Blown engine spoils another solid Jarrett run

ROCKINGHAM, N.C. -- Dale Jarrett's consolation from a blown engine Sunday at North Carolina Speedway was two-fold.

First, it came after a solid run in the Subway 400, as Jarrett ran in the top five for more than half the race.

Second, Jarrett picked up a little extra money, as a quarter wedged its way into the front grille of the No. 88 Ford.

Well, OK, a quarter isn't much help. And, by the way, as the crew loaded the car onto its hauler, the quarter was left in the grille. It was upside-down.

Yes, bad luck struck Jarrett and Robert Yates Racing.

"Something happened in the engine," Jarrett said. "I came off Turn 2, and it just quit pulling. It's unfortunate. It's very rare that we have anything in that department happen."

The new Yates/Roush engine-building combination has now had three failures in two races, as Mark Martin and Jeff Burton both blew up at Daytona.

But blowing an engine at Rockingham is nothing new for Jarrett. Last November, Jarrett's engine failed in the Pop Secret 400, leaving him with a 38th-place finish.

Somehow, blowing an engine this year doesn't seem to hurt as much. Jarrett's crewmen weren't smiling, but instead they wore looks of confidence on their faces.

The 88 team is clearly a much better group than it was last year, and the Mike Ford-led crew knows it. So does Jarrett.

"We had a good racecar," Jarrett said. "Mike has done a really good job of giving me something I can race with. We weren't as fast as those guys on new tires, but our car was really good on the long runs. He's got a good outlook on things. We'll get ready for 'em in a couple weeks in Vegas."

Jarrett struggled though a difficult 2003 season, finishing a distant 26th in the points standings with only one top-five finish: his victory here last year.

But after a good Speedweeks -- which included a victory in the Budweiser Shootout -- and another good run at Rockingham, the future appears bright.

"We were running well," Jarrett said. "We have very few engine problems, so this is very rare. We had a good race car, and that's the main thing. We know we can compete."