After a few weeks of bumper battles on short tracks and speedy shows on 1.5-mile venues, the NASCAR schedule tosses fans a veritable wild card as the Series rolls to Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. Talladega is heralded among NASCAR fans and drivers alike.
A trip to the mammoth 2.66-mile track means anything can happen. Known for putting on displays of remarkable wrecks, fantastic fan parties in the campgrounds, and unusual finishing orders, drivers approach Talladega with one mindset – survive.
While NASCAR’s top drivers may implore varying strategies to finish all 500 miles, the ultimate goal is to survive the “Big One,” the gargantuan wreck that seemingly occurs each race at ‘Dega and decimates half the field, to give themselves at least a chance to win.
“You have to be conscious of your surroundings,” said Clint Bowyer, who finished second last week at Texas. “You can’t put yourself in a bad situation. If they’re racing hard in front of you, and you don’t think you should be around, get out of there. Get out of it and just don’t stay there and hope it’s going to change because nine times out of 10, that’s when it’s going to bite you.”
Further adding to the uncertainty that always surrounds a race at Talladega will be the return of tandem drafting, seen at Daytona International Speedway earlier this year. While many fans believed the new two-car drafts seen at Daytona were a result of the freshly-paved track and the drivers’ and teams’ insight, it will be back at ‘Dega, for better or worse.
“I believe there is a really good chance of seeing an instant replay of the Daytona 500,” said Martin Truex Jr. “The style of racing we saw earlier this year originated at Talladega. Since then, teams have worked on their cars and I expect everyone to be able to push and run longer because the cars will stay cooler.”
Traditionally, Talladega races have featured trains of cars pushing each other along in lengthy packs, but often late in the race, duos break off and prove to be faster than the pack.
“Drivers will keep switching out to keep the momentum going on their side,” Truex Jr. added. “We will see a lot of two-car drafting because we go faster than running in large pack.”
Yet not everyone – the fans included – like the new racing style at the restrictor-plate tracks.
“I don’t particularly like that style of racing,” said Dale Earnhardt Jr. as he enters a track where he has five wins. “I’d rather have control of just what I’ve got to do. Having to have responsibility for someone else is a little bit more than I care to deal with, but that is the way the racing is.”
Yet, despite the reservations of fans and some drivers, the tandem-drafting action in Daytona made for an entertaining affair and remarkable finish. A finish that a certain rookie would like to see repeated.
“I hope it is the same, man, and then we could have the same result,” said Bayne, the youngest-ever winner of the Daytona 500, with a laugh. “I think the two-car draft is a great thing for us because we do know how to do it now, there is confidence in us and it is more level because there isn’t a lot of experience.”
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