NASCAR ' Talledega Heat Doesn't Effect Gordon's Speed as he Takes The Pole for the Aaron's 499.

Jeff Gordon set the fastest time around the biggest track in NASCAR to take the pole for the Aaron's 499 at Talledega.

The early spring Alabama heat wave has had people talking all week about how the heat was going to effect the cars at Talledega this weekend.  How will they keep the engines cool?  Will the drivers be able to handle the temps inside the cars?  Will the heat cause engine issues in the pack or when they break to a 2 car push?  Jeff Gordon had concerns about engine management, and how much tape there was on his front grille, but all of his worrying paid off in the end with him setting the fastest lap around NASCAR's biggest and fastest racetrack in the circuit. With a time of 49.973 seconds at a speed of 191.623 mph posted the only sub 50 second lap time of the day, taking his 71st pole (third most of all time), and marking 20 straight seasons with at least one pole tying the record set by David Pearson.

'The temperatures are being managed from the moment that car goes on the track [Friday] till the end of that race,' Gordon said. 'So even in qualifying we're trying to manage 'em and not get 'em too hot. We chose to do that bottom lane, because we feel like it saves about three seconds of time, which is how much longer the engine's running, building temperature.

'Plus, I feel like this track is big enough that you don't have to run up high, like Daytona.'

With temperatures hovering around 86F during qualifying and expected temperatures predicted to be even higher for today's race, keeping cool, both under the hood and under the collar, will definitely be a challenge.

'It's so warm out, that I think most of the cars down pit road had to leave open a little bit of tape [on the grille], because they were going to push water too much,' said A.J. Allmendinger, whom Gordon knocked off the pole with his fastest lap. 'I didn't see if [Gordon] was fully taped up, or how much tape he had, but I think that's kind of the idea that he had, that if you can fully tape up, you're going to get a little bit of an advantage on everybody, and the only way you can do that is run low the whole time.

'It's definitely a new strategy, but those guys are fast no matter what, so it's not like they snuck up on us. We knew that was going to be one of the cars to beat there at the end. But it's something to think about the next time we're here.'

Is Talledega really Dale Jr's best shot for a win this year?

When it comes to restrictor plate tracks the names of the usual suspects begin to get tossed around.  Dale Earnhardt Jr. hears it every time he comes here.  Is this your best place to try and break the streak Jr?  Is it your best chance?

'I never really took anything for granted. A lot of people have said that this weekend at the race track, but I don't pay much attention to it,' Earnhardt said. 'I know how this sport can be brutal and great all at the same time. You just hope you're prepared and try to run a smart race. Hopefully then you can make the right moves and beat the odds and win the race.'

'This is probably one of our better shots,' Earnhardt said. 'How the drafting and everything was changed before Daytona [this year], that suits me better. And it's hotter, and I think that leans toward favoring pack racing over tandem racing, too. That's kind of in my favor, so I'm looking forward to the race. I just don't think our odds have necessarily increased because I've run so well this year.'

'I feel like I'm in the best equipment that's out there, and that gives you a lot of confidence. I feel like I know what I'm doing when I come here,' Earnhardt said. 'I feel like if I could create the best scenario for me to come to Talladega and win a race, this is it. I've got the best car and I know how to get around the race track.'

The other drivers seem to agree for the most part that Jr. knows his way around this track and will definitely be a contender at the end of the race.

Opponents like Denny Hamlin recognize the potential. 'I think he's obviously got a ton of experience and a ton of wins on this track. When you look at this schedule and you look at opportunities to win, I would say that this is one of his best shots to do it.'

Jimmie Johnson seemed to be in the minority with his opinion.  He feels that while Jr may be really good at Talledega, his chances here have too many factors to be wary of.

'I think his best chance to win is on non-plate tracks, to be honest with you,' Johnson said. 'Here, there are so many circumstances to deal with. We don't know if you're going to overheat, get the push at the right time, whatever it may be. What I've seen out of him, if you just look at this year alone and where he is in points and how fast his cars have been and how great he's been driving, I put this lower on the list of where I would expect him to win.'

