MARTIN TRUEX JR.

Chase Elliott salvaged a crummy day for Hendrick Motorsports and interrupted a potential Toyota rout by winning the rain-drenched race at Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday night.

Denny Hamlin was awarded the pole at Nashville Superspeedway when a surprise rain shower washed out the second round of qualifying.

This is the short course version of a road course, so it's tough.”Road course proficiency is more important than ever in the Cup Series, which has six such circuits on its schedule this season. “It's really tight and narrow for a road course,” Chase Briscoe said of Sonoma Raceway. Defending champion and five-time pole sitter Kyle Larson claimed he didn't notice a huge difference between the road course challenges of COTA and Sonoma, other than deeper braking zones. “I think the new car changes everything (on road courses),” said Truex, who has won on both course layouts at Sonoma. “He can take my opinion or not, and I'm fine with it.”ODDS AND ENDSElliott unsurprisingly is FanDuel Sportbook's 11-to-2 favorite at Sonoma, given his road course acumen.

Joey Logano jockeyed for the lead with Kyle Busch in overtime, got around him for good just before the white flag flew and cruised to the victory Sunday in the NASCAR Cup Series debut at World Wide Technology Raceway.

NASCAR is bringing its top series to World Wide Technology Raceway near St. Louis for the first time this weekend.

NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 was many things.

The All-Stars during qualifying Saturday night were the pit crew members for Kyle Busch.

Kurt Busch pinched his way past Kyle Larson for the lead with eight laps to go, then drove his gaudy Jordan Brand-styled car away from the reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion to win Sunday’s race at Kansas Speedway.

Larry and Dannielynn Birkhead on their Kentucky Derby Red Carpet

NASCAR Cup Series Dover Auto Racing Chase Elliott (9) races in the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Dover Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 1, 2022, in Dover, Del. — (AP) — Chase Elliott snapped a 26-race winless streak when the 2020 NASCAR champion pulled away down the stretch to win the Cup Series race on Monday at Dover Motor Speedway. Speedway Motorsports bought the track (Dover Motorsports) late last year. UP NEXTThe Cup Series races next Sunday at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina. Toyota is set to celebrate its 1,500th NASCAR race during Darlington’s annual Throwback Weekend.

Chase Elliott snapped a 26-race winless streak when the 2020 NASCAR champion pulled away down the stretch to win the rain-delayed Cup Series race at Dover Motor Speedway.

NASCAR Cup Series Dover Auto Racing Ryan Blaney (12) races toward Turn 1 during a restart at the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Dover Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 1, 2022, in Dover, Del. Truex raced to his first NASCAR Cup win June 4, 2007, at Dover and 12 years later used another rainout to take the checkered flag on May 6, 2019. It's the fourth time out of 104 career Dover races it will run on a Monday. Buescher won his only career Cup race in a weather-shortened race in 2016 — yes, on a Monday — at Pocono Raceway. Successes have been rare for Buescher since that checkered but he took the pole at Dover - his first in more than 230 career Cup races and 74 Xfinity starts.

Rain postponed Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover Motor Speedway to Monday.

Ross Chastain surged into the lead as he closed in on the checkered flag Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway to steal his second career Cup Series win.

Christopher Bell won the pole at Talladega Superspeedway by turning the fastest lap as the final driver to qualify.

Kyle Busch is uncertain about his future with both Joe Gibbs Racing and in NASCAR.

William Byron is making the guy that made the No. 24 Chevrolet famous proud.

William Byron took the lead on pit road after Stage 2 pit stops and held it pretty much the rest of the way at Martinsville Speedway to become the first repeat winner this season in NASCAR’s Cup Series.

NASCAR's top drivers expect some beating and banging to be on the menu when they race at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday night.

