Hamilton Jr. says Bristol a track drivers either love or hate
By SceneDaily Staff
Thursday, March 13, 2008
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Nick Laham / Getty Images for NASCAR
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 14: Bobby Hamilton Jr., driver of the #25 Smithfield Foods Ford, sits in his car during practice for the Camping World 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series at Daytona International Speedway on February 14, 2008 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images for NASCAR)
Bobby Hamilton Jr. acknowledges that Bristol Motor Speedway is a fan favorite. The Nationwide Series driver knows the tight confines of the short track make it a fun place to watch a race.
But as a competitor, Bristol can be a place that makes you want to pull your hair out.
“As far as the cars and crew members, crew chiefs and drivers, it drives you crazy because it’s so fast, it’s so finicky,” Hamilton Jr. said. “It’s concrete, and it’s so forgiving that you can get away with so much. You can beat and bang with people, and at the same time you can miss the chassis by two- or three-tenths and be five laps down there.
“Compared to going somewhere else and be off a little bit and only be one lap down. I’ve been on the good side of it where the car is driving so good it is so easy to pass people at ease without touching anybody. You can come home with a fifth- or second-place finish without a scratch on your car or you come with the fenders tore off of it and the nose knocked off and finish 23rd.”
The Team Rensi Motorsports driver said Bristol is a track that a driver either loves or hates.
“One race you love it, and the next race you hate it or that year you loved it,” Hamilton Jr. said. “It’s a hard little short track, but if your car is right, it’s probably one of the most fun places we go.”
Bristol has also been a struggle for Hamilton Jr., as he only has one top-10 finish in 11 starts there: A sixth in 2003. He was 18th and 12th in the two series races there last year.
“If you can get a good qualifying run, have good pit stops, you’re going to be hard to beat,” Hamilton Jr. said. “If you’ve got to be in the back, in the traffic for any amount of time, that’s where a good spotter comes in keeping you calmed down. The crew chief is making the right adjustments. The driver is making the right adjustments and explaining the car to the crew chief. It takes all of us.
“When you find that, that’s why so many people, like Darrell [Waltrip] and Kurt Busch and those guys, when they hit on those four, five in a row or Jeff Gordon and those guys, they find what it takes and then it just hits. Then all of a sudden, you can’t do anything wrong there. Getting to that point is what takes so long.”
- Mentioned Drivers:
- Bobby Hamilton Jr.
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