AUTO RACING: Gibbs drivers surge as NASCAR goes to Bristol
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NASCAR CUP SERIES
Bass Pro Shops Night Race
Site: Bristol, Tennessee
Schedule: Saturday, race, 7:30 p.m.
Track: Bristol Motor Speedway.
Race distance: 500 laps, 266.5 miles.
Last year: Kevin Harvick won after starting fourth.
Last race: Martin Truex Jr. led a 1-2-3 Joe Gibbs Racing finish with Denny Hamlin second and Christopher Bell third.
Fast facts: Regular season champion Kyle Larson was sixth at Richmond and his points lead was cut to 34 over Hamlin and 38 over Truex. All three have qualified for the next round of the playoffs. ... Three Team Penske drivers — Joey Logano, finished fifth; Ryan Blaney, sixth; and Brad Keselowski, ninth — were all running in the top five together at one point at Richmond. ... Defending series champion Chase Elliott is seventh in points, 79 behind. ... Kevin Harvick is sixth, 73 back.
Next race: Sept. 26, Las Vegas.
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NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
Food City 300
Site: Bristol, Tennessee
Schedule: Friday, race, 7:30 p.m.
Track: Bristol Motor Speedway.
Race distance: 300 laps, 159.9 miles.
Last year: Chase Briscoe won after starting 10th.
Last race: Noah Gragson held off Justin Haley through two late restarts at Richmond and won his second straight race.
Fast facts: Only one race remains before the 12-driver field is set for the playoffs. ... Gragson's consecutive victories are his first two of the season. ... A.J. Allmendinger's points lead over defending series champion Austin Cindric went from one point to five. Justin Allgaier is third, 121 behind. ... Nine drivers racing primarily in the series have victories this season. Allmendinger's three wins tie him with Ty Gibbs for second-most, trailing only Cindric with five. Gibbs is not eligible for the playoffs, having made just 13 starts this season.
Next race: Sept. 25, Las Vegas.
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NASCAR TRUCK SERIES
UNOH 200 Presented by Ohio Logistics
Site: Bristol, Tennessee
Schedule: Thursday, race, 9 p.m.
Track: Bristol Motor Speedway.
Race distance: 200 laps, 106.6 miles.
Last year: Sam Mayer won after starting 17th.
Last race: Sheldon Creed won at Darlington for his second straight victory.
Fast facts: Creed, the defending series champion, led 104 of the 147 laps and has won three consecutive playoff races dating to last season. He leads John Hunter Nemechek by two points in the standings through one race in the postseason. Three-time champion Matt Crafton is third, 34 points behind. Canadian racer Stewart Friesen is 36 back and Ben Rhodes is 54 behind.
Next race: Sept. 24, Las Vegas.
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FORMULA ONE
Last race: Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris gave McLaren a 1-2 finish in Italy as championship contenders Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton both crashed.
Next race: Sept. 26, Sochi, Russia.
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INDYCAR
Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey
Site: Monterey, California.
Schedule: Friday, practice, 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, practice, 1:45 p.m., and qualifying, 5:05 p.m.; Sunday, race, 3 p.m. (NBC).
Track: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
Race distance: 90 laps, 212.6 miles.
Last year: Did not race.
Last race: Alex Palou recovered from a first-lap mistake on the road course in Portland and rallied for his third victory of the season to regain the series points lead.
Fast facts: Palou leads Patricio O'Ward by 25 points, two-time series champion Josef Newgarden by 34 points, six-time champion Scott Dixon by 49 points and Marcus Ericsson by 75 points with two races remaining. ... Palou's three victories are one more than O'Ward, Newgarden and Ericsson have managed. ... Dixon has led a series-high 400 laps, but has won just once.
Next race: Sept. 26, Long Beach, California.
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NHRA DRAG RACING
Last event: Billy Torrence won in Top Fuel and Tommy Johnson Jr. won in Funny Car in Mohnton, Pennsylvania.
Next event: Sept. 17-19, Concord, North Carolina.
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WORLD OF OUTLAWS
Next event: Sept. 18, Hanford, California.
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