Richmond, Va. -- Jimmy Johnson beat Tony Stewart Saturday night to win the Nextel Cup's Chevy Rock & Roll auto race at Richmond, Va.

Johnson's No.48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet driver crossed the finish line 3.007 seconds ahead of Stewart, giving him six victories this season and 29 for his "Cup" career.

"My mental strength is much greater than what it was last year and so is our team," the defending points champion said in Victory Lane. "To be able to go through five seasons and almost getting it and then getting it, I feel a lot more confident and I'm sure the team does, too."

David Ragan, Jeff Gordon, and Johnny Sauter finished third, fourth, and fifth.
In the race-within-the-race, Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick clinched the last two positions in the "Chase," with Dale Earnhardt Jr. the odd man out, missing the playoffs by 201 points. Harvick slid past Casey Mears into fourth place, well ahead of Busch (14th) and Earnhardt (21st).

Joliet, Ill. -- Dario Franchitti passed Scott Dixon on the final lap when Dixon ran out of fuel Sunday, and captured the 2007 IndyCar Series title at Joliet, Ill.

Franchitti won the Peak Antifreeze Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway, making it to the finish line 1.84 seconds in front of Dixon -- who had the only other car on the lead lap.

It was the fourth victory of the season for Franchitti, who claimed his first series title.

There were six laps left when Danica Patrick spun on pit lane, bringing out the caution flag. The green flag was shown with two laps to go.
Dixon had the lead going into the final lap and Franchitti went outside Dixon heading into turn four. Dixon suddenly slowed and Franchitti narrowly avoided hitting him as he made the pass.

Daytona Beach, Fla. -- NASCAR suspended Jeremy Mayfield's crew chief, Joe Lax, until Sept. 19 for rules violations at the Sharp AQUOS 500 last Sunday at Fontana, Calif.

The infractions also led to probation until Dec. 31, a loss of 25 championship driver points for Mayfield and a loss of 25 championship car owner points for team co-owner Gail Davis.

In a statement, NASCAR cited several violations, including added car weight and "actions detrimental to stock-car racing."

Lax will miss races at Richmond, Va., and Loudon, N.H.

Also, David Stremme's crew chief, Steve Lane, was fined $2,500 because team scorer Joel Charpentier left the scoring area before the race ended.

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Copyright 2007 by United Press International.

Richmond, Va. -- Jimmie Johnson won the pole Friday night for Saturday night's running of the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway.

It will be the final race of the Nextel Cup regular season, after which the top 12 drivers in the yearlong points competition will begin the 10-race "chase for the championship."

Johnson turned in a lap of 21.378 seconds over the 0.750-mile oval. It was his first pole of the season.

Points leader Jeff Gordon had the second best time, 21.541 seconds, followed by Kyle Busch and Ryan Newman.

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Copyright 2007 by United Press International.

Richmond, Va. -- Kyle Busch led for all but 25 laps Friday night and won the Emerson Radio 250 NASCAR Busch race by less than a half second at Richmond, Va.

It was the second series win of the year for Busch and the ninth of his career.
Carl Edwards finished .461 of a second behind Busch. Denny Hamlin was third and Matt Kenseth fourth.

Edwards boosted his championship lead to 733 points over Kevin Harvick and David Reutimann.

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Copyright 2007 by United Press International.

Charlotte, N.C. -- Ricky Rudd, who started the 900th race of his career last week in California, will miss a start for the first time in his 31-year career because of injury.

Rudd will sit out the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at the Richmond (Va.) International Raceway. He injured his left shoulder during a crash last Sunday.

"The wreck tore a bunch of ligaments and tendons," Rudd said. "I'm out at Richmond."

Rudd was knocked unconscious and was injured during a crash in lap 181 of the Sharp Aquos 500 in California. He was treated and released at a local hospital and was being treated in Charlotte, N.C.

He said he hoped to be ready to drive in the Sept. 16 race in New Hampshire.
Kenny Wallace will replace Rudd on Saturday night in the final race of the Nextel Cup "regular" season.

Fontana, Calif. -- Jimmie Johnson's No.48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Sunday took the Sharp Aquos 500 at the California Speedway, almost two seconds ahead of Carl Edwards.

It was Johnson's fifth victory of the season and the 28th of his Nextel Cup career.

The final race before the "Chase for the Nextel Cup" is scheduled for Sept. 8 at the Richmond International Raceway.

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Copyright 2007 by United Press International.

Dear Mrs. Riches:

My pride and joy has become my nightmare. No, it's not my kid (I don't have any), nor is it my spouse (I'm still single). It's my car.

Bristol, Tenn. -- Carl Edwards overcame Kasey Kahne's dominance Saturday night to win the Nextel Cup's Sharpie 500 auto race at Bristol, Tenn.

Kahne led the race for 305 laps, but Edwards' Roush Fenway Ford crossed the finish line 1.406 seconds ahead of Kahne for his second win this season and the sixth of his Nextel Cup career.

In a key sequence, Edwards passed Ryan Newman with eight laps left, and there were several caution flags near the end.

Clint Bowyer, Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. completed the top-five.
In the "Chase for the Nextel Cup," Jeff Gordon remained the leader, 349 points ahead of second-place Tony Stewart.

Denny Hamlin (-353), Matt Kenseth (-419) and Edwards (-422) are third, fourth and fifth.

Brooklyn, Mich. -- Kurt Busch beat Martin Truex Jr. by about half a second Tuesday and won the rain-delayed 3M Performance 400 at the Michigan International Speedway.

It was Busch's second NASCAR victory of the season and 17th of his career. The win allowed Busch to claim a 163-point advantage over Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the final spot for the Chase for the Nextel Cup.

The race has been scheduled for Sunday, but rains washed out racing Sunday and Monday. Even Tuesday's start was affected by weather, with a start under a yellow flag because of fog.

Busch led for a race-high 92 laps. But Truex was usually right behind. With a restart with seven laps to go, Truex passed Jimmie Johnson and took aim on Busch. But another driver's spinout with two laps to go played to Busch's strength and a good final start allowed him to hold Truex off by 0.496 seconds for the victory.