If you were to compare this season’s two Bristol races side by side, you’d struggle to find many, if any, similarities.
In the spring race, massive tire fall-off was a major factor. Yet despite Goodyear bringing the same tire to the track for Saturday’s Round of 16 finale, it became evident within the first 100 laps that tire degradation wasn’t going to be an issue this time.
Tire wear was virtually non-existent, allowing Kyle Larson to dominate, leading 462 of 500 laps to claim his fifth victory of the season.
On “The Teardown” podcast following the race, Jeff Gluck from The Athletic called for an explanation from Goodyear as to why the tires didn’t wear down like they did in March. Fellow NASCAR insider Jordan Bianchi, also from The Athletic, expressed doubt that Goodyear would provide one, voicing his concerns about their consistency in producing effective tires.
“I have zero confidence that there will be an explanation for what happened tonight,” Bianchi said. “My faith in Goodyear is steadily declining. They seem unable to build a reliable tire on a regular basis because it just doesn’t happen.”
Saturday’s race was all about Larson. He had the best car, without question. But behind him, the race was largely uneventful. Drivers repeatedly complained about how difficult it was to pass, with only eight lead changes throughout the entire event.
Kyle Larson’s commanding Bristol Night Race victory Larson finished with a 7.1-second margin of victory, delivering the third most dominant win in Bristol’s history.
With only four leaders, the 2024 Bass Pro Shops Night Race joined the ranks of the 2023 Bristol Dirt and 2022 spring Martinsville races as some of the least competitive in terms of cars leading the pack during the Next Gen car era.
In a playoff system where the championship is determined across these 10 races, divided into four rounds, Gluck insists it’s unacceptable for tire performance to vary so much from week to week.
“Well, that’s a problem,” Gluck said. “There needs to be accountability or an explanation, whether from Goodyear, NASCAR, or whoever. You can’t have this kind of inconsistency. The race was straightforward, sure.
But moving forward, whether it’s championship races or cutoff races, teams shouldn’t show up on race day saying, ‘I have no idea what this tire is going to do.’ Tires are a crucial part of the race. It’s inconsistent, and we don’t know why, or how to explain it.”
