NASCAR, IndyCar, Formula 1 all off during Olympics in light, mid-summer motorsports schedule
All Times Eastern
NASCAR CUP SERIES
NASCAR, which had last weekend off, has another free week for the Olympics before resuming at Richmond on Aug. 11.
Fast facts: 2021 Cup Series champion Kyle Larson got to “Kiss The Bricks” at Indianapolis after winning there on July 21. ... There are four races left in NASCAR’s regular season with Michigan, Daytona and Darlington coming after the run at Richmond. ... Larson leads the NASCAR standings with 2,043 points, 15 ahead of Denny Hamlin. Christopher Bell is third and Larson's Henrick Motorsports teammate William Byron is fourth. ... It has not been a good break for Corey Lajoie, who announced he's leaving Spire Motorsports. No word yet on his replacement. ... Lajoie had signed a multi-year contract extension to stay with Spire last year.
Next race: Aug. 11, Richmond, Virginia.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
The Xfinity Series has two more weekends free before racing at Michigan on Aug. 17.
Fast facts: Stewart-Haas Racing has a lot of momentum, winning the previous two Xfinity races before the month-long break. Cole Custer won at Pocono on July 13 as the defending series champ ended his winless drought this season. Teammate Riley Herbst won at Indianapolis Raceway Park on July 20. ... Custer continues to lead the series with a 55-point edge of Justin Allgaier. ... There are six more races left in the Xfinity regular season. After Michigan, comes Daytona, Darlington, Atlanta, Watkins Glen and Bristol. The 12-driver playoff starts at Kansas on Sept. 28.
Next race: Aug. 17, Brooklyn, Michigan.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
NASCAR TRUCK SERIES
The Truck Series is also off until Richmond, returning to the track on Aug. 10.
Fast Facts: Richmond is the final race of the regular season with the playoffs starting at the Milwaukee Mile on Aug. 25. ... Christian Eckes leads the driver standings by 50 points over Corey Heim, even though Heim has five victories this season to Eckes' three. ... Five drivers (Eckes, Heim, Nick Sanchez, Ty Majeski, Rajah Caruth) have clinched playoff spots through wins. ... Two more drivers, Tyler Ankrum and Grant Enfinger, have enough points to lock up their spots.
Next race: Aug. 10, Richmond, Virginia.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
FORMULA ONE
F1 is off for most of August, returning with the Dutch Grand Prix on Aug. 25.
Last race: Lewis Hamilton took the Belgian Grand Prix last Sunday when Mercedes teammate George Russell was disqualified after crossing the line first for an underweight car. Mercedes acknowledged a “genuine error” by the team. Russell had held off Hamilton, despite the past series champion coming close to passing for the lead over the final laps. Oscar Piastri had finished third behind Russell and Hamilton, but was moved up to second. Fourth-place Charles Leclerc was declared third after the disqualification.
Fast facts: Series leader Max Verstappen missed out on the podium despite moving from fifth to fourth after Russell's DQ. Verstappen has not won since taking the last of seven victories this season in Spain on June 23. ... Verstappen’s drought has not dented his championship chances as he heads into Belgium with a 76-point lead over McLaren driver Lando Norris. Leclerc sits in third, 97 points behind Verstappen. ... Hamilton, who had earned his 200th career top-three finish in Hungary two weeks ago, followed that with his record 105th F1 win.
Next race: Aug. 25, Zandvoort, Netherlands.
Online: http://www.formula1.com
INDYCAR
IndyCar is also off for the Olympics, returning in mid-August from its last race on July 21.
Fast facts: Only five races remain in the IndyCar season. After visiting World Wide Technology Raceway outside St. Louis in two weeks, the series runs in Portland, Oregon, and then two races at the Milwaukee Mile before finishing up at the Nashville Superspeedway on Sept. 15. ... Alex Palou has a 49-point lead over Will Power. Scott Dixon is in third, four points behind Power.
Next race: Aug. 16, Madison, Illinois.
Online: http://www.indycar.com
NHRA DRAG RACING
Drag racing's top series takes the next two weeks off before returning with the NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minnesota.
Last event: Antron Brown won in Top Fuel and Bob Tasca III won in Funny Car at Sonoma, California, on July 28.
Fast facts: Brown defeated Brittany Force in the semifinals before besting three-time NASCAR Cup Series drivers champion Tony Stewart in the finals. ... Force was back on the track after her father, 16-time Funny Car champion John Force, had improved after his horrific accident on June 23 in Virginia and was transferred to continue his recovery closer to home. ... Doug Kalitta has a 125-point lead over Shawn Langdon in the Top Fuel race while Austin Prock leads the Funny Car standings by 211 points over Tasca.
Next event: Aug. 15-18, Brainerd, Minnesota.
Online: http://www.nhra.com
WORLD OF OUTLAWS
Last events: David Gravel won weekend events at Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and Weedsport, New York, to win his 100th and 101st sprint car titles on Saturday and Sunday. Gravel missed his first chance at triple digits on Friday night in Pennsylvania, losing to T.J. Stutts before taking the checkered flag in the next two races.
Fast facts: Gravel became the eighth World of Outlaws driver to reach triple-digit victories. ... After racing in Missouri this weekend, the series heads to Knoxville, Iowa, for four events. ... Gravel has 13 wins, 31 top fives and 37 top 10s this season, all leading totals. ... Gravel tops the points standing, up 110 points over Donny Schatz. Carson Macedo is third, 142 points behind Gravel.
Next events: Friday and Saturday at Pevely, Missouri.
Online: http://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars
___
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
