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THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
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Advance Auto Parts (/ ™I >
500. 1 p.m. April 18 M *■ * ***
Busch Series
Pepsi 300.
3:30 p.m. Saturday ■ **
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1 p.m. April 17 SSSWWWI
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► The Texas finish was a dandy,
which serves as a reminder of
how many times the boredom of
the first 400 miles can be
erased from the memory banks
by a rip-roaring conclusion.
► Kurt Busch is the new Nextei
Cup points leader, and you
heard it here first: Busch has
grown up a lot in the last year. If
you'll give him a second chance,
you're going to find out that he's
learned some lessons and
grown as a person. He always
had the talent and the potential.
Now he has the maturity.
► Someone else who is paying
his dues is Kasey Kahne. Three
second-place finishes in his first
seven races! And two of them by
half a car length or less? Won
der if his first victory will be as
spectacular as his two runner-up
finishes ...
► For what it's worth, Texas Motor
Speedway has almost 159,000
seats, yet track officials claimed
(er. uh, unofficially) that there
were 216,000 fans at Sunday's
race. That would mean there
were 57.000 fans in the infield,
suites and condos, and that's
just not possible. Texas isn't the
only track to pad the atten
dance: this case is a bit ex
treme.
► The Busch Series races at an
interesting track this week.
What sets Nashville Super
speedway apart is its surface,
concrete, and its length. 1.333
miles. It 's got a cookie cutter
shape but not a cookie cutter
form.
► Just think. Just one more week
end off and there'll be another
Craftsman Truck Series race,
and at Martinsville, no less.
What could be better than that?
► How about letting up on the
criticism of "field fillers." by the
way? These guys can t win. They
pull off the track after a few laps
and get accused of "take the
money and run." They try to run
the race, and people say they're
in the way. Either adopt a mini
mum qualifying speed and live
with smaller fields, or leave
these guys alone. The mam
thing they lack is money.
► The Earnhardt Jr. Kenseth log
jam is but a memory. Five driv
ers have now won races.
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Nextel Cup
1. Kurt Busch 1.032
2. Matt Kenseth 19
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr 35
4. Tony Stewart 86
5. Elliott Sadler 90
6. Jimmie Johnson 109
7. Kasey Kahne 130
8. Kevin Harvick 135
9. Jeff Gordon - 141
10 Newman 198
Busch Series
1. David Green 891
2. Martin True* Jr. •17
3. Michael Waltrjp _ 46
4. Kyle Busch -74
5. Robby Gordon 89
8. Jason Keller 91
7. Kevin Harvick 101
8. Bobby Hamlton Jr. 131
9. Johnny Sauter 148
10. V-g Bi file 152
Craftsman Truck
1. Travis Kvapil 340
2. Carl Edwards - 4
3. Bobby Hamilton -20
4. David Reutimann 2?
». Dennis Setter 55
8. Shane Hmiel -69
1. Terry Cook 71
8. Mike Skinner 76
9. Chad Chaffin •78
10. Matt Cnrfton ■ 79
§3yron, GA, USA \
ast side of 1-75 » 1
Exit 149 J
IDk STATE
V CENTER
kind the Peach Outlet Mall
We deliver nationwide!
► If you have a question or a comment, write: NASCAR This Week, c/o The Gaston Gazette, PO. Box 1893, Gastonia, NC 28053
[■ WHAT'6 OP NEXT ]
[ CUH J
What: Advance Auto Parts 500
Where: Martinsville (Va.)
Speedway (.526 mile). 500
laps/263 miles
When: Green flag drops just
after 1 p.m. April 18
Last year's winner: Jeff Gordon
Qualifying record: Tony Stew
art. Pontiac, 95.371 mph,
Sept. 30, 2000
Race record: Jeff Gordon,
Chevrolet. 82.223 mph.
