Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 14, 1995 TAG: 9502140127
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DENISE MICHAUX LANDMARK NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. LENGTH: Medium
NASCAR calls it breaking the rules.
No matter what you call it, based on what has happened at Daytona International Speedway in the past few days, a lot of teams worked hard during the winter testing the limits.
``Maybe it's our testing policy, where we give them December off, that they get more ideas,'' Winston Cup Director Gary Nelson said Monday.
A total of $90,200 in fines has been handed out since Friday, including the highest fine in the sport's history - $45,100. All of the money collected from fines throughout the year goes into the Winston Cup points fund which is handed out at the end of the season.
Junior Johnson, the car-owner on the No.22 Ford driven by Brett Bodine, was hit for $45,000 for not having the air intake manifold bolted down. Crew chief Mike Beam was fined $100 and put on indefinite probation.
Bill Davis, car-owner on the No.22 Pontiac driven by Randy Lajoie, got fined $25,000, Lajoie $10,000 and crew chief Chris Hussey $100 with indefinite probation for constructing an elaborate hydraulic rear deck lid lifter.
Joe Nemechek, driver of the No.87 Chevrolet, was fined $5,000 for tampering with the air filter.
And Jeff Hammond, crew chief on the No.40 Pontiac driven by Greg Sacks, was hit with a $5,000 fine for having 18 pounds of loose weight in the car Sacks crashed during Sunday's Busch Clash.
So the question is, is NASCAR getting that much better at catching the infractions or are the drivers pushing the envelope that hard?
``You've got to give NASCAR credit for looking in all the right places,'' Petty said. ``But you've got to give these guys credit for trying stuff.''
``I'd like to think our officials are always doing a good job and they are always on top of things when things happen out there,'' Nelson said. ``But in reality, some things you just flat out stumble on.''
Like Davis' hydraulic pump which was discovered when a NASCAR official at the gas pumps thought the pins on the rear deck lid were loose and tried to tighten them up for LaJoie.
While the consensus is that NASCAR is getting more efficient at finding problems, there are probably more factors involved.
With Hoosier Tire's exit from Winston Cup, at least four officials were freed up to work in the garage.
``We had seven officials dedicated to tires all year last year,'' Nelson said. ``This year we were able to knock that team down to just a few officials watching the three-set rule and we have another six or more sets of eyes in the garage area.''
There was also a tremendous amount of movement among team members and drivers during the off-season.
``If you leave one place and you know they've got something they've been doing, you're not going to rat them out, but you are going to tell enough people that somebody's going to rat them out,'' said Robin Pemberton, Rusty Wallace's new crew chief, who spent four years with Mark Martin, two years with Petty and last season with Ted Musgrave. ``The best inspectors in the garage area are the other competitors.''
Nelson said NASCAR officials get their information from everywhere and they track down every rumor to see if there is any possibility of truth.
So the next obvious question is why risk it?
``The cars have to fit the templates within a quarter inch of tolerance,'' Petty's new crew chief Barry Dodson said. ``So it comes down to a 40-car IROC race. You've got to do everything you can.
``I call it self defense. You have to try to have an edge. I've done it too.''
``I just can't believe what people are trying to do,'' Pemberton said. ``I would think they would work harder at something they can use and use it all the time instead of something they can use once.''
``I think you have to be innovative,'' Sacks said. ``But that doesn't impress me. I'm impressed with the guys that are going fast today that haven't been caught.''
The severity of the fines has had a lot of tongues wagging. But the number is going to have to get pretty high before owners such as Richard Childress, Felix Sabates, Roger Penske and Junior Johnson are going to feel the pinch.
``Dollars to some people mean more than to others,'' Nelson said. ``If the fines aren't high enough to deter each competitor, we will keep raising fines until they quit.''
Suspension is an option, but is rare and even rarer is sending a team home from the track unless safety is involved.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB