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Tuesday, March 6 Drivers to Watch ESPN.com news services Check out a short list of drivers to keep an eye on this weekend at Atlanta. Jeff Burton Has not finished higher than 19th after three races this year; drove well at Atlanta two years ago, but was 43rd in this race in 2000; recorded four victories last year and finished third in the Winston Cup standings; best performance of the year was the start-to-finish victory at New Hampshire in September where he led all 300 laps of competition. Bill Elliott Leads all active drivers with five wins and five poles at Atlanta Motor Speedway; one of four drivers to sweep both races at Atlanta since the track opened in 1960; turned the trick twice in 1985 and 1992; finished 10th in this race last year and 11th in the NAPA 500, the season's final race. Jeff Gordon Recorded his 53rd career victory last Sunday at Las Vegas taking the lead 19 laps from the finish; won the $1 million bonus as part of the Winston No Bull 5 promotion; it may have signaled he is ready to reclaim his place as one of the dominant racers in NASCAR; jumped from seventh to second in the points after three races; has four wins at Atlanta; last year he finished ninth in the Cracker Barrel 500 and fourth in the NAPA 500. Dale Jarrett The runner-up finish to Jeff Gordon at Las Vegas moved him up to second in the standings; it was his second top-10 of the year; was winner in Atlanta in 1997 and runner-up in both 1998 races; in 1999 also finished both event in the top five, but last year fell out of the top 10 in the spring and fall. Bobby Labonte The defending Winston Cup champion has performed well at Atlanta in the past; last year he finished second in this race to the late Dale Earnhardt in one of the closest finishes in Winston Cup history, by .01 seconds; also second to Jeff Gordon in 1999 but won the race in the previous year; in last year's season finale he finished fifth; completed all races in 2000 with four wins, three poles, 20 top-fives and 25 top-10s. Sterling Marlin The early points leader after three races with all showings in the top eight; also won one of the Twin 125 races at Daytona but a seventh-place finish in the Daytona 500 was marred by the death of Earnhardt; Marlin, a two-time Daytona 500, was emotionally devastated by the death of Earnhardt; he received death threats from fans who accused him of being guilty of initiating the crash that killed Earnhardt; finished third in Las Vegas last Sunday and eighth at Rockingham, the week before. Mark Martin A third-place finisher in the last two years of the Cracker Barrel 500; took checkered flags at Atlanta twice in the fall race; coming off a sixth-place result at Las Vegas. Tony Stewart Heads into Atlanta fresh of a respectable 12th place finish at Las Vegas; after the disappointing outing in the Daytona 500, he has put together two good runs which vaulted him into ninth place of the standings; the 1.54-mile Atlanta oval has been somewhat of a problem for the 29-year-old; failed to finish both races last year and in four starts his highest finish was 11th in the 1999 Cracker Barrrel 500; aims to improve on that this year. Rusty Wallace First to retire from the UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400 in Las Vegas due to an accident on lap 8; had solid third-place finish at Daytona and seventh at Rockingham a week later; tends to drive better in the fall race at Atlanta than spring; both his victories at the track have come in the second race; led series with nine poles last year and posted four wins for a career total of 53 (tied with Jeff Gordon for 8th); won at least one race in 15 consecutive seasons.  Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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