THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 27, 1996 TAG: 9609270752
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BRIAN J. FRENCH, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 83 lines
Much like the ubiquitous picture game, fans at Langley Speedway have been playing a hearty round of ``Where's Warren?'' Only nobody's having that much fun.
Two-time defending Late Model champion Phil Warren remains on a self-imposed hiatus from the track, citing tire problems and what he termed ``disagreements'' with Langley personnel.
``I never cared for the tires they (Langley) use, and especially after the disagreement with the officials, I decided not to come back this season,'' Warren said.
Langley uses Hoosier 2035-series tires, which Warren says are too easy to wear out. He has asked that the track use F-series tires. It will in 1997, according to Langley promoter Wayne Wyatt.
Warren and track officials also don't see eye-to-eye on a pair of incidents in Warren's last two appearances.
Before the Aug. 18 event, Warren was disqualified when, in a post-qualifying weigh-in, his car was eight pounds underweight.
``They didn't notify us that they would be weighing us after qualifying (normally the weigh-in is done beforehand), and we came up eight pounds short, which translates to four gallons of gas, which we burned in qualifying,'' Warren said.
In the Aug. 25 race - Warren's last - he tried to qualify using two left tires he previously had used and two new tires. Track officials said no, and Warren had to qualify on a new set of tires. He placed 29th after time trials and ran two laps to earn last-place points and money before pitting for the season.
``Other drivers have been allowed to qualify on two old tires,'' Warren said. ``To me, this was a way for (officials) to get back at me for the week before.''
Then there's the matter of the anonymous package sent to Warren soon after the Aug. 25 race. In it was a pacifier and a note telling Warren, ``If you want to whine, go to a nursery.''
Warren said it probably was sent by a track official. But Wyatt said it wasn't him.
``If I were to do something like that,'' said Wyatt, ``I'd do it at the drivers' meeting or right on the front straightaway. I wouldn't do it anonymously.''
LIMITED STOCK SHOWDOWN: Three of the six Langley division champions have been decided. Two drivers are within a top-10 finish of joining them. Only the Limited Stock points race is still close.
Points leader Paul Lubno is eight points ahead of Jerry Scott, and a fifth-place finish or higher will give him the crown. The majority of the races in the division have had Lubno and Scott finishing 1-2 - or vice versa.
But Lubno can't afford to take a chance.
``We're checking every nut and bolt on this car,'' he said. ``A lot could go wrong, and it's a big gamble. But all we can do is run hard and stay out of trouble.''
DIXIELAND CHAMPS: Dixieland Speedway in crowned division champions after last Friday's season-ending program. Bobby Webb won the Budweiser All-Stars division. Troy Williams clinched the Minnie Stock title long ago, while Robin Cohoon easily won the Pro Bombers series. Don Koreniowski took the B-Bombers crown, and Shane Kirkwood won the C-Bombers title.
RULING REVERSED: 4-Cylinder Modified points leader Alan Kee's disqualification at Southampton Speedway last Saturday was overturned by technical inspector Ken Roberson on Monday.
Kee had finished second in the 25-lap race but was disqualified following a protest by third-place finisher Jay Williams.
The restored finish adds to Kee's margin in the points standings. Kee now has 404 points, ahead of Keith Edwards and Kendall Barnes (373). ILLUSTRATION: AT A GLANCE
LANGLEY SPEEDWAY
Saturday: Gates open at 1 p.m., qualifying begins at 5 and
racing begins at 7 in Late Model Stock (100 laps); Grand Stock (40);
Limited Stock (25), Mini Stock (25) and Pure Stock (25). Tickets:
Adults $12; active military and senior citizens $10; children 6-12
$4; children under 6 free with admission.
Notable: This is the final regular-season schedule of 1996.
SOUTHAMPTON SPEEDWAY
Saturday: Gates open at 4 p.m, qualifying begins at 5:45 and
racing begins at 7 in Super Late Model (35 laps), Late Model Stock
(30), Limited Sportsman (25), 4-Cylinder Modified (25), Super Stock
(20) and Pure Stock (20). Tickets: Adults $10; children 6-12 $4;
children under 6 free with admission. by CNB