DATE: Tuesday, October 28, 1997             TAG: 9710280421

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: ROCKINGHAM, N.C.                  LENGTH:   85 lines

HAMILTON'S ROCKINGHAM WIN IS WORTH KING'S RANSOM CAR OWNER PETTY MUST BACK WORDS WITH HIS WALLET.

Bobby Hamilton and Richard Petty have been having an amicable divorce, and the best evidence of that was Hamilton's victory Monday in the rain-delayed AC Delco 400 at North Carolina Motor Speedway.

Things have been so comfy that Hamilton's victory in the No. 43 STP Pontiac Grand Prix might end up costing Petty $100,000. That's what Petty laid on the line one night, challenging Hamilton to win a race before taking over the No. 4 Kodak Chevrolet next year.

Attention Greg Sacks: Contact Hamilton for a share of that pot. It was Sacks who gave Hamilton the key to victory. Sacks's car stalled in turn 4 and forced a fifth and final caution period that ended with just 22 laps to go.

That took the race out of Dale Jarrett's control and gave Hamilton the break he needed. Hamilton's Pontiac was at its best in the beginning of green-flag runs. Jarrett was

best at the end of long green-flag runs.

When the race restarted, Jarrett managed to hold onto the lead for four laps before Ricky Craven passed him. Two laps later, with 16 to go, Hamilton swept past Craven and into the lead.

Hamilton crossed the finish line 0.941 of a second ahead of Jarrett, who eked past Craven at the end. Jeff Gordon was fourth, followed by Dick Trickle, Mark Martin, Terry Labonte, Dale Earnhardt, Sterling Marlin and Joe Nemechek, the only other cars on the lead lap.

And as he circled the track before doing a backwards victory lap, Hamilton heard his car owner come on the radio and say, ``Hey, buddy, you just cost me $100,000!''

``Yeah, I know it,'' Hamilton told Petty. Then he added, ``Hey, the feeling is worth more than the hundred thousand.''

After the race, Hamilton was asked to explain the bet.

``We were at dinner one night,'' he said. ``Actually, we had just talked about the deal of me leaving. You wouldn't believe how easy this (leaving) has been. . . .

``So Richard said, `You need to win me a race before you leave. You're going to give up.'

``And I said, `I'm trying.'

``And he said, `I'll bet you $100,000 you won't win me a race.' We shook hands on it and now he's got to pay me.''

Hamilton didn't think about the bet until the very end of the race.

``I didn't think nothing about it with 10 to go, or five to go,'' he said. ``But with three to go, I was like, `Cha-ching! Cha-ching! Cha-ching!' It's a perfect time, too. I'm going to Vegas after we go to Phoenix.''

Because victories are so hard to come by for the second-line teams in the Winston Cup series, Petty probably will benefit even after paying off the bet.

``Any win is important,'' Petty said. ``But this is real important getting ready for next year, as far as talking to sponsors and talking to drivers.'' Petty has not selected a driver for next year, although John Andretti is still reported to be the front-runner.

The race unfolded much as the drivers predicted. Tire wear was severe, so teams had to choose a tire-saving setup that would make them good on long runs or a more aggressive setup that would make them fast in the beginning but slower toward the end of a long run.

``I knew we had a good car for short runs,'' Hamilton said. ``We are usually just the opposite - we get the car driving so good on long runs, but we're usually not good on new tires.''

But the adjustments the team made trying to get Hamilton's Pontiac to work well in the high groove at Rockingham also made him quick on new tires.

Before the final restart, crew chief Robbie Loomis told Hamilton on the radio, ``I don't know if you realize it or not, but you're faster than anybody on new tires.''

``They dropped that green rag,'' Hamilton said afterward, ``and everybody else starting slipping and sliding. We took off.''

Jarrett, who had led 36 laps before the final caution, knew his chances for victory were gone with the yellow.

``I knew when that caution came out, I was in serious trouble. We had our car set up for long runs to conserve the tires.''

Craven, meanwhile, was best in the middle of a run but used up his tires trying to stay in front of Hamilton. Jarrett had enough time to run Craven down and probably would have caught Hamilton had the race been a few laps longer.

But Hamilton wasn't so sure of that. ``We left a little on the table on long runs,'' he said. ``We had another 10th (of a second per lap) or two in the car. We still might have been a real good car there, too.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

ASSOCIATED PRESS

``I'm going to Vegas,'' Bobby Hamilton said after Monday's win.

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