Williams ready for pressure of Grand Slam

TENNIS: One major title stands between Serena Williams and a Grand Slam, and she’s enjoying this “awesome” and “crazy” ride.

“There’s still a lot I want to win, but I just want to keep growing,” she said. “I just enjoy going out there every time I’m out there. I have a different outlook. I’m intense when I’m out there, but I also realize that life is super short and tomorrow isn’t promised.”

Williams is seeded first and the defending champion at the Western & Southern Open, a warmup for the U.S. Open. She is coming off a loss to Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic in the semifinals of the Rogers Cup in Toronto.

The top-ranked player in women’s tennis already has the “Serena Slam” – reigning champion of every Grand Slam tournament. The run started at last year’s U.S. Open. The last calendar Grand Slam was by Steffi Graf in 1988.

“I think the ‘Serena Slam’ is really unbelievable,” she said. “I didn’t think I would ever do it again. I mean, I thought I would, but when it didn’t happen after a while. It’s captivating. It’s awesome. It’s crazy.”

At 33 years old and with so many championships to her name, Williams can almost take it or leave it.

“That makes it fun,” she said. “I don’t have to win. I want to win, but I really just look forward to playing.”

She says the process has become almost as important as the outcome. That’s one reason she hopes to play well in Cincinnati.

“I would like to do well here, especially after a disappointing week last week,” she said. “Even if I don’t win, I would like to play technically better.”

At the same time, she realizes time is running out on her career though her results suggest otherwise – she is 47-2 this year and has won four championships. She agrees with the suggestion that her career is like a marathon and she’s in her sprint to the finish.

Her new outlook has her ready for the pressure of the calendar Grand Slam in New York.

“I think it’s great,” she said. “It’s cool, even though there’s a lot of pressure. I would like to win the Open more than anybody else.”

Danica Patrick lands new primary sponsor

AUTO RACING: Danica Patrick’s fit and healthy lifestyle has landed her a new sponsor that will allow her to continue driving for Stewart-Haas Racing.

SHR announced a deal with Nature’s Bakery to become the primary sponsor of Patrick’s No. 10 Chevrolet beginning next season. The Nevada-based food brand replaces Patrick’s longtime sponsor, GoDaddy.

Much of Patrick’s marketability was built during a long partnership with GoDaddy that began in 2007.

But the company said in April that this third Sprint Cup season with Patrick would be its last in NASCAR, which forced Patrick to worry about funding her racing career for the first time in probably a dozen years.

She wanted to remain at SHR, with co-owner Tony Stewart, reigning Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch, and seemed confident that her marketability and appeal to such a wide audience would help land a sponsor that fit her own brand.

Nature’s Bakery was founded in 2010 by the father-and-son duo of Dave and Sam Marson. Its deal with Patrick means no more neon green paint for her No. 10.

“I feel like that’s a really good color for me, it’s going to be really good for my complexion,” Patrick said of her new blue-and-white Chevrolet.

U.S. draws Canada, Cuba and Panama

SOCCER: The United States men’s national team has been drawn into a group with Canada, Cuba and Panama for CONCACAF Olympic qualifying.

The U.S. will be in Group A and open with two games at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kansas, against Canada on Oct. 1 and Cuba on Oct. 3. The team concludes group play against Panama in Commerce City, Colorado, on Oct. 6.

Group B includes Mexico, Honduras, Haiti and the winner of the UNCAF playoff between Costa Rica and Guatemala. The top two finishers from Groups A and B will advance to the semifinals in Sandy, Utah, on Oct. 10.

The semifinal winners advance to the Oct. 13 final in Sandy and qualify for the 2016 Olympics.

Bookwalter takes lead in USA Pro Challenge

CYCLING: Brent Bookwalter took the yellow leader’s jersey from BMC Racing teammate Taylor Phinney by winning the second stage of the USA Pro Challenge at the Arapahoe Basin ski resort area at Keystone, Colorado.

Phinney, the 2012 Olympian who won the opening stage in Steamboat Springs, lost more than 4 minutes on the hilly stage that finished at more than 10,000 feet.

The third stage today takes riders 101 miles from Copper Mountain to Aspen, and features a climb to more than 12,000 feet at Independence Pass.