NASCAR Issues Penalties

Jimmie Johnson lost the Nextel Cup points lead and his crew chief was suspended Tuesday when NASCAR handed out penalties for violations at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Instead of holding a 15-point lead after his victory Sunday in the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400, Johnson is now second, 10 points behind series champion Kurt Busch.

Johnson’s crew chief, Chad Knaus, was suspended for two weeks and fined $35,000 when the race-winning car failed to meet the minimum height requirement in the post-race inspection.

The crew chiefs for Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick also were suspended.

Todd Berrier was suspended for four weeks and fined $25,000 for rigging Harvick’s fuel tank to appear full when it actually wasn’t during qualifying.

Alan Gustafson was suspended for two weeks and fined $25,000 because Kyle Busch’s runner-up car was too high in the post-race inspection.

Johnson, Harvick and Kyle Busch were docked 25 points apiece. And 25 car-owner points were taken from Rick Hendrick, the car owner for Kyle Busch; Jeff Gordon, who owns Johnson’s car, and Richard Childress, who owns Harvick’s.

Hendrick and Childress said they planned to appeal.

Pro Football

The first NFL regular-season game outside the United States is expected to take place Oct. 2, when Arizona plays San Francisco in Mexico City.

The game is expected to be a Sunday night contest televised by ESPN.

It would be a home game for the Cardinals, who rarely sell out their stadium but could draw 100,000 or more in Mexico City.

Courtney Brown, the No. 1 pick in the 2000 draft who was cut by Cleveland, is being courted by Washington Coach Joe Gibbs, who flew to Cleveland in an attempt to sway the defensive end to sign with the Redskins, an official within the league told Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Minnesota signed receiver Travis Taylor, a disappointment with Baltimore after being taken 10th overall in 2000.

Pro Bowl left tackle Orlando Pace completed a two-day visit with Houston, the first step of a process that could eventually lead to a trade with St. Louis. The Rams face a deadline today to re-sign Pace. After that, under NFL rules, St. Louis wouldn’t be allowed to strike a deal with him until July 15.

Tight end Anthony Becht, a late first-round pick in 2000, signed with Tampa Bay, leaving the New York Jets.... Jacksonville re-signed receiver Troy Edwards and running back Chris Fuamatu-Maafala.

Miscellany

In National Invitation Tournament games, DePaul (20-10) defeated Missouri, 75-70, at Columbia, Mo. The Tigers finished 16-17. Virginia Tech (16-13) stopped Temple, 60-50, in Blacksburg, Va. The Owls finished 16-14. South Carolina (16-13) held off Miami, 69-67, in Columbia, S.C. The Hurricanes finished 16-13. Holy Cross (25-6) stopped Notre Dame, 78-73, in South Bend, Ind. The Fighting Irish finished 17-12.

The United States won its third consecutive Algarve Cup, defeating Germany, 1-0, in Faro, Portugal, on a first-half goal by Christie Welsh.

USA Cycling announced the 10-member squad that will represent the United States at the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Carson on March 24-27.

Named to the men’s team were James Carney of Durango, Colo.; Robert Lea of Taneytown, Md.; Giddeon Massie of Colorado Springs, Colo.; Marty Nothstein of Orefield, Pa.; Colby Pearce of Boulder, Colo., and Christian Stahl of Bethany, Conn.

The women’s team is comprised of Erin Mirabella of La Habra, Rebecca Conzelman of Cincinnati, Rebecca Quinn of Quakertown, Pa., and Jennie Reed Kirkland, Wash.

Former two-time heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe (41-1, 33 knockouts), who returned to the ring last year after an eight-year absence, will continue his comeback on April 7. Bowe, 37, will face Billy Zumbrun (18-5-1, 10) in a 10-round main event at the Pechanga Casino in Temecula.

In the semi-main event, middleweight Andre Ward (2-0, 1), a gold-medal winner at last summer’s Olympics, will fight Anthony Pietrantonio (5-0, 4).

Vitali Klitschko’s heavyweight title defense against Hasim Rahman probably will be rescheduled for June 18 after an injury to the champion. Klitschko pulled a thigh muscle while training Friday, forcing the fight scheduled April 30 at Madison Square Garden to be postponed.