NASCAR’s championship weekend shrouded in off-track drama from lawsuit to alleged race manipulation

AVONDALE, Ariz. (AP) — NASCAR heads into its championship weekend locked into a federal antitrust lawsuit with NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan. Its officiating has been under months-long scrutiny, and this week it issued a wave of hefty fines for alleged race manipulation in the final playoff qualifier. Other than that? Three champions will be crowned starting Friday at Phoenix Raceway. But those national series races have become a sideshow to the off-track drama that has engulfed NASCAR the last several months. Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Joey Logano and Tyler Reddick will race for the championship Sunday.