But when it comes right down to it, the driver who is going to win this race will be the one who has the best equipment at the end of the race, and a partner who can push them away from the pack where timing will be everything.

'I think the chemistry Junior and I both have, that our shop has, it was just another example of how strong that chemistry is and how much it continues to grow,' Johnson said. 'I'm very happy to see how fast the No. 88 car has been week in and week out. Naturally, you think of him as a favorite here at this race track ' but that No. 88 has been pretty strong everywhere. He is rising to be a favorite everywhere we go.'

Earnhardt Jr. tends to agree with his Hendrick Motorsports teammate.

'I maybe feel the same way because when you come to Daytona and Talladega, the cars are so equal,' Earnhardt said. 'And even though pack racing definitely puts more in your hands and you definitely control your own destiny more when you're just dealing with yourself and looking for No. 1 and being greedy and selfish, there still are so many things that can happen.

'Somebody could get the right push and do the right thing at the right time and win the race, and there's nothing you can do about it. It's a lottery, really. I've said that before, but it really is when you come to Daytona and Talladega, trying to win these races.

 

 

Related posts:

1. NASCAR ' Bowyer Takes 4th Career Win at the Scareless Talledega Halloween.
2. NASCAR ' Mark Martin Takes the Pole for Talladega Proving You Are Never Too Old to Go Fast
3. NASCAR ' Johnson Wins at Talledega ' Is The 2 Car Push Here to Stay?
4. NASCAR ' Edwards Takes the Pole as Goodyear Makes Last Minute Tire Changes
5. NASCAR ' Mark Martin Takes The Pole For Phoenix ' Hendrick's Teams Look For Big Rebound

Ford Taking Orders for Hot Focus ST

Ask the average North American car guy what comes to mind about what high performance cars Ford builds, the Mustang and Taurus SHO will come to mind, and he'll stop there. Soon, the Ford Focus ST will be joining that group. In Europe, Ford has been building (and racing) performance versions of their small, mainstream four cylinder cars for decades. Finally, North America gets a taste of what we've been missing all this time.

One glance at the Focus ST and you immediately know this is no ordinary grocery getter. Apart from the aggressive aero, standard 18's, lowered ride height, beefier brakes and sport suspension, the Focus ST has the grunt to match the look. Motivation comes in the form of a 2.0L EcoBoost four, cranking out 252hp and 270 lb. ft. of torque. A six-speed manual is the only transmission available, and I am happy about that. Posers, stay home. If a car like the Focus ST appeals to you, but you could not be bothered to learn how to work three pedals and a gearshift together, you don't deserve to get to play.

The 2013 Ford Focus ST has a starting price of $23,700USD, plus $795 destination. The ST will be available only as a five-door hatchback. If you feel like building your own Focus ST, click here for the link to Ford's site. Even going with the priciest option package with goodies like HD Radio, Recaro seats with leather, sunroof and navigation, the ST still comes in under $30 grand. To put that into perspective, the VW Golf R four door with similar power and features will run you over $6,000 extra.

Ford is now taking orders for the Focus ST. It's been a long, long wait to see such a car from Ford here in North America. To reward us for our patience, the first 1,000 people to place an order will be rewarded with a GoPro HD Hero2 Motorsports Edition camera pack. That shows Ford understands the buyer of the Focus ST completely-the fact that high quality photography is a passion for many here at The Garage is living proof. Stay tuned for more Focus ST news and updates.

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1. Review: 2012 Ford Focus
2. This week in The Garage: 2008 Ford Focus Sync
3. Road test: 2008 Ford Focus SES with Sync
4. Last day to register and win a Focus from Ford and American Idol
5. Road test: 2008 Ford Focus SES Part 2

ebook launch: One in A Thousand

 

We're always on the lookout for a great read, and one that includes a bit of Canadian racing history is always at the top of our list. Long time Canadian racer, Ian Coristine has just release this story called One in a Thousand. Rather than publishing in book format, Coristine has chose to publish as an ebook, meaning that readers can enjoy the photographer's spectacular images in high resolution. From the publisher:

It is a memoir, written by Ian Coristine, with novelist Donnas Walsh Inglehart. Coristine raced formula cars in the late 60s and early 70s in Canada and his story relates the challenges of chasing a racing career at that time, with a significant number of images from the era. Later, he became a pilot, discovering the 1000 Islands on a random flight in 1992, then spent the next 17 years photographing it, mostly low from above in his Challenger ultralight. This memoir shares many of his unlikely adventures along the way and includes a massive amount of material (images, video, audio, narration and music) which will immerse you in the story and the spectacular 1000 Islands in ways not possible before.

