MOTOR RACING ROUNDUP : Earnhardt Holds Off Sacks to Win Race at Talladega

Dale Earnhardt fought off Greg Sacks over the final 17 laps to win a battle of Chevrolet Luminas in Sunday’s Winston 500 at Talladega, Ala.

They were at the head of the pack when the green flag waved following the final caution flag on the 172nd of 188 laps.

Sacks stayed on Earnhardt’s rear bumper until the last lap around the 2.66-mile, high-banked oval. At that point, Earnhardt was able to pull away a bit then hold on to beat Sacks by two car lengths.

Sacks, whose only Winston Cup victory--considered one of the biggest upsets in NASCAR history--came in the July 1985 race at Daytona International Speedway in a research and development car, got close this time in the debut of a new team co-owned by Charlotte, N.C., businessman Rick Hendrick and actor Paul Newman.

It did not appear that Earnhardt was beatable as he led eight times for 113 laps on the 2.66-mile oval, including the final 22.

Earnhardt, who won $98,975, averaged 159.571 m.p.h.

Lori Johns covered the quarter mile in 5.009 seconds at 270.10 m.p.h. to claim her second consecutive NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series victory at Memphis (Tenn.) Motorsports Park.

The 24-year-old from Corpus Christi, Tex., took the Top Fuel title at the third-annual Chief Auto Parts Mid-South Nationals, the sixth stop in the 19-race, $18-million NHRA/Winston series. She beat Joe Amato, who smoked the tires on his dragster and ran 9.333 seconds at 74.67 m.p.h.

Larry Morgan won his second consecutive Pro Stock title, and Mark Oswald recorded his first Funny Car victory of the season.

Juan Manuel Fangio II got his first IMSA Camel GT career victory, starting on the pole and leading every lap of the Camel Grand Prix of the Heartland sports car race at Topeka, Kan.

Driving a Dan Gurney-prepared Toyota Eagle, Fangio averaged 94.526 m.p.h. for the 75-lap race around the 2.5-mile road course. He earned $90,000, including a $60,000 bonus for being a first-time winner this season.

Fangio is the nephew of five-time Formula One world champion Juan Manuel Fangio.

Geoff Brabham, co-driving a Nissan GTP ZX-Turbo with Chip Robinson, finished second, 1.314 seconds back.