THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 26, 1995 TAG: 9503260394
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DARLINGTON, S.C. LENGTH: Medium: 100 lines
A stock-car driver named Pearson showed up in Victory Lane at Darlington Raceway on Saturday for the first time in 15 years.
Larry Pearson, son of Darlington legend David Pearson, crossed the finish line about two car lengths ahead of Johnny Benson to win the Mark III Vans 200. Mark Martin was third, followed by Chad Little and Phil Parsons.
Larry Pearson undoubtedly was thinking more about his own career than his father's unparalleled 10 Winston Cup victories at this 1.366-mile oval as he won his first winner's trophy in almost seven years.
He had not won a Grand National race since Bristol in the fall of 1988, and he was moved to tears at the Grand National banquet in January as he promised his team he would win this season.
Pearson had never won a race on a superspeedway. And he had never won at his father's favorite track, which had been a matter of discussion between father and son.
``He's drilled enough crap into my head about getting around this place,'' Larry Pearson said.
David Pearson, who last won at Darlington in 1980, was not on hand to witness his son's victory, although he had been at the track Friday and earlier Saturday.
``He don't like to get caught in race traffic,'' Larry Pearson said.
``I'll probably have a message on my answering machine when I get home. As most of you know, he's really not much for words. But he's not the only one who can win here at Darlington.''
Pit strategy was the key to Larry Pearson's victory. He started 36th and did not take the lead until 18 laps to go, when he passed Parsons on the front straight.
Pearson's crew chief, 25-year-old Ryan Pemberton, had determined that Pearson was faster on used tires than on new ones, and that his greatest disadvantage was poor track position because of his starting spot.
So Pemberton and his crew changed Pearson's tires on lap 101 during a caution period. When the other leaders, including Mark Martin, who led 37 laps, changed tires during the next caution period on lap 108, Pearson stayed out and gained nearly all the ground he needed.
On lap 100, Pearson was 15th. On lap 110, he was second, trailing only Parsons.
Pemberton ``made that call,'' Pearson said. ``He's only about 25, but he's got a lot of knowledge about racing.
``The last two times I've been here, we've actually run very well,'' Pearson added. ``We ran good enough to win the race but things happened - mainly Mark Martin. He was a little stronger than we were. But I don't think this is going to be the only (win) this year. I think we can kick some butt.''
Pearson had never been particularly fond of Darlington and was irritated with last year's repaving because it took away his preferred groove in turns three and four. But his attitude is changing.
``It's become one of my favorite places,'' he said.
Benson, meanwhile, retained his lead in the series points race by 112 over Terry Labonte, who was taken out in a four-car crash on lap 112.
In all, there were seven crashes.
Chesapeake's Elton Sawyer was one of the crash victims, hitting the frontstretch wall on lap 65.
``I came up on a lapped car coming onto the front straightaway and the 75 car (driven by Rick Wilson) just got into the back of me,'' he told a track reporter.
MARTIN WINS IROC RACE: Mark Martin led 57 of 60 laps for an easy victory in the second round of the International Race of Champions as Dale Earnhardt triggered a four-car crash.
Martin, the series' defending champion, took the lead from Jeff Gordon on the third lap and was never seriously challenged after that, even though he won by only a few car lengths. Gordon was second, followed by Ken Schrader, Tom Kendall and Scott Pruett.
The wildest moment of an otherwise uneventful event came on lap 17, when Earnhardt tried to pass Steve Millen in turn two and clipped him, sending Millen into a spin that collected Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace and Ricky Rudd.
``I wasn't going to hold him up intentionally but I wasn't just going to pull over, either,'' Millen said. ``We touched and we spun. It was racing.''
Said Earnhardt, ``We spun each other out or I spun him out, more or less.''
Earnhardt finished eighth, Millen ninth, Wallace 10th and Rudd 11th.
``I love this place,'' said Martin, who has won five events at the 1.366-mile track the past two years. He won with an average speed of 153.675 mph.
Martin leads the series with 33 points, with Earnhardt second with 31. Pruett has 29 points for third and Schrader is fourth with 28. The series resumes April 29 at Talladega, Ala. ILLUSTRATION: Photos
ASSOCIATED PRESS
``He's drilled enough crap into my head about getting around this
place,'' Larry Pearson said of his dad, a 10-time winner.
Cars driven by Steve Millen, left, Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace and
Ricky Rudd piled up on lap 17 of Saturday's IROC race, won by Mark
Martin. Earnhardt clipped Millen while trying to pass.
by CNB