Skinner hoping for breakthrough season

Mike Harris

Thursday, Feb. 11, 1999 | 10:30 a.m.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The favorites for the Daytona 500 read like a Who's Who of stock car racing.

There's pole sitter and two-time defending Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon, defending race champion Dale Earnhardt, Dale Jarrett, Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin and Sterling Marlin.

And one more name keeps coming up - Mike Skinner.

"I would say Mike has to be included when you talk about favorites on Sunday," Gordon said. "He's obviously got some good horsepower, and nobody would doubt how good that Childress team is."

True, Richard Childress' team has been the best in the modern era of NASCAR. But Skinner, now in his third season with Childress, has yet to emerge.

His only victories have been in postseason exhibition races in the last two years in Japan.

In Childress cars, Earnhardt has won six of his seven Winston Cup titles and 62 of his 71 race victories. But not even ironman Earnhardt can go on forever.

"I don't really like to think about Dale getting done with driving, but that day has to come, of course," Childress said. "But, you know, I think Dale's still got some good years, and I think Mike is going to keep us running up front for a while yet."

Skinner, the 1997 rookie of the year at 39, has shown flashes of brilliance. He won the pole for the Daytona 500 in 1997 and had nine top-10 finishes last season - including a career-best third on the road course in Watkins Glen, N.Y.

Those accomplishments came despite a hard crash during an April race at Texas Motor Speedway. Skinner got a concussion, broke his left wrist and shoulder blade, and tore up his left knee.

He missed the next three races, and was in pain for the rest of the season. Skinner finally had knee surgery in December.

He admits he probably came back too soon because he hated being out of the car.

"I could have been more patient and maybe got more healthy before I came back," Skinner said. "But you don't want to be sitting on the sidelines because you feel like you're letting your team down.

"But that was last year. I think we're ready to do it right this season."

Childress agreed.

"We've got a lot of high hopes," he said "Mike is back and healthy, and if we keep him good and healthy, we think this can be a big year for him."

Skinner got off to a good start in the Bud Shootout, a non-points event that opens the stock car season at Daytona International Speedway.

After winning a preliminary race to get in, Skinner came from the back of the 15-car field to finish fourth in the Shootout.

Crew chief Larry McReynolds, who began last year with Earnhardt and swapped jobs with Kevin Hamlin midway through the season, is as optimistic as Skinner about the Daytona 500 and rest of the season.

"I really think we're going to win some races this year," McReynolds said. "This team began to come together last year, and I'm not surprised that we were a lot better when we came down here.

"We feel like we gained a lot of momentum at the end of last season."

McReynolds pointed out that Skinner, who finished 21st in the season points, was eighth in the points over the final 20 races of 1998.

"They don't pay nothing for that," he said. "But that's a good confidence booster for the driver and the crew.

"I know I've probably got more fire in my belly about this season than I've had in a long time."