NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FOLDS OF HONOR QUIKTRIP 500
ATLANTA MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 26, 2016
TY DILLON, NO. 14 BASS PRO SHOPS TRACKER BOATS CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Full transcript:
TY, YOU’RE RUNNING DOUBLE-DUTY THIS WEEKEND IN THE NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES AND THE NASCAR XFINITY SERIES. TALK ABOUT EXPECTATIONS HEADING INTO THE WEEKEND.
“It’s a huge weekend. First of all, I have to thank Stewart-Haas Racing for the opportunity to be in the 14 car. I think everyone wants to see Tony (Stewart) in this car. With those unfortunate circumstances, I was able to be in the car this weekend, which is good for me to get the experience in such great equipment. I can’t thank them enough for the opportunity. It’s an honor to drive the 14 for Tony. I have high expectations for this weekend. I said it earlier in the week that I always set my goals high. I want to run good in this car. I want to do good for Tony and Stewart-Haas Racing. I don’t see why we shouldn’t be able to run in the top-10 or top-15. I’m going to give it all I have. I’ve been talking with (crew chief) Mike (Bugarewicz) all week. I want to go out there and impress a lot of people and show people what I’m made of and what I can do in these race cars. Going back and forth will help me a lot, especially in my Xfinity car. It would be nice to get two good finishes here in Atlanta.”
ANY EXTRA NERVES OR UNUSUAL FEELINGS COMING INTO THE WEEKEND THAT YOU NORMALLY WOULDN’T HAVE?
“It’s different. Everything is different for me. I’ve been used to having one company my whole life that I’ve worked with. This whole week I’ve been at Stewart-Haas, talking to those guys and getting to know them. It’s been great and an awesome experience for me to. It’s helped me grow not just as a driver but as a person and learning how to go about things different. I’m excited for what this brings. It’s definitely a different feeling coming into this weekend but it’s not a worse feeling. It’s really good.”
DOES BEING IN THIS SUBSTITUTE ROLE TAKE AWAY ANY OF THE STING, IF THERE WAS ANY, OF NOT BEING ABLE TO PUT TOGETHER A FULL-TIME CUP PROGRAM? AND HOW MUCH DO YOU VIEW THIS AS BEING PIVITOL IN LANDING SPONSORSHIPS MOVING FORWARD?
“It was a little bit of a sting. I wanted to start of the year knowing I was going to run more Cup races. So with this opportunity coming about, it gives me a chance to showcase what I can do in these cars and gain experience. I’ve only run a certain amount of races in the Sprint Cup Series so far, so any time I can get more laps and more experience it’s always going to help. So it does take away a little bit of the sting from not running more of a schedule that I was hoping for this year in the Sprint Cup Series. But now that I have the opportunity, I can go out there and do what I want to do.”
HAVE OFFICIALS WITH STEWART-HAAS TOLD YOU WHAT THEY EXPECT OUT OF YOU? AND IF THE CAR ISN’T RUNNING AS FAST AS PEOPLE THINK IT SHOULD BE RUNNING, OR IF THERE ARE ISSUES WITHIN THE TEAM, CAN THAT BE A NEGATIVE FOR YOU?
“I don’t think so. I have one job to do, and that’s drive the race car as fast I can. I know Stewart-Haas is going to give me the best equipment possible. I’m going to get in there and work has hard as I can from the first time I’m in the race car. We’re going to make the best out of the situation. Mike and I went to lunch, and we talked about our goals. He’s a rookie crew chief who’s been in the garage for a long time and won championships. The main thing is that we want to finish the race. That’s the first thing – we want to finish the race and bring the car back in the same condition that we brought it here. With what Stewart-Haas can bring to the track as far as racecars and equipment right out of the gate, we ought to be able to finish on the lead lap and in the top-15 – top-10 being a bonus. We have our goals set and want to show people what we’re both made of. I think we’ll have a good opportunity to do that.”
DO YOU EXPEECT TO BE IN THE CAR AT SOME POINT AFTER THIS WEEKEND?
“We’ll see. The main focus right now is just here. This whole process has been day-to-day. We’ll see but right now we’re going to focus on doing the best we can here in Atlanta and go forward from there.”
OBVIOUSLY YOU AND AUSTIN (DILLON) ARE EXTREMELY COMPETITIVE PEOPLE, AND HE RAN THIS CAR TWICE. ANY BRAGGING RIGHTS IF YOU BETTER HIS FINISH IN THIS CAR?
“Yeah, I had to make sure it was OK for my friends and everybody to pull for Stewart-Haas Racing this weekend. They had to ask my mom if it was OK, and she said it was good. Every time we race in any series, there are always bragging rights between us. Even if it’s not said between us, we’re always trying to beat the other one. It’ll be fun this weekend, and hopefully we beat them.”
WHAT ARE THE BEST PARTS OF THIS RACE TRACK, AND WHAT WILL BE YOUR MAIN CHALLENGES WITH THIS TRACK?
“I really like this track. I love that it falls off and it’s getting a little rougher. The surface is worn out. I ran a Cup race here two years ago – it was a different time of year as the race schedule hadn’t changed – and I learned a lot. I really love how these things fall off and it really suits my style. I’m more of a long-run guy at most of these places. The biggest challenge for me is that I haven’t run this new aero package at all. Coming here with that new package is going to be tricky. A lot of that is going to quicken my learning curve by driving the Stewart-Haas No. 14. I know and all the guys are going to give me the best equipment possible. I’ll have a lot of great teammates that know what’s going on and be able to help me out. Hopefully we can cut that learning curve of that new package and being only my second race here pretty quick.”