The Washington Post - USA (2022-05-08)

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PRO BASKETBALL

In a testy Game 3 in Milwaukee, the Bucks turn back

the Celtics for a 103-101 win and a 2-1 series lead. D8

AUTO RACING

Formula One, riding a wave fueled by Netflix, revs up

courtship of U.S. fans with today’s Miami Grand Prix. D3

KLMNO

SPORTS

SUNDAY, MAY 8 , 2022. WASHINGTONPOST.COM/SPORTS M2 D

BY CHUCK CULPEPPER

louisville — The stuff of irratio-

nal daydreams and sugarplum

fairies and future books and fu-

ture movies and deathless wonder

happened Saturday evening at the

148th Kentucky Derby, where a

colossal stretch duel yielded sud-

denly and shockingly to an alter-

native reality.

There, as favorites Epicenter

and Zandon battled one another

in their own storybook in the

fumes of the stretch, an interloper

appeared along the rail. Rich

Strike, who did not even get into

the Kentucky Derby until Friday

morning, who had not won any-

thing since a $30,000 maiden

claiming race last September and

who went off at 80-1, materialized

and capitalized on the others’

dogged wane.

Then the you’ve-got-to-be-kid-

ding Rich Strike won the Derby in

2 minutes 2.61 seconds by three-

quarters of a length over Louisi-

ana Derby winner Epicenter, with

Blue Grass Stakes winner Zandon

third. He paid a gigantic $163.60

to win. He became the second-

most far-fetched champion in a

race run since 1875, behind only

Donerail in 1913. And he loosed all

manner of quotations that tilted

toward a merry absurdity.

Here spoke the owner, o il-and-

gas Oklahoman Richard Dawson:

“What planet is this?”

Here spoke the trainer, l ong-

time Kentuckian plugger Eric

Reed, training since 1983: “I saw

him at the head of the stretch

when he cut in, and then I passed

out. I don’t remember what hap-

pened after that.”

The owner: “As far as my career

in horse racing, I think it just

started. (Pause.) I don’t think

we’ve had a horse win an allow-

ance race.”

The trainer: “I never dreamed I

would be here. I never thought I

would have a Derby horse. I never

go to yearling sales and try to buy a

Derby horse.”

The owner: “I didn’t get into

this to win the Kentucky Derby —

SEE KENTUCKY DERBY ON D2

Rich Strike, at 80-1, stuns Derby field

In the race o nly because

of late scratch, colt posts

second-biggest upset

EZRA SHAW/GETTY IMAGES

Ridden by Sonny Leon, R ich Strike stormed from far back to pass
favorites Epicenter and Zandon on S aturday at Churchill Downs.

BY GENE WANG

As temperatures tumbled
amid soaking rain and raw, blus-
tery wind, scores soared Satur-
day at the Wells Fargo Champi-
onship, where players dealt with
not only t he elements but also a
treacherous layout at TPC Poto-
mac at Avenel Farm that bared
its teeth on the most unforgiving
day of the tournament.
By the time the chaos was
complete, Keegan Bradley stood
alone in first place thanks to a
3-under-par 67 during a rugged
third round that produced just
four scores below par. His 54-
hole total of 202 left him two
strokes ahead of second-place
Max Homa and four clear of
Anirban Lahiri and James Hahn,
both tied for third.
“When conditions get like this,
I find a sense of calm,” said
Bradley, a Vermont native who
shot the low round of the after-
noon and drew upon growing up
playing golf in the Northeast in
sometimes even more unfavor-
able weather. “I’m sort of worry-
ing about other things, keeping
my clubs dry and my bag dry. It
sort of keeps me in the present.”
The third-round scoring aver-
age of 73.662 was the highest in a
PGA Tour tournament since the
final round of the 2020 U.S.
Open.
Bradley put himself in posi-
tion for his first victory since the
2018 BMW Championship
thanks to deft play at the par-3s
during a run of three birdies over
four holes. The first of those
SEE WELLS FARGO ON D6

F or Bradley,

keeping cool

amid chaos

is elemental

With third-round 67,

Vermont native moves

in front at TPC Potomac

WELLS FARGO CHAMPIONSHIP
TPC Potomac, t hrough today

POS. TO PAR

1. Keegan Bradley -8


2. Max Homa -6

T3. James Hahn -4

Anirban Lahiri -4

5Matt Fitzpatrick -3

T6 Seven tied -2

TV: 1 p.m., Golf Ch.; 3 p.m., CBS

Feinstein: The D.C. area has long
deserved more from the PGA. D6

Six-pack on ice

JONATHAN NEWTON/THE WASHINGTON POST

CAPITALS 6,

PANTHERS 1:

Washington’s Garnet

Hathaway is all smiles

after scoring in the final

minute of Game 3 on

Saturday. “The boys did a

really good job from the

drop of the puck all the

way through,” winger T.J.

Oshie said.

Panthers at Capitals

Tomorrow, 7 p.m., TBS, NBCSW

Washington leads 2-1

BY SAMANTHA PELL

The chants of “Sammy! Sammy! Sammy!” were loud

and clear at Capital One Arena on Saturday, an

afternoon when goalie Ilya Samsonov made save after

save in the Capitals’ emphatic 6-1 win over the Florida

Panthers. The netminder, who has struggled to find

consistency all season, was stellar in Game 3, finishing

with 29 saves to help tilt the first-round series in

Washington’s favor.

“I was close to crying [when I heard the chants],”

Samsonov said. “Thank you, fans. It was important.

Thank you, team. A lot of blocks today. It’s more

important we play together, and we got great result.”

Washington holds a 2-1 series lead over Florida, with

SEE CAPITALS ON D10

Caps cruise to Game 3 win

as Samsonov shines in net

This feels familiar, doesn’t it? Not so

much the 6-1 drubbing the Washington

Capitals placed around the neck of the

Florida Panthers but the yoke that now

rests on the Panthers’ shoulders.

This series isn’t close to over, of

course. But there’s a vibe now. The

Capitals will carry the momentum from

Saturday’s just-how-they-drew-it-up

Game 3 victory into Monday’s Game 4 with a chance to

put a stranglehold on the series. The hockey

intellectuals didn’t have the Presidents’ Trophy-

winning Panthers either trailing in this series or being

run off the ice. Now both have happened.

It’s almost like amassing a whopping 122 points and

SEE SVRLUGA ON D10

A top seed in trouble: Where

have we heard that before?

Barry

Svrluga

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