NASCAR

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) Dale Earnhardt Jr. says the pressure is gone, not only about his future, but also his results. ''I certainly did feel a lot more relaxed now,'' NASCAR'S most popular driver said Friday at Richmond International Raceway, where he came back to work three days after announcing...

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) The Latest on the NASCAR Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway (all times local): 1:05 p.m. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is set for his first NASCAR Cup Series broadcast, and Junior Nation is ready. A steady stream of fans stopped at the NBC Sports set before the race at Chicagoland...

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (AP) Jamie McMurray has become the ''other'' driver on Chip Ganassi Racing's two-car team. The 40-year-old veteran, in his 15th season on NASCAR's top circuit, hasn't won in more than four years. His teammate is 24-year-old Kyle Larson, the early points leader and one of racing's rising...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) It's time to pay attention to Ryan Blaney, the second-year NASCAR driver who is as close to a throwback as fans are going to get from this current crop of talent. He's a second-generation Cup driver, North Carolina raised, and prefers Bill Elliott T-shirts and Talladega 500...

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (AP) NASCAR's top series has had five different winners in five races this season, and as the Monster Energy Cup Series arrives at Martinsville Speedway and its first experience with stage racing rewarding drivers at three points during the race, the focus shifts to drivers who...

Nationwide Series driver Michael Annett said the investigation into why he suffered a fractured and dislocated sternum in a crash at Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 23 hasn't uncovered any answers. "The best answer is 'we don't know,' because my injury is something we haven't seen in the past 12...

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) Kevin Harvick considered the list of young drivers often suggested as NASCAR's next big stars and replacements for departed veterans Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. He suggested that only one prospect could truly hook a new generation of fans. ''NASCAR needs Chase Elliott...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) ?? Sam Ard, a two-time champion of NASCAR's second-tier series, died Sunday. He was 78. Ard died in South Carolina. NASCAR called Ard "a tough-as-nails racer" in a statement confirming his death, but gave no details. Ard won titles in what is now known as the Xfinity Series...

Matt Crafton charged to the lead in a crash-filled race at Kansas Speedway, and then held off a late run by Joey Coulter to pick up his third career Truck Series victory Saturday. Crafton and Coulter were engaged in a spirited game of cat-and-mouse over the final 20 laps, but...

Ryan Truex will make his Sprint Cup debut for in the April 27 race at Richmond International Raceway for Phoenix Racing. General manager Steve Barkdoll told ESPN.com the 21-year-old younger brother of Cup driver Martin Truex, Jr. also will drive in the June 2 Cup race at Dover and the...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) The Latest on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s announcement that he will retire from racing at the end of the season (all times local): 4:55 p.m. NASCAR's chairman and CEO is praising Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s passion for the sport, saying it will ''leave an impact on NASCAR that will...

Nationwide Series driver Jeremy Clements on Wednesday was reinstated two weeks after being suspended indefinitely for using a racial slur. NASCAR suspended Clements for using the "n-word" in a Feb. 23 conversation with MTV blogger Marty Beckerman at Daytona International Speedway. Clements was informed of his reinstatement after completing a session...