auto racing – News Stories About auto racing - Page 5

Feb 17, 2008 7:06 PM CST

Ryan Newman Wins Daytona 500

Miscue by leader Tony Stewart on final lap gives Penske team its first 500 win

(Newser) - It appeared that Joe Gibbs Racing was going to take today's Daytona 500; the question was whether it would be Tony Stewart or his teammate Kyle Busch. That changed after a last-lap decision by Stewart to go low on the track, blocking Busch and freeing Ryan Newman to zoom past...

Racing Team Docked $100M in Spying Flap

Sep 13, 2007 6:42 PM CDT

Racing Team Docked $100M in Spying Flap

McLaren stole data from rival Ferrari to improve own car

(Newser) - Formula One auto-racing team McLaren Mercedes was fined a record $100 million today for using information from rival Ferrari to improve its own cars, the New York Times reported. Though McLaren's drivers—who are at the top of the F1 standings—will keep their points and remain in competition, the...

Busch Wins
in Michigan

Aug 22, 2007 1:39 AM CDT

Busch Wins in Michigan

After 2 days of rain delays, racer grabs checkered flag

(Newser) - Racer Kurt Busch took the checkered flag at the 3M Performance 400 in Michigan yesterday after rain delays bumped the race from its usual Sunday spot. The afternoon had no shortage of oddities, starting with a half-hour fog delay and ending with a two-lap overtime sprint due to Greg Biffle's...

NASCAR's Ricky Rudd to Retire

Aug 20, 2007 12:19 AM CDT

NASCAR's Ricky Rudd to Retire

Veteran Nextel Cup driver will hit the pits after 2007 season

(Newser) - Veteran NASCAR driver Ricky Rudd will retire from his full-time Nextel Cup duties at the end of this season. Rudd, who has chalked up 23 wins in a 32-year career, may make occasional starts in future years, but said he wants to give his team plenty of time to find...

This Bud—and No. 8—Is Not for Earnhardt

Aug 15, 2007 11:30 PM CDT

This Bud—and No. 8—Is Not for Earnhardt

Contract with new team strips racer of number with 'tremendous history'

(Newser) - Dale Earnhardt Jr., whose Budweiser ride has long been iconic among NASCAR fans, will have to surrender the number 8 under the terms of a new team contract. The racer, who's leaving his father's Dale Earnhardt, Inc., to replace Kyle Busch at Hendrick Motorsports, will also strip the Budweiser paint-job...

Spitzer Rolls With NASCAR Crowd

Aug 14, 2007 6:30 AM CDT

Spitzer Rolls With NASCAR Crowd

It's off to the races for flesh-pressing Harvard Democrat

(Newser) - The Times noticed an unlikely NASCAR fan at this weekend's race in upstate New York—Governor Eliot Spitzer, who was no doubt running slightly left of the pack. Spitzer, whose brother-in-law is an engineer for NASCAR's Hendrick Motorsports, said he was supporting his favorite driver, Hendrick driver Jeff Gordon. The...

'Spin Doctor' Stewart Wins Watkins Glen

Aug 13, 2007 3:11 AM CDT

'Spin Doctor' Stewart Wins Watkins Glen

No. 20 grabs third checkered flag of the season

(Newser) - Tony Stewart took his third checkered flag of the Nextel Cup season yesterday at Watkins Glen, recovering from an early spinout to finish 2.46 seconds ahead of teammate Denny Hamlin. Stewart, who battled Jeff Gordon for the lead all afternoon, took the top spot on the penultimate lap, when...

Busch Nails a Win at Pocono

Aug 6, 2007 6:42 AM CDT

Busch Nails a Win at Pocono

Big win puts Busch in 12th and final spot of standings with 5 races to go before Chase begins

(Newser) - Kurt Busch picked up a much-needed first place finish at Pocono on Sunday, his first win since March 26, 2006. Busch dominated the race, leading for all but 25 laps. The win moved him into the 12th and final spot in the Chase for the Nextel Cup rankings...

Gordon the Rain King in PA

Jun 11, 2007 4:13 AM CDT

Gordon the Rain King in PA

Risky call pays off for Gordon, who wins in rain-shortened Pocono 500

(Newser) - Nascar's Pocono 500 was called after 106 laps for rain with Jeff Gordon in the lead after a gutsy off-timed pitting on the 65th lap. The move gave him a jump in the short-term, but had there been no shortening of the race, it likely would have meant a loss...

NASCAR's 'Genial Dictator' Dead at 74

Jun 5, 2007 4:17 AM CDT

NASCAR's 'Genial Dictator' Dead at 74

Bill France Jr. transformed NASCAR into a national pastime

(Newser) - Bill France Jr., the NASCAR chairman who took a Southern pastime and transformed it into a national mania, died at 74 on Monday. Sickly in his final years, the godfather of stock car racing from 1972 to 2000 was nonetheless fiery and irascible until the end. France's father had founded...

Franchitti's Thirsty
for More

May 29, 2007 2:36 PM CDT

Franchitti's Thirsty for More

Quizzed on retiring, Indy 500 champ says he has the drive to return to the top

(Newser) - Still basking in the glow of his first Indy 500 victory, Dario Franchitti isn't even thinking about retirement. "I'm having a blast," the driver formerly best known for being married to Ashley Judd tells the Indianapolis Star. And no wonder—Franchitti, 34, reeled in a record $1.6...

Champ Claims NASCAR is Rigged

Apr 26, 2007 7:56 AM CDT

Champ Claims NASCAR is Rigged

Officials throw bogus caution flags to shape races, Stewart says

(Newser) - Two-time champion Tony Stewart charges that NASCAR is rigged like pro wrestling. He said officials control races by throwing bogus caution flags for debris on the track. “They can almost dictate the race instead of the drivers doing it. It’s happened too many times this year," said...