Drivers To Watch In Atlanta

 

The NASCAR Nextel Cup Series heads to the Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend for the running of the Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 race 33 of 36 on the circuit and sixth in the ‘Chase for the Nextel Cup’.

After suffering $40 million in damages from a tornado this past July, track president Ed Clark rallied his troops and completed the monumental task of preparing the facility for this weekend’s event. Kyle Petty who tested there a few weeks ago said this week, “Atlanta is ready for this weekend.”

Here are your drivers to watch for this Sunday’s running of the Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500.

Tony Stewart opened a 15-point lead over Jimmie Johnson in the standings after starting from the pole, leading 283 laps and finishing second to Jeff Gordon in last week's Subway 500. The second-place finish was his third runner-up in six "Chase" events and sixth second-place finish of the season. Since his most recent win at Watkins Glen in August, Stewart has recorded 16 top-10s in the last 18 races and leads the circuit with 22 top-10s and 16 top-fives overall.

Stewart has had four top-fives and seven top-10s in his last eight races at Atlanta Motor Speedway, including a win in spring 2002. He started ninth and finished 17th at Atlanta in March. Last October, Stewart started 19th and finished seventh. "With four weeks to go, you can't narrow it down yet. It's too early. Mathematically, everybody is still in it. As long as everybody is mathematically in it, I don't know how you can count anybody out of it," Stewart said.

Factoid: Stewart has a 13.769 average finish at Atlanta, fifth among the Chase drivers. He has led 472 laps at Atlanta, which includes laps in eight of his 13 races here. --(Cont'd From Page 1)

Jimmie Johnson finished third in Martinsville last week, falling from a tie for the points lead to 15 behind Stewart. He was running second to teammate Gordon with 13 laps remaining before Stewart executed a bump-and-run maneuver to take over and ultimately finish second. Johnson is tied with Gordon for third on the circuit with four victories, including a record fourth in a row at Lowe's Motor Speedway on October 15. Johnson won this race last year and averaged a second-place finish over the final six races of 2004 to come within eight points of Kurt Busch in the closest standings finish in stock car racing history.
Johnson has ranked among the top 10 drivers since the Las Vegas Motor Speedway race in March 2004, 65 consecutive races. He has competed in eight races at Atlanta, scoring one victory (October 2004) and five top-10 finishes. He had top-five finishes in his last four races there, including second in March. Johnson has a 12.0 average finish at Atlanta, second among the Chase drivers. "I really look forward to all of (the remaining races). I feel good at all of them. I think that we've got a chance of winning or running in the top five," Johnson said.

Factoid: Johnson tested at Atlanta this month and said it went well. "We went down for a day, and it was a little bit warmer than we would have expected it to be," he said. "So I feel since the car drove good in the hot conditions, it will be better in the cooler conditions."

Ryan Newman ran 10th in Martinsville last week and climbed a spot to third in the standings, 63 points off the pace. Since clinching the final spot in the 10-race championship run, Newman has recorded five top-10s, including a victory in New Hampshire in the Chase thus far. Newman had only 10 top-10s in the 26 events leading up to the Chase. Currently with six poles, Newman is well on his way to leading the circuit in that category for the fourth consecutive season and he heads here as the favorite to win the pole, especially since he has started first the past five races.

Newman has four top-10 finishes in seven Atlanta starts, with a best of fifth. His average Atlanta finish of 13.57 is third among Chase drivers. His average Atlanta start of 1.857 leads all drivers. "Like I said last week, the team can't rely on top-10 finishes alone to win this championship. We're very happy with our newfound consistency and the team truly is relaxed and confident in our abilities right now. But a streak of top 10s is going to have turn into a streak of top fives and a few wins to secure the championship," Newman said.

Factoid: Crew chief Matt Borland will bring the chassis that finished seventh at Lowe's Motor Speedway this month.

Greg Biffle wound up 20th last week in Martinsville and was called an "idiot" by standings leader Tony Stewart for bumping him while a lap down. The poor result caused him to fall one standings spot and 72 points. The 20th place was his second-worst finish during the "Chase". Biffle has run in the top five in half of the first six "Chase" races but outside the top 10 in the other half and is tied with Stewart with five checkered flags this season but has not visited victory lane since June in Michigan.

