Cristiano Ronaldo hit a hat-trick as Real Madrid kept on the trail of leaders Barcelona with a 5-1 rout of Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday.

The visitors took a shock lead after 15 minutes through Riki but Madrid quickly bounced back with Ronaldo hitting his first from the penalty spot after Angel Di Maria was felled.

Real Madrid and France striker Karim Benzema, who has struggled to hit the net in the opening weeks of the 2012-13 season, says he is starting to hit top form again.

"I have felt very good in the last few matches. I notice that I am making progress and that my legs are responding better. I am very pleased," the 24-year-old said in an interview published Sunday in sports daily AS.

Barcelona struck twice in the final minutes to complete a controversial fightback as they beat 10-man Sevilla 3-2 to go eleven points clear of bitter rivals Real Madrid on Saturday.

Piotr Trochowski put Sevilla ahead after 26 minutes and when Alvaro Negredo doubled the advantage after the break it looked as though the Andalusians would achieve a double over the top two, having beaten Real a fortnight ago.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas predicted "big things" from his side after a stunning 3-2 victory against Manchester United in the Premier League.

Goals from Jan Vertonghen, Gareth Bale and Clint Dempsey saw Spurs to their first victory at Old Trafford in 23 years and their first win over Sir Alex Ferguson's team in 27 attempts; a run dating back to May 2001.

Germany's Stefan Stu Thoms won the grueling 245.3 km ultra-marathon Spartathlon race Saturday in 26 hours 28 minutes.

The 46-year-old beat out Japan's two-year younger Tetsuo Kiso who finished second in 26:36.

Motivation, not money, was the main reason Lewis Hamilton on Friday confirmed he was to leave McLaren for Mercedes next year.

That became clear in the aftermath of the news that he has signed for fellow-Briton Ross Brawn's Brackley-based team and was turning his back on the outfit that had nurtured his career since he was 13 years old.

Lewis Hamilton is moving to Mercedes, replacing seven-time Formula One champion replacing Michael Schumacher in a major shakeup that also sees Sergio Perez going to McLaren.

Hamilton has been at McLaren throughout his F1 career but the British team had been unwilling to match a lucrative offer from Mercedes, where he will team up with Nico Rosberg next season on a three-year contract.

Kaka is back in the Brazilian national squad for the first time since the 2010 World Cup.

The playmaker was selected Thursday despite being used sparingly by Real Madrid recently. Coach Mano Menezes picked Kaka in a squad for friendlies last year, but the player didn't join the team because of an injury.

With his camera-ready good looks, quirky catchphrases and funky fashion choices, swimmer Ryan Lochte parlayed the five medals he won at the 2012 Olympic Games into a burgeoning media career.

But the 28-year-old athlete says he's back in the pool training for future competitions and only embraced Hollywood to raise his sport's profile.

Kenya's national track federation is investigating claims of doping among its famed distance athletes and said Thursday it had asked the World Anti-Doping Agency and police for help.

Athletics Kenya chairman Isaiah Kiplagat told The Associated Press that his organization was looking into allegations by a German reporter and Kenyan athlete that performance-enhancing substances were being made available to runners by people posing as doctors.