FORT WORTH, Texas

Jeff Gordon admits he was one of the drivers who went to NASCAR last week at Talladega complaining about the bump-drafting but said the rule change didn't impact the race.

FORT WORTH, Texas Ryan Newman continues to insist that to limit the chance of drivers going airborne, the car NASCAR uses in Sprint Cup needs to be changed before the series returns to Talladega next April.

A NASCAR official criticized ABC's broadcast of Sunday's Talladega race, stating in a blog that the network "missed a lot of very good racing." ABC defended its coverage in a statement Tuesday, saying: "We feel we had a strong telecast." Ramsey Poston, NASCAR's managing director of corporate communications, didn't see it that way.

Let 'em race. That seems to be the mantra from fans on Internet message boards, comment sections and even Twitter. A short, simple declaration to NASCAR after what fans saw in Sunday's race at Talladega Superspeedway.

TALLADEGA, Ala. Jimmie Johnson moved closer to a record-breaking fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup title Sunday as a last-lap crash collected his two nearest rivals.

Talladega, Ala. Ryan Newman does not want to be a daredevil, but when it comes to restrictor-plate racing, he's gone airborne about as often as a circus performer shot out of a cannon. There, it's OK. The rocket man lands in a net, waves to the crowd and waits to perform the next night. At Talladega, no one knows where a driver will go or how many times he'll roll.

VIRGINIA BEACH Marte Baro looked down at the catch lying on his driveway. A handful of speckled trout glistened in the late afternoon light, but there was no shine that could compare to the one on Baro's face. The Suffolk firefighter who lives in Virginia Beach had caught his biggest Rudee Inlet speckled trout.

TALLADEGA, Ala. Racing will return to North Wilkesboro Speedway next year with the USARacing Pro Cup Series announcing it will run there on Oct. 3, 2010. North Wilkesboro hosted NASCAR races from 1949-96. Jeff Gordon won the final Cup race there on Sept. 29, 1996.

TALLADEGA, Ala. The Native American medicine man prayed. He burned ceremonial offerings and asked that balance be restored to Talladega Superspeedway, a place where drivers race on an edge so sharp, disaster is a constant companion.

TALLADEGA, Ala. | AJ Allmendinger, arrested early Thursday on a charge of driving while intoxicated, said he had to take a Breathalyzer test for NASCAR before he could practice Friday at Talladega Superspeedway.