Biffle currently ranks second on the circuit with 13 top-fives, including a third here in March. Biffle's most recent finishes at the final four Chase tracks: Atlanta, third; Texas Motor Speedway, first; Phoenix International Raceway, running second when contact with another car on pit road sent a bumper bar through the radiator and Biffle to the garage for a 41st-place finish; and Homestead-Miami Speedway, first. In addition to his Cup record at Atlanta, Biffle has one win, three top-fives and five top-10s in five Busch Series races here. "We tested at Atlanta last week and just didn't feel like we were up to par with the other teams who were down there testing that day. We've decided to take the Charlotte car because we feel that it is one of our best cars for that type of track right now. Atlanta fits Greg's driving style and I look for us to have a good run this weekend," said crew chief Doug Richert.

Factoid: This weekend the National Guard Ford will feature the red, white and blue Charter paint scheme.

Carl Edwards finished a mediocre 26th in Martinsville but it was good enough to climb one spot in the standings. The finish marked his worst result in the Chase and snapped a streak of four consecutive top-10s; overall this season he has 14 top-10s and 10 top-fives, including two victories, this season.

Edwards is third in the Busch Series standings with three races remaining in his rookie season on that circuit It was here that Edwards waged a thrilling final-lap battle with Jimmie Johnson before taking his first career-checkered flag on March 20; it was a win that capped a remarkable weekend that included his first career Busch Series triumph from the pole. In four career starts at the track (one Craftsman Truck, one Busch, two Cup), Edwards has two wins, three top-fives and four top-10s. His 2.0 finishing average at Atlanta ranks first among the Chase drivers. "Atlanta is an awesome race track. I love that place. Even if we hadn't won that race, it would still be one of my favorites just because you get to do so much as a driver there," Edwards said.

Factoid: Edwards will race the same chassis he used recently at Kansas Speedway.

Rusty Wallace was running in the top five before a late crash relegated him to a 19th-place finish last week in Martinsville. The Martinsville run was his third finish of 19th or worse in the last four events after running 15th or better in 16 of the previous 17 races. "We had a top-five finish all locked up ... until we got spun out." Wallace said. In his last full season on the circuit, the 49-year-old Wallace is sixth in the standings, 166 points off the pace.

Wallace's Atlanta career record includes two wins, eight top-five finishes, 16 top-10 finishes and three poles. He started 12th and finished 11th in last year's race and started 32nd and finished 27th in the spring. "That was a tough blow to take there at Martinsville, but there's absolutely nothing we can do about it now. We just have to come into Atlanta looking to bounce back with a super strong run. Our team has a never-say-die attitude and we'll be right back there going for it all again this weekend at Atlanta," Wallace said.

Factoid: Wallace ranks eighth all-time with 55 career triumphs but has visited victory lane just twice since 2000 and he remains the only championship-eligible contender without a win this year.

Mark Martin encountered a brake problem that relegated him to a 34th-place finish last week in Martinsville, sinking him two spots to seventh in the standings. The 46-year-old, who had planned on this being his final season on the circuit but made his return official, this week with new sponsor AAA, has run in the top-10 four times during the Chase. The other two finishes are outside the top 30 in the events, however, is 170 points off the pace and just two points ahead of eighth-place Busch.

"Martinsville was just a bad weekend all around for this team, but the one thing I will say is that these guys on this team never gave up," Martin said. Martin ended a 57-race victory drought by taking the checkered flag in Kansas on October 9 and will be making his 40th career start on this track in search of his 20th top-10 on this 1 1/2-mile track. Martin won this race in 1994 and 1991 and finished fourth here in March that is among his nine top-fives this season. He dominated the Atlanta race last fall, leading 227 of the 325 laps before finishing second to Johnson. "Optimism doesn't get results. I'm not a pessimist by any stretch of the imagination whatsoever. I know that I have a great team and great cars and a great opportunity, and we're having the year of my career, but at the same time I can't expect to have everything go my way every time I step out on the race track," Martin said.

Factoid: Martin will drive the same car that won at Kansas two weeks ago.

Kurt Busch jumped two spots to eighth in the standings following a sixth in Martinsville last week despite being penalized a lap for aggressive driving. Since beginning the Chase with a 35th in New Hampshire and a 23rd in Dover, Busch has run in the top 10 in three of the last four events. Busch has three checkered flags this season, with the most recent coming in Richmond on the eve of the Chase and only needs one more victory to match his career high established in 2002 and matched the following season.

