The MRN broadcast of the 1984 Miller High Life 400 from Richmond Raceway.
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MRN Classic Races
MRN Classic Races - 1984 Miller High Life 400
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An impressive field of drivers, probably the biggest field of cars to ever come here in an attempt to qualify. We'll be starting 32 on the grid this afternoon. They had more than 41 cars here, opting for those positions. It's been a real scrambling qualifying since Friday afternoon here at Richmond. Beautiful day, the weather just ideally perfect for it. It's a little bit cool for the fans. Most of them came early this morning and the stands right now look like he's gonna have a complete sellout as they always do here, Mike Joy, 'cause it is indeed one of the finest short tracks in the country. - This is true, Marty, good afternoon everyone. It's going to be a packed house here at Richmond. The sun is out, there's not a cloud in the sky, no chance of rain, but it is about 50 degrees. So it's going to be a cool day for the cruise. The flags are stretched right out straight. There's a good stiff breeze going, and even though it is sunny, it's gonna be a cool afternoon out there, and it's gonna be kind of tough to keep your mind on your business as you wait for these cars to make their pit stop, so the pit crews will have a tough run of it today. Not so much the drivers, of course they've got the heat coming up through the floorboards from those race cars, so it won't be too uncomfortable for them. The weather may be cool, but the action's going to be hot here as usual. - Well, the short-crack racing at Richmond is some of the best in the country. As we always say, when we come here, we usually see a real good show, and I think it's gonna be a dandy this afternoon. Qualifying, extremely competitive already as the season began at Daytona last weekend with a running of Daytona 500. What a week a lot of drivers had down there. Caled Yarborough running off as his second Daytona 500 in a row, coming away with more than $160,000, and while we're on that subject and have some time to talk about it, there was quite a few drivers down there last week, Mike, that really came home with some fat paychecks, including Dale Earnhardt, who collected better than 81,000. Darryl Walter, up over 68,000, and on down the line, there were several more that collected more than 50,000, so very healthy week for many of them. - Right, Barney, there were fellas that placed in the top 10 that scored their biggest paycheck of their Winston Cup careers, and some of those were drivers that had won races elsewhere. It's become, speed week had just become such a tremendous promotion. It is hard for it not to overshadow a race like here at Richmond, but in its own right, this race here at the Richmond Fairgrounds, raceway, it's the richest short track race on the Winston Cup tour, and that's evidenced by some of the drivers that are here, that normally don't run the short tracks. Most evident is Cale Yarborough, the Daytona 500 winner who runs a limited schedule, runs hardly any short track races at all, but he's here because the money is here. - And so is David Pearson, it's his first appearance here, as far as running a short track race in a grand national car, particularly here at Richmond. I don't think David's been here since 1972. The drivers are being introduced trackside right now as pre-race activity continues here at the Richmond Fairground Raceway for any late developments on pit road and in the garage, covering the action there this afternoon, they're Jared and Jerry Punch, let's go down to the pits at this time. - Well, thank you Barney, good afternoon everyone. It is a beautiful day for racing here. One change is in the driver, before you get to that starting lineup, Barney will be that Jimmy Hensley, late model sportsman driver who's been very successful, will be replacing Tommy Gail in the car number 64, and we're sorry to say that Tommy had a kidney stone problem and he's on his way back to his home in Pennsylvania now, so our prayers and best wishes will be with him that he was not able to start here today. Of course, we'll be covering the action here in the pits along with Jerry Punch. - And that little chili down there this morning, or this afternoon. - Well, it is Mike, as you mentioned earlier, until that first pit stop, some of the crews, so we'll be bundled up a little bit, but as the day goes on, it gets a little bit warmer and I think that it certainly is. I don't think it is a better day than we've had many times here in the past in February, so they welcome the situation. The pits here are a little bit tight, even though they have improved pit road considerably. Over the years, with 32 cars, they still have to jam up pretty much in the pits, so when caution comes out boy, we're going to have a real activity in the pits here, but they were told in the driver's meeting to be sure to take that into consideration when they come down pit road. - Kyle Larson brings these some more toes to snowball racing fuel. - From fueling NASCAR champions on the track for over 20 years to innovating 94 octane, the highest octane on the market, performance is what Sanoco does. All Sanoco fuel at the pump meets the same top tier standards as the fuel used in NASCAR. Back here for Ryan Blaney, four tires with a Sanoco fuel. - From the track to your tank, you can trust Sanoco to help your vehicle perform at its peak. - So they are introducing drivers right now at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, in anticipation of the start, and just a matter of a few minutes, of the second race of a 1984, NASCAR Wisdom Cup Grand National Stock Car Tour. Daytona the first race, and of course the point standings reflect. Dale Yarbroughs, Daytona 500 victory. He's atop the point standings. As he was a year ago, when he won that race, although last year he did not come here at Richmond. Now Kale is not running the full season this year. They've elected a run of limited schedule, 16 to 18 races, but he could go out of here again with the point lead. Dale Earnhardt, the runner up at Daytona, 10 points back of Kale, Darryl Waltshire, but other five points back in third. Neil Monnet, Bill Elliot, Harry Gantt, Ricky Rudd, Jeff Bodine, Jody Ridley, who is not here, and Terry Labadi around at the top 10 in the Winston Cup point standings. And Latin rookies in the field, Barney, six rookie drivers were in today's field, including Phil Parsons, Greg Sachs, Dean Coems, and Clark Dwyer, the top four drivers in the champion spark plug rookie point standings, along with Rusty Wallace, who was also in the starting lineup for this afternoon's race. - It's gonna be a good scramble all year long because there's some very top driving talent running for a rookie of the year honors. We were talking about Kale Yarbroughs, complete domination of speed weeks, 1984 at Daytona, what a really a successful two weeks or 10 days they had down there and everything. His crew chief, Waddell Wilson is one of the best in the business. We had a chance to chat with him a little bit here this weekend at Richmond. And for him, he said for the whole team and Kale, it was really the top of the mountain down there. - Yeah Barney, I'd have to agree with you. That's been one, one time at Daytona that we've come back feeling we've done by everything we could possibly do. And we're so happy with Kale and the crew and Harry right here give us everything we needed to work with through the winter months to get the car as way we wanted them to go to Daytona. And everything turned out it is exactly like we planned it. - Thoughts of Waddell Wilson, the crew chief on that hardy Chevrolet of Kale Yarbrough. I think a lot of things kind of came to the forefront in Daytona last week. A lot of the new teams that have gone together for the first time this year, Jeff Bodine and his outing with Harry Hyde as his new crew chief and that five-star racing team, Harry had some thoughts. I was very pleased with his new team and particularly his driver, Bodine, down at Daytona. - Barney, we're real happy with speed week. The boss was happy Rick Henry, so I really didn't know that we could go down and finish all the four races that we run. But we're tickled to death and I think now we can do some serious racing. About 90 days we should catch up with the competition and make a good showing. But we've got a lot of work ahead of us and a lot of work to do. But we're really happy about Daytona. - Barney, one thing that really surprises me about being here at Richmond and how professional this sport has become and what a big business it has become is how many good race cars there are in that starting grid without major sponsorship. And I'm not talking in the million-dollar category as there are some of those deals, but fellas who are here with the side of their car just completely blank and those include drivers like Ron Bouchard and the Raymott car for Dave Marcus, there are few others up and down fit road that don't have sponsorship signed and are kind of running race to race on their winnings. - Well, the sport, you can take a look at the purse. It's more than $243,000 I think here for this particular race this weekend and it wasn't too many years ago that that kind of purse was really a heck of a payoff for one of the major races on the tour, but now it is the richest short track race going and the winner today can collect more than $21,000. - Let's add to that list, Ronnie Thomas and also the all-star racing team of Jeff Bodine without a major sponsor, although they do have some strong backing there, but there are some good cars in the field and if you're out there listening and own a business, this is not a sponsorship pitch by any means, but if you have a look at the crowd that's here and the crowds that have been at Daytona, if you have a product to get in front of a public, there certainly isn't much of a better way to reach this group of people than through Winston Cup stock car racing. They're introducing the drivers, the large cheer you just heard was for Ron Bouchard and the large ovation of sorts for Daryl Waltrop as he comes up and is introduced as the pole sitter, a new track record holder. - Krasman is back on track and racing for a miracle. Help support your local children's miracle network hospital and save 20% off select Krasman V20 products. Shop this deal of the race at Ace Hardware. Do it fast, do it proud, do it with Krasman. 20% savings offer available at participating Ace Hardware stores and on Acehardware.com. Restrictions apply, seekrasman.com/dealoftherace for details. - Here at Fireground's Raceway activity continuing trackside as the drivers have been introduced to the record crowd, it appears to be this afternoon they've gone back across the speedway now to be climbing in their cars in just a couple of minutes. - They've just announced Barney here in the grandstand that they have brought in additional bleacher seats and additional seating that are putting down a ground level to handle the huge overflow crowd here. Some additional unreserved seating brought in and that's the first time we can remember that happening here at Richmond Fairgrounds, Raceway. So certainly an indication of the popularity of Winston Cup racing as the 1984 season gets underway. Each of these races has a preliminary event. Last week at Daytona, it was the goodies 300 provided what many people said was the best racing of all of speed week. And here yesterday, the Bush Sportsman series came to Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway and strutted their stuff on a half mile. John McMullod reports. - MR continued his winning ways at the Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway as Ashboro, North Carolina veteran drove his Thomas Brother Osmobile to a lopsided victory in the Wrangler 150 NASCAR Bush late model sportsman series event Saturday afternoon before 10,000 fans. Hard used a caution flag restart to gain the lead when he out muscled Paul Sitter and early leader Tommy Ellis on lap 13 from the air hard went unchallenged over the 150 lap event on the half mile oval. He credited his engine and tires in victory lane. - I tell you what, the old him car runs the Super today and I tell you what, good your head will get tired on there and be in our head to power under the hood so it was just a little more negative handle today. - The strategy was to go right to the front and get past Tommy or in the early cautious flag there and that kind of was a break for it, wasn't it? - What if I ever got out front and got a little distance and I could drive my own race and I could save the tires or do whatever I needed to do to make the car finish to rate? - When I was back there, I was going to have to scour the car or whatever you know till it ordered to get by him but whenever I got a good break, when we had to restart I got a good jump and I was able to take him coming down in the front straightaway and then they don't, Tommy really pretty good for a few left. It looked like he had to be running for a while. Tommy started getting a little loose and seven caution flags kept the 24 car feel close but on each restart all right and mowed it away. Ellis saw his hopes for victory dash when he tagged the third turn barrier on lap 95. A good battle developed for the remaining positions but Dale Jarrett's a kind of large Pontiac edging Dale Earnhardt's Wrangler Earls for the runner up position. Wayne Patterson and Jack Ingram and the Skoll Pontiac completed the top five. Six through 10 saw Bosco Low, Elton Sawyer, Tommy Houston, Larry Pearson and L.D. Eartinger are collecting $7950 and the goodies 300 qualifying spot. For NASCAR today, this is John McMullen. - With the field assembled on pit road and just waiting the command to fire up and move out for 400 laps here Richmond, let's take a look at the starting lineup. Starting in 30 second position, the two added spots due to the car owner's option for top 25 car owners, that'll go to the James Hilton car. Trevor Boyes of Calgary, Alberta, Canada is the driver. Starting 31st also on the option position in the Broadway Motor Chevrolet Huntsville, Alabama driver now racing out of Forest City, North Carolina. Jimmy Means in the 30th spot. Champion spark plug rookie challenger, Dean Combs of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina in his best products, Oldsmobile. And right alongside is Dave Marcus of Wasal, Wisconsin and Avery's Creek, North Carolina, the Raymoc racing Pontiac that will start from the 29th position. In the 28th spot, the NASCAR Winston racing series national champion, Mike Alexander of Franklin, Tennessee. He's driving Dave Marcus owned Hudson Chevrolet, Oldsmobile. In the 27th spot, another rookie contender from Matatuck Long Island, New York, the former modified champion, Greg Sacks, in the Uniden force Chevrolet. In the 26th spot, as Ned Jarrett pointed out, Tommy Gale has returned home to Elizabeth, Pennsylvania. So Jimmy Hensley, the short track star from Martinsville, Virginia, will be starting Elmo Langley's car. That's the Sonny King Ford Honda Ford going 26th. And 25th, the rookie driver out of Colorado Springs, Colorado, Clark Dwyer. We'll start Roger Hamby's Hesco exhaust systems Pontiac from the 25th position. Starting in 24th spot this afternoon, Lenny Pond from Chester, Virginia, in the Jim Tester Morgan McClure Racing Chevrolet. 23rd is JD McDuffie of Sanford, North Carolina. He'll be in the Wilders Racing Pontiac. Starting 22nd, another rookie contender for this year, Phil Parsons, out of Denver, North Carolina, starts the Skoll Bandit Chevrolet. David Pearson goes from 21st position, out of Spartanburg, South Carolina, in the Chattanooga Chew Chevy. Starting in 20th spot is Ronnie Thomas of Christiansburg, Virginia, in the Thomas Racing Chevrolet. The 19th position belongs to Kyle Petty of Random and North Carolina, the 7-11 Ford, and starting 18th Lake Speed, out of Jackson, Mississippi, in the Bullfrog Knits Racing Chevrolet. 17th, Dale Earnhardt of Canapolis, North Carolina, in the Ranger Chevy. Morgan Shepherd is back behind the wheel of the Booby Harrington car, Tom Sneva drove that car at Daytona, carries number two, and it carries the logo of Food Country USA on the side of that view this afternoon. Starting 15th, out of Rattleman, North Carolina, looking for his 199th career win today, is Richard Petty, the driver of the STP Pontiac. In the 14th spot, in the Ron Benfield Racing Levi Garrett Chevrolet from Upland, California, Joe Rutman, the driver, Jake Elder, the crew chief, Jacob Pacas Suitcase, after this afternoon, and move on from that team that he started this season with and finished up 1983 with the Levi Garrett Bunch. In the 13th spot, Bill Elliott, the pride of Dawsonville, Georgia, driving the Coors beer, Melling Tool Ford. In the 12th spot, Harry Gantt, the bandit from Taylor'sville, North Carolina, in the Skoll Bandit Chevrolet, prepared by Travis Carter. In the 11th spot, the defending Winston Cup Grand National Stockyard champ, Bobby Allison of Huey Town, Alabama, in the die guard, Miller Highlife Buick. And in the 10th spot, Neil Bonnet of Huey Town, Alabama, driving the Johnson-Hodgden Budweiser Chevrolet, and a halo to Doug Richard, his crew chief, was listening back up home in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, still on the mend from a pit road incident in Daytona. We know he's listening in today. Alongside Neil, the Winston Cup point leader, the Daytona 500 winner, Kayleigh Arboro, of Timmonsville, South Carolina, in the Waddell Wilson engineered, Hardy Chevrolet. Starting in the eighth position will be Jeff Bodine, of Shemung, New York, and the All-Star Racing Chevrolet. Starting seventh, Dick Brooks of Porterville, California, and the comedian, Sunglass, is Ford. The sixth position belongs to Terri Labonte, out of Corpus Christi, Texas, and the Piedmont Airlines Racing Chevrolet, starting fifth, Rusty Wallace, of St. Louis, Missouri, and the Gatorade Pontiac. The fourth spot this afternoon is Ricky Rudd of Chesapeake, Virginia, and the Ranger Ford. Starting third, Tim Richmond of Ashland, Ohio, and the Old Milwaukee Pontiac in the front row, outside pole, Ron Bouchard of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and the race hill farms Buick, and on the pole, Darryl Walter, Franklin, Tennessee, and the Budweiser Chevrolet. And that's the 32 drivers who will get at it shortly. And the Miller High Life 400 here at Richmond. New record qualifying speed for Walter, 93.8 miles per hour. 41 cars came here at Richmond to look for 32 spots. Close qualifying, just half a second lap separated the entire field. The drivers here that did not qualify, Buddy Arrington of Martinsville, Virginia, and the Dodge did not make the field. He was eligible for a promoter's option spot, declined it, loaded up, and went home. Doug Heveron, the super modified ace that won our Timex Timelyist move award at Daytona, did not qualify. Neither did local driver Joe Fields, short track driver from the area, Robert Ingram, DK Ulrich's car is on the truck and hit at home. Likewise, that of Rick Newsom, Louis Littlepage, Brent Elliot, and the California Ford driver, Mark Stahl, the drivers who attempted, but did not make the field here at Richmond. NASCAR today has been sponsored by Goody's Manufacturing Corporation, makers of Goody's headache powders and extra strength pain relief tablets. [MUSIC PLAYING] As two-time Grand National Champ Ned Jarrett delivers the invocation, we'll take this pause from Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. This is MRN, the Motor Racing Network. [MUSIC PLAYING] The Motor Racing Network presents the NASCAR Winston Cup series. Today, the Miller High Life 400 from Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. [MUSIC PLAYING] Well, I think we're going to see a good one this afternoon here at Fairgrounds Raceway. As 32 drivers are now aboard their cars or waiting in the command of fire engines, that'll be given very shortly here by Ray Melton. And the field is probably as tight as I've ever seen it. Mike and qualifying, as you said a moment ago, less than a half a second separating all 32 drivers. And the way qualifying has become lately, it just the snap of a finger separates the first 10. That's incredible, Barney. We talked to a couple of drivers, short track drivers, well-known in their own right, who tried to qualify on a race day setup, which is going to be running laps about one second slower than qualifying laps. It just didn't work. They were fellows who found themselves on the truck and going home with what they thought would be a comfortable qualifying speed. Things have just become so competitive. And anytime you have 41 cars looking for 30 or 32 qualifying spots, things are going to be tight. But I don't think anybody expected them to be as tight as they are with just half a second separating the first 30 cars in the field. And that's kind of indicative of the kind of scramble we're going to see on the racetrack all afternoon. Last time we were here in the early race, the spring race, what we'll call the spring race right after Daytona last year. Bobby Allison, the defending champion. He and Dale Earnhardt really went at it. The last 50, 60 laps, Earnhardt did everything he possibly could to get around the man, just could not, came up short. And Bobby won. In fact, Allison has reeled off three wins in a row here at Richmond, has kind of been his cup of tea lately. Well, it has. But none of them have been easy contests. As you mentioned, he and Earnhardt tousled in the spring race. In the fall race, it was Allison and Ricky Rudd, who battled just about right down to the wire. It was a several car length margin of victory. It's been back since Dave Marcus won the spring race a year and a half ago. The rain shortened race that anybody else besides Allison has visited victory lane here. His sponsors are so confident. His car sponsors are so confident of his chances here that now they even sponsor the race as well. Well, don't count him out this afternoon. That's for sure. We were talking, we first came on the air this afternoon, about two of the greats in this business, coming back here to run the first time in a long, long time. K.L. Yarbrough hasn't run here in about four years. Pearson hasn't been here since 1972. And the command has just been given the fire engines. And 32 come alive down on the racetrack. David Pearson, who hasn't been here since 1972. He's been very successful at this racetrack. And I talked with him about that yesterday. I've won, I wish I don't know exactly how many, but when I won most of my races here was back when it was dirt, but as far as the asphalt, I don't think that I've ever won here since it's been asphalt. I came up one time and run a sportsman race here. And that must have been seven, eight years ago. It might not have been that long. I don't really know. And then I ran, Don Levitt's car here one time. And I remember the throw stuck. And I knocked a hole down going into three during the practice. But I'm excited about coming back and running some short track. So let's see what Pearson can do this afternoon. Ned, you go back to those dirt track days with old David here, and you guys really used to make some chunks of mud fly out of these corners. I'll tell you, this was a fun track to drive, Barney. It was a tough racetrack then, as it is today. It really didn't change it that much, accepting that you got black asphalt instead of a hard to sand base that was here before. In fact, a lot of times we would-- it got near the end there, that we could run asphalt tires on the car that dirt was so hard. And certain to David Pearson was one of the toughest dirt track competitors I ever raced against. Now, there were a lot of them. Richard Paddy was good. Junior Johnson, of course, was sensational. But David Pearson and Dick Hutcherson certainly ranked right up there at the top of the list as far as I'm concerned, and dirt track drivers. Of course, Pearson has gone on to prove what he could do in other phases of the sport too, especially on super speedways. I kind of like to see some of those old days again, but I guess they're gone forever. Can you handle the smoke? Then Toyota racing wants you. Not the kind of smoke wafting from the grill on race days. Smells good. Kind of smoke from victory donuts, drifting less than a hair is width from walls and blasting off to the tune of 300 miles per hour, plus. If the smoke smells inviting, we're looking for you. Be part of the action at Toyota.com/racing. Toyota, let's