Right turns, Left turns, uphill climbs, downhill esses - all part of the Infineon circuit that Nextel Cup stars tackle this week. Here's a quick look at what to expect.
Tony Stewart: Last year's winner at both road courses, he will be a favorite to repeat. This race last year was the start of Stewart's hot streak. Maybe this year it can put to bed all his bad luck (engine failure at California, crash at Charlotte, wreck at Michigan - and that's just Cup races).
Jeff Gordon: A multi-time winner at the road courses, he will be in contention for a high finish. We'll see if the DuPont team can put together a road course car for their driver.
Denny Hamlin: A rookie, but a road course winner in the Busch series thie year in Mexico City. Can he transfer what he learned there to Sonoma? He is still on his hot streak - he finished 12th last week at Michigan.
Kasey Kahne: Kahne has never done well at the road courses. With help from Boris Said, can he keep his drive for the Chase on course?
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Last year, Junior crashed out early. While he has not won at a road course in the Cup series, he does have a Busch win at Watkins Glen. And he has road course experience in other road course series (remember the Rolex series with his Dad one year and Tony Stewart another? Let's forget the road course crash that caused burns...).
Mark Martin: Martin is looking for a road course win, and hopes to ignite his 2006 campaign. It's his last trip to Infineon - will he say "thank goodness" or miss the road racing?
Robby Gordon: Gordon has a road course win on his resume, but he'd love to win as an owner-driver. He came so close at Watkins Glen last year. Maybe a trip home to California will be a good luck charm.
Kevin Harvick: Harvick is not necessarily a road racer, but he did do an exceptional job in the Busch race at Mexico City. Perhaps he's getting the hang of the right turn thing.
Elliott Sadler: His worst finish on last year's road courses was 12th. He has potential to do well this week - let's see if his car is handling right. (Maybe he and Gordon need to swap cars and see what happens?).
Ringers: Boris Said, Scott Pruett, Chris Cook, PJ Jones, Ron Fellows, Tom Hubert, and Brian Simo will all attempt to get their cars into the race on Sunday. All are accomplished road racers (and many "teachers" of Cup regular drivers on the road courses). So far, no ringer has won the ultimate prize. Maybe this year?
What else to look for: (1) Watch Turn 11 (the hairpin near start finish). Lots of "accidents" happen here - as do a lot of passes. This is where Stewart muscled by Ricky Rudd last year to take the lead and deny Rudd the win. (2) Transmission problems plagued several teams last year - most notably Hendrick Motorsports (Gordon, Johnson, Busch). Will teams try a new transmission manufacturer or stick with Old Faithful? (3) Pit strategy can play a major role in who wins. Pit at the wrong time -and you'll have to pass a bunch of cars. Fuel mileage and tire wear are also factors. (4) Restarts - getting a clean restart is imperitive at the road courses. A clean restart and you can keep lots of cars behind you. Spin your tires, and the field will race by - and it's hard to plan where to pass them back.
What you'll hear: (1) Gordon has 8 road course victories. He needs this race to get back some points. (2) Stewart won both road races last year and has 5 wins in the last 5 seasons. He'll be hot to trot after his crash in Michigan. Will his shoulder factor in (my guess is no - his win at Watkins Glen in 2004 was with him fighting the flu. He wouldn't get out of the car.). (3) Lots of discussion about the ringers, Make no mistake - they are all exceptional drivers with long racing resumes. (4) References to "wine country" will dominate the coverage. (5) Can someone break the Gordon/Stewart stranglehold on winning these things?
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