Busch's third career Cup victory came at Atlanta on Oct. 27, 2002. He started eighth in the rain-shortened event and led 84 laps on the way to his third win of the year. That's his only top-five finish in nine Atlanta races, but he has two other top-10 finishes. However Busch finished 32nd in this event last year and has managed just one top-10 in the circuit's last five trips to Atlanta. "Atlanta is the fastest race track we go to, but it's one of those tracks where Kurt has won before, so we feel good about our driver this week," said crew chief Jimmy Fennig.

Factoid: Busch will compete in the fourth and final 2005 Crown Royal IROC Series race Saturday at Atlanta.

Matt Kenseth finished 12th last week in Martinsville is tied in the standings with Busch for eighth. Kenseth’s Martinsville finish on the heels of a 26th in Charlotte is causing him to fade down the stretch as he did in last year's Chase. Kenseth concluded last season ninth in the standings after running outside the top 10 in each of the final nine events. Kenseth entered the Chase as one of the hottest drivers on the circuit with 10 top-10s in a 14-race span, including his lone checkered flag of the season in Bristol on August 27.

Kenseth extended the stretch with top-fives in three of the first four Chase events but since has fallen to 172 points off the pace. Kenseth finished 31st here in March amid an uncharacteristic start to the season that included just one top-10 in the first 12 races; finished 41st - a career low in 11 starts here - in this event last season. "Atlanta is definitely one of the tracks I particularly look forward to coming to. It is wide and fast and there are multiple grooves that you can run. I think we'll be competitive this weekend and we'll be looking to regain some points that we've lost over the past couple of weeks," Kenseth said.

Factoid: Kenseth will be running the same chassis he raced to second place at Chicagoland Speedway and third in the second Michigan International Speedway race.

Jeremy Mayfield finished 28th at Martinsville after a flat tire with 100 laps to go took him out of contention after he had been in the top 10 for most of the first 400 laps. Mayfield seems to be sputtering in the Chase, dropping to last place after finishing 28th in Martinsville. He has only finished in the top 10 in one of six Chase events. His 21.0 average finish at Atlanta is ninth among Chase contenders.

Overall Mayfield has four top-fives and five top-10s in 19 races at Atlanta and has led 81 laps here. "We certainly didn't expect to be making the trip to Atlanta 216 points behind the leader in the Chase for the championship. The opportunity is still there to move up in the final standings. We don't have to be cautious, that makes us dangerous. It's time to make something happen. Atlanta is the perfect place to start," Mayfield said.

Factoid: Mayfield will drive the same chassis he used in both Pocono Raceway races, the February race at California Speedway and the June race at Michigan (where Mayfield started fifth).


Greg Ingle contributed this story. In my opinion Greg is one of the best ever to write about Nextel Cup. He wants a gig in the racing world. You would be a fool not to take advantage of his expertise. Contact Greg at http://www.cupscene.com/

Listen for me on www.wgst.com in Atlanta around 11am for Sunday's pre-race

Mark

Martinsville Is Last Big Scare For Title Contenders

 

Martinsville Is Last Big Scare For Title
By TONY FABRIZIO afabrizio@tampatrib.com

Drivers call them wild-card races. They're races in which the chance of being caught up in a wreck or having some other misfortune is much greater than usual.

Talladega three weeks ago was a wild-card race because of restrictor plates. Charlotte last week was a wild-card race because the newly ground track surface didn't match up with the tire compound, and tires were blowing left and right.

And Sunday's Subway 500 at half-mile Martinsville Speedway is a wild-card race because it's a short-track event, the last of the year."If I was one of those 10 drivers who have a chance to win the championship, I'd be a little wary about going to Martinsville," veteran Ken Schrader said. "It doesn't take a genius to figure out we'll have a lot of beating and banging going on there."

Midway through the Chase, the championship is wide open.

Tony Stewart and Jimmie Johnson are tied for the lead, with Stewart holding a tiebreaker advantage because he has five wins to Johnson's four. The top four drivers are separated by 17 points, the top six by 54 points.

With so many drivers in contention -- even 10th-place Kurt Busch can't be counted out at 142 points back -- nobody can afford to crash out at Martinsville.

"I think that Martinsville is a place where contact is going to come into play and tempers are going to be high, like at Bristol," said Johnson, who won last fall at Martinsville. "There's a lot on the line for Chase contenders. It's a track where you can never get away from lapped cars or cars that you're racing, so the potential is there to have contact and problems."

