Rudd the man to beat at Indy

Earlier this year, Rudd edged Jeff Gordon at Pocono International Raceway's June race and was a factor in last weekend's Pennsylvania 500 until dropping back after the final pitstops. Now, he is ready to go to victory lane for a second time at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

"It will always be a special place for me," Rudd said. "It always had been, but to win on top of that makes it that much more special.

"It's special to win at Indianapolis because of the challenge of racing at the Speedway. In a stock car, the turns are difficult because the nine-degree banking does not allow a driver to throw the car into the corners like on a high-banked track.

"I think it's a track that is a little bit difficult to run fast on," Rudd explained. "You have to really attack the track, but you also be real careful because the entry speeds in those flat corners are very high.

"There is give and take from the fact that it's tight. If you are running together, you can have a guy with a ton of straightaway speed, but he's junk in the corners. The guy might hold you up and you have to learn how to pass him and be careful how to pass him. You can't take two cars and sail off in there and both of them be wide open, because it won't work, You have to have give and take.

"The biggest thing that makes Indy difficult is how fast we sail off into those corners, much faster than anybody could ever figure we get into the corner, and the track itself is very flat. It's not very forgiving for a Winston Cup car, if you make a mistake, because you are into the corner so fast to begin with. The corner is a series of 90-degree corners, not 180-degree corners. You are in the corner and if you are in trouble, the next thing you know, you are right there against the fence at the exit to that corner on the next straightaway."

While Rudd wants to visit victory lane for a second time, his Robert Yates Racing team mate Dale Jarrett, who is currently third in the points, is hoping to become the first three-time winner of the Brickyard 400.

"Fortunately for myself and the team, I enjoy racing at the Brickyard because of the challenge it presents with four different corners instead of the traditional oval," Jarrett said. "It requires using a different type of art and skill of driving to get around the track.

"I know that for me and probably four other drivers, it's a place that's typical of our driving style. You have to use the centre of the corners more and brake less. The more brake you use, the more it tends to hurt the handling of the car. In the past, I've always had real good cars and have been able to find a set-up that suits me. And it doesn't hurt that we've had good, strong engines there."