THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 19, 1994 TAG: 9406190193
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: 940619 LENGTH: BROOKLYN, MICH.
``It's one groove - until that groove tears up,'' Ernie Irvan said after qualifying 23rd-fastest Saturday in the second round of time trials. ``The track is going to tear up, and we'll have a lot of wrecks. Every time anybody races on it, it's going to tear up.''
{REST} A strong dissent was offered by Jeff Purvis, who dominated the ARCA race on Saturday and beat Gary Bradberry by 4.14 seconds on the 2-mile Michigan oval.
Turn three, he said, ``turned out to be the fastest point on the track. I can't say enough about the track conditions and the (Hoosier) tires. I went through that corner really, really well. It seemed like the race track got faster as we went.''
There were a couple minor crashes in turn three, but the race was surprisingly free of trouble, considering the track conditions and the tendency of ARCA superspeedway races to be accompanied by mass automotive carnage.
But in the final Winston Cup practice, Hut Stricklin lost control in turn three and demolished the front end of his backup car. On Friday, he crashed his primary car in the same turn, which was repaved recently.
``Today the rear end came around,'' said Stricklin, who was unhurt. ``It's a weekend you'd rather forget right now.''
Stricklin was fresh out of cars, so Junior Johnson lent him Bill Elliott's backup for today's race.
Under NASCAR rules, by switching cars Stricklin will have to fall to the rear of the 42-car field for the start of Sunday's race.
NOTHING SPECIAL: Track spokesman Steve Brown said no special overnight maintenance was planned for turn three, where 780 feet of new asphalt has been coming apart in the heat.
On Friday night, the turn was cooled with water, and then lime was applied to absorb the oil seeping from the asphalt.
That wasn't the right way to do it, Dale Earnhardt said.
``They did it backwards, and that messed up the track this morning,'' Earnhardt said. ``They should have put the lime on the raw pavement and then cooled it all night and let the pavement harden. They cooled it all night and then put the lime on it. Lime will not bond to cold pavement.''
Said car owner Jack Roush: ``One of the things about this track is the cars (usually) can race side-by-side all the way around. They're not going to do it tomorrow.''
SPENCER FASTEST: With the same rented engine Bill Elliott had used to qualify third-fastest Friday, Jimmy Spencer led the second round of time trials Saturday with a speed of 177.945 mph.
Spencer's run Saturday was more than 4 mph faster than his Friday speed. Had he run his Saturday lap Friday, he would have started 12th.
But Spencer had help on Saturday that wasn't available the day before. He used an engine prepared by Ken Wilson, Jeff Burton's crew chief. Wilson rented the engine to car owner Junior Johnson, who put it in Elliott's car for pole qualifying Friday.
Both Spencer and Elliott will use Johnson-prepared engines in the race. Elliott reportedly slowed down almost a second a lap after the Wilson engine was replaced.
DISTRACTED BY O.J.: Along with track conditions, the hottest topic in the garage Saturday was the incredible drama in Los Angeles involving O.J. Simpson. Nearly everyone watched the Simpson pursuit Friday evening in their motel rooms.
Junior Johnson had a typical reaction: ``Beats anything I've ever seen.''
THE OTHER WALTRIP: He still hasn't won his first race, but Michael Waltrip is running like he might have a chance.
Waltrip, currently eighth in Winston Cup points, is doing the best of all the Pontiac drivers. He has three top-10 finishes in the past five races, which fueled his move from 16th in the points (at Martinsville) to eighth.
``Kind of the weird thing about it is that it has not been without trouble,'' Waltrip said. ``At Richmond we blew a tire and wrecked. At Atlanta we were in the top 10 and broke a shock.'' He also was swept up in a crash at Daytona.
Waltrip says he enjoys the better finishes, but mostly, ``It's more fun because the car is a lot better. I've got good cars now, and they drive good.''
He'll start 11th today.
MAN OF STEELE: The latest setback to Bobby Allison's snakebit team was the temporary loss of driver Chuck Bown, who was injured in a crash last Sunday at Pocono International Raceway.
Bown, who spent Sunday night in an Allentown, Pa., hospital with a concussion, went to his doctor Tuesday and found out his right wrist was broken. He went to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis on Thursday to have a special cast put on.
Bown got back in the team's Ford on Friday and tried to get up to speed but found he had double vision.
``It's OK under normal conditions, but when I get up to speed and the car is bouncing around, the track and the wall all begin to run together,'' Bown said.
He was replaced for the weekend by ARCA regular Tim Steele.
``I've tested (Winston) Cup cars, but never competed in one,'' Steele said. ``I was really pretty floored. by CNB