King Jr. matches father with second victory
King Jr. matches father with second victory
HARTFORD
Sharon Speedway was completed a “Steel Valley Thunder” weekly event after three straight rain outs, special events, and two scheduled nights off. Celebrating in the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply victory lane were Rex King, Jr.-Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Big-Block Modifieds, Chris McGuire & Chris Schneider-Penn-Ohio Pro Stock Championship Series, Chas Wolbert-HTMA/Precise Racing Products RUSH Sportsman Modifieds, and Steve Haefke-Summit Racing Equipment Econo Mods. The four-division program brought out 109 cars.
Defending track champion, Rex King, Jr., took the lead on lap nine and drove off to the 25-lap Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Big-Block Modified feature win. With the win, the Bristolville native matched his father with his second victory of the season- tied for tops in the division, and took one step closer to his third title in four years with just one month of point racing remaining.
Stakes at WV Derby top $1.3 million
NEW CUMBERLAND, W.V.
When the afternoon of Aug. 5 rolls around, there will be plenty of money on the line at Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack & Resort.
Headed by the $750,000 West Virginia Derby for 3-year-olds, the Saturday program will include six other stakes with purses of $200,000 to $75,000.
Total stakes money for the day will be $1.325 million. The other two races on the traditional nine-race card are expected to be West Virginia-bred allowance races that would take total purses for the day to $1.375 million.
When the Derby was revived in 1998 after a seven years on the shelf, the purse was $200,000.
Penguins re-sign Sheary for $9 million
PITTSBURGH
The Pittsburgh Penguins have agreed to terms with forward Conor Sheary on a $9 million, three-year deal.
Sheary will count $3 million against the salary cap through 2019-20. General manager Jim Rutherford announced the contract for the restricted free agent Sunday.
Sheary has been part of Pittsburgh’s back-to-back Stanley Cup champion teams, putting up 17 points in 45 games. He spent significant time as a linemate of Sidney Crosby’s during the 2016 Cup run.
The 25-year-old signed with the Penguins as an undrafted free agent. Since then, the 5-foot-8 winger has 30 goals and 33 assists for 63 points in 105 games.
Last season, Sheary had 23 goals and 30 assists in 61 games. His 53 points were fourth on the team behind Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel.
Newgarden dominates in second IndyCar win
LEXINGTON
Josef Newgarden dominated at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on the way to his second straight IndyCar victory at the Honda Indy 200 on Sunday.
Newgarden was not challenged most of the day on the 90-lap, 2.2-mile course and finished 5.156 seconds ahead of Team Penske teammate Will Power, the pole-sitter. Newgarden won at Toronto on July 16 and has six career wins, three this season.
Local favorite Graham Rahal was third and 2016 champion Simon Pagenaud finished fourth.
Patriots’ Ninkovich caps 11-year career
FOXBOROUGH, Mass.
New England Patriots defensive stalwart Rob Ninkovich capped his 11-year NFL career by announcing his retirement Sunday after the team’s morning practice at Gillette Stadium.
Since joining the Patriots in 2009, Ninkovich had proven to be one of the team’s most durable and dependable players.
A defensive end and linebacker, he was a two-time co-captain and won two Super Bowls with New England. But he didn’t take the easiest route to get there.
A fifth-round pick by the New Orleans Saints in 2006, he was waived four times by the Saints and Miami Dolphins before joining the Patriots just before the start of the 2009 season — after spending that offseason trying to make the Saints as a long snapper.
Staff/wire report