rpm.espn.com: Drivers to Watch

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Tuesday, August 14
Drivers to Watch
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Check out a short list of drivers to keep an eye on this weekend at Michigan.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Michigan Speedway is one of Dale Jr.'s favorites; although finishes have not been quite up to par, last year he was on the pole (record 191.149 mph) and drove good until he ran out of fuel and burned a piston to a 31st-place finish; last year's race marked the first time a father and two sons started a Winston Cup race in 40 years, as Dale's brother, Kerry, made his Winston Cup debut; the last series race with the name Pepsi 400 turned out quite exciting to a win at the Daytona International Speedway; climbed to sixth in the points after a career-best road course finish of 12th at Watkins Glen.

Bill Elliott
Among the all-time leading drivers at Michigan Speedway, owning seven wins here, second to Cale Yarborough's eight; swept both races in 1985 and 1986; also won this race in 1987 but his last win here was in the spring of 1989; ran well in the KMart 400 in June for a ninth-place finish; has been steady in the second half of the season, with one top-five finish and three top-10s in his last five races.

Jeff Gordon
Two of his 57 career Winston Cup victories were recorded at Michigan Speedway, including the KMart 400 in June after which he took the championship lead from Dale Jarrett; won this race in 1998; the victory in June was the 100th for Hendrick Motorsports; the win at Watkins Glen on Sunday was his second straight and fifth of the year; is 194 points ahead of Ricky Rudd in the standings (the largest of the year) and 265 in front of Dale Jarrett; has finished first, second or third in nine of the last 13 races.

Dale Jarrett
Has posted five straight top-five finishes in the Pepsi 400 at Michigan Speedway, including a win in 1996; finished fourth the past two years, but in June at the KMart 400 he placed 18th; recorded his first career victory at Michigan Speedway in this race on August 18, 1991; three straight finishes outside the top-10 caused the slip to third place in the standings, 265 points behind leader Jeff Gordon; his four wins are second to Gordon's five as are his three poles to five by Gordon; 44-year-old son of Ned Jarrett.

Bobby Labonte
Swept both Winston Cup races at Michigan in 1995 (was the seventh time a driver swept both races in a year at the Michigan track); also won the Pepsi 400 in 1999, while last year he was third behind Rusty Wallace and Ricky Rudd; finished 13th in the KMart 400 at Michigan Speedway on June 10; one victory this season was the Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway two races ago; eighth in the series standings.

Sterling Marlin
The 25-year veteran is having one of his better seasons in recent memory; has six top-five finishes, with runner-up to Jeff Gordon at the Brickyard 400 as top result; his last last trip to victory lane dates back to 1996 at Daytona, also the season he last finished in the top-10 of the championship standings; is 323 points behind Gordon, but just 163 in back of second-place Dale Jarrett with 15 races remaining.

Mark Martin
A good performer at Michigan Speedway, but it has been two years since he finished in the top-10 at the two-mile oval; last year he was 11th in this race; in the KMart 400, he struggled with a bad-handling car all day to a 16th-place finish; in 15 Pepsi 400 he has three wins, seven top five finishes and 10 top-10s; is 12th in the Winston Cup standings with 2,540 points; top results of the year were fourth in the Coca-Cola 600 and Talladega 500.

Steve Park
One of 13 winners on the circuit this year, posting his second career win at the Dura Lube 400 in North Carolina; second to Jeff Gordon in laps led with 499; remained 11th in the series standings with 2,570 points afte a 10th place finish at Watkins Glen, New York.

Ricky Rudd
By finishing fourth at Watkins Glen, he moved ahead of teammate Dale Jarrett into second place of the standings; is 194 points behind Jeff Gordon, but 71 ahead of Jarrett; Rudd and Gordon are the only drivers to score 15 top-10 finishes in 22 races this season; has only one finish lower than 14th in the last 15 races, that a 39th at the Brickyard 400; victory at the Pocono 500 on June 17 ended an 88-race winless streak; runner-up in the Pepsi 400 last year to Rusty Wallace.

Tony Stewart
Michigan Speedway has provided mixed results for him; recorded three top-10 finishes in five career starts at the two-mile oval including a win in the KMart 400 in 2000, but in his last two starts he endured finishes of 41st and 25th; was third in the 1999 Pepsi 400; after a somewhat slow start, he bounced back into contention with a string of top 10 finishes; won two races this year and has 11 top-10 finishes; fifth in the points standings.

Rusty Wallace
Five of his 54 career victories have come at Michigan Speedway, most recently the Pepsi 400 last year; four fresh tires late and a caution helped matters for him to pass Ricky Rudd and Bobby Labonte; had short day at Watkins Glen as his engine expired after just 14 laps; fell from sixth to ninth in the standings; one win this year was in April at California Speedway.

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