Kyle Busch executes late bump and run for Bristol win

Kyle Busch is Mr. Bristol!

Food City 500 Results

Kevin Harvick wins fourth straight Sprint Cup race at Phoenix

Kevin Harvick is rolling like few before in recent hostory

AVONDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kevin Harvick is redefining dominance at NASCAR's highest level.

The defending NASCAR champion won his fourth consecutive race at Phoenix International Raceway on Sunday with yet another rout of the field. His 42 other competitors knew this was Harvick's race to win, and he made it look easy.

Harvick has won five of the last six races at Phoenix and a record seven overall.

More important, he continued a streak of dominance that dates to last season. He has seven consecutive top-two finishes and has won four of the last seven races, which includes the final two of last year's championship season.

He opened this season with two runner-up finishes, then won last week at Las Vegas and now Phoenix.

The last driver to open a season with four finishes of second or better? Hall of Famer Richard Petty in 1974.

CampingWorld.com 500 Results


Phoenix Fast Facts
* Kevin Harvick won the 11th Annual CampingWorld.com 500, his 30th victory in 506 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
* This is his second victory and fourth top-10 finish in 2015.
* This is his seventh victory and 14th top-10 finish in 25 races at Phoenix International Raceway.
* Jamie McMurray (second) posted his fourth top-10 finish in 24 races at Phoenix International Raceway. It is his first top-10 finish in 2015.
* Ryan Newman (third) posted his 11th top-10 finish in 26 races at Phoenix International Raceway.
* Jeb Burton (34th) was the highest finishing rookie.
* Kevin Harvick leads the point standings by 22 points over Joey Logano.
* Harvick is the first driver to win four straight races at a single track (Phoenix) since Jimmie Johnson won four straight at Charlotte from 2004 - 2005.
* Harvick is the first driver to finish in the top 2 seven consecutive times since NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty did it in 1975.

- NASCAR

Hamlin and Kenseth win Budweiser Duels

Hamlin races to checkers as mayhem ensues behind him on last lap

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Denny Hamlin was in the right place at the right time Thursday night — out front and ahead of the big crash.

Hamlin led the lead pack across the finish line to win the second Budweiser Duel and avoid the wild multicar crash that erupted behind him and sent Clint Bowyer's car flipping through the air.

The wreck occurred when Jimmie Johnson ran out of fuel on the final lap and Jamie McMurray tagged him from behind coming out of Turn 4, sending both drivers crashing into the outside wall and igniting a huge crash. Bowyer got the worst of it, getting knocked across the track and flipping his car into the frontstretch grass. Also involved were Michael Waltrip, Martin Truex Jr., Carl Edwards and David Ragan.

“I feel terrible," Johnson said. "Terrible to tear up that many racecars and see the 15 (Bowyer) flip. I feel terrible and want to apolgize to everyone. I tried to get up out of the way, I had my hand out the window, but the last lap coming to the checkered, there is so much going on right there, so much energy in the pack, I knew we were going to get run over if we ran out. Thankfully everyone is all right and I certainly feel bad for all the torn-up racecars."

Hamlin, meanwhile, won the race, followed by Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Paul Menard, Brian Scott, Trevor Bayne and rookie Kyle Larson.

Read More Here......Sporting News

Bud Duel 2 Results


DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Matt Kenseth held off a furious charge from Kevin Harvick and Kasey Kahne on the final lap to win the first Budweiser Duel qualifying race at Daytona International Speedway Thursday night.

Harvick finished second but was disqualified after failing postrace inspection for his car exceeding the maximum split on the track car. Harvick's finish was disallowed and he will have to get into the Daytona 500 based on his qualifying speed or owner points. His team has Ryan Newman's owner points from 2013.

Kenseth led most of the race, but had to deal with Harvick on the final lap. Harvick pulled out of line going into Turn 4 on the final lap to take the lead, but Kenseth fought back on the outside to hold off Harvick and Kahne in a three-wide finish.

Read More here....Sporting News

Bud Duel 1 Results

Kyle Busch wins at Atlanta, his fourth win of season

Busch is looking good heading into the Chase

A year ago, Kyle Busch was 12th in points and watching his Chase hopes slip away.

A year later, he clinched a spot in the 2013 Chase for the Sprint Cup with a win at Atlanta Motor Speedway Sunday night. Busch, who missed last year's Chase, climbed to fifth in the standings and became one of seven drivers to clinch a spot in the 12-driver Chase field, which will be set following next week's race at Richmond.

"This is a heckuva lot different than 365 days ago," Busch said in victory lane.

One just one race left before the Chase, the 500-mile race had huge implications on the playoff race.

