ON THE TRACKS This weekend’s auto races

NASCAR

Busch takes pole position at Dover

DOVER, DEL.

Kyle Busch led a strong qualifying effort for Toyota, turning a lap of 158.954 mph to win the pole at Dover International Speedway.

Led by Busch, Toyota had the first four drivers Friday in the qualifying session. Martin Truex Jr. was second, followed by Daniel Suarez and Matt Kenseth. Busch, Suarez and Kenseth are all winless this season for Joe Gibbs Racing.

Erik Jones was seventh and JGR’s Denny Hamlin was 10th to give Toyota six of the top 10.

Busch has gone 28 straight races without a win and was second last week in the Coca-Cola 600.

Austin Dillon, the Charlotte winner Sunday night for his first Cup victory, will start ninth.

INDYCAR

Drivers face different task from Indy

DETROIT

Last week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Takuma Sato and his fellow IndyCar drivers raced 230-plus mph on straightaways and turned left at 220 mph into four corners on a smooth track.

They will now go as fast as about 165 mph and as slow as 30 on a 14-turn, bumpy track that is a mix of concrete and asphalt at the Detroit Grand Prix, where the open-wheel series has its only doubleheader with races Saturday and Sunday.

“It is 180-degree different from Indianapolis Motor Speedway,” Sato said, “I personally love this transition because you have such a fresh feeling. The oval racing is great. But after an entire month of it, you come here and it’s very challenging, very bumpy and you’re basically fighting in the car.”

Sato’s Honda-powered car held off Castroneves’ Chevy at Indy, but team owner Roger Penske believes his four drivers have the power and reliability needed to win his hometown race that he supports and promotes.

“Look at the facts,” he said matter of factly. “We won the three races before Indy. We had five pole positions. The power that Honda has found this year, they’ve lost some reliability and obviously you could see it in Indianapolis. You’re trading power for reliability. You have to finish before you finish first.”

truck series

Sauter wins Truck Series race at Dover

DOVER, DEL.

Johnny Sauter topped a high school graduate and was faster than a runaway tire on Friday to win the Truck Series race at Dover International Speedway.

The reigning series champion, Sauter led 33 laps and won for the first time this season and 14th time in a career that dates to 2003. Sauter had finished second in three straight races and is the fifth different winner in six races this season.

Sauter and Kaz Grala made it a 1-2 finish for GMS Racing. The 18-year-old Grala received his high school diploma from announcer Michael Waltrip in a mock graduation before the race. Grala graduated from Worcester Academy in Massachusetts and for now plans to attend Georgia Tech in the fall and study engineering. Grala won the season opener at Daytona International Speedway.

“This was clearly a big day for me,” Grala said. “Not only for my school life, but for my racing life, too. I kind of lead two lives. This was a big day all around.”

Sauter, who leads the point standings by 52 over Christopher Bell, was one of only eight drivers to complete all 200 laps.

Chase Briscoe won the pole, finished 199 and was 12th, and even drove a bit on three tires. Briscoe’s truck lost the front driver’s side tire, sending the tire rolling down the track as the truck started sparking.

Associated Press