How appropriate.
On a day where tire management was the essential element in a NASCAR Cup Series race, three veterans swept the podium positions, with Denny Hamlin winning Sunday’s Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.
In a race that produced 54 lead changes—a record for Cup Series short tracks—Hamlin lost the lead briefly to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr. in the closing laps but regained it in traffic and beat Truex to the finish line by 1.083s.
In a return to concrete after three straight spring races on dirt, Hamlin won his second straight race at the 0.533-mile speedway and his fourth overall, second most among active drivers to Kyle Busch’s eight.
The victory was the 52nd of Hamlin’s career, 13th all-time, and his first this season.
But the story was the tires and the mysterious way they behaved in a race that saw the track start to eat through to the cords 45 laps into a green-flag run.
Stage 1: Ty Gibbs
Stage 2: Ty Gibbs!
Stage 3: ???(Those battles coming to the end of the stage were awesome)
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— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) March 17, 2024
Goodyear brought the same tire that ran without issues in last fall’s night race, but on Sunday, the concrete surface did not take rubber. Instead, marbles (small balls of rubber from degraded tires) accumulated high in the corners, making the top of the track untenable.
There were two variables that might have helped to account for the tire issues. The temperature was roughly 10-15 degrees cooler than it was for last year’s night race, which was run on Sept. 16.
NASCAR also opted for a different resin the bottom lane from the PJ1 traction compound previously in use.
Whatever the cause, with his short-track background, Hamlin was best equipped to deal with the surprising situation.
“That’s what I grew up here doing in the short tracks in the Mid Atlantic, South Boston (Va.), Martinsville,” said Hamlin, who grew up in Chesterfield, Va. “Once it became a tire-management race, I really liked our chances.