NASCAR SPRINT CUP

Site: Watkins Glen, N.Y.

Schedule: Today, qualifying (ESPN2, 3 p.m.); Sunday, race (ESPN, 1 p.m.).

Track: Watkins Glen International (permanent road course, 2.45 miles, 11 turns).

Race distance: 220.5 miles, 90 laps.

Fast facts: There are only five races remaining until the start of the Chase for the championship. Kevin Harvick rebounded from a first-lap crash to finish fourth at Pocono and jumped from 13th to 11th, switching places with former Cup champion Matt Kenseth, who finished 11th. The top 12 drivers are eligible for the 10-race Chase. ... Gordon and Stewart have combined for eight wins, 11 top-five finishes and 15 top-10 placings at Watkins Glen. Both drivers are winless this season. ... Kyle Busch will be trying to become the first driver to win three national-series road-course races in the same season. He won the Cup's only other road-course race at Infineon Raceway on June 22 after taking the Nationwide event at Mexico City in April. ... Watkins Glen is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.

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NASCAR NATIONWIDE

Zippo 200

Site: Watkins Glen, N.Y.

Schedule: Saturday, qualifying (ESPN2, 10 a.m.), race (ABC, 2:30 p.m.).

Track: Watkins Glen International (permanent road course, 2.45 miles, 11 turns).

Race distance: 200.9 miles, 82 laps.

Fast facts: Nine of the last 10 winners of this event started in the top 10 and 12 of 15 overall. ... Harvick returns to the series following a three-race hiatus. He had two road-course victories last year, including the inaugural Montreal event. ... Joey Logano finished 17th in his first NASCAR road-course start last weekend after crashing during the final caution period. He had won at Kentucky Speedway in June in his third Nationwide start and added second-place finishes at Milwaukee and Gateway. ... Points leader Clint Bowyer finished ninth at Montreal and has a 168-point lead over fellow Cup driver Carl Edwards. ... Fellows has won this race three times, including two in a row from 2000-01. ... Chevrolets have won 10 of the 14 Nationwide events at Watkins Glen.

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INDY RACING LEAGUE

Meijer 300

Site: Sparta, Ky.

Schedule: Today, qualifying, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, race (ESPN2, 6:30 p.m.).

Track: Kentucky Speedway (tri-oval, 1.5 miles, 14 degrees banking in turns).

Race distance: 300 miles, 200 laps.

Last race: Scott Dixon inherited the lead when Tony Kanaan pitted on lap 62 and led the rest of the way to take the Grand Prix of Edmonton on July 26. Dixon has five wins this season and a 65-point lead over Helio Castroneves in the standings with four races remaining.

Fast facts: The series won't return to Nashville Superspeedway after efforts to negotiate an agreement for a 2009 race failed. The Edmonton Sun recently reported that Toronto would replace the Nashville race in an 18-race schedule in 2009. ... Dixon was the runner-up in last year's race. ... Castroneves has no wins but 11 top-five finishes in 13 races this season. ... Scott Sharp snapped a 40-race winless skid by taking the 2005 event. Danica Patrick won the pole that year, but finished 16th.

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NHRA

Lucas Oil Nationals

Site: Brainerd, Minn.

Schedule: Today, qualifying, 3:45 p.m.; Saturday, qualifying, 12:15 p.m. (ESPN2, 8:30 p.m.; Sunday, eliminations, Noon (ESPN2, 7 p.m., tape).

Track: Brainerd International Raceway.

Last event: Tony Schumacher completed a sweep of the three-race western swing of the NHRA season on July 27, winning the Top Fuel competition at the Fram-Autolite Nationals at Sonoma, Calif. Schumacher, who also won in Colorado and Washington, has eight victories overall this season. The other winners were Robert Hight (Funny Car), Dave Connolly (Pro Stock) and Matt Guidera (Pro Stock Motorcycle).