Aaron's 499
Who Will Win?
Harvick
Kevin Harvick: This is a total crapshoot, so why not go with an RCR Chevy? Harvick is one of the strongest drivers at NASCAR's longest track and should be a fixture near the front all day. Unless of course, he's taken out in "The Big One." – Nick Bromberg
Tony Stewart: After getting a potential win taken because of a water bottle, it's fair to say Smoke heads to Talladega a bit angry. And an angry Smoke is a motivated Smoke, and a motivated Smoke usually gets what he wants which, in this case, will be a third victory of the season. – Jay Hart
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Oh, why not? Dude is running second in points, he's got the entire grandstand behind him and Talladega is a wait-till-the-last-lap crapshoot anyway. Junior is running well enough to get up front and smart enough to stay up front. Is this, at last, the weekend it all comes together?. – Jay Busbee
Top storyline
• The storyline of the weekend may not happen Sunday, but Saturday when Danica Patrick will likely be a factor in the Nationwide race. If she wins – which is entirely possible – it would trump all else, including a Junior win Sunday. – Jay Hart
• Qualifying will be crucial. We're all just itching for some wreckage, aren't we? Talladega, like Daytona this year, could give us some opening-laps carnage, which means that it's essential to qualify well and stay ahead of most of the pack. There'll be at least one big name caught up early this weekend the way Jimmie Johnson was at Daytona, bet on it. – Jay Busbee
• If you thought Richmond had high expectations, then Talladega's are even higher. The new restrictor plate package brought the pack back at Daytona, but the 500 wasn't the most thrilling as plate races go. How many crashes and lead changes will it take to satiate the cries for excitement? No matter how exciting Talladega is, will we even find that satiation point? – Nick Bromberg
From The Source
Carl Edwards: "We don't have any points to give up so we will go with a different attitude I am sure than my teammates. That is one race that scares our team because we don't want to be 15th in points right now. We want to be up there marching toward the top five."
