The first round of the 2024 Cup Series playoffs features races in Atlanta, Watkins Glen, and Bristol. While each of these venues presents significant and distinctive challenges, Watkins Glen stands out for a key change. Expectations are that the race at the road course will feature a new tire compound that will increase wear-off and deliver a new sort of experience for drivers.
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Speculation was that the compound would fall over three seconds during the course of a run. The exact durability of the tire is yet to be known and this cluelessness makes strategizing a whole lot difficult. Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin welcomes the experimental effort and believes that this could make the fixture, unlike any other road course race in recent times.
He told the press during Wednesday’s Playoff Media Day, “If tires are going to matter like it seems like they might, it throws a whole new element in it and it’s not a huge gimmicky element because you have to strategize around tire wear. The driver plays a huge role in that, so certainly, hopefully, I’ve got my fingers crossed that it’s a race that’s going to be unlike any road course we’ve seen.”
Watkins Glen will go against its nature and be a sketchy place in a few days. Previous winners cannot go to the track with a guarantee of success, courtesy of the added element. A new tire on a road course is a big change. NASCAR has been testing softer tire compounds for short tracks and found success with them. Could a similar result be expected in the Glen? The answer will be known soon.
Could a driver outside the playoffs win at Atlanta or the Glen?
The Atlanta Motor Speedway is a track much along the lines of the unpredictable Daytona and Talladega. It will host the Cup Series field this weekend for the first race of the postseason. Considering the blank factors of the first two races, could there be an upset winner from outside the sixteen-driver playoff list? Denny Hamlin is wary of the possibility.
He said, “Well, certainly, I think with some of the cars that didn’t make the Playoffs, there’s a chance of that — the Chris Buescher of the world and Ross Chastain’s — they can win at races like that. Certainly, I think given our type — Atlanta this weekend, we could have someone outside the top 30 again win.”
From a superspeedway in Atlanta to a road course in the Glen and then an elimination race in Bristol, the first round of the playoffs is going to be a thrilling ride. And the pressure will only grow more intense over the remaining weeks.
