Busch’s Pit Crew Wins in Martinsville; Increases Points Lead:
April 21, 2004 at 12:00 AM
Kurt Busch’s pit crew increased its points lead in the McDonald’s Drive-Thru Pit Championship fueled by POWERade after taking top honors in Sunday’s Advance Auto Parts 500 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The Martinsville victory, worth $20,000, was the second of the season for Busch’s pit crew, giving the #97 crew the distinction of becoming the first team to score multiple wins in 2004. The team’s other pit crew victory was the March 7th race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. After eight NASCAR NEXTEL Cup races, Busch’s pit crew leads the McDonald’s/POWERade standings with 312 points, 10 more than the second place crews for Elliott Sadler and Dale Earnhardt Jr. Tony Stewart’s crew is fourth with 280 points. Busch’s IRWIN Industrial Tools Ford spent the least amount of time on pit road in Martinsville — 284.693 seconds. Earnhardt’s Budweiser Chevrolet was second with a time of 289.324. Bobby Labonte’s Interstate Batteries Chevy was third at 290.121. “These Sharpie/IRWIN guys worked really hard in the off-season on our stops,” said Jimmy Fennig, crew chief for the No. 97 team. “We’ve been consistent in the pits and had some good qualifying runs to get favorable spots on pit road which helps too. Kurt has done a great job of keeping the fenders on the car too, which has kept us out on the track for position. It’s a team effort all around, and these guys really keep an eye on the McDonald’s/POWERade Drive-Thru point standings.” Busch’s over-the-wall crew consists of: Scott Ward (front tire changer), Mark Full (front tire carrier), Kevin Gilman (rear tire changer), Jason Binger (rear tire carrier), Doug Newell (gasman), Scott Radel (jackman) and Jim Gaudette (catch can). for the top ten results from Martinsville, season standings see my Pit Crews News page, past results on my 2004 Past Pit Crew News page and also check out my 2004 Pit Crew Chart.(DMF Communications PR)(4-21-2004)
