For the second straight day, Martinsville Speedway was turned into a half-mile laboratory. #31-Jeff Burton and four other NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers  #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr., #6-David Ragan, #2-Brad Keselowski and #47-Bobby Labonte  finished up a two-day tire test at Martinsville Speedway on Wednesday. The goal was to help Goodyear come up with a better racing compound for this fallÂs TUMS Fast Relief 500. ÂGoodyear is always trying to make tires better and they work hard at building different compounds, different rubbers, different constructions, said Burton who has 21 victories in 18 years of Sprint Cup racing. ÂThey do a lot of lab testing, but really, this is the best place to test, at the race tracks. WeÂve been picking out the tires we like and then we confirm what we like and donÂt like on long runs. So weÂve made a lot of 10 and 20-lap runs and a bunch of 75-lap runs to confirm what we like. That is our main objective to being here. With only one or two cars on the track at a time, and no real racing, tire testing seems like a monotonous exercise, but Burton says it is vital. Tickets for the TUMS Fast Relief 500 on Sunday, October 30 are on sale and can be purchased by calling 1.877.RACE.TIX. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.martinsvillespeedway.com.(Martinsville Speedway)(8-18-2011)
