Technical Manager Claims Criticism Is Unwarranted
Preston Miller, Ford’s NASCAR technical manager, says criticism directed at his company over the shape of its new Winston Cup Taurus is unwarranted.
General Motors fans and others have denounced the four-door Taurus, which is replacing the two-door Thunderbird, as considerably different in shape than ones sold on dealership floors
“There are 18 templates approved and issued right now that apply to the Taurus,” Miller said. “Of those 18, nine fit the production car. Of the nine we don’t fit, the long template has not fit any production car competing in NASCAR since back in the 1980s, because the back of the hood and the cowl were raised for the engine package.
“Then there are about six templates, like the door template, that don’t fit any of the production cars because NASCAR has standardized them for all makes. Besides the door template, the rest have to do with the width of the tail and the trail area.”
Miller said the Pontiac Grand Prix sheet metal used in NASCAR fits fewer templates than the Taurus “because they keep changing the nose of the car.”
As for Chevrolet’s Monte Carlos, which led the change to a more rounded look, Miller said, “It fits 11 templates, but the only reason it fits the two that we don’t fit is because NASCAR standardized them using the Monte Carlo as the base.
“If Chevrolet says they are running a stock car, let’s go to a Chevrolet dealership and buy a Monte Carlo Winston Cup car. They have no doors, they’ve got a 16 1/2-inch window opening, they’ve got bars in the interior of it and it only seats one person.
“Even (NASCAR president) Bill France says that we haven’t raced a stock car in many years. So this whole issue of the Taurus not fitting the production templates and of it not being stock is ridiculous.”
The new Tauruses made their official debut Saturday as qualifying and preliminaries get under way for next Sunday’s Daytona 500.
BIG MONEY: The overall purse for the Daytona 500, including money for the Twin 125-mile qualifying races, has surpassed $7 million.
Not only that, but the winner of NASCAR’s most prestigious event has also been guaranteed $1 million.
Other than Bill Elliott in 1985 and Jeff Gordon in 1997, both of whom won a $1 million bonus for winning three of four major events in the same season, no NASCAR driver has earned $1 million for winning a single race.
The single biggest payday from a race purse is the $613,000 Jeff Gordon earned in winning the inaugural Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis in 1994. Gordon also got $377,410 for winning last year’s Daytona 500.
Second place in next week’s race is $500,000, with each of the top 11 finishers in what is expected to be a 43-car race taking home at least $100,000.
ROOKIE WATCH: This year’s Winston Cup rookie of the year battle, featuring Steve Park and Kenny Irwin Jr., is one of the most anticipated in years,
Park, a former modified champion in the northeast, moved to NASCAR’s Busch Grand National Series last year, driving for the new team formed by seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt.
The move up to Winston Cup, where he will compete against, among others, his boss, is a big challenge for the 30-year-old Park.
“Rookie of the year is important, and everybody asked me about competing against Kenny Irwin and the other drivers for the rookie award,” Park said. “I tell them that they are the least of my problems. Kenny is a great driver, but so are the Earnhardts, Gordons, Martins, Burtons and Labontes in this sport. I’m going to have my hands full with all of them.”
Irwin, a former U.S. Auto Club short track champion and last year’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck top rookie, is replacing Ernie Irvan as teammate to Dale Jarrett on the elite Robert Yates Racing team.
Irwin, 26, distinguished himself last year in a handful of Winston Cup starts.
“Everything will be different now,” he said. “Last year, we were just getting to know each other, feeling our way. Now it’s for real and we’ve got to do it every week.”
GAME FACE: Mike Skinner, last year’s Daytona 500 pole-winner and Winston Cup rookie of the year, is sporting a new look these days.
Like some young Hollywood actor, his 40-year-old face is covered with stubble. Is this the look Skinner is trying for?
“I’ve had a mustache all my life and I shaved it off during the holiday. Everyone said I looked 10 years younger, so I grew it back and left a little on my chin. Ten years from now, when I need to look younger, I may shave again.
“This is not a new game face or anything. I’ve never had a problem with a game face. When my mustache grows back like it was, I’ll shave the rest of it.”
STATISTIC OF THE WEEK: Although he has not won the Daytona 500 in 19 tries, Dale Earnhardt leads all drivers in total victories at Daytona International Speedway with 29. That includes 10 wins in the 125-mile qualifiers, six in the Bud Shootout, which previously was the Busch Clash, four IROC victories and seven wins in the Busch Series race, now known as the NAPA Auto Parts 300, and two Pepsi 400 victories.
