The Charlotte Observer from Charlotte, North Carolina • 100

6H THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER Sunday February 26 1995 MOTORSPORTS 500 Past winners scarce among top qualifiers Continued from page 1 Repeat performance: Chad Little gives the thumbs up Saturday at NC Motor Speedway in Rockingham after winning his second Grand National race in a row He won last week at Daytona biggest thing going for us is the new Monte Carlo said Gordon never had a car with so much downforce here which improves traction That makes me really look forward to racing Rudd shares the front row in his Thunderbird for the race that starts competition for The Charlotte Observer Cup The award goes to the driver with the best record in the eight Winston Cup events at four tracks in the Carolinas Brothers Brett and Geoff Bodine line up abreast on the second row in Fords They also started alongside each other in the seasonopening Daytona 500 last Sunday Ken Schrader a teammate of Gordon on the Hendrick Motor-sports operation has the fifth position in a Chevy The other non-winners at Rockingham start sixth through 15th: John Andretti Ricky Craven Rick Mast Todd Bodine Michael Waltrip Joe Nemechek Dick Trickle and Bobby Labonte Steve Grissom rallied from an accident during his qualifying run Friday and led second-round trials with a lap of 155452 mph seventh fastest overall but start 21st Daytona 500 champion Sterling Marlin also came back from a disappointing effort Friday to qualify at 154821 (22nd position) in a Chevy Seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt lines up 23rd in a Chevy Little dominates earns 2nd-straight Grand National win Rockingham 500-miler explained the trouble that can develop from pitting on the backstretch year we had to go over there to said Marlin came from 37th to second under the green Then we had a caution period and after the restart we got in a wreck because we were way back in the The problem is the cars pitting on the frontstretch get to peel onto pit road from behind the pace car so much earlier than their rivals on the back By the time the reach their pit stalls the are serviced and back on the track Unofficially fastest during an rather be close to the front but races here can be won from fairly far said Earnhardt winner of The Observer Cup the past two seasons won the AC Delco 500 here last fall after starting 20th" Ford drivers Bill Elliott Ted Musgrave and Dale Jarrett were 24th-26th Friday to get the other front stretch pit stalls considered critical to having a chance to win Jarrett and Kyle Petty had identical qualifying speeds of 153987 mph but Jarrett got the favored pitting position on the basis of 1994 Winston Cup car owner points Marlin second in last intense final practice after Goodwrench 200 was Gordon at 152550 mph with Marlin Schrader and Martin also in the low 152 range Randy LaJoie crashed his Pontiac on the backstretch during the final shakedown session and faced the possibility of being forced into a backup car Wallace fans got a scare when smoke streamed from his Ford on the first practice lap and he limped to the garage with what seemed a blown engine However the problem was diagnosed as a leak in the scavenger line to the oil tank and termed He returned to the track after repairs By TOM HIGGINS Staff Writer ROCKINGHAM It took Chad Little 48 starts to win his first NASCAR Grand National race the 300 at Daytona International Speedway on Feb 18 It took the Ford driver who lives in Charlotte one more start to win his second Little led 177 of the 197 laps in the Goodwrench 200 on Saturday at NC Motor Speedway and finished a comfortable 939 seconds ahead of runner-up Mark Martin also in a Ford in my wildest dreams did I think of winning the first two in a said Little who drives for a team owned by NFL quarterback Mark Rypien and Greg Pollex awfully Little who started on the outside of the front row was behind only after pitting leading stretches of 62 51 and the final 64 laps in the preliminary to Goodwrench 500 a Winston Cup Series race (noon TNN) think you ever expect to be that said Little car was handling just awesome and had a lot of power I have to hustle it and drive over my head at any time" In contrast Little had to rally from 42nd starting position at Daytona and led only the last three laps Little averaged 120753 mph Saturday an event record and earned $29630 car was awfully good as good as always said Martin a four-time Grand National winner at Rockingham was I set up just perfect We were no I match for I Terry Labonte came on strong late in the race to finish third in a Chevrolet Johnny Benson Jr was fourth and Ford driver Morgan Shepherd fifth Shepherd ran in the top three most of the way then dropped back as his tires wore He only changed two tires each pit stop and as a result led the 20 laps that Little have had a better chance if known the Grand National tire rule for this