go, places. They're about to roll a field Barney. They'll take four pace laps, and we'll go racing. Not a seat to be had here at Fairgrounds Raceway in Richmond, Virginia. In fact, there are even some folks sitting out in the trees, up in the trees that line the back stretch in one of those is our only like all. Well, I'll tell you the truth. The tree union got together, and they wouldn't let me up on the branches, but you're right. There are folks out here on the trees as the field rumbles by. The infield is as jammed as we have ever seen it here at Richmond. And from our vantage point, which is at the very end of the back straightaway, going into turn number three, we get a very unique view of the cars coming off turn number two and heading down the backshoot. And like any short track, the kind of jump you get off the corner can help dictate what happens on the back straightaway and going into the next turn. And that, of course, is so very pivotal here at Richmond or at any short track. A number of the cars, when they come off turn number two, have the tendency to fly out towards the outside retaining wall, the car gets a bite there. Then they dive back into turn number three, trying to straighten out this race track as best they can. All the cars will take another lap or so and warm the engines up. Because as we said, it is very cool here at Fairgrounds Raceway this afternoon. The temperature was forecast to go up around 51 or 2 degrees and the wind chill factor is going to have to drop it down considerably less than that this afternoon. So it's going to be a cool day, but it'll be ideal for the drivers inside the cars. For the teams on Fit Road, it'll be a bit uncomfortable for a while. As they come across the line and Chief Stewart Ernie Moore giving the field the indication, they will take green next time by. And I think we're going to see one mad scramble, at least in the early going here, the way they qualify it. And if the cars can run like they look like they did in practice, it'll be a dandy. Well, if yesterday's race was any indication, the Wrangler 150, most of the passing here is done on the start and on the restart. So to abreast, it should be a mad scramble down into that first corner when they get the green. The two corners here at Richmond, very different. One from the other, we'll talk about that with several of the drivers as the day goes on. Pontiac Safety Car has the field in tow up in turn number three. The Trans Am has the light off on the roof. It'll make the hard left turn, and they'll be coming down to start the first short track race of 1984. Well, it's going to be interesting to see how long Ron Bouchard can hold his position up there. He's alongside a Daryl Walter, and the Pontiac Trans Am is behind pit wall. Harold Kinder holds them down as they come down to the line about 100 yards away, and he waves the green. And the Miller 400 is underway as they dive into the number one corner, Walter squeezes Bouchard back to second spot as they hit the corner and come off turn two. Tim Richmond holds down the third spot, going fourth and a charge from their start here is Ricky Wright. Fifth is Rusty Wallace, a short track specialist. Sixth is Lobati, and a good seven-place battle. Brooks and Elliot. Brooks on the inside. That'll be Jeff Bodine on the outside. He will have to drop in line. It'll kill Yarbrough, Bobby Allison, Neil Bonnet. Bill Elliot and Richard Petty as the leaders come out of two. And they'll hold single file. Again, the field comes off the corner. They swing towards the outside, retaining wall, then dive quickly in the turn of a three. Right now, Walter's feeling no heat for the moment from Bouchard. Probably the first 10 laps or so. They'll just run to see what the car feels like in the corners as they throw it in there real hard for the first time this afternoon. Walk up is the leader, riding along in the second spot. Bouchard, Richmond third, still fourth right now is Rudd. Fifth, going to Rusty Wallace. They're in the back stretch. And Wallace with a bit of a ton alongside him as Lobati. Lobati trying a bit for fifth. Goes to the inside of turn three. Wallace goes outside. Back at 16 spot last time by it. They were three wide in the back stretch. Pearson on the inside, Joe Rutman in the middle, and Harry Gann on the outside. They sorted out in just that order as the battle is in fifth position coming out of two. And this time, it's the Piedmont Airlines car that has a nose in front. Give fifth place to Lobati, and now the sixth place battle is thick Brooks in the pavilion car. Inside of Wallace, Brooks gets sixth and Wallace is seventh. No change in that front four as they run single file. Back into the number one corner. Dick Brooks riding along in fifth position still. Sixth is Wallace. Seventh is Bodine. Eighth right now is Kale Yarbrough. Riding ninth is Bobby Allison. 10th is he'll brought it. 11th will be Bill Elliott. Richard Petty goes 12th. 13th now is Dale Earnhardt. Kyle Petty is 14th. 15th David Pearson, Joe Rutman, 16th. 17th is Lake Speed, 18th to Harry Gann. J.D. Mcguffey is 19th, Morgan Shepard, 20th. Field works turns 1 and 2 again. As Walter has pulled away right now by about eight or 10 car lengths, and then I guess they'll run just exactly as we said. At first 10 or 15 laps, they just want to see what the car feels like. Well, they do, Barney. Of course, they had a good practice session yesterday after the Wranger Genes 150 Sportsman race. But still, the weather conditions are different here today than what they were then. And it could make a little difference in the way that the cars would handle in the condition of the track. Everyone anticipated to be in good shape because of the temperatures here today. And they will feel them out here for the first maybe even 50 or 75 laps. You mentioned K.O. Yarb are running in the top 10. I think that's phenomenal, really. The fact that he has a car that he ran in the bush clash at Daytona and here running on a half a mile track at Richmond. And normally, a car that you run on a super speedway like that or don't at that very well to a short track. But what L. Wilson and the crew have done a good job. Another point along that line of pit note here, Richard Bostick is normally the jack man on that car and did do the jacking at Daytona even though he had a broken foot. He didn't tell the crew about it until after the race was over. And he went and got some cortisone in it and performed his job down there. But they have former linebacker for the Green Bay Packers Larry Hefner here doing the jacking today. So I suspect the car will get up once they come in to the pits. You can bet your bottom dollar at will on that. There's a good scramble going on back there for fourth place right now between Cherry Labani and Tim Richmond as Ricky Rudd is eased up into the number three spot. They go door to door for that four spot back in turn. Number one, Cherry Labani, one of the young drivers along the side of the door, he's going to come off the corner. Looks like he'll get the position. Labani to the inside, grabs the spot. Richmond cuts him behind him, shutting the door on Nick Brooks, who also had an idea to try and pick up a spot. Barney, the fastest car on the racetrack right now seems to be Ricky Rudd. He worked underneath Labani a couple of laps ago. He's quickly closing in on second place Ron Bouchard. Rudd is still feeling the effect. So that wild flip two weeks ago in the Bush class. Well, I'm getting there. Mike is still-- you know, it's going to take me a little time. I'm still so hurting. And the dizziness needs to be going away a little bit today. So I'm really pleased about that. The aches and the pains are still there. And I guess they're going to be there for quite a while. He says the best therapy, Barney, is to get that car to the front of the field. Well, it indeed is. He drove quite a race at Daytona, considering the week he had down there to come back and post a pretty good finish in the Daytona 500. Leader is still Darrell Walter. He's out front by a full second or maybe a little better than that right now. Ron Bouchard, who eases along in the number two spot, then moving up on Bouchard. There's going to be a battle there very shortly. His Ricky Rudd, as he continues to close in at the front of the pack. The fourth place car right now is pulled away. That's Terry LaVotti back in fifth. His Richmond, riding six, his Dick Brooks, and boy, does he want a good finish here this afternoon. Seventh, Rusty Wallace, who riding in eighth position as they move to Eli Gold right now, Jeff B09. And he can already see Barney already. Just needs to be left into the race. Now, some cars are getting a much better grab of the race track coming off turn number two. You can see the ones in particular. Wall chippy comes set right off the turn. A number of the other cars are zigging and jacking back and forth trying to get themselves geared in. Ron Bouchard, before much longer, will have a full rear view mirror or pull a brickie running such two car lanes now in that battle for seconds. And Eli Gold, one of those cars that's not getting off of those corners very well, is Tim Richmond. He was up there in fourth place. And right now, he's doing battle with Dick Brooks back there. His car is not handling well off of those turns. 14 laps completed. Your Richmond fairgrounds raceway. The wall trip has a lead of just about half a straightaway. Ron Bouchard is second. Ricky run his third. Fourth is Lebani. Fifth is Richmond. Sixth is Brooks. Seventh, the rookie Rusty Wallace. Eighth is Jeff Bodine. And Bodine sneaks under Wallace. No, he doesn't get the move. And Barney, that's got to be some emotion going there. Bodine is trying to pass the car he drove last year. Well, there always is. When you leave a car and go to another one, and you run up on a former car that you were the driver of, you like to kind of outdo it a bit. We'll watch that battle this afternoon. Here's Brooks up alongside right now. Tim Richmond, good scramble there in turn three. Brooks got the jump off the corner. Richmond goes high. Brooks has the position as they go to turn three. And Dick Brooks begins to move up a little bit. He feels like they're going to have the best season that Judy Donlevier has ever had. I think they've got a lot of new parts and pieces. The comedian's sponsorship on the car has allowed them to do a lot of things they have not been able to do in the past. He had a good run at Daytona. He was heartbroken down there that the car had an engine malfunction about midway in the race because he'd been running up in the top five. He said, don't count me out here at Richmond this weekend. He'd really like to win in front of Judy's hometown folks. Well, Dale Walker is just simply driving away from the field at this juncture of the race. As we've just taken the green, some few laps ago here at Richmond Fairground Raceway. Walker now 2.8 seconds ahead of the second place car, which is Ron Bouchard. A couple of car links back to Bouchard riding along his Ricky Rudd, then about another two seconds back to Terri Labani in fourth position, riding along-- One car side race. Trevor Boyes gathered it back in. Nearly took the 71 car of Mike Alexander with him as they were both trying to get Terri Labani some racing room. Better driving by the youngest Canadian driver. Back in the field of it past Labani, who is the fourth place car, fifth is Dick Brooks, sixth is Tim Richmond, seventh rusty Wallace, eighth is Jeff Bodine, ninth is Bobby Allison, Neil Bonnet is 10th. 11th is Kayleigh Arboro, 12th is Bill Elliott. 13th today, Learnhardt, 14th is Richard Petty. In 15th, Joe Rutman, 16th is Kyle Petty, and 17th is Lake Speed, 18th is David Pearson, 19th Harry Gant, 20th is Morgan Shepherd, 21st is Dave Marcus, 22nd J.D. McDuffie, 23rd is Ronnie Thomas, 24th is Bill Parsons. In the 25th spot is Lenny Pond, and he's about to be left by Walter Bellader. So one lap down and 26th is Greg Sacks, 27th is Clark Dwyer. In the 28th position is Trevor Boyes, 29th. Is Mike Alexander at 30th is Dean Combs, 31st? Is the Jimmy Means automobile? Last car running on the race track. Moving up through the field right now, Bill Elliott scoots up a position as he is trying to get the courers forward up in the front. And boy, there is a real mad scramble from Rusty Wallace on back, about 10 cars right along in that fact, Eli Gold. Right behind Wallace Podine by the Adelson Neil Bonnet that Yarnhardt in Earnhardt, nobody has a chance to breathe right there. But still, they're all tattooing one another. As they lap around Jimmy Means' car, he gives him plenty of running room off that corner. Dick Brooks still having a good run here at Fairgrounds raceway this afternoon, and Brooks told us the other day, this has been a hard race track for him, but he feels things are much, much better now. Well, it is, but we never really had a so-called George Rack car before. And they got one now, and they built a couple new cars over the winter. And then they took the car, the '84 model car that we had last year, and replaced some of the weight and stuff on it, and did a little work on it, and I was trying to make a George Rack car out of it. And we were on good. I don't know that we're running as good as some of the super teams, but really got George Rack cars. But we're running good here. And I think, you know, getting him, of course, I don't really like to do great, but we got a lot of fans here. Lots of Dick Brooks and a done schedule pit stop right now. Let's go down on Ed Jarrett. It's Kyle Petty in the 7-11 board. It is unscheduled. Barney, they came in for a change of left side tires. Apparently, he had one going down, so that's going to be a costly pit stop early in the race here for Kyle Petty. He's back down and out on the track. Almost impossible to make a stop here, particularly under green, and not lose a lap at Fairgrounds Raceway. He loses a couple of laps. Kyle Petty is back on the racetrack. Leader is still Darryl Walker as he eases around. Good battle been going on the last couple of turns around the speedway between Bill Elliott and Richard Petty. They're door to door. Along with Dale Earnhardt and Kale Jarboros, they move to Eli Golden turn three. Jarboros, and that battle is to the inside. It loses a position to both veal Bonnet and Dale Earnhardt. And now, what men trying to take a spot away from Jarboros as well? As they get caught in that outside line, and that's the long way around the racetrack. They don't gain into ground there. They still ride door to door back in turn one. As they come back through traffic again, they work this time upstairs. Ghost Earnhardt. Earnhardt swings to the outside. Bonnet gives him some room. And Dale finds himself now having a run back in behind the Earnhardt car. And there's some smoke from the car. Number three, as Earnhardt's off the pace. Oh, it looks like he overextended it. That car really handling in the corner. But Earnhardt has now really slowed. The five cars that he had just gone by in the last few laps have gone by him. He's down to the track. April looks like you'll pit next time by. He's overhead in Freelaw goal. He had just gone into turn number three, Mike. And as we said, he was on the outside after a bit of a battle with Joe Rutman. And all of a sudden, the wishes of smoke came loose of the Wrangler car. And he's heading towards Ned Jarrod at Jerry Pudge right now. Well, he's staying on the racetrack. We thought he was going to come on the pin row. But Earnhardt is staying out there far off the pace. Says a lot of the cars are scooting on by. After such an outstanding run at Daytona last weekend, finishing second of the Daytona 500. What a charge he put on at the end. Many said that it was one of the smartest races that Earnhardt had driven in his career. One of his biggest paychecks, that's for sure more than $81,000. He is still out there. And Ned, apparently, he's going to ride it out for a while. Well, apparently, he is. Jerry Pudge is on his way down to the Richard Chiller's piss. And see if you can find out. The first time he went around when that smoke first came out, it looked like there was a lot of steam or smoke or something inside the car. Now that is cleared away. Of course, one problem that he has-- I don't know if the safety net has come unbuckled or either he unbuckled it because of the smoke that was inside of the car. But now the smoke seems to have gone away. But he's trying to get that window net fastened back up. And he is now being given the black flag. And it is because of the window net that is not fastened on Earnhardt's car. Let's go down to Jerry Pudge. Well, Richard Chiller's is talking to one of the vast car officials here in the pits. We'll get a comment, Richard, just a moment to find out what the problem is. He's talking to Dale right now on the two-way radio. We're trying to get a comment to find out. They are going to bring Dale in. They're getting ready to pit. We'll move back out of the way. We'll see what the problem is on Earnhardt's car. He's picked up a little more speed now. He's running considerably quicker than he was a moment ago. But Dale Earnhardt definitely has a problem on the Ranger machine. And he has fallen back several positions in the field. 400 laps here this afternoon in the middle of 400. Good battle coming out of turn four, Barney. It'll be for the ninth spot. Joe Rutman is climbed up to the field with Earnhardt. He's alongside Bobby Allison for ninth spot. He's moving on Jeff Bodine and Neil Bonitz coming right up the outside with him. And you're talking about guys right there who certainly know their way around the short track, including Joe Rutman, who really made his name on the short tracks of the Midwest. He'll come down in front of Jeff Bodine, pick up a position there as he holds his line. And Darrell Walter catches up to Dale Earnhardt as he drops down on the April to the track. And here is Earnhardt on Penn Road. There's going to be a costly stop for him. Whatever the problem is, let's hope they can get it cured and get him back out there quickly. Let's go back to Jerry Punch. Well, Dale Earnhardt brings the Wrangler Chevrolet into Penn so they go to work inside the window that had come loose on the car. They're cleaning the windshield, looking inside underneath the dash where the ignition is. And they signal Earnhardt to move away. So a seven-second pit stop, and we'll get a comment from Richard Jones as to what the problem was. So Dale Earnhardt is back in competition, going to be a costly stop anytime you make one of the green this early. Let's get out of the Dale Earnhardt pit. Well, it's the car owner for Dale Earnhardt. Richard, what was the problem with the car? We must have a rear end pump or something to burn up on it. He started to race for it all at all. And everything was warmed up. And that's the sort of rear end pump out. He let's win a net down. He thought it was going to burn inside. We're OK now. That's Richard Children's. Darrell Walter is just getting through the field phenomenal, and that's no big surprise. When a junior Johnson team comes to any of the short tracks around the country in the last few years, their magic just seems to work everywhere they go, as he is wearing out the field already in the early going in the Miller 400 here this afternoon. Well, Darnie, they haven't always done that well here at Richmond, though. They've wore them out on other tracks around the circuit, particularly North Goldsboro, Nashville, and Bristol. But this track hasn't been that good to them. And they really worked hard on trying to correct the problems that they've had. Of course, Bobby Allison, as you said at the top of the show, is one of the last three here. And so they zeroed in on that situation. Well, they come here and they seem to have a segment in the race where they, like a lot of cars, will do it, particular tracks. We'll just dominate the field, and then it will go away. That is highly unusual for one of Junior's cars. Usually, if they get it hooked up with the racetrack, they're there all day. Well, that's very true, but this track probably is more simple to change more times during the race than any other track on the circuit. You talk to any driver up and down Pitt Road, and they'll tell you that. We'll see them there right now. They're running the low group around the track. But as the bank goes on, we'll see them running higher and higher. In fact, we have near the end of some of the races in the past. They will go almost up and touch the guard rail. Then next thing you know, they're back down to the inside running you can't. Jimmy Means is on Pitt Road. It's not a schedule stop. They're changing right side tires. But he came in due to some smoke coming from the tailpipes of that car. NASCAR fish is keeping an eye on him as he goes back on the racetrack. Walter has already put Bill Elliott a lap down as probably about eight or nine other cars. They're only now showing 14 cars on the lead lap. And Lake Speed would be the last car on the lead lap. And that just goes out the window as he gets around him over in front of Eli Gold. Walter went by Lake Speed with no problem. And now tries to put the Hardee's Machine of Kael Yarbrough up down. They are door to door as they go into turn number one. Kael Yarbrough trying to keep himself from going a lap down. It will-- well, I was going to say he was going to lose it anyway. But they're still door to door as they come off the corner. Then Walter accelerates away and now Kael is a lap down. Barney caught a contrast from a week ago today when Yarbrough drafted past Walter on the last lap to take that $160,000 win if they don't. Well, he knew when he came here and they had it. He couldn't come here and dominate this race because they don't have a short track car. But he felt like Waddell and the team. As you said, they ran that car in the bush clash down there. Could make adjustments on it throughout the day, all week long, whatever it took. He said, don't count me out. Because the way my boys work, we still got a shot to come up here and win this thing. He likes the short tracks. He really enjoys running here. Here's Walter out of number four corner. This time he's trying to put Jeff Bodai in a lap down. Looks like he's going to do it, Mike Joy. And Walter is simply just knocking them off one by one. 55 laps complete, Barney. And that will leave only 11 cars in the lead lap. Walter, of course, is the leader by about three and a half seconds over Ron Bouchard. Bouchard has just a car link on Ricky Rudd. Rudd is the third place car. Terry Labati hangs on to the fourth spot. Back in the fifth position will be Dick Brooks. Brooks has a good margin on the sixth place car. That's posted as Tim Richmond. Check that. Sixth place would now be the Joe Rhettman automobile. Seventh is Bobby Allison. Eighth is Tim Richmond. Ninth is Richard Petty. 