The Maryland Jockey Club "reported record attendance of 131,680" for yesterday's Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course, as well as "an increase in pari-mutuel handle from last year's event." The attendance figure "topped last year's record of 123,469." Total handle on this year's program was $85.16M, "up 1.64%" from $83.78M in '14. The record of $91.02M was established in '05 (BLOODHORSE.com, 5/16). Meanwhile, NBC posted a 5.8 household overnight rating for yesterday's race. That figure is down from a 6.3 last year and a 6.0 in '13 (THE DAILY).

The festive crowd and scenic panoramas broadcast worldwide yesterday "will do nothing to solve the persistent social problems that plague" Baltimore, but there is "something to be said for changing the subject." Maybe the Preakness "was just a horse race, but it also was a symbol of the resilience of a city that has been knocked down before and always finds a way to get up" (Baltimore SUN, 5/17).

The Reds "continue to assess and investigate the fire that broke out Friday night in one of the PNC Power Stacks at Great American Ball Park, and the team hopes the feature is operational again by the next homestand." The fire "began in the sixth inning of the Reds-Giants game." Play continued while the fire burned, with the Cincinnati Fire Department "extinguishing the blaze after several minutes." There were "no injuries reported." Fans were "evacuated briefly from the area beneath the stacks in right-center field." Reds VP/Ballpark Operations Tim O'Connell said the evacuation occurred "mainly because firefighters did not want spectators sprayed with water from the fire hoses" (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 5/17).

Under Armour yesterday said that it "had stopped selling a shirt displaying a silhouette of basketball players hoisting up a hoop stanchion after its similarities to a famous U.S. war memorial statue caused some to say they were offended by it." The "Band of Ballers" shirt "bears a strong similarity to the U.S. Marine Corp War Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery," the statue "also known as the Iwo Jima Memorial." The "misstep is uncharacteristic for the brand, which has dedicated some of its resources in recent years to veterans injured in battle" (ESPN.com, 5/16).

Doctors at Toronto General Hospital "have identified 12-plus candidates who have been selected to go through the donor screening process" to assist ailing Senators Owner Eugene Melnyk. The donor assessment team "has been poring over a list of more than 500 people who have stepped forward with a potential match for Melnyk’s ailing liver, after more than 2,000 people inquired with the hospital Friday following the Senators’ public plea for help." Univ. Health Network Multi Organ Transplant Program Dir Dr. Atul Humar said surgery could begin "within a week" (OTTAWA SUN, 5/17).

Opponents of the Univ. of Tennessee's decision to remove the Lady Vols moniker from the school's women's sports teams, except basketball, "offered a thick stack of signatures as evidence of their support at a news conference" yesterday. News conference organizer Mollie DeLozier said that she "wasn't surprised" invited UT officials did not attend. She added that signees to save the Lady Vols’ logo "number almost 23,000, including about 8,000 online." UT donor Sharon Lord said that she "had difficulty meeting" with UT AD Dave Hart, even when she "was trying to give the school more money." Lord encouraged other donors to "withhold their checks" (Knoxville NEWS-SENTINEL, 5/17).

A "wild crowd of 12,372 chanted and cheered" for boxer Gennady Golovkin, who last night "scored three knockdowns" during his KO defeat of Willie Monroe Jr. at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. Golovkin wore "Lakers-colored gloves and trunks" (ESPN.com, 5/16). Two of the "finest fighters in the world thrilled a raucous crowd" at the bout. In addition, Roman Gonzalez was "sensational in a second-round stoppage of Edgar Sosa in the opener of the HBO doubleheader" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 5/16).

Showtime's documentary about former NBAer Allen Iverson debuted last night, and it is a "fascinating look into the soul of one of the most beloved, yet controversial, sports figures to perform in Philadelphia." It does not "run away from many of the controversial legal and professional issues." The documentary is told "largely in Iverson's own words;" it "does that well, and that's what made the film enjoyable" (PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 5/17). CBSSPORTS.com's Zach Harper conducted a Q&A with "Iverson" director Zatella Beatty (CBSSPORTS.com, 5/16).

ESPN's Kevin Negandhi on Twitter wrote, "Some unexplained things in the Iverson doc off the court but they did some of the on court stuff in Philly right. Especially at the end." The Washington Post's Kent Babb tweeted, "90 mins can't possibly capture a character like AI. Good stuff but definitely missing his dark side. No mention of drinking/divorce." Pistons G Brandon Jennings wrote, "Iverson made 30 for 30 look bad because they probably thought he would never say anything. But he actually told his story his way."

Tickets for yesterday's Indianapolis 500 qualifying session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway are being "honored" today. That reversal "came after an initial decision that Saturday's tickets would not be honored." The session "was called off because of rain early in the afternoon" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 5/17). Meanwhile, Ed Carpenter today became the third driver to become airborne at IMS, prompting a delay in qualifying until 3:15pm ET. Hulman & Co. CEO Mark Miles in a statement said, "As a precautionary measure, IndyCar will require that the cars qualify today in the same aero setup that they will run" in next weekend's race (ESPN.com, 5/17).

