Auto Racing Capsules: Bowyer's car fails inspection; he loses 150 points
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Clint Bowyer's NASCAR championship chances were crippled Wednesday when his car failed a follow-up inspection and he was penalized 150 points after winning last weekend's first race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup.
NASCAR also fined crew chief Shane Wilson $150,000, and suspended him for the next six Sprint Cup races. Car chief Chad Haney was also suspended six races, and team owner Richard Childress was docked 150 owner points. The team plans to appeal the penalty.
Bowyer was permitted to keep Sunday's victory at New Hampshire — NASCAR does not typically strip wins and an official said the Richard Childress Racing team probably was punished enough.
"We don't consider taking away the win," NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said. "If you ask some, they would consider a 150-point penalty with only nine races to go in the Chase a pretty hefty penalty."
With Sunday's win in the opening race of the Chase, Bowyer vaulted from 12th to second in the standings. The penalty drops him back to last place, 185 points behind leader Denny Hamlin.
NASCAR said the No. 33 Chevrolet from Sunday's race had been altered and did not meet its strict specifications. Neither Pemberton or Sprint Cup director John Darby would specifically address the infraction, citing RCR's right to appeal the penalty.
Darby, however, said the issue revolved around how the team had set up the body of the car.
Childress said in a statement that the penalty was handed down because the car was out of tolerance "less than 1/16 of an inch."
"We feel certain that the cause of the car being out of tolerance by sixty thousandths of an inch, less than 1/16 of an inch, happened as a result of the wrecker hitting the rear bumper when it pushed the car into winner's circle," Childress said.
"The rear bumper was also hit on the cool down lap by other drivers congratulating Clint on his victory. That's the only logical way that the left-rear of the car was found to be high at the tech center. We will appeal NASCAR's ruling and take it all the way to the NASCAR commissioner for a final ruling, if need be."
Bowyer's car passed its initial inspection at New Hampshire on Sunday, but was taken by NASCAR back to its North Carolina research and development center for a more thorough examination. It was there that NASCAR found the rear end of the car had been manipulated.
The development came a day after NASCAR called in RCR officials to warn them that Bowyer's Chase-clinching car from the Sept. 11 race at Richmond had nearly failed inspection because its back end was very close to the mandated limits. Pemberton said that earlier warning played a part in the punishment.
Although the issues on the car at Richmond and the car at New Hampshire were not exactly the same, the infractions were in the same area of the car. Childress said his team had addressed NASCAR's issues before Sunday's race.
"I am confident we fixed the area of concern and the New Hampshire car left the race shop well within the tolerances required by NASCAR," Childress said.
Speaking at an appearance Wednesday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame before the penalty was announced, Bowyer said he was aware his car was under scrutiny but pleaded ignorance as to what could be wrong with the Chevrolet.
"Man, I have no idea. I show up on Friday, I bring my helmet, my HANS and I get in the car," Bowyer said. "Anything that happens Sunday to Friday, I don't know. I know we won the race this weekend and it was a lot of fun. We led the most laps and won the race and the guys work hard in the shop to bring fair, fast race cars.
"Aside from that, I don't know what's going on."
NASCAR sets very strict templates that the teams must follow in building their race cars. Although the cars are built to be equal, crew chiefs can and do make alterations in certain parts of the design for strategy and driver preference.
Teams also have historically pushed the limits in an effort to gain a technical edge on the race track. Since NASCAR ramped up its penalties for cheaters over the past several years, there have been fewer examples of blatant infractions.
Instead, teams tend to cross the line now by manipulating setups to improve handling, alter downforce, improve fuel mileage or find additional speed. It's not clear what advantage Bowyer would have gained, or if it factored into his win.
Bowyer led a race-high 177 laps, lost the lead to Tony Stewart, but stretched his final tank of gas 92 laps to win the race when Stewart ran out of fuel right before the final lap. The victory snapped an 88-race winless streak for Bowyer.
RCR has two other cars in the Chase. Kevin Harvick, who moved up to second in the standings, 45 points behind Hamlin, after Bowyer's penalty, and Jeff Burton, who is ninth in the Chase.
