The roar of engines could be heard this week at Dover International Speedway, even though NASCAR’S first stop in the First State this year is still two weeks away.
About a dozen Sprint Cup drivers hit the Monster Mile over the past three days for testing sessions on the track.
Joey Lagano was among them. Lagano is currently fourth in the 2015 standings with one win this year.
He says NASCAR’s made some changes for this year’s races at Dover and these test sessions give his team a chance to see what that means.
“Right now, we’re learning a little bit about this new wheels package here with the less horsepower and less down force," said Lagano. "And the race will play out a lot different than it did, I think, here in the past. So, [we’re] trying to understand what we’ll need to race well here and a strategy to go with that will be real important when we come back.”
Jimmie Johnson was also in for testing. He's owner of 3 wins this season and a record 9 career victories at Dover. Despite his success on Dover's one-mile concrete oval, Johnson says the sessions still afford his team a chance to learn about the track and their car by trying new things without the pressure of race weekend.
“At a test session, you’re willing to show up that way. You’re willing to make that change over lunch and look at something different in the afternoon. So, we can try a lot more," said Johnson. "We might not be able to learn and have the speed on the track today, but we’ll go home with some ideas. We’ll go home with some things that didn’t work or did work and let our group at home stew on it and it’ll help.”
Johnson, a six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champ, is currently third in the Sprint Cup standings behind Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. - 48 points off the lead.
