But if Martin, who trails teammate Jimmie Johnson by 118 points in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship, hopes to gain ground in tomorrow’s Amp Energy 500, the seventh race in the Chase, he will need to do it at a track he and Johnson dislike. Given his record at Talladega, Martin surprisingly seemed to change his tune about the place.

“Something’s got to change here, right?’’ he said. “I’ve thought for a while now that I’m feeling good about Talladega. I think this may be a good one for us. I hope so.’’

Despite having two career victories there, Martin’s fear and loathing of Talladega largely stemmed from the unpredictable and close-quartered racing at the restrictor-plate track, where a big crash often takes out a large chunk of the field.

In the Aaron’s 499 April 26 at Talladega, Martin scored a minimum of 34 points. Martin got caught in a 14-car pileup and finished last in the 43-car field after completing just six laps. Johnson didn’t fare much better, scoring 78 points after finishing 30th when he was taken out in a 10-car melee after 179 laps. It was his sixth DNF (did not finish) at the track.

“Talladega’s a lotto,’’ Martin said. “I used to think if you took a fast car down there, you’d be speedy enough to stay ahead of the trouble, but that’s not the case anymore. It’ll be interesting to see how the race unfolds. When the race is over, I think it’ll be a very clear picture of who’s going to be contenders for the Cup.’’

After finishing second to Denny Hamlin in last week’s race at Martinsville, Va., Johnson was asked about Talladega. The reigning three-time Cup champion threw up his hands. “I’m so tired of answering this question,’’ Johnson said. “I think you guys can all figure it out. Talladega, there’s no telling.’’

Which, of course, makes tomorrow’s race such a tossup.

In April, only four drivers who wound up qualifying for the Chase finished among the top 10 at Talladega: Ryan Newman (third), Kurt Busch (sixth), Greg Biffle (seventh), and Brian Vickers (eighth).

“I’m welcoming the race,’’ said Carl Edwards, who was last seen at Talladega in April, sprinting the last 100 yards of the race on foot after his car made contact with eventual winner Brad Keselowski on the last lap. Edwards’s car spun and became airborne when it made contact with Newman’s car and was violently launched into the catch fence. The frightening accident prompted NASCAR officials to decrease the size of the holes in restrictor plates for this race from 60/64ths of an inch to 59/64ths, which is expected to reduce speeds by 5-6 miles per hour.

“A year ago, I didn’t want to go there at all because I knew the potential for losing points,’’ Edwards said. “Right now, I know the potential for Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson to lose points, so, greedily, I’m hoping to go there and mix things up and gain some points.’’

The driver, who admitting to having drinks at dinner, failed a field sobriety test after being pulled over by police in Mooresville, N.C.

“I honestly felt fine, but I obviously should have erred more on the side of caution, particularly given what I do for a living,’’ said Allmendinger, who was fined $10,000 by RPM and placed on probation by NASCAR until Dec. 31. “It was a bad judgment call and I apologize for that. If anything good can come of this, then hopefully I can be an example of being more aware of drinking responsibly and if even if you feel fine, take a cab, call a friend, just don’t risk it.’’

Material from wire services, sanctioning bodies, race teams, sponsors, and track publicity departments was used in this report; Michael Vega can be reached at vega@globe.com.