Dodge Motorsports Phoenix chassis, driver notes

STERLING MARLIN (No. 40 Coors Light Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Marlin will drive the same chassis that finished 10th two weeks ago at Martinsville. He finished 17th in the EA Sports 500 at Talladega Superspeedway last Sunday and ended a four-race streak of top-10 finishes. He dropped from third to fourth in the NASCAR Winston Cup Standings (NWCS). He now trails third-place Tony Stewart by just three points and point leader Jeff Gordon by 472. Marlin is the only driver who has remained in the top 10 in points all season. He is one of just four drivers to score 17 or more top-10 finishes in the first 31 races of the season. He has scored only four top-10 finishes in 13 races at Phoenix, but none in his last six races at the Arizona track. His best Phoenix finish, a third, has occurred twice (1991 and 1994). Marlin finished 15th in this race one year ago. The 44-year-old driver from Columbia, Tenn., will make career start No. 535 on Sunday.

BILL ELLIOTT (No. 9 Dodge Dealers Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Elliott will drive the same Evernham Motorsports Dodge Intrepid R/T chassis that he ran at Texas and Las Vegas. He finished 14th in both of those races. Elliott finished 20th last week at Talladega and 26th last year at Phoenix. In 13 starts at the Desert Mile, Elliott has one victory, four top fives and four top 10s. Elliott ranks 15th in the NWCS and the 45-year-old 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup champion from Dawsonville, Ga., will make career start No. 655 on Sunday.

WARD BURTON (No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Burton will race the Bill Davis Racing chassis that finished third two weeks ago at Martinsville. Burton finished 12th last year at Phoenix and 21st last week at Talladega. He^Òs 16th in the NWCS and trails 15th-place Bill Elliott by 45 points. Burton, a 39-year-old driver from South Boston, Va., will make career start No. 246 on Sunday.

DAVE BLANEY (No. 93 Amoco Ultimate Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Blaney finished eighth last year at Phoenix in his first Cup start at the Desert Mile. Blaney^Òs Phoenix chassis finished ninth earlier this season at Rockingham. Blaney finished 30th last week at Talladega and ranks 24th in the NWCS. The 36-year-old driver from Hartford, Ohio, will make career start No. 71 on Sunday.

JOHN ANDRETTI (No. 43 Cheerios Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Andretti started 20th and finished 30th at Richmond in the chassis he'll race this week at Phoenix. Andretti finished 28th last year at Phoenix and 34th last week at Talladega. He ranks 29th in the NWCS. The 38-year-old driver from Indianapolis, Ind., a former pole winner at Phoenix, will make career start No. 258 on Sunday.

CASEY ATWOOD (No. 19 Dodge Dealers Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Atwood will drive a brand new Evernham Motorsports Dodge Intrepid R/T chassis at Phoenix. Atwood, a 21-year-old Raybestos Rookie of the Year contender from Nashville, Tenn., finished 39th last week at Talladega. He ranks third in the rookie standings and 33rd in the NWCS.

STACY COMPTON (No. 92 Kodiak Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Compton's Phoenix chassis raced earlier this season at Las Vegas and both Pocono races with finishes of 27th, 23rd and 32nd, respectively. Compton will be making his first Cup start at Phoenix. He's fresh off his second pole of the season at Talladega last week and an 11th-place finish. The 34-year-old driver from Grit, Va., ranks 34th in the NWCS and will make career start No. 62 on Sunday.

JASON LEFFLER (No. 01 Cingular Wireless Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Leffler finished 15th last week at Talladega and took top honors in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year class for the second time this season. Leffler ranks fifth in the rookie standings and 37th in the NWCS. Leffler, 26, is from Long Beach, Calif.

BUCKSHOT JONES (No. 44 Georgia Pacific Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Jones will drive the same chassis that Petty Enterprises teammate John Andretti drove to a second-place finish earlier this season at Bristol. Jones finished 28th last week at Talladega and ranks 41st in the NWCS. The 31-year-old driver from Tucker, Ga., will make his 43rd career Cup start on Sunday.

KYLE PETTY (No. 45 Sprint Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Petty will drive the Petty Enterprises chassis that finished 26th in the Pepsi Southern 500 at Darlington. Petty has four top-10 finishes in 12 starts at Phoenix. He qualified 10th and finished seventh here in '99. Petty qualified eighth and finished 33rd last week at Talladega. He ranks 43rd in the NWCS, and the 41-year-old driver from Randleman, N.C., will make career start No. 605 on Sunday.

-Dodge Motorsports-