CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
AAA INSURANCE NHRA MIDWEST NATIONALS
GATEWAY MOTORSPORTS PARK IN MADISON, ILLINOIS
POST-RACE DRIVER QUOTES
SUNDAY, SEPT. 23, 2018
An interview with Pro Stock winner TANNER GRAY, GRAY MOTORSPORTS, GRAY MOTORSPORTS VALVOLINE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 7 qualifier; sixth win of season and 11th of career in 44 races; competing in second season; extended points lead to 52 over second place with four races left):
WHAT STANDS BETWEEN YOU AND THE CHAMPIONSHIP TROPHY?
“Basically, just eliminating any kind of mistakes we could make from here on out. We have to stay consistent, going rounds. I have all the confidence in the world in the guys at Gray Motorsports. They gave us, me and Drew (Skillman; runner-up), awesome cars. He has a chance to get back into this (championship hunt). I can’t be more thankful and pleased with everything that is going on. If you would have told me that in my second year I would be running for a championship, as lose to winning one, I would have told you that you were crazy. I have to thank Valvoline, Chevy, my grandma and grandpa, my mom and dad.”
THOUGH YOU QUALIFIED SEVENTH, YOU MUST HAVE HAD CONFIDENCE IT WOULD COME AROUND ON RACE DAY?
“I think we seem to run a little bit better when the track is a little hotter and the track is a little greasier. We made nice runs all through qualifying; it was not just aggressive enough, I guess. I’m happy with the race car we had today. The guys did an awesome job putting it together and giving me a consistent car all day.”
WERE YOU WORRIED GOING INTO THE FINAL ROUND AGAINST A GUY (DREW SKILLMAN) WHO HAS THE SAME HORSEPOWER ARE YOU?
“I knew Drew was going to be tough and he has been hitting the Tree better than he has lately. I’m not sure what they did in the final; obviously they shook. It worked out for me.”
YOU HAD ANOTHER GOOD DAY ON THE TREE
“I definitely had a good day. I feel like I hit the Tree really well through qualifying. They make it a lot easier for me when they give me a great race car. I’m focused on winning the championship. I feel like this is our best year yet and I’m looking forward to it.”
TOP FUEL:
BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS MONSTER ENERGY CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (No. 8 qualifier; fell in first round): “There is no doubt that was a tough loss but no one on this Advance Auto Parts Monster Energy team is going to quit. There are four Countdown races left and we are taking this dragster back to the shop to get front halved tomorrow. We think that will help with the consistency going down track. I am going to keep my focus on doing the best job I can as a driver. This sport is tough but we can handle it. I have a lot of confidence in every one of my crew guys and in my crew chiefs Brian Husen and Alan Johnson.”
FUNNY CAR:
COURTNEY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 3 qualifier; fell in second round): “We gave a really great effort in the second round. We came close. It dropped a cylinder and hurt itself at the top end. It might have kicked the rods out by the time we got past the finish line. I am bummed because I feel like we have a car that is getting us down to the other end and if we wouldn’t have dropped those cylinders I think we would have been right there with him,” said Force, the No. 3 qualifier of the event. “We made some quick runs in qualifying but these past few races we have been battling tire smoke on race day. I feel like we fixed one problem and may have created another one. That is the tricky part with these Nitro Funny Cars. We are going testing tomorrow and tear this thing apart and see what we can get squared away. We are going to find what is responding negatively to our tune-up. There have been runs where we felt like it should have gone or not hurt itself and we are going to figure out where that problem is. We are going to stay positive. I still feel like we have a good race car.”
JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, PEAK COOLANT & MOTOR OIL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 8 qualifier; fell in second round to Robert Hight): “This is the Countdown and we are running for a championship. I am happy to see Robert (Hight) and Courtney (Force) running at the top and we are just a little behind them. I love racing in St. Louis and the fans have been great. We still can make some moves and I am ready for the fight.”
PRO STOCK:
DREW SKILLMAN, RAY SKILLMAN MOTORSPORTS, RAY SKILLMAN AUTO GROUP CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 5 qualifier; fell in final): “It was a good day but could have been better with our first win of the season in Pro Stock (Skillman won in Stock Eliminator). We’re going rounds, which is what matters. We’ll be ready for Dallas.”
JASON LINE, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 3 qualifier; fell in second round): “It was kind of a tough day, and certainly not the outcome I expected. I had a good chance to make up some ground, but that did not happen like I thought it would. You have ups and downs in racing and life, so we’re just going to have to keep digging and move on.”
BO BUTNER, BUTNER AUTO, JIM BUTNER AUTO SALES CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 4 qualifier; fell in second round): “I was OK today, but I just got bit there in one shot. My focus leaving here is just going rounds, wherever we go, and who knows what can happen. We’re going to do some testing and make things better for these last few races. The goal is for one of the KB Racing cars to win, and maybe the other ones can help.”
VINCENT NOBILE, MOUNTAIN VIEW RACING, MOUNTAIN VIEW TIRE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 6 qualifier; fell in semifinals): “We had a great run going (six elimination round wins in a row) but couldn’t get past (Tanner) Gray in the semifinals. All in all, it was a good points weekend for the Mountain View team and we’ll look forward to being strong off the truck in Dallas.”
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 8 qualifier; fell in second round): “All weekend long, we just couldn’t make the engine or car happy here, and we’re kind of confused about that. It was a disappointing weekend, and we just kept hoping we would figure it out – but we never did. We’ve got some work to do, and we have to do some on-track testing before we get to Dallas. It’s not over yet, but we cannot afford another weekend like this if we want to be in the battle for that championship.”