All Jacked Up

The big one is upon us

Posted by: Jason Randall

Thursday, April 24, 2008 1:26 PM

I've said before that my favorite track on the Sprint Cup circuit is Bristol, but I would have to say my second favorite is Talladega.

You know the sign at parks like Six Flags that says if you have a heart problem, don't ride this ride? Well, to me, that's what Talladega is all about. Certainly not for the weak of heart.

I blogged about it earlier in the month, and I still like Junior this weekend at the superspeedway. The way the 88 ran in the Bud Shootout, along with the turnaround Hendrick Motorsports has shown over the last few weeks, leads me to believe we'll see Little E back in Victory Lane after a long drought.

But you also have to look at the Dodges. I think this will be a good chance for Kurt Busch to turn things around. He ran second at Daytona and he probably could have won if Ryan Newman wasn't his teammate. Kasey Kahne also should be fast.

But don't count out the RCR cars. Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick have had some good runs at Talladega and I fully expect them to be around when it's time to let it eat on Sunday.

It will be interesting to see how qualifying goes this weekend. Yeah, it doesn't mean a whole lot in a plate race (Jeff Gordon won from the 36th starting position in 2000), but after a week off I am excited to see how the teams respond.

The second starting position at Talladega has produced the most winners with 18 since 1969. Thirteen times, the pole winner has gone on to take the checkered flag. So it's clear that guys need their cars running well from the get-go, if nothing else, to stay out of trouble and the "big one."

Speaking of the "big one," I think we're going to see one this week. We didn't have one at Daytona, and it just feels like it's coming.

Anyway, it should be a good race on Sunday. I'll update again soon when I make my pick in The News-Gazette. I am going to start posting my picks that run in the paper here in this blog, so check back on Saturday, but right now, unless Junior has to make an engine change, I am taking the 88 Chevy. It's his time.

Until next time, keep hittin' your marks!

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