LOUDON, N.H. ? Ryan Newman’s determination and a convenient rainstorm made him a winner Sunday for the first time in his Winston Cup career.

Newman barely held off Kurt Busch to take the rain-shortened New Hampshire 300.

“This meant so much to me, but not just because I won,” Newman said, alluding to the startup crew that has helped him to stardom as a rookie. “It was just awesome for the team.

“We’ve been looking forward to it all year, and it finally came in Loudon.”

But for the third incursion of the day, when rain assured his victory, Newman might have been talking about still another second-place finish.

Lap after lap, Busch drew up to Newman’s bumper, barley tapping him once.

But a caution for rain waved on lap 199, ending the chase. After seven more laps, NASCAR ended the race.

“It was a great race,” said Busch, with Newman among the youthful chargers beginning to have a major impact in NASCAR.

Newman might have been moved aside by Busch, whom he praised for his tactics.

“He just raced me clean, and I appreciate it,” Newman said.

The win followed consecutive second-place finishes for the 24-year-old driver. It also further established him as one of the top drivers in NASCAR.

Newman has eight top-five finishes in his last 10 starts, and a series-leading 13 in 27 races. He had five second-place finishes before breaking through in his 35th career start.

It was the first points-paying victory for the former USAC open-wheel champion from South Bend, Ind. In May, he won The Winston, NASCAR’s all-star race.

Hornish claims Chevy 500, second straight IRL title

Fort Worth, Texas Sam Hornish Jr. won another incredible race at Texas Motor Speedway, and his second straight IRL title.

Hornish went side-by-side with Helio Castroneves for many of the last 25 laps in the season-ending Chevy 500, crossing the finish line 0.0096 seconds only a few inches ahead of the only other driver in contention for the season championship.

Officially, Hornish and Castroneves traded the lead six times over the final 35 laps. But they stayed beside each other, almost touching several times, before the second closest IRL finish.

Hornish won his IRL-record fifth race of the season, and the 23-year-old Pennzoil Panther racer became the first driver to win two IRL championships.

Hornish overtook Castroneves for the points lead when he beat Al Unser Jr. by 0.0024 seconds the closest IRL finish ever at Chicagoland Speedway a week earlier. Hornish finished with 531 points, 20 ahead of Castroneves.

Barrichello, Schumacher finish 1-2 in Italian GP

Monza, Italy Rubens Barrichello led Ferrari teammate Michael Schumacher across the finish line in the Italian Grand Prix, setting off a celebration by the home fans.

Barrichello won his third race of the season, and Ferrari claimed its 13th victory in 15 races. Schumacher, the five-time Formula One champion and 10-time winner this season, reached the podium for the 15th consecutive race.

Barrichello slowed down on the final lap to allow his teammate to catch up and set up a parade of red Ferraris at the finish line. Britain’s Eddie Irvine was third in a Jaguar, 52.5 seconds back.