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Dixon, the New Zealand driver who lost the IRL IndyCar Series championship to Dario Franchitti when he ran out of fuel on the last lap of the 2007 season, got off to a great start with the victory in the Gainsco Indy 300.

But it didn’t look like his race to win.

Kanaan came out of the last round of green flag pit stops in the lead and appeared well on the way to a victory until Ernesto Viso, a rookie driving for one of the former Champ Car teams that just joined the IRL, punctured a tire and spun on the 193rd of 200 laps.

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“I wish I could describe how I feel,” Kraft said. “Maybe justice.”

Kraft earned $630,000 — more than he’s made on the PGA Tour combined since 2003 — and has secured playing privileges through 2010.

He had played only two other PGA Tour events this season, his best finish before now a tie for 19th at the Mayakoba Golf Classic in Mexico.

Motor sports : Raikkonen wins Malaysian GP

Kimi Raikkonen comfortably won the Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday in Formula One racing.

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“We’re very excited to add the SCCA SPEED World Challenge GT Championship to our 2008 racing lineup,” said Bud Denker, chairman for the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix event. “After a very entertaining Grand Prix race weekend in 2007 that included both the American Le Mans Series and the IndyCar Series, our fans told us they wanted even more racing action.

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In sweeping the podium at the Food City 500, RCR stole a race that was dominated by JGR drivers Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch. The trio combined to lead 372 of the 506 laps, but Hamlin’s sixth-place finish was the best of the group.

“It’s just a shame. We had another win taken away,” said Hamlin, who blamed a fuel pickup problem on the final restart as the reason the RCR cars passed him.

“Our cars just won’t pick up fuel.

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The victory also put the No. 18 back in Victory Circle at Atlanta, where former Joe Gibbs Racing driver Bobby Labonte won six races in that car.

The significance was not lost on Busch.

“The 18! The 18! The 18 is back at Atlanta,” Busch screamed on the radio after crossing the finish line ahead of teammate Tony Stewart. “Congratulations, (crew chief Steve) Addington, it’s your first one.”

Former crew chief Jimmy Makar, the first person hired by Gibbs when he decided to go NASCAR racing, radioed the winner, “Kyle Busch, this is Jimmy.

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It was rather unusual for Johnson, a two-time defending Sprint Cup champion, to have such a bad day, but it certainly wasn’t history-making. Still, as Johnson failed to contend for a fourth consecutive win in the desert, many in NASCAR began to wonder what’s wrong with mighty Hendrick Motorsports.

The team that couldn’t be beat last season is now winless through the first three events of this year. That has sent a buzz through the garage that even Hendrick has heard.

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Bob Osborne, crew chief for the No. 99 Ford, declined comment on NASCAR’s discovery. But the infraction could spoil what has been a stellar start to the season for Edwards and that team.

Edwards won for the second time in six days — he also won the rain-postponed event at California on Monday — and moved to the top of the points standings for the first time in his career. He has a 21-point lead over Kyle Busch.

“We do this to win.

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While Busch is enjoying the perks of being on top of his sport, he’s downplaying his hold on the standings. Busch has a six-point advantage over Ryan Newman.

“It’s cool, it’s fun and it’s great and all, but we’re two weeks in. We need it two weeks to go,” Busch said. “There’s a lot of stuff, a lot of laps and a lot of corners to go through and a lot of pit stops and everything else.

“Hopefully we can keep it and ride this wave for however long it lasts.

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