Sept. 22. 1996
Most recent race: Elliott
Sadler, in a Ford, managed
to win Sunday's Samsung/
Radio Shack 500 despite
the fact that Kasey Kahne's
Dodge was by far the domi
nant car. Kahne lost by
about half a car length.
Bobby Labonte Nextel Cup Series, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Chevrolet Monte Carlo
Shaky start
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John CIarVNASCAR This Wook
Bobby Labonte, left, and crew chief Michael Fatback' McSwain started the season with an llth-place showing at
Daytona. Then came up-and-down finishes of 25th. eighth. 18th, second and 33rd, then 25th Sunday at Texas.
Labonte fighting through string of inconsistency
By Monte Dutton
NASCAR This Week
Bobby Labonte is concerned about
the fact that his performances this
season have lacked consistency.
“We’ve been on an odd-and-even
weekend type of thing,” said Labonte,
who gave his Joe Gibbs Racing team
and himself particularly high
marks for finishes at Daytona, Las Ve
gas and Darlington He wasn’t as
pleased with his showings in Rocking
ham, Atlanta and Bristol.
Labonte has won poles two years
running at Texas Motor Speedway, the
only Nextel Cup track located in his
home state of Texas Labonte hasn't
actually lived in Corpus Christi,
Texas, since the late 19705.
He said it's business as usual since
the owner of his No. 18 Interstate Bat
teries-sponsored Chevrolet, Joe
meaning that he has now
finished second twice by a
grand total of .038 of a sec
ond. Kahne. a rookie who
drives for Evernham Motor
sports. stormed through the
field after briefly losing a lap
because of an ill-timed pit
stop. There was. however,
some justice in Sadler's vie
tory. A year earlier, he had
led 91 out of the first 167
laps before crashing out and
placing 41st. This time he
closed the deal when Kahne
could not. Jeff Gordon fin
ished third, followed by Dale
Earnhardt Jr. and Rusty Wat
lace. Kurt Busch took over
the points lead with a sixth
place finish.
[ fIM THE SPOTUQHT >]
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SPORTS
What: Pepsi 300
Where: Nashville Super
speedway, Lebanon, Tenn.
(1.333 miles), 225
laps/300 miles
When: 3:30 p.m. Saturday
Lett year'* winner: David
Green
Track qualifying record:
Randy LaJoie, Chevrolet.
163.324 mph, April 12,2003
Race record: David Green,
Pontiac. 122.724 mph. April
12, 2003
Mott recent race: Ford driv
er Matt Kenseth won Satur
day's race at Texas. Pole-sit
ter Kyle Busch finished sec
ond, followed by Robby Gor
don. Johnny Benson and Ja
son Leffler.
Gibbs, returned to the National Foot
ball League coaching ranks with the
Washington Redskins
“Things are just going along fine,"
Labonte said “There are more people
talking about it on the outside than on
the inside What we have is a great
group of people that have actually tak
en over the management role over the
past several years. Joe's been there,
and yet he's been gone, too.
“I don’t see us missing a beat. We
want Joe to be there, but we also want
him to do what he wants to do, which
is to coach the Redskins. He's a phone
call away and an hour away by air
plane. ... I've got his numbers and he's
got my numbers If we need to talk,
we can obviously do that ”
With a change in the way the Nextel
Cup champion is determined, Labonte
thinks it’s important that he and his
team start producing strong perform
www.mldstat4rv.com
What: Kroger 250
Where: Martinsville (Va.)
Speedway (.526 miles), 250
laps/131.5 miles
When: 1 p.m. April 17
Laat year'e winner: Dennis
Setzer
Track qualifying record: Mike
Bliss, Chevrolet. 94.275
mph, 2000
Race record: Jimmy Hensley,
Dodge, 74.294 mph, April
17. 1999
Moat recant race: Bobby
Hamilton, in a Dodge, won
the March 13 race at At
lanta. The series has run
only two races, with Travis
Kvapil holding a slim lead
over Carl Edwards in the
points standings.
ances week to week After starting
first, he finished 25th in Sunday’s
Samsung/Radio Shack 500 He’s 15th
in the points standings.
