NASCAR Winston Cup Pepsi 400 Preview -- #18, Bobby Labonte
1 July 1997
#18 Bobby Labonte, Interstate Batteries Pontiac Grand Prix
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Pepsi 400 Advance
Daytona International Speedway
LABONTE HOPES TO SKATE TO WIN AT DAYTONA
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - The annual July pilgrimage to Daytona International
Speedway promises sweltering conditions of 90-plus degrees, but Interstate
Batteries Pontiac driver Bobby Labonte likens the Pepsi 400 to NASCAR Winston
Cup's version of an ice skating race.
The scorching heat produces a slick 2.5-mile superspeedway, putting a premium
on handling. Notes from the season-opening Daytona 500 offer little help in
deciphering a chassis setup because track conditions are as much as 40
degrees hotter.
"It's a lot more slippery at Daytona in July, so you want more downforce on
the car," Labonte said. "The first time I came to Daytona you could run wide
open around there in a Busch car. It really wasn't too hard to drive. It was
like you were on a rail. It's like you derailed when you come back down here
and race in July. I remember the first time I ran down here during the
summer. I went out, and they asked me how much I had to let off. I said I
had to let off a whole lot. It was a lot different than I thought it was
going to be."
After two consecutive crashes that sent him falling to seventh in the point
standings, Labonte is back on track with two-straight top-10 finishes. He was
ninth at Michigan, and followed that with a sixth-place run in the inaugural
race at California. At this time last season, Labonte and the Joe Gibbs
Racing team stood 17th in the point standings. Despite the improvement,
Labonte is hoping for more. He has ranked as high as third in the point
standings this year.
In the Daytona 500, Labonte largely struggled. By the end of the race he was
zeroing in on a top-10 run, but was collected in a late wreck that relegated
him to a 21st-place finish. In his next restrictor-plate start, Labonte
finished third in the Winston 500 at Talladega Superspeedway, running with
the leaders throughout the race.
"We're going to use the same Pontiac we finished third in at Talladega,"
Labonte said. "At Daytona, we were OK, but we didn't do all the right things
to maximize the potential of the car. At Talladega, we did things the way
we're supposed to, and we showed up a lot better."
Part of the reason is that Gibbs is sparing no expense in upgrading the
team's restrictor plate program. The team has an addition to the engine
department this year, Joe Hornick, whose sole responsibility is working on
restrictor plate motors. After struggling in restrictor plate races last
year, Labonte has seen much improvement in horsepower.
"Restrictor plate engine development is so exhaustive," Labonte said. "That's
why so many teams hire someone outside their operations just to work on
restrictor plate engines. Joe wanted a guy in-house, and I think that's made
a big improvement in our overall program. Near a race, it's like he's on that
engine dyno 24 hours a day. After the race was postponed at Talladega, he did
some more tinkering with the engine and we picked up even more horsepower,
and that really spelled the difference at Talladega. We've gotten things
better by tuning the engine to the car. You can be off just a little bit and
it will really make it a long race."
While Labonte appears better prepared than ever for the Pepsi 400, he knows
there's a big task ahead. In nine career starts at Daytona, Labonte's best
finish is only 16th. He's never finished better than 22nd in the Pepsi 400.
But his strong run at Talladega has Labonte optimistic despite the
numbers.
"We were really pretty good from the start at Talladega," Labonte said. "We
got shuffled back a couple of times, but that's better than getting shuffled
back a lot. It's important we get in a good qualifying run, and just work on
the car so it sticks to the track. It may be slippery as ice at Daytona in
July, but you still don't want to be on a sled."
By Camp & Associates, Inc.