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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA ground level image of where a tyre wall will be placed at Watkins Glen exiting Turn 5.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA ground level image of where a tyre wall will be placed at Watkins Glen exiting Turn 5.<\/p>\n
NASCAR has added a series of tyre bundles in the Turn 1 run-off as well as a 68-metre tyre wall exiting the Turn 5 carousel.<\/p>\n
The latter tyre wall begins with a six-metre gap to the track\u2019s edge where the rumble strip is and runs at an angle that will leave just 1.5 metres between the rumble strip and the edge of the wall.<\/p>\n
The measures are designed to stop drivers from running wide and coming back onto the track into the path of another car.<\/p>\n
Van Gisbergen, however, has some concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Turn 1 is a really good solution. What they\u2019ve done with the tyre packs there and having the gaps in the walls is going to work okay,\u201d said van Gisbergen.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe exit of the carousel is a bit of a worry. The angle that it comes back on.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy experience with those tyre walls is they grab cars and spit them out.<\/p>\n
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An aerial view of Turn 1 at Watkins Glen where tyre bundles will be placed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t like the look of that, but smarter people have come up with those things.\u201d<\/p>\n
NASCAR\u2019s senior director, racing communications Amanda Ellis said the governing body wanted to limit the potential for drivers to blow the corner exit and return at high speed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is going to be a tyre barrier or a tyre pack coming out of the carousel, and that is an area where we have seen some pretty hard hits,\u201d said Ellis.<\/p>\n
\u201cUltimately, that one is in place from a safety perspective because we want to help control that as much as we can.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that we\u2019ve seen some hard hits in Cup and O\u2019Reilly but specifically I know in the Truck Series we\u2019ve definitely have seen some that\u2026 they took some hard hits in that area.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome drivers may like it, may not like it. SVG has let his thoughts known, but that won\u2019t be the only change going into Watkins Glen.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re also going to have some tyre packs in Turn 1 and those are essentially in the run-off areas.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you go back and you watch parts of the race last year, the drivers were really starting to use that run-off area.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis, from that perspective, is an opportunity to give them some boundaries in that area but also help get cars back on the track quicker and stay in that racing groove.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere will be potentially some track limits in that area, but we\u2019re still working through that. We do have a pretty good amount of feedback already received.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do know it was also discussed in the drivers meeting that was held at Texas Motor Speedway last weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cDrivers will have a chance to walk the track. If they have questions, obviously NASCAR will be open to that and open to any feedback.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t expect any surprises heading into the weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
Van Gisbergen will do triple duty for the first time in his NASCAR career, racing in the Truck Series on Saturday, the O\u2019Reilly Auto Parts Series on Sunday, and the Cup Series on Monday.<\/p>\n
For more of the latest NASCAR news and analysis, visit Speedcafe US<\/a><\/p>\n
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