Jimmie Johnson wins one for Hendrick Motorsports

Jimmie Johnson's third straight victory may have been the most special of his career.

The Hendrick Motorsports driver won Sunday's NASCAR Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, just one week after nine members of the team were killed in a plane crash.

The emotional victory brought tears from crew chief Chad Knaus, who buried his face in his hands as he wept openly.

"This has been the hardest week of my life," Knaus said. "Dealing with the loss that we had and doing what Mr. Hendrick loves the most, which is racing. It was hard, but we were able to do that. It's absolutely amazing. It's just awesome. For Randy Dorton, it just wasn't his engine under the hood today."

Johnson's Chevrolet Monte Carlo defeated Mark Martin's Ford Taurus by 0.293 seconds. Rookie Carl Edwards was third in a Ford, followed by Joe Nemechek's Chevrolet and rookie Kasey Kahne's Dodge Intrepid.

Crew members for all four Hendrick Motorsports teams went to victory lane for a solemn celebration in memory of John Hendrick, his twin daughters Kimberly and Jennifer, team owner Rick Hendrick's son Ricky, engine builder Randy Dorton, team general manager Jeff Turner, sponsor vice president Joe Jackson and pilots Richard Tracy and Elizabeth Morrison all killed in last week's plane crash in southern Virginia.

Johnson became the first driver to win three straight races since current teammate Jeff Gordon won four in a row in 1998.

A smiling but subdued Johnson sat in his car in victory lane, relishing the victory and what it meant to the memories of those who were killed. He was handed a cell phonem and spoke with team owner Rick Hendrick, who was in Charlotte, North Carolina.

"There is no medicine like that," Johnson said. "It doesn't change anything and it sure doesn't give our friends back that we lost. For everyone at Hendrick Motorsports, we were able to do it. Rick Hendrick called and told me to turn my hat around backwards in honor of Ricky. I just don't know what to say."

Johnson won with daring restarts late in the race that paid off.

"I took some chances on those restarts but I had 10 angels riding on this race car," Johnson said. "Things happen for a reason, and there is a bigger plan for them today. It was preparation. What Rick Hendrick has done for this race team, it paid off."

Teammates Gordon and Brian Vickers also put their hats on backward to help Johnson celebrate the win. They hugged the winner, sharing a private moment, before veteran Terry Labonte joined his teammates.

"This is a family celebration," Labonte said. "I'm so proud of Jimmie and this team to come back after such a tough week that we had, for everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, this is awesome."

"We all wanted a victory here and we were all four trying for it, but there are a lot of smiles here today," Gordon said. "It's just amazing."

The race took its toll on many drivers involved in the "Chase for the Championship," most notably Kurt Busch, who came in with a 96-point lead over Gordon. Busch's engine blew up on lap 52 and he finished 42nd. Gordon suffered transmission failure and finished 34th.

It looked like Dale Earnhardt Jr. would be the big winner, but he crashed with 15 laps to go and finished 33rd.

Johnson climbed from fourth to second in the standings, 59 points behind Busch and 13 in front of Gordon. Martin is 81 points off the pace and Earnhardt 98 points behind.

"We were just trying to race for the win there," Earnhardt said. "I came up on Carl Edwards and I spun myself out and tore my car up. It wasn't Carl's fault; it was mine. We wanted a win today and that's what I was trying to do."

Newman Wins 3rd Straight Pole

"Rocketman" again will start in front of everyone else.

Ryan Newman captured his third straight pole Friday, winning the top spot for Sunday's Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Driving a Dodge Intrepid, Newman circled the 1.54-mile oval at an average speed of 191.575 miles per hour en route to his series-leading eighth pole of the season. He also has won four straight poles in Atlanta, but still is looking for his first Nextel Cup win at the track.

Spencer arrested, then dropped by team

The AP reports that Jimmy Spencer was fired by Morgan McClure Motorsports on Wednesday, just days after he was arrested and accused of interfering with police officers as they attempted to serve a warrant on his son.

Spencer, 47, has driven 25 races for the team this season without posting a top-10 finish. He ran 29th in Sunday's race at Martinsville Speedway. The team didn't indicate whether the firing was because of Spencer's arrest.

