Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Kyle Petty tops 170 mph in LV Speedway test

Thursday, Jan. 31, 2002 | 11:24 a.m.

Unofficial speeds, as reported by each team, for the 17 Winston Cup drivers taking part in Wednesday's test at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (q -- qualifying trim; r -- race trim; c -- combination):

Kyle Petty on Wednesday posted the fastest qualifying lap among the 29 NASCAR Winston Cup drivers who have taken part in the first three days of testing at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Petty turned an unofficial lap of 170.616 mph in qualifying trim as he concluded his two-day test in the No. 45 Sprint Dodge Intrepid.

Dale Jarrett won the pole for last year's Winston Cup race at LVMS with a speed of 172.106 mph.

Bobby Hamilton, in the No. 55 Schneider Electric Chevrolet, posted the fastest lap Wednesday among drivers in race trim at 168.750 mph. After three days of testing, Hamilton has the fastest lap in race trim among Winston Cup drivers.

Petty, who struggled to qualify for races last season after Petty Enterprises switched from Pontiac to Dodge, was cautiously optimistic about his teams' testing this winter.

"This is a test, so it's hard to gauge," Petty said. "So far, for us out here, it has been good. Even at Daytona, we had a really good test with our speedway stuff and then to come out here, we had another really, really good test and learned a lot.

"For us right now, testing is about learning as much about what doesn't work and what does work, so I'm pleased."

In addition to Petty's fast lap, teammate Buckshot Jones posted the second-fastest lap Wednesday (in qualifying trim) at 169.865 mph.

Petty credited his team's improvement to new engine builder Mike Ege, who was chief engine builder for Robert Yates Engine Manufacturing before acquiring RYEM.

"We are aligning our teams with an engine builder with a proven track record of success and we feel like that's going to be a step up from a performance standpoint."

Schrader was not hurt in the incident.

Las Vegas native Kyle Busch, 16, had signed with Roush Racing to drive the truck this season until NASCAR instituted a rule prohibiting drivers under the age of 18 in any of its touring series.

"I'm very excited about the opportunity that has been handed to me," Fedewa said. "All of my time and energy will be dedicated to running well in Daytona and whatever happens next is beyond my control."

The Sun's weekly drag racing notebook will return next Thursday.