Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, August 25, 1993 TAG: 9308250029
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: From Associated Press reports
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"I feel like I'm ready because I've got a lot of the right kind of support," Burton said Tuesday after unveiling the No. 31 Chevrolet outside a Hardee's franchise in Charlotte, N.C.
Burton, 31, of South Boston, Va., has two Grand National victories this season and is in fifth place in the points race.
He won back-to-back races in May and has led the most laps in the Grand National division this season.
"It's been real exciting and scary, too," he said about the decision to move up to the sport's premier circuit. "I've made a lot of steps over the last seven years and this is the last step to make. I just hope to be able to show potential and finish some races."
Burton's A.G. Dillard Motorsports racing team has a three-year sponsorship deal with the Rocky Mount, N.C., restaurant chain.
\ NEW PAVEMENT AT CHARLOTTE: The 1.5-mile oval track at Charlotte Motor Speedway, whose condition has been criticized by many Winston Cup drivers, will be repaved at a cost of $1 million, track officials said Tuesday in Concord, N.C.
"This is only the third time the speedway will be completely repaved in its 33 years," speedway president H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler said.
The new surface will be in place in time for the 10th running of The Winston All-Star race, which will return to CMS on May 22, 1994, track officials confirmed Tuesday.
A new polymer-based material that can withstand temperatures as high as 165 degrees without cracking will be used in the turns. The corners are more susceptible to cracking, Wheeler said.
\ INDY CHANGES: The Indianapolis Motor Speedway's landmark scoring pylon was torn down as part of renovations to the pit lane and main straightaway. The pylon, built in 1959, displayed the positions of each of the 33 starters in the Indianapolis 500 and the number of laps completed by the race leader. A new scoring pylon will be built to accommodate the 40 cars that will compete in the NASCAR Brickyard 400 stock car race starting next year.
Other changes to be completed before the Indy 500 next May include relocation of the inside and outside pit walls, giving crews more room behind the pits; repaving the pits and driving lanes; narrowing a strip of grass between the pits and the track from 11 feet to 4 feet; and moving the victory stand from in front of the pits to the rotunda in front of the scoring tower.
by CNB