Editor's note: NBC broadcasters will offer opinions on upcoming races the remainder of the season. This week, analyst Steve Letarte discusses the Bojangles' Southern 500 from Darlington Raceway, which airs shortly after 6 p.m. ET on NBC.
This is a throwback weekend for more than just the paint schemes. With Sprint Cup drivers taking on the track known as both "Too Tough to Tame" and the Lady in Black, the racing itself will be a bit of a throwback.
This is still a place where the drivers race more than one another. The biggest challenge come Sunday could be the track itself.
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For years, drivers have talked about the so-called Darlington stripe that comes from cutting things a little too close when trying to figure out the best line around the track. They both revere and fear this track.
As well they should.
Steve Letarte faced races there as a crewman and a crew chief during his tenure with Hendrick Motorsports. Now an NBC analyst, Letarte brings a unique perspective to races at the track.
What does he see as the toughest thing drivers will face this weekend?
"Darlington is the biggest challenge of Darlington," he said. "I know that sounds silly but the reason the Southern 500 is such a spectacle is because it is one of the races that it seems that over time 500 miles has lost its luster, lost its need, we see shorter races, equipment doesn't fail anymore, drivers are in such great conditioning, they get out the car after 500 miles and they really … seem like they could go another 500 miles.
"I don't expect to see any of that at Darlington."
He says that 500 miles at Darlington is like "1,000 at Charlotte, probably 5,000 at Talladega."
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It's a race that can wear on drivers and teams alike.
"It's just so nerve-racking running the edge of chaos," he said, pointing out that drivers must be against the wall in order "to make any speed" and then they have to judge the entry speed off the wall. The crew chief must manage 10-12 stops. A lot is happening.
"It is truly probably one of the few racetracks where the old mantra of race the racetrack is still true," he said. "I really don't feel the competitors race each other for 350 miles. I think they somehow race the racetrack and just try to keep their equipment in reasonably the same shape it started so they can race for a checkered flag three and a half or four hours after the start."
That only adds to the pressure on the bubble drivers this weekend. With two races to go before the for the Chase for the Sprint Cup field is set, drivers in position to make the field on points are desperate not to give up ground. Those ahead of them are trying equally hard to make sure they gain.
It's certain to be a recipe for disaster for someone — maybe several drivers and teams.
Not only is that potential for anxiety mounting on drivers, but it's also that way for crews.
With two night races remaining, at Darlington and Setp. 10 at Richmond, the potential for disaster on pit road is high as well. Last week at Michigan saw teams having issues with stops.
Those would be even more damaging and disheartening this weekend. Chiefs and crews must limit their mistakes. And they must know, Letarte says, that decisions in the final 100 miles will be magnified.
"If he decides to pit and most stay out and you lose 15 points, those are the 15 points everyone's going to point at when you miss the Chase," Letarte said of chiefs. "Even though you had 26 races to get in, those are the ones freshest in everyone's mind."
For example, tire changers must be confident in hitting five lug nuts — not just because it's the rule, but because those wheels must be tight. One just cannot afford to give up points with a pit-stop error.
Letarte used Jimmie Johnson's fueling issue last week at Michigan as an example. The team had a problem and Johnson lost positions on his stop. Last week, with a driver already in the Chase, it didn't matter.
In the next two races?
"You put that same fueling issue on Ryan Newman's car in the last pit stop at Richmond under caution, where he goes from fifth to 25th, everybody will be looking at that pit stop as what cost this team a potential Chase berth," he said.
So what can a crew chief do to help?
"Set the tone," he said. "Be the leader. That's exactly what a crew chief has to do, in good times and in bad. So when an issue comes up he has really two things to do. The first thing he has to do, and it seems to be clear, is make sure you understand the issue to make sure you don't have the issue again. If it was just a human error, those are hard to recover from, those are hard to coach up. But if it was equipment, if it was a play call, something like that, let's try to avoid that again. But the second and probably the more important thing is to keep everyone's eyes forward."
He points to Kyle Larson at Michigan and his late, slow green-flag stop. Larson went back on the track in fourth — and recovered. It might not have gone that way. But he and crew chief Chad Johnston did what they needed to do, recovered, focused — and won.
"That's what the crew chief has to do," Letarte said. "He has to make sure the driver is still focused on the task at hand and that sometimes can be easier said than done when emotion comes into play."