RICHMOND, Va. — (AP) — Denny Hamlin ran down William Byron with five laps to go Sunday and ended the slowest start to his career with a victory in the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway. He then held off a challenge from Kevin Harvick, a three-time winner at Richmond. Just drove as hard as I could,” Hamlin said after climbing from his car, crediting his team for not giving up. “There was no doubt in my mind, maybe just a little, but they got this car right there towards the end. Harvick was second, followed by Byron, Truex and Kyle Larson.

Denny Hamlin ran down William Byron with five laps to go and ended the slowest start to a season of his career with a victory in the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway.

RICHMOND, Va. — (AP) — Denny Hamlin would love to think that a visit to his home track will produce a finish that finally gets his season heading in the right direction. Hamlin stands 22nd in points after six races and has failed to finish three races. With trying the figure out the new car, every week is like starting over. We are trying to find that point where we are good, and we can build off of that,” he said. Hamlin, who had 25 top-10 runs in 36 races last year, has yet to record any.

Martin Truex Jr. left Richmond Raceway a winner in his last visit to the Virginia short track, a playofff victory last September that helped him get into NASCAR's championship round and showed the veteran has plenty left in his tank. The 41-year-old Truex is in the final year of his contract with Joe Gibbs Racing and hasn't decided how long he wants to continue his career. There is no wait-and-see going on with Truex, who in his 17th full Cup Series season is grappling with NASCAR's new Next Gen car.

Ross Chastain bumped and banged his way around the final overtime lap at Circuit of the Americas on Sunday for first career Cup win and upstart NASCAR team Trackhouse Racing’s first trip to victory lane.

Chase Briscoe raced to his first NASCAR Cup Series victory, executing two great restarts over the final 20 laps to pull away from Ross Chastain and Tyler Reddick on Sunday at Phoenix Raceway.

Tyler Reddick is enjoying his status among NASCAR’s fastest drivers through the season’s first three races.

LAS VEGAS — (AP) — Alex Bowman beat NASCAR champion Kyle Larson in a door-to-door overtime battle at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that sent Hendrick Motorsports to victory lane for the second consecutive week. Las Vegas native Kyle Busch and teammate Martin Truex Jr. were in a lap-by-lap chess match for the win until the 12th caution ended the stirring duel. The Hendrick trio of Bowman, Larson and William Byron all changed just two tires to get off pit road first through third. Larson, the defending Las Vegas winner and winner last week in California, chose the outside line for the restart with Bowman on his inside. Hendrick snuffed out any drama, evidenced by the clean overtime racing for the win between Bowman and Larson.

Alex Bowman beat NASCAR champion Kyle Larson in a door-to-door overtime battle at Las Vegas Motor Speedway that sent Hendrick Motorsports to victory lane for the second consecutive week.

Ty Gibbs is stepping into arguably the top ride in NASCAR’s second-tier Xfinity Series.

NASCAR was long overdue to revamp its aging, arguably outdated race car.

NASCAR is in Los Angeles a week ahead of the Super Bowl with its wildest idea yet.

Before he headed onto the track for the biggest race of his career, Kyle Larson heard Mario Andretti praise him as one of the most well-rounded drivers in all of motorsports.

NASCAR Phoenix Auto Racing Kyle Larson is introduced to the fans before a NASCAR Cup Series auto race on Sunday, Nov. 7, 2021, in Avondale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri) (Rick Scuteri)AVONDALE, Ariz. — (AP) — Kyle Larson won. That was the expected result of NASCAR's season-ending championship race, right? Larson closed his comeback season in NASCAR with his first championship Sunday, where he capped his return from a nearly yearlong suspension with a title-winning victory at Phoenix Raceway. It was Rick Hendrick who decided to give him another chance and he hired Larson once NASCAR lifted his suspension. Larson watched last year's championship race from the competition compound on the Hendrick Mototsports' campus in North Carolina.

Kyle Larson closed out his comeback season in NASCAR with his first national title.

Phoenix Raceway will finally get to host championship weekend in front of a packed house.

