Samprasfanz

SEATTLE, WA (Oct. 13, 2011) – Pete Sampras continued his winning ways on the 2011 Champions Series by defeating Michael Chang 8-4 to capture the Washington Trust Bank Champions Cup presented by Propel Insurance, at the Key Arena Thursday night in Seattle, Washington. It was his fourth victory in five appearances so far this season, as Sampras increased his lead in the Champions Series points standings. He now leads Chang by 600 points with seven of 12 events completed.

“I got it going tonight, and my game is really starting to feel good,” said the 14-time Grand Slam Champ. “These are all great matchups that we play here on this tour, and we’re all really excited that we can still sell out these arenas that we play in. But I’m here to win, and I like where I stand right now.”

Sampras advanced to the final with a 6-4 semifinal triumph over John McEnroe, who was making his first appearance of the 2011 Champions Series. “It was really nice coming back up here to Seattle tonight, and I loved getting back out there onto the court to compete,” said McEnroe.

Chang – who spent a number of years living in the Seattle area during his ATP Tour days – was playing in front of some of his old friends from the Pacific Northwest. He advanced with a 6-4 semifinal triumph over Jim Courier, who now sits in third place and holds just a 100-point margin over fourth place Andre Agassi. Only the top 3 finishers at the end of the 2011 Champions Series will share the one million dollar bonus pool.

The Champions Series moves to the Staples Center in Los Angeles Friday night for the HSBC Tennis Cup, followed by the CTCA Championships in Las Vegas Saturday night.

TONIGHT’S SCORES
Semifinal 1: Chang def. Courier, 6-4
Semifinal 2: Sampras def. McEnroe, 6-4
Final: Sampras def. Chang, 8-4