Joey Logano, who led the most laps, climbed to eighth in points and solidified his Chase hopes with a runnerup finish. Martin Truex Jr., meanwhile, also helped his chances with a gutsy third-place finish despite racing with a broken wrist.

Kurt Busch also moved back into the Chase picture, climbing to 10th in points by finishing fourth.

Rounding out the top 10 in the race were Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, Juan Pablo Montoya, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kevin Harvick and Brian Vickers.

Read More Here.......Sporting News

Advocare 500 Results

Kenseth wins at Kentucky following late Johnson spinout

Matt Kenseth grabs fourth win of the season 

When crew chief Jason Racliff told Matt Kenseth to pit for fuel only with 25 laps remaining in the Quaker State 400, Kenseth thought he was crazy.

Kenseth beat Jimmie Johnson out of the pits to take the lead, but thought there was no way he could hold off the dominant Johnson, who had led a race-high 182 laps. But when Johnson wrecked on the ensuing restart, Kenseth held the lead through another restart and then pulled away to win at Kentucky Speedway.

“I didn’t roll the dice, Jason did. I thought he was crazy when it happened," Kenseth said.

Jimmie Johnson dominated the race, but wrecked on a restart with 21 laps remaining. He was trying to hold off a hard-charging Joey Logano for second on the restart when he lost control of his car and spun.

Kenseth held off a challenge from Clint Bowyer on the final restart and pulled away for his series-high fourth win of the season.

Jamie McMurray passed Bowyer with four laps remaining to finish second, his best finish since 2010. Bowyer finished third followed by Logano and Kyle Busch. Johnson rallied at the end to finish ninth after pitting following his spin.

An emotional Kenseth thanked his crew over his team radio after taking the checkered flag. The win was his fourth since joining Joe Gibbs Racing this season.

“I don’t even know what to say. Thank you, guys. This is unbelievable. Thank you so much,” he said. “Great job. It was a team effort. You guys make me look so good every week. I couldn’t be any happier and prouder to be a part of this.”

Read More Here....Sporting News

Quaker State 400 Final Results

Johnson Takes Martinsville, and Championship Lead

Johnson rolls to his seventh Martinsville win, and grandfather clock (Getty)

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (AP) -- Jimmie Johnson held off Kyle Busch on a restart with five laps to go Sunday and won for the seventh time in his career at Martinsville Speedway.

The five-time series champion moved into the lead in the championship standings, two points over Brad Keselowski with three races remaining.

Keselowski started 32nd, methodically worked his way forward, and took a late gamble to grab the lead on a restart with 19 laps to go. When Johnson and the rest of the leaders pitted for tires, Keselowski was a sitting duck once the race went back to green.

Johnson made the race a points bonanza, leading the most laps and earning three points for the victory.

Busch was second, followed by Kasey Kahne.

MARTINSVILLE RESULTS

                Denny Hamlin's Chase for the Championship is OVER, Finishes 33rd at Martinsville

Crew members work on the #11 FedEx Express Toyota of Denny Hamlin in the garage area during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway. Hamlin seemed to have electrical problems down the stretch that did him in. (Getty)

Ambrose Wins at Watkins Glen for Second Consecutive Years

The King and King of the road courses, for the second straight year (Getty)

USA Today

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. – Watkins Glen International's frontstretch grandstands erupted with approval as fans watched favorite villain Kyle Busch spin from the lead on the white-flag lap of Sunday's Finger Lakes 355.

Marcos Ambrose survived a wild last lap to win his first Sprint Cup race of the season and defend his title at Watkins Glen.

Marcos Ambrose and Brad Keselowski did their part to make sure they stayed on their feet.

Ambrose emerged victorious in a riveting duel to the checkered flag that had both cars skidding around the track, through grass and, ultimately, repeating their 1-2 finish in this Sprint Cup race a year ago.

With every twist and turn of the 2.45-mile circuit visible on big screens, fans roared during the last-lap theatre that ended with Ambrose making two final saves of his No. 9 Ford around two final turns before a dramatic drag race to the finish line. Even the runner-up was applauding.

"We were both cool about it and didn't dump each other," Keselowski said. "This is what I think racing in NASCAR is supposed to be — hard-nosed, going for the win, bumping and rubbing, without any of that intentional wrecking nonsense. Marcos gets that."

Busch, who led 43 laps, wasn't quite as thrilled with the outcome, storming into his hauler without speaking to reporters. Crew chief Dave Rogers said Busch's No. 18 Toyota slowed after running through leaked oil from Bobby Labonte's No. 47. Busch went through the runoff in Turn 1, and by the time he returned to the racetrack Keselowski was on his bumper and spun him, setting the stage for the duel.

