Kubica takes Formula One lead

Robert Kubica grabbed his first Formula One victory and the series points lead Sunday after Lewis Hamilton made a huge mistake that took him and world champion Kimi Raikkonen out of the Canadian Grand Prix at Montreal.

Defending race winner and pole-starter Hamilton slammed his Mercedes McLaren into the rear of Raikkonen’s Ferrari in the pits early in the race, taking out both leaders and giving the 23-year-old Kubica a clear road to victory in his 29th F1 start.

It was a great day for the BMW Sauber team, winning for the first time in its 42 races as an F1 team and sweeping the top two spots with Nick Heidfeld finishing second, well ahead of Red Bull Racing’s David Coulthard in third.

It was a very different finish from 2007 for Kubica, who was taken away in a helicopter after a spectacular crash late in the Canada race.

He was shaken up but not injured, and Kubica showed definitively on Sunday that memories of the frightening accident were not a deterrent.

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Funny car star Tony Pedregon bounced back from a fire during qualifying to win for the second time this season and the 38th time in his career, beating Scott Kalitta in the Torco Racing Fuels Route 66 NHRA Nationals at Joliet, Ill.

Racing in 87-degree heat with the track at 101 degrees, Pedregon won with a quarter-mile run of 4.818 seconds at 319.75 mph. Kalitta finished in 4.957 at 308.02.

Kurt Johnson won the pro stock final, and Tony Schumacher won in top fuel.