10th is Neil Bonnet. And those are the only cars left on the lead lap. M55 laps. A lot of people were wondering why Cale Jarberall suddenly decided to come back and run some short-track races. I asked him about that yesterday. One big reason I came back to Richmond. I had so many fan requests to come back and run a short track. And most of them came from Richmond area. So when we decided to run a short track, Richmond was the first place we thought about it. We had so many people want us to come back. And I just hope we can do a good job. Well, right now he's going to lap down. David Pearson is on pit road. Let's go down to that, Jared. And it'll be a non-scheduled pit stop for David Pearson, Barney, as they go to the right side, changing tires. They didn't really anticipate any tire problems here today or nothing showed up during their qualification and practice runs here on Friday and Saturday. But Pearson's car didn't seem like he was handling certainly not as good as Darryl Walters and some of the others, although I told him this morning and he felt that he was in good shape other than Walters. They have those right side tires changed on the Chattanooga tube car and he's back out running, but he too is going at least to lap down. Who lapsed down on David Pearson as he makes that unscheduled stop. It's going to be a costly one. It's hard to stay away from the short tracks for any great period of time. Particularly if you measure it in years, it's bad enough. If you stay away from three or four races, you get behind all the Winston Cup teams. They'll tell you that. And it's just hard to know what's set up to go with, what gear you really need in the car, and it does and other things. But Pearson is still hanging in there, even though he's a couple of lapsed down, still a long ways to go. A lot of people were wondering how the new Johnson-Hudson team would work out what with Neil Bonnet and Darryl Walterft being stablemates in Ronda, North Carolina. Well, Walterft had a chance to put Bonnet a lap down. Neil didn't give him a lot of room, but Darryl wasted no time getting by and now off turn four. Walterft underneath Richard Petty. Petty slams the door on him on the toughest part of this racetrack. Off turn four. Walterft has another shot at him on the low side, coming out of turn two. [INAUDIBLE] Luke down low. Richard Petty, who has won 13 times here, goes well to the outside retaining wall. But with Walterft having a quicker way around, he'll out dive. Richard in the turn three and pick up the position. And Walterft's car is really sticking in the corner. Just about anywhere he wants to put it, he's able to do it so far this afternoon. But Richard still does not want to give up that lap as he rides door to door. About a half a car link back looks like he's going to settle in behind him this time as they come off the number two corner and move up the back shoe. That's what he'll have to do. Richard Petty tucks it behind. Walter's just ahead of Neil Bonnet. He's got to make a call for Ricky right now. He'll make a move for the inside of Pushard for third place in turn number two, or at least for second place. But they're not a turn four. That's the battle everyone's been watching around the speedway. Ricky has been caught in heavy traffic along with Ron Buschard. Could not make a move down of the inside lane. And again, they'll have to drift out around this time with Dave Marcus's Raymark machine as they come off the corner. But Rod is after the second spot. Ricky, one of the more stable automobiles he owns as far as getting that jump off the corner. He follows Buschard this time, just too much race traffic. They're in turn four. Heavy traffic up ahead. Lapped cars, boat on working by Greg Sacks. Two former modified standouts. Kale Yarbrough like Speed Clark Dwyer right there. And then the car is racing for second and third spot. That's a bundle of cars now coming off turn two. So they all sort themselves out. Couple of cars go to the inside to give room, including Greg Sacks. Push side now, cuts in front of Sacks and Dwyer. They kick up the dirt and they go to the inside of the race track back to the corner. At Fairgrounds Raceway, Darrell Walter put Strift's advantage right now with the second place car Ron Buschard to better than five and a half seconds as he winds his way around the speedway. It should be a long ways unless it is an unscheduled stop before they'll make another pit stop here after going off pit road this afternoon and getting into cars. And then they'll run, what, about 150 laps with no problem? Maybe 160? Yeah, maybe even as much as 170, Barney, depending on really their tires and how they get heated up. As far as gas is concerned, they can go 160, 170, some up might even stretch it a little bit farther than that. But once the load of fuel gets out of the gas tank, you lighten the weight back there. And the tires get heated up and the cars become pretty old handling. Then a lot of them will stop even earlier than they absolutely have to. Ricky Rudd has still been looking for an opening to get around Ron Buschard and move into the number two position. Thus far, he has had no success at it. He's had a couple of times to get down and inside. Maybe pull up a half a car link on Buschard, hasn't been able to do it. They had really bad luck at Daytona, destroying the car when they ran the bush clash down there a couple of weeks ago, and Bud Moore hears that battle for a second going off the number two corner again. Buschard shuts him down. Bud Moore had nothing but praise for his new driver, young Ricky Rudd after Daytona. Well, Barney, we were real pleased to come out of Daytona after all the problems we've had, you know, with that nice direct we had in Ricky getting into the car. Trouble in Jurgler 1. As the cars go flying into the corner, Trevor Boyes is sitting right up in the middle of the groove, spinning the car out. Three of four cars dive to the outside and get around him, and it will put us under caution for the first time this afternoon here in the Miller 400. Couldn't tell just for that split second as the cars dive by if Trevor Boyes got tagged by anyone, but it looked like everyone will get through clear, but we are under caution. It looked like everybody got through cleanly, Barney, and what a break for the drivers in the top eight spots. Notably, Jeff Bodine, he would be the next driver to be lapped by Darryl Waltrip. This long stretch of green flag running, quite a break for Waltrip, able to put a lap on some of the top competitors in the field. As we mentioned earlier, David Pearson, Kyle Petty, Jimmy Means, made early pit stops on scheduled ones. There are each at least two laps down Pearson now, three laps down on the racetrack. Here comes the field onto pit road. Let's go to net. - Yes, they will. They'll take this opportunity back to come in. Of course, Waltrip, the first one to come down. Here comes his teammate Neil Bonnet right behind him, and they have two separate pits here. Of course, two separate crews surfacing those Budweiser Chevrolet's, and Dale Earnhardt coming back down. Ricky Rudd, I should say, coming down in the Budmore Wrangler 15. Here's Ron Bichard, Terrell Bonning, the Piedmont Airlines car, Harry Gantt. And here is Earnhardt now trying to get into the pits as he, Harry Gantt, comes down also. So everybody taking advantage of this caution period. They'll change the right side tires. Many of them will change all four. We see Tim Richmond screw changing left side on his car. We mentioned earlier that his car was not handling too well. He managed to keep it in the lead lap. Richard Petty is going out first in the STP Pontiac. And of course, we see down pit road that Waltrip is the way. So Matt Scramble in the pits right now. - Oh, and now the pit road to Richmond provides about the Mattis Scramble. You see anywhere in this sport. - I'll tell you, it was really busy there for a couple of laps. Now, some more cars coming down. Many of the cars that came in the first time came back in again and changed left side tires. They only took on right side tires. Included in those was Joe Rutman in the Levi Garrett car. And Richard Petty in the STP car. And Dick Brooks in the chameleon floor. It also came back in for left side tires. And then some of the back runners chose to wait until all the confusion had stopped in the pits. And now they're in. We see Ronnie Thomas going back out. Ronnie has a partial sponsor on his car today. You mentioned earlier in the broadcast that quarter panels are bare on that. But filter flow, water filters out of Gastonia, North Carolina, is helping Ronnie to some degree. In fact, Jabin Ronnie are in the filter flow business now. They're selling those things. So maybe they can build them up a business there well enough that they can sponsor their own race car. - OK. A lot of different motorsports activity here at Richmond coming up in the month of May, May 5th and 6th. They'll have a Class A tractor pull with the twin pulling tracks being installed here for more information contact. The Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. It's this the highest paying short track race on the circuit. They're going to pay $70,000 for a tractor pull on May 5th and 6th. If you're in an area, that'll be a good one to see. - We're back under green at Fairgrounds Raceway. Walter is the leader. Tim Richmond was down inside trying to get his lap back. We have a moment ago said he might be on the lead lap, such as not the case. He is a lap down. And he's scrambled with Walter on that restart, trying to stay up there and put himself back on the lead lap. Now he's getting shuffled back through the field. Daryl is in front by two carlakes. Over Ron Bouchard as they work off turn number two, Ricky Rudd is third. - I will see what kind of moves Ricky Rudd can make. - Last time onto the green flag racing, he tried to get a quicker and quicker. Tough walk to number two corner and make a bid on Bouchard. Right now, Bouchard pulls away with Richmond behind him and then run. - Stiff battle midway in the field. It involves Terry Labani and Bobby Allison for position and cars racing one lap back. Bill Elliott, Neil Bonant and Jeff Bodine, along with Dale Earnhardt, as they come off the corner. - Let's watch that Labanti. Bobby Allison said two. Allison comes off to the inside of turn number two, but finds himself left in behind. Neil Bonant told Labani takes the high side. - And now he and Allison are again, side by side. - If you get caught in traffic as heavy as it is back in the middle of the pack, there's not really much you can do until you get in the straightaway and hope for some breathing room. In the corner, you just try to hold what you've got. As they come off the number two turn into the backshoot, Walter puts a leader. Riding second to still, Ron Bouchard, third position, belongs to Ricky Rudd. He's been able to get up there toward the front, but he hasn't been able to do any better than that. He's not been able to get into that second spot. He worked on Bouchard for about 30 laps this afternoon. Couldn't do anything with him. Bill Elliott's a lap down. He also, the car just not working in the corner is a net here. If you don't have it dialed in, you're gonna go backwards. - Well, every racetrack requires horsepower, Barney, but some of them requires handling qualities more and certain that this is one of them. And if you don't, as you say, have it dialed in just right, then it don't take long to get a lap behind because you lose a quarter, a half a second a lap. First thing you know, the leaders are coming up on you. We saw that in the early going here. Many of the drivers welcome that opportunity for the caution to come in and make some adjustments on the chassis of the car. Meanwhile, it didn't look like they'd hurt Walter. Sometimes they sort of hate to take office out of tires that is running so well. They might get a mismatch set. Sometimes when you pump the tires up, they might grow a little bit. - Quick, a tire spinning in turn number two. Greg Sacks does a full 360. Tacks the wall, then finds it in the right direction and pulls down the back straightaway. But that's gonna bring out the second caution. Greg Sacks of Matatuk, New York, spins off turn number two as he began the back stretch. - And that caution will come out on lap number 90 as they had just gone back to green and really beginning to settle down to some hard-nose racing. And caution is on the speedway again, as Greg Sacks spins off in number two corner. It's so critical getting off the turns here. If you don't have the car dialed in, just as Ned was saying, and you get off that turn and the wheels spin a little bit, the rear end can break loose and send you round and round. And that's probably the case over there just going off that corner. - Well, and the tough thing about this track, Barney, is that the two turns are so very different. The car's got to be set up for one end of the racetrack as opposed to the other. Jeff Bodine explains. - Sure are. Seems like one and two is, it's like driving down into a U-turn. You got in and you got to turn the car hard to get it back going the other way. Three and four is a more gradual corner and it gets real tight coming off the four. So they're just completely different corners. Which one do you set up for? You've got to really get off of four at this racetrack. And that's the hardest corner to get off of. So you're basically set up to get off the turn four and get in to turn one. - I guess it's fair to say, Ned, that if you're set up to get off turn four, you're not going to get off two all that well. - Well, that's exactly right, Mike. And it presents a real challenge for him. No question about that. - Feel to be going back to green next time by as a square up there for a double file restart down on the inside again, right up alongside the leader, Darrell Walter, will be Tim Richmond as he's been trying to get his lap back right behind him as Walter's teammate and the Budweiser Chevrolet Neil Bonnet as a ease down the backshoot. And it's going to be pretty interesting down on the inside line that the cars that are lap down are trying to hold onto the leader again. They're in front of Eli Gold. - And of course those cars that are lap down are big time cars. - They're talking like you say, Richmond, Bonnet, Bill Elliott, Bodine is next in line on that inside group. Then comes Dale Earnhardt and Lake Speed. So those men have the machinery, we'll see what happens there, ready to get the green. - Walter again comes through that gearbox in a hurry, just drives off and leaves Tim Richmond and Ron Bouchard and falls back a couple of car links as he got a good jump on the restart. They're back in turn number one, coming around on the outside, trying to make up some ground again, Ricky Rudd as they head in the backshoot. - For the moment, Ricky Rudd takes that high line, Bobby Allison follows him through, Rudd who has to try and face down Walter and Bouchard and for the moment, Walter can't shake Bouchard. - Now to turn four, back to the start finish line, they'll put the black flag on the calm scar number 97 for damage to the right front corner, that may have happened during the Trevor Boy spin the front on the first caution, leaders in the back stretch. - This time they string single file, except for one of the Budweiser cars, that's Neil Bonnet, who stays from the inside group, but again, Ron Bouchard this time able to hang onto the rear deck of Walter. - Bouchard is not dropping back in the pack as he did earlier here this afternoon, after that next round of pit stops, apparently they made a few adjustments on that car, he's running much better, being able to stick right at the bottom of the racetrack. He is just a half a car link, make that about a car link, back of the leader in turn three. - Ricky Rudd though, he's caught back in traffic, now boots to the inside of Chip Richmond, trying to dispense with that last car, he can't and he sees the two leaders pulling away. - Barney that whole Bouchard operation, it's just a whole different team and they were last season, they came to the tone to load it for bear. Ron well in the qualifying race and in the 500, and in the sportsman race, Bouchard's car was one of the top three cars in the field. Here at Richmond they qualified on the outside pole and they're really enthused about this season. - Well he's pumped up, he's got a lot of new people, I think they picked up several new folks on the team and he says right now it is a team effort, they all want one thing and that is to win a race and they're pulling together whatever it takes to do it. Leader goes back into turn number one, that's Darryl Walker, just one car link, ahead of Bouchard, right behind Bouchard, comes a lap car, a deal bottomed as he's trying to catch up and put himself back on the lead lap. Ricky Rudd still rides third, there's a battle there for that third spot. As they come off the corner it'll be Bobby Allison riding around on the outside, Allison trying to make up some ground here this afternoon. As we said earlier, this has been his cup of tea for the last three races, he's reeled off three wins here, but this afternoon, car isn't working to his liking but it's beginning to run a little bit better. They're coming off turn two and moving to Eli Gold. - Making those adjustments right now, Allison to the high side of Ricky Rudd. Rudd you'd think without the easier way around but Bobby Allison is holding in the bay. - Neil Bonnet pinned Bouchard to the outside and got ahead of him, now Bonnet is a lap down. - He brought in just a little bit of a shot as they came off the corner, Bouchard will hold the second spot, then another lap car, Tim Richmond, Allison has the third spot in turn two. - So is Bobby Allison as dispense with Ricky Rudd, everybody stays single final because running Thomas who is running slowly on the back straightaway has the inside groove occupied, Thomas is going to pit road. - Lot of cars caught back in the pack on that restart, trying to work their way back in the front. Blake Speed is one of those, Kerry Lebardi is another one along with Dick Brooks and Joe Rutman and Richard Petty and there's so much traffic directly ahead, eight and 10 cars running single file and double file. You really don't know when to make a move at all, they're in front of Eli Gold. - Now this time nobody makes the move of the exception of Bobby Allison who goes to the inside trying to get by the slower car of Tim Richmond. - Field heads back to turn number one, Walker very much in command of this one here this afternoon and this kind of looks like the race we saw here in the fall when Bobby Allison started out running in the top three or four or five and as the day went on by the midway point that car just got stronger and stronger and then in the final laps it was all Bobby Allison. - Yes it does remind you that accepting that the different driver up front right now will be interesting to see as the day goes on just if the track changes so that it causes one driver to be more competitive than it was earlier in the race. Certainly Allison is running a lot better now than he did in the early going. He wasn't too far from being left before that first caution came out but he came in, made an adjustment on the car changed tires and he is definitely back in the thick of the battle now. - Barney let's mention that David Pearson's car just came by us, tough to diagnose the exact problem and the car just didn't sound all that healthy and he's running around towards the pit area. - Well Jerry Punch should be on his way to have a word with the silver foxes, he joins Ronnie Thomas in the garage area. - We've completed 111 laps in the Miller 400 here at Fairgrounds Raceway. Darryl Waltrip is still the leader riding along in second as Bouchard. Third position belongs to Bobby Allison dropping back to fourth now, be Ricky Rudd and in fifth spot they're showing Jerry Labani. David Pearson is gone to the garage area. Jerry Punch is trying to track him down. Let's see if we can check in there. - Ronnie was standing by with Ronnie Thomas. Ronnie is the first car to retire. Ronnie what's the problem? - It's a rear end. We're gonna get it fixed but we're gonna lose about 20 or 30 laps fixed and you know this is the problem he's trying to overcome at 84. It's good coming in the garage too much but you know it's still early in the evening and in the season this is a seem like a river side and Daytona here three races in a row. We've had some kind of trouble with the back end of the car so we're hoping to have it fixed this race so we can care address the season. - Well that's Ronnie Thomas. David Pearson has climbed out of the channel to get you Chevrolet. We'll get a comment from him in just a moment. - So if you joined our broadcast a little bit late Pearson not really in the thinking things this afternoon as they had an unscheduled pit stop put him some distance back and now they have retired the car. We'll find out what put him out. Hadn't been here since 1972. - Let's go a little further back in the field Barney. We mentioned Dave Marcus his 18th to lap down. Two laps down, 19th is Kyle Petty. 20th is Phil Parsons, 21st JD McDuffie, 22nd. The Elmo Langley car Jimmy Hensley the driver today. 23rd part Dwyer, 24th is Greg Sacks. Three laps down, Trevor Boyes and the Dean Combs automobile. Let's now a couple more laps down after repairs on Fit Road. - Leader across the line, riding right behind the leader Darryl Waltrip is Neil Bottin. As you pointed out a moment ago, Neil's car right now seems to be running as well as Darryl's although he's not getting off the corner quite as good. He is flying. - He is running very hard. He's driving the car so hard Barney into the turns. Darryl looks a little smoother but Neil is making a little better time around the racetrack now. A question might be answered in some people's mind as to the two car situation. Will Darryl Waltrip move over and let Neil Bonnie get back in the lead lap? My opinion is he won't. He'll have to work for it. Time will tell. - If he gets him out of the way, I guarantee you'll have to move him out of the way or earn it because Waltrip will not pull over. Neil told us yesterday talking about Daytona. I said do you think the two car team is going to work after what you saw and after you left Daytona? How do you feel? - Well Barney, there's a big misconception there. I could have been racing somewhere in Texas or in California. The same day the firecracker, I mean, shooting at the day count of 500 ran because these two teams can load up going opposite directions and race and we can park beside each other and race is independent. So this thing here is totally separate and I'll tell you what, what you understand in the middle of it, governing what goes on. I can't help but think it'll work. - Well that's the battle everyone's watching on the racetrack right now. It's not for the lead, it's simply for the fact that Neil Bonnet needs to get back on the lead lap as Darryl is keeping him at base, tried him outside, inside they go off the number two turn right behind Trevor Boy's car to work up to three. - Now there's no room inside either as J.D. McDuffie's car is there. So Boy's and McDuffie two by two, how the leaders blocked in and now Neil Bonnet who walked up around the binders. - Well let's check with Jerry Bunch down in the garage. - We're standing with David Pearson. David, tough luck for the Chattanooga two ride, what happened? - Well to start with, the clutch was giving him problem, couldn't change gears and you know, yes I know we thought we had everything under control and everything had them good but today we changed gears and everything and this morning I guess we just went the wrong way because I couldn't even touch the throttle. I was just spinning all the way around the racetrack. - Well that's David Pearson, the silver fox, out of it hit Richmond. - Pearson confirmed what we said a little bit earlier and they had that it is hard to stay away from this business and know what gear to put in the car, what kind of springs, what kind of setup to put under it. - Well thanks Shane so quickly in the business barn and if you're not there weekend and week out it is tough to come back and try to adjust back into it because even though the track is the same size as the last time he ran here, the gear is because of the engine combination and the tires that he used now have so many things come into play as to what gear you might run and the springs setup and everything else. It's totally different. - Gonna see a battle for second right now. Bobby Allison is working on Ron Bouchard. He's been hanging right there for the last four or five laps there in turn three. - Hell go by race traffic, first to the head of sleaze and Dean Colms and then J.D. McDuffie so Allison has to bite his time this time. - Fifth position transfers in the back straightaway going into turn three, Joe Rutman moves past Terry Labadi and that battle for the fifth spot as they have overhauled Dick Brooks so it'll be Rutman and fifth, Labadi and sixth. Dick Brooks in seventh, he's the last car on the lead lap. - Here goes Bobby Allison in the turn three. He looked at the inside of Bouchard but Bouchard's car got there in a hurry but now Allison has an opportunity again. - Allison gets down to the bottom of the race track. Both cars drift a little bit off that fourth corner and Bouchard will be able to hold him off. Allison hangs right with him again, just waiting for an opportunity to stick the nose up underneath there and take over the number two spot. - And here's Neil body, on the outside of Darryl Walter in front of Eli Gold. - And Neil goes to the high side, takes over that position again, not for the lead but he is back on the lead lap. Neil bought it finally perseveres. - So Neil Boddard has put the second of the Budweiser cars back on the lead lap here at Fairground Raceway. Don't count either out either one of these drivers or for that matter, 20 more that are out there still really getting at it this afternoon. We've completed 125 laps of the Miller 400. Bobby Allison riding in that third spot gets underneath Bouchard in turn three. - As they work against through traffic, Bouchard this time has to hold the high side. Bobby Allison, if