Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 15, 1995 TAG: 9509150099
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Knight-Ridder/Tribune
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
When Labonte gets the green flag for the MBNA 500 at Dover (Del.) Downs, it will mark his 500th consecutive start in NASCAR's major league. The record is Petty's 513 in a row, a mark Labonte is on a pace to tie in the Goody's 500 in April 1996 at Martinsville Speedway.
Because of NASCAR's policy of offering provisional starting opportunities, Labonte is assured of a spot in the lineup at Dover merely by showing up for the race.
Not only will Labonte be reaching a rare milestone Sunday, he will be among the favorites to win the race. Since joining Hendrick Motorsports to drive Chevrolets last season, the 1984 Winston Cup champion has revived his career.
Labonte was winless from 1990-93 before succeeding Ricky Rudd in team owner Rick Hendrick's No.5 Chevy last year. He won three times in '94 and has three victories this season with seven of the tour's 31 events remaining. Labonte has been strong recently, with finishes of fifth, second, first and second sandwiching a 19th in his past five starts.
``As I've gotten closer to 500 starts, it has made me think about how early I really did begin racing at the top level,'' said Labonte, whose streak began in January 1979. ``I've said all along that I hope people don't think of me as being older than I am [39] just because I've run this number of races.''
Count on there being more on Labonte as race weekend progresses at Dover, where qualifying begins today.
CONCRETE PROOF: The Winston Cup and Grand National drivers will be racing on Dover Downs' concrete surface for only the second time in the MBNA 200/500 doubleheader.
The pavement has received drastically different reviews as the competitors looked this week to returning to ``The Monster Mile.''
Said Hut Stricklin, who finished fourth in a Ford in the track's June 500-miler: ``I've built a concrete go-kart track at my house that's a mini-Dover, just to get me ready. The best thing now is that the track will always be the same and we'll know what we're dealing with. Conditions won't change like when it was paved with asphalt. I like Dover.''
Ted Musgrave, third in a Thunderbird in June, had a very different opinion.
``It's like a nightmare I'm having thinking about going to Dover,'' Musgrave said. ``Concrete and racing don't mix. We finished well, yeah, but you've got to take into consideration a lot of top cars were put out of the race in a big wreck on the second lap. ... I think we've got a shot at another top-five [finish], but I still don't like concrete.
``I think I can explain why. Ever go over a concrete bridge after driving up to it on asphalt? Once you're on the bridge, you can feel a vibration in the steering wheel. The tires are vibrating on top of the stones in the concrete, and I don't like that feel. On asphalt, you can wear in a groove. Not on concrete. It just wears the tires down.''
DASHING: The Goody's Dash Series returns this weekend to North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway, the track where competition for subcompact cars was born in 1975.
Back then NASCAR called the circuit the Baby Grand National Division.
The smaller machines last raced at the Wilkes County track in 1987, with home-county driver Larry Caudill taking the checkered flag.
Caudill remains a top competitor on the tour and goes into Sunday's 100-lap Dash portion of the Coca-Cola 400 quadrupleheader leading the standings toward the championship. However, Caudill is only 14 points ahead of Rock Hill (S.C.) teen-ager and high school senior David Hutto, who closed with his season-leading fifth victory Sept.2 in Florence, S.C.
Another S.C. teen-ager, Lyndon Amick of Batesburg, is third in the standings, 75 points behind Caudill.
by CNB