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New rules requested at Atlanta

By KEVIN KELLY

© St. Petersburg Times, published October 24, 2000

Atlanta Motor Speedway president Ed Clark would like to slow Winston Cup cars before the series returns for the season-ending NAPA 500 next month.

Clark called NASCAR chief operating officer Mike Helton Friday and proposed NASCAR use Talladega rules, minus the horsepower-limiting restrictor plates, at the Nov. 19 race.

"I asked Mike to at least take a look at it," Clark said Monday. "I told him we would make the track available to test if they have an interest. What they do is really up to them. They have to make the decision."

NASCAR changed air dam and spoiler heights and added a 1-inch strip across the roof for the Winston 500 on Oct. 15 at Talladega.

The result was an ultra-competitive race (49 lead changes) with Dale Earnhardt charging from 22nd to first in the final 10 laps.

"I saw some things that I haven't seen for a long, long time in that race," Clark said. "Obviously something worked. People have certainly talked about Talladega for two weeks now."

Though Atlanta hasn't had a problem with boring races (30 lead changes in March), speeds at the 1.54-mile track have worried some drivers.

Dale Jarrett won the pole position for the Cracker Barrel 500 in March (at) 192.574 mph, the fastest qualifying lap of the season. The track record (197.478) was set in 1997.

"Some of the drivers have expressed concern about the corner speeds here," Clark said. "They're in the corner so much. This would take some of the corner speed off and make the drivers more comfortable."

CREWMAN RELEASED: Rick Machinski, gas man for Matt Kenseth's team, was released from a Charlotte, N.C., hospital Monday, one day after sustaining second-degree burns to his face and neck in a pit fire during the Pop Secret 400 at North Carolina Speedway.

Machinski was burned when a piece of burned rubber fell on the ground and ignited spilled gas.

"We're happy and relieved to hear that Rick is doing well today," said Jack Roush, who owns Kenseth's No. 17 Ford.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE: Just the thought of not being in the championship chase frustrates Dale Jarrett.

Despite winning Sunday, the defending Winston Cup champion trails series leader Bobby Labonte by 330 points with three races remaining.

"We're not going to win the championship this year, but we can keep fighting, trying to get back in the top three, which is something that we've done every year (since 1996)," said Jarrett, who is fourth in the standings. "The main thing is we're learning things that are probably going to be beneficial to us in 2001, where we can come out and start making a run at another championship."

NO BRAKES: Less than one month after TBS tested the idea during the UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, NBC has decided to provide its viewers continuous coverage of NASCAR events.

Beginning with the Busch Grand National race Nov. 11 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the Pennzoil 400 Winston Cup event the next day and for its 13 races next season, NBC will dedicate 25 percent of the screen to the race during commercials.

Advertisers must first agree to adopt the format.

"Fans say their biggest complaint with NASCAR is the commercials, and we think this answers that complaint," said Sam Flood, producer of NBC's NASCAR coverage. "This is a loyal audience, and now they don't have any reason to surf channels."

PIT NOTES: Labonte has lost 51 points off his lead in the past two races. He leads Dale Earnhardt by 201 and needs to finish 14th or better in the final three races to win the title. ... Alexander Wurz will serve as a test driver for the Formula One McLaren team next season. He replaces Olivier Panis, who signed to race for British American Racing.

- Information from other news organizations was used in this report.

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