Kurt Busch was running out front with three laps to go when things really got interesting.

First, a frightening crash that seemed intentional between two feuding drivers.

Then, another spinning, slamming melee before the white flag came out.

"We've got to win this race three times, maybe even four times," a frustrated Busch said on his radio.

Not to worry. Busch survived a couple of overtime restarts and 16 extra laps to win again yesterday at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, a race marred by accusations that Carl Edwards purposely wrecked Brad Keselowski's car, sending it hurtling toward the main stands upside down.

Busch won the spring race at the 1.54-mile trioval for the second year in a row, beating Matt Kenseth to the line by nearly half a second in the Kobalt Tools 500. Juan Pablo Montoya was third, followed by Kasey Kahne and Paul Menard.

The race went 341 laps instead of its scheduled 325 because of two big crashes near the end.

Edwards clipped Keselowski and caused his car to spin, then lift into the air at around 190 mph. It smashed into the barrier in front of the stands roof-first, then flipped back onto the track right side up. Keselowski was OK, but NASCAR ordered Edwards to park his car and summoned him to its trailer.

NASCAR put off a decision on whether to discipline Edwards until at least today.

Keselowski and Edwards were involved in a spectacular crash at Talladega last year. Early yesterday, Keselowski nicked Edwards, which sent him crashing into Joey Logano.

On the first attempt at a green-white-checkered finish, another crash took out seven cars. Finally, they got in two clean laps, and it was Busch all the way for his third career win in Atlanta.

TENNIS

SERBIA BEATS U.S.

The Davis Cup run for the United States is over in the first round.

Novak Djokovic withstood 24 aces and outlasted John Isner, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-4, yesterday at Belgrade, giving Serbia a clinching 3-1 lead against an American team looking for its 33rd Davis Cup title.

"Isner fought like crazy, and his serve was unbelievable," Djo-kovic said of the 6-foot-9 American.

In the last rubber, Sam Querrey beat Viktor Troicki, 7-5, 6-2, to make the final score, 3-2.

It's the first time since 2005 the Americans were eliminated in the first round, while Serbia advances for the first time in the World Group and next plays Croatia in the quarterfinals.

ELSEWHERE

Skiing: Erik Guay of Canada won a super-G race yesterday at Kvitfjell, Norway, for his second career World Cup victory.

Guay edged early leader Hannes Reichelt of Austria on to win his first race since a downhill in Germany, three years ago.

Guay clocked 1 minute, 31.95 seconds over the Olympiabakken course to beat Reichelt by 0.02 seconds.

• Dominique Gisin of Switzerland won her first World Cup super-G race yesterday at Crans-Montana, Switzerland by denying Lindsey Vonn a second win in two days.

Gisin attacked the Nationale course to finish in 1 minute, 24.14 seconds.

Vonn won Saturday's downhill to clinch the season discipline title.

Iditarod: The festivities are over, and the serious competition began yesterday in the 1,100-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

Under sunny skies, the drivers of 71 dog teams took off from frozen Willow Lake to begin the race to Nome on Alaska's western coast.

Three-time champion Lance Mackey of Fairbanks is seeking his fourth consecutive win.

Swimming: Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps has broken his own U.S. short course record in the 200-yard butterfly at the Maryland Swim Championships in Annapolis, Md.

Phelps, who won both the 2004 and 2008 Olympic gold medal in the 200-meter butterfly, clocked a time of 1:39.65. His old U.S. record of 1:39.70 in the 200-yard event was set March 3, 2006.

Tennis:Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia has won her first WTA title, defeating Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia, 1-6, 6-1, 6-0, in the final of Monterrey Open (Mexico).

Pavlyuchenkova also defeated Hantuchova earlier this season in a hard-court match in Dubai.