Goodyear responds to criticism

Stewart, who finished second behind his teammate Kyle Busch in what was the first race victory for Toyota in the Sprint Cup, described the tyre taken to Atlanta by Goodyear as "the worst tyre I've ever been in my life in any professional form of racing," while other drivers echoed his remarks in less extreme fashion.

Goodyear officials defended their tyre selection for the race weekend at Atlanta, which was done based on data and feedback gathered from tests last year and finalized in December following a test with six-time race winner at the venue Bobby Labonte.

They also stated that NASCAR fully supports them as the series' official tyre supplier.

"Based on Goodyear's tyre testing at Atlanta last August, October and December, we provided what we believed were the best possible products for the races this past weekend," a statement from Goodyear read.

"We had no tyre failures and no problems with heat or wear. We supplied the same tyres for both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, and received zero complaints about our tyres after the Nationwide race on Saturday.

"We believe that our engineering, research and tyre development is second to none. We accept that drivers will have their own opinions about our tyres.

"NASCAR president Mike Helton told us Monday that 'NASCAR is very grateful for the commitment Goodyear has made on behalf of building a good and safe product for our competitors, including this past weekend at Atlanta. NASCAR stands by our relationship and is proud to have Goodyear as a partner.'"

However, Goodyear said in their statement that following comments made by a number of Sprint Cup series drivers, they plan to review their tyre selection for the next event at Atlanta, which takes place in October.

"Even though both Goodyear and NASCAR were satisfied with the tyre's performance in Atlanta, if the drivers are not happy, then Goodyear's not happy. Now that we know how this tyre combination performed, we'll go back and retest for the fall race.

"We have the same goal as the drivers and NASCAR: to put the safest, best performing tyres on these cars.

"There will be many instances this year when the new car is on a particular track for the first time, as was the case in Atlanta. That makes it tougher than usual to get a read on how the tyres will perform. But if there is ever any doubt about the recommendation, we will always err on the conservative side."

Finally, Goodyear denied claims made by Tony Stewart regarding the tyre maker's exit from Formula One and other forms of motorsport, which according to the two-time Sprint Cup series champion's claims was a consequence of Goodyear's lack of capability to compete at the top level.

"Finally, we would like to correct an erroneous comment made by Tony Stewart. Goodyear decided to leave other racing series only because of the escalating costs of competition in those series.

"At least one other tyremaker has done the same. For Goodyear, the enormous investment required to compete in those other forms of racing far outweighed the benefits derived from our participation.

"We see tremendous benefits in our 54-year relationship with NASCAR as the organization's longest continuing supplier. We remain fully committed to, and are proud of, our relationship with NASCAR."