MOTOR RACING ROUNDUP : Bodine Holds Off Late Challenge at Sonoma

Geoff Bodine took advantage of a series of late caution flags to hold off a strong charge by Ernie Irvan and Ricky Rudd and win the NASCAR Save Mart 300 Sunday at Sears Point International Raceway in Sonoma, Calif.

Bodine’s second victory of the season came when he held first in his Ford Thunderbird when Dorsey Schroeder spun on Lap 72 of the 74-lap race, bringing out the final yellow.

The race went to green with one lap left.

Irvan, who won the race last year, slipped his Chevrolet Lumina past Rudd’s Chevrolet on the final lap to take second.

The lead trio bumped and shoved each other through the last two corners.

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Joe Amato beat Eddie Hill off the line at Millington, Tenn., to win the top-fuel championship in the Mid-South Nationals with a slower elapsed time.

Amato drove the quarter mile in 4.971 seconds to Hill’s 4.936 but won because of the quicker start. Amato’s speed was 293.92 m.p.h.

John Force set a track record in the funny-car division, driving 5.219 seconds at 283.32 m.p.h. to beat Tom Hoover.

Scott Geoffrion won in pro stock, driving 7.211 seconds at 191.08 m.p.h. to defeat Bob Glidden.

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Kyle Walker of Houston won his first top-fuel hydro drag-boat race in more than a year in the International Hot Boat Assn. Nationals at Castaic. Walker, 45, defeated David Promnitz of Clovis with a run of 5.788 seconds at 189.40 m.p.h.