NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
STP 400
KANSAS SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 19, 2013
 
 
JAIME MCMURRAY, NO. 1 MCDONALD’S CHEVROLET SS met with media and discussed the state of the EGR team; it’s turnaround this year, and more. FULL TRANSCRIPT”
 
HOW WAS YOUR CAR IN PRACTICE?
“I thought we were really good in race trim. We changed a few things in qualifying and I thought we got a little bit behind. But by the end, I thought our car was good and we’re happy with it.”
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA SAID TODAY THAT WHAT’S BEEN GOING ON WITH THE GANASSI CARS HAS BEEN BAD LUCK AND FAILED PARTS. HAS THERE BEEN MORE QUALITY CONTROL THERE?
“Well, unfortunately the No. 42 car has been on the receiving end of having the parts failures. The parts that they’ve broke are kind of one-off’s. I don’t think it’s a quality control issue. Unfortunately it’s just been really bad luck for them. So, yeah, I don’t think there is really anything that we’ve done wrong at our shop. It’s just unfortunate that both things happened to the No. 42 car early in the year.”
 
SO IF THEY WEREN’T HAVING THOSE TROUBLES, DO YOU THINK THE NO. 42 TEAM WOULD BE PUTTING UP SIMILAR RESULTS TO YOUR NO. 1 TEAM?
“Both our cars have been very similar, performance-wise. He ran really good at Bristol and had that fuel pump issue. But for the most part, our cars have been comparable.”
 
MONTOYA SAID HE FEELS PRETTY GOOD ABOUT NEXT YEAR AND BEING BACK. WHERE DO YOU STAND ON ALL THAT?
“Oh, I don’t really have a comment on anything for next year. I’ focused on what we’re doing now. I’ve really tried hard not to talk about the length of my contract or when you resign one. I feel like the media takes a lot of that and runs with it and seems to use imagination to make more than what is fact. So I don’t have a comment about anything like that.”
 
WHAT IS THE MAJOR REASON FOR THE TEAM TURNAROUND THIS YEAR?
“When we made all the changes in 2011, we hired a lot of new people and changed the way we go about a lot of items at the shop. I said at Media Day at the beginning of 2012 that it wasn’t going to be immediate. And it’s taken some time. Certainly this car I think has helped us. I feel like we hit on a few things at the Charlotte test in December or January, and it’s helped our 1.5-mile program, which is where we really struggled last year. And fortunately our short tack program has been pretty good all year. When I look back at my season, though, we ran really good at Martinsville but at Bristol, we really had about a 15-place car and the way the pit strategy worked out, we got a Top 10 out of it. But I feel like we’ve run better at the 1.5-miles than we have at the short tracks and we really had a great car last week. I made a mistake on pit road and got us a penalty and we never could recover from it. We’ve had a couple of instances where maybe we should have pitted once, and didn’t; and then next time we shouldn’t have pitted, and we did.
 
“But fortunately when I look at that, we’ve at least been in position to contend. And maybe we haven’t made the best decisions, but performance-wise, our cars, I would say, are better than they were in 2010. Obviously we didn’t win the Daytona 500 this year, but for me, constantly at every single race track we have been competitive this year. And even in 2010, we didn’t have that.”
 
HAVE YOU NOTICED A CHANGE WITH CHIP GANASSI AT ALL? HE CAME TO MARTINSVILLE ON FRIDAY, WHICH WAS UNUSUAL BECAUSE THE INDYCARS WERE RUNNING IN ALABAMA THAT DAY. HAD HE BEEN MORE DEDICATED OR COMMITTED?
“No, Chip has been really consistent through all this. Chip has spent a lot of money to get out program back where it needs to go; certainly with the engine program change that we did this year. I know that was a big cost in relation to the ECR engines; and also with hiring all the people and all the software that they bought at our shop. So he’s made a huge investment into this; even more so than what he did in 2008, ’09 and ’10. But him coming to the races is pretty much planned out before the season starts. He knows where he’s going to go and on what days he’s going to be there. And I think Martinsville was just on the way to Barber. But yeah, he seems really pleased with kind of where the cars are.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
STP 400
KANSAS SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 19, 2013
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Kansas Speedway and discussed the first practice session, the tragedy in Boston and the affect is has had on him and his team and other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
HAVE YOU GUYS HAD A CHANCE TO PROCESS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED IN BOSTON WITH A MEMBER OF YOUR TEAM?
“It’s someone that related to our team and that we know how that is going to affect this team and their family.  Definitely, our thoughts and prayers are with them and that whole situation is just so tragic.  I think not just our country the whole world was watching in kind of shock and disbelief of what has happened there.  Somebody has been affected by it and has lost their life that is associated with our organization. We take that to heart.”
 
