Gas and Go--Darlington

This week's Gas and Go comes from The Track Too Tough to Tame, aka Darlington Speedway. I will give some short insights and takes leading into the race, and offer up some unusual facts, along with predicting my winner for the race.

1. Kyle Busch comes into Darlington on a roll. He showed his mettle and patience last week in winning at Richmond. Could this be the beginning of a newer, more patient KB? If so, he'll be a threat to JJ's dominance.
2. Mark Martin comes in as the defending race winner. Although he's just won twice, in over 50% of his starts at Darlington he has finished in the top 10 (26 top 10's in 43 races). This track is ideal for his patient, methodical approach.
3. Jeff Gordon is the current master of The Lady in Black with seven wins. He is the only driver ever to win four consecutive Southern 500s, 1995 to 1998. In that span he won five times at the track. To give you an idea of how dominant he was in that stretch, no one has even won the Southern 500 three times in a row. He also won the Southern 500 in 2002, and this race in 2007. Don't be surprised if he wins his eighth Darlington race. He's coming closer to that win.
4. Although Martin won last year at age 50, he's not the oldest winner at Darlington. Harry Gant won the 1991 Southern 500 at age 51. If you thought Martin had an amazing year at 50 (which he did), Gant won five races in 1991, including a record-tying four STRAIGHT races, which started at the Southern 500. At 51!
5. The all-time master of Darlington is David Pearson, with 10 wins. The Silver Fox often dominated; in one of his wins, the runner-up was 13 laps DOWN. Which brings me to:
6. Thinking of you: David Pearson.
7. Kevin Harvick comes in as the points leader. However, he has struggled at Darlington in recent years. In his first six starts, he had four top 10 finishes, including a second place finish in the 2003 Southern 500. He hasn't had a top 10 finish since.
8. Terry Labonte got his first Cup win at the 1980 Southern 500. He got his final Cup win at the 2003 Southern 500 as his career was winding down and a young buck named Kyle Busch was waiting in the wings. The 2003 Southern 500 would be the last race run at Darlington on Labor Day weekend.
9. Look for the usual suspects to run up front: Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Martin, Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, and Denny Hamlin.

Predicted Race Winner: Jeff Gordon. He breaks his winless streak and shows the young studs how to tame the Lady in Black. With his eighth win at Darlington, he moves to within two of Pearson. The rest of the top 5: 2) Martin; 3) Biffle; 4) Harvick (he's running very well and continues the momentum); 5) Kyle Busch.

Darkhorse top 10 finisher: Marcos Ambrose. He noses out Carl Edwards for the final spot in the top 10.

Those are my observations. Feel free to leave your insights and takes.