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AUSTIN, Texas - Nico Rosberg earned a chance to tighten his Formula One championship duel with Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton by winning the pole position Saturday for the U.S. Grand Prix, while the race faced an early threat of a boycott by several teams that are struggling financially.Rosberg edged Hamilton by .376 seconds at the Circuit of the Americas. Valtteri Bottas of Williams will start third.Hamilton leads Rosberg by 17 points in the drivers championship with three races left.Saturdays qualifying was clouded by the roiling tensions between Formula Ones wealthiest teams and those struggling to survive. Two teams, Marussia and Caterham, had already dropped out of Sundays race because of financial problems, reducing the grid to at most 18 cars, the smallest in nine years.For most of the day, it looked as if it could get much smaller.Sahara Force India deputy principal Bob Fernley said his team, Sauber and Lotus discussed a potential Sunday boycott or pulling out after one lap, and insisted both options could happen.But the threat seemed to fade by late afternoon.Lotus officials dismissed the chance of sitting out the race. Sauber team principal Monisha Kaltenborn declined to comment on a boycott, but later said her team wanted to maximize driver Adrian Sutils first top-10 qualifying position this season.Then Formula One commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone and Circuit of the Americas Chairman Bobby Epstein said the teams will race.Forget all that, Ecclestone said. They will be racing, I give you a guarantee, but I worry if they will be racing next year.The mere threat of action conjured images of the disastrous U.S. Grand Prix of 2005, when a boycott over tire safety left only six cars racing. Winner Michael Schumacher was booed on the podium, the traditional champagne celebration was cancelled and the public address announcer implored fans not throw things.The current conflict between top teams and those struggling to survive reached the critical stage this week with the collapse of Marussia and Caterham.Lotus, Sahara Force India, and Sauber sparred with Mercedes and McLaren officials in a contentious news conference Friday, arguing whether Formula One should adopt spending caps or other means to help smaller teams survive.Ecclestone further enflamed the situation by telling Sky Sports that small teams are needed only if they are going to be there performing properly and not moving around with begging buckets.Rosberg and Hamilton, who have waged a season-long duel for the title, declined comment on the boycott threat.Former Formula One world champion Jackie Stewart said a boycott would harm the teams, their sponsors and Formula One just three years into the sports re-emergence in the American market.I cant imagine that would be a sensible thing for any team to do, Stewart said. Formula One is the largest commercial sport in the world. Thats the last thing you want to be playing around with.The small teams dont want to damage Formula One but want to be heard, Fernley said.The last thing anybody wants to do, particularly the owners of these three teams, who are pure racers, would be to damage anything, Fernley said. But youve also got to understand that Formula One is also damaging them at the moment. There has to be some form of coming together.On the track, Rosberg earned his ninth pole of the season as Mercedes locked up the top two spots for the 10th time.First place today is awesome, Rosberg said, but its the race that counts.Hamilton posted the fastest times in all three practice sessions, only to have problems with locking brakes in qualifying. Hamilton is chasing his ninth victory of the season. He has won three times when starting outside of the pole and won here in 2012 with McLaren.Rosberg has four wins this season.Defending race and world champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull will start Sunday from pit lane after incurring a penalty for using his sixth engine this season. He participated in only the first of three qualifying rounds. Fake Nike Shoes Black Friday .C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes have activated defenceman Joni Pitkanen from injured reserve. Cheap Nike Shoes Black Friday . LOUIS -- Joe Thornton and the San Jose Sharks won the matchup of unbeaten teams. http://www.nikeshoesblackfriday.com/ .com) - Maria Sharapova reached her 10th career grand slam final after beating Ekaterina Makarova in straight sets at the Australian Open on Thursday. Wholesale Nike Shoes Black Friday . Napoli beat high-flying Hellas Verona 3-0 to keep up the pressure on the top two while AC Milan had another disappointing night as four goals from teenage forward Domenico Berardi saw relegation-threatened Sassuolo come back from two goals down to win 4-3. Nike