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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, July 8, 2009

This week's top auto races


Associated Press

All Times EDT

NASCAR

LifeLock.com 400

Site: Joliet, Ill.

Schedule: Thursday, practice (Speed, 5-6:30 p.m.), qualifying (Speed, 8:30-10:30 p.m.); Friday, practice (Speed, 5-7:30 p.m.); Saturday, race, 8 p.m. (TNT (6:30-11:30 p.m.).

Track: Chicagoland Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles).

Race distance: 400 miles, 267 laps.

Last year: Kyle Busch won the seventh of his eight 2008 victories, passing Jimmie Johnson in a green-white-checker finish. Busch also won the Nationwide Series race.

Last week: Tony Stewart raced to his second victory of the year, holding on after making late contact with Busch at Daytona International Speedway. After slight contact in the last lap, Busch slid low, then moved up into Stewart, hooking Busch's right corner and sending him into the wall. Busch finished 14th.

Fast facts: Stewart, the 2004 and 2007 race winner, leads the season standings with 2,719 points. Jeff Gordon is second with 2,539, followed by three-time defending champion Johnson (2,525). ... Owner-driver Michael Waltrip will scale back to a partial schedule next year, giving his NAPA-sponsored ride to Martin Truex Jr. The 46-year-old Waltrip is a two-time Daytona 500 winner. Truex will leave Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing at the end of the year. ... Kevin Harvick won the first two Sprint Cup races at Chicagoland, in 2000 and 2001. He also has two Nationwide victories at the track.

Next race: Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, July 26, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis.

On the Net: http://www.nascar.com


NATIONWIDE

Dollar General 300

Site: Joliet, Ill.

Schedule: Thursday, practice (ESPN2, 7-8:30 p.m.); Friday, qualifying (ESPN2, 3-5 p.m.), race, 8 p.m. (ESPN, 7:30-11 p.m.).

Track: Chicagoland Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles).

Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.

Last year: Kyle Busch raced to the fifth of his 10 2008 Nationwide victories, easily holding off Denny Hamlin. Busch also won the Sprint Cup race.

Last week: Defending series champion Clint Bowyer won at Daytona International Speedway, beating Busch and Carl Edwards in a green-white-checker finish. The victory was Richard Childress Racing's first of the season.

Fast facts: Busch leads the season standings with 2,756 points, followed by Edwards (2,584), Brad Keselowski (2,488), Jason Leffler (2,367) and Joey Logano (2,200). ... Kevin Harvick (2005 and 2007) is the only two-time winner in the first eight races at the track. ... David Reutimann will drive Braun Racing's No. 10 Dollar General car.

Next race: Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 250, July 18, Gateway International Raceway, Madison, Ill.

On the Net: http://www.nascar.com


CAMPING WORLD TRUCKS

Next race: Built Ford Tough 225, July 18, Kentucky Speedway, Sparta, Ky.

Last race: Points leader Ron Hornaday raced to his second straight victory and third of the season, leading 175 of 201 laps June 27 at Memphis Motorsports Park. The 51-year-old Hornaday has a series-record 42 victories and three season titles.

On the Net: http://www.nascar.com


INDYCAR SERIES

Honda Indy Toronto

Site: Toronto.

Schedule: Friday, practice; Saturday, practice, qualifying; Sunday, practice, race, 1 p.m. (ABC, 1-3:30 p.m.).

Track: Streets of Toronto (street course, 1.725 miles).

Race distance: 148.75 miles, 85 laps.

Last year: Inaugural event.

Last week: Justin Wilson gave team owner Dale Coyne his first victory after 25 years of trying, leading 49 of 60 laps at Watkins Glen International. Coyne's victory came in his 558th entry as an owner-driver. Ryan Briscoe finished second.

Fast facts: Defending series champion Scott Dixon, third at Watkins Glen for Target Chip Ganassi, tops the standings after nine of 17 events, 19 points ahead of teammate Dario Franchitti and Team Penske's Briscoe. Dixon has three victories and seven straight top-10 finishes. ... Paul Tracy, from nearby Scarborough, won CART races in Toronto in 1993 and 2003. Tracy's KV Racing Technology entry is sponsored by the Ontario Honda Dealers Association. ... Franchitti (1999), Will Power (2007) and Justin Wilson (2005) also won CART races at the track.

Next race: Rexall Edmonton Indy Grand Prix, July 26, Edmonton City Centre Airport, Edmonton, Alberta.

On the Net: http://www.indycar.com

NHRA FULL THROTTLE

Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals

Site: Morrison, Colo.

Schedule: Friday, qualifying; Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, 10 p.m.-midnight); Sunday, final eliminations (ESPN2, 7-10 p.m.).

Track: Bandimere Speedway.

Last year: Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel) and Tim Wilkerson (Funny Car) won in the first 1,000-foot races in NHRA history. The NHRA cut the Top Fuel and Funny Car runs from a quarter-mile following Scott Kalita's death in Englishtown, N.J. Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won.

Last event: Larry Dixon raced to his fourth Top Fuel victory of the season and 47th overall, beating Brandon Bernstein on June 28 in Norwalk, Ohio. Jack Beckman (Funny Car), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won.

Fast facts: Ashley Force Hood tops the Funny Car standings with 872 points, followed by Tony Pedregon (854) and Ron Capps (847). ... Antron Brown leads the Top Fuel standings with 938 points, followed by Dixon (885) and Schumacher (882).

Next race: NHRA Northwest Nationals, July 17-19, Pacific Raceways, Cent, Wash.

On the Net: http://www.nhra.com


FORMULA ONE

German Grand Prix

Site: Hockenheim, Germany.

Schedule: Friday, practice (Speed, 8-9 a.m.); Saturday, practice, qualifying (Speed, 8-9:30 a.m.); Sunday, race, 8 a.m. (Fox, 3-5 p.m.).

Track: Nuerburgring (road course, 3.2 miles).

Race distance: 191.9 miles, 60 laps.

Last year: McLaren's Lewis Hamilton raced to the fourth of his five 2008 victories en route to the season title, holding off Renault's Nelson Piquet Jr.

Last race: Sebastian Vettel won the British Grand Prix on June 21 for his second victory of the year, beating Red Bull teammate Mark Webber by 15.1 seconds.

Fast facts: Brawn's Jenson Button, the winner of six of the first eight races, leads the season standings with 64 points. Teammate Rubens Barrichello is second with 41, followed by Vettel (39) and Webber (36). Hamilton is 11th with nine points.

Next race: Hungarian Grand Prix, July 26, Budapest, Hungary.

On the Net: http://www.formula1.com

OTHER RACES

ARCA RE/MAX SERIES: Prairie Meadows 200, Saturday, Iowa Speedway, Newton, Iowa On the Net: http://www.arcaracing.com

FIRESTONE INDY LIGHTS: Grand Prix of Toronto, Saturday, Streets of Toronto, Toronto. On the Net: http://www.indycar.com

WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SERIES: Saturday, Charter Raceway Park, Beaver Dam, Wis.; Sunday, Cedar Lake Speedway, New Richmond, Wis. On the Net: http://www.worldofoutlaws.com/sprint

WORLD OF OUTLAWS LATE MODEL SERIES: Friday, River Cities Speedway, Grand Forks, N.D. On the Net: http://www.worldofoutlaws.com/latemodel

USAC SPRINT CAR SERIES: Friday, Lawrenceburg Speedway, Lawrenceburg, Ind.; Saturday, Gas City I-69 Speedway, Gas City, Ind.; Sunday, Kokomo Speedway, Kokomo, Ind. On the Net: http://www.usacracing.com