Notebook: Double-dipping not so helpful at Bristol

BRISTOL, Tenn. -- This weekend at Bristol, 19 drivers will take part in both the Busch Series and Nextel Cup races. For the first time, these drivers will be driving two completely different racecars with the debut of the Car of Tomorrow in the Sunday's Food City 500.

Driver opinions differ on whether the Busch race on Saturday will help for Sunday's Cup race.

"I think actually it's hurting me a little bit," said Juan Montoya, who will start Sunday's Cup race 36th. "Normally 90 percent of the time it helps and yes, maybe it's going to give me a hand in the race -- what to do with race trim -- but [Cup] qualifying, I went out and normally I know exactly what I need to do. I run nearly three hours in the Busch car and [then] do one lap here and it's the one that counts. It's not easy."

Stremme fast in HH

Seventy-eight percent of the winners at Bristol have started the race inside the top 10. But David Stremme, who will start Sunday's race in 33rd, was smiling after Happy Hour.

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For Busch Series points leader Carl Edwards, it's the feel of the car that differentiates the two.

"It's a lot different. The Busch car travels a lot more and moves around a lot more and has more grip. This [COT] is a little more touchy to drive," he said.

Not everyone thinks the difference between the Cup and Busch cars is substantial. Dave Blaney, who had a good qualifying run in the COT and will start Sunday's race seventh, doesn't see much of a difference.

"All the cars feel pretty much the same at Bristol," Blaney said. "It's really not that big of a difference between the two, at least from the driver's standpoint."

Ultimately you can't replace experience, and getting the track time is what's important for Clint Bowyer, who will roll off 18th on Sunday.

"To me personally, laps here are important," he said. "This place is so unique. It takes so long and you're so up on the wheel, it's nerve-wracking to be around here. You're never relaxed. The more laps you run around here the more relaxed you get, the more of a rhythm you can get in."

"If you were to just jump in that thing and start the race right away, you'd be fidgety and all over the track and it's really hard, for some reason for me, to get calmed down here and get in a rhythm and get relaxed."

COT step in right direction, but not end answer

Driver Jeff Burton said that the Car of Tomorrow's arrival should be hailed as a monumental step in the right direction of safety for Nextel Cup racing.

But Burton also cautioned against anyone believing that it means more can't be done to keep improving in that area.

"With the HANS device, the soft walls and the better head restraints we have in our cars now, there's been a lot of great work that's been done," he said. "But safety isn't a goal; it's a trip. You're on it every day." (Continued)