NASCAR did not alter the cars and the laps were about a second slower in race conditions.
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Last week at repaved Pocono, drivers reported a top speed of 211 mph. “Granted, I haven’t seen anyone hit the wall yet to see how the car reacts with the SAFER barrier at this pace, but at least the balance we have on our racecar, it’s very comfortable to drive.â€
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€œI don’t have any concerns about the speeds,†Johnson said. He said he knew he was going faster because of how far he could drive into the corners. He said drivers were comfortable with the speeds after topping 200 mph on the new surface last week at Pocono Raceway. We’re not concerned right now with (the speeds) and things will calm down a little bit.â€įive-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson said he didn’t believe that the speeds were dangerous. €œWe also know this is the optimum day and time (for) that. “Racetracks like here and California have a tendency at times to be pretty fast, but these are good racecars and we work real hard on the package. €œWe’re just barely a little faster than we were 15 years ago at Atlanta when the pole speed was 197 or something like that,†Pemberton said about the 1.5-mile track where Geoffrey Bodine qualified at 197.478 mph in 1997.
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NASCAR Sprint Cup Series director John Darby said speeds had not yet reached a level that would cause NASCAR officials to react. He said qualifying speeds may top 201 mph. Pemberton said he expects the pace to slow with higher temperatures expected for a mid-afternoon race Sunday and with more rubber accumulating on the track throughout the weekend. NASCAR vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said NASCAR doesn’t plan to use them at Michigan. NASCAR brings restrictor plates to every track, but officials did not opt to use them for the second three-hour test session Thursday afternoon.
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€œI would be surprised if I saw a restrictor plate, but I have to admit that if I was on the other side of the game I would be a little bit nervous right now with the 218,†Biffle said. The 200-mph mark has always been considered NASCAR’s threshold for high speeds. NASCAR began using carburetor restrictor-plates at Daytona and Talladega after speeds topped 200 mph at those tracks in 1987 and Bobby Allison’s car got airborne and nearly flew into the grandstands at Talladega. … We have to walk that fine line of not killing people and creating excitement.â€īiffle said while he was comfortable racing at more than 200 mph, he admitted that NASCAR is approaching “safety concerns.†€œIt has been a long time since we have gone that fast. “It definitely is going to gain some attention going 218 miles per hour.
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€œI don’t see anything wrong with this,†said Roush Fenway Racing driver Greg Biffle, who ran 200.556 mph in the afternoon practice.