The Montgomery Advertiser from Montgomery, Alabama • 15

Montgomery Advertiser Monday, October 16, 2000 WINSTON 500 Tine dd rif: If- Earnhardt Jr. gives up lead in final laps By Ben Thomas Montgomery Advertiser TALLADEGA With just eight laps remaining in Sunday Winston 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, Dale Earnhardt already looked to be on his way to a victory. Dale Earnhardt that However, somewhere in the final laps of the 188-lap event, the man they call 'Lil E' plummeted toward the back of the pack and lost any chance he had for his first Talladega win. As a result, the Dale Earnhardt celebrating in Victory Lane just moments later was Dale Sr. "It's been a while since we've had a car that good," Earnhardt Jr.

said of his Budweiser Chevrolet. "We got to lead some laps. I don't know if that was just because everybody else didn't want to." Earnhardt Jr. qualified back off. It didn't look like we were going to win it, but it cost us a good top five, I think.

The decision was my choice. I'm fine it. We've had a good car the last two weeks and, hopefully, we've got things turned around." Since winning The Winston in Charlotte earlier this summer, Earnhardt Jr. has had his problems. He finished fourth the 'next week in the Coca-Cola 600 and 10th two weeks later at Dover.

However, he hasn't had a top 10 finish since and has finished 21st or lower eight times. Still, he finds himself second in the race for NASCAR rookie of the year honors. With four races left, Earnhardt Jr. leads leader Matt Kenseth by 238 points. "I was happy with leading the races.

That's whaFit's all about no matter where you finish. I had a good time from where I was sitting," he said. "We had a real good car. Some guys probably din't have their cars as good and didn't enjoy it as much. I thought it was really competitive, though." I 11 i 1 Mickey Welsh Staff Dale Earnhardt pit crew members service his car on his last pit stop during Sunday's race.

Earnhardt Jr. was leading at the time. Winston 500 Results TALLADEGA Results Sunday of the NASCAR Winston Cup Series Winston 500 at Talladega Superspeed-way with finishing position, starting position (in parentheses), driver, type of car, laps completed, reason out (if any) and money won: 1. (20) Dale Earnhardt, Chevrolet, 188, $135,900, 2. (7) Kenny Wallace, Chevrolet, 188, $98,170.

3. (1) Joe Nemechek, Chevrolet, 188, $85,685. 4. (8) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 188, $82,100. 5.

(17) Terry Labonte, Chevrolet, 188, $73,700. 6. (24) Mike Skinner, Chevrolet, 188, $62,450. 7. (27) Mark Martin, Ford, 188, $62,350.

8. (38) Rusty Wallace, Ford, 188, $59,500. 9. (43) Mike Bliss, Pontiac, 188, $46,770. 10.

(36) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 188, $65,100. 11. (11) Ricky Rudd, Ford, 188, $52,930. 12. (6) Bobby Labonte, Pontiac, 188, $59,450.

13. (4) Jerry Nadeau, Chevrolet, 188, $51,730. 14. (3) Dale Earnhardt Jr, Chevrolet, 188, $49,260. 15.

(12) Dale Jarrett, Ford, 188, $66,185. 16. (31) Steve Grissom, Pontiac, 188, $51,250. 17. (25) Elliott Sadler, Ford, 188, $51,185.

18. (39) Chad Little, Ford, 188, $50,280. 19. (10) Steve Park, Chevrolet, 188, $50,000. 20.

(15) John Andretti, Pontiac, 188, $57,960. 21. (28) Rich Bickle, Chevrolet, 188, $52,160. 22. (21) Ward Burton, Pontiac, 188, $55,750.

23. (13) Stacy Compton, Ford, 188, $41,070. 24. (2) Bill Elliott, Ford, 188, $59,290. 25.

(41) Robert Pressley, Ford, 188, $40,910. 26. (42) Brett Bodine, Ford, 188, $37,135. 27. (5) Tony Stewart, Pontiac, 187, $56,465.

28. (33) Dave Blaney, Pontiac, 187, $36,945. 29. (37) Jeff Burton, Ford, 187, $56,875. 30.

