Adapting to this track

• The Texas track is a lot like Atlanta and Lowe's Motor Speedway, but there's one big difference. The asphalt at Texas has really good grip, and the race pace doesn't slow down. So the racing actually is quicker. Bill Elliott set a qualifying record in 2002 with a 27.80-second lap, which is almost 195 mph. That's an average speed, so driving off into the corners in Turns 1 and 3, the cars go well in excess of 200 mph. Obviously they aren't going to run 195 mph in the race, but they aren't going to slow up too much. They will run in the 28- to 29-second bracket.
• This track is hard on the engine guys. You have to have a lot of top-end horsepower for the straights, and you have to have a lot of bottom end to pull you off the corners. Fuel mileage will come into play because there are some long green runs at Texas. Last year, there were 10 cautions for 52 laps, so there were 282 laps of green flag racing.
• Another issue at Texas is tires. Goodyear always is concerned about this track because the fast pace is hard on tires. The cars run really soft springs, and the cars suck down on the ground, so it just amplifies the abuse on tires, especially the right front. The loads in the corners are so great on the right front that the teams will look at the tire for problems all day. It's a scary thought because if you blow that right-front tire and hit the wall, you hit it a ton.

Plotting strategy

• For the most part, teams change four tires, but we have seen some two-tire changes because the rubber give-up isn't that great. A two-tire change can be a big help because it's so hard to pass at this track, and a fair number of cars usually finish on the lead lap. In 2003, 13 cars were on the lead lap at the end. You can run about 60 to 65 laps on a tank of fuel, and when the race reaches lap 270 or so, you'll see cars stay out on the track or just take two tires.

Where the action is

• A lot of cars hit the wall in the transition coming out of Turn 4. You funnel out of Turn 4, and it's really tight. Also, pit road is really close to the track. In the past, I told my guys in the pits to not turn their backs on the racetrack, especially if we were at the pit road entrance, where you are a stone's throw from the track. If a car hits the wall, comes back over the track and through the front stretch grass -- boom -- it's on pit road.