Weekend preview: Atlanta Motor Speedway
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[March 20, 2021]
It's unusual for the NASCAR Cup
Series to run six races to start a season without seeing a repeat
winner.
Not since 2014, when Kevin Harvick became the first multiple winner
in the eighth event of the season, has the series produced six
different winners in the first six races.
Last year, there were two duplicate winners in the first six races
-- Denny Hamlin and Harvick. That was the harbinger of a spectacular
season for those two drivers, who combined to win 16 of the 36
points races.
Five different drivers have taken checkered flags to start the 2021
season, and that streak is likely to continue at Atlanta Motor
Speedway in Sunday's Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (3 p.m. ET on FOX,
PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
Harvick and Brad Keselowski have dominated Atlanta in the recent
past, each winning two of the last four events. Neither driver has
won a race so far this season. Neither has Keselowski's Team Penske
teammate, Joey Logano, who won two of the first four races in 2020.
And though two of his Hendrick Motorsports teammates -- William
Byron and Kyle Larson -- already have tasted victory this year,
reigning champion Chase Elliott has not. Current Cup Series leader
Hamlin, a seven-time winner in 2020, likewise has yet to visit
Victory Lane.
In fact, the top three drivers in the point standings -- Hamlin,
Keselowski and Logano -- all have achieved their current ranks
without winning.
Atlanta Motor Speedway hasn't been repaved since 1997, and the old,
abrasive asphalt at the 1.54-mile track favors veteran drivers who
can manage their equipment and preserve tire life over the course of
a fuel run.
"Atlanta is definitely a tough place," says Elliott, who finished
eighth in last year's Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. "The race track
has a lot of wear to it -- the surface is one of the oldest that we
go to -- so finding grip is a challenge. The track has a lot of
character and is very line-sensitive to where you can and can't run
to find that.
"You really have to hit your marks in Atlanta to have success. I think
the track conditions this weekend will be pretty similar to last year in
a lot of ways. The No. 9 team and I have talked a lot about last year's
event. That's how we're going about the setup for Sunday is from last
year and taking things away from how we did -- what we did good and what
we can improve on."
If form holds, Elliott will have to improve to beat Harvick, who led 151
of the 325 laps last year, including the final 55 circuits during a
108-lap green-flag run to the finish.
Given Harvick's strength at Atlanta -- not to mention the sizable group
of as-yet-winless powerhouse drivers who will start Sunday's race --
it's likely the streak of different winners will reach six this weekend.
ALLMENDINGER LOOKS TO KEEP PERFECT ATLANTA RECORD INTACT
In the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway, AJ Allmendinger
is undefeated.
OK, Allmendinger has started only one race in the series at the
1.54-mile track, but the result last year was a milestone win for the
driver of the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet -- his first in any of
NASCAR's top three series on an oval.
Allmendinger was a part-timer last season. This year he's full-time with
Kaulig Racing, and he already has announced his championship intentions
with an oval victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the fourth race of
the season.
Once considered a one-trick pony on road courses, Allmendinger relishes
a return to Atlanta this weekend for Saturday's EchoPark 250 (5 p.m. ET
on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
"I have always loved Atlanta," says Allmendinger, who is fourth in the
Xfinity Series standings behind Kaulig Racing teammate Jeb Burton. "It's
such a fun race track to drive because of the worn-out pavement and how
much the cars slide around.
"Atlanta will always be special to me after winning my first oval race
there. I can't wait to get back to it this weekend."
Kaulig Racing boasts an enviable record entering Saturday's race. For 38
straight races from the start of the 2020 season, at least one Kaulig
driver has finished in the top 10. The organization also has placed at
least one of its cars in the top five in all five events this season.
In addition, Allmendinger is the only former Atlanta winner in the field
this week.
To triumph in the second leg of a Saturday doubleheader at Atlanta,
however, the Xfinity regulars will have to beat NASCAR Cup Series
interloper Martin Truex Jr., fresh from his victory in last Sunday's Cup
event at Phoenix Raceway.
Plus this weekend, the Atlanta Motor Speedway Xfinity race will serve as
the qualifier for the first round of the 2021 NASCAR Xfinity Series Dash
4 Cash program. The highest finishing four NASCAR Xfinity Series
full-time competitors at Atlanta will qualify for the first round of the
Dash 4 Cash at Martinsville Speedway on April 9.
ATLANTA COULD BRING ROUND 2 OF KYLE BUSCH MOTORSPORTS BATTLE
John Hunter Nemechek won in his third NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
start for Kyle Busch Motorsports, holding off team owner Kyle Busch in
the process to take the checkered flag March 5 at Las Vegas Motor
Speedway.
Even though Nemechek has a victory and Playoff spot in the bank, the
mission hasn't changed for the driver of the No. 4 Kyle Busch
Motorsports Toyota as he heads for Atlanta Motor Speedway and Saturday's
Fr8Auctions 200 (2:30 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
"I don't think we're going to change our plan of attack whatsoever,"
says Nemechek, who will start from the pole in the first leg of a
Saturday doubleheader with the NASCAR Xfinity Series. "We're here to win
races. #Here4Wins is the hashtag we've been using since the announcement
of myself coming to Kyle Busch Motorsports.
