Primestar 500 Preview
TV: ABC, 1:00 PM EST
Radio: PRN Radio, 1:00 PM EST
Laps: 328
Track length: 1.522 miles
Race length: 500 miles
Banking: 24 degrees
Qualifying record: Greg Sacks, 185.830 mph, 1994 (fall)
Race record: Dale Earnhardt, 161.298 mph, 1996 (spring)
Drivers to Watch
Dale Earnhardt -- if there is any track that could cure what ails Earnhardt, it's Atlanta where he is the winningest driver in track history with eight wins; Earnhardt is the defending event champion and finished fourth in the season-ending race at Atlanta; his lifetime mark at the track includes 24 top-fives in 37 starts; he is off to the worst start in his career finishing 31st, 11th and 25th in the first three events of the season; without a top-10 in the opening three races for the first time in his career; average point position of fourth through first three races, but is currently 24th in points standings; his last win came in this race last year.
Bill Elliott -- was a house on fire at Daytona with a fourth place finish, but cooled to finish 15th and 22nd in the two other events; showing that fire is still burning under his hood, and would like nothing better than to post his first win in three seasons in his native Georgia; has five career wins in Atlanta; only five times have the races in Atlanta been swept -- twice by Elliott (1985 and 1992); currently seventh in Winston Cup points.
Jeff Gordon -- Gordon comes to Atlanta with a pair of wins, a fourth place finish and command of the Winston Cup standings; Gordon turned in a pair of third-place finishes in Atlanta last season; in nine career starts in Atlanta, Gordon has four top-fives, including a victory in the spring race two years ago; made his Winston Cup series debut in Atlanta in the 1992 fall race, which was ironically Richard Petty's final event.
Dale Jarrett -- Jarrett has become one of those guys on the Winston Cup circuit who, once he was finally running up front, refused to leave; late wreck in Daytona 500 dropped him from a leader to 23rd, and has since finished second and third; finished 11th in this event last season, but came back to finish second in the fall race.
Terry Labonte -- picked up where he left off in 1996 by turning in nothing but top-10s (sixth, seventh, second) in firt three races this year; never a winner in Atlanta, but has 21 top-10s in 37 career starts in Atlanta; last year's results included a second and a fifth en route to his wrapping up the Winston Cup title in November.
Mark Martin -- seems to be struggling a lot like Earnhardt; winless since October 1995; after finishing in the top-10 17 races in a row, Martin has posted two straight finishes of 13th; engine problems knocked him out of this event last year, and he finished seventh in the fall; has a pair of wins and nine top-10s in career 21 starts in Atlanta.
Rusty Wallace -- a little controvery followed Wallace's win at Richmond last week, but there always seems to be a little controversy around Wallace; both of his wins at Atlanta have come in the fall race; had a best finish in Atlanta last season of 10th, which also came in the fall race; after leading the sprint race, he exited with engine problems; off to a nice start with a pair of top-10s after a disappointing Daytona 500.
