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Earnhardt Jr. hopes new tire can help end win drought

Another race, another new right-side tire for the NASCAR Sprint Cup – but unlike last week’s contest at Kentucky, four drivers have already tested the new tire at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last month. 

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Action Sports Photography

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin, Aric Almirola and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. participated in the two-day test at the Magic Mile on May 31-June 1.

Although the left-side tire (D-4564) has been used at NHMS since 2012, the right-side tire construction (D-4706) is similar to what the teams compete with at Phoenix International Raceway and Richmond International Raceway.

Goodyear softened the compound in hopes of promoting additional grip and wear.  

Earnhardt in need of a win

In 33 starts, Earnhardt has never won at New Hampshire. Four of his 15 top-10 finishes at the track came in his last five starts.

Earnhardt, who has yet to win this season, finished fifth in this event last year.

“I enjoy racing at New Hampshire,” Earnhardt said. “The track is great. It’s always been one of my favorite stops – it’s always a nice challenge to figure out how to get around the track itself and the racing is pretty fun. I just want to get a win there. 

“We’ve been a top-five or top-10 car pretty much every trip, but we’ve never had the fastest car. It seems like such a short race, so you need to be the guy.

“There seems to always be one guy who just stands out above the rest of the field, so hopefully the opportunity we had to test there is going to give us a chance.”

Hamlin looking for more success

Unlike Earnhardt, Hamlin has won at NHMS – twice. Over the last seven race, the track has favored Toyotas and Fords.

The last time a Chevy won at New Hampshire, Earnhardt’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kasey Kahne was behind the wheel at this race in 2012. But Hamlin’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth swept the races last year. And Hamlin enjoys an average finish of 10.2 at New Hampshire – the best of the Cup tour.

“Obviously, a big part of what we’ll do this weekend is to try some things that might help us when we return in September during the Chase,” says Hamlin, who locked into the playoffs with his Daytona 500 win.

“Our FedEx team tested at New Hampshire earlier this year, so it gave us a little bit of a head start on some other teams in terms of working on setups and different changes to help the car turn in the center of the corner. 

“We’ll certainly give everything we can to get the win on Sunday, but also establish a good baseline for the Chase.”

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