"We knew (Labonte) blew a motor, and instead of getting off the racetrack like he should have, he tried to stay out there and run the extra two laps," Rogers said. "And when he did, he ran right through the (racing) groove."

Ambrose, who has finished third or better in his last eight NASCAR races at Watkins Glen (Nationwide and Cup), was more than happy to take advantage for his second career Cup win.

"We had a fast car. We were in position to take advantage when it went crazy," Ambrose said. "We got the win. We didn't luck into it. We deserved to get this win. We'll take it."

Jimmie Johnson finished a distant third, replacing Hendrick Motorsports teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. (28th after a late spin) as the points leader. Sonoma winner Clint Bowyerwas fourth and Sam Hornish Jr. fifth, his best Cup finish since 2009.

Sunday's outcome enriches the focus on the Chase for the Sprint Cup cutoff that's coming in four weeks.

Ambrose joined a group of five one-win drivers that are vying for one of two wild-card spots awarded to the winningest drivers ranked 11th through 20th. The top 10 in points and 11th-place Kasey Kahne (two wins) are in good shape, but Ryan Newman, Busch and Jeff Gordon are separated by 10 points for the second wild card.

That Busch, who said Saturday he was taking a "win-or-bust" mentality into the Chase run-up, finished seventh was some solace to Gordon (21st). A second win for Busch would have meant an uphill climb for Gordon and other one-win drivers. "Yeah, that would have impacted it in a big way," Gordon conceded.

Read More Here.....

Finger Lakes 355 Results 

Jimmie Johnson Wins Brickyard 400 for Fourth Time

Jimmie Johnson kisses the bricks at Indianapolis, again ( Getty)

SI.com

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Jimmie Johnson fondly recalls watching the Indianapolis 500 as a kid in California, rearranging the couch cushions so he could pretend he was sitting in a race car.

Johnson's grandfather was an A.J. Foyt fan. Johnson liked Rick Mears. And now Johnson might be mentioned in the same breath as those two drivers and other Indy greats.

Johnson stamped another exclamation point on his racing resume Sunday, a dominant drive that ended with his fourth career Brickyard 400 victory.

"I'm able to join racing legends, my heroes and people I looked up to my entire life,'' Johnson said. "To join them was a huge, huge honor.''

With the win, Johnson joined Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon as the only NASCAR drivers to win four times at the historic 2.5-mile track, which has hosted stock car racing since 1994.

The victory also puts Johnson among some top names in the track's record books.

Only three drivers have won four Indianapolis 500s: Foyt, Mears and Al Unser Sr. Formula One ace Michael Schumacher won the U.S. Grand Prix five times on Indy's road course configuration.

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Brickyard 400 Results

Biffle Wins at Texas, Extends Points Lead

Associated Press

Greg Biffle paid out at 10/1 in Las Vegas sports books

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Greg Biffle knew his only chance to get past Jimmie Johnson for good was at the end, and he finally figured out where to do it.

Biffle drove down into Turn 3 and charged under Johnson with 30 laps remaining Saturday night, then pulled away to end his 49-race winless streak while giving owner Jack Roush another NASCAR Sprint Cup victory in Texas.

"I just dug deep. I knew I had to do it and kept trying and trying and trying," Biffle said. "I knew the team would forgive me if I wrecked it trying to beat him so I just gave it all I had."

Once Biffle got his No. 16 Ford around Johnson, he went on to a 3.2-second victory in the fastest Cup race in Texas with an average speed of 160.577 mph.

"Catching the 48 at the end, it was all I had to be able to get to him," he said. "It seemed like when we got to him, it was too easy."

Biffle's 17th career victory was his first since an October 2010 race in Kansas, where the series goes next week.

Johnson led three times for 156 of the 334 laps while going for owner Rick Hendrick's 200th victory. But he never recovered, even scraping hard into the wall trying to catch up after Biffle drove under him and completed the pass before the start-finish line.

It was Roush's ninth win in 23 Cup races at Texas, and completed a Lone Star State weekend sweep. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won the Nationwide race on Friday night for Roush's fourth Texas victory in a row and ninth overall in the second-tier series.

"I don't know if this is my last sweep," Roush said. "But I'm going to remember this one for a long time."

After starting third, season points leader Biffle was among the lead pack the entire race, leading 90 laps on a fast-paced and windy night.

There were only two cautions for 10 slowed-down laps, both for debris, and the race finished with a record 234 consecutive laps of green-flag racing.

Biffle said his hands were hurting from fighting the wheel through the wind. But he thought there were no major incidents because every driver was dealing with the same conditions and maybe more cautious because of them.

Mark Martin finished third in a Michael Waltrip-owned Toyota, followed by Jeff Gordon and Roush driver Matt Kenseth. Polesitter Martin Truex Jr., another Waltrip car, was sixth after leading 69 laps.

