NASCAR officials will return to Michigan International Speedway on Tuesday, Oct. 20 to test a low downforce package similar to what was used in competition last month at Darlington Raceway.
Drivers scheduled to take part in the test are defending NASCAR XFINITY Series champion Chase Elliott in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 25 Chevrolet, current XFINITY Series points leader Chris Buescher (Roush Fenway Racing No. 17 Ford) and Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup contender Denny Hamlin (Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota).
According to information provided to the teams on Wednesday, the test is to verify max and corner speeds with three different grip levels of tires.
The schedule calls for individual 10- and 25-lap runs in the morning and afternoon sessions.
The lower downforce package debuted at Kentucky Speedway this season before also being put into play at Darlington, where it featured a 3.5-inch spoiler, 25-inch splitter extension panel (radiator pan) and 6.63-inch by 25-inch splitter.
The only change for the MIS test will be an increase in the splitter extension panel to 33 inches.
Drivers and teams were pleased with the initial results of the package, particularly at Darlington where Goodyear was able to provide a specific tire based on data gained from testing there prior to the race.
The MIS test will take place approximately two months after the Sprint Cup Series competed at the 2-mile facility with a high-drag aerodynamic configuration. A high-drag package was also used at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
JGR driver Matt Kenseth called the high-drag package "terrible."
"You just can't pass," he said after finishing seventh in the Jeff Kyle 400 at the Brickyard.
"Yeah, you can run up on the straightaway a little bit, but you can't run though the corner with anything."
A month later, after his driver dominated at Michigan with the same rules package, Kenseth's crew chief Jason Ratcliff said "at the end of the straightaway (cars could) gain on others two or three car-lengths. But they just couldn't do much once they got there and they got down in the corner, they were kind of helpless."
The high-drag rules included a 9-inch spoiler with a 1-inch wicker bill, a rear fascia extension panel (similar to those used for superspeedway events at Daytona and Talladega), a 2-inch leading edge on the splitter and a 43-inch splitter extension panel.
"We know that high drag package is awful," four-time premier series champion Jeff Gordon said following the Darlington race. "We know that this (lower downforce) is definitely in the right direction. … I think when you look at the less horsepower we had coming in this year it's the package that should have been with this car that we have now. You can't take that kind of power away and not do something significant to the downforce as well."
Homestead Test Slated for December
NASCAR and Goodyear officials have added a post-season test scheduled for Dec. 14-15 at Homestead-Miami Speedway to continue preparations for the 2016 rules package.
Organizations scheduled to participate in the test are Stewart-Haas Racing (Chevrolet), Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet), Richard Petty Motorsports (Ford) and Furniture Row Racing (Toyota).
It is expected to be the first on-track testing for Furniture Row and driver Martin Truex Jr. with a Toyota entry. The Denver-based team is making the switch from Chevrolet to Toyota for '16.
Because of the change, SHR was added to the test to replace Furniture Row for Chevrolet.
"I think '16, we're not really even thinking about right now," Truex said earlier this week. "We know what we're doing next year, we'll worry about that after (the final race at) Homestead.
"I think everybody in the Chase is probably in the same position -- you're worried about today and tomorrow and this coming weekend. No further ahead. Once you set your plans, it's real easy."
Lineup Change for Atlanta Test
The Toyota teams of Michael Waltrip Racing and BK Racing have declined to take part in the Goodyear tire test slated for Oct. 27-28 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Joe Gibbs Racing has been added to the lineup to represent Toyota teams at the 1.54-mile track.
MWR will not field a full-time Sprint Cup Series team next season.
The two-day program is a confirmation test for Goodyear; an open team test is scheduled for Oct. 29 following the completion of the tire test.
CMS Tire Info
Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series teams will be running the same tire codes this weekend at Charlotte, according to Goodyear officials, and is unchanged from what was provided for the 1.5 mile track's May races.
The left-side tire code has been used at CMS since 2012; the right side, which features a multi-zone tread, was used there for the first time in May.