Drivers impressed by safety changes at The Glen (cont'd)

"That's probably good," Clint Bowyer said. "I think the two things that it will change -- you will see less caution flags and I think it will affect fuel mileage just for the fact that you can't count on somebody getting stuck in the sand trap anymore. The fuel mileage gambling is going to be a lot different than what it was in the past just for the fact that you're not going to have those cars getting stuck.

"In my mind, that's the biggest thing that will change and kudos to Watkins Glen for changing the race track and upgrading their stuff. There should be like a big star next to their name because all the race tracks should take note and upgrade something all the time. There is always something they can make better."

Burton participated in a tire test at Watkins Glen earlier this season and he said he was "really impressed" with the changes.

"The sand traps are great ideas in the event of brake failures or something like that, but where the inner loop was, it's much more appropriate to have a run off with SAFER barriers.

"They made a lot of improvements trying to make the race track safer and to prevent what happened last year as well as look at areas of the race track that could improve the quality of racing and be productive for safety. I think what they've done is really good."

The true test of whether or not the safety upgrades are a success will come Saturday and Sunday afternoon. But the fact the track saw an issue and corrected it immediately gave the drivers a sense of security that this track is looking out for those behind the wheel.

"We've been racing here a long time and we've been racing with the stuff we had up to this point," Stewart said. "It's nice when you go back to a facility and you know they've made it safer than it was the last time you were there."

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