AWESOME BILL Elliott, on a roll, facing his retirement decision

The veteran driver savored his win at Rockingham last Sunday.
By MIKE HARRIS
ASSOCIATED PRESS
HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- Retire or race, Bill Elliott has a tough call to make. After all, the guy can still win.
A second-half surge that includes a victory last Sunday at North Carolina Speedway has complicated Elliott's decision on whether to retire at the end of the season or return to Evernham Motorsports in 2004.
"The way we're running right now, you can look at it one way or the other," said Elliott, who has tried to avoid retirement talk all year. "I'm eventually going to retire. Right now, we've fought through some things but we haven't made a decision.
"On the other hand, as good as we're running right now, and you get those stars lined up, and as good as everything is coming together, it makes it hard."
Win overshadowed by Kenseth
The win was the 44th of Elliott's career but his first in 50 races, dating to the Brickyard 400 in August 2002. As popular as the latest victory was with fans and in the NASCAR garage area, it was overshadowed by Matt Kenseth's fourth-place finish to wrap up his first series title.
Still, the 48-year-old Elliott savored the moment, knowing it might be the last time he gets to celebrate in Victory Circle.
"I think they get better each and every year," said the Georgia native, dubbed "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville" after taking 11 wins and 11 poles in 1985. "You learn more to appreciate them better because they come less often.
"Sometimes, back when you're going through it, you don't realize how hard it is to win these things. I'm just so proud of the team and the efforts that they've given, and how well we've come together in the last few races."
Currently on streak
Going into the season-ending Ford 400 Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Elliott has five top 10 finishes in his last seven starts. That stretch includes a runner-up finish at Kansas City and fourth-place runs at Charlotte and Atlanta, along with the victory.
The strong finish to the season has helped him move up to ninth in the standings. If Elliot maintains or improves on that, it would be his best finish since he finished eighth in 1997.
Considering Elliott has managed only nine top fives and 11 top 10s all year, the late run is a big boost to him and his team, which also won last Saturday's pit crew championship at Rockingham with a record time.
"These guys have really matured the last several weeks," crew chief Mike Ford said. "They've been really anxious to get the opportunity to lay one down in front of the world.
"That time came and all of them rose to the occasion. That momentum carried over on Sunday."
Ford said working with Elliott has helped the team grow, and he will be sad if the driver retires.
"We're behind Bill whatever he decides to do," Ford said. "Bill does bring a lot of experience to the table, and I feel like we've all learned from him. If he decides to move on, we'll miss him."
Started from the rear
Because of an engine change on Friday, Elliott had to start from the rear of the 43-car field at Rockingham. With the crew of his No. 9 Dodge giving him great pit stops, Elliott wound up dominating the race, leading a race-high 140 of 393 laps.
Elliott said it was just the latest example of how far the team has come this season.
"If you look at where we were at six months ago, it's been a fantastic second half of the season," he said. "That's what we've got to build and expand on."
That might sound as if Elliott is leaning toward staying for at least another season. But he said he still hasn't made up his mind.
"Right now, we need to focus on one race at a time," Elliott said. "Once Homestead is over we'll worry about next year and what we all end up doing."