Sore neck forces Phelps out

INDIANAPOLIS — Michael Phelps called it quits because of a sore neck at the U.S. nationals, leaving the spotlight to rival Ryan Lochte, who qualified Friday for the world championships later this month.

Phelps withdrew from the 100-meter freestyle heats in the morning on the advice of a doctor after waking up a day earlier with a kink on the left side of his neck. He swam through the pain to set a world record in the 100 butterfly on Thursday, but said he felt worse Friday despite receiving numerous treatments.

"It wasn't fun swimming the 100 fly with that," he said. "I could barely move my neck to breathe. I definitely didn't feel 100 percent."

The 100 free, in which Phelps owns the American record, was going to be his final event at nationals. He said he was willing to try, but his coach Bob Bowman vetoed the idea.

"We're going to err on the safe side," Bowman said.

Phelps qualified for the world championships in Rome, where he'll swim the 100 and 200 flys and the 200 free. He will likely swim on three relays, too.

Even if he had qualified, Phelps said he wouldn't have swum the 100 free at worlds because it conflicts with the 200 fly. The swimming events begin July 26, giving him two weeks to train.

Lochte qualified second-quickest in the 100 free heats, but he also withdrew to focus on the 200 individual medley.

Fans flocking to UFC 100 show

LAS VEGAS — By early afternoon, the line was 15 people wide and hundreds deep, stretching the length of a cavernous corridor near the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Hundreds of boisterous mixed martial arts fans of every age, race, fitness level and tattoo taste whooped and fidgeted in the refrigerated casino air.

They queued for hours Friday just for the chance to attend a brief weigh-in for UFC 100, tonight's landmark show in the league's hometown. And though this line was long, the really big crowds were in the nearby convention center, where the first UFC Fan Expo is expected to draw well more than 20,000 this weekend.

UFC's self-celebratory weekend also includes big fights, of course. Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar's bout with interim champ Frank Mir is the headliner, while pound-for-pound candidate Georges St. Pierre has a dangerous meeting with Brazilian kick specialist Thiago Alves.

UFC 100 is shaping up as a benchmark for how far MMA has progressed in the nearly 16 years since the first event — and a gauge for just how big it still might become.