THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 2, 1994 TAG: 9407020762
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. LENGTH: Medium: 93 lines
The 1994 Winston Cup season went from bad to worse Friday at Daytona International Speedway for Richard Petty, Wally Dallenbach and the No. 43 Pontiac Grand Prix team.
A last-minute, near-desperation qualifying run by Ward Burton put him in the 43-car field in today's Pepsi 400 and knocked out Dallenbach, whose team had elected to stand on its Thursday speed.
It was the second race in a row Dallenbach missed and the fifth this season.
A grim-faced Dallenbach, who loves the superspeedways, wasted no time leaving the track as Petty searched for an explanation.
``You got to run fast enough to make it,'' Petty said. ``We did everything except what it took to run fast.''
``We've been in this shape before,'' said crew chief Robbie Loomis. ``We've just got to dig ourselves out of this hole.''
``Man, I feel for (Dallenbach),'' said Burton, who has missed four races himself. ``There's not a worse feeling in the world. It's so degrading and demoralizing to go home from a race when you've run up front before.''
Burton seemed to come out of nowhere to ruin the day for the Petty camp, but certainly lifted the spirits of his own team. He didn't get to qualify during Thursday's first round because his team was still installing the motor he leased from the Morgan-McClure team and engine builder Runt Pittman. He only had six laps of practice Friday morning before damaging his transmission.
The team managed to get the transmission replaced, but didn't fire the engine until there was only 30 seconds to spare on their qualifying deadline.
``I tell you what, it was do or die,'' Burton said after winning the 40th starting position at 185.644 mph.
The regular provisional starting spots went to Rick Mast, who has had trouble getting a new car up to speed, and Bobby Hamilton. And Bill Elliott elected to take a provisional for the 43rd spot, standing on his Thursday speed even though he was only 44th fastest.
LAST MINUTE TROUBLE: Pole winner Dale Earnhardt burned a piston in the engine of his Chevrolet Lumina during the final Winston Cup practice Friday afternoon.
Earnhardt reportedly damaged the power plant at the beginning of the session while pace car driver Elmo Langley was escorting the race cars down pit road to allow them to gauge the speed limit on their tachometers.
Crew chief Andy Petree said the team would change engines before today's race.
THE FASTEST PETTY: Ritchie Petty outran both his cousin Kyle and the car of his Uncle Richard to capture the 35th starting position.
Petty, driving an unsponsored car prepared on a shoestring budget by his brothers, with help from his father, Maurice, made the field during the first round of time trials Thursday at a speed of 186.131 mph.
Cousin Kyle didn't make the field until the second round on Friday, qualifying in the 36th starting spot at 186.100 mph.
Ritchie's qualifying run was particularly notable in that it was more than 2 1/2 mph faster than his best practice lap Thursday.
TWO $5,000 FINES: NASCAR on Friday morning levied fines of $5,000 to the teams of Darrell Waltrip and Joe Nemechek for taking steps that could have hindered the effectiveness of the roof flaps on their Chevys.
``During pre-qualifying inspection Thursday, NASCAR inspectors found tape covering a small gap around the roof flaps of Waltrip's car,'' a NASCAR statement said. ``The tape was removed by inspectors, but four pieces of tape were put back in place by the team before Waltrip qualified which covered not only the gap, but the flap hinges.''
During the same inspection, inspectors found that Nemechek's team had used silicone to fill the same gaps, which are located where the flaps are hinged to the roof.
NASCAR levied the fine because it determined that the tape and the silicone made it more difficult for the flaps to open.
``It must have helped us so much, that's why we qualified 34th,'' Waltrip told team publicist Keith Waltz.
But NASCAR spokesman Kevin Triplett said the issue was safety, not performance, and future penalties could include higher fines or suspensions.
TURNS OF THE SPONSOR WRENCH: Mark Martin and team owner Jack Roush announced Friday that Valvoline had extended its contract for several more years, but the company said its policy was not to say how many.
Also, Dick Trickle and the Active racing team owned by Dean Myers, has obtained sponsorship for today's race and the Brickyard 400 from Skybox International, a trading card company about to introduce a NASCAR set. ILLUSTRATION: ASSOCIATED PRESS
Wally Dallenbach, left, quickly departed after missing the Pepsi 400
field, leaving car owner Richard Petty to explain the trouble.
TODAY IN NASCAR
[For a copy of the chart, see microfilm for this date.]
by CNB