The Preakness Stakes attracted a record crowd of 135,256 to Pimlico Race Course on Saturday, "up from the previous high of 131,680" last year. Despite rain for "most of the day, the Pimlico infield appeared crowded." Exaggerator upset favorite Nyquist to win the race (BLOODHORSE.com, 5/21). The record crowd "underscored a brightening outlook for keeping Maryland's biggest sporting event in Baltimore" (Baltimore SUN, 5/22). Betting on the race was "up sharply and set a record, buoyed by a larger field" of 11 horses. Preakness betting was $61.3M, up 16.2% from $52.7M on an eight-horse field last year (DRF.com, 5/21).

Meanwhile, the "deaths of two horses in early races" at Pimlico "set a somber tone to Preakness Day (Baltimore SUN, 5/22).

Arlington city officials and the MLB Rangers have "agreed on a plan to build a stadium with a retractable roof that would be funded in part by tax dollars that are currently being used to pay off AT&T Stadium." Construction, estimated to cost $1B, still "must be approved by Arlington voters in a Nov. 8 election." If the referendum is successful, construction "could begin" by late '17. The venue’s costs will be "split equally between the city and the Rangers" (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 5/21). The ballpark is "expected to open no later than" the '21 season. It "would probably have a capacity of 42,000 to 44,000, slightly smaller than Globe Life Park's current maximum of about 48,000" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 5/21).

The French Open begins today, and the "new level of scrutiny at Roland Garros is evident and understandable as France, still in a state of emergency, prepares for two months of sport that also present a major security headache." There are "new checkpoints and policies and a much more visible police presence outside the stadium gates, with the security cordon clearly much wider." The tournament, which "attracts crowds of more than 30,000 daily during the first week, will be the most significant and extended sporting event in Paris since the terrorist attacks in November" (N.Y. TIMES, 5/21). Entering the tournament grounds "has become far more time-consuming and complicated." Organizers have added 25% more security personnel and "surrounded the venue with a second perimeter of barricades" (ESPN.com, 5/21).

The Wisconsin Center District board on Friday approved "three public bond sales, which are to occur in June, that will raise" $203M to help pay for the Bucks' new $524M arena. The remaining $47M of the $250M in public costs "will come from bonds sold by the City of Milwaukee." Current Bucks ownership and former Owner Herb Kohl are "covering the other expenses, with the team also responsible for any additional possible overruns." The district will "own the new arena and lease it to the Bucks" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 5/20). 

The Sharks yesterday fell to the Blues 6-3, tying the Western Conference Finals at two games apiece, and it was a "perfect illustration of why there continue to be many premium unused seats at SAP Center for Sharks playoff games." Sharks fans know there "is no such thing as a sure thing when it comes to their hockey team," which is why there were "empty seats in the best sections of SAP Arena" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/22). The crowd at SAP Center yesterday was "primed to scream" as the Sharks could have taken a 3-1 series lead (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 5/22).

Meanwhile, Jack Nicklaus in a CBS News web exclusive spoke about about his relationship with Trump. Nicklaus: "He's turning America upside down. He's awakening the country. ... If he's the one on the ticket, I'll be voting for him." Nicklaus also praised Trump for his "treatment of their business relationship, calling him a 'good man'" (GOLF.com, 5/21).

A new format to yesterday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway "left half the field confused to almost comical levels but did produce an aggressive race that ended with a thrilling victory for Joey Logano" (AP, 5/22). The format "put drivers on older tires at the front and those on newer tires at the rear for the final segment after a random inversion." Driver/owner Tony Stewart said, "It's the most screwed up All-Star Race I've ever been a part of. I'm glad it's the last one" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 5/22).

USA Today's Jeff Gluck writes the new format "spoiled" a "great idea." It "left drivers confused, frustrated and angry – well, most of the drivers" except for Logano. NASCAR Senior VP/Competition Scott Miller said, "It's just very unfortunate that this situation cropped up and a lot of people walked away from here disappointed. We're disappointed as well" (USATODAY.com, 5/22).

