Drivers Almost Fight at Pepsi 400

B R O O K L Y N, Mich., Aug. 20, 2000 -- Rusty Wallace’s third win of the seasonwas almost upstaged today by another altercation between JeffGordon and Tony Stewart.

Wallace, riding with four fresh tires on his Penske Ford, tookthe lead with 15 laps to go and steadily pulled away from RickyRudd’s Ford and Bobby Labonte’s Pontiac in the Pepsi 400.

“I had a fast car,” said Wallace who has won five of his 52career NASCAR Winston Cup races at Michigan Speedway. “I figured Ihad a first- or second-place car all day. I knew I’d have to raceRicky Rudd, because he was quicker than me.”

Wallace, who beat Rudd by 2.971 seconds, averaged 132.586 mph ina race which took 3:01.01 to complete.

Dale Jarrett was fourth and Johnny Benson of nearby GrandRapids, Mich., was fifth.

Drivers Involved in Recent Crash

For the second straight week, the outcome of the race was almostupstaged by an incident involving Gordon and Stewart.

The brash Stewart, as he did a week earlier at Watkins Glen,took Gordon into a wall, causing serious damage. That time, the twoalmost got in a fistfight. But it didn’t lead to such bad blood onthis occasion.

Stewart was running second to Wallace when his car got loose andtouched pole-sitter Dale Earnhardt Jr. on lap 37.

Earnhardt Jr. drove on, but Stewart’s Pontiac began to swervebadly. The car got sideways between the first and second turn andspun into Gordon, who was trying to get past the trouble on thehigh side.

Gordon’s car slammed into the wall, damaging the front end, andhe had to take the multi-colored Chevrolet in to have the brakesrepaired.

“I just lost it down there,” Stewart said. “We were justracing hard out there. It was my fault. I just got down into oneand I don’t know why I got loose. I hadn’t been loose there allday.

“For some reason, it just got loose that one lap down there andI crashed a bunch of people I didn’t mean to crash. It was myfault. I just lost it.”

Payback Promised

Actually, the only driver he caused to crash was Gordon. Butthat was enough.

The start of the race had been overshadowed all week by the feuda week earlier between Gordon and Stewart at Watkins Glen. In thatrace, Stewart caused Gordon to go into the wall while Gordon wastrying to pass on an ‘S’ curve. Gordon vowed a payback during ashouting match later in the garage area.

“I’m sure a lot of people were wondering what was going tohappen with the 20 and 24,” said Gordon, whose car was taken tothe garage. “But it had nothing to do with this weekend at all. Hewas racing hard and it looked like he just got real loose.

“I saw the 20 car wiggle and it looked like it got realsideways.”

The race went on for 41 laps while Gordon’s crew installed newbrakes. He rejoined the race while the leaders still had 119 lapsto go, but completed only 141 laps before retiring the car.

Three Earnhardts, No Win

Kerry Earnhardt, making his first Winston Cup start, hit thewall on the fourth turn of his sixth lap, bringing out the first ofthe race’s eight caution flags.

“The car was running real loose,” he said. “We were justtrying to stay out of trouble and bring it in on the first caution.But another car got underneath me on turn 3 and took away my air. Ithought I could hang on to it, but I spun out and hit the wall.”

Still, it was just the start of a so-so day for all threeEarnhardts in this race. Dale Jr., despite starting first, spunonto the infield grass while swerving to avoid Robby Gordon on lap177 and finished 31st. Their father, The Intimidator himself,finished sixth after taking a provisional to start 37th.

Bill Elliott, on lap 124, went into the wall at the exit of thesecond turn with a cut right tire. That caution period led to amass pit stop, with Rudd leading Jeff Burton. Wallace was back infront when they all came out and the caution was lifted.

Rudd and Wallace raced hard around the banked 2-mile speedwayfor the next few laps, swaping the lead back and forth severaltimes.

Race Settled in the Pits

It was great entertainment for the sun-drenched fans, yet therace may have hinged on pit strategy.

Wallace went in with 30 laps to go and took on fuel plus fournew tires, all in 16.1 seconds. The others waited until lap 173 tomake their final pit stop. Rudd, who went in with that group, tookon only two new tires — both on the right side of the car.

Wallace, who won at Bristol, Tenn. in May and the second Poconorace in July, was running third behind Rudd and Labonte when thespin by Earnhardt Jr. and Robby Gordon brought the caution flag outon lap 177. The difference was that Wallace had the four new tireswhile the others had taken on just two.

“I didn’t think I was going to catch those guys,” Wallacesaid. “But the caution flag came out and they were sitting on twotires. They gambled, but we went for four and ... when they droppedthat [restart] flag, the Miller Lite Ford took off like a bullet.”

There were 21 lead changes among eight drivers and 12 of the 43cars failed to finish. There were 38 laps run under the eightcautions.