NASCAR extends pit road at Michigan

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- For the second straight race, NASCAR has extended the onset of the pit road speed limit in an attempt to make conditions on the service alley safer.

For Sunday's GFS Marketplace 400 at Michigan International Speedway, teams were told in the drivers' meeting that the pit road speed limit of 55 mph would be enforced from a line 195 feet before the first pit box.

In June's Winston Cup race at Michigan, the pit road speed limit began at a line 45 feet before the first pit box.

"What it does is it gives us an additional (150) feet, and it will vary a little bit from race track to race track," Winston Cup director John Darby said. "The concept is to give us a full (speed) trap box if not a trap-and-a-half before the cars actually get to the part of pit road that actually involves crewmembers and officials.

"So all the tire smoke and wiggling and locking up the brakes will happen actually more towards Turn 4 than it does toward the pit road."

The change was initiated at last weekend's event at Watkins Glen following an accident at Indianapolis, in which Dale Jarrett spun while trying to enter the first pit box and struck his jackman, John Bryan.

Bryan is recovering from injuries to his shoulder, knee and thumb but expects to rejoin his Robert Yates Racing pit crew in the near future.