"Over the past several weeks there has been a steady and gradual improvement in the Morgan McClure race car and Spencer has been an integral part of this drive for success," team owner Larry McClure said Wednesday in a statement. "While his part has been greatly appreciated by everyone here at Morgan McClure Motorsports, it has been decided, by mutual agreement, that it would be beneficial to both the team and to Jimmy Spencer to release him so that he may pursue other driving opportunities within the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series."

On Sunday night, officers went to Spencer's home to arrest James Jonathan Spencer Jr., 18, on a misdemeanor charge of injury to personal property, police records show. He is accused of pouring paint on two cars at a Cornelius home Oct. 6.

The elder Spencer was charged with two misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct and resisting a public officer.

Racing Community Grieves for Hendrick

The AP reports: Rick Hendrick has spent 20 years as a NASCAR team owner and is one of the big players in the sport. Yet for all his success, he has never lost the wide smile and easy manner that make him welcome wherever he goes.

"Rick is one of those guys who is everybody's friend," said Terry Labonte, who has driven for Hendrick since 1994. "He can't walk 20 feet in the garage without someone wanting to shake his hand or have a conversation."

Now, Hendrick is grieving like never before. A plane crash killed all 10 people aboard, including four family members.

The plane, owned by Hendrick Motorsports, crashed Sunday in fog en route to a NASCAR race in Martinsville, Va. The dead included Hendrick's son, Ricky; brother John; and John's twin daughters, Jennifer and Kimberly.

Also killed were Joe Jackson, an executive with DuPont; Jeff Turner, general manager of Hendrick Motorsports; Randy Dorton, the team's chief engine builder; Scott Lathram, a pilot for NASCAR driver Tony Stewart; and pilots Richard Tracy and Elizabeth Morrison.

Hendrick Motorsports Plane Crash Kills 10

Reuters reports a plane owned by NASCAR's Hendrick Motorsports organization crashed on Sunday near a small airport in Virginia, killing all 10 people aboard, police said.

Neither Hendrick Motorsports owner, Rick Hendrick, nor his teams' drivers were on the plane, but his son, Ricky, 24, brother, John, and two nieces were among those killed in the crash, a Virginia State Police spokesman said.

The Beech 200, on a flight from Concord, North Carolina, crashed in a mountainous area seven miles west of Martinsville airport in southern Virginia shortly after noon, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Marcia Adams said.

The FAA spokeswoman said the aircraft, en route to a NASCAR stock car race at Martinsville Speedway, carried 10 people, including the pilot and co-pilot.

The pilot had been given instructions to land at Martinsville but asked to do a "missed approach" or abort the landing.

"He received directions for the missed approach from a controller. After those directions were given he never regained contact with the pilot," said Adams. "They crashed into a mountainous, wooded area."

Virginia State Trooper J.D. Byrd said there was heavy fog in the area when the crash happened. There was no immediate information on what caused the plane to go down.

Hendrick Motorsports, based in Charlotte, North Carolina and one of stock car racing's leading organizations, includes top drivers Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson in its stable.

Johnson won the Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday but the traditional victory lane celebration was canceled after the team learned of the plane crash.

Several hundred NASCAR fans posted messages of condolence on the sport's official Web site, offering prayers to the Hendrick family.

Newman wins seventh Bud Pole of season

Ryan Newman isn't giving in to the notion that the first five races of NASCAR's 10-race championship playoff have essentially turned the last five into a three-way race for the title.

Newman led the way on the newly resurfaced Martinsville Speedway on Friday as 17 drivers broke the track qualifying record, turning a lap at 97.043 mph to win his Nextel Cup Series-high seventh pole of the season.

Tony Stewart's mark of 95.371 mph had stood since 2000.

Rain "sets field" for Kroger 200

The field for Saturday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway was set by owner points after a misty drizzle canceled qualifying Friday.

Points leader Bobby Hamilton Sr., who owns his own truck team and one other, will start on the pole in a Dodge. Hamilton will be flanked by the Chevrolet of Dennis Setzer, who trails by 79 points with four races to go.

Hamilton, who usually doesn't devote a lot of attention to winning pole positions, said starting up front does offer one advantage.

