The Associated Press
All Times EDT
NASCAR
SPRINT CUP
HOLLYWOOD CASINO 400
Site: Kansas City, Kansas.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Fox Sports 1, 1-2:30 p.m.), qualifying (ESPN2, 5:30-7 p.m.); Saturday, practice (Fox Sports 1, 11 a.m.-noon; Fox Sports 2, 2-3 p.m.); Sunday, race, 2 p.m. (ESPN, 1-6 p.m.).
Track: Kansas Speedway (oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 400.5 miles, 267 laps.
Last year: Kevin Harvick raced to the third of his four 2013 victories, pulling away from Kurt Busch and Jeff Gordon on a late restart.
Last week: Gordon won at Dover for his fourth victory of the year and 92nd overall.
Fast facts: The race is the fourth in the 10-race Chase. The championship field was cut from 16 to 12 last weekend. It will be cut to eight after the sixth race and to four after the ninth. Championship-eligible drivers get a spot in the next round with a victory. Points are reset after each round and the title will be decided by finishing order in the Nov. 16 finale at Homestead. … Brad Keselowski won the Chase opener at Chicagoland for his series-leading fifth victory. Penske teammate Joey Logano won the following week at New Hampshire. … Keselowski, Logano and Gordon advanced to the second round along with Harvick, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin and Kasey Kahne. AJ Allmendinger, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle and Aric Almirola dropped out. … Gordon won the May race at the track.
Next race: Bank of America 500, Oct. 11, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
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NATIONWIDE
KANSAS LOTTERY 300
Site: Kansas City, Kansas.
Schedule: Friday, practice (Fox Sports 1, noon-1 p.m.; ESPN2, 4-5:30 p.m.); Saturday, qualifying (Fox Sports 2, noon-1:30 p.m.), race, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN, 3:30-6:30 p.m.).
Track: Kansas Speedway (oval, 1.5 miles).
Race distance: 250.5 miles, 167 laps.
Last year: Matt Kenseth raced to the second of his two 2013 victories.
Last week: Kyle Busch won at Dover for his fifth victory of the year and record 68th overall. He swept the season Dover races and has a record five Nationwide wins at the track.
Fast facts: Busch, Kenseth and Harvick top the Sprint Cup drivers in the field. Busch won the Truck race at the track in May. Harvick won at Chicagoland in his last Nationwide start. He has four victories this year and 44 overall. … Chase Elliott leads the standings, 26 points ahead of JR Motorsports teammate Regan Smith. Elliott has three victories this season.
Next race: 300 Miles of Courage, Oct. 10, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
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CAMPING WORLD TRUCK
Next race: Fred’s 250, Oct. 18, Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega, Alabama
Last week: Erik Jones won at Las Vegas for his second victory of the year, holding off Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate Darrell Wallace Jr.
Online: http://www.nascar.com
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FORMULA ONE
JAPANESE GRAND PRIX
Site: Suzuka, Japan.
Schedule: Friday, practice (NBC Sports Network, 1-2:30 a.m.), Saturday, practice, qualifying (NBC Sports Network, 1-2:30 a.m.); Sunday, race, 2 a.m. (NBC Sports Network, 1:30-5 a.m., 2:30-5:30 p.m.).
Track: Suzuka International (road course, 3.61 miles).
Race distance: 191.12 miles, 53 laps.
Last year: Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel raced to the ninth of 13 2013 victories en route to his fourth straight season title. He’s winless this year.
Last race: Lewis Hamilton won the Singapore Grand Prix on Sept. 21 for his seventh victory of the year. He took the series lead from Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg.
Fast facts: Hamilton has a three-point lead over Rosberg with five races left. Rosberg has four victories this year. … The figure-eight track was built by Honda in 1962 as a test facility. … The U.S. Grand Prix is Nov. 2 in Austin, Texas.
Next race: Russian Grand Prix, Oct. 12, Sochi Autodrom, Sochi, Russia.
Online: http://www.formula1.com
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NHRA MELLO YELLO DRAG RACING
NHRA NATIONALS
Site: Mohnton, Pennsylvania.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying; Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, Sunday, 3:30-5 a.m.), Sunday, final eliminations (ESPN2, 8-11 p.m.).
Track: Maple Grove Raceway.
Last year: John Force raced to the third of his four 2013 victories en route to his record 16th Funny Car season title. Shawn Langdon won in Top Fuel, Jeg Coughlin in Pro Stock in Pro Stock and Matt Smith in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Last week: Courtney Force won the Midwest Nationals in Madison, Illinois, for her second straight victory and fourth of the year. Antron Brown won in Top Fuel, Dave Connolly in Pro Stock and Jerry Savoie in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Fast facts: The event is the fourth in the six-race Countdown to the Championship. The top 10 in each class qualified for the playoffs. Tony Schumacher leads in Top Fuel, 65-year-old John Force in Funny Car, Jason Line in Pro Stock and Andrew Hines in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Next event: NHRA Toyota Nationals, Oct. 30-Nov. 2, The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas.
Online: http://www.nhra.com
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OTHER RACES
ARCA RACING SERIES: ARCA 98.9, Friday (Fox Sports 2, 8:30-10:30 p.m.), Kansas Speedway, Kansas City, Kansas. Online: http://www.arcaracing.com
TUDOR UNITED SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP: Petit Le Mans, Saturday (Fox Sports 2, 3-9:30 p.m.), Road Atlanta, Braselton, Georgia. Online: http://www.imsa.com
WORLD OF OUTLAWS: Sprint Car: National Open, Friday-Saturday, Williams Grove Speedway, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. Online: http://www.worldofoutlaws.com
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