NASCAR WCUP: Buckshot Jones Rolls Into Thunder Valley Looking For Strong Finish

31 March 1999

SPARTANBURG, S.C. --- Buckshot Jones started his racing career on the short tracks of Georgia and every season he enjoys using a lot of what he learned in those early days when he competes at Bristol Motor Speedway.

This will be the first time Jones has driven a Winston Cup car at Bristol Motor Speedway, but he had some success over the last couple of seasons on the track in the NASCAR Busch Series. Jones claimed the outside pole in the spring race in 1998 and led more than 80 laps at the .533-mile track throughout the 1997 and 1998 Busch Series seasons.

Bristol is a tough track because the racing is so close, said Jones.

Theres not a lot of room to pass unless youre up front and you continuously have to deal with lapped traffic. Thats why track position is so important there. Our goal for our first time at this track in a Cup car is to qualify well, so we can be up front from the start. We always had strong setups at this track in the Busch car, so I hope that will give us some information we can use in the Cup car.

Jones came close to winning at Bristol when he competed on the NASCAR Busch Series and he knows how challenging this track can be for a driver.

One of the most important things a driver has to learn to focus on in any race is patience, said the 28-year old Winston Cup rookie. At this track you have to be patient as far as making smart moves, but you cant sit back and take your time here because you can lose positions and even laps if you do that.

This will be the first short track Ive competed on in a Winston Cup car, and I know one of the biggest things Ill need to adapt to will be the length of the race. The Busch races were only 250 laps, but the Winston Cup race is 500 laps. This will be the longest race Ive run on the Winston Cup Series to date.

Jones is continuously progressing and learning each time he straps himself into the No.00 Crown Fiber Communications Pontiac.

Like every other track we will go to this year, I will also need to get used to more horsepower in the car. Every race we run this year is helping me with the adjustment, but every track is a new experience for me. Jones knows that a lot of different skills will be tested at Bristol Motor Speedway, but he is up to the challenge.

The races at this track are so exciting for the drivers and the fans that come to watch, said Jones. Its one of the most thrilling and challenging races on the circuit. I think that drivers are tested both mentally and physically at this track. You have to make smart, quick moves, but you also have to endure 500 laps of hard driving. Im looking forward to the test.

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