Race will be far from a pleasure trip

Michael Vega

Sunday, July 9, 2000 | 2:16 a.m.

LOUDON, N.H. - They all just want to get through Sunday's NASCAR Winston Cup Race at New Hampshire International Speedway. They'll grit their teeth, put aside their personal pain after the death of fellow driver Kenny Irwin during practice Friday morning, and run hard to the checkered flag of the New England 300.

Let the best man win.

This Granite State whistlestop, the 18th of 34 races on the Winston Cup tour, already loomed as difficult, especially for Petty Enterprises, after 19-year-old Adam Petty was killed May 12 during a Busch Series practice. Then, in a sequel that boggled the mind, Irwin, 30, of Indianapolis, was killed Friday in a Turn 3 crash, hitting the wall in virtually the same spot that Adam Petty did.

Irwin drove the same No. 42 BellSouth Chevrolet Monte Carlo that Joe Nemechek rode to Victory Lane last September at NHIS for owner Felix Sabates. Team SABCO called Irwin's crew back to its Charlotte, N.C., headquarters, and left the No. 40 Coors Light Chevy, driven by Sterling Marlin, to carry the team's banner Sunday.

"We're going through a hard time right now," said Marlin, who earned a 37th starting spot after going through second-day qualifications Saturday. "And we're just doing whatever we can do to get through it. Sitting through an interview just isn't something I want to do. If you've been through losing a friend, you know what I mean and how I feel. Our minds are with Kenny's family right now, and that's really all I've got to say."

But Marlin won't be alone in his thoughts of Irwin.

John Andretti will be similarly challenged in carrying the banner for Petty Enterprises along with Steve Grissom, who will substitute for the absent Kyle Petty.

"Kyle's not here, so we feel it," said Andretti, who qualified second-fastest to earn a spot on the front row alongside pole-sitter Rusty Wallace, winner of the inaugural Winston Cup race at NHIS in 1993. "It's tough. It's a tough situation. I feel really close to (the Pettys) and their family is like a part of our family. For me, my motivation is high because I want people to remember Adam, and I feel like the best way to remember him is for us to do well as part of an organization of which he was so key."

Andretti came close to winning in last year's Jiffy Lube, but failed to capitalize when leader Tony Stewart dropped out with two laps to go. Andretti entered the pits in second place with a chance to emerge as the leader, needing just a splash of fuel. However, his car coughed and wheezed when the fuel pick-up failed and finally stalled as he attempted to exit the pits, enabling Jeff Burton to cruise to his third consecutive NHIS victory.

"We ran longer than Tony, but it seems like that got lost in the mix," Andretti said. "But I think that we've got the capabilities of winning the race here. We've run awful strong here before. We ran out of fuel the one race and the other (September) race we were every bit as good as Nemechek in the (No.) 42 and got crashed. So what are you supposed to do? You've just got to lick your wounds, come back, and do it again."

And that's what everyone else will attempt to accomplish Sunday in the aftermath of Irwin's death.

"You've got a lot of guys who are trying to deal with it for the first time themselves," said Ricky Rudd. "All these guys are professionals, and I know it sounds like it's cold-blooded, but we just have to go on."