The Kansas City Star from Kansas City, Missouri • 45

SPORTS DAILY SPOTLIGHT Srf- 9 Friday July 2 1999 THE KANSAS CITY STAR AUTO RACING N0UB00E Be sure to check out wwwJhatsraciik com an Internet site updated every day of the year with Winston Cup racing news Look for daily live reports on what's happening in the sport and find It first at wwwAhatsraclnxom fWe think we could finish today let alone win ik her husband Bob Kersee announced Thursday that they plan to form a NASCAR team for the 2000 season They will team with Kurt Rnehrig and run a Pontiac A driver and sponsor Will be an- nounced later Procter Gamble announced the end of its relationship with Ricky Rudd brightly colored Tide car has been a fixture on the Winston Cup Circuit for nine years Procter Gamble is negotiating to take its sponsorship to Precision Preparation Inc a racing company owned by Cal Wells whose primary racing interest is in the CART seriea offered Rudd an opportunity to drive the ITI car but he declined- AREA: Rains have forced cancellation of tomtit's races at lakeside Speedway The O'Reilly Auto Parts Firecracker TVvin Modified 50s will be held next Friday Racing is still scheduled for Saturday at 1-70 and will be highlighted by a 10Q-lap late-model feature OPEN WHEEL: This yveek evdand became the latest battle-' fidd in the war between CART and the IRL The engines hadn't even cooled down from Sunday's race in pevelami when CART announced that it was canceling Cleveland's tun with foe serra after 18 years In announcing that Cleveland had been booted fiom its schedule CART chairman and CEO Andrew Craig sakl: was CARTk desire to continue to race at Cleveland and it is unfiutunate we coukiiiot come toan What he meant Was that IMG Motorsports the' group that puts on the Qeveland Grand Prix gagged when CART asked them to dole out $2 million a race rr The: IRL plans to Burke Lakefront Airport firom a temporary road circuit into a tem-porary oval for its 2000 race WINSTON CUP: Thick and field star Jackie Joyner-Kersee and 1 'n By JIM PEDLEY The Kuiai City Star Ht It wouldn't be a largd gathering but die American Speed Association could hold a meeting this weekend at the Busch Grand National race in Milwaukee Hying to make the field for Sunday DieHard 250 al the Milwaukee MUe will be ASA regulars Rick Beebe of Merriam and Jimmie Johnson who drives for Herzog Motorsports of St Joseph Beebe will be trying to qualify for his first Busch race He! be driving for the Black Diamond team Johnson will be making his 1999 Busch debut but his fourth career Busch effort He tested for two days at Milwaukee last week and the re-" suits were promising "We tested our qualifying setup and we turned some laps that let us know we're pretty close said Her-' zog crew chief Tony Liberatt Gordon after winning ft Martin 350 afthejlualkresandlaryngftit also got a pretty good feel for the -race setup we want to go with so the whole crew is happy with the way things Johnson will drive in five Busch races this year The four final races will be at events after the ASA ACDelco Challenge Series season finale ti Oct 2 Johnson andllerzogplan to runs foil Busch schedule in 2000 "There is a learning curve any-' time you move up a Johnson said trying to leam as much as we can this year so we will be ready when the 2000 season Beebe plans to compete in four Busch races this season Beebe finished third at the ASA Greased Lightning 300 on Saturday at 1-70 Speedway in Odessa Ma Johnson was llfiv' in i ii mu hi TRACK: Time not on Which of the ffoOowfcig would you choose as thel story In the first half of the yeas? Dale Jarrett strings togetner gooa nntsnes ana taxes tne points ieaa Jeff Gordon has five wins and five finishes of 31st or worse in the first i-15 races Eight drivers have at least one victory going to Daytona -Rookie Tony dazzling performance Dale Eamhardtwins at TaJIadega and goes three-for-three in the IROC series Register your vote and A contents on wwwJhatsracinxom Last week we asked: If you could attend only one of NASCAR' night races which one would It be? There were 8797 votes:" UlUMl Jeff Gordon is getting a taste of his own medicine this season In his last two championship years Gordon has made it toui on anybody to make 'up ground in the points race by racking up good finishes even when his car wasn't the strongest on the track Dale Jarrett is doing the same this year His sixthiJlace finish at Sears Foint Racewaywas a work of artM patience Gordon finished secoixf three times and won once in the four June races but made up only 40 points on Jarrett during that stretch y'y V'v The Asaucialed Pira Joe Nemechdt drove bis Chevy around Daytona International Speedway fast enough Thuraday to win the pole for Saturdays Pepsi 400 knewgoing in tfod there was a time Denney said though there was a goal of 2000 we knew With weather and other things itcouldbe2001'' fcyi Denney said the economic im- pact of a delayed opening would be minimal just prqierty taxes lost when houses on the site were re- mc lie said that is being