A year after the Red Bulls "dominated MLS newcomer NYCFC, winning all three meetings, they won again" yesterday. The Red Bulls’ "colossal 7-0 thrashing was as much a boost of energy to their resurgence after a terrible start to the season as it was thoroughly demoralizing to NYCFC." The Red Bulls "quickly silenced the spirited Yankee Stadium crowd of 37,858 and never let the home crowd – or NYCFC – into the match" (N.Y. POST, 5/22). NYCFC and Red Bulls fans "clashed again" outside Yankee Stadium before the match (USATODAY.com, 5/21). The scene felt "like England in the 80s" (TWITTER.com, 5/21).

Meanwhile, midtown Manhattan was "lit with both clubs' colors on Friday night ahead of the contest," with the Empire State Building illuminated in a split color scheme representing both teams (CBSSPORTS.com, 5/21).

We'll be split in @NewYorkRedBulls' red & white and @NYCFC's blue & orange for the start of @MLS #RivalryWeek. pic.twitter.com/AAU3vzOCJb

— Empire State Bldg (@EmpireStateBldg) May 20, 2016

NBC Sports Group today announced that it has reached a multiyear agreement for the U.S. media rights to the Royal Ascot horse racing event, starting in '17. NBCSN will present live coverage of the U.K. event for at least three-and-a-half hours a day for five consecutive days, Tuesday-Saturday. All coverage will be streamed on NBC Sports Live Extra. Royal Ascot features 30 horse races and more than $8M in purses and is attended annually by Queen Elizabeth II. Ascot Commercial Dir Juliet Slot in a statement said the deal “will allow us to bring Royal Ascot to a mainstream American audience.” NBC also has long-term agreements to broadcast the Triple Crown races and the Breeders' Cup.

A source said that Big Ten hockey is "in the process of approving a new format for its conference tournament that would move games to on-campus sites" beginning in '18. The tournament "would be played over the course of three weekends and feature three best-of-three quarterfinal round series, two single-game semifinals, and one championship game." Games will be hosted on the "campus of the highest seed." The regular-season champion of what will be a "seven-team conference by the time new format is in place, will receive a first-round bye." A formal announcement is "expected in late summer/early fall" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 5/21).

The White Sox this weekend chose to celebrate the 25th anniversary of U.S. Cellular Field, a ballpark that "overcame a dysfunctional infancy to become" functional. The club in the early years was "in denial about their fans' indifference to the park." But White Sox fans "never truly have loved the Cell as old Comiskey Park was, warts and all" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 5/22).

The CHICAGO TRIBUNE feature a package of stories on the ballpark's 25th anniversary, including, "White Sox Saved For City In Their Own Version Of The Chicago Way" and "Tax Dollars Still Paying Off Renovations On White Sox Stadium."

U.S. runner Boris Berian on Friday night at the Hoka One Classic "learned that he was being sued" by Nike, his former sponsor, when he was "served lawsuit papers at the meet" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 5/21). T-Mobile CEO John Legere wrote to Berian on Twitter, "Call me if I can be of any help? Did they own your arm too??" (TWITTER.com, 5/21).

The NLL Saskatchewan Rush yesterday drew a sellout crowd of 15,192 to SaskTel Centre to watch it face the Calgary Roughnecks, the largest crowd to attend a sporting event in the arena's 27 years of operation (THE DAILY).

NPSL club Detroit City FC's home opener and first-game ever at Keyworth Stadium yesterday drew a franchise record crowd of 7,410. Detroit City and AFC Ann Arbor "battled to a hard-fought, 1-1 draw" (DETROIT NEWS, 5/22).

89-year-old Holocaust survivor Hermina Hirsch yesterday sang the national anthem at Comerica Park before the Rays-Tigers game (AP, 5/21).