“It just takes the season and puts it
into two,” Labonte noted “We still
have 36 points-paying races, but we
have 26 races to get you to where the
points are really going to pay off. So
you have 26 races to finish in the top
10, not 36. ... You want to finish in the
top 10 so you can race in the Chase
(for the Championship, a season-end
ing, 10-race playoff). That's your goal.
“You want to get a good head start
and not be mired back in points. Your
point swing today is a bigger swing
than it will be. Later, everyone gets
more of a solid base, and you won't
make that swing so much. So it’s im
portant to get up there right now and
build on that."
Cofi’Act Monte Dutton nt hnr>d4BsH4jpeunieoi < <>'>
Jli2! Advance Auto Parts 500 Subway 500 nb£
April 18 Oct 24
Distance: 0.526 mite oval
yjP Length of frontstretch: 800 ft
°" Length of back stretch: 800 ft U^F
I'SX Miles/Laps: 263 mi. - 500 laps ffifT
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Best always...from our family to yours!
FRIDAY, APRIL 9, 2004
Elliott U Johnny
Sadler $ Sauter
Elliott Sadler thought Johnny
Sauter's blocking almost cost bim
the victory on the final lap of Sun
day's Samsung/Radio Shack 500.
Sadler's lead over Kasey Kahne
was fading fast in the final laps.
Sadler tried to hold the bottom line
as best he could until he and Kahne
closed in on Sauter. But as the cars
drove through turns three and four
on the final lap. Sadler was forced to
drift up the track to fight off Kahne.
who was making a move to the out
side.
Sadler ended up winning by about
a half-car length. Sauter finished
24th two laps down.
"His awareness is hideous,"
Sadler said. "Pardon my French, but I
wish he would have left it down to
me and Kasey (Kahne) to race and
should have never been a factor
here. but. hey. we all knew that going
in. We race with him every week."
NASCAR This Week's Monte
Dutton gives his take: "Sauter is a
rookie who has a lot of talent, and It
wouldn't hurt to cut him some slack
occasionally, but suffice it to say that
he has made his share of enemies
this year,"
The fastest race ever run at Bris
tol Motor Speedway had an interest
ing wrinkle to it.
The record book shows that Char
lie Glot/bach. driving a Chevrolet,
won the 1971 Volunteer 500 at an
average speed of 101.074 mph. The
race was run caution free, which
would be unthinkable at Bristol (then
known as Bristol International Race
way) today. Glot/bach. however, did
not complete the race. He was one
of six drivers who needed relief on
that sweltering day. Just past the
halfway point. Friday Hassler. whose
own Chevrolet had suffered wheel
bearing failure, climbed into
Glot/bach's white No. 3.
It was Hassler who took the
checkered flag, more than three laps
ahead of the rest of the field
► Elliott Sadler s Race for Hope,
scheduled for May 25 at the
NASCAR Speedpark in Concord.
N.C.. gives tans a chance to race
against NASCAR drivers such as
Sadler. Tony Stewart. Jimmie John
son, Michael Waltrip. Darrell Waltrip.
Jamie McMurray. Casey Mears. Mar
tin Truex Jr and others. Packages in
volving various tracks are available
for sls and S2O and include T
shirts and autograph sessions Tick
ets may be purchased at the
NASCAR Speedpark ticket office
located in the Concord Mills Mall
or by catling 18 7 7 626 8725. For in
formation. visit sadlerfanclub.com.
► Mike Calinofl who among other
things is Cup champion Matt
Kenseth's race day spotter, is hold
mg his annual Get Into Racing semi
nar May 28 in Mooresville. N.C., at
PPC Racing's headquarters. The ex
perts participating include drivers,
team owners, crew members and
media representatives. For informa
tion. visit getintoracmg.com or call
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