Sprint Cup Series Finishes Phoenix Test

As of a western swing through Fontana, Calif. and Las Vegas, Nev. wasn't enough, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series got its fourth official test session wrapped up in Phoenix on Tuesday afternoon.

The test at Phoenix International Raceway was the fourth of six that teams suggested to NASCAR prior to the season, and joins Daytona, California, and Vegas as tracks the teams have tested at.

Only Pocono and Lowe's Motor Speedway remain on the official Sprint Cup series testing docket. Teams can otherwise only test on tracks that the Sprint Cup series doesn't compete on.

Juan Pablo Montoya -- who was fastest during the Las Vegas test prior to the season -- again led all drivers over the five different sessions offered. The No. 42 put down a lap of 131.459mph in the Tuesday morning test session.


From the looks of it, teams were given the same option they had at the Auto Club Speedway test in California. Of the five sessions that were ran, teams could only choose to compete in four of those. About half the teams ran the first session on Monday morning, with the other half running the final session on Tuesday afternoon.

Paul Menard, in the No. 15 Dale Earnhardt Inc. Chevrolet, had the second-quickest lap at 131.186mph. Phoenix-native J.J. Yeley was third.

The one-mile PIR track will host two Sprint Cup events this season with the Subway 500 on April 12 and the Checker Auto Parts 500 during the Chase to the Sprint Cup on November 9.