A full-page ad in today's Charlotte Observer highlights next weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway (THE DAILY).

Today's N.Y. TIMES features multiple ads for staff writer Joe Drape's recently released book, "American Pharoah: The Untold Story of the Triple Crown Winner's Legendary Rise" (THE DAILY).

"Why don't we speed up the replay? That's what I'm thinking. Speed up the replay. If it's not conclusive in a minute and thirty seconds, we go about our business. That's what I’d like to see" – Nationals manager Dusty Baker, on MLB's instant replay disrupting the rhythm of games (WASHINGTON POST, 5/22).

"Please, no. A four-point line? No, I would not be a proponent of that. It sounds like a circus – you win a stuffed animal if you make a four-pointer. ... I think that sounds insane" – Warriors coach Steve Kerr, when asked if he supported a four-point line in the NBA (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/22).

"We're in dire straits here. This just isn't going well at all. So I have to be prepared to change it up and move some pieces. Whether you call it shuffling the deck or shaking it up" – Twins Exec VP & GM Terry Ryan, on the team's poor start to the season (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 5/22).

"Ten percent still means hundreds of thousands of degraded human beings" – ESPN's Pablo Torre, on a recent Washington Post poll showing 90% of Native Americans do not find the name "Redskins" offensive ("Sports Reporters," ESPN, 5/22).

"We need to admit that the system is flawed" – USOC CEO Scott Blackmun, on the Olympics' anti-doping system (AP, 5/20).

The N.Y. TIMES' Dan Barry pens a front-page piece under the header, "A Heated Linguistic Debate: What Makes 'Redskins' A Slur?" Barry writes the "widespread acceptance of the term as a pejorative ... has apparently been tossed into linguistic uncertainty" by the results of a recent Washington Post poll. The CHICAGO TRIBUNE's Clarence Page wrote, "It turns out that Native Americans Indians are not offended. ... I respect the results of the survey." However, Page added the results do not "totally dampen my support for the Native American Groups that pushed for the name change."

The Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE's Ron Way tried to diagnose what the problem is with golf. The baby boomer rocket that "propelled golf to new heights ... has lost altitude." Frugal millennials "balk at a game they see as too expensive, too difficult and too time-consuming."

Elsewhere:

• CSN New England’s Trenni Kusnierek keeps mental health dialogue open.
• How adidas’ lifestyle brand is using its recently launched Snapchat channel.
• Phil Mickelson is “in the clear” after precedence rules in his insider trader case.
• Horsemen largely “struggle to market sport on social media.”
• Indy 500 visitors are willing to pay hundreds of dollars to stay with you.
• The Bay Area “strives” for the Titletown mantle.
• Motorsports’ “riskiest corner” is short-track racing.

Watched the race this morning...still a bit confused. I understand why some of you at home were frustrated. All eyes on the #600 though.

— Kurt Busch (@KurtBusch) May 22, 2016

The FOX broadcast keeps saying 10 players on the USMNT roster are also going to Copa America. I count eight... Fact check, anyone?

— LeanderAlphabet (@LeanderAlphabet) May 22, 2016

Boxing has enough problems with crappy judging without completely unfit people being (allegedly) handed judging jobs.

— Chris Mannix (@ChrisMannixYS) May 22, 2016

Bringing back a feature I started at Fang's Bites and wasn't able to resume. Hoping to restart at @awulannouncing this week.

— Ken Fang (@fangsbites) May 22, 2016

On my way to Vegas for the @BBMAs! Gonna be a great show🎉 pic.twitter.com/nJkd2sHams

— lindsey vonn (@lindseyvonn) May 22, 2016

👍👍 @cj_wentz!!#RookiePremiere pic.twitter.com/BvE7gBqgvA

— NFL Now (@NFLNow) May 21, 2016

The next installment of ESPN Films' SEC Storied series, "Mighty Ruthie," premieres at 9:00pm ET.