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Tony Stewart's fast start to the season with his new team will get even more impressive on Saturday night when he wins the Sprint Cup Series 300-miler at Richmond (Va.) International Raceway, predicts Johnny Benson of NBCSports.com.

Keys to success at Richmond
Racing at RIR seldom leaves fans disappointed. There is usually a lot of action, a lot of passing, and plenty of paint-swapping. There is usually a lot of contact between cars as they get into the corners, so staying out of the wall presents a stern challenge.

Now that the track is more seasoned since its repaving in the fall of 2004, the multi-groove aspect of the track is at its best. Drivers can run at the bottom or near the top, and this provides great racing for the fans.

It's very important to be consistently fast getting around the bottom of Turns 1 and 2, and drivers must be cautious not to get their brakes too hot from overusing them in the corners, but they are well aware of this so it should not prove to be a huge issue on Saturday night.

Watch as the cars go down into Turn 1. If you look at the right front tire, if it's cherry red in the center -- which is where the brake rotor is — that means the driver is heavily using his brakes to help the car handle, which it may not be doing well. Needless to say, that's not a good sign for that car's brakes.

Drivers will be asking their spotters how the right front brake looks in an effort to help determine if they are taxing their brakes too much. Abusing the brakes can sometimes lead to a right front tire failure.

Another factor is getting onto pit road during green-flag pit stops. Doing that can sometimes be difficult as Richmond is a tricky track to get on and off of for green-flag stops. That's because of the abrupt transition from a banked track to a fairly flat entrance to pit road, and the racing debris that makes the surface slippery in spots.  

Night racing at Richmond is a favorite with the drivers, and also with the fans.