o be seen if the two sides can come to an agreement.---Follow Jon K

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. -- Florent Geroux had ridden three horses for trainer Chad Brown before Saturday, none of whom hit the board. But Brown entrusted Geroux with rides in two Grade 1 races on Saturday at Arlington, Geroux won both of them, and the ride he gave Beach Patrol in the Grade 1, $450,000 Secretariat was exactly what Brown desired.That was the trip we were hoping hed get last time, Brown said. Florent kept him in the clear and out of trouble.Beach Patrol had gotten into a spot of trouble and was posted four wide on the turns when he finished third in the Belmont Derby last month. Geroux had him three wide today but sacrificed a bit of ground loss to keep Beach Patrol out of traffic. The pair moved to challenge for the lead at the top of the stretch, took over before the stretch call, then had to hold off a resurgent Long Island Sound, whom Beach Patrol had passed in mid-stretch, but who continued on gamely to the finish for trainer Aidan OBrien, who was seeking his third straight Secretariat win.You know when you pass a horse from that barn, youd better go by quickly because they always run, said Geroux.Geroux is a Frenchman who cut his teeth in American racing on the Chicago circuit, basing at Arlington during the summer until this year. His business has grown by leaps and bounds, and though he has won Breeders Cup races, Saturday surely was the best single day of his career. He won five of the cards 10 races, four graded stakes, and two Grade 1s. He also won the Grade 1 Beverly D. for Brown on Sea Calisi, the Grade 3 American St. Leger on Da Big Hoss, and was elevated to first by a disqualification on the Brown-trained Noble Beauty in the Grade 3 Pucker Up.I dont feel pressure. I just try to have a blank mind on days like this, try to ride my best, Geroux said.Scissors and Tape, a pacemaker for Oscar Nominated, set a solid pace over good-to-firm going, passing the half-mile in 48.31, pursued by Long Island Sound and Beach Patrol. The pacemaker threw in the towel at the top of the stretch as the two favorites slugged it out, with Beach Patrol just a head better on the day. American Patriot had a traffic-filled trip on the inside and ran a good race to get third, three-quarters of a length behind Long Island Sound.He wasnt taking me anywhere early, said jockey William Buick. Hes a big horse, and it probably wasnt ideal being in so tight.Long Island Sound improved Saturday on his sixth-place finish in the Belmont Derby. He was better this time than last time, said jockey Seamie Heffernan. Hes an improving horse.One Mean Man turned in his typically solid performance to finish fourth and was followed by Oscar Nominated, Cordon, Surgical Strike, Cherry Wine, and Scissors and Tape. The winning time for the 1-1/4 miles was 2:01.95. Beach Patrol paid $7.60 as the mild favorite.Beach Patrol is owned by James Covello, Sheep Pond Partners, and Head of Plains Partners. Hes a 3-year-old colt by Lemon Drop Kid out of the Quiet American mare Bashful Bertie who has gone 3-2-2 from eight starts and won his first graded stakes after a near miss in May in the American Turf. Beach Patrol was developed as a young horse by trainer Wayne Catalano and was sold privately this year by Gary and Mary West. Nike Vapormax Wholesale China . Klitschkos management company says the bout will be the Ukrainian fighters 25th world championship fight. 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MINNEAPOLIS -- There is a gaping hole in the northeast corner of Target Center, the result of a renovation that has started on the Minnesota Timberwolves aging arena to update it as much as possible without completely tearing it down and starting from scratch.After almost a decade-long identity crisis, the major rebuilding of the roster is finally over.With Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine, a core is firmly entrenched that makes one of leagues most unsuccessful franchises the subject of envy for its wealth of young talent. Tom Thibodeau has arrived to give the Wolves a top-flight coach to take over their on-the-job education. And they are just plain sick and tired of hearing about the teams 12-year playoff drought.It bothers me, Towns said. It truly bothers me. Its something I dont want to hear anymore. Im tired of hearing about a drought around here. Thats something that annoys me and bothers me. What I can do to control that is come in every day, work tremendously hard and do everything possible to help us be the winning team we see ourselves being.The Timberwolves won 29 games a year ago, a 13-game improvement from the previous season. They will likely need at least 12 more wins this season to be in the mix in the competitive Western Conference.Despite starting three players who are 21 or younger, their optimism is high.There are a lot of guys on the team that have never been in the playoffs and theyve been here for a long time, Wiggins said. We havent seen it. Now we finally have the perfect pieces to get there, the perfect opportunity this year. Were very confident. Were overly excited. We just want to work hard to get there.The Timberwolves open the regular season on Wednesday in Memphis. Here are some things to watch this season:VETERAN WIGGINSThere is relative certainty surrounding Towns ability to assert himself as an elite big man in the league. It remains a little unclear just how great Wiggins will be. He has worked tirelessly to improve his ball-handling and perimeter shooting to become an All-Star caliber player. If Thibodeau and Wiggins can form the relationship that helps the supremely talented wing play with fire more consistently, look out.DUNNS DEVVELOPMENTThe Wolves grabbed point guard Kris Dunn with the fifth overall pick in June, and there is a lot of speculation that he will eventually supplant Ricky Rubio as the starter.dddddddddddd. But point guard is the most difficult position to play in the league, and the Wolves have no reason to rush him into that role on a team that desperately wants to make the playoffs. Dunn has shot poorly in the preseason, but Thibodeau has already proclaimed him NBA-ready on defense, which is a big thing for the coach.BJELICAS BOUNCEBACKNemanja Bjelica came to the Timberwolves last season after being named Euroleague MVP in Turkey, but struggled with injuries and making an adjustment to the NBA game. He has looked much more comfortable during the preseason of Year No. 2. If he can emerge as the playmaking, sharpshooting, stretch 4 with the second unit, the ceiling for the team raises significantly.BYE, BYE KGFranchise icon Kevin Garnett retired earlier this month, leaving the pups he mentored last season to strike out on their own. The best players on this team are very, very young, so watching the leadership element develop will be intriguing. Towns has quickly asserted himself as one of the teams hardest workers and most vocal communicators, so he is a natural candidate.We talked. I know what I must do, Towns wrote on Instagram after KG retired. Ill take it from here.FINANCIAL MATTERSWith so many young players under contract, the Timberwolves enter the season with cap space galore. But that space will be chewed up in the coming years when Wiggins, LaVine and Towns come up for extensions. One of the interesting pieces in the immediate future is versatile big man Gorgui Dieng. If the Wolves do not reach agreement on an extension with him by the end of the month, he will become a restricted free agent next summer and likely command a salary on the open market of $17 million a year or more. Thibodeau is a big fan of Diengs game, but it remains to be seen if the two sides can come to an agreement.---Follow Jon Krawczynski on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/APKrawczynski cheap falcons jerseys cheap ravens jerseys cheap bills jerseys cheap bears jerseys cheap bengals jerseys cheap cowboys jerseys cheap lions jerseys cheap texans jerseys cheap colts jerseys cheap jaguars jerseys cheap chiefs jerseys cheap rams jerseys cheap dolphins jerseys cheap vikings jerseys cheap saints jerseys cheap giants jerseys cheap jets jerseys cheap eagles jerseys cheap steelers jerseys cheap 49ers jerseys ' ' '