THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, April 4, 1996 TAG: 9604040486
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
Terry Labonte, who vowed to quit the International Race of Champions series after a rules controversy at Daytona, says he will continue to compete.
The next race is at Talladega later this month.
Labonte and a number of other drivers were furious when several competitors took advantage of a confusing rule change and switched tires during a caution period, allowing them to pass the front-runners. Labonte was so mad he threw his IROC driver's uniform in the trash can.
``We've reached an agreement,'' Labonte said Tuesday. ``I'm going to run the IROC series. They've satisfied my concerns.''
Labonte said the rule will be ``the way half of us assumed it was,'' which is that no tire changes are allowed unless something is wrong with a tire.
NASCAR IRONMAN: Labonte, by the way, will tie Richard Petty for the record of consecutive race starts with 512 at North Wilkesboro on April 14.
Labonte's streak began Jan. 14, 1979, at Riverside, Calif.
``It really doesn't seem like it's that long ago,'' he said.
But his streak nearly ended where it began in 1982. He was seriously injured in a crash at Riverside, but it was the last race of the season, giving him several months to recover before the 1983 season opener at Daytona in February.
If it hadn't have been the season-ending race, ``I wouldn't have been able to compete at that point,'' he said.
Labonte is expected to break the record April 21 at Martinsville.
QUICK REPAIR: The Ford Thunderbird that Dale Jarrett crashed during qualifying at Bristol International Raceway last Friday is already well on its way to recovery.
Jarrett plowed head-on into the frontstretch wall, causing damage that required a new front chassis piece, known as a front clip.
By Friday night, the damaged car was back at car owner Robert Yates' shop in Charlotte. On Saturday afternoon, it was taken to Laughlin Racing Products outside Greenville, S.C., to await repairs.
The work at Laughlin's was done about 2 p.m. Monday, and the car was back at Yates' shop with a new front clip by 4 p.m.
``It will probably be ready to race again next Wednesday or Thursday, but we don't plan to use it until we test at Charlotte on the Wednesday and Thursday after the (May 5) Sonoma race,'' team manager Larry McReynolds said.
NASCAR BILLIONAIRE: The rich get richer in a growth sport like stock-car racing, and Speedway Motorsports Chairman O. Bruton Smith is already almost a billionaire in stock holdings alone.
The current prospectus for Speedway Motorsports, which offered 3.1 million shares of the stock, shows that Smith owns 29 million shares, or 70.6 percent. At the current selling price of about $28 a share, Smith is worth approximately $812 million.
Speedway Motorsports President H.A. ``Humpy'' Wheeler owns 600,000 shares, worth about $16.8 million, while Atlanta Motor Speedway president Ed Clark has 80,000 shares, valued at about $2.24 million.
Other interesting facts in the prospectus: Smith paid $6.05 million in cash for half-ownership of North Wilkesboro Speedway last June. The price tag for Bristol, purchased in January, was $26,583,000.
THERE ALL THE TIME: When Dale Jarrett pitted in teammate Ernie Irvan's stall after running out of fuel with two laps to go at Darlington on March 24, NASCAR initially said there was no rule that specifically addressed whether that was legal.
But after taking another look, NASCAR decided that an existing rule bans the practice.
That rule? Cars may not pit outside their pit box.
Jarrett was penalized a lap anyway because he violated another rule when Irvan's crew and another gave him assistance by pushing him on pit road after the white (one-lap-to-go) flag was waved. by CNB