Jarrett back to square one at KC after 2001 wreck.

When the NASCAR Winston Cup Series returns to Kansas Speedway it's going to be like a first-time experience for Dale Jarrett who has few memories of the inaugural Protection One 400.

The driver of the UPS Ford Taurus was running in the 14th spot with 21 laps to go during the 2001 Protection One 400 when he was tapped from behind and sent spinning into a vicious accident. Jarrett suffered a concussion as a result of the accident, and the majority of the race weekend is a blank. Despite the lack of knowledge about the track, Jarrett looks forward to the return trip to the Midwest.

"I don't remember anything and it's kind of strange," Jarrett said. "It's the first time I'd had a concussion of that magnitude, and the only thing I do remember is the entrance into turn one and getting tapped. That's pretty much all I remember up until the time I was getting on the plane to head back to North Carolina.

"I know the shape of the racetrack and know it's a lot like Chicago. But going back there, I think we're going to see some of the same things we saw at a track like Chicago. It has a year of wear on it with different types of series having run on it and hopefully another groove has developed. I believe that is all we had there last year, which is how I think I got into my trouble.

"I think it will be a very competitive race. You'll see the championship contenders up there battling and I believe it will be a very exciting race.

"I think it's going to be interesting going back but I'm looking forward to it," Jarrett added. "We're taking the same car we ran last weekend at Dover and it's the same car we've won both our races with this year. It's been a good car and hopefully it will be a good weekend."

The National Association of Pit Crew Members (NAPCM) just wrapped up its third quarter portion of the Mechanix Wear "Pit Crew of the Year" contest and the #88 UPS Racing Team was announced the finalist to move on from this quarter. The #88 team earned 66 points during the third quarter, which spanned from the July New Hampshire race to the most recent event in Loudon two weeks ago.

First quarter finalist was Sterling Marlin's #40 team, while Mark Martin's #6 crew took home the top spot during the second quarter. The Mechanix Wear Pit Crew of the Year Award is a $75,000 prize awarded to the winning pit crew as selected by the crew chiefs in the Winston Cup Series.

The fourth quarter team will be announced following the Phoenix event, and the overall winner will be selected from each quarter's finalist in Homestead.