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4C SPORTS/tE:^e Cgsrlotte $o«t Thursday, July 20, 2006 NASCAR QUIZ 0: Which driver has the most Cup wjns at Pocofio? A: Bill Elliott (5) THIS WEEK Race: Pennsylvania 500 Where: PocofJo Raceway When: 1:30 p.m. ET Sunday Television: TNT Defending race winner: Kurt Busch A more mature Jeft Gordon sees himself as ... ‘a better guy By RICK MJNTER Cox Nevre Service Atlanta T he Jeff Gordon who could tie the late Dale Earnhardt on NASCAR’s career victories Itet with a win at I’ocono Raceway this weekend is a far dif ferent fellow from the “Wonder Boy” who burst onto the Cup .scene more thait 14 %'^'sago. The signs of the changes aren't hard to notice, and Gordon. .34, said thej-’re for the better. R>r one. he bclie\*e8 his fiancee. Ingrid Vandebosch, the Boiglan actress and model, will get a better husband than his first wife, former Miss Winston Brooke Sealygot. “1 feel like that I'm older I'm more ma ture,” he said. “I think I have a better id^a of who 1 am and what I want out of life and who 1 want to spend my life with. pocoNo r.i£Emy Track length: 2.5 miles Race length: 200 teps/500 miles Banking InTum 1:14 degrees Banking JnTurn 2: 8 degrees Banking in^rn 3: 8 degrees Frontstretch: 3.740 feet Backstmteh: 3.055 feet First race; Aug. 4.1974; Purolater 500 Qualifying record: Kasey Kahne, Dodge; 172.533 mph: June 11, aXW Race record; Rusty Wallace, Ford: 144,892 mph: July 21.1996 I think that in my opinion, is a better guy” Otiier signs of a changing Gordon are his unexpect«Kl sho\e of Matt Kenseth in the gara^ at Bristol Motor Speedway etirlier this year and and hfaj unapolo- getie boot of Kenseth on the track at Chicsigoland two weeks ago. It’s not that he’s trying to portray a tough-guy tme^. He even admitted lik ing ciT>qufit, something he likely wouldn’t have done in his eaiiier days when the late Earnhardt tried to inthnidafe him by referring to him as "Wonder Boy” “Don't knock crtjguet, man." he said, with a chuckle. “It’s challenging, and I would challenge anybody to .some cro quet." He said his life so far, even though it has been lived under the bright spotlight of media and fan attention, isn’t really much different from what the average Joe experiena^. He subK:rib^ to the no tion that most of life’s imi»!tant deci sions ara made when the decider is too yotmg and inexperienced to know what to do. He should know. He wtusthnist into the NASCAR spodii^it at tlie relatively young age of 21. ”As i get older, 1 think about all those things.‘’hB said. “It's life, and you can't change how life progresses. You can only learn from all your experiences,” He said that others sometimes try to help, but the potentially helpful advice rai-ely gets put to usa “I tliink all of us ha'w bwn through tluit speech with your parenLs where they tried to teach you some teison hut you coulcM't Icam it by what they told you.” he said. "You had to learn it youreeif. usually the hard way;” But to Gordon’seredit, he has made lots of decisions that turned out to be brilliant. He chose NASCAR over Indy car racing, and he picked Hendrick Motorsixrrte, a perennial NASCAR powerhouse, over other te^is that wanted him. He has wx)n 75 Nextel Cup rares, four championships more than S78 million in official winnings and »untlcss mil lions more from other sources. But. he said the choices that didn’t pan out have been just as imponant in molding him into the person he has become. "Everything Fve learned in life has only helped me to live my life better and be a better person,” he said. What ever happened to ... “ei™ Cowart Delma Ckiwart of Savannah, Ga., was the “aown Ih-ince” of NASCAR racing during his era, which tegan in 1981 at Atlanta Motor Speedway and ended in themid-i^s during the NASCAR All-Star race at Lowe’.s Motor Speedway Perhaps nothing illusfrates Cowimfs fun-toving approach better than his final NASCAR run. He showed up to rim the Cup raa', but his engine blew in praefitte. His crew sirug^ed throughout the afternoon to make the repairs and finished the woric just as prayer was said and the national mithem .sung. The only thing missing: the required