DARLINGTON, S.C. – A day after Ricky Craven edged Kurt Busch in a sheet-metal slinging finish to the Winston Cup Dodge 400 at Darlington Raceway, Todd Bodine and Jamie McMurray produced a reprise in the rain-delayed darlingtonraceway.com 200 Busch race.
Bodine had finished last on Sunday, but he wound up first on Monday after he and McMurray slammed into each other coming off the final turn of final lap.
As both drivers struggled for control of their cars, McMurray’s Dodge cut a tire and he lost what little bit of control he had left, sending him spinning down the front stretch.
Bodine, meanwhile, also was fighting to control his Chevrolet.
“I just held it wide open,” Bodine said. “I knew I was pointed the right way down the race track. I was just hoping to get there (the finish line) before he did.”
McMurray slid sideways across the line to get second, with Scott Riggs picking his way through the chaos for third.
Bodine had led 68 laps earlier in the day, but for a while it looked like Stacy Compton might steal this victory away.
Compton, stretching his fuel and trying to make it all the way on worn-out tires, led by a full lap when the leaders completed their final stops under green by Lap 125.
But Bodine, McMurray and Riggs had fresh tires and quickly ate away at the gap, making up as much as two seconds a lap.
With five laps to go Bodine was nearly 2.9 seconds behind Compton. With three to go Bodine and McMurray both tried for the lead, with Bodine making his car stick in the middle of a three-wide sandwich in Turn 2 and coming out with the top spot.
McMurray wasn’t done, though. He kept hammering away, just as Craven had done in chasing down Busch on Sunday.
And when Bodine hit what he called “a slick spot” in Turn 4 on the final lap, McMurray tried to pounce on the opportunity.
“I drove in there as deep as I could,” McMurray said. “I had committed myself to going to the top and Todd got a little loose.”
That left McMurray between Bodine and the wall as they started to drag race down the front straightaway for the final time. Both cars were wiggling and began banging fenders. That’s when McMurray heard his tire blow out.
“It was the left rear,” he said. “As soon as we touched the first time I could hear it explode. He was bouncing off me and we were bouncing off that wall, too, so it was pretty hard to hold on to.”
Bodine didn’t know about McMurray’s tire, however, and was apologetic immediately after the race for having sent his fellow combatant whirling down the frontstretch. But McMurray wasn’t angry.
“He was just trying to stay in his line,” McMurray said. “He was out of control just like I was. He was doing what he does and I was doing what I do.”
Bodine was on probation in Winston Cup for rough driving late last season, so the last thing he needs is people pointing blame at him for dirty pool in going for a victory.
But McMurray wasn’t alone in letting him off the hook this time.
“When it comes down to the last lap, you have to get every bit out of your race car,” said Riggs, who said the leaders’ battle off Turn 4 happened one lap too late to hand the victory over to him. “Nobody pointed fingers yesterday and nobody is going to today.”
“It’s easy to get mad about it, but when you’re coming off Turn 4 off the last lap racing for the lead, as long as you bring the steering wheel home everything is fair.”
Bodine, whose team currently has no sponsor, now leads the Busch Series standings by 37 points over McMurray after four races.
Busch Series regular Jason Keller, who finished 10th Monday, is third, eight points ahead of Ron Hornaday.
Compton held on for fourth Monday.
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(c) 2003, The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.).
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AP-NY-03-17-03 1934EST
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