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Sprint Cup
CUP: Under The Hood - The 2010 NASCAR Chase Is On
The 2010 NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup kicks off this Sunday afternoon at New Hampshire Motor Speedway...
“Under The Hood Presented by Quaker State” is a series of behind-the-scenes articles about Hendrick Motorsports.
Editor’s Note: “Under The Hood Presented by Quaker State” is a series of behind-the-scenes looks at what Hendrick Motrosports does to remain at the front of the hyper-competitive world of NASCAR Sprint Cup racing. This week, it’s the first race in the Chase.
The 2010 Chase for the Sprint Cup kicks off Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, with the running of the Sylvania 300.
NHMS is unique among all the tracks that the series races at because of its layout. At 1.058 miles in length the track is longer than short tracks like Richmond International Raceway and Martinsville Speedway, and shorter than the high-speed intermediate tracks, including Charlotte Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Most of all, though, NHMS is flat, with variable banking the corners from just 2 degree to 7 degrees. Combined with the narrowness of the track, that places a premium on track position and passing, and it also makes braking important.
According to brake system manufacturer Brembo, NHMS trails only Watkins Glen International, Martinsville and Richmond International Raceway in terms of severity on the braking systems at New Hampshire. Brembo rates NHMS as an 8.0 on brakes, with the high-speed Watkins Glen road course coming in at a 9.5.
Last time the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series raced at NHMS, it was a great day for the Hendrick Motorsports team, with Jimmie Johnson winning the June race in his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, Jeff Gordon finishing fourth in the No. 24 Dupont entry and Dale Earnhardt Jr. bringing the No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevy home in eighth. And the defending race-winner of the Sylvania 300 is Mark Martin, pilot of the No. 5 GoDaddy.com Chevy.
Still, the Hendrick crew knows this weekend will be a challenge on a number of fronts.
“It is very difficult to pass at New Hampshire,” says Lance McGrew, crew chief of the No. 88 Chevy driven by Earnhardt. “It seems like when they added the footing to the bottom of the corners, it helped. It put another groove there. It used to be one groove, so it's a place that's very difficult to pass. You've got to work — it doesn't matter who it is.”
Steve Letarte, crew chief of Gordon’s No. 24 Dupont Chevy, agrees. “Loudon is a very scary race because it's only 300 laps, and if you lose track position your race is over,” he says. “It doesn't matter if you got lost at Lap 50 or Lap 150. It's a very, very hard track to pass.”
Last year’s fall New Hampshire race came down to a final late-race restart, with Martin able to use the outside lane to hold down Juan Pablo Montoya and drive to victory, with Denny Hamlin charging to second at the end ahead of Montoya.
It’s the kind of race and the kind of place that gives crew chiefs ulcers.
“The double-file restarts will be crazy,” says Letarte. “The pit strategy is very crazy. The tires there don't mean a whole lot, so it's hard to kind of get outside the normal on pit strategy. It's one of those tracks that we've had a lot of success there. We've had success there but it's also one of those that if you don't run well, man, it's a hard one to catch up on.”
Read more... “Under The Hood Presented by Quaker State”
The 2010 Chase for the Sprint Cup kicks off Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, with the running of the Sylvania 300.
NHMS is unique among all the tracks that the series races at because of its layout. At 1.058 miles in length the track is longer than short tracks like Richmond International Raceway and Martinsville Speedway, and shorter than the high-speed intermediate tracks, including Charlotte Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Most of all, though, NHMS is flat, with variable banking the corners from just 2 degree to 7 degrees. Combined with the narrowness of the track, that places a premium on track position and passing, and it also makes braking important.
According to brake system manufacturer Brembo, NHMS trails only Watkins Glen International, Martinsville and Richmond International Raceway in terms of severity on the braking systems at New Hampshire. Brembo rates NHMS as an 8.0 on brakes, with the high-speed Watkins Glen road course coming in at a 9.5.
Last time the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series raced at NHMS, it was a great day for the Hendrick Motorsports team, with Jimmie Johnson winning the June race in his No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, Jeff Gordon finishing fourth in the No. 24 Dupont entry and Dale Earnhardt Jr. bringing the No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevy home in eighth. And the defending race-winner of the Sylvania 300 is Mark Martin, pilot of the No. 5 GoDaddy.com Chevy.
Still, the Hendrick crew knows this weekend will be a challenge on a number of fronts.
“It is very difficult to pass at New Hampshire,” says Lance McGrew, crew chief of the No. 88 Chevy driven by Earnhardt. “It seems like when they added the footing to the bottom of the corners, it helped. It put another groove there. It used to be one groove, so it's a place that's very difficult to pass. You've got to work — it doesn't matter who it is.”
Steve Letarte, crew chief of Gordon’s No. 24 Dupont Chevy, agrees. “Loudon is a very scary race because it's only 300 laps, and if you lose track position your race is over,” he says. “It doesn't matter if you got lost at Lap 50 or Lap 150. It's a very, very hard track to pass.”
Last year’s fall New Hampshire race came down to a final late-race restart, with Martin able to use the outside lane to hold down Juan Pablo Montoya and drive to victory, with Denny Hamlin charging to second at the end ahead of Montoya.
It’s the kind of race and the kind of place that gives crew chiefs ulcers.
“The double-file restarts will be crazy,” says Letarte. “The pit strategy is very crazy. The tires there don't mean a whole lot, so it's hard to kind of get outside the normal on pit strategy. It's one of those tracks that we've had a lot of success there. We've had success there but it's also one of those that if you don't run well, man, it's a hard one to catch up on.”
Read more... “Under The Hood Presented by Quaker State”
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