Johnson is down but vows he's not out
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The rattling of a loose wheel would be enough to unravel any driver, and for a brief moment in the opening race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, the chattering from under his car probably did cause Jimmie Johnson's heart to sink.
Forced onto pit road for a quick fix, Johnson couldn't make up time he lost and finished a distant 25th in Sunday's race at New Hampshire.
It was the lowest finish of all Chase drivers, and enough to drop him six spots in the standings to seventh. A lot of drivers would throw in the towel on a title run.
Superman isn't one of them. Johnson is taking an optimistic approach to the remaining nine weeks of the Chase. He knows the record book shows that since the Chase began in 2004, the champion finished sixth or better in the opening race every year but one. The lone exception? Johnson.
He rallied from a 39th-place finish in 2006 to win the first of his four consecutive championships. So anyone who wants to count him down right now had better be warned, he most definitely is not out.
"I know we all try to find statistics and trends that favor someone, but there's 10 races and there's so many variables and so many opportunities for something to go wrong and '06 proved all that to me," Johnson said. "Yeah, 25th is not the way we want to start the Chase, but those other 11 drivers can also have their fair share of bad luck, too. We just can't get down and depressed. We ran well, we were competitive, we need to go to Dover and get back in our game and do our thing and see how things go from there."
Johnson, trailing leader Denny Hamlin by 92 points, is certainly in a hole. But he's hardly on the ropes, especially since Round 2 of the Chase rolls into Dover International Speedway this weekend.
The Monster Mile has never been all that daunting to Johnson. He swept the two races his 2002 rookie season, added a third win during the 2005 Chase, then pushed his wins total to five with last season's sweep.
Had he not been caught speeding down pit road there in May, Johnson might have had a sixth win. After all, he led a race-high 225 laps before his gaffe opened the door for Kyle Busch to wrest away the victory.
"It's one of my favorite race tracks, so I'm excited to get back after last weekend's finish," Johnson said. "We definitely need to get some points and get some things going. We couldn't pick a better track."
Johnson has become an expert at tuning out distractions and focusing only on his No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports team. He figured out that strategy after he became consumed with Tony Stewart during the 2005 title race that Stewart won.
When he switched gears the next season and stopped worrying about the rest of the field, Johnson began his four-year reign atop NASCAR.
Now that he finds himself in a deficit, he figures this is yet another example of why it's best to tune out the competition.
"The only way to go is up at this point, and we know that we can't have anymore mistakes," he said. "We have to be spot-on, we have to be leading laps, we have to be running up front. It really simplifies things for us. We've got to perform.
"There's nothing to protect, there's nothing to try to hold on to, it's all about getting back some points so it's pretty simple right now."
Johnson figures if he does that, then one by one, the drivers ahead of him in the standings may leave the door open for him to quickly climb back into the race. He showed last season that he wouldn't waste his time playing mind games, guessing correctly that the competition would self-destruct without any help from him.
Now that he's in a hole, and other drivers can sense the opportunity in front of them, he's hopeful the pressure will weigh on his rivals.
"There's some other teams out there that are very concerned and very occupied with what everybody else is doing, and when you start writing nice things about them, they believe it and when you start writing bad things about them, they get upset and call, text or e-mail you," Johnson said. "Those are the guys that during the stretch of the Chase, I think can be affected by the pressure. Will they? I don't know.
"For my sake, I hope they feel the pressure and make mistakes, but they're all hoping that they don't."
-- Jenna Fryer
Glance at 12 drivers in the Chase
A glance at the 12 drivers competing in NASCAR's Chase for the Sprint Cup championship heading into this weekend's race at Dover International Speedway (in order of points):
DRIVER: Denny Hamlin
CHASE POINTS: first, 5,230 points
CAR: No. 11 FedEx Toyota
TEAM: Joe Gibbs Racing
POSITION CHANGE: None.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 9
BEST DOVER FINISH: Fourth (twice)
LAST WEEK: The Chase's top seed held onto his spot with a solid second-place finish at New Hampshire, better than even he had hoped for following an up-and-down day.
