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NASCAR WCUP: Dodge Passes Key Milestone With First On-Track Test Laps

6 May 2000

Dodge Return to NASCAR Winston Cup Racing Passes Key Milestone With First On-Track Test Laps

    HOMESTEAD, Fla., May 5 The clicking and whirring of news
cameras was quickly drowned out when the engine came to life with a throaty
roar.  Moments later the primer-gray Dodge Intrepid R/T race car began to roll
out of the garage area at Homestead Miami Speedway.  As the car made its way
onto the track, a new page of racing history was written as Dodge once again
prepared for NASCAR Winston Cup racing.
    Highly successful in drag, endurance, touring and truck racing, Dodge has
been absent from the Winston Cup Series for more than two decades.  Today's
inaugural on-track test session follows the decision announced last October
that Dodge will return to NASCAR's top stock car series at the Daytona 500 in
2001.
    "Seeing the Dodge Intrepid R/T on the track for the first time was an
emotional moment for me," said Lou Patane, Vice President, Dodge Motorsports
Operations and Mopar Performance Parts.
    "When you start a program and grow it from its infancy to a point where it
becomes a reality, it does touch you emotionally," he said.  "And when I see
the effort all the people put in from the team side and from the company side
to get us to this milestone -- and this is only one of many milestones we will
accomplish -- it does give you a special feeling."
    Witnessing the event with Patane were more than a dozen Dodge dealers,
representing their 3,000 colleagues across North America, and officials of the
United Auto Workers (UAW) union.  The dealers will be the primary sponsors of
two of the seven Dodge Intrepid R/T race cars scheduled to compete in Winston
Cup racing next year.
    The UAW National Training Center is an associate sponsor of the Evernham
Motorsports cars.
    Test driver Kyle Petty also admitted that emotions were high today as the
Dodge and Petty names came together again in a Winston Cup program.  The wins
of Petty's father and late grandfather, Richard and Lee, respectively,
comprised a large portion of Dodge's 160 Winston Cup victories.
    "You should have seen the look on my father's face when we met with Dodge
people to talk about our truck racing program and learned that they had
decided to get back into Winston Cup racing," said Petty.  "I'm incredibly
excited.  This is a big deal for our family," he continued.  "We view this as
a huge opportunity.  The sky's the limit, really.
    "I'm also excited about coming down here and driving (the test car) for
the first time.  I wouldn't miss this for the world.  This is a big day for
Kyle Petty personally."
    In addition to his driving duties, Petty is chief executive officer of
Petty Enterprises, one of three teams that have announced they will race with
Dodge Intrepid R/Ts in 2001.
    The others are Evernham Motorsports and Bill Davis Racing.  All three
teams were present at the track today with Dodge engineers.  All are sharing
the information being gathered.
    Leading the Dodge development effort is champion crew chief and team owner
Ray Evernham.
    "I'm really happy with the car's first shakedown runs," said Evernham
after the car had been on the track a few times for five-lap runs.  "The car
got up to speeds that are competitive with what the Winston Cup cars ran here
last year.
    "But we didn't come here to go fast," continued Evernham.  "We came here
to gather information about how this car works with the aerodynamic changes we
will be making.  We're gathering data we can use in our simulations and to
prepare for our next track tests.
    "We're also testing the team," added Evernham.  "The fact that we unloaded
the car and put it on the track with no problems, and with all the engineering
and test systems working as they should, is really a big accomplishment."
    Bill Davis, owner of Bill Davis Racing, echoed Evernham's comments about
speed not being the critical factor.
    "No one expected to come down here and set a new track record," said
Davis.  "We'll leave here with the first set of notes to build on.  Kyle will
have an impression of how the car runs, Ray will have a crew chief's
perspective on the car and we'll have a lot of data we can analyze.  We'll put
that all together, make some improvements and then test again."
    Dodge officials and the team owners commented repeatedly about all of the
various entities operating as a combined Dodge operation.
    "The 'one team' concept is an important part of what is different about
the Dodge approach to Winston Cup racing," said Evernham.  "When we pool our
resources and our experience, we've got a much broader information base than
any one person can have.  Working together is what will push the Dodge program
to the top and get it done quickly.  I've been involved with racing for many
years and I've never seen anything like this."
    Speaking with reporters a few steps away, Patane expressed the same
thought:  "Collectively, we're all smarter than any one of us on our own."
    As the first morning of the two-day test session concluded, Evernham
declared the event a success.
    "We got to see history being made this morning with the first Dodge
Winston Cup car on the track," said Evernham.  "We also know that our test
team works.  We can now start to test seriously because we know our people and
our systems are ready to go.
    "We continue to make great progress with our ambitious 500-day countdown
to Daytona," said Evernham.  "We have a lot of work left to do but we are
right on schedule."
    When the Dodge Test Car is put back in the hauler tonight, there will be
291 days left to prepare for the Daytona 500 in 2001.