TEAM CHEVY ADVANCECOCA-COLA 600CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAYCONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA MAY 24, 2020
BOWTIE BULLETS:· In what was originally called the World 600, Joe Lee Johnson won the inaugural 600-mile race on June 19, 1960 in a Chevrolet Impala. · Since then, Chevrolet leads all other manufacturers with 24 victories in the annual Coca-Cola 600, one of the NASCAR Cup Series crown jewel races. · Team Chevy drivers have led the field to the green 33 times at the annual Memorial Day event. The most recent pole-winner was William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Liberty University Patriotic Camaro ZL1 1LE, at last year’s race in 2019. The 2019 Coca-Cola 600 pole makes him the youngest Charlotte Motor Speedway pole winner to date (21 years, 4 months, 27 days). · Chevrolet has won the longest NASCAR Cup Series race on the circuit with multiple models including Monte Carlo, Lumina, Monte Carlo SS, and most recently the Chevy SS.
LONG DISTANCE ACHIEVERS:· To date, Darrell Waltrip has the most Coca-Cola 600 victories of all drivers with five – all in Chevrolets (1978, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1989). · Jeff Gordon captured his first NASCAR Cup career win at the Coca-Cola 600 in 1994. He went on to win that event two more times (1997, ’98). All three victories were in Chevrolets. · Career-long Chevrolet driver and seven-time Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson, leads all active drivers with four Coca-Cola 600-mile race victories to his credit (2003, 2004, 2005, 2014).
MULTIPLE TEAM CHEVY WINNERS:· Hendrick Motorsports has the most Coca-Cola 600 victories of any team with 11 in Chevrolets (1988, 1989, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2003–2005, 2007, 2012, 2014). Jimmie Johnson’s most recent win of this race was in 2014. · Richard Childress Racing ranks second with six Coca-Cola 600 wins in Chevrolets (1986, 1992, 1993, 2011, 2013, 2017). Most recently, Austin Dillon took the checkered in 2017. TUNE-IN:FOX will telecast the 400-lap Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway live at 6 p.m. ET Sunday, May 24. Live coverage can also be found on PRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
QUOTABLE QUOTES:ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM/NOCO PATRIOTIC CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 3rd IN STANDINGSBOWMAN ON THE TRANSITION FROM DARLINGTON TO CHARLOTTE:“This weekend will be a little different since we are able to qualify. That will give us a little more knowledge about the car before taking the green flag. We had strong cars in Darlington, and I am confident that everyone back at Hendrick Motorsports is building dominant Chevrolets for the Charlotte events.” BOWMAN ON THE IMPORTANCE OF RACING ON MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND:“It is always special honoring the men and women in the Armed Forces, and we will have United States Army Staff Sgt. Scott W. Brunkhorst on our ChevyGoods.com/NOCO machine. Scott passed away in 2010 from injuries sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with an IED. It will be an honor having him on board and hopefully we can put the car in victory lane for his family and friends.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 5th IN STANDINGSELLIOTT ON THE TRADITION OF RACING ON MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND:“The 600 is a race I always look forward to. It’s great to be a small part of what NASCAR does around Memorial Day. The sport has done a great job recognizing the real heroes. The very least we can do is show appreciation for all the men and women who are serving our country. We can never say thank you to them enough. I look forward to continuing the tradition this weekend.” KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 GEARWRENCH CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 14th IN STANDINGS“I look forward to the 600, it is always a challenge mentally and physically for the drivers and the crews. I tend to break-up the race into two sectors; daytime and nighttime, the race starts at 6pm, sunset around 8pm and finish around 10pm. With the 600 miles and the way the stages are broken into 100 lap segments, that’s the pit strategy side of things. You don’t know when a caution will come out, but the pit strategy is pretty straight forward on what you would do through those segments. You stay busy, focusing on the tire wear the fuel burn-off, gaining positions on-track and you’re always looking forward to that next pit stop to make adjustments, because the track changes throughout the run with the transition from day to night. It is a challenge all the way through.