Martinsville may be more critical for fourth-place Ryan Newman and seventh-place Rusty Wallace than the other eight Chase drivers. It's a track where each has a better chance of winning than in any of the other four remaining races. Newman is the best qualifier on the circuit, and qualifying is critical at Martinsville because passing is difficult.

And Wallace has always been at his best on a short track. His seven wins at Martinsville are first among active drivers, third all-time behind Richard Petty's 15 and Darrell Waltrip's 11.

Wallace is brimming with confidence.

"I saw a poll of the 10 Chase drivers and it really surprised me how many were concerned about the impact the Martinsville race could have on their chances of winning the championship," Wallace said. "Man, that's certainly not the case with me and my team. The race at Martinsville is one we've been looking forward to forever."

Jeff Gordon isn't in the Chase, but still figures as one of the favorites this weekend. Gordon has six victories at Martinsville, including one this spring and a 2003 sweep in which he won both races from the pole and led 503 of 1,000 laps. Gordon has an average finish at Martinsville of 8.1, and he has never failed to finish a race there.

"I definitely want another grandfather clock," Gordon said, referring to the unusual gift presented to Martinsville winners. "And I'd like to get [Steve] Letarte his first win as a crew chief."

Drivers in the Chase are thinking about another clock -- the one ticking on their Nextel Cup title hopes.

A NASCAR Track That Used To Suck!

 

Track problems may not be a problem after all
by Greg Engle

Drivers took their first laps today and although Bobby Hamilton spun and destroyed his primary car and Jeff Gordon scraped the wall during the first practice session the sessions were relatively clean with Elliott Sadler leading the first session and Jimmie Johnson leading the second and the overall sessions with a speed of 193.216 which is faster than the current qualifying record set by Ryan Newman of 192.988 this past May.

Tony Stewart spoke out earlier in the day and he seems to now think that the problems that he and others experienced in testing may not have been anything that may still be lingering on the track or even as a result of work that Lowes officials did on the surface. Stewart said that the surface was ‘1000% better’ during the Busch test after rubber had been laid down the week before by the Cup cars.

“I pretty sure that’s not going to be as big of an issue as it was when the Cup cars test ran here, “Stewart said. “They had a car show here that weekend before and there wasn’t any rubber on the track when we all went out there, nobody had been on the track yet, running cars around there. So even though it had been reground nobody had been out there yet. I give Humpy (H.A. “Humpy” Wheeler track president) credit as much as I filleted him and gave him a hard time about how he’s ‘ruined’ this racetrack, the thing is he hasn’t just said “hey, I’m not going to do anything’, he took what we had and tried to make it better, you gotta’ give him credit for trying to make it better for this race. I think a lot of it is because it was such a green race track after being freshly ground and after a car show and you know if you have old cars sitting around, you can’t tell me that none of them were leaking any oil on the racetrack so with that being said I think the racetrack is probably a thousand percent better condition this weekend then it was when we tested.”

Jeff Gordon, who didn’t participate in either test session here, seems concerned about tires. “It’s very fast and has a lot of grip,” Gordon said referring to the track, “but I’m more concerned with tires more than anything else. The speeds are going to be so great and the track is so abrasive and we just built up a lot of heat, especially in the right front tire, so that’s my concern. Anytime you speed up the corners the way they have here it’s going to make passing a little bit tougher. I was pretty happy with the track here in May, I liked it and from what I’ve heard from in testing is that, yeah there were some wrecks but all in all everybody feels like the track’s a lot like it was in May and feel good about it.”

Mark Martin seems to think that there won’t be any problems with Saturday nights running of the UAW-GM 500. “They’ve made a huge effort to try and make it better, “Martin said.” and it’s a lot better than it was. It was in very poor shape when we came here to test,” Martin added.” So far so good.” I really wish that we could go back to before we ever touched it, but it’s in good condition and hopefully, we’ll see.”

Rookie Carl Edwards was one of those who didn’t test, he said that he was nervous coming to Lowes, but has relaxed after practicing both his Cup and Busch Series cars. “I was pleasantly surprised, “said Carl Edwards. “I think the track is really awesome right now. The whole thing is fast right now. Even though it’s faster it easier for me to keep control the racecar.”

