NASCAR

Furniture Row Racing announced Friday it has bought out the contract of driver Joe Nemechek. The racing organization recently made known it would field a Sprint Cup Series team on a limited schedule in 2009.

Roush Fenway Racing announced Thursday it has signed Matt Kenseth to a multi-year contract extension. Kenseth, the 2003 Cup Series champion, has been with the racing organization since 1998.

Days after capturing his third-consecutive Sprint Cup Series championship, Jimmie Johnson has returned to his home in North Carolina to relax and allow his record-tying accomplishment to finally sink in. Johnson, who finished 15th in last Sunday's season-ending race at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, matched Cale Yarborough's 30-year-old record of three titles in a row.

Yates Racing announced Tuesday that Paul Menard will drive the No.98 Ford for the team during the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

After capturing his third-consecutive Sprint Cup Series championship Sunday at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, Jimmie Johnson and his No.48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet crew have not only established themselves as one of the greatest teams in NASCAR, but as the latest in a string of professional sports dynasties.

Carl Edwards dominated Sunday's season-ending Ford 400, but Jimmie Johnson was the "tropic" of conversation at the Homestead-Miami Speedway as he drove into NASCAR's record books with his record-tying third consecutive Sprint Cup Series championship. Johnson finished 15th to join Cale Yarborough as the only drivers in NASCAR's 60-year history that have won three titles in a row. Yarborough accomplished the feat from 1976-78.

David Reutimann recorded his first career pole in the Sprint Cup Series by taking the top starting spot in Friday's qualifying for the Ford 400 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway. Reutimann, the driver of the No.44 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing and a native of Zephyrhills, FL, rounded the 1.5-mile oval in 31.462 seconds (171.636 m.p.h.).

In an effort to cut costs for teams, NASCAR announced it will suspend testing at its sanctioned tracks for its three national touring and two regional racing series during the 2009 season.

All three of NASCAR's national touring series championships will be decided this weekend in South Florida. While Jimmie Johnson is on the verge of capturing his record-tying third-straight Sprint Cup Series title, the best race will likely be the Craftsman Truck Series, featuring the close points battle between Johnny Benson and Ron Hornaday, Jr.

With the second-to-last race in the "Chase for the Sprint Cup" reaching its climactic point and Jimmie Johnson on the verge of clinching his record-tying third consecutive series championship, viewers in the Eastern and Central time zones were stunned to see the remaining 34 laps of Sunday's Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway switched from ABC to ESPN2.