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY PATRIOTIC CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 16th IN STANDINGSBYRON ON RACING AT CHARLOTTE AND THE NO. 24 TEAM’S MENTALITY: “The races at Charlotte are going to be critical for our team. There are a lot of points up for grabs at the 600 and we need to keep building those points to overcome misfortune from earlier in the season. It’s a home race for me as well so there’s a bit of added motivation to run up front. We ran well there last year in both the All-Star Race and the 600 so I’m excited that we’ll have back-to-back races there. I think we will definitely be in contention for the win and that’s an exciting feeling.” BYRON ON THE MEANING OF RACING ON MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND: “Racing on Memorial Day weekend is always special. It’s a time for us to try do something small to honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice so we can continue to do what we love. It’s also special for me, not only because I’m racing where I grew up, but because I’m able to honor those who share connections to Liberty University. It gives me even more motivation and satisfaction to be able to run well, and I hope I’m able to make them proud again on Sunday.” TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 ALSCO UNIFORMS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 17th IN STANDINGSTHIS WILL BE YOUR FIRST EXPERIENCE RACING IN THE COCA-COLA 600, ON OF NASCAR’S LONGEST RACES. HOW ARE YOU PREPARING FOR THAT?“I’m looking forward to my first attempt at the Coca-Cola 600 and the challenges it will bring. I’ve never experienced a race that long before, so it’s going to be a big learning experience for me, especially with how the track will change over the course of the race. Charlotte Motor Speedway is a temperature-sensitive track, so we need to be ready since the way the track is at the start of the night likely won’t be the same at the end of the night. We’ll need to be able to adjust our car for that. I’m excited to be part of the show. It’s an honor to be carrying SGT Norman L. Tollett’s name across my windshield for the race, and I hope we can make his family and friends proud.” YOU THEN TURN AROUND AND RACE CHARLOTTE AGAIN ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT. HOW HAVE THESE MID-WEEK RACES GONE FOR YOU? “It has been really interesting and fun to have these mid-week races. They keep us on our toes, even though it’s the same track being raced so close together. Both Darlington and Charlotte are tracks affected by temperature and day versus night conditions, so it almost comes off as two different places. For this week, we should be able to pull some additional notes from the Coke 600 for Wednesday’s race since we will have a big portion of that race ran in the nighttime, as long as the temperature is close to the same on both nights.” BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 U.S. AIR FORCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 18th IN STANDINGS“To be able to honor Captain Lawrence E. Dickson at the Coca-Cola 600 is remarkable. It’s truly an honor hearing his story – how he was a pioneer, a warrior, and an all-around great American hero. It is our job, and our duty at Richard Petty Motorsports to perform at the best levels that we can know how to represent him, and make his family proud for everything that he has done. We will showcase just how big he was to this country at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. I’m excited, I cannot wait!”
JERRY BAXTER, CREW CHIEF OF THE NO. 43 U.S. AIR FORCE CAMARO ZL1 1LE“After The Real Heroes 400 at the Darlington Raceway, we re-grouped – our Richard Petty Motorsports team did a better job in the Toyota 500 with the No. 43 Victory Junction Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, did a better job driving, the pit crew was on it, and we had our best run of the year. We have a new Chevrolet going into the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. Everybody’s moods are up and Bubba’s excited. Updates to follow, hope it’s good!”
