Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 3, 1993 TAG: 9309030186
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B5 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: DARLINGTON,S.C. LENGTH: Medium
\ Ernie Irvan is ready to qualify for Sunday's Southern 500. He's just not sure which car he'll be driving.
Irvan is waiting for the paperwork releasing him from Morgan-McClure Racing and for his new contract with Robert Yates Racing, owner of the late Davey Allison's Ford Thunderbird.
Irvan said Thursday that he and Morgan-McClure had agreed to the driver's release, and he was waiting for the proper documents to be signed.
"Until we have it in letter form, I can't make a statement as far as what's happening," said Irvan, who had a year left on his contract. "Texaco can't make their statement; Robert Yates can't make their statement."
Texaco Havoline is a sponsor of Robert Yates Racing.
Irvan hopes his release and the new contract with Robert Yates Racing will be finished in time for today's qualifying runs for the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. The NASCAR Winston Cup event will be held at the 1.36-mile oval Sunday. The Gatorade 200 Busch Grand National race is scheduled for Saturday.
Irvan has raced for the Morgan-McClure team since 1990, but he went to owner Larry McClure and asked for his release after this season. However, McClure wanted to release Irvan sooner.
"When Larry came to me and wanted to release me the rest of this year, it caught me by shock," Irvan said. "Evidently, he wanted to move on with his race team and get prepared for next year."
Things apparently deteriorated further after Irvan wrecked two of his team's cars in less than seven hours Saturday at the Winston Cup race in Bristol, Tenn.
Irvan wanted to join Robert Yates Racing after Allison crashed his helicopter July 13 in Talladega, Ala. He died the next day.
"Nobody is replacing Davey Allison," Irvan said. "I'm driving Robert Yates' race car. Me and Davey had a lot of run-ins for a couple of years, but in the last six or seven months before his accident, we had gotten to be good friends."
Robby Gordon, an Indy-car driver, drove the No. 28 car at Talladega in July.
NASCAR driver Lake Speed, a 13-year Winston Cup veteran with one victory in 258 starts when he took over for Allison at Watkins Glen on Aug. 8, finished 27th in the Bud at the Glen.
Speed also was seventh in the Champion Spark Plug 400 in Michigan on Aug. 15 and 16th at the Bud 500 in Bristol on Aug. 28.
Irvan said he had intended to stay with Morgan-McClure through his five-year contract but changed his mind this season.
"I don't feel like I was treated as fairly as some of the other drivers financially for the things I was doing for the race team," he said. ". . . I felt the best thing I could do was move on."
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
Memo: shorter version ran in the Metro edition.