FONTANA, Calif. (AP) – Elliott Sadler raced to his second victory of the season and wrapped up a spot in the NASCAR’s new championship playoff Sunday night at California Speedway.

Sadler won for the third time in his Nextel Cup career, easily holding off rookie Kasey Kahne and Mark Martin at the end of the 250-lap Pop Secret 500 with the help of a couple of late caution flags that slowed the two challengers.

But Kahne, who finished second for the fifth time this season, and Martin both climbed into the top 10 in the points with only next Saturday night’s race at Richmond Va., remaining until NASCAR pares the championship battle to the top 10 drivers for the last 10 races of the season.

“The cautions were definitely helping me, but my car was unbelievable the last 10 laps,” said Sadler, whose last win came early in the season.

at Texas. “After we got the checkered (flag), I told (team owner) Robert Yates This is a dream come true. This is the reason I came to Robert Yates Racing.”‘

Martin appeared to have the strongest car through much of the race. But he couldn’t seem to get his car up to top speed for 10 to 20 laps after each of the 11 caution flags in the race that began in 99-degree heat of the late afternoon and ended in the cooler temperatures after dark under California Speedway’s new lights.

“We had a fast race car on the long greens, but I can’t help that the cautions came out and my car just didn’t shine on a 10-lap run.”

Jamie McMurray, another of the drivers trying to get into the top 10, moved up four positions to 11th, 34 behind Kahne, while both Kevin Harvick and Bobby Labonte fell out of the top 10.

AP-ES-09-05-04 2355EDT