Around the Track: Martinsville Speedway

Nextel Cup rookie Clint Bowyer finished 23rd last weekend at Lowe's Motor Speedway to move up a spot to 17th in points.

Now he heads back to Martinsville Speedway, where he crashed on the third lap of the April race before rebounding for a 22nd-place finish.

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In Jack Daniel's "Around the Track,'' Bowyer addresses each week's venue as well as his philosophies on racing and life in general around NASCAR.

My teammate Jeff Burton doesn't need any advice from a rookie like me since he's leading the points race, but if I had to give him some it would be simple.

Stay out of trouble.

That could come in handy this weekend at Martinsville Speedway, where it's easy to get in a whole lot of trouble without even trying.

My first time on the track in a Cup car way back in April we wrecked on the third lap, so that should be a place where we definitely can improve on our finish.

Jeff just needs to keep doing what he's been doing and finishing in or near the top 10. He's in great shape to win the championship with five races left.

My other teammate, Kevin Harvick, has had a little bad luck the last few races and is third [89 back], but he's in position to give Richard Childress Racing this championship as well.

Having those two up there definitely makes the Monday morning meetings more fun.

A lot of people might think I get ignored or they're getting all the best equipment right now, but that's where RCR has improved leaps and bounds. We don't have bad stuff anymore.

All three cars are pretty equal and all three cars are running well. It took me some growing pains in the series, but I feel we're just as strong of a team as those two are now.

The last two or three weeks my car has kind of been the flagship car in practice in qualifying. It all comes down to results, but in practice and through parts of the race we were the car with the speed.

Obviously, a championship is what it's all about. So if we were to have a better motor, it needs to go to one of those guys for sure. Any part like that I'd be the first one to step up and say give it to those guys.

But we really don't have one car much better than the other. All of our motors are so close anymore. There might be a fraction of a difference in horsepower, but it's definitely not like it was.

It's because of our teamwork that we're in the position we're in, and that's what's going to win this championship for one of those guys.

You won't see a situation like they had at Hendrick Motorsports where Brian Vickers [leaving for Team Red Bull in 2007] wrecked teammate Jimmie Johnson on the last lap to win at Talladega a few weeks ago.

Inside the Numbers Bowyer's 2006 stats Track Start Finish Laps Status Daytona 37 6 203 running Fontana 32 14 251 running Las Vegas 20 15 270 running Atlanta 16 27 324 running Bristol 27 29 495 running Martinsville 42 22 496 running Texas 12 19 333 running Phoenix 8 5 312 running Talladega 15 40 16 crash Richmond 20 10 400 running Darlington 3 23 365 running Lowe's 15 19 399 running Dover 22 17 400 running Pocono 42 21 200 running Michigan 9 39 86 running Infineon 28 16 110 running Daytona 30 10 160 running Chicago 38 9 270 running Loudon 31 27 307 running Pocono 14 41 194 running Indy 2 4 160 running The Glen 14 14 90 running Michigan 29 33 197 engine Bristol 27 38 415 running Fontana 3 3 250 running Richmond 16 12 400 running Loudon 18 24 299 running Dover 16 8 400 running Kansas 6 9 267 running 'Dega 32 35 63 accident Lowe's 8 23 329 running

If I were to wreck one of my teammates I'd be sick. I know Brian was as well, but how much of a teammate was he when they booted him out of team meetings after he said he was leaving next year?

That plan kind of backfired on them, didn't it?

Those meetings are important. At RCR, we start talking about the things we went through and saw through the race the previous weekend and things we need to work on for the future.

We also talk about the competition, what we saw they had and how we could get better against them.

It's the little things that are overlooked that cost you championships and races won.

From that perspective, if Jeff or Kevin wins the championship we'll all feel like we've contributed to it in some way.

Our cars are so close anymore that one little thing can make a big difference.

It's going to be kind of an unusual weekend since we've got a week off from the Busch Series and I'm not running the Truck Series race. It'll be kind of relaxing. Our truck driver is having us all over to his place about 20 minutes from the track.

It'll still be a busy week. We had two days of testing at Homestead-Miami Speedway and an appearance in Myrtle Beach on Thursday for a sponsor appearance.

I've also been planning a big Halloween party for Tuesday, Oct. 31. We're having some of the guys from the shop in for a costume party. I doubt you'll see any of my teammates there.

If Jeff Burton shows up we're probably keeping him up too late from loud noise.