NOTEBOOK | NASCAR

Antitrust suit dismissed: A federal judge dismissed an antitrust lawsuit filed against NASCAR by a Kentucky track that was left off its premier racing circuit. Kentucky Speedway alleged that NASCAR had conspired to leave the Sparta track and others out of the Sprint Cup — formerly known as the Nextel Cup — series despite their superior amenities. Judge William O. Bertelsman threw out the speedway’s suit against NASCAR and the International Speedway Corp. in a ruling from U.S. District Court at Covington in northern Kentucky. The speedway plans to appeal, its attorney said.

Gordon upset: Robby Gordon said Monday the cancellation of the Dakar Rally cost him approximately $4.5 million, and he disagreed with the decision not to race at least a portion of the event. Gordon, who won stages of the race the past three years and led the event in 2005, was in Portugal and preparing for the start when organizers canceled it because of “direct” threats of terrorism from al-Qaida-linked militants. Gordon said his team had built two cars for the event and had more than $1 million invested in each vehicle. “I’m extremely disappointed,” he said. “I can completely understand their decision not to go to Mauritania or not want to put competitors in an awkward or dangerous situation. That I understand 100 percent, but for them — with as many years as they’ve been doing this rally — not to have a backup plan. They just had no Plan B.” About 550 competitors were scheduled to start Saturday the 16-day, 5,760-mile trek through remote and hostile dunes and scrub from Europe to Senegal in west Africa. Organizers of the rally cited warnings from the French government about safety after the al-Qaida-linked Dec. 24 slaying of a family of French tourists in Mauritania — where eight of the competition’s 15 stages were to be held — and “threats launched directly against the race by terrorist organizations.” It was the first time that the 30-year-old rally, one of the biggest competitions in automobile racing, has been called off.

Kahne pleads not guilty: NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne filed a written not guilty plea for misdemeanor battery charges and now faces the possibility of criminal and civil trials stemming from a Nov. 16 shoving incident with a security guard at Homestead-Miami Speedway. “We’ll take it as far as it has to go,” Kahne’s Miami-based attorney Richard Sharpstein said Monday. “We’ll prove Kasey’s innocent, and that he didn’t intentionally harm this person.” Kahne was arrested during the NASCAR race weekend at Homestead because of the incident, and last month security guard Archibald Hutchinson filed a civil lawsuit. Hutchinson is seeking damages in excess of $15,000 from Kahne, who according to the complaint/arrest affidavit shoved Hutchinson to the ground at Homestead. Kahne, a Gillett Evernham driver, was wearing his Gillett Evernham driver’s race suit and trying to get to his motor home in the owner/driver motor-home lot. The confrontation between Hutchinson and Kahne arose because Kahne did not have his NASCAR-issued identification card. Kahne entered a written not guilty plea last week to misdemeanor battery charges, which carry a maximum sentence of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine. Kahne’s plea canceled his arraignment in Miami that had been scheduled for Tuesday.

Associated Press