Year of living dangerously

New tire compound has some drivers lamenting on-track effect

Darrell Ingham/Getty Images Where the rubber meets the road Tire Goodyear Eagle Superspeedway Radials (Nextel Cup, Busch and IROC) Goodyear Wrangler Superspeedway Radials (Truck Series) Number of Tires Required Nextel Cup: Left, 1,900; Right, 1,950 Busch: Left, 550; Right, 550 Craftsman Truck: Left, 400; Right, 400 IROC: Left, 130; Right, 130 Tire Codes Left: D-6800 Right: D-6802 Tire Circumference Left: 87.9 inches Right: 88.4 inches Technical Inspection Inflation Left Front: 30 psi Left Rear: 30 psi Right Front: 55 psi Right Rear: 50 psi Minimum Recommended Inflation Left Front: 27 psi Left Rear: 27 psi Right Front: 50 psi Right Rear: 45 psi Estimated Pit Window Every 32-36 laps, based on fuel mileage.

Never at a loss for words, spitfire Robby Gordon summed up the naysayers' sentiment in the ongoing debate over the new Goodyear tire at Daytona in one word: junk. After the second Twin 125 qualifying race Thursday, Gordon said the end result of Goodyear's offseason effort just wasn't good enough.

"The tires ... I don't know," says Gordon, "but they are junk and they are junk because this is what NASCAR wanted, not because Goodyear brought a bad tire. I just don't know if we have enough grip to run three-wide and do the things we have to do. It is important to get your car set up because it isn't going to be a horsepower race or an aero race as it has been in the past."

Of all the words written or said about the new rubber, one man is openly optimistic this new Eagle will pass with flying colors. Mark Keto, Goodyear's lead engineer for stock car tire development, says, "For Daytona, we have a new, softer, more compliant construction on both sides of the car. We will also introduce a more wear resistant right-side tread compound, which at the same time has a little more grip. This tire set-up tested very well this offseason, so we expect a highly successful Speedweeks."

And that's about what you would expect from a Goodyear worker bee. NASCAR and Goodyear hope that softer tires will lead to more passing with fewer races decided by pit strategy or aerodynamics.

Now here's what just two of the drivers -- you know, the guys whose lives will be on the line Sunday -- are saying:

• Scott Riggs: "Everybody is complaining about the right front [tire]. It's hard to really get the car freed up enough. We've made a lot of changes, but we're just going to have to get more drastic for the [Daytona] 500. ... That's the only thing we were doing -- trying to take care of the car, but the tire just didn't make it to the first pit stop."

• Dale Earnhardt Jr.: "It's hard to pass the leader. The cars are pushing so bad. Everybody is real right. I was running on the top just in case the right front [tire] blew out so I wouldn't have too far to go before I hit anything. ... You really can't run as hard as you want. I knew the right-front tire was going to blow on somebody's car before we got to the end of the fuel run because of how bad the tires were wearing out in practice. Being hotter [Thursday] and us being out there in race conditions was just a little harder on the tire under those circumstances. And sure enough, somebody's [Riggs' on lap 25] tire blew out."

However, other drivers are welcoming the change, which puts more emphasis on the driver's skills -- and relies less on aerodynamics and horsepower.

"We actually have to drive these cars for once instead of just riding them around like we've done in the past," notes 2002 Cup champion Tony Stewart. "The good drivers are going to get themselves to the front.

"I'm somewhat excited for the rest of the week. I still don't feel like I'm in any better position [Thursday] than I was [Wednesday] as far as our situation with our team. At least for the race, the drivers can actually drive and decide who wins the race by who out-drives whom. Finally."

Adds Rusty Wallace, a vocal proponent of the changes: "We're starting to bring back the old days. I think the fans are going to love it." Of course, Wallace hasn't won since April 2001. So anything that returns the on-track action to circa 1993-94, during which time he won 18 races, is a potential boon for him.

Jimmie Johnson, a third-year driver who is among the favorites to win the inaugural Nextel Cup, says: "Inside the car now there is a lot more going on in the car, you have to drive it more like you would on a mile-and-a-half track. ... I really predict you will see a race Sunday similar to what you saw in the '80s where cars were strung out and you could go down a lap just from handling.

"I have never been a part of or experienced anything like that here because we have always run in huge packs," he adds. "And with a tire itself that gives up a lot more and the bigger spoiler on the restrictor plate tracks, it just aggravates that push and so before you know it, you are three laps into the race and your front tires are beat up and you have to breathe it like you would on a mile-and-a-half track so its essentially a new game and is going to be about handling and not about drafting."

Still, Junior counters that the new tire is skirting the line between on-track control and letting it all hang out and let come what may.

"The driver can only do so much with a car that won't turn," says Earnhardt. "I can't tell you that it would make a bigger difference. Now you can hardly hang on to the bottom line. You're not going to see that racing like you say in the Bud Shootout because it's too hot [Thursday]. If it's cool during the 500, you might see some better racing. But it's too hot for these tires.

"When the tires start to go away and the car starts to push around or slide around, the driver starts to do a lot more than he normally does as far as letting off [the accelerator]. He's setting himself up for a better exit or entrance. He's trying to change the poor handling by moving around. So the driver has more to do and is more involved in making a better lap time. But at the same time, when the car won't turn, the car won't turn."

Goodyear notes that Daytona is the only track where this tire combination will be run in 2004, which means when the series returns in July for the Pepsi 400 that all the data gleamed from Speedweeks will be useless. Not to mention being able to rely on Daytona information as a guide for setting up at Talladega.

NASCAR and Goodyear are holding their collective breaths hoping that this year's Great American Race will be remembered more for revving up the Nextel era than for tire wear, but from the early returns, it may be best that this tire will be junked before the series' return to Daytona in five months.

B. Duane Cross is a senior producer for SI.com.