‘Turtles’ fast becoming a strategy consideration for drivers at Roval

CONCORD, N.C. -- In a sport where drivers consistently want to be quick as hares, a key might be avoiding the "turtles." The nickname has been applied to the most prominent blue curbing around the new Charlotte Motor Speedway road course. They're another new facet to Sunday's inaugural Bank of America Roval 400 (2 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), the final event in the three-race Round of 16 in the Monster Energy Series Playoffs. The curbs are meant to define the chicanes and other turns on the 2.28-mile circuit, keeping drivers from making shortcuts in the more twisty sections. But they've also given drivers a penalty for bounding over them, upsetting and stressing the cars' damage limits. PHOTOS: Curb hopping, spinning and more great Roval photos "It's definitely not good for the car and I purposely stayed off them all day," said defending series champion Martin Truex Jr. after final practice, "so there’s a little bit of speed there maybe for the end of the race, but we’re definitely going to try and stay off of them as much possible." Truex predicted that drivers would likely adopt a defensive tack to the event, especially early on. A similar approach played out in the early stages of Saturday's Xfinity Series race with drivers feeling out the race pace before pushing the limits. Overstepping those bounds was especially costly for Bubba Wallace and Erik Jones in Saturday's Monster Energy Series practice. Both drivers clouted the tire barrier on the backstretch chicane forming Turns 11-12, causing serious damage. Afterward competition officials altered the angle of the tire-pack wall. The curbs -- in particular the "turtles" -- remain as potential obstacles. "Keeping it between the lines is probably the biggest key to survival," said Mike Wheeler, crew chief for Denny Hamlin's No. 11 Toyota. "We worked on the car a lot with the builds to make sure it can withstand more load than ever. Then again, at the same point, it can still happen at any point."