Rules Changes Take Effect

Was it whining or sandbagging? Whichever, complaints from Ford and Dodge about the GM advantage during Daytona 500 SpeedWeeks paid off in Sunday’s race.

After only two Fords qualified in the top 20, NASCAR officials cut a quarter-inch off their rear spoiler last Sunday to improve their aerodynamics. Then, after watching Chevrolets and Pontiacs dominate the Budweiser Shootout and Twin 125 races, NASCAR responded by cutting another quarter-inch off both Ford Taurus and Dodge Intrepid entries on Friday.

When Saturday’s practice was rained out, if left all manufacturers curious as to what effect the reduction would create--if any.

“Our engineers estimate a quarter-inch is worth two-tenths of a second a lap,” said Mike Helton, NASCAR president.

The results were obvious. Dodges and Fords claimed seven of the first eight finishing positions in the Daytona 500 and one or the other led for 106 of the 200 laps.

The first Chevrolet--after having the top three and eight of the top 10 in qualifying--Sunday was fifth-place Michael Waltrip and the first Pontiac was Johnny Benson Jr. in 10th.

Second-place finisher Elliott Sadler and sixth-place Mark Martin didn’t even qualify, starting from the rear with provisional invitations.

“It looks like our teams were able to take advantage of the rules change,” understated Bob Wildberger, manager of Dodge’s NASCAR operation.

“Obviously, the playing field was level today. I’ve got to believe that Ward Burton and [team owner] Bill Davis have got a start on that million dollar bounty we’ve got for the driver’s championship this year.”

Dodge announced Saturday it would pay $1 million to any of its drivers who won the Winston Cup crown.

Rusty Wallace spoke for the Ford contingent when he said, “The rule change really helped the Fords in the race, there’s no doubt about that. We were competitive with the Chevrolets and everybody, we just didn’t win.”

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Pole-sitter Jimmie Johnson, after getting shuffled back as far as 35th because of inexperience, came back to finish 15th, the second-highest-finishing rookie. Ryan Newman, a rookie with Roger Penske’s Ford team, was seventh.

“It was crazy,” said Johnson, a former off-roader from El Cajon. “We were caught up in that first big wreck. Luckily we didn’t get a lot of damage but we got a quarter panel bent in which the 09 [Geoffrey Bodine] bumped me and it cut the tire. While we worked on the car we got caught down a lap and that put us behind.”

Shawna Robinson, the second woman to drive in the Daytona 500, finished 24th as the third rookie in the race and was not pleased with it.

“We finished in the top 25 and we’re not thrilled about that but at the same time we finished the Daytona 500 and got it out of the way and now we can move on to racing,” she said.

“When we were in the mix of it all we held our own. I think I showed that I don’t have any problem running three wide or going high or going low or doing whatever it takes. I think that was something I needed to show today. I think I’m a pretty smart driver and I know how to drive a race car and that’s something I needed to prove today.”

Janet Guthrie finished 12th in 1977 and 11th in 1980.

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Burton’s win was the first for a Dodge since Richard Petty won the 1974 race.