ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, February 18, 1996 TAG: 9602200006
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-11 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: DAYTONA BEACH, FLA.
SOURCE: Associated Press
THE CHEVY DRIVER regains the lead with five laps left and holds off Dale Jarrett en route to his first Daytona victory in 15 tries.
Steve Grissom lost the lead in a late-race pit stop, but regained it with drafting help and then used a perfect blocking maneuver on the final lap to win the Goody's 300 on Saturday.
Grissom used the draft from the lapped car of Jimmy Spencer to get by Dale Jarrett with five laps left.
``When we got to Dale, he was kind of a sitting duck, and Jimmy helped me get right on by him,'' said Grissom, who dominated the latter portion of the event for the 11th NASCAR Busch Grand National victory of his career.
All three will be in pursuit of pole-sitter Dale Earnhardt in today's Daytona 500.
Jarrett, who will try to win stock car racing's biggest prize for the second time, took the lead with 11 laps remaining when his final fuel stop took four seconds less than Grissom's. But Spencer, who fell out of contention because of a bad mid-race pit stop, got close to Grissom and helped him take the lead.
``Jimmy Spencer tried to help me right there at the end, but couldn't,'' Jarrett said. ``I really hated to see him pulling Steve up through there, but Steve had a great car today, and deserved to win the race.''
As the cars were entering the high-banked third turn at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway, Jarrett made his final move. He climbed to the top of the track, but Grissom deftly moved up to block.
As the cars exited the final turn, Jarrett looked to the low side, but Grissom moved in that direction, effectively ending a duel that dominated the second half of the race. Grissom took the checkered flag two car-lengths ahead of Jarrett.
``I tried him on the outside in the last corner, but we just didn't quite have enough for those Chevrolets,'' Jarrett said.
The 32-year-old Grissom won for the first time in 15 career attempts at Daytona. He collected $54,697 from a purse totaling $772,975. All told, he led three times for a race-high 47 laps.
There were 14 lead changes among 10 drivers in a race slowed five times - four in the first half - for 23 laps. Grissom averaged 140.772 mph, but the average speed was considerably slower in the early going because of the accidents.
Jason Keller escaped serious injury despite being hit hard by four cars after he spun exiting the high-banked fourth turn on the 22nd of 120 laps. Among those to make contact was Doug Heveron, whose car lifted off the ground after running over the left rear of Keller's spinning Chevrolet.
Earlier, pole-sitter Jeff Purvis, whose qualifying speed of 189.733 mph, was the fastest for any of the events held during the week, made contact with Mike McLaughlin while attempting a pass on the backstretch on lap 15.
McLaughlin drove on, and remained a part of the lead group until he and Joe Nemechek touched just after crossing the start-finish line to begin the 43rd lap. Several cars spun as they did eight laps later in a 10-car accident in a turn two crash that removed Nemechek from contention.
The fourth caution period ended at the halfway mark, and Spencer, who started 29th, took the green to start the 61st lap. But he was caught between drafting lines and shuffled back in the pack as Mark Martin completed a run to the front from his 28th starting position.
Within two laps, Jarrett moved to the point, then gave way to Grissom almost immediately.
Spencer, who didn't pit on the previous caution, was forced to stop for fuel at the end of the 82nd lap. He lost a lap, then was penalized with a stop-and-go for speeding on pit road.
That set up the final third of the race as a battle among Grissom, Jarrett, Martin and Randy LaJoie.
Martin's Ford was taken out of contention when he tried to stop for fuel with 17 laps left. He was unable to make it onto pit road when he failed to clear the lapped car of Dennis Setzer, who hit him in the rear.
``It was time for me to pit, I couldn't wait,'' Martin explained. ``I had to cut through there and hope the lane was clear. So the contact was my fault.''
Martin had to go around one more time, slowing as he lost fuel. But he managed to finish third.
Larry Pearson was fourth in a Chevy, followed by the Pontiac of Curtis Markham, and the Chevys of Rodney Combs and LaJoie.
The Ford of Derrike Cope was eighth, followed by the Chevys of Bobby Labonte and Spencer. Defending race champion Chad Little was 19th in a Pontiac.
LENGTH: Medium: 90 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP. Steve Grissom celebrates his Goody's 300 victoryby CNBSaturday at Daytona International Speedway. KEYWORDS: AUTO RACING