Thursday, April 30, 1998 | 12:29 p.m.
NASCAR
WINSTON CUP
California 500
Site: Fontana, Calif.
Schedule: Friday, first-round qualifying, 4 p.m. (ESPN2, tape 5:30 p.m.); Saturday, second-round qualifying, 2 p.m., final practice, 7 p.m. (ESPN2, tape 11 p.m.); Sunday, race, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN).
Track: California Speedway (tri-oval, 2.0 miles, 14 degrees banking in corners).
Race distance: 500 miles, 250 laps.
Last year: Jeff Gordon won the inaugural race, beating Hendrick Motorsports teammate Terry Labonte by 1.074 seconds in a duel of Chevrolet Monte Carlos. Gordon drove the last 55 laps without stopping.
Last week: Bobby Labonte won the DieHard 500 at Talladega, Ala., passing brother Terry with two laps left and holding off Jimmy Spencer and Dale Jarrett. Bobby Labonte, also the winner at Atlanta, is the first Pontiac driver to win at Talladega since Richard Petty in 1983. Twenty cars were involved in a crash at the start of lap 142.
Fast facts: Rusty Wallace, 12th in the Diehard 500, leads Penske teammate Jeremy Mayfield by 36 points in the series standings. Roger Penske owns the California Speedway. ... Morgan Shepherd, who filled in for injured Mike Skinner in the Lowe's Chevrolet at Martinsville and Talladega, will drive the SABCO Chevrolet. Team owner Felix Sabates, who severed ties with Wally Dallenbach Jr., will use Trans-Am Series star Tommy Kendall in road-course races at Sears Point and Watkins Glen. ... ESPN will broadcast the NASCAR 50th Anniversary Awards Gala on Saturday night at 7 p.m. EDT. ... NASCAR will return to the California Speedway on July 18-19 for Busch and Craftsman Truck races. ... NASCAR's Wed site is www.nascar.com.
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BUSCH GRAND NATIONAL
Next race: New Hampshire 200, May 9, Loudon, N.H.
Last week: Joe Nemechek won the Touchstone Energy 300 at Talladega, Ala., avoiding four multicar crashes and holding off Phil Parsons by 0.171 seconds. BGN officials are reviewing possible sanctions against Nemechek after determining he used illegal shock absorbers on his Chevrolet.
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CRAFTSMAN TRUCKS
Next race: NAPACARD 200, May 9, Monroe, Wash.
Last week: Stacy Compton gave Ford its first short-track victory since late in the 1996 season, winning the Craftsman 200 at Portland, Ore. Compton, a first-time series winner, led the final 197 of 200 laps en route to a 1.063-second victory over Randy Tolsma.
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NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
Castrol Lone Star Nationals
Site: Ennis, Texas.
Schedule: Friday, first-round qualifying, 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, second-round qualifying, noon and 4 p.m.; Sunday, final eliminations, noon (ESPN2, 11:30 a.m. and 11 p.m.).
Track: Texas Motorplex.
Last year: Joe Amato won the Top Fuel division, beating Larry Dixon in the final with a run of 4.638 seconds at 316.01 mph. Randy Anderson took the Funny Car title, and Warren Johnson won the Pro Stock competition.
Last week: Cory McClenathan raced to his third Top Fuel victory of the year, beating Amato in the Pennzoil Nationals at Dinwiddie, Va., with a quarter-mile run of 4.723 seconds at 302.01 mph. Chuck Etchells took the Funny Car division, and Johnson won the Pro Stock title.
Fast facts: McClenathan leads the Top Fuel standings with 552 points, 157 more than Amato. Etchells has a 31-point lead over Cruz Pedregon and John Force in Funny Car, and Johnson leads Jim Yates by 210 points in Pro Stock. ... NHRA will return to Ennis on Oct. 22-25 for the Revell Nationals.
Next event: Mopar Parts Nationals, May 14-17, Englishtown, N.J.
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CHAMPIONSHIP AUTO RACING TEAMS
Next race: Rio 400, May 10, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Last race: Jimmy Vasser won the Bosch Grand Prix on Monday at Nazareth, Pa., beating Target Chip Ganassi teammate Alex Zanardi by 1.4 seconds. Greg Moore finished third to take a 51-50 lead over Zanardi in the points race.
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FORMULA ONE
Next race: Spanish Grand Prix, May 10, Barcelona, Spain.
Last week: Scotland's David Coulthard led from start to finish in the San Marino Grand Prix, giving McLaren its third victory in four races this year. Germany's Michael Schumacher was second in a Ferrari.
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INDY RACING LEAGUE
Next race: Indianapolis 500, May 24.
Last race: Scott Sharp won the Dura-Lube 200 in Phoenix on March 22, beating Tony Stewart by 2.366 seconds in a Dallara-Aurora. Sharp has two victories in nine IRL starts.
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