CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES REV GROUP GRAND PRIX ROAD AMERICA ELKHART LAKE, WISCONSIN TEAM CHEVY POLE QUOTE JUNE 19, 2021 JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 2 HITACHI TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET WINS SECOND CONSECUTIVE NTT P1 AWARD. POLE WINNER QUICK QUOTE:
WHAT DID YOU AND YOUR TEAM KNOW THAT OTHERS DIDN’T KNOW TO GO OUT ON PRIMARY BLACK TIRES?“We knew it this morning that this was what we were going to do. I didn’t know where everyone else was at, but I knew this was my plan this morning and everyone was onboard with it. Gavin was inline, and Tim was as well. Just happy it worked out. I’m a little surprised more didn’t do that. The degradation has been the talk of the weekend. The tires are wearing out. So we needed to mix it up I think. It was going to be hard to make used tires work. It was a huge drop off on second runs. Doesn’t matter what tires you are using. I was really happy with that. Car has been phenomenal. Gavin did a great job. Boys did a great job. Super happy for Hitachi. Second pole in a row. We’ve got to get them a win though. But this is a great day. Team Chevy has done such a good job for us, I would like to get them a win. Obviously we were good last weekend, we just didn’t close the deal. So we are going to work on that tonight and hopefully we can finish it off tomorrow.”
DID YOU AND TIME TALK ABOUT LAST WEEK. OBVIOUSLY THAT IS HIS DEPARTMENT? “I back our decisions every time. I’m always pleased with what we do. I think I have the best of best as far as what we are doing strategy-wise. Tim is aces and I have a great crew behind me. I never question it. It didn’t work out. People have been asking me constantly what do we need to do. Do we need to change our approach? I’m going to maintain that we are doing just fine. We’ve had speed all year. It hasn’t worked out 100% on some of these weekends, and that is INDYCAR racing. It’s very difficult to get every thing to line up. But that’s what makes the series so exciting. But it can be a little infuriating because every thing has to go perfect for you. I think we are doing the right thing. We will try and conjure up the right plan for tomorrow. I think we keep doing what we’ve been doing.”
WHAT IS IT ABOUT YOU AND THIS PLACE? THIS IS YOUR THIRD POLE HERE.“I definitely love Road America. This is one of the best tracks in the world. Not just North America. As far as racing a car, you can’t beat this place. The crowd is always big here. I just think the support for INDYCAR racing is massive in this part of the country. This is one of my favorite tracks. It doesn’t matter where you are in the world. This is one of the best places to drive and INDYCAR.”