5C
SPORTS/illie CJarlfltte #o«t
Thursday, June 30, 2005
SCAR
Greg Bitfle
jumped into the
top spot in the
standings
toliowing a 14th-
piace finish at
Infineon
Raceway.
STANDINGS
Hem the top 10 staik up this week
NEXTEL CUP
Following the Dodge/Save Mart 350
1. GregBIffie
2,250; previous: 2
2. Jimmie Johnson
2,228; previous: 1
3. Eiiiott Sadler
2,073; previous; 3
4. Tony Stewart
2,052; previous: 6
5. Mark Martin
2,022; previous: 5
6. Rusty Wallace
2,013; previous: 8
7. Ryan Newman
1,994; previous: 7
8. Kurt Busch
1,978; previous; 9
9. Carl Edwards
1,963; previous; 4
10. Jamie McMurray
1,923; previous: 11
BUSCH SERIES
Following the SBC 250
1. Martin Truex Jr, -
2,320; previous; 2
2. Reed Sorenson
2,313; previous: 1
3. Clint Bowyer
2,279; previous: 3
4. Carl Edwards
2,241; previous: 4
5. Kenny Wallace
2,143; previous; 5
6. Denny Hamlin
2,032; previous: 6
7. Ashton Lewis
1,983; previous: 7
8. David Stremme
1,964; previous; 8
9. Jason Keller
1,877: previous: 10
10. David Green
1,839; previous: 11
Johnny Sauter led 162 of the 200 laps
to win the rain-shortened SBC 250
^ CRAFTSMANTRUCK ^
Following the Toyota Tundra
Milwaukee 200
1. Dennis Sefzer —
1,614; previous; 2
2. Bobby Hamilton
1,579; previous: 1
3. Ted Musgrave
1,570; previous: 3
4. Ron Hornaday
1,493; previous: 5
5. Ricky Craven
1,473; previous: 4
6. Jimmy Spencer
1,437; previous: 6
7. Jack Sprague
1,428; previous: 9
8. Terry Cook
1,416; previous: 7
9. Matt Grafton
1,384; previous: 8
10. David Starr
1,372: previous: 10
V THE RACING 411
NEXTEL CUP
Race: Pepsi 400
Where: Daytona International Speedway
When: Saturday 7:45 p.m., ET
Race distance: 160 laps, 400 miles
Defending champion: Jeff Gordon started from
the pole and won his second race In a row In last
year’s Pepsi 400.
Track qualifying record: Bill Elliott, 210.364 mph;
Feb. 9,1987.
Race record: Bobby Allison, 173.473 mph; July 4,
1980.
Fast fact: The summer race at Daytona, tradition
ally held over the Fourth of July weekend, was
once called the Firecracker 400.
DODGE/SAVE MART 350 REVIEW
BUSCH SERIES
Race: Winn-Dixie 250
Where: Daytona International Speedway
When: Friday 7:45 p.m., ET
Defending champion: Mike Wallace drove from
fifth to first on the last lap to claim victory In
last year’s Winn-Dixie 250.
Track qualifying record; Tommy Houston,
194.389 mph; Feb. 10,1987.
Race record: Geoffrey Bodlne, 157.137 mph; Feb.
16,1985.
Fast fact Dale Earnhardt Jr., who won three
straight Busch races at Daytona prior to
Wallace’s stunnl:^ 2004 victory Is scheduled to
compete In Friday’s race.
CRAFTSMAN TRUCK
Race: O'Reilly Auto Parts 250
Where: Kansas Speedway
When: Saturday, 3;30 pm., ET
Defending champion; Carl Edwards won last
year’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 250.
Qualifying record: Chad Chaffin, 166.323
mph; July 4, 2003.
Race record: Ricky Hendrick, 125.094 mph;
July 7,2001.
Fast fact: If Ted Musgrave, driver of the No. 1
Dodge, wins the championship, It would mark
the first time a driver has won a NASCAR
national tourli^ series with a car or truck
carrying the No. 1.
One for the
ROAD
A second-place
finish in the
SBC 250 lifted
Martin Truex Jr.
ahead of
previous leader
Reed Sorenson
in the Busch
standings.
Cox News Service
T ony Stewart claimed his
second victory at Infineon
Speedway Sunday overcom
ing transmission problems to win
the Dodge/Save Mart 350.
Stewart battled Ricky Rudd for
the lead In the closing laps of the
road-course race, finally overtak
ing the Wood Brothers driver on
Lap 100 and holding him off fol
lowing a restart on Lap 106.
Stewart’s victory, his eighth top-
10 finish in 2005, moved him from
sixth to fourth in the Nextel Cup
standings. He is now just 198
points behind new Nextel Cup
leader Greg Blffle.
