Auto Racing Glance

Thursday, May 14, 1998 | 6:47 a.m.

NASCAR

WINSTON CUP

The Winston

Site: Concord, N.C.

Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 7 p.m., No Bull 25s, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, The Winston Open, 7:45 p.m. (TNN), The Winston, 9 p.m. (TNN).

Track: Charlotte Motor Speedway (trioval, 1.5 miles, 24 degrees banking in corners).

Race distances: The Winston Open, 75 miles, 50 laps; The Winston, 105 miles, 70 green-flag laps in segments of 30, 30 and 10.

Last year: Jeff Gordon charged through the field from the 19th spot to win the all-star event for the second time in three years. The following week at CMS, Gordon won the Coca-Cola 500.

Last race: Mark Martin held off series points leader Jeremy Mayfield by 1.287 seconds in the California 500 on May 3. Martin, also the winner at Las Vegas and Fort Worth, Texas, has 25 career Winston Cup victories.

Fast facts: Gordon, Martin, Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, Dale Jarrett, Jeff Burton, Ricky Rudd, Ernie Irvan, John Andretti, Terry Labonte, Bobby Hamilton and Bobby Labonte qualified with victories after the 1997 event. Kenny Irwin and Rich Bickle received spots for their car owners' victories, Darrell Waltrip and Bill Elliott qualified as previous Winston Cup champions, Michael Waltrip and Geoff Bodine are in as former winners of The Winston, and Sterling Marlin gained the 19th spot as the most recent winner from a previous year. The final spot will be determined in The Winston Open.

Next race: Coca-Cola 600, May 24, Concord, N.C.

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BUSCH GRAND NATIONAL

First Union 200

Site: Nazareth, Pa.

Schedule: Saturday, qualifying, 2 p.m.; Sunday, race, 1 p.m. (ESPN).

Track: Nazareth Speedway (oval, 1.0 miles, 3 degrees banking in Turn 1, 4 degrees in Turn 2, and 6 degrees in Turns 3 and 4).

Race distance: 200 miles, 200 laps.

Last year: Elliott Sadler raced to his first of three 1997 victories, starting from the pole and holding off Todd Bodine by .209 seconds. Sadler drove the Phillips 66 Chevrolet to victory this year at Bristol, Tenn.

Last week: Buckshot Jones won the Gumout Long Life Formula 200 at Loudon, N.H., rallying from last place after breaking a radiator in a first-lap accident. Jones finished 2.1 seconds ahead of Tony Stewart for the Pontiac driver's second Busch victory.

Fast facts: Craftsman Truck star Ron Hornaday is making his BGN debut in the Kingsford-Matchlight Chevrolet under a five-race deal as a substitute for Winston Cup regular Robert Pressley. Hornaday has 19 truck victories, two this year. ... Mike McLaughlin tops the season standings with 1,369 points, followed by Matt Kenseth (1,364) and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (1,339).

Next race: CarQuest Auto Parts 300, May 23, Concord. N.C.

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CRAFTSMAN TRUCKS

Next race: Yellow Freight 200, May 23, Odessa, Mo.

Last week: Jack Sprague held off Ron Hornaday by 2.215 seconds in the NAPACARD 200 at Monroe, Wash. Sprague, who drives a Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, extended his series lead over Hornaday to 18 points.

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INDY RACING LEAGUE

Indianapolis 500 Qualifying

Schedule: Saturday, first-round qualifying, noon (ABC, 1 p.m.; ESPN, 2 p.m.; ESPN2, 5:30 p.m.); Sunday, second-round qualifying, noon (ABC, 1:30 p.m.; ESPN2, 3 p.m.; ESPN, 5 p.m.).

Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (oval, 2.5 miles, 9 degrees banking in corners).

Fast facts: Cars will qualify in sessions Saturday and Sunday. The fastest four-lap average Saturday wins the poll. Once all 33 positions are filled, the bumping procedure begins. The slowest car is removed from the tentative field. Each entrant has up to three opportunities to qualify for the May 24 race. ... Tony Stewart won IRL's season-opening Indy 200 on Jan. 24 at Orlando, Fla., and Scott Sharp took the Dura-Lube 200 on March 22 at Phoenix.

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NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION

Mopar Parts Nationals

Site: Englishtown, N.J.

Schedule: Friday, first-round qualifying, 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Saturday, second-round qualifying, 12:15 p.m. and 4 p.m. (TNN, 4 p.m.); Sunday, final eliminations, 11 a.m. (TNN, 5 p.m.).

Track: Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.

Last year: Cristen Powell, then an 18-year-old high school senior from Portland, Ore., won the Top Fuel title, beating Bruce Sarver with a run of 4.849 seconds at 239.61 mph. Kenji Okazaki won the Funny Car division, and Darrell Alderman took the Pro Stock title.

Last event: Joe Amato won the Top Fuel title in the Lone Star Nationals on May 3 at Ennis, Texas, beating Doug Kalitta in the final with a quarter-mile run of 4.695 seconds at 313.58 mph. Ron Capps took the Funny Car title, and Mike Edwards won the Pro Stock competition.

Fast facts: Cory McClenathan, a four-time winner this year, leads the Top Fuel standings with 604 points, 91 more than runner-up Joe Amato. McClenathan is 4-for-4 in finals this year and 20-for-30 in his career.

Next event: Route 66 Nationals, May 28-31, Joliet, Ill.

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CHAMPIONSHIP AUTO RACING TEAMS

Next race: Motorola 300, May 23, Madison, Ill.

Last week: Canada's Greg Moore won the Rio 400, passing Alex Zanardi with five laps remaining and holding off the Italian driver by nearly a half-second. Moore leads Zanardi by four points in the PPG Cup race.

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FORMULA ONE

Next race: Monaco Grand Prix, May 24, Monte Carlo.

Last week: Finland's Mika Hakkinen won the Spanish Grand Prix, driving his McLaren to victory for the third time this year. Scotland's David Coulthard was second, giving McLaren its third 1-2 finish in five races.