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What's in a name? Why 'Dave' can win at Talladega

This Sunday, NASCAR's drivers will race at the famous Talladega Superspeedway—the largest track they'll see all year. At 2.66 miles in length, speeds are enormous, and could reach 250 miles per hour if the cars were left unaltered.

As a way of keeping speeds at a safe level, NASCAR artificially reduces the speed of each car to around 200 miles per hour, causing all cars—good and bad—to race at the same speed. This "restrictor plate" racing creates a bumper-car like gridlock of race cars around the track. When one car spins out, it usually means several others are crashing out with it.