ANYTIME SOMETHING HAPPENS TO ONE MEMBER OF THE ORGANIZATION DOES IT KIND OF HAPPEN TO EVERYBODY IN A WAY?
“Yeah, it does.  We have certainly been through our tragedies at Hendrick.  We have also had our triumphs.  We win and lose as an organization and we deal with losses as an organization as well.”
 
IS IT HARD TO RACE THIS WEEK WITH EVERYTHING THAT IS GOING ON?
“When you get in that race car you focus on your job.  When I’m outside the car I’m certainly anxious like so many others are of what is going on.  That is weighing heavy on everybody I think throughout this country.  Dealing with that event and right now it’s about just being with those people as they recover, deal with the loss or finding justice.”
 
WITH ALL THE TEMPERATURE SWINGS IT COULD BE 30 DEGREES WARMER ON SUNDAY.  HOW HARD IS THAT TO ADJUST TO?
“The track is super-fast, a lot of grip with these cool temps.  In the wind it’s playing pretty significant call on how the balance of the car is.  These cold temperatures are definitely making for some fast times.  Anytime we are preparing for a race we want to have even or equal conditions that we are practicing in to make the best adjustments and decisions for race day that we possibly can.  I haven’t seen the forecast on Sunday.  All we can do is deal with what we have right now and tomorrow when we are practicing what we have then.  We try to make the best decisions we can for Sunday.”
 
CAN YOU COMPARE THE SPEEDS THAT YOU GUYS ARE SEEING THIS TIME WITH THE NEW GEN-6 TO WHAT YOU GUYS HAD WITH THE NEW PAVEMENT LAST TIME?
“It is mind boggling how fast it is out there.  It’s hard for my old brain to process some of the speeds that we are carrying out there.  I’m telling you it’s insane.  The cars have a lot of grip which allows you to push the limits of them.  This car has a lot of downforce and then the track and the tire and the temperatures also have a tremendous amount of grip.  I knew it would be fast.  I remember it being fast last time we were here, but boy I didn’t know it would be this way.”
 
TALK ABOUT PRACTICE TODAY.  DID YOU GUYS MAKE A QUALIFYING RUN? YOU WERE KIND OF IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PACK THERE AT THE END OF PRACTICE:
“We got a little bit delayed there while we were making our switch over to qualifying trim.  We didn’t get the best run, but we did make a run.  We’ve got some speed to find.  I thought the car was really close in race trim.  We’ve got maybe a tenth, a tenth in a half to gain there.  Yeah, there were some cars that ran some really quick laps.  We have typically seen here in the past on this track last year as well as other repaves it’s sometimes hard to back those times up when you go to qualify and everything calm and sits.  Versus when you just bolt the tires on and everything is kind of warm and hot.  We will see.  I’m hoping we will pick up a little bit some other guy’s maybe can’t back up what they ran in practice and we find our way in the top-10 or 12.”
 
WHAT WILL YOUR CHALLENGE BE NEXT WEEK AT RICHMOND?
“It’s a short track.  Getting the balance correct dealing kind of with what we were dealing with in Texas last week where you practice during the day and you race at night you’ve got to guess.  I feel like every time we go to Richmond something is changing.  I feel like we are advancing the technology of the cars. Gaining more downforce, gaining more mechanical grip and so you are always trying to figure out what combination is going to work best for the night race. We’ve been very successful there I would say three out of the last four times, but we also missed it big on one of those times.  That is going to be our goal is to find that right balance and make sure we don’t miss it like we did that time.”
 