Thanks to Greg Engle - Cup Scene Daily - The Voice Of The Nascar Nation for the assist on this issue of NASCAR Wrecks

Mark
www.NascarStockCar.com

Sadler Sits On Nextel Cup Pole At Lowe's!

 

Sweet ...Sadler scores the pole at Lowes by Greg Engle

Welcome to another edition of NASCAR Wrecks, pull those belts tight and enjoy the ride!

The driver of the No. 38 M&Ms Ford blistered the track and set a new track record, stealing the pole from favorite Ryan Newman. Sadler’s lap of 193.216 knocked Newman from the top spot.

“We’re so pumped up right now, “Sadler said. “ We just did miss having three poles (in a row) last week and to come back to Charlotte here and do it at home is a great, great feeling. This is a pole that I really, really wanted, “Sadler added.” There are a lot of guys in the fab shop who come and are able to watch qualifying so it’s pretty cool to do it here at Lowes of all places.”
Ryan Newman the acknowledged master of poles had earlier set a new track record with a lap of 193.126 I’m disappointed, I know our car was faster than that,” Newman said. “I’m putting the blame on myself. I overdrove the car the first lap and under drove it the second.”

Jimmie Johnson also listed among the favorites and shooting for his fourth win in a row here was third. “It was a solid lap, “Johnson said. “I ran a 27.94 and I felt like the car was a little looser from what I had there. I felt like I drove the same way and did all the same things. A blown engine in practice however, will negate Johnson’s third place start. “It’s alright and we’ll just get going on Saturday,” Johnson said. “I’ll have to be on my toes at the start of the race.”

Special thanks to Greg Engle - Cup Scene Daily - The Voice Of The Nascar Nation! for the assist in this article.

Mark
NascarStockCar.com
Home of NASCAR Wrecks

"Johnson Takes Blame For The Big One!"

 

Johnson accepts blame for Talladega accident

Jimmie Johnson acknowledged today he was at fault for an eight-car crash Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway that scuttled at least one other driver's championship hopes.

Johnson had denied responsibility immediately after the incident, which cost both himself and Mark Martin valuable ground in the race for the Nextel Cup title.

After watching tape of the accident that occurred 20 laps into the race, Johnson says he realizes he ran into the back of leader Elliott Sadler to start the wreck. Johnson initially claimed he was pushed into Sadler by Dale Earnhardt Junior.

Johnson, who was involved in a later accident that ended his day, dropped from the top of the Nextel Cup leaderboard to fourth and is now 82 points behind new leader Tony Stewart.
Martin plummeted to ninth in the standings and is 138 points back.

Johnson says he has apologized to Sadler, and left a message for Michael Waltrip, who flipped several times during the accident.

Double Secret Probation

NASCAR announced Tuesday that Nextel Cup Series crew chief Todd Berrier has been suspended, fined and placed on probation because of rule violations this past weekend at Talladega Superspeedway. Berrier, crew chief of the No. 29 Chevrolet driven by Kevin Harvick, was suspended from NASCAR competition until Oct. 19, fined $10,000 and placed on probation until Dec. 31.

During post-qualifying inspection last Friday, the No. 29 was found to have an unapproved aerodynamic modification and an unapproved fuel cell vent mounting -- violations of Section 12-4-A (actions detrimental to stock car racing) and 12-4-Q (car, car parts, components, and/or equipment that do not conform to NASCAR rules) in the series rule book.

NASCAR Dollar Store

Last year fans shelled out $2.1 billion for NASCAR merchandise, with Earnhardt's and Gordon's stuff leading the sales

Nascar's VP for licensing and consumer products Larry Dyer says: No Junior? No Jeff? No problem...

"I don't expect support for Earnhardt and Gordon to drop off one bit," Dyer said. "The beauty of the Chase is that unlike some other sports' postseason playoffs, all of our drivers continue to participate. Just because Earnhardt and Gordon didn't make the Chase doesn't mean they won't be in all of the remaining events, racing hard and trying to win. Their fans still get to watch them compete and will continue to support them."

NASCAR merchandise ranges from apparel such as caps, T-shirts and jackets, to collectibles, souvenirs and even furniture. NASCAR also includes publishing in its empire, licensing numerous racing books and periodicals.

Individual teams and drivers can cut their own licensing deals, but NASCAR cross-licenses to put its mark on all "official NASCAR products."


Mark