"Vegas is a great city to visit whether you're racing or not, but it has generally been one of my favorite tracks too," Biffle said." I'm interested to see how the racing is on the new surface."

Very interested, probably. Biffle crashed hard in a December tire test here and then wiped out another car in NASCAR's big January test.

Kevin Harvick, one of the Nextel Cup tour's hottest drivers, is skeptical about the condition of the track.

"It's too bad they repaved it and screwed it up for the next four or five years," Harvick said. "The track is extremely fast. And I am worried about the tires and how they are going to wear on the new surface."

Goodyear had to go back to the drawing board to come up with tires for LVMS after the January test.

Michael Waltrip is more positive.

"I like the track a lot, and during the test I was able to run up high," Waltrip said. "Every track built lately, like Chicago and Kansas, got a bad rap for not having good racing. Vegas is similar to those tracks - except for the banking. The banking at Vegas allows us to run two or more different lines.

"It's also fast, but that's OK. I'm not sure what the fuss is all about. We're race-car drivers. The cars just go fast at Vegas."

But too fast for some, such as Tony Stewart, who called the speeds "ridiculous."

"I've had two tests and lost one car in each," Biffle said. "So NASCAR is making us run a smaller fuel cell (13 gallons, instead of last year's 22) to counter any tire issues. So pit strategy (with more frequent stops) will play a big part in the race this weekend."

That puts pressure on his crew chief Pat Tryson, who has become one of the sport's most formidable and savvy crew chiefs the past three years. The car that Tryson has for Biffle here "is actually faster than the one that we wrecked, so we're hoping for better luck.

"The smaller fuel cell should help with tire issues, but there are still a few unknowns with the new track surface," Tryson said. "We'll have to be on our toes in the pits and play it safe at the same time."

Kyle Petty noted another worry here.

"It seems to be hard on motors," Petty said. "You are really twisting the engine, and your RPM range is not that wide with all of that new banking.

"They also moved pit road, and that may be a factor. Not only are you getting used to coming down off the banking to pit, but the entrance to pit road is at the exit of turn four."

Indeed, there has been the vague sense in NASCAR rigs that this weekend's runs could be fraught with serious issues.

Matt Kenseth, Biffle's teammate and the winner at California two weeks ago, said: "Vegas used to be one of my favorite tracks - and I hope it's still that way after this weekend. I loved the old configuration because tire wear really became a factor. That makes the racing fun because it comes down to who can tune their cars and find the best line around the track to make their car work on old tires.

"That has changed. They've put a lot more banking in the turns, and during the test the track was super-fast.

"Vegas has been a good track for this group (the Jack Roush teams), and we came within half-a-car-length of winning our third race in four years the last time out. That was frustrating, when you think about all of those laps we led. But there was a late caution that put Jimmie Johnson right behind us, and he was faster. That's one that got away from us."

Kenseth again will have Chip Bolin running the team, while crew chief Robbie Reiser continues serving a NASCAR-imposed suspension. Bolin is batting .500.

"The (pit) guys really won the race for us at California by putting us out front the last pit stop," Bolin said. "This group is continuing to do the things they need to do to pick up the slack in Robbie's absence.

"It's a bit of a learning experience for me atop the pit box. But this is Robbie's team, and he's done such a good job getting talented people in place that when everyone does their job it practically runs itself."