racingmeridian.com

Sean Avery has resumed skating and is keen to kick-start his NHL career. With the Dallas Stars refusing to allow the asshole back into their line-up, some arrangements will be made to peddle the lumpen piece of filth. Scary thought. What GM, on a soft and sinking team, loves chippy, aggressive players? Especially ones who can be acquired for the proverbial song? Don’t do it Brian Burke, there is no polishing this turd…in an ESPN poll, querying which sports the unwashed masses felt were fixed, the top four arousing suspicion were; wrestling (duh), boxing (ouch), the NBA (of course) and horse racing……strange rumblings from Ray Lewis. The all world linebacker not only said he will not take a hometown discount to remain in Baltimore, he brazenly speculated about sharing a locker room with Terrell Owens in Dallas…the Arizona Republic is reporting the vastly overrated Edgerrin James is “already gone” from the Arizona Cardinals…if I owned munchy meisters Cheetos, I’d be all over bong boy Michael Phelps as exalted new spokesman…NASCAR kicks off the 2009 seasons fun with “The Shootout” Saturday Feb 7^th from Daytona. I have a heap of my hard earned Steelers money riding on Dale Earnhardt Jr at a gracious 4-1. This is the year the talented driver must produce. He has the team, the equipment, and no distraction from step mother Theresa now that she has effectively ruined DEI Racing and her own reputation. Until proven otherwise, I’m forecasting a breakout year for the Hendricks driver…and, yes, I am biased as all hell…when I watch a NASCAR race I lose the refinement and decorum that characterizes my demeanor while enjoying other sporting events. I just can’t but help gettin’ to the hootin’ and a hollerin’! God bless you NASCAR…Brendan O’Meara of the Saratogian sagely notes the impending doom of boxing, newspapers and horse racing, the Meridians three passions…hits keep coming; Patena, one of the early favourites for the May 2^nd Kentucky Derby, has just joined the barn of the infamous Rick Dutrow. The news? Patena has undergone some “vet” work, but will of course be ready for the big dance at Churchill. Expect big improvement from the colt when he resumes his career in the Louisiana Derby March 14^th…Meridian early love Pioneerof the Nile (spelling, unfortunately, correct) runs Saturday at Santa Anita in the Robert Lewis Stakes. No way will Bob Baffert have the son of Empire Maker cranked, so this is an opportunity to simply observe the animal, take notes, and relish the coming battles…unfortunate development; Square Eddie, Canada’s big hope on the Derby Trail, will be laid up for thirty days with a sore shin. Looking at my “Girls of the Catholic Church; Non Virgin Edition” calendar, I can say what the owners are loathe to admit - he won’t be ready. Look for the Queens Plate, at Woodbine in June, to become the next focus for the robust runner…unbeaten Light heavyweight Joe Calzaghe, 46-0, has announced his retirement. The Welshman received some publicity stateside with his wins over Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones in 2008. His best win, while attracting scant attention, was a thorough dismantling in 2007 of Mikkel Kessler, a fighter that could well dominate the 168 lb (super middleweight) ranks for the foreseeable future. Calzaghe wasted years conducting gross mismatches and was all too frequently an uninspired combatant. But he closed his career like a freight train, with savage beatdowns of Peter Manfredo and Jeff Lacey also garnering accolades…James Toney, fighting at 230 these days, has floated the possibility of a fight with Bernard Hopkins at a catchweight of 185. Toney was once rumoured to have pulled out of a heavyweight fight with Larry Holmes because, according to historian and wag Bert Sugar, he couldn’t make weight…