Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, July 29, 1990 TAG: 9007280011
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By RANDY KING SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Bown, who through 19 races has practically buried everybody in the chase for NASCAR's Busch Grand National championship, said he plans to keep on slinging the dirt.
"We have no plans of backing off," Bown vowed. "We have no plans of backing off.
"We've run hard to get to where we are, so there are no plans of getting conservative. Besides, I don't know if Chuck Bown can drive conservative.
"The only time I could think of running easy would be the last race at Martinsville [Oct. 28], say if we just need to finish in the top 15 or something like that to win the title."
Unless something changes, in a hurry at that, Bown might not even have to go to Martinsville. At the present rate, he and his Hensley Racing team will have the GN trophy in their shop long before the season finale.
"I like our position. We think it's ours to give it to them," Bown said.
Bown is not a title lock. But he has the key, and, no doubt, his pursuers can see the hatch closing.
"Chuck's running real well," said Jimmy Hensley, who is the closest dot in Bown's rear-view mirror, a distant 312 points behind.
"We've got a lot of races left, but let's face it, if he doesn't have trouble, our chances of catching him are pretty slim.
"Everybody has got to have some help from him."
Bown is a nice guy, but don't plan on him offering any such help.
"Tell Jimmy, I can't help him," Bown quipped about his neighbor from Horsepasture.
"Seriously, I've just got to try and not make any stupid moves and end up in a wreck."
That task may not be easy tonight at PCS. Last July, the .416-mile oval chewed up thousands of dollars of machinery and left many drivers pointing fingers before Rick Mast finally won the caution-filled race.
Bown, who finished second, said he should have won. He was leading until being spun out by the lapped car of eventual 1989 GN champion Rob Moroso.
"We still look at that as one that got away," Bown said.
Bown failed to win in 1989, but he has owned the circuit this season. He leads the tour in every major category: points, wins (five), poles (four), top-five finishes (10), top-10 finishes (15), laps led (1,013) and money won ($167,376).
All five of Bown's victories have come on short tracks. On layouts less than one-half mile, Bown has five victories, a second, a third, a fifth and a ninth for an average finish of 2.66.
Bown said his and the Hensley team's short-track experience is the key.
"Most of these short-track races are 200-lappers, which mean we can't change tires under yellow," Bown said. "So you have to know how to save the car and have it ready when the race starts. Since last year, I have learned to save the car and the crew has figured out how to dial it in.
"Now, the others have to catch us."
Besides the odds-on favorite Bown, others who figure to run strong on the PCS bullring include Tommy Houston, a four-time short-track winner this year; Bobby Labonte, Tommy Ellis, Hensley and Mast.
Bown said an expected crowd of some 10,000 fans could see a "heck of a race."
"There is no other track on our tour like [PCS]," Bown said. "So many of the tracks really only have one racing groove, but with the banking here, there are two grooves. There should be a lot of good racing."
\ LUGNUTS: The 200-lap, 83.4-mile race carries a purse of $72,102. . . . NASCAR officials have agreed to expand the starting field from 26 to 30 cars. . . . The speedway's gates open at noon. The track's Late Model Stock Car division, which runs a 50-lapper after the GN race, practices from 2 to 4 p.m., followed by the GN cars from 4 to 6. GN time trials begin at 6:15 p.m. The green flag falls at 8 p.m. . . . As of Friday afternoon, there still were some reserved seats left in the front grandstand. Tickets go on sale today at noon.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB