Five races are all that stands in the way of a fortunate driver and the 2008 Sprint Cup Championship. Carl Edwards sure would like to be that driver. But with his performances of 29th and 33rd in the past two races, he certainly can't afford for any more mistakes if he wants to improve on the Nationwide title that he earned last year.

Edwards has made eight starts at Martinsville Speedway placing only one top-10 finish in those attempts. Although the No. 99 team has made some progress over those races and the lone top-10 came in this past spring’s Goody’s Cool Orange 500, the team needs to intensify their results at the track.

With Martinsville being one of the more treacherous tracks on the Cup Series’ agenda, Edwards believes that pit strategy will be vital to a booming finish.

”A lot can happen in 500 laps at Martinsville, and things like pit strategy and tire management can make or break you,” said Edwards.

Despite his past hardship at the speedway, Edwards is excited to flip things around before… and after the TUMS QuikPak 500. Driving the No. 99 Office Depot Ford Fusion, he will look to take it to Victory Lane for the seventh time this year.

"Martinsville is a track that I’ve really had a tough time at over the years. It's probably one of the toughest tracks for me in the Cup car, but I’m still really looking forward to the race,” Edwards noted. “Track position is so important at Martinsville, if we can have a decent qualifying run in the Office Depot Ford Fusion, I think we’ll race well.”