CHASE CHATTER: "I was happy with the day I had," Hamlin said. "I would have loved to have won, don't get me wrong but I'm not going to go out there and do it the dirty way."
DRIVER: Kevin Harvick
CHASE POINTS: second, 5,185 points
CAR: No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet
TEAM: Richard Childress Racing
POSITION CHANGE: Plus 1.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 19
BEST DOVER FINISH: Third (Fall, 2003)
LAST WEEK: Battled his way up from a poor qualifying run to finish fifth at Loudon, stretching his gas mileage over the final miles to post his 12th top-five of the season.
CHASE CHATTER: "We hung in there, we battled, and we came away with a top-five finish," Harvick said. "We need to get better, and we will."
DRIVER: Kyle Busch
CHASE POINTS: third, 5,168 points
CAR: No. 18 M&Ms Toyota
TEAM: Joe Gibbs Racing
POSITION CHANGE: Plus 1.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 11
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (twice)
LAST WEEK: Started and finished ninth at Loudon, though his drive was anything but boring. Twice Busch found himself in close quarters with four-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson but keep it together enough to get back in the top 10.
CHASE CHATTER: "We were battling back and forth with tight and loose. We just got what we could out of it," Busch said. "Fortunately, our bad day right now is ninth versus some other guys."
DRIVER: Jeff Gordon
CHASE POINTS: fourth, 5,155 points
CAR: No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet
TEAM: Hendrick Motorsports
POSITION CHANGE: Plus 4.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 35
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (four times)
LAST WEEK: The veteran quietly got off to a solid start in the Chase with a sixth-place finish at Loudon.
CHASE CHATTER: "We had some high hopes when we got up there to third or fourth; even to second at one time, but I think Steve (Letarte, crew chief) called a great race," Gordon said. "He didn't want to risk the fuel, and it just wasn't worth it."
DRIVER: Kurt Busch
CHASE POINTS: fifth, 5,144 points
CAR: No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge
TEAM: Penske Racing
POSITION CHANGE: None.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 20
BEST DOVER FINISH: Fourth (Fall, 2006)
LAST WEEK: The former champion hoped to get the Chase off to a solid start at one of his favorite tracks and instead wound up an eventful 13th after playing bumper cars with Joey Logano.
CHASE CHATTER: "I wasn't quite in the zone," Busch said. "I wasn't quite feeling it today. We survived. We needed to have a good day today and not just survive."
DRIVER: Jimmie Johnson
CHASE POINTS: sixth, 5,138 points
CAR: No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet
TEAM: Hendrick Motorsports
POSITION CHANGE: Minus 4.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 17
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (five times)
LAST WEEK: A chink in the armor or a case of bad racing luck? Maybe both? Johnson found himself caught up in a pair of accidents in Loudon and finished 25th, the type of mishap the defending champion largely been able to avoid during his four-year run at the top.
CHASE CHATTER: "We did what we could," Johnson said. "We had a decent car today and ran in the top five and top 10, but just didn't end up finishing there."
DRIVER: Carl Edwards
CHASE POINTS: seventh, 5,135 points
CAR: No. 99 Aflac Ford
TEAM: Roush Fenway Racing
POSITION CHANGE: Plus 2.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 12
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (Fall, 2007)
LAST WEEK: Wasn't a ton of magic at the "Magic Mile" for Edwards, who put together a solid but hardly spectacular 11th-place finish at Loudon.
CHASE CHATTER: "We've had some really good runs (at Dover) including a win," Edwards said. "For me this is one of the races in the Chase where I can make a difference as a driver."
DRIVER: Greg Biffle
CHASE POINTS: eighth, 5,122 points
CAR: No. 16 3M Ford
TEAM: Roush Fenway Racing
POSITION CHANGE: None.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 16
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (twice)
LAST WEEK: One of the Chase long shots saw his playoff run get off to a bumpy start as he struggled with handling all day and finished 17th at Loudon.
CHASE CHATTER: "I know we dropped a little in the points but some of the other guys finished behind us so we'll just learn from this one and get ready for Dover," Biffle said.
