sistant trainer Alan Sherman, giving the chestnut an affecti | Forum

                                      SONOMA, Calif. Cheap Air Max 90 Green . -- In a yearlong celebration of Roger Penskes 50th season in racing, Simon Pagenaud brought yet another championship to trophy to one of the most storied organizations in motorsports.The Frenchman won his first career IndyCar title in his sophomore season driving for Penske, and did it in dominating fashion by winning the season finale Sunday at Sonoma Raceway.Pagenaud only needed a smooth race to put a wrap on this breakthrough season.Instead, he picked up his fifth win of the year and led a strong Penske finish to the final podium. The Penske team went 1-2-3 in the final series standings, the first team to do so since another Penske trio pulled off the sweep in 1994.That was a strong run and I take my hat off to the entire team, Penske said.A 14th IndyCar title -- and 29th in various forms of motorsports -- was guaranteed at the start of the race because only Pagenaud and teammate Will Power were mathematically eligible to win the title.Pagenaud entered the weekend 43 points ahead of Power, but earned an additional point for winning the pole. Then he led the most laps and won a race that was worth double points in the standings.What Im thinking about right now is, its been a long career, Pagenaud said. You start, seven years old. You go through a lot. I remember my first race in France in a go-kart. It was raining. I had my visor open because I had the wrong helmet.I still have that picture at home. The ground I covered since is quite incredible. I just feel so blessed to being a human that has been able to live his dream and get to this. I basically accomplished all the dreams I had.Pagenauds performance was a moot point, though: Power had mechanical issues 38 laps into the race that sealed the outcome.Obviously I saw Will slowing down, which I wanted this fight to go all the way, Pagenaud said. It was a bit of a relief, I have to say. I feel sorry for his luck.Probably needing to win to unseat Pagenaud, Power instead finished 20th. Pagenauds final margin was 127 points, the largest points win since Alex Zanardi defeated teammate Jimmy Vasser by 119 points in 1998.It was pretty realistic considering it was (worth) double points, Power said. Its just how it flows, when its your year, its your year, and Simon has done a phenomenal job to lead a 1-2-3 finish.Power finished second in the standings, Helio Castroneves was third and Chevrolet won its fifth consecutive manufacturer title since its return to IndyCar in 2012.Throughout the entire season, he was not only an amazing driver but a champion, Castroneves said of teammate Pagenaud. Really honored to be working with a guy like that. The whole team was a dream to work with and today was the proof of that.Its the fourth time Power has finished second in the standings, but it was easy to swallow because he won his only title in 2014. And, he missed the season opening race this year when IndyCar ruled him out with concussion-like symptoms -- it was an inner ear infection -- so climbing back into title contention was somewhat of a victory.If I hadnt won a championship, I guess it would be a pretty bad day, Power said. But finishing second, considering how I started the year, getting four wins, its a good year.A year after losing the title in the final race -- Juan Pablo Montoya led the standings wire-to-wire, but a Scott Dixon win in the finale cost Penske the championship on a tie-breaker -- the Penske organization cruised to the top of the series. The combination of Pagenaud, Power and Montoya won 10 of the 16 races.Across all motorsports, Penske this year also achieved its 500th pole, its 100th victory in NASCARs top Sprint Cup Series, and now an additional championship. The Penske team still has another shot: Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano both had top-five finishes Sunday in the opening race of NASCARs playoffs.GOODBYE TARGET: Scott Dixon didnt give sponsor Target the send-off it had hoped after 27 years in IndyCar.Dixon started the day tied for third in the standings and trying to keep his streak of finishing third or better in the standings every year since 2007.But he had radio issues, had to change his helmet during a caution, and finished 17th. It dropped him to sixth in the final standings. Its the lowest Dixon has finished since 2005.MONTOYA MOVING ON?: If Sunday was the final race for Montoya driving for Penske, he closed out his tenure on a strong note.Montoya finished third at Sonoma to bookend the year with podium finishes. He won the season-opener at St. Pete, but had a significant drop-off the rest of the way.Although Montoya won the Indianapolis 500 for Penske last year, the team owner is unsure if hell bring the Colombian back next year. Penske hopes to make a decision within 60 days on if hell field a fourth car, and who will drive it, and Montoya doesnt believe the door is closed yet on a return.ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Alexander Rossi finished fifth on Sunday to lock up top rookie honors for the IndyCar season.Rossi won the Indianapolis 500 for a huge bright spot on a season he otherwise believes failed to live up to expectations. Rossi had just one podium all year.Hes yet to announce his 2017 plans, and his name began to surface Sunday as a possible Penske driver next year.Wouldnt that be nice, Rossi said after the race. Cheap Air Max 90 All White . LOUIS -- Attorneys for the St. Cheap Air Max 90 Running Shoes . -- In one brief spurt, Brazil turned a close game into a rout and proved again it will be a strong World Cup favourite. http://www.cheapairmax90fromchina.com/ . Varlamov made 33 saves and Ryan OReilly had a goal and scored in the shootout as the Avalanche beat the New Jersey Devils 2-1 on Thursday night. In show business, its how you leave em that counts -- laughing, crying, wanting even more. Last Saturdays Day 2 of the Breeders Cup provided all that and then some.Brilliant races from Arrogate, California Chrome, Highland Reel, and Tourist marked the day, while Peter Eurton, Phil DAmato, Seamus Heffernan, and Flavien Prat joined the company of Breeders Cup winners.Even the fans, 72,811 strong, got into the act by the end of the long, dramatic afternoon, although with varying effects. As the soft twilight settled and the dying sun glowed in the distance, those heading for the exits near the walking ring were greeted by a woman wearing a red dress and a broad grin proudly waggling a homemade banner that read, Hillary for Prison.Times change. In 1996, signs at the Cup shouted Cigar for President. In 2009, it was Girl Power! Go Zenyatta! When someone suggested that perhaps this of all places on this of all days might be considered temporary sanctuary from the all-too-real concerns of the election, the woman declared her First Amendment rights, which apparently include freedom from good taste.A more poignant endnote played out a short time later at the west end of the paddock gardens. The tableau included a stretch limousine, a befuddled chauffeur, a solicitous security guard, and a woman clearly over her prescribed alcoholic intake. The guard was gently urging her into the limo, but she resisted, shouting, Im being arrested! Im being arrested! I wanted California Chrome to win!Ah, well, so did a whole lot of other people, for whom the $6 million Breeders Cup Classic was a more sobering moment. Heroes die hard -- Tepin, Found, and Lady Eli also bit the dust in valiant efforts -- and California Chrome went down with a ferocious fight, stretching Arrogate to be every inch of the colt he was in his breathtaking Travers last August.The margin was half a length at the end of the Classics 1-1/4 miles, with the first two nearly 11 lengths afield of the third horse (Keen Ice). But whether it was the 3-year-olds fresher legs that made the difference or a ride of wary calculation from Victor Espinoza, the verdict remains: The 2016 season may have been wall to wall California Chrome, but the Breeders Cup belonged to Arrogate.Thats a relief, Bob Baffert said earlier in the day, after the 3-year-old Drefong defeated the favored Masochistic in the $2 million Breeders Cup Sprint. You want to make sure you dont get that doughnut.To that point, Baffert had run only four horses, but Dortmund and American Gal had been favored, and Bafferts main chance in the Sprint, Lord Nelson, had been scratched. Drefong, a son of champion grass horse Gio Ponti, gave Baffert his fifth Sprint title dating to the 1992 running with Thirty Slews.When he won the Breeders Cup Sprint, I thought that day at Gulfstream Park I had reached the pinnacle of my career, Baffert said. That was it. I never had that feeling again until I won a Kentucky Derby.Baffert had to wait just five years for that -- when Silver Charm won at Churchill Downs in 1997-- but it was 22 years, a new family, a heart attack, and nine more Breeders Cup titles before the trainer scored his first win in the Classic. Cheap Air Max 90 2018. Bayern was the horse who couldnt break straight but could run very fast - fast enough to hold off the British colt Toast of New York and the 3-year-old version of California Chrome in 2014. Baffert rolled to his second straight Classic win last year with American Pharoah, while California Chrome was chilling at Taylor Made Farm ? and 2-year-old Arrogate was nothing more than a gleam in Bafferts eye.The son of Unbridleds Song clearly was designed by the same people who dreamed up the AT-ATs from The Empire Strikes Back. Time was required before his long legs and powerful torso struck a workable balance. It was April before Baffert dared unleash Arrogate -- the result was a promising third -- after which he worked his way through his conditions.When Arrogate won the Travers by 13-1/2 lengths in his stakes debut, the 3-year-old picture was turned on its head. Preakness winner Exaggerator and Belmont winner Creator were among the humbled that day, while Derby winner Nyquist was a no-show.By the time the Breeders Cup came around, all three had been retired. That makes Arrogate the latest in a select line of late-blooming 3-year-olds -- including Kelso, Wajima, and Tiznow -- who ended up champions of their generation without touching a Triple Crown event.Arrogate is a fast-track version of the imposing Tiznow, with fewer starts and a limitless trajectory. Baffert had been convinced that his colt could climb buildings and swat biplanes, but even he had lingering doubts about the Classic.Going in, we knew we had a great horse, Baffert said. We thought we could be competitive. But down deep, I really wasnt sure if we could beat California Chrome because I still have total respect for the horse. Hes a great horse.Unfortunately, the great horse did not get a comparable ride. At least that was the concession of Espinoza, whose work this year aboard California Chrome had been flawless. This time around, instead of cutting Chrome loose around the turn and into the stretch, he allowed the champ to idle briefly while looking for the oncoming Arrogate and Mike Smith.I could have maybe let him run sooner, opened up more, Espinoza said.Still, California Chrome took Arrogate deep, and Arrogate was best in only the final yards. Back at the barn, in the corner of the Santa Anita stables, California Chrome returned to an outpouring of affection from friends and family.Its not your fault, said assistant trainer Alan Sherman, giving the chestnut an affectionate pat.Look at him, said trainer Art Sherman, Alans dad. Just ran maybe the best race of his life, and hes recovered already. What a horse.And what a horse race. How could anyone ask for more? ' ' '