Have a FaceBook, Twitter, or other social networking account?

Link them to your fanatic account!

Add An Account

TAKE ME TO...
NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
CUP: Truex Looking For Speed Again
Martin Truex Jr. has a little bit of an advantage at Atlanta...
Mike Hembree  |  Posted March 04, 2010   Hampton, GA
In ten races at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Martin Truex Jr. has two top-10 finishes and one pole. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
Atlanta Motor Speedway typically is listed among the top-five favorite tracks of most Sprint Cup drivers.

It’s fast. It’s wide. Its surface promotes the sort of adjust-your-groove racing that drivers tend to appreciate.

Martin Truex Jr. likes the 1.54-mile track so much he won the pole for last fall’s race here. He’ll be among the favorites in Friday night’s qualifying round for Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 500.

Truex Jr. picked up an additional boost in January when he ran tire tests for Goodyear at AMS.

“The biggest thing is the groove is so wide,” Truex Jr. said. “Even at the test that we did for Goodyear, I could run up toward the wall. I can just run all over this track. That’s what makes it fun for me.

“Some guys like to run the bottom. Some guys like the top. Some guys can run anywhere. That makes for great racing when you can choose. If there is a guy in front of you and you can’t pass him, you just find a different lane and pass him. That helps a lot and makes it fun for all of us.”

Three races into the season, Truex Jr. is 21st in Cup points. He started strong at Daytona with a sixth-place run, but a sour engine left him 39th at Fontana, Calif., and then he finished 20th last week at Las Vegas.

AMS could give Truex Jr. and his team a lift, particularly if they can repeat their pole-winning performance from last season.

“I really enjoy this track,” he said. “I have had some great runs here. I came close to winning here. We won the pole here back in the fall. It is a place where I feel comfortable.”

The key to doing well here, he said, is “being in the gas. It is a fast track, and obviously your car needs to handle well. Being able to stay on the bottom for a fast lap is the key (to qualifying). For the race, you will need to be able to move around. You have to be able to be in the gas for a long time.”

Truex Jr. has never finished higher than eighth at Atlanta, but he has led 204 laps at the track.

Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEEDtv.com and has been covering motorsports for 28 years. He has written several books on NASCAR, including "NASCAR: The Definitive History of America's Sport" and "Then Tony Said To Junior: The Best NASCAR Stories Ever Told". He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.

Play! SPEED Fantasy Racing Cup Edition - Spring Series
mike.hembree's avatar

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mike Hembree

MORE BY THIS AUTHOR
Advertising | Jobs | Feedback | FAQ | Terms of Use | NEW Privacy Policy | Ad Choices | Site Map
Fox Sports | FUEL TV | FX Network | National Geographic | IGN | AskMen
The Motor Sports Authority, SPEED and associated logos are registered trademarks of Speed Channel Inc.
All Rights Reserved © Speed Channel, Inc. 2012

All external links will open in a new browser window. SPEED.com does not endorse external sites.