NASCAR

Danica Patrick turned attention from her personal life to her driving Saturday. The 30-year-old Stewart-Haas Racing driver topped the second Sprint Cup practice with a fast lap of 196.220 mph, raising the possibility of her becoming on Sunday the first female to win the pole for the Daytona 500...

Denny Hamlin apologized Friday for making two mistakes involving former Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Joey Logano last weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. The first mistake was bumping Logano too hard on Lap 349 in retaliation for the way the Penske Racing driver raced him earlier. The bump sent Logano...

Chevrolet may have pulled out of NASCAR had the governing body not developed the new "Gen 6" car that returns brand identity to the sport. "It would have been a good chance," team owner Rick Hendrick said on Saturday at Daytona International Speedway. "As a matter of fact, I'm sure...

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...

Danica Patrick will make her second appearance in the Nationwide Series this season on Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway. The Sprint Cup rookie will drive for Turner Scott Motorsports, which also fielded her ride in the opener at Daytona International Speedway. Patrick has only one start at Talladega, finishing 13th in...

Matt Kenseth decided not to replace any tires during the final pit stop under caution, and the calculated risk put him in the lead. Kenseth knows a bit about risk after his offseason move to Joe Gibbs Racing, and this latest gamble paid off with his third victory in Vegas. Kenseth...

- Joey Logano has Dale Earnhardt Jr., NASCAR's most popular driver and the Sprint Cup points leader, on his side -- at least when it comes to whether his block of Tony Stewart on the final restart at Auto Club Speedway was acceptable. "In my opinion, it was just hard...

Kurt Busch has become the first driver this year to pass rookie orientation for the Indianapolis 500. The 2004 Sprint Cup champion came to Indy this week to test himself on the 2.5-mile oval in one of Michael Andretti's IndyCars. He wound up completing all three phases of the...

FONTANA, Calif. (AP) Jimmie Johnson will start from the back Sunday when he defends his Fontana title after a spin during practice wrecked his primary car. And if anybody can rally from 37th position to the checkered flag, Johnson thinks he has a good shot on his home track. Johnson elected...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Kasey Kahne will stay in NASCAR next season and drive for Leavine Family Racing in the No. 95 Chevrolet Camaro. He will replace Michael McDowell, who has driven that car since 2014. The announcement Tuesday was not unexpected, but Kahne last week revealed he'd given consideration to...

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...

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...