Track: Martinsville Speedway (.526-mile oval) in Martinsville, Va.
Race: Advance Auto Parts 500 Date: 04.10.05
NASCAR Nextel Cup points position:30th(dropped five positions in the standings)
Notes:
- The No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge Charger at Martinsville Speedway this weekend is Chassis No. 88 it is a brand new car that the team tested at Martinsville Speedway on Tuesday, March 29.
- CAT crew teams up with DW for last truck race The No. 22 CAT Racing pit crew will be pulling a Double-Duty weekend at Martinsville Speedway this Saturday and Sunday by pitting Darrell Waltrips No. 11 Toyota Tundra in Saturdays Kroger 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck race. Then, assuming their usual duties on Sunday, the crew members will pit their No. 22 Caterpillar car for Scott Wimmer in the Advance Auto Parts 500. This will not be the first time the No. 22 Bill Davis Racing teammates have stepped up to the plate to help Waltrip. They pitted Waltrips truck two times in 2004at Martinsville in April and at Indianapolis Raceway Park in August. The No. 22 over-the-wall crew includes: Gordy Arbitter (front tire changer), Kevin Sharp (front tire carrier), Tom Hubert (rear tire changer), Dail Long (rear tire carrier), Steve Spahr (jackman), Tony Anderson (gasman), and Gray Warren (catch can). The Kroger 250 truck race is scheduled to start at 1:15 EDT Saturday, April 9, and will broadcast LIVE on SPEED (TV), MRN (radio) and XM Radio.
- Tuesday Testing Wimmer and his No. 22 CAT Racing team will be in Ft. Mitchell, Ky., next Tues., April 12, to test at Kentucky Speedway.
- Tune in Qualifying for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Advance Auto Parts 500 is scheduled to start at 3:10 p.m. EDT Friday, April 8, and will broadcast LIVE on SPEED (TV), MRN (radio) and XM Radio. The Advance Auto Parts 500 race is scheduled to start at 1:15 p.m. EDT Sunday, April 10, and will broadcast LIVE on FOX (TV), MRN and XM Radio.
S. Wimmer on heading to Martinsville Speedway this weekend:
Martinsville is all about patience and good reflexes, as well as cradling your car. You have to take care of your equipment and at the same time not under use it. We tested at Martinsville last week and I havent raced there a whole lot, so testing there helped me get a better feel for it, as well as help the guys with the setup. We had a good test. We were like a yo-yo parts of the day but by the end we got it down. I really hope things go better for us this weekend compared to this past weekend. We just have to be ready for anything at Martinsville. It, of course, is the typical short track where if there is an accident in Turn 2 the repercussions can end up all the way back in Turn 4. You cant let go once so it is a pretty exhausting race, but you just have to be ready for anything and keep the radio clear for your spotters guidance.
I hate what happened to us in Bristol, but I guess it goes back to that saying about living and learning. We had a good car and I am not sure how that happened because if you wouldve been at the track with us Friday you wouldve probably been just as surprised as I was when I took the green flag. The car was good. Even after the guys changed the radiator, the car felt good. Unfortunately, we just got so far behind in the process that catching up really wasnt an option, so we just made the best we could of the situation. The guys worked real hard and we didnt give up and were still hanging in there in the end. We made it out of there with a pretty clean car and that is very rare at Bristol.
D. Finley on the past run at Bristol and upcoming race weekend at Martinsville Speedway:
We are taking a brand new No. 22 Caterpillar Dodge to the track this weekend that had a good test at Martinsville a couple of weeks ago. The only thing we gained from Bristol to help us at Martinsville is we are definitely not taking the same oil cooling system. It really bit us Sunday because we had a good car and I hate to talk about what couldve been, but it is just one of those things that makes you really sick in your stomach if you think about it too much. It was a problem for us in 2003, but we took care of it last year. This year, were using the same system as last year but the problem resurfaced and I plan to shake it real fast. In fact, Ive already shaken it. I dont plan to have any problems with it this weekend. We are taking a completely different system to Martinsville and will continue to look into it in Kentucky next week.
The key to Martinsville is to stay out of trouble, dont blow up radiators and you have to have a car that will just last. You have to have a car that wont fall off on the long runs. Keeping the car under the driver for the long runs is key because the cars tend to get away and loose off the corners at Martinsville. We use a lot of brake at Martinsville, but anymore brakes are made to withstand the abuse they undergo. Back when DW [Darrell Waltrip] was King of Martinsville, the guy who had brakes at the end of the race was usually the winner. Now, the brakes we are using have been developed from other series like road racing. They are built to be used a lot. Technology, research and development have greatly helped improve the durability of the brakes. Now, that doesnt mean you can just go out there and abuse them, but you definitely utilize them a lot especially at Martinsville.