The Tennessean from Nashville, Tennessee • Page 21

2 THE TENNEStEAM Jumtdmt. Aartl II 199 3C SPORTS ii 1 -i FAST LANE I PIT STOP CHATTER if CARACCIOLA WALLACE GOSSAGE Rudolph Caracciola, a famed European "racer in the 1930s, will be among the drivers inducted the International Motorsports Hall of Fame April 23 at Talladega, Ala. Eddie Gossage, president of trouble-plagued Texas Motor Speedway: "If these same guys went to Darlington or Talladega for the first time, they'd complain about those tracks, too." Rusty Wallace, despite sputtering in the last two races, is the Winston Cup leader as he chases his first championship since 1989 when he beat Dale Earnhardt by 12 points. POINTS LEADERS: THE TOP 20 AP HERE'S YOUR PROBLEM Hut Stricklin points out damage to Dale Earnhardt's car after the two were involved In a 10-car crash on the second lap of the Texas 500 Sunday in Fort Worth. Earnhardt went on to finish 35th and Stricklin came in 40th.

rrn 1 Rarincr Pos Driver Make Pts St Wins T-5 T-10 Winnings 1 Rusty WaBaoe Ford 1036 7 0 5 5 $765,710 2 Jeremy MayfieW Ford 1012 7 0 4 4 $724,575 3 Terry Labonte Chevrolet 1001 7 0 1 4 $493,215 4 Mark Martin Ford 979 7 2 3 5 $960,125 5 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 938 7 2 3 3 $579,550 6 Bill Elliott Ford 927 7 0 0 3 $468,770 7 DaleJarrett Ford 920 7 1 3 4 $571,900 8 Jeff Burton Ford 875 7 0 3 4 $531,175 9 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet 860 7 1 1 2 $1,361,970 10 Johnny Benson Ford 843 6 0 3 5 $365,505 11 Jimmy Spencer Ford 836 7 0 1 3 $528,170 12 KenSchrader Chevrolet 830 7 0 1 2 $603,355 13 Michael Wattrip Ford 830 7 0 0 3 $426,090 14 Bobby Labonte Pontac 822 7 1 2 3 $934,080 15 Ward Burton PonSac 788 7 0 0 0 $384,515 16 TedMusgrave Ford 736 7 0 0 3 $381,630 17 Chad Little Ford 730 6 0 1 3 $520,085 18 Bobby Hamilton Chevrolet 730 7 0 0 1 $361,180 19 BrettBodine Ford 718 7 0 0 0 $368,350 20 DckTrickle Ford 716 7 0 0 1 $363,445 POINTS LEADERS: AREA DRIVERS 28 Sterling Martin Chevrolet 566 6 0 0 0 $324,065 37 DarreBWaftrip Chevrolet 427 7 0 0 0 $281,205 Jv Insider Tornado forces Rim to postpone Just 200 yards away from Highland Rim's track, workers were picking up pieces of private businesses Saturday, a day after a tornado touched down near Greenbrier. "I didnt want to see it so I covered my eyes an prayed," said Marie Stanley, who was at the track Friday when the storm hit "IVe seen one and didnt want to see another." The track suffered very little damage, although lightning hit the lighting system, forcing postponement of racing both Friday and Saturday nights. Nashville Speedway Justin Alsip has more drive to win at Nashville Speedway. The 20-year-old rookie at the track leaves his home in Dayton, Ohio, at 3:30 a.m. on Saturdays to make the S-hour drive to Nashville for the Saturday night races.

"I've found that this is the best asphalt track, the best competition, and the best people in the country," he said. "We've raced all over Ohio and found that it cost the same, if not less, to race down here. I've also learned what everybody talks about Southern hospitality. It's for real." Alsip, who started 38th Saturday, had engine problems but finished 22nd. Nashville Speedway's SuperTruck Division will be part of the new Winston Short Series announced by NASCAR and Winston.

To be eligible for regional and national championships, drivers must compete in at least 16 events with each of the 10 regional champions and the national champion being honored in November at the NASCARWinston Racing Series banquet Joe Ruttman and teammate Gary Biffle will be at the Speedway tomorrow' and Thursday testing their Roush Team Fords for the NASCAR Truck Series race to be held here in August Ruttman, who is from Brentwood, started seventh but finished 22nd in Saturday's truck race in Homestead, Fla. "I looked like a rank amateur out there Saturday and I'm still lick ing my wounds," Ruttman said yesterday. "We had not planned to test at Homestead and it looked like it. Our poorest performances have been on short tracks, and Nashville is one of those." Music City Racing at Music City begins three nights a week, starting tonight with street legal drags, fun and grudge racing on Friday and the seven-class NHRA series on Saturday. -CHARLES SEARCY Larry Woody NEXT RACE: GOODY'S 500 Site: Martinsville, Va.

Qualifying: April 17. Race: April 1 9, noon TV: ESPN Radio: Motor Racing Network afSates. 1997 winner: Jeff Gordon. UPCOMING RACES: of NASCAR, and, at 26, his future is golden. ESPN Video has produced a home video, One In a MWxm: Jeff Gordon's 1997 Championship Season, which not only chronicles Gordon's race-by-race march to the championship but offers insight into what makes him click.