NASCAR in spection. "They said, ’Gentleman, start yuiir engines,' so I cranked mine up in the garage area.” said Ojwtut, 64. “I hopped in it and drove 1^ the tech .shed, and it was locked up.” He figured, “What the heck?” so he pulled onto the track and started rac ing. He ran about four laps before - c{^.flagggdhiin NASCAR officials biack-fl; off the track. “They wm* raising cain wTih my crew chief, and after the race they called me to the trailer fora little con versation,” Cjwtrt saUl. “It was kind of a warm conversation,... They said 1 should have known better. "1 told them I didn't think they'd mind." Told he'd be fined &>.ooo, he iiatised and said, “Make it ^.ooo,HX) btHi^use I ain’t giving you five amts.” And the NASCAR days were over for Cowart, who now vssotks as a con struction contractor in hi.s hometown. But the spmt’s old-timers haven’t foi^tten him. Former champion Benny Raraon.s still laughs about the time Cowart qualified for the Daytomi 500. then throw a legendary party at a Daytona Boitch hotel. “I don't think be showed bade up at the track until Sunday” Parsons said. ‘‘He was strictly in it for the good times.... It was as good a way as miy. but It wouMn't work today” —Rick Minter, Cox Neios Service Nl'MKHlCALiA' SITAKING 15 11 Top-10 finishes in Nextel Cup this season by points leader Jimmie Johnson, tops among all drivers. Top-10 finishes by David Reulimann, tops among all Craftsman Truck Series drivere. DNFs (Did Not Finish rdees) by Jeff Gordon, most among drivers in the top 10 in Nextei Cup points. Rick Minter’s OBSERVATIONS Here am some qf the key storylines this tveek h&xding to Pocom: Freefeillm’ Jeff Gordon's back-to-back Cup diarapionshiiR} in iKt7-i9Se haven’t b«>n duplicated stoce. and it's be^ning to loisk like tt’ll take a HB’culean effert for the current champ. Tbny Stewart, to match Gordon's feat After being safeh' inside the top 10 in points for most of the season, Stewart has dropped out of the elite group. Stewart’s lat est setback came after a run-in on tlrc frack at New Hampshire Inta-naticaial Sp^way with fellow' Indiana native Ryan Newman that left him 37th at the cmd cT the Lenox Industrial Tx>ls 300. It replants a dramatic change of foitune since the 11 th raceof the season, at Darlington Raceway ivhere Stewart was sec ond in pointe to Jimmie Johnson, atpoint.s back. b7 EWART His troubles started at the next race In Chaidotte where he broke his scaimla in a hard crash. He and relief driver Ricky Rudd more gj-ound the next %v€k at Dover becau^j of a penalty for speeding on pit ixKid, Although ho won the f^2psi 400 at Da>dona. he ran out of gas at Chicagoland, had engine pnAlems at Infineon and wrecked at Michigan. He has .‘^-en races to regain a spot in ttie 'lO-driver, iferace, ,sea- sun-«iding run to die title, but lie’s just II points behind Greg Bifile, who holds the iOth and final spot in tiie top 10. (CKi I4> New HfUTiEShire winner Kyic Busch gained four spots in tiro standings, jumping from eiglith to fourth, with his latest Cup victo ry but as he cautioned in Victory T.ane, it's tcK* early tt a,ssume he or any other driver neai- him in the standings will make the Chase. “The biggest thir^ with that ks... the diflemice in fourth and lOth Ls so dai^' ck^e,” he .said. Bren though he hadn’t had time to do the matti, Busch was right about how tight the standing are after 19 points races. Leader Jimmie Johnson second-place Matt Ken^th are weU ahead of Ihc pack- - Kensethisjust^pointsbehind Johnson, while third- place Jeff Burton is 311 pomts out of the lead. Butfixwn third to 12th, the points spread is jttst IM. Cl^git^ times Ray Evernham’s No. 19 Dodge appears to be one r£ the key pieces to the next big driver swap in NASC'AR. After makmg the Chase for the Nextei Cup the past two the No. 19 team iUiddiiver Jeremy Mayfield are 33rd in the points standing heading into this week's race at Poctmo, where Mayfield brat DarreS Wdtrip to get his first Cup victory in 1998 and where he knocked the late Dale Earnhardt aside on the last lap to get ra- roes- win No. 3 two season later There’s now talk in the garage (hat Mayfield, who is all but