Race 2 Win: NEXTEL Cup Series Race Notes

Nextel Cup Series

Centurion Boats at the Glen - Jeff Burton Notes

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

Event/Date: Centurion Boats at The Glen – August 12, 2007
Venue: Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International

NOTES:

This Week’s AT&T Chevrolet at Watkins Glen International … Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 210 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable. Built new for 2007, Burton raced this car earlier this season at Infineon Raceway where he started sixth and finished third.

Stat Facts … In 13 NASCAR Cup starts at The Glen, Burton has posted two top-five and three top-10 finishes.

Twists & Turns … Burton’s NASCAR Cup Series road course stats include three top-five and eight top-10 finishes in 27 starts. Additionally, the South Boston, Va., native has an average starting position of 20.1 coupled with an average finishing position of 19.6.

Double Down at the Glen … In addition to his duties behind the wheel of the No. 31 AT&T Chevrolet, Burton, a 24-time race winner in the NASCAR Busch Series, will drive RCR’s No. 29 Holiday Inn Chevrolet in the Zippo 200 on Saturday, August 11. Race coverage will be televised live on ESPN2 beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The event will also be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 24th of 35 races on the 2007 Busch Series calendar will air live on ESPN2 Saturday, August 11, beginning at 11:30 a.m. EDT.

Testing, Testing … Burton and the AT&T Racing team tested chassis No. 210 at Virginia International Raceway (VIR) on Tuesday, July 31 in preparation for this weekend’s Centurion Boats at the Glen.

Five to Go … The 19-time series winner currently sits fourth in the championship point standings with five races remaining in NASCAR’s “Race to the Chase.” The 12 Chase contenders will be determined once the checkered flag waves at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday, September 8. Over the same five races last season, Burton had an average starting position of 5.6 coupled with an average finishing position of 17.4.

RCR at The Glen … In 36 starts at Watkins Glen International, RCR boasts two wins (Kevin Harvick 2006 and Robby Gordon 2003), eight top-five and 15 top-10 finishes with seven different drivers. Additionally, Dale Earnhardt won the pole three times (1990. ’92, ’96) at the high-speed, 11-turn central New York circuit.

Going Home … Two members of the AT&T Racing team hail from the state of New York. Mechanic and pit support Kevin Nervenga calls Suffern, N.Y. his hometown while spotter Rocky Ryan is from Smithtown, N.Y. Additionally, team engineer Jeff Curtis attended Cornell University, located in Ithaca, N.Y., where he graduated with an engineering degree.

Birthday Wishes … Joe Zielinski, front-tire changer for the AT&T Racing team, will celebrate his 31st birthday on Monday, August 13. The Andover, Minn., native currently resides in Salisbury, N.C.

Catch the Action … The Centurion Boats at The Glen will be televised live Sunday, August 12 beginning at 1 p.m. EDT on ESPN. The event will also be broadcast live on MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 22nd stop on the 36-race NASCAR Cup Series calendar is scheduled for Friday, August 10 beginning at 3 p.m. EDT and will be broadcast live on ESPN2.

JEFF BURTON QUOTES:
Are you excited to race at another road course this season?
“I really enjoy road course racing and I have a good time doing it. Watkins Glen is a place where we’ve had pretty good race cars over the past few years, although we don’t have the finishes to indicate that. It’s a big challenge and completely different than running at Sonoma. Watkins Glen is much more like a superspeedway of road courses, if there is such a thing. It’s definitely a fast race track. I’m looking forward to competing this weekend and hopefully we can find a way to get a good finish.”

As the Chase for the championship approaches, is your team starting to get into a different mode?
"Well not yet, we still have some work to do. We feel good about where we are, but we all know that a lot can happen between now and then and we're just trying to perform better. Honestly, we haven't performed as well the last three months as we need to. We haven't been bad but we haven't been great and if we're going to win the championship we've got to get closer to great. We're working hard to be better and get faster, and at the same time, we want to continue to do the things that we're doing well. We don't want to let up in any area but we got to improve in some others. I think this is a race that could be very volatile in the points. Certainly some Chase contenders will have some issues at The Glen. We definitely do not want to be one of them. The best way to avoid issues at a road course is to run in the front, be aggressive and stick to the game plan. That’s what we’ll do. We’ll go there and try to run as fast as we can, the best we can and get the best finish we possibly can.”

Are there more passing zones at Watkins Glen than there are at Sonoma?
“I think there are more passing zones at the Glen. You have the front straightaway, the back straightaway and then you have the straightaway after the long chicane. So, I think there are three real passing zones and more opportunity for passing at the Glen than at Sonoma.”

What are the main differences between the two road courses on the NASCAR Cup schedule?
“The best way I know how to describe it is Sonoma is like the Martinsville of road courses and Watkins Glen is more like a Charlotte or Chicago. It’s a much bigger, wider, faster race track than Sonoma. Sonoma is very tight with a lot of elevation changes. The Glen has some elevation changes too, but it’s in a fast part of the race track. They are in slower parts at Sonoma. I think The Glen is a little less technical, it’s faster and it offers a few more passing zones. It’s just a bigger, wider, faster race track.”