This week in motor sports

Friday, May 16, 2003 | 9:22 a.m.

All Times PDT NASCAR WINSTON CUP The Winston

Site: Harrisburg, N.C.

Schedule: today, qualifying (Speed Channel, 4 p.m.); Saturday, race (FX, 6 p.m.).

Track: Lowe's Motor Speedway (quad-oval, 1.5 miles, 24 degrees banking in turns).

Race distance: 135 miles, 90 laps.

Last race: Joe Nemechek overcame a pit-road blunder that cost him 24 spots by gambling on tires and getting help from late-race cautions and rain to win the Pontiac Excitement 400 at Richmond, Va. Nemechek missed the turn for pit road and was shuffled from first to 25th place but rebounded and was in the lead when rain ended the race with 6 1/2 laps to go.

Last year: Ryan Newman recorded his first career victory at The Winston despite qualifying in the 27th and final transfer spot. Newman became the second rookie driver, and first since Dale Earnhardt Jr. two years earlier, to win NASCAR's all-star event.

Fast facts: Those eligible for the race are winners from last year, this year, past Winston Cup champions, any driver who has won The Winston in the last five years, and the Winston Open winner. The Winston Open is Saturday at 7:30 p.m., just before The Winston. ... The Winston will consist of three segments totaling 40, 30 and 20 laps. The top-20 finishers of the first segment advances to the second, with the top-14 in that stage advancing to the finals.

Next race: Coca-Cola 600, May 25, Harrisburg, N.C.

Driver standings: 1. Matt Kenseth, 1,619. 2. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 1,599. 3. Kurt Busch, 1,452. 4. Jeff Gordon, 1,441. 5. Bobby Labonte, 1,376. 6. Jimmie Johnson, 1,372. 7. Michael Waltrip, 1,361. 8. Kevin Harvick, 1,328. 9. Rusty Wallace, 1,274. 10. Sterling Marlin, 1,259.

On the net: www.nascar.com -- BUSCH SERIES Goulds Pumps ITT Industries 200

Site: Nazareth, Pa.

Schedule: Saturday, qualifying, 3:35 p.m.; Sunday, race (FX, 10 a.m.).

Track: Nazareth Speedway (tri-oval .946 miles, 1 degree banking in turn 1, 4 degrees in turn 2, 6 degrees in turns 3-4).

Race distance: 189.20 miles, 200 laps.

Last race: Scott Riggs raced to his third victory of the season, taking the Charter Pipeline 250 in Madison, Ill., when Mike Bliss ran out of fuel on the final lap. David Green finished second, 0.543 seconds behind Riggs, to take a five-point lead over Todd Bodine in the season standings.

Last year: Jason Keller recorded his third win in five races by taking the Stacker2 200 at Nazareth Speedway. The final 30 laps were run under caution after a two-car accident involving Jeff Purvis and defending race winner Greg Biffle.

Fast facts: Tim Fedewa won the race in 1995 and 1998, becoming the only driver to win more than once. ... Matt Kenseth outlasted a five-hour rain delay to win the 1999 race. ... Ron Hornaday Jr. raced to his first Busch series victory in the 2000 event, beating Elton Sawyer by 1.992 seconds.

Next race: Carquest Auto Parts 300, May 24, Harrisburg, N.C.

Driver standings: 1. David Green, 1,486. 2. Todd Bodine, 1,481. 3. Shane Hmiel, 1,436. 4. Scott Riggs, 1,413. 5. Jason Keller, 1,387. 6. Ron Hornaday Jr., 1,378. 7. Johnny Sauter, 1,352. 8. Mike Bliss, 1,346. 9. Brian Vickers, 1,296. 10. Bobby Hamilton Jr., 1,256.

On the net: www.nascar.com -- CRAFTSMAN TRUCKS Hardee's 200

Site: Harrisburg, N.C.

Schedule: Thursday, qualifying, 5:45 p.m.; Friday, race (Speed Channel, 8:30 p.m.).

Track: Lowe's Motor Speedway (quad-oval, 1.5 miles, 24 degrees banking in turns).

Race distance: 201 miles, 134 laps.

Last race: Dennis Setzer passed Chad Chaffin with 51 laps to go and held on through a series of late restarts to win the Advance Auto Parts 250 at Martinsville, Va., on April 12. Setzer, the defending champion, earned his second straight win overall and became the first driver to win twice on tight, narrow Martinsville Speedway, where the close quarters produced 11 caution flags.

Last year: Inaugural race.

Fast facts: This is just the third time, and first since 1996, that the series has competed in North Carolina. Lowe's is the 41st different venue to host a NASCAR truck race.

Next race: MBNA America 200, May 30, Dover, Del.

Driver standings: 1. Bobby Hamilton, 670. 2. Rick Crawford, 631. 3. Brendan Gaughan, 594. 4. Ted Musgrave, 591. 5. Dennis Setzer, 590. 6. Travis Kvapil, 569. 7. Terry Cook, 557. 8. Robert Pressley, 551. 9. Jon Wood, 520. 10. Jason Leffler, 514.

On the net: www.nascar.com FORMULA ONE Austrian Grand Prix

Site: Spielberg

Schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 5 a.m.); Sunday, race (Speed Channel, 4:30 a.m.).

