Hamilton zooms back into F1 lead

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the French Grand Prix from pole position to retake the lead of the Formula One title race Sunday. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen crossed second and third to complete the podium at the Paul Ricard Circuit. Hamilton has 145 points after eight races. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who entered the race with a onepoint lead, trails by 14. Canada’s Lance Stroll finished 17th.

Josef Newgarden put in a lot of work to make his win at Road America look easy at Elkhart Lake, Wis. With no caution flags to slow him down, the Kohler Grand Prix pole-sitter led 53 of 55 laps, crossing the finish line with a 3.38-second cushion over second-place finisher Ryan Hunter-Reay for his third IndyCar Series win of the season. Toronto’s Robert Wickens was fifth, while James Hinchcliffe of Oakville, Ont., finished 10th. “We had our work cut out for us today,” Newgarden said. “We had to be perfect.” Points leader Scott Dixon finished third. Dixon moved to 393 points on the season to open a 45-point lead. Hunter-Reay moved up to second, tied with Alexander Rossi at 348 points.

Martin Truex Jr. won the NASCAR Cup Series race in Sonoma, Calif., using a clever pit strategy to cruise to his second career victory on the challenging road course. Truex easily held off Kevin Harvick for his second win in three weeks and his third victory of the season in his Furniture Row Racing Toyota. The defending Cup Series champion waited to pit until the 81st lap, a full eight laps later than Harvick. Truex and his crew chief Cole Pearn appeared to use a bit of trickery on the decision, bluffing an earlier move to the pits and enticing Harvick into pit lane instead. Truex’s victory in his manufacturer’s title race was the 18th of his career.