NASCAR Cup Series — Race No. 12 – 293 laps / 400 miles
Darlington Raceway (1.366-mile oval) – Darlington, S.C.
Fast Facts for May 7-8, 2022
Tire:Goodyear 18-inch Speedway Radials
Set limits:Cup: 1 set for practice, 1 set for qualifying and 11 sets for the race
(10 race sets plus 1 set transferred from qualifying)
Tire Codes:Left-side — D-5168; Right-side — D-5122
Tire Circumference:Left-side — 2,254 mm (88.74 in.); Right-side — 2,280 mm (89.76 in.)
Minimum Recommended Inflation:Left Front — 20 psi; Left Rear – 22 psi;
Right Front — 48 psi; Right Rear — 44 psi
Storyline – When being abrasive is good thing:Darlington Raceway has perhaps the most abrasive track surface on the NASCAR Cup circuit and that, as it turns out, is a good thing for race fans. Teams will see more than two seconds of fall-off on their tires as a run progresses, which means that drivers who are able to manage their tires and be easier on them early in a run will gain track position on the field late in a run. That results in more comers and goers and a lot of passing throughout the field, making for a competitive and entertaining race for the fans. With 11 sets of tires for the 293-lap Cup race, teams will change four tires at every opportunity, even choosing to re-pit after just a handful of laps. That many pit stops will make pit crews an important part of the race as a slate of clean stops will help teams gain positions on pit road and not have to do that on the track.
“We are obviously very excited about this week’s running of the Goodyear 400 at Darlington. To be the sponsor of this race, at a track where we have so much history, is really great for us.,” said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. “As far as the tires are concerned, Darlington’s abrasive surface always makes for an exciting race. Tires will wear and we will have a lot of fall-off over the course of a run, meaning tire management will be important. Drivers can impact their teams’ fortunes by not abusing their tires early in a run so they can fall off that little bit less and be faster than their competitors later. High wear also means four-tire stops all day, keeping the pit crews involved and highlighting the all important team aspect of the sport.”
Notes – Compound changes for Cup teams at Darlington:Having moved to an 18-inch bead diameter tire for 2022, NASCAR Cup teams will run a different tire set-up than those in the Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series at Darlington this week . . . Cup teams have run this right-side tire code at both Fontana and Las Vegas earlier this season, and are scheduled to run it at Kansas, Texas and Charlotte coming up . . . they will also run this left-side code at Charlotte as well . . . in addition to the obvious construction changes in moving to an 18-inch tire, this set-up features changes to the left- and right-side compounds (more grip) compared to what Cup teams ran at Darlington in 2021 . . . with this 18-inch tire, and its lower profile sidewall, NASCAR Cup cars will not run inner liners in any of their tires in 2022..
Throwback weekend – Goodyear to run white-lettered sidewalls at Darlington this year:In support of the sport’s “throwback” initiative, the Goodyear tires run at this weekend’s races will feature a different sidewall design than teams normally run . . . Goodyear will throw back to the early 1980s when the race tire line was aligned with the Eagle brand performance passenger tires . . . Goodyear Racing ran white letters until 1992 when it transitioned to the now standard yellow.
Goodyear is this week’s Cup entitlement sponsor – Goodyear 400 is back at the “Lady in Black”:Goodyear returns for the second straight year as entitlement sponsor of the spring throwback race at Darlington Raceway – the Goodyear 400 . . . Goodyear is the longest-running continuous partner in NASCAR history and has been the exclusive tire supplier to the sanctioning body’s top three national divisions since 1997 . . . Goodyear has a rich history at Darlington, conducting its first official NASCAR tire tests at the track in 1954 and earning its first NASCAR victory in the 1959 Southern 500 with driver Jim Reed.
Grand Marshal and Honorary Starter – Goodyear’s Kramer and NASCAR Hall of Famer Petty on hand to represent Goodyear:Goodyear Chairman/CEO/ President Rich Kramer will be in attendance at Sunday’s Goodyear 400 and serve as Grand Marshal, giving the command for drivers to fire engines . . . NASCAR Hall of Fame driver and Seven-time Cup Series champion Richard Petty will be the race’s Honorary Starter and wave the green flag to start the race.
Goodyear Blimp – Florida-based airship over Darlington all weekend:“Wingfoot Two” will be in the air over Darlington Raceway for the entire weekend . . . this airship is based out of Pompano Beach, Fla. . . . Wingfoot Two will provide aerial coverage of all three of NASCAR’s national series races at Darlington for Fox Sports.
Follow us on Twitter: @GoodyearRacing.
GOODYEAR TIRE NOTES
NASCAR Xfinity Series — Race No. 11 — 147 laps / 201 miles
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series — Race No. 7 — 147 laps / 201 miles
Darlington Raceway (1.366-mile oval) – Darlington, S.C.
Fast Facts for May 6-7, 2022
Tire:Goodyear 15-inch Speedway Radials
Set limits:Xfinity: 6 sets for the race;
Truck: 7 sets for the race
Tire Codes:Left-side — D-6106; Right-side — D-6130
Tire Circumference:Left-side — 2,225 mm (87.60 in.); Right-side — 2,250 mm (88.58 in.)
Minimum Recommended Inflation:Left Front — 18 psi; Left Rear – 18 psi;
Right Front — 48 psi; Right Rear — 44 psi
Notes – No significant changes for Xfinity, Trucks at Darlington:Teams in both the NASCAR Xfinity and Camping World Truck Series will run the same tire set-up at Darlington this weekend . . . being on 15-inch bead diameter tires, these teams will run a different tire set-up than those in the Cup Series . . . compared to last year at Darlington, this tire set-up features just a minor right-side compound change . . . despite the two series running the same length race, Truck teams will have seven sets of tires compared to six sets for Xfinity teams because the Trucks are the first series on track for practice on a “green” race track and have the first race of the weekend . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run inner liners in all four tire positions at Darlington . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.
Throwback weekend – Goodyear to run white-lettered sidewalls at Darlington this year:In support of the sport’s “throwback” initiative, the Goodyear tires run at this weekend’s races will feature a different sidewall design than teams normally run . . . Goodyear will throw back to the early 1980s when the race tire line was aligned with the Eagle brand performance passenger tires . . . Goodyear Racing ran white letters until 1992 when it transitioned to the now standard yellow.
Goodyear Blimp – Florida-based airship over Darlington all weekend:“Wingfoot Two” will be in the air over Darlington Raceway for the entire weekend . . . this airship is based out of Pompano Beach, Fla. . . . Wingfoot Two will provide aerial coverage of all three of NASCAR’s national series races at Darlington for Fox Sports.
Follow us on Twitter: @GoodyearRacing.
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