Davies ran newly crowned 600cc champion Jamie Hacking close, a performance that persuaded Yamaha-supported Celtic Racing to sign him for the 2007 season.
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For double world champion Alonso the close of 2007 marked the finale of a nightmarish year at McLaren where he and Hamilton traded barbed insults in the media before doing their best to pretend the other did not exist.
Poulter's close friend Justin Rose and former Open champion John Daly failed to grab the one remaining place on offer from a 15-man play-off.
The Hublot King Power Usain Bolt was developed in close consultation with the three-time Olympic champion and Swiss luxury watch brand ambassador.
There was JewishDoc1000, the private-practice cardiologist who hated cruise-ship travel, and LawMan2346, an attorney who was very close to his family and a former national debate champion.
Nine years ago, when it bought Champion, KeyCorp said it was going to close branches and focus on "higher growth" businesses like mortgages and auto financing.
Graeme McDowell edged a close game with Padraig Harrington, Jim Furyk defeated Ryan Moore while 2012 Masters champion Bubba Watson and 2012 U.S. Open winner Webb Simpson moved into round two.
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Add in the likes of Davydenko and 2008 champion Novak Djokovic and the men's title race looks too close to call, while Becker believes the return of Belgian pair Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin has give the women's draw a real shot in the arm.
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Touching distance is not close enough though, as Khan's dreams of becoming Britain's youngest world champion since Prince Naseem Hamed look to be just that, a dream.
Jessica Ennis's coach says the Olympic champion's hopes of defending her title have been dealt a blow by a decision to close Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield.
What's more, reinforcements are on their way: Spain also happens to be European champion at the Under-21 and Under-19 levels, suggesting the pipeline isn't close to running dry.
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