LOUISVILLE, Ky. Jonathan Stewart Blue Jersey . -- Untapables dominant effort in the Kentucky Oaks gave Rosie Napravnik big momentum in her bid to become the first female jockey to win the Kentucky Derby. Whether she follows up aboard Vicars In Trouble on Saturday in the 140th Run for the Roses and becomes the eighth rider to complete the Oaks-Derby double remains to be seen, but Napravnik is making the Oaks her domain. Untapable gave Napravnik her second Oaks win in three years and put her on the brink of history by surging past My Miss Sophia entering the stretch and rolling to a 4 1/2-length victory Friday in the 140th Oaks at Churchill Downs. "We got the first half completed, so were moving on to the second half of the double," Napravnik said. The overwhelming favourite in the $1 million race for 3-year-old fillies earned, Untapable raced her third straight victory and fifth in seven starts. She has won her last three by a combined margin of nearly 22 lengths. "We got into a great position," said Napravnik, who has ridden the horse for all but one start. "She runs her best when she can get into a great stride and she relaxes so nicely. She has grown up and she is maturing. She is magnificent." Untapables victory also turned up the spotlight on trainer Steve Asmussen, who is being investigated by Kentucky and New York racing officials after an animal rights group alleged he and his former assistant mistreated horses in their care. Asmussen sidestepped the matter, choosing instead to focus on his horses stellar closing run. However, Winchell Thoroughbreds racing manager David Fiske conceded that the attention was "a little bit" of a distraction, adding, "Id be lying if I said it wasnt. ... But we thought we had the goods when we came in here and she proved us right." Thanks to Napravnik, Untapable positioned herself to charge at just the right time. Breaking from the far 13th spot, Untapable stayed within reach of early leaders Sugar Shock, My Miss Sophia and Thank You Marylou before getting clear outside turning for home. The winner ran 1 1/8 miles in 1:48.68, the races second-fastest time, and paid $4, $3.20 and $2.60. "The development of the filly, I think Rosie has been a key part of it," Ausmussen said. My Miss Sophia returned $4.20 and $4.40, and Unbridled Forever paid $6. Untapables dramatic finish followed some pre-race suspense involving two horses who violently balked in the gate. The first was Empress of Midway, partly owned by Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino. She thrashed and flipped in the gate and then sat down for a tense moment. Jockey Corey Nakatani wasnt hurt in the fracas and stood by watching as workers quickly got the horse out; she walked away uninjured but was quickly scratched. "She just went up in the gate and lost her balance and kind of sat down on her haunches and couldnt get herself back up in the right position," attending track veterinarian Larry Bramlage said afterward. "We didnt see anything obviously wrong and shes back to her barn." Minutes after horses in surrounding gates were guided back in, second betting choice Fashion Plate also had issues before settling down. She hopped out of the gate and quickly fell behind in finishing 11th of 12 entrants. "She was real tight in the gate," jockey Gary Stevens said. "When (Empress of Midway) flipped, she tried to flip. She has never had to stand in the gate that long and shes used to smaller fields. As soon as the gate opened, my race was over." At that point, Napravnik was guiding Untapable to one of her smoothest victories before 113,071, which is saying something considering how dominant she has been this year. It was no contest after Untapable caught My Miss Sophia, quickly gaining a length and widening the gap. Dwan Edwards Womens Jersey . Ortega played 42 games for Double-A Tulsa in the Texas League last season before sustaining a hairline fracture on his shin. Antoine Cason Panthers Jersey .Com Tour. The former Canadian Amateur champion, who made his rookie year as a professional a memorable one, has had a long wait to get back on the course and after last season, hes anxious to play.WASHINGTON -- Milos Raonic has had nearly a month to digest his Wimbledon semifinal loss to Roger Federer. But even after all that time, the sting still lingers. "Im still pretty angry about it," Raonic said of the straight-sets loss to the Swiss star. It was the first Grand Slam semifinal for the hard-serving player from Thornhill, Ont., who reached a career-high sixth in the world rankings. Now ranked seventh, he says the disappointment of not advancing to the final at the All-England Club has left him with extra incentive heading into the hard-court season. "Out of all the ranking climbs that Ive made over the past three years that have been significant to me, its probably the one that I enjoyed the least because I felt that I could have done much better in that situation," said Raonic, who returns to the court this week at the Citi Open. Raonic arrived in Washington last Friday -- five days ahead of his opening match -- rested and rejuvenated but with the July 4 loss to Federer still fresh in his mind. The Canadian is seeded second, behind only fifth-ranked Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic. "Its been a lot of frustration, anger and disappointment, specifically to that semifinal, and its actually sort of transformed into a lot of energy to do better, to work harder and now its got me really excited," said Raonic. "It makes me want to play that much more badly and get through these next tournaments." The Citi Open is the first of three straight hard-court events for Raonic, who returns home to Toronto next week for the Rogers Cup before playing in the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati the week after. That Raonic is heading into the hard-court season with extra motivation and a newfound confidence is a potentially scary thought for the rest of ATP Tour. "I have more belief in what I can do and the kind of damage that I can make," said Raonic, who has won 82 per cent of his first-serve points this year, second-most on tour, and is third with 567 aces in 34 matches. "I can make guys feel uncomfortable whether theyre ranked No.1 in the world or No. 50. I dont think anybody enjoys playing me so I have a lot more understanding of that and how to use that to my advantage." Prior to his semifinaal run on the grass courts at Wimbledon, Raonic also reached the quarter-finals on the clay courts of the French Open. Antoine Cason Blue Jersey. Overall, the 23-year-old compiled a 16-7 record on grass and clay this spring, after going 8-8 over the same stretch a year ago. Combine the recent success in Europe with Raonics past performances on hard courts and he says "this is the most eager" hes ever felt heading into his favourite time of year. "Its the best thing for my game," he said of the hard courts and the typically hot and humid playing conditions that accompany the North American summer schedule. "After spending four months of tennis where Im adjusting to playing the surface, this is a surface where Im comfortable and where I dont have to worry about OK in this situation, I have to hit this kind of shot. (On hard courts) I have that stuff ingrained in myself naturally." Raonics coach, former world No.3 Ivan Ljubicic, also sees the hard-court season as a tremendous opportunity for Raonic to close the gap with the games elite and to potentially breakthrough with his first career Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open. "His level is much higher than at this time last year," said Ljubicic, who challenged Raonic last August to "save" his 2013 season with a strong tournaments in Montreal, Cincinnati and New York. "Hes shown recently that hes better able to handle certain situations -- the pressure situations -- very well," he said. "Hes got the type of personality and character where he feels more comfortable with a higher ranking, where he doesnt feel the pressure. If anything, he has more hunger to do better." Raonic now has his sights set on defending his ranking points at the Rogers Cup -- he reached the final in Montreal last year before falling to Rafael Nadal -- and building towards a strong U.S. Open. He is also eyeing his first career top-5 world ranking. "I think theres a big opening," Raonic said of joining Nadal and Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic among the top-5. "The biggest threshold and the biggest barrier or wall to pass is the one that Novak and Rafa have on the 1-2 spots. But I think that the rest of the parts, this year specifically, are up for grabs." wholesale nfl jerseys ' ' '
