The Kansas City Star du lieu suivant : Kansas City, Missouri • 41

Friday October 15 1099 on testing next year 1 iUIONOTEBOaL By IIM PEDLEY The Kanias City Star The Auoclated Pick Register your vote and com- merits on Knight motorsports site at 7 wwwthatsracirvcom Last week we asked: Should the media -have made as big a deal of the Stewart-lrwin bumping incident as they did of Earnhardt and Labonte's? There were 6 286 votes: 38 A computer-generated image of the Dodge Intrepid the car Chrysler wlU use when it returns to Winston Cup racing in 2001 CHRYSLER: Dodge back inVVinston Cup How high wfl raee jaruoraonnnisn htfwWftmtonClg) BE 62 Winston Clip Earth-moving vehicles will give way to race cars at the new speedway in Wyandotte County about a year from now: Those cars won't be racing but they wifi be testing the track JeffBoeigei director of operations for Kansas Speedway Corp said the asphalt will be down in the fall of next year and ready to be tested Itk uncertain who will be doing the testing NASCAR rules are very specific on but there wifi be an effort to get can onto the track more for our than for the cars and teams doing the testing Boeiget said The testing could be done by NASCAR drivers or they could be local drivers "We just need to get vehicles onto the track to make sure we are ready to goTBoeiger said The first racing at the track wifi be in 2001 The current plan for that year is two weekends of racing featuring a Winston Cup race a Busch Grand National race an open- wheel race and an ARCA race Boerger said there is no news yet on a buyer for the facility naming rights Kansas Speedway Corp said it would like to sell the name and is listening to offers but is not kicked into a sale If sold Boerger said the plan is to keep die word Kansas in points leaden Winston Oup race rJORTHTOVTIE V0LKSVAG0N ANSWERS HIE QUESnON: Continued from D-l lifetime deal between the twtx On Thursday Evemham said competitive juices are pump-'ins" They should be The folks at Chrysler appear to be ready to throw a lot of money and resources Evemhamkway Lou Patane vice president for motorsports operations at Dodge said: "We intend to be competitive consistently from the beginning" Thursday's announcement means that for the first time in 16 years all of foe Big Three automakers will be competing at stock-car radngb highest level Ford is represented by Taurus General Motors by Chevrolet Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix and now ChrysleiDaimler will have the Intrepid Dodgefe re-entry into Winston Cup has been spinning the rumor mill all season So nobody in the garages seemed to surprised by Thursday announcement guess weVe all been expecting it for some time said Jeremy Mayfield driver of the Mobil lThu-rus can they not be In Winston Cup racing? With Ford here and General Motors here Chrysler just about has to be Dodge was a power in Winston Cup during the 1970s especially when it had The King behind the wheeL Of the 200 victories Richard Petty had during his career 175 came in Chryslers Dodges or Plymouth Chrysler won the Winston Cup manufacturers title in 1970 and 75 Chrysler pulled factory for its team in the late 70s Its com-panyls cars continued to race only as independents having to scavenge for parts and technical sup- -port The last time a Dodge won a race was at the Lot Angeles Times 500in November 1977 The late Neil Bon- nett was at the wheel Dodge beganits move backinto stock-car racing in 1997 when it fielded a factory effort in the NASCAR Thicks Series It dumped a lot of money into that effort and that money has produced very goodrestibs Since 1997 Dodge trucks have won beven races This year Dodges have won four races three by Dennis Setzer and one by Jimmy Hensley Chrysler also has gotten behind die Ytodd of Outlaws team headed by legendary engine-builder Karl Kinser Kinser has taken engines provided to him by Chrysler and made them die best in die series So Dodge won't be entering racing cold in 2001 Its cars could be competitive right out of the box they left back in the 1970s "said Winston Cup driver -Sterling lot of people diouit it was die end of the wnldL Now I guess they are coming bad: and a lot of people think ift foe end oftheworid" A lot of eyes over the next year and a half will be on Gary Nelson NASCAR's series director He and his people will oversee the devel- opment of the Intrepid as it tries to meet competition guidelines set forth by NASCAR an organiza- tkm that is vny big on keeping racing competitive Ward Burton driver of the Caterpillar Pontiac said: "Itn sure NASCAR and probably die fans would like to see Chyrsler in Win-ston Cup racing But NASCAR isn't going to let the rules get to the