NASCAR Cup Series

Tryson out as BK Racing crew chief

Published Jul. 15, 2013 1:00 a.m. ET

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Crew chief Pat Tryson has parted ways with BK Racing.

Tryson, a 17-year veteran of the Sprint Cup Series, most recently worked with David Reutimann and the No. 83 Toyota at BKR. The team is 32nd in the points standings.

“Pat’s a great resource in the sport,” said BKR co-owner Ron Devine. “We asked Pat to come in at a time when we were trying to get up to speed, and, for now, we’ve just decided to go in a slightly different direction.

“We’re comfortable where these teams are progressing. We’re still a very young team — only about 16 months old. But I feel good about where we’re going. We wish Pat all the best. He has a lot of talent.”

Tryson’s first season on the tour was 1997 with Geoff Bodine. His most productive years were 2004 and 2005 with Mark Martin, when the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford finished fourth in the points standings both seasons, and 2009 with Kurt Busch at Penske Racing. The Blue Deuce posted two wins and also finished fourth in points.

Tryson has been replaced by Doug Richert. Richert worked as Landon Cassill’s crew chief at BKR last season. However, his career as a Sprint Cup crew chief began in 1980 with the late Dale Earnhardt.

Where the rubber meets the road

After testing for two days at Atlanta Motor Speedway last month, neither Goodyear nor the drivers were pleased with the variety of tires brought to the test.

Most drivers complained that the compound was too hard and did not provide ample grip. So Goodyear has rescheduled a confirmation test for Aug. 6, with 12 to 15 drivers from a variety of teams.

Greg Stucker, Goodyear director of race tire sales, says that working with the new Generation 6 car has introduced new challenges.

“We’re starting to see more differences in the car as we test more and the teams become more familiar with it,” Stucker said. “Obviously, the car is quicker than the previous generation. That puts more load on everything. So we’re starting to see some differences that we need to react to. That’s why we’re returning to Kansas so we can provide something with a little more grip than what we had the first time around.

“We’ve seen a couple of instances with some guys crossing the boundary — some right-front situations, to be quite honest with you, weren’t there before with the same package. What’s different? The car is different. I’m not saying the car is bad — it’s just faster. They’re loading it differently. So, we need to understand it and figure out how we need to react to it.”

Kasey Kahne, Martin Truex Jr., Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards, Jeff Burton, Jamie McMurray and Aric Almirola are some of the drivers expected to attend the Atlanta test.

Goodyear will also return to Kansas Speedway this Tuesday and Wednesday with Greg Biffle, Kyle and Kurt Busch.

For sale

Boris Said is selling his race shop in Concord, NC.

Normally, that wouldn’t be a big deal. But in this case, it’s currently the home of Richard Petty Motorsports.

“We’re looking at our options right now,” said RPM director of operations Sammy Johns. “It’s nothing that’s a surprise. We’re working through it.’

RPM currently fields two Sprint Cup entries, for Marcos Ambrose and Almirola, who finished a season-high fifth at Loudon on Sunday. RPM also runs the No. 43 Nationwide Series team for Michael Annett and recently discussed a development program for Corey LaJoie and Ryan Truex.

Johns is optimistic that RPM, which has leased the property since 2010, will continue a similar relationship with the new owner.

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