Biffle got his eighth consecutive top-10 finish at Texas, where he had a victory in 2005 even before that stretch.

He was surprised that it was so easy after the final pass gave him his seventh and last lead in the race.

"I thought he was going to be right there," Biffle said.

Said Johnson, who had led 119 laps combined his first 17 Texas races, "He got by me and I was chasing him from there. I didn't have anything left to go get him. I tried."

For Hendrick Motorsports, it was another close call for its first victory of the season and the owner's 200th in a career that began in 1984.

Johnson, Gordon and teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. were running in the top three at Martinsville two weeks ago before a late restart in the last race before the Easter weekend break. But Clint Bowyer's aggressive inside move took out Johnson and Gordon, and Earnhardt ended up third.

Biffle is no pretender to win the title after win (Getty)

"It's nice to be running well. It's nice to be in this position," Johnson said. "But I want to get back to our winning ways really soon."

Kasey Kahne, the first-year Hendrick driver, finished seventh ahead of another Roush driver, Carl Edwards. Harvick and Earnhardt rounded out the top 10.

The first lead change came on the 32nd lap when Biffle went around the top through Turns 1 and 2 and got past Truex on the backstretch.

Five laps later, Kenseth went around the outside of Truex through Turns 3 and 4 to take over second place.

The first caution flag came out on lap 67, when a cap was tumbling around near Turn 2 on a night when the wind was gusting more than 30 mph.

Gordon, who started 34th, was in the top 10 before the second caution after Trevor Bayne scraped the wall.

The race restarted on lap 100, with Truex in front of Biffle for only one lap. There were no more yellow flags after that.

Texas Results

Newman at Right Place, Right Time, Wins at Martinsville

USA Today

Newman got a big assist from SHR teammate Reutimann

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Ryan Newman held off A.J. Allmendinger on a green-white checkered finish Sunday to win the Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway in a wild ending.

Newman took the lead after the top three cars of Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Clint Bowyer were knocked out of contention in the first attempt at an overtime finish. Gordon was leading when Bowyer attempted to dive below him in Turn 1. Gordon's Chevrolet and Bowyer's Toyota made contact, collecting the Chevy of Johnson.

Newman emerged in the lead and held it for the final two laps under green ahead of Allmendinger, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth and Martin Truex Jr.

It was Newman's first win in NASCAR's premier series at the 0.526-mile oval.

"We were at best a fourth-place car and sometimes a 15th-place car," Newman said. "We did everything we could."

The rest of the top 10 was Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart, Aric Almirola, Brad Keselowski and Bowyer.

Johnson finished 12th, the last car on the lead lap. Gordon, who ran out of gas during the final caution, was 14th.

For most of the afternoon, it seemed as if a Hendrick car was destined to win and give team owner Rick Hendrick his long-awaited 200th victory.

Johnson, Gordon and Earnhardt Jr. were running 1-2-3 with 20 laps remaining before the chaos began with a caution with three laps left for David Reutimann's stalled car on the track.

"I don't know what the hell (Reutimann) was doing," Bowyer said. "He drove around for 10 laps with no brakes and finally just stopped."

In a postrace interview, Gordon said he was initially mad at Bowyer but realized later that Newman's bump of Bowyer triggered the mayhem.

But many drivers, including Earnhardt, seemed to be steaming at Reutimann.

In a postrace interview on Fox, Reutimann said he was staying on the track to stay in the top 35 in owner points for Tommy Baldwin Racing.

"I would not have stopped on the freakin' racetrack. The thing quit going on the back straightaway," Reutimann said. "I know it sucks, and I hate it for everybody it affected. But I can't get out and push the thing. I was just trying to finish the day out and stay in the top 35."

Newman, however, wasn't blaming anyone for the result.

"I'm not in a position to point fingers, because I won," he said, laughing. "In all honesty, I gave Clint a pretty good shove at the start-finish line.

"The seas kind of parted and opened up, and we went right through there."

Pole-sitter Kasey Kahne's horrendous luck continued when his No. 5 Chevrolet suffered an engine problem after 200 laps. Kahne entered the garage during a lap 246 caution and remained there until lap 300. He brought out a caution 15 laps later when he spun in his own oil entering pit road as his engine finally expired, and he finished 38th.

It was Kahne's fourth finish of 29th or worse this season, and it puts his car back in the danger zone of falling outside the top 35 in points and a guaranteed starting spot in each race.