"It might let me lead a lap," he cracked.

If he does, Hamilton will earn five bonus points toward the championship. At this stage, he can use any help he can get. His lead is so small it could evaporate if he finished 21st or worse and Setzer won.

Earnhardt Jr. Penalty Stands

The National Stock Car Racing Commission, an ad-hoc appeals panel called by NASCAR to review penalty cases, has upheld NASCAR's rulings following Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s use of a prohibited word on live television after his victory at Talladega two weeks ago.

NASCAR's penalties will stand as pronounced. Earnhardt was fined $10,000 for uttering the word off-hand in a quick mike-spot after the race with interviewer Matt Yocum. More important, NASCAR deducted 25 points from his season total, a correction which has become far more effective than money fines in recent years.

NASCAR also deducted 25 owner points from the team.

Jimmy Johnson Wins UAW-GM Quality 500

Jimmie Johnson thought he needed a victory to jump back into contention for the Nextel Cup championship. He got it, and it still wasn't enough.

Johnson won the UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway on Saturday night - leading teammate Jeff Gordon across the finish line for a 1-2 finish for Hendrick Motorsports - but gained almost no ground in the Chase for the Championship.

On a night in which almost all 10 of the championship contenders had some sort of trouble, Kurt Busch and Gordon rebounded the best.

The two bounced back from a wreck in the first turn of the first lap to salvage stellar finishes and retain their hold on the top of the point standings.

Busch finished fourth and now holds a 24-point lead over Dale Earnhardt Jr., who finished third. Gordon, who also had a second minor accident midway through the race, is 74 points back.

Bodine Takes NASCAR Truck Race

Todd Bodine won his second consecutive NASCAR truck race yesterday at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, leading the final 38 laps after a lengthy red flag.

Bodine, 40, a former Nextel Cup driver, finished a full second ahead of Johnny Benson, another former Cup driver also in a Toyota. Bodine's average speed was 115.179 mph and he became the first driver this season to win consecutive races.

"The truck was perfect, absolutely perfect," Bodine said. "That last run, I was barely lifting out of the throttle. When you can do that, it's awesome."

Bodine regained the lead on the 109th lap, the first green-flag lap after the race had been stopped for 28 minutes because of a crash involving five trucks.

After the delay Bodine passed pole-sitter Mike Skinner and his Toyota after the green flag waved.

Points leader Bobby Hamilton finished third in his Dodge, ahead of the Chevrolets of David Starr and Jack Sprague. Ted Musgrave was sixth in his Dodge.

Last call for NASCAR's hard-liquor ban?

Jim Utter in the Miami Herald reports that NASCAR is set to rescind its ban on hard-liquor sponsorships beginning next season.

The move should bring an influx of new sponsorship money into the sport. Several Nextel Cup teams – Roush Racing and Richard Childress Racing among them - are primed to sign sponsorship deals with hard-liquor companies, including Diageo and Jack Daniels, sources said.

On Friday, NASCAR officials insisted they had not made a final decision.

"We are currently evaluating the policy we have in place regarding liquor sponsors but no official decision has been made at this time in regard to any changes," NASCAR spokesman Mike Zizzo said.

NASCAR has allowed beer companies to sponsor cars and its Busch series has been sponsored by Anheuser-Busch since 1982.

In recent years also has allowed hard liquor companies to advertise their malt beverage products. For instance, Smirnoff vodka is not allowed, but Smirnoff Ice is allowed as an associate sponsor on Matt Kenseth's No. 17 Ford.

Several other racing series already allow hard liquor advertising. Crown Royal began sponsoring the International Race of Champions series this season.

NASCAR will likely provide several guidelines overseeing the marketing of the hard liquor sponsorships, but is not expected to alter its 18-year-old minimum age requirement for its three national series - Craftsman Trucks, Busch and Cup, sources said.

NASCAR Approves New Ford Cylinder Heads

Jim Utter of The Charlotte Observer reports that NASCAR has approved Ford Motor Co.'s new cylinder head for competition in the Busch Series beginning in the 2005 season, officials confirmed Thursday.

The cylinder head was approved for use in Nextel Cup competition this season, but it took several months before Ford teams worked get the cylinder head performing up to speed.