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 COCA-COLA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 21st IN STANDINGSBIG WEEKEND FOR YOU GOING TO YOUR HOMETOWN TRACK WITH A SPECIAL PAINT SCHEME.“It is really cool to have a brand like Coca-Cola behind you at the Coke 600. I’m really looking forward to the opportunity. This is special to me. It’s in my backyard. I have a lot of friends and family watching this race. A couple years back, winning the Coca-Cola 600, there was nothing like it. Being tied with Coca-Cola from the beginning of my Cup Series career and getting to represent Coca-Cola in a full paint out with a patriotic scheme, it’s special. We have an awesome looking car for the 600 that spotlights the true meaning of the holiday.” HOW HARD IS IT TO CHASE TRACK CONDITIONS IN THE COCA-COLA60? IT’S THE LONGEST RACE OF THE SEASON.“It is difficult. It’s a long day, and you’ve really got to stay up-to-date with your car and be ahead of the adjustments. Anything can happen in 600 miles, so you are always in the race. That is the good part of it. Stage racing is fun and interesting there also.” WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO YOU TO BE ABLE TO RACE AT CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY?“I’ve been so fortunate to be able to have come here since I was a little kid and watch races right inside turn one from my grandfather’s condo. I’ve seen so many laps at Charlotte Motor Speedway and have seen a lot of guys from RCR run well at the track. I watched Jimmie Johnson dominate for years. It’s been a good track for me and I always enjoy coming to Charlotte Motor Speedway. This year, it’s even more special to have the opportunity to race and I have to commend NASCAR for all of the steps they’ve taken to put protocols into place that get us back racing safely.” TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO MILITARY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 22nd IN STANDINGSWHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS HEADING INTO CHARLOTTE AND THE LONGEST RACE OF THE SEASON?“The Coke 600 is every bit of five and a half hours, starting in the daytime and ending in the nighttime. There will be a lot of changing positions, depending on if you set up your car for the day or night. I expect quite a bit of excitement on restarts and NASCAR has done a good job of adding the traction compound to help the racing. Last season in this race, my heart rate averaged 150, which is about the same as running or doing a solid workout for five plus hours. I’ve been putting in a lot of work and preparation of my body to go this many races in a row, and that is an important part of being a race car driver. The goal on Sunday for our GEICO Military team is to be consistent and continue the positive momentum we have been gaining.”
YOU WILL RUN A SPECIAL GEICO MILITARY PAINT SCHEME THIS WEEKEND, HONORING OUR COUNTRY’S SERVICE MEN AND WOMEN. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO YOU PERSONALLY? “Our GEICO Military paint scheme – in a cool new desert tan color – was built to honor those men and women who serve our country. It is so much fun being part of a sport that honors those outside of ourselves. From the last two races of honoring those on the medical front lines to now honoring those in the military, it’s a privilege to highlight the real-life heroes. It is special every year to have a fallen soldier’s name on our front windshield, and this season to have another connection to our shop is special. Specialist Richie Emmons (honoree) actually served in the Army with one of our shop fabricators and while we normally have the family at the track with us for the race, we will still honor them the best we can.” RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 23rd IN STANDINGS“The Coca-Cola 600 is a really special race for a lot of reasons. While we aren’t able to host families of fallen soldiers, to still be able to have PFC Barrett Austin on our No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE for 600 miles is very humbling. I’ve had a lot of success at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the 600 specifically and I’m looking forward to continuing that at JTG Daugherty Racing this weekend. While the Darlington races may not have felt normal to us being earlier in the season and during the day versus during at night, the 600 is a race that’s been continuously on Memorial Day Weekend throughout my whole career. We’re definitely getting back into the swing of the season and continuing so work on the speed we have on our intermediate track program. It’s been so great to get back to racing after so many weeks off and while we miss the fans, we hope we can put on a good show on Sunday afternoon.”
RYAN PREECE, NO. 37 SCOTT PRODUCTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 32nd IN STANDINGS“We’re still searching for that rabbit’s foot, but I’m really proud of the work that everyone has put in at JTG Daugherty Racing this season. Our finishing positions may not reflect how our races have gone, but in all of our DNF’s this season, we’ve been running in the top-10 before our bad luck struck. Running third in the Daytona 500 on the second to last lap before getting wrecked, running second at Las Vegas Motor Speedway before a blown engine, and running tenth after restarting 14th when our engine failed at Darlington on Wednesday night. Our speed is there, our determination is there, and we just need a little bit of luck to show for it. I’m proud to continue with the Memorial Day Weekend Coca-Cola 600 tradition of having Cpl. Kyle Schneider on our No. 37 Scott Brand Camaro ZL1 1LE. We’ve got an awesome paint scheme to honor the weekend, and I’m ready to get back on track on Sunday afternoon for the longest race of the season with a great run.”
MATT KENSETH, NO. 42 MCDELIVERY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 33rd IN STANDINGS“The Coke 600 is one of the toughest races we run all year. It’s usually hot and slick to start the race, and then we finish late into the night when the track usually picks up speed and grip, and you have to keep up with the handling through all those changes to be good. It’s one of those races where you have to run hard all day to keep your track position, and then be ready to keep up with the changes to still be good at the end. The second Darlington didn’t go quite as good for us, but we continued to learn some things and I’m looking forward to getting on track at Charlotte for another chance to learn as a team.”
