NASCAR’s new aero package will debut this week at Atlanta and with it, a new tire combination from Goodyear.
All three of NASCAR’s national series teams – Monster Energy Cup, Xfinity and Gander Outdoors Trucks – will debut a new left-side tire in this week’s races at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
“Two things are sure about Atlanta Motor Speedway – first, it is an extremely worn track surface which is very hard on tires; and second, the racing there has been consistently entertaining,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing.
“This is the first race with NASCAR’s new rules package, and teams will have more downforce than they did a year ago, to go along with a reduction in horsepower. With the track surface, fresh rubber will be at a premium, and the pit crews will be busy all day as teams take four tires on every stop.”
Cup and Xfinity teams will use the same new left-side tire, while Truck teams will have their own unique left-side tire. The new left-side tire for all three series features a construction update that will align Atlanta with what is run at other speedways.
Atlanta is known for its extremely worn surface, long, sweeping turns and high speeds. It is also the one track at which teams are most likely to pit short of their fuel window to take advantage of fresh tires.
Added into the mix this season for Cup teams is the debut of most of the components of NASCAR’s new aero package, which includes reduce horsepower, a taller rear spoiler, a larger front splitter and a wider radiator pan.
The right-side tire for Cup and Xfinity teams is a multi-zone tread tire, with a two-inch inboard compound designed for heat resistance and a 10-inch outboard compound to give more grip. This is the same right-side tire Cup teams have run at Atlanta since 2016 and Xfinity teams since 2017.
The new tire set-up came out of a Goodyear test at Atlanta last October which included drivers Ross Chastain (Chip Ganassi Racing) , Erik Jones (Joe Gibbs Racing), Ryan Blaney (Penske Racing) and Paul Menard (Wood Brothers Racing).
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