4LT GS Roadster
Mark Martin talks with a crew member following practice for the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard
at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, July 24, 2009.
INDIANAPOLIS - The best words Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. officials heard Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway were none at all.
That meant there were no complaints about the tires used in a pair of Sprint Cup Series practice sessions in preparation for Sunday’s Allstate 400.
After a chaotic race last season during which NASCAR was forced to throw cautions every 10 to 12 laps to prevent tire blowouts - and an 11-month effort to produce a suitable tire for this year’s race - Friday’s silence was golden for the tire company's officials.
“We feel pretty good. So far, everything we’ve seen we’re very happy with,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of race tire sales. “The track took rubber very, very quickly this afternoon and continued to do so.
“The tire wear has been excellent. There were guys with 27 laps on a set of tires. It’s made all the hard work over the past year on everyone’s part worth it.”
Following the two sessions, four-time series champion Jeff Gordon said it was time to discuss another issue, because the one involving tires was “done.”
“The tires are a non-issue. If anyone has an issue in this garage with the tires it’s not because they’re wearing out,” Gordon said. “Goodyear has done a great job and they backed it up in testing and they’ve now proven it here on the track.”
Gordon said the tire wear was so good he believes he could have spent an entire hourlong practice session on the same set of tires without a problem.
The news was about as good as NASCAR and IMS could hope. Ticket sales were extremely sluggish in the months after last year’s debacle but picked up after several drivers, including Gordon, proclaimed the problem solved after the last of seven tests.
A sizable crowd gathered Friday to watch the two practice sessions and a good weather forecast for Sunday should help as well.
Several drivers voiced optimism Friday over the tire problem and said it was important to ensure the race at IMS was a good one, as it’s become one of NASCAR’s signature stops each season.
“They made a huge effort and spent a lot of time up here testing, a lot of money on research and development, all those things,” last year’s race winner, Jimmie Johnson, said of Goodyear.
“They didn’t have the right situation last year and wanted to prove to the fans that they could get it right. I commend them for their effort.”
Greg Biffle, Juan Pablo Montoya and Bill Elliott led the first practice session Friday. Mark Martin, Montoya and Kasey Kahne were fastest in the final session. Qualifying begins at 10 a.m. Saturday with additional practice Saturday afternoon.
“I think it’s all good,” Biffle said of the tire problems last year. “It was basically an isolated incident. A big deal was made about it and it’s gone now. The track has grip and I think it’s going to race good.”
Added Ryan Pemberton, crew chief for driver Brian Vickers: “You’d have already heard vibrations through the garage if the tires were an issue – and I don’t believe they are.”
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