WERE YOU SURPRISED AT ALL THAT PEOPLE ARE STILL WORKING IN REAR SUSPENSION AREA?
“I was a little surprised this week with what was going on there because I feel like it’s pretty clear NASCAR’s stance on those types of components.  I feel like over the last couple of years they have really stepped it up on getting parts approved.  They see something that somebody is doing and if they don’t feel like it is blatantly intentional against the rules then there is usually a time frame where people start pushing the limits too far and then they make a rule.  Or sometimes they wait for the off season to do that.  That is kind of where I see this year I feel like they’ve really made a stronger statement of that these components need to be approved.  When they don’t get approved and go against the intent of the rule they are going to act very strongly about it. This obviously showed that.”
 
WERE YOU SURPRISED AT ALL ABOUT HOW HARSHLY THEY REACTED?
“No, I think everybody was expecting it to be pretty harsh.  I think an area that we all feel like this year is not an area that you want to have pieces that weren’t approved by NASCAR pushing those limits.”
 
BRAD (KESELOWSKI) WAS PRETTY OUTSPOKEN LAST SUMMER ABOUT THE HENDRICK CARS.  THINGS HE THOUGHT WERE GOING ON.  IS THERE ANY SENSE FROM YOUR CAMP IN TERMS OF KARMA AND NOW THE SAME THING THAT HE WAS COMPLAINING ABOUT THAT IS WHAT THEY GOT NAILED FOR?
“I think you have to look at every situation a little bit different.  This is a much different year, different car and different components in the cars.  The rules have changed completely from last year.  I think if anything Brad has probably learned a lesson on how far to take some of those statements and opinions because they can come back to haunt you.  While those things were going on we were just putting our heads down and working.  In all honesty those guys went to work as well.  Brad made those comments but by the end of the year I felt like their car was exceeding the skew that we were exceeding.  Those guys made those statements and then they went to work, but those things were within the rules last year.  NASCAR knew it was going on. The parts and pieces were approved.  The parts that Brad was talking about we had approved through NASCAR.  They knew what we were doing.  I think they kind of knew there were some other teams doing more.  I think that it’s interesting how this has come to this, this year.  We looked at it.  I think it’s just interesting how people from the outside look at it.  What’s the difference?  Well there is a big difference from 2012 to 2013 and it’s all written in the rule book.”
 
DOES THIS TRACK FEEL LIKE THE SAME TRACK YOU RACED ON OVER THE YEARS?
“No, not at all, because it’s not just a repave so it’s not like you just go back to the first year we raced here.  The type of pavement is so much different now that they are using to pave these tracks versus what we used to have.  Th
ey are just not as abrasive so they have a lot more surface there for the tires to grip to and forces NASCAR/Goodyear to build a harder more durable tire.  Yet we’ve got a car with a lot of grip, but it’s on the edge.  Things are quite a bit different than they were when we first came here, but I still love it.  The transitions and the banking and all those things are very similar.  That part of it does remind me of the old track.  Those are the things that I’ve always enjoyed here and still do.”
 
DO YOU EXPECT SUNDAY THERE PROBABLY WON’T BE AS MUCH TIRE WEAR?
“Well there wasn’t a lot of tire wear at (Las) Vegas. This is going to be quite a bit different than Texas.  You are not going to see guys changing four tires like we did in Texas.  That track in particular is pretty abrasive.  California is fairly abrasive.  These are quite a bit different conditions than what we saw last week.”
 
LESS SIDE-BY-SIDE RACING DO YOU THINK?
“Because of the side-by-side restarts you are going to see an outer groove working.  I think we were quite surprised last year at how much of an outside groove there was.  In practice we were all running the bottom thinking there wasn’t going to exist.  In the race it was there, it wasn’t great, but it was there.  If the temperatures rise I think that the outside groove could get better.  As you start to lose grip you just aren’t able to hold it down on that bottom so you start searching around and start trying to build a little bit of a lane that gives you more room to get the car through the corner as fast as you can.  That usually starts to build a little bit more of an outside groove.”
 
