| | DirecTV 500
The first three races at Texas Motor Speedway have been in a word -- forgettable. I honestly can't tell you much about last year's Primestar 500 because, well, I don't remember much of it. Sure, Terry Labonte won in his home state. And Jeff Gordon was involved in one of his hardest crashes of his Winston Cup career. But I really can't go into much more detail.
That said, I would think this year's DirecTV 500 has the potential to be one of the better races at Texas Motor Speedway -- for the simple reason the drivers have had a couple of years to get used to this 1.5-mile oval and the track itself has undergone several improvements since that first race in 1997.
Now, for my money, tracks like Texas (1.5-mile tri-ovals) provide the most boring racing in NASCAR today. Sorry, but I have to be honest. These tracks are just so tight, they don't allow for a lot of side-by-side racing. And with only one groove to race, one mistake can set off the major chain-reaction wreck we've seen here before.
Another factor that plays into races on 1.5-mile ovals are team's ability to find the right set-up. Today's Winston Cup cars are just so sensative that the odds are one of the 43 cars in Sunday's race is going to hit the perfect set-up. And when that happens on these tracks, the lucky driver will just run away from the rest of the field.
Teams will try to build some adjustability into their cars. But sooner, or later, they'll have to find the right combination over 500 miles. Most will never find it. But the odds are someone will get their car working perfectly and run away with a victory. The margin for error is just so small that when teams find those set-ups, that's when a race becomes a one- or two-car show.
While Jeff Burton, Martin and Labonte have won the first three races at Texas Motor Speedway, with a little racing luck, Martin could have swept all three. Martin's engine failed him in 1997 and last year a tire problem sent him into the wall. In both those races, Martin led several laps and had strong cars.
So if I had to make a pick this week, I'd say Martin is a strong candidate to continue the streak of non-repeat winners in 2000. And if I'm right, Martin would become the seventh different winner this season to start the season -- equalling the all-time record set in 1991. Others who could also continue the streak include Gordon and Tony Stewart.
Goodyear is bringing its new generation radial tire to this year's race. That's the tire that was tested in Texas earlier this year and drivers seemed to feel it was much more reliable and consistent than those in the past. That should help the racing, along with the drivers' overall familiarity with Texas Motor Speedway.
However, one driver who isn't familiar with the track is Adam Petty, who will run in his first Winston Cup race after qualifying 33rd on Friday. It will be interesting to see how Adam handles this weekend. He's only 19 years old, and the Winston Cup Series is so competitve right now. He's done all right in Busch, but you can still tell that he's an inexperienced driver.
But his father Kyle started his Winston Cup career in this same race when he was 19.
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DirecTV 500 Breakdown
Dunlap: Tired of messy pit boxes
Labonte brothers return to Texas roots
Adam eager to continue Petty legacy in Texas
Gordon struggles to find winning combination
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