you just outdrags him off the corner would be there. - Bob is getting a good jump into the corner but coming off the corner, Bouchard of the high side. Ned what, he'll turn a little higher RPM with that high groove and get him a better jump. - Yes, that's exactly right. You can keep the RPMs of the engine up more running out there and of course it does give you a better jump off the turn. - They stack him up again over in turn number three. This time it'll be Bouchard pulling him off the turn as they squeeze Earnhardt right out in the loose marbles as he comes off the corner in that Ranger machine riding right behind him Ricky Rudd also in the Ranger car. Two team effort there much the same as the Budweiser car of Darryl Walter and Neil Bonnet here this afternoon. - Ranger in 27 on the board, go ahead Ned. - Before the caution came out Earnhardt was one of the fastest cars on the track and he we mentioned earlier that we'd see some drivers moving to the high groove and he has done that. He's moved around Bobby Allison now and is trying to move around to run Bouchard but his car seems to be working in that high groove although he's cut the last behind, he's really flying. - The problem seems to be with quite a few of them they're getting in the corner real good and getting off the corner. The car just looks like it's plowing coming off the turn and that really is costing him a lot of ground on the racetrack but other than that in the straightaway isn't getting into the turn Earnhardt seems to be about as quick as anybody out there. Bobby Allison again trails along behind Ron Bouchard. This time he drops back about three car lengths gets a little high in the corner and trying to get underneath him now as Ricky Rudd. - Ricky Rudd thought he had a move but he holds off for the moment. He'll go well high into turn number three whereas Allison stays to the low side and we're seeing Barney the fact that many of the cars must have set up the turns one and two because they're getting through that into the straightaway, a whole lot better than they are, isn't it? - Eight cars now on the lead lap. Well, all trip the leader, Bouchard is second, Allison is third, fourth is Ricky Rudd, right on Allison's bumper. In fifth now is Joe Rutman, sixth Terry Lebani, seventh took Brooks and eighth just ahead of the leader, Neil Bonnet. Ninth spot, one lap down, that'll be Dale Earnhardt posted in the 10th position is Bill Elliott, 11th is Tim Richmond, 12th Morgan Shepherd, 13th is Lake Speed, 14th Jeff Bodine, 15th is Richard Petty, 16th Terry Gant, 17th Kale Yarborough, 18th is Dave Marcus, 19th Mike Alexander, 20th is Rusty Wallace, 21st two laps down Kyle Petty, 22nd is Phil Parsons, 23rd is J.D. McDuffey, 24th Jimmy Hensley, 25th is Clark Dwyer and 26th Greg Sacks. Well, Neil Bonnet, not only did he get by, Darryl Waltshire, bringing it back on the lead lap, he's opened up about a one second margin of safety from going a lap down again, 135 of 400 laps complete. At Richmond Fairgrounds, Rice Way and the Miller High Life 400, Darryl Waltshire, the leader, Ron Bouchard in second, Ricky Rudd is third, Bobby Allison keeps trying to find a way past Rudd without success, he is the fourth place car, fifth on the lead lap Joe Rutman in the sixth position, Terry Lebani in seventh is Dick Brooks and an eighth, Neil Bonnet from Richmond Fairgrounds, Rice Way, this is MRN, the motor racing network. - Well, from first to second position here at the Fairgrounds, Rice Way in the Miller 400, it's about 2.8 seconds, Waltshire still the leader, Bouchard riding along in the number two spot, right behind him now, comes Ricky Rudd, hanging onto the third spot behind, Ricky will be Bobby Allison, a couple of car links back, that's been a good battle all afternoon watching there, as Allison sticks right at the bottom of the racetrack, that's his groove around the speedway, while Ricky is running a little bit higher, just kind of easing along behind Dale Earnhardt. So many lines being taken through the corners and both ends of the speedway, let's go over to Eli Gold. - One other thing we're seeing, Barney not only in the corners, but on the back straightaway, when Ricky Rudd and Bobby Allison were battling each other for position, Bobby Allison would make a rather severe cut off the end of the back stretch, right down to the diagonal line to the low side of turn number three. Meanwhile, Ricky Rudd would take more of a gradual move to the inside, starting somewhere in the middle to front position of the back straightaway. So you're right, we're seeing so many different styles right now, I'm watching a good three-car battle, Morgan Shepard, Bill Elliot, and Tim Richmond joined by Joel Rutman for a four-car get together, granted they're not all battling for one same position, but they're giving each other a pretty good going over right now. - Well, three of 'em are alive, that's the battle for tenth spot. Rutman is not a part of it, he's a lap ahead of them, but that is a three-car battle for the tenth position back there, a couple other good battles back in the back, and a good run for Morgan Shepard today, driving the booby Harrington car, it's still a car number two, JD Stacy not involved with the racing team, and to Harrington trying to run the team out of his own pocket, they've got a little sponsorship there today for food country USA and Levi's jeans, Morgan having a good run here. - That team really, I would like to see somebody come along and pick up a sponsorship on it, because they have a good driver, there's a good team potential right there to win some races if they had a little financial backing. Crowd has been watching Bobby Allison pound back and forth with Ricky Rudd, last three or four laps around, and Allison will scoot around him now to move up into the third spot. Here comes Ricky Reich back, doesn't want to give it up as they work the back stretch. - And Ricky Rudd's going to run into the rear, Greg Schack, too, as the inside proves. So Rudd has to go right in behind Bobby Allison, who in turn is following the alert hard around the speedway. - So they tuck in single file, as they come off the corner this time, work to the outside of Greg Sacks. Allison has moved up into third position, dropping Ricky back to fourth, still hanging onto fifth spot, as Joe Rutman, sixth right now, is Kerry Lebate, Dick Brook still in the top 10, he's in seventh position, riding eighth, is Neil Bottock, who put his car back on the tail end of that lead lap a moment ago, and those are the eight cars that currently are on the lead lap. We're talking about how critical it was to get in and out of the turns here at Fairgrounds Raceway, particularly getting off the corners, Dale Earnhardt had some thoughts about that. - Well, getting into corners pretty decent, you know, you know, it's okay, but getting off is the biggest and most important. I hear the car, the traffic gets slick and greasy and the car will get loose, you know, you know, if you get up off the corner and beat the other guys there, you know, you're pretty much beat 'em all the way around the racetrack, 'cause you can't get in the corner so hard and you can't get in there side-to-side, you know, it's not a real good track to race on side-to-side, even though you'll fix a lot of guys racing on side-to-side, but I think key to winning the race here and to being the fastest one is getting off the corner again. - That has certainly been the key here this afternoon. We're working 147 of the 400 laps that will make up the Miller race here at Fairgrounds Raceway. - Barney, it looks like Ron Bouchard is, if he's not closing on Wall Street, he'll be certainly keeping the gap constant. Darryl has had lap traffic to deal with, and it stands right now just to shade under two seconds, it seems, about a quarter of the length of the back straightaway marked that 1.5 seconds from Wall Street back to Bouchard. It'd be about 1.8 seconds then back to Bobby Allison, Ricky Rudd hanging right off Allison's bump for the third and fourth place cars, Joe Rutman, who's in the fifth position is about a third of a lap behind the leader, and indeed Bouchard is catching Wall Street in the back straightaway. - Ron Bouchard finally got rid of Rusty Wallace, who was battling right there. Rusty though done on the lead lap at Bouchard, but when he has free sailing, has been able to make up some rules. We have to clock on him earlier. He's doing it again right now when he has some clear racetrack. - Barney, it looks like Walter is still trying to take the low groove around the racetrack. Most of the other cars that are really getting around this racetrack now are using the high groove, particularly between one turns one and two, and that's where Ron Bouchard seems to be picking up on Walter's car. He's not handling as well as he was earlier, of course. As we mentioned earlier, this racetrack changes several times during the race, and I think we're seeing some of that right now. - We see adjustments almost every time they make a pit stop, and the drivers don't mind seeing a caution here at Fairgrounds Raceway. They would be a blessing in their favor should they come out over 40 or 50 laps where they could dive on the pit road and make a few adjustments on the machines, but Walter is being reeled in. A moment ago, after about 10 laps on that restart, he was better than 2.8 seconds ahead, and right now Ron has cut it down to about 1.7 as they come out of the corner and work back into the number one turn. Walter's gonna be caught in some heavy traffic in just about a half a lap around, and that's gonna allow Bouchard to close it down to about 10 car lengths as they work to Eli Gold. - A large pack of automobiles, the first one that Walter Bull encounter will be Jimmy Means. Walter stays low, Bouchard goes into turn three, a good state higher, that's the same line that Bobby Allison and Ricky Rutter take. - Bouchard had a good race car with a bad run of luck last week at Daytona in the goodies 300. He had one of the top cars in the field, but lost at engine. In the Daytona 500, he was running up with the leaders on the lead lap. Dick Brooks lost at engine, spun right in front of him, Bouchard unable to avoid Brooks driving through this boat, trying to get away, he couldn't do it, but they have shown that they have the muscle to run up front. - Well, he feels like they have the team to do it this year. - That's true, you know, everybody's really tightened up and got together and, you know, I think it's been a good team effort this year. We've got some good people, we've hired, you know, about four or five new guys. It's really made a difference. We have people that stay home and get race cars ready, and, you know, I think it's gonna show quite an improvement for our race team. - On an unlapped himself a bit ago, has been climbing up through the field and he just put a tap on the back bumper of Terry Labani coming off turn four. That'll be the race for position. It's the sixth spot. Bonnet has a look inside Labani. He's going for sixth position in turn two. - He'll stay on the low side of the racetrack field, Bonnet will. Labani going upstairs. They've got clear sailing for the moment, side by side. They'll dive in a turn of three. Bonnet stays low, Labani goes high, but here comes Kerry charging right back on the high side. - Hey, ride door to door off that corner, still that way as they cross the start finish line, if that had been the last lap, it had been about a 10-inch difference between Neil Bonnet and Terry Labani now. As they go off the corner again, Jeff Bodine is directly ahead. Neither driver wants to give their still door to door. - But Neil Bonnet has to tuck in because as you say, Jeff Bodine, Lake Speed, both ahead of Labani Bonnet's battle to they'll go single-file this time. - And while that battle going on, Bobby Allison and Ricky Red has called up to Ron Bichard as he's still tries to reel in Darryl Walter, so we got racing going on everywhere. - Bobby Allison tried to take the second spot away from Ron Bichard over in turns three and four a moment ago. The two cars came together in front of Eli Gold. - They came together, all right. It's a good bump and jump and things held on tight. At the same time, Neil Bonnet and Jeff Bodine were getting together and Neil was nearly a third of the way sideways, but gathered that car back in so we were splitting our attention the same time. For the moment now, Bodine and Neil Bonnet coming back towards us and they'll take more of a conventional line right behind Neil as Terry Labani, Neil of course broke away from Terry about five laps ago. - Little sheet metal damage on Bobby's right side on the car and it doesn't appear to be anything serious, just a little metal hanging out. - Yeah, I don't think it's anything that'll bother in the bumper on the right front. There is a sort of sticking out and down in the wrong direction, but it doesn't appear that the initiative man was supposed to tire. We've been watching for smoke. We haven't seen any of that. And Bobby Allison is still running very strong, so I think he's okay. - Let's go to Mitt Road and Jerry Punch. - Where at the crew chief for Richard Petty, buddy, what's the problem with the car? - Well, I think you asked me what happened to our car? Okay, the STP Pontiac was running pretty good there and we just had a tire going down and it's one of those situations where you know, you really can't tell until it gets so loaded, it really hurts the handling of the car, but we'll be back out there running and hope we can have a pretty good finish for today. We've got a new crew and all we need to do is finish the race and so we know we can get the job done. - Good battle up for second spot coming off at turn four. It is Allison, he's up alongside a Bouchard. Ricky Rudd almost made it three wide last time by and Allison goes into second spot down at turn one. Bouchard fights right back in turn two. - Bouchard on the low side of the race track, he'll stay inside, meanwhile Ricky Rudd hooks right on behind Bobby Allison. That's how they'll go on to turn three, Allison in second, run in third, Bouchard at fourth and now run one second. - Ricky Rudd comes down to the inside of the crowd, come to their feet cheering the forward on, it won't make it down in turn number one. He'll have to settle in behind Bobby Allison and hang on to the third spot for the moment. Bouchard still riding in fourth position as the laps go down on the board, 168 complete, they're back to turn three. They'll hold single file again this last time by Neil Bonant and Jeff Bodine doing a heavy tag, one on each other. They kept the cars in the straight line. - If you joined us late, Darryl Walter has led from the pole, after setting a new track record, he has led every lap. There were only two cautions. By lap 79, when the first caution came out, Walter had been lapping the field, he had only 10 cars with him on them. Make that seven cars with him on the lead lap, that caution for Trevor Boye spinning in the first corner. Then on lap number 91, Greg Sacks went around in turn number two, had prompted the second caution flag. Shortly after the restart, Neil Bonant got back on the lead lap, so now we have eight cars in the lead lap at 170 laps complete. The leader, Darryl Walter. In second, Bobby Allison, third is Ricky Rudd, fourth is Ron Bouchard. In fifth, Joe Rutman, sixth is Terry Labadi, seventh is Dick Brooks, eighth is Neil Bonant, let's check that, in the fifth spot is Rutman. Neil Bonant has moved to sixth, Labadi is seventh, Brooks is eighth, one lap down in ninth, Dale Earnhardt, in tenth, Morgan Shepherd, 11th is Bill Elliot, 12th is Tim Richmond, 13th is Lake Speed, 14th Jeff Bodine, 15th is Dave Marcus, 16th Harry Gantt, 17th Kale Yarborough, 18th is Rusty Wallace, and 19th is Lenny Pond, they're all one lap down. Two laps down, Kyle Petty is 20th, followed by Bill Parsons, Clark Dwyer and Richard Petty, three laps back, Jimmy Hensley, Greg Sacks and J.D. McDuffey, Trevor Boyes, and the Jimmy Means automobile, four or more laps behind. Darryl Walter just pretty much dominating this race thus far, and I think one reason Darryl is running out front and running so hard, he was very impressed with the purse here this weekend and how much money a driver couldn't win here at Richmond. - I'll tell you what, I looked at the first thing I looked at like any good race driver is the entry blank, and this race pays $21,300 to win. That doesn't include qualifying and lap contingencies. We could make probably over $30,000 here this week, if we had a good weekend. So that may be one reason Walter is really putting it around here this afternoon. He'd like to collect the winner's share of the purse of over $243,000 for the richest short track in the country right now. 174 laps up on the board right now with Walter in front, Allison hanging out of the second spot, still riding along in third, is Ricky Rudd right behind Bobby. Now, Bouchard has fallen off the pace again in fourth position, he's about a half a second back. - Well actually, Barney, I think what's happened, Bouchard is still about the same distance behind Walter, but Bobby Allison and Ricky Rudd now are reaming Walter Pian. - They are closing the gap as they go off turn number two, the separation between Bobby Allison and Daryl Walter, call it three car links in front of Eli Gold. - Right now, they take the identical line. Walter, then Allison and Ricky Rudd. Ricky Rudd has stopped trying for the moment to get by Bobby Allison, and it's intent on chasing down the leader. - Out of turn four, back to the start finish line, to complete the 176 lap, Walter in front. Allison has a mirror full of Ricky Rudd, but he's intent on tracking down the leader. - But Walter stays way low through third one and two, whereas Allison and Ricky Rudd go to the high side. Now, the return number three and again, Walter mentors the turn and stays, they are a good bit lower than do Allison and Rudd. - There's such a difference in the line that the three cars are taking, with Daryl putting it right down to the apron of the racetrack with Bobby Allison and Ricky Rudd running almost two lanes wider as they go off the corner. The integral between first and second, still about three car links. It stays the way it is, again, Ricky Rudd tries to out dive. Allison, in the turn number three, Ricky Rudd throws and owes him that right machine sport, but good, quite hang on. - Well, Allison's really working well up in that high groove. Ned, it's an interesting contrast the way he's running the racetrack on the high side. Ricky Rudd in the middle and Walter right on the bottom. - Yes, it is an interesting contrast, Mike, but it seems like the higher groove is the one that's working best right now. They're running about a second to a second, a half slower than what they qualify, and that indicates that there is a difference in the way that the track is working right now and how their cars are working under the present track conditions. - Trouble in turn two prompts the third caution of the day in front of Eli Gold. - The Gatorade car, Rusty Wallace at the controls, just spun out, Mike, it was running by its lonesome, and the car just kept on going around as it came off turn number two. The car went down to the inside, then quickly came back up, the limited banking that there is here at Richmond, and then clarked wires. The Esco exhaust system car was right there, and was sandwiched up against the wall as well. No damage as for the cars not continuing along, both are under power, heading back to the pit and garage area, but there is a good bit of damage as far as cosmetics to the left front of the Esco car, Clark Dwyer. - Both those cars are on pit road along with the leaders. Clark Dwyer driving for Roger Hamby, Sterling Marlin, Hamby's driver last year is here, but without a ride. He did drive the second Hamby car at Daytona, but still trying to put together a deal to run some races this season as the champion spark plug rookie of the year. Let's go to Ned Jarrett on pit road. - Well, as you say, the leaders are in along with those two cars that were involved in the accident. Of course, they're changing right side tires on most of the cars. We'll perhaps see most of them come back in for left side tires too. Darryl Walter is taking on all four while he's in the pits, so is Bobby Allison down at the end of pit road. So another opportunity for them to come in, change those tires, fill it up with Union 76 gasoline, make any adjustments that they might need, and go back at it again. - Stepping into our booth for a moment, John Wilson with Pontiac Motor Division out of the Washington DC zone office. You folks really put a lot of effort into that pace car program. At least you know you're going to have one car in the lead, and that's the start of the race when you see that transam in front of the field on the pace lap. - Mike Pontiac is very pleased to be involved in NASCAR racing and provide the beautiful pace car, particularly it's awful nice to be here at Richmond Speedway. - I know folks like you and Gillian Fields is here from the Charlotte zone. You guys put a lot of work into that pace car program. - Well, thank you. We appreciate all the efforts you've put out. - I think every time of day, Ned Jarrett, on Pit Row, that Darrell Walter, and the Junior Johnson team have been first off Pit Row. They have really done some pit work this afternoon. - Yes they have. And Bobby Allison raced him down Pit Row as they were coming in. Allison Pitting one or two pits down farther than is Darrell Walter, but Walter did beat him back out. Both of them changed all four tires that time around. Couple of cars that will be right back in the thick of this thing now. Of course, Neil Bonicha talked about how fast he was running. He had gained about almost a half a lap home. Darrell Walter and the other leaders. So that proved that his car was perhaps the fastest on the track. And also running very quickly was Joe Rutman in the Levi Garrett car. He was actually gaining on the leaders before this caution. Now he has made his pit stop and has caught up to the pack. So Joe might be right back in the thick of this thing too. And while we're talking about him, there's going to be a change in that organization. Of course, Jake Elder has been the crew chief on that car since last fall. I believe he worked a race or two and then came on his full-time crew chief this winter. Well, that's going to change. They had a meeting on Friday night and they mutually agreed that Jake would be leaving the team and this is his last race. So suitcase Jake, as he named himself a couple of years ago, is back out. We don't know what didn't get a chance to talk to him to see what his plans might be. But Ron Benfield, who owns that team, said that they were going to look internally as far as perhaps a replacement. And a couple of the members who are now there will be in charge and they'll just evaluate from here on. Jake's going to have to put a skateboard under that suitcase where he's been traveling in the last couple of years. Here's the way they're running after that rash of pit stops under the third caution of the day. That it just came out a moment ago. Walter is the leader. Bobby Allison rides second, third is Bouchard. Fourth right now is Ricky Rudd. Fifth is Rutman. Sixth is Dick Brooks. And seventh, they're posting Terry Lamonti and all those cars are on the lead lap. While we're talking about Rutman, Eli Gold had a chance to talk with Joe yesterday about just what Jake has meant to that team. Well, I would think that Jake, just from his sheer experience, brings us the confidence on a track like this. We've done extremely well here. So I think everyone looks up and says, Jake can make a car run. And so you just got a mental confidence that you normally wouldn't have. He's probably the number one free agent in the history of stock car racing. He definitely is that. It's going to be interesting to see where Jake will surface probably half a dozen times if he kind of follows his pattern for the last year and a half this year. He is an asset to any race team. I don't care where he goes. Well, I think that there'll be some out there making offers to him, Barney, because of the experience that he has. And he just seems to be able to work well, particularly with young drivers and get them. You know, he's won several polls for different people just coming home for a race or two and set the car up and let him win polls. And so I think his services will be asked for him. I don't think you'll have any problem finding a job. I don't think