Atlanta Motor Speedway yesterday announced that the track "will be resurfaced" following the NASCAR race weekend in early March, according to Tim Southers of MOTORSPORT.com. AMS President & GM Ed Clark said that the "time was right to update the racing surface that was last paved" in '97. Clark: "We got 20 years out of this surface and we’re getting ready to have our 21st season and that’s about as good as you can get.” Clark added that track owner SMI "will oversee the awarding of the contract for the work much like it did with the recent repaving of Kentucky Motor Speedway last year." He also wants to "make sure the great racing and close finishes AMS is known for remain well into the future." Clark said that AMS also will place additional SAFER barrier to the "inside wall of the track coming out of Turn 2." The project is "slated to begin in April" (MOTORSPORT.com, 1/3). NBCSPORTS.com's Daniel McFadin noted the new asphalt surface "will be laid down on top of the old surface," and the 24-degree banking in the turns "will not be changed" (NBCSPORTS.com, 1/3). USA TODAY's Jeff Gluck noted AMS' surface is the "second-oldest" on the NASCAR circuit behind Auto Club Speedway. The age of the pavement has "made for a slippery surface where drivers slide around the track in several different grooves, which produced above-average racing for an intermediate oval" (USATODAY.com, 1/3). FOXSPORTS.com's Tom Jensen noted AMS is "one of the more popular tracks on the circuit precisely because its pavement is so old" (FOXSPORTS.com, 1/3).
