Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 25, 1995 TAG: 9501250068
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER
DATELINE: DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. LENGTH: Medium
You can't believe the pre-season speeds, according to conventional wisdom, because the teams use tricks to make a good impression with sponsors, among other reasons.
After all, the daily speed reports during the Ford and GM tests here this month are now widely reported throughout the southeast to satisfy the NASCAR fans' rabid desire for information during the off-season.
But the January speed reports are, in fact, becoming an increasingly reliable barometer of what to expect in February before the Daytona 500.
Two years ago, Kyle Petty was among the fastest drivers in pre-season practice. Petty went on to win the 500 pole in 1993. Last year, the speed leaders were Sterling Marlin and Ernie Irvan. And they were the fastest in February, too, with Marlin winning the race.
This year, the speed leaders include Dale Jarrett, in Irvan's old Ford Thunderbird, and Marlin, Jeff Gordon and Robert Pressley in Chevrolets. So don't be surprised if these four drivers are among the quickest next month before the Feb.19 race.
On Tuesday, the five fastest drivers were Marlin at 192.431 miles per hour, Michael Waltrip in a Pontiac at 192.308 mph, Gordon at 191.939, Terry Labonte at 191.775 and Pressley at 191.652.
Still, there are sharply divided opinions about the reliability of the January speeds.
Don't believe them, Richard Petty said here Tuesday during the second day of the final three-day session for GM cars.
``You've got to wait until we all come back and go through inspection and put all the cars in the same place at the same time with the same situation. Some of the practice days here are good weather days and some are bad days,'' he said.
``There's speeds going around that I know for a fact are bogus,'' Ford driver Rick Mast said. ``The problem with Daytona in the winter is there ain't nothin' going on and all the writers don't have anything to write about. Those speeds get a lot of coverage and it gets back to corporate America. And if you can show that your car went fast, it makes them feel good for a couple of months.''
But Pressley, one of the quickest here this week, says team owner Leo Jackson ``doesn't do that kind of stuff. He doesn't have to impress [sponsor] Skoal. If anything, we've got a little bit left.''
And Larry McClure, Marlin's co-car owner, said there is a disadvantage to being one of the fastest teams because they get ``looked at a little harder [by NASCAR] if they do run faster. If someone sets the fastest time, there needs to be a reason for that.''
Said Gordon: ``Most of the cars are legitimate. You're just kidding yourself if you come down here and do anything that's not legal.''
The daily speeds are compiled by employees in the track's public relations department, who get them from a variety of sources. One of the key sources over the years has been trackside firemen, who sit in the pits and hand time laps with stopwatches. Although the reliability might seem questionable, the firemen have spent many years timing laps and have become quite good at it.
``A lot of these speeds are run with [illegal] combinations, but the teams are not trying to fool anybody. They're just trying to gain information for themselves,'' said Ford driver Ricky Rudd.
Teams will often use an illegal air cleaner setup to establish a baseline to measure the efficiency of the flow of air into the cleaner, he said. And teams will sometimes run a slightly oversized carburetor restrictor plate because they have a more powerful engine they're saving for February.
``They'll put a big plate on because they're trying to duplicate that extra horsepower,'' Rudd said.
Of course, they may run illegally because they need a sponsor and ``it might give them a negotiating tool,'' Rudd said.
In general, as Terry Labonte said, ``you can believe some of the speeds, but there will be a few of them that won't be right.''
NEMECHEK'S ANNOUNCEMENT: Chevy driver Joe Nemechek, fielding his own team this year, has scheduled a press conference in Daytona for 11 a.m. today, reportedly to announce that he has secured Burger King as a sponsor. Today is the final day of the GM test and of January Winston Cup practice.
HAGAN IS BACK: Billy Hagan was in Daytona on Tuesday with Indy car driver Scott Brayton practicing in his Chevrolet. Brayton plans to try to qualify the car in the Daytona 500. And Hagan said he's trying to land a sponsor for a full-season campaign.
Memo: NOTE: Shorter version ran in Metro edition.