AUTO RACING PACKAGE: Auto Racing Glance

 

All Times Eastern
NASCAR
AAA TEXAS 500
Site: Fort Worth, Texas.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Fox Sports 1, 1-2:30 p.m.), qualifying (ESPN2, 6:30-8 p.m.); Saturday, practice (Fox Sports 1, 11 a.m.-noon); Sunday, race, 3 p.m. (ESPN, 2-7 p.m.).
Track: Texas Motor Speedway (oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 501 miles, 334 laps.
Last year: Jimmie Johnson took the points lead en route to his sixth season championship, racing to the last of his six 2013 victories.
Last week: Dale Earnhardt Jr. won at Martinsville, a week after he was eliminated from the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. He has four victories this season.
Fast facts: The race is the second in the third three-race Chase round. The championship field will be cut from eight to four after the Phoenix event next week, with race winners earning spots in the Nov. 16 finale at Homestead. Points are reset after each round and the title will be decided by finishing order at Homestead. With the eliminated Earnhardt winning at Martinsville, at least two of the four Chase spots at Homestead will be decided by points. Jeff Gordon leads the standings, three points ahead of Ryan Newman. Joey Logano (-4) is third, followed by Matt Kenseth (-5), Denny Hamlin (-7), Carl Edwards (-20), Brad Keselowski (-31) and Kevin Harvick (-33). … Logano won the April race at the track.
Next race: Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500, Nov. 9, Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, Arizona.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
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NATIONWIDE
O’REILLY AUTO PARTS CHALLENGE
Site: Fort Worth, Texas.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Fox Sports 1, noon-1 p.m.; ESPN2, 4:30-6 p.m.); Saturday, qualifying (Fox Sports 2, noon-1:30 p.m.), race, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN, 3:30-6 p.m.).
Track: Texas Motor Speedway (oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.
Last year: Brad Keselowski raced to the sixth of his seven 2013 victories.
Last race: Keselowski won at Charlotte on Oct. 10 for his fourth victory in nine starts this season.
Fast facts: Kyle Busch has a series-high six victories this season to push his record total to 69. Sprint Cup Chase contenders Kevin Harvick and Joe Logano are racing. Harvick has four Nationwide victories this season. … Chase Elliott leads the standings, 42 points ahead of JR Motorsports teammate Regan Smith with three races left. Elliott won the April race at the track for the first of his three victories.
Next race: DAV 200, Nov. 8, Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, Arizona.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
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CAMPING WORLD TRUCK
WINSTAR WORLD CASINO AND RESORT 350
Site: Fort Worth, Texas.
Schedule: Thursday, practice; Friday, qualifying (Fox Sports 1, 3-4:30 p.m.), race, 8:30 p.m. (Fox Sports 1, 8-11 p.m.).
Track: Texas Motor Speedway (oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 220.5 miles, 147 laps.
Last year: Ty Dillon raced to the second of his two 2013 victories.
Last week: Darrell Wallace Jr. won at Martinsville, a year after he won at the track to become the first black driver to win a national NASCAR race since Wendell Scott in 1963.
Fast facts: Kyle Busch is making his first series start since winning at Chicagoland on Sept. 13. He has six victories in eight starts this year and 41 career wins in 123 races. Kyle Busch Motorsports has won 11 of the first 19 races, with Wallace winning three times and Erik Jones twice. … Defending series champion Matt Crafton leads the standings, 18 points ahead of Ryan Blaney with three races left. Wallace is 22 points back in third, and Johnny Sauter is 40 points behind in fourth. Crafton won the June race at the track.
Next race: Lucas Oil 150, Nov. 7, Phoenix International Raceway, Avondale, Arizona.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
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FORMULA ONE
U.S. GRAND PRIX
Site: Austin, Texas.
Schedule: Friday, practice (NBC Sports Network, 12:30-2 p.m., 3-4:30 p.m.); Saturday, practice, qualifying (NBC, 1-3:30 p.m.); Sunday, race, 3 p.m. (NBC, 2:30-6 p.m.).
Track: Circuit of The Americas (road course, 3.427 miles).
Race distance: 191.94 miles, 56 laps.
Last year: Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel raced to his eighth consecutive victory to break Michael Schumacher’s season record. Vettel won the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix the following week to match Schumacher’s record of 13 victories in a year and tie Alberto Ascari for the longest overall winning streak.
Last race: Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton won the Russian Grand Prix on Oct. 12 for his fourth straight victory and ninth of the year. Teammate Nico Rosberg was second and Mercedes wrapped up the constructors title.
Fast facts: Hamilton has a 17-point lead over Rosberg with three races left. Rosberg has four victories this year. … Hamilton won the inaugural race in 2012, driving for McLaren. … Vettel is winless this season, his last at Red Bull. … The 20-turn track is the series’ 10th U.S. venue and first built specifically for F1.
Next race: Brazilian Grand Prix, Nov. 9, Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, Sao Paulo.
Online: http://www.formula1.com
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NHRA MELLO YELLO DRAG RACING
NHRA TOYOTA NATIONALS
Site: Las Vegas.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying; Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, Sunday, 2-3:30 a.m.); Sunday, final eliminations (ESPN2, 6-9 p.m.).
Track: The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Last year: John Force won his record 16th Funny Car season title, beating daughter Courtney Force in the final round. Matt Smith won in Pro Stock Motorcycle to take the season title. Antron Brown won in Top Fuel event, and Shane Gray topped the Pro Stock field.
Last event: Matt Hagan won Oct. 5 in Mohnton, Pennsylvania, to take the Funny Car points lead. He has two victories in the first four races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs. Tony Schumacher won in Top Fuel to extend his season lead. He has three Countdown victories. Rodger Brogdon won in Pro Stock, and Eddie Krawiec in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Fast facts: The event is the fifth in the six-race Countdown. Hagan has a 36-point lead over 65-year-old John Force. Jason Line tops the Pro Stock standings, 35 points ahead of Erica Enders-Stevens. In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Andrew Hines has a 25-point lead over Krawiec.
Next event: Auto Club NHRA Finals, Nov. 13-16, Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Pomona, California.
Online: http://www.nhra.com