NASCAR conducted its first mid-track wet weather tire test on Monday, and early reports were positive. The test took place the next day after eight rounds of racing at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Alex Bowman (Chevrolet), John Hunter Nemechek (Toyota), and Ryan Preece (Ford) were the drivers who participated. There were five sets of tires, with four of them being different wet weather options to work through. “They wet the track the night before, so it was wet before we started testing,” NASCAR Cup Series Executive Director Brad Moran told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “According to my report (I will elaborate on this in today’s meeting), the tires were very good. They did a great job.
“They ran into the wall and all over the racecourse in the rain. It is exactly what we expected. Obviously, the pace will get a lot faster every mile and a half, so there’s probably more to do. But overall it was a very good test. All three drivers declared their favorite tires. Everyone agreed it was the best band. “I gained a lot from him.”Moran expects more rain tires to be used next season. NASCAR used rain tires for the first time last season in the North Wilkesboro All-Star Race, a non-scoring event on the oval.
It was first used on the oval track at the Richmond race in April. The series then had the opportunity to use it to complete an event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in June. NASCAR does not use wheels when there is heavy rain, but if there is light rain or the track does not need to be completely dry, NASCAR can resume the event early. “This is a guide that Jim France sent me a few years ago. I worked hard for it,” Moran said. “We started testing a few years ago. Obviously we saw more of that this year and it worked really well in New Hampshire and North Wilkesboro. That definitely helped bring racing back and allow fans to enjoy the racing when they get there. “So I didn’t drive in the rain, but I drove on wet roads. Goodyear did a great job on the tires.”
