| | |  | | Michael Waltrip is the poster boy for the "Oh-fer Club" -- going 436 races without an official Winston Cup victory. |
TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Everyone always remembers their first time. For Winston Cup drivers, their first start, or winning their first pole position, and of course, making their first trip to Victory Lane, are days etched in their minds forever.
But there is a group of drivers out there who've made that first start, and maybe even won that first pole. But they're still looking for that first win. Call it the "Oh-fer Club." They've made countless starts, but remain winless.
Well I've got some good news for these guys: They couldn't pick a better race track to score their first win than Talladega Superspeedway. That's right, the scariest, meanest, nastiest 2.66 miles of track in Winston Cup just happens to produce more first-time winners than most tracks we visit.
Strange, but true.
Since the track opened in 31 years ago, Talladega has seen eight drivers score their first win on the Alabama track. The first came in the inaugural race. In 60 races since, seven more drivers have broken through at Talladega. The percentages just seem to work in the favor of guys looking to end their "Oh-fer Club" membership this weekend.
Richard Brickhouse was the first to break through at Talladega when he won that first race in 1969. But he never won again. (Right now you're pondering exactly who the heck Richard Brickhouse is. You aren't alone.) But through the years, names such as Ron Brouchard, Lenny Pond, James Hylton, Bobby Hillin, Dick Brooks and Phil Parsons have scored their first and only wins at Talladega.
Now, winning anywhere on the Winston Cup schedule would be a dream come true and a huge pressure release for a number of drivers. But come Sunday in the Diehard 500, there are five particular drivers I'll be keeping my eye on.
The fab five fighting for firsts are Johnny Benson, Michael Waltrip, Kevin Lepage, Kenny Wallace and rookie Matt Kenseth. The five have combined for 850 starts, yet none have yielded a victory. Three of the five -- Waltrip, Wallace and Benson -- have narrowly missed victory with runner-up finishes, while Kenseth and Lepage have recorded fourth- and
fifth-place finishes.
We'll work our way through this "Oh-fer Club" based on career starts.
Michael Waltrip
| |  | | | Waltrip |
436. 4-3-6. That's right, it's been 436 green flags without a checkered flag for Waltrip. If anyone is due, and I mean ready to break through in a big way, Michael Waltrip is the poster child in his 19th season. His best restrictor-plate finish is a third here at Talladega in 1994. And his Sabco engine package, which has been very strong on
the plate tracks, netted a top-five at Daytona in '99 and he looked like a top-10 car at Daytona this year until a late-race crash. So to say he is very optimistic about his chances at Talladega is an understatement. "I know I can win there, we have a great package -- engine and body -- and I run well on the plate tracks. If there is one place we could win it would be there." The younger
Waltrip's results in 2000 are not indicative of his overall performance. He's coming off a third-place run at Martinsville -- his best since a third at Charlotte in May of '95.
Kenny Wallace
| |  | | | Wallace |
It must be something in the Wallace family gene pool, but both the Wallaces are still searching for their first restrictor-plate wins. Kenny, however, just would like a win -- period. In 193 starts over 10 years, the youngest Wallace has been close to the front at the finish, recording four top-seven finishes in the last four Talladega races, including last fall's fifth-place run. Last year, his teammate Kenny Schrader sat on the pole for this event. Wallace started 15th and 3rd and finished seventh and fifth.
Johnny Benson
| |  | | | Benson |
Johnny Benson has been riding the proverbial Winston Cup roller coaster in 135 career races. He was the 1996 rookie of the year, switched teams at the start of this season, and back in February nearly pulled off the biggest Daytona 500 upset since Derrike Cope's victory in 1990. Benson led 39 late laps before a late caution and powerful horde of Fords ran him down. He finished a heartbreaking 12th. He could easily coulda/woulda/shoulda the Daytona 500 to death, but it's history and a mere memory as the tour prepares for the second plate race of 2000. Benson started his Roush Ford 24th and 28th last season at Talladega. He survived the challenges and chess games of drafting, but he couldn't escape the wreck last fall. This season, he and crew chief James Ince are prepared for a potentially winning drive and expect another successful day. They know all eyes will be on the 10 car, watching to see if Daytona was a fluke or indication of the teams potential. One note from my "Useless But Cool to Know" file: Benson has never led a lap at Talladega in eight career races. His best finish came in 1997 when he finished ninth in Chuck Rider's Pontiac. Benson and crew chief James Ince have pride, potential, and motivation to run well this week.
Kevin Lepage
| |  | | | Lepage |
Last fall in the Winston 500, Lepage motored his No. 16 Ford through the field chasing a $1 million bonus, but the dream was quickly crushed. Lepage was hung out of the draft, and his victory chances disappeared. Lepage finished 12th in this race one year ago, but still hasn't led a lap at Talladega. The Fords looked very strong at Daytona, as all three of Lepage's teammates finished in the top 10. He and crew chief Pat Tryson have strong chemistry and the team seems close to a break through in its 73rd career start.
Matt Kenseth
| |  | | | Kenseth |
I know it's tough to put a rookie in the "Oh-fer Club," but after Little E's win in Texas, a little more pressure in placed on Kenseth in just his 14th career Cup start. And Kenseth did fire off the first salvo in the rookie battle by
finishing tenth at Daytona. Kenseth and his rookie team are banking on Daytona success and experience from his Roush teammates. Kenseth won the Daytona Busch race, so he has found success on the big tracks. Kenseth just needs it to carry over to Winston Cup. Kenseth could be the first rookie to win at Talladega since Davey Allison in 1987. He has all pieces in place to
pull it off, the question is, does he have the karma? You bet. It's named
teammate Mark Martin.
| |
ALSO SEE
Kernan: Talladega should be good show
Smaller plates mean bigger challenges for teams at Talladega
Weber: Yates makes Jarrett, Rudd tough at Talladega
Diehard 500 Breakdown
 |
