Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 5, 1994 TAG: 9403050090
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
As Ted Musgrave slowly shuffled through the garage at Richmond International Raceway late Friday afternoon, almost limping from the pain in his chest, it was hard to believe this was the man who had just set a track qualifying record and won the pole position for Sunday's Pontiac 400.
Musgrave, not to be outdone by Mark Martin, drove a lap of 123.474 mph late in the first round of time trials to steal the pole from his more famous teammate. It was the first pole and the first track record of Musgrave's NASCAR Winston Cup career.
But after celebrating in victory lane, and completing his pole-winner's interview (without ever mentioning the injury), Musgrave allowed himself to acknowledge the pain from the rib injury he had suffered in the Daytona 500. By then, the torn cartilage hurt so badly he had to visit the infield care center for a painkiller.
"During qualifying, nothing hurt," Musgrave said, almost wincing. "I put it out of my mind. But it's back."
The 38-year-old driver from Troutman, N.C., was favoring his right side and trying to avoid moving his upper body and neck. Clearly, this was a man in pain.
The cartilage had nearly healed, Musgrave said, but he reinjured it Friday morning while sitting in his Ford Thunderbird.
"When I leaned forward to put my helmet on, I just popped it loose," he said. "It took awhile to get back in the car for qualifying. The crew had to put the seat belts on."
But as Musgrave said, none of that mattered once he got on the track for his two-lap qualifying run.
"When I went around on the first lap, it slipped around a little bit," he said of the car. "So on the second lap, I really had to concentrate hard. In turns 1 and 2, it slipped up a little bit, so I didn't believe I'd gone that fast. But I went through [turns] 3 and 4 as good as I ever have."
Musgrave's speed topped the record of 123.164 mph set by Ken Schrader a year ago.
And how did Martin take defeat at the hands of his junior teammate?
"I wasn't even out of the car yet and he was the first to stick his head in the window," Musgrave said.
Actually, Martin was more surprised with his own qualifying run of 123.012 mph. He had tapped the wall in his Ford during morning practice and was worried about the car.
"After what I did in practice this morning, I was afraid I wouldn't make the top 20," Martin said. "I had a good lap then, but we've had a tough day. I made a bad mistake in practice and wrecked our car and lost our confidence. I didn't hurt the car [Friday], but I boogered it up, and it's an awful nice car."
Chuck Bown was third fastest in Bobby Allison's still-unsponsored Ford at 122.973 mph, followed by Rick Mast of Musgrave Rockbridge Baths in another Ford at 122.727 mph. Michael Waltrip was fifth fastest in a Pontiac Grand Prix at 122.627 mph.
Completing the top 10 were Sterling Marlin in the fastest Chevrolet (122.543 mph), Ernie Irvan in a Ford (122.360), Jeff Gordon in a Chevy (122.249), Dale Earnhardt in a Chevy (122.194) and Jimmy Spencer in a Ford (122.172).
Musgrave gave Goodyear its first pole of the year. The drivers running on Hoosier tires were not as quick as they had been in time trials at Daytona and Rockingham.
Joe Nemechek was the fastest Hoosier qualifier, taking the 11th starting spot at 122.172 mph. Geoff Bodine was 17th and Darrell Waltrip was 26th.
With 46 cars trying to qualify for 34 starting spots, today's second round, scheduled for 11 a.m., will be crucial for many drivers. Terry Labonte leads the list of a dozen drivers who were not among the 34 fastest Friday. Labonte was followed by Greg Sacks, Ward Burton, Bobby Hillin, Loy Allen Jr., Hut Stricklin, Dave Marcis, Billy Standridge, Mike Wallace, Rick Carelli, Rick Bickle and T.W. Taylor.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB