NASCAR

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) It's never easy to be the son of a legend, especially when he is a tough-as-nails hero and the most feared man in his profession. Follow in his footsteps? Forget it. Just being able to drive cars was enough for Dale Earnhardt Jr., and if it made...

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) There was a moment during the Bristol Motor Speedway race that captured the essence of Dale Earnhardt Jr. He was walking briskly to the care center for a mandatory health check after a crash. Flanked by a television reporter on one side, a handler on the...

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...

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...

DALLAS (AP) Dale Earnhardt Jr. says he has felt great all this season after missing the final 18 races a year ago because of the lingering effects of a concussion. Earnhardt said Thursday that he wouldn't be driving the No. 88 car if he didn't feel like he was 100...

Joe Gibbs Racing was premature to announce that Mark Martin would replace Denny Hamlin while he recovers from a compression fracture in his lower back. Martin, who drives a part-time Sprint Cup schedule for Michael Waltrip Racing, will drive only at Martinsville on April 7 in JGR's No. 11 Sprint...

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) Martin Truex Jr. just celebrated his 38th birthday. He has won two of his last three races. He is spending this weekend at one of his favorite tracks. So yes, life is quite good at the moment. Truex appears to be picking up some momentum as he tries...

Three-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart will not be penalized for instigating a post-race fight on pit road or his profanity-laced comments about Joey Logano on Sunday at Auto Club Speedway. NASCAR also will not penalize six drivers called to the hauler after the California race for entering pit road...

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...

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (AP) Things keep going right for Kyle Larson. Hours after saying he hoped qualifying for Sunday's Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race would be rained out, he got his wish, giving him the pole position on a track where he has struggled. ''I think it will be a good...

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, Virginia (AP) Brad Keselowski had sampled success at Martinsville Speedway, but had never put everything together to get to Victory Lane. He changed that on Sunday, passing Kyle Busch with 43 laps to go and pulling away to win for the 23rd time in his career. ''It felt like...