Josef Newgarden won his 3rd race of the season and increased his point lead of Alexander Rossi at the Texas Motor Speedway last Saturday night. It was the first time Newgarden had won the DXC Technology 600. Takuma Sato won the pole and led 60 laps but was penalized for hitting a crewman during a pit stop and never recovered. Ryan Hunter Reay took over and lead 90 laps — the most of any of the drivers, but faded in the last 4th of the race. Scott Dixon, the 2018 race winner, led 33 laps altogether but Newgarden took the lead and fought off a strong push by Alexander Rossi to claim the victory. Dixon and rookie Colton Herta tangled when, with 20 laps to go, Herta attempted to pass Dixon underneath and Dixon tried to shut him off. They tangled and both were eliminated from the race, Newgarden and Rossi drove heel to toe the last 10 laps but the Penske Chevy and a little more juice than the Andretti Honda.
Graham Rahal finished 3rd, rookie Santino Ferrucci was 4th, and Hunter Reay took 5th. So now it’s on to Elkhart Lake on June 23 for the REV Group Grand Prix at Road America.
Belmont Stakes Closes an Improbable 2019 Triple Crown
Sir Winston, a lightly regarded chestnut colt, took the 3rd leg of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, the Belmont Stakes. Sir Winston, who was bred and is owned by Tracy Farmer, didn’t qualify for the Kentucky Derby and wasn’t entered in the Preakness. Trainer Mark Casse, who was born in Indianapolis, also trained War of Wills whose Preakness win was Cassie’s 1st Triple Crown victory. War of Wills was the pre-race favorite at Belmont Park. He finished 9th in a 10 horse field. Joe Rosano was on board Sir Winston and had a 2013 Kentucky Derby win to his credit. Casse won 2 of the 3 races but with different horses. Country House, who was given the Kentucky Derby win after Maximum Security’s disqualification, was not entered. Neither was Maximum Security for that matter. Security went into the Derby as the favorite to be the 2019 Triple Crown winner and came away with zero victories. A suit to have Security’s disqualification overturned is working it’s way through the federal court system as of this moment.
NBA Finals Game 6
The Golden State Warriors beat the Toronto Raptors 106 to 105 in Toronto to bring a game 6 to the 2019 series. Toronto fans were hoping for a series winning 4th victory at home so now they will have to watch the home boys try to clinch the title in Oakland Thursday night. The 3 point shots were in full attack as Stephen Curry scored 31 points. Kevin Durant had to leave the field house on crutches after injuring his leg, much to the delight of the Raptor’s bloodthirsty fans.
So it’s game 6 and maybe a run to game 7 before the issue is decided. The Warriors have been here before, but it’s a new experience for the Canadians.
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