Shoes Black Friday Online . Chris Capuano. Shane Greene. And now, Esmil Rogers.DORAL, Fla. -- Patrick Reed followed a big win with a bold comment. Reed was dripping with confidence even before the final round of the Cadillac Championship. He had two wins in his previous 13 starts on the PGA Tour. He knew his game could handle any course, even a new Blue Monster that yielded the fewest 72-hole scores under par in the 52-year history of Doral. And even having Tiger Woods just three shots behind and in the group head of him didnt keep Reed from wearing black pants and a red shirt. He delivered a final round Sunday that even Woods could have appreciated. Reed doubled his two-shot lead with two quick birdies, hit five quality bunker shots on the back nine that led to pars and closed with an even-par 72 and a one-shot victory. Bubba Watson played bogey-free over the final 27 holes at Trump National Doral and closed with a 68. He was the first to post a 3-under 285. Jamie Donaldson of Wales got within one shot of Reed before he found a back bunker on the 18th and missed a par putt just inside 15 feet for a 70 to join Watson. Reed played the 18th conservatively with an iron off the tee -- just like Woods did in one of his four wins at Doral -- made bogey and finished at 4-under 284. Thats three wins in seven months for the 23-year-old Texan. He now is the youngest winner of a World Golf Championship. Surprised? Reed sure isnt. He had said he felt like he belonged among the top five in the world, and Reed wasnt about to back down after beating the strongest field in golf so far this year. "I dont see a lot of guys that have done that besides Tiger Woods and the legends of the game," Reed said of his three wins, including a WGC title. "I believe in myself, especially with how hard Ive worked. Im one of the top five players in the world. I feel like Ive proven myself." So who are the other four? He mentioned Woods, whom Reed considers the best to ever play. Reed grew up watching Woods in a red shirt and black plants on Sunday, and thought it would be wise to do the same thing. Those now are his Sunday colours, and hes now 3 for 3 when having at least a share of the 54-hole lead. He mentioned Adam Scott and Phil Mickelson. He is constantly impressed with Graeme McDowell. He played Saturday with Dustin Johnson and saw how good Johnson can be when he puts it all together. So thats five names right there, without even getting to FedEx Cup and Race to Dubai winner Henrik Stensson, Match Play champion Jason Day or two-time major champion Rory McIlroy.dddddddddddd So maybe it was a figure of speech. "Tough question," Reed said with a grin. "Those guys, theres so many great players out there." He at least has reason to count himself among them. Reed moved up to No. 20 in the world, and hes starting to think he can win any week, anywhere. Even the Masters? He led Augusta State to two NCAA titles. Reed makes his debut at Augusta National next month, and his outlook is changing. "Before this event, my goal was to compete and be in contention come Sunday at Augusta," Reed said. "To go and play the field -- all these guys are going to be at Augusta -- to go wire-to-wire, that definitely just gives me more confidence come Sunday that if I play how Im supposed to at Augusta, that well be in the running." Woods is limping to the Masters. One week after he withdrew from the final round of the Honda Classic after 13 holes, he said his back flared up again after an awkward shot from the bunker on the sixth hole. He wound up with a 78, his highest score ever on Sunday, and for the first time failed to make a single birdie in the final round. His hopes were gone by the sixth hole, anyway. Woods beaned two spectators in three holes with tee shots and already was seven shots behind. He said he spent the rest of the day fighting spasms, and only said after his round, "Its over. Its finally done, which is good." He tied for 25th, his best finish in four events this year. He missed a 54-hole cut at Torrey Pines, tied for 41st in Dubai and withdrew from the Honda Classic. "Just let me get through this day, get some treatment and well assess it as time goes on," Woods said of his back. His next scheduled start is March 20 at Bay Hill, where he is defending champion and an eight-time winner. Asked if he has had an MRI on his back or planned more tests, Woods said, "Well, it is back spasms. So weve done all the protocols and its just a matter of keeping everything aligned so I dont go into that." Reed certainly has his golf aligned nicely. He won the Wyndham Championship last August in a playoff over Jordan Spieth. He went wire-to-wire at the Humana Challenge, opening with three 63s. And then against a strong field, he went wire-to-wire (including ties) at Doral. Can he live with being No. 20 for now? "Oh, yeah," Reed said with a smile. ' ' '