New Daytona surface good, not flawless

During a Thursday press conference, Tony Stewart turned some heads when he mentioned a small bump between Turns 3 and 4 at Daytona International Speedway. With everyone led to believe the newly paved track was "flawless," talk of a bump was an attention getter.

Bill Braniff, lead engineer for the repaving project, was at DIS on Saturday and explained that the paver — the 40-ton Titan 525 — slipped a couple of times in the east banking.

The resulting blemish was smoothed by hand (and shovel), and while it appeared level upon completion, there was a very small bump that can be felt if driving near the middle of the racing groove.

There's another small blip closer to Turn 3, said Braniff, who said both bumps fit well within the engineering tolerance level. And compared to the wrinkles and dips in the old layout, it's now like 2.5 miles of billiard slate.