Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, March 6, 1995 TAG: 9503070038
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
Six months ago, Terry Labonte's biggest challenge during his 400 trips around the track at Richmond International Raceway was overcoming the slow pit stops by his crew.
On Sunday, Labonte's pit crew may have been his biggest asset.
With 88 laps to go in the Pontiac Excitement 400, Labonte's crew gave him a lead he never relinquished as he cruised to a 1.25-second victory over Dale Earnhardt in the NASCAR Winston Cup race. Rusty Wallace finished third, followed by Ken Schrader and Sterling Marlin.
Labonte won the fall race as well as Sunday's, so no matter how slow or fast his crew services his Chevrolet, Labonte has a handle on this three-quarter-mile track.
``Sometimes you just hit on a combination and it really works for you,'' said Labonte, who has won three of the past 11 Winston Cup races. ``Every time you come back, you say, `Boy, I really hope we can run as good as last time.' I used to have Rockingham down pat a long time ago.''
Labonte's victory came despite a poor qualifying run Saturday. He started 24th Sunday and spent the first half of the race hacking his way through the field. He didn't take the lead until lap 221. But after that, he dominated, leading 131 laps.
While Labonte was paying the price for his poor qualifying effort, Wallace and Earnhardt were entertaining the crowd.
They seem to have a thing about running side-by-side at Richmond. And from lap 97 to lap 123, they put on another show.
``I really thought I was going to win it,'' said Wallace, who led 247 laps, the most of anyone. ``But beggars can't be choosy. After two DNFs [did not finishes], I'm really happy to finish third today.
``It was neat racing. I had a good time out there today. I believe we just mischose the right-rear shock today. That really aggravated me and killed me.''
Said Earnhardt, ``I was having fun racing Rusty. That's what it's all about. But I just couldn't get to Terry. My tires went away. He was better than we were.''
The patience Labonte displayed while working his way through the field was matched by the patience of the Virginia race fans. They waited through a snowy, wet Friday and a cold, threatening Saturday to find themselves with what turned out to be a nice Sunday for racing. The sun actually came out during the afternoon.
The weather was great for the fans, but a sudden change like that can wreak havoc on stock car teams.
``Boy, the sun came out and that thing was good,'' Labonte said of his car. ``The way we qualified, I thought we might be in trouble. And we didn't practice as good as I thought we would. I don't know. We just lucked out, probably.''
Luck always plays a part, but the winning move for Labonte and his team came in the pits.
Labonte's pit crew is not entirely the same as it was in the fall. Brad Parrott, who used to be a key member of Wallace's unparalleled 1994 crew, joined Labonte's team during the winter.
But the change wasn't apparent during a round of yellow-flag pit stops on lap 273 after Dale Jarrett and Ward Burton tangled in turn 3. Labonte was leading when he came in for new tires and fuel. When he came out, Labonte was third, trailing Wallace and Earnhardt. It looked like a re-run of the fall race.
``When they beat us on [that] stop, I just went back and dug down deep,'' Parrott said.
The crew got another chance.
On lap 311, Jimmy Spencer and Brett Bodine tangled in turn 2. The yellow flag came out for the fifth and final time during the race, and everyone headed to the pits. Labonte still was trailing Wallace and Earnhardt.
But after a few pumps of the jack and turns of the air wrench, Labonte was out first, with Wallace and Earnhardt just behind him.
``Good stop, guys,'' Labonte said on his radio. ``Way to go.''
After that, it was just a matter of counting down the laps.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB