Winston Cup Rookie?.............. Tony Stewart
Tony drove the first half of the season like he was trying to outrun those yellow stripes on his back bumper that designate his car as being driven by a rookie. While maintaining a strong lead in the rookie points over Elliott Sadler for Rookie of The Year honors, he is sitting in sixth position in the Winston Cup Championship points standings. He hasn't won a race yet, but he's won over a million dollars, with four finishes in the top five, and nine finishes in the top ten.
Tony has one Bud Pole win and a couple of second place starts, so far, so we'll see him in the Bud Shootout next February. With one DNF (did not finish) and a couple of poor qualifying attempts , his starting average to date is 13.5, and his average finishing position is 12.25 while completing 70% of laps available.. When you consider that there are 43 positions, you would have to say that he's knocking at the front door, and is working hard to be a major competitor.
The next three months will tell the story. I'd like to see Tony keep his momentum and have a great rookie season. Sadler still has an outside chance to catch Tony for Rookie of The Year, but Tony would have to have three DNF's and some poor finishes, while Buckshot would have to get his act together and pile up some solid finishes. Lady luck has a way of changing things. Keep an eye on this one.
Dale Jarrett won the race, but there's a controversy brewing over the finish. To begin with, it ended under caution, taking away Dale Earnhardts chance to mount a finishing challenge, which he contends he would have won. Earnhardt didn't think that Jarrett had enough fuel because of the abbreviated pit stop he made for a splash of fuel, while he (Earnhardt) took on fuel and right side tires. He figured Jarrett would run out of gas, as well as not being able to compete with worn tires. But, the caution saved Jarrett, allowing him to take the checkered flag with the yellow, along with a purse of over $164,000. It was his third win of this season, and the 21st of his career. Sitting at the top of the WC championship points standings, he has 15 finishes in the top ten so far this season, with 13 of them in the top five.
Pepsi 400...........
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