Kahne has qualified first twice this year but hasn't led a lap. He was passed by Kevin Harvick on the first lap Sunday and by teammate Earnhardt Jr. in the March 11 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Martinsville Results

Stewart Beats Hamlin and Rain to Win Auto Club 400

Tony Stewart wins rain shortened Auto Club 400 (Getty)

Tony Stewart didn’t win in the first 26 races last season during his Championship year, but already has two in five 2012 races after taking the rain-shortened Auto Club 400 at California Speedway Sunday. Stewart had no wins in his first 18 California starts dating back to 1999, but has now won two of the last three.

Kyle Busch finished second followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr, Kevin Harvick and Carl Edwards.

The best car of the weekend during practice was Denny Hamlin, and he still may have had the best car during the race, but between the rain and pit strategy his day won’t reflect it. When the first and only caution of the day came out, Hamlin, running second at the time, opted to come to pit row on lap 124 thinking they might have an edge if the race ever re-started. The rain never stopped and Hamlin ended up with a 12th-place finish.

Although Hamlin’s team said their pit stop during the caution was a planned, it did look as if Hamlin was baited into a stop by following Stewart’s lead. Stewart had faked the move to the pits and at the last moment, pulled back out to the lead. Busch, sitting in third, was about to follow as well, but left Hamlin and followed Stewart.

"I don't think that I faked him out," Stewart said of Hamlin. "I'm sure he had made his decision already -- looked good, though."

In hindsight, the Hamlin move looks ill-advised, but Hamlin said it was all part of a plan.

"We were planning on the race going back to green, and if it doesn't, we'll lose some spots, but if we chose to stay out there, we would have to be behind all the cars that pitted [if the race restarted]," Hamlin said as the rain intensified. "[In that case], your chance of winning decreases greatly.

"So you could give up a few spots if it finishes up here and lose a chance to win in the grand scheme of things ...We had finally gotten to [Stewart's] bumper when the rain came."

This is the first California race not finish every lap. It’s a shame that the one weekend out of the year it seems to rain in Southern California has to happen when NASCAR visits. Weather is the reason the west coast has three of their five Cup races a year mashed into the first five weeks of the season.

Auto Club 400 Results

California Post Race Notes:
• Tony Stewart scored his 46th career win in his 467th career race.
• Tony Stewart posted his second career win at ACS in his 21st start; he has won two of the past three races there.
• Tony Stewart scored his second win of 2012, the first driver to win multiple races this season; he has won seven of the past 15 races, dating to Chicagoland (September 2011).
• Tony Stewart scored his third career win in a rain-shortened event: Michigan (June 2000), New Hampshire (July 2000).
• This is the first race to be rain-shortened since June 2009 at New Hampshire.
• Tony Stwart led twice for 42 laps, including the final 22.
• Stewart-Haas Racing posted its 15th career win.
• Chevrolet scored its 12th win at ACS, most of all makes; it has won the past five races there.
• Kyle Busch (second) scored his best 2012 finish; he led a race high 80 laps.
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. (third) has finished 15th or better in all five races in 2012.
• Kevin Harvick (fourth) has finished 11th or better in all five races this season.
• Carl Edwards (fifth) matched his best finish in 2012; he also finished fifth at Las Vegas.
• Greg Biffle (sixth) scored his fourth top-10 in five races this season; all five of his finishes are 13th or better.
• Martin Truex Jr.(eighth) posted his best finish and only top-10 in the past seven races at ACS.

Hamlin Hangs on to Win at Phoenix, Takes Points lead

NASCAR Wire Service

Denny Hamlin captured his first Phoenix win and 18th overall (Getty)

AVONDALE, Ariz. -- At the race track that dashed his championship hopes in 2010, Denny Hamlin found redemption in Sunday's Subway Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.

In his second race with 2011 Sprint Cup championship crew chief Darian Grubb on his pit box, Hamlin held off Kevin Harvick in a 53-lap green-flag run to finish the 312-lap race at the one-mile track. Hamlin took over the series points lead for the first time since surrendering it in the final race of 2010 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Harvick lost fuel pressure with fewer than two laps left but had enough to retain the second position, 7.315 seconds behind the race winner.

Greg Biffle came home third, followed by Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski. Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Jeff Gordon, pole-sitter Mark Martin and Joey Logano completed the top 10.

Hamlin surged into the lead after a restart on Lap 254, passing Harvick and pulling away. Ryan Newman's hard contact with the Turn 4 wall two laps later caused the seventh caution of the afternoon, but Hamlin again stretched his advantage over Harvick after a restart on Lap 260 and held on the rest of the way.

