The Race Report.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)

Longtime NASCAR ``experts'' could have seen this one coming from halfway to South Bend. After all, Bill Elliott had always run well at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, about as well as anyone who'd never won a Brickyard 400.

He finished 10th or better in the first four Brickyards, then 12th and 23rd before finishing third and eighth the last two years. Except for a 15th and 37th, he'd always qualified top-10. ``Even when I came with my own cars, I've gotten around the place pretty well,'' the cinch Hall of Fame driver said on the eve of this year's 400. ``It's just one of those places that's always been good to me.''

But never more so than this year. Elliott, in a Ray Evernham-owned Dodge, started No. 2, led five times for 93 laps and easily won the ninth annual Winston Cup race at IMS. The Fords of Rusty Wallace, Matt Kenseth and rookie Ryan Newman were second, third and fourth, then the Chevrolet of Kevin Harvick.

Elliott's five-for-93 stat tells only half the story. He was either first or second at 15 of the 16 10-lap scoring intervals, and was fifth at the other one. He was well ahead of the pack or close to the leader, and avoided the dreaded aero push that plagues drivers in heavy traffic.

This was a two-man show from the start. Polesitter Tony Stewart led the first 12 laps, then three other times for 31 more laps. He was leading at lap 136 when he reluctantly yielded to the onrushing Rusty Wallace in Turn Three. Moments later Stewart's car-suddenly a slug-simply pulled over as Elliott came by, reeling in Wallace at every turn.

``When Bill got within three or four car-lengths with four fresh tires [to Wallace's two], I knew it would be hard to hold ...