DEI News: Philippe Lopez to miss Talladega April 23, 1999 (Jayski's)
Dale Earnhardt Inc announced Thursday that #1 Pennzoil Monte Carlo crew chief Philippe
Lopez will miss this weekend's NASCAR Winston Cup race in Talladega while he travels to
France due to an illness in the family.
Steve Hmiel, DEI's Technical Director, will serve as the interim crew chief for driver
Steve Park until Lopez's return next week when the team races at California
Speedway(Pennzoil PR) Best wishes go out to Lopez and his family.
Earnhardt's
to race against each other this weekend at Talladega!
April 22, 1999
The second IROC race of the year will take place this
Saturday April 24th at the Talladega Super Speedway. Dale Earnhardt
and son, Dale Earnhardt Jr will again have the opportunity to race
against each other as well as 10 other drivers from various racing series. This will be
the second time the Earnhardts have had the opportunity to race together on US soil. "I am looking forward to getting in an IROC
car again. I had a real good time in Daytona meeting the guys from the other series. The
thing I learned at Daytona about these cars is to have patience; you can't win the race on
the first lap. My first outing was a little rough and I am looking forward to redeeming
myself in an IROC Car." -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. Dale Earnhardt, winner of the IROC
opener at Daytona last February, will start round two of the True Value International Race
of Champions from dead last! Why? Because, the IROC rules say so! Earnhardt, with 21
points, commands an 18-point lead over Jeff Burton, who was credited with three points for
his last place (12th) finish. Burton was the victim of a multi-car wreck that also
involved Rusty Wallace, Eddie Cheever Jr., and Dale Earnhardt Jr. However - the IROC rules
provide Burton an opportunity to regain some ground - literally; he'll start from the pole
(first place). The formula is simple; reverse the order of finish from the first event.
For the first race, the drivers draw for starting position. The rules are the
non-mechanical element of equalization that IROC utilizes to level the field. (See
Talladega IROC starting lineup below). Talladega IROC Lineup ROW ONE:
1. No. 12. Jeff Burton (NASCAR/Winston Cup), 3 points
2. No. 11. Eddie Cheever Jr. (Pep Boys Indy Racing League), 4 points ROW TWO:
3. No. 10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (NASCAR/Busch Series), 5 points
4. No. 9. Rusty Wallace (NASCAR/Winston Cup), 6 points ROW THREE:
5. No. 8. Dale Jarrett (NASCAR/Winston Cup), 7 points
6. No. 7. Adrian Fernandez (FedEx Championship Series), 8 points ROW FOUR:
7. No. 5. Jeff Gordon (NASCAR/Winston Cup), 12 points
8. No. 6. Greg Moore (FedEx Championship Series), 10 points ROW FIVE:
9. No. 4. Kenny Brack (Pep Boys Indy Racing League), 12 points
10. No. 3. Mark Martin (NASCAR/Winston Cup), 19 points ROW SIX:
11. No. 2. Bobby Labonte (NASCAR/Winston Cup), 19 points
12. No. 1. Dale Earnhardt (NASCAR/Winston Cup), 21 points
(Note: Starting order is determined by reverse of the finishing order of Race 1 at
Daytona. Car numbers reflect driver's current position in IROC point standings.)
Talladega
Trivia
April 21, 1999 (From That's Racin') Here's a trivia question you might win a round of
refreshing beverages with someday: Can you name the nine drivers who have started each of
the 47 restrictor-plate races in Winston Cup history? They are Dale Earnhardt,
Sterling Marlin, Terry Labonte, Ken Schrader, Bill Elliott, Michael Waltrip, Rusty
Wallace, Ricky Rudd and Brett Bodine. Dale Jarrett and Dave Marcis have started 46, while
Mark Martin, Darrell Waltrip and Geoffrey Bodine have 45 starts. If Dale Earnhardt fans
are going to have anything to really get excited about anytime soon, this might just be
the week. In 47 restrictor-plate starts, Earnhardt has won eight times
and has led at least one lap in 40 of those races with a total of 1,998 laps led. Earnhardt
has not yet led a lap this season. He has finished in the top 10 in 36 of the 47
restrictor-plate starts and averages 147 points in those races, better than any active
driver with at least four starts at Daytona or Talladega. Dale Earnhardt is the most successful active driver at Talladega with
seven wins, 19 top-5s and 23 top-10s in 40 starts.
DEI News: 
"I am looking forward to getting in an IROC
car again. I had a real good time in Daytona meeting the guys from the other series. The
thing I learned at Daytona about these cars is to have patience; you can't win the race on
the first lap. My first outing was a little rough and I am looking forward to redeeming
myself in an IROC Car." -- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
