Phoenix deals unique hand to crews dialing in setups (cont'd)

"It's more just getting on the inside edge of the tire itself and damaging it," Parrott said of the rash of popped right-fronts the teams have experienced with the new car. "That usually happens when you put new tires on and you've got a lot of camber in it in the center of the corner. It happens at low air pressure, and you'll damage the tire, then run almost a full fuel stop. You'll see guys start having right-fronts go down."

Phoenix presents a different tire challenge from most tracks, now that Rockingham is off the schedule. Being flatter than most, and in the middle of the desert, sand has a tendency to find its way into everything.

"Phoenix can be hard on tires," Parrott said. "You can get caught up in trying to make your car turn, and camber is a good fix for making it turn in the center of the corner. Phoenix has a history of a lot of guys trying to get too aggressive with right-front camber settings and popping right-front tires. The track is pretty old and abrasive, and it's in the middle of the desert, so you'll have wind storms that make it kind of sandy."

The engine guys earn their money at Phoenix too, Parrott said.

"It puts the engines to the test because on the straights you're turning pretty good RPM, especially into Turn 3," he noted. "A lot of guys will put a rev limiter in their car. If the driver's on the chip entering Turn 3, it kind of gives them an idea that they're driving too hard into the corner. It helps the driver to know to get off the gas."

Getting off the gas can be important at Phoenix, especially at the end of the race, as fuel mileage is crucial.

"Phoenix is a place that will make you or break you on track position," Parrott said. "Being up front is definitely the key to winning the race there. The lead car just seems to get up and get out ahead of everyone, and being in clean air is very important there. Fuel mileage is very important there too. The race that Jimmie Johnson won the first of the year was very similar to the one Carl Edwards won at Texas last week. At the end of the race, he slowed the pace way down while everyone else was pitting for fuel and he was able to make it."

One aspect that is on Parrott's mind these days is the super-tight race for the manufacturer's championship. Chevrolet, Ford and Toyota are separated by a scant three points heading into Phoenix.

"I'd love to see Ford win the manufacturer's championship," he said. "It's going to be tough, but anything is possible."