Michigan 400 Tickets
Ryan Newman knew he hadn't forgotten how to win.
"I wasn't super concerned," said Newman, who led NASCAR's Nextel Cup Series with eight wins last year, but hadn't won in the first 14 races of 2004.
"We've had some great runs and my mistakes have kind of killed it, but nobody on our team doubted we could still win races," he added Sunday after coming from a lap down to win the DHL 400 at Michigan International Speedway.
Newman had not finished better than third this year and it didn't look like this was going to be his day, either, when the radiator on the front of his Penske Racing South Dodge became blocked by trash early in the race. The engine overheated, forcing Newman to make a green flag pit stop on the 22nd of 200 laps.
Dodge/Save Mart 350:
Jeff Gordon wrapped up a near perfect weekend Sunday, starting from the pole and racing to an overpowering victory in the NASCAR race at Infineon Raceway.
Gordon picked up his fourth victory on the 1.99-mile, 10-turn road course, winning for the third time from the pole. It also extended his own Nextel Cup record for road racing wins to eight and gave him three for the season and 67 for his career.
"We've had some bad finishes lately and we wanted this one real bad," said Gordon, who got out of his No. 24 Chevrolet soaked with sweat and just about spent after leading 92 of 110 laps on a hot afternoon at the scenic wine country circuit.
"I drove out and got as big a lead as I could and gave a lot of it up there at the end," said Gordon, who had his overheated driver's seat iced down during his last pit stop. "It was real tough."
Pepsi 400
Jeff Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports are the new kings of NASCAR plate racing.
Gordon proved Saturday night his victory at Talladega in April was no fluke, leaving the favored Dale Earnhardt Inc. duo of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip and everyone else behind in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway.
"Wow! Wow! Wow!" Gordon said. "This is a big one. What an awesome show by Hendrick Motorsports."
It was Gordon's second victory in a row, fourth of the season and 68th of his career. He also became the first driver to win this race from the pole since Cale Yarborough in 1981.
Tropicana 400
Tony Stewart fought his way through the field in a backup car Sunday after wrecking his primary car in the weekend's first practice. Still, when the smoke cleared, Stewart stood in Victory Lane for the first time in 2004. Siemens 300
Kurt Busch entered Sunday's Siemens 300 on the bubble for the Chase for the Nextel Cup. After taking the checkered flag at New Hampshire International Speedway, his place in the 10-race run for the Cup seems more secure. Pennsylvania 500
Jimmie Johnson pulled off a clean sweep at Pocono Raceway.
Johnson dominated at the track for the second time in seven weeks, building on his NASCAR Nextel Cup points lead and winning the Pennsylvania 500 on Sunday in a race that further shuffled the rest of the standings.
"That race car was incredible," said Johnson, who's the first driver to win the Pocono 500 and Pennsylvania 500 in the same year since Bobby Labonte in 1999.
Under the old points system, Johnson probably could have cruised toward his first career points title.
Brickyard 400
Jeff Gordon dominated Sunday's caution-filled Brickyard 400, leading 122 of 161 laps to get his fourth career Indianapolis victory. The win is also the fifth of the season for Gordon, who gained significant ground on series points leader Jimmie Johnson. Sirius at the Glen:
Tony Stewart knew he was in trouble shortly after the start of the race, but overcame an upset stomach to win Sunday at Watkins Glen International.
"It started about the 15th or 17th lap," he said. "It got better toward the end but I still don't feel well."
Stewart went back to his hauler as soon as he exited the car after winning the Sirius at the Glen. He was driven back to his motor coach in a golf cart to change his uniform and attempt to recover.
That delayed his celebration in victory lane, marking the third straight week that has happened in NASCAR. Jimmie Johnson was fined $10,000 for violating protocol two weeks ago at Pocono by obscuring the product of a rival sponsor with a placard of his own. GFS Marketplace 400
Greg Biffle drove to an easy victory, pulling away from gambling teammate Mark Martin at the end of the NASCAR Nextel Cup race Sunday at Michigan International Speedway.
Biffle, the only driver to win both the Busch and Craftsman Truck series championships, took the GFS Marketplace 400 for his second career Cup win. He has struggled through much of his second full season in the series.
To get his first win since the July race at Daytona last year, Biffle had to hold off longtime Cup star Martin, who overcame a mistake in the pits to get back to the runner-up spot.
Martin and crew chief Pat Tryson chose to take only two tires on their final pit stop, while Biffle and the rest of the leaders took four. That gave Martin track position, but he was unable to come close to chasing down Biffle's Ford.
Sharpie 500
Dale Earnhardt Jr. found the perfect cure for his struggling team's ills: Winning.