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Skillful luck

Restrictor plates mean anything can happen at Talladega

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

From CNNSI.com

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has finished second, eighth and first in the season's first three restrictor-plate races. He is one of just two drivers to have finished in the top 10 in each of those three races. The other, of course, is Mike Wallace.

Of course.

Wallace's performance (sixth, ninth and 10th) is either an indication of his talent or the dumb luck of restrictor-plate racing. But that two of Wallace's top 10s came after starts of 42nd and 43rd would seem to lend weight to the former line of thought. Also consider Wallace's recent performance in relief of Jeremy Mayfield and the late Dale Earnhardt's charge from 19th to first in the final five laps last year to win, the "talent" argument gains even more steam.

Still, as the spring race at Talladega made perfectly clear, there's no denying the element of chance when it comes to plate racing. The Talladega 500 had less to do with racing than it did a forced march. That is, it was long, fairly tedious and anyone who got out of line was severely punished for his insolence. It was not uncommon to see drivers shuffled 10 or 12 spots in a single lap. Though drivers had hoped that NASCAR would make changes that would allow them to actually race at Talladega, this week's token changes to the Fords and Pontiacs likely ensure another show where luck is even more important than skill.

Bobby Hamilton Hamilton won the Talladega 500 in April -- a race that featured zero caution flags. He also is coming off a strong 13th-place run in the Old Dominion 500 at Martinsville Speedway on Monday. Terry Labonte Labonte has two career victories at Talladega and he finished 11th there in April. In 45 career starts at Talladega, Labonte has 22 top-10 finishes. So far this season, he has just three top-10 finishes in 30 Winston Cup starts. Sterling Marlin Marlin has won twice at Talladega Superspeedway, most recently in the spring of 1996. He was 10th in the Talladega 500 in April, his 15th top-10 finish in 36 career starts there. Mark Martin In 31 career starts at Talladega, Martin has 19 finishes in the top 10, including a fourth-place effort there in April. Martin finished seventh at Martinsville on Monday.

Flattery NASCAR did the right thing Wednesday when it announced that the use of head-and-neck restraints is mandatory in all Winston Cup, Busch and Truck series races beginning with this weekend's race at Talladega. Flag Ricky Rudd didn't do himself any favors in his points battle with leader Jeff Gordon by finishing 39th at Martinsville on Monday. After Gordon finished ninth, Rudd's second-place deficit ballooned to 334 points. Flattery Craven was sidelined only three and a half years ago, the victim of postconcussion syndrome. His career was in question. His victory Monday at Martinsville was inspiring. Flag Rusty Wallace's status as a short-track expert may be called into question. A 15th-place finish Monday at Martinsville is the fifth time in his past nine starts there that Wallace has finished outside the top 10.

Jasper Motorsports fired driver Robert Pressley on Tuesday and hired Dave Blaney for 2002. Pressley is 23rd in the points standings. Meanwhile, crew chief Ryan Pemberton a three-year contract extension. . After finishing third in the Sam's Town 250 Busch series race in Memphis on Sunday, series leader Kevin Harvick has a 203-point lead on second-place Jeff Green. Randy Lajoie took the checkered flag Sunday. Ted Musgrave, whose crew elected to change an engine and start at the rear of the field, passed Jack Sprague with 17 laps to go and won the Craftsman Truck series Orleans 350 Sunday at Las Vegas. NASCAR Winston Cup teams will have to use the same engine to qualify and race starting next season, the series' governing body announced Sunday. The move is seen as a cost-saving measure by NASCAR.

EA Sports 500 -- 1 p.m. Sunday (NBC): 500.08 miles, 188 laps. 2000 pole winner: Joe Nemecheck. 2000 race winner: Dale Earnhardt.

When Bill Elliott is leading, the broadcasters find it necessary to cover the same few drivers wherever they are on the track. All I ask is to spread the coverage around. As fans of those drivers whose careers involve earlier successes, we still represent considerable economic clout for the sport. -- David, Bentley, La. Sterling Marlin may be consistent, but driving clean is not exactly the way it has been. At Richmond this year, it was clear that he crowded Jeff Gordon and pushed him from behind. Gordon subsequently went into the wall and fell 100 laps back. It's part of racing, but Marlin can't be accused of driving clean. -- Jesse, Fort Worth, Texas. Never should a race end under the caution flag if a accident happens with two or three laps left. The race should be restarted with that many laps to go. Give us a race, not a ho-hum finish. -- Bob, Willmington, N.C. Jeremy Mayfield is a great driver and a gentleman on and off the track. What could they be thinking? Who could they even hope to get to drive the No. 12 car that would come close to being the driver that Mayfield is? I hope that he gets a great ride soon and can finish out the season. Hopefully with the right team working with him, 2002 will be his year. He deserves better than what he got with Penske. -- Tina, Nashville, Tenn. Jeff Gordon will break Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty's championship record before he is 40. -- Deacon, Keene, Texas.

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