Pages

Sunday, October 10, 2010

NASCAR winless streaks

As hard as it is to believe, Jeff Gordon and Carl Edwards each have some pretty long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winless streaks.
Gordon has gone 58 Cup races without a win. He is a three-time winner at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, site of today's Pepsi Max 400. His last win in Fontana came in 2004.
When asked if he knew what it takes to win at Auto Club Speedway, he said, "I don't know. Ask me after Sunday because it's been a while since we've won one anywhere and this track is a tricky one."
Tricky is a relative term. It seems the driver who can get out front at Auto Club Speedway can break away from he rest of the field. The drivers left behind have to work to get to the front.
Still Gordon insists track conditions can present some challenges.
"It's slick. The grooves move around during the race and we haven't had the success here recently that we've had in the past," Gordon said. "Sometimes it takes fuel mileage. Sometimes it takes having a good car on the restarts. Sometimes pit strategy, but a lot of different things. I'll take a fast car anywhere we go, that always help."
Edwards hasn't won a Cup race in his past 65 starts. He is also a former winner at Fontana, coming in the February race in 2008. He is coming off a sixth-place finish at Kansas Speedway last weekend.
"I believe last week was a good test for us," Edwards said. "That Kansas race track is a lot like the Auto Club Speedway. It's going to be a really hot, slippery race on Sunday. It looks like the temperatures are going to be pretty high. I feel like our team has been marching towards this points lead just little bits at a time and I think is an opportunity for us to do that again."

Photo: California native Jeff Gordon is fifth in the NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup standings after three races. He starts 17th in today's Pepsi Max 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. (Credit: Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

No comments:

Post a Comment