NASCAR and Goodyear made progress in finding a suitable tire for Indianapolis Motor Speedway, but drivers who participated in testing at the 2.5-mile oval this week said work remains to solve the durability issues that turned last year’s Allstate 400 at the Brickyard into a debacle. Ryan Newman of Stewart-Haas Racing said teams worked through several compounds and constructions bud “didn’t really see anything that is ideal.” Red Bull Racing’s Brian Vickers said the tires lasted longer than in the 2008 race but not as long enough for a full fuel run. Last season, NASCAR had to throw a caution flag every 10 to 12 laps to avoid blowouts. “It was an embarrassment for the sport, and I commend NASCAR and Goodyear (for) going above and beyond to try to get this problem fixed,” Vickers said. “They’re looking for perfection. Unfortunately from what I’ve seen, we’re going to have a fast tire. There’s just no way around it. When you make these tires slower and harder, they just slide across the pavement and because of that grooving it just turns into a shredder. So we’re going to have to have a softer, faster tire that essentially will grip the track instead of sliding across it to make it last.”(USA Today)(4-26-2009)
