TALLADEGA, Ala. – NASCAR will continue using the 15/16th-inch restrictor plate that teams used in the first two practice sessions Friday at Talladega Superspeedway.
Sprint Cup Series officials met to discuss the plate size after the final practice, where the top lap speed was Jeff Burton's 199.467 mph, but decided to keep things the same.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has five Sprint Cup Series wins at Talladega and posted the fifth fastest lap (196.487mph) in final practice, said the current speeds "seem slow" and "feels real draggy" but the race will give drivers plenty of time to adapt to the new spoiler and plate combination.
"The draft is a little bit different with the spoiler and the plate they chose," Earnhardt Jr. said. "The cars do a little bit different things and some things work better or a little worse and it's a little different.
"There's not a lot that we can do to the cars to make them any faster with the rules the way they are you can't adjust on the car that much so it is what it is when you unload it and you just try to go out there in the race and learn what is working and who is good to work with and try to make it happen."
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