Drivers: Daytona is now more like Talladega

Drivers: Daytona is now more like Talladega


Speeds during the Goodyear tire test at Daytona International Speedway have reached 197 mph in the draft, and drivers say they expect more Talladega-style racing on the newly paved Daytona International Speedway.
Drivers were comfortable with those speeds, although NASCAR might decrease the size of the restrictor plate for the full test Jan. 20-22. Of the 18 Sprint Cup teams that attended the test Wednesday, 14 remained for the second and final day of the test on the 2.5-mile oval.
The restrictor plate used during the test had 15/16th-inch holes, which were 3/32nds of an inch smaller than the plate used last July at Daytona but the same that was used at Talladega.
“You’re doing the same speed (as in the past), but you’re doing it in a completely different way,” Jeff Burton said. “You don’t even think about having to lift unless you’re trying to keep from wrecking.
“In the past, there was quite a bit of throttle control to get your car to go around the racetrack. … I don’t anticipate (a change) just based on the speeds we’ve seen. If there is one, it will be minimal, but I have a hard time believing there will be a plate change.”
Restrictor plates regulate the air flow through the engine, and NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said NASCAR will continue to monitor speeds.
“Right now we’re the same as Talladega (which was repaved in 2006), and we’ll further evaluate,” Pemberton said. “We’re not sure—we may need to come down a little bit off of that, which would be like a 64th of an inch or something (in the hole diameters). We’ll have to get back and talk to the teams.”
Pemberton said drivers and teams gave good reviews to the new nose on the cars as well as the new fuel. All the cars had the revised nose, and teams were given the option whether to use the 15 percent ethanol blend that will be used in 2011.