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NASCAR America: Pit stops vital at Phoenix

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Phoenix was considered by most drivers to be one of the most important races of the West Coast swing and it's unique qualities could require different strategies.

ISM Raceway is an interesting track on the NASCAR landscape.

The 1-mile track is the site of fourth race of the season and it also hosts the penultimate race before the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

On NASCAR America, analyst Kyle Petty and guest analyst Landon Cassill discussed how important pit stops are in races in Phoenix, especially in relation to how the stages are laid out for the 312-lap race this weekend.

The first two stages are 75 laps each. The final stage is 162 laps.

“I’m looking at the way the slower pit stops this year are going to effect the strategies,” Cassill said. “I think the teams are going to be more incentivized to risk two tires or no tires if it comes down to a green flag pit stop in the third stage. I feel like the teams are really incentivized to get as short as a pit stop as possible. You’re not just blasting in and out of the pits with four brand new tires in 10 seconds anymore.”

Petty pointed to how long ISM Raceway’s pit road is in relation to the track’s 1-mile length.

“You lose about 45 seconds pitting under green at Phoenix,” Cassill added. “The lap time are going to be 28 seconds, 27 seconds in the middle of the race. ... That’s over a lap-and-a-half you lose under a green flag pit stop.”

Watch the above video for more.