Fired official had legal woes

NASCAR cites character issues

The former racing official who has accused NASCAR of racial discrimination and sexual harassment in a $225 million lawsuit had a restraining order filed against her by a former boyfriend and was arrested for driving under the influence, The Associated Press has learned.

Mauricia Grant, who filed her suit against NASCAR in June, also was charged with driving with a suspended license while still employed as a technical inspector for NASCAR's second-tier Nationwide Series.

An attorney for Grant said his client did not refute anything in her past but said previous actions have no bearing on the suit that alleges 23 specific incidents of sexual harassment and 34 specific incidents of racial and gender discrimination. Grant claims her October 2007 firing was retaliation for complaining about the way she was treated on the job.

But NASCAR indicated Thursday her past actions are a reflection on Grant's character. and was granted a three-week extension on filing a response to her suit. The new deadline is today.

FISHER WILL RUN AT KENTUCKY: Sarah Fisher, the only female owner-driver in the IndyCar Racing Series, will compete Saturday in the Meijer 300 at Kentucky Speedway, her first start since a disastrous month of May, when two title sponsors backed out and she and husband Andy O'Gara poured their life savings into helping the team make the field for the Indy 500.

Fisher qualified 22nd, but Tony Kanaan spun into her halfway through the race, and she finished 30th.

Dollar General CEO Rick Dreiling, a racing fan, was moved by Fisher's story. The company has signed on to help sponsor Fisher this week and in the season-ending event at Chicago in September.

Dollar General could stay involved in 2009 if Fisher can recapture the form that made her one of the series' most popular drivers earlier in the decade.

INDYCAR TV PACKAGE: The Indianapolis 500 and four other IndyCar Series races will be televised by ABC Sports at least through 2012 in a contract extension announced Thursday by the Indy Racing League.

Also, the Versus cable channel, the home of the NHL, Davis Cup and Tour de France, will carry at least 13 IndyCar races annually for the next 10 years. The move to Versus means ESPN will no longer carry IRL races on its domestic channels.

CREWMAN IMPROVES: An injured American Le Mans Series crewman was upgraded to fair condition at an Indianapolis burn center as he recovers from burns suffered in a pit fire.

De Ferran Motorsports said Thursday that fueler Keith Jones is continuing to make good progress after he was critically burned during a race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course last month.