NASCAR held a 30-minute meeting with drivers ahead of Sunday’s Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway, and among the topics at hand — wet-weather tires.
NASCAR brought the Goodyear wet-weather tires to New Hampshire this past weekend and ordered all teams to use them for the remaining 82 laps coming out of the two-hour, 15-minute rain delay. Denny Hamlin provided insight to Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports of how NASCAR explained the wet-weather tire protocol, saying “there’s always room for improvement.”
“Only insight I can give is they kind of explained to us why they made the decisions they made and why they are trying to ease their way into this,” Hamlin said. “If you make one big mistake, which I think is a very valid one, then you kind of set yourself back and you’re less hesitant to take those risks again. So, I was happy with everything they explained and certainly there’s always room for improvement, but they’re trying to use all the facts they have at hand to make the right decision.
“I mentioned on the [Actions Detrimental] podcast I thought they did a pretty good job short of allowing cars to take fuel. That was the only thing that was maybe questionable. I like where they’re at with it and certainly we’re gonna continue to get better as teams with it.”
Denny Hamlin: New Hampshire was ‘treacherous’ on wet weather tires
Well before the race resumed, it looked as if NASCAR had a window to get some laps in with the rain falling lightly on the racetrack. Instead, NASCAR brought the field down pit road and put the race under a red flag in anticipation of more severe weather coming through.
When racing resumed, it was “treacherous,” Hamlin said on his podcast this week.
“Because we still don’t want to race in the rain,” Hamlin said. “While they’re called wet-weather tires, they’re more damp condition tires, which is not as sexy as a name. The wet weathers — I’m telling you, it would be too dangerous to run that track. Before we started the race I mean, we had two cars spin out under caution before we even went. I just think that when we went, it was probably the right time. But it was treacherous I’m telling you for 5-6 laps before the car has got enough heat in the track to start to create dry spots.”
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