 

You can learn more about it as well as enjoy two videos by exploring the One in a Thousand home page.

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Shutter Speed: Two in a row

After the drama in Zolder everyone packed up, lock, stock and barrel and moved to the shores of the Mediterranean'Monaco. Long known as the crown jewel of Grand Prix racing and a serious favourite of the drivers and spectators alike, Monaco remains a very narrow, dangerous circuit that would not pass the required safety standards now in force in Formula One. It is like Kitsbuhel in downhill racing. It is iconic and will continue to be run.

It was felt the turbo-charged cars would be ineffective on the slow, twisting streets of both Monaco and Long Beach. Gilles proved them very wrong by putting the 126C on the front row with Nelson Piquet in his Brabham on the pole. Pironi had a more difficult time taming the powerful Ferrari and sat seventeenth on the grid.

Race day dawned warm and dry, but the start of the race was delayed due to a kitchen fire in the Lowes Hotel. This situation caused quite a stir with fire crews as the whole circuit was now sealed off for the race. Once this problem was solved the fire was quickly extinguished. As a result of this fire a new problem emerged. The tunnel under the hotel was flooded with the water used to fight the fire! The cars were sent out to do two parade laps. It was declared that the zone between Portier, where the cars came down the hill out of the city to the harbour, through the tunnel and on to the chicane at the bottom of the hill would be a 'no passing' area. Almost all passing is done in this area, especially at the entrance to the chicane.

Almost an hour behind schedule, the race got the green and Piquet high-tailed it through the first turn at Ste. Devote. Gilles chased him up the hill towards the casino. The start had it's usual interest with de Cesaris and Prost getting together at Ste. Devote with de Cesaris getting airborne and landing in front of Andretti's Alfa-Romeo. Both Prost and de Cesaris were out before the lap had ended. When the leaders came around, Piquet led Villeneuve by some margin. Mansell in the Lotus, Reutemann and Jones in the two Williams and Patrese in the Shadow rounded out the first six. Pironi was still well back in the field with his red handful.

Piquet continued to pull away from Gilles when they started to come upon the back markers. Piquet got through, but Gilles had difficulty and the following group of cars tightened right up on number '27'. During all this Reutemann and Mansell got together in the tunnel resulting in both cars needing repairs in the pits. With these two gone from the scene, Jones had a clear shot at Gilles. Having none of third place, Jones took the risky move and pulled inside Gilles as they entered the right-hander at Mirabeau. Gilles was now suffering brake fade and had to be more cautious in the braking zones. Jones hustled off up the road to harass Piquet. Piquet would not yield to Jones, but came upon the Theodore of Patrick Tambay who was having gearbox problems. Piquet tried to squeeze through a hole that just did not exist and had to hit the brakes to avoid Tambay. Nelson promptly slid into the guardrail to end his charge. Jones was now in the lead with Gilles well behind in second. Jones started to feel his Williams sputter with the fuel light coming on. He had plenty of lead on Gilles and decided to come into the pits for a splash of fuel to get him home to the finish. When he rejoined the race he was still in front of Gilles, but the car continued to falter. Gilles was now six seconds in arrears. He was informed of the situation by his pits and the excitement around the track escalated as Gilles put the hammer down despite the continuing brake problem. Four laps later Gilles gobbled up the Williams on the pit straight and Monte Carlo erupted when the Ferrari climbed the hill out of Ste. Devote with the Williams in it's mirrors! Jones finished almost forty seconds behind a jubilant Gilles. Pironi had climbed from his seventeenth to fourth. Gilles had ended the long Ferrari drought and given the 126C it's first win, With renewed confidence the team headed for Spain for the Grand Prix at Jarama.

