Ford teams react to rule change
By Tim Packman, Turner Sports Interactive
January 22, 2002
6:12 PM EST (2312 GMT)
CONCORD, N.C. -- Despite the rule change handed down on Tuesday afternoon affecting the aero package for the season-opening Daytona 500, some Ford teams still feel that NASCAR didn't do enough for them.
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Rusty Wallace (left) with Jeff Burton.
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NASCAR ruled that Ford teams could take off a quarter inch from the rear spoiler for the running of the Daytona 500. The measurements used during the Winston Cup Series testing recently completed at Daytona were 57 inches wide and 6 1/2 inches tall. With the decrease, Ford and Chevrolet will have the same size rear spoilers of 57 inches wide and 6 1/4 inches tall. Dodge and Pontiac will remain at 57 inches wide and 6 1/2 inches tall.
Upon the completion of the two test rounds, Chevrolets and Dodges were at the top of the speed chart with the Ford teams consistently lower on the list. The poor test results cause some Ford teams to voice their concerns to NASCAR.
Rusty Wallace said that something was better than nothing for the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford -- but it still wasn't enough.
“I talked to the people at NASCAR,” Wallace said Tuesday afternoon. “My basic reaction was that we need more than that and they said they felt a lot of Fords weren’t playing straight up on the templates during testing.
“They said many Ford teams didn’t come through inspection, but that my car and the No. 28 did. NASCAR also felt that many cars would be slowing up on the track and coming toward us to run in the draft.
“They said they weren’t comfortable giving us more than what they did. If we get to Daytona and need more, they said they might take another look at us then.
“But, as it is now we’ll take what we can. I understand, but I don’t understand and I feel like we needed at least a half-inch off the spoiler.”
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Members of Robert Yates Racing work on the rear spoiler of the No. 28.
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Wallace and the No. 28 Robert Yates Racing-owned Ford took part in a post-test session experiment where a quarter-inch was taken off the spoiler. After making a run, another quarter-inch was removed and the two cars went back out for another run.
The results showed an increase in speed, but didn’t affect the handling that much.
Geoffrey Bodine was the fastest of the Fords in the No. 09 James Finch-owned Ford. He laid down a lap of 182.723 mph (49.255 seconds) around the 2.5-mile superspeedway. That turned out to be the 15th-fastest speed on the overall chart.
There was some garage talk that the Finch team wasn’t holding back and that other Ford teams were "sandbagging" in order to gain a favorable rules change. Bodine said there was no sand in his hourglass when it came to lap times.
“We weren’t sandbagging at the test in Daytona, we went as fast as we could,” Bodine said after the rule change. “James Finch has really good equipment, so it was obvious to us that Ford needed a little help to be competitive.
“We're glad NASCAR acted in a positive way to make all the brands competitive for the Daytona 500. In theory the Fords should gain a little speed, but it won’t hinder the handling of the car.”
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Frankie Stoddard
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Frankie Stoddard is the crew chief for the No. 99 driven by Jeff Burton. The Roush Racing-owned team didn’t tear up the track either, and Stoddard feels something needed to be done. He wasn’t pleased with the rule and thinks the Fords need more taken off the rear spoiler.
“I am disappointed,” Stoddard said. “We went down to Daytona and it was clear that everyone was off. NASCAR said that they would make adjustments. The wind tunnel data showed in order for the Fords to compete with the Dodges and the Pontiacs that we would need a six inch spoiler.
“How we can overcome the deficit and still race competitively with the rule issued today is going to be very difficult in my opinion. A GM product has won at least twelve of the last sixteen restrictor plate races.
“I don’t see things changing in the near future.”
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