COT height tolerance change

NASCAR will give teams a half-inch tolerance instead of a quarter-inch on the minimum height requirement of the rear of the car during post-race inspection at car of tomorrow [COT] races, Nextel Cup Series Director John Darby told reporters Thursday. #16-Greg Biffle was outside the quarter-inch tolerance after a fifth-place finish at Bristol, but NASCAR won't penalize him because of the lack of benefit to the car to be that low. Darby also said that although it was procedural measurement with the car of tomorrow, it was never specified in the rulebook. He says NASCAR will continue to explore the minimum height of the rear of the car before making a steadfast rule. Darby also said that the minimum right-side weight was changed from 1,650 pounds to 1,700 pounds. As far as the problems some teams had with broken exhaust pipes, Darby said he expected that to be fixed. "The teams have been very weight conscious through this process," Darby said. "Most of the exhaust pipe failures that we saw were pipes that were constructed out of material that was much thinner than the pipes on yesterday's car were. It should be an easy fix for the teams.

Martinsville track history

Martinsville Speedway was built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles and is the only charter-member track that remains on the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series schedule.

Red Byron won the first "Strictly Stock" event on the half-mile dirt track on September 7, 1947 and went on to win the first NASCAR championship in 1949. Six years later, the track was paved and Martinsville Speedway has since hosted at least two 500-mile races each year ever since.

Nestled in the Virginia Piedmont on Route 220, approximately 50 miles south of Roanoake, Va. and 50 miles north of Greensboro, N.C., Martinsville Speedway still maintains a small-track ambiance due in part to Clay Campbell, the third generation of the Earles family to manage the facility. Campbell continues his grandfather's fan friendly philosophy that includes an allotment of affordable bleacher seats that go on sale the day of the race.

Picks so far - Martinsville

Drivers that must qualify on speed at Martinsville

36) #4-Burton/Morgan-McClure Motorsports 331, 34 pts behind 35th
37) #22-Blaney/Bill Davis Racing 325, -40
38) #83-Vickers/Team Red Bull 322, -43
39) #44-Jarrett/Michael Waltrip Racing 320 [has 2 champ provisionals left to use], -45
40) #21-Schrader-Wood/ Wood Brothers 320, -45
41) #49-Bliss/BAM Racing 287, -78
42) #15-Menard/DEI 281, -84
43) #10-Riggs/Evernham 265, -100
44) #55-Waltrip/Michael Waltrip Racing

This is a partial list and very unofficial.

The Biff gets no penalty

NASCAR will not penalize Greg Biffle's #16 team, despite the fact his Ford was found to be too low in post-race inspection at Bristol Motor Speedway, NASCAR vice president for competition Robin Pemberton said Wednesday. NASCAR has scheduled a news conference for Friday morning at Martinsville Speedway to explain their reasoning in detail. NASCAR took the #16 car back to its research and development center Sunday night after the Food City 500 and gave it a thorough inspection Monday. Officials determined that no unapproved adjustments had been made to the car, so NASCAR cleared the machine and returned it to Roush-Fenway Racing on Monday afternoon. The 2007 season began with a new, less tolerant approach toward rules violators, prompting many to suspect that Biffle and his team would receive a stiff penalty following the Bristol mishap. But NASCAR officials said the Car of Tomorrow is a work in progress, and that they anticipated the cars would lose some height during the race at Bristol. Officials ran eight cars through the height sticks during post-race inspection, and Biffle's was the only one that came back too low. Before making any permanent changes, NASCAR said it will likely make some rules adjustments in the future that benefit everyone.

Drivers trying to qualify on speed at Atlanta

#4-Ward Burton (2/38)
#13-Joe Nemechck (3/20)
#14-Sterling Marlin (3/30)
#15-Paul Menard (3/37)
#33-Scott Wimmer (0/none)
#34-Kevin Lepage (3/52)
#36-Jeremy Mayfield (3/48)
#37-John Andretti (3/46)
#44-Dale Jarrett [Past Champ 1999](3/32)
#49-Mike Bliss (3/47)
#55-Michael Waltrip (3/56)
#70-Johnny Sauter (3/24)
#78-Kenny Wallace (3/43)
#83-Brian Vickers [won in 2006](3/41)
#84-A.J. Allmendinger (3/50)

Picks so far - Atlanta

Tire notes from Atlanta

GOODYEAR TIRE NOTES

Tire: Goodyear Eagle Speedway Radials

Number of Tires: Left-side -- 1,700; Right-side -- 1,700

Tire Codes: Left-side -- D-4066; Right-side -- D-4080

Tire Circumference: Left-side -- 87.4 in.; Right-side -- 88.6 in.

Technical Inspection Inflation:
Left Front -- 30 psi; Left Rear -- 30 psi;
Right Front -- 50 psi; Right Rear -- 47 psi
Minimum Recommended Inflation
: Left Front -- 22 psi; Left Rear -- 20 psi;
Right Front -- 48 psi; Right Rear -- 45 psi

Estimated Pit Window: Every 48-52 laps, based on fuel mileage.

Notes: This is the first time Goodyear has brought this specific combination of left- and right-side tires to the track . . . while the left-side code will be the same for teams in all three NASCAR series at Atlanta, Nextel Cup teams will be running a different right-side code (D-4080) to account for their smaller fuel cell . . . this is the only track at which these codes will be used in 2007 . . . the important factors in designing a tire setup for Atlanta are the high speeds and loads, as well as the relatively rough track surface . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run inner liners in all four tire positions at Atlanta . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.

Vegas Baby! - picks so far

Blond Dog sets new record

For the first time in the Dakota Kid's NASCAR pool history, someone picked the top three finishers. Blond Dog picked JPM, Hamlin and Said; who finished this weekend's Busch race 1, 2, 3. That's a record that can be tied, but can never be broken.

Who to root for/against - Mexico