The Phoenix track record was set last fall by Joey Logano, at 142.141 mph. While this is considerably slower than the new track record of 194.679 mph Jeff Gordon set last week in qualifying at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, PIR is still surprisingly fast for a 1-mile short track. How fast will they go Sunday? The answer lies in how well drivers manage rear grip.
Battling The Asphalt
Phoenix International Raceway was reconfigured and repaved in 2011. In the races since, many drivers have fought to get the rear grip they need on the new pavement. Time and time again, we’ve seen drivers break lose in the corners when the rear tires lose grip.
Before the race last fall, Clint Bowyer summed up the struggle by saying “you either have grip or you feel like you are racing on ice.” One of the keys to keeping the wheels under the car was to stay in the narrow groove, which limited passing.
This is changing, though. The asphalt is aging quickly, thanks to desert weather extremes that wear the track faster than new pavement in more temperate areas. This should make it easier to find the grip they need. The groove is widening out, and there’s more grip in more lanes now. Each race is seeing more passing than the previous race, and we can expect even more this weekend.
Battling The Banking
Progressive banking was added during the reconfiguration, but the D-shaped oval is still
relatively flat. Turns 1 and 2 and the backstretch are banked at 10 to 12 degrees while turns 3 and 4 are banked from 8 to 9 degrees. Compared to the 31 degree banking in the turns at Daytona, the 24 degree banking in the turns at Atlanta or even the 20 degree banking last week in Las Vegas, though, Phoenix is flat.
Keeping all four wheels underneath the car plays an important role on a track with little banking, because you can easily end up in oncoming traffic, against the outside wall or into the inside retaining wall. When paired with a lack of rear grip, this can cause major pileups.
Battling Changing Track Temperature
Last spring in Phoenix, the high temperature of the weekend was only about 72 degrees. The forecast for Sunday is in the high 80s. In fact, local weather forecasts are showing that final practice temperatures may be up to 15 degrees cooler than race temperatures.
At Phoenix, 15 degrees can have a lot of effect on grip. When it’s cooler, there is plenty of grip. This is what the drivers will most likely see Saturday in the two practice sessions. But by Sunday afternoon, the sun will be beating down on the track and the afternoon heat could play a major role in how loose drivers are from the first lap.
Since it was repaved and reconfigured in 2011, Phoenix International Raceway has been a bit of a riddle for many Sprint Cup teams. Turns 1 and 2 handle very differently than turns 3 and 4, and the weather may be much warmer on Sunday than during practice. Expect to see a lot of adjustments as drivers search for that elusive grip. The crew who can best manage their car’s rear grip may win the battle this weekend at Phoenix, especially if they have a driver who can find a way to pass as new lanes emerge.