NASCAR set to roll at LVMS

Monday, Feb. 25, 2002 | 9:38 a.m.

When the NASCAR Winston Cup Series came to Las Vegas last year for its annual race, the series was under a dark cloud following the death of its biggest star, Dale Earnhardt, just two weeks earlier.

A rejuvenated NASCAR returns to Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend in much better spirits and riding the crest of two extremely exciting races to open the season.

And, despite the current economic climate and fears among many Americans to fly in the wake of Sept. 11, a record crowd approaching 140,000 -- the majority from out of town -- is expected for Sunday's fifth annual UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400.

The Winston Cup season opened two weeks ago with the Daytona 500 and underdog Ward Burton won perhaps the most bizarre race in the 44-year history of the event. The race drew a Daytona record 10.9 television rating and became the most-watched telecast in NASCAR history.

On Sunday, Matt Kenseth battled back from the 25th starting position and outdueled Sterling Marlin in the closing laps to win the Subway 400 at North Carolina Speedway.

Marlin comes to Las Vegas leading the Winston Cup points standings but the four drivers behind him in points, including Las Vegas native Kurt Busch, all have run strong in past Las Vegas races.

Ward Burton, who is second in points, finished second at Las Vegas in 1999 after battling his younger brother and eventual race winner, Jeff, late in the race.

Busch, a Durango High graduate, comes to his hometown track third in points after a fourth-place finish in the Daytona 500 and a 12th-place showing on Sunday. Busch finished 11th last year in his first Winston Cup start at LVMS.

Four-time Winston Cup champion Jeff Gordon is fourth in points and is the defending race winner. Gordon led 33 of the final 43 laps and captured series sponsor Winston's $1 million "No Bull 5" bonus in addition to nearly $370,000 from the race purse.

Jeff Burton, fifth in points, is the only two-time winner of the Las Vegas race with victories in 1999 and 2000, and a second-place finish to Roush Racing teammate Mark Martin in the inaugural race in 1998.

For the fourth consecutive year, the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 is designated as one of Winston's "No Bull 5" races and will pay a million-dollar bonus if one of the five qualifying drivers wins the race.

The five drivers competing for the bonus -- based on their finish in the last "No Bull 5" race (last October at Talladega Superspeedway) -- are Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, Jeff Burton, Kenseth and Bobby Hamilton.

The weekend's on-track activities will start on Thursday night with the first of three World of Outlaws programs at the LVMS half-mile dirt track.

Qualifying for Saturday's Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Busch Series race and Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 Winston Cup race will be held Friday at 12:30 p.m. and 2:05 p.m., respectively.

The 200-lap Sam's Town 300 will start at 1 p.m. Saturday and the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 will begin at 12:30 p.m.07