| | Associated Press
TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Bobby Labonte would have liked another chance to qualify for Sunday's DieHard 500. Unfortunately, he didn't make up his mind quick enough.
Labonte, the NASCAR Winston Cup points leader, had a miserable qualifying run Friday at Talladega Superspeedway, blowing a cylinder after a mistake in the set-up for his Pontiac Grand Prix. His speed of 181.967 was more than 5 mph slower than pole-sitter Jeremy Mayfield.
The Joe Gibbs Racing team, assured of a spot in the 43-car field because of provisional status, put in a new engine and chose to stand on its first run. Then, Labonte had a change of heart just before Saturday's second round of qualifying.
"We thought about qualifying today," he said after winning the International Race of Champions, a preliminary event for Sunday's DieHard. "But we didn't think about it until it was too late to go over there and scratch our name off the other list."
The fastest qualifier on day two was Kenny Wallace, whose speed of 185.344 put him 26th in the 43-car field and actually was faster than three drivers who made the field Friday. Dave Marcis, Dick Trickle, Robby Gordon and Wally Dallenbach also got in with their Saturday runs.
Among those failing to qualify: Kevin Lepage and Elliott Sadler, both missing out for the first time in nine races this season, and Brett Bodine, a one-time series regular who was bumped for the third time.
Ted Musgrave got in with the only car at Talladega that doesn't have a primary sponsor. He'll start 29th after standing on his first-day speed.
Alabama, get away
ALABAMA, GET AWAY: Once a racing hotbed, Alabama is no longer represented in its home-state Winston Cup event.
Gary Bradberry of Chelsea was the only local driver even
attempting to qualify at Talladega Superspeedway. He failed to get
in after managing just 183.427 mph in his second attempt Saturday
on the 2.66-mile tri-oval.
Bradberry was hoping to make his third straight start since
taking over Larry Hedrick's No. 41 Chevrolet for Rick Mast, who
moved into A.J. Foyt's No. 14 Pontiac. Mast also failed to qualify
at Talladega.
Bradberry finished 41st and 33rd in his two races this year. In
his only start at Talladega, he was 23rd in the 1996 Winston 500.
With no one to cheer for Sunday, Alabamians focused their hopes
on former Winston Cup driver Hut Stricklin of Calera, who was sixth
in Saturday's Touchtone Energy 300 Busch race.
No more restrictions
Restrictor plates are an accepted way of life at Talladega and Daytona. Jack Roush doesn't see it becoming a trend.
Roush, who runs the largest team on the Winston Cup circuit,
said the sport's competitive balance could be hurt by having
restrictor plates at shorter tracks where speeds are rising.
"There are naysayers and critics who say we go too fast at a
lot of places and there are others who say the racing is borderline
in terms of being exciting enough," Roush said. "There's a
delicate balance there."
He said the cars should be able to deal with higher speeds
because of improved safety measures and more reliable tires.
"Except for Daytona and Talladega, the race tracks are
configured with enough variance and enough variety to provide a
very nice balance in measuring driver ability and team ability,"
Roush said. "To bring restrictor plates to other places or do
things that change that balance would be very risky."
Kyle's distractions
Kyle Petty is the first to admit that he's probably trying to do too much. He's not about to change his ways, however.
In addition to driving, Petty now oversees the operations at
Petty Enterprises, which includes two Winston Cup cars and also
competes in the Busch and truck series. His father, King Richard
Petty, decided to step away from the daily grind in the past year
to focus on more leisurely pursuits.
"Is it too much? It may be," Kyle Petty said. "Should I
choose? Maybe I should. Am I going to be hardheaded about it and
keep hammering along? Yeah, because that's what my granddaddy (the
late Lee Petty) did and that's what daddy did and that's what I'm
going to do.
"But it's tough," he admitted. "When we get to a point where
we have three Winston Cup cars here, I think it will be a little
bit tougher."
The Pettys are grooming Kyle's son, Adam, to race on the sport's
most glamorous circuit. The 19-year-old currently competes in the
Busch Series.
Kyle Petty, meanwhile, has struggled this season with engine
problems in his Pontiac while preparing for the switch to Dodge
next year. He ranks 34th in the point standings, failing to qualify
at Texas and finishing no higher than 24th in his other seven
races.
"We're struggling with our engine department and we know it,"
Petty said.
Spark plugs ...
Jimmy Spencer posted the fastest speed during Saturday's final practice session, 194.512 mph. He was followed by Steve Park (193.705), Kenny Irwin (193.552) and pole-sitter Jeremy Mayfield (193.123). ... Dale Jarrett has finished third or better in seven of the last nine races at Talladega. He won the 1998
Winston 500. ... The purse for Sunday's race is more than $2.9
million. ... Ken Schrader, who won the DieHard pole a year ago, was
forced to use a provisional to get in this time. He will start
40th.
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