NASCAR and Team Ford Racing will get their first on-track look at the new Fusion in two weeks in a team effort. Wood Brothers Racing [#21] will run a prototype with former Nextel Cup champion #88-Dale Jarrett of Robert Yates Racing testing at the Atlanta Motor Speedway on Aug. 2. The 1.5-mile track south of Atlanta is available despite almost $40 million in property damage from a recent tornado. As of right now [the Sunday morning of the recent New England 300 at Loudon, N. H.], were still planning to test the new Ford and the new Chevrolet that day, said Robin Pemberton, a former crew chief and Ford Racing official, and now NASCARs vice-president for competition. They were hit pretty hard, but theyre cleaning up and making progress. With small variations, it will go something like this: The Chevy and Ford haulers will arrive at AMS early in the morning. The team that tests firstthat hasnt been determinedwill wait for the other team to leave the premises before unloading and testing. Once its test is done, NASCAR officials will accompany the car to the Lockheed wind tunnel in Marietta. The second car wont be unloaded and tested until the other car is off the premises. Once its on-track test is completed, officials will accompany the second car to the wind tunnel at Marietta [GA]. Mainly, we want to compare the cars performances to each other on the track and in the wind tunnel, Pemberton said. We have target numbers for what downforce and drag numbers we expect in the tunnel, and what speeds we expect on the track. But theres no reason to think either car wont be approved. Everybodys so tuned into what it takes for approval. The teams and engineers know the aerodynamic numbers, so the tests are to cover our bases. Theyre just to verify that the cars are what we expect. Itll be a neat and orderly process. The teams will get the go-ahead within a few weeks to start building new cars.(Ford Racing)(7-21-2005)
