NOTES OF INTEREST HEADING TO PHOENIX

Wrapping up Las Vegas:

The tremendous growth the NASCAR Winston West Series has experienced is illustrated by the additional teams that have joined the series. The average car count for the last three races, including the 1997 season finale, is 39.33 cars.

Kevin Harvick's win at Las Vegas marked the return of Spears Motorsports to victory lane in the NASCAR Winston West Series. The teams last win came at Mesa Marin in April of 1995

Only three drivers finished in the top 10 at Tucson and Las Vegas -- Sean Woodside, Kelly Tanner and Gary Smith. Nobody finished in the top five at both races.

Woodside, Tanner and Smith are the only drivers who have completed all of the 300 laps of competition in the first two races of the year.

Woodside, Tanner and Smith have the best average finish among drivers who competed in the first two NWWS races this season. Their average finish is 6.5.

Harvick has led the most laps in NWWS competition this year. He has had the Spears Motorsports Chevrolet out front for 129 laps and was the only driver to lead in both races so far.

With his prize money from Las Vegas, Gary Collins moved above the $100,000 mark in career earnings in the NASCAR Winston West Series. He ranks 31st on the list with $100,413.

Turning to Phoenix:

This is the third of 14 races on the NASCAR Winston West Series schedule and only visit by the series to Phoenix International Raceway this season. Although it is only the third race of the season. It is the second visit by the series to the state of Arizona in 1998. The series kicked off its season in January at Tucson.

This event is the second of six superspeedway races for the series this year. With the postponement of last month's NASCAR Winston West Series event at Altamont, the series now has three consecutive superspeedway events on its schedule. The Phoenix in the second of those three.

This year's race marks the return of the NASCAR Winston West Series to PIR, where races were annually held from 1977 to 1984. Between 1988 and 1996, the series participated in nine combination races with the NASCAR Winston Cup Series at the one-mile track.

Jay Sauter, who raced two NWWS races in 1997, is slated to compete at Phoenix in both the NASCAR Winston West Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. He will drive the Golden Gate-RCR West Chevrolet Monte Carlo owned by Jim Offenbach.

Kevin Harvick will also be busy in both divisions at Phoenix. It could be the first of many weekends for Harvick doing double duty with the Spears Motorsports teams running full schedules in the NASCAR Winston West Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

Other drivers planning to race in both divisions at Phoenix include Brendan Gaughan, Jerry Glanville, Randy Nelson and Lance Norick

Richard Petty has the most NWWS wins at Phoenix International Raceway, with victories in 1978, 1980 and 1981.

Richard Petty also has the most Bud Pole Awards for the series at PIR. He started from the pole position in 1978, 1979 and 1980.

Pappy Pryor and St. James Davis each competed in two of the NWWS stand-alone events that were held at Phoenix International Raceway between 1977 and 1984.

Chevrolet, with four victories, has the most wins among manufacturers in NWWS races at PIR.

Three NWWS drivers celebrating birthdays during the month of April include Rich DeLong, who turns 41 on the 17th; Mike Chase, who turns 46 also on the 17th; and Bob Howard, who turns 54 on the 22nd.

Stats of the Week:

The average starting position of NWWS winners at PIR is 4.12. Only once did a winner start from outside the top 10. In 1979 Richard Petty lined up in 11th on the grid and won.

This Date in the NASCAR Winston West Series:

April 19, 1964 -- Dick Bown won a 200-lap race over Bill Amick at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe, Wash.