The Essentials
Race: AAA 400Time: Sunday 2 p.m./EDT
TV/Radio: ESPN, Motor Racing Network
Twitter: Updates @ FanHouseRacing
Forecast: Mid-70s, Partly Cloudy, 40% rain
Distance: 400 laps (400 miles)
Pole Winner: Jimmie Johnson
2008 Winner: Greg Biffle
The Storylines
If you've caught any coverage of Sprint Cup practice or qualifying this weekend from Dover, the chance you didn't hear a driver complain about the new Goodyear tire compound was razor thin.
The tire supplier tested at the mile-long concrete track in August and brought back a compound that is supposed to have more grip like a tire for Charlotte or Las Vegas. The right-side tires also feature compound elements learned from Indianapolis that Goodyear hopes will allow the rubber to adhere to the racing groove better.
Several teams were taken by surprise by the change this weekend and have noticed a tremendous difference in the tire's handling characteristics from the May race at Dover -- leaving many to ponder and criticize Goodyear's changes.
Denny Hamlin, qualified 13th for Sunday's race, was the most vocal of opponents on Friday in the garage area.
"There was a tire test here and, from what I hear, they didn't bring back the tire that everyone liked," Hamlin said. "They won't listen to us drivers, so I don't know why we even tire test these race tracks anymore.
"They'll take a lot of data from this tire or they'll piece together this tire and that tire and make a tire that no one has run on and it ends up being terrible."
Greg Biffle wasn't as critical of the process, but felt the changes were unnecessary.
"This tire is really proposing a lot of trouble for us, and we're just super-loose and having troubles getting a hold of the race track," said Biffle. "They should've left the tire alone. There was nothing wrong with the old one."
Of course, there were other drivers who felt that the complaining wasn't needed and that the tire would be fine. Kurt Busch's feelings about the tire were positive, feeling that the drivers just need to do their jobs.
"It's not driving very easy, but we're fast," said Busch, who paced the second practice session. "I think what the car is telling me is that this new tire is asking for the drivers to get up on the wheel and drive hard."
And Michael Waltrip Racing's David Reutimann was quite gung-ho about the grip level of the tire -- something Goodyear probably liked to hear.
"I think Goodyear has got a very good tire," said Reutimann. "It seems like it has a lot of grip and a lot of good drive. The tire has a little more stagger and a couple of subtle things."
Hamlin's irritation didn't stop with the tires after getting booted late out of Saturday's Nationwide race at Dover.
Brad Keselowski made a move underneath Hamlin on lap 189 of the 200 lap event in turn two. Hamlin, who admitted his spotter told him that the No. 88 was down low, tried to cut down to stop Keselowski off the corner. Contact ensued and Hamlin spun lazily across the track before clipping the nose of his car against the inside wall.
Hamlin would pull directly to the garage and finish 27th while Keselowski finished third. The controversy didn't stop there, though.
When the 25-year-old Keselowski pulled into the pits after the race, 29-year-old Hamlin greeted him at his car and exchanged a few words with him. Later, Hamlin said he wanted to offer Keselowski "guidance".
The pair exchanged a shoves with Keselowski's PR rep handling Hamlin for the driver from Michigan.
Don't worry, we've got the Youtube of the whole discussion -- and a little bit of background from a tangle between these two at Charlotte last season -- right here.
Elliott Sadler, fresh off his 8th-place finish last week, suffered the same problem that his Richard Petty Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne had a week ago during qualifying for Sunday's race.
Sadler's No. 19 broke a crankshaft his R6 Dodge engine -- the same ill that knocked Kasey Kahne out of the race at New Hampshire last week. Unlike Kahne, though, Sadler will be biting the bullet on Sunday with the same model of engine because of problems with motor mounts.
Kahne is planning to race the R5 engine -- an older, but more reliable generation of the Dodge motor -- for the rest of the season. Sadler, meanwhile, will have to put a new R6 in for Sunday because the motor mounts on his car at Dover don't align with the R5, and the chassis work to make it fit is too much to handle away from the shop.
Rain is a possibility today at Dover, but the chances seem to be tapering off as the day moves on.
The National Weather Service has the threat of isolated showers at 40 percent through 3pm local time today and otherwise partly cloudy.
Here's to hoping we can get a full race in.
The Prediction
Greg Biffle has scored 108 more points in the last 10 races at Dover than Jimmie Johnson to lead all active drivers in that category. However, Johnson does have four wins at the track compared to Biffle's two.
Johnson is the most recent winner at Dover, but Biffle won last season's fall race at the one-mile concrete oval.
Those two seem like obvious favorites at the fast track in Delaware, but there's just one more stat you should know. Carl Edwards has the best average finish of them all -- he's normally 7th -- and has failed to complete just 5 laps in his career at the track.
Who's your favorite today? Me, I'll take Jimmie Johnson.
