Talladega preview: Restrictor-plates return

The Winston Cup teams will compete in the Talladega 500 this weekend at the imposing 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway. Sunday's race is the third event where a combination of a bigger carburettor restrictor-plate and an aerodynamics package that includes a roof strip will be used. The rules were first used at Talladega last October, and also at Daytona this year.

Dale Earnhardt took his final Winston Cup win in emphatic style last time out at Talladega. The restrictor-plate regulations produced a race with a record number of lead changes as the field was unable to spread out and completed lap after lap in a solid bunch.

Kenny Wallace came second to the Intimidator, but is unlikely to repeat the performance on Sunday after failing to break into the top 10 so far this season.

A man not entirely looking forward to this weekend is Michael Waltrip, who won the last restrictor-plate race at Daytona and feels sure that last year's second Talladega race is a hard act to follow.

"When we left Talladega last fall, I think everyone pretty much would agree that it was the best race in the history of NASCAR," said Waltrip. "I mean, Dale Earnhardt came from 18th to win in the last four laps. It was just a really entertaining race. It was fun for me as a driver, and fun for the fans to watch.

"When we head back to Talladega this week, the rules are exactly the same. I mean they've been adjusted, but we have the same plates and the same aero-packages as we did then. So Talladega lends itself to great racing, there's no doubt about it. There's a lot of room to race there."

Much speculation has arisen about the inevitability of accidents and injuries at restrictor-plate events, but Waltrip defends the notion that the regulations are at fault and believes the blame can be firmly laid at the door of the drivers.

"I think the thing that I keep coming back to is that, if we have one of those wrecks, generally it's because somebody caused it," he said.

This weekend's first qualifying session takes place on Friday night at 2100 BST.