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Show cs DAILY HERA ID Monday. May H 2007 NFL NOTEBOOK AUTO RACING Hendrick domination continues Gordon overcomes late car troubles to pick up victory at Darlington Jenna Fryer ASSOCIATED PRESS THE As DARLINGTON, S.C. steam poured from his engine, Jeff Gordon figured his chance at victory had gone up in smoke. Any other season, it would have. But in this year of for Hendrick nothing ever goes wrong. J FILE Associated Press frustration over the Packers not trying to pick up former Oakland receiver Randy Moss, who was traded to New England on draft weekend Green Bay quarterback Brett Fawre has voiced , And Denny Hamlin is pretty sick of it. Gordon overcame an overhe said with heating engine five laps to go there was no way he'd make it to the finish to race to his third victory of the season Sunday at Darlington Raceway. Hendrick has won four straight races, eight of nine overall, and remained perfect in the five Car of Tomorrow events. "I can't believe that thing lasted," Gordon said of his motor, which had thick steam streaming out of it for the last hour of the race. "There's no way that thing should have ever made tt." When it did even though Gordon gambled and didn't make a final pit stop when most of the field did with 23 laps to go Gordon won for the third time in four races and lead maintained a over Jimmie Johnson in the Nextel Cup standings. "That's the way you win races right there," said Gordon, a seven-tim- e Darlington winner. "What an amazing year we're having." One that Hamlin was a little bitter about after his second-plac- e finish. Hamlin, who led a race-hig- h 179 laps, suffered when his crew dropped a pair of lug nuts on a late pit stop. It cost him a shot at running for the win, and he has finished second or third in four COT races. It was extremely frustrating for Hamlin, who has led a series-hig- h 563 laps in the five races the car has been used. "We gave away another one 231-poi- to Hendrick Motorsports," Hamlin said. "It's a shame. This has got to end. We have to win a race sooner or later. Evervjjtgpi vjDftaTk about how Hendrick won another race," but this was our race." Hamlin was also critical of NASCAR for not caffing a caution for obvious debris in the Packers' Moss miss leaves Favre fuming, but does he want out? THE ASSOCIATED PATRICK Mike Harris ASSOCIATED PRESS two-tim- 2.5-mil- e p MILWAUKEE The Green Bay Packers left Brett Favre fuming when they didn't pull off a trade for wide receiver Randy Moss during the NFL draft. MVP But was the three-tim- e angry enough to ask his way out of Green Bay? Amid public grousing from Favre about the state of his team over the weekend, a report on the Fox Sports Web site, citing anonymous sources, said Favre's agent called Packers general manager Ted Thompson to request a trade a few days after last month's draft. According to the report, Packers coach Mike McCarthy later called the quarterback and was able to calm his anger, getting Favre to admit that he didn't really want to play elsewhere. In a statement posted on the Packers' Web site, Thompson said he would not address the specifics of the report but understood the frustration Favre vented in interviews over the weekend. "I think it's natural for a player to be frustrated from time to time that's simply being human," Thompson said. "Everyone knows that Brett Favre is all about winning. As an organization, we share that commitment. And we want to winnow." Other Packers officials and Favre's agent, James "Bus" Cook, did not return telephone messages from The Associated Press on Sunday. The Packers' mandatory minicamp begins Friday, and it' was not clear whether Favre, who had surgery to remove bone spurs from his left ankle in late February, would attend. McCarthy said during the team's rookie orientation last weekend that he expected Favre to be present, even if he wasn't able to practice while he continues to recover from the surgery. Favre didnt mention anything about wanting a trade in interviews he conducted during his annual charity golf tournament in Tunica, Miss, on Saturday. But Favre did make it clear that he believed the Packers passed on a chance to make "a steal" of a deal for Moss, who instead was traded from Oakland to New England April 29. "He was going to wipe his contract clean and sign for $3 million guaranteed, phis a fourth-roundraft pick. That would have been a steal" Favre told the Biloxi (Miss.) "But we were not willing to guarantee part of that $3 million. I even had (Cook) call up there and tell them I would give up part of my salary to guarantee that part of the money. Apparently that wasn't enough either." Favre, who has flirted with retirement during the past several offseasons, told the team in car during the NASCAR Nextel Cup Dodge Avenger 500 on Sunday at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, S.C. was going to come out. And of course, if caution comes out, its game over. Instead, Hendrick gets another break." Even Gordon admitted that NASCAR should have thrown a yellow. But he didn't complain because he believed a debris caution with 17 to go when Gordon had a huge birth. "It was fantastic to just think that here in about six or seven weeks, she is going to be a mother," Gordon said. "She had a little tear in her eye, definitely her emotions and the hormones are flowing right now. "She knew, too, that this was bogus. lead was her last weekend to travel "There absolutely should before she has the baby, so I think that meant a lot to her to have been a caution there at be able to pull that off before the end but there shouldn't she's stuck at home for a little have been one before it," Gorwhile." don said. "There at the end debris, oil, everything you Johnson, last week's winner, finished third for Hendrick. can imagine was on that race track and that comes Ryan Newman was fourth, back to the inconsistency. I am followed by Carl Edwards and glad they didn't throw it at the MattKenseth. Dale Earnhardt Jr. capped end, but I didn't understand a frenzied week that began why they threw it earlier. "It can work with you or when he said he's leaving DEI PATRICK COLLARDAssociated Press at the end of the season by finagainst you. Today it worked Jeff Gordon is showered with for