Bourdais goes wire to wire at Road America

Autoracing Betting Lines

08/12/2007 - Elkhart Lake, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sebastien Bourdais led 51 of 53 laps and won Sunday's Generac Grand Prix on the historic Road America road course. The No.1 Newman/Haas/Lanigan driver crossed the finish line 9.751 seconds ahead of Dan Clarke.

The victory was Bourdais' series-leading fifth of the season and 28th of his Champ Car career.

"It was a great result for the team," said Bourdais. "Graham (Rahal) was on the podium too, it couldn't be any happier for the team owners."

Bourdais brought the field to the green flag to begin the race. But the excitement was behind him where Bruno Junqueira jumped the start, grabbed the third position behind Bourdais and Robert Doornbos, only to be penalized for his illegal start.

On lap 14 the three leaders, Bourdais, Doornbos and Graham Rahal all pitted yielding the lead to Clarke. Clarke made his stop two laps later and fell in line in fourth behind the three early leaders.

With one hour still to race, Bourdais held 2.238 seconds on Doornbos, who also was second to the Frenchman in the series championship.

The top four remained in line as the field passed the 22-lap mark. Then Rahal flew around Doornbos for second and his Clarke also quickly came up on his teammate.

Was something wrong with the No.14?

Clarke made the pass of Doornbos, but in the process knocked off his teammate's front wing. Doornbos was 14th when his pit crew repaired the damage and got him back out in the race.

With 30 minutes to go, Doornbos was still mired in 13th place and with Bourdais holding a five-second lead looked to take a big hit in his title hopes.

Bourdais was still cruising with his Newman/Haas/Lanigan teammate Rahal protecting him in second place. On lap 41 with 20 minutes left, Bourdais made his final stop of the day holding an eight-second lead. After everyone had cycled through, Bourdais' lead was 7.816 seconds, but Clarke had gotten around Rahal for second.

Clarke cut the lead at one point to 5.648 seconds with just under seven minutes to go, but to no avail. Bourdais got his first win at the historic Elkhart Lake track and the 28th of his career.

Rahal, Oriol Servia and Alex Tagliani completed the top-five.

The next race in the series is set for Sunday, August 26th in Belgium.

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El Duque expected to throw Tuesday

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.

Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.

El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.

MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds. 

Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.

New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.

Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''

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