Dixon wins pothole-plagued race

DETROIT – Scott Dixon won Indycar’s Detroit Grand Prix that was marred by poor track conditions that stopped the race for a little more than two hours on Sunday.

A red flag halted the event 45 laps into a race that was scheduled for 90 laps and shortened to 60.

Belle Isle’s 3.3-kilometre road course that hadn’t hosted a race since 2008 had chunks of asphalt and concrete missing. Potholes and grooves that were recently filled with tar became exposed. Crews filled the gaps with epoxy that settled enough for the race to resume.

The sprint to the finish was stunted by a caution flag because light rain made a slick track even more slippery.

The first sign of trouble with the track came when Canadian James Hinchcliffe lost control because of a huge divot in the road and ran into a tire barrier when he was on Lap 39.

Johnson wins again at Dover

DOVER, DEL. – Jimmie Johnson romped again at Dover International Speedway, racing his way into the track’s history books on Sunday with his seventh win on the concrete, matching the mark held by Hall of Fame drivers Richard Petty and Bobby Allison.

No active driver owns the track like the five-time Sprint Cup champion. Johnson led 289 of the 400 laps and looked every bit like the driver who swept the two Cup races at Dover in 2002 and 2009. Johnson last won at Dover on Sept. 26, 2010. He also won the September 2005 race.

“God, I love this place,” Johnson said.

Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Clint Bowyer rounded out the top five.

Johnson’s win came about 600 km after a massive 13-car accident ended weeks of mostly accident-free races and took out defending Cup champion Tony Stewart. Stewart finished 25th.

Protest fears nix F1 open house

MONTREAL – Protester threats in Montreal have forced organizers of the Canadian Grand Prix to cancel the free opening day of the event.

Formula One fans were to have had access to Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve at the open house event Thursday.