DRIVER: Jeff Burton
CHASE POINTS: ninth, 5,118 points
CAR: No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet
TEAM: Richard Childress Racing
POSITION CHANGE: Plus 1.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 33
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (Fall, 2006)
LAST WEEK: Gambled on fuel at Loudon and ran out with two laps remaining, though he was able to coast to the finish in 15th.
CHASE CHATTER: "We just didn't get as good of fuel mileage on the last run as we had been getting," Burton said. "It is what it is. Our finish certainly doesn't reflect how well (we) ran all day."
DRIVER: Tony Stewart
CHASE POINTS: 10th, 5,106 points
CAR: No. 14 Old Spice/Office Depot Chevrolet
TEAM: Stewart/Haas Racing
POSITION CHANGE: Minus 4.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 23
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (twice)
LAST WEEK: Hey, you can't blame the 2005 series champion for not going for it. He had one of the strongest cars at Loudon, leading 100 laps, but ran out of fuel with a lap to go and finished 24th.
CHASE CHATTER: "We went down swinging," Stewart said. "It's a tough way to start the Chase. I would have settled for second."
DRIVER: Matt Kenseth
CHASE POINTS: 11th, 5,094 points
CAR: No. 17 Crown Royal Ford
TEAM: Roush Fenway Racing
POSITION CHANGE: None.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 23
BEST DOVER FINISH: 1st (Spring, 2006)
LAST WEEK: Where do you start? Battled his way up from 33rd to run in the top 15 before a nudge from Brad Keselowski ended up damaging the No. 17 car, sending Kenseth tumbling to 23rd.
CHASE CHATTER: "The guys made adjustments all race long but we just didn't run very well," Kenseth said. "We got caught up in that wreck, had a lot of damage to the car, and it was just a really long day for us."
DRIVER: Clint Bowyer
CHASE POINTS: 12th, 5,045 points
CAR: No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet
TEAM: Richard Childress Racing
POSITION CHANGE: None.
CAREER DOVER STARTS: 9
BEST DOVER FINISH: Eighth (three times)
LAST WEEK: Bowyer's title hopes evaporated almost as quickly as they materialized after his victory in New Hampshire on Sunday had vaulted him into second place. He dropped back to 12th Wednesday after NASCAR docked him 150 points because the No. 33 failed to pass a postrace inspection.
CHASE CHATTER: "Man, I have no idea," Bowyer said before the penalties were announced. "I show up on Friday, I bring my helmet, my HANS and I get in the car."
-- Will Graves
IndyCar
Homestead '09 IRL race was mellow, without yellow
HOMESTEAD, Fla. (AP) — Dario Franchitti was more than a mile behind Ryan Briscoe and Scott Dixon at times during last season's IndyCar Series finale, nearly an entire lap off the pace.
He couldn't have been happier.
Sounds bizarre, but even while facing a daunting 25-second deficit Franchitti could almost taste the champagne. He had done the math. His fuel saving was going perfectly. He was going to win the race, capture his second IndyCar championship and earn $1.17 million ... provided, of course, that a yellow flag didn't come out to wreck his plans.
"The ultimate strategy," Dixon would later say.
The ultimate reward, too.
The 2009 race at Homestead-Miami Speedway was memorable mainly for two reasons — it brought Franchitti a title, and it went down as the first IndyCar event in history to go start-to-finish without a caution flag. And when Franchitti returns to Homestead for this year's finale on Oct. 2, the memories of that glorious, yet strange, day a year ago will surely come flooding back.
Franchitti enters this year's finale trailing Will Power by 12 points, certainly far from an insurmountable deficit.
"We can only control what we do," Franchitti said.
But when everyone else remains in control — essentially what happened at Homestead in 2009 — the task of making up points could get much easier for Franchitti.
When Franchitti started last year's finale at Homestead four points behind Dixon and four points ahead of Briscoe in the super-tight race for the title, he took what might be considered a huge gamble. He saved fuel from the very beginning, coaxing more miles of out his tanks than Dixon and Briscoe did from theirs.
