Clint Bowyer

Shelby American 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway When: Sunday, 3 p.m. TV/Radio: Fox/WNPV (1440-AM) Race course: 1.5-mile oval Race distance: 400 miles/267 laps Last year's race winner: Kyle Busch Last year's pole winner: Kyle Busch (185.996 mph, track record) Track facts: In winning last year's race, Las Vegas native Kyle Busch led 51 laps, including the last 17. Clint Bowyer was runner-up; Jeff Burton was third . . . Jimmie Johnson has the most wins (three)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick were fined $25,000 apiece and put on probation yesterday by NASCAR for their actions on pit road at Darlington Raceway. The probation for all NASCAR-sanctioned events runs through June 15, a span that includes four Sprint Cup Series championship races and the non-points $1 million All-Star event. Busch and Harvick's on-and-off feuding resumed Saturday night after contact Busch had with Harvick led to Harvick's wreck with Clint Bowyer.

MARTINSVILLE, Va. - Ryan Newman needed help and was running out of time. Finally, Clint Bowyer provided an opening with two laps to go at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday. Bowyer's aggressive move took out race leaders Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson entering the first turn, allowing Newman to slide into the lead, and he held off A.J. Allmendinger and Dale Earnhardt Jr. on another restart for his first win in 23 races. "We were not a dominate race car," Newman said. "Clint kind of cleared out Turn 1 for us and we were fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time.

Ryan Newman needed help and was running out of time. Finally, Clint Bowyer provided an opening with two laps to go at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. Bowyer's aggressive move took out race leaders Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson entering the first turn, allowing Newman to slide into the lead, and he held off A.J. Allmendinger (second) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (third) on another restart for his first win in 23 races. Gordon angrily sought out Bowyer after the race, and heard the whole story.

  MARTINSVILLE, Va. - Kasey Kahne won his second Sprint Cup pole of the season. He's hoping his first top 10 finish of the season will come with it. "It was a really solid lap. We didn't have the most speed [in practice], but we had good balance in the car," said Kahne, who posted a lap of 97.128 mph Saturday at Martinsville Speedway. "It's a tough track to qualify and a tough track to race. Hopefully, we can have a good day on Sunday. " Kevin Harvick, last year's winner of this race, qualified second.

Auto Club 400 Auto Club Speedway, Fontana, Calif. When: Sunday, 3 p.m. TV/Radio: Fox/WNPV (1440-AM) Race course: 2-mile oval Race distance: 200 laps/400 miles Race forecast: partly cloudy, low 60s Last year's winner: Kevin Harvick Last year's pole winner: Juan Pablo Montoya, 184.653 mph Track qualifying record: Kyle Busch, 188.245 mph (February 2005) Track facts: Kevin Harvick passed Jimmie Johnson on the final lap to win last year's race.

AFTER Steve Addington resigned as Kurt Busch's crew chief following the NASCAR Sprint Cup season finale last month, the question was, who would succeed Addington? Now, there's a bigger question: Who will replace Busch in the No. 22 Dodge? Busch and Penske Racing parted ways yesterday in what is described as a "mutual agreement. " Busch was fined $50,000 by NASCAR recently for uttering profanities while waiting to do an interview with an ESPN reporter at the season finale. Previously, Busch had temper outbursts toward his crew during races.

TALLADEGA, Ala. - Clint Bowyer pushed teammate Jeff Burton around and around Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday. With the checkered flag in sight, he bailed. Bowyer pulled around Burton as they closed in on the finish line, grabbing his first win of the season while giving Richard Childress Racing its 100th victory in the Sprint Cup Series. "I knew he was going to make a move," Burton said. "He was supposed to make a move. He ain't expected to push me to the win. " It was redemption for Bowyer, too. He lost the spring race here when Dale Earnhardt Jr. pushed Jimmie Johnson past the Bowyer-Burton tandem and Bowyer settled for second.

TALLADEGA, Ala. - Clint Bowyer pushed teammate Jeff Burton around and around Talladega Superspeedway yesterday. With the checkered flag in sight, he bailed. Bowyer pulled around Burton as they closed in on the finish line, grabbing his first win of the season while giving Richard Childress Racing its 100th victory in the Sprint Cup Series. "I knew he was going to make a move," Burton said. "He was supposed to make a move. He ain't expected to push me to the win. " It was redemption for Bowyer, too. He lost the spring race here when Dale Earnhardt Jr. pushed Jimmie Johnson past the Bowyer-Burton tandem and Bowyer settled for second.

SEVEN RACES remain in NASCAR's Chase for the Championship, with the top eight Chasers separated by only 15 points. Jeff Gordon, in ninth place, is only 19 points out of first. This race is tighter than the lids on grandma's canned peaches. Chase leader Kevin Harvick thinks success and failure quickly affect the new points plan. "I think the points system definitely has changed the complexion of having a bad day," he said after finishing 10th Sunday at Dover. "When you have a bad day, it hurts you worse than in the past.

LOUDON, N.H. - Tony Stewart made it 2 for 2 in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, pulling ahead when Clint Bowyer ran of gas with two laps left to win the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Sunday. Stewart is on a roll when it matters most, following last week's Chase opening victory with another strong performance at New Hampshire. Both of his victories this season have come in the Chase and have propelled him to the top of the points standings. The outcome was a complete reversal of last fall's race at New Hampshire.

J ACK NICKLAUS said Tiger Woods can still beat his record of 18 major championships - provided he can stay in control of his mental game. Nicklaus said Woods can achieve the feat "if he gets the 5 inches between his ears squared out. " "I mean Tiger has a great work ethic, he's a great competitor, the most talented kid on the planet right now," Nicklaus told the Associated Press yesterday. "He's not going to go away. " Woods' 2011 season has been partly derailed by injuries, but Nicklaus also praised the decision by U.S. captain Fred Couples to include Woods in the 12-member Presidents Cup team that will take on non-European players in Australia in November.