Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 27, 1995 TAG: 9504270077
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It's nothing of great moment, but the sanctioning body has been making some slightly strange moves of late.
First was the $250 fine against Bill Ingle, Ricky Rudd's crew chief, for punching Ted Musgrave while the driver sat in his car after the Hanes 500 Sunday at Martinsville Speedway.
Even if one concluded that Musgrave intentionally spun Rudd out, which Musgrave denies, the penalty seemed light. Then again, there were no complaints from Musgrave or his team, and certainly none from Rudd or his team.
Now comes the announcement of rules changes for upcoming races.
Effective for the May 7 Sears Point road race, NASCAR has ordered all cars to raise the ground clearance of their front air dams from 3.75 inches to four inches. And the height of the spoilers must be reduced a half-inch, from 6.25 to 5.75 inches.
Then, for the next race, the Winston Select on May 20, the Pontiacs and Fords get to lower their front ground clearance back to 3.75 inches and they get to add a quarter-inch of height to their spoilers, bringing it back to 6 inches.
Why? Kevin Triplett, a NASCAR spokesman, said the first change was a follow-up, as predicted by NASCAR, to similar changes announced before the Atlanta race in March. The intent was, and is, to reduce speeds across the board.
The second change, he said, is ``directly related'' to the NASCAR wind-tunnel tests, which obviously showed NASCAR that the Fords and Pontiacs needed help. The changes were for different reasons, Triplett said, so that's why they were not combined.
CHEVY BACKLASH: Whatever the reasoning, the changes don't sit well with Chevy driver Dale Earnhardt and his car owner, Richard Childress, both of whom used rather strong words to criticize the moves.
``It seems sort of unfair or one-sided to take something away ... '' Earnhardt said. ``It's a little early and I think a little wrongful to penalize teams that came up with a race car that works good. Why work so hard if they're going to take it away from you?''
Childress called the rule changes a ``slap in the face,'' saying: ``I think it's too early. This sport had its highs and lows in it, and when you work hard and you're seeing your efforts really come out, then to take this is emotionally hard for teams to accept. ... We've been asking for things the last two years that didn't come through. And then to see them go to another car ... ''
``These cars today have gotten so aerodynamically balanced, anytime you make a change it can unbalance the car.''
PETTY UP AND AROUND: Richard Petty, who was released from Moses H. Cone Regional Cancer Center in Greensboro, N.C., on Monday after surgery April 18 for prostate cancer, paid a visit to his shop Tuesday.
``He came over for a little while yesterday just to let us know he was back and okay,'' said Martha Jane Bonkemeyer, Petty's personal secretary. ``He's OK. He's either resting at home [in Level Cross, N.C.] or at the lake.'' [He has a home at Baden Lake.]
In the meantime, get-well cards have been pouring into Petty Enterprises at a rate of about 125 a day, and that doesn't include those received at his home or his fan club.
``He's resting well and he'll be back at the track as soon as the doctor lets him,'' Bonkemeyer said.
by CNB