MOTOR SPORTS NOTEBOOK: ROBINSON GETS NEW SPONSOR.

Byline: Daily News Staff and Wire Services

Already, Shawna Robinson is seeing the benefits of becoming the first woman in 12 years to qualify for a Winston Cup race.

She's picked up a sponsor for the Cup race at the new Chicagoland Speedway in July. Perhaps more will jump on her bandwagon now that her storyline has changed from frustrated to competitive.

Robinson makes her own history today at Michigan International Speedway, where she starts 32nd in the Kmart 400.

She'd failed twice before to qualify for a Cup race, missing the field for the Daytona 500 in 1995 and the NAPA Auto Parts 500 at California Speedway in April.

Jeff Gordon, the hottest driver at the moment, is on the pole and has a good shot to make up a 50-point deficit on Dale Jarrett. Jarrett, hurting from a cracked rib and torn muscle, starts 21st.

But the day will belong to Shawna. It's her first time on a Winston Cup track on what she hoped to be a six-race schedule that's an audition for a full-time ride next season.

Robinson is the first woman to start a Cup race since Patty Moise ran at Talladega in 1989. No woman has completed a Winston Cup race since 1980, when Janet Guthrie finished 28th at Pocono.

--Comments callous? Richard Petty thinks he was a better driver than Dale Earnhardt, and this is news?

It has been extremely interesting to see the delayed reaction this week to remarks Petty made before last Sunday's MBNA 400 in Dover, Del.

Petty's comments didn't get all that much play because of Jimmy Spencer, who tore into NASCAR about its rule changes and several other topics.

By midweek, however, people took a closer look at some of the things Petty had said, particularly about Earnhardt's death and its effect on NASCAR.

``I don't see any difference,'' Petty said. ``I don't see any enthusiasm gone from my side of the fence. The sponsors, the crews, everybody goes right on. There's nobody important enough to stop everything. You might think about it, but you just go right on and do your thing.

--Kanke wins again: NASCAR Featherlite Southwest series points leader M.K. Kanke of Frazier Park chased down rookie Ben Walker to win the $40,700 Food 4 Less 150 Saturday night before a crowd of 5,126 at Irwindale Speedway.

Kanke, who won his fourth of seven Southwest races this year, and second in a row at Irwindale, passed Walker, the 19-year-old from Canyon Country, on the 116th lap of the 150-lap race.

In the Automobile Club of Southern California Late Model race, Tim Huddleston of Aguora Hills won his first race in 11 years. The race was shortened to 65 laps.

In the 40-lap Super Stock race, Andrew Phipps of Simi Valley won his first race at Irwindale. Will Cottrell of Northridge finished fourth to take the series points lead by two points.

In the American Race Trucks feature, Deyon Young of Las Vegas pulled away twice to win the 75-lap race.

- Keith Lair