so. One lap to go before we go green. We'll remind you the next Sunday. Motor racing network will be a Rockingham, North Carolina to cover the Hodgdon Carolina 500. Another big weekend with Bush Pole qualifying Thursday. Saturday, the Bush and Ask Carley model sportsman series. And Sunday, MRN goes on the air 12 noon with the Hodgdon Carolina 500. They're ticket offices open right now. So give them a call. Looking ahead, two weeks from today, we're at Daytona. For the Daytona Supercross and the Daytona 200 motorcycle classic. Three weeks from today, Atlanta International Raceway. We'll bring you all the action of the Coke 500 on March 18th with the Winston Cup cars. And then we'll go short track racing Saturday night style on Sunday afternoon, March 25th, the Miller Time 500. And ask our modified and late model sportsman double header at Martinsville, Virginia. So big month of racing. And March, you ought to get to one of these events and see it if you can. If not, be sure to be tuned in with us right here on MRN. We're ready to go back to green before they drop that green. We'll remind the folks who might be riding around this afternoon. The North Carolina motor speedway is having open house. You'll be allowed to drive on the racetrack if you visit there today. We are under green again on lap 190 here at the Fairgrounds Raceway. Walker is a leader. Allison rides second. Bushard is third. Their single file off the number two corner. Walter, getting a good jump again reminds you of what Sam Hart was able to do yesterday. Mike Alexander, those rim riding, further back on the pack of heels. The car back off the guard rail as your leader is still Walterman turned four. Eight cars are on the lead lap at this juncture. The race, Daryl, still in front. Allison rides second, third, still Bouchard. Fourth is Ricky Rudd. Fifth is Joe Rutman. Back to sixth position. That stick brooks. The seventh place car right now is Jerry Labadi. And riding eighth is Neil Bottoms. Scramble off the number two corner. They're in turn three. Bobby Allison tried to get around Dale Earnhardt. And he can again set sail on the lead bar of Daryl Walter. Earnhardt not giving a whole lot of room. Trouble on the Morgan Shepherd car. He drops all the way to the back of the pack. Looks like he'll piff. As Allison wants to look underneath Dale Earnhardt, doesn't get it going to turn one. We'll watch him in the back stretch. Bobby Allison holding and hounding away on Earnhardt. Dale takes one groove inside. Bobby thought about swinging to the outside. That's not the way to get around the real start right by. But it is the way to get around for Ricky Rudd. He'll try and challenge on the outside. Follow that bump in banging is going on back from second on Daryl Walter began, just drives away. Pads his lead by a full second or better. As they work off turn number two, here's Bouchard trying to get underneath Bobby Allison. But Dale Earnhardt is positioned directly head down in that lower groove. He has no place to go in turn three. But Bobby is going to try and get by Earnhardt this time. Allison's staying high in turns three and four. But Earnhardt stays right with him on the most side. Close packed racing, closer than most people park as they come down the front straight away. And they trade a little sheet metal down at turn number one. Allison has the second spot. Earnhardt is underneath Bouchard. And Ricky Rudd is right there. And now Bouchard trying to tack right in behind the Miller time automobile. Does, holds down a position until he goes higher in turn. Number three and four smokes the brakes. And Earnhardt gets by again. Well, I think it's probably heating up back in the pack right now. We saw a little tapping and bumping and banging back there. The last four or five laps around. And now the field begins to split out. As Bouchard goes wide in the number one corner, don't know he's slowing down a bit. And everybody's ducking by. There is a problem on Ron Bouchard's car. He comes by us now, Barney Hall. And he's going to take the car to the low side of the racetrack. He has his hand up waving from the inside of the automobile, letting everybody know he's going to stay on a slower pace. So Ron Bouchard, what a tough break. I leave the right front tires down on that car, Barney. He wanted to get down on the inside, come in for the pits. His car, his crew was ready for him, but he couldn't get down low enough on the crack. He's going to have to go around again. And that's going to cost him a lot of extra time. We mentioned that Morgan Shepherd was having problems. He came in. The crew went around to the right side. He motioned to the left side, or at least they thought it did. They came over there, didn't change any tires, send it back out. But he's back in now, changing right-side tires. And that, as you shed Bouchard, just come by us the right front. Now he's running down on the rim. So he's going to head towards Pitt Road. Meanwhile, Allison has broken free from everybody else. While Ricky Rudd keeps on going in a battle there for a position. Tough break for Ron Bouchard. Is there on Pitt Road right now? In front of Ned, they're going to change those right-side tires. Give him fuel and get him back on the racetrack. Here's the skull dipping man, baseball's Bobby Mercer. [MUSIC PLAYING] Pardon me if I've seen this a little bone. But it's just because I got myself another can of gold. And I keep my little tin of butter green. Handy in the pocket of my new years I've earned. Just a piece between my finger and my thumb. Let's be no it's a winner like a proud and a long one. I'm a soul dipping, soul dipping man. I'm a soul dipping, soul dipping man. I'm a soul dipping, soul dipping man. I am a soul dipping man. Now just a piece-- Gold, a pinch is all it takes. Ron Bouchard came off Pitt Road and went two laps down. He's right behind the leader, trying to get one of those laps back in front of you like gold. Ron Bouchard now trying to swing to the high side of Darryl Waltzip. Darryl staying down low where he's run so well. Bouchard on fresh rubber on the right side, using the high portion of the racetrack against by Waltzip. Moving up right now and putting on a challenge for that second spot, Joe Rutman is caught. Bobby Allison takes a look underneath him as they go off the number two corner, nothing there. But he has closed a lot of ground on the second place car. We've talked earlier about the most accomplished short track drivers on the racetrack today. Joe Rutman counting today is on the USAC trail in the Midwest. Might have more laps on a short track than Burke to the anybody out here today. And Rutman in that Levi Garrett car, like you say, is now making some hay. He is down low on the racetrack. Bobby Allison, who holds down second spot is to the high side. But now with Jimmy Beams on the back straight away as a slower car, they'll hold single-file. Waltzip working traffic out of the number four corner, back end of the straightaway, as he'll be moving around Morgan Shepherd, who made an unscheduled stop. A couple unscheduled stops a moment ago. He'll also be running up behind Ron Bouchard, who lost a couple of laps with an unscheduled stop himself with a right front tire that was flat a moment ago. For the moment that battle for second is just about what it was a moment ago, one car link from Bobby Allison back to Joe Rutman. Let's take you back through the field at halfway. Just moments ago, they took the cross flags from starter Harold Kinder, the halfway side of this Miller Highlight 400. The leader, Darrell Waltrip, he's led every lap. Bobby Allison rides second. Ron Bouchard was third. Let's make Ricky rather third-place car, fourth Joe Rutman, fifth Dick Brooks, sixth Terry Labadi, and seventh. Neil Bonnet at the halfway mark. One lap down, eighth is Dale Earnhardt, ninth is Bill Elliott, tenth Tim Richmond, 11th Borgen Shepherd, 12th is Lake Speed, 13th is Jeff Fodine, 14th is Harry Gant, 50th Dave Marcus. Two laps down, 16th is Kale Yarbrough, 17th Richard Petty. 18th position would be Mike Alexander and 19th Lenny Pond. Three laps down is Kyle Petty, followed by Clark Dwyer and Phil Parsons. Four laps back in the 24th spot. That would be rather rusty Wallace. 25th Jimmy Hensley, five or more laps back. Trevor Boyes, J.D. McDuffey, Greg Sacks, and the 52 car of Jimmy Means. That leaves David Pearson and Ronnie Thomas in the garage area. And as we reported a moment ago, Ron Bouchard is now on the tail end of that group. One lap down, so he would be in the 17th position. There have been only about six or seven cars that have been able to get really hooked up with the racetrack here this afternoon and run up in that lead pack. Ron Bouchard was one of those. He's a couple of laps off the pace. Darryl Walker has dominated the field thus far. He is the leader right now by almost a little better than three quarters of the straightaway in the back stretch. Bobby Allison has posted himself up to the number two spot and it is so hard to get dialed into this racetrack. And Richard Petty was talking yesterday about just exactly what makes it so tough to get around this speedway. Yeah, racetrack's been here a long time, isn't it? Really, the purpose is just wow, it's just slick, slick, slick. And the deal is, it's tight racetrack on top of that. And the deal that's running you is just, you just turn up so much cheap metal. I mean, just to run around and win the racetrack on a better speedway. And it's just hard to pass anybody called the track slick. And like slick, when you do try to prepare, that it's just kind of hard to get behind without living them. And if the car isn't working well, it makes it twice as hard to do your job here at Richmond. We've completed 213 of the 400 that will make up the Miller event here this afternoon at Fairgrounds Raceway. Some good fender banging talking about men and cheap metal, Mike Joy, almost anywhere you look on the racetrack right now, you can see that going to work. Probably the best battle of Barney. There's two of them, and they're at equal. He opposite ends the racetrack. There's the Bobby Allison, Joe Rutman, and Ricky Rott trouble and turn one, it's Petty. Richard Petty has spun around. That was the other heated battle we were about to mention. Petty, Dave Marcus, Rusty Wallace, and Lake Speed were running in a tight four car knot. This time it was Richard Petty that spun around on the 216th lap down at turn number one. There might have been contact. He and Dave Marcus running very tight and close together. But everybody gets away from the accident seen without incident. Now the field has taken the caution flag in the Pontiac safety car. We'll pick up the field. So we have now just eight cars. Make that seven cars on the lead lap, with Bouchard a lap down. And Bouchard gets a break here, Barney. He was running just ahead of Darryl Waldrop. So now he will be with that group of cars that is one lap down. And perhaps as Neil Bonnet did, have a chance to charge back and get back on the lead lap. That'll be a break for a lot of drivers. And it's a hit-fit road right now that just about everybody is in the pits. Yes, they are, Barney, and taking advantage. Once again, I have the caution period to change right-side tires. And some of them, perhaps, will change all four tires, making any adjustments they might need. Ricky Rudd only took on right-side tires. So he's going back out in the Wrangler Ford, while Bobby Allison is taking on all four tires. Darryl Waldrop did too, and he's headed back out. Neil Bonnet in the pits also. So practically everybody going into the pits again during this caution period. We've got a bit of debris on the racetrack. While they clean it up, we'll remind you that May 5th and 6th, they're at Richmond, the Wrangler Championship Pulling Series, the largest purse for a tractor pull ever posted in the East, the National Tractor Pullers Association. $70,000 in posted wards right here at the Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, a Class A tractor meet with 250 entries involved for information contact, the Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. 216 laps complete, and a new name will go up on a leaderboard. It will be Ricky Rudd, the Wrangler driver in Budmoor's Ford, who will lead this lap as we're under the caution of Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. - Terry Labani did elect to stay on the speedway and make his pit stop after everyone else had come on the pit road, so he'll pick up five bonus points for leading a lap. We're about set to go back to green. Ricky Rudd is now the leader in Budmoor's. Ranger Ford, he's driven a good race here this afternoon. He calls nearby down the road, is his home, and he'd like to do well here in front of some quite a hometown partisan crowd for his Ford product this afternoon. Walter Brides right behind him, here's the Pontiac Safety Car, just barely getting out of the way as they come up through that gearbox in a hurry, he almost got tagged. Down on the inside of the leader right now, his day Marcus trying to pick up a lap on him as they race back into the corner. - Meanwhile, Darryl Waltship, who is now in second place, sees Ricky Rudd with the lead, swing to the outside of Dave Marcus. So Waltship, as they steam past us, will tuck in behind the Marcus car in the low side of the race track, and now gives him room. - Marcus won a badly to get back on the lead lap, and for the second time in his many weeks, Marcus is getting the black flag for actions on the restart. He jumped it ahead of Ricky Rudd, and as Eli put it up just about, grabbed the safety car by the rear bumper, and so he will have to pit a tough blow for the Raymoc team as the leaders come out of turn four. - Everybody's been in the pits right now, made the adjustments they needed, right now Ricky Rudd is holding off Darryl Waltship. Let's see if Waltship can take the lead back. He's already led the most laps here this afternoon. He's led about all of them, except the one that the 44 car, I'm carrying the body led a moment ago in what Ricky Rudd has picked up right now. We're working 221 of the 400. It'll make up the Miller race this afternoon. They're back in three. - So it will show out behind Rudd and Waltship, Bobby Allison now trying to close in on the tail of the Budweiser car, so it can make it a three-way battle for the league. - Back to turn one, as Dave Marcus obeys the black flag, goes to pit road. He'll take the opportunity to change tires once again on his car before they send him back out, and elite cars head for the back straight. - Joe Rutman now separated between Bobby Allison himself by the Dale Earnhardt car. So Rutman biting his time as Waltship tries to get a piece of lead from Rudd. - Here is Dave Marcus off pit road, going back out of the speedway, and Walker begins to ramble a little bit. He's right up on the bumper of Ricky Rudd as they get back in turn number one. He may feel it's time to go back to the front. They're off in number two corner and up the back shoot. - Or he might feel it's time to make Ricky use up his car, but no learning I think you're right, because Waltship says I'll take the low road. Ricky takes the high road. Waltship trying to reassert himself for the lead. - Unbelievable how that car is working, but Ricky isn't about to give it up. He's a scrapper. They ride door to door, not giving up the lead. Going into the number one corner, they're still side by side. Walker, right down at the bottom of the racetrack, Ricky in the outside lane, and they're still door to door. - And Ricky keeping that forward, wraps up as Bobby Allison smokes in front of us down the back straight away. An accurate odor over this back stretch has smoked just billows from the Miller time entry. - Bobby Allison dives on a pit road and for the second race in a row, apparently a mile function in the engine department is gonna put him out of the race. Jerry Punch will be making his way down to the Allison pits to find out what the story is and caution is on the speedway. As apparently Bobby has put some liquid on the racetrack. - He has, Barney Hall. There was a little puff of smoke. Just as Bobby Allison came off turn number two, he went another 25 yards, let's say, and then he just erupted and spoken as the safety men are quick to point out. And there's a good bit of fluid water and otherwise on the low groove of the racetrack, hence the caution. - It's the fifth caution of the day here at Richmond with Darryl Watrop in the lead after 226 laps. Allison's Winston Cup title defense off to a dismal start. He came away from Daytona with just 61 championship points and was 34th in the point standings. He'll finish 30th today. That's only worth about 95 points, so he'll be well in arrears when they hit for Rockingham one week from now. You could be headed for Daytona next February as the winner of our new goodies race for the money sweepstakes. Again, the Daytona 500 dream vacation this year will include two tickets to the goodies 300 and Daytona 500, a tour of the NASCAR garage area lodging for two for four nights at the Treasure Island Inn and Daytona Beach shores and $1,000 in spending money. Or you could win one of our eight racing holiday of the month prizes in 1984. Two tickets to a selected Winston Cup race plus $300 cash. Just said, the front paddle for many size package of goodies were the name goodies, headache powders printed and plain block letters on a three by five piece of paper with your name address and phone number to goodies, race for the money. Box 500 Daytona Beach, Florida, 32015. One entry per envelope, please. If you're 18 or over, you're eligible and are as often as you like. Next month we'll be calling out the first winner in the goodies, race for the money sweepstakes. - We're about set to go back to green as they have just given the indication of the field. They'll put them under green this time by. Pottyac pace car gets off the racetrack in a hurry this time as they come a digging out of turn number four with Darryl Walter, the leader. He did not pit, riding in the second spot right now is Dick Brooks as they worked back into turn number one, coming around on the outside and challenging Brooks for that third or second position, I should say, is Neil Bonnet as they head to Eli Gold. - So the field now sorting itself out behind the leader, Walter, couple of black cars and then as you say, Neil Bonnet alongside Tim Gritman in a private battle also trying to chase Dick Brooks. - Ronnie Rickey, Red and Joe Rutton both did make pit stops so they'll be working their way back up through the field. - They were the only two of the front five that came on the pit road as Walter belected not to fit and neither did Dick Brooks as they come off the corner and head back in the backshoot again in the field stream, Jerry Punch, go ahead. - Party was standing by, it's hard to hear that here. Bobby, if you could hear me, Bobby, this climbing out of the car, Bobby Allison, what was the problem? I guess we expected it at the engine blue. - Yeah, the engine blue up. - Bobby, any reason, any idea what Bobby's, we can't send the kid here right now, but as the cars go by, Party, Bobby, any idea that two weeks in a row, some engine trouble, any idea what the problem may be? - No, I don't have any idea. Just, you know, we're, have a little run of fan luck or something, I guess. - Well, it's Bobby Allison out over here at Richmond. - Allison not feeling much like talking right now after watching it go up and smoke two weeks in a row and you can well understand that after the successful season they had last year. It's a good one on the racetrack. Walter, as a leader in a gat, he shows his power and domination here this afternoon as he is pulled away already by a full second again. Back in that number two spot, riding right now, as Dick Brooks back to third, that'll be Neil bought it, fourth is Terri Labati in fifth position right now, is Ricky Rudd and riding six, are still on that lead lap, is Joe Rutman. They're back in three. - And as a testimony to how well run and run is, running after that touch stop, they're now well within shouting distance at the front of that pack. They have been picking off car after car and going around the outside of the racetrack to get the job done. - So they're reshuffling the field here at Richmond after the caution flag, the fifth one of the day for Bobby Allison's float engine. 234 laps complete, Walter walking off with a lead here at Richmond in the second. - Jeff Modine in the wall on the back straightaway. He bounces off quickly, and got a good bit of room from Terri Labati, who was a long sign of him at Modine, kept it in the straight line. - Lot of short track slam bag here at Richmond and a record crowd here to see it. - Dick Brooks in trouble after been run moving up to the number two spot, just a moment ago, he's in pit road in front of Ben Jared. - And to add the hood up on the car, Barney, certainly not a good sign now they're putting the hood down. They're doing no other work on the race car. Apparently there's something internally wrong with that engine that they won't be able to think. Well, no, they got it cranked up and he's gone again. - Now we can see from this side, from the outside of the racetrack, a crew member reached in the right side window to the dashboard where they have the two different ignition modules, apparently switched from one system to another and got them going again. - Okay, he did coast down pit road without any power whatsoever. And so that is a bad break for him, he's running so well. - Well, he'll lose a couple of laps in the process, but that car is back up to speed, coming off turn number four. Bapping against Neil Bonant, who's just gone by Terry Labati. So Bonant will now pick up what has become the second spot after Brooks going to pit road. Labati will be third, Joe Rutman is the fourth place car, Ricky Rotten, fifth, they're all in a bundle on the back stretch. - And that's a good battle right now behind Neil Bonant, Labati, Ben Rutman, and Rudd. Those cars tied tightly together and again, they're just spread all over car three and four, everybody with their own way around, again problems for Dick Brooks, he's heading back your way then. - Brooks is back on pit road and whatever the problem was, they cured it for the moment. Now it's back again, we'll find out in just a moment what his problem is. Jerry Punch will make his way down there and see what is wrong with the comedian sunglasses forward of driver Dick Brooks. - Well, this time Barney, they're going under the hood again. So if they switched that ignition, which I'm sure they did, as Mike Joy pointed out, but it apparently didn't cure it or maybe they have a short somewhere that caused that ignition to go out. So anyway, they're working on it. Jerry Punch is on his way there. - Good battle for fourth position right now going on back in the field. Let's make that for third spot as they work off the number two corner and down the back shoe between Ricky Rudd and Joe Rutman. - Rutman to the high side, Rudd to the inside, and directly in front of Ricky Rudd, is Terry Labonti is also there battling first spot. - Ricky trying to find someplace to go, can't do it. As those three cars are in a battle for position on the racetrack, down to the inside, is Labonti in the Piedmont Airlines machine, Rudd on the outside of a Levi Garrett car. They ride door to door, Rudd's right behind him, still no place to go. - No place to go, no one's moving and they'll stay though with Labonti to the inside and Rutman take advantage to the high side, puts the car in front. - But Dick Brooks has his car back out running again. Jerry punches in the pits, let's say if he's found out why. - And there they said it's, they do have an ignition trouble. They came in as Mike Joy said and they changed the inside ignition, boxes in the head to come back in and change the coil and we'll try to wait and see if Dick said the car is now running correctly. - Ronnie Thomas brought his car out of the garage, Jerry made one lap and came back to fit road, trying to pile up some Winston Cup boys and a tough run of it this afternoon. He was the first car out of the race. In the garage area right now, just Bobby Allison and the David Pearson car, Pearson went out early, Allison just a few laps ago, about 20 laps ago with engine failure. 