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NASCAR notes: Documentary on Scott airs tonight on ESPN

Sunday, February 20, 2011
(Updated 7:35 am)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- ESPN will air an hour-long documentary tonight on Wendell Scott, the only African-American to have won a race in NASCAR's top series in the sport's history

The Danville, Va., native's lone win came Dec. 1, 1963, at Jacksonville (Fla.) Speedway. Scott, though, never visited victory lane that day. It wasn't until after the race when a scoring error was discovered that showed Scott was the winner. He also never received the trophy.

ESPN's documentary airs at 9 p.m. While such a program can only cover so much in a short period of time, it reflects some of the struggles faced by Scott, who died Dec. 23, 1990, at the age of 69.

Frank Scott cannot forget what his father went through.

"He would get death threats: 'If you come to the race, you're going to leave in a pine box,'" Frank Scott said. "He said, "I'm going. That's what I've got to do.''

The documentary includes an interview Scott gave with Ned Jarrett for a racing show years later and even then Scott said he felt he could race with the right equipment.

"That Wendell Scott was something else,'' said son Wendell Scott, Jr.

Scott, who had no factory support, ran 495 races from 1961-73, recording 20 top-five finishes and 147 top-10 finishes.

The documentary starts at Jacksonville Speedway the day Scott won the race and goes back to different moments in his life. It shows the family receiving a trophy from the track in 2010 to commemorate Scott's win.

RULE ADJUSTMENT: NASCAR told teams that with warm weather forecast for today, they could enlarge their air inlet openings from 2.5 x 20 inches to 3 x 20 inches. That's to allow more air to the engine to help cool it. Temperatures are expected to be as warm today as they have been the past two weeks.

LAST CHANCE: Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer each posted the fastest lap in Saturday's final practice session at 200.316 mph when they were in a two-car draft. Eight of the 37 drivers who practiced topped 199 mph. Kyle Busch ran 37 laps, more than any other driver in practice. The six drivers who did not practice were: Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Brian Vickers, Terry Labonte and Brian Keselowski.

 

Contact Dustin Long at 373-7072 or dustin.long@news-record.com

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