The forecast is uncertain for NASCAR‘s inaugural Cup Series race weekend in Mexico City, but the plan for deploying wet-weather tires is straightforward.
“Thankfully, this is a lot easier than if it was a short track.” NASCAR managing director of racing communications Mike Forde said during the latest episode of the “Hauler Talk” podcast. “The short track rules are different, but with a road course, it’s pretty simple.”
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If it‘s raining before the green flag for Sunday‘s 100-lap race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez course, Cup teams will be allowed to roll off on dry (also called “slicks”) or wet-weather tires for a parade lap. The teams then will be allowed to decide which tire to start on in the race (and, if necessary, switch to a different compound without penalty).
After the green flag, NASCAR will leave all tire selections to the teams.
“From then out, it is all going to be crew chief or team decisions on how they want to play that strategy,” Forde said. “So it’s as simple as that. For pit road rules or changing tires, nothing is different. It‘s like a normal race. We have competitive pit stops at road courses, and it‘s a pretty straightforward process for the road course.”
In addition to road and street courses, NASCAR has also been using wet-weather tires on ovals one mile and shorter since the 2023 All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Last season, the wet-weather tires also were used at Richmond Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Though the process was tweaked after New Hampshire so teams can manage their allotment of wet tires during “natural” cautions, NASCAR still determines whether slicks or wet-weather tires are used if damp conditions occur.
“We’re still evolving the short-track process (for wet-weather tires),” Forde said. “Eventually, we want to get to a place where we are with the road courses, where you can have competitive pit stops and have it completely in the hands of the teams.”
During the podcast episode, Forde and co-host Amanda Ellis were also joined by NASCAR managing director of event experience Michael Verlatti, who discussed preparing the fan experience for Mexico City and how the return of Ram to the Craftsman Truck Series was announced Sunday in a splashy pre-race event at Michigan International Speedway.
Other topics covered during the 18th episode of “Hauler Talk,” which explores competition issues in NASCAR:
— NASCAR officials made a Monday visit to Hendrick Motorsports to examine Alex Bowman‘s No. 48 Chevrolet that crashed head-on into the outside wall on Lap 67 at Michigan. The car also underwent an inspection at the track, and Forde said NASCAR was satisfied with the performance of the safety components.
Forde said the crash registered an impact similar to the Xfinity Series crash at Talladega Superspeedway involving Connor Zilisch, who missed the next race with an injury. Bowman said he was sore after one of the worst hits in his career, but he is expected to race this weekend in Mexico City.
— How Ram will get its truck approved for the 2026 season (the deadline for its first wind tunnel test with NASCAR is Aug. 15).
— The 18-month process for Dodge potentially returning to the Cup Series.
— The state-of-the-art AVL dyno that is being installed at the R&D Center. The multimillion-dollar project, which will be completed by the end of the year, will help set the parameters for the evolution of the Next Gen engine.
— The Michigan speeding penalty that Brad Keselowski found to be curious.
Click on the embed above to listen or search for “Hauler Talk” wherever you download podcasts to hear it on your phone, tablet or mobile device.
Nate Ryan has written about NASCAR since 1996 while working at the San Bernardino Sun, Richmond Times-Dispatch, USA TODAY and for the past 10 years at NBC Sports Digital. He is a contributor to the “Hauler Talk” show on the NASCAR Podcast Network. He also has covered various other motorsports, including the IndyCar and IMSA series.
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