Burton Wins, Earnhardt Closes In

Ward Burton celebrated his first Winston Cup victory, and Dale Earnhardt drew ever closer to Jeff Gordon in their championship duel.

With NASCAR correcting its own error during a confusing late-race caution period, Earnhardt sliced 43 points off Gordon’s series lead and is 162 points down with two races remaining.

In the 400-mile race at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham, N.C., Burton led three times for 87 laps, including the final 60. He won in his 53rd career start, also giving Bill Davis Racing its first Winston Cup win in only his eighth start for that team.

Michael Schumacher won his second consecutive Formula One championship, getting a victory in the Pacific Grand Prix in Aida, Japan.

Schumacher, who needed no better than a fourth-place finish in any of the final three races, overcame Damon Hill’s blocking to win his second championship.