NASCAR Cup Series

Dale Earnhardt Jr. says drivers will need 4 tires today

Published Mar. 19, 2017 11:12 a.m. ET

Tom Jensen

Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a great day Saturday, as Justin Allgaier won the DC Solar 200 NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Phoenix Raceway, and Allgaier’s three JR Motorsports teammates all finished in the top 10.

For Earnhardt, who co-owns JR Motorsports with his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, it was as good a day as he could have possibly hoped for.

And for Earnhardt the driver, who will start third in today’s Camping World 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix (3 p.m. ET, FOX), the XFINITY battle was a good chance to learn what he’ll need to content today.

“I think we saw that the outside line is the best place to restart,” said Earnhardt when asked about his observations from the XFINITY race.

Then there’s the question of pit road strategy and whether to take two tires or four during pit stops.

“You know, you look at what two tires does vs. four,” said Earnhardt. “It’s so hot that I think two tires aren’t going to be quite as competitive as they might have been here in the past because of the heat.

“And the fall off is a little more dramatic with the track temp being so high,” said Earnhardt. “Four tires seems to be really important. You can’t gamble and stay out or just get the two tires and expect to be as competitive as you need to be.”

Earnhardt said he’s good with that.

“Every time we come down pit road, we want four tires,” Earnhardt said. “We just want to be on the offense all of the time. Anything less puts you kind of a bit on defense.”