Burton team 'logo-less' after AT&T is banned

*Jeff Burton’s Nextel Cup car and hauler arrived here with no visible sponsorship logos, and he and his crew are wearing nondescript uniforms, after a court decision favoring NASCAR’s move to bar sponsor AT&T from this sport.

"I’ve said all along that reasonable people can come to reasonable solutions, and I’m still holding on to that," Jeff Burton said.

"In order for that to work people have to be willing to be reasonable. Hopefully we can get there. But we haven’t gotten there yet."

* Promoter Jeff Byrd’s new concrete looks good, according to drivers after their first runs here. "But I’m interested to see 200 or 300 laps in how all the dynamics work out, with passing, and whether or not it separates the field more," Carl Edwards said.

"Right now it looks like there will truly be two or three grooves for racing.

"But concrete tracks are real touchy as far as the setup — you’re either on or off. And if you’re a little loose, it feels real loose.

* Retirement?

Ricky Rudd is getting used to the term. He said, at 50, this will be his last year of full-time NASCAR racing.

"Yeah, I think you can call it retirement," he said. "I’m not looking. If something fell in my lap, with a very limited schedule, I’d maybe take a look. But I’m probably more actively pursuing that rocking chair on the porch or on the beach right now."

* It's looking as if Dale Earnhardt Jr. will fail to make this year’s championship chase, unless he can make up 163 points in these last three races before the playoffs.

"To make up 160 points in a few races is really hard," Carl Edwards said.

"But this is racing, and anything can happen.

"You can run first or second here, or have an accident that’s not your fault and run 43rd. That’s 140 or 150 points."

But Edwards is in a comfortable spot himself: "We’re almost locked in the chase.

"So the last couple of weeks we’ve been a little more aggressive."

See more at www.journalnow.com