NASCAR team owner Chip Ganassi shut down Dario Franchitti's race team yesterday because of a lack of sponsorship, putting the former IndyCar Series champion's future in doubt.

Franchitti, the 2007 Indianapolis 500 winner and series champion, has struggled in his first NASCAR season driving Ganassi's No. 40 Dodge. He ranks 41st in the driver standings, failed to qualify for races in Texas and Sonoma, and missed five with a broken ankle he suffered in a Nationwide Series crash at Talladega.

The poor performance came as Ganassi has searched all season for a sponsor for his third NASCAR team. Longtime sponsor Coors Light left at the end of last season, and Ganassi was unable to secure funding despite releasing David Stremme for the more marketable Franchitti.

“If I keep going I run the risk of dragging the other two teams down. I don't want to do that,” Ganassi told the Associated Press.

MORE MOTORSPORTS

Dale Earnhardt Inc. will use Aric Almirola full time next season in a promotion that will free driver Mark Martin to move to Hendrick Motorsports next season.
NCAA

Officials from Florida State expect to appear in Indianapolis on Oct. 18 before the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions for a hearing relating to the university's pending academic fraud case. The incentive package from his previous agreement, a maximum of $235,000, is retained in the new contract.

 Duquesne University AD Greg Amodio signed a five-year extension that extends his contract through the 2013-14 academic year.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

UCLA coach Ben Howland, who has guided the Bruins to the Final Four each of the past three years, agreed to a new seven-year contract with the university. The deal, which adds one year onto the agreement he signed last October, runs through the 2014-15 season and includes a guaranteed $1.97 million for next season, rising to $2.3 million in the final year of the contract.

SOCCER

Ivan Trujillo scored twice and the Kansas City Wizards beat the second-tier Carolina RailHawks 4-2 in extra time in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup in Cary, N.C. . . . Mike Banner scored two goals to help the Chicago Fire outclass the third-tier Cleveland City Stars with a 4-1 win in round three in Ridgeview, Ill. . . . Sam Brill, Joe Germanese and Taylor Twellman scored second-half goals to help the New England Revolution beat the Richmond Kickers 3-0 in a rain-delayed third-round game in New Britain, Conn. . . . Defender Marc Burch scored twice and D.C. United beat the second-tier Rochester Rhinos 2-0 in the third round in Gaithersburg, Md.

SPORTS AND DRUGS

A scientist involved in a study questioning the validity of testing for the performance-enhancing drug EPO is calling for the paper to be retracted.

“It's absolutely non-scientific,” said Wilhelm Schanzer, director of the Laboratory for Doping Analysis in Cologne, Germany, which is accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

The study was published last week in the Journal of Applied Physiology. Carsten Lundby and colleagues of the Copenhagen Muscle Research Center in Denmark gave the oxygen-boosting hormone EPO to eight college students who were not athletes. They collected samples which were tested by two labs, including the German lab.

Lundby and colleagues concluded the two labs had contradictory results, and that athletes theoretically could take EPO without being caught.

Schanzer said yesterday the Danish authors misinterpreted his results, and that because his lab and the other lab used different reporting criteria, their results could not be compared.

CRIME AND COURTS

A judge has declared a mistrial in the assault case of former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry.

  The Wynn Las Vegas casino said it is dropping a lawsuit against Alonzo Mourning Charities Inc. because a $50,000 debt has been paid in full for a convention bill from 2007 All-Star Week.

NHL

The Washington Capitals re-signed defenseman Mike Green to a four-year, $21 million contract.

Green, 22, led the NHL in goals among defensemen with 18 goals last season, his second full season in the league. He was rewarded with a four-year, $21 million contract.

Washington also added free agent Jose Theodore, signing the former Montreal and Colorado goalie to a two-year, $9 million contract.

 The Los Angeles Kings acquired veteran defenseman Denis Gauthier and a second-round pick in the 2010 draft from the Philadelphia Flyers for defenseman Patrik Hersley and forward Ned Lukacevic.

 Anaheim signed Corey Perry, its second-leading scorer to a five-year, $26.6 million contract.

 The Florida Panthers signed forward Cory Stillman to a three-year, $10.6 million deal.

 The Columbus Blue Jackets acquired winger Raffi Torres from the Edmonton Oilers for promising center Gilbert Brule.

 The Carolina Hurricanes traded forward Erik Cole to the Edmonton Oilers for defenseman Joni Pitkanen.

WNBA

Shameka Christon scored a career-high 28 points and the New York Liberty (8-7) rallied for an 89-78 victory over the host Los Angeles Sparks. Candace Parker had 18 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks, three assists and three steals for the Sparks (10-5)  . . Diana Taurasi scored 28 points and the visiting Phoenix Mercury used a strong second quarter to beat the winless Atlanta Dream 97-79.

  Lindsay Whalen had nine assists to set Connecticut's career record and scored 14 points to help the host Sun overcome a 14-point deficit to beat the Houston Comets 78-68.

 Candice Dupree had 26 points and 10 rebounds to lead visiting Chicago 73-71 over the Minnesota Lynx. Rookie Candice Wiggins had 17 points to lead Minnesota . . . Becky Hammon had 19 points, 10 in overtime, and Sophia Young added 27 to lead the host San Antonio Silver Stars 79-72 over the Shock.

  Ticha Penicheiro hit back-to-back shots in the final 1:30 to help the host Sacramento Monarchs hold off the Washington Mystics 87-81.

WATER POLO

Three San Diego-area players have been selected to play on the U.S. men's and women's Olympic water polo teams in Beijing. Coronado High grads Layne Beaubien and Jesse Smith – who were on the team in Athens in 2004 – are on the men's squad; Moriah van Norman, who graduated from USDHS, is on the women's team.

DEATH

John Pont, who guided Indiana to its only Rose Bowl appearance 40 years ago and also coached at Northwestern, Yale and Miami of Ohio, died yesterday. He was 80.

– FROM NEWS SERVICES