NASCAR

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) Extreme heat is a concern again as NASCAR closes out its annual weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. Rain could become a factor, too. There are scattered thunderstorms in the forecast for the NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday afternoon. Paul Menard is set to start from the pole, and...

FONTANA, Calif. (AP) Ryan Blaney already had his Hollywood moment earlier in the week when he got a photo with actress Daisy Ridley at a Lakers game. ''She had no idea who I was,'' Blaney said with a grin. ''I wasn't going to be like, `Hey, I drive race...

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...

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) The Latest on the NASCAR Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway (all times local): 2:25 p.m. Aric Almirola has won the first stage of the NASCAR Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway. Almirola began the day in the No. 6 position. It was his first stage win in the...

An Orlando, Fla.-based law firm has been hired to represent three of those injured in Saturday's Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway. Attorney Matt Morgan of Morgan & Morgan announced the hiring on Twitter Monday night. The tweet read: "BREAKING: My firm has been retained by three individuals who were...

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) Paul Menard won the pole Saturday for Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway. It's the second career pole for Menard, who has just one top-five finish this season. He also qualified first for a race at Daytona almost exactly 10 years ago. ''Ten years, it goes...

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...

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) Kevin Harvick quickly got up to speed on the new pavement at Texas Motor Speedway, while some top drivers never made on the track for qualifying. Harvick won all three rounds of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying Friday, earning his 19th career pole with a...

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...

LOUDON, N.H. (AP) Kyle Busch's run in NASCAR's playoff opener went from dominant to dud because of mistakes on pit road. Clean up those gaffes, and Busch again just may have the car to the beat. Busch made it 2 for 2 in playoff poles, turning a lap of...

Kyle Busch is winning again in the Nationwide Series, at Texas and everywhere else, since getting back into a Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Busch won his third consecutive Nationwide race by leading 91 of 200 laps Friday night at Texas, where he became the first six-time winner in the series...

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...