NASCAR makes its first visit of the season to Richmond Raceway this weekend, and with it will come a new set of Goodyear Eagle Intermediate Radials in both Cup and Xfinity.
Teams in both series will run the same tire set-up, making Richmond the only track at which both series will run the two distinct Goodyear tire codes.
“Richmond is currently one of the more high tire wear race tracks on the NASCAR circuit,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing in a media release. “While we’ve seen a little less wear with this new, higher downforce rules package than we’ve had over the past few years, tracks like Atlanta and Fontana and Richmond still wear tires.
“The tires this weekend feature the same compounds we’ve been running at Richmond for the past several seasons, and being able to lay rubber on this track creates multiple racing grooves and more side-by-side racing as drivers move around to find the fastest line.
Compared to what was run at Richmond last year, both the left-side and right-side tires feature construction updates. As on most NASCAR ovals of one mile or less in length, liners will not be used in tires at Richmond.
Also, tires at Richmond will have more stagger (difference in height between the shorter left-side tire and the taller right-side tire) built into the tire set-up.
Here’s the tire info for this weekend’s races:
Set limits – Cup: Three sets for practice, one set for qualifying and 10 sets for the race (nine race sets plus one set transferred from qualifying or practice); Xfinity: six sets for the event.
Tire Codes: Left-side - D-4874; Right-side – D-4876
Tire Circumference: Left-side -- 2,214 mm (87.17 in.); Right-side – 2,244 mm (88.35 in.)
Minimum Recommended Inflation: Left Front - 12 psi; Left Rear - 12 psi; Right Front - 30 psi; Right Rear - 27 psi