New tire gets positive reviews after Kansas Speedway practice

KANSAS CITY, Kan. - Based on recent history, Kansas Speedway hasn't been too kind on tires.

So a few weeks ago, on April 15, NASCAR and Goodyear brought teams to Kansas Speedway for a tire test to help determine if the compound they were bringing to this weekend's Sprint Cup Series race was the right one. But after reviewing the data, Goodyear scrapped their original offering and brought a whole new tire that hadn't seen the track.

The result was consistently positive among teams and drivers throughout the Sprint Cup garage.

'Based on our tire wear, everything looks really good,” said Richard Childress Racing driver Ryan Newman following final practice on Friday. 'There have been a lot of question marks with respect to tires and durability at different race tracks. The speeds that we have here put us at risk no matter what.

'I think they (Goodyear) have at least, at this point, made a good decision on the tire they brought.”

With rule changes and the way teams are allowed to set the cars up this season, speeds are as high as they've ever been.

The weight of the car combined with the size of the tire and how hard the drivers are pushing it to go as fast as possible, it's hard to make a tire that will hold up.

But, so far this weekend, it appears Goodyear has found the right combination.

'I will say this, that is the fastest I have ever gone through the corner here,” said Roush Fenway Racing driver Carl Edwards. 'We have these stock cars rolling around on a relatively small tire in racing, relative to a lot of other cars that go that fast, and so they are put in a box with all that force in the middle of the corner to make a tire that drives well and lasts and doesn't create a ton of heat. It's really tough.

'I think the amount of downforce we have and the speeds through the center of the corner, I don't know how they make a tire that even holds up. Whatever they are doing is working.”

The best compliment the drivers gave the new tire was how consistent it was, from brand-new, sticker quality through until it was scuffed in and worn a bit.

The biggest variable left to determine before qualifying and the race is if the groove will widen out from a one-groove racetrack to a two- and three-groove track. With a track that has been recently repaved leading to that situation early in the weekend, this new tire has been all the more important.

What Goodyear brought is less 'edgy” and therefore easier to work with.

'We're only on edge because of raw speed and what we're doing with our race cars to make them that fast,” Newman said. 'It's not going clear back to the days of Charlotte and Vegas when the tracks were repaved and you were gripping the steering wheel for all your life to get the first couple laps in because you were going to spin out.

'Everything points to (this tire) being the right choice.”

The race on Saturday is set for 6:30 p.m.

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