Phoenix Results

Post-Race Notes
• Denny Hamlin earned his 18th career victory in his 225th start.
• This is Denny Hamlin's first career victory at Phoenix in his 14th start. He finished third four times before winning.
• Denny Hamlin is the 23rd different driver to win at Phoenix in 32 races at the track.
• Joe Gibbs Racing earned its 94th Cup victory and second win at Phoenix. All three JGR cars finished in the top 10.
• Toyota earned its second win at Phoenix -- both coming on the track's new configuration.
• Kevin Harvick (second) scored his second top-10 finish in 2012. He finished seventh at Daytona.
• Greg Biffle (third) earned his second third-place finish in two races in 2012.
• Jimmie Johnson (fourth) has finished in the top five in 11 of the past 12 races at Phoenix. He has never finished worse than 15th in his 18 races.
• Brad Keselowski (fifth) earned his best finish and first top-10 in six races at Phoenix.
• Kyle Busch (sixth) scored his first top-10 finish in his past six Cup starts.
• Martin Truex Jr (seventh) has finished 12th or better in six of his past seven Cup starts.
• There were a record 15 different leaders in this race breaking the old track record of 13.
• This is the 198th victory for the No. 11, tying the No. 43 for the most in NASCAR history.

Stewart Holds Off Johnson, Wins at Martinsville

Sporting News Wire Service

Tony Stewart wins his third race of the Chase (Getty)

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Tony Stewart passed Jimmie Johnson on a restart with three laps left in Sunday's Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway and held off Johnson's desperate bid for the win on the final lap.

The victory was Stewart's third in the Chase for the Sprint Cup and vaulted him into second place in the standings, eight points behind leader Carl Edwards. Stewart won for the 42nd time in his career.

"He'd better be worried," Stewart said of Edwards after the race, "that's all I can say. He's not going to have an easy three weeks."

Miraculously, after twice being lapped on the race track, Edwards salvaged a decent run and retained his lead in the Chase standings with a ninth-place finish, as his two closest pursuers entering the race, Matt Kenseth and Brad Keselowski, both experienced late trouble and finished 31st and 17th, respectively.

Jeff Gordon ran third, followed by Kevin Harvick, who climbed to third in the standings, 21 points behind Edwards. Denny Hamlin came home fifth, with Jeff Burton sixth and Dale Earnhardt Jr. seventh.

After a wild first half of the race had settled into a 97-lap green-flag run after the midpoint, Hamlin squeezed past Gordon on Lap 320 and stayed out front in traffic until Burton's spin caused the 10th caution of the race.

That started a spate of cautions that gave Harvick and Stewart a chance to move to the front with two-tire calls -- and allowed Edwards to return to the lead lap under the 12th caution with a free pass for the highest-scored car one lap down.

At the drivers' meeting before the race, NASCAR announced that any driver intentionally causing a caution by stopping on the race track will be penalized three laps. The rule is in effect for at least the rest of the season, though the number of laps could vary according to the size of the race track.

Martinsville Results

Martinsville Post-Race Notes

• Tony Stewart earned his 42nd career win in his 461st start. His third win of the season came, as the others have, in the Chase.
• This was Tony Stewart's third Martinsville victory, but his first since spring 2006.
• Tony Stewart led three times for 14 laps, including the final three laps after passing Jimmie Johnson on a restart.
• With nine Chase wins in his career, Tony Stewart is second to Jimmie Johnson (20).
• This was the 11th career victory for Stewart-Haas Racing; nine of those have come from Tony Stewart.
• Chevrolet earned its 48th victory at Martinsville, the most of any make.
• Jimmie Johnson (second) earned his 14th top-five finish at Martinsville; he's finished first or second nine times.
• Jeff Gordon (third) has finished in the top five in 13 of the past 14 races at Martinsville. He also became the fourth driver to lead more than 3,000 laps at Martinsville.
• Kevin Harvick (fourth) finished in the top five for the third consecutive race at Martinsville.
• Denny Hamlin (fifth) earned his first top-five in the 2011 Chase.
• Jeff Burton (sixth) followed a second-place run at Talladega with his third top-10 finish of 2011.
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. (seventh) finished in the top 10 in both Martinsville races in 2011.
• Martin Truex Jr. (eighth) picked up his 10th top-10 finish of 2011.
• Carl Edwards (ninth) picked up two free passes in the race; his worst finish in the 2011 Chase is 11th at Talladega.

Johnson Wins at Kansas; Now Only Four Points Behind Chase Lead

Sporting News Wire Service

Johnson wins second race of 2011 at Kansas (Getty)

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Jimmie Johnson answered all questions about his readiness to contend for a sixth consecutive Sprint Cup title with a dominating performance in Sunday's Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway.

Johnson held off hard-charging Kasey Kahne in a green-white-checkered finish set up by Jeff Gordon's blown engine on Lap 265. Johnson beat Kahne to the finish line by .548 seconds in a race that went five laps past its scheduled distance of 267 laps.