us." ishing eighth. Rain washed out the race But Earnhardt said strong soft drinks by his crew as support from his crew kept they celebrate his win in the Saturday night and it was reNASCAR Nextel Cup Dodge scheduled for Sunday, making everyone focused. it the first NASCAR race run "My guys said, 'We're beAvenger 500 on Sunday. hind you,' and that took it all on Mother's Day since 1986. Although Gordon's mother left away," he said. "We focused the track when it appeared his on the car, we drove the car closing laps. Had the yellow and we had a good time this motor wouldn't last, he was flag waved, Hamlin was confident he would have beaten still able to celebrate the win weekend. I had no pressure, Gordoit" with his pregnant bride: : r nothing,, really on my mind ' Gordon and wife Ingrid other than what we were sup"SontebodyVehtire fender and underbody was on the Vandebosch are expecting posed to be doing. "I was surprised. I thought race track," Hamlin said. "I their first child a daughter it would be a little more of a at the end of June and this literally pumped my fist in the car 'cause I knew a caution distraction." was her last race before the fi 0 " out of the field with a run of 221.070 just 30 minutes from the end of the session. Herb was then bounced out of the field for the second time Sunday by 1996 Indy winner Buddy Lazier, who bumped his way back into the lineup by improving his speed from 220.452 six-ho- INDIANAPOLIS Once, Al Unser Jr. was the guy to beat at Indy. Now, he's just one of the drivers trying to find a way into the lineup, e x The Indianapolis 500 winner was bumped from the tentative field on Sunday, the second of four days of qualifications for the May 27 race. Unser qualified during an early flurry of activity on the oval, posting a four-laaverage of 220.963 mph that left him vulnerable to being bumped out under the new procedure that limits the number of qualifiers during each of the first three days of time trials to 11. He spent a nervous couple of hours before John Herb, who finished 27th in 2001 in his only Indy start, knocked Unser Press Jeff Gordon's pit crew services his Little Al is far from the big-tiTHE COLLARDAssociated to 221.380. That left Lazier "on the bubble" as the 22nd and slowest driver in the partial lineup. Jaques Lazier, got out just before the final gun in an effort to bump his older brother, but pulled back onto pit road after one lap at just over 220. It was a sad day for Unser, who left the track without comment after his speed was bumped. Unser is part of one of American open-wheracing's royal families, an Albuquerque, N.M., clan that has been an integral part of Indy for decades. me these days at Indy His father, Al Sr., won the big race four times. Uncle Bobby won it twice. Uncle Jerry died in a crash on the historic e oval while practicing for the 1959 race. Little Al's cousins, Robby and Johnny Unser, have also raced at Indy, as has Unser Jr.'s son, Al III, although the latter has run only in the developmental Indy Pro Series so far. Unser Jr. is 45 years old now and has driven only one race since 2004. last year's Indy In recent years, he has become better known for his trouble off the track than his success on it. In 2002, Unser underwent treatment for alcohol abuse after his girlfriend said he hit her in the face while drunk in Indianapolis. Prosecutors did not file charges. Then there was a January crash in Henderson, Nev. He faces a July 1 1 trial after 2.5-mil- pleading not guilty to charges including driving under the influence, misdemeanor hit and run, failure to render aid in an accident and failure to report an accident. Just when things seemed darkest for Little Al, though, A.J. Foyt, celebrating his 50th year in racing and a longtime Unser friend, offered him a ride at Indy. Foyt's team, with Englishman Darren Manning his e driver in this year's IndyCar Series, has not had much success in recent years. But Unser was thrilled with the opportunity. "He helped my dad get going in 1965, and now there's another Unser driving for A.J," Unser Jr. said. "I couldn't be more proud." He has worked his way up to speed slowly this week and his single qualifying effort on Sunday was far from the 225.817 Helio Castro-neveby the fastest of 11 first-daqualifiers. full-tim- d s, pole-winn- er PRESS y "He was going to wipe his contract clean and sign for $3 million guaranteed, plus a fourth-roun- d draft pick. That would have been a steal." Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre On Randy Moss, who was traded to New England February that he would return for his 17th NFL seasoa I Tank Johnson released from jail: At Chicago, Bears defensive tackle Tank Johnson was released from jail Sunday after spending two months behind bars for violating parole in a 2005 weapons case. Wearing a red baseball cap Johnson and white walked out of Cook County Jail smiling broadly. He did not speak to reporters before getting into a sports utility vehicle and leaving. He was released on good behavior after serving half his sentence. The player is to have a hearing with NFL commisv sioner Roger Goodell on Wednesday in New York and could four-mont- h f r x sus- pension by the league. Johnson's Tank Johnson jailing in March stemmed from a Dec. 14 police raid on his Gurnee home, where authorities found six unregistered firearms. Johnson pleaded guilty last month to a misdemeanor weapons charge as part of a deal with prosecutors that kept him from serving more time in jafl. He was ordered to serve 45 days, which he was able to serve concurrently with the sentence for violating his probation. At the time of the December raid, Johnson was on probation in a November 2005 Cook County case. In that case, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge stemming from an arrest in which a nightclub valet reported seeing Johnson with a handgun in his SUV. Johnson's bodyguard, Willie B. Posey, was arrested on felony drug charges after the raid on Johnson's home. Posey was shot and killed two days later during an early rnorning fight while he and Johnson were at a nightclub in Chicago. Trie Bears suspended Johnson for one game for being at the club. JM5zftM r itt cts.rq A Y CG la ' I 'r offMSRP r C 260 E. 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