2002 Samsung/radio Shack 500 - Part 26

DRAG RACE ON THE INSIDE THAN THE OUTSIDE. >> TONY STEWART, THATH@ FOX TRK IN THE PITS DROPPED HIM BACK TO EIGHTH. >> 20 LAPS AGO, GOT FOUR TIRES, MIGHT BE ABLE TO MAKE IT, BUT I DOUBT IT. >> WE'VE GOT ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE CARS UP THERE THAT HAS TWO TIRES. >> I SAW A POLL THIS MORNING ON "INSIDE NASCAR" THAT SAID FANS THOUGHT JEFF GORDON WAS -- >> HMM. WE'VE GOT 22 LAPS TO FIND OUT. >> GOOD CLEAN RESTART. JEFF GREEN UNABLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE RACE LEADER. KENSETH HEADS HIM OFF TURN THREE. >> TWO BEST CARS OUT FRONT RIGHT NOW FROM WHAT I'VE BEEN WATCHING. THE QUESTION IS CAN GORDON GET AFTER THAT 17 CAR? 17 CAR'S BEEN FAR AND AWAY THE BEST CAR THE LATTER PART OF THE RACE. >> AND HE'S OUT FRONT IN THAT BEAUTIFUL, CLEAN AIR. >> THE CARS WITH FOUR FRESH TIRES HAVE NOT YET CLEARED THE TRAFFIC. >> ONE THING GORDON HAS THOUGHT RACE AFTER RACE IS NOT HAVING A VERY GOOD CAR BEHIND THE CAR. I WAS EXPLAINING, THEY LET THE MONTE CARLO STRETCH THE FRONT END OUT ANOTHER INCH AND A QUARTER. MORE FRONT DOWNFORCE IN TRAFFIC IS WHERE THEY HOPED IT WOULD HELP THE MOST. >> CHEVY HOPING FOR THEIR FIRST WIN OF THE SEASON. >> THAT'S LOOKING GOOD. >> MATT KENSETH, HOPING FOR HIS SECOND WIN OF THE YEAR. >> PROBLEM YOU HAVE HERE IS EVERYBODY'S RACING SOMEBODY. YOU'RE EITHER RACING WITH THE CAR'S A LAP DOWN OR RACING WITH CARS TWO LAPS DOWN. BACK IN THE PACK LIKE TONY STEWART IS, MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO MOVE FORWARD. >> THERE, THE MILES PER HOUR, ABOUT 183 MILE PER HOUR AT THE START/FINISH LINE. 193 FOR GORDON, 195 -- THIS IS DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF TURN ONE AND TWO. THERE, YOU SEE, MATT KENSETH, THREE MILES AN HOUR FASTER DOWN IN THE CORNER COMING OFF UP TURN TWO, THREE MILES AN HOUR FASTER THAN JEFF GORDON. >> IT REALLY SHOWS, TOO. YOU CAN SEE THE GAP BETWEEN HE AND GORDON OPENED UP. PARTICULARLY IN TURN ONE. >> STEWART IS STUCK IN TRAFFIC AS THE LEADERS SCOOT AWAY. >> THIS IS TOP MILES PER HOUR GOING OFF INTO TURN ONE. JEFF GORDON, FASTER BY THREE MILES AN HOUR. >> THAT'S A GREAT -- YOU CAN BE FASTER GOING IN THE CORNER, BUT YOU'LL PAY THE PRICE IN THE CENTER OF THE CORNER. I WANT MY CAR TO BE FASTER IN THE CENTER, THAT MEANS YOU'RE CARRYING MORE SPEED OFF THE CORNER. >> IT TELLS YOU THE GUY IN FRONT IS HANDLING BETTER. >> THIS IS GOING TO BE A THREE-CAR RACE. MARTIN COMING. >> ABOUT A TENTH OF A LAP KING QUICKER THAN THE OTHERS. >> YOU'RE RIDING WITH MARTIN, PAST THE CONDOES AT TURN TWO. AND THERE'S THAT INTERVAL IN THE UPPER RIGHT OF THE SCREEN. >> I THINK IF MARK -- I KNOW HE'S TRYING AS HARD AS HE CAN. I THINK HE CAN GET GORDON BECAUSE GORDON'S FALLING OFF, JUST ENOUGH I THINK IT WILL HELP MARTIN. GET A LITTLE DRAPT HERE. OBVIOUSLY, 195 MILES AN HOUR, YOU'LL GET A LITTLE DRAFT. INTERVAL SHRINKING THERE, 1.02 SECONDS. >> 15, 16 LAPS TO GO. >> AGAIN, MARTIN'S CAR, JUST LIKE HIS TEAMMATE UP THERE, THE 17 CAR, KENSETH, FASTER THROUGH THE CENTER OF THE TURN. GAINED A LITTLE BIT THERE UP OFF TURN FOUR, GOT A GOOD RUN OFF TURN FOUR. >> FOURTH PLACE, SPENCER AND RUDD, SIDE BY SIDE, SHEET METAL ALMOST EXCHANGED. >> BOY, SPENCER HAD TO GIVE RUDD ROOM. RUDD HAS THAT FEND ARE ALONG THE QUARTER FRONT PANEL. >> YOU BETTER LET HIM GO. >> ALL