(26) Ricky Craven, Chevrolet, 187, $38,105. 31. (29) Rick Mast, Pontiac, 187, $36,715. 32. (30) Ted Musgrave, Chevrolet, 186, engine failure, $47,820.

33. (23) Johnny Benson, Pontiac, 186, $39,640. 34. (18) Michael Waltrip, Chevrolet, 186, $47,495. 35.

(34) Darrell Waltrip, Ford, 186, $39,620. 36. (19) Bobby Hamilton, Chevrolet, 167, accident, $46,935. 37. (14) Ken Schrader, Pontiac, 166, engine failure, $36,400.

38. (22) Jimmy Spencer, Ford, 134, handling, $44,350. third for Sunday's race, his second straight top 10 qualifying performance at Talladega. He started sixth in the spring DieHard 500, but had engine problems in the first lap and wound up 42nd. His second try here was much different.

Earnhardt Jr. led eight RESTRICTOR-PLATE RACING "I wanted to be out front there at the end," said the 26-year-old. "I got a good run on him (Skinner) and went to pass him. The only place to go was on the apron, so I hit the apron and said, 'maybe I won't and maybe I will' "I got loose and had to 7 f. 1 -m times for 28 laps, including laps 175-184.

But John Andretti passed him and took the lead on 185. Mike Skinner passed Andretti on the next lap. Earnhardt Jr. made one final run on Skinner, but he couldn't take the lead and began steadily slipping in the field. He finished 14th.

finished 10th in his Taurus. "They were the top four positions here in April when we raced here last and I think they won again and all finished up front, so I think they did penalize us a little bit. The restrictor-plate thing was no big deal, that was equal for everybody. But the spoiler thing, I thought, was a little unequal." There were 49 lead changes among 21 drivers, including three lead changes in the final four laps alone. As the cars raced to the finish line four abreast, even longtime NASCAR fans were in awe at the drivers' ability to maintain control of their cars.

"It was a pretty awesome day from where I was sitting," Jeff Gordon said, "to win rates Late changes to the cars make for exciting racing David Bundy Staff Drivers race two and three-wide during the Winston 500 Sunday at Talladega. mr-tSTtm really competitive," said Dale Earnhardt Jr. ''You could take a break, go to, the back and get ready to go to the front. We could takejhe lead when we wanted, do whatever we wanted to Jo." Nemechek, like the Earnhardts, was driving a Chevrolet, the model of choice following the modifications. "Everybody was leading the race," Nemechek said.

"It came down to the end, who gets through the mess down there. I can't say the rule favored the Chevysi1' By Tim Gayle Montgomery Advertiser TALLADEGA A 12th-hour decision by NASCAR officials to make aerodynamic modifications to cars prior to Sunday's Winston 500 created an exciting environment that kept the 43-car field bottled up together for most of the race. Unlike virtually every superspeedway race that follows such changes, there were no spectacular wrecks to mar the event. That didn't mean drivers agreed with the changes, however. "As a car owner with two teams, it's very expensive to change the (restrictor) plates," Winston 500 winner Dale Earnhardt "We spend a lot of money testing the new plates just so we can race well and qualify well." Mickey Welsh Staff Winston Cup points leader Bobby Labonte climbs into his car prior to the start of Sunday's race.

39. (35) Scott Pruett, Ford, 120, engine failure, $36,300. 40. (9) Dave Marcis, Chevrolet, 101, engine failure, $36,225. 41.

(32) Sterling Marlin, Chevrolet, 81, engine failure, $44,175. 42. (40) Jeremy Mayfield, Ford, 69, engine failure, $44,125. 43. (16) Kevin Lepage, Ford, 20, ignition, $44,086.

Race Statistics Time of Race: 3 hours, 1 minute, 6 seconds. Margin of Victory: .119 seconds. Average Speed: 165.681 mph. Lead Changes: 49 among 21 drivers. Cautions: 3 for 13 laps.

