Auto Racing

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — What a great NASCAR race that was at Las Vegas! The new Gen-6 car sure put on an amazing show, one for the ages, for sure.

That’s the kind of effusive praise we should expect to hear from drivers the rest of the year, right?

Anything short of that could lead to another shut-up-and-drive fine like the one levied last week against Denny Hamlin, who was popped for $25,000 for having the audacity to give an honest answer when asked to assess NASCAR’s new car after its second race.

Hamlin is digging in his heels for this fight, though, saying he’ll be suspended before he’ll pay the fine. In reality, he’ll first go through an appeals process, and if NASCAR is smart, it will quietly make this whole mess go away.

LAS VEGAS — Danica Patrick says she’s fine after getting hit in the head by a rock while racing on a dirt track.

Patrick says she got smacked by a stray rock Thursday night, leaving her feeling like she had a concussion. But she says the infield care center checked her out and pronounced her healthy.

Patrick says it hit her “straight in the head” and she’s glad she had a hat on or “there would have been blood.”

Twenty-eight spectators were injured at the Daytona International Speedway on Saturday, the day before the Daytona 500, after a 12-car pileup sent a car into the stands. Is car racing the most dangerous sport for spectators?

No.

Attending car races has its risks, but most people who die or suffer injuries at professional car races are drivers and field marshals. According to a study by the Charlotte Observer, 46 spectators died at motorsport events between 1990 and 2010, though none of these deaths occurred at a NASCAR race. A few NASCAR crashes have injured spectators, including a 1987 Talladega accident in which debris from Bobby Allison’s car flew into the grandstand and a 2009 Talladega accident in which Carl Edwards’ car flipped into the catch fence. The worst motorsport crash in history occurred at the 24-hour Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency in Le Mans in 1955; after 83 spectators died in that crash, better safety measures were adopted throughout motorsports.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Jimmie Johnson has won his second Daytona 500, racing past defending NASCAR champion Brad Keselowski on the final restart, while Danica Patrick finished eighth.

Johnson wasn’t challenged over the final six laps Sunday, adding another 500 title to go with his 2006 victory.

This time crew chief Chad Knaus can enjoy it — he was suspended by NASCAR for the first victory.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. made a late move to finish second, but didn’t challenge his Hendrick Motorsports teammate for the victory. Mark Martin was third.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Danica Patrick has made history before — as a woman and a racer, in Indianapolis and Japan.

The spotlight is nothing new. But never has it been this bright before.

Patrick won the Daytona 500 pole Sunday, becoming the first woman to secure the top spot for any race in NASCAR’s premier circuit. It’s by far the biggest achievement of her stock-car career.

ST. GEORGE — Police say a man who led authorities on a chase in Nevada and Utah is a former NASCAR driver.

The Spectrum of St. George reports (http://bit.ly/WHMBeE ) that police stopped Timothy Tyler Andrew Walker on Wednesday in southern Utah following a chase that began in Nevada. Authorities say Walker had marijuana, pills and open containers of alcohol in his luxury BMW sedan.

They also arrested a female passenger.

NASCAR will go back to the dirt for the first time since 1970 when the Truck Series visits Eldora Speedway in Ohio.

The July 24 event at the Tony Stewart-owned track in Rossburg will be a lead-in to the Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series races later that weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.