With the softer compound tire Goodyear is using at Las Vegas, what was tire wear like?
“The performance of the tires has always fallen off at Vegas, but the new tire is falling off a little bit more, obviously. But that’s a good thing. It’s what a lot of us drivers have wanted for a long time because the fuel mileage and track position games we saw played last year have been taken out of the equation this year.” Will Las Vegas be the first true test of the new tire and aerodynamic package? “I’m not sure that Vegas will be the first true test, because tire performance has always fallen off at Vegas. But the race will certainly have a different set of circumstances from last year with the reduced spoiler height. We’ll still be able to learn form it. I think Atlanta will be the first true test of how this new package works for us, especially in traffic.” With the change in tire compound and the new aerodynamic package, is the racing back to where it was when you first started as a rookie in 1999, or is just another evolution of racing in the Nextel Cup Series? “It’s still t