Sunday’s win was the 20th of
Stewart’s career, his fourth In 13
starts on road courses. It was the
driver’s first victory since last
August at Watkins Glen
International, also a road course.
Rudd, who ran out of gas just
after passing the finish line, fin
ished second, while a hard-charg
ing Kurt Busch finished third.
Rusty Wallace finished fourth, fol
lowed by Dale Jarrett and Elliott
Sadleb
Polesitter Jeff Gordon led the
first 32 laps, but a broken transmis
sion left him with a 33rd-place fin
ish. Fellow Hendrick Motorsports
driver Jimmie Johnson also suf
fered transmission woes and gave
up the top spot in the standings
with a 36th-place finish.
Dennis Setzer
took over the
series lead
atter winning
the Toyota
Tundra
Milwaukee 200
at The
Milwaukee Mile.
RACE STATISTICS
Time of race: 3 hours, 0 minutes, 18 seconds
Margin of victory: 2.266 seconds
Winner’s average speed: 72.845 mph
Caution fiags: eight for 18 laps
Lead changes: seven among six drivers
Lap ieaders: Jett Gordon, 1-32; Tony Stewart, 33; Kyle Petty,
34; Greg Bitfle, 35-42; Stewart, 43-69; Rusty Wallace, 70-81;
Ricky Rudd, 82-99; Stewart, 100-110
Tony Stewart’s No. 20 Chevrolet leads a pack of cars on the way
to victory in Sunday's Dodge/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Speedway.
Patrick and Crocker poised to be racing’s next big stars
■■
ON TV
AM times
Eastern
NEXTEL CUP
Pepsi 400
7 p.m., Saturday
BUSCH SERIES
NBC
Winn-Dixie 250
7:30 p.m., Friday
ISl TNT
CRAFTSMAN TRUCK pPMH CJPPFO
O’Reilly Auto Parts 250
3 p.m,, Saturday
COMMENTARY
I CHANNEL
By JEFF GLUCK
Cox News Service
Richmond, "Va.
D anica Patrick and Erin
Crocker should probably be
friends.
They’re both in their early twen
ties, they both
drive race cars
for a living and
they both have a
chance to become
very popular In
their respective
racing series.
Both drivers
were at
Richmond
International
Raceway Friday,
and conducted interviews with the
media an hour apart.
Of course, Crocker isn’t at Patrick’s
level of prestige yet. Patrick Is
already the most fkmous Indy Racing
League driver, while Crocker won’t
make her NASCAR Busch Series
debut until Septembet
Patrick has been hailed as the IRL’s
CROCKER
savior and called the Tiger Woods of
her sport — a notion she embraces.
Tiny but with a commanding pres
ence, Patrick Is cool and relaxed,
clearly feeling little pressure. Her sud
den fame is no burden, she said.
“It’s Just now Instead of a local
show, you know. It’s CNN,’’ she said.
She can be silly. Imitating Formula
One boss Bemle Ecclestone In a
British accent. Or she can be Ice cold,
promptly shutting down a reporter’s
question about drivers’ weights.
Patrick, who has modeled for men’s
magazine FHM, likes to brag about
her unkempt appearance. She said
walking through airports and grocery
stores is no problem, as long as she
doesn’t stop and that nobody bothers
hep “probably because I look like
crap.”
She won’t wear makeup at the
track, even when addressing a room
ful of cameras and media members
like she did Friday. Her news confer
ence attire? Flip flops, shorts, a black
T-shirt and burgundy sunglasses
perched atop a head of wet hair.
Patrick enjoys the rare occasions
that require her to get dressed up, but
as long as they are rare.
After all, this is a person who rev
els in walking the red carpet at a
recent movie premier without a
designer dress.
“They’re like, 'Who are you wear
ing?’ ” she said, laughing, “I’m like, 1
bought this dress, actually.”
Patrick loves to race, but doesn’t
want to overdo It. NASCAR, she said,
doesn’t appeal to her because the
Nextel Cup Series schedules 36 races
per year, and the IRL has just 17.
“That’s an Incredible amount of
racing,” she said. “You know, I also do
like to travel, and I like to spend time
and lay by the pool every now and
again.
“You kind of struggle for that time,
don’t you?”
Meanwhile, all Crocker wants to do
is race.
Bill France Jr., vice-chairman of
NASCAR’s board of directors, came
face to face with the future of female
stock-car drivers Friday,
“Bill France, I’d like you to meet
Erin Crocker," said a NASCAR offi
cial.
Fiance, 72, studied the perky red
head and shook her hand.
“You can keep It between the lines,
can’t you?’’ he asked.
“I’m working on It.”