ofiset by re-cent staitements from NASCAR president Bill France that Kansas Speedway will have "the best traffic operation of any trad: in the coun- Denney said: TThe publicity we are getting is priceless" Vfoile the track may not stajge a Winston Cup event next year it may stiQ be able to accommodate another big-time racing event The Indy Racing League for instance isn't working on as tight a sdipdule miSCAR-' would trot be disappointed in 2000 with a small Denney said could work out the bugSL 7b reach Jim Pedley assistan sports editor for the Die Star call 816234-4860 or send e-mail to Continued from D-1-' building the track (the weather) mokes it more of a long Far from-being perfect the weadier in the area this spring and summer has been some of die wettest on record And wet ground is a major enemy of construction likely looking at an opening date of 2001 based bri the iwt lynch said Most construction ceases when rairt begins to fall though work oh die many miles of sewer mains has proceeded under those conditions Theproject is actually a couple of weeks ahead of schedule on the phase that involves building the grandstands And that Werth mann said the longest to The zone where the actual track is being constructed has been slowed most Don Denney spokesman for Wyandotte County Unified Cov-emment said govanment admin- istrators are disappointed that a Winsttm Cup race in 2000 has been placed in serious jeopardy by the weadier but they're not crushed (MBiiUTiiliiro si 400 Winston Cup points leaders RankDriver 21 WDailenbach (25) RanfcDriver Dl Jarrett Labonte 1 Martin 4 1 Burton 51 Gordon 6 Stewart Points 1497 1461 1448 1447 1435 1429 Nol 08) (6) (99) (24) (20) pones urn 2337 2328 2354 2080 2J11 221 Benson 231 Spencer 24 Lepage 25 1C Wallace' 26 Mast (26 (23) 06) (55) (98) Craftsman Ihick Indy Racing League will be Ricky Rudd who qualified at 194374 mph just hours after leafn-ing his nine-year sponsorship deal with Tide will be terminated after this year guess this doesn't hurt Rudd said of his effort to find a new sponsor good advertising What I'm proud about is that I took a pretty bad slap in the face for our team effort The guys -on our team are good We just need time to Mark Martin qualified third at 194376 mph Jle is seeking his first restrictor-plate victory since 1997 atThlladega really fed like wefve got foe best shot at a race at Daytona that weVe tra said Martin who has never won a main event at the track got great horsepower This is die most I've had on any restrictor plate that I can ever Jeff Gordon who won the pole and die Daytona 500 in February qualified 11th Dale Earnhardt was 10th and series points leader Dale Jarrett was 12th Among the drivers who failed to make the top 25 and will have to either try again today or stand on their first-day laps were' Terry Labonte who was 39th and Steve Park last among the 44 drivers who matte a qualifying attempt The Associated Press DAYTONA BEACH Fla In bet-ter days they called him Row That nickname fits once again for Jcle Nemechek who won the pole positron fin the Pepsi 400 ThursdayniiL It was Nemechekig first pole in more than two years Nemechek took his Chevy around Daytona International 23-mile trioval at 194860 mph early in the qualifying session for Saturday's race It was reminiscent of his successful 1997 season in which he earned his nickname by winning two poles and qualifying second three times Nemechek has made 170 Winston Cup starts without a victory Like any driver he would like to break that string at most famous track Of course he knows that qualifying and the actual race are always different at Daytona one of two tracks that require carburetor restrictor plates to reduce speeds two separate deals" Nemechek said "You go fast with a qualifying package for basically two laps For racing you've got to get a package where you can hold the pedal down for a whole On the outside of the front row NEXT RACE: Saturday Pepsi 400 Daytona Beach Fla 7 pm Chs 5 and 13 Grand National points leaders RankDrlver 6 1 Keller 7 IPurvis 8 McLaughlin" 9l Blaney 10 RLaJoie RankDrlver 1 Earnhardt Jr 2 MKenseth 1 3 1 Green A Sawyer MBodine Points Z444 2315 H2J49 7 2090 2046 2305 1900 1846' 1782 1716 NEXT RACE: Sunday DieHard 250 West Allis Wis 1 pm TNN I'-' Om Ubo iM 1 i MrkIA iTitwip: Lawn Tractor LT166 16-hp Lawn Tractor 580 per month LT133 13-bp Lawn Tractor i $38 per month I 1 dll 1 $51 V'" per month 1 rii iv i i 4 4 i l-r The John Deere LT Lawn Tractors GnnJ things take time Even at John Deere where developing a great tractor tomes naturally Each of our LT comes with all the reliability durability and ingenuity that John been delivering since 1837 it time you stopped by and saw one ibr yourself) thing rfl H- 'M tSA i NMHI-IVB ARNOLDS LAWN GARDEN 7010 EAST BLUE PARKWAY KANSAS CITY MO 64129 wwwJeeraxMi SHOOON SUBURBAN EQUIPMENT Ca 15301 SOUTH 159 HIGHWAY OLATHE KS 66062 (913)764-6055 TOWN COUNTRY POWER EQUIPMENT 1224 EAST 58 HIGHWAY RAYM0RE M0 64083 (816)331-1843 I I 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