ON THE TRACKS | This weekend's events
NASCAR NEXTEL CUPPepsi 400Daytona Beach, Fla.
Schedule: Today, qualifying (Speed Channel, 4:30 p.m.); Saturday, race (FOX, 7:30 p.m.).Track: Daytona International Speedway (tri-oval, 2.5 miles, 31 degrees banking in turns).Race distance: 400 miles, 160 laps.Last race: Jeff Gordon combined patience with a fast race car at Infineon Raceway to grab a record ninth road course victory. Gordon took the lead for the first time on lap 49 of the 110-lap Dodge/Save Mart 350. Last year: Tony Stewart made a dramatic four-wide pass, then pulled away on a restart with nine laps left to win the Pepsi 400, his first victory in 14 starts at Daytona International Speedway. Fast facts: Series leader Jimmie Johnson survived a spin to finish 10th at Sonoma and increased his lead over Matt Kenseth from 74 to 101 points. Gordon jumped from 11th to eighth in the standings, while Stewart fell from sixth to seventh, 26 points ahead of Gordon. ... Johnson won the first two restrictor plate races of the season, the Daytona 500 and the Aaron's 499 at Talladega on April 30. ... There are 10 races left before the Chase for the Nextel Cup championship begins. The top 10 drivers in the points after the 26th race of the season are eligible for the 10-race playoff. ... The race was lengthened to 400 miles in 1963.Next race: USG Sheetrock 400, July 9, Joliet, Ill.
NASCAR BUSCHWinn-Dixie 250Daytona Beach, Fla.
Schedule: Today, qualifying, 1:05 p.m., race (FX, 7:30 p.m.).Track: Daytona International Speedway (tri-oval, 2.5 miles, 31 degrees banking in turns).Race distance: 250 miles, 100 laps.Last race: Paul Menard took advantage of a mistake by Jason Leffler, then held on in the closing laps to win the AT & amp;T 250 at The Milwaukee Mile.Last year: Martin Truex Jr. passed Kevin Harvick with four laps remaining and held on to win the Winn-Dixie 250.Fast facts: Harvick finished a season-worst 19th at Milwaukee. He still has a 344-point lead in the standings over Denny Hamlin, who has three straight top-five finishes. ... Tony Stewart won the season-opening Hershey's Kissables 300 at Daytona on Feb. 18. ... Chad Little set a Busch record by winning the 1995 event from the 42nd starting position.Next race: USG Durock 300, July 8, Joliet, Ill.
NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCKSO'Reilly Auto Parts 250Kansas City, Kan.
Schedule: Today, qualifying, 6 p.m.; Saturday, race (Speed Channel, 3 p.m.).Track: Kansas Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles, 15 degrees banking in turns).Race distance: 250.5 miles, 167 laps.Last race: After winning his first career truck race the previous week, Johnny Benson made it two in a row with a victory in the Toyota Tundra Milwaukee 200. Benson, who won at Michigan International Speedway on June 17, drove past Ron Hornaday Jr. with 41 laps to go at the Milwaukee Mile, then held off Hornaday on a restart with 25 laps to go for the victory.Last year: Todd Bodine withstood a series of late restarts, then pulled away from the pack in a three-lap shootout to win the O'Reilly Auto Parts 250.Fast facts: No truck driver has won three straight races. ... Terry Cook is expected to make his 209th consecutive start this weekend, tying the series record held by Rick Crawford. Crawford did it from 1997-2005. ... Bodine has won seven times since his victory in last year's race.Next race: Built Ford Tough 225, July 8, Sparta, Ky.
FORMULA ONEUnited States Grand PrixIndianapolis
Schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 1 p.m.); Sunday, race (Speed Channel, 12:30 p.m.).Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (road course, 2.606 miles, 13 turns).Race distance: 190.238 miles, 73 laps.Last race: Fernando Alonso won his fourth consecutive race, driving his Renault to an easy victory in the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. Last year: The United States Grand Prix was marred when seven teams boycotted the race in a tire safety dispute. Schumacher won his first race of the season, two days after his brother Ralf crashed during a practice session while driving on the questionable Michelin tires.Fast facts: Alonso has won five straight poles. ... Schumacher has won this race in three of the last five years. ... The series' contract with Indianapolis Motor Speedway expires this year, and track officials are taking a wait-and-see approach before they begin negotiating for an extension.Next race: French Grand Prix, July 16, Magny Cours.
INDY RACING LEAGUEKansas Indy 300Kansas City, Kan.
Schedule: Saturday, qualifying, 1:45 p.m.; Sunday, race (ABC, 1 p.m.).Track: Kansas Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles, 15 degrees banking in turns).Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.Last race: Sam Hornish Jr. blew by teammate Helio Castroneves early in the race to win the SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond, Va.Last year: Tony Kanaan denied Dan Wheldon his fifth victory of the season, beating him to the finish line by .012 of a second to win the Argent Mortgage Indy 300 at Kansas Motor Speedway. It was the sixth-closest victory in series history.Fast facts: Castroneves has started on the pole three times this season, but never after posting the fastest qualifying lap. He was on the pole at Motegi in Japan when the grid was set on points because of rain. At Watkins Glen and Richmond, the field was set based on practice speeds because of rain. Next race: Firestone Indy 200, July 15, Gladeville, Tenn.
Associated Press
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