Always a threat on the track, Truex is the most unassuming championship contender in Cup. But last season, Truex stumbled in the first season he was paired with crew chief James Small. He has 28 of his 31 career wins since 2016 and is a perennial championship contender. JGR teammate Hamlin has two wins and time is running short for the veteran to win his first Cup championship. With a win, Truex would join Kyle Busch as the only active drivers with two championships.

Martin Truex Jr. is racing for his second career NASCAR Cup Series championship.

Alex Bowman spun Denny Hamlin from the lead with six laps remaining at Martinsville Speedway and then went on to win his fourth race of the season.

The NASCAR championship will pit Rick Hendrick against Joe Gibbs as both team owners put a pair of drivers in the final four.

Alex Bowman spun Denny Hamlin out of the lead at Martinsville Speedway and then won in overtime as the field for NASCAR's championship race was set Sunday.

Brad Keselowski is in the final two races of his NASCAR career with Team Penske and would love nothing more than to close his 12-year run with another Cup championship.

Kyle Larson drove to his ninth victory of the season and most meaningful to date in his new job with Hendrick Motorsports.

A conversation on driver code and on-track etiquette is raging in NASCAR, and with it comes debate about the expectations of non-playoff drivers.

FORT WORTH, Texas — (AP) — Kyle Larson claimed the first of four championship-contending spots in NASCAR's season finale with a dominating victory at Texas on Sunday to start the round of eight in the playoffs. There were two laps remaining on the final restart, and Larson was able to stay out in front of teammate William Byron. The seven remaining playoff contenders leave Texas with two more chances to get into the championship four, with Kansas and Martinsville left before the finale. Texas had always been the eighth of the final 10 races, and the middle race of the third and final elimination round, before this season. He also won at Texas in the $1 million, non-points All-Star race in June.

NASCAR Texas Preview Auto Racing FILE - In this Sept. 11, 2021, file photo, Martin Truex Jr., celebrates winning the NASCAR Cup series auto race in Richmond, Va. Truex is in third place in the NASCAR playoff standings heading into Sunday's race at Fort Worth, Texas. “The round of eight is really as tough as it gets,” said Truex, the 2017 Cup champ who finished second in both 2018 and 2019. But there’s a lot of guys with that in mind as well.”Kyle Larson, who won the NASCAR All-Star race at Texas four months ago, is the points leader. Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch round out the top five. A four-time winner at Texas, Busch will be without crew chief Ben Beshore after his suspension for two loose lug nuts on the No.

The third round of NASCAR's playoffs are getting started in Texas.

NASCAR's playoffs shift to Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday for the middle race of the second round.

Denny Hamlin earned his first career victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday night.

Kyle Larson returns to Las Vegas Motor Speedway looking for yet another victory.

Hendrick Motorsports is in a precarious position heading into first playoff elimination round.

NASCAR Richmond Auto Racing Denny Hamlin (11) and Martin Truex Jr., (19) lead the field st the start of the NASCAR Cup series auto race in Richmond, Va., Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021. Homestead was given a second chance for 2022 with an Oct. 23 race date that makes it the middle race of the third round of the playoffs. The 1.25-mile oval has held NASCAR national series races since 1997 and IndyCar the past six seasons. It is the only new track added to the 2022 Cup schedule. The Cup Series will be 36 races as always, but Pocono Raceway lost one of its two dates to get the race near St. Louis.

Mackenzie Salmon 'overreacts' to the biggest storylines from the NFL's Week One action in the AFC.

RICHMOND, Va. — (AP) — Two races into the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, regular-season champion Kyle Larson is still the points leader, but the stable of contenders at Joe Gibbs Racing is making the most noise with victories in the last two races. It was during that winless spell that Larson really asserted himself, winning four times. “We had a lot of tough luck and a lot of crashes and got caught in the rain a few times. “In general, I think we felt good coming into the playoffs. He led 197 laps on Saturday and won both stages, just as he had in April when he led 207 laps.

