Sports

Motorsports

Autos

By TIMES WIRES
Published May 26, 2006

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INDYCARS

FAST FACTS: Penske drivers will occupy the top two starting positions. Sam Hornish won the pole with a speed of 228.985 mph and Helio Castroneves placed second at 228.008. ... Seventeen of the previous 89 Indy 500s have been won from the pole. The second starting spot has yielded 11 winners; the No. 3 starting position has had nine wins. ... The race has taken place every year since 1911, except for when the United States was in World War I (1917-18) and World War II (1942-45). ... Each winner receives an 18-inch sterling silver replica of the Borg-Warner Trophy. The original stands 5 feet 43/4, weighs 150 pounds and has a bas-relief bust of each winner. It is valued at $1-million.

POINTS STANDINGS:

1. Castroneves, 146; 2. Dan Wheldon, 104; 3. Hornish, 94; 4. Scott Dixon, 92; 5. Tony Kanaan, 89; 6. Kosuke Matsuura, 80; 7. Bryan Herta, 77; 8. Vitor Meira, 64; 9. Dario Franchitti, 63; 10. Felipe Giaffone, 61.

NEXTEL CUP

FAST FACTS: The track was repaved last winter. Cars will go to 14-gallon fuel tanks at Lowe's rather than the normal 22-gallon tanks to create more pit stops, preventing long runs that would put stress on the tires. ... Jimmie Johnson has won the past four points events at Lowe's and five of six. A win this weekend would make him the 10th driver in NASCAR history to win the same event four consecutive years. ... Five drivers have won the All-Star Challenge and Coca-Cola 600 in consecutive weeks, most recently Johnson in 2003. ... Jeff Gordon's first victory in the series was the 1994 Coca-Cola 600, while Matt Kenseth picked up his in the 2000 event.

POINTS STANDINGS:

1. Johnson, 1,686; 2. Tony Stewart, 1,593; 3. Kenseth, 1,592; 4. Mark Martin, 1,487; 5. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 1,460; 6. Gordon, 1,391; 7. Kyle Busch, 1,388; 8. Kasey Kahne, 1,379; 9. Kevin Harvick, 1,365; 10. Jeff Burton, 1,295.

BUSCH

WHAT: Carquest Auto Parts 300.

WHEN/WHERE/TV: Saturday, race (FX, 7:30 p.m.); Concord, N.C.

2005 WINNER: Kyle Busch.

FAST FACTS: Denny Hamlin's victory made Nextel Cup racers 12-of-12 on the Busch circuit this season. Hamlin also won the Busch event in Mexico City in March. ... Busch made his series debut in the 2003 event and finished second to Matt Kenseth. ... Mark Martin will be trying to qualify for his first Busch event at Lowe's since 2000. He holds the series record with six wins and 13 top-five finishes at the track.

POINTS STANDINGS: 1. Kevin Harvick, 1,945; 2. Clint Bowyer, 1,598; 3. Hamlin, 1,566; 4. Carl Edwards, 1,559; 5. Busch, 1,490; 6. Paul Menard, 1,483; 7. Greg Biffle, 1,469; 8. J.J. Yeley, 1,432; 9. Jason Leffler, 1,322; 10. Johnny Sauter, 1,302.

TRUCKS

WHAT: City of Mansfield 250.

WHEN/WHERE/TV: Today, qualifying, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, race (Speed Channel, 2 p.m.); Mansfield, Ohio.

2005 WINNER: Bobby Hamilton.

FAST FACTS: Former Boston Red Sox outfielder Mike Greenwell will try to qualify for the race. Greenwell has plans to run two more events this season, including a return to New Hampshire in September. ... The 2004 race, won by Jack Sprague, was the first for the trucks in Ohio and first for a NASCAR series in 51 years. ... Bill Lester's streak of consecutive starts ended at 102 last weekend after he crashed during qualifying. The streak was fifth longest among active drivers.

POINTS STANDINGS: 1. Todd Bodine, 1,017; 2. Ted Musgrave, 1,000; 3. David Reutimann, 896; 4. Mark Martin, 844; 5. Terry Cook, 808; 6. Johnny Benson, 788; 7. David Starr, 783; 8. Dennis Setzer, 776; 9. Sprague, 765; 10. Matt Crafton, 760.

FORMULA ONE

WHAT: Monaco Grand Prix.

WHEN/WHERE/TV: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 8 a.m.); Sunday, race, 8 a.m. (Ch. 10, 12:30 p.m., taped); Monte Carlo.

2005 WINNER: Kimi Raikkonen.

FAST FACTS: BAR-Honda was missing from last year's event because of a two-race suspension for using an illegal car at the San Marino GP. ... Fernando Alonso finished fourth in last year's race, the first time he was out of the top three in 2005. ... Michael Schumacher will try to equal Ayrton Senna's record of six Monaco victories. He hasn't won at the track since 2001. ... The series has been racing on the Monte Carlo street course every year since 1955. The first Monaco race was held in 1929.

POINTS STANDINGS: 1. Alonso, 54; 2. Michael Schumacher, 39; 3. Raikkonen, 27; 4. Giancarlo Fisichella, 24; 5. Felipe Massa, 20; 6. Jenson Button, 16; 7. Juan Pablo Montoya, 15; 8. Rubens Barrichello, 8; 9. Ralf Schumacher, 7; 10. (tie) Mark Webber, Nick Heidfeld, Jacques Villeneuve, 6.

NHRA

WHAT: O'Reilly Summer Nationals.

WHEN/WHERE/TV: Today, qualifying, 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, qualifying, 1 p.m. (ESPN2, 8 p.m., taped); Sunday, eliminations, noon (ESPN2, 10 p.m., taped); Topeka, Kan.

2005 WINNERS: Dave Grubnic (Top Fuel), John Force (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock).

FAST FACTS: Funny Car leader Ron Capps has lost in the first round in each of the past two events. ... Angelle Sampey has won three of the four Pro Stock Motorcycle events this season. ... Gary Scelzi broke an NHRA record with his seventh Top Fuel victory of the season at the 2000 event. ... The first Funny Car 4-second and 300-mph runs took place during the 1993 event.

POINTS STANDINGS: Top Fuel - 1. Melanie Troxel, 690; 2. Doug Kalitta, 536; 3. Brandon Bernstein, 515; 4. Grubnic, 506; 5. Larry Dixon, 477. Funny Car - 1. Capps, 666; 2. Force, 575; 3. Eric Medlen, 482; 4. Robert Hight, 474; 5. Tommy Johnson Jr., 446. Pro Stock - 1. Anderson, 557; 2. Jason Line, 527; 3. Jim Yates, 509; 4. Erica Enders, 460; 5. Mike Edwards, 446. Pro Stock Motorcycle - 1. Sampey, 378; 2. Andrew Hines, 342; 3. Antron Brown, 304; 4. Chip Ellis, 222; 5. Karen Stoffer, 215.

CHAMP CAR

UP NEXT: Milwaukee Mile, June 4, West Allis, Wis.

POINTS STANDINGS: 1. Sebastien Bourdais, 102; 2. Justin Wilson, 77; 3. Mario Dominguez, 69; 4. Andrew Ranger, 58; 5. Alex Tagliani, 56; 6. Paul Tracy, 54; 7. Cristiano da Matta, 47; 8. A.J. Allmendinger, 45; 9. Will Power, 40; 10. Nelson Philippe, 35.

[Last modified May 26, 2006, 00:51:15]

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