ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 10, 1996 TAG: 9603110098
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: AUTO RACING NOTES
DATELINE: HAMPTON, GA.
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
Just as they were tasting real success, two young NASCAR drivers saw their fortunes turn sour Saturday at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Jeff Burton, second in Winston Cup points, failed to qualify for today's Purolator 500.
And Johnny Benson, who won the pole Friday, demolished his pole-winning car in the final Winston Cup practice. He will start today's race from the back of the field in a backup car.
Benson was unhurt, but he gave the outside wall between turns 3 and 4 a terrific head-on wallop, flattening the front of his Pontiac Grand Prix.
``I don't think we'll be running that one tomorrow,'' he said. ``Just lost it, I guess. I ain't never had a car come around on me that quick. I don't know if it was because I was close to [another car] or what.''
Benson's team quickly unloaded their backup car, but the final practice ended before the car was ready to go on the track.
Burton, meanwhile, was not fast enough to qualify for one of the 38 starting spots. And because his team is new, he was not eligible for a provisional starting spot.
Burton, who drives a Jack Roush-owned Ford Thunderbird, was 42nd fastest in Friday's first round of time trials. He was more than a mile an hour quicker in Saturday's second round, but was still only 40th fastest.
``Obviously, it's devastating,'' he said. ``We unloaded with the wrong package. We struggled trying to fix the car and never got good enough. Then to have to do it on the second day, when you dig yourself in a hole on the first day, it's really difficult to get out.''
Forty-one cars will start today's race, leaving one provisional starting spot unfilled.
Burton was not eligible for it because for the first four races of a new season, provisionals are doled out on the basis of the previous season's car owner points.
His team did not exist in 1995.
Beginning with the next race at Darlington, S.C. in two weeks, provisionals will be allocated by 1996 car owner points.
Roush, Burton and crew chief Buddy Parrott all separately spoke to NASCAR officials, appealing for a chance to race. And they spoke to several other car owners in hopes of renting someone else's car. Neither effort succeeded.
``We weren't fast enough to make the race, and I can't argue that point,'' Burton said. ``But it seems to me if there are spots available, the rule should be written to take care of the people who are running all of the races.''
NASCAR spokesman Kevin Triplett said officials searched through the rule book and checked other resources, but found nothing that would get Burton into the race. He said the rules are written to be as liberal as possible with provisional starting spots for regular competitors, but ``unfortunately for the first time a guy got caught in the middle. We would prefer a 42-car field. But we can't stop everything and change a rule today because of an unfortunate situation.''
Daytona 500 winner Dale Jarrett, who is also with a new team, faced the same challenge as Burton. Jarrett made the field, but just barely. He qualified 35th, just ahead of teammate Ernie Irvan.
``I didn't sleep last night,'' Jarrett said. ``I may have dozed a little, but I didn't sleep.''
WIND TUNNEL WORK: NASCAR is headed back to the Lockheed wind tunnel Monday and Tuesday, this time with three cars each from the Winston Cup and Busch series.
After Saturday's race, NASCAR selected the Ford driven by Mark Martin, the Chevy driven by Bobby Labonte and the Pontiac driven by Ward Burton.
And after today's race, they will impound the best cars of each make.
NASCAR took Dale Earnhardt's Chevy and Ernie Irvan's Ford to the wind tunnel after last November's race. The tests showed that the Chevy had superior downforce and prompted NASCAR to order several body adjustments to the Fords to improve their aerodynamics.
TOP PRACTICE SPEEDS: Rusty Wallace posted the quickest lap in Saturday's final Winston Cup practice, reaching 181.912 mph in his Ford. He was followed by Mark Martin in another Ford at 181.852 mph, Bobby Labonte in a Chevy (181.490), Terry Labonte in a Chevy (181.250) and Bill Elliott in a Ford (180.832).
LENGTH: Medium: 81 linesby CNB