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Matter of preference

Richmond presents welcome challenge ... for some

	• Lugnuts • On the track • In the pits • Stop 'n' Go • Finish Line

From CNNSI.com

"Richmond is a really good racetrack for everybody. It's kind of like any other place: When you run good, you run good, and you love the place; and when you don't, you don't, and you don't like it as much."

Um, yeah. File Mike Wallace's thoughts on Richmond International Raceway under the heading of "painfully obvious" -- right before the following statement: Tony Stewart is looking forward to Saturday night's Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400. Stewart, 30, won the May race at Richmond, as well as the night race at Bristol two weeks ago. If Stewart can win yet another short-track race, it will mark the first time since 1993 that a Winston Cup driver has won three consecutive short-track races.

"It's going to be hard to not have in the back of our mind that because we've won there twice, we should expect to run well," Stewart said. "I'm not sure we'd go in there and expect to win again. I think we've got a shot, but to go there and expect it -- [the team] doesn't do that."

If ever there was a man who could be forgiven if he did expect it, it's Rusty Wallace, the last guy to win three consecutive short-track races. But Wallace, one of the greatest short-track racers in history whether Stewart equals his mark or not, probably isn't terribly concerned about losing that little claim to fame. No, Rusty, who has led an improbable 24 percent of all laps run at Richmond since the track was reconfigured in 1988, is less concerned with Stewart than with stopping the bleeding within his own season.

Since briefly holding the lead in the points race after Rockingham, Wallace fell to 11th after a 43rd in Las Vegas. He then battled back to third, in part as a result of his dominant performance in the first Richmond race, when he led 276 laps. Since then, Wallace has endured another tough run that eliminated any chance he had for a long-sought second Cup championship. Wallace is now eighth.

"It'd sure be nice to get back to Richmond and put the whole deal together again," he said. "Dominate and win."

But not because he cares about any silly streak.

Terry Labonte Labonte has three wins at Richmond and 26 top-10 finishes in 46 starts there. His last victory at RIR was the 1998 spring race. He also is the '94 champion of this race and he won the spring race in '95. Jeff Gordon Gordon is the defending champion of this race. In comparison to other recent stops on the Winston Cup circuit, his success at RIR has been modest. His only other victory there came in the 1996 spring race. Ricky Rudd Rudd has 24 top-10 finishes in 45 career starts at Richmond. His lone victory there came in the 1984 spring race. Of those 23 top-10 efforts, Rudd has finished in the top five 17 times. Jeff Burton Burton has seven top-10 finishes in 14 starts at Richmond. He won this race in 1998. Earlier this season, he finished 14th there in the Pontiac Excitement 400.

Flattery Ken Schrader finished 10th last week at Darlington. It was his first top-10 effort since he was ninth at the Pocono 500 in June. Incidentally, Schrader was also ninth in the Pontiac Excitement 400 at Richmond in May. Flag Kurt Busch edged out Jeff Gordon for the pole Friday at Darlington. Sunday wasn't as successful. Engine problems forced Busch behind the wall. When the day was out, he was 39th, 61 laps back. Flattery Jerry Nadeau's ninth-place finish last week at Darlington was his second top-10 finish in his past four starts. He was sixth at the Global Crossing @ The Glen last month. Nadeau has six top-10 finishes in 25 starts this season. Flag To say Stacy Compton had trouble at Darlington this year would be an understatement. Compton finished 43rd there at the Carolina Dodge Dealers 400, and he managed just a one-spot improvement last week.

Winston Cup drivers are running out of time to catch Jeff Gordon. The points leader's cushion got a little softer after he finished second at Darlington on Sunday. Gordon now leads second-place Ricky Rudd by 342 points. Kevin Harvick would probably like to forget last weekend. Aside from the $10,000 fine NASCAR gave him for fighting with Chad Little after Saturday's Busch race, Harvick's points lead shrunk to 316 over Jason Keller. Speaking of Saturday's Busch race, Elton Sawyer came in second, his best finish of the year. Sawyer is fifth in points without the benefit of a victory. He has 15 top-10 finishes in 25 starts this season. After his freak accident Saturday at Darlington Raceway, Steve Park will miss this week's action in Richmond. He's recovering from a concussion and a bruised collarbone suffered in the crash.

Kroger 200 -- 8 p.m. Thursday (ESPN): 150 miles, 200 laps. 2000 pole winner: Kurt Busch. 2000 winner: Rick Carelli. Autolite FRAM 250 -- 8 p.m. Friday (TNT): 187.5 miles, 250 laps. 2000 pole winner: Todd Bodine. 2000 winner: Jeff Burton. Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 -- 7:30 p.m. Saturday (TNT): 300 miles, 400 laps. 2000 pole winner: Jeff Burton. 2000 winner: Jeff Gordon.

One thing about NASCAR fans I've never been able to understand is how they can "hate" an opposing driver they don't even know personally. It's OK to pull for or against someone, but to hate someone because they win or because they defeated your favorite driver, how small. -- Greg, Lawrenceville, Ga. I don't believe that NASCAR should have a salary cap. That would take away from the guys who finish well week in and week out. -- Jeff, Jackson, Mich. I think NASCAR is getting out of hand and the drivers are forgetting who really made the sport what it is today. The tickets are too costly and the drivers forget that the fans are who made racing what it is. -- Larry, Paris, Ky. Put Jeff Gordon in the No. 27 car. If he wins one race, I'd be surprised. He has a great team, nothing more. -- Brad, Lakeland, Fla. Fans and the media shouldn't be concerned with the personality differences of NASCAR drivers. I enjoy it. If they were all like Jeff Gordon there would be a lot fewer fans. -- JoAnn, Irving, Texas. Stop talking about taking dates away from tracks like Bristol and Darlington. We need fewer tracks of the 1.5 mile "cookie cutter" type. The only new tracks worth any mention are Fontana and Vegas. But Vegas is flat and produces normally boring races. And why a third race in Florida? Homestead is obviously second to Daytona and certainly doesn't deserve to have a champion crowned there. You want to cut a date from a track? How about Atlanta? They always have lots of empty seats. -- Dave, Colorado Springs, Colo. NASCAR has gotten too politically correct. We need more folks who know, "God called it a bumper for a reason." Like him or not Tony Stewart is that man. Kevin Harvick will be, too. -- Mike, Blackstone, Va.

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