The 126C had proven to have significantly less downforce than the Williams or the Brabham, but any gains on the straightaway would be dispensed with when the car entered any corner. The terrible handling 126C was a beast to be controlled.

The Spanish Grand Prix was not a typical Villeneuve race. Gilles qualified seventh over a second behind Jacques Laffite in the Talbot-Matra on the pole. Didier man-handled his Ferrari into thirteenth.

Raceday dawned very hot with the temperature over one hundred degrees. With twenty-four cars taking the start, Laffite found himself being gobbled up by the field as his clutch faltered. Jones took off into the first turn with Reutemann on his tail. Gilles had pulled wide and stormed from seventh to third. Heading into the first turn on the second lap he pulled one of his late-braking events and took second from Reutemann. Jones then pulled an uncharacteristic move by locking up his front end and sliding off the track. He rejoined well down the field. An astonished Gilles found himself in the lead! It was immediately apparent to him that only the straight-line speed had put him there. In the corners the snarling, ever-stacking-up-field was challenging to get by the Ferrari. Gilles knew he needed to put in a flawless performance in every corner right down to the mad dash for the start/finish line on the final lap. At the end there was a mere 1.24 seconds between Gilles in first and Elio de Angelis in fifth. Laffite was 22/100 seconds back in second!

After the race Gilles smiled to a few of us and remarked that the car was like driving a 'fucking big red Cadillac.' That 'some of us' happened to be then odd journalists did not seem to faze him. It naturally got into the papers in Italy and it did not go over too well with the old man who owned the red bombs. Typically, Gilles called it as he saw it with little regard for the consequences. That was certainly an endearing characteristic most journalist loved about him. He always had a story with a quote of how it really was out there.

Laffite summed it all up for everyone. 'Only Gilles Villeneuve could have passed Gilles Villeneuve out there today.'

After his win in Spain it would be seven dry races before he was back in the points in Canada with the third level of the podium.

Gilles had a few exciting experiences in the 126C during that season one being at Dijon on the Saturday morning. He slid off at Courage de Pouas where the minimal run-off area presented his Ferrari with a set of catch-fencing. Nigel Roebuck, a close friend of Gilles and still a very respected journalist, found Gilles at the lunch break dabbing at a large gash on his jaw.

'One of the poles that held up the fencing had gone up under his helmet,' said Roebuck later. 'He wasn't particularly concerned about. He and Pironi were having heart monitoring that weekend by a couple of French doctors who were doing research on the stress levels of racing drivers. Gilles was wired-up at the time of the incident. His heart rate jumped by a minimal five beats per minute when he slid off into the fencing. The doctor's simply could not believe it as Didier's heart rate was normally over thirty beats a minute more that Gilles.'

At home in Canada Gilles put on quite a show when he drove a number of laps with the front wing standing straight up in front of him as a result of another late-braking event. He was about to be black-flagged when the wing took off under braking for the hairpin before the pits. He had started in eleventh and finished third to the delighted crowd.

'I wouldn't have stopped for the black flag anyway. I couldn't see a thing, he joked after the race.

The 1981 season in the 'shitbox', as Gilles affectionally called it, had provided two exciting and unexpected wins, but generally was dismal as he had won only twenty-five points to Nelson Piquet's fifty while winning the championship. Pironi had finished thirteenth in his first season with the team. A new chassis had been designed to couple with the most powerful engine in Formula One and the best in ground effects. They all hoped for better things in 1982.

Read the rest of the Shutter Speed series.

Related posts:

1. Shutter Speed: The new kid on the block
2. Shutter Speed: Terror in Zolder
3. Shutter Speed: The first book and the first nine!
4. Shutter Speed: 1976 ' A Big Year!
5. Shutter Speed: Down; but not out!

Scion's xB and xD on Final Lap

The winds of change are blowing at Scion, as a recent report from Wards Auto indicates the youth-focused brand is killing of the boxy xB and small four-door hatchback xD. Vice President Jack Hollis, the corporate face of Scion said there were no plans to replace either car. This is a shocking revelation for the xB, which until 2011 was Scion's best selling car since coming to America in 2004. The first generation xB was a success for its huge funk factor that made it endearing to the finicky youth market Scion was chasing. In 2008 Scion introduced the second generation xB, which was larger, less boxy, more powerful and much heavier than the outgoing car.  In Scion's attempt to mainstream the xB to a broader audience, they killed the cool factor and sales dropped like a rock.

