Phoenix International Raceway has announced the completion of its pre-event track grooming program in advance of this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup SUBWAY Fresh Fit 500™. Similar to the track preparation last fall, the program was designed to burnish rubber into the track to enhance the racing groove.
“The goal was to present the best possible racing surface to NASCAR and the drivers for this weekend’s races,” said Phoenix International Raceway President, Bryan R. Sperber. “This is a very important race in the NASCAR season and we wanted to make sure that the track was ready to perform.”
Phoenix International Raceway hired Colorado-based Bandimere Speedway to have a tire rotator machine work additional rubber into PIR’s upper groove. The program was conducted Feb. 25-27, one week before this weekend’s big event.
“It’s all about creating a better show for the fans,” said Larry Crispe, executive vice president of operations for Bandimere Speedway. “We have used this process many times and it’s a great way to recondition the track and prepare it for highly competitive racing.”
Last fall, with pre-race input from NASCAR and many of the Series’ top drivers, PIR groomed the race surface using a different tire dragging device. That effort was augmented by six professional drivers running more than 3,000 laps on the new surface prior to the November race weekend. The PIR grooming program was widely lauded by the drivers during the November NASCAR weekend.
PIR PR