WHAT DO YOU THINK MAKES IT EASIER ON THE TEAM TO KIND OF JUST TAKE THE PENALTY THAT IS HANDED DOWN OR TO APPEAL?
“Well, most of the reasons why we appeal or anybody is appealing is to give them time to…when you are having suspensions and you are losing your crew chief, car chief and engineer it takes time to replace them.  It takes time to manage some people so that you don’t lose more than you have already lost from a performance standpoint.  They may feel like they have a very strong case I don’t know.  When we felt like we had a strong case and feel like we were wronged we appealed and we fought it to the full stint.  We feel like we were in the wrong we usually appealed if there was a suspension just to try to work personnel out and gives us a little bit of time there to work on those details.”
 
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HOW OUTSPOKEN BRAD (KESELOWSKI) WAS LAST WEEK?  AS A NEW CHAMPION DO YOU HAVE TO AS A GROWING PROCESS DO YOU HAVE TO LEARN HOW FAR YOU CAN PUSH THINGS?
“We all learn from our experiences and not all of them are good.  Sometimes we push the limits whether it be on the race car or on the race track and sometimes you do it in the things that we say and our opinions.  I think we all love how outspoken Brad is, but being that outspoken can sometimes get you in trouble.  I think in this case it’s probably been a pretty valuable lesson for a young guy, a new champion and I think that his opinion matters more.  He has got more people listening so sometimes makes you want to say more and be more outspoken and then there are times when you think about it and you go ‘you know what I probably should have just said less.’
 
YOU EVER HAVE A MOMENT LIKE THAT?
“Oh yeah, I made a comment about Michael Waltrip my rookie year when he wrecked me at Darlington.  I wish I could have taken back because I thought it was disrespectful and looking back on the situation he didn’t deserve some of the comments.  So, little instances like that where you are just saying ‘hey I probably just should just…’ less is more.”
 
WHEN YOU WON YOUR FIRST TITLE THOUGH DID YOU FEEL EMPOWERED AT THAT POINT WHERE YOU FELT LIKE YOU COULD DO MORE? THEN YOU KIND OF LEARNED TO BACK OFF OR BE MORE EVEN?
“Absolutely, you feel like you have more respect and you feel like the thoughts that are running through your head that you would like to get some of those out there.  There is still a way to do that.  You just have to sometimes thread the needle on what you are going to gain from it and what you are going to lose.”        
 

CORVETTE RACING LOOKS FORWARD TO LONG BEACH RETURN
 
(LONG BEACH, Calif., April 19, 2013) – Corvette Racing returns to where its championship season in 2012 earned its first of four victories: The 1.968-mile, 11-turn Long Beach Street Circuit.
 
Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner, co-drivers of the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R, won at Long Beach last year en route to the Team and Driver championships. It was their first victory as a team, and Milner’s first victory in the American Le Mans Series.
 
“Long Beach was the start of the run to the Championship for Tommy and me,” Gavin said. “As you so often have to be on street races, we were a little lucky in that the two cars in front of us on the grid had issues on the fourth corner of the race and their race was compromised from there on.  We still had to battle our way from then on to the front but our car was good straight off and that was a big plus point.”
 
One of the keys at Long Beach, Gavin said, is the very last turn.
 
“The most important corner on the track is the last one and getting off that corner well is vital for lap time and opportunities to overtake other cars,” Gavin said. “If you can get into someone’s tow on the straight it’s the best chance you get to pass others going into Turn 1. Street tracks are always a bit of a lottery, but if you are able to switch on your tires fast, ride the bumps easily and go through and off the corners well, you’ve got a good chance to be fast.”
 
Doug Fehan, Corvette Racing Program Manager, agrees that luck is important, particularly on street courses.
 
