Newman Hangs On for NASCAR Win

Ryan Newman dominated a late long run and held on through three restarts -- the last with four laps to go -- and won the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 on Saturday at Richmond International Raceway in Virginia.

Newman, whose crew said he might not have had enough fuel to finish under the long green flag run that started with 77 laps to go, got a break when Robby Gordon crashed with 19 laps to go, causing a seven-lap caution.

He appeared to be pulling away from Kevin Harvick when the race went back to green with 14 laps to go, but he lost that edge when debris on the track caused the yellow to fly for the 12th time, setting up the nine-lap finish.

Again Newman was pulling away, but Ricky Rudd, running third, nudged Harvick, sending his car slamming in the Turn 1 wall and bringing out one more yellow.

On the single-file restart, Newman’s Dodge pulled away from Jeremy Mayfield’s Dodge and went on to his series-high sixth victory this year. Rudd finished third in a Ford.

Afterward, Rudd and Harvick exchanged words but were kept apart by crew members.

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Only 10 days after Team Menard hired him for the IRL’s Delphi Indy 300, Richie Hearn won the pole in record time. His lap at 223.159 mph was the fastest ever in qualifying at the Chicagoland Speedway.

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Todd Burns of Riverside successfully defended his Auto Club Late Model title by holding off Mike Price and Scott Youngren to win the 50-lap feature in front of 5,150 at Irwindale Speedway.

Other winners were Curtis White in the 40-lap final regular-season race of the Vista Paint Super Stock series, Pat Mintey in the 40-lap Ultra Wheels Super Truck race and Cory Miles in the 35-lap King Taco Legends Car Series feature.

College Sports

Three former chairmen of Baylor’s board of regents urged the university’s president, Robert B. Sloan, to step down, contending he can’t unite the school shaken by scandal after the slaying of basketball player Patrick Dennehy.

The letter from Glenn Briggs, Gale Galloway and Randall Fields comes as the board prepares to meet Thursday. The school’s faculty senate may also discuss a possible no-confidence vote on Sloan on Tuesday.

The meetings follow investigations into attempts by former coach Dave Bliss to cover up improper tuition payments paid to Dennehy. Dennehy was found dead July 25 with two gunshot wounds to the head. A former Baylor player, Carlton Dotson, has been indicted on a charge of murdering Dennehy.

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The Bay Area trip by the USC men’s basketball team will last a day longer than expected this season as the Trojans’ Pacific 10 Conference game at Stanford, originally set for Jan. 24, has been rescheduled for Jan. 25 with a 3 p.m. tipoff for television.

Basketball

Tariq Abdul-Wahad of the Dallas Mavericks scored 16 points to lead France over Italy, 85-52, in the European Basketball Championships at Lulea, Sweden.

Spain beat Russia, 89-77, at Sodertalje with Pau Gasol of the Memphis Grizzlies scoring 35 points. Dirk Nowitzki of the Mavericks scored 32 points to lead Germany over Latvia, 94-86, at Norrkoping.

Golf

Hidemichi Tanaka of Japan shot a three-under-par 67 -- highlighted by an eagle on the par-five 17th -- to take a two-stroke lead after three rounds of the Canadian Open at Hamilton.... Karrie Webb shot a one-under 69 and took a three-stroke lead after two rounds of the John Q. Hammons Classic at Tulsa, Okla.... Gil Morgan shot a five-under 67 to lead by two strokes after two rounds of the Kroger Classic at Maineville, Ohio.

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Bill Haas helped rally the United States to a 7-5 lead over Britain-Ireland halfway through the Walker Cup match at Ganton, England. After Britain-Ireland won 3-1 in the foursomes, the U.S. won five of the eight singles matches, tied two and lost one. Haas highlighted the U.S. rally, beating Gary Wolstenholme, 1-up, in the first singles match.

Miscellany

Former New York Giant defensive end Jeremiah Parker received the maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for his role in the death of an ex-girlfriend’s 4-year-old son.

Parker was sentenced Friday in Paterson, N.J., two months after a jury convicted him of endangering the welfare of a child in the second degree.

Parker’s ex-girlfriend, Tauleah Kelly, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in January and was sentenced to seven years in prison.

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In the final women’s beach volleyball match of the AVP Nissan Series, Misty May and Kerri Walsh won their seventh title of the year and finished with a perfect season by defeating Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs, 21-16, 21-13, at Las Vegas. Dain Blanton and Jeff Nygaard defeated Scott Ayakatubby and Brian Lewis, 21-13, 21-19, in the final men’s match.