245 laps complete here, Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, Wall trip, out in front by a good margin, he has already clinched the $3,000 7-11 miles leader award. Last year, NASCAR called that the Lap Leader Award, it was sponsored by a different company and this year they have changed the format of that, up the prize money, 7-11, a leader in their field. Now honoring the miles lead leader in NASCAR, rather than the lap sled, it counts the number of miles on the racetrack that a particular car is in front. And so Wall trip will pick up the lead in that standings, coming out of Daytona. Kale Yarbrough was the runaway leader in that department. So Wall trip who was second will close some ground. Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Bobby Allison, the next four drivers in the 7-11 miles leadership category. - Neil Bodden having a good run here this afternoon, his first outing in a short track, or on a short track I should say, on a junior Johnson prepared automobile. He's been very successful here at Richmond. I don't think he's failed to ever finish a race when he was here and he feels like his chances to win this afternoon are pretty good. - I better knock on awards, but I don't think I've ever fell out of race here, Richmond. I've been able to finish them all and been in the top five and all of them I've ever run here. It's been a good racetrack for me. And junior's past success at this racetrack is a nice asset to come in here with. I can't help but think that, you know, if we run all day long, we'll be in good shape, in good contention, possibly win the race. - He's 6.9 seconds behind his teammate right now, but he's in the number two spot with Walter the leader, and he has just completely dominated this racetrack. - Barney, I remember Neil Bonnet's first trip to Richmond. It was 1976, and Bobby Allison had flipped at Rockingham, and Neil Bonnet, who was a well-known short track driver in Birmingham, was brought here to be. Allison stand in in case of a problem. He didn't even have his own driver suit. He had one of Bobby's suits and induct tape. They covered up Bobby's name and put Neil Who on it, 'cause that's the question everybody was asking. Well, everybody knows who Neil is now, and right behind him is a strong battle in the back stretch. - As they work behind Bonnet, Joe Rutman, still holding off the challenge of Ricky Rudd. Those two guys have pulled away by three-car lane, took the real amount. - As they work out of traffic on the number four turn and move in behind Tim Richmond's automobile, Richmond has had a frustrating day here, and the Old Mill walkie car just hasn't been able to do anything at all with it. They have not been able to dial it in, and Richard Petty is back on pit road for another unscheduled stop. Let's go to Ned. - It is another unscheduled stop, Barney, to go to the right side, once again, to change tires on the STP Pontiac. Of course, they do fill it up with gasoline, while they're in, but Petty is having his problems here today with these unscheduled pit stops under the green. Boy, this really hurts now. They're coming around to change the left side, so they're going to 04. They could have had a vibration in the car the other time they cut a tire down. This time they might have a vibration. Sometimes it's hard to tell exactly which tire it is, so they're gonna change 04 to make sure that they get the right one. - Richard Petty has had so many good days over a career that spans more than 20 years as having one of his bad ones here this afternoon at Richmond. - It's a new season on Motor Racing Network. We'll remind you to patronize our sponsors and your local station sponsors, and why not drop a line to your local station to let them know that you're listening and that you appreciate their coverage of NASCAR Winston Cup Racing. Strong battle back in the field, but everybody's tried to chase Gerald Waltrip, who has led all but about five laps here at Richmond. The race is back in second spot. Back where Neil Bonnet, Joe Rutman, and Ricky Rod are battling it out and Terry Labotti. Closing up on that group, those are the cars on the lead lap here. 254 laps into the event. We've had five caution flags to slow the average speed, the latest one, just 25 laps ago when Bobby Allison blew his second engine in as many weeks on the Western Cup Tour, and he's only piled up about 150 boys, Barney, and two races to date. That's a really tough start to overcome. - You can really hear the frustration in Bobby's voice a moment ago, as he climbed out of the car on pit road and was talking with Jerry Punch, he just did not feel like talking about it at all, but you can bet that team will bounce back. Remember last year, Gerald Waltrip came away from Daytona after one of the most, well, it was the most severe crash, Gerald had ever had in his career, came back and almost won the championship, so don't count the Allison Miller team out at it for sure. - And Gerald had trouble in this race last year too, Barney, they had a couple of rear ends to go out, which is something very unusual for Junior Johnson's cars, and so he was down about as much as Bobby is right now. - So we're watching Dale Earnhardt the line, he's been taking around here all afternoon, he had run extremely well in the early going now, Dale has been running up very high in the corners of the racetrack, and there may be a reason for that, he told me yesterday that there's a lot of new stuff on the car that he's driving for Richard Childress that wasn't on there before. - So they put him up at the car at the start with, and then we work with it from there at the racetrack. I can tell him to change something, and I think I could do better this way or that way, and they'll do it. It's a little bit new to me running fire steering and set up with the fire steering like it is, and I think that's my biggest problem up here. And once we get used to that dial in, I think we'll be just as good or fast as anybody. - Dale Earnhardt driving a new car with power steering, and that would make it tremendous difference, because Earnhardt is really used to physically man-handling a race car. - Yes, he is. I was talking to him yesterday, and he said that he was having some problems. He ran in the Ranger Genes 150 sportsman race yesterday, finished in third place, and he said it was particularly tough. We go out of a 3700 pound car that has power steering, get into the 2950 pound sportsman car, and running back and forth, and didn't have a great deal of time to practice either up on Friday, and he said it was really tough to make those adjustments and do justice to either car. - So Earnhardt's just trying to get it together with his new Richard Childress team after their second place finish at Daytona. We've completed 261 laps here at Richmond this afternoon. Darryl Walker continues to just dominate this race, just how strong he is right now, while he's pulled away 7.1 seconds over his teammate, Neil Bonnet. - Man, it looks like some John Deere tractors coming off the fourth corner of the way, some of these cars are plowing off that turn. They turn the steering wheel, and nothing happens, it just plows right out toward the wall, and that just shows you how critical handling is here at Richmond. - I'll tell you, when you put that 600-some horsepower to work coming off of that turn bar, and it's a little slick there right now, and if that chassis isn't working, absolutely perfectly, get this change to the race, that thing is gonna do some things, and we are seeing a lot of smoke coming off some tires there, Joe Rutman is one of them, as he smokes her off of the corner there, but he's hanging right in there in fourth place right now, but a lot of them are smoking those tires as they come off of there. - Rutman has really been hanging the car out coming off number four, almost like a dirt track, where 272 laps, end of the Miller 400 here at Fairgrounds Raceway in Richmond, Virginia, perfect day for racing, beautiful weather all day long, not a cloud in the sky, the temperature up in the '50s, and it seems to have warmed up a little bit out there, the wind has died down a bit, it's ideal racing conditions, not only for the drivers, but for the gentleman on Pitt Road. Waltrip is a leader, has been most of the day, he's just totally dominated this race, as we have seen so many times in years past, since he teamed up with Junior Johnson, he certainly has it dialed into the racetrack this afternoon, his teammate Neil Vaudet rides in the number two spot, Rutman hangs on to the number four position, moving up in the third right now, is Ricky Rut, as he hounds the number two place car, coming back to turn four. - Barney Ricky's just having a super day for a fellow who took such a wildflip just two weeks ago at Daytona, he said he's really happy the way the car is, with their performance here this week. - We're pleased with it, we came down here a little short of help, but had a death in the family, wasn't able to come here the first day of practicing qualifying, so it kind of left me and Doug and the guys on the car to get it ready to qualify. We came in, the car drove real well, we felt like it was race ready, it wasn't running that quick, we were maybe 7/10 of a second off of what we thought was gonna be the pole speed, and I think it just kind of showed that things are gonna work out well, we got in there, we went out and we inched away at it, picked at it and got the speed down, where it was really competitive, just a little bit off the aerals pole speed, but we're really happy with the car, it's running good now and we're race ready, and the car's handling well. - But thinks he really has himself a driver this year, he feels like he can work with Ricky Rut, and they'll have a very successful year. - They got off to a bad start, and Daytona last week, as you know, if you're a race fan, Ricky had that terrible crash coming out of turn number four at Daytona, flipping the car some six or seven times, but now he is very much back in the thick of things. One story a lot of people didn't know was that of Dale Earnhardt, he drove the car last year far Bud Moore, and that Earnhardt was one of the first gentlemen to go to Bud Moore after that accident occurred, and found out that Ricky would be kind of laid up for a couple of days, and volunteered his services that anything he needed on the car to shake it down or whatever he would do. - No, it's not. I do want to win the races, and if I'm racing out there, I'm going to beat Bud and Ricky, just as much as anybody else, but you know, I've got a lot of respect for Bud Moore and his team. They're a good team. I enjoyed racing and working with them the years I was with them, and they were in, you know, a little bit of a bind of needing somebody to run the car that knows what the car did, and you know, I just got out of the car, so I felt like I could help Bud in doing some good, and you know, I was willing to, and lucky, you know, I could we could, and we worked, you know, ran the car and took it down, and he just got him a little bit of time, and that he needed to get the car ready for Ricky. - 118 laps to run here at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, 282 on the board. Darryl Waldtrip the leader, Neil Bonnet. In second, two Budweiser cars at the front of the field in this Miller High Life 400. In third, the Wrangler car, Ricky Rudd, and the Bud Moore machine, in fourth, the Levi Garrett Chevrolet. That is the Joe Rutman automobile. And in fifth, the Piedmont Airlines Chevrolet, the Billy Hagen car, Terry Le Bonny, the driver, having a good run today, they're all on the lead lap. One lap back is Richard Childress Wrangler Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt, and in seventh, the Coors Belling Thunderbird for Bill Elliott. Eighth is the other beer wagon, that's the old trouble in turn three. - One car up against the wall, Lenny Pond. That's the Jim Testa Morgan McClure Chevrolet. Lenny just found himself going in the wrong way now as he'll back the car. Well actually, that back, it is pointed forward, but coming in our direction, he's going from turn three, back towards turn number two, hanging along the guardrail. Lenny found himself in the guardrail up in turn two. Oh, I guess about 25 or 30 laps ago, he just bounced off the guardrail and continued. Now as the traffic goes by, he'll pull the car off the guardrail towards the infield, and he'll steam on back towards Pitt Road. - It's the sixth caution of the afternoon from Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. This is MRN, the motor racing network. - Lenny Pond bringing out the sixth caution flag has seen everybody in and out of the pits. Let's go down the net. - And Joe Rutman just got caught in the pits. He was one of the five drivers in the lead lap. They changed all four tires, had a little bit of a problem with the left rear, and he's now sitting down at the end of Pitt Road as the pace car and the other cars go by. So Joe Rutman, who has driven so well here this afternoon, loses a lap in the pits and boy, that's a sin, Barney. When you get that, everybody else has come in, those that didn't come in the other lap are in now, taking on some of them, two tires, some of them, four tires, and all of them taking on a tank of Union 76 gasoline. - Pitt stops are absolutely so critical here. If you don't get it done right on the numbers, you lose an awful lot of ground. That's almost impossible to make up on the racetrack. And again, quick pit work puts Darryl Wolterp right back out ahead of everyone. So he is the leader, and Neil Bonnet comes off Pitt Road second best, so he maintains his second spot, and it looks like Ricky Rudd will move into the third position. - The way they were running at the time of the caution, Barney, five cars on the lead lap. Wolterp, Bonnet, Rudd, Rutman, and Labotti. One lap back, as in one lap will be racing, one lap back the cars of Earnhardt, Bill Elliott, Tim Richmond, Harry Gantt, Jeff Bodine, Ron Bouchard, and Lake Speed. 111 laps to go, as the leader comes back across the line this time. We are back under green here at Fairgrounds Raceway, and running one and two right now are the Budweiser cars. Wolterp is the leader right behind him. His teammate, Neil Bonnet, and we may see some getting with the program here, as they have both come off Pitt Road, fresh rubber, ready to get at it. They're in front of the Lago. - Those two cars have pulled the way, Barney Hall. Right behind those two is Dick Brooks's car. Of course, Brooks he lost time in the pits earlier. - Heading back into the number one corner, Bodine tried to get underneath his teammate that time down at four, and Walterp pinned him right to the bottom of the racetrack, is not giving him anything. He goes after him again off two. - Those two cars rumble off in number two corner. Neil Bonnet stays right behind Walterp. They'll take identical lines diving in a turn three-stay low, and again, Bodine had an idea. - Had an idea to wrap Walterp in the bumper, and it looks like he did. A year ago in the SECA Trans Am series, the two team Budweiser cars were David Hobbs and Willie T. Rips. Identically painted cars, running in tandem, just the way we see Walterp and Bodine there. Although what happened, the challenge for Lee got to be so great. Both cars ended up crashing off the course. Somebody else went on to win, so we'll see if cooler heads prevail here. Out of turn four, it is Walterp, Bodine. Half a car link between them. Third is Ricky Rudd. Fourth is Terry LeBaudie, and the report is that Joe Rutman has gone a lap down, losing a lap in the pits. - And of course, Ricky Rudd is a good second and a half, almost two seconds, behind the front two cars, and on top of that, there are four other cars, separating Rudd from the leaders. - Neil Bodine again closes in on Darryl Walterp, and then I don't think you'll see one of these drivers do anything foolish because Junior will take a jack handle to both of them. - He might just do it, Barney, but I'll tell you, they are two hard chargers, and I'm sure he's letting them have their reins now. They go out there and race for it, 'cause he said all went along after they made the announcement that they'd feel these two cars, that there'd be no favoritism. They'd just go out there and race, whoever had the best car, did the best driving on a given day. Well, you know, their work was cut out for 'em, and right now their work is cut out for 'em. I think they're having fun, too, because Walter certainly would like to outdo Neil, and vice versa, the two teams just based across the creek from each other at the Junior's shop. Right now, Walter pulls away by one car link, they're back in three. - And as they head to turn number three, Neil Bodine remembers that his very first short track win came here at Richmond, and he said this is a particularly favorite short track because the fans who listened back in the Alabama area know that Birmingham International Raceway is a carbon copy of this racetrack, and Neil gets around there as well as he does anywhere, and he said yesterday, if he's gonna want a short track, he just assumed what a Richmond or Birmingham, so he's right there, helping away on Walter. - They're coming up on lap traffic, moving up on Trevor Boyes, and the 52 car of Jimmy Means, and still a bit further back in the back is the Ricky Rudd fourth place car, her third place car, rather, and the fourth place car, last car on the lead lap, that's Terry Lebani. - At Fairgrounds Raceway, Walter is the leader, Neil Bodine rides second, and I believe, for the first time in a long, long time, normally at a race you look down on Pitt Road, and junior Johnson has his foot propped up, nine times out of 10, looking off in the infield, or somewhere like he isn't watching the race, that's not been the case here the last 20 laps. He's been watching his two drivers get at it, as Neil Bodine taps there a little bit, going off the number two corner. - The old chrome horn, it doesn't disarm Walter, though, as Neil Bodine now looks to the high side of his teammate, they're in turn looking for, and Bodine tries to look upstairs. - Outside comes Neil Bodine off the corner, trying to get around Darryl Walter. Walter uses up a little racetrack, makes him get out of the throttle, and Bodine's gonna try it again on the outside, as they get back into the number one and two turn on the outside, it's awfully hard to pass there, they're in the back stretch. - Especially on turns one and two, the way Walter's far as the working there, but Neil tries him to get in turn three. He'll try to fall alongside, but can't get past the right rear of the automobile. - And that'll get the fans attention, as Bodine comes up alongside, they've been pretty quiet as Neil has been stalking Darryl, giving him a wrap here and there, but now the crowd is beginning to come to life, as it looks like we've got a real battle shaping up here for the lead. This time, it's Budweiser again, against Budweiser, but Neil Bonner didn't get the good jump off the corner, this time, and he'll find himself a bit further behind Walter back in first, three and four. - And then I think you may see Junior get on the radio here in a minute and say, "Hey, we've got a long ways to go, we've just passed 303 laps, there's 97 laps to go and you can't run the cars, as hard as they're throwing them in and out of these corners and have much left at the end." - Well, Barney, as you say, they're probably having fun out there, but let me go down and see if we can get Junior on our radio and just see what his notes are right now. - All right, here comes Walter back in at number four, they've got plenty of racetrack, as the field has kind of spread out, they've got a lot of daylight. If Neil does decide to make a move, he's got plenty of room to do it right now. The third place car is still Ricky Rudd, riding fourth on the field, and I'm still on the lead lap, is the Piedmont Airlines machine of Terry Labotti. Darryl Walter told us the other day that he enjoys driving for Junior, because Junior lets him have his way, make kind of the car like he wants, it calls a lot of the shots on it. - You know, I always have that, ever since I went to work for Junior, that's the one thing that he's allowed me, is to work on the car, to change it, to do whatever I've ever wanted to do to it. And of course, that responsibility is greater now, I spent more time at this shop before Daytona, and I was there all before we come here, because the guys need a leader, and I've been able to fill that role for ever since I've been up there, and now it's even more important. Junior spends more time with the 12, and I spend more time with the 11th. That's the way we planned it, and it's the way it's gonna be. And it seems to be working out very well, but I love working on my race car, and making it do what I want it to. And it's like my car, when the sports and races with it, Daytona, I built that in my shop in Charlotte, my crew did, and we oversaw that whole project. And that's the kind of things I like to do. I'm not just a driver, I don't just show up with my helmet, and my uniform, and getting the car and driving. I gotta feel like I'm a part of the whole program, or I'm not happy. - Let's go down to pit road, and then, Jared. - I'm already, we're standing in his pants, he's doing some talking here right now. We'll get back to Junior Johnson in just a moment. - Here's Neil Bonnet putting a bit on Daryl on the outside, and he's gonna get caught in behind Ronnie Thomas, but Walter saw that one coming, and says, "Ha-ha, as he swings out around Ronnie, "to use up some racetrack, "and again, makes Neil come out of the throttle." But Bonnet's not about to give up, as they work toward turn three. - There's no race traffic now for the next short, while Neil Bonnet goes to the high side, snopes those tires, and he gathers them back in, but he can't quite accelerate enough to get by Walter. - This is no tag team deal here, they're going at it in earnest, and here is Bonnet again, diving hard in turn number one. - He uses up a little bit of race car, Waldrip though has the low line, and off the corner is still Waldrip. - Let's go to that Jaren. - For a Junior Johnson, Junior, you're in a member position, having two cars running first and second. What's gonna happen? Any pay which isn't that? - Well, I don't know, man. I just hope when I'm winned a race, you know, an unfinished second. I'm not gonna tell one up to let that win or nothing else. I'm just gonna have to fight that out on the racetrack. It seem to be driving pretty aggressively out there. I mean, there's always a possibility that you could get together and hurt each other. - And this have to get together 'cause I'm not gonna get in it. They're gonna be racing all year like this, and I expect them to respect each other, but I ain't gonna tell 'em not to race each other. - Okay, well, that's the way everybody expected it to be, Barney. - In turn three, Neil Bonnet comes off the high side of the racetrack, has a half problem in the trouble at once. Ron Bouchard looks to have let go of engine down into turn number one. Caution is out, and Bonnet will beat wall trip to the caution flag. Neil Bonnet will be the leader, and it's another heartbreaker for Ron Bouchard. Last week, Dick Brooks flew, and Bouchard went through the smoke, collected the front end of Brooks race card, was out of the Daytona 500. Here he ran second for a long time in this race, and just now loses the engine down. In turn number one, it's the seventh caution of the day. - Well, it's a whole new outlook on this race too, is Neil Bonnet went past Jero Waltrip just before the caution flag, and took over the lead here. Of course, they've been on fit road, and are on fit road making changes, and that will jumble up the field somewhat. It will be wall trip back in the lead, when we go back to the green flag. Bonnet will be the second place car, Ricky Rudd will be third, and Terry Lebani fourth, the way they came off fit road. Next Sunday, MRN will be at Rockingham, North Carolina, it's the Hodgton Carolina 500. Bush pole qualifying on Thursday at Rockingham, and the Bush late model sportsman series in action on Saturday, we're on the air at 12 noon next Sunday with the Hodgton Carolina 500. The ticket office is open right now, so why not give them a call and order your tickets for Winston Cup stock car racing. Ned Jarrett's on his way to have a word with Ron Mujardt. - Mike, we're there right now. Ron has just crawled out of his car. Ron, it just wasn't your day. - Well, I guess it wasn't. We run real super in the beginning there, and we had one set of tires, we couldn't get the stagger, right, really hurt us, and I don't know, something just broke inside the motor. - Well, you were running off like a, sorry to say you have that trouble. - Well, at