PAUL NEWBERRY
William Byron (24) reacts as he climbs out of his car in Victory Lane after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga., Sunday, March 20, 2022. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
William Byron wins wild NASCAR race at remodeled Atlanta

By Paul Newberry Mar. 20, 2022 07:48 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — William Byron had a freight train in his rearview mirror. A

Ty Gibbs leaps off his car as he celebrates his win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga., Saturday, March 19, 2022. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Ty Gibbs wins again in NASCAR Xfinity Series

By Paul Newberry Mar. 19, 2022 09:15 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Ty Gibbs pulled off a brilliant move after taking the white flag

Corey Heim poses with the trophy after winning a NASCAR trucks series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga., Saturday, March 19, 2022. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
19-year-old Corey Heim wins NASCAR Truck race at Atlanta

By Paul Newberry Mar. 19, 2022 05:32 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Nineteen-year-old Georgian Corey Heim raced to his first NASCAR

NASCAR Cup Series driver Brad Keselowski (6) prepares for practice for Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga., Saturday, March 19, 2022, (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Full-blown chaos: NASCAR preps for wild racing at Atlanta

By Paul Newberry Mar. 19, 2022 03:25 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Atlanta Motor Speedway billed its striking changes as a

Olga Tikhonova of Kazakhstan, crashes in her heat of the women's 1000-meters during the short track speedskating competition at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Column: No need for NASCAR, WWE with short track at Olympics

By Paul Newberry Feb. 11, 2022 03:13 AM EST
BEIJING (AP) — NASCAR and pro wrestling are not sports at the Winter Olympics.

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen, of the Netherlands, moves into a turn during a practice session for the F1 US Grand Prix auto race at Circuit of the Americas, Friday, Oct. 22, 2021, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Nick Didlick)
Column: F1 takes another run at conquering America

By Paul Newberry Oct. 22, 2021 04:51 PM EDT
Formula One has been down this road before. In the 1970s

FILE- In this Sept. 21, 2001, file photo, New York Mets catcher Mike Piazza wears the NYPD logo on his helmet as he takes the field in the top of the fifth inning against the Atlanta Braves in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
Column: 20 years after 9/11, sports reveals its limitations

By Paul Newberry Sep. 10, 2021 04:06 PM EDT
On that sunny morning two decades ago, in the hours and minutes and seconds

FILE- In this Feb. 17, 2019, file photo, Darrell Wallace Jr., right, prepares put on his HANS device equipped helmet before the start of the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. The lightweight head restraint co-invented by veteran sports car racer Jim Downing keeps a driver's head from snapping forward violently in a crash and has been credited with saving numerous lives in its two decades of use. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)
Column: Jim Downing, a sports hero we should never forget

By Paul Newberry Sep. 03, 2021 04:36 PM EDT
ATLANTA (AP) — There are sports heroes who roll off the tongue.

Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Keelan Doss (18) makes a catch against the Seattle Seahawks during the first half of an NFL preseason football game, Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Column: Sports should require fans be vaxxed - or stay home

By Paul Newberry Aug. 20, 2021 07:31 PM EDT
The Raiders have always prided themselves on being a maverick franchise, so

FILE - Janet Guthrie poses with a toy race car at a news conference in New York, in this April 6, 1978, file photo. Janet Guthrie is still astonished at all the fan mail that pours in from around the world. And she's honored to hear that Academy Award winner Hilary Swank wants to portray her in a movie. Forty-four years after her history making run at the Indianapolis 500, Guthrie's impact on the growth of female sports is certainly a legacy worth remembering. (AP Photo/Marty Lederhandler, File)
Column: Guthrie paved the way, still hoping more will follow

By Paul Newberry May. 07, 2021 03:03 PM EDT
All these years after her history making run at the Indianapolis 500, Janet

NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson, left, talks to the owner of the NASCAR team Hendrick Motorsports, Rick Hendrick, right, before a NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday, March 21, 2021, in Hampton, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Blaney wins at Atlanta after Larson fades on old tires

By Paul Newberry Mar. 21, 2021 07:14 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Ryan Blaney knew he had to let Kyle Larson go.

