Updated

Updated · The San Diego Union-Tribune · Jun 15

NASCAR Unveils 3.4-Mile Coronado Street Course With 16 Turns as Teams Face Minimal Practice

Updated

Updated · The San Diego Union-Tribune · Jun 15

NASCAR Unveils 3.4-Mile Coronado Street Course With 16 Turns as Teams Face Minimal Practice

Q: Will NASCAR's longest street course, with its bumpy surfaces and varied pavements, lead to racing chaos this weekend?

Yes—everything points to a messy, highly unpredictable weekend, even if outright “chaos” is not guaranteed in every race. The strongest evidence is the combination of an entirely new 3.4-mile, 16-turn street course, very limited practice, and major uncertainty about setup. Cup and O’Reilly teams get only one 50-minute session, while trucks get two 40-minute sessions, leaving little time to understand tire wear, ride heights, braking zones, and how the cars react over bumps. Billy Scott said simulations already show the cars will bottom out, and teams still lack real track data. The surface itself is a major concern. Drivers and crew chiefs expect four different pavement types—old concrete, new concrete, old asphalt, and new asphalt—to produce uneven grip and tire wear. Jimmie Johnson called parts of the course “bumpy and rough,” and Joey Logano warned the narrow sections could make mistakes costly and even block the track if several cars get tangled. That said, the race may not be nonstop wrecking. Kyle Larson believes passing opportunities exist, especially at Turns 2, 6, and the Turn 12 complex, which could prevent the event from becoming a pure traffic jam. Road-course specialists such as Shane van Gisbergen may also adapt faster than others. So the likely outcome is not random mayhem, but a race shaped by cautions, missed braking points, setup mistakes, and strategy swings. On a track this narrow, rough, and unfamiliar, disorder is more likely than a clean, settled race.

Q: With minimal practice on a new track, will simulation data or driver instinct decide the winner at Coronado?

Driver instinct and adaptability are likely to decide the winner more than simulation alone, though the best-prepared teams will need both. Simulation will matter because Coronado is brand new, practice is extremely limited, and teams need a baseline for ride height, braking points, gearing and tire expectations. Crew chief Billy Scott said simulator work already suggests cars will bottom out, and Kyle Larson’s sim laps helped identify likely passing zones at Turns 2, 6 and 12. For drivers such as Ty Gibbs, heavy sim preparation could prevent wasting the only 50-minute Cup practice session. But Coronado’s biggest variables are the kind simulators handle least well: a bumpy, narrow street course with four different pavement types, changing grip, and little margin for error. Jimmie Johnson called parts of it “bumpy and rough,” while Joey Logano warned that narrow sections could make incidents block the track. Those conditions reward drivers who can quickly judge grip, improvise lines, protect brakes and tires, and avoid race-ending mistakes in traffic. That is why instinct may carry extra weight on race day. Drivers with a record of adapting to unfamiliar road courses, such as Shane van Gisbergen, appear especially dangerous because everyone will be learning in real time. The likely winner is not the driver with the best simulation model alone, but the one who can turn that preparation into fast decisions once the track behaves differently than expected.

3 articles · Updated · The San Diego Union-Tribune · Jun 15

NASCAR said its new Naval Base Coronado circuit will stretch 3.4 miles with 16 turns, mixing narrow sections, sharp 90-degree corners and several short straights around the waterfront base.
One 50-minute practice for Cup and O’Reilly Series teams — and two 40-minute sessions for Trucks — will leave crews building tire, chassis and setup data on the fly.
Jimmie Johnson called parts of the track “bumpy and rough,” while Billy Scott said cars could bottom out and Joey Logano warned incidents in tight sections could block the course.
Kyle Larson still identified passing zones at Turn 2, Turn 6 and the Turn 12 A-B section, suggesting execution and quick visual learning may decide how raceable the layout becomes.
The course places the start-finish line and pit road on the Ellyson section, tying NASCAR’s latest street-racing experiment to Coronado’s naval aviation history.