New tires have become a prominent storyline during the second half of the NASCAR season. This will only continue this weekend as Goodyear brings new setups for both the NASCAR Xfinity Series and Cup Series races at Kansas Speedway.
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According to a press release from NASCAR's official tire manufacturer, the Cup Series setup features one familiar tire code and one new tire code. The left-side tires previously appeared at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the August race at Darlington Raceway.
The right-side tires are new for Kansas Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway next month. Goodyear says that this right-side tire will give teams more strategy options during a pivotal Round of 12 playoff race.
The Xfinity Series teams, for comparison, will use the left-side tire code from Texas Motor Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and Nashville Superspeedway earlier this season. The secondary series will also debut a new right-side tire code during this weekend's playoff race. Unlike the Cup Series, the Xfinity Series teams run an inner liner on their tires.
"Kansas presents a unique set of conditions for teams — known for its relatively smooth surface, multiple grooves and close finishes — but recent races have shown notable tire wear," said Justin Fantozzi, Goodyear operations manager for global race tires.
"For both series, new right-side tires are being introduced after undergoing construction changes to increase strategy options for the crew chiefs. This weekend, teams will need to balance grip with outright speed to maximize performance of these new Goodyear Racing Eagle tire setups."
The tires will only add to the question marks as Cup Series teams take on Kansas Speedway for the second time this season. Goodyear and NASCAR gave them several weeks to prepare for this tire change, but they don't know exactly how the new setup will affect the racing and their pit calls.
Another wrinkle is that this marks the first traditional intermediate track since Charlotte Motor Speedway. The teams have taken on a variety of tracks during the summer stretch, but they haven't raced on a traditional intermediate since Memorial Day Weekend in May.
"We'll see where we stack up. I don't really know what to expect, to be honest with you," said Ryan Blaney, who won last weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
"It's been a while and things could be massively different than what you saw at Charlotte, or it could be the exact same. I don't know."