“There’s a formula that I like to extoll, and it’s for any race: It’s 25 percent great car, 25 percent great team and 50 percent good luck,” Fehan said. “And that gets modified just a little bit when you go to street races, and the good-luck portion plays a much greater role. Because you have a great car and a great team, but in a street race anything can happen to you – from turn one, lap one to turn 10, final lap of the race. You’ve got to have good fortune on your side. Anybody who wins at Long Beach, has good fortune on that day. That’s just the way street races work.”
Corvette Racing, which also won the 2012 ALMS Manufacturer Championship, opened the 2013 season with a victory last month. Milner made a late pass for the lead and held on for the final 15 minutes as the No. 4 GT Compuware Corvette C6.R overcame an early electrical issue and two key penalties to win the GT class 61st Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway.
Fehan thinks the one-month break between the first two races will be a good thing for the two Corvette Racing teams.
 
“It lets the guys wind down a little bit, and you clearly get to take more time and get the car correct and ready for the next race,” Fehan said. “There’s a huge emotional build-up to that event at Sebring, and a huge emotional release when you’re victorious, so to have a little extra time to catch your breath, get yourself sorted out, and enjoy and contemplate what you’ve accomplished, and then re-focus on what you have to do. So, the break is actually pretty good.”
 
The No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R, driven by Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen, looks to bounce back from an electrical issue at Sebring.
 
“The issues that we had with the 3 team at Sebring were just devastating,” Fehan said. “As it turns out, a simple little pin on one little wire, and it took those guys out of contention – and they had a car that was good enough to win. Now, if you do this game long enough, you’re going to have those experiences. Everybody goes through that. They all want to perform at their optimum, they all want to make sure that they bring a car that they know can win. And they did that at Sebring. It just didn’t work out. It was one of those racing bad days. As quickly as that can happen to you, it can turn around. I think they are very energized by that, I think they know that at a street race it is anybody’s ballgame and the 3 guys are not at all down and out about it at this point. You go home, you get past it and you come back harder than ever.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
STP 400
KANSAS SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 19, 2013
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S/KOBALT TOOLS CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Kansas Speedway and discussed the Boston Marathon tragedy’s effect on himself, Hendrick Motorsports and NASCAR as well as racing this weekend at Kansas Speedway, the impact of team member suspensions on performance and other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
OBVIOUSLY THIS IS A SAD TIME FOR EVERYONE IN THE COUNTRY RIGHT NOW BUT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AS WELL.  I UNDERSTAND YOU HAVE A FEW WORDS YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH US TODAY:
“I would assume everybody has seen the press release, but last night the shooting that took place unfortunately has some attachment to Hendrick Motorsports.  Someone in our engine shop it was his brother, Andrew Collier’s brother, Sean was tragically killed last night.  Still a lot of questions going on obviously if anybody has had a chance to watch the news today there still is a lot of chaos taking place in Boston.  Trying to gather all that is going on, but a very sad time.  My thoughts and prayers are with the Collier family.  I certainly know that it is the same thing for all of Hendrick Motorsports.  We are one big family and it’s sad and unfortunate to see a fellow teammate and his family going through such a tough time.”
 
TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE WEEKEND:
“Excited to be back, I think that every driver and team is excited to race here.  First there was a race track now there is this thriving community and businesses that are around the track as well.  It’s nice to come here as the track, it was newly repaved, but with the progressive banking I think there is a lot of good racing that is going to take place.  I think we had a nice opening event here last fall, one that we were very competitive in.  I think as the track ages we will have a lot of lanes to choose from and a lot of great racing will take place as a result of the reconfiguration.  Again, the area is great.  I spent a lot of time in this area driving for the Herzog’s that were up the road in St. Joseph, Missouri.  I smile for a few reasons every time I come back to this race track.”
 
DID YOU GUYS TURN IN PENSKE LAST WEEK?  I’M ASSUMING YOU HAVE HEARD BRAD’S (KESELOWSKI) COMMENTS AS FAR AS, THEY FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE BEEN TARGETED AND UNDER THE MICROSCOPE THE LAST WEEK OR SO.  YOU AND CHAD (KNAUS) OBVIOUSLY KNOW HOW THAT FEELS.  CAN YOU TALK ABOUT WHEN YOU DO HAVE SUCCESS HOW MUCH CLOSER NASCAR DOES SCRUTINIZE EVERYTHING THAT YOU GUYS DO:
“When you have success on your side the magnifying glass the viewpoint for everybody, NASCAR, other teams, it gets a lot more intense.  The best officiating in the garage area has always been your neighbor.  That has just been part of NASCAR for years and years.  That is why NASCAR has the procedures in place that they do in the garage area and why even in F1 today they are not allowed to cover their stuff anymore. It’s just part of it.  With all that being said, no, the Hendrick group and the No. 48 team did not rat out the Penske cars.  There are two decisions teams are faced with in the garage area.  Everybody has people watching.  We have been very impressed with the No. 2 cars staff and their ability to have somebody just stand and watch other teams.
 