The victory was Johnson's second of the season, the 55th of his career and the 20th in 74 career Chase races. He left Kansas tied with Rusty Wallace for eighth on the all-time Cup win list.

Brad Keselowski came home third, followed by Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards, who salvaged a top-five finish despite falling a lap down earlier in the event.

A caution for debris on Lap 205 ended a green-flag run that began with a restart on Lap 90 and included two rounds of green-flag pit stops. Before the yellow flew, Johnson had built a lead of more than 12 seconds over second-place Tony Stewart, and Edwards, Chase co-leader entering the event, had fallen one lap down in 16th position.

Edwards got his lap back, however, when Landon Cassill's spin through the tri-oval grass on Lap 220 brought out the fourth caution. Edwards got a free pass back to the lead lap as the highest-scored driver one lap down. Pit stops under the yellow with 47 laps left took fuel conservation out of the equation.

Kansas Results

Marcos Ambrose Wins First Career NASCAR Cup Race at the Glen

By Joe Menzer

NASCAR.com

Ambrose does Australia proud with his win

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. -- Marcos Ambrose's happiness bubbled over Monday afternoon to the point where he began vigorously chasing various employees of Richard Petty Motorsports and attempting to spray them with a bit of the bubbly in Victory Lane at Watkins Glen International.

For a driver and company whose intertwined futures were so uncertain just one year ago, it was indeed a day to call for champagne all the way around.
Marcos Ambrose (Autostock)

Ambrose won his first Sprint Cup race in the 105th start of a career that began when he made the trek to NASCAR's top touring series in 2008 after short stops in the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series. His overall NASCAR experience began in 2006 when he left the comfort of his native Australia, where he was a V8 Supercar champion.

So it's not like Ambrose had never stepped out of his comfort zone when he took the leap of faith to sign with Richard Petty Motorsports in August of last year. Ambrose had to get out of the final year of his contract with JTG/Daugherty Racing to do it -- and two months later he wondered if he had made a serious mistake as speculation swirled that RPM as he had envisioned it might be going out of business.

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Watkins Glen Results

Stewart-Haas Dominate New Hampshire, Newman and Stewart Finish 1-2

By Matt Taliaferro

Athlon Sports

Ryan Newman captures first win of 2011 season, Stewart runner-up (Getty)

A typical fuel-mileage race on the NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit finds a surprise winner in Victory Lane — a driver and team running mid-pack that have nothing to lose by rolling the proverbial dice and stretching a tank of gas to the max.

Sunday’s Lenox Industrial Tools 301 was not your typical fuel mileage race.

Ryan Newman passed Clint Bowyer on a lap 260 restart and managed to milk 41 laps worth of fuel around New Hampshire Motor Speedway’s 1.058-mile layout to grab his first win of the 2011 season.

Newman and Stewart-Haas Racing teammate, Tony Stewart, flexed their muscles early and often in Loudon, N.H. Both were top-3 cars throughout the event’s three practice sessions. They followed that by sweeping the front row in qualifying, with Newman edging Stewart for the pole.

Newman then led a race-high 119 laps — including the final 72 — while conserving just enough fuel to hold off a hard-charging Stewart in the closing laps.

“One of the best cars here that we saw was the 14 (Stewart),” Newman said. “There were a couple other cars at different times, but the 14 was mired back in traffic. He had to run the wheels off of it to get up to where he had some track position so he could try to run us down.

“Fortunately it stayed green. I was more worried about a yellow coming out with five (laps) to go. Do we have enough fuel for a green-white-checkered (finish)? Usually those things that come and squash us didn’t happen today.”

Stewart settled for second, while Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano and Jimmie Johnson rounded out the top 5.

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New Hampshire Results

Kenseth Makes Late Winning Call To Win to Win at Dover

Associated Press

Kenseth won for the second time in five races

DOVER, Del. -- Matt Kenseth pulled away late on the strength of a two-tire pit stop to win the Sprint Cup race at Dover International Speedway.

Kenseth led the final 32 laps Sunday to win for the second time this season. He also won at Texas and became the third driver to win twice this season.

Mark Martin was second and Marcos Ambrose third. Kyle Busch and Brian Vickers round out the top five. Busch was forced to start in the rear of the field because of an engine change.

Kenseth made his Cup debut at Dover in 1998 as a fill-in for Bill Elliott.

The 400-mile race was dominated by long stretches of green flag racing. Jimmie Johnson led a race-high 207 laps and finished ninth.

FedEx 400 Results

Johnson Beats Bowyer to the Line at Talladega

Associated Press

Johnson by an inch over Bowyer (Getty)

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Jimmie Johnson won a Talladega two-step Sunday, edging Clint Bowyer by about a foot with a big push from Dale Earnhardt Jr.

