Courtesy of The Associated Press
All times Central (U.S)
NASCAR Sprint Cup
Samsung 500
Site: Fort Worth, Texas Motor Speedway (quad-oval, 1.5 miles, 24 degrees banking in turns)
TV schedule: Friday, practice (Speed Channel, noon), qualifying (Speed Channel, 3:30 p.m.); Saturday, practice (Speed Channel, 11 a.m.), final practice (Speed Channel, noon); Sunday, race (FOX, 12:30 p.m.)
Race distance: 501 miles/334 laps
2008 winner: Carl Edwards
Fast facts: Carl Edwards swept both races at Texas in 2008, holding off Jimmie Johnson in last year’s Samsung 500 and Jeff Gordon in November. He was the top lap leader in both events, 123 and 212 respectively. Edwards also won the 2005 fall race there. ... Matt Kenseth has had an average finish of 27.8 in the four races since opening the season with consecutive victories. He is now 12th in the standings. ... Dale Earnhardt Jr. won his first career Cup race in the 2000 event in just his 12th start. He has also claimed two poles at the track, including last year. ... Hendrick Motorsports had four cars finish among the top eight last week, while Stewart-Haas Racing had two.
www.nascar.com
NASCAR Nationwide
O’Reilly 300
Site: Fort Worth, Texas Motor Speedway (quad-oval, 1.5 miles, 24 degrees banking in turns)
TV schedule: Saturday, race (ESPN2, 1:30 p.m.)
Race distance: 300 miles/200 laps
2008 winner: Kyle Busch
Fast facts: Kevin Harvick has a series-high four wins at Texas. ... Kyle Busch swept both Nationwide races at Texas last year. ... There has yet to be a repeat winner this season in the Nationwide Series. ... Kenny Wallace is among the top 10 in the standings for the first time since 2006. ... This race will mark the final time where the 2008 owner points set the top 30 in the field. Starting next week at Nashville, the top 30 in this year’s owner points standings will determine those spots for the remainder of the season.
www.nascar.com
Formula One
Malaysian Grand Prix
Site: Kuala Lumpur, Sepang International Circuit (permanent road course, 3.443 miles, 15 turns)
TV schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 4 a.m.); Sunday, race (Speed Channel, 3:30 a.m.)
Race distance: 192.25 miles/56 laps
2008 winner: Kimi Raikkonen
Fast facts: The past three winners of the Australian GP went on to win the championship. Jenson Button won last week’s season opener in Melbourne. ... Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel was fined $50,000 by race stewards for continuing around the track on three wheels following an accident in the Australian GP. He also incurred a 10-place grid penalty for this weekend’s race. ... Days after winning the Australian Grand Prix, Brawn GP said it will cut about 270 of its 700 employees. Brawn GP became the first team since 1977 to win its maiden F1 race. ... Button, who is in his 10th year in the series, has only two career victories.
www.formula1.com
Indy Racing League
Honda Indy Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (Fla.)
Site: Streets of St. Petersburg (1.8 miles, 14 turns)
TV schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Versus, 4 p.m.); Sunday, race (Versus, 1 p.m.)
Race distance: 180 miles/100 laps
2008 winner: Graham Rahal
Fast facts: Dario Franchitti is returning to open-wheel racing after joining NASCAR following the 2007 season, when he won the Indianapolis 500 and IndyCar Series championship. His stock car tenure ended abruptly last July when team owner Chip Ganassi closed his team for lack of sponsorship. ... Andretti Green Racing has won 34 races and three points championships since switching from Champ Car to the IRL full-time in 2003. ... IUPUI will sponsor Sarah Fisher this season. The university stepped in and helped her qualify for the Indianapolis 500 after her previous sponsor, sports drink ResQ, dropped out. ... Tony Kanaan is expected to make his 98th consecutive IRL start this weekend. ... Defending-champion Scott Dixon needs two more top-five finishes to reach 50 for his career. ... St. Petersburg is hosting its first IRL season opener. The winner of this race has gone on to win the title just once in the four-year history of the event.
www.indycar.com
NHRA
SummitRacing.com Nationals
Site: Las Vegas, The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
TV schedule: Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, 7 p.m., taped); Sunday, eliminations (ESPN2, 3 p.m., taped)
2008 winners: Tim Wilkerson (Funny Car), Cory McClenathan (Top Fuel), Jason Line (Pro Stock)
Fast facts: Matt Smith broke Angelle Sampey’s nearly 2-year-old record for elapsed time in Pro Stock Motorcycle when he ran 6.865 in a second-round win over defending series champion Eddie Krawiec last week in Baytown. Then, Mike Edwards set a new Pro Stock speed record when he ran 212.03 mph in his semifinal loss to Krisher. The Pro Stock speed record was topped three times that afternoon. ... Tony Schumacher recorded a record-tying 30th consecutive first-round victory en route to last week’s title. He jumped to second in the Top Fuel standings, 20 points behind Antron Brown. ... Ashley Force Hood, who won Houston Raceway Park, appeared in her sixth career Funny Car final last weekend. ... John Force failed to qualify at Las Vegas in 2007, ending his streak of 395 consecutive events.
www.nhra.com
Comments