Goodyear Racing will bring tested intermediate-track tire setups to Chicagoland Speedway this weekend as the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series return to the 1.5-mile oval in Joliet, Illinois.
The track has not hosted NASCAR national series competition since 2019, but teams in both series will have recent experience with the Goodyear Racing Eagle tires selected for the weekend. Chicagoland puts similar demands on tires to other intermediate ovals, and Goodyear has chosen setups that have already been used several times this season.
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The Cup Series tire setup for Sunday’s eero 400 was most recently used at Nashville Superspeedway. The left-side tire also has been utilized at Michigan International Speedway and Pocono Raceway.
The O‘Reilly Series will use a right-side tire that debuted at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May, along with a left-side tire that has raced several times this year, most recently at Nashville. As is customary on tracks 1 mile or longer, teams in both series will run inner liners inside their tires.
This weekend’s tire selections follow an April test at Chicagoland that included Cup Series drivers Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin — representing all three manufacturers — along with O’Reilly Series drivers Justin Allgaier and Brandon Jones.
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“Although teams have not raced at Chicagoland Speedway since 2019, they have lots of data on their Goodyear Racing Eagle tire setups for this weekend,” said Rick Heinrich, Goodyear NASCAR product manager. “The April test gave us valuable information and confirmed that our proven intermediate package is the right choice for this event. With the race falling on the Fourth of July weekend and plenty of excitement around NASCAR’s return to Chicagoland, our focus remains on providing teams with proven performance.”
Tire allotments for each team competing this weekend:
- Cup Series: 12 total sets — 8 new sets for the race, 1 for qualifying that transfers to the race and 3 for practice.
- O‘Reilly Auto Parts Series: 7 total sets — 4 new sets for the race, 1 for qualifying that transfers to the start of the race and 2 for practice.