Two races into the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, regular-season champion Kyle Larson is still the points leader.

NASCAR Richmond Auto Racing William Byron (24) and Kyle Busch (18) race into turn one during the NASCAR Cup series auto race in Richmond, Va., Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) (Steve Helber)RICHMOND, Va, — (AP) — Martin Truex Jr. assumed the lead when Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch was penalized for speeding with about 50 laps to go and won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway on Saturday night. The victory was the third for Truex in the last five races at Richmond. Truex led a 1-2-3 finish for JGR, with Denny Hamlin finishing second and Christopher Bell. McDowell finish 37th — last — last week and had three speeding penalties and finished 29th at Richmond.

Martin Truex Jr. assumed the lead when Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch was penalized with about 50 laps to go and won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway.

Martin Truex Jr. assumed the lead when Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch was penalized for speeding with about 50 laps to go and won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway on Saturday night. The victory was the third for Truex in the last five races at Richmond. Truex led a 1-2-3 finish for JGR — the sixth in its history — with Denny Hamlin finishing second and Christopher Bell third.

There was still a buzz over Venus Williams beating little sister Serena in prime time for the U.S. Open tennis singles title. 1 college football team in all the land, coming off a 61-0 thrashing of Rutgers. In some ways, so was life as Truex and the rest of us knew it. Instead of a salve, sports has become a mirror on our angry divisions in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. “I’ll play for free this year to live life how I’ve lived it from day one,” Beasley added in a rant this summer.

On that sunny morning two decades ago, in the hours and minutes and seconds before everything changed, sports was playing its usual role in the fabric of life.

DARLINGTON, S.C. — (AP) — Denny Hamlin held off Kyle Larson after their cars hit nose to tail racing to the finish line Sunday night in the Southern 500 to open the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. But Hamlin held firm up near the wall to take the checkered flag“He was going to have to go through me,” Hamlin said. Hamlin broke out ahead of Larson on the restart 36 laps from the end. Earlier, Daytona 500 winner Mike McDowell hit the wall on the backstretch on lap 30 and was done for the day. UP NEXTThe NASCAR Cup series playoffs continue at Richmond, Virginia, on Saturday.

Denny Hamlin held off Kyle Larson after their cars hit nose to tail racing to the finish line Sunday night in the Southern 500 to open the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

Tyler Reddick finished fifth in the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season finale Saturday night and secured the final spot in the 16-car postseason field.

Ryan Blaney won for the second consecutive week when the race Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway ended under caution in overtime with a typical fiery finish.

One week after Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe tangled on the track in NASCAR's Cup Series, they'll be back in action Sunday at Michigan.

NASCAR drivers got their first laps on Indianapolis Motor Speedway's road course in practice — and it opened to mixed reviews.

Kyle Larson won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International, building a big lead in the final stage and keeping Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott at bay over the final laps.

Chase Elliott is going for a three-peat at Watkins Glen International.

The now half-over, two-week hiatus is something Harvick wishes would become a regular thing. “I’d take it off the front end because everybody’s fresh and energized," he said of moving the break to the summer months. “I think having this two-week break really allows these guys in the shop and on the road to be able to actually have two, for-sure weeks off that they can plan around. That’s something very important to the families of those individuals.”Harvick, though, wasn't planning on getting too far away from racing. Harvick won a series-high nine races last year, but like points leader Denny Hamlin, has only visited Victory Lane this season to congratulate other winning drivers.

Kevin Harvick headed into NASCAR’s two-week break during the Tokyo Olympics delighted to be away from his own race car, but with plans to be wrapped up in his young son’s fledgling career behind the wheel.

With darkness closing in, Aric Almirola sprung to life late Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and pulled off a surprise for Stewart-Haas Racing’s first victory of the year.

