Dodge Pocono chassis notes

STERLING MARLIN (No. 40 Coors Light Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Marlin qualified second and finished fourth with the same chassis earlier this season at Pocono. Chip Ganassi Racing chassis No. 105 has been a workhorse for the Coors Light team this season. Marlin drove the same Intrepid chassis at Las Vegas, Atlanta, California, Charlotte in the Coca-Cola 600 and Chicago. It finished third at Las Vegas and ninth at California and Chicago. Marlin finished 17th last week at New Hampshire and remained fifth in the NASCAR Winston Cup Standings (NWCS), 281 points behind the co-leaders but only seven points out of fourth. Marlin leads all Dodge drivers with five top five and 10 top 10 finishes this season. Marlin will be making his 523rd career start at Pocono. The 44-year-old driver from Columbia, Tenn., has 11 career poles and six victories.

WARD BURTON (No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Burton will drive chassis No. 42 at Pocono, the same one he finished 40th with there earlier this season after getting caught up in an accident on lap 113 of 200. Burton finished 20th last week at New Hampshire and remained 18th in the NWCS. Burton has two top fives and four top 10s in 2001. The 39-year-old driver from South Boston, Va., trails his 15th-place younger brother, Jeff Burton, by 123 points after 19 of 36 events.

BILL ELLIOTT (No. 9 Dodge Dealers Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Elliott will race the same Intrepid chassis that finished 27th in June at Pocono. The 45-year-old driver from Dawsonville, Ga., has three poles and five victories at Pocono. He finished 21st last week at New Hampshsire and remained 19th in the NWCS. Elliott trails 18th-place Ward Burton by only nine points.

DAVE BLANEY (No. 93 Amoco Ultimate Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Blaney has raced the same chassis this season at Texas, Atlanta and Pocono. He scored a career-best sixth with it at Texas and finished 11th in June at Pocono after qualifying 29th. The 36-year-old driver is a native of Sharon, Pa. He finished 37th last week at New Hampshire and dropped two spots to 26th in the NWCS. He^Òs only 149 points behind 20th-place.

JOHN ANDRETTI (No. 43 Cheerios Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Andretti will drive the same chassis that qualified 23rd and finished 23rd at Chicago. The 38-year-old Bethlehem, Pa., native finished 23rd last week at New Hampshire after running in the top 10 for most of the race. He finished 39th earlier this season at Pocono and has a career-best finish of 12th in 15 starts at the 2.5-mile triangle. Andretti^Òs runner-up finish at Bristol earlier this season has been the highest finish for Dodge in 2001. Andretti ranks 31st in the NWCS.

STACY COMPTON (No. 92 Kodiak Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Compton will race the same Intrepid chassis that qualified 22nd and finished 23rd in June at Pocono. Compton finished 31st last week at New Hampshire and ranks 33rd in the NWCS. The 34-year-old driver from Grit, Va., will be making his fourth career start at Pocono and 51st overall.

CASEY ATWOOD (No. 19 Dodge Dealers Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Atwood^Òs team will bring back the same chassis that finished 38th at Pocono in June. Atwood qualified 13th and had worked his way to the top five when engine problems robbed him of a better finish. Atwood led all Dodges last week with a 12--place run at New Hampshire. That matched the 20-year-old rookie^Òs best run of the season. The Nashville, Tenn., driver ranks third in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings and 34th in the NWCS.

JASON LEFFLER (No. 01 Cingular Wireless Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Leffler^Òs team will bring chassis No. 114 to Pocono. Leffler qualified 33rd and finished 41st last time at Pocono. The 25-year-old Long Beach, Calif., native started 41st and finished 27th last week at New Hampshire. He ranks fifth in the six-driver Raybestos Rookie of the Year race and 35th in the NWCS.

BUCKSHOT JONES (No. 44 Georgia Pacific Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Jones will race a brand new Dodge Intrepid chassis at Pocono. Jones finished 42nd in his first career start at Pocono in June. He finished 24th last week at New Hampshire and ranks 39th in the NWCS. The Tucker, Ga., native celebrated his 31st birthday on Monday, July 23.

KYLE PETTY (No. 45 Sprint Dodge Intrepid R/T)
Petty will race the same chassis he used in June at Pocono. Engine problems relegated Petty to a 34th-place finish in that race. Petty finished 26th last week at New Hampshire and ranks 42nd in the NWCS. In 38 career starts at Pocono, Petty has a victory (^Ñ93), two top fives and 12 top 10s. The 41-year-old driver from Randleman, N.C., will make his 598th career start on Sunday at Pocono.

-Dodge Motorsports