NASCAR Cup

Bristol II: Casey Atwood preview

Casey Atwood Dodge Intrepid R/T Does your temperament change when you race at a short track like Bristol? You got to be a little bit more aggressive at Bristol. I don't have any trouble doing that. I'm a patient driver, but on the shorter race ...

Edited: Aug 22, 2002, 3:40 AM

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Casey Atwood
Dodge Intrepid R/T

Does your temperament change when you race at a short track like Bristol?

You got to be a little bit more aggressive at Bristol. I don't have any trouble doing that. I'm a patient driver, but on the shorter race tracks you got to be aggressive and patient at the same time. I'm going to try to step it up this week and have a good race. We ran good there last time and had clutch trouble. I know we're going to be better this time. We'll just keep all four fenders on the Sirius Dodge, and hopefully we'll come out of there with a good finish.

What is so special about Bristol?

I think that fans enjoy short tracks. Everybody likes the Bristol race, the Richmond race, the Martinsville race. That's the best racing for fans, and you can fit just as many people around those if you put stands all the way around them. Bristol's got more seats than anywhere that I know of. Besides short tracks, everybody enjoys night races. You get to see the cars under the lights and the sparks. I know just as a fan of racing I enjoy night racing, but as a driver I enjoy it too.

There's no place like home...

Bristol is a special place to me. I consider it my home track. It's the only track we go to that's in my home state. It's always been a special race for me even in Busch-- even though we went to Nashville, which is my home town, in the Busch car. Night races get me more excited. I don't know what it is. I'm excited for every race, but to do that at night and see all the people and the lights, it's a pretty awesome sight to be there.

Where does Bristol rank for you as a driver?

I have my favorites-- Richmond, Phoenix, Homestead-- but Bristol is right there with them. I haven't had the success there as some of my other favorites. But it's Bristol-- it's the race everyone likes to watch growing up. Being in my home state, I've got a lot of friends and family coming so it's pretty high on the list.

Do you feel the energy and excitement from the fans at the start of the race?

It looks more like a football stadium than it does a race track from looking at the stands. It's a good feeling to be in Tennessee. I feel like I've got more fans there because people will drive up from Nashville to watch the race and all my family is there. I get more cheers there-- it's bigger than I get anywhere else, so I really like the excitement.

This will be Atwood's fourth Winston Cup Series visit to Bristol. Atwood has finished 20th or better in his three Winston Cup starts at Bristol.

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