by Jeff Hammond

Speed Mail Jeff Hammond
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Jeff Hammond: I'm not going to argue with you. Several drivers have told me they hate that NASCAR changed the plate. It is more difficult to pass, but give them a little bit of time and understand that these teams have to work on the right gear selections so they can make passes. That's the advantage of running the Budweiser Shootout. Those 20 teams have an advantage over the others because they have already made some changes and can fine tune those changes in the 150s.

After the 150s, we've got another practice session so by the time we get to the 500, the teams should adapt, and I think we'll be happy with these results. I'm going to stay positive and hope everything that NASCAR did was right and these teams will get their cars right so we can see some good racing. If not, I'm going to be like you. You can imagine how I'm going to feel trying to talk about a race that's not exciting. That's not any fun either, folks. When you don't have an exciting race, it's very difficult to turn it into an exciting race. We're hoping that these teams will figure out the new package. Just give them a little bit of time. We've only run 70 laps of fierce competition. Let's wait and see what happens.

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FOX race analyst Jeff Hammond led Darrell Waltrip to two of DW's three Winston Cup championships as his crew chief. They also teamed to win the 1989 Daytona 500.

For Jeff Hammond's "Real Men Work in the Pits" magnets, Hollywood Hotel hats and more, check out www.dwstore.com.

For photos and appearances, visit Jeff's web site www.jeffhammond.com.