His plan was simple: If Dixon and Briscoe — the only other two contenders for the 2009 title — needed to pit four times, then he would try to finish 300 miles on only three stops for fuel. For the plan to work, he pretty much needed everything on-track to go right.
Somehow, it did.
"It was physically very difficult with no yellows," Franchitti said. "Our strategy, after the halfway point, it wouldn't have mattered if there were no yellows or not. We had used so little fuel in the first half of the race, that put us — what do they say, in the catbird's seat? If there had been a yellow, we would have had more fuel. We were always, from Lap 100 on, in a very good position."
For so many reasons, a yellow-free race was something that no one expected.
There had only been six IndyCar races with just one yellow flag, two of those coming earlier in 2009. But the series had never seen a caution-free race, and one surely wasn't expected at Homestead, where the combination of drivers vying for jobs in 2010 and grip being an issue throughout the week had plenty of people thinking there would be plenty of wrecks.
"Might be the first and last time it ever happens," Dixon said. "It was that odd. It's a strange thing and that obviously made it into the race it was. In hindsight, maybe we should have slowed down and saved fuel. But for me, it was one of those things you had to push. I think that's how you win championships and win races. We just took it the wrong way."
Two things were clear from the outset of last season's race at Homestead. One, none of the non-title-contenders in the field wanted to ruin anyone's championship chances. Two, those three cars weren't going to be caught by anyone regardless of strategy.
At the midway point of the 2009 race, Dixon, Briscoe and Franchitti were the only cars on the lead lap. They were that dominant, more than 15 mph faster than some cars on certain laps.
"Even when I crossed the line, I asked the question: 'Did Dario really win this race?'" Briscoe recalled. "We did everything perfect, just perfect. I was so bummed."
Although it went down as an incident-free race, that really wasn't the case. As Danica Patrick was trying to enter her pit, she got crashed into by Dan Wheldon with about 40 laps remaining. Had that happened on the track, everyone's strategy might have changed.
But since the track remained under green-flag racing, Franchitti remained in control.
"It was amazing, because the track was so slick," Briscoe said. "It was challenging and everyone did a great job to keep it off the wall. Why they chose that day. ... Last race of the year, a lot of people are fighting for rides for the next year. But I don't know if the focus for anyone was different at that race than any other."
Power watched from a hospitality suite in the Penske Racing area last season at Homestead, recovering from a crash at Sonoma that ended his season months earlier.
He hasn't had a taste of what it's like to race for a title at Homestead. Franchitti said he doesn't think that will matter.
"I think he will get up to speed very quickly. ... No reason why he can't do it at Homestead," Franchitti said. "We just have to make sure we beat him."
-- Tim Reynolds
Formula One
F1's title race begins Asian swing in Singapore
BANGKOK (AP) — The race for the Formula One world championship shifts from Europe to Asia this week, with five drivers still holding title ambitions entering a key stretch of the 2010 season.
Sunday's race in Singapore contrasts sharply with F1's previous stop in Italy, taking the sport from the rich traditions of Monza to the new frontiers in Singapore, from the fastest circuit to the tight and twisty confines of the Marina Bay street course, from day racing to night racing.
What hasn't changed is the wide-open nature of the 2010 title contest.
Red Bull's Mark Webber leads the drivers' championship with 187 points, but struggled while finishing sixth in Italy. He took over the lead in the standings from McLaren's Lewis Hamilton (182), who crashed out on the first lap in Italy.
Webber anticipates the cramped confines of the Singapore circuit to play to Red Bull's strengths, unlike the flowing layouts of Spa and Monza in the previous two events.
"I'm hoping to improve on last year's result, as it's a high-downforce street circuit that should suit our car," Webber said. "It's got some similarities to Monaco and Budapest and we did well at both those circuits, so I'm hoping for a strong result."
Hamilton goes to Singapore with mixed emotions: lingering anger over the mistake that ended his race barely after it had begun in Italy and optimism created by the memory of his victory at Marina Bay last year.
"I've already drawn a line under Monza," Hamilton said. "I've learnt from the experience and, while it was extremely disappointing, those things are sometimes what you need to sharpen your mind and raise your game and motivation at an extremely crucial time in the season."