Ben Leslie, interim field manager for Ford Racing, said he doesn't expect such problems in the Busch Series next season.

"From the Cup end of it we started from nothing. We had to do all the research and development for power and but also durability tests," Leslie said.

"We already have the lion's share of that done. Granted, the Busch cars are a little bit different. But as far as durability, we're a long ways down that road. Power-wise, we might have to tailor that because of the different carburetor, but we're not starting from scratch."

Robert Yates Racing and Roush Racing combined forces this year to build Ford engines in Cup competition. Leslie said it was too early to tell if such an arrangement would take place in Busch as well.

Newman Wins Pole with Track Record

Newman knows a victory Saturday night would go a long way toward closing the gap and getting him back in the race for the title. Newman will start first in the UAW-GM Quality 500 after shattering the track record with a lap at 188.877 mph.

Newman's lap beat the track record of 187.052 that Jimmie Johnson set here in May - a lap that erased the record Newman had held.

"I told my wife I wanted it back," he said.

The Parade Continues - Martin is Leaving a Winner

NASCAR great Mark Martin will stop racing full-time on the circuit after next season. Martin is currently fifth in the "Chase for the Nextel Cup," 150 points off the pace.

"I think the biggest thing in my career right now is that I don't want to go out on the decline," said Martin, who has won nearly $45 million driving stock cars.

Martin made his announcement Thursday, preparing for this weekend's UAW-GM 500.

"I told Jack that the best times that we had, we didn't know we were having them at the time," Martin said. "Those 17 years that we have been together have been the most incredible years of my life."

Martin has been synonymous with NASCAR since joining up with Roush Racing in 1988. He has 41 career poles and 34 wins, although the sport's biggest prizes have escaped him. Martin never has won the Daytona 500 and also has finished second in the championship standings a staggering four times - in 1990, 1994, 1998 and 2002.

Over the last few years, Martin has watched Roush Racing move its emphasis away from him. Ironically, teammate Matt Kenseth won the series title last year and teammate Kurt Busch leads the standings this year.

"There hasn't been a bigger influence on my career in the Cup series than Mark Martin," Kenseth said. "He's the one that talked to Jack Roush about me and kind of took me under his wing and made sure I had a home here at Roush Racing. I owe my success to Mark."

Martin intends to run a full schedule in 2005 and transition to a much shorter slate in 2006 - perhaps on the Craftsman Truck series.

"In 2006, I'll still be in the driver's seat," he said. "I just don't know exactly what seat that will be just yet."

Gibbs adds third Cup entry for 2005

Joe Gibbs Racing's third cup entry next year in the NASCAR Nextel Cup series will piloted with Jason Leffler behind the wheel.

Team president J.D. Gibbs said Wednesday that FedEx would sponsor Leffler's Chevrolet. Leffler will be a teammate to former series champions Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte.

The deal with FedEx came together through team owner Joe Gibbs, who returned to the NFL this season as coach of the Washington Redskins and whose team plays at FedEx Field in Landover, Md.

The 29-year-old Leffler has competed in all three of NASCAR's top divisions as well as the 2000 Indianapolis 500.

Leffler's first Busch Series victory was in June at Nashville Superspeedway and has made 33 Cup starts, including 30 for Chip Ganassi Racing in 2001.

Dave Rogers, race engineer for Stewart, will be Leffler's crew chief on the No. 11 car.

Labonte Exits on His Terms

Terry Labonte officially announced today that he is retiring at the end of 2006.

"The Iceman" is moving to a limited schedule in 2005 and 2006 - running in only 10 races a year. Labonte will drive the No. 44 Chevrolet for car owner Rick Hendrick beginning next season.

"44" is a special number to Labonte - the No. 44 was the car Labonte drove when he won his first NASCAR title in 1984. His younger brother, Bobby, used that number when he won the Busch series title and his son, Justin, was in the No. 44 when he won his first Busch race this season.

The highlight for the Labonte family came in 1996 when Terry won the title in the season finale at Atlanta - the same day Bobby won the race. Terry and Brother Bobby became the only brothers to win a series title when Bobby won the 2000 championship.

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