Atlanta Motor Speedway will have additional barriers in place for this weekend’s NASCAR races after a review of the facility Monday.
The sanctioning body and all of its tracks are taking new looks at their facilities in light of the injury suffered by Kyle Busch during Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
Officials from NASCAR and AMS inspected the track and determined that for the coming weekend, the wall at the exit of pit road near Turn 1 will be extended, and a tire barrier will be added along the inside wall of Turn 4. The temporary fixes will add 130 linear feet of barrier to the existing SAFER barriers that cover most of the walls at AMS.
Track president Ed Clark said the temporary barriers were en route to Atlanta on Tuesday from the track’s sister facility, Charlotte Motor Speedway. Clark also said in the coming weeks there would be more study of the track, including the current pit wall, which now has no SAFER protection and is not considered a high-risk area for impact. “It’s something we will look at,” he said.
Driver Kevin Harvick said he’s pleased to see track operators across the circuit responding in the aftermath of Busch’s crash, which left him with injuries to his right leg and left foot and out of his No. 18 Toyota for an indefinite period.
“We’ve proven that we can wreck everywhere,” Harvick said. “Speedweeks was a wake-up call for everybody. It’s good to see people like Ed Clark making a commitment to safety.”
Georgia drivers this weekend: The Peach State will be well-represented in Saturday's Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series doubleheader at AMS. John Wes Townley of Watkinsville and Ryan Sieg of Tucker plan to run both the Hisense 250 Xfinity race and the Hyundai Construction Equipment 200. Chase Elliott of Dawsonville and Chris Cockrum of Conyers will compete in the Xfinity race, while Korbin Forrister of Cedartown and Garrett Smithley of Peachtree City are entered in the truck race.
Smithley will make his major-league NASCAR debut driving the No. 63 Chevrolet fielded by Mike Mittler, the Foristell, Mo., machinist who has given several of NASCAR’s top stars their first opportunity in the big leagues.
Jamie McMurray and Carl Edwards raced for Mittler early in their careers.
Smithley, who has raced Legends on the quarter-mile track at AMS and turned hundreds of laps on the big track as an instructor for the Richard Petty Driving Experience, said Edwards offered to give him pointers this weekend.
“That brings a lot to the table,” Smithley said of Edwards’ offer. “And it’s just a huge opportunity to race for a legendary team.”
Etc.: Regan Smith, who filled in for the suspended Kurt Busch in the Daytona 500, will drive the No. 41 Chevrolet again this weekend in the Folds of Honor Quik Trip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. A replacement for the March 8 race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and other coming races has not been announced.
