A bumpy, worn Auto Club Speedway saw a litany of tire failures hamper Sunday’s race.
Auto Club 400: Tire problems perplex drivers; NASCAR, Goodyear blame teams
What caused all the tire failures Sunday? Drivers gave a variety of reasons, while NASCAR and Goodyear blamed over overaggressive teams.
But was the culprit the track, which hasn’t been repaved since its 1997 opening? Or, were teams simply pushing beyond the limits suggested by Goodyear? Theories abound, with no definitive answers.
"I hate Goodyear was not prepared today for what happened. They are so good at what they do and that is just uncalled for.-Jeff Gordon
Jimmie Johnson was one of those who pointed at a tire not suited for speeds reaching 200 mph, and believed Goodyear laying the blame at teams was standard procedure for the tire manufacturer. The defending Sprint Cup champion also had tire-related problems a week ago at Bristol Motor Speedway.
“We did everything we could to win the race today, unfortunately something out of our control let us down,” said Johnson, who led a race-high 104 laps.
Goodyear brought the same tire compound to Fontana as it had the previous two years. But offseason rule changes have increased speed and downforce and put more strain on left-side, which were the bulk of the failures Sunday. Goodyear recommended teams run 20-22 pounds of air pressure. However, NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said some teams running 14 pounds of pressure. NASCAR, like many drivers, absolved Goodyear.
“Over the past few years we’ve been on a path to add mechanical grip, give more options to the teams,” Pemberton said. “We’ve opened up camber rules for grip in both the front and the rear of the car. They have a lot of tools to use if they choose to do so.
“But the tires weren’t wearing. At some parts of the race, the tires were abused a little bit, so I guess that’s why the failures.”
Pemberton’s comments echoed those made by Goodyear, which said the responsibility lays with the teams themselves.
“Every left-side tire that we’ve seen gone down or had issues with is kind of the same characteristics as (Saturday),” said Goodyear’s Greg Stucker, according to Motor Racing Network. “The common denominator being aggressive on air pressure. You’re in race conditions, so everybody is running a little bit harder. It’s not surprising that you see a few more if people haven’t made adjustment from where they were (Saturday).”
Third-place finisher Kurt Busch was one of the few who did not experience issues Sunday. He did though have a problem during practice Saturday, which prompted his Stewart-Haas Racing team to go with a more conservative setup. Busch offered Goodyear and NASCAR resounding praise.
“It’s up to the team’s discretion if you’re going to have a problem or not,” Busch said. “By no means is this a problem for Goodyear, it’s actually a thumbs-up for NASCAR allowing the teams to get aggressive in all areas.”
ACS’ aged surface is attributed to the increased quality of racing the track has seen in recent years. With multiple grooves, the two-mile oval has become a favorite for drivers, who have been outspoken about the speedway not resurfacing as many other tracks have done; an unpopular trend which is frequently cited for the lack of side-by-side racing at many facilities.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. didn’t blame Goodyear; instead he said an excessively bumpy backstretch was the real cause -- though he’s against a complete repave.
“The bumps are getting worse and worse and are too bad now,” Earnhardt said. “I don’t think it’s low air pressure. ... I’m telling you, the bumps back there and unlike any other thing we see. If they don’t tear the tire up, I don’t care that it’s bumpy. You just go through them and fix the track whenever you feel like fixing it. But, if it’s tearing the tires up and if that’s why, we need to look into it.”
Earnhardt endured two failures Sunday en route to a 12th-place finish, but his troubles were nothing compared to a pair of his Hendrick Motorsports teammates.
Johnson was comfortably in the lead with seven laps to go when his left-front tire came apart on the backstretch. This handed the top spot to Jeff Gordon, who was nursing his car around the track trying in vain to protect his tires. But his lead evaporated when Clint Bowyer lost a tire and spun brining the day’s final caution.
“I hate the caution came out,” Gordon said. “I hate Goodyear was not prepared today for what happened. They are so good at what they do and that is just uncalled for.
“When I saw (Johnson) had issues I was just hoping we would make it to the end and I was just going as slow as I possibly could trying to maintain the lead and cars were just blowing tires left and right all around me. It’s unfortunate that was happening.”
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