Sadler wins Xfinity Series race at Talladega after OT wreck (The Associated Press)

Elliott Sadler celebrated his 41st birthday Saturday with his first victory in almost two years. Mired in a drought that dated to May 4, 2014, Sadler didn't mind waiting through a five-minute post-race review by NASCAR to be named the Xfinity Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. NASCAR had to determine who was the actual leader when a caution froze the field in overtime.

Chase Elliott wins pole at Talladega 30 years after his dad (The Associated Press)

TALLADEGA, Ala. (AP) -- Chase Elliott has won his second career Sprint Cup Series pole by taking the top spot in qualifying at Talladega Superspeedway.

Lug nuts and $35,000 fine still the talk around Tony Stewart (The Associated Press)

TALLADEGA, Ala. (AP) -- It's been an action-packed week for Tony Stewart following his return to a race car after a back injury sidelined him the first eight races of the season.

Edwards will have post-Richmond talk with Kyle Busch soon (The Associated Press)

TALLADEGA, Ala. (AP) -- A test session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway has delayed the inevitable conversation between teammates Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch.

Earnhardt gets favorite car "Amelia" back for Talladega (The Associated Press)

The beloved car ''Amelia'' will be back at Talladega Superspeedway after Hendrick Motorsports rebuilt the Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to drive on Sunday. Earnhardt drove the car he named Amelia Earhart to four wins in six starts over a 13-month period. Earnhardt wrecked Amelia in February and thought the car that had never finished lower than third was gone forever.

Stewart supports NASCAR decision to tighten up lug-nut rule (The Associated Press)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Carl Edwards and Chase Elliott say that if tightening up the lug-nut rule makes racing safer, they are all for it.

NASCAR suspends crew chief for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 1 race (The Associated Press)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- The crew chief for Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has been suspended for Sunday's race at Talladega Superspeedway for a technical violation found last weekend.

NASCAR adds penalties for teams that ignore lug nuts (The Associated Press)

NASCAR has added mandatory fines and other penalties for teams caught without five lug nuts on each wheel. The move announced Monday comes less than a week after three-time series champion Tony Stewart urged NASCAR to take action. NASCAR can only check for every lug nut before and after a race, but may call a car back to pit road during a race.

Column: Not even bump-and-run generates good vibes in NASCAR (The Associated Press)

It's what Carl Edwards did to teammate Kyle Busch at Richmond International Raceway in what NASCAR says was the first last-lap pass for a win in track history. It was dramatic, controversial and likely set the stage for tense team meetings this week at Joe Gibbs Racing. Was it enough, though, to build any positive goodwill for NASCAR?

Daytona's Chitwood promoted to ISC's chief operating officer (The Associated Press)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- After overseeing a widely acclaimed $400 million upgrade of Daytona International Speedway, track President Joie Chitwood III is getting promoted.

Edwards passes Kyle Busch on last lap to win at Richmond (The Associated Press)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Carl Edwards bumped teammate Kyle Busch off his racing line in the last turn and passed him to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway on Sunday.

Stewart says he won't hold tongue on safety concerns (The Associated Press)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- NASCAR driver and car owner Tony Stewart says he's not going to keep quiet when he has safety concerns.

Earnhardt wins NASCAR Xfinity race at Richmond (The Associated Press)

Dale Earnhardt Jr. dominated all day and regained the lead on a late restart to win the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday, earning his 24th career victory in the series and first in more than six years. Earnhardt was beaten off pit road by his J.R. Motorsports teammate Justin Allgaier, one of four drivers contending for a $100,000 bonus.

Hamlin, drivers excited for daytime racing at Richmond (The Associated Press)

Denny Hamlin has gotten accustomed to having Sunday's off when NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series comes to Richmond International Raceway, where the premier series has traditionally raced under the lights on Saturday night. Hamlin and others thinks they might be in for a treat. ''I like having Sundays off every now and then, but I think it's definitely going to put on a great show for sure,'' said Hamlin, who grew up about 25 minutes from the track.

Stewart's stormy return garners support of fellow drivers (The Associated Press)

Three-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart returned to the track on Friday for the first time this season, and several drivers said they support his right to raise questions about safety concerns. NASCAR fined Stewart $35,000 on Thursday for comments he made criticizing the series for not policing how many lug nuts teams are applying during tire changes. The nine-member driver council announced Thursday night that it would pay the fine for Stewart, saying it disagreed with the punishment, and council member Denny Hamlin said at Richmond International Raceway that the show of solidarity was important.

Harvick wins pole on rainy day at Richmond (The Associated Press)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- Rain washed out qualifying at Richmond International Raceway on Friday, giving Kevin Harvick the pole position Sunday for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race based on being the fastest in an abbreviated morning practice session.

Driver Council agrees to pay Tony Stewart $35000 fine (The Associated Press)

Tony Stewart's peers will pay the $35,000 fine NASCAR levied against the three-time champion for criticizing the series about a potential safety hazard during races. The nine-member driver council said in a statement released by Denny Hamlin it agreed to equally pay the fine. Stewart is a member of the council, which was formed last year and its members are elected by all the drivers in the Sprint Cup Series.

NASCAR fines Tony Stewart $35000 for criticizing officials (The Associated Press)

NASCAR fined Tony Stewart $35,000 on Thursday after he criticized the series about a potential safety hazard during races. The fine falls under NASCAR's new behavioral policy and came one day after the three-time champion warned that a driver is going to get hurt if the series doesn't start policing pit stops for missing lug nuts. ''I'm beyond mad, I'm P.O.'d at NASCAR about it,'' he said Wednesday.

NASCAR fines Tony Stewart $35000 for criticizing officials (The Associated Press)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- NASCAR has fined Tony Stewart $35,000 for criticizing the series about a potential safety hazard during races.