The demise of the xD comes as less a surprise. Introduced as a 2008 model in the US, the xD offered more contemporary styling than Toyota's Yaris, but few seemed to notice or care. It didn't help that Scion barely promoted or marketed the car in any meaningful way, so it's no wonder the average subcompact car buyer knew the car even existed. With sales stuck around 10,000 cars a year for the past two years, the xD likely won't be missed.

So that leaves Scion in a very different position in terms of product from when they first launched in America, and just recently in Canada. We have the front-drive sport coupe tC, the pint-sized iQ, and Scion's anticipated rear-wheel drive sport coupe, the FR-S. An ultra-tiny subcompact and two sport coupes sound like a pretty thin product portfolio, so Scion's decision to kill off both cars with four doors at once seems to make less sense, as they have now eliminated every family seeking Toyota reliability in a more interesting wrapper, as well as any first time buyer wanting a car to road trip with his buddies.  It is especially sloppy product planning for Canada. You can't enter a market trying to establish a brand identity and within two years kill off two of the three cars you introduced yourself as. There is a gaping hole being left in Scion's product line, and Jack Hollis' assertion of no direct replacement leaves me with serious doubts about the future or relevance of Scion.

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Shutter Speed: Terror in Zolder

There had been many changes to the driver line-up in the off-season. Andretti now drove for Alfa-Romeo. Emerson Fittipaldi retired from Formula One and left Keke Rosburg to carry the Fittipaldi colours. Rene Arnoux was still at Renault with newcomer Alain Prost. Formula Three star Nigel Mansell shared the driving orders at Lotus with Italian Elio de Angelis. The Williams team remained unchanged with Carlos Reutemann and Alan Jones, the new World Champion. Only Ferrari and Renault had the all-powerful turbo until the new Toleman team appeared with a Brian Hart turbo. It was entered in the Italian Grand Prix with Brian Henton at the wheel. It started twenty-third and finished tenth. Derrick Warwick was unable to qualify the sister car.

At the Belgian Grand Prix, again held at Zolder, Gilles qualified seventh, over a second and a half behind Reutemann's Williams on the pole. Pironi out-qualified Gilles in third.

Reutemann had an unfortunate incident which put a damper on the weekend and his solid qualifying run for the pole. As he set out for his final qualify attempt on Friday, Osella mechanic, Giovanni Amadeo, fell from the pit wall into Reutemann's path. Reutemann was unable to avoid him. Amadeo died from extensive injuries the following Monday. A second incident, also involving a mechanic, occured at the start of the race.

There was mass confusion on the starting grid; first protests by the drivers who supported the mechanics threatened to delay the start. The cars returned to the starting grid after the warm-up lap and several drivers promptly got out of their cars. The protest was over the lack of organizers listening to the driver's view on pre-qualifying sessions to reduce the number of cars during official qualifying in the interest of safety both on the track and in the pits. The mechanics, very upset after the serious injuries to one of their own, joined in to protest the extremely cramped conditions in the pit lane. The drivers each saw a $5,000 fine, but reluctantly returned to their cars with people still standing all over the grid area.

The signal was given for what everyone thought was a second warm-up lap. Upon returning to the start location, Piquet overshot his grid position and was waved off on another lap of the circuit. The rest of the grid was held in position for the start. By the time Piquet had returned there were many engines beginning to overheat badly. At this point it was still thought there would be a proper pace lap. Patrese began waving his arms over his head'his engine had stalled! The red start lights, to start the race, came on just as Patrese's chief mechanic, Dave Luckett, jumped over the pit wall with an air-line to start the stricken Arrows on the second row of the grid. As he crouched down to attach the line the lights turned to green! Alan Jones, right behind the Arrows, could clearly see the problem directly ahead of him and promptly moved to the left with Eddie Cheever and Mansell following. Further down the grid the drivers had not seen the mechanic jump the wall with the air-line. They had no idea of the potential situation awaiting them further up the grid. There had been no yellow flag to indicate a problem of any kind. Siegfried Stohr, starting just his third Grand Prix, had pulled to the right of Rosburg's Fittipaldi and found himself with a stationary car directly ahead. Stohr got on the brakes, but hit his team leader's Arrows squarely in the back. Luckett was trapped, still in a crouch, between the two cars. Amazingly, he suffered only a broken leg, hand and facial lacerations in what appeared would result in far worse consequences.

