Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 3, 1994 TAG: 9403030097
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: BOB ZELLER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
So much has changed in 12 months.
One year ago Sunday here at Richmond International Raceway, Davey Allison won his last NASCAR Winston Cup race. The third-place finisher was Alan Kulwicki.
Both are gone, victims of the aviation accidents that made 1993 a tragic year in racing.
Sandwiched between Allison and Kulwicki at the finish of last year's race - 4.38 seconds behind the winner - was Rusty Wallace. That's one reason he ranks as the clear favorite going into Sunday's 400-lap event at the three-quarter-mile Virginia State Fairgrounds track, which seats more than 71,000.
Wallace will race a Ford Thunderbird instead of a Pontiac Grand Prix. The engine and sheet metal are different, but the chassis is the same one he used to win the night race here the past two Septembers.
"I'm going back to my favorite race track with my favorite car, so I feel good about it," Wallace said Sunday, after winning the Goodwrench 500 at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham. "The car I'm taking to Richmond is the best car in the house."
Hoosier and Goodyear will renew their tire war here, with Hoosier introducing a new "cantilevered" tire that will put more tread on the track and will "make a car seem like it's on a 17-inch rim instead of a 15-inch rim," said company president Bob Newton.
Hoosier cars have won both poles this year, but Goodyear cars have won the races. The Hoosiers were not used in the race at Daytona, and pole-winner Geoff Bodine's 15th-place finish was Hoosier's best at Rockingham.
The tire contest should intensify at Richmond because of the track, Wallace said. "That's where we're going to get into more of a tire war," he said. "When we get into the shorter, flatter race tracks, that's where it might get pretty sticky on the tire stuff."
Forty-seven cars have entered the $849,947 race, which means another big group of drivers will be going home early after failing to qualify. Thirty-four cars, plus as many as three provisional starters, will take the green flag at 1:15 p.m. Sunday.
The weekend's activities also include the $219,502 Hardee's 250 for Grand National cars at 1:15 p.m. Saturday. Fifty-six cars will battle for 34 starting spots in that race. Winston Cup practice starts at 11:30 a.m. Friday. First-round Winston Cup qualifying is at 3 p.m., immediately followed by Grand National qualifying.
Tickets for Friday and Saturday are general admission. The cost is $5 for adults on Friday and $30 on Saturday. Children 12 and under are admitted free Friday and Saturday if accompanied by an adult.
Gates open at 8 a.m. each day and there are 300 acres of free parking at the fairgrounds.
All seats for Sunday's race are reserved, with ticket prices at $40 and $50 each. For more information, call the speedway ticket office at (804) 345-7223.
Keywords:
AUTO RACING
by CNB