Chevy or Pontiac? a draw? UPDATE 3 A Pontiac at Indy: #20-Tony Stewart and #18-Bobby Labonte tested both Chevrolets and Pontiacs in Monday’s opening session of the two-day Winston Cup test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but the results appeared to be a virtual dead heat. Stewart’s best speed was a 175.632mph in his 40 laps in a Chevy, good for 23rd place on the day, but he had a 175.457 in his 39 laps in a Pontiac, which was the 25th best of the session, Labonte had a best of 173.476 in his 39 laps in a Monte Carlo (40th overall) and a 173.43 in 16 laps in a Pontiac (45th of the 54 driver/car combinations). The team announced Sunday it would switch to Chevrolet entries next year and might run them in some events this season.(Winston Cup Scene Newsletter)(7-16-2002) UPDATE – looks like a #20 Chevy at Indy: FSN’s Totally NASCAR reports that it is likely that Joe Gibbs Racing will run a Chevy for Tony Stewart and the #20 Home Depot team in the Brickyard 400 at Indy, didn’t mention the #18-Labonte team.(7-17-2002) UPDATE 2: however, sources with the team tell me that the decision has yet to be made and supposedly the #20 is leaning heavily towards the Pontiac though and not the Chevy. As for the #18 team, there will be another test next week and a decision will be based following that test.(7-18-2002) UPDATE 3: during TNT’s qualifying coverage of the New Hampshire 300 on Friday, Stewart and crew chief Greg Zipadelli were interviewed on the war wagon and Zipadelli said they would run a Pontiac at Indy for the Brickyear 400, but would test a Chevy at Kentucky and may run it at a place like Michigan. #18-Bobby Labonte said in a later interview that he would run a Pontiac at Indy also.(7-19-2002) the #20 and #18 Chevy’s testing at Indy this week – Creative Motorsports Images
