NASCAR
SPRINT CUP
IRWIN TOOLS NIGHT RACE
Site: Bristol, Tenn.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Speed, noon-3:30 p.m.), qualifying (ESPN2, 5-6:30 p.m.); Saturday, race, 7:30 p.m. (ABC, 7-11 p.m.).
Track: Bristol Motor Speedway (oval, 0.533 miles).
Race distance: 500 laps, 266.5 miles.
Last week: Brad Keselowski raced to the last of his three 2011 victories. He also won the March race at the track this year.
Last week: Greg Biffle won at Michigan after leader Jimmie Johnson left the track because of engine trouble with six laps left. Keselowski finished second.
Fast facts: Biffle leads the season standings with three races left in the regular season. Matt Kenseth is second 20 points back. The top 10 – Dale Earnhardt Jr. is third, followed by Johnson, Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr., Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin – will earn spots in the 12-driver Chase. Kasey Kahne, with two victories, holds the first of the two wild-card spots that will go to the drivers with the most victories in the 11th-20th spots. Kahne is 11th. No. 13 Ryan Newman, No. 14 Kyle Busch, No. 16 Jeff Gordon, No. 17 Marcos Ambrose and No. 18 Joey Logano each have one victory. Johnson, Keselowski and Stewart lead the series with three victories. Biffle and Hamlin are tied with Kahne with two victories. Each victory is worth three points when the points are reset for the 10-race finale. … Busch has won four of the last seven Bristol races. … The top grove on the track was milled down after the March race. … Danica Patrick is making her fourth series start.
Next race: AdvoCare 500, Sept. 2, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, Ga.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
—
NATIONWIDE
FOOD CITY 250
Site: Bristol, Tenn.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Speed, 10 a.m.-noon), qualifying (Speed, 3:30-5 p.m.), race, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN, 7-10 p.m.).
Track: Bristol Motor Speedway (oval, 0.533 miles).
Race distance: 250 laps, 133.24 miles.
Last year: Kyle Busch raced to his 50th Nationwide victory to break a tie with Mark Martin for the series record. Busch finished the year with eight victories to push his total to 51.
Last week: Justin Allgaier won at Montreal, bumping past French Canadian driver Jacques Villeneuve on the final lap in a green-white-checkered finish.
Fast facts: Elliott Sadler, the winner at the track in March, leads the season standings – 22 points ahead of defending series champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Sam Hornish Jr. Austin Dillon, Sadler’s Richard Childress Racing teammate, is fourth – 35 points behind. … Busch is racing along with fellow Cup drivers Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Kasey Kahne and Joey Logano. Harvick has a series-record five Bristol victories.
Next race: NRA American Warrior 300, Sept. 1, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, Ga.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
—
CAMPING WORLD TRUCK
Next race: Jeff Foxworthy’s Grit Chips 200, Aug. 31, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hampton, Ga.
Last race: The series raced Wednesday night at Bristol.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
—
INDYCAR
INDY GRAND PRIX OF SONOMA
Site: Sonoma, Calif.
Schedule: Friday, practice; Saturday, practice, qualifying (NBC Sports Network, 6-7 p.m.; Sunday, race, 4:45 p.m. (NBC Sports Network, 4-7 p.m.).
Track: Sonoma Raceway (road course, 2.31 miles).
Race distance: 196.35 miles, 85 laps.
Last year: Australia’s Will Power won for the second straight year at the track, leading a Team Penske podium sweep for the last of his five 2011 victories. Helio Castroneves was second, and Ryan Briscoe third.
Last race: Target Chip Ganassi’s Scott Dixon won at Mid-Ohio for the fourth time in six years, holding off Power on Aug. 5. Dixon also won this year at Belle Isle.
Fast facts: Power broke his back at the track in 2009 in practice. The Australian leads the season standings, five points ahead of Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay. Power and Hunter-Reay each won three straight races this year. Power won road races at Alabama, Long Beach and Sao Paulo, and Hunter-Reay won on ovals at Milwaukee and Iowa and the street course in Toronto. … Three-time defending series champion Dario Franchitti is eighth in the standings, 108 points behind Power. … The race is the ninth of the season on road or street courses. … Castroneves won on street courses in St. Petersburg and Edmonton. … Turns 7, 9 and 11 have been modified to enhance passing on the 12-turn course.
Next race: Grand Prix of Baltimore, Sept. 2, Streets of Baltimore, Baltimore.
Online: http://www.indycar.com
—
FORMULA ONE
Next race: Belgian Grand Prix, Sept. 2, Spa-Francorchamps Circuit, Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium.
Last race: McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton won the Hungarian Grand Prix on July 29 for his second victory of the year, holding off Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen.
Online: http://www.formula1.com
—
NHRA FULL THROTTLE
Next race: U.S. Nationals, Aug. 29-Sept. 3, Lucas Oil Raceway, Clermont, Ind.
Last week: Ron Capps topped the Funny Car field in Brainerd, Minn., to take the points lead with one race left in the regular season. Erica Enders raced to her third Pro Stock victory of the season and second in a row, Morgan Lucas won the Top Fuel division, and Eddie Krawiec won in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Online: http://www.nhra.com
—
OTHER RACES
ARCA RACING SERIES: Herr’s Live Life with Flavor 200, Sunday, Madison International Speedway, Oregon, Wis. Online: http://www.arcaracing.com
WORLD OF OUTLAWS: Sprint Car: Friday-Saturday, Castrol Raceway, Edmonton, Alberta. Late Model: Saturday, Winchester Speedway, Winchester, Va.; Saturday, Selinsgrove Speedway, Selinsgrove, Pa. Online: http://www.worldofoutlaws.com
U.S. AUTO RACING CLUB: Sprint Car: Thursday-Saturday, Kokomo Speedway, Kokomo, Ind. Online: http://www.usacracing.com
Add A Comment