Glossary / General

tire strategy

11 Episode Mentions

Too Afraid to Ask

Tire strategy is the plan for when to swap tires during the race. Since tires wear out, the timing affects how much grip the car has.

Technical Definition

Tire strategy is how teams plan when to change tires and what tire setup to use over the course of a race. Because tires degrade at different rates, the timing of tire changes can determine grip, lap times, and how well a car performs in later stages.

Hear It Discussed

"because you might see someone pit in stage one, and that move, they change tire strategy, or they change something, you know, maybe they change the suspension of the car"
Talking Car Design With Jeep The Truth About Cars 41:32

"Kyle Kirkwood used a slightly different tire strategy than Pillow and And at one time it looked like it might pay off for him, but Cushans fell the wrong way."
Indycar News in 10 Minutes - Detroit Recap & Gateway Preview - Ep. 32 The Indycar Dad Podcast 01:43

"We had saved a set of tires and no one else did... We got a really, really good car, but we had been out on old tires long and we lost a lot of track position... NASCAR decided to give everybody in..."
Draft for Publish on 2026-05-12 The Dale Jr. Download 47:01