NASCAR officials say that the upcoming Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway in Virginia on August 11 will feature two Goodyear tire options for teams. This procedural change follows a trial during the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway and marks its first use in a points-paying race.
For the 400-lap event at Richmond, teams will have access to two types of Goodyear tires: a softer option tire for short-term grip with less durability and a harder prime tire for longer-lasting performance. The option tires will have red sidewall lettering, while the prime tires will feature traditional yellow labeling. Wet-weather tires with white lettering will be available if needed.
Teams will be allocated six sets of prime tires and two sets of option tires for the race, including one prime set carried over from qualifying. A 45-minute extended practice session will allow teams to test one set of each tire type. Teams must qualify on prime tires but can choose either compound for the race. Mixing the two tire types is not permitted, according to NASCAR.
Elton Sawyer, NASCAR’s senior vice president of competition, emphasized that this change aims to improve the short-track racing experience. The use of option tires encourages teams to manage tire strategies, potentially enhancing race dynamics and entertainment value.
NASCAR has been exploring tire options to improve race conditions, with previous tests at North Wilkesboro, Bristol and Iowa. The Richmond event will provide further data on the effectiveness of using different tire compounds in a competitive setting. “This past year, it gave us the chance to try something with tires, and we’re working really hard in NASCAR as well as the folks at the R&D center to improve the short-track package,” explained Sawyer.
“We didn’t get the results at Wilkesboro that we were hoping for, with a very similar opportunity that we had at Bristol where we did see results, and even at Iowa where we did as well. Any time we can put our teams in a position where they have to manage tires, we really see some great racing and we see an entertaining race, so that’s our goal going into Richmond.”
NASCAR officials, including Sawyer, have maintained ongoing discussions with Goodyear, drivers and teams to refine the approach. Stu Grant, general manager for Goodyear global race tires, added, “This whole option tire thing is pretty exciting strategy stuff for us and for the sport.
“The whole North Wilkesboro thing came together pretty quickly and we said, ‘hey, let’s give it a try’. So we’ve got that data point – that’s nice. We’ve got that data point, and now we just go forward.”
The Cook Out 400 will be broadcast on the USA Network, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and the NBC Sports app at 6:00pm ET on August 11.
