Kmart.


title: Kmart

text: In 1992, Kmart entered the Eastern European market with the purchase of 13 stores in the former Czechoslovakia. These stores were sold off in 1996.


title: Kmart

text: The company also began to offer exclusive merchandise by Martha Stewart, Kathy Ireland, Jaclyn Smith, Lauren Hutton, and Thalía. Other recognizable brands included exclusively licensed merchandising of products relating to "Sesame Street" and Disney. Actress and television personality Rosie O'Donnell and actress/director and producer Penny Marshall became among the company's most recognized spokespersons.


title: Kmart

text: Super Kmart Center (Super Kmart) opened an all-new location on July 25, 1991, in Medina Township, Ohio, featuring a full-service grocery with a full-service deli, seafood counter and bakery. And it also had general merchandise like many Kmarts had. After the Medina and Copley store opened, many more super Kmarts were open nationwide. However, this location was downsized in 2011 and was one of a number of Kmarts closed in early 2012 due to dismal Christmas 2011 sales. The second ground-up Super Kmart Center opened in Copley Township, Ohio, featuring an in-store video rental center, and an in-store carryout Chinese restaurant. This location has also closed. The last Super Kmart Center in Howland Township, Ohio, closed on April 8, 2018. The largest super Kmart was in Euclid, Ohio as it was a former Hypermart.


title: Kmart

text: Big Kmart opened in Chicago, Illinois, on April 23, 1997. The format focuses on home fashions, children's apparel, and consumables (The Pantry). Most Kmart stores were remodeled to this format during the late 1990s and the early 2000s. During 1997 and 1998, Kmart converted 1,245 of their regular Kmart stores into Big Kmart stores. Initially, the Big Kmart stores were successful, and by the end of 1997, Kmart had seen their sales numbers grow by 10% due to success of their Big Kmart stores. In 1998, Kmart acquired 45 former Venture stores and converted them into Big Kmart stores. By the end of 1998, 62% of Kmart's stores were Big Kmart stores. Kmart later converted nearly 1,900 of their regular Kmart stores into Big Kmart stores in 1999. By the end of 1999, Kmart saw another increase in sales numbers by 6.5% due to the success of their Big Kmart stores. The last Big Kmart in Marshall, Michigan, closed on November 22, 2021.


title: Kmart

text: Kmart's profitability and sales peaked in 1992, and have since declined due to competition with Walmart, Target, and internet shopping. In 1994, Kmart announced they would close 110 stores. Unlike its competitors Walmart and Target, Kmart failed to invest in computer technology to manage its supply chain. Furthermore, Kmart maintained a high dividend, which reduced the amount of money that was available for improving its stores. Many business analysts also faulted the company for failing to create a coherent brand image.


title: Kmart

text: In September 1995, Kmart sold its money-losing in-store auto repair centers to Penske Corporation for $112 million to operate them as Penske Auto Centers. Penske later closed the auto repair centers in 2002 as a result of a payment dispute with Kmart.


title: Kmart

text: In 1997, Kmart launched the Kmart Cash Card as a replacement for the paper gift certificates and to facilitate the return process.


title: Kmart

text: In July 1999, Kmart hired SuperValu and Fleming to distribute $3.9 billion worth of food and other related products to all Kmart stores.


title: Kmart

text: From 1999 to 2000 Kmart converted 150 regular Kmart stores into Big Kmart stores during the first half of 2000.


title: Kmart

text: In 2000, Kmart and Capital One launched an all-new co-branded MasterCard as a replacement for the private label Kmart credit cards.


title: Kmart

text: Also in 2000, Kmart expanded the Martha Stewart Everyday Garden Collection to include live plants and seeds. Kmart also launched the Martha Stewart Everyday Kitchen, which is a complete line of housewares essentials.


title: Kmart

text: In July 2000, Kmart closed 72 underperforming stores due to poor sales, while opening 20 new Big Kmart stores, converting 12 regular Kmart stores into Super Kmart Center stores, and opening 5 new Super Kmart Center stores. and the company announced a planned major restructuring, in which Kmart would invest in new customer check-out and new inventory management technology and other related systems as well.


title: Kmart

text: In 2001, Kmart opened several new Super Kmart stores as part of Kmart's plan to expand their Super Kmart Center store portfolio, along with Kmart trying to make groceries available at stores as well. However, due to Kmart filing for bankruptcy in January 2002, Kmart was unable to open any more new Super Kmart Center stores, and any of the Super Kmart Center stores that were under construction during Kmart's 2002 bankruptcy were halted, no matter how close the stores were to completion.


title: Kmart

text: In 2001, Kmart signed a $4.5 billion arrangement with Fleming, making them the sole food and consumables distributor for the company's stores.


title: Kmart

text: In February 2001, Japanese video game company Sega sued Kmart for failure to pay $2.2 million of $25.9 million for Sega Dreamcast game systems.


title: Kmart

text: In August 2001, Target sued Kmart because the company's "Dare to Compare" advertising campaign inaccurately compared its own prices with those of Target a majority of the time on in-store signs.