OVER WITH ONE WAY OR ANOTHER DALE EARNHARDT JR. >> THAT'S RIGHT, SOMETHING'S GOING TO GIVE. >> I SAID MARK WILL CATCH THE 24 CAR. IF HE GETS BY HIM WITHOUT TOO MUCH TROUBLE, LOOK OUT. >> FOR MORE ON GORDON, HERE'S MATT. >> YOU HEAR SO MANY TIMES THAT GORDON'S CARS ARE MORE AERO SENSITIVE THAN MAYBE SOME OTHER DRIVERS. THIS CAR IS ONE OF THEIR BETTER AERO CARS. IT WON IN LAS VEGAS IN ITS DEBUT ONE YEAR AGO. THE LAST TIME JEFF GORDON WENT TO VICTORY LANE AT KANSAS CITY, 14 RACES AGO, IT CAME IN THIS RACE CAR. HE WAS LOSE IN THE LAST SET OF TIRES. THAT'S WHY THEY ONLY TOOK DOWN TWO TO TRY TO TIGHTEN IT UP. HASN'T SAID ANYTHING ABOUT HOW THIS RACE CAR'S HANDLING NOW. >> THIS IS NO TIME TO BE TALKING I CAN TELL YOU THAT. THE CREW CAN'T DO ANYTHING FOR YOU, NOW. THEY'RE PUTTING EQUIPMENT UP RIGHT NOW. >> THE OLD PHRASE IS, YOU GOT WHAT YOU GOT. >> YEP, THEY'RE PACKING FOR MARTINSVILLE. 13 TO GO, KENSETH OUT IN FRONT BY HALF A SECOND. MARTIN IS CATCHING JEFF GORDON. RICKY RUDD HAS PULLED AWAY FROM JIMMY SPENCER, WHO HAS JARRETT SEPARATING HIM FROM STEWART AND JOHNSON. >> THIS -- YOU KNOW, WE GOT A HECK OF A BATTLE BACK HERE FOR 10th. TERRY LABONTE PROBABLY HAVING ONE OF HIS BEST RUNS OF THE YEAR. RUSTY, EVER SINCE ABOUT TWO STOPS AGO, THAT CAR HAS BEEN NOTHING LIKE IT WAS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE RACE. >> AT ONE TIMING DOMINATED THE RACE. PULLED OUT TO A BIG LEAD. SURE HASN'T SHOWN IT THE LAST FEW LAPS. >> COMPTON IN THE 14, TWO OR THREE LAPS DOWN, HE'S GOING BY. >> LAST TOP TEN FOR TERRY LABONTE WAS BRISTOL, LAST AUGUST. >> TERRY, HE LIKES THAT TRACK. I THINK HE'S AVERAGED FINISHING ABOUT SIXTH HERE. TIME AND TIME AGAIN, HE'S HAD GREAT RUNS HERE. >> HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE. >> HE SAYS THE FIRST TIME HE CAME HERE, '97, HE LIKED IT. HE'S BEEN GOOD HERE EVER SINCE. >> FIVE RACE, AVERAGE FINISH, LED A LAP IN ALL THE PREVIOUS FIVE RACES HERE. >> HIS PERFORMANCE THIS YEAR, THAT'S A GREAT TURNAROUND FOR HIM AND HIS TEAM. >> MARK MARTIN IS THERE. HE'S ALL OVER THE BACK OF JEFF GORDON. >> AND YOU BETTER BELIEVE MATT KENSETH LOOKS UP IN THAT REARVIEW MIRROR AND SAYS, COME ON, GET SIDE BY SIDE. >> YEAH, BECAUSE JEFF GORDON IS NOT GOING TO PULL OVER AND LET HIM GO, EVEN THOUGH HE MIGHT BE FASTER. >> SPENCER AND STEWART SIDE BY SIDE OFF TURN FOUR. >> STEWART STUCK IT DOWN UNDER -- >> JOHNSON, STAYS LOCKED ON TO THAT REAR BUMPER OF STEWART. STEWART OPENED THE DOOR TO JOHNSON. SPENCER'S GOING TO GO ALL THE WAY BACK TO ABOUT EIGHTH POSITION, SEVENTH POSITION. >> STEWART'S TIRES ARE JUST NOW COMING IN. GUESS WHAT TOO LATE, TOO LATE. >> TOO FAR BACK. STEWART IS FIVE SECONDS BACK OF THE LEAD. >> MARK MARTIN HAS CAUGHT JEFF GORDON ONCE AGAIN. HE'S UP THERE -- HAS TO GET THAT LEFT FRONT DOWN OUT OF THE AIR, OUT OF JEFF GORDON'S AIR WHERE HE CAN MAKE THAT TURN. >> HAS TO COME OUT FROM BEHIND HIM. >> MARK MARTIN THIRD IN LAS VEGAS. HIS BEST RESULT OF THE SEASON SO FAR. AND THERE'S A LOT OF GUYS THAT ARE GOOD, YOU KNOW, GREAT DRIVERS, BUT GORDON, WHEN IT'S INSIDE OF 10 LAPS TO GO, HE'S A HARD MAN TO DEAL WITH. HOW'S THE OLD POINT LEADER? >> BATTLING BILL ELLIOTT. >> BOTH THESE CAR, MARLIN IN PARTICULAR, HAS FOUR TIRES THIS THEY'VE BEEN RUNNING SPENCER DOWN IN THE 41 CAR. IF YOU'RE BACK IN TRAFFIC, THOSE TWO TIRES PROBABLY AIRPORT FEELING GOOD.