Rudd continues to leave fans guessing
MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- After a solid qualifying lap put him on the outside of the front row for Sunday's Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway, Ricky Rudd knew the questions about his future were coming.
He was ready.
"Let's talk about Martinsville. I know what's happening at Martinsville," Rudd said Friday with a laugh. "No disrespect to everybody. It's just not time to announce anything yet."
Rudd, in his third season driving for Wood Brothers Racing and in his 31st season in Nextel Cup racing, said he realizes his fans want to know his plans.
"We're very aware of the support we have from them and the last thing we want to do is make it appear like we're snubbing them or dusting them off," he said.
"It's not intended that way. When everything comes out and all the hands get played, I think everyone will see there were reasons why things needed to be kept under wraps. The time has not come to divulge that. I wish I could."
D.W. rides again
Darrell Waltrip said he will be making his
final appearance in the Craftsman Truck Series when he starts 30th
in Saturday's Kroger 200.
Rick Crawford won the pole Friday at 95.966 mph; Waltrip's speed was 93.442 mph.
"Just being out here and hanging out and working has been good," Waltrip said. "I hate starting that far back, but if the tires don't fall off, we'll be OK."
Waltrip, a three-time Nextel Cup champion, also is an announcer for Fox.
Kyle Busch will start outside Crawford's Ford in a Chevrolet on the front row, with Tim Fedewa in a Dodge and Brandon Whitt in a Toyota starting on the second row.
Gordon the spoiler
Jeff Gordon won for the sixth time here in
the spring, but arrived this weekend out of the Chase for the
championship and qualified 15th.
But, he said, along with helping Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson in any way he can, Gordon is hoping to gain some momentum in Sunday's race and build on it in the last four races before heading into an offseason that will bring change to his team.
Robbie Loomis, Gordon's crew chief for his fourth series championship, will create the biggest void when he leaves after the season to join Petty Enterprises.
"We'd love to have something good happening for us, because we certainly haven't had a lot of that happen lately," he said. "Something like that -- even just a top five for us, would be fantastic."
Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press
