Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Little Labonte gets big win at Talladega

Labonte escaped the wreck Sunday, then pulled off a delicate pass of older brother Terry with two laps remaining to win the DieHard 500 at NASCAR's fastest and arguably most dangerous track.

It was a reversal of the showdown between the brothers here last fall, when Terry held off a late charge from Bobby to win for the second time at Talladega.

Unlike that race, however, this one included a fiery crash that stopped the race for 27 minutes, but fortunately resulted in no major injuries.

"When I saw it happening behind me, I started screaming in the radio, 'Find out where he's at,"' Bobby Labonte said of his brother. "When I saw the rooster on his hood was still out on the track, I said 'Whew,' and kept on going. Then the end came and he turned into just another driver."

Using drafting help from Jimmy Spencer, Bobby Labonte made his all-or-nothing move coming out of turn 2, sealing himself just next to the wall, then leaving his brother behind to finish fourth, in back of Spencer and Dale Jarrett.

Labonte won $141,870 for his first victory on a restrictor-plate track after two straight second-place finishes. It also made him the first Pontiac driver to win at Talladega since Richard Petty did it in 1983.

And capping a day of milestones, the Labontes became the first brother tandem to win consecutively at the track since Bobby and Donnie Allison won back to back in 1971.

"I think the guys here will tell you when Bobby came on board we struggled with restrictor plates and it has been a gradual climb," said Labonte's car owner, Joe Gibbs. "I've been so pleased with our team over the last three restrictor plate races. It's just been fantastic."

Those feelings weren't shared by Bill Elliott and Dale Earnhardt, two of the major victims of the type of crash that has made the track something of a dreaded stop on the circuit.

The accident began when Ward Burton nudged Earnhardt as a pack of about 20 cars was passing the start-finish line on lap 141. Earnhardt spun sideways into Elliott's car, turning it upside down with flames coming out the hood.

Elliott walked away from the wreck. He suffered a bruised sternum and left the track without comment. Earnhardt had half his mustache singed and left no doubt about his feelings.

"You can talk about it all you want, it's not good racing," he said. "They just can't keep doing it. They've got to do something."

Like most drivers, Earnhardt has little love for the restrictor plates, which limit speeds and bunch up cars at NASCAR's two fastest tracks, Daytona and Talladega.

But part of what makes a quick change unlikely are the tight packs that produce fantastic finishes like the one Labonte pulled off.

"As long as people want to see 40 cars going nose to tail, you're not going to see a change," said Labonte's crew chief, Jimmy Makar. "As long as they keep us bunched, I'd say, yeah, you're going to see stuff like that."

Labonte, who started from the pole, emerged from the wreck in the lead pack and stayed there throughout the final 60 laps.

Running in second behind his brother, he took a calculated risk by making his move on lap 187 instead of waiting for the final lap. It paid off, then he spent the final lap blocking Spencer, who made three futile attempts at passing.

Defending points champion Jeff Gordon was left feeling equally helpless, getting kicked out of the lead pack with four laps left and settling for fifth place.

"I got stuck between a couple of Labonte brothers and didn't know what to do," Gordon said. "I wanted to help Terry out all day and I did. If I couldn't have won, I really wish he could have won it, but Bobby had a real strong car."

It gave him his second win of the season and the seventh of his career. He averaged 163.439 mph and beat Spencer by .167-seconds - about five car-lengths.

Rusty Wallace, who finished 12th, held onto his series lead, moving 36 points ahead of Penske teammate Jeremy Mayfield, who was 13th. Jarrett moved to third, one point behind Mayfield, while Gordon slipped one spot to fourth, 73 points behind.

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