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| | Friday, September 24 Who's next? Several still searching for No. 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| This week it's the Monster Mile at Dover, Del. And who knows what could happen this time around? Could we see another first-time winner? It's always a wait-and-see situation, but the last two races have certainly put a little spark in the sport. And maybe, just maybe, it could happen again this week. Johnny Benson was seventh at Dover in June. He was also seventh this past Sunday in New Hampshire. Those are his two best finishes of 1999.
It could be a new face in Victory Lane, but it won't be easy. Dover didn't get the nickname "The Monster" for the traffic coming in and out of the track, although it could have. It's called The Monster because it is tough on engines, equipment and drivers. The MNBA Gold 400 is the 27th race of the Winston Cup season. Mark Martin is the defending champion, while Bobby Labonte won here in June. Dale Jarrett won here in June of 1998. In other words, the guys that are first, second and third in the Winston Cup points, have won the past three races at "The Monster." That should tell you that a driver has to be good to win at Dover.Jarrett carries a healthy 254-point lead in the standings over Labonte into Dover. Martin, who slipped to third last week, is 18 points behind Labonte. Then it's 17 points back to fourth-place Tony Stewart and another 107 to Jeff Burton. None of them may catch Jarrett, but the race for second should be something to watch.
Labonte won from the pole in June, but Jarrett finished fifth after starting second. Jarrett was seventh here last September and won here last May. That's three top-seven finishes in the last three races. The Ford Quality Care crew would love to win this week, just like every week. But they have posted disappointing finishes in three of the last four races. At Loudon, Dale Jarrett make a couple of driving errors. Actually, they were pit stall parking errors, running over an air hose and then leaving his right side tires outside the pit box. I was really surprised by both mistakes. They were unforced errors, created by impatience in a situation where Dale could stand to be the most patient guy on the track. I think two lessons were learned in that sequence. The first one, Jarrett is racing every lap of every race. He saw an opportunity and jumped at it, only he jumped too soon. The second lesson learned? Patience. Patience. Patience. It's tough, but I don't expect to see any mistakes from Jarrett caused by impatience. That Winston Cup trophy is waiting for him in Victory Lane at Atlanta. He could win it before then, but by using his talent and taking his time, he should certainly win it.In seven of the last nine races, Mark Martin has posted a top-ten finish. However, in the past two races, he has finished 17th in Loudon and 35th in Richmond. Costly finishes that have dropped him to third in points. When the season is over, Jarrett's subpar finishes in New Hampshire, Darlington and Bristol will all be remembered. But what shouldn't be forgotten is that at critical times in big races, when Jarrett briefly stumbled, no one was able to make a major move to threaten Jarrett. In June, four of the top five guys that are chasing Jarrett finished in front of him at Dover. Labonte, Gordon, Martin and Stewart (in order of finish), but they could only make up a handful of points. There are eight races remaining on the schedule, a handful of points here and there aren't going to amount to much. Here's something else to start watching for: Guys that have won a race this year, but should have won more. This list is headed by Rusty Wallace. Wallace has eight straight top-20 finishes, but just four top-10s -- and no wins. Wallace has won just twice in the past 88 races, but that's not as unsettling as the fact that Wallace should be contending, and winning, races at Richmond, Loudon, Bristol and Dover. Terry Labonte falls in the same category. He won at Texas and got robbed at Bristol, but has been remarkably inconsistent. I don't usually think of Labonte as a threat at Dover. But he could this week, and he certainly should challenge next week at Martinsville. Maybe Ward Burton is worth watching this week (talk about inconsistent). Or Jeremy Mayfield, ninth at Dover in June, even after running out of gas. Points are always important, but as we get ready to race into October, so is pride. There could be more than one big winner on Sunday, and that could generate plenty of excitement throughout the afternoon. But the big story should be the same story: How is Dale Jarrett running, and where did he finish? | ALSO SEE Yocum: Jarrett's title train pulls into Dover
Labonte usually good to the last drop at Dover
Stewart simply taking NASCAR by storm
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