NASCAR WCUP: Chassis notes, Chevrolet, Atlanta Motor Speedway

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

[The following are facts and figures regarding the cars Team Monte Carlo will be running this weekend during the NASCAR Winston Cup event at Atlanta Motor Speedway.]

1) Steve Park, winner of the Dura-Lube 400 at Rockingham, will campaign chassis #14 in Atlanta. It is the same Monte Carlo he ran here in the fall last year that scored a 4th place finish.

24) Fresh from his win at Las Vegas, Jeff Gordon will sit behind the wheel of a brand new Monte Carlo in Atlanta. This chassis, #2453, has what the team thinks is the right aerodynamic package for success on the l.54-mile track.

4) A solid performer, the Monte Carlo that Robby Gordon will drive ran in the fall Michigan, Charlotte, and Atlanta races last year. On this track, it was 2nd fast on the 2nd day of qualifying and took a top 15 finish.

25) Jerry Nadeau's philosophy is "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." He will drive the same Monte Carlo that carried him to victory at the Atlanta season finale last November. It has the exact same springs and shocks. Gordon Gibbs, who continues to serve as crew chief, just dusted it off and put it on the transporter.

5) Terry Labonte will drive Monte Carlo chassis #155, a car that he drove twice in 2000. This car finished 20th in the fall Michigan race and 17th at the Atlanta season finale. This will be its first time on the track in 2001.

29) Kevin Harvick, Raybestos Rookie of the Year contender, will drive Monte Carlo chassis #70 in the Cracker Barrel 500. This is the same car that Dale Earnhardt won with at this race in 2000.

8) Dale Earnhardt Jr. will drive chasses #001 at Atlanta, which is the same Monte Carlo that won The Winston. It is also the same car that Jr. crashed in practice in Pocono. It has been re-built and returns to the track for the first time this year.

31) A tried and true Monte Carlo, chassis #62 is the car Mike Skinner will drive in Atlanta. On this track, it was a lap leader in the spring, and took a 6th place finish in the fall. It also ran at the fall Pocono race and at both Michigan races in 2000. The Lowe's crew calls it "Old Reliable" .

15) Daytona 500 winner, Michael Waltrip, will run the same car they ran in the Dura-Lube 400 at Rockingham two weeks ago. As a brand new chassis, it secured a 7th place starting position and a 19th place finish.

33) Joe Nemechek will pilot Monte Carlo chassis #49 in the Cracker Barrel 500, which is the same car he ran here last fall. In that race, "Front-Row" Joe took a 5th place finish.

55) For Atlanta, Bobby Hamilton and his crew chief, Jimmy Elledge, decided to bring the same Monte Carlo used last weekend in Las Vegas. "With the downforce that this car has, we think it will run better in Atlanta," said Elledge. "Although they are similar in size, Atlanta is much faster. The key to running well here will be to have the total aerodynamics package. You need to be able to race three wide at high rates of speed in Atlanta."

Text Provided By Nancy Wager

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