title: Kmart

text: On January 22, 2002, Kmart filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection under the leadership of its then-chairman Charles Conaway and president Mark Schwartz. Conaway, who successfully expanded CVS Corporation, accepted an offer to take the helm at Kmart along with a loan of $5 million (equivalent to $ in 2022). In a scandal similar to that involving Enron, Conaway and Schwartz were accused of misleading shareholders and other company officials about the company's financial crisis while making millions and allegedly spending the company's money on airplanes, houses, boats and other luxuries. At a conference for Kmart employees on January 22, Conaway accepted "full blame" for the financial disaster. As Kmart emerged from bankruptcy, Conaway was forced to step down, and was asked to pay back all the loans he had taken.


title: Kmart

text: After dismissing Conaway and Schwartz, Kmart closed more than 300 stores in the U.S., including all the Kmart stores in Alaska, and laid off around 34,000 workers as part of the restructuring process. Kmart introduced five prototype stores with a new logo, layout, and lime green and gray color scheme, one in White Lake, Michigan, and four in central Illinois: (Peoria, Pekin, Morton and Washington). The new layout was touted as having wider aisles and improved selection and lighting, and the city or town's name was featured under the new Kmart logo at the front entrance. However, Kmart could not afford a full-scale rollout. The lime green prototype was abandoned for the new Kmart "Orange" concept that rolled out at several of its locations throughout the United States in 2006.


title: Kmart

text: While Kmart was going through bankruptcy, a significant amount of Kmart's outstanding debt was purchased by ESL Investments, a hedge fund controlled by Edward Lampert. Lampert worked to accelerate the bankruptcy process.


title: Kmart

text: On May 6, 2003, Kmart emerged from bankruptcy protection as a subsidiary of the new Kmart Holding Corporation. On June 10, 2003, Kmart began trading on the NASDAQ stock market with the ticker symbol of KMRT with Lampert serving as the chairman and with ESL Investments controlling 53% of the new company for an investment of less than $1 billion. Lampert dismissed his concerns that the smaller company would be at a disadvantage, stating "The focus that a lot of people have in retail revolves around sales, but sales without profit do not allow a business to be successful in the long term." He began to improve the company's balance sheet by reducing inventory, cutting costs, and closing underperforming stores. By the fourth quarter of 2003, Kmart posted its first profitable quarter in three years, although it has since returned to an operating loss.


title: Kmart

text: On July 23, 2004, a new Kmart logo featuring a large red "K" with "kmart" in small block letters underneath it was announced. On August 12, 2004, Kmart and E! Entertainment Television announced a new, exclusive, cross-promotional clothing brand called Attention. Attention was launched as a new clothing brand that would be sold only at Kmart stores and would be used to promote "E! News Live". Kmart had previously signed a similar deal with the WB Network to have the cast of five WB shows wear Kmart branded clothing during shows.


title: Kmart

text: On November 17, 2004, Kmart's management announced its intention to purchase Sears for $11 billion. As part of the merger, the Kmart Holding Corporation (the company that owns Kmart) would be transferred to the new Sears Holdings Corporation and Sears would be purchased by the new Sears Holdings Corporation. The new corporation announced that it would continue to operate stores under both the Sears and Kmart brands. Around this time, Kmart changed its logo from a red K with the script "mart" inside, to the same K with the chain's name in lowercase letters below it. Kmart's headquarters were relocated to Hoffman Estates, Illinois, and in 2012 the sprawling headquarters complex in Troy, Michigan, was acquired by the Forbes Company, which owns the nearby upscale mall, Somerset Collection. No concrete plans for redevelopment of the site had been announced.


title: Kmart

text: In 2005, Sears Holdings Corporation introduced the Sears Essentials store format, which would serve as a Kmart-Sears hybrid. Sears Essentials stores were freestanding (not located at a shopping mall) stores. In 2006, the company discontinued the Sears Essentials name, and renamed all of the Sears Essentials stores as Sears Grand stores.


title: Kmart

text: Kmart started remodeling stores to the "Orange" prototype in 2005. In 2006, the typical white and blue interior of the stores was changed to orange and brown, and shelf heights were lowered to create better sightlines. The remodeled stores contain an appliance department with Kenmore Appliances and most have hardware departments that sell Craftsman tools, which prior to the merger had been exclusive to Sears stores. Some auto centers left vacant by Penske after Kmart filed for bankruptcy had been converted to Sears Auto Centers. As of 2009, 280 stores had been remodeled to this new prototype.


title: Kmart

text: In July 2009, Sears Holdings opened its first Sears-branded appliance store inside a Kmart. The store-within-a-store opened inside the former garden department of a Birmingham, Alabama, Kmart. It is two-thirds the size of the appliance department in most Sears stores, but larger than the appliance department in remodeled Kmart stores.


title: Kmart

text: In October 2009, it was reported that Kmart and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia failed to come to a new agreement. This came after Stewart made remarks on CNBC that her line at Kmart had deteriorated, particularly after the Sears merger.


title: Kmart

text: In November 2009, Kmart reported its first year-over-year sales increase of 0.5% since 2005, and only the second such increase since 2001.


title: Kmart

text: On December 27, 2011, after a disastrous holiday sales season, Sears Holdings announced that 100 to 120 of Sears and Kmart stores would close.