Competition changes have been made for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race on the dirt due to high tire wear
On Friday, the NASCAR Cup Series touched the dirt for the first time since 1970. The Bristol Motor Speedway dirt track is scheduled to host 250 laps of stock car racing on Sunday.
In the Friday practice sessions, teams found excessive tire wear in short stints. Brad Keselowski and Chase Briscoe burned all the tread off one side of his tires in just 20 laps.
That was going to cause issues as stage three was scheduled to be 100 laps. And without a caution or pit crew, that stint was going to be run on the same set of tires.
Now, NASCAR has added two new race breaks and cut the length of the final stage.
Related: Bristol Dirt tires burn off in 20 laps; NASCAR teams plead for more tires
Changes
Stages: “Stage 1 will now end on Lap 100 (previously Lap 75) and Stage 2 will now end on Lap 200 (previously Lap 150). The race will still consist of 250 laps.”
• Competition cautions: “There will be competition cautions on Laps 50 and Lap 150 — the exact midway point of Stage 1 and Stage 2. That will allow NASCAR two additional opportunities for track prep and also allows teams the chance to pit. Laps will not count once NASCAR sends the free pass car around.”
Goodyear tires: “Each team will receive an additional set of tires, for a total of six (one set used in qualifying race and five stickers). Higher-than-anticipated tire wear was prevalent during Friday’s practice, necessitating the adjustment.”
