Crew Chief Corner: Chad Knaus on Las Vegas

Las Vegas Motor Speedway will be a good test for the Lowe's team. Rockingham was a solid test for our intermediate track setups in terms of shocks and springs, but Las Vegas will challenge our horsepower and aerodynamics with the new 2003 Monte Carlo body style.

We were the highest-finishing Chevrolet at Rockingham, placing eighth. There were only two Monte Carlos in the top 15, so we still have a way to go on figuring out this new body style. Fortunately, we had a successful test session at Las Vegas in late January, where we posted the fastest lap time in race trim during the four-day session.

	Chad Knaus

In addition to January's strong test, Las Vegas was the site of our first top-10 finish of 2002. Our finish last season started a string of five consecutive top-10 finishes, which propelled us into the top 10 in the Winston Cup points standings. We were in the top 10 for 32 straight weeks last season, and a lot of those were spent in the top five. Not bad for a rookie team.

Going into the weekend, I'm not sure what to expect in qualifying. Last season, we qualified 25th and had to work to get up front. I expect us to qualify somewhere in the top 15, which would leave us in good shape and not force us to come from the end of the field for the second week in a row.

As far as the race goes, I'm expecting our team to be strong. The test session a month ago provided us with great data and allowed Jimmie Johnson get a feel for how the new 2003 Chevy will drive in clean air on the track.

We still have some questions coming into the weekend regarding how the car will handle around other race cars and how the weather could affect what we learned a little bit, but we are going into the race with a lot of confidence.

The other thing we have going for us is that Jimmie is a heck of a driver on these 1.5-mile ovals. If last season is any indication of how he will drive these tracks, our team will contend for championships for many years to come.

If we can unload Friday, be fast off the truck and have all of the practices to fine tune the Lowe's Chevy, we have as good a chance as any team to get into the winner's circle.

The keys to success at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

1. Horsepower

Just like Atlanta, we'll need the horses to motor around the track.

2. Aerodynamics

Aero plays a role at Las Vegas, and we need to figure out how the car will run in the draft.

3. Qualifying

Although we didn't qualify well last weekend, we need to start near the front and have a good pit selection. It's hard to come from behind each week.

Chad Knaus is the crew chief for Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet Monte Carlo for Hendrick Motorsports. His column will appear weekly on SI.com.