Tony Stewart cleared to race will be in car at Richmond (The Associated Press)

Tony Stewart has been cleared to return to racing and will be back in his car Friday at Richmond International Raceway. The three-time NASCAR champion missed the first eight races of the season with a fractured vertebra suffered in a January all-terrain vehicle accident. The injury occurred one week before Stewart was scheduled to start his final season in NASCAR.

NASCAR suspends Xfinity Series crew chief for Ty Dillon (The Associated Press)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- NASCAR has suspended the Xfinity Series crew chief for Ty Dillon for a penalty at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Carl Edwards wins Sprint Cup Series race at Bristol Speedway (The Associated Press)

BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) -- Carl Edwards avoided tire issues that hampered his teammates and took off on the final restart to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Wreck knocks Cup series champ Kyle Busch out at Bristol (The Associated Press)

BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) -- NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Kyle Busch has wrecked at Bristol Motor Speedway and failed to finish for the first time since June at Michigan.

Super Bowl champ Manning attends NASCAR race at Bristol (The Associated Press)

For one day, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was the second most popular guy at a NASCAR race. Manning was a guest of the NASCAR driver for Sunday's Sprint Cup Series race. The five-time NFL MVP got big cheers when he was introduced at the prerace drivers meeting and was understandably in demand while making his way around the Bristol Motor Speedway infield.

Jones rallies on late restart to win Xfinity race at Bristol (The Associated Press)

Erik Jones blew past Kyle Larson soon after the final restart and held off Kyle Busch in the final laps to win the NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway. Larson led a race-high 94 of 200 laps thanks to a series of daring moves between cars on the tight half-mile track that kept Busch at bay during the final third. Then came the final caution that left a short sprint on the restart, when Jones' No. 20 Toyota got past Busch on the outside before he eventually cleared Larson, who finished third.

Kyle Busch riding the momentum of consecutive weekend sweeps (The Associated Press)

Whether Kyle Busch earns his third consecutive NASCAR weekend sweep remains to be seen, he's savoring his current success. It's not like starting position matters to Busch, who leads the Cup standings by six points over Jimmie Johnson. Busch has swept Martinsville and Texas to become the first driver since Harry Gant went back-to-back at Richmond and Dover in 1991.

Carl Edwards takes pole at Bristol Motor Speedway (The Associated Press)

BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) -- Carl Edwards won his second straight NASCAR Sprint Cup pole Friday, helping Joe Gibbs Racing take four of the top five spots in qualifying Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Logano, Kenseth hope Bristol success continues this weekend (The Associated Press)

Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano hope their recent success at Bristol Motor Speedway helps them reach victory lane for the first time this season. Both drivers have two wins over the past five races at Bristol. Another win could land Logano or Kenseth a spot in the Chase for the championship, and both drivers believe a breakthrough is possible.

Column: NASCAR clouding its image with politics (The Associated Press)

There are Democrats who enjoy NASCAR. You wouldn't know it lately, not after several events this season, including the invocation before Saturday night's race at Texas Motor Speedway. Robertson, a star of ''Duck Dynasty,'' has publicly voiced his support for Ted Cruz in the presidential race.

Drive and win: Kyle Busch sweep is NASCAR's 1st in 25 years (The Associated Press)

Four races in NASCAR's top three series over eight days - and Kyle Busch won them all. From Martinsville to Texas, Busch had consecutive weekend sweeps, something last done in NASCAR 25 years ago. ''I think the magic is Kyle Busch, but that's just me,'' Busch said with a smile before looking to car owner Joe Gibbs, who started laughing and told the No. 18 Toyota driver to not freak out on him.

Kyle Busch wins at Texas to complete another NASCAR sweep (The Associated Press)

Kyle Busch took the lead after the final restart Saturday night at Texas to complete his second NASCAR weekend sweep in a row. Busch ended Jimmie Johnson's three-race winning streak at Texas, getting his 36th Sprint Cup victory a week after also winning at Martinsville. Busch also won the Xfinity race at Texas on Friday night, his 80th win in that series that was coming off a two-week break.

NASCAR race in Texas starts after one-hour, 50-minute delay (The Associated Press)

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- The NASCAR Sprint Cup race in Texas has gotten underway after a delay of 1 hour, 50 minutes.

Kyle Busch 4th NASCAR Xfinity win of 2016 is 80th overall (The Associated Press)

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Kyle Busch led 150 of 200 laps at Texas on Friday night to win for the fourth time in five NASCAR Xfinity starts this season.

Jimmie Johnson certainly knows way to Victory Lane in Texas (The Associated Press)

Jimmie Johnson certainly knows his way to Victory Lane at Texas Motor Speedway. Already with two wins this season, Johnson is back in Texas, where he has won the last three NASCAR Sprint Cup races and five of the last seven. Johnson started eighth or better is all six of his victories at Texas.

Edwards on Texas pole, 7th pole winner in 7 Cup races so far (The Associated Press)

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Carl Edwards is the seventh different pole winner in the seven NASCAR Sprint Cup races this season.

Stewart still weeks from knowing when he can drive again (The Associated Press)

Tony Stewart is anxiously waiting to find out when he will be able to return from a broken back to debut in what is supposed to be his last season as a full-time NASCAR Sprint Cup driver. ''Then (doctors) will be able to have an idea of when exactly it's going to happen,'' Stewart said. Until then, Stewart will continue in his role as co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing while Brian Vickers and Ty Dillon share the role as the replacement driver in Stewart's No. 14 Chevrolet.

Vickers ready for 3 in a row for Stewart, unsure after Texas (The Associated Press)

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- Brian Vickers is getting ready for his third consecutive race filling in for injured Tony Stewart. Nothing is certain after Texas.