Story By: JORDAN WOOD / WOOD BROTHERS RACING – STUART, VA – With the disappointment of Daytona behind them, Harrison Burton and the No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane crew are hoping to rebound with a strong run in this weekend’s Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Since a repave and reconfiguration in 2021, Atlanta’s 1.54-mile quad-oval has become a drafting track much like Daytona and Talladega, the much larger superspeedways on the NASCAR circuit.
Jeremy Bullins, crew chief of the No. 21 Mustang Dark Horse, said the team’s speed at Daytona, especially in the Duel qualifying races where Burton contended for the win and wound up fifth in his race, make him optimistic headed into Atlanta.
“Obviously the way Daytona ended for us wasn’t the start to the season we were looking for,” Bullins said of the Lap 6 multi-car wreck that took Burton out of the 500. “We felt like we were really strong at the end of the Duels and had a shot to win and felt like we had a car that could carry that over to Sunday.
“Atlanta will be a similar style of racing, and we will be ready to bounce back.”
Bullins said the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team members need to put the early Daytona exit behind them, since it was due to circumstances not of their making.
“Like I told Harrison we controlled everything we could, and that’s all you can do,” Bullins said.
There will be no pre-race practice at Atlanta other than a 10-minute session after qualifying where drivers can work on pit entry.
Qualifying is set to begin at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time on Saturday.
Sunday’s 260-lap, 400-mile race is expected to get the green flag just after 3 p.m., with TV coverage on FOX.
Stage breaks are planned for Laps 60 and 160.