“So this environment does take place in the garage area.  Yeah, there are eyes open, but when a team sees something they have two options.  One, they go home and try to adapt it to their car and understand it and see if they can make it work or they go in the truck and say something.  We don’t say something.  We are a company built on performance.  We are a company that tries to understand the rulebook as close as we can to the law.  Sure, we have had our issues with it, but that is racing it has been that way since day one of racing.  We go in there and we try to be as smart as we can and conform to the rules and put the best race car on the track.  With all that being said, no, sure there was a lot of activity around the Penske cars during the test day, just like all the other cars and everybody is watching, everybody is looking, but in no way shape or form did anybody from the No. 48 car walk into that truck and say anything.”  
 
HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO COME AND RACE IN A TRAGIC SITUATION LIKE THIS TODAY?  IS IT EASY TO PUT IT OUT OF YOUR MIND WHEN YOU GET IN THE CAR?
“It’s ever changing to be honest with you.  Monday I think everyone dealt with grief and sadness and shock.  Come Tuesday I found out that the Gross family from Charlotte that was injured in the bombing that I had not an attachment to, but I know who Nicole is.  The pool that I swim at on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s she is there often instructing others, she is a swim coach and works with a lot of people.  Once that hit home with me I’m like ‘wow I know who she is.’ I know her face. I didn’t put that together prior to.  That brought it a little closer to home for me.  Then now this morning learning the news about what happened last night brings us closer to it again.  Absolutely, we will race with heavy hearts.  At a sporting event at a type of an event where most people are competing for the awareness of a charity or for some cause to have these innocent people that are there in the spirit of giving back have this tragedy take place is just ridiculous.  I think we have all as a society have paid attention to that and it has hit somewhere deep in us on that.  The last four hours, three hours, it has gone to a new level knowing that a fellow teammate is now directly involved with what took place in Boston.”
 
IS THERE CERTAIN CHEMISTRY BETWEEN THE DRIVER AND THE SPOTTER? IS THERE REALLY NO PROFILE THAT FITS BEST FOR EVERYBODY, BUT RATHER JUST WORKS BEST FOR YOU? WHAT MAKES EARL BARBAN SUCH A GREAT SPOTTER FOR YOU?
“Yeah, there just is a connection with a driver and a spotter and you really don’t know that until you get racing and get into some real pressure situations and you can tell when your spotter saved your butt; or if they miss something and got you into an issue. I haven’t had many spotters along the way. I don’t believe I’ve ever had an issue with one where it was like okay; you need to go do something else. I’ve been very fortunate along the way. I think at Hendrick, we find good people and are able to make sure we go to the track with the right people in place. But even in the earlier years, I was very fortunate to have Lorin Ranier spot for me when I got into Nationwide. It would always surprise me the eye that he had. When I was a rookie, I needed that experienced eye up there (atop the grandstands) watching. He could tell me when I missed my mark by four or six inches.  And it’s like man, that wasn’t it. Try gain. So, everybody has a different need inside the car. And when you find someone that you get along with, it lasts for a long time.”
 
WAS THERE ANY PART OF YOU THAT THOUGHT THE PENSKE PENALTY WAS SOMEWHAT JUST IN THE SENSE THAT BRAD KESELOWSKI WAS COMPLAINING OR AT LEAST TALKING ABOUT YOUR REAR END SUSPENSION LAST YEAR?
“Brad was talking about my rear end (laughter)? Sounds like we’ve got bigger issues than race car stuff (more laughter). I’ve said this before. Brad is a huge talent. But as we all know, Brad will say things. And when you’re in the sport long enough, you learn when you need to be careful. And no team is immune to the issues. I don’t want the crew chief’s job. Those guys live on the ragged edge and they have to. If not, they’re going to run 20th every week. So, I think over time, I’ve learned and have also clearly experienced some issues where man, you just do your thing and there’s no need to spout off what other
people are up to. I think there have been a few lessons that Brad has learned along the way this year as to when to say something.
 
