Teams ranked in the top 35 of the current 2006 car owner standings will be guaranteed starting positions each week.
Heading into Talladega, the No. 19 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge, owned by Ray Evernham and driven by Jeremy Mayfield, is ranked 35th in the car owner point standings. The No. 55 NAPA Dodge, with team owner Doug Bawel and driven by Michael Waltrip, has fallen out of the top 35 standings and will be required to qualify on time this weekend at Talladega. Waltrip is a former winner at Talladega (9/28/03) and in his 40 career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series starts there, he has posted 12 top-10 finishes.
In fact, Waltrip and Dale Jarrett are the only two drivers other than Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr., to win NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series races at Talladega since April, 2001. That is a string of nine straight races at the track. The No. 55 Dodge is 40 points out of 35th place.
