Catchfence

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (April 2, 2011) – Each race weekend, selected Dodge Motorsports engineers, Penske Racing crew chiefs, engineers, drivers or engine specialists give their insight on the ‘Keys for Success’ for the upcoming race.  This week, the green flag drops at Martinsville Speedway and the Goody’s Fast Relief 500.

Track: Martinsville Speedway (Race 6 of 36 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series)
Race: Goody’s Fast Relief 500
Track Length: .526-mile (500 laps/263 miles)

Trivia Question: Only two Virginia tracks currently host NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.  How many other Virginia tracks have hosted Cup events over the years? (Answer below)

STEVE ADDINGTON (Crew Chief, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge Charger R/T)

Key at Martinsville: “Patience!  Patience!  Patience!”

Tires: “That’s an unknown.  Everybody was having tire issues yesterday.  I didn’t talk to anyone in the garage area yesterday that didn’t have an issue with wear on the right front or right rear or with both rear tires.  It’s going to be an interesting Sunday.  I don’t think you will see any two-tire stops, not with the way the tires are wearing.  It will be interesting to see what happens in the truck race today.”

Air to Brakes (with new Dodge nose): There’s plenty of air for brake cooling with the new Dodge nose.  You take all the air you can get at Martinsville because the 500 laps are so hard on the brakes.”

Importance of the Spotter: It’s big here because of the tight racing; it’s bumper cars for 500 laps.  The spotter lets the driver know where he’s getting beat, what line others are running as well as what happening right around him.  The spotter is very important here.”

Answer to trivia question: In addition to Martinsville and Richmond, seven other Virginia tracks have hosted Sprint Cup events, but are no longer on the schedule.  Martinsville (124) and Richmond (109) make up the largest share of the 270 races in the state.  South Boston Speedway hosted 10 events, Langley Field Speedway nine and Old Dominion Speedway seven.  The four other tracks had a total of 11 races.

- Darnell Communications for Dodge Motorsports, Press Release