NASCAR's new aerodynamic rules are certain to be the topic of conversation this weekend when the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series makes its eighth annual visit to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400.
Several drivers voiced their disapproval of the shorter rear spoiler and the softer Goodyear tires following the most recent race, at California Speedway, but 2002 series champion Tony Stewart said the new package will make for better racing at the 1.5-mile LVMS oval.
"I think it's a great idea," Stewart said of the new rules package. "Now we have to budget our tires. We can't go out there and just run flat out the whole time and, with that, comes a lot more passing.
"Guys who get in too big of a hurry and go out and abuse their tires early in a run will get passed by guys at the end of a run because they're more patient. When it was like that a few years ago, you saw a lot more passing and the racing just seemed to be better all around. By taking some downforce away from us and giving us some softer tires, it's given us a combination that's allowed us to race ... so, I'm all for it."
And this coming from a driver who struggled in the first test of the new aero package eight days ago in Fontana, Calif. Stewart fought an ill-handling car the entire 250-lap race but kept his Home Depot Chevrolet on the lead lap and settled for a 17th-place finish.
Stewart tested for two days at LVMS last month and said he learned that tire wear would be especially crucial in Sunday's 267-lap race.
"The performance of the tires has always fallen off at Vegas, but the new tire is falling off a little bit more, obviously," Stewart said. "But that's a good thing; it's what a lot of us drivers have wanted for a long time because the fuel mileage and track position games we saw played in years past have been taken out of the equation."
Stewart no doubt is looking forward to returning to Las Vegas Motor Speedway -- a track at which he has enjoyed a lot of success the past five years. After finishing 36th here as a rookie in 1999, Stewart has finished in the top five in four of the past five races, including a second-place showing in 2000 and a third-place effort last year.
But no team has been able to match Roush Racing's success in Las Vegas. Team owner Jack Roush has had the winning car in five of the seven Cup races here and three of the eight NASCAR Busch Series races at LVMS.
Matt Kenseth, the 2003 series champion, has won the past two Cup races at LVMS and joined former Roush driver Jeff Burton (1999 and 2000) as the only two-time and back-to-back winners in Las Vegas. Mark Martin scored Roush's other victory here, in the inaugural race in 1998.
Although Kenseth has struggled in the first two races of the season, the other Roush drivers -- including reigning series champion and Las Vegas native Kurt Busch -- are riding a wave of momentum into Sunday's race. Greg Biffle is coming off a victory at California Speedway, where four of the team's five drivers placed in the top seven.
Busch, a Durango High graduate, returns home as the Nextel Cup Series points leader after a runner-up finish in the Daytona 500 and a third-place showing at Fontana. Fellow Roush Racing drivers Martin, Carl Edwards and Biffle are third, fourth and fifth in points, respectively.
Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 Nextel Cup race is expected to draw a record crowd of more than 150,000, making it the largest single-day sporting event west of Dallas for the eighth consecutive year. An estimated 144,600 fans attended last year's race and the speedway has added additional bleacher seating outside Turn 3 for this weekend's race.
The all-time attendance mark for a Cup race at LVMS is 145,275 in 2003.
In addition to Sunday's Nextel Cup race, LVMS will host the Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Busch Series race Saturday and World of Outlaws races Thursday and Friday night at the half-mile dirt track.
Qualifying for Sunday's UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 and Saturday's Sam's Town 300 will be held Friday at 3:10 p.m. and 4:40 p.m., respectively.
The 200-lap Sam's Town 300 will start at 1:10 p.m. Saturday and the 267-lap UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 will begin Sunday at 12:05 p.m.
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