THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 5, 1994 TAG: 9406050231
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CHARLIE DENN, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: 940605 LENGTH: HAMPTON
A former track champion, Sawyer had been noticeably absent from competition for almost two years due to a series of financial woes. But he resumed his driving career earlier this year and showed he hadn't lost his flair for winning.
{REST} Sawyer bested a solid field, including an all-out charge from Norfolk's Phil Warren at the end, to win the 100-lap Late Model feature. It was the culmination of a long, hard climb back.
``I never lost my desire to race,'' Sawyer said. ``Even though I wasn't driving, I worked at jobs where I could keep my hand in it. I knew I'd get to drive again some day.
``So this (victory) feels real great. I've got a good race car and the team has worked hard to get us to this point. Tonight it all came together for us.''
When he climbed out of his car after completing his victory lap, Sawyer stood on the door frame and thrust his arms skyward in triumph. He even tried to kiss one of his crew members. The crew member declined.
Sawyer has been steadily improving his finishes since resuming driving. He has challenged for the lead on several occasions during a race and finished as high as second in one race.
Saturday, though, was to be his night.
``I could sense we were getting close,'' Sawyer said. ``Tonight I felt all I had to do was run hard at the start and the car would do the rest.''
Sawyer qualified second behind Buddy Malish. The two drivers stayed that way, throughout several early caution flags, for nearly three-quarters of the race.
On lap 70, Sawyer appeared ready to pass Malish but ran into some lap traffic and had to pull back. But on lap 74, he finally got ahead of Malish on the back straightaway.
From there, Sawyer wasn't to be denied. Malish dropped back, but Warren picked up the chase.
The Norfolk driver stayed right with Sawyer, waiting for a break. Two late-race caution flags kept Sawyer from extending his lead too much.
There was one final anxious moment for Sawyer. Coming out of the fourth turn on lap 99, he found himself behind Barry Strathmann, who was nursing a bad tire.
Sawyer hesitated briefly waiting to see which way Strathmann was going to go. The decision almost cost him the race.
``I wasn't sure whether Barry was going to go high or low,'' Sawyer said.
``I knew Phil was right behind me, so I had to go somewhere. Phil got a good turn and closed things up a bit.
Warren finished second, while Greg Edwards, Malish and Chip Hudson rounded out the top five.
``If we had been running 125 laps, things might have been different,'' said Sawyer. ``I'm glad the race ended when it did.''
In Saturday's other races:
Gordon Weeks, Jr. started first, dropped to second early, then came on strong to claim the 40-lap Grand Stock race. Weeks, who had won twice previously, was passed by John Hicks on lap one in an early challenge. But he took the lead for good on lap nine and withstood several caution flags to rule the rest of the way. Hicks finished second, followed by Robert Dozier of Virginia Beach in third in his best finish of the season.
Chesterfield's Chris Mull made it two wins in a row in the 20-lap Pure Stock division. Mull held off points leader Jerry Scott, who was closing fast at the end, to claim his fourth victory of 1994.
The Mini-Stock class ran an expanded 35-lap race, but the additional laps didn't make a difference to Brian Loving. The Williamsburg driver led from start to finish in claiming his eighth victory in 10 races. Virginia Beach's Jim Adkins, Kevin Harrison and Norfolk's Cathy Mosier ran a spirited race behind Loving to claim spots two through four, respectively.
Points leader Charlie Bryant, Jr. led all the way in winning the 25-lap Limited Stock class. It was Bryant's third win in a row and sixth of the season. Tod Carson was second and Kevin Adams, second in points, was third. by CNB