Zenyatta wins record 17th straight race
Horse racing: Zenyatta won her 17th consecutive race Sunday, giving her the longest winning streak by a modern day thoroughbred in unrestricted races.
The 6-year-old mare won the $200,000 Vanity Handicap by a half-length at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif., rallying with her usual last-place move to overtake St Trinians approaching the wire.
Ridden by Hall of Famer Mike Smith, Zenyatta ran 11/8miles on the synthetic Cushion Track of her home track in 1:49.01 and paid $3 and $2.10 as the overwhelming 1-5 favorite.
Under the race’s handicap conditions, Zenyatta carried high weight of 129 pounds – 9 to 17 more than her five rivals.
With the victory, Zenyatta surpassed the 16-race winning streaks of Cigar, 1948 Triple Crown winner Citation, and Mister Frisky.
Zardana was third and Will O Way fourth, followed by Miss Silver Brook and Cherryblossommiss.
There was no show wagering because the track wanted to avoid a huge minus show pool, knowing that the heavily favored Zenyatta would have attracted several hundred thousand dollars in bets.
Hewitt sends Federer to rare loss on grass
Tennis: No. 2-ranked Roger Federer, who came into the final at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany, with a 76-1 record on grass since 2003, lost 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4 to Australian Lleyton Hewitt in Sunday’s title match.
Federer’s only other loss on the surface before Sunday was against top-ranked Rafael Nadal in the 2008 Wimbledon final.
Hewitt beat Federer for the first time in 16 matches dating to 2003. The 29-year-old Australian was playing in his first final of the season.
After cruising through the first four rounds without dropping a single set, Federer met his match in Hewitt, a former No. 1.
• Li tops Sharapova for Birmingham title: Top-seeded Li Na beat Maria Sharapova 7-5, 6-1 to win the grass-court Aegon Classic in Birmingham, England, and claim her first title this year.
Sharapova lost to Li in the semifinals of last year’s tournament and the Chinese player produced a repeat performance, winning her first title on grass.
• Querry wins Queen’s Club: Sam Querrey won an all-American final at the Queen’s Club grass-court tournament in London, edging Mardy Fish 7-6 (3), 7-5.
Querrey won his third title of the year, all on different surfaces – he won in Memphis on hardcourt and in Belgrade on clay. Querrey is the eighth American winner of the Wimbledon warm-up tournament.
Hawks make it official: Drew is coach
NBA: The Atlanta Hawks officially named Larry Drew as their new head coach. Now, they can turn their attention to Joe Johnson.
The Hawks announced Drew’s hiring two days after the Associated Press and several other news organizations reported the team had selected Mike Woodson’s top assistant as its new coach.
This is Drew’s first head coaching job.
The selection of a familiar face will surely be popular with the players and may help to re-sign Johnson, who is set to join perhaps the best free-agent class in NBA history this summer.
TCU earns school’s first CWS berth
College baseball: Aaron Schultz hit a two-run home run to help TCU beat Texas 4-1 in Austin, Texas, advancing to the College World Series for the first time in school history.
Kyle Winkler (12-2) gave up no runs and five hits with five strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings for the Horned Frogs.
• Bruins punch ticket: Rob Rasmussen allowed a first-inning run and nothing else in a complete-game two hitter as UCLA beat Cal State Fullerton 8-1 in Los Angeles for a berth in the CWS.
• Gamecocks rally for berth: Christian Walker hit a three-run homer in the eighth inning to lead South Carolina to a 10-9 victory over Coastal Carolina in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and into the CWS. The Gamecocks will make their first CWS appearance since 2004.
• Seminoles in again: Walkon Sherman Johnson’s eighth inning bases-loaded double provided the winning margin as Florida State advanced to the CWS for the 20th time with a 7-6 win over Vanderbilt in Tallahassee, Fla.
Brajkovic captures Criterium crown
Cycling: Janez Brajkovic of Slovenia won the Criterium du Dauphine in Sallanches, France, claiming the biggest win of his career.
Brajkovic, 26, rides for Lance Armstrong’s RadioShack team. He is expected to compete in next month’s Tour de France, where Armstrong will be bidding for a record eighth win.
Two-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador came in second overall. American Tejay Van Garderen finished third, 2:41 behind.
Edvald Boasson Hagen of Norway won Sunday’s seventh and last stage, a 92-mile trek between Allevard-les-Bains and Sallanches.
• Haussler leads Swiss sprint: Heinrich Haussler led a mass sprint to win the second stage of the Tour of Switzerland, while Lance Armstrong cruised safely across the finish in the main pack.
Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara retained the overall leader’s yellow jersey. Armstrong climbed to 33rd overall, from 44th, and is 29 seconds behind the Swiss leader.
Pablo Urtasun of Spain finished second and Marco Marcato of Italy was third after the 104-mile stage from Ascona to Sierre.
They were among 66 riders who clocked the same time – 4 hours, 25 minutes, 16 seconds – including Cancellara, who placed 12th, and Armstrong, who was 46th.
Titans’ Young cited after strip club fight
Miscellany: Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young received a misdemeanor assault citation after getting into a fight at a Dallas strip club and leaving before authorities arrived early Sunday, police said.
Surveillance video footage released by police showed the former University of Texas star and several people talking in a small room before Young attacked someone in the room. Others tried to break up the fight.
Young wasn’t at Club Onyx when police responded to a call about the fight, Dallas police Lt. Andy Harvey said.
Harvey said an investigation led to Young receiving a Class C assault citation, punishable by a fine up to $500.
A Titans spokesman said the team had contacted Young and was still gathering information, and an NFL spokesman said the league “will look into it.”
• Lysacek not assigned to Grand Prix: Next season’s Grand Prix assignments are out and Evan Lysacek’s name is nowhere to be found.
The Olympic champion received no assignments for the six Grand Prix events, a possible indication he will leave competitive skating – or at least take the upcoming season off.
• Kings assistant quits: Los Angeles Kings assistant coach Mark Hardy has resigned while facing a fourth-degree charge of felony sexual abuse.
Hardy’s attorney says the former NHL defenseman has entered an alcohol treatment program. Hardy was arrested last month in Washington, D.C., after a woman said he fondled her in a hotel room after a night of heavy drinking. He is scheduled to return to court July 1.