BUSCH: Atlanta Todd Bodine Notes

Todd Bodine Atlanta Motor Speedway NASCAR Busch Series Notes

On Atlanta: The upcoming NASCAR Busch Series event at Atlanta Motor Speedway will be just the second race for the series since the track was reconfigured and repaved in 1997. Todd Bodine, driver of the Phillips 66 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, has made three starts at the 1.5-mile quad-oval since it was reconfigured. In his last Busch race at Atlanta, Bodine finished 15th and followed it up one day later with a fifth-place finish in the Winston Cup race. Bodine explained Atlanta's new configuration generates greater speeds among both the Busch and Winston Cup teams.

"Because of how the track is configured you can run a Busch car wide open when you're qualifying," Bodine explained. "The turns are longer than they used to be and you just don't have to let off the gas to get through them during qualifying. Now it's a different story in the race. You want to be able to run the car hard going into the corner, but not so hard that you can't get out of the turn."

Crew Chief Donnie Richeson said despite the changes in Atlanta Motor Speedway, it continues to be a track where the right combination eludes a number of race teams.

"The track is very fast now but it is still tricky," Richeson explained. "It seems like only a select few race teams have put together the right set up that gets them around the race track better than their competition. The challenge for us this weekend is finding the combination that will get us into victory lane."

Equipment: "Angus" is the car Bodine will compete with this weekend in the Georgia 300. The car is named after the guitarist for rock band AC/DC. A former short track car, "Angus" was rebuilt to compete on intermediate race tracks such as Atlanta and Charlotte. "Angus" is the car Bodine raced to an eighth place finish in Charlotte last October.

Bodine Favorite: Todd's favorite childhood memory is driving his dad's pickup truck around the race track in Chemung, N.Y.

Todd Bodine Cumulative NASCAR Busch Series Record

Starts        Wins        2nd  3rd  4th  5th  6th-10th  Poles Outside Poles  $ Won
175        10        6    10          6    16    44        6        5         $1,823,761

Atlanta Motor Speedway Career Busch Series Results Year ST FIN Poles Wins Top 5 Top 10 Winnings 1998 29 15 0 0 0 0 $6,115 1997 9 6 0 0 0 1 $16,105 1996 10 18 0 0 0 0 $3,990 1993 6 34 0 0 0 0 $5,500 1992 26 20 0 0 0 0 $6,480

        Starts        Wins        Poles        Top 5s        Top 10s        $ Won
Total        5        0        0        0        1        $38,190

Todd Bodine 1999 NASCAR Busch Series Results

Date        Location               ST  FIN        LC/TL        Earnings  Status  Pts.
2/13        Daytona Beach, Fla.    17  32   76/120   $21,050  Accident 32
2/20        Rockingham, N.C.       19   9  197/197         $11,565  Running  13
3/6        Las Vegas, Nev.               22  40   39/200         $15,555  Engine   22
3/13        Atlanta, Ga.
3/20        Darlington, S.C.
3/27        Fort Worth, Texas
4/3        Nashville, Tenn.
4/10        Bristol, Tenn.
4/24        Talladega, Ala.
5/1        Fontana, Calif.
5/8        Loudon, N.H.
5/14        Richmond, Va.
5/23        Nazareth, Pa.
5/29        Concord, N.C.
6/5        Dover, Del.
6/12        South Boston, Va.
6/27        Watkins Glen, N.Y.
7/4        Milwaukee, Wis.
7/17        Myrtle Beach, S.C.
7/24        Fountain, Colo.
7/31        Madison, Ill.
8/6        Indianapolis, Ind.
8/21        Brooklyn, Mich.
8/27        Bristol, Tenn.
9/4        Darlington, S.C.
9/10        Richmond, Va.
9/26        Dover, Del.
10/9        Concord, N.C.
10/23        Rockingham, N.C.
10/31        Memphis, Tenn.
11/6        Phoenix, Ariz.
11/13        Homestead, Fla.

Starts Poles Outside Wins Top 5s Top 10s LC/TL Earnings 3 0 0 0 0 1 312/517 $48,170