Out on the circuit, Piquet led from Reutemann and Pironi.

The leaders passed the horrible scene on the pit straight twice and still there was no sign of a red flag to stop the race. In the end Pironi slowed right down and signalled to the other drivers behind him to do the same. The field slowed to a halt in front of the pits with the luckless mechanic still trapped between the two cars. The whole grizzly scene was right in front of them.

Almost an hour later the race was restarted and was basically uneventful. It was halted in the fifty-fourth lap when heavy rain forced the organizers to bring out the chequered flag fifteen laps early. Gilles was classified fourth and won his first three points in the 126C. Pironi finished eight.

The circus moved to Fairyland ' Monaco!

Caution, the following video is graphic and may be quite upsetting.

Read the rest of the Shutter Speed series.

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2. Shutter Speed: The first book and the first nine!
3. Shutter Speed: Motorcycles, Racing and a New Camera
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NASCAR ' Mark Martin Leads the Field, Drivers Playing it Safe, Dale Jr Fastest in Practice

Mark Martin has the pole for tonight's race in Richmond

Mark Martin is the oldest kid in the NASCAR sandbox, and yesterday he proved that he can still be the fastest.  Turning the second fastest lap on his first run around the track there was nowhere to go but up.  On his second time around the 3/4 mile D shaped oval he topped the speed set by Carl Edwards just minutes earlier to take the pole for tonight's Capitol City 400 presented by Virginia is For Lovers.  Setting the pace at 128.327 mph was enough for the 53 year old to take the coveted pole position.  So how does the oldest kid on the block feel about taking his 5th pole in Richmond?

'As far as I'm concerned, this is just as big a deal,' he said.

After running his laps Martin showed his trademark humility about how his talent and experience kept him out front.

'I was very close to skinning the car up, especially off of four [on] the second lap,' Martin said. 'I'm driving it as hard as I can go, and at the very limits of my talent.'

'I did not ask Rodney [Childers] what he put under the car,' said Martin. 'We made some improvements to the car in happy Hour [final practice] in race setup right at the end.

'If it would have been me, I probably would have incorporated those changes into the qualifying setup, and I didn't want to ask Rodney if he did or not, or what he did to the car. All I want to do is roll out on the race track with no preconceived notion and drive it as fast as it'd go and rely on him and his judgment.'

'I was really hoping that he [Childers] would call me [on the radio] on the first lap and tell me to shut it down ' I told him to tell me to shut it down if we happened to get the pole on the first lap. When he didn't, I was afraid, 'Oh, no, we're 15th-fastest. That wasn't near fast enough, and I've really got to get up on the wheel.'

'I was very close to skinning the car up, especially off of [Turn] 4 on the second lap, and that was my concern. That was my concern in practice, as well. Both the qualifying runs I made in practice, I almost skinned it up, too. So I was driving as hard as I can go ' at the very limit of my talent, for sure ' and if I keep pushing the limits, I'm going to run out of talent here, one of these days.'

Carl Edwards will sit on the outside of row 1 beside Mark Martin.

Carl Edwards will be sitting on the outside of row 1 beside Martin when the green flag drops tonight.  Edwards' top lap at 128.290 had hung on through 17 drivers, but when Martin moved to second on the scoring tower with his first lap, Edwards paid much closer attention.

'I thought we had him, and then he shot up to the top of the scoreboard,' he said.

Edwards was asked how he feels his 2012 season is playing out and what he feels about the fans concerns about the log green flags in the previous races causing a drop in the ratings from fans looking for more excitement in the form of wrecks and/or tempers flaring on and off the track.

