Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, October 24, 1994 TAG: 9410280009
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ED HARDIN LANDMARK NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: ROCKINGHAM, N.C. LENGTH: Medium
An Associated Press photo of Gordon's pit stop during the competition showed that Gordon's car was clearly over the boundary line - a 4-second penalty under the event rules - and that an eighth man - one too many - was over the pit wall servicing the car.
The annual competition pits the Winston Cup tour's crew teams in a controlled pit-stop contest. The team making the fastest stop while changing four tires and adding 14 gallons of gas wins the $8,600 prize. Seconds are added to a team's score for any penalties such as loose lug nuts, driving over the end line of the designated pit or having too many men over the wall. A protest was dropped once a review of the film showed that several teams, including the second-place Quaker State team, had also slipped by without being penalized for infractions.
Coincidentally, Gordon's chances of winning the AC Delco 500 Sunday were dashed by a 15-second penalty assessed by NASCAR when Gordon came into the pits too fast on lap 265.
PARROTT LEAVING: Buddy Parrott, Rusty Wallace's crew chief, told his team members Saturday night that he would not be back with the team in 1995.
The veteran crew chief will go to work for the Gary Bechtel-owned Diamond Ridge race team in 1995. Steve Grissom of Gadsden, Ala., is the driver for the Diamond Ridge team.
``We've got work to do,'' said Wallace, whose team lost its hopes for a Winston Cup title Sunday. ``We've got to start over. First, we need to hire a new crew chief, and that's totally my decision. Then we'll go from there.''
BODINE HOT AND COLD: Geoff Bodine continued one of the strangest years in memory Sunday when he dropped out of the race less than 100 laps into the event. It was the 14th ``DNF'' of the season for Bodine, the most of any driver on the tour. Bodine has also won three races and sat on the pole five times, more than any other driver.
Only two drivers, Rusty Wallace and Ernie Irvan have led more laps this year than Bodine. He led 57 of the first 60 laps on Sunday before blowing an engine.
HEALTH CARE: Drivers Lake Speed and South Boston's Ward Burton ended up in the hospital Sunday after complaining of dizziness after the race. Burton stayed in a hospital in Charlotte two weeks ago after receiving a concussion in a racing accident. Speed inhaled gas and smoke from a burning transmission.
WRASSLIN': The first car out of Sunday's race was the Billy Standridge Ford, sponsored by the World Championship Wrestling tour.
The car was decked out with WCW on the side panels and an advertisement for Sunday night's bout between Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair - the ``Loser Retires`` bout shown on pay-for-view. Strandridge was home in time to watch the match. No word on who won.
PETTY FOR HIRE: Kyle Petty fell out of the race on lap 162 when he blew a tire in the third turn. ``I hung a left and it went straight,'' Petty explained after coming out of the infield care center. Petty returned to the race about 100 laps later, but his Pontiac had nothing left. By lap 400, Ford's Brett Bodine had nothing left, having battled the flu all week. Petty, who just got over the flu himself two weeks ago, relieved for Bodine and took the Quaker State Ford to an 18th-place finish.
by CNB