Today's sports news: What you need to know

Latest - Young New Zealand driver Marcus Armstrong has recorded his first podium finish of the Formula 2 season.

Armstrong has finished second in the second sprint race at Silverstone behind Dutchman Richard Verschoor.

"It's been a long time coming," Armstrong said.

"Unfortunately we ran into a few issues in Monaco and also in Baku we were a bit unfortunate. So, it's sort of been a podium that's been taking its time.

"Obviously I would have preferred the middle step [but]...I'm extremely happy to be here, and it's the start of hopefully a good run of results."

Marcus Armstrong finished ninth in the opening sprint race and will start the feature race from 14th on the grid.

Fellow New Zealander Liam Lawson finished seventh and fifth in the two sprint races.

Verstappen wins F1's first sprint race qualifying

Max Verstappen took pole position for the British Grand Prix and made Formula One history by winning the sport's first sprint race to stretch his lead over Lewis Hamilton to 33 points.

Seven times world champion Hamilton will start alongside his Dutch rival in tonight's grand prix after finishing second for Mercedes in a 17-lap qualifying race that lasted just over half an hour.

The winner took three points, with two for the runner-up and one for third place.

Hamilton's team mate Valtteri Bottas finished third in a race aimed at providing more thrills over the three days of track action and potentially shaking up the starting grid.

The pole was a fourth in a row for Verstappen, who will be chasing his sixth win of the season and fourth in succession tonight.

- Reuters

Wallabies and France play out another thriller

Wallabies first-five Noah Lolesio slotted a penalty with two minutes left as a 14-man Australia edged France 33-30 in a nerve-shredding classic in Brisbane to seal the three-test series 2-1.

Australia were a man down in the fifth minute when winger Marika Koroibete was given a red card for a high tackle on France captain Anthony Jelonch but the Wallabies rallied brilliantly.

Lolesio was nerveless off the tee in the last few minutes, and he calmly kicked over the winner from a sharp angle to extend Australia's winning streak to nine at their Brisbane fortress.

His kick capped a fairytale series for the young first-five, who had slotted the winning penalty after the siren when Australia clinched the series-opener 23-21, also in Brisbane.

"So proud," Australia captain Michael Hooper said.

"We love playing here, the crowd got us home.

"Each game (came) down to the wire so thanks to France travelling around the world in this day and age, it made for a great competition."

- Reuters

Georgian rugby coach in severe condition

Georgia head coach Levan Maisashvili is in severe condition in a Johannesburg hospital after testing positive for Covid-19.

Maisashvili and five other members of the squad tested positive after their July 2 test against South Africa in Pretoria, leading to the cancellation of the second test in Johannesburg as well as a planned July 17 game in Tbilisi against Scotland.

"We got several Covid cases just after the match in Pretoria, including Georgia's Head Coach Levan Maisashvili, who is currently hospitalised with serious lung damage and is on artificial respiration,Georgia Rugby said in a statement.

"Everything is being done to improve Levan Maisashvili's condition. He has been moved to one of South Africa's top-level clinics, which is equipped with the most up-to-date medical equipment to manage COVID patients.

"The rest of the team has already returned to Georgia while Levan and the team doctor will stay in South Africa for as long as needed. Five more Covid-positive team members are finishing their recovery and will leave for Georgia on Sunday."

- Reuters

Pogacar on the verge of second Tour de France title

Tadej Pogacar is poised to win a second consecutive Tour de France title after the Slovenian retained his overall lead following the final time trial, a 30.8-km solo effort from Libourne.

The 22-year-old UAE Emirates rider finished eighth in the 20th stage won by Belgian Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma), who clocked a best time of 35 minutes 53 seconds.

Danes Kasper Asgreen and Jonas Vingegaard were second and third respectively in the 20th stage, 21 and 32 seconds off the pace.

Overall, Pogacar leads Vingegaard by five minutes 20 seconds and Ecuador's Richard Carapaz by 7:03 ahead of the final stage, a largely processional ride from Chatou to the Champs Elysees in Paris.

The UAE Emirates rider bettered his rivals in the opening time trials and in the mountain stages, claiming a total of three stage wins in a dominant performance.

- Reuters

Storm continue dominance in Queensland

The Melbourne Storm have moved two points clear a the top of the NRL ladder after a resounding 48-4 win over the Newcastle Knights on the Gold Coast.

It is the reigning premiers' 25th consecutive win in Queensland.

In the first match of the double-header on the Gold Coast, the Canberra Raiders beat the Cronulla Sharks 34-18 to move on to the cusp of the top eight.

The Raiders are now ninth, behind the eighth-placed Sharks on points differntial.

The Sydney Roosters earlier reclaimed fifth place with a 34-18 win over the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville.

NBL regular season comes to an end

The Wellington Saints have warmed up for the National Basketball League's Final Four by beating the Auckland Huskies 85-61 in Auckland.

The two sides will meet in the first semifinal in Porirua on Thursday night.

Saints captain Dion Prewster lead all scores with 23 points to go with nine rebounds and eight assists.

Meanwhile, the Canterbury Rams finished their season with a 104-81 win over the Otago Nuggets in Dunedin.

The Rams finished fifth on the ladder, one place ahead of the Nuggets.

The Hawke's Bay Hawks and Southland Sharks will meet in the other semifinal on Thursday night.