IRWIN Rough to Finish Award: At last Saturday’s Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway, tempers flared, cautions were abundant and emotions ran hot. In the end, few cars were able to escape the race without any damage.. The #99 CITGO Ford of Jeff Burton’s was no exception. But the team overcame some mid-race bad luck to finish in the top-15, helping earn team crew chief Frank Stoddard this week’s “IRWIN Rough to the Finish” award. Starting from the 36th position, Burton methodically made his way through traffic all night, climbing as high as 5th after a fast pit stop during a caution flag on lap 292. When the field came to the restart, the #19 and #88 got tangled up in front of Burton. Burton had nowhere to go, and ran into the #88 causing severe damage to the nose of the car. The #99 CITGO Ford would come in for a series of green flag pit stops to assess and fix the damage, eventually going a lap down on lap 355. But Burton persisted, and was able to regain his lap later in the race and climb to 13th position, where he would finish the night. “The #99 CITGO team did a great job in the pits this past weekend,” said Stoddard. “We were really running strong before the accident. Unfortunately, we won’t know how well we could have done tonight. But this team really came through under some difficult circumstances and allowed Jeff to post a top-15 finish.. My hat’s off to all those guys in the pits – they deserve all the credit.” Each week throughout the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup season, Irwin, makers of professional power tool accessories like Marathon Plus saw blades and Speedbor flat bits, is partnering with Performance Racing Network to honor the crew chief who had the toughest day in the pits, but still managed to help his team to a strong finish. The IRWIN Rough to the Finish Award includes an assortment of tools for the crew chief and a $250 check donated to the Ellerbe, NC Educational Fund in the racing team’s name.. The year-end winner of the crew chief points standings will win a $5,000 check donated to the Fund.. Race fans wanting to make a contribution to the Fund may do so by sending it to the Ellerbe, NC Educational Fund, PO Box 443, Ellerbe, NC 28338. In addition to the crew chief award, Irwin is also sponsoring the weekly nationally syndicated radio show, “Fast Talk with Benny Parsons”, throughout the upcoming year.(Golin Harris PR)(8-28-2002) (8-27-2002)