Ferrari's Fernando Alonso (166 points) enters this weekend's race with momentum, having delighted Italian fans with his victory there two weeks ago. He is a point ahead of McLaren's Jenson Button, who hasn't won in 10 races but still has a chance of defending his title thanks to his consistency.
Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel is only two points further back, but has won only one of the past 11 races and is 24 points behind more experienced teammate Webber with five races remaining.
Going by the performance at high-downforce tracks this season, the McLarens could expect to struggle in Singapore, as they did in Monaco and Hungary, but Button remained optimistic.
"A lot has changed since that race in Budapest," he said. "Not least, some quite hefty revisions to the rule book regarding bodywork flexibility and, additionally, a lot of work by the engineers to ensure our car is now better suited to slower circuits.
"Singapore will be interesting for all of us. We'll not only get an idea of the speed of the Ferrari and Red Bull, but we'll get to see for the first time whether all our efforts over the past two months have helped put us back in the ballpark at high-downforce tracks."
This is the third Singapore Grand Prix, and teams have by now gotten a handle on the challenge of racing under lights. The main challenge as drivers come off the European segment of the schedule is adjusting their body clocks so they are alert for the night sessions. That means staying awake until nearly dawn and then sleeping into the early afternoon.
There is one wild card the teams have never encountered — a night race in the rain.
The first two editions of the Singapore event were dry — surprising for the tropical locale — and drivers will be hoping the rain stays away again, given the difficulties of driving on a track with light reflected off spray and a wet track.
-- Chris Lines
Auto Racing Glance
All Times EDT
NASCAR
SPRINT CUP
AAA 400
Site: Dover, Del.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Speed, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.), qualifying (ESPN2, 3-4:30 p.m.); Saturday, practice (Speed, 12:30-1:30 p.m.); Sunday, race, 1 p.m. (ESPN2, noon-1 p.m., ESPN, 1-5 p.m.).
Track: Dover International Speedway (oval, 1.0 miles).
Race distance: 400 miles, 400 laps.
Last year: Jimmie Johnson completed a season sweep at the Monster Mile, beating Hendrick teammate Mark Martin in the second of the 10 Chase races.
Last week: Clint Bowyer won the Chase opener at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, taking the lead when Tony Stewart ran out of gas with a lap left. On Wednesday, Bowyer was fined 150 points after his car failed an intense NASCAR inspection. Crew chief Shane Wilson was suspended for six races and fined $150,00, car chief Chad Haney also was suspended six races and Richard Childress was docked 50 owner points. NASCAR said the rear end of the car was manipulated.
Fast facts: Denny Hamlin leads the Chase standings, 45 points ahead of Kevin Harvick. Four-time defending series champion Johnson is 92 points behind Hamlin in sixth place. The 150-point penalty dropped Bowyer from second to 12th in the standings. ... Kyle Busch swept the Cup and Nationwide races at the track in May.
Next race: Price Chopper 400, Oct. 3, Kansas Speedway, Kansas City, Kan.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
| NATIONWIDE |
|---|
| Dover 200 |
Site: Dover, Del.
Schedule: Friday, practice (ESPN2, 1-3 p.m.); Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, 10:30 a.m.-noon), race, 3 p.m. (ESPN2, 3-6 p.m.).
Track: Dover International Speedway (oval, 1.0 miles).
Race distance: 200 miles, 200 laps.
Last year: Clint Bowyer raced to his second victory of the year, taking the lead with 83 laps left and holding off Mike Bliss.
Last race: Kevin Harvick won at Richmond on Sept. 10, racing to his third victory of the year and 37th overall. Points leader Brad Keselowski was second.
Fast facts: Kyle Busch, the winner in May at the track, has a record-tying 10 victories in 22 Nationwide starts this year. He also won 10 times in 2008 to match the mark set by Sam Ard in 1983. Busch, not running for the season championship after winning the 2009 title, is second on the Nationwide victory list with 40 — eight behind Mark Martin. ... Keselowski has a 373-point lead over Carl Edwards with eight races left. Keselowski has four victories this season. ... Danica Patrick is making her seventh start in Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s No. 7 Chevrolet.
