Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, July 16, 1994 TAG: 9407160051
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LONG POND, PA. LENGTH: Medium
"I think it's an embarrassment to the sport," Dale Earnhardt said Friday while preparing for Sunday's Miller 500 at Pocono International Raceway.
The entry blanks for Indy's first stock car race were distributed this week with posted awards listed at $2,687,249 - slightly less than the $2,756,845 purse for the 1994 Daytona 500.
Speedway spokesman Bob Walters was quoted as saying that additional awards could push the purse past $3 million. For instance, PPG, the primary Indy car sponsor, reportedly will give the winner a $200,000 bonus on top of the posted first-place award money of $245,500.
But as far as Earnhardt, Ernie Irvan and Rusty Wallace are concerned, the extra money means little compared to what NASCAR should demand and Indy could pay.
"I don't necessarily think we ought to get as much" as the Indy 500 races, but the 400 purse "is a little bit of a downgrading deal to us," Earnhardt said. "Beyond that, I don't want to comment."
The Indianapolis 500 purse was $7,864,800, and winner Al Unser Jr. received $1,373,813. Indy has about 300,000 permanent seats, compared to Daytona's 98,000.
"I'll jump on [Earnhardt's] bandwagon," Irvan said. "It looks like to me that if you put 150,000 more people in the seats [than the Daytona 500], shouldn't it pay more? It looks like to me they could pay more. I guess it just goes to show we'll race cheaper than anybody else."
Said Wallace, "It's unfortunate that financial politics took over for that race, because they've basically put a restrictor plate on the money they can pay. I hear it could be three times that amount . . . but I hear they won't allow that. I don't understand it at all."
Other drivers, however, had no complaints.
"I think it's great," said Mark Martin. "Didn't everybody know NASCAR wasn't going to allow Indy to pay more than Daytona? I am surprised it paid as well as it did."
"I don't have a problem with it," said Kyle Petty. "Would the NFL want some outside interest to come in and play another Super Bowl the week after the real Super Bowl that paid more. That takes away from the luster of the Super Bowl.
"It's the same thing here. I think what NASCAR is trying to do is not let the Indy race take the luster away from the Daytona 500.
"I understand how Earnhardt and those guys are looking at it. And that's a legitimate argument. On the same side, I think NASCAR has a legitimate argument when they say we don't want to pay a bigger purse for Indy because all of a sudden that will be bigger than our biggest race."
\ BRETT SAYS GOODBYE: Brett Bodine on Friday confirmed the rumor that he won't be returning to the No. 26 Ford Thunderbird team sponsored by Quaker State and owned by drag racer Kenny Bernstein.
"I just got stale, and I've got to make a change," Bodine said Friday. "I've got to do something different and start a new chapter in my career. I need to try to be more competitive. But I don't know what I'm doing yet [for 1994]."
There was no immediate word as to who would replace Bodine.
\ DODSON TO WORK WITH PETTY: Barry Dodson, fired as Darrell Waltrip's crew chief on July 4, was hired this week by car owner Felix Sabates as a consultant to Kyle Petty's No. 42 Pontiac team.
"I'm just another set of eyes and ears," Dodson said. "Felix did me a favor."
Dodson said he will focus on trying to get the team's Pontiacs to run faster under the new rule that allowed the cars to be about five inches longer.
"This is a good race team with a pretty solid program," Dodson said. "It just needs sewing back together."
\ A SAD ANNIVERSARY: Wednesday was the first anniversary of the death of Davey Allison, and his fans did not forget him.
Outside the Robert Yates Racing shop in Charlotte, N.C., fans put flowers on the fence and kept a vigil during the day, team publicist Brian VanDercook said. Allison was a driver for Yates.
And in Allison's hometown of Hueytown, Ala., the day was officially declared "Davey Allison Remembrance Day." Residents were encouraged to wear yellow ribbons and keep their headlights on during the day. For the Allison family, there was a private mass Wednesday night.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB