Wallace’s Victory May Not Stand Up

Auto racing

Rusty Wallace managed to avoid hard-driving Jeff Gordon and finish first in the Pontiac Excitement 400 in Richmond, Va., Sunday, but he may not have won the race.

Four hours after Wallace crossed the finish line, NASCAR officials announced they had taken the engine from his Ford Thunderbird for “failing to meet compression ratio specifications.”

NASCAR spokesman Kevin Triplett said the engine had been tested more than once and did not comply with the organization’s 14-to-1 compression standard. The inspection is routine for the winner’s engine and at least two others after each race.

Triplett said there will be more testing on the engine before a ruling is announced, probably today.

Wallace wasn’t pleased with Gordon’s tactics late in the race.

“He thought he had a chance to win being a lap down with five to go?” Wallace, 40, scoffed. “I don’t know. That’s pretty tough to do. You’ve gotta be Houdini, although that kid’s pretty good. I don’t know.”

Ernie Irvan said Gordon ran over the left front of his car, sending him smashing into the wall on the fourth turn on the 393rd of 400 laps. Irvan was fourth at the time, and promised to remember what Gordon cost him and pay him back.

Irvan wound up 36th when he couldn’t finish the race.

Michael Andretti won in the Swift’s debut at the Marlboro Grand Prix of Miami - the first victory by an American-built chassis in the last 14 years on the Indy-car circuit.

Andretti started 14th in the 28-car lineup, but came on to dominate the second half of the 148-lap race at the 1.517-mile oval at Metro-Dade Homestead Motorsports Complex.