Buddy Pittman: Atlanta will prove to be NASCAR Chase battleground

Back during the Civil War, General William Tecumseh Sherman set his sights on Atlanta as a major battle ground. A strong showing in the battle at Atlanta would go a long way toward winning the war. NASCAR drivers are probably feeling the same way this weekend as they roll into Atlanta Motor Speedway. It is only one battle, but one that will go a long way toward winning the war.

The Atlanta Motor Speedway is known for its speed. 24 degree banking in the turns on the mile and a half layout provides the drivers with a fast track and tight racing. This weekend’s Emory Healthcare 500 will be the 103rd Cup race run at Atlanta. Among the active drivers, Bobby Labonte has the most wins at Atlanta with six, but his last win there came all the way back in 2003. Jeff Gordon has four wins there and has eight Top-10 finishes in the last 10 Atlanta races. Kurt Busch has won two of the last three Atlanta races, including one earlier this year.

This weekend’s race will be run under the lights and with only two races to go until the Chase begins, Atlanta will play a pivotal role in setting the 12 man playoff field.

Clint Bowyer is on the bubble right now. He enters this weekend in the 12th spot and only 100 points ahead of a charging Jamie McMurray. The Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 champion has picked up five spots over the last five races and has outscored Bowyer over that span by 81 points.

Mark Martin is 101 points back, with Ryan Newman 118 points off the pace. Atlanta has not been a particularly strong track for any of those four drivers with the exception of perhaps Newman. Newman has won seven poles at Atlanta, including six straight between 2003 and 2005. He also won the pole at the March race in 2007. Newman however has an average finishing position of 18th. Clint Bowyer is coming off of a 4th place finish at Bristol, but in his last two Atlanta races has finished 23rd and 29th. Likewise for McMurray, who had a 3rd place finish at Bristol, but in his last two races at Atlanta has a 29th and a 28th place finish. Mark Martin will be making his 50th career start at Atlanta this weekend and finished 5th there back in March, however his average finishing spot over those previous 49 races is 17th.

A couple of the past memorable moments at Atlanta include March of 2005 when Carl Edwards got his first Cup win and the fans were introduced to the infamous back flip by Edwards. Over the years, Dale Earnhardt Sr. posted nine career wins at Atlanta and no one will forget back in 2001, for the closest finish ever at Atlanta. A rookie driver named Kevin Harvick, who had been tabbed to drive for Richard Childress Racing following Earnhardt’s death, got his first win edging out Jeff Gordon by 0.006 of a second.

It will be interesting to see how the fans respond this weekend after the recent news that Atlanta will lose one of its two Cup races next season. Atlanta used to be a solid sell-out each race, but attendance has declined over the past few years, leading NASCAR to take one of their races and shift it to Kentucky Speedway in 2011. Both of those tracks however are owned by Bruton Smith’s Speedway Motor Sports.

It should be an exciting race this weekend as positions three through eleven in the points hope to lock-in their spot in the Chase. Any of those drivers leaving Atlanta with a 196 point lead over the 13th place driver will secure their spot in the playoffs. Also a nerve-racking weekend as that quartet of drivers, Bowyer, McMurray, Martin and Newman battle for that final spot in the Chase.

There is a lot on the line Sunday night as NASCAR makes its march through Atlanta.

Buddy Pittman is the auto racing analyst for Bright House Sports Network. He has covered over 35 Daytona 500s, and puts his expertise to use several times per week in his blog on BHSN.com.