point where they absolutely dominate Anytime anybody has gotten a whole lot better than everybody else usually the rules have been worked to even things out again going to happen here" A first significant step in putting a car on die track for Chrysler will be die development of templates that will determine the shape of die car Those templates will be reviewed by NASCAR and then modified and remodified if need be until they are approved That process will take time Chevrolet was supposed to come out with its new Monte Carlo early this year but still not on the track Burton talked about what the next year and a half will be like as NASCAR prepares for the return of Chrysler at die 2001 Daytona 500 go through a year of politicking" Burton said then start the real politicking If the way things usually work come out with a great car and start talking about how bad it is while everybody else is talking about how good it is And everybody wifi be worried that either going to win all the races or lose all the races" 7b reachJunPedley assistant sports editor for theTheStarcaU (816) 234-4860 or send e-mail to JpedkyGkatarxom miu isfe $29 nuonr Draft Radnf ranks the top 10 die name: -V BUSCH GRANDNAnQN NASCAR' officials Thursday that dieyhave fined tr owner Ke Hetty and crew chief jlm Murray for rules violations disaft- ered after second-round qualifying fiw last Satuidayfc All fro Buroperfo Bunker 300 Busch Series race at Lowe's Motor Speedway The was disqualified after NASCAR nical inqiectore fimnd a rubber gasket was altered to allow extra ak'to-reach the carburetor of the ChevnK let driven byAdam Petty Kek son Adam Fetty a Busch Series rookie was the fastest second-round qualifier but wound up sitting out the race Kyle Petty was fined $15000 and Murray $2500 for the rules violation TRUCKS: Jay Sauter vho picked up his first NASCAR Oafts-man Thick Series Victory of the sea-son last week in Louisville 1: won the pole Thursday for todas Blue Bonnet 300 at Haas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth FORMULA ONE: Ddver Michael Schumacher was cleared by medical personnel to make his return to the Formula One circuit in Sundayk MalaysianGrand Prix three months after breaking his right leg in two places in a arah at the British Grand Prix 1 Vi 1 irl Mi vAi eiTTT lei liy Mo Jarratt (Nol 88): He's doing exactly what the points system dfc-tates he must to bring home the championship Last week: 2 Bobby lebonte (Nol 18): lnthe draft at Talladega he may get to pay back lapped cars that blocked him at Charlotte Last week: 2 2 Jeff Gordon (Not 24): Seven wins and seven poles Ciearly this Is the best season" anybody has ever had Last week: 4 4 Mark Martin (na 6) This year has been so odd hell probably win at Talladega he was third there in May Last week: 3 SLlbny Stewart (Na 20): Two weeks ago he had a shot at second in points Now he's fighting to stay in top five Last week: 5 Jeff Burton (Na 99): He's in Tatadega No Bull 5 with Martin brother Ward Jeremy Mayfield and Kevin Lepage Last week: 6 1 Palo Earnhardt (Na 3): Will anybody remember Bristol and hang him out in the draft? ftnbabiy not if he's fasL Last week: 7 A Rusty 2): He's now tied with Gordon with 49 career victories and doesn't want to lose that raceto 50 Last week: 8 ft Mfce Skkmar (No 31): Didn't HkeGordon's pit-road block at Charlotte but he acknowledged it didn't cost him a win Last week: 9 UL Ward Burton (Na 22): Would bea great story to see him edge brother Jeff for a $1 million Talladega victory Last week: 10 THIS IS ABOUT 'FORD ESCORT' PRICE! CHECK OUT THE 2000 BEET1E T0DAYI CAU US TOR IMMEDIATE DEUVEHTI 3 VI TUI UASL $Hf NWIL 1XON I DULlilU AWDLlSlH APtmOlUL WITH I HORIHTOWHI VOUtSWAGEN A8TH A NORTH OAK KC NORTH VISIT US AT WWWNORTHTOWNENET minfli il lZdnodsLCD 4tewncdkpfgy kite did bp 1 Codimo nl opobky Jl AlCR'ift ph £5 'JZ i itaBMaffiTI Winsfon 500 WHERE: Talladega Superspeedway a 266-mHe trioval In TaOade- ga Aia WHEN: noon Suncb Qualifying Is scheduled to begin at 4 pun Friday with second-round time trials at VMS am Saturday TEIEVSION: Live coverage begins at noon on ESPN RADIO: Live beginning at 1130 am on Motor Racing Network af-' filateSk' i THE QUESTION Bt Can Brian Whitesel stay unbeaten as Jeff Gordon's crew chief? Gordonhas won only once at Talladega but he was second in this race last year -and his Daytona record proves he can run on restrictor-plate tracks After the last two weekends anything seem NASCAR Craftsman Truck driver point standings RankDrlvwr Points Jack Sprague 3437 2 Greg Biffle 3413 TfW 7i49W 8m kmd MM liigh 1 1 Vl Be NOKIA HOmftkle-EMbney fcLSteLCD taeBira 1 rienaunj i EKV I -SOMbMIMiltei WHikidikMim Oib llVStyW Sii Sw wdw See eOidi 1 i i.