Track: A1-Ring (road course, 2.688 miles).

Race distance: 191.386 miles, 71 laps.

Last race: Michael Schumacher won the Spanish Grand Prix on May 5 for his second straight victory, moving within four points of leader Kimi Raikkonen, who crashed just after the start. Schumacher, driving his new Ferrari F2003-GA, won his third straight and fifth overall Spanish Grand Prix title.

Last year: Schumacher won his first Austrian Grand Prix after teammate Rubens Barrichello moved aside on the very last straight to hand him the victory. Barrichello had been in charge after starting from the pole position but then relinquished the lead because of team orders in the final lap.

Fast facts: This is the seventh race at the A1-Ring. ... Mika Hakkinen won this race three straight years before Michael Schumacher's victory last season. ... Fernando Alonso and Ralf Schumacher are the only two drivers to score points in the first five races of the season. ... Toyota and Jaguar both picked up their first points of the season at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Next race: Monaco Grand Prix, June 1, Monte Carlo.

Driver standings: 1. Kimi Raikkonen, 32. 2. Michael Schumacher, 28. 3. Fernando Alonso, 25. 4. Rubens Barrichello, 20. 5. David Coulthard, 19. 6. Ralf Schumacher, 17. 7. Juan Pablo Montoya, 15. 8. Giancarlo Fisichella, 10. 9. Jarno Trulli, 9. 10. Heinz-Harald Frentzen, 7.

On the net: www.formula1.com -- NHRA K&N Filters Supernationals

Site: Englishtown, N.J.

Schedule: today, qualifying, 12:30 p.m.; Saturday, qualifying, 9:45 a.m. (ESPN2, 3 p.m., tape); Sunday, eliminations, 8 a.m. (ESPN2, 1:30 p.m., tape).

Track: Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.

Last event: Larry Dixon reclaimed the Top Fuel points lead with his win at the Southern Nationals at Atlanta on May 4. Tony Pedregon collected his fourth win of the season and 23rd of his career in Funny Car while Warren Johnson earned his 90th career Pro Stock victory.

Last year: Kenny Bernstein took advantage of Larry Dixon's bucking car to win the Top Fuel finals at Raceway Park. Gary Densham won the Funny Car category and Greg Anderson became the eighth different Pro Stock winner of 2002.

Fast facts: John Force advanced to the semifinals for the first time this season at the Southern Nationals, but lost to Johnny Gray. ... Geno Scali moved into the Pro Stock Bike points lead at Atlanta Dragway when final-round opponent Antron Brown fouled by leaving the starting line early. It was Scali's first victory of the season and second of his career. ... Englishtown has held the event since 1971.

Next event: O'Reilly Summer Nationals, May 25, Topeka, Kan.

Driver standings: Top Fuel -- 1. Larry Dixon, 630. 2. Brandon Bernstein, 595. 3. Doug Kalitta, 458. 4. Doug Herbert, 394. 5. Cory McClenathan, 387. Funny Car -- 1. Tony Pedregon, 659. 2. Whit Bazemore, 551. 3. Del Worsham, 494. 4. Gary Densham, 491. 5. Johnny Gray, 414. Pro Stock -- 1. Kurt Johnson, 607. 2. Greg Anderson, 554. 3. Warren Johnson, 552. 4. Jeg Coughlin, 390. 5. Bruce Allen, 363. Pro Stock Bike -- 1. Geno Scali, 272. 2. Angelle Savoie, 268. 3. Antron Brown, 224. 4. Shawn Gann, 186. 5. Craig Treble, 163.

On the net: www.nhra.com -- CHAMPIONSHIP AUTO RACING TEAMS

Last race: France's Sebastien Bourdais won for the second straight week by outlasting Mario Dominguez on the final lap to capture the German 500. Bourdais picked up his first CART victory at Brands Hatch, England, the previous week.

Next race: Milwaukee Mile 250, May 31, West Allis, Wis.

Driver standings: 1. Paul Tracy, 66. 1. Bruno Junqueira, 66. 3. Michel Jourdain, 56. 4. Sebastien Bourdais, 49. 5. Mario Dominguez, 40. 6. Patrick Carpentier, 34. 7. Adrian Fernandez, 29. 8. Roberto Moreno, 27. 9. Jimmy Vasser, 25. 10. Oriol Servia, 24. 11. Alex Tagliani, 22.

On the net: www.cart.com -- INDY RACING LEAGUE

Last race: American Scott Sharp won the crash-filled Indy Japan 300 on April 13 and moved into a tie for the lead in career victories in the series. Sharp finished under the yellow flag at Twin Ring Motegi for his eighth career IRL victory.

Next race: Indianapolis 500, May 25.

Driver standings: 1. Scott Sharp, 106. 2. Tony Kanaan, 102. 3. Felipe Giaffone, 92. 4. Kenny Brack, 89. 5. Helio Castroneves, 83. 6. Al Unser Jr., 79. 7. Michael Andretti, 77. 8. Scott Dixon, 75. 9. Gil de Ferran, 58. 10. Sam Hornish Jr., 57.

On the net: www.indyracingleague.com