The NASCAR-licensed videos are available at retail outlets or may be ordered by calling 1-800-S62-ESPN. Texas-size improvements The racing surface at Texas Motor Speedway, called poorly designed and dangerous by drivers, will be overhauled to soften corners and improve drainage at a cost of up to $2 million, officials said yesterday. Bruton Smith, who spent $130 million to build the track, and track officials were forced to look at such changes after a series of problems with the year-old racing surface overshadowed Sunday's Texas 500. In a release faxed to news agencies, Smith said turns criticized as dangerously narrow will be widened. The track will also be repaved to improve drainage and there will be a new drainage system installed to solve a seepage problem.

Smith, who estimated the changes will cost between $1 million and $2 million, said he wants to make the Texas track more like the Charlotte Motor Speedway, which he also owns. "Obviously, the changes made after the inaugural race weren't adequate," Smith said. "Texas is the same size and configuration as Charlotte and what we will do is follow, as closely as possible, those contours of Charlotte, which is one of the best on the circuit" The statement said officials aren't certain when the turns will be overhauled but hope to get started in the coming weeks. The next event at the speedway is the NASCAR Craftsman TruckPep Boys Indy Racing League weekend on June 55. Smith said he'll consult with engineers, asphalt specialists, NASCAR officials and drivers to determine precise changes to the track.

Myriad problems have plagued the track since it opened last year. Contributing: Associated Press. Look for new track to go beyond stock The recent $90 million purchase of the Grand Prix Association in Long Beach, by the same group of investors that earlier bought Nashville Speedway, should enhance Nashville's racing diversity. Indy-Car, NHRA, and Grand Prix racing, along with various NASCAR divisions, all fit into the plans of Nashville's new super-speedway, scheduled to be running by the year 2000. "It will be difficult to find a more diversified motorsports company," said Denis McGlynn, president and CEO of Dover Downs Entertainment, who oversaw the recent California acquisition.

Dover Downs, which bought Nashville Speedway and will build the new super-speedway in partnership with Gaylord Entertainment, also owns and operates Gateway International Raceway in St. Louis and Memphis Motorsports Park. McGlynn's Dover track currently seats 109,000 for two annual NASCAR Winston Cup races. He said those races will not be moved. Bottom line for Nashvillians: How will all this affect racing's future here? "Very positively," McGlynn said.

"There is strength in numbers, and that helps when you start bargaining for races and race dates. We can offer every major form of motorsports available in the U.S. and have a significant presence in major markets on both coasts as well as in the central regions of our country." McGlynn, who attended last month's NASCAR Busch Series race at Nashville Speedway, does not rule out a Winston Cup race here at some point the future. "The way this sport is booming, you never know what might happen," he said. "That's why we are starting out with just 50,000 seats, but designing the facility so that 100,000 more seats can be added virtually overnight" McGlynn said studies are currently underway on "five or six prospective sites" for the new track.

Once the best site is determined, work will begin immediately. McGlynn hopes to start construction this summer. Speedway taking action Nashville Speedway officials say they never received a letter NASCAR Busch Series spokesman Tim Sullivan said he sent, advising the track of some problem areas. "We never received a letter," Speedway PR director Dave Kohler said last Saturday. Velma Jones, who along with Bob Harmon operates the track, phoned NASCAR headquarters last week when she read about NASCAR's cited problems in The Tennessean.

Sullivan said Jones "responded promptly and positively" to the concerns he cited following the March 15 Busch race. "Velma was on the phone with me the next day," Sullivan said. "She assured me the problems would be taken care of, and I have all the confidence in the world in her. "Nashville is a great track, and the people who run it are devoted to the sport. I didn't want to sound overly critical, but there were definitely some areas that need to be improved on." Among's Sullivan's complaints: too much noise in the working press box, a malfunctioning and at times inaccurate scoreboard, copying machines which failed to work efficiently.

As a result of the latter, Sullivan said, many Eastern time zone media outlets failed to receive the Nashville race results by airdeadline time. "This is a professional sport and we want our tracks to operate in a professional manner," Sullivan said. "I know that Velma and Bob expect the same." Video spotlights Gordon Many long-time racing observers feel Jeff Gordon is the best driver in the history Date Race Site April26 DieHardSCO Talladega, Ala. May 3 California 500 Fontana, Calif. May 16 The Winston Concord, N.C.

May 24 Coca-Cola 600 Concord, N.C. May 31 MBNA Platinum 400 Dover Downs, Del. June 6 Pontiac Excitement 400 Richmond, Va. June 14 Miller Lite 400 Brooklyn, Mich. June 21 Pocono 500 Long Pond, Pa.

1 POINTS Driver Points LRonHomaday 180 2. Joe Ruttman 170 3. RickCarelli 165 4. Jack Sprague 160 5. GregBiffle 155 6.

Joe Nemechek 150 7. JaySauter 146 8. Bob Kesetowski 142 9. Butch Miller 138 10. Rich Bickle 134 NEXT RACE April 19: Chevy Trucks Desert Star Classic, Phoenix.