NASCAR driver Justin Allgaier celebrates after a win after a NASCAR Xfinity Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Saturday, March 20, 2021, in Hampton, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Allgaier holds off Truex to win Atlanta Xfinity race

By Paul Newberry Mar. 20, 2021 08:18 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Justin Allgaier snatched the lead after Martin Truex Jr.

Kevin Harvick makes a pit stop during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, March 7, 2021, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
NASCAR returns to its roots with 1st of 2 visits to Atlanta

By Paul Newberry Mar. 20, 2021 02:14 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — NASCAR is returning to its roots. Even

Empty stands are viewed during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Sunday, June 7, 2020, in Hampton, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Harvick cherishes Atlanta win, looks to help off the track

By Paul Newberry Jun. 07, 2020 07:43 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — After another dominant performance at one of his favorite

Chase Elliott (9), Aric Almirola (10) and Joey Logano (22) drive during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Sunday, June 7, 2020, in Hampton, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
NASCAR vows to do better job addressing racial injustice

By Paul Newberry Jun. 07, 2020 04:33 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Bubba Wallace donned a black T-shirt with the words “I Can

AJ Allmendinger celebrates after he won a NASCAR Xfinity Series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Saturday, June 6, 2020, in Hampton, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Oval master: Allmendinger wins on NASCAR oval for 1st time

By Paul Newberry Jun. 06, 2020 07:27 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — A.J. Allmendinger finally won on an oval.

Enfinger takes advantage of late caution to win Trucks race

By Paul Newberry Jun. 06, 2020 04:08 PM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Taking advantage of a late caution, Grant Enfinger passed

FILE - In this Oct. 28, 2006, file photo, Chase Miller slides his Dodge past an old Georgia flag and a Confederate stars on bars flag during running of a NASCAR Truck series auto race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga. NASCAR has a checkered racial history, from a long-time affinity for Confederate flags among the fan base to a driver losing his job just this season for casually uttering a racial epitaph. (AP Photo/Craig Hellman, File)
NASCAR looks to steer clear of protests over George Floyd

By Paul Newberry Jun. 06, 2020 11:13 AM EDT
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — NASCAR has a checkered racial history.

FILE - At left, in a Dec. 6, 2019, file photo, Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton attends a press conference in Paris. At center, in a June 24, 2019, file photo, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar arrives at NBA Awards ceremonies in Santa Monica, Calif. At right, in an Aug. 16, 2019, file photo, Phoenix Mercury WNBA basketball player Brianna Turner is shown during a game in Phoenix. A column is normally a spot for pontificating, to speak bluntly on the issues of the day and receive a gamut of feedback, from effusive praise to slanderous insults. Not this time. Now's the time for those of us in the privileged class to listen, really listen to what African-Americans and people of color around the world are expressing in the wake of George Floyd's brutal, senseless death. (AP Photo/File)
Column: Shut up and dribble? No way. It's time to listen

By Paul Newberry Jun. 05, 2020 03:42 PM EDT
A column is normally a spot for pontificating, to speak bluntly on the issues

FILE - In this April 11, 2004, file photo, Phil Mickelson celebrates after winning the Masters golf tournament with a nine-under-par at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Ga. Augusta National decided Friday, March 13, 2020, to postpone the Masters because of the spread of the coronavirus. Club chairman Fred Ridley says he hopes postponing the event puts Augusta National in the best position to host the Masters and its other two events at some later date. Ridley did not say when it would be held. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File)
Column: Say no to bizarre ideas to get sports going again

Paul Newberry Apr. 01, 2020 02:10 PM EDT
The NBA playoffs on cruise ships? Tiger vs. Lefty, The