Sun, 8 Oct 2000, 12:02 PM Sunday Preview

By Larry Sullivan

MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Sunday promises to be a busy day at the 13th annual AutoZone Nationals presented by Pennzoil, both on the track and in the championship points races.

The big news of the weekend, of course, is Tony Schumacher's terrifying accident during the final Top Fuel qualifying session Saturday. His most serious injury turned out to be a broken left tibia (shin bone), plus bumps and bruises. He will not be released from the hospital until later today and will not be able to drive today, but his teammate, Melanie Troxel, has a chance to act as a blocker if both she and points leader Gary Scelzi make it through the first round of eliminations.

Details of the crash were sketchy Saturday, but the video clearly shows the wing breaking away at the top of the struts, unlike other similar accidents where the wing struts themselves broke loose. The effect, however, was the same - the rear of the car suddenly lost several hundred pounds of downforce and the car became uncontrollable. The chassis came apart as designed, the driver "capsule" remaining intact and doing its job.

In Funny Car, we will see the quickest field ever, with a 5.024 bump, the top thirteen qualifiers in the fours.

In Pro Stock, Jeg Coughlin can clinch the title if he goes to the semifinals. If he loses in round two, Ron Krisher must win the event and set a national ET record. If Jeg loses in round one, Krisher must win the event. Anything else, and Coughlin clinches the title.

We have a Dodge atop the Pro Stock order with the quickest ET ever, a 6.809. If Scott Geoffrion backs that up as a national record, it will be the first time since September of '92 that a Dodge has held the ET record, and that time it was also Geoffrion, with a 7.099, the first run ever under 7.10 seconds.

Gary Stanfield shattered the truck record book, setting both ends with a 7.438 at 180.69. He also heads the quickest Pro Stock Truck field ever, anchored by Brian Self's 7.494.



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