All three of NASCAR’s national series will be competing on new tires this weekend as they race on different track surfaces.
Cup and Xfinity Series teams will be road-course racing at Watkins Glen International, and the Gander Outdoors Truck Series holds its annual race on the dirt of Eldora Speedway.
Here’s the tire info for both tracks.
Cup and Xfinity - Watkins Glen
Cup and Xfinity Series will run the same Goodyear tire code on all four tires at Watkins Glen. This is a brand new tire, featuring the same tread compounds as 2018 with just a construction update.
Watkins Glen International is a faster and less technical road course than the Cup Series’ earlier stop at Sonoma Raceway. WGI’s 2016 repave only added to that. Because of the sustained speed on the course, WGI requires a different tire set-up, and one that utilizes a more heat-resistant tread compound.
While the compound run at Sonoma is more tractive by comparison, the one run at WGI is still among the top-third in that area in Goodyear’s 2019 tire lineup.
Tire info
Set limits: Cup: Three sets for practice, one set for qualifying and five sets for the race (four race sets plus one set transferred from qualifying or practice)
Xfinity: Six sets for the event
Tire Code: D-4926 (same on all four tire positions)
Tire Circumference: 88.23 in. (2,241 mm)
Minimum Recommended Inflation: Left Front -- 26 psi; Right Front -- 24 psi; Left Rear -- 21 psi; Right Rear -- 21 psi
Truck Series - Eldora
This is a new tire set-up for Truck Series teams at Eldora. Compared to the 2018 Eldora race, both this left-side and right-side tire feature a tread compound change to introduce more wear.
There are three main differences between this tire set-up and the one that Truck teams normally run on asphalt ovals. 1) these are bias ply tires, not radials, and are more compliant and able to envelope the irregularities of the dirt surface. 2) these tires have a block-style tread pattern with leading edges on the blocks to bite into the dirt surface and grooves to help evacuate the dirt, not a “slick” or smooth tread. 3) This left-side tire is significantly shorter to create more stagger between the left- and right-side tires.
Tire info
Teams will not run inner liners in their tires at Eldora.
Set limits: Four sets for the event
Tire Codes: Left-side -- D-3024; Right-side -- D-3026
Tire Circumference: Left-side -- 85.79 in. (2,179 mm); Right-side -- 88.50 in. (2,248 mm)
Minimum Recommended Inflation: Left Front -- 18 psi; Left Rear – 18 psi; Right Front -- 22 psi; Right Rear -- 22 psi