“With all that being said, it doesn’t take away from the fact that with the penalties and with what Penske is going through right now, doesn’t take away the fact that they are champions and they did an awesome job last year. And I still think Brad is an awesome driver and that team has awesome equipment and we’re going to deal with them week-in and week-out. Again, I’ve lived through it and good teams survive. Good teams and drivers will always survive. But it’s going to put a lot of stress in their world the next six, eight, or ten weeks, depending on how long the appeals last and all that. And we’ll all see how they respond to it. But once they get some normalcy back in their lives at-track, they’re going to be right there at the front of the pack each week like we’ve seen so far.”
 
IF THEY DON’T WIN ON APPEAL, HOW DIFFICULT WILL IT BE FOR THEM WITH THEIR KEY PEOPLE WORKING FROM THE RACE SHOP INSTEAD OF AT THE RACE TRACK?
“That’s tough. Your depth chart really gets challenged at that point. We know that as fines continue to come out, they will never be less than what happened before. So it’s going to continue to go to new levels and NASCAR obviously wants to discourage this type of activity, so they are going to make the punishment harsher and harsher. Now it’s not just a crew chief suspension. You’re into engineers. Typically, your engineer would sit on the box and call the race if the crew chief was gone. So, what’s next? It’s going to be tough. Without a doubt, it’s going to be really hard for those guys to perform. I’m not saying that it’s impossible, and I do expect great things out of Penske. Roger has an awesome racing operation with a lot of smart people over there. It’s not going to be easy, but I think they’ll survive.”
 
WOULD AN ENGINEER FILL IN FOR ANOTHER ENGINEER EACH WEEK?
“You can. They have on their IndyCar staff a lot of great people. It’s just like a driver coming into a car. A very accomplished driver from another form of racing would be the same as an accomplished crew chief and/or engineer from another form of racing. You can get in the game. You can get close. But to win at this level, you’ve got to be so good. And it’s the last tenth or half a tenth that separates second from first. And that’s what you miss. That’s the part that will be missed if their suspensions go through.”
 

TEAM CHEVY POST RACE RECAP – TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
 
FT. WORTH (April 13, 2013) – With a sixth-place finish tonight at Texas Motor Speedway, five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s Dover White Chevrolet SS, continues to lead the point standings following the seventh race of the 2013 season.
 
Other Team Chevy drivers scoring finishes in the top-15 are: Ryan Newman, No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS – 10th, Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet SS – 11th, and Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Rheem Chevrolet SS – 13th.
 
Kyle Busch (Toyota) was the race winner. Martin Truex, Jr. (Toyota – 2nd), Carl Edwards (Ford – 3rd), Greg Biffle (Ford – 4th) and Joey Logano (Ford – 5th) were the top-five finishers of the night.
 
The next race is at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, April 21, 2013.  Live coverage will be on FOX TV, MRN Radio and Sirius NASCAR Radio Channel 90 at 1:00 p.m. EDT.
 
 
 
NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
TEXAS 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER RACE NOTES & QUOTES
APRIL 13, 2013
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 CROMAX PRO CHEVROLET SS – Sidelined on lap 306 with front suspension issue. FINISHED 38TH:
ON THE SUSPENSION FAILURE:
“I’m not sure maybe a burned wheel bearing or something.  No signs just went down the back straightaway and went to go to the brake and the brake pedal was spongy and the car just didn’t turn.  I thought I had a left-front tire going down.  Man that was unfortunate.  That Cromax Pro Chevy was awesome fast.  It was so much fun to drive and what a great job this team has done to prepare for this weekend and hopefully more to come on these mile and a half’s with more cars like that. We’ll learn what happened and we’ll try to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Most importantly, we know we have a fast race car and we know we can put another fast race car out there on the track.”
 
