Sofa Sideline – First Round of Testing at Daytona
The first round of testing at Daytona is
finished and the fastest lap was posted by Ward Burton with a speed of 184.961
on day three. It looked like Jimmie Johnson was going to hold onto the top spot,
after having the top speed during the first two days of testing, but Burton
managed to beat that time. Johnson’s top speed for the session was clocked at
183.816 mph. Johnson also had the highest non-drafting cumulative speed for the
three day period. Rounding out the five on Wednesday were Kenny Wallace at
183.486, Dale Earnhardt Jr. at 183.475 and Jeff Gordon at 183.262. Of the two
Pontiacs, Stacey Compton posted highest at 183.087 with a 7th place
rating. The number one Ford turned out to be Geoffrey Bodine with the 11th
fastest time.
Of course, that brings on the claims of
"sandbagging," particularly by the Fords, in hopes that NASCAR might
make even further rule changes prior to the race. Now I think not showing your
hand is a team’s prerogative, but hopefully, NASCAR will not necessarily
"knuckle under" to these types of tactics. The second round of testing
next week may give a better sense of where the teams are at. I swear sometimes
all this maneuvering just gets to be a little too much, but I guess its part of
the game.
Things were kind of tough going for Jeff
Burton while testing tires for Goodyear at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Tuesday and
Wednesday of this week. Burton lost two engines and turned only a total of 20
laps before having to bring out a third engine to finish the afternoon session
on Tuesday. The focus was on increasing the left side wear on the tires before
the race in March. As to why the engines blew, no cause has been found at this
point. Let’s hope this is all out of their system, as Burton does not need a
bad start to the season again this year. Ok – shake it off!!
We fans almost had heart failure when
there was a rumor going around that the Daytona 500 might be tape delayed due to
the Olympics just getting started and being broadcast on NBC as well. NBC has
nipped that rumor, and said they will be broadcasting the 500 live. Can you
imagine what kind of ruckus that would have caused – do visions of the
"Heidi" incident come to mind? NBC, smart move!
Have to take a moment to congratulate
Robin Pemberton on his new role as Vice President and General Manager for Petty
Enterprises. Robin brings a great deal of knowledge and expertise to this
organization, and we’ll no doubt see the Petty teams get back on track during
the upcoming season.
IROC – the list is out, and lo and
behold we have some race car drivers in the field.
Representing Cup will be Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart, Sterling Marlin, Dale
Jarrett and Kevin Harvick; from IRL, Sam Hornish Jr., Buddy Lazier, Scott Sharp,
Helio Castroneves and Al Unser Jr. CTS; Jack Sprague and from the World of
Outlaws, Danny Lasoski. It should make for some great racing as there are
obviously some spirited drivers in this group, and though it’s unfortunate
that Mr. Gordon is not participating, with this bunch, who will notice?
"We have about the same goals as we
had last year. I think we can finish in the top six and we’d like to win a
race. Both of those aren’t too far out of our reach. We are getting better and
better each year, and I expect that to continue in 2002." Those words were
spoken by Johnny Benson while talking about what his plans are for the new
season. Many fans share those feelings. When Benson gets that elusive win this
year, I suspect the fan reaction will be pretty much like it was when Ricky
Craven got his first win at Martinsville in 2001. The crowd loved it and
everyone was on their feet cheering. So go, Johnny go!!!!!
I, for one, am looking forward to the new
season. I think we will see a lot tighter points race, and continue the array of
winners like we saw in 2001. I don’t know if the restrictor place race changes
will make the Daytona 500 less interesting. Only time will tell, but I for one,
feel that what has gone on at these races over the past couple of years has not
been great racing. You can see 40 something lead changes, that’s true, but all
that doesn’t matter. All that matters is where you set yourself up for that
last couple of laps – well really, the last lap, and trying not to be in the
middle of the pack when the big one hits. So hopefully, the 500 will start off
on a good note, with no major accidents, and from there the racing will just get
better and better.
Just one thing though – before it all
starts, lets just glance upward, think of the "Man In Black," smile,
miss him a little, and then let’s get back to racing!!
That’s it for now.