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Atlanta: Jeff Burton NASCAR Sprint Cup Race Preview
NOTES:
· This Week’s AT&T Chevrolet at Atlanta Motor Speedway … Jeff Burton will pilot chassis No. 236 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable, a brand new race car for the 2008 season.
· Burton in the Loop at Atlanta …
§ Stat Facts … In 27 starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS), Burton boasts seven top-five and 12 top-10 finishes.
§ The Atlanta Report … According to NASCAR’s loop data statistics, Burton is the fourth-best driver in the Average Running Position (ARP) category. His average running position of the last six races at the 1.54-mile oval is 11.359. The ARP is the sum of the driver position on each lap divided by the number of laps run in the race. Additionally, the 19-time Cup Series winner is the series eighth-best quality passer. Since the inception of loop data statistics in 2005, Burton has made 186 passes while running in the top-15 under green-flag conditions.
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§ Since We’re Talking Stats … Burton is the sixth-best driver when it comes to quantity of laps driven in the top-15. Out of 1,954 total laps, the South Boston, Va., native completed 1,533 laps while running in the top-15 (78.5%). Additionally, he is eighth in the Driver Rating category (92.4). The Driver Rating is a formula that combines the following categories: wins, top-15 finishes, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps led and lead-lap finishes. The maximum points a driver can earn in each race is 150 points. The Driver Rating number is used pre-race as a prediction tool and post-race as a performance evaluator.
· Burton’s Season Update …
§ Good Start, Better Finish … Over the season’s first three races, Burton has earned one top-five and one top-10 finish. He currently holds a 22.7 starting average coupled with a 10th-place finishing average and has completed 717 of 717 total laps (100 %) to date. Additionally, Burton has led all three events for a total of 21 laps.
§ Movin’ On Up … Burton’s fifth-place finish last weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway advanced the veteran driver three spots to seventh in the NASCAR Cup Series championship point standings. The South Boston, Va., native began the 2008 season 12th in points after his 13th-place finish in the season opening Daytona 500.
· Double Duty … In addition to his duties in the No. 31 AT&T Chevrolet, Burton, a 27-time race winner in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, will drive RCR’s No. 29 Holiday Inn Chevrolet in the Nicorette 300 Saturday, March 8. This weekend’s race is the third of 12 races that Burton is scheduled to drive the Holiday Inn Chevrolet. The race will air live on ESPN2 beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time and can also be heard on the Performance Racing Network (PRN) and Sirius Satellite Radio.
· Testing, Testing, Testing … Burton and the No. 31 AT&T team tested at Phoenix International Raceway on Monday and Tuesday of this week to prepare for the upcoming short track races on the 2008 schedule. The test was the fourth of six allowed under NASCAR’s 2008 testing policy. The remaining tests available to teams in NASCAR’s top division will be conducted at Pocono Raceway May 27-28 and at Lowe’s Motor Speedway September 23-24.
· RCR in the ATL … In 99 starts at AMS, RCR has earned four poles and nine wins including Kevin Harvick’s emotional victory in the Cracker Barrel 500 on March 11, 2001. Prior to that, Dale Earnhardt won eight times at the ultra-fast Hampton, Ga., track. Additionally, RCR boasts 25 top-five and 42 top-10 finishes at AMS. Meanwhile, RCR prepared race cars have also led 2,695 laps at the 1.54-mile quad-oval. Childress, a former driver on NASCAR’s senior circuit, recorded his best finish at Atlanta with a ninth-place effort in the Atlanta Journal 500 on Nov. 2, 1980.
· Local Flavor … One member from the AT&T Racing crew hails from the state of Georgia. Jackman Adam North grew up in Sonoraville, Ga. In addition to his race day duty on the No. 31 AT&T Chevrolet, North is also a fabricator in RCR’s Nationwide Series shop.
· Heartburn Free Hotlanta – NASCAR Fan’s Victory of a Lifetime heads South … Prilosec OTC Victory of a Lifetime Sweepstakes winner Kathryn Cooley of Barnesville, Md. will attend her fourth race in as many weeks when she strolls into Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend for the Kobalt Tools 500. Before taking their seats in the grandstands, Cooley and her guests will enjoy all that the fastest track in NASCAR has to offer with their exclusive Hot Passes. With hot passes, Cooley will be able to rub shoulders with NASCAR’s elite and get a firsthand view of the preparation that each team goes through on race day.
· Up to Speed … The Kobalt Tools 500 from AMS will be televised live Sunday, March 9 beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on FOX and will broadcast live on PRN and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the fourth of 36 NASCAR Cup Series events will take the green flag at 6:30 p.m. EDT Friday, March 7 and will be telecast live on SPEED.
JEFF BURTON QUOTES:
How important is it to run well on mile-and-a-half tracks?
"Because there are so many mile-and-a-half race tracks on the schedule, it’s really important to be successful on those types of tracks. Some people say the real season starts at California. I don’t believe that. I think the real season starts Saturday in practice (at Daytona) but the way the points are paid and with so many mile-and-a-half and two-mile tracks on the schedule, it’s important to have a solid intermediate program. If not, then you don’t have a chance of competing for the championship. So, it’s a part of the program that we have worked exceptionally hard on and I hope we have done it well enough. The effort has been good so we’ll just have to see how we stack up."
How does it feel taking a car to Atlanta that you have never driven before?
"These cars are obviously completely different than the old cars in a lot of ways. Because of the front end on the cars, we can’t travel the cars very much before they hit the race track. Of course, when you go to qualify you’re going faster which makes the car want to travel more. There’s a big transition between qualifying trim and race trim. In the old cars we found ways to understand how to switch over. What that car did from race trim verses qualifying trim we had a pretty good understanding of what it took. We are still trying to figure that out with these cars. On a fast track like Atlanta, you are going to see cars that are way off of the pole. I think you are going to see cars struggle and the teams that qualify well are not going to have trouble. I think you are going to see a bigger disparity than what you normally see just because we don’t know a lot about it. The more we run them, the more we’ll learn. We have teams in the garage that claim that they don’t do anything from race trim to qualifying trim and we have teams in the garage that say they have major changes and a lot of that is driver preference. I think what it really boils down to is getting the driver accustomed and comfortable with what it is that particular team has to do to be successful in qualifying."
Do you enjoy competing at Atlanta Motor Speedway?
"Atlanta is one of my favorite racetracks. I really enjoy going there and I’m excited about running there this year. It’s one of those places where I think we have a good shot of winning. To me, it’s a great challenge. The difference between qualifying and racing there is so big. The track gets so slick during the race and becomes a blast to drive on. You have to get up on the wheel and drive the car. It’s so much fun. As a race car driver, that’s the kind of racing you hope for."
Are there things you can learn at Atlanta that you can apply to other race tracks?
"I think so. There are things that we can learn from each race track and apply them to other race tracks more so than others. Some tracks have a bigger impact than others but I think a lot."
PaddockTalk Perspective
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