'We are [11th] in points and don't have a win,' Edwards said of his status. 'It is not like we are tied for first right now. We have to be very cautious with our points. Let's say we know some things. Let's assume some things that are true. Right now we don't have the fastest car on the race track every week so we can say, 'Alright for the next 16 or 18 races we might still not have the fastest car.'

'Under the old points system we would say, 'Damn, we are already ninth and not running that great, let's just go for it here. Let's do some crazy stuff and get a win or two and have some fun.' But we can't do that now because we say that we have to make it into the top 10. We cannot give up any points.

'What we are banking on, what we hope comes is that we hope in those last 10 races that we are good enough then to go shoot for the championship.'

'If you were in my position you would never be able to forgive yourself if you were ninth in points here in Richmond and they drop the green flag on the last restart and you have a great race car and you go for some banzai run and wreck the thing and don't make the Chase.

'Let's say those last 10 races we have a hell of a run and would have won the thing if we would have made it. I would be a moron to give it up right here at Richmond. I don't know if that is right or wrong but that is why it ends up this way because guys start to think, 'OK, just gather all your troops here, focus, work everything out, make the Chase and then go get 'em.' That wasn't intended by NASCAR I am sure but that is the way we feel.'

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''-

Dale Jr talks about his newly returned confidence and the firestorm he caused by saying he is"the best driver" in the Hendrick stable.

Last week some comments by Dale Earnhardt Jr caused a bit of a firestorm in the garage when he stated that he felt he was the best driver at Hendrick Motorsports, maybe even the best in the entire garage.   In Friday's interview session at Richmond International Raceway he reconfirmed his opinion and then in final practice for Saturday's Capital City 400, put an exclamation point on it by outrunning 44 other drivers.

'That is a healthy debate, that is healthy among race fans as far as who is the best driver,' Earnhardt said. 'All the drivers in the garage feel like they are the best, individually, and they should. That is kind of the way you have to approach it.

'I figured that was definitely debatable and the race fans are going to voice their opinion and that's good. I certainly don't like to rock any boats, but you have to answer the question honestly.'

Jr lays a lot of his confidence at the feet of Steve Letarte for giving him the best equipment he can, and for being the best cheerleader in the business.  Keeping his mind in the game when frustration might normally take over, and keeping him focused on the race are just a few of the things Jr credits his crew chief for.

'He's definitely made me more accountable, would be a way to explain it for the words I choose to use and how I choose to describe the car to him,' Earnhardt said of Letarte. 'He's not going to put up with me verbally abusing him or the equipment. I wouldn't expect anything less than him being a professional, as well.'

'I think we have a good in-race relationship. He does a really good job of providing me with information and calming me that we are going to fix any issues we have. I feel confident that he has fixed enough issues and improved the car during enough races that I don't really get as worried about it when something isn't quite right. I know that the chances of it getting improved and fixed are really good.

'I've got great confidence in him and his abilities to orchestrate the weekend as good as I would expect. We get along really good because of that confidence between each other. I think there is good trust there, too.'

That confident attitude send waves through his team and pit crew as well.

'I learned a long time ago that if you don't have confidence in your car that can be problematic for you,' Earnhardt said. 'If you don't have confidence in your crew chief then that can be problematic for you and if you don't have the same confidence in yourself it's not conducive to being successful.

'You have to feel like you're here and you're the best and that is the way you should feel. In any profession, you have to have that kind of confidence.'

So off we go to Richmond tonight, under the lights, for what some drivers call a race on the ultimate short track.  Get those helmet straps and set belts tightened folks, it's looking like a good race tonight.

Related posts:

1. NASCAR ' Hendrick's Leads the Field as Gordon Takes the Pole, Drivers Comment on The 2 Car Push
2. NASCAR ' Mark Martin Takes the Pole for Talladega Proving You Are Never Too Old to Go Fast
3. NASCAR ' Mark Martin Edges Out Trevor Bayne for the Pole at Daytona
4. NASCAR ' Mark Martin Takes The Pole For Phoenix ' Hendrick's Teams Look For Big Rebound
5. NASCAR ' The Field is Set, The Fans Are Ready, The Drivers Are Looking to Win! 2012 Here We Go.