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John Force gets NHRA victory

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 21:05:47 -0600

POMONA, Calif. (AP) — John Force raced to his 134th career Funny Car victory Sunday at the O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals at the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

The 62-year-old Force used a holeshot start to claim his sixth win at this event and 15th at this track with a performance of 4.080 seconds at 315.84 mph in a Ford Mustang.

Runner-up Mike Neff finished in 4.036 at 316.82 in his Mustang.

"It was good to get a win under my belt," Force said.

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Morgan Lucas take No. 1 spot in Top Fuel

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 22:30:37 -0600

POMONA, Calif. (AP) — Morgan Lucas raced to the No.

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Tasca tops Funny Car field at NHRA Winternationals

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:01:17 -0600

POMONA, Calif. (AP) — Bob Tasca raced to the provisional No.

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Jack Beckman leads Funny Car qualifying

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:33:02 -0600

POMONA, Calif. (AP) — Jack Beckman raced to the provisional No.

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AUTO RACING PACKAGE: Auto Racing Glance

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:00:47 -0600

All Times EST

NHRA FULL THROTTLE

NHRA WINTERNATIONALS

Site: Pomona, Calif.

Schedule: Thursday-Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, Saturday, 11 p.m.-1 a.m.); Sunday, final eliminations (ESPN2, 7-10:30 p.m.).

Track: Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

Last year: Morgan Lucas beat former high school classmate Shawn Langdon in the Top Fuel final in the season-opening event.

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Foyt released from Houston hospital

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 21:01:08 -0600

A.J. Foyt has been released from a hospital in Houston, where he was being treated for complications from knee surgery.

The 77-year-old Foyt had knee surgery two weeks ago, and an infection sent him to the hospital Wednesday.

A spokeswoman for the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner said Foyt was released Friday and is still taking antibiotics for the infection.

Foyt is the only driver to win the Indianapolis 500, the Daytona 500, the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Foyt was scheduled to be the grand marshal Saturday at Daytona International Speedway for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Casino opens overlooking Turn 2 at Kansas Speedway

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:01:26 -0600

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Lesa France Kennedy strode through the Art Deco-inspired lobby, past rows of blinking slots machines and spinning roulette wheels, her eyes trying to take in the homage to old Hollywood.

The chief executive of International Speedway Corp., which owns and operates Kansas Speedway, could only marvel at the new casino overlooking Turn 2 of the race track — a $411 million facility that has created 1,000 new jobs and is expected to attract 4 million visitors annually.

"All the different screens, all the colors," Kennedy said.

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Mother of NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth dies at 63

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:31:07 -0600

CAMBRIDGE, Wis. (AP) — The mother of NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth has died.

An obituary from a Cambridge, Wis., funeral home and Kenseth's fan website say Nicola "Nicki" Sue Kenseth battled Alzheimer's disease and died Tuesday at age 63 at Oak Park Place in Cottage Grove.

Matt Kenseth grew up in Cambridge and won the Daytona 500 in 2009.

A funeral service is scheduled Friday at Willerup Methodist Church in Cambridge.

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Sutil says Hamilton a 'coward' for not testifying

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 06:45:50 -0600

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Former Force India Formula One driver Adrian Sutil says Lewis Hamilton is a "coward" for not testifying at the German's trial.

Sutil was convicted of causing grievous bodily harm in a nightclub confrontation in China and given an 18-month suspended sentence Tuesday.

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Allmendinger leads Michael Shank Racing to win

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 17:01:02 -0600

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The little team with no pedigree knocked off the big boys with all those championships.

Michael Shank Racing did it with a pair of drivers hoping Sunday's victory in the Rolex 24 at Daytona is the kickoff to their career comebacks.

NASCAR driver AJ Allmendinger closed out the twice-around-the-clock win by piloting the No.

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SunTrust out, Gainsco in trouble at Rolex 24

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 21:32:22 -0600

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — One former Grand-Am champion was knocked out of the Rolex 24 at Daytona less than an hour into the race, and another lost several laps a quarter of the way into the twice-around-the-clock event.

Max Angelelli took the No.

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Oklahoma scene: Freestyle Motocross Series on Saturday at Chesapeake Energy Arena

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 20:20:13 -0600

FROM STAFF REPORTS

Oklahoma City University women's wrestling team tries to win fourth consecutive national championship.

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Justin Wilson back in a car after back injury

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:16:01 -0600

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Justin Wilson's wife had quite enough of the driver being home all the time during the six months he was sidelined with a broken bone in his back.

As Wilson readied for his return to the race car this week at Daytona International Speedway, wife Julia couldn't get him back to the track fast enough.

"She said two days ago, 'I can't wait for you to go away again,' " Wilson said.

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Ganassi teams figure to be up front at Daytona

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:01:01 -0600

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Chip Ganassi hopes to improve on last year's 24-hour race at Daytona International Speedway.

It hardly seems possible.

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Oklahoma scene: American Sprint Car Series Sooner Region opens season April 28 at Lawton Speedway

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:09:05 -0600

FROM STAFF REPORTS

The American Sprint Car Series announced its race dates Thursday for the Sooner Region, and 17 events are scheduled over nine different tracks.

Lawton Speedway will host the opening points race of the season Saturday, April 28.

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Judge tosses verdict against New Hampshire track

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:00:53 -0600

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A judge has thrown out a verdict that would have required New Hampshire Motor Speedway to pay nearly $1 million to cancel its contract with Motor Racing Network.

A jury awarded MRN $993,724 last September because New Hampshire did not meet a three-year notice of termination when Speedway Motorsports Inc.

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Dalziel captures pole for 24-hour race at Daytona

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:00:52 -0600

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Ryan Dalziel's qualifying performance was somewhat surprising.

He knew his car was fast, but given that the team had just two weeks to tune it and then failed to turn a lap in the first practice session because of engine failure, sitting on the pole was hardly expected.

Nonetheless, Dalziel bested Max Angelelli, Chip Ganassi's two-car powerhouse team and IndyCar regular Ryan Hunter-Reay on the road course at Daytona International Speedway.

Dalziel turned a fast lap of 1 minute, 41.119 seconds in Thursday's qualifying session.

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Oklahoma scene: Funeral scheduled for race car driver Donnie Ray Crawford

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:22:11 -0600

FROM STAFF REPORTS

Future sprint car star died at age 24 after being shot by his grandfather. Crawford was scheduled to race the day of his death.

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Oklahoma scene: Kevin Swindell three-peats as Chili Bowl champ

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 20:08:07 -0600

FROM STAFF REPORTS

Five laps added to A feature in memory of Broken Arrow driver Donnie Ray Crawford, who died Saturday in a shooting incident

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Oklahoma scene: Swindells dominating Chili Bowl so far

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 21:07:08 -0600

FROM STAFF REPORTS

Sammy Swindell's son, two-time Chili Bowl champion Kevin Swindell, advances to Saturday's main event

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NASCAR's Tony Stewart to compete in Tulsa's Chili Bowl Nationals

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 21:06:05 -0600

NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart said Tuesday that he will race in the Chili Bowl Nationals next month at the QuikTrip Center's Tulsa Expo Raceway.

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Athletes, coaches and officials who died in plane crashes

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 19:20:06 -0600

FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

Nov. 17, 2011 — Kurt Budke, 50, Oklahoma State women's basketball coach and assistant coach Miranda Serna, Perryville, Ark.

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