Race 2 Win: NEXTEL Cup Series Race Notes

Nextel Cup Series

Coca-Cola 600 - Jeff Burton Notes

Jeff Burton
No. 31 AT&T Chevrolet
Event Preview Fact Sheet

Event/Date: Coca-Cola 600 – May 27, 2007
Venue: Lowe’s Motor Speedway – Concord, N.C.

NOTES:

This Week’s Race Car Lowe’s Motor Speedway (LMS) … Jeff Burton will pilot chassis No. 155 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable. This is the same AT&T Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS Burton raced to victory at Texas Motor Speedway earlier this year. Additionally, this car also saw action at California Speedway (started eighth, finished fourth), Las Vegas Motor Speedway (started fifth, finished 15th) and Atlanta Motor Speedway (started 32nd, finished fourth).

Two-timer … AT&T driver Jeff Burton has claimed the checkered flag twice in the Coca-Cola 600. His first victory in NASCAR’s longest event came in 1999 by edging out Bobby Labonte by .547-second, and in 2001 he finished ahead of current RCR teammate Kevin Harvick to claim his second victory at the track.

Stat Facts … In 26 starts at LMS, Burton boasts two wins, six top-five and 12 top-10 finishes. Both LMS victories came in the Coca-Cola 600.

Double Duty … In addition to his driving duties with the No. 31 AT&T Chevrolet at LMS, Burton, a 24-time race winner in the NASCAR Busch Series, will drive RCR’s No. 29 Holiday Inn Chevrolet in the Carquest Auto Parts 300 on Saturday, May 26. The race will air live on ESPN2 beginning at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) and will also be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network (PRN) and Sirius Satellite Radio.

RCR at Charlotte … In 90 starts at LMS, RCR has earned four points-paying victories – all of them coming with Dale Earnhardt. Additionally, RCR boasts 16 top-five and 31 top-10 finishes at the 1.5-mile oval with six different drivers including Earnhardt, Ricky Rudd, Mike Skinner, Kevin Harvick, and Burton. Richard Childress, a former driver on NASCAR’s senior circuit, contributed two of those top 10s from 1978-1979.

Testing One, Two, Three, Testing … Burton and the AT&T Racing team tested at LMS on Monday, May 7 and Tuesday, May 8 in preparation for this weekend’s Coca-Cola 600.

Giving Back … Jeff Burton will be part of a very special question and answer session outside Lowe’s Motor Speedway Sunday, May 27. The South Boston, Va., native will visit with and answer questions from active and retired military troops. Recording artist Leann Rimes and driver Kyle Busch are also scheduled to visit the troops later that day.

Carolina on His Mind – Fan’s Victory of a Lifetime rolls into Lowe’s … Prilosec OTC’s Victory of a Lifetime Sweepstakes winner Jim Farina continues his ultimate NASCAR Fan experience this weekend at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The Coca-Cola 600 will be Jim’s 11th race of his 20-race schedule with RCR’s No. 31 Cup team. To start off the weekend, Jim and his guests will enjoy their very own tour of the Richard Childress Racing Shop and Museum located in Welcome, NC. Following the tour, they will be treated to a private lunch and wine sampling at Childress Vineyards.

Meet the Driver … Burton will make a guest appearance in Uptown Charlotte for the annual Speed Street festivities on Friday, May 25. The 19-time Cup Series winner will be part of a question and answer session on the Coke Stage beginning at 8:50 p.m. The Q&A session will be hosted by radio and TV personality Marty Smith and Burton will be joined on stage by fellow drivers Dale Jarrett and Kyle Petty.

Catch the Action … The Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway will be televised live Sunday, May 27 beginning at 5 p.m. EDT on FOX and broadcast live on PRN and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 12th of 36 NASCAR Cup Series events will take the green flag at 7 p.m. EDT Thursday, May 24 and will be telecast live on SPEED.

JEFF BURTON QUOTES:
You posted two top-10 finishes last year at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. What are your thoughts about heading into this weekend’s race?
“We had a good season last year at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. We were really fast during the fall race. We were coming on hard toward the end of the race and we didn’t have the track position we needed to pull off a win. As the track changed, we had to change the way we set our race cars up. Goodyear came in with different tires so the grip was way down even though it was a new surface. It was a huge challenge and a difficult race track to figure out. It’ll be that way again this weekend. The way the race track is built now, Goodyear has to bring a tire that can live and that means the grip level is not very good. I will say that at the end of the fall race last year, the speeds were unbelievable. It was really fast and I expect the speeds to be back up there.”

Will the race track wear back in to where it used to be or will the track surface be different?
“I hope so. Charlotte is a great example of why I beg race track owners not to try and fix the race tracks. More times than not, it causes more problems than it does help it. I don’t like it when they mess with the race tracks. The more time goes by, the better Charlotte will get. Hopefully, the track surface will get back to where it used to be but you never know. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens.”

How important is it to qualify well for a 600-mile race?
“The reason it’s a big deal to start up front at Charlotte is the transition from day to night. You can set your car up to be better at night and be willing to give up some positions early. If you’re starting deep in the field, you can’t afford to do that. Typically, there are a lot of green-flag runs at Charlotte and starting up front gives you a buffer if things don’t go well early on when the sun is out.”