During last night's "Weekend Update" segment on NBC's "SNL," cast member Michael Che interviewed cast member Taran Killam, who portrayed Patriots QB Tom Brady on the Deflategate scandal. Throughout the interview, Killam as Brady, deflected much of the criticism facing the real-life NFLer by highlighting his perceived positive qualities (“SNL,” NBC, 5/16).

A crowd "of several hundred crammed into the Rail Event Center" in Salt Lake City on Friday night for a charity boxing match between former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and former boxer Evander Holyfield. The "Fight For Sight" event was put on to "raise money for the group CharityVision." Holyfield midway through the second round "went down, to the stunned gasps of the capacity crowd," from a Romney blow to the "elbow, it appeared." After "standing in a taunting fashion for about two seconds while Holyfield rose to his feet, Romney then ran as Holyfield chased him around the ring" (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 5/17).

The NFL's new rules involving the preparation, transport and inspection of balls "are expected to be introduced next week at the owners' meetings" in S.F. (L.A. TIMES, 5/16).

The Sun Belt conference, which begins its spring meetings today, "now seems to be solidly in favor of putting on a title game" despite having only 11 of the 12 football teams needed to do so (Lafayette ADVERTISER, 5/17).

Rutgers men's basketball coach Eddie Jordan yesterday "received his bachelor of science degree in Labor and Employment Relations at the Rutgers Athletic Center" (NJ.com, 5/16).

Navy Associate AD/Operations & Championships Bill Givens said that advance ticket sales for today's NCAA D-I men's lacrosse quarterfinals at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium "indicate a crowd of at least 10,000 for the games" (Annapolis CAPITAL GAZETTE, 5/17).

Plans are "in motion" to restore the childhood home of Muhammad Ali to how it looked when he and his family lived there in the '50s and to "let his fans visit the now-abandoned house in Louisville" (AP, 5/15).

AT&T and DirecTV "appear increasingly optimistic" that their $48.5B marriage "soon will win the blessing of federal regulators." On Friday, the two companies "agreed to extend their merger agreement, which had been scheduled to expire" tomorrow (L.A. TIMES, 5/16).

“Simply put, the National Football League has become America’s morality play” – NBC’s Al Michaels, on public reaction to Deflategate and other league issues in recent months (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 5/17).

"We are in some discussions about possibilities. It would be probably more European, and some of it might be in-season and some of it might be out-of-season opportunities" – ACC Commissioner John Swofford, on holding sporting events overseas (ESPN.com, 5/15).

"There are seriously zero discussions about Cup ever coming out here right now. But the scheduling process is year-to-year, so you don't know what is going to happen" – Iowa Speedway President Jimmy Small, on the possibility of holding a Sprint Cup race in the future (AP, 5/16).

The N.Y. DAILY NEWS' Christian Red profiles NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's "right-hand man," NFL Exec VP/Football Operations Troy Vincent, who is responsible for "overseeing discipline," including the four-game suspension given to Patriots QB Tom Brady for his role in Deflategate. Vincent's childhood, during which his mother was "beaten by a boyfriend," factored "heavily in how he addressed and processed last year’s domestic violence crisis."

The ORLANDO SENTINEL's Marco Santana details how Orlando's pro teams "use social media to connect to fans." The teams' social media accounts "do not have an offseason," and feedback is "almost immediate." Meanwhile, NEWSDAY's Marc Carig writes social media "is a different ballgame" for young MLBers like Mets P Noah Syndergaard, whom the team "prompted to cede control" of his Twitter account.

Elsewhere:

• The NFLPA has discussed the "legal and ethical pitfalls" of helmet sensors.
• Also, a Q&A with NFL Chief Health & Medical Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Nabel.
• Kyle Busch's wreck "prompts safety measures" after pleas were "ignored for years."
• Despite push to "restrict excessive" exec compensation, the "party goes on" for CEOs.
• The media loves Bills coach Rex Ryan's "big personality and supreme confidence."

Texas AD Steve Patterson says football season tickets are "at about 90 percent renewal rate." Also, UT brought in $1 mil in additional rev.

— Brian Davis (@BDavisAAS) May 17, 2015

Something good in the works with former teammates @RobinAhrberg and @KaleighRafter reunited in the ESPN3 booth in Tallahassee. Good listen.

— Graham Hays (@grahamhays) May 17, 2015

Pretty sure every person in this hotel is either a sportswriter or a screaming small child in a Disney shirt. (Insert joke here.)

— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) May 17, 2015

Think of how many of ESPN's best reporters -@DVNJr & @KVanValkenburg come immediately to mind - who have never been on The Sports Reporters.

— Richard Deitsch (@richarddeitsch) May 17, 2015

Sr. had a great first week at MD Anderson and his reward is a hall pass to hit up Game 7 today!

— Craig Sager II (@CraigSagerJr) May 17, 2015