Twice is nice

Stewart wins second consecutive Budweiser Shootout

Tony Stewart won $200,955 for 70 laps of work Sunday. AP

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- Rules nearly overshadowed racing Sunday in the Budweiser Shootout.

A mostly single-file race turned into, well, a shootout at the end, with Tony Stewart winning for the second consecutive year with an Earnhardt in his rearview mirror.

On Sunday, it was Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Stewart's rear bumper right to the finish line in the race that is considered a sneak preview of next weekend's Daytona 500.

Last year, Stewart outdueled Dale Earnhardt Sr. in the made-for-TV event at Daytona International speedway, just a week before the seven-time Winston Cup champion was killed in the Daytona 500.

"Winning that race last year with that black No. 3 in my mirror was the highlight of my career," Stewart said. "But this was just like last year. He may have 'Junior' behind his name, but he drives like Senior."

Two-Pack of Bud Click the image to launch the clip Tony Stewart says he had to battle Dale Earnhardt Jr. to capture his second Bud Shootout title. Start Video Plus Visit Video Plus for all the latest video and audio.

Jeff Gordon, the reigning Winston Cup champion, was also part of the exciting finish. The four-time champ drew the last starting spot in the 22-car field but worked his No. 24 Chevrolet into position to make a run at the leader near the end of the 70-lap event.

Stewart, the Winston Cup runner-up last year, led a five-car breakaway in the waning laps, pulling Earnhardt Jr., Sterling Marlin, Ken Schrader and Gordon in a tight single file for lap after lap. Finally, six laps from the end, Gordon, who seemed to be one of the few drivers who could consistently pass other cars, made a move around Schrader on the high side to take fourth. Gordon and Schrader then combined to pass Marlin two laps from the end.

On the final trip around the 2 1/2-mile oval, Gordon chose the high side of the banked oval and got alongside Earnhardt. The two bogged down coming off the fourth turn, and Stewart's No. 20 Pontiac won by about a car length as Earnhardt's Chevy edged Gordon for second.

Stewart fell to fifth, just behind Earnhardt, after the two made their mandatory green-flag pit stops on lap 40 and 41, respectively. It took Stewart only until lap 47 to move back to the lead, with Earnhardt in second.

"I think I learned something there," Stewart said. "But that's something I'm going to keep in my back pocket for next weekend.

Ken Schrader still gets a kick out of mixing it up during a race. After 17 years of Winston Cup series competition, the 47-year-old still enjoys the thrill of competition. Complete story, click here.

"I was good behind Junior and in front of him," said Stewart, who averaged 181.295 mph as he won $200,955. "I knew it was going to be between us at the end."

With NASCAR's latest aerodynamic rules turning Daytona racing into mostly single-file competition and making passing a chore, Earnhardt said there was no way he was going to overtake Stewart.

"I would have had a better shot, but I felt like the race was over going into Turn 1 on the last lap," Earnhardt said. "Every time we were trying to do something to get a run on Tony, he knew what we were doing."

Stewart said, "It was the same tricks his father tried to pull last year to get the lead."

Schrader's Pontiac finished fourth, just ahead of Marlin's Dodge. Dale Jarrett's Ford finished sixth, half a straightaway behind Marlin.

Ford teams have complained since the end of last season that they are at an aerodynamic disadvantage, and Sunday's race appeared to back that up.

Kurt Busch started from the pole in a Ford after getting that position in a blind draw. After Stewart passed him for the lead on lap four, the only other Ford driver out front the rest of the way was Rusty Wallace, who led for several laps after taking only two tires on the race's mandatory green-flag pit stop. He was quickly caught and passed, finishing 11th.

Two hours after the Shootout, NASCAR made a move to give the beleaguered Fords some relief.

NASCAR president Mike Helton said the height of the rear spoiler of the Tauruses will be cut a quarter-inch to 6 inches in an effort to even up the competition.

The new rule will be instituted after the second round of time trials Monday. It will be in effect in time for practice Tuesday and Wednesday, and for Thursday's twin 125-mile qualifying races.

"That gives us a chance to see what this action creates," Helton said. "We've said all along we would adjust to get it right as quick as we can.

"We're making this change based on what we've seen on the race track in three days in Daytona."

The aerodynamic rules for Daytona and Talladega, NASCAR's two biggest and fastest ovals, were changed following a dull Daytona 500 in 2000.

The 2001 rules turned the racing into a wild show, with three- and four-wide racing and passing throughout the pack on just about every lap. It was great entertainment but left drivers complaining about the dangers of such racing.

"I'd rather be a spectator if they go back to the old rules," Gordon said. "They may still do some tweaking, but I felt comfortable out there and enjoyed it."

Sunday's race was more reminiscent of 2000, with only six lead changes among six drivers and no caution flags. Jarrett won the race two years ago, with only nine lead changes among seven drivers and six caution flags for 24 laps over the 500 miles.

"It may have been a little boring at times [Sunday], with the single-file racing," Gordon said, "but I thought it was a good, exciting finish."

 

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