Next race: Kansas Lottery 300, Oct. 2, Kansas Speedway, Kansas City, Kan.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
| CAMPING WORLD TRUCKS |
|---|
| Smith's Food & Drug Stores 350 |
Site: Las Vegas.
Schedule: Saturday, practice, qualifying, race, 9:30 p.m. (Speed, 9:30 p.m.-midnight).
Track: Las Vegas Motor Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 219 miles, 146 laps.
Last year: Johnny Sauter won for the first time in the Trucks Series, taking the lead from Matt Crafton with 16 laps left.
Last week: Kyle Busch raced to his fifth Trucks victory of the season and 80th overall NASCAR win, passing James Buescher on the final restart at New Hampshire.
Fast facts: Todd Bodine, the 2006 series champion and a four-time winner this year, has a 237-point lead over Aric Almirola with six races left. Sauter is third, 310 points behind Bodine. ... Ken Schrader is making his sixth start of the year for Kevin Harvick Inc., driving the No. 2 Chevrolet.
Next race: Kroger 200, Oct. 23, Martinsville Speedway, Martinsville, Va.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
| FORMULA ONE |
|---|
| Singapore Grand Prix |
Site: Singapore.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Speed, 9:30-11 a.m.), Saturday, practice, qualifying (Speed, 10-11:30 a.m.); Sunday, race, 8 a.m. (Speed, 7:30-10 a.m., 1-3:30 p.m.).
Track: Marina Bay (street course, 3.148 miles).
Race distance: 191.97 miles, 61 laps.
Last year: McLaren's Lewis Hamilton raced to the second of his two 2009 victories, starting from the pole and finishing 9.6 seconds ahead of Timo Glock.
Last race: Fernando Alonso won the Italian Grand Prix on Sept. 12, giving Ferrari a victory on its home track. McLaren's Jenson Button was second, 2.9 seconds back. Red Bull's Mark Webber finished sixth to regain the season points lead.
Fast facts: Webber has 187 points with four races left. Hamilton is second with 182, followed by Alonso (166), Button (165) and Sebastian Vettel (163). ... Webber also leads the series with four victories. Hamilton and Alonso are three-time winners.
Next race: Japanese Grand Prix, Oct. 10, Suzuka International, Suzuka, Japan.
Online: http://www.formula1.com
| NHRA FULL THROTTLE |
|---|
| NHRA Fall Nationals |
Site: Ennis, Texas.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying; Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, Sunday, 1-2 a.m.); Sunday, final eliminations (ESPN2, 7-10 p.m.).
Track: Texas Motorplex.
Last year: Robert Hight topped the Funny Car field, and Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle) won their divisions.
Last week: Larry Dixon raced to his 11th Top Fuel win of year, beating Doug Kalitta in Concord, N.C., to remain perfect in 2010 final-round appearances. Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car), Anderson (Pro Stock) and Louis Tonglet (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won.
Fast facts: The event is the third of six in the Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship. ... Dixon has an 85-point lead over Cory McClenathan in the Top Fuel standings, 14-time champion John Force leads Jack Beckman by four points in the Funny Car title race, and Mike Edwards is 27 points ahead of Anderson in Pro Stock.
Next event: Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals, Oct. 8-10, Maple Grove Raceway, Mohnton, Pa.
Online: http://www.nhra.com
| INDYCAR |
|---|
Next race: Miami Indy 300, Oct. 2, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead, Fla.
Last week: Helio Castroneves won the Indy Japan 300 for his second straight victory and third of the year. Dario Franchitti finished second and is 12 points behind series leader Will Power with one race left. Power was third.
Online: http://www.indycar.com
| OTHER RACES |
|---|
U.S. AUTO RACING CLUB: Silver Crown and Sprint Car, 4-Crown Nationals, Saturday, Eldora Speedway, Rossburg, Ohio. Online: http://www.usacracing.com
WORLD OF OUTLAWS: Sprint Car, 4-Crown Nationals, Friday, Eldora Speedway, Rossburg, Ohio; Saturday, Lernerville Speedway, Sarver, Pa.