least it makes you feel good when you run good. We'll be back next week. - They ever get it all hooked up. Ron Mujardt is gonna be in victory lane, I can assure you that. - They started on the outside pole. Ran well, ran in the second spot to Walter for a good part of the first half of this race. Now they're in the garage area. Only the fourth car out of this race. Ronnie Thomas dropped out, came back, and ran a few laps, and then went back to the garage area apparently. David Pearson is out, Bobby Allison is blowing an engine, and now Ron Mujardt is the fourth car out of the race. - They're ready to go back to green next time by. - Walter is back at the head of the class, good pit work again, puts him right back out, ahead of everyone, Neil Bonnet rides second, still hanging on to third spot and trying to move up all afternoon. Good run for Ricky Rudd, and fourth right now is Terry Lebani, those four cars around the lead lap there in turn three. - As they get now, the signal is, follow the pace car, the pace car makes its way on a pit road, and the front row, holding him down to a wall jump, jumps and lets to the restart. - 315 laps are on the board, 316 as they go back under green. So it's gonna be a run for the money right now. - Walter hauls it off in turn number one. Neil Bonnet gets caught in the shuffle and jacked upstairs a little bit, going off in number two corner, he loses a couple of car lengths. - We told you before, the restarts for Walter have been outstanding today. Neil Bonnet down like Bonnet shed by some three car lengths, Ricky Rudd works at the outside of Lake Speed, holding third. - And it'll be the fourth time today a driver's been penalized for his action on the restart. First it was Dave Marcus, then Mike Alexander, then Clark Dwyer, and now it's Harry Gant, the skull bandit will be getting the black flag for going three abreast on the restart. Terry Lebani's moving up in the back stretch. - Lebani worked for the outside of the board in separate and Lake Speed. He can't count Lebani out, he's not run above the first and second spots today, but he's won a consistent race. - Terry hangs on to fourth position, losing a little ground. Right now, Governor Lebani more car lengths, he falls off the pace as they get back into turn number one. Lake Speed shuffles him upstairs a little bit and he'll lose even more ground. But the battle everyone is watching to shape up again will be between Darryl, Walter, and Neil Bonnet. They're right back, just bumper to bumper, as they come in to turn number four, about a half a car like the park, and they had really done some hard-nose racing. And you heard Ned talking to Junior a moment ago, he said, "Let them get out and I don't care what they do "as long as they finish first and second." They're back in turn two. - And also, let's watch whether Ricky Run might be able to chase down those front two cars. The two Budweiser cars still walled him in Neil Bonnet, Bonnet farmed inside, dark shot side, ends up single-mile right behind Walter. - Barney, it'll be hard to take one of those two drivers up front and try to tell either one of them that the other guy should win, or you should back off, or you should run conservative, not have the other guy do it. It's a team of equals. There's, as Neil Bonnet said earlier in the broadcast, they're separate, but equal operations, and if they batter each other's fenders in between here and the checkered flag, well, you know, that's racing. - Well, I really think, and Ned, you've been around Junior as much as I have. I don't think Junior just exactly what he told you. I don't think he'd ever say that you need to win the race and you need to finish second, 'cause he's been a race driver himself. He knows how much it means to win, and he just, I think he's enjoying it as much as Darryl and Neil are. - Well, I don't think there's any question that no, I don't think he would ever say that you need to win, or whatever, even though, you know, if Neil Bonnet could win, he could go on the winner's circle program, which Darryl, of course, is already on, but I don't think that Junior Johnson would let that happen just in tension. I think he's gonna have to earn that victory. You know, while going to talk to Junior, I said they might hurt each other. I mean, hurt each other on the racetrack, not physically hurt each other. - Now, the way they were getting at it, they could easily spin into the guardrail here. They're door to door in turn three. - Bonnet, outside, a wall trip. Neil goes high, stays there. Walt's up on the low side, they'll drag race to the line. - It is Bonnet getting to jump off the corner and buy a foot. He beats wall trip to the line. Down in turn one, Bonnet has the high side. Wall trip's on the bottom of the racetrack. - Identically painted cars with wall trips still staying inside. Neil Bonnet, he has the big push down the back straight away. He'll out dive, wall trip into the turn, but again, using the high groove allows wall trip to try and battle back. - And this crowd is on their feet, and they have been all afternoon watching good battles, but they're watching the two Budweiser cars get at it right now. As they scoot back into turn number one, bought it by half a car link. Darryl down to the inside of the track. That's been wall trip's line all day right at the bottom of the racetrack, and Neil has been running a little high. He pulls away by three car links. - So Neil Bonnet makes the move, and he does pull away, and even while those two cars have been going one against the other, it is not really allowed Ricky Ruskin to close in all that much. - And there's a great battle going on for six spot. The front straightaway, Tim Richmond is on the inside. Dale Earnhardt is on the outside. Those cars are one lap down behind Phil Elliott, so they're racing for six spot out of turn two. - And with Tim Richmond staying down the ball, he'll hear Kelly knows out of the front of Dale Earnhardt. Earnhardt had an idea to look back inside of the back straightaway, but stay single by out of the turn. - That's a good battle. It'll be Earnhardt rather to Richmond in sixth. Earnhardt in seventh, Jeff Bodine is right there in eighth, and ninth is Joe Rutman, and they're all running in one tight pack. - The fans are getting the Nichols' worth you this afternoon in the Miller 400 at Richmond Fairground Raceway. Perfect day, record crowd, they sold every seat in the house. It's early this afternoon, and then jam the stands. - We're under caution again here at Richmond Fairground Raceway. It comes out at lap 332, Trevor Boyes and Dean Combs involved, let's gooty like old. - The two cars came together, Bonnie, as they were coming off turn two, just getting sent to the back straightaway. The cars tagged one another. Trevor Boyes went nose first into the outside guardrail, but has now gotten the car fired again, and he'll lumber away towards the pit area. Dean Combs, which of course is sponsored by Best Products into the car out of Richmond, Virginia. He suffered a good bit of cosmetic damage on the automobile. He's continued around, and a number of the other cars who were running up front will likely also be making pit stops, because a large number of automobiles went over giant chunks of debris, which came flaring off the automobile. So both cars are fired, they're back around towards pit road, and the drivers evidently are okay. - We just see Darrell Walter believing pit road, and they made a four tire change on his car. Here comes Neil Bonnet. - Yes, he was not pleased, I'm sure, with that car, after Bonnet was able to pass him and move away a little bit. Now Bonnet is coming in. After Walter came in and took on four tires, I guess Bonnet had no choice but to come in, and let him at least take a look at the tires. They were filling it up with the gasoline, and as Eli Gold said, there was a lot of debris out on the racetrack, so I'm sure that Bonnet is taking that into consideration in his crew as well, to check the tires over to be sure that they are not cut. Rusty Wallace in, in the Gatorade car number 88, Joe Rutman was in a moment ago, so was Kale Yarbera. So some of the drivers using this caution period again, as an opportunity to come in, change tires, make whatever adjustments that they might want to make, Lake Speed, and the Bullfrog Knits car is one of those that's in the pits right now. - So it's gonna set up the feel for a real shoot out here at Richmond in the Miller 400. Don't count anybody out of this. When four cars are still very much on that lead lap, as it's been as good a race, I think, as we have seen here on this short track in a long time, clean up operations are continuing over in turn number two. - There's a, go ahead Eli. - The folks out there with the push brooms, they picked up the big pieces, and evidently the debris was basically with the big chunks of stuff. They're just now sweeping away some of the speedy dry and some of the small pieces of debris, and it shouldn't be much longer before we're back to racing. - They may have to pull that guardrail out just a little bit. The posts were not moved, but they did put a punch in the guardrail. Well, we're looking down through the field to see if it gets the chameleon change award today. That's for the driver who most improves his qualifying position to his finishing position here in this Miller High Life 400. Dave Marcus, Mike Alexander, Jimmy Hensley, some of the drivers that started at the back of the pack that would have a shot at that one, likewise Phil Parsons at Lake Speed, and perhaps Dale Earnhardt. Earnhardt has gained about 10 positions since they dropped the green flag on this one. The goodies headache award, well, it's anybody's guess. Bobby Allison would be a strong choice, blowing two engines in two weeks and getting his title defense off to a bit of a shaky start. David Pearson's in the garage early, and Ron Bouchard who ran real well here, ran second, qualified second. He's also in the garage area with a blown engine. The crash that just took Trevor Boyes back to pit road, and brought out this latest caution, is the eighth one of the day. Boyes is back on the racetrack, and so has Dean Combs, the other car involved. - Back under green at Fairgrounds Raceway, and they'll run this one, the conclusion here, should we not have another caution, under the green it's gonna be a dandy. The leader is Ricky Rudd, as he pulls away from Darryl Walter by a couple of car links in three. - Walter taking the high groove around one of the other one of the wheels. That's Dale Eliot, further back, of course, Dale Bonant trying to pick his way through the race traffic. - Dale Eliot had himself back in the lead lap a moment ago. Now he goes a lap down again, as they work back into turn number one. - And Budmore's car has always run good here at Richmond. They've won their share of races over the years with different drivers, and right now Ricky Rudd's trying to give him another win this afternoon. They're back in three. - And being from Chesapeake, Virginia, he'd like something better than do it in front of the home state fans, and he's right now keeping Walter from Bay. - Right in the lead here in the Budmore Wrangler car, and I asked him after the super speedway run of Daytona, and trying to get readjusted after the Bush clash crash, is this run of the short track gonna be more physically demanding than trying to run Daytona after that wreck? - Different kind of physical, you know, thank you, you definitely are working harder inside of the race car than your own super speedway. The problem I had at Daytona was, when I got into the banking, the G-force that you feel was stronger than it was, like I'd say, a short track like at Richmond. His problem is gonna be down to the corner because he cannot keep the car down to the bottom of the racetrack, and that has been Walter's strong suit all afternoon, and every time he drifts up, Daryl gets a fender alongside, can't do anything with him over in three right now. Here he comes again. - Walter's face, whoa, Ricky Rudd on the high side, just has to try it out, pull him off the corner. Rudd seems to have the motor to pull him down a straightaway barn and get off that corner, but Daryl dives way in hard in turn number one. Gives Rudd a lot of room on the outside of the racetrack, and they drag race off the corner. - This time with Walter up to the inside, Ricky Rudd has a half car length of advantage, but Walter, this time is dead even as they go on to turn three, using the low side of the racetrack, it's a drag race back to the line. - Coming back down to the line, Walter, by half a car length, Ricky will not give it up, they go door to door, back into turn number one, again, it's Walter, right at the bottom of the racetrack, and the long way around the racetrack is in that outside lane, and Ricky's finding it out, but he has the stuff to get off the corners, he is still door to door. - Keeping that forward wound up on the straightaway, it's not been the key to Ricky Rudd, but this time, Walter virtually with a full car length in front now as they come off the corner. - Well, they've been side by side for the last three laps, and this time, Walter has the lead, Rudd, will he drop in line? Nope, he's staying to that high groove, he's right off the right rear quarter panel of Walter's car, and Walter now establishes a full one car length lead on Ricky Rudd. Labadi is the third place car, and Neil Bonnet right behind him, and fourth, we were talking to Ricky Rudd about the difference on his ribcage between running here on the short track and running a super speedway at Daytona. - At Richmond, my whole right side of sore, and the angle of the bank, and the ring, it keeps you in the turn all day long, keeps me pressed up against the right side of the seat, so I don't think the dizziness is gonna be as bad, but the physical pain will be stronger. - Ned, you don't feel much of that when you're-- - No, you don't, yes, Neil Bonnet has slowed, I believe he has a tower going down, we'll check on him as he comes around, see if he does come into the pits, but he had slowed as he was going around. Here he is down pit road right now, so Neil Bonnet, who made a pit stop, didn't change tires during that last caution, but now they're gonna have to change tires on the right side. Darryl Walter did change tires on his, Budweiser's car number 11, so this is gonna be a costly pit stop for Neil Bonnet, who is still in the thick of the battle for the win, but Darryl Walter comes around now for turn four, so Bonnet goes a lap down. - It's a tough break for him, it's a good possibility he could have cut a tire down, or run over some metal over in turn number two, it was quite a hard crash into that wall, and a lot of chunks of metal went off the car, and when he went right through it, he should have probably sent him right back out, they did not change tires, I would speculate they might have cut a tire down, but whatever the reason, it is a costly one for Neil Bonnet. The laps are winding down here at Fairgrounds Raceway, 350 coming up on the board, 50 to go next time around for the leader right now, Darryl Walter, Ricky Rudd hangs on to second spot, and he is falling back a bit right now, as Walter has pulled away, he lied by better than a second and a half. - Right, it's not our fact, we just got the clock on him as they came by, 1.94 seconds, so right there are two seconds, Ricky Rudd trying to gamely hang on, but as you say his car is still not working as well as the turns, and you spend a good bit of time with the turns here at Richmond, that's very much the case. - That battle for sixth spot is still a good one, it's still Tim Richmond up against the three car of Dale Earnhardt, and they have been battling back and forth, they are one lap down as is Bill Elliot the fifth place car, in fact we've not mentioned today is that Elliot still running his 1982 Thunderbird, not the aerodynamic newer model, they still have a couple of those cars that they have downgraded to short track duty, for the 84C's in any city, they're not going to change the newer sheet metal until they use these cars up, and places like Richmond will do a good job of that, won't they? - You can use up a gang of sheet metal here, you can use up a truck load right quick, you've just joined a broadcast and wondering how David Pearson and Cale Jarborough are faring here at the Miller 400 this afternoon, Pearson went out earlier this afternoon with mechanical problems, still running his Cale Jarborough, that they've done a 500 winner, he's currently posted in 14th position, he has three laps off the pace, and Cale remembers the good old days we were talking about when he was in junior Johnson's car some years ago, how good it was for him on the short tracks with junior. - I did, yeah, I enjoyed running the short tracks, we had a real good short track record when I was with junior, and I'm looking forward to getting back on the short track, I know even though it's been a long time, I think it's kind of like running the bottom, you don't have to be dead, you might be a little in practice, but I hope we're dead after. - Now the two Lake Norman neighbors, Tim Richmond and Dale Earnhardt have been going at it pretty strong for the last 50 laps, and that's for a position on the racetrack, they are riding on the same lap, one lap behind the leader right now, Darryl Walter, Ricky Rudd, and Terry Labadi as they work their way around the speedway, they've been running just the same kind of lines we saw a moment ago between Ricky Rudd and the leader Darryl Walter, with Earnhardt having to run a little bit high, Richmond running low, now they've reversed that, and Dale takes it right now to the bottom of the racetrack, and they go door to door in the back shoe. - Let's see what kind of blue, Earnhardt can put on from the both side, well for the moment, who looks at Richmond staying right there, but as Richmond goes way high in the corner, that's going to get Earnhardt an opportunity, but he can't get off the corner in Zion. - Here comes Neil Bonnet, he's part of that battle for the fifth position, he moves up as the two cars are side by side, and turn one again on the low side, Earnhardt, on the high side, Richmond, and taking the high groove with him as Bonnet. - Neil Bonnet now trying to find himself in racing room, he's got Marcus to the inside of him, Dave now backs off, and Neil's takes the low road, he'll follow Earnhardt through the turn with Tim Richmond going well upstairs. - Bonnet's been coming around the racetrack at about 22 seconds flat, and this late in the race, as slippery as the racetrack is, that is a good lap time here at Richmond. He gets down underneath Earnhardt and Richmond this time, and it looks like he's going to scoot by both as they go off the number two, turning up the back stretch. - We are sailing this time, no racetrack but Neil's going to tuck in behind Dale Earnhardt, didn't think he could out dive him into the corner, so for the moment it single-file. - Back to the start finish line, Earnhardt pulls him off the corner this time, Bonnet has dispensed with Tim Richmond now, works on Dale Earnhardt down in turn number one, and they're both taking that high line through the corner this time, as there's traffic all the way around the racetrack, you've got to be extremely careful when and where you pass, they're back and free. - Morgan Shepard's car is still staying there and watching that three-car battle in front of him, Neil Bonnet now letting Earnhardt work his way around Dean Colmes. - Blimping along is Thark Dwyer, he'll put his car behind the wall, and Dean Colmes almost collects him down in turn number one, right as part of that battle continues, coming off the corner, Earnhardt still leads Bonnet. - Earnhardt to the outside, retaining wall, Bonnet behind him, and now Morgan Shepard bangs on the rear deck of Dave Marcus's car, and Morgan pulls further off the bus. - The whole caution is out. - We've got a lot of debris on the back straightaway mic, they have thrown the caution we see, it's because Morgan Shepard and Marcus got together, and the back stretch is now littered with debris from those two automobiles. - That's a combination of two things, Clark Dwyer's car has come to rest down between turns one and two also, so that will bring out the ninth caution flag of the afternoon on lap 367. We're about set to get back at it and conclude the Miller 400 here at Richmond Fairground Raceway, as this has been a break for Ricky Rudd, he came in and then he changed all four tires, if he's got anything left at all, he ought to be able to do it now. - Yes, they had to pull out all stops, Barney, and give it your best shot. So did Terry Labani in the Piedmont Airlines car, so both of those cars has own fresh tires, Walter stayed out, his car was working very well, apparently to his satisfaction, so he said, "I'm gonna go with what I got." Neil Bonnet also came in, but Barney, he has a lap down. - They're in front of Eli Gold. - That's how the front four cars line up, Walter, then Ricky Rudd, followed by Terry Labani and Bonnet, double-file the fast cars to the outside. - Quick restart as they come off that corner in a hurry, and Walter tries to get away from Ricky Rudd, and he succeeds by a couple of car links as they get back into turn number one. It's now or never for Ricky, as a lapser winding down, 372 on the board as they go off turn two and head to Eli Gold in three. - Your basic sprint upcoming as the field lumber's passed us on the restart. - Ricky Rudd right there, filling up the rear view of Darryl Walter. Further back, Labani and Neil Bonnet got shuffled in traffic. - Rudd hangs onto him, half a car link back, this time as they're getting one, about six car links back. That's the third place car. The Piedmont Airlines machine of Terry Labani, and he is dispensing with Dale Earnhardt, and he may be able to catch up to the front two. They're back in three. - Labani's run a very solid race, we talked about it earlier. He got by Earnhardt to the inside. Neil Bonnet though having trouble getting by both Richard Petty and Earnhardt. - Ricky Rudd is right where he was last September, except this time it's Wall Trippies chasing instead of Bobby Allison, as it's Chevrolet versus Ford off turn two. - This time, Wall Tripp comes off the corner, Ricky Rudd looks outside, certainly nothing there, and he'll decide to hold tight until they get the turn three. Rudd thought about again trying outside, but the side single file is best. - Yeah, this is where experience pays off. Darryl is a master at making young drivers use up their equipment. I think he did a little bit of that to Ricky earlier, when they went on that restart a little bit earlier this afternoon, right now he's making him work, running the corner very hard, get on the throttle, on the brakes, and use up as much car as he can. - Yes, he is a master at that, Barney, and that's very important right now in this point of the race, because if he can make Ricky use up the tires, basically is what he's making him do, is he makes him run hard down in the corner and he puts the brakes on, and then Ricky has to do likewise, and that puts a little more pressure on Ricky's tires, and that's what Darryl's trying to make him do now, is heat those tires up a little bit, because he feels that he will be able to pull away if Ricky's tires do start giving up a little bit on him. - Ricky's putting all the pressure on Walter Pecan, but Walter is in the catbird seat right now, he has the line into the corner, so he can take him in at his pace, his speed. - Barney, the tenths point in the racetrack, though, is well behind them. All those cars that are one lap down are all in a row. Bonnet jumps underneath Dale Earnhardt. Bill Elliott is there. Tim Richman, Jeff Bodine, and here he can turn two. - There's tightly tied together. Neil Bonnet tried to move to the inside of Dale Earnhardt, but Earnhardt shuts down the low groove, so it's Earnhardt. - Bonnet now, Dale Elliott. Charlotte's back on the outside. - Earnhardt gets a little tap from Neil Bonnet, as they came into the fourth corner, now scoots away from him by half a car link, but there is a good hard scramble going on about among six or seven cars, as they go off that number two corner again. Here goes Rudd for the lead in three. - Ricky's alongside Walter, using the high side of the racetrack. They touch between turns three and four, and Walter comes out ahead. - It's a partisan Virginia crowd, they want to see their home state drive removed to the front against Walter, but under green flag racing, Ricky