wheel, Hornaday has only tested the car in superspeedway trim for RCR’s Winston Cup teams.  But the ACDelco driver is excited to see just what the new car can do this weekend.

Despite the fact that North Carolina Speedway is typically not a track that aggressive drivers do well on due to the excessive tire wear, “The Rock” has been good to Hornaday.  In 2000, he finished third in the spring race and despite racing for several different teams, he has run up-front in nearly every race and has never finished outside the top-20 in the NASCAR Busch Series events at the track.

Ron Hornaday, driver of the No. 2 ACDelco Chevrolet, comments on racing at “The Rock”: 

Daytona was your first race with the ACDelco team.  How did you feel about your first weekend in the No. 2 car?

“It was a very positive weekend overall.  We were very fast during the week and qualifying went well.  I’m not sure what changed on Saturday but the car just felt completely different than what it had all weekend long.  It pushed so bad getting in, that it wanted to snap loose coming off.  I had my hands full early on, but the guys on this ACDelco team kept working on it and it actually drove pretty well on the final run, but we were too far back in the pack.”

“I am so excited to be associated with RCR and ACDelco.  I could feel it walking around the garage and when I did appearances.  There is something very special about this team and I have never been more confident about my chances of winning races and a championship than I am this year.”

You’ve run well at North Carolina Speedway in the past.  What’s the key to getting around “The Rock”?

“I don’t think there is a key.  You just try to survive.  It is one of those tracks where you really race the track not the other cars.  The tires lose grip early in a run and you just hang on from there, but that’s what makes this track so competitive.  The groove moves around here more than anywhere we race.  The high groove seems to be the best on long runs, but the bottom can work for you as well.  Hopefully this ACDelco Chevrolet will be fast right when we unload and we can just tweak it all weekend.  I very excited about our chances this weekend.”

This will be the first race for the 2003 Chevrolet Monte Carlo in the NASCAR Busch Series.  Have you tested the car yet?

“I did a lot of the straight-line testing of the RCR Winston Cup cars out in Tempe, Ariz., but I haven’t driven the car on a track yet.  (Kevin) Harvick did the testing for the car at both Homestead, Fla. at the end of last year and at Las Vegas, Nev. a couple weeks ago.  Both tests went very well and he said, ‘Hornaday, this car is awesome’.  We have a similar style and all the RCR Busch cars leave the track in the exact same configuration, so we should be fine.”

“I know from talking to Kevin (Harvick) that the car has a lot more downforce than last years car, so that should really help us at Rockingham.  Anytime you can get the nose to stick, you don’t have to fight the wheel to get it to turn.  This will help with tire wear which is always the key for this race.” 

How important is getting off to a good start early as far as the championship goes?

“I think it is very important, but you can’t start points racing at Rockingham.  Like any race, you get the best finish you can, but you still want to win races and lead laps so that’s what you prepare for.  We want to win races with this ACDelco team.  That’s the goal right now.  If we do that and make sure we are running at the end of every race, then the points will work out in our favor.”