The lap
Daytona International Speedway · Road Course
9 corners, 5 of which decide the lap. What each one asks of the car, and what you do about it.
Tri-oval
T1
T2
Horseshoe
Esses
T6
Back straight
Bus Stop
NASCAR banking
StraightFast cornerMedium cornerSlow corner
The lapTwo halves: a tight, low-grip infield where mechanical grip decides everything, bolted onto banking and straights where drag decides everything. Wing level is the whole argument.
Set up forSet mechanical grip for the infield, then strip wing until the Bus Stop and banking are only just tolerable.
Classic mistakeRunning a comfortable amount of wing. You get passed on both straights, every lap, by cars with less.
Works hardestLeft side on the banking; fronts in the horseshoe
Length5.7 km · road course · US
Corner by corner
Every corner on this layout
A • marks the corners that decide the lap.
T1 Turn One •
Heavy braking off the banking
Off the banking at full speed into the tightest braking zone on the lap, with the track falling away as you hit the pedal.
- Technique
- Braking done early and straight. The transition off the banking is no place to be trail braking.
- Demands
- Braking-limited · Low speed — aero does little · Wants a settled rear
T2 Turn Two
Short left · linking
A quick left that exists mostly to set up the Horseshoe.
- Technique
- Straighten it as much as the kerbs allow. Getting greedy compromises the corner that matters.
- Demands
- Transient, not steady-state · Wants yaw on entry · Kerbs are part of the line
T3 International Horseshoe •
Slow left · long apex
Long, slow and patient with a very late apex. The biggest mechanical grip test on the lap.
- Technique
- Slow in, wait, be greedy only on exit. It keeps turning long after you think it should.
- Demands
- Low speed — aero does little · Wants yaw on entry · Front grip limited · Traction-limited · Degradation over a stint
T4 Turn Four
Medium right
The first half of the infield esses, taken with the car still loaded from the Horseshoe exit.
- Technique
- One flowing input through both esses corners.
- Demands
- Transient, not steady-state · Sustained mid-corner load
T5 Turn Five
Medium left
The second direction change, with no time to settle in between.
- Technique
- If you're sawing at the wheel here you're losing time in both directions.
- Demands
- Transient, not steady-state · Sustained mid-corner load · Wants a settled rear
T6 Onto the Back Straight •
The money exit
Everything gained here carries down the longest straight, through the Bus Stop and onto the banking.
- Technique
- Sacrifice entry for exit every lap. Get straight, then get greedy.
- Demands
- Traction-limited · Exit-phase limited · Rear grip limited
BS The Bus Stop •
Chicane · big kerbs
Brake from top speed into a left-right that lives on the kerbs, then get straight for the banking.
- Technique
- Use the kerbs but land flat. Bouncing out costs you all the way round the banking.
- Demands
- Kerbs are part of the line · Bumpy surface · Braking-limited · Aero platform sensitive
T3–4 NASCAR Banking •
Flat · sustained load
Flat out but not free — sustained lateral load compresses the car for a long time.
- Technique
- Hands off and let it run. The work here is traffic management, not driving.
- Demands
- High speed — aero is live · Aero platform sensitive · Wants a settled rear · Degradation over a stint
TO The Tri-oval
Flat · high speed
The kink past the start line, flat but with the car fully loaded at maximum speed.
- Technique
- Nothing to do but hold it. Watch for cars three-wide on the exit.
- Demands
- High speed — aero is live · Wants a settled rear · Aero platform sensitive
Corner names and numbering follow common usage; some circuits number differently between layouts.
Sideways
Where to go next
The ranked answer is per car. Pick yours to see what this lap asks of it.
This lap, car by car