Speedway, Ind. — Ford driver Dale Jarrett was the fourth-fastest driver during yesterday’s Indianapolis Motor Speedway NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series test session with a speed of 176.604 mph in the No. 88 UPS Ford.

Kenny Wallace was fastest in testing with an unofficial lap of 50.2502 seconds, 179.104 mph in the No. 00 Aaron’s Chevrolet, a car owned by fellow NEXTEL Cup competitor Michael Waltrip.

Wallace’s speed was nearly 2.5 mph faster than the 12 other drivers taking part in testing, and he attributed it to a solid program in place at Michael Waltrip Racing.

The 2002 NASCAR champion Tony Stewart was second-fastest in the No. 20 Home Depot Chevrolet at 176.783 mph, Bill Elliott was third in the No. 91 Visteon Dodge at 176.638 mph and Geoffrey Bodine was fifth at 176.314 mph in the No. 34 RaceElPaso Dodge.

Ryan Newman also tested in the No. 12 Alltel Dodge for Penske Racing. The team did not authorize the release of speeds during the private test.

Newman, a native of South Bend, Ind., said that while he appreciates the history of the 2.5-mile IMS oval, located less than three hours from his hometown, he has an even greater appreciation for the challenge the Speedway presents to NASCAR NEXTEL Cup teams and drivers.

“To me, this is a greater race than the Daytona 500, in my opinion, mostly because to me it’s more of a race than Daytona,” he said. “The track’s [IMS] got more historical value, and that’s cool and all, but I enjoy the race track, I enjoy the racing, I enjoy the spectacle [of] what it is now.”

Newman graduated with an engineering degree from Purdue University in W. Lafayette, Ind., and used his background in that field describe the importance of testing at IMS year after year.

“Different tires, different cars, different people,” he said. “[We’re] trying to get the whole mathematical equation to balance out, and that’s why we’re testing.”

Elliott, winner of the 2002 Brickyard 400, will return to Indianapolis driving a third car for the Evernham Motorsports team, the same team with which he won. He is running a limited NEXTEL Cup schedule in 2004 and is ready to compete in the 11th Brickyard 400 on Aug. 8.

Testing continues from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. (EST) today, the final day of private testing at IMS, with a one-hour lunch break from noon-1 p.m. The public can view testing free of charge from the South Terrace grandstands, located inside the track between Turns 1 and 2.

POSITION — DRIVER — SPEED (MPH) — SESSION — TOTAL LAPS
1. — Kenny Wallace — 179.104 — Afternoon — 45
2. — Tony Stewart — 176.783 — Morning — 142
3. — Bill Elliott — 176.638 — Afternoon — 100
4. — Dale Jarrett — 176.604 — Afternoon — 145
5. — Geoffrey Bodine — 176.314 — Afternoon — 42
6. — Dave Blaney — 175.776 — Morning — 138
7. — Sterling Marlin — 175.555 — Morning — 78
8. — Terry Labonte — 175.343 — Afternoon — 50
9. — Ward Burton — 175.331 — Afternoon — 46
10. — Jamie McMurray — 175.059 — Afternoon — 102
11. — Ricky Craven — 174.634 — Morning — 82
12. — Larry Foyt — 171.792 — Afternoon — 41
NR — Ryan Newman — NR — NR — 85

NR= Team did not authorize release of speeds

Contributed by Indianapolis Motor Speedway news bureau