goes way high in turn number one, but he draws even here in turn two, tries to pull up alongside again. - Meanwhile, Clark Dwyer is just about come to a stop between turns three and four, watching that car, the leaders go by. Walter, mid-side of Ricky Rudd, Terry Lebond, be watching from third. - Drag race off the fourth corner with Ricky Rudd and Darryl Walker door-to-door, and Ricky would have wanted if that had been the checkered flag lap by less than four or five inches, as Clark Dwyer trying to get his car out of traffic, up in the south end of the speedway, finally gets down on the apron of the track, and Ricky Rudd has a lead in three. - Ricky Rudd picks a move on, takes Walter, but here comes Darryl right back, as Rudd opens the door by going way high in the turn. - Ricky will look pretty good push going into that corner, but the crowd is on its feet as their home state driver is taking the lead here. Walter doesn't want to let him keep it, he's right underneath Rudd, dead even, Ricky comes off the corner and holds the lead. - This one is a dandy, that board just stays revved up, coming off the corner, and now pulls by a car lane, and this time Ricky Rudd's able to keep the car low on the right track. - And Neil Vaudet comes flying out of that pack of traffic back in the field to work his way up and try to chase down the leaders, he's gonna get high up and turn four, and Earnhardt will almost get under him as they come out of the corner, along with Tim Richmond and Jeff Bodine and Harry Gant, man's scramble back there, but the battle everyone has been watching is Ricky Rudd and Darryl Walker, and for the moment, Rudd is out front by just about a car lane. - Ricky Rudd, the Chesapeake Virginia driver and Budmore's Rancro Thunderbird is the leader. Darryl Walter, the junior Johnson, Budweiser Chevrolet in second, and Billy Hagen Chevrolet, the Piedmont Airlines car for Terri Labadi third. One lap back, that battle has pretty much sorted out. Fourth is Bill Elliott, fifth is Neil Vaudet, side by side for sixth, Tim Richmond and Dale Earnhardt, side by side for eight, Harry Gant and Jeff Bodine, a knife and Joe Rutman, and there isn't a car in the racetrack that doesn't have somebody else's pain on it, somewhere, they're in the back stretch. - And Joe Rutman's still running well. Remember earlier when he lost that time when the tennis got caught in pit road area, when the Carson Star came out, but he's running well at this moment. - Some of the wildest hardest knocking short track racing we've seen in years, there are five cars going at it for fifth spot. Right now, Earnhardt is fifth, and Harry Gant has climbed his way up the ladder, right underneath Tim Richmond, who's seven, Bodine is eight, and ninth is Joe Rutman, they are a lap and a half behind the leaders, and a point of battle for that fifth spot. Up front it's Ricky Rudd, wall trip is right now watching and waiting. With third place Terri Labadi in fourth place, one lap down, Bill Elliott, fifth place Neil Vaudet, and then that battle for six right behind him, five cars all stacked up in a pile. - This partisan crowd of Virginians this afternoon, cheering on right now, young Ricky Rudd, and the Ranger Ford of Bud More, as he has pulled away from Darrow Walter by about three or four car lengths, then back in the field, they've been switching their heads back and forth, watching the battles from fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth back in there all afternoon. Right now, Ricky Rudd is still pulling away from Darrow Walter by about three or four car lengths, as they exit turn number two. - Those two cars holding their own right now, but further back, Terri Labadi, he holds down the third position, right behind him, Bill Elliott Star, then comes Neil Vaudet, but then the big battle. - Third boy, San Richmond, Harry Gadd, Jeff Vodine, and Joe Rutt, and those cars tightly tied together. - And it's gonna be a good scramble for that third spot. It looks like two as they work back into turn number one, as Bill Elliott's trying to get his car lined up to get underneath Terri Labadi, no place to go that time, they're running up on the tail end of Jimmy Means back in three. - So, Labadi's face single-flower with Bill Elliott right behind him. Labadi gives Elliott the low side but again Jimmy Means is there, so Terri comes down on top. - I'll Ricky Rudd, the leader, heads back into turn number one, Walter, taking the inside groove. Ricky Rudd for the moment seems to have the measure of Darryl Walker, and it looks like Walter's car's not working as good coming off the corners as it was earlier this afternoon, because that's where Rudd is getting stronger. He is now able to stick his right at the bottom of the racetrack, take the short way around, and he pads his distance even more. He has pulled away from Walter now by about 10 car lengths. They're back in turn number two. - And Martin, the folks here on the back stretch, without even looking at the cars, can tell which one is doing better. You look at the driver, and all of a sudden now, Walter, in the last 10 or 15 laps coming off turn two, is really man-handling the automobile, right and left, right and left, trying to find the good chest. Meanwhile, Ricky Rudd almost effortlessly comes off the corner. - Like that battle for fifth, sixth, and seventh, you see the tire smoking on Harry Gant's car, along with the rest of the field, including Earnhardt and Richmond and everyone else as they come screaming off that fourth corner. - It will be two laps to go next time by for the young Chesapeake, Virginia driver, Ricky Rudd. Walter now has clear sailing to try and catch him, but he's got about eight car lengths to go. The fans waving him on, it's two to go, as Rudd takes the blue and yellow Wrangler forward, back to turn two. - Ricky's going to have some traffic to contend with. Hale Yarbrough is the car directly ahead, but pulls to the inside. Lake Speed and Greg Shacks automobiles, and a couple of other cars. Likewise, Trevor Boyes and Lenny Pond are close ahead. - And an anxious but more in his team are standing on pit road watching this one unfold, hoping that Ricky Rudd can pull it out. White flag as he scoots back into turn number one, and he is far ahead of Walter now by about seven or eight car lengths, has two cars positioned between himself and Darryl, he's in the back stretch. - Ricky Rudd, he's not going to press it now. He's sandwiched in behind Lake Speed ahead of Hale Yarbrough. Walter's not a factor, as Ricky Rudd takes his time in turn three and four. - Here's Ricky Rudd out of turn number four, will come down to the line, take the checkered flag, and win the Miller 400. His first win ever here at the Richmond Fairground Raceway, he waves to the crowd, Walter will come across the line and finish in second position. And that looks like Terry Lebani will finish third, and fourth will be Bill Elliot. - Elliot will be fourth, fifth will be Neil Bonnet, and sixth will be Dale Earnhardt, seventh is Tim Richmond, eighth is Harry Gant, and finishing ninth will be Jeff Bodine, tenth will go to Joe Rutman. Not since 1963, when Joe Weatherly drove to victory lane, has a driver from the state of Virginia, won this race at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, and Ricky Rudd, a bit battered and a bit bruised from a terrifying crash two weeks ago, will now drive the Budmoor car to victory lane. We'll be going to victory lane in just a moment at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, this is MRN, the Motor Racing Network. (upbeat music) - NASCAR today continues on the Motor Racing Network. (upbeat music) - Well, on since 1963 is a Virginia driver gone to victory lane in this race at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, let's go down to victory lane and net gerant. - Well, Ricky Rudd has just called out of the Wrangler Ford, a very happy individual, Ricky, congratulations. - Well, thank you Ned, I'm telling this whole Wrangler bunch did a super job today. I'm telling you, we lived at the limit today, but I went in this one, I'm telling you, the competition was tough. Budmoor was making adjustments at the end of the race on the car and it hit it just right. - Well, coming in and changing tires on that last caution, that seemed to make a big difference. - Well, it did, I saw Daryl and stayed out. We had damaged the front end settings early in the race, and I was really a little bit worried, I didn't think I could run with him, but made some adjustments on the last pit stop, I think, and straightened this wheel back up that was bent, and the car really went to running then. - Ricky, how about you personally? Of course, you came here with injuries from that wreck in the bush clash, but you seem to make it okay. - Well, I made it, Ned, I owe a lot to David Wheeler, he came all the way up here from Charlotte to help work with me, and he's been here all week, taping my ribs up and working with me, and if it wasn't for him, I'm sure I wouldn't have been able to go the distance. - Well, it's nice to get that first win of the 1984 season. - I'm telling you, I couldn't believe it at the end of the race, everything just kind of went too easy for us, especially when I saw I could run with Darryl like that at the end. - Of course, we've heard Linda, his wife, on some of the commercials earlier here this afternoon, I know you were a happy lady, too. - No, I can't believe it, when Darryl was running so good, I just thought he was gonna get it, but when we had that last caution, Ricky got out front, we just went wild in the pits. - Okay, and they're going wild here in Victory Lane, too. - That's a story from Victory Lane. We'll hope to get a word with Bud Moore down there, the owner of that race car. We'll go back to Victory Lane in a moment, right now, let's check with Jerry Punch. - We're standing wide, Darryl's standing here, just climbed out of the car, Darryl, a super race today, a heck of a finish. - Well, we did everything but went to race, and we run out of tires, believe it or not. We didn't have a set to put on it at the end, so we had to stay out and run what we had, and the other boys must have come in and got some tires that they had saved or something, 'cause we just flat run out, and we thought that staying out would be better than putting another U set on, and so that's what happened. - Like that, Marty, everybody back home and thank the good Lord for a safe race. - Well, that's their altar up, and of course, they said, Marty, you mentioned about the car getting loose, last few laps, and Darryl said definitely, the car was getting a little bit loose, and he said the tire problem, in fact, they run out of tires may have cost him the race, but he's happy with a good second place finish. - Well, I think they had an outstanding run, he and Neil both, and you couldn't see any better short track racing than we saw here this afternoon, and it is a heartbreaker, not to have a set of tires, and watch him doodle it out, the bumper to bumper, wheel to wheel the last couple of laps, but I think this one had a little bit of everything. - It certainly did, Barney, and car owner Bud Moore is known just about everything now from frustration to victory, all in the span of two short weeks, and see if Ned Jarrett's caught up with him. - He's standing right beside me, Mike Joy, but congratulations, some good strategy, everything worked out well. - Well, in the head, with a little worried tire when Bodine hit him in the left front and bent the toe on it, so it did have the wheel bent a little bit, so with a little bit worried about that, he couldn't run in the bottom like we'd like to, after we got the front wheel bent, but then we adjusted the stagger on the tires on the livestock with weight, maybe hoping to get those tires on, when we got them on it, that's what meant the difference. - But a lot of the fans don't realize what some of the things that you have to go through on a race day, adjustments that you have to make, and really adjust to the circumstances as they change. - Well, you know, Ned, we were juggling the tire pressure on the right side, the left side, we were juggling the stagger on the front and the rear, and it took us a little time. We knew what to do, but when we got the toe bent on the car, then the car pushed real bad getting in the corner, so I had to adjust the stagger on the tire to stop the car from pushing in the corner, so when we made the livestock, we knew we were pretty well close, so we got that set of tires on, that's made the difference. - Well, fans, when he talked about the toe, he's talking about the toe in, and that's what either the wheels run both straight ahead, of course, normally on these race cars, on a short track bud, you'd run it, what about an eighth, an inch, so well? - No, Ned, we run about a quarter toe out, but I imagine right now as bad as this bend, it's probably got three quarter of an inch, which that was hurting it real bad, but once we got the stagger adjusted on, that helped stop the car from pushing some bad getting in the corner, this helped. - Good win for the Ranger team. - Well, even if you're hurting real bad, that trip to Victory Lane can make you feel real good. - Ricky Rudd and Bud Moore, the Ranger team, continue to get congratulations down in Victory Lane, it's time for us to take a swing around and pull our MRN broadcasters on the time X, timely, it's move with the race award. And first, let's go to Eli Gold. - Well, Barney, you'd like to give it to a driver sometimes, and you try and think of who kept their car straight after getting hit today, and you could probably give it to the entire field on that basis, but you can't look past what Bud Moore has done. Ricky Rudd had a heck of a day himself driving out there, but Bud, with the explanation he just gave to Ned, taking advantage of that final pit stop and others either couldn't or just didn't, and it of course resulted in Victory. I'd give the money and the time X award to Bud Moore. - Let's go down to Ned Jarrett for his vote. - I'd have to concur with that, Barney, because that was a very timely move, no question about it. It resulted, I think, in them being here in Victory Lane. - Well, I think Ricky made some timely moves out there also, so I kind of have to make it unanimous and go with the Ranger team this afternoon. - I'd go with Bud Moore, Barney. He's been one of the master strategists in NASCAR racing for years, and right here, despite the all-day dominance of the junior Johnson Warner Hodgdon team, Darryl Watrop and Neil Bonnet leading the race, Bud made the move that paid off and got him to Victory Lane. It was a timely one indeed, and we'll award that money from Time X for the timeliest move of the race to Bud Moore and his Ranger team today. The goodies headache award to the driver who suffered the biggest misfortune in this race is voted by all of the media in attendance. It's been voted to Ron Bouchard. He'll pick up that money from the goodies headache people down in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. That money and a sample of goodies will hopefully help to cure his headache. They've had a couple of good runs now in two weeks, but just haven't been able to finish one and come home strong. One thing that Ricky Rudd had asked us to mention is just about the outpouring of fan support after he crashed that car down in Daytona Beach in the Bush clash, and he did want to personally. Thank everybody for all their support and their outpouring of feeling after he wrecked that car. - Well, Mike, I guess if there's any good came out of that accident at Daytona, is the one thing that I did learn is that there's a lot of people all over the country that really has been supportive of me, a lot of fan support, a lot of concerned people, a lot of phone calls at a hospital, people from all over the country, hundreds of calls. So I really would like to thank all the people that did call and are concerned, and I really appreciate it. I think that's, if anything, it's helped me get better a little bit quicker. - Well, winning this race today, Barney, sure helped him get better in hurry. - That's for sure. There's one other thing we'd also like to clarify. Dick Brooks asked us to make an announcement on our broadcast today that I had completely forgotten up until now. There was a rumor that seemed to have gotten started at Daytona last week that Dick Brooks' father had passed away, and Dick said he didn't have really have any idea how that rumor got started, but he had a lot of calls and people calling to express their condolences at that, and that is not the case at all. His father is ill in California, but he is doing rather well. At least Dick said yesterday, and he said he thanked the people for calling, but that he would like to put an end to that rumor as quickly as he could. - Well, I wish him a hello, and also wanted Doug Richard, who's listening up. He'd like to help Neil Bonitz team go to victory here today, and he's on the recovery list as well from what happened down there at Daytona, and wish him well up in North Wilkesboro and a hurry back to the Winston Cup circuit. Well, the finish is coming across from timing and scoring. We'll tell you about next weekend. We'll be at Rockingham, North Carolina. The Hodgdon Carolina 500, airtime is noon on MRN. Still plenty of time to pick up your tickets for that race. Two weeks from today will be at Daytona Beach for the motorcycles. The Daytona 200 and the Wrangler Supercross. Three weeks from now will be at Atlanta. Atlanta International Raceway for their spring race, and we'll finish up the month of March back of at Martinsville, Virginia. The Miller Time 500, the double header for NASCAR Modifies and Late Model Sportsmen. Looking ahead to April is something you might want to mark on your calendar if you're in the Virginia Piedmont area of North Carolina, and that's the Roanoke Transportation Museum's fifth annual NASCAR motor racing weekend, April 21st and 22nd. A lot of the cars and drivers will be there. Terry Lebani, Ricky Rudd, Joe Rutman, Tim Richmond, Ronnie Thomas, Trevor Boyes, among the drivers that have already committed to show up there at the museum. You've got to look at some old time and classic automobiles and trains and other modes of transportation. Very interesting facility up there at the Roanoke Transportation Museum. That's April 21st and 22nd. The largest purse ever posted in the East for a tractor pole will be right here at Richmond, May 5th and 6th, as part of the Wrangler Championship Pulling Series, $70,000 on the line, right here at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. And today in the 7/11 Miles Lead category, Darryl Waltrip, who won that championship last year, moved into the lead. He's led 412 miles of Winston Cup racing in two events. Kayle Yarbroughs led 222, and Richard Petty has led 60 miles. That's the standings there today. And Barney Hall has a look at today's finish. Ricky Rudd, of course, pulling off the victory here this afternoon, finishing second. Darryl Waltrip, third spot, going to Terry Lebani. Fourth will be Bill Elliott, finishing in fifth. Neil Bonnet, sixth spot, going to Dale Earnhardt. Seventh to Tim Richmond. Harry Gantt will finish eighth, ninth as Jeff Bodine. 10th is Joe Rutman. 11th will be Dave Marcus, finishing in 12th Lake Speed. 13th position this afternoon will go to Morgan Shepherd. Finishing 14th is Kayle Yarbrough. 15th to Richard Petty. 16th spot, going to Rusty Wallace. 17th position to Phil Parsons. 18th to Dick Brooks, 19th to Kyle Petty. 20th will go to Lenny Pond. 21st will go to Mike Alexander. Jimmy Hensley will finish 22nd. Finishing 23rd, J.D. McDuffey. Greg Sacks will finish in 24th position. Dean Combs, 25th, Trevor Boyes will finish 26. The 27th position will go to Young Clark Dwyer, finishing in 28th as Jimmy Means, 29th spot, going to Ron Bouchard. 30th is Bobby Allison. Finishing 31st is Ronnie Thomas. And 32nd spot will go to David Pearson. And that's the way they finish this afternoon. Average speed for the winner, 76.736 miles an hour. And the rookie point battle, the Champions Park flag rookie standings, real tight battles shaping up there based on the first two races. Rusty Wallace is the rookie of the race today. And he will move up into second place in the rookie standings. Excuse me, he'll climb in the rookie standings. But Phil Parsons, the second finishing rookie today, will lead that standings with 19. Greg Sacks will be second with 17 points. Dean Combs and Rusty Wallace will be tied with 15. 13 points for Clark Dwyer and six for Doug Hevron. And the manufacturers championship, Trevor Lay and Ford. Now go to Rockingham with one win apiece. Chevy leading the point standings there, 15 to 11. The fans began to file out. They saw a dandy here this afternoon with Ricky Rudd pulling off his win. And some good luck is due for Bud Moore and that Ranger team. Well, they sure got a bit today. Darryl Watrop and Neil Bonnet, the Hodgden Johnson team, ran a super race, just kind of ran out of tires toward the finish there. And Ricky Rudd and some sharp pit work on the part of Bud Moore and his crew enabled them to run to victory. And I bet Ricky is sore after all the backslaps. He's gotten in victory lane, but he's going to be a happy fellow. But a sore one tonight, still recuperating. He told us earlier in the broadcast from those injuries sustained at Daytona when he flipped that car in the Bush class. It'll all be worth it. That comedian change award, our speculation the way we have it on our scoring should be Dave Marcus, who moved up 18 spots in the field. Dave started 29th here this afternoon, had a real good finish coming up in 11th position. So he will get the comedian change award this afternoon here at Richmond. And Barney, with that race we saw today, and especially with that scramble for the fifth spot, those cars one lap down, and what looked like it was going to be a giant traffic jam. And Paolo right here at the start finish line on the last lap. The fans certainly got their money's worth today, and it's indicative of the season that I think we're going to see in Winston Cup racing. There's just so many competitive cars. And a lot of the cars that were in that battle from fifth on back got caught down a lap early in that first 80 lap run of green flag racing before the first caution flag. But it's going to be quite a show of Rockingham one week from today. Well, that's what Winston Cup racing is about. We said it all last year. We've said it for the last several seasons. You can have three or four cars running up there in a bunch for the lead, and all three of those cars can have problems and go out. And then from fourth position on back, there's still a heck of a battle all day long. That's just what Winston Cup racing is about. And I think it's going to continue at Rockingham next week. We'll look forward to it. A lot of interest in NASCAR racing. The Bush Sportsman Series got off to a great start at Daytona with the Daytona goodies 300. And here with the Wrangler 150 yesterday afternoon, won by Sam Aard. And renewed interest in the modified division as well. The Winston Circle of Champions is a new program. They put eight drivers on kind of a winter circle program for the NASCAR modifieds up in the Northeast. That'll be a new championship program. We'll take a look at that at Martinsville when we do our Miller High Life 500 broadcast and update you on that one as we go through the season here on the motor racing network. So a lot of great racing to come. It all picks up again next weekend at Rockingham North Carolina, Bush Pole qualifying Thursday on Saturday. The Sportsman race, and on Sunday at noon, we're on the air with the Hodgdon Carolina 500. Our thanks to Eli Gold, who covered the action out in turn three, Ned Jarrett, two time Winston Cup champion, and Dr. Jerry Punch on the pit road. Our chief engineer, Bryant Cooper, our general manager and director today, John McMullen, Louise Frazier, and Martha Mewe, working on the scoring loop, helping provide those rundowns to keep your rest of the drivers back in the field. For Barney Hall, this is Mike Joy congratulating Ricky Rudd on his Richmond victory. We'll speak to you next Sunday from Rockingham North Carolina. Motor Racing Network Classics is a production of the motor racing network with studios in Concord, North Carolina. Remember to visit mrn.com for all the latest news and information. Any use of the accounts or descriptions contained in this broadcast must be with the express written permission of NASCAR and the motor racing network.