Sports Desk
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

FOOTBALL
PATRIOTS WIN SEASON OPENER OVER COLTS
Tom Brady threw for 335 yards and three touchdowns and Corey Dillon ran 16 times for 86 yards as the New England Patriots beat the Indianapolis Colts 27-24 in the NFL season opener last night.
Colts quarterback Peyton Manning completed 16 of 29 passes for 256 and two touchdowns in the rematch of last year’s AFC championship game.
Willie McGinest sacked Manning with the Colts at the Patriots 18, forcing Mike Vanderjagt to try a 48-yard field goal instead of a chip shot. Vanderjagt, who had made 42 in a row, kicked it wide right with 24 seconds left.
Also yesterday, the Miami Dolphins’ opening game against the Tennessee Titans was rescheduled for tomorrow instead of Sunday because of approaching Hurricane Ivan.
BOXING
ALI CALLS FOR FEDERAL BOXING COMMISSION
Boxing great Muhammad Ali asked Congress yesterday to create a U.S. Boxing Commission, saying oversight by the federal government is needed to protect boxers from exploitation and injury. Ali’s testimony before a congressional panel was read by his wife, Lonnie, because he suffers from Parkinson’s disease.
Legislation authored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., would create a three-person commission – appointed by the president – to license boxers, managers, promoters, and sanctioning organizations. It would impose uniform health and safety standards, establish a centralized medical registry, and provide uniform ranking criteria and contractual guidelines. The bill has passed the Senate but no action on it is expected in the House this year.
In 1996, Congress established minimum health and safety standards for professional boxing, which were expanded by the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act of 2000. But Ali said more work was needed, citing a 2003 Government Accountability Office study which found that inconsistent regulation by state commissions led to permanent and sometimes fatal injuries, economic exploitation of boxers, and corruption.
HORSE RACING
STUD FEE SET FOR SMARTY JONES
Smarty Jones’s first year stud fee was set at $100,000 per live foal yesterday.
Chestnut Hils farm, where the Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner is retired, started offering four-year contracts, so breeders will be guaranteed a season to the horse in each of his first four years at stud.
– Associated Press