Lap Leaders: Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 1, Dave Marcis 2, Tony Stewart 3-12, Jeff Gordon 13-14, Dale Earnhardt 15-19, Mike Skinner 20-21, Gordon 22, Earnhardt 23-27, Gordon 28, Earnhardt 29-41, Bill Elliott 42-48, Mark Martin 49-50, Michael Waltrip 51, Elliott 52-84, Bobby Hamilton 85, Gordon 86-88, Hamilton 89, Gordon 90, Martin 91, Gordon 92, Hamilton 93, Stewart 94-95, Jerry Nadeau 96, Earnhardt 97-99, Ward Burton 100, Stacy Compton 101-102, Ted Musgrave 103, Gordon 104-108. Earnhardt 109-113, Earnhardt, Jr. 114-115, Mike Bliss 116-119, Rusty Wallace 120, Earnhardt, Jr. 121, Matt Kenseth 122, Bobby Labonte 123-129, Nadeau 130, Ken Schrader 131-136, Terry Labonte 137-140, Earnhardt 141, Nadeau 142, Kenseth 143, Martin 144-148, Gordon 149-155, Earnhardt, Jr.

156-169, Gordon 170-174, Earnhardt, Jr. 175-184, John Andretti 185, Skinner 186, Earnhardt 187-188. Points Standings: Bobby Labonte 4,537, Dale Earnhardt 4,327, Jeff Burton 4,229, Dale Jarrett 4,135, Ricky Rudd 4,102, Tony Stewart 4,064, Mark Martin 3,999, Rusty Wallace 3,955, Jeff Gordon 3,729, Ward Burton 3,667. David Bundy Staff Dale Earnhardt, left, congratulates $1 million winner Richard Stutz, who was in the Winston "No Bull 5" contest at Talladega. expected to be released from the Carraway Methodist Medical Center in Birmingham Sunday.

Ed Curtis suffered two broken ribs, and a small area of his lung collapsed in a separate accident on lap 109. He was in stable condition Sunday at Regional Medical Center in Annis-ton. The Associated Press Mickey Welsh Staff WINSTON 500 NOTEBOOK Trucker feels like a $1 million after Dale's win Dale: Winston his best After speeds at Saturday's practice reached 198 mph, NASCAR officials huddled and decided to change the 1-inch restrictor plates to 1516 of an inch, add a rooftop strip and change to a higher rear spoiler. The restrictor plates may have kept the cars close, but it was the rear spoilers that met with the most resistance after the top six positions in Sunday's finish went to Chevro-lets. "I think we all were disappointed they dropped the Chevy spoilers down," said rookie Matt Kenseth, who ing on the restart following the accident before finishing fourth.

"I put the '24' car in spots I've never put it before." "It didn't look like we had the opportunity to win the race," Earnhardt admitted, "but I was working awful hard to try and get back up there to finish good." Skinner looked like he might hold off the pack, but Earnhardt dropped down to the apron approaching the first turn of the next to last lap, then bumped the leader. Both dropped out of contention, with Skinner finishing sixth and Junior in 14th place. "I thought I was doing the right thing, but obviously we weren't," Skinner said. "You don't have any friends down there toward the end." Amazingly, Earnhardt found friends in the strangest of places. As he burst out of the middle with the white flag waving at the start-finish line, he found Wallace bumping him from behind and Nemechek drafting Wallace.

"I couldn't believe it," TALLADEGA Dale Earnhardt's win in Sunday's Winston 500 Richard Sturtz a millionaire. The truck driver from Mount Salvage, won the "No Bull 5" bonus out of five finalists. Sturtz and Earnhardt each got a $1 million bonus for the win. "I'm totally shocked," said Sturtz, 45, accompanied by his wife. "Dale Earnhardt's made my life a lot easier since I won this money." He said he would give the other four finalists $10,000 apiece.

He has plans for the rest of the money, too. "I'm going to invest it and kick back and take it easy," Sturtz said. "My truck driving job I'm going to give it up." Getting better: Four drivers injured in Saturday's Winn-Dixie 300 ARCA stock car race were recovering at local hospitals Sunday. Randal Ritter was recovering from a badly bruised chest, Cavin Councilor injured his spleen and Mark Gibson suffered a slight crack in the upper jaw and a bruised chest. All three were injured in an eight-car crash midway through the race and were pjSf have those few accidents and none of them serious.

