Adapting to this track

• Like so many of the mile-and-a-half, flatter racetracks — with less banking than Lowe's or Atlanta but more banking than some short tracks and bigger tracks like Indy and Pocono — drivers can choose where they want to race because there are now a multitude of grooves as the track hosts its seventh Cup race. During qualifying, they will be right around the bottom, but when they get ready to race, they'll be all over the racetrack.
• It's a smooth track without a lot of bumps. Drivers put the car down low on the track, and teams work a lot with shocks to keep the car down. The track is hard on motors because drivers are in the throttle so much, especially around that front stretch. You can damage the valve springs and valve train, so the engine guys must get the cars to have good fuel mileage and still be able to run those high, hanging rpms all day.

Plotting strategy

• Like Michigan, Sunday's race at Chicagoland could come down to strategy and fuel mileage because we tend to get long, green runs. Like Michigan, when someone jumps out front and gets clean air, they can be tough to run down, even if they're just on two tires. Weather can dictate strategy. Warm weather will take grip away from the track and put a premium on fresh tires. Throughout the event, you'll see teams try just two right-side tires, especially if there isn't a long run and a lot of laps on a set of tires.

Where the action is

• It's going to take time before the racing surface is broken in enough to allow side-by-side racing. Although the track has a fair amount of banking, the groove is down around the bottom. On qualifying day, cars will hug the white line all the way around because that's where the rubber and grip are. It will take several races, like it did at Las Vegas and Fontana, to get a second groove. Because it's so hot here in July, the track becomes slick; we've had wrecks in Turn 2 and Turn 4.