NASCAR Notebook: Truex wins Cup race at Kentucky

SPARTA, KY. — Martin Truex Jr. won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway, passing Brad Keselowski and then Kurt Busch on the way to repeating as champion on Saturday night.

Truex's No. 78 Toyota Camry appeared even more dominant than it was last July as he led 174 of 267 laps and swept the first two stages after starting on the pole. The defending Cup champion was always in contention in the 400-mile race, even while trailing. He became Kentucky's first repeat winner, earning his fourth victory this season and the 19th of his career.

Ryan Blaney was second and Keselowski was third, both in Fords, followed by Kyle Busch (Toyota) and Kevin Harvick (Ford).

Bell wins Xfinity race

Norman native Christopher Bell couldn't have started any worse in Friday night's NASCAR Xfinity Series race, which made his impressive victory all the more satisfying.

Bell rallied from the rear of the field after a tire change due to a spin during qualifying. He steadily worked his way up the field and passed Justin Allgaier with 17 laps remaining, then held off Daniel Hemric to win the 300-mile race at Kentucky Speedway.

"That was pretty cool, man," said Bell, after driving his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to his second victory this season.

Bell, who has three career victories in the Xfinity Series, moved within 17 points of co-leaders Elliott Sadler (12th) and Hemric. He trails third-place Cole Custer by 14.

Cup Series regular Kyle Busch (Toyota) led three times for a race-high 111 laps and won the first stage but finished third. Allgaier was fourth in a Chevrolet and pole winner Custer (Ford) fifth.

Allgaier led Bell by eight car lengths late on the 1.5-mile track and seemed in control before Bell and Hemric both got past him. Hemric closed the gap some but couldn't catch Bell, the 2017 Truck Series champion. The Xfinity rookie weaved through lapped traffic and went on to earn his first Kentucky victory by .848 seconds.

Earnhardt leads all-analyst booth in New Hampshire

NBC Sports is set to dump its play-by-play NASCAR announcer for an all-analyst lineup headlined by Dale Earnhardt Jr.

The network will use three analysts in the broadcast booth for next week's NASCAR Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Earnhardt, the 15-time most popular NASCAR driver, Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte will be the only broadcasters for the July 22 race at the Magic Mile.

Knaus signs extension as crew chief for Jimmie Johnson

Chad Knaus has signed a two-year contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports through 2020 to remain as crew chief for the No. 48 Chevrolet of seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson.

Knaus, who has worked with Johnson since 2002, said during a news conference Saturday at Kentucky Speedway that he signed the deal in the past couple of weeks. His current contract was set to expire after this season. He described his decision to stay as "pretty easy," even as the team seeks sponsors to replace home improvement chain Lowe's.

FROM WIRE REPORTS