Gordon ends longest drought of career

Jeff Gordon ended the longest winless drought of his career, beating Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson to finally win at Texas.

Gordon won for the first time in 48 races Sunday at the 1 1/2 -mile, high-banked Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, one of only two active tracks where the four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion had never won a race.

It was the 17th Cup race at Texas, the track where Gordon has the only two last-place finishes in 552 starts. One of the 43rd-place finishes came last spring before he was the runner-up to Carl Edwards in the fall race after winning the pole.

“How ironic is this that when we go into this streak and we end it here in Texas, a place that’s just eluded us for so long,” Gordon said. “Incredible team effort. This whole year has been amazing. What a great car. I’ve never had a car like this at Texas. We finally had one and put it in position.”

Gordon, already the season points leader with four top-five finishes in the first six races, did a few burnouts on the front stretch before grabbing the checkered flag and taking his No. 24 Chevrolet for a long-awaited victory lap -- his first since October 2007 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.

Gordon won by 0.542 of a second over Johnson with an average speed of 146.372 mph for his 82nd victory.

Ryan Briscoe held off Ryan Hunter-Reay to win the IndyCar Series season opener on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla.

Briscoe, driving for Team Penske, passed Justin Wilson for the lead on a restart 14 laps from the end of the crash-filled Honda Grand Prix.

TENNIS

Murray earns title by beating Djokovic

Andy Murray hit second serves for aces, slipped passing shots through the narrowest openings and rarely made a mistake.

It was a performance worthy of a trophy, and Murray became the first Briton to win the Sony Ericsson Open by defeating Novak Djokovic, 6-2, 7-5, at Key Biscayne, Fla.

The Scotsman used his vast repertoire of shots and took advantage of two wobbly stretches by Djokovic, who struggled with the 85-degree heat.

Djokovic rushed his strokes at the start and fell behind four-love. In the second set, Murray rallied from a break down at 1-4, overcame two set points and won 10 of the final 11 points.

The fourth-seeded Murray committed only 19 unforced errors, patiently mixing the pace and direction of his shots to keep the third-seeded Djokovic off balance.

ETC.

Trainer Mullins under investigation

Trainer Jeff Mullins, who conditions Kentucky Derby hopeful I Want Revenge, is under investigation for allegedly violating detention barn rules by trying to administer cough medicine to a horse before Saturday’s Bay Shore Stakes at Aqueduct, the Thoroughbred Times reported.

New York stewards scratched Gato Go Win after security personnel alleged they saw Mullins trying to administer an over-the-counter product called Air Power to the horse. Joe Mahoney, a spokesman for the New York State Racing and Wagering Board, said that security alleges Mullins brought a syringe into the detention barn. Mahoney said there was no incident involving I Want Revenge, who later won the Wood Memorial on the same card.

Mullins served a 20-day suspension in 2008 imposed by the California Horse Racing Board for use of the Class 2 drug mepivicane, and he had trouble in 2005 when at least one of his horses tested positive for excessive levels of total carbon dioxide.

The Pamplemousse, a leading contender for the Kentucky Derby, will be sidelined at least six months after a small lesion was discovered on the tendon in his left front leg, according to part owner Alex Solis II.

The Pamplemousse was the pre-race favorite for Saturday’s Santa Anita Derby until he was scratched in the morning after the track veterinarian expressed concern over a soft-tissue issue.

-- Eric Sondheimer

The U.S. Under-20 men’s national soccer team has been drawn into Group C alongside Germany, Cameroon and Korea for the 2009 FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Egypt, which will held Sept. 24-Oct. 16.