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Two-time NASCAR XFINITY Series champion Sam Ard passed away Sunday, April 2. The Asheboro, North Carolina, native was 78.   Ard had compiled an impressive record in the NASCAR Late Model Sportsman Series before that circuit was retooled and renamed in 1982. In the series that today is known as the XFINITY Series, Ard scored 22 victories and won titles in 1983 and ’84. “For many years, Sam Ard’s persona…

A year after Texas’ attorney general questioned whether fantasy sports are legal, state lawmakers are considering proclaiming that they are. In a non-binding opinion in January 2016, Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton equated paid fantasy sports sites to online gambling, which is illegal. But one fantasy football-playing Democrat in the Legislature has filed a measure that he says would protect Texans who play the online games from repercussion. The measure will be considered…

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Brad Keselowski passed Kyle Busch with 43 laps to go and pulled away to win for the first time in his career at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday. The victory was the 23rd for Keselowski, the 2012 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion, and his second in the first six races of this season. It made him just the eighth active driver with a victory in the top series on NASCAR’s…

Texas Motor Speedway underwent a necessary evil this offseason by repaving its racing surface. Drivers prefer the older surfaces. Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Toyota, made his preferences known at Martinsville Speedway. Yes, the same — and only — driver who blamed Goodyear tires for his disappointing run at the season-opening Daytona 500 in February. “I hate repaves,” said Busch, a two-time winner at Texas. “But it’s part…

Sam Ard, shown in 2007 with his dog Putt Putt, in Pamplico, S.C.(Photo: Mary Ann Chastain, AP) Sam Ard, a two-time champion of NASCAR’s second-tier series, has died. He was 78. Ard died Sunday in South Carolina. NASCAR called Ard “a tough-as-nails racer” in a statement confirming his death. Ard won titles in what is now known as the Xfinity Series in 1983 and 1984. He won 22 races in…

As the IOC moves the goalposts in the 2024 Olympic contest, bid leaders from Los Angeles and Paris head to a campaign event in Denmark on Tuesday unsure of exactly what they are shooting for. While both cities are bidding for the 2024 Games, the 2028 hosting rights are also in play, according to IOC President Thomas Bach. LA and Paris will send 12-member delegations to lobby and make 10-minute…

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Caption Close A man working security at a Houston-area sports bar was shot Sunday morning. A man working security at a Houston-area sports bar was shot Sunday morning. A man working security at a northern Harris County sports bar was shot by an unruly patron Sunday morning, according to authorities.  Around 2:30 a.m., a security guard at Trevino’s Tejano Sports Bar asked a patron to leave the bar at Bauman…

No. 1 seed South Carolina got coach Dawn Staley her long-awaited national title Sunday, taking control early and withstanding several second-half punches to beat No. 2 seed Mississippi State, 67-55, to win the women’s Final Four. The Gamecocks went old school, eschewing the long ball and instead dominating inside. They controlled the paint throughout the night, with A’Ja Wilson proving too much to handle. The junior forward finished with 23…

It’s one thing to win a World Series, and another to revitalize a sport. The Cubs did both last year, and now they’re going to be baseball’s prime time team, shoved down the throats of national TV viewers for the next several years, like the Red Sox and Yankees. The 2016 World Series ratings were the highest since 2004, when the Red Sox ended their prolific drought with a four-game…

Ger Loughnane believes that hurling’s Division 1A teams are burned out by the time the League quarter-finals come around and that’s why they’re dropping like flies. Three sides from the tier two Division 1A are through to the semi-finals having beaten higher ranked opposition. On Sunday Limerick beat Cork, Wexford knocked out Kilkenny and Galway took care of Waterford. The League has been won the last two years by teams…

Sunday’s STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway was everything a classic, old-school NASCAR short-track race should be. Five times over the final 100 laps, the lead changed hands back and forth between Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski, with Keselowski ultimately prevailing in a battle between two of the sports best drivers and two of the sport’s best teams. And over 500 laps, there was plenty of drama, lots of trading…

As the IOC moves the goalposts in the 2024 Olympic contest, bid leaders from Los Angeles and Paris head to a campaign event in Denmark on Tuesday unsure of exactly what they are shooting for. While both cities are bidding for the 2024 Games, the 2028 hosting rights are also in play, according to IOC President Thomas Bach. LA and Paris will send 12-member delegations to lobby and make 10-minute…

How Does The Raiders Move To Las Vegas Affect Sports Betting? It seems as though the shift of the Raiders from Oakland to Las Vegas (officially to occur in 2020) should not heavily affect the way that gambling is treated in Nevada, other states and by the NFL. The league remains outwardly against legalized sports betting and Nevada casinos will still seemingly be able to accept wagers on the Raiders,…

As the chef at Bub’s at the Ballpark sports bar just a few minutes’ walk from Petco Park, Todd Nash spends a good chunk of his time marinating in the blood, sweat and tears of Padres fandom. His restaurant is the site of pre-game happy hours and post-game parties (or post-mortems), and if the team is having a good night, the cheers from Petco make the Bub’s walls rattle. So…

The Showcase of the Immortals is finally here. The biggest stars in WWE will step onto the biggest stage in the sport Sunday in Orlando at Camping World Stadium, home of WrestleMania 33. The WrestleMania 33 main card will begin at 7:00 p.m. ET on the WWE Network. The kickoff show, which includes two matches, will begin at 5:00 p.m. ET. You can read our predictions for…

CLOSE x Embed x Share USA TODAY Sports’ Brant James previews the top storylines to watching heading into this weekend’s STP 500 at Martinsville USA TODAY Sports Kyle Busch, front, ran away with the 2016 STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway.(Photo: Michael Thomas Shroyer, USA TODAY Sports) It’s NASCAR race day at Martinsville Speedway, and we’ve got some essential information you need to get ready for Sunday’s STP 500. START TIME: Actor…

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“We stopped on the tarmac. The pilot announced the error. We were petrified about what might happen,” one of the delegation said later.  “He told us to stay seated, stay calm. A cabin steward popped the door open and we could see armed men in uniform facing the plane.”  With the aid of a translator, the pilot apologised profusely. The passengers were told to disembark while their luggage was inspected….