WRAL Sports Fan

NASCAR

Finding the right line is key to winning at Atlanta Motor Speedway

By SceneDaily.com

Mar 5, 2009

The pavement at the 1.54-mile Atlanta Motor Speedway is worn out, long since losing the grip provided by new asphalt in 1997. The pavement is so worn that Goodyear’s tires take a beating during Sprint Cup races.

But Cup drivers love Atlanta, mainly because of the worn-out pavement. Why? Because old pavement usually means cars slide around, giving drivers a chance to search around for a place to make their cars handle better.

And sometimes, that’s all a driver wants.

“The neat thing is that the [lap] times fall off, so guys move around on the race track more,” driver/owner Tony Stewart said. “Everybody starts at the bottom, and the fast guys normally end up right around the wall midway through a run.”

And that’s what separates Atlanta – site of this weekend’s Kobalt Tools 500 – from its Speedway Motorsports Inc. cousins, Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway.

“I like having the flexibility to be able to move around,” Stewart, a two-time series champion, said. “I know that if my car isn’t driving all that well in a particular spot that I have the flexibility as a driver to move around on the race track. You can make a difference.

“It’s like Michigan where you can move around and help yourself as a driver, versus being committed and whatever you’ve got, you’ve got. It does make you feel better as a driver to know you have that flexibility.”

Drivers may try different lines around the track from the start of a run to the end of a run, from the start of the race to the end of the race. And if one driver is picking up speed, others will soon notice, and then their lines will change.

But the most important thing, Richard Petty Motorsports’ Kasey Kahne said, is to find what works for you.

“Your car may be good on the bottom early in the race, but as the track changes the car may work better up top.” Kahne said. “It's important to move around to make sure you are running the quickest line. A line that didn't work early may be the right line later in the race. Just because another driver is having success with one line doesn't mean the setup you have in your car will automatically produce the same kind of results.”

Because setup has changed dramatically with the new Cup car, teams that used to be good at Atlanta aren’t necessarily the fastest cars now.

Roush Fenway Racing driver Matt Kenseth said the new car moves around more than the old car, making line selection even more sensitive.

“Atlanta is a track where you not only race your competitors, but you race the track,” Kenseth said. “It’s really high-banked and fast. You start off fast, and the track gets slick, so you’re always looking for a different groove and for more grip.

“When the track gets slick, you’ve got to have a good-handling car so that you can change your points and get into the corners. I always have a lot of fun racing at Atlanta, because it is always a challenge.”

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch, who won this race in 2008, agrees.

“Atlanta definitely doesn’t have much grip, but I still seem to like it,” Busch said. “There are so many lines. You can run anywhere on the track, and I love that. Coming off Turn 2, if you’re running the low line and start to slide up, you have a tendency to get sideways.

“But, otherwise, it’s a really fun track. It’s really a driver’s track because, when you get about 40 laps on your tires, you really start to slide around, and that can be a handful.”