Elliott Sadler, left, hits the wall in turn 3 on Sunday during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Ga.

Hampton, Ga. — Tony Stewart raced to his first victory of the year, pulling away from Carl Edwards off the final restart Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Stewart beat Edwards by 1.316 seconds for his first victory since Oct. 4, 2009, at Kansas, leaving Edwards winless since the 2008 season finale.

Jimmie Johnson was third, followed by Jeff Burton and Kyle Busch.

Ten drivers have now clinched spots in the 12-man Chase for the Sprint Cup championship going into the final race before the playoff begins, led by points leader Kevin Harvick.

The final caution of the night came out after Ryan Newman made contact with Kasey Kahne, nearly causing a crash on the backstretch.

Stewart was out front when the green came back out with 19 laps to go, and he zoomed off the line to beat Edwards into the first corner. From there, the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevy steadily pulled away.

“I didn’t hit a restart all night until right there at the end,” Stewart said. “I’ve never been so happy with a win in my life.”

MLB

Rangers’ Hamilton unsure of return

Minneapolis — AL batting leader Josh Hamilton isn’t sure when his rib injury will heal enough for him to rejoin the lineup of the AL West-leading Texas Rangers.

“I have no clue when I’ll be back,” he said Sunday. “I really don’t. Your guess is as good as mine.”

Hamilton ran into the left-field wall at Minnesota on Saturday and bruised his ribs. He said all he can do for now is apply ice and hope he feels better.

Texas being cautious with ace Lee

Minneapolis — The Texas Rangers will take a cautious approach with pitcher Cliff Lee, and he will not make his scheduled start Tuesday at Toronto because of a sore back.

Mets’ Santana to miss start

Chicago — New York Mets ace left-hander Johan Santana will miss his next scheduled start because of a strained left pectoral muscle.

Golf

Day leads by 1 at Deutsche

Norton, Mass. — Jason Day capped off an exciting day with a routine birdie to take the lead Sunday in the Deutsche Bank Championship, setting up a Labor Day finish today with all sorts of possibilities.

Day watched a three-shot lead evaporate in two holes, only to get it back on the par-5 18th with a shot just off the back of the green, leaving him a simple two-putt for birdie and a 5-under 66. He had a one-shot lead over Brandt Snedeker, who made a mess of the 18th until chipping in for par and a 67.

Schulz claims first Champions win

Pebble Beach, Calif. — Ted Schulz won the First Tee Open on Sunday for his first Champions Tour title, holing a 12-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole at Pebble Beach en route to a 2-under 70 and a one-stroke victory over Tom Pernice Jr.

Kisner tops at Mylan Classic

Canonsburg, Pa. — Former Georgia player Kevin Kisner won the inaugural Mylan Classic for his first Nationwide Tour title, closing with a bogey-free 4-under 67 on Sunday for a one-stroke victory over Geoffrey Sisk.

NFL

Jets release fullback Richardson

New York — The Jets are running out of locker-room leaders on offense.

Veteran fullback Tony Richardson was released by New York on Sunday, the most surprising of a series of roster moves a day after the team got down to the mandatory 53-player limit. The Jets also waived wide receiver David Clowney and running back Chauncey Washington.

Cuts have union examining trades

Washington — Three of the four rookies involved in curiously timed trades have now been cut, prompting the NFL players’ union to continue looking into whether the deals were made to avoid paying money into a special player pool, a person familiar with the situation told the Associated Press on Sunday.

The person, speaking on condition of anonymity because the union has not made the probes public, said the developments over the weekend only served to reinforce the NFL Players Association’s review of last week’s trades by the Washington Redskins, St. Louis Rams, Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals.

Dolphins place CB Allen on IR

Davie, Fla. — Miami Dolphins cornerback Will Allen was placed on injured reserve Sunday, ending any hope the 10th-year player had of returning from mid-August knee surgery in a move that removes the most seasoned player from a young secondary.

Chiefs trade Page, release 13

Kansas City, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs traded safety Jarrad Page to the New England Patriots and released 13 players, including quarterback Tyler Palko.

They also placed cornerback Maurice Leggett and wide receiver Jerheme Urban on injured reserve.

Also released were guard Colin Brown, defensive tackles Garrett Brown, Dion Gales, and Derek Lokey, tackle Bobby Greenwood, guard Darryl Harris, linebackers Pierre Walters and David Herron, safeties DaJuan Morgan and Ricky Price, wide receiver Verran Tucker and running back Javarris Williams.