The official margin was 0.002 seconds, tied for the closest finish in NASCAR Sprint Cup history.

The tag-team race came down to an eight-car sprint -- actually, four pairs of cars -- with only the guys at the front of the duos having a chance to win the Aaron's 499.

After laying back most of the day, five-time series champion Johnson came on strong at the end for his 54th career victory and first of the season.

"We were just the lucky guy at the end with a good run," Johnson said. "We had some big mo on our side, and off we went."

"What a bummer," said Bowyer, who led a race-high 38 laps. "I saw him coming."

Earnhardt, the fourth Hendrick driver, finished fourth and essentially gave up a chance to claim his first win since 2008 by deciding he was more comfortable pushing Johnson than getting pushed.

"I can't thank Junior enough," said Johnson, who gave Earnhardt the checkered flag as a reward for being such a team player. "He made the decision that my car was faster leading. And the way these things are finishing up, the lead car's going to get the win. In some respects, he was more worried about the team having a good performance than anything."

Kevin Harvick, who was Bowyer's pusher, wound up fifth. Carl Edwards almost got into the mix as well, going right up against the outside wall with Greg Biffle on his bumper but didn't have enough room to pull it off, finishing sixth.

Biffle was seventh, while Martin dropped back to eighth.

The finish matched the closest since NASCAR went to electronic timing -- Ricky Craven edging Kurt Busch in 2003 at Darlington -- and made up for a day of lackluster racing with this new tandem style, which the drivers began using at the season-opening Daytona 500 and really perfected at this 2.66-mile trioval.

Twenty-six leaders swapped the top spot 88 times, tying the record set in last year's spring race at Talladega. Many of those changes were carefully choreographed by pairs who were merely trying to stay out of trouble, conserve their cars and give themselves a chance at the end.

"If you didn't like that finish and forget about the race, there's something wrong with you," Bowyer said. "It always seems to fix itself at the end of these restrictor-plate races. We always have a hell of a finish."

Hendrick Motorsports claimed the first four spots in qualifying, only the third team in NASCAR history to sweep the first two rows in a Cup race. They were all right there at the end.

"With as crazy as it gets in these closing laps, sometimes a third is almost like a victory at these type of race tracks," Gordon said.

The finish overshadowed the mundane riding-around that came before it.

Of all races for Johnson to win, Talladega? (Getty)

Rather than run together in huge drafting packs, which used to be the norm at the restrictor-plate tracks, the drivers figured out they can run even faster in pairs. So, everyone cut deals before the race, usually with teammates, and swapped radio frequencies so they could make changes on the fly if needed once the green flag dropped.

One guy in the pairing would run out front for a while, then they'd switch positions before the driver doing the pushing overheated his car.

The most important thing was staying together. During an early pit stop, Johnson stayed in a little longer to make some adjustments on his car. Earnhardt just idled in his box, waiting to go back out with his partner.

Of course, bumping cars from behind and pulling off choreographed switches at 190 mph didn't always go smoothly -- especially when the second driver in a tandem can't see a thing.

Busch can attest to that. He twice got into cars while pushing, totally blind to what was going on in front of him.

First, the No. 22 car nudged the rear bumper of Landon Cassill's machine on lap 28, sending him into Brian Vickers, whose car smashed into the outer wall at the start of the backstretch. Fortunately, Vickers entirely missed a wave of cars bearing down on his sliding vehicle.

Busch was at the center of things again on the second crash of the day. He appeared to clip Brad Keselowski from behind when the lead car slowed, sparking a five-car melee that also took out Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne, David Ragan, Marcus Ambrose and Kasey Kahne.

"Just one of those deals here at Talladega," Keselowski said. "I just got on the wrong end of it."

Kahne tried to nurse his smoking car back to pit road, but finally had to bring it to a stop and hustle out.

"The car just got some flames in the back because of the oil, I guess," he said. "I sucked up a little bit of black smoke, but that was it. I stink, too."

The 20-year-old Bayne had another disappointing finish since his improbable Daytona win in just his second Cup start. The youngster hasn't finished higher than 17th since then.

He certainly had a car that was strong enough to contend at Talladega, qualifying a career-best 11th and running up front three times for five laps.

"I thought we were kind of out of harm's way there but, obviously, we weren't far enough back out of it," Bayne said.

Another Busch, Kurt's little brother Kyle, was taken out in a third wreck that was a virtual copy of the first two. Joey Logano bumped the No. 18 car, sending it spinning hard into Matt Kenseth and taking out two other cars, as well.

"So much is out of your hands here," Kenseth said. "It's a frustrating type of racing, to say the least. It would be nice to be able to see and control your own destiny a little more."

Aaron's 499 Results