ON THE TRACKS This weekend’s events

NASCAR NEXTEL CUP
Dodge Dealers 400
Dover, Del.

Schedule: Friday, qualifying (ESPN2, 3:15 p.m.); Sunday, race (ABC, 1:30 p.m.).
Track: Dover Downs International Speedway (oval, 1 mile, 24 degrees banking in turns).
Race distance: 400 miles, 400 laps.
Last race: Clint Bowyer raced to his first Cup victory, starting from the pole and leading all 221 of the 300 laps to win at New Hampshire International Speedway. Bowyer entered the 12-driver Chase as the only contender without a victory, and had never finished higher than third in his short Cup career.
Last year: Jeff Burton found his way back to Victory Lane at Dover International Speedway after a thrilling late battle with Matt Kenseth. The win parked Burton in the lead of NASCAR’s Chase for the championship and ended his 175-race winless streak.
Fast facts: Chase drivers have won four straight races. ... Bowyer joined Martin Truex Jr., Casey Mears and rookie Juan Pablo Montoya as first-time Cup winners in 2007. ... Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon are tied for the lead with 5,210 points, 10 ahead of Tony Stewart. Johnson owns the tie-breaking edge over Gordon because of his six race wins this season to four for Gordon. ... Truex, sixth in the point standings with 5,170, won the Autism Speaks 400 at Dover on June 4.
Next race: LifeLock 400, Sept. 30, Kansas City, Kan.

NASCAR BUSCH
RoadLoans.com 200
Dover, Del.

Schedule: Friday, qualifying (ESPN2, 12:05 p.m.); Saturday, race (ESPN2, 3:30 p.m.).
Track: Dover Downs International Speedway (oval, 1 mile, 24 degrees banking in turns).
Race distance: 200 miles, 200 laps.
Last race: Kyle Busch led four times and for all but 25 laps and even made overtime look easy at Richmond International Raceway on Sept. 9, earning his ninth career Busch victory and second of the season. Carl Edwards, the runaway series points leader, extended his margin to 733 points over Kevin Harvick, last year’s runaway champion, with seven races left on the schedule.
Last year: Clint Bowyer won a green-white-checkered flag finale at Dover International Speedway for his first victory of 2006 after four runner-up finishes.
Fast facts: Defending NEXTEL Cup Dover winner Martin Truex Jr. has entered the race. Truex scored his first career Cup win at the Monster Mile in June. ... Carl Edwards has a 733-point lead over Kevin Harvick and David Reutimann.
Next race: Yellow Transportation 300, Sept. 29, Kansas City, Kan.

NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCKS
Las Vegas 350

Schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 6 p.m.), race (Speed Channel, 8:30 p.m.).
Track: Las Vegas Motor Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles, 20 degrees banking in turns).
Race distance: 219 miles, 146 laps.
Last race: Ron Hornaday Jr. led 174 of the 200 laps in the New Hampshire 200 on the way to his fourth victory of the season and the 33rd of his career. Mike Skinner, who wound up third, came into the race trailing Hornaday by four points and left 29 behind with seven events remaining.
Last year: Skinner raced to his first victory of the year, passing Ted Musgrave with 20 laps to go and holding on to take the Las Vegas 350.
Fast facts: Buddy Lazier, the 1996 Indy 500 winner, will make his NASCAR debut. ... Like Lazier, Jacques Villeneuve (1995 Indy 500 winner) will be making his Truck Series debut. ... In 18 races this season, Hornaday has finished as low as 11th once. In the past five races, he has two wins, two seconds and a sixth.
Next race: Talladega 250, Oct. 6, Alabama.

NHRA
O’Reilly Fall Nationals
Ennis, Texas

Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 4:45 p.m.; Saturday, qualifying, Noon (ESPN2, 12:20 a.m., tape); Sunday, finals eliminations, Noon (ESPN2, 7 p.m., tape).
Track: Texas Motorplex.
Last event: Gary Scelzi topped the Funny Car field in the O’Reilly Mid-South Nationals, edging teammate Jack Beckman by 0.0013 seconds in the final at Memphis Motorsports Park. Pro Stock driver Dave Connolly once again outran former points leader Greg Anderson in the final for his sixth victory of the year. Top Fuel pilot Melanie Troxel took out three of the men in the Countdown to Four Top Fuel field, including Bob Vandergriff Jr., Brandon Bernstein, and Doug Herbert in the final. Pro Stock rider Andrew Hines raced to his third win in a row.
Last year: Bernstein and Robert Hight made up ground in the their championship chases with convincing victories. In Pro Stock, Richie Stevens raced to his first victory in more than five years.
Fast facts: Texas Motorplex is the only NHRA track with an all-concrete racing surface. ... The event is the final chance for the eight Pro Stock Motorcycle riders in the Countdown to Four and is the second-to-last chance for the Countdown teams in Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock. ... Andrew Hines leads the Pro Stock Motorcycle for the first time this year with a four-point margin over Matt Smith. ... Dave Connolly has won three straight to take a commanding 33-point lead over Greg Anderson in Pro Stock. ... Tony Schumacher leads the Top Fuel division by 19 points (2,216-2,197) over Rod Fuller. ... Hight has a 43-point lead (2,233-2,180) over Jack Beckman in Funny Car. ... Beginning in 2008, the maximum percentage of nitromethane used in the Top Fuel and Funny Car categories will be increased from 85 percent to 90 percent to extend the life of parts and reduce costs.
Next event: Torco Racing Fuels Nationals, Oct. 7, Richmond, Va.

Associated Press