Here it’s called “mo”, short for momentum and it’s defined as the capacity to develop, the power to increase at a growing pace. ‘Mo’ is not unique to NASCAR, it’s a force in all sports even though no one really knows how to possess it. If anyone did, they would never lose.
Not everyone calls consistent results momentum and not everyone believes in it either.
In many sports too “mo” is sometimes called “mojo” or magic, luck and it has a special meaning to teams because during any race in one instant a good day can be a bad day and ‘mo’ can go.
In this series ‘mo’ is capitalized and known simply as Mo. Reason: No one ever seems to know everything about why a team surges or why Mo comes and goes.
This week Mo might be in the process of being snatched by perennial winner Jimmie Johnson and his potent 48 team. Richard Childress Racing drivers, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Burton have dominated the top of the leader list so far this season , but Jimmie has won two in a row. Right now RCR has learned a lot about Mo. At the same time the 48 team knows a ton about Mo.
Perhaps fans can sense what the following NASCAR drivers have going on by what they are saying this week.
Ryan Newman [No. 39 Chevrolet]
About driving Atlanta:
“It's really difficult from a fan's perspective to see the bumps we feel,” Newman said. “When you're playing on a video game, Atlanta is a smooth surface, not any bumps there. You can't get that sensation. When you're running 200 plus miles an hour going into a corner and you hit a bump that makes the car jump three or four inches, that's a big bump. That's big feedback.
“Places like Vegas, even though they have little bumps, they're not near as big as some of the bumps at Atlanta. I equate it to water. When the water gets choppy, things get that much more difficult, whether you're a wakeboarder or a skier. So it's just a way to relate to the fans what we as drivers go through to get that ultimate quick lap or each and every lap to make it as fast as we can.”
About rebounding:
“From our standpoint, we rebounded quick last year,” Newman said. ”I don't know when we were first inside the top 12 after being 33rd three races in. I know there's plenty of potential and there's a lot of season left. The law of averages works out for everybody except for Jimmie Johnson.”
Jimmie Johnson [No. 48 Chevrolet] [NSCS]
About Atlanta:
“You just have to be very conscious of what end of the race car is taking the abuse or what tire is slipping and sliding too much,” Johnson said “Every time you slide that tire, you’re just taking speed out of the car and especially off the tail end of the run. You’re just trying to be very aware of what tires work and looking for ways to get around that, the balance and the load between all four tires. When you’re able to do that, your car typically drives very comfortable and you’re going to need that for 500 miles at Atlanta. It just kind of comes down to that -- making sure you feel all four tires being worked equally. It’s rough and we all love it being rough. It’s a handful.”
Jeff Burton [No. 31 Chevrolet] [NSCS]
About this year:
What I have enjoyed about this year so far, and toward the end of last year, is that we have speed,” Burton said. “And, with speed, you can make things happen. When you’re running midpack, you are at the mercy of a lot of things. We need to take that intensity that we have brought into this year and carry it into the entire year.”
“We’re headed in the right direction. For years, there was one team that carried the other RCR teams. We need to be a company where all three teams run similar to each other, but it needs to be good. Having both Kevin (Harvick) and Clint (Bowyer) running well makes me run well. It enables us to use information and share notes to be everyone better. The sign of really being tuned in is when all of the teams run well.”
About Atlanta:
“The biggest challenge is the way the speed falls off so much. It’s like the track has two personalities. You have to be aggressive and drive hard for qualifying and then, when the race starts, you race it like you race Darlington. The place gets really slick and real slimy. It’s amazing the amount of grip you don’t have there.”
Clint Bowyer [No. 33 Chevrolet] [NSCS]
About why drivers with dirt track experience seem to run well at Atlanta:
You’re dirt tracking at 200 miles per hour at a big race track,” Bowyer said. “You have to get up on the wheel to make things happen, but hold onto the car and don’t let it get out from underneath you. Most of the time, you’re really loose as the back end of the car is trying to come out from underneath you. It happens about every corner on every lap. It doesn’t matter what line you’re in, you could be on the white line or all the way up at the wall. Either way, you’re loose all the way around the track. In order to be good on the long run, you have to be really loose on the start of it.”
Kevin Harvick [No. 29 Chevrolet] [NSCS]
About Atlanta results:
“Atlanta, over the last few years, has just been one of those places that seem to fit everything that we do,” Harvick said “We go there expecting to be in contention for the win, and anything short of that will be a disappointment.”
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