SBRS: Graduates win over the weekekdn

Congratulations to Skip Barber graduate Bobby Labonte on his victory at the Pepsi Southern 500 held at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Labonte, the NASCAR Winston Cup points leader, fought off fellow Skip Barber alumnus Jeff Burton ...

Congratulations to Skip Barber graduate Bobby Labonte on his victory at the Pepsi Southern 500 held at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Labonte, the NASCAR Winston Cup points leader, fought off fellow Skip Barber alumnus Jeff Burton for the top honors in a wild-and-wooly contest that lasted over six hours and featured heavy rains, multiple stops, numerous caution flags and generally dicey track conditions. When it was over, Labonte was as much a survivor as a victor. Jeff Burton finished the race in second place. With the win, Labonte increases his lead in the overall points standings entering the backstretch of the Winston Cup season. Skip Barber trained drivers made up half of the Top-10 finishers. Jeff Gordon took the checkered flag in fourth place, Ward Burton finished in sixth, Steve Park in tenth. The Burton brothers also earned top-10 honors in Busch Series action the previous day at the Dura Lube 200 on the same track; Jeff in second place and Ward with a fifth place result.

In CART action, at the Molson Indy Vancouver, 1993 Pro Series Champion Kenny Brack earned the sole top-10 honor among Skip Barber graduates with a ninth place result. In Indy Lights competition, which also ran on the temporary Concord Pacific street circuit, other Skip Barber trained racers prevailed. The 1998 Barber Dodge Pro Series Champion and Rookie of the Year, Jeff Simmons, took third place honors finishing ahead of Formula Dodge Race Series veteran Townsend Bell, who finished in fourth place. Barber Dodge alumni Tony Renna rounded out the Skip Barber trained in the top-10 with a sixth place result.