Marlin's 2001 win returns Dodge to MIS Victory Lane

With the Chrysler-Fiat deal approved and the new company emerging from bankruptcy, it seems fitting to take a look back at one of Dodge's biggest days at Michigan International Speedway.

2001 Pepsi 400

Results

Pos.	Driver	Make
1.	Sterling Marlin	Dodge
2.	Ricky Craven	Ford
3.	Bill Elliott	Dodge
4.	Matt Kenseth	Ford
5.	Johnny Benson	Pontiac
6.	Dave Blaney	Dodge
7.	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet
8.	Mark Martin	Ford
9.	Steve Park	Chevrolet
10.	Casey Atwood	Dodge

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Since Cale Yarborough's Mercury edged David Pearson's Ford by five car-lengths in the inaugural race in 1969, the track located in the Irish Hills has always seemed to favor Ford products. Thanks to in part to Pearson's nine victories, Fords and Mercurys won 13 of the first 15 Michigan races. And that trend only seemed to intensify over the years.

Starting in 1984, Bill Elliott scored the first of his seven Michigan wins. Other successful Ford drivers included Davey Allison, Dale Jarrett, Ernie Irvan, Geoffrey Bodine and Rusty Wallace. And in recent years, Jack Roush's flagship operation -- with the likes of Mark Martin, Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards -- have carried Dearborn's blue oval into Victory Lane.

In comparison, Richard Petty's wins in 1974 and 1975 represented the only Michigan wins for Dodge in the 20th century. The manufacturer had been winless since Neil Bonnett's victory at Ontario in 1977, and hadn't competitively campaigned on the circuit for nearly two decades. However, after returning full time to Cup in 2001, the folks in Auburn Hills were itching for a chance to celebrate a long-awaited victory, and that came in the Pepsi 400.

Bill Elliott put his Dodge on the front row next to pole-sitter Ricky Craven's Ford, and took the early lead. But not surprisingly, the race began to look like a parade of Fords, as Ricky Rudd, Wallace, Jarrett and Martin began to swap the top spot over the next 120 laps, with only Elliott making any headway. However, steadily moving up from his 15th-place starting position was Sterling Marlin, and nearing the halfway mark, he was closing fast on the front-running Fords.

Conserving fuel with dark clouds rapidly approaching the track, Martin looked like he might break his 42-race winless streak when rain forced NASCAR officials to throw the caution flag on Lap 98, and the field pulled onto pit road two laps later at exactly halfway. But the showers ended and the track was quickly dried in time to set up a dramatic turn of events.

When the race resumed, Martin pitted, handing the lead back to Elliott. Wallace got by shortly after the restart. And Rudd, who had the dominant car until he lost two cylinders, saw his day go from bad to worse when the engine expired on Lap 121, bringing out the caution. While Jeremy Mayfield stayed out, the rest of the lead-lap cars headed for pit road. And while Elliott gambled on a two-tire stop, Marlin took four fresh tires.

Elliott quickly disposed of Mayfield on the restart and built up a 2-second advantage over the field. But Marlin's lap times were significantly quicker, and once he worked his way through traffic, he began to close on the leader. Getting to Elliott and passing him was a different story. Twice Marlin found the way blocked before he finally got a clean shot on Lap 145.

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"The first time I tried to pass him, I didn't catch him in the right place on the track," Marlin said. "The last time I caught him, I got a good run up off Turn 4 and just got on by."

But Craven was just as fast, if not faster, and passed Elliott for second four laps later. Now the only question would be whether Craven could catch Marlin before it rained, as the radar showed more showers nearby.

"I kept looking in my mirror and I saw Ricky coming," Marlin said. "It was raining and I was thinking, 'Man, they've got to call it,' because it was getting slick out there.'

"I kept watching the clouds get bigger. It kept getting darker and darker. I said a little prayer to let it rain, and it rained."

The caution flag flew on Lap 157, with Craven's Ford getting closer and closer in Marlin's rear-view mirror. And five laps later, NASCAR halted proceedings for the final time -- 32 laps shy of the scheduled distance -- allowing Marlin to secure Dodge's first victory in 24 seasons, and his first win since 1996.

"I never doubted myself," Marlin said. "I knew we could get the job done if we could get some stuff to do it with. I felt in my heart that I could still drive a race car as good as anybody."

Craven's only wish was for the rain to have held off just a few more laps, which might have resulted in his first Cup win.

"With it raining, you say, 'Gosh, we're going to be second. I wish I could have just 10 more laps,'" Craven said. "You've got to be reasonable. That's what I've got to remind myself. That's my best career finish.

"I was chasing Sterling down and would've loved to have had 10 laps to duke it out."

Two races later at Darlington, Ward Burton would record another win for Dodge. And after Marlin's triumph at Charlotte, Elliott would finally get to Victory Lane at Homestead.

For Craven, he would erase his disappointment at Michigan later in the season with a win at Martinsville.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.