All Times PDT

NASCAR SPRINT CUP

Samsung 500

Site: Fort Worth, Texas

Schedule: Friday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 1:30 p.m.); Sunday, race (FOX, 10:30 a.m.).

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

Race distance: 501 miles, 334 laps.

Last race: Denny Hamlin foiled Jeff Burton's late strategy of staying out while the rest of the leaders pitted, passing him on the 427th of 500 laps and holding on to win at Martinsville. Hendrick cars dominated most of the race, with Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr. all leading for long stretches, and Casey Mears running mostly in the top 10.

Last year: Burton passed Matt Kenseth on the final lap for his only lead to become the first repeat winner at Texas. Burton won with an average speed of 143.359 mph and was the last of nine leaders. Gordon, who started on the pole after qualifying was canceled because of storms, led four times and Dale Earnhart Jr. had three leads for 96 laps.

Fast facts: Earnhardt Jr. jumped to fourth in the standings, his highest ranking since November 2006. He is the only driver with five top-five finishes this season. ... Texas and Homestead are the only two tracks where Jeff Gordon has failed to win. ... Hamlin is now eighth in the standings after sitting 32nd following the season's second event. ... Johnson was knocked out of last year's race on lap 240 when he ran into Tony Stewart's sliding car coming onto the frontstretch. He finished 38th while Stewart, who won at Texas the previous fall, was 25th after going into a spin when he was bumped while running side-by-side with Juan Pablo Montoya. ... Burton also won the inaugural Texas race in 1997. ... Richard Childress Racing will expand to four cars next season with General Mills as sponsor, a partnership that leaves Petty Enterprises searching for financial backing for its famed No. 43 for just the second time since 1972.

Next race: Subway Fresh Fit 500, April 12, Avondale, Ariz.

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NASCAR NATIONWIDE

O'Reilly 300

Site: Fort Worth, Texas

Schedule: Thursday, qualifying, 3:30 p.m.; Saturday, race (ESPN2, 2:30 p.m.).

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

Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.

Last race: Scott Wimmer passed Richard Childress Racing teammate Clint Bowyer with 21 laps to go and held on to win the Pepsi 300 at Nashville Superspeedway on March 22. The Childress cars took the top two spots, six days after the team swept the top three positions in the Sprint Cup series race at Bristol.

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INDY RACING LEAGUE

Grand Prix

of St. Petersburg

Site: Florida

Schedule: Saturday, qualifying, 10:55 a.m.; Sunday, race (ESPN, 2:30 p.m.).

Track: Streets of St. Petersburg (1.8 miles, 14 turns).

Race distance: 180 miles, 100 laps.

Last race: A Target Chip Ganassi Racing entry, this one driven by former series champion Scott Dixon, won the season-opener for the third straight year. He took the lead late in the 200-lap race at Homestead after Tony Kanaan collided with Ernesto Viso, a rookie driving for one of the former Champ Car teams that just joined the IRL.

Next race: Indy Japan 300, April 19, Motegi

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FORMULA ONE

Bahrain Grand Prix

Site: Sakhir

Schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 7 a.m.); Sunday, race (Speed Channel, 7:30 a.m.).

Track: Bahrain International Circuit (road course, 3.37 miles, 12 turns).

Race distance: 192.09 miles, 57 laps.

Last race: Kimi Raikkonen comfortably won the Malaysian Grand Prix on March 23, immediately injecting Ferrari back into the title race after the disappointment of the previous week's flop in Australia where neither car finished. Raikkonen won by 20 seconds over BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica, with McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen another 19 seconds back in third.

Fast facts: After winning in Australia, Hamilton finished fifth in Malaysia after starting in ninth as a result of a five-place penalty on the grid for causing interference in qualifying. ... Robert Kubica's second place in Malaysia gave BMW Sauber podium finishes in two straight races for the first time. The 11 points it earned in the race were also a record for the team, and Nick Heidfeld turned the fastest lap for the first time in his 136-race career. ... Massa remains pointless on the season after failing to finish at Malaysia despite starting on the pole. ... Giancarlo Fisichella finished ahead of Fernando Alonso in the 2006 event to give Renault only its second 1-2 finish ever.

Next race: Spanish Grand Prix, April 27, Barcelona