NASCAR News 1/20/2010

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Cup drivers Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle and Brian Vickers became the first to conduct an on-track test with a new aluminum spoiler package that could be implemented for the 2010 season during the Goodyear Tire test at Texas Motor Speedway on Tuesday.

Stewart was the first of the group to test the spoiler in the morning session, which was delayed nearly two hours from its 9 a.m. CT start time due to moisture on the 1.5-mile, high-banked oval from heavy morning dew.


“
"[The spoiler] was on a bunch. It didn't seem to be a big balance change which was good. That means you won't have to invent the wheel necessarily.
”
-- TONY STEWART
The session kicked off at approximately 10:53 a.m. with temperatures in the 60s as Stewart rolled out with the wing and less than 40 minutes later was utilizing the spoiler. Vickers also got an opportunity to run the spoiler in the abbreviated morning session.

"[The spoiler] was on a bunch. It didn't seem to be a big balance change which was good," Stewart said. "That means you won't have to invent the wheel necessarily. It was a balance shift, but it wasn't a big balance shift.

"You've got two kinds of grip -- you've got aero grip and you've got mechanical grip. The spoiler is the aero grip and the tires are mechanical. The mechanical grip is real important because it doesn't know if you are running first in line or 10th in line. I'm more of a mechanical guy."

"I thought [the spoiler] was good," Vickers said. "I thought it added a little bit of front downforce, which is a good thing. I think it's going to be more accepted to the fans. It looks cooler -- a little more retro back to the older car.

"We haven't been in a lot of traffic yet, so the big question is how it's going to handle in traffic. Theoretically, from what I've been told, the difference between the two is that the spoiler is better in traffic. The spoiler is going to be more efficient in dirty air and a wing will be more efficient in clean air. Once you get in a lot of turbulence, the spoiler's not going to lose a lot of efficiency while a wing really will."
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Other News: Darlington is added to the Truck schedule in 2010.
Sources: http://www.nascar.com

I hope Texas is the debut...I wonder if testing the spoiler there along with the tire test is a sign of that. It'd be an extra treat to witness that live!

I'd really like to see it debut at Texas, it's a better fit and more knowledgeable than Martinsville. It looks awesome too! I love that the Trucks are going to race at Darlington too.