(AP Photo/Nell Redmond) (Nell Redmond)The Hendrick Motorsports train rolls into Sonoma Raceway on a three-race winning streak that pushed it past Petty Enterprises as NASCAR's winningest organization. “I think we all look at them as being a really strong team and having really strong race cars consistently,” Truex said. Since then it has been all Hendrick Motorsports, starting with an Alex Bowman 1-2-3-4 sweep at Dover. Out in wine country, Elliott will be seeking his first career victory at Sonoma. Those six wins tie him for third on NASCAR's all-time road course win list with Bobby Allison, Richard Petty, Ricky Rudd and Rusty Wallace.

NASCAR Austin Auto Racing Martin Truex Jr. (19) slides through Turn 12 after a crash as Chris Buescher (17) and Garrett Smithley (53) drive around during the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, Sunday, May 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) (Chuck Burton)AUSTIN, Texas — (AP) — Chase Elliott raced to a short and slippery victory Sunday as rain spoiled the end of NASCAR’s debut at the Circuit of the Americas, where drivers struggled to navigate the winding course in the first rain race in Cup Series history. Elliott, the defending series champion, won for the first time this year and the sixth time on a road course. The rain started on the opening lap and several drivers complained about treacherous conditions that limited visibility, and caused a pair of violent crashes. UP NEXTNASCAR heads to North Carolina for the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway next Sunday before a return to road racing at Sonoma Raceway___More AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

All the information you need to get ready for Sunday's Drydene 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover International Speedway.

NASCAR Dover Preview Auto Racing FILE - In this Sunday, May 9, 2021, file photo, Kyle Larson uses his cell phone before the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, S.C. Larson took time out from his NASCAR schedule to Zoom in with the class at Philadelphia’s Urban Youth Racing School. The school has served more than 7,500 students from ages 8 to 18 over the last 22 years and teaches all aspects of auto racing, including driving and Black racing history. The Joe Gibbs Racing star and 2017 Cup champion has been the runner-up finisher in three straight Dover races. For the lottery's current fiscal year of July 1, 2020 through May 13, 2021, auto racing comprised $196,000 or 0.18% of the wager handle. _____More AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NASCAR last weekend had a soft re-opening of the garage area and allowed 350 fully vaccinated sponsors and guests into the competition footprint at Darlington Raceway. NASCAR is not requiring its competitors be vaccinated, only guests and media who enter the garage area. ___The Milwaukee Brewers will begin allowing fans to fill all the seats at American Family Field for home games on June 25. They announced Tuesday they would start filling up to half the seats at American Family Field beginning with Saturday’s game against the Atlanta Braves. American Family Field has a seating capacity of 41,900.

NASCAR Darlington Auto Racing Martin Truex Jr. drives into Turn 1 during the NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Darlington Raceway, Sunday, May 9, 2021, in Darlington, S.C. (AP Photo/Terry Renna) (Terry Renna)DARLINGTON, S.C. — (AP) — Martin Truex Jr. powered his way around Darlington Raceway, sweeping both stages and leading the final 105 laps Sunday. Kyle Larson cut into Truex's often large lead over the final 30 laps, coming as close as two car-lengths down the stretch. The victory gave Truex some payback at Darlington from the last time here last September, when he led 196 laps, yet finished 22nd after tangling for the lead late with Chase Elliott. WHO’S HOTKyle Busch followed up his first win of the season at Kansas last week with a solid third place at Darlington. But Busch hasn’t come that close to a Darlington victory in 22 races since.

The most celebrated day in motorsports has been whittled down to the third course, 600 miles around Charlotte Motor Speedway in NASCAR's longest race of the year. What began as the World 600 in 1959 became the nightcap to a spectacular day of automobile racing treasured annually by fans. It means NASCAR is alone in the spotlight Sunday night, just as NASCAR has been for the last week. Were right there and James is doing an awesome job.BUSCH VS. ELLIOTTChase Elliott flipped Busch the bird after Busch wrecked Elliott racing for the win Wednesday night. Busch went on to finish second in a 1-2 with Hamlin for Joe Gibbs Racing; Elliott was 38th.