I try to say they're using their heads, but I'm not exactly sure if it wasn't pure luck because at times it was really, really wild out there. That's just Talladega. That's the way it is here." The restrictor-plate racing, often a thorn in the side of veteran drivers, didn't seem to anger many racers after Sunday's race. Perhaps they've become accustomed to the changes. "I thought the race was among Gordon wanted to be at least not for 14 more laps.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. passed him on lap 174. John Andretti passed 'Lil E' on lap 185. Mike Skinner passed Andretti on the next lap. But this is Dale Earnhardt's track.

Almost before anyone noticed, he raced thru the center of the pack and took the lead for good heading into turn one. Wallace and Nemechek gave him the push he needed. "I thought it was just a i 1 "I knew coming into the last lap the bottom guys, they always do it, they're going to hang each other out on the little flat before you go into turn one," Nemechek said. "I don't know who did it to who, but I saw them get all jacked up and I said, 'This is Now Earnhardt's only challenger in the final lap were the teammates. "I thought Wallace and Nemechek would draft by me on the front stretch," he said.

"I didn't think one car could hold two cars off. Fortunately, we did." Wallace, watching the television replays at the end of the race, said the restrictor plates kept challengers from being able to slingshot past the leader. "The slingshot was not there," Wallace saicLr "I wish it had been, darn; it, because Joe might have won. Look at Earnhardt on TV. Joe, he's celebrating our win." Tim Gayle, who cQqers University of Alabama-athletics for the Advertiser can be reached at (334) 240-0198 or by faxing (334) 261-1548.

crapshoot out there all day as to who was going to come in first," said Gordon, who finished fourth. "And Earnhardt is as good as anyone at timing it just right." Indeed, the Intimidator rolled the dice at nearly the last possible moment on Sunday and left with another memorable wiril Ben Thomas, an assistant sports editor for the Advertiser, can be reached by phone at (334) 261-1522 6f by faxing him at (334) 261-1548. From Page 1B with the usual response from Earnhardt. "I still don't like restrictor-plate racing," he said. "I'm not that good at it." The 12th-hour changes might have made his dash to victory even more memorable, car owner Richard Childress said.

"I think Talladega has given us some of our greatest, most exciting wins," he said. "This one has to rank at the top." There were 49 lead changes among 21 drivers, but no one could be expecting the final four laps. With cars racing four abreast and swerving in and out of traffic, the final scramble looked more like fans leaving the parking lot than superspeedway racing. On at least three occasions, cars bumped into each other but the drivers were able to maintain control as they jockeyed for the checkered flag. "I'd say those last 15 laps were the most horrifying and the most exciting I've ever run in my life," said Jeff Gordon, who was lead Owns: From Page 1B coupled with a series of aerodynamic changes made last month to the spoiler, front air dam and rooftop strip made for a dramatic race from start to finish.

There were 49 lead changes among 21 cars. Drivers racing in the top five on the front stretch easily found themselves drifting quickly toward the back of the pack before fans in the back straightaway could take a second swallow of Budweiser. Mickey Welsh Staff Dale Earnhardt drinks from a giant champagne bottle after winning the Winston 500 Sunday. Earnhardt said. "Knowing watch me run." now how it was Wallace The trio's charge to the and Nemechek, they're front couldn't be matched teammates and they don't by the jumbled pack at the want to sit back there and bottom of the track.

7. Intimidator rolls dice late and wins Likewise, cars that didn't seem to be a factor one minute, often held the lead moments later. There was never a dominant car. Bill Elliott's Ford led the most laps (40), but he finished 24th. Earnhardt was second in laps led (34), followed by his son, Dale Jr.

(28), and Gordon (26). Truly, any of 25 drivers could have claimed victory in a race filled with breath-taking passes, but for once almost completely free of frightening crashes. "How can NASCAR can do any better job?" Wallace asked, rhetorically. "This race was vintage Talladega. I came around the tri-oval one time and I glanced right at the stands and everyone was standing.

It was exciting." The smart money would have been on Gordon with just 15 laps left. He caught a break, taking his No. 24 Chevrolet into pit road, just ahead of a four-car crash and took the green flag as the leader following the final caution on lap 173. But that wasn't a place Members of Ward Burton's pit crew put on new tires as they try to bend a fender back out during Sunday's race..