mathematically out of the Chase, may be headed to one of ttie new Toyrtta trams. Arui tha’o’s just as much speculation tlwt Elliott Sadler rouM leave his sttniggling No. ^ at Robert Yates Racing to team up with Kvranham. who al»> fields the Dodges driven by K{is;y Kaline and Scott Riggs. ftx-^ed about the issue by reporters at New’ Htunpehire, Rrernham referred them hack to his comments from the week be fore. “Jeremy and 1 are going to rontinue to woik on getting this team where it needs to be,” Evernham told repcaders at Qiicago. “Thei'e’s a lot of racing left this sea.sou, and I’m coittldent that we can get this program on ft-ack.” Eyeing a Busch tide Fbr a guy who's preoa-upied with making the cut fw the Chase for the Nextei Cup. Kevin. Harvick is in toe midst of a surprisingly strtmg nm to tiie Biusch Seines elmtpiimship. Despite having to shuttle garagra ~ and somettmra be tween trades in different cities Harvidt ha.s completed evay' of Busch Series rompetition this year He lia-s ww three times and recorded 12 top-five jmd 17 top-10 finishes instaits. His worst fin ish is a likli-place run at Milwaukra. His closrat dnallenger. felbw Cup regular Cml Edwards, has thi’cc victonra.! 1 top-flvc and 15 top-iOfinishes. But he lias stnig- ^ed with three finishra of 36th or worse, and thaf s why; despite a win at New Hampshire last week, he’s sf iU second in the standings and 3(B ttolnts out of the lead. S^ond chances Craftsman Truck ^rira team owner Billy Ballew must be either soft-hearted or shrewd — or both. Tvnee in his career he has put drivers in his No. 15 Chevrolet that othei-s woulcfo’t touch — ch-iveis who had been Banned from NASCAR for violating toe ^metioning body's drug policies. First Ballew gave Shane Hmiel a second dbance. Hmiel won a race in Ballew's trtick, then moved to the 8i^ Series before foil ing another drug test iuid being put out of the sport. This month, Ballew took a chance on armther driver with a simi- lai- reel’d - Kevin Gnibb. So far, it looks like another successful eombinaticMi- Grubb rem among the lexers two weeks at Kentucky Speedway before flnishii^ 21st, and l^t w^ek at Memphis he w'asa frwit-runnaragaln before finishing 14to. “You know me, I'll take a chance,” BaJlcw said. STftNDi-liiS NEXTEL CUP Following the Lenox Industrial Tools 300 1. Jimmie Johnson 2,789: previous: 1 2. Matt Kenseth 2,721: previous: 2 3. Jeft Burton 2,478; previous; 4 4. Kyle Busch 2.455; previous: 8 5. Mark Martin 2.451: previous: 6 6. Kasey Kahne 2,445: previous; 5 7. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2,428; previous: 3 8- Kevin Harvick 2,408: previous: 9 9. Jeff Gordon 2.342: previous: 1Q 10. Greg Biffie 2,342; previous; 11 Cup naxi up: Pannsyfvanta 500; Pocooo Raceway TV: 1 ;30 p.m. ET, Sunday: TNT Busch next up: Goody’s 250: Marlinsviile Speedway TV: 3:30 p.m. £T. Saturday: TNT Truck next up: Power Stroke Diesel 2K30:0'RaHty R^evray Park TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, Aug. 4; Speed Channel BUSCH SERIES 1. Kevin Harvick 3,0Se; previous: 1 2. Carl Edwards 2,784; previous; 2 3. Clint Bowyer 2.705; previous: 3 4. Denny Hamlin 2.667; previous; 4 5. JJ.Yeley 2,636; previous; 5 TRUCK SERIES 1. Todd Bodine 2,161; previous: 1 2. David Reulimann 2,044; previous; 3 3. Johnny Bensw 1,998; previous: 2 4. Rir* CraiMord 1,930; previous: 5 5. Ted Musgrave 1,913; previous: 4 Are you single, attractive BUT selective? Tired of trying to meet new/eo/Ie throt^hfrlends, at the workykee, or at the local handout? That's the vefj reason why many fuiltty singles like you are turning to professional match makers to find their next date., PAI-^, FqR AN APPBINTMSNT 704-30Z-1 745 VISIT US ON THK WEB AT WWW.BOUAOEPONBUI-TINB.NET f ni-Apc CoNBULTiNa, "Hrinbinq Hearts Thbetheh" y»u'»« ettfMientsJ iU Jdtlifg *»»«» In fWr min.Vinf IW’ fm h* f«jf h »kn»»l ^^ Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate for Cox W ws Service. (800) 255-6734. *For release the week of July 17, 2006.
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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July 20, 2006, edition 1
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