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Cup Series, Craftsman Trucks set for Goodyear tire tests at North Wilkesboro Speedway

Cup Series, Craftsman Trucks set for Goodyear tire tests at North Wilkesboro Speedway

Goodyear tire tests have been scheduled Monday and Tuesday at North Wilkesboro Speedway in advance of NASCAR All-Star Race Weekend on May 19-21.

The 0.625-mile track will host NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series teams on Monday, with the NASCAR Cup Series on track on Tuesday. Three teams — one representing each manufacturer — will participate each day to help determine the proper tire compounds for the weekend.

RELATED: North Wilkesboro construction updates | 2023 Cup Series schedule

The sessions mark the return of NASCAR national series vehicles to the North Carolina venue, which last hosted both tours in 1996. The speedway is undergoing a major renovation project ahead of the NASCAR All-Star Race on May 21 (8 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) and the Tyson 250 for Craftsman Trucks on May 20 (1:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM).

The two days of tire testing are closed to the public. Teams and drivers scheduled to participate are:

Monday: Craftsman Truck Series

  • Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford

  • Corey Heim, No. 11 TRICON Garage Toyota

  • Carson Hocevar, No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet

Tuesday: Cup Series

  • Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

  • Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford

  • Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota

Smith, the defending Truck Series champion, said Friday at Atlanta Motor Speedway that he was looking forward to seeing the progress that has been made in reviving the race track.

“I think it’ll be a pretty cool event,” Smith said. “It’s been kind of cool to see the updates on all my Twitter of just that place coming alive. Obviously, we’ve seen that late model event how packed it was, so I can only imagine how crazy it’s gonna be for the trucks. … I mean, it’ll be a cool event, I’m excited for it. I know my whole team, they’re all racers, especially my engineer and crew chief. They grew up short-track racing, and so they’re excited for it as well.”

North Wilkesboro Speedway hosted NASCAR Cup Series competition from its first season in 1949 up to 1996. The Truck Series joined the North Wilkesboro schedule in 1995-96, the circuit’s first two seasons of existence.