NASCAR BGN Series Notebook
1 October 1997
NASCAR Busch Series, Grand National Division Notes of Interest Week of September 29, 1997 DAYTONA BEACH, FL - This season's NASCAR Busch Series Rookie of the Year Champion Steve Park currently is fifth in most miles led with 399.122 and second in most races led with 12. He's led 19 different times in 12 of the 26 races so far this season. - Steve Park broke Kenny Wallace's record (16) of most top-10 finishes by a rookie, when he finished fifth in the MBNA 200 at Dover Downs International Speedway. It was Park's 11th top-five and 17th top-10 finish of the season. - In eight of the 20 times Bobby and Davey Allison raced against each other in the NASCAR Busch Series, Davey had a higher finish than his father. - DID YOU KNOW? Only twice, when Bobby and Davey Allison were racing against each other in the NASCAR Busch Series did one of them win a race. Bobby won the spring race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in 1984 and the 1988 Goody's 300 in Daytona. - Steve Park is riding a streak of five consecutive top-five finishes into Charlotte this weekend. He has two wins, a second and two fifth-place finishes in his last five races. - Since tying Jack Ingram's career win record at 31 in the NASCAR Busch Series, Mark Martin is 0-for-4 in his attempt to break the record. - Only 156 points separate positions four through nine in the NASCAR Busch Series point standings. - There have been 12 different race winners on the NASCAR Busch Series in 1997. Five of those 11 are first-time winners. - Dale Jarrett is one top-five finish away from becoming only the third driver in NASCAR Busch Series history to record 100 or more top-five career finishes. Tommy Houston holds the record with 123. Jack Ingram is second with 122. STAT OF THE WEEK This weekend at Charlotte, Dale Jarrett and his son Jason will both attempt to qualify for Saturday's All Pro Bumper to Bumper 300 NASCAR Busch Series race. If both Jarrett's make the race, it wouldn't be the first time that a father and son have raced against each other in the NASCAR Busch Series. Bobby and Davey Allison were the first and only father/son to race against each other in the NASCAR Busch Series. The Allison's did battle a total of 20 times throughout the 1980's. TOP 10 - TENTH: Hermie Sadler spends a second week in the top-10. Sadler had his streak of two straight top-10 finishes broken at Dover after an accident caused him to finish 26th. - NINTH: Tim Fedewa holds down the ninth spot for a sixth consecutive week. Fedewa has three top-10 finishes in his last nine starts. - EIGHTH: Elton Sawyer has spend 22 of the 26 weeks in the top-10 point standings. - SEVENTH: Buckshot Jones' average finishing position in his last four races is 22nd position. - SIXTH: In his last 11 starts, Mike McLaughlin has only finished higher than 13th place three times. - FIFTH: Elliott Sadler trails fourth-place Phil Parsons by just 37 points. Sadler recorded his first top-10 finish since he finished third at Indianapolis, five races ago. - FOURTH: Phil Parsons never has been lower than fourth place in the point standings this season. - THIRD: Rookie Steve Park recorded his fifth consecutive top-five finish. The rookie has 11 top-five and 17 top-10 finishes after 26 races. - SECOND: With a 15th-place finish at Dover, Todd Bodine lost ground in the hunt for the 1997 NASCAR Busch Series Championship point race with Randy LaJoie. Bodine now trails LaJoie by 231 points with four events remaining. To win the championship, Bodine would have to beat LaJoie in each remaining race by an average of 58 points. - FIRST: Randy LaJoie sits on top of the points standings for the ninth straight week. He has four wins, 12 top-five, and 16 top-10 finishes in his last 21 starts. LaJoie has not been lower than third-place in the point standings since March 23, 1996, when he was in fifth -- 49 races ago. TURNING TO CHARLOTTE AND THE ALL PRO BUMPER TO BUMPER 300 - NASCAR Busch Series drivers have won only one (Jeff Gordon - 1992) of the last seven All Pro Bumper to Bumper 300's (Fall Race) at Charlotte Motor Speedway. - The late Rob Moroso has the most victories (three) of any NASCAR Busch Series driver at Charlotte Motor Speedway. - In 30 NASCAR Busch Series races held at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the driver starting from the pole position has won more races (seven) than any other position. - When Joe Nemechek won the spring NASCAR Busch Series race at Charlotte earlier this year, it was the first win by a Chevrolet at Charlotte Motor Speedway since Terry Labonte won the All Pro Bumper to Bumper 300 in the spring of 1994. - DID YOU KNOW? Mark Martin has won three of the last four (1993, 1995, 1996) NASCAR Busch Series fall races held at Charlotte Motor Speedway. By NASCAR Public Relations
