Viewer's Guide: Talladega

Despite his problems this season, it's tough to get through an entire race weekend at any track without seeing some bit of coverage aimed at Dale Earnhardt Jr.

At Talladega, it's even harder.

Junior has five wins at NASCAR's biggest track. None were more noteworthy than his victory in last fall's race, where Earnhardt uttered a profanity in a post-race interview that cost him 25 points.

	Inside the Numbers Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Talladega Year Start Finish 2000 6 42   3 14 2001 19 8   6 1 2002 4 1   13 1 2003 13 1   38 2 2004 3 2   10 1 2005 36 15 Average 13.7 8.0

On Sunday, he'll be a focal point of an extended pre-race show on NBC, beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET.

"It's definitely one of my favorite tracks. (Crew chief) Tony (Eury) Jr. has had Talladega marked on his calendar for awhile, and he's been putting in overtime to get this car ready."

Junior will have to erase a bit of bad fortune there this time. He was involved in a multi-car accident two laps from the finish in the April race and he finished 15th.

"The wreck was a bad deal, but we weren't that good to begin with. This is the same car we raced in May, and we've done a lot of work on it to make it better. Tony Jr. is really good at building and preparing restrictor-plate cars."

If anyone could have an opinion on the practice of bump-drafting -- an increasingly common occurance at restrictor-plate tracks, it would be Earnhardt Jr.

"I love doing it, but today's bump-drafting ain't like it used to be. It ain't your daddy's bump-drafting. You use to give a bump here, give a bump there, and push the guy in front of you past another car. Now it's more like slam-drafting.

"At Talladega we hit each other hard. It feels like being hit by a sledgehammer. The car we're taking this weekend had to have a whole new rear clip put on it, because it was so banged up from the last plate race. But it's a part of it.

"Some guys don't like it, but I think it's fun. If you do it right, it can be a big advantage, but if you don't... it isn't pretty."

Carl Edwards and Casey Mears are among the guests scheduled for a live edition of Trackside on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.. If you're planning to be at Talladega, the SPEED stage will be located be located outside Turns 1 & 2.

Last week's race at Dover was the final Cup race broadcast on TNT this year. According to the network, ratings for its Cup broadcasts were up 11 percent over last season. The Dover race drew a 3.1 national rating, about even from the same race a year ago.

In this week's "Ask the Producer" question, a boatload of readers want to know how it is decided which pit reporter interviews which driver before the race.

NBC/TNT producer Sam Flood says there's a new procedure in place.

	NBC/TNT producer Sam Flood
	EMAIL Send Mark your take for "The Rant" or your question for "Ask The Producer"

"We used to all get together and discuss it, but now I just tell them Saturday morning in our production meeting who they're going to interview," Flood said.

"We just didn't want the same guys interviewing the same drivers over and over."

Each week, we'll choose a fan's question to ask a NASCAR on NBC/TNT producer. Send your puzzler by e-mail using the link to the right.

In this week's version of "The Rant," Matthew D. MacDonald of Connecticut has a message to everyone who was upset by Robby Gordon's comments at New Hampshire.

I'd sure be curious to know if any of those people complaining about Robby Gordon's colorful language are the same that feel free to use the same language in the concession stand lines at the races -- the same line I'm waiting in with my niece and nephew!

Now to this week's light schedule:

Nextel Cup Series: UAW-Ford 500

Track: Talladega Superspeedway

• 2.66-mile oval
• 33-degree banking in turns
• Length of frontstretch: 4,300 feet
• Length of backstretch: 4,000 feet

Race length: 188 laps/500.08 miles

TV schedule (All times ET)

Coming backJunior makes a big comeback to get a fifth Talladega win Sign up for TrackPass now BUY YOUR NEXTEL DRIVER PHONE

• NASCAR Live: 2 p.m. Fri., SPEED
• Bud Pole Qualifying: 4 p.m. Fri., SPEED
• NASCAR Live: 6:30 p.m. Fri., SPEED
• Trackside: 7 p.m. Fri., SPEED
• NASCAR Live: 5 p.m. Sat., SPEED (taped)
• Final practice: 5:30 p.m. Sat., SPEED (taped)
• NASCAR Performance: 6:30 p.m. Sat., SPEED (taped)
• NASCAR This Morning: 11 a.m. Sun., SPEED
• Pre-race: 1:30 p.m. Sun., NBC
• Race: 2:30 p.m. Sun., NBC

One year ago, Dale Earnhardt Jr. charged from 11th place to a victory and the series points lead in the last five laps of Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway. Of course, his point lead would be short-lived, as the 25-point penalty he incurred for his post-race slip-up gave the lead to Kurt Busch.

The most recent checkered flag went to Jimmie Johnson, who took the Nextel Cup Series points lead with a win last weekend at Dover.

Keep an eye on Mark Martin. He's the only driver in the Chase who has a victory at Talladega. He conquered the track in 1995 and '97. However, no Chase driver has a win in a fall race at NASCAR's biggest track.

Mark Spoor is a senior producer for NASCAR.COM. The Domino's Viewer's Guide appears each Thursday during race weeks.