Aggressive Setups and Driving Tactics Fuel Phoenix Tire Woes, Experts Say

Phoenix, AZ – The recent NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway saw a notable increase in tire issues, with many observers initially attributing the problems to outright "tire failure." However, seasoned industry professionals and crew chiefs suggest a more complex reality: the aggressive pursuit of performance by teams and drivers themselves is a primary driver of these tire-related incidents. This nuanced perspective, revealed through interviews and analyses, points to a delicate balancing act between maximizing grip and ensuring tire durability, a challenge inherent to the sport.

The core of the issue lies in the inherent conflict between two key tire performance metrics: grip and longevity. As Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 crew chief Adam Stevens explained in a recent appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, teams constantly navigate a precarious risk-versus-reward scenario. "It’s so tough," Stevens remarked, acknowledging the fan’s potential lack of understanding regarding this intricate aspect of racing. "We just don’t know the load, air pressure and camber combination with certainty where we’re going to have a problem."

Stevens elaborated on the fundamental physics at play. "What we do know is generally the tires make the most grip at higher camber settings and they last the longest at lower air pressure settings," he stated. "So, those two material facts are polar opposites of working together." This creates a situation where the only definitive way to understand the precise limit of tire endurance is, unfortunately, to exceed it. "You can think you know but you don’t know until you cross it or somebody else crosses it and you know exactly what they have going on."

From a competitor’s standpoint, Stevens described the strategy as "sneaking up" on the tire’s limit, aiming for any potential failure to occur early enough in the race to allow for repairs or strategic adjustments. He lamented the inherent unpredictability, stating, "It’s a quirky part of the sport and I don’t know how to get around it." While practice sessions allow teams to analyze tire wear and Goodyear to inspect for internal failures, the real-world race conditions introduce variables that are difficult to fully replicate.

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"The tires are blowing because they are overloaded for a sustained amount of time," Stevens continued. "That load decreases as the lap times slow down and as the air pressures come up. So, there’s a lot of variables and the tires are laid up by hand. They’re made by humans, not machines, so there is a variability there and we could maybe all of practice at the same setup, air pressure and camber, and not have any problems and then get in the race and have a problem."

Echoing these sentiments was Rudy Fugle, crew chief for William Byron and the Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 team. Fugle also highlighted the critical role of tire pressure and sidewall flex in driver feedback. "The reason we want to go lower is — for most of the time, especially with this really short sidewall — as the driver leans the car into the corner, that sidewall has a ton of flex, and gives the driver a ton of feel before he goes from spinning out to tight," Fugle explained. This tactile feedback allows drivers to make micro-adjustments to throttle and steering inputs, preventing oversteer or understeer.

Fugle noted that the introduction of the NextGen car, with its shorter tire sidewall, has exacerbated this issue. "With this NextGen, with its shorter sidewall, this tire has way less so the driver is on edge," he said. This led to a noticeable increase in "snappy spins" during the 2022 season as drivers adapted to the reduced sidewall flex. "So the lower air pressure gives that sidewall way more flex, way more feel," Fugle elaborated. "When you have a tire that digs, the low air pressure generally means it survives way longer, so you make it a 60-lap run and it just survives a lot longer."

Consequently, teams are incentivized to push tire pressures to the absolute minimum that offers optimal grip, a calculation involving air pressure, load, and camber. However, it’s crucial to remember that tire pressure naturally increases as a run progresses due to heat buildup, regardless of the starting point. Furthermore, lower initial air pressure increases the tire’s contact patch, directly translating to enhanced mechanical grip.

Todd Gordon, a veteran crew chief now serving as a broadcast analyst, further emphasized the driver’s role in tire management. Speaking on his SiriusXM show, Gordon pointed out that driver execution and strategic choices significantly impact tire life. "At old Auto Club, the fast way around was you turned down across the apron in 3 and 4, and transition back up," Gordon recalled. He recounted a conversation with Joey Logano where Gordon proposed a lower air pressure setup, contingent on Logano agreeing to refrain from aggressive overtakes for a set number of laps. "And where drivers choose to race can impact tire life as well," Gordon concluded.

Gordon specifically referenced Phoenix Raceway’s unique track characteristics, particularly the apron’s accessibility on restarts. "Remember, at Phoenix, drivers can use the short cut by cutting across the apron on the restart, and that can shock the tires into an eventual degradation process too," he stated. This aggressive maneuver, especially on cold tires at the beginning of a run, can subject the tires to extreme forces. "So yes, camber is one, air pressure becomes one, how you install where you choose to be aggressive, how much load you’ve got into the setup, how much it shocks the load," Gordon detailed. "And then, how aggressive your driver is."

He vividly described the visual cues of such aggressive driving: "Phoenix is tough on them because everybody wants to bail off and, and shorten the dog leg on cold tires first lap at speed. You’re driving across — and I mean, we see sparks and everything else coming out of these cars — It’s a brutal transition both down and back onto the race surface."

The evolution of Goodyear tires in recent years has been a deliberate move towards facilitating more engaging racing. Previously, Goodyear produced harder, more durable tires, which, while reducing tire failures, often led to less dynamic on-track action. The shift towards a more performance-oriented tire, which requires teams to manage its limits more carefully, has been a conscious industry decision. This recalibration means that teams and drivers must now accept a greater degree of responsibility for their tire management strategies. The current era of racing, characterized by the pursuit of higher risks for potentially greater rewards, has empowered crew chiefs and drivers to push the boundaries, and the resulting tire issues at Phoenix are seen by many as a direct consequence of this calculated aggression.

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