NASCAR Cup

Talladega: Aric Almirola preview

Almirola Taking Army Momentum to Talladega TALLADEGA, Ala. (April 22, 2008) -- Continuing the team momentum is the goal of Aric Almirola, who returns to duty as the driver of the No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup race ...

Edited: Apr 23, 2008, 3:26 AM

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Almirola Taking Army Momentum to Talladega

TALLADEGA, Ala. (April 22, 2008) -- Continuing the team momentum is the goal of Aric Almirola, who returns to duty as the driver of the No. 8 U.S. Army Chevrolet for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway.

In the last four Cup races, Mark Martin and Almirola have combined to score three top-eight finishes for the No. 8 team. The streak started with Almirola's eighth-place result in Bristol (March 16). Martin followed with finishes of eighth in Texas (April 6) and fifth in Phoenix (April 12).

The recent surge lifted the Dale Earnhardt Inc. team to 14th in the owner standings, only 13 points shy of 12th place -- the final position for making the Chase.

"It's been an all around team effort and I feel it's only going to get better," said Almirola. "Along with having some really strong race cars, we also have great driver/crew chemistry."

Though he's only competed in eight career Cup races, Almirola knows full well about the challenge that awaits him in his second start at Talladega.

"It's a mind game at Talladega," noted Almirola. "You're constantly thinking about strategy and how you can be among the leaders in the closing laps."

In his first Cup start at Talladega in October, Almirola was in good position as the race was winding down. He was in the lead draft, but with 24 laps remaining a mechanical malfunction prematurely ended his day.

"So many things can happen on that track," said Almirola about the ultra fast 2.66-mile oval. "But the good news for us is that the No. 8 Chevy Impala SS hadgood power in Daytona. If we can stay away from trouble, we'll have a good chance of securing another strong finish in the soldiers' car."

Sunday's Cup race will be Almirola's third of the season. After Talladega, his next scheduled race will be June 22 at the Infineon Raceway road course in Sonoma, Calif.

-credit: dei

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