race that I could change all said Shepherd i "As the race ended worn the right rear tire to the fabric" Completing the top 10: Phil Parsons Derrike Cope Mike Wallace Joe Bessey and Jeff Green There were five caution periods for spins with all the incident: occurring in Turns 1-2 No injuries were reported Among the drivers experiencing I mechanical trouble was the cir- i 1994 champion David Green who had to park his Chevy on Lap 112 because of engine failure Next on the Grand National schedule is the Frisco 250 at Richmond Raceway on Saturday have a brand new car very optimistic about for the Rich- mond said Little who has a law degree from Gonzaga could make it three in a The auto racing attorney has made a great case for himself so far SAVE 1 9 on Auto A Bonaflde Special Same High Quality Paint lob OUR MOST FOPULAPAINT JOBH i Poly cry staline A Mt mv (MOfi Art hut rwtMf a mruui hartots at fcnfcity Alp amita iMri WWW bdo wit dm u4 Maf 1 pa mm pa imp (pMiittj ifuw priaf ai cndHf Must 11095 list 24995 I Present Ad Expires 3395 I i rantruU 2710 NORTH TRYON ST 6315 SOUTH BOULEVARD Hours: Daily Sat 9 Bonnett Little stories add to A Season Pass to the Family Circle Magazine Cup on Hilton Head Island! a Whole Lot More Than Just a Good Seat! 342-9788 554-8923 to Noon FomilyCircle MagazineCup See the stars of tennis Including players like Gaby Arantxa Mary Bi weekend spected Winston Cup veterans as Mark Martin Terry Labonte and Morgan Shepherd Then with 25 laps to go David slipped high in Turn 4 messed up a tire and had to pit under green The bobble dropped David 28 four laps back He finished 1 7th had the car too tight and that was strictly my fault" said David whose father died Feb 1 1 1994 in a crash while practicing for the Daytona 500 felt really good at the beginning of the race then kept getting tighter and tighter "We had to pit under green because I got up too high in the marbles and that cost us the laps still learning All in all I guess it wasn't that bad of a No it bad In fact it was good And if David Bonnett ever gets a Winston Cup chance it can be traced in great part to his showing Saturday at NC Motor Speedway the track where Neil Bonnett posted the last of his 18 victories in 1988 Pierce and Conchita Martinez thenunwlnd In yoga classes led by Molly Pox sharpen tennis skills with Rosie Casals and Stan Smithhit the links for a golf clinic participate in Fun-for-Kids Activities with crafts and entertainment for the junior set all this and more for smart buyers of a Season Pass to the Family Circle Magazine Cupl Season Tickets: $17100 (a $5800 savings) Dally tickets also available cast that my mom was watching but know the outcome the crowd around the TV in the lodge grew to about 50 people They got a real kick out of watching her go nuts when I Where was Teri on Saturday during live telecast of the 200? sure she was right in front of the TV back home in Washington" said Little on live she miss any races now" Recalling how proud and ecstatic Teri was that day years ago in Riverside surprised we hear her cheering all the way to the Carolinas as Chad made it two victories in a row Story No 2 is about David Bonnett whose late dad Neil was among one of the most beloved men in NASCAR David hoping to reach the big-time on his own someday had a ride in 200 For much of the race David who qualified third fastest ran in the top 10 and remained on the lead lap with Little and such re- ROCKINGHAM There were a couple of especially warm stories this cool weekend at NC Motor Speedway where the Goodwrench 500 opens the NASCAR Winston Cup Series season in the Carolinas today (noon TNN) Story No 1 concerns driver Chad Little who has swept the first two Grand National Division races of 1995 the 300 at Daytona International Speedway and Goodwrench 200 at Rockingham When Little was getting started in auto racing on the Winston West tour his biggest fan not surprisingly was his mother Teri She did public relations for her son who was balancing a motorsports career and college Once when Chad qualified for a Winston Cup event for the first time at the now defunct Riverside Raceway in California his proud mom sat in the press box and personally patiently called every TV and radio station and newspaper in the home state of Washington to let editors know I Last weekend as the tour opened in Florida Teri was far away skiing with six girlfriends at Big Mountain Resort in Whitefish Mont where no radio broadcast of the 300 was available taped telecast of the race set until Saturday night group knew they see or hear the race live they spent the afternoon skiing and planned to gather in the ski lodge to watch the delayed said Little of the ladies called home and learned that I had won the race She told the oth ers in the group but they kept it from my mom word spread during the tele- i For ticket information and reservations call (800) 677-2293 Ask for operator 0-3 SeaRrxs WTA JU2CT.