“You’ll do fine,” France said.
“Thank you,” Crocker replied. “Tm
trying.”
France admits he’s been paying
close attention to Crocker and other
potential female Cup drivers such as
Sarah Fisher and Allison Duncan.
“Well, I hear things going up and
down the hall (at NASCAR headquar
ters),” he said.
Crocker might have the best shot
among female drivers because she’ll
have the best equipment. Team owner
Ray Evernham and driver BUI Elliott
are mentoring her on the track, and
she seems ready for the off-the-track
responsibilities, too.
She’s has a bubbly personality and
seems eager to drive, as if she would
rather race than breathe.
And, after being featured in
Friday’s editions of the Richmond
Tlmes-Dlspatch, Crocker went up to
the reporter and actuaUy thank^
him for writing the story
Rookies,
Break out a Bud and crank up the new Junior song
By JEFF GLUCK
Cox News Service
B udweiser pitchmen Dale Earnhardt
Jr. and Tun McGraw have joined
together to re-wrlte McGraw’s classic
hit “I like it, I love It.”
It seems as though
McGraw feels sympathetic
toward aU the Junior fans
out there. And Earnhardt,
mired in 18th place and
with no victories this sea
son, needed to reach out to
his supporters.
The following are the
new lyrics to “1 like it, I
love It,” obtained exclusively
\Tj our imaginary NASCAR
music investigation department.
So put on your Tun McGraw CD, crank up-
the stereo and sing along. If you’re a Junior
fan, what else are you going to do?
(Fans’ verse)
Spent 48 dollars last Sunday at the
NASCAR race,
I didn’t see Dale win but 1 stUl booed
Gordon’s face.
EARNHARDT
June’s got me saying dang, darn it, shoot
and trembling with fear,
I ain’t seen the 8 win a thing all year.
Gonna switch the channel, I might just
go to sleep,
Turns out the Eurys were a big bunch
of creeps.
(Chorus)
But I like Dale, I love Dale, 1 want some
more dt Dale,
He tries so hard, but he can’t kick
much tail.
Don’t know what it is and why the 8 car
ain’t runnin’.
But I like Dale, I love Dale, I want some
more of Dale.
(Dale’s verse)
My stepmama’s company didn’t give me
courtesy,
They gave my cars away and now
Waltrlp is ahead of me.
Now I’m barely on the lead lap if racing
at all,
Who the heck could have guessed such a
bigfaU?
Crossin’ my fingers, and countin’ every
lap
Prayin’ that the media gets off my back.
(Chorus)
But I like Dale, I love Dale, I want some
more of Dale,
He tries so hard, but he can’t kick much tall.
Don’t know what It Is and why the 8 car
ain’t runnin’.
But I like Dale, I love Dale, I want some
more rf Dale.
(Pans’ bridge)
When Dale wrecks his car, I fess up,
I start to feel a little peeved.
Then I sit down on the sofa, and look at my
Bud posters,
I think this season’s got the best ctf me.
(Chorus)
But I like Dale, I love Dale, I want some
more of Dale,
He tries so hard, but he can’t kick much tall.
Don’t know what It Is and why the 8 car
ain’t runnin’.
But I like Dale, I love Dale, I want some
more of Dale.
Jeff Gluck writes about NASCAR for Cox
News Service.
Jarrett goes back to school
By RICK MINTER
Cox News Service
W ho says you can’t teach a relatively old race driver new
tricks? Dale JarretL 48, made a stop last week at the
Bondurant School of High Performance Driving In
Phoenix to work on his road-racing skills In preparation for the
weekend’s race.
He had been to Bondurant’s school before, working with
Bondurant’s coaches on the tricks drivers use when turning
right and lefL
“I don’t think It ever hurts to go back,” Jarrett said before the
race. “This way they can get In the car with you and refresh
your memory on some of the techniques and hopefully get rid
of some of the bad habits you might have gotten Into over the
years, because It’s easy to do that,”
The lessons paid off; Jarrett scored a top-five finish In
Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart 350.
Roush’s ‘Gor^ Show’ draws 1,700 applicants
Roush Racing’s “Gong
Show” driver search drew
approximately 1,700 applica
tions, which have been whit
tled down to about 150, team
president Geoff Smith said.
Now, team owner Jack
Roush, his drivers and crew
chiefs will go through the
entries to give their Input
before the list is reduced
again to about 25.
The finalists will then be
taken to Martinsville
Speedway and Darlington
Raceway for their on-track
auditions, with the winner or
winners joining Roush’s
NASCAR race team.
The whole process will be
shown in 13 episodes on the
Discovery Channel.
Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate for Cox News Service. (800) 255-6734. Tor release the week of June 27, 2005.