Gordon won this event a year ago -- a victory that only added to his stellar history at Darlington, where he has seven wins, three poles, 15 top-fives and 17 top-10s. Darlington is a track deemed “Too Tough to Tame” but that obviously hasn’t been the case for the four-time Cup champion. But with six finishes this year outside the top 10, Gordon and his team are scuffling a bit and they have been kind of a hit-or-miss deal. They’re seeking consistency and hope to start down that road at Darlington.

Kenseth likes Darlington and he will be trying to bounce back from a 38th-place result at Richmond. In 14 Cup starts at this oval, Kenseth has one top-five, five top-10s and six top-15s.

Harvick, who is a teammate of Burton’s at RCR, will be running a chassis he drove to a second-place finish at Bristol. He’ll be looking to come home one place better than that at Darlington, where he’s been no stranger to success with two top-fives and four top-10s in 11 Cup starts,

My darkhorse is veteran Mark Martin, who has finished in the top 10 in four of his last five Cup starts at Darlington.

Keys to success at Darlington
I tested at Darlington after it was resurfaced and although the track has the same unique shape it’s had in the past -- one end is different than the other meaning teams have to set cars up for almost two different types of corners – with the new pavement the oval has become extremely fast so finding balance in the cars is going to be no easy task.

The drivers who will have the best chance at a win are those who have a car that proves better running through Turns 3 and 4. It’s considerably easier to get through Turns 1 and 2 than it is Turns 3 and 4. The new track surface has a lot of grip and is very smooth. The layout is tight, making Darlington an extremely demanding track.

With the new surface tire wear won’t be as big of an issue as it was in the past and so teams can be a little more aggressive in their setups. Tire management will not be as crucial as it used to be at Darlington.

Patience is needed for Darlington's racing groove, which historically had been real narrow and got even narrower after the installation of SAFER barriers in 2004. In the past drivers would strictly race the track but with the new pavement they can be a bit more daring and the quality of racing should improve. There should be more side-by-side racing. Qualifying takes on an added importance since no driver wants to start in the back because of the increased likelihood of getting caught up in a wreck.

With the track banked in the corners any debris (dust, tire rubber or residue from any track cleaning product) that is blowing around is going to roll down and collect on the apron of the track so entering the pits can be a problem since drivers have to be extremely careful not to get caught up in any debris that has collected and spin out, especially when pitting under a green flag.

And with the new pavement speeds could be up entering the pits which will make it more difficult to get in since cars will be going from the new surface on the track to the old surface in the pits and the old surface lacks grip.

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