"(Crew chief) Eric (Phillips) and I are on the same page. Kyle, Toyota
and all of our partners want to win, and that's why we're here. We are
going to go try and win everything we can from poles to stages to
practice to races. Anything and everything that we can win, we want to."
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Nemechek, who triumphed at Atlanta in 2016 in family-owned NEMCO
Motorsports equipment, is one of five former winners in the field.
The list includes Matt Crafton (2015), Brett Moffitt (2018), Busch
(2019) and Grant Enfinger (2020).
Busch's presence sets up another potential showdown between the team
owner and his marquee driver. And Busch would hate to lose two in a
row.
"At Las Vegas, John Hunter was a little bit better
than us at the end of the race, and I hate I finished second,
obviously, but it's nice to see our Tundras getting used to their
full potential and running up front," Busch says.
"I'm excited to have John Hunter racing at KBM this year and to have
Eric Phillips back on board. I felt like, when we were able to make
that move over the offseason and pair those two together, it was
going to be a winning combination. Three races in, we've already
reaped the benefits."
NASCAR Cup Series
Next Race: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500
The Place: Atlanta Motor Speedway
The Date: Sunday, March 21
The Time: 3 p.m. ET
TV: FOX, 2:30 p.m. ET
Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 500.5 miles (325 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 105), Stage 2
(Ends on Lap 210), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 325)
What To Watch For: Atlanta Motor Speedway has hosted 113 NASCAR Cup
Series races dating back to the inaugural race on June 31, 1960. The
first Cup race at Atlanta was won by Fireball Roberts. ... The 113
NASCAR Cup Series races at Atlanta have produced 53 different pole
winners and 44 different race winners. ... NASCAR Hall of Famer
Richard Petty leads the series in starts at Atlanta with 65 starts.
Kevin Harvick leads all active drivers with 30 starts. ... Buddy
Baker and Ryan Newman are tied for the series-most poles at Atlanta
with seven each. ... Dale Earnhardt leads the series in wins at
Atlanta with nine. Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch lead all active
drivers with three each. ... The youngest Cup winner at Atlanta is
Kyle Busch (03/09/2008 -- 22 years, 10 months, 7 days) and the
oldest is Morgan Shepherd (03/20/1993 -- 51 years, 5 months, 8
days). 14 of the 113 Cup races at Atlanta have been won from the
pole or first starting position; the most recent to do it was Kasey
Kahne in 2006.
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Next Race: EchoPark 250
The Place: Atlanta Motor Speedway
The Date: Saturday, March 20
The Time: 5 p.m. ET
TV: FS1, 4:30 p.m. ET
Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 251.02 miles (163 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 40), Stage 2
(Ends on Lap 80), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 163)
What To Watch For: Atlanta Motor Speedway has hosted 29 NASCAR
Xfinity Series races dating back to the first event on March 14,
1992. The first Xfinity Series race at Atlanta was won by Jeff
Gordon driving the Bill Davis Racing No. 1 car. ... The 29 Xfinity
Atlanta races have produced 17 different pole winners and 18
different race winners. ... Jeff Green, Kevin Harvick and Jason
Keller lead the series in Atlanta starts with 17 each. ... Kyle
Busch leads the series in poles at Atlanta with six. ... Kevin
Harvick leads the series in wins at Atlanta with five. AJ
Allmendinger is the only former Xfinity Atlanta winner (2020)
entered this weekend. ... The youngest Xfinity winner at Atlanta is
Jeff Gordon (03/14/1992 -- 20 years, 7 months, 10 days) and the
oldest is Harry Gant (03/12/1994 -- 54 years, 2 months, 2 days). ...
Six of the 29 Xfinity Atlanta races have been won from the pole or
first starting position; the most recent was Kyle Busch in 2017.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
Next Race: Fr8Auctions 200
The Place: Atlanta Motor Speedway
The Date: Saturday, March 20
The Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
TV: FS1, 1:30 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 200.02 miles (130 Laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30), Stage 2
(Ends on Lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 130)
What To Watch For: Atlanta Motor Speedway has hosted 19 NASCAR
Camping World Truck Series races producing 11 different pole winners
and 14 different race winners. ... Ron Hornaday Jr. and Mike Skinner
lead the series win poles at Atlanta with three each. ... Kyle Busch
leads the series in wins at Atlanta with five. ... Five former Truck
Atlanta winners are entered this weekend -- Grant Enfinger (2020),
Kyle Busch (2019), Brett Moffitt (2018), John Hunter Nemechek (2016)
and Matt Crafton (2015). ... The youngest series race winner at
Atlanta is John H. Nemechek (02/27/2016 -- 18 years, 8 months, 16
days) and the oldest is Ron Hornaday Jr (09/02/2011 -- 53 years, 2
months, 13 days). ... Kyle Busch leads the series in laps led at
Atlanta with 516. ... Five of 19 Camping World Truck Series races at
Atlanta have been won from pole or first starting position; the most
recent was Christopher Bell in 2017.
--By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service, special to Field Level Media
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