SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Paul Menard won the Brickyard 400 in 2011, but the Richard Childress Racing driver says he doesn’t dwell much on his lone victory in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series.
“I’ll reminisce about it more when I’m retired I guess,” the 35-year-old said Tuesday during an organizational test for Sprint Cup teams at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “I was actually thinking about it this morning. I’ve got to get a picture of the yard of bricks (on the start/finish line) because I’m going to build a house here in the next few years and I want to put a yard of bricks in my driveway, so I’ve got to get the specs of it right, how many bricks specifically, and make it right.”
Menard was one of a dozen drivers testing with their teams Tuesday at the legendary 2.5-mile track. A second day of testing is scheduled for Wednesday as teams prepare for the July 24th running of the Crown Royal Presents The Combat Wounded Coalition 400 at the Brickyard (3 p.m. ET, NBCSN, SiriusXM NASCAR).
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Unlike 2015 when NASCAR officials brought out a high drag rules package for Indy and one of two stops at Michigan International Speedway, teams will compete this year with a low downforce aerodynamic package.
Last year’s package “definitely changed the handling of the car,” Menard said, noting increased temperatures in the driver’s compartment as well.
“I always enjoy racing at Indianapolis but the rules package we had last year … ot was a little bit of a shot in the dark,” Menard said. “… Internal cockpit temperatures were at least 10, maybe 15 degrees hotter so we were getting cooked for one (thing) and the cars were just really unstable in traffic so it was really hard to make passes.”
Menard is 23rd in points, 86 behind 16th-place Trevor Bayne . Although he made the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup last season, he said his team’s current mindset is that a win will be necessary to return to the 10-race, championship determining playoff.
“What better place than Indianapolis?,” he said. “It’s a special place for a lot of people, myself even more so than some because of all the time I spent here as a kid watching Indy Car races and I was here for the inaugural Brickyard 400. …
“We’ve got a couple of more opportunities before the Chase starts and Indy is definitely circled.”
Menard is in his sixth season with RCR, and said conversations concerning 2017 and beyond will likely take place next month.
“Nothing ironed out (for next year),” he said. “It’s the same schedule we’ve been on the last few years with RCR; August 1 is when our renewal is up and we’ll talk about it.”
Others taking part in the test are four-time Brickyard winner Jimmie Johnson (Hendrick Motorsports), 2014 series champ Kevin Harvick (Stewart-Haas Racing), Joey Logano (Team Penske), Brian Scott (Richard Petty Motorsports), Chris Buescher (Front Row Motorsports), Trevor Bayne (Roush Fenway Racing), Ryan Blaney (Wood Brothers Racing), Kyle Larson (Chip Ganassi Racing), Matt Kenseth (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Martin Truex Jr. (Furniture Row Racing).
Johnson had the top lap, unofficially, in the morning session, dipping into the 48-second range (183.70 mph), followed by Kenseth and Larson.
Larson had the fastest lap in the afternoon session at 182.70 mph, with Harvick and Truex close behind. The test was extended 30 minutes, ending at 5:30 p.m. ET because of a brief shower that halted testing shortly after lunch.
On-track activities are scheduled to resume Wednesday at 9 a.m.
This week’s test is the second of five organizational tests for Sprint Cup teams in 2016. Remaining tests are slated for Watkins Glen International (July 26-27), Chicagoland Speedway (Aug. 23-24) and Homestead-Miami Speedway (Oct. 18-19).
Only one team from each organization is allowed to take part in each test.