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NASCAR-BGN: Total Team Effort Leads Allen to Thrid Straight Top-Ten Finish

20 May 1998

NAZARETH, PA - Have you ever had one of those days when it just wasn't meant to be? Luxaire Busch Grand National driver, Glenn Allen had one of those days on Saturday. Fortunately for Allen, the First Union 200 was held on Sunday. While preparing for the race on Saturday, Allen hit all kinds of bad luck. On his 3rd lap of practice, the engine in his #99 Chevrolet decided it was done for the day, leading the team to have to make a quick engine change before the next practice session. The engine change worked and Allen was one of the fastest cars in the second practice session.

Then came qualifying, Allen posted a tremendous lap on his first of two laps of qualifying, before he cut a tire in turn two on the second lap, sending his car hard into the wall. Now the team was forced to pull out the backup car and prepare it for the next day's race. Under NASCAR rules, Allen would also be required to start in the rear of the field instead of the 10th place spot he had earned in qualifying.

Sunday brought a new day and a new attitude among the team. After all their hard work on Saturday they were ready for action on Sunday and it showed. The team had given Allen a pretty good car to run and Allen was determined to reward them for their hard work. Despite going down a lap to the leaders on lap 56, Allen fought back and regained the lap on lap 80. Allen then fought his way back to 14th position before his final pit stop, and what a pit stop it was. The team worked fast enough to allow Allen to pick up 7 position under the pit stop and restart the race in the 8th position. Allen raced hard to hold the spot until the end when Jason Keller squeezed by him. When the checkered flag flew over the race, Allen was in 9th position.

"We have a great bunch of guys on this race team, and without them I am scared to say where we would be," Allen said. "They worked so hard this weekend and we came away with our third straight top-ten finish, man I am so proud of them."

Tim Fedewa claimed the win by holding off Jeff Purvis and Mike McLaughlin.

The ninth place finish allowed Allen to move into the 9th position in the Busch Grand National Point Standings, only 97 points out of 4th place.

The Busch Series returns to action on Saturday in Charlotte. Racing action begins at 1:00pm EDT with coverage provided by WTBS and PRN.