POINTS Driver I.Dale Earnhardt Jr. 996 .2. Elliott Sadler 971 3. Mike McLaughlin 953 4. Matt Kenseth 952 5.

Randy LaJoie 902 6. Buckshot Jones 838 7. Mark Green 810 8. Hermie Sadler 800 9. Jeff Burton 797 10.

Elton Sawyer 779 NEXT RACE April 11: Galaxy Foods 300, Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway. iSr ram ilr" 1962 Fred Lorenzen's victory at Augusta (Ga.) Speedway gives team owner Mamie Reynolds her first Grand National victory. 1963 Wendell Scott wins a race in Jacksonville, becoming the first and only black driver to win on NASCAR's top circuit. 1961 Curtis Turner and Tim Flock, trying to unionize the drivers (and possibly bring pari-mutuel betting to NASCAR), are suspended for life by Bill France Sr. I960 Charlotte Motor Speedway opens with the World 600, NASCAR's longest race.

Joe Lee Johnson drives a Chevy to victory in the 600-mile event on a 1 paved A i A. TIMELINE Important moments In NASCAR history TENNESSEAN NEWS SERVICES TO BE CONTINUED Courier delivers U.S. victory over Russia Vols look to add guard LUCE pressure as possible." The pressure was applied when Agassi suffered his first Davis Cup loss since 1990, ending a 16-match winning streak that tied the American record set by Bill Tilden from 1920-26. "I'm not here for any records," said Agassi, who was beaten by Kafelnikov 6-3, 6-0, 7-6 (7-3). "I did what I needed to do, because we counted on everybody.

Had Jim not won that last one, I would have taken it a little bit harder." After his match, which lasted 90 minutes, Agassi slammed his racket, grabbed his bag and stomped away to the locker room. "I havent played a match that poorly in a long time" said Agassi. Safin looked overmatched in the first two matches of his Davis Cup career. He lost in straight sets to Agassi Saturday, then teamed with Kafelnikov for a four-set loss to Richey Reneberg and Todd Martin in Sunday's doubles. Safin was a different player yesterday afternoon.

He blitzed Courier in the first set, finishing it off with four straight aces, and grabbed a 4-1 lead to begin the second set. Courier huddled with Gullikson during the changeover to come up with a different strategy. Instead of trying to match Safin's power a sure losing battle Courier mixed in a few slices to change the pace and try to lure him from the baseline. "Safin has got a good future ahead of him, but he doesnt have the experience that all of us have, playing Davis Cup ties, playing lots of big matches, five-set matches," Courier said. "That's the bottom line in Davis Cup.

You cant ever stop believing." 9 Associated Press STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. Jim Courier couldnt sink any lower. His career in a tailspin the past two years, the world's former No. 1 player took the United States to the brink of Davis Cup elimination yesterday by losing 10 of the first 11 games in the deciding match to a Russian teen-ager ranked 170th. "I was just shellshocked," Courier said.

"I didnt know what to do out there." With nothing to lose, Courier altered his shot selection against 18-year-old Marat Safin and reached deep within himself to recapture the determination that carried him to four Grand Slam titles. Courier rallied for a 0-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over Safin, giving the United States a 3-2 first-round triumph over Russia. Yevgeny Kafelnikov forced the deciding match By CHRIS LOW Sports Writer KNOXVILLE The Tennessee men's basketball team plans to add a guard during this spring signing period, and there could be a couple of different options. Jenis Grindstaff, looking to transfer from Virginia Tech, said yesterday UT has the edge on South Carolina. The only problem: He would have to sit out next season.

At 6-foot-2, he averaged 10.7 points and led the Hokies in assists last season. The Vols will also have in for a visit this weekend junior college guard Jeremy Hall of St Catherine College in Bardstown, Ky. The 5-11 Hall averaged 14 points and seven assists last season. He be- gan his career at Wisconsin. Another possibility is Travis Stinnett of Alcoa High.

Stinnett originally signed with Murray State last November, but requested his release after Coach Mark Gottfried left for Alabama. Stinnett expects to have an answer in the next few days and has indicated an interest in the-Vols. The spring signing period begins tomorrow. Vincent Yarbrough of Cleveland High signed in November, leaving the Vols with two scholarship openings, but UT only plans to sign one player. A scholarship became available when former Smith County star Scott Moore announced he would forgo His final year of eligibility and graduate in August by defeating Andre Agassi.

Courier sank to his knees and was mobbed by captain Tom Gul-likson after the final point Within seconds, Agassi and the rest of the U.S. team piled on. "There's no better feeling," Courier said, "than being at the bottom of that pile." The Americans, who have won 31 Davis Cup titles, advanced to the second round against Belgium, which defeated the Netherlands 3-2. They never have lost when Courier plays, going 11-0. He volunteered his services again for.

the second-rounder. "This feels like vindication for a lot of bad things," said Courier, whose ranking has dropped to No. 53 this year. "I needed a good, tough wfcn like this with as much.