WHAT DO YOU KNOW FOR SURE WHAT HAPPENED?
“I don’t know for sure. We won’t ever know for sure until we pull it all apart. It’s just unfortunate for it to happen that close to the end and to be running that good. I’m pretty upset. This team has just worked so hard to try to claw ourselves back into the points; and we had a great weekend last weekend and we were having a great day. The racing in the passing is difficult when you’ve got three cars all running the same speed out there. I’ve never seen three cars just sit there and run the same lap time after the same lap time; and run in the same line, too. I was trying to deviate from my line and made a few gains on Kyle (Busch), so I thought I might have a shot at him before this thing was over. I don’t know about Martin (Truex, Jr.), but we won’t know.”
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW/SERTA CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 37TH:
“When you’re running solidly in the top-five and then to have a parts failure knock you out of contention it’s very frustrating. We came in here with a fast race car, qualified on the front row and continued the strong performance until we had a part on the fuel injection system break. What’s done is done and we have to put tonight behind us and focus on getting these problems rectified sooner than later. I feel confident that we’ll have another fast Furniture Row Chevrolet SS in Kansas next week.”
 
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 29TH
WAS THAT JUST A PERFECT STORM OF THINGS GOING WRONG THERE FOR A COUPLE OF LAPS FOR YOU GUYS?
”We just had a battery go dead and didn’t diagnosis it correctly to just switch it.  We have two batteries in there we have a switch in the driver’s seat that goes from one to two.  I didn’t know it was a battery until we got down on pit road and I got to looking at the gauges and really understanding.  At that point we had lost a couple of laps.  I couldn’t control my speed on pit road because the motor was not running coming on.  So we sped there and we came down pit road to serve the penalty but Steve (Letarte, crew chief) wanted to get tires.  You can’t get tires serving a penalty so we had to come back and then serve the penalty.”
 
INAUDIBLE:
“It’s just I don’t know what else we could have done different aside from me understanding better what was going on with the car and diagnosing it on the race track and switching to the second battery and not losing any laps. That was just my mistake.  You know things break on these cars; you don’t know right away what it is and it’s just real easy to have hindsight and say ‘man you know that was pretty simple’.  When the motor quits running you don’t really know why.  You just have to diagnosis it.  It took us more than a few seconds.  I couldn’t coast past pit road if it was something I couldn’t fix in the car we were going to be stalled on the track and lose a ton of laps that way anyways.”
 
FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE FROM THE DRIVER’S SEAT DID EVERYTHING JUST GO OUT? 

“Yeah, all the gauges went bad.  All the gauges just went haywire and so I couldn’t read the gauges to really diagnosis what was happening, but once you start to think about it you are like, ‘well if all the gauges are going bad we have electrical issues’.  Then you go right to the battery. The thing quit running going into (Turn) three and I couldn’t stay on the track if it wasn’t the battery we would have stopped on the track and lost all those laps.  I came down pit road, sped, no motor, no tach (tachometer); figured out by the time I got to the pit stall it was the battery.  We changed the switch over to battery two, get fired up, take off, come down pit road change tires, came down pit road serve the penalty and that was the night.”
 
HOW HAVE YOU DEALT WITH THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS?
“It has been rough, but we had a really good car tonight.  If we were running bad and having these kinds of nights we would have a hard time making that Chase, but running good eventually things will turn back around for us.  We will get going.  We have a lot of confidence.  We’ve got a lot of positive attitude and feel like we will have no problem rebounding.”
 
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 QUICKEN LOANS CHEVROLET SS, FINISHED 10TH:
ON HIS RACE: “We had a tough day in the pits for the most part; and got a lap down. Long green flag runs kept us a lap down for a while there. We got lucky and got the Lucky Dog. We never got the car balanced quite right, but the guys did a good job of coming back. We were probably our best at the end of the race there. We did not have a 10th place car all weekend until there at the end of the race. “
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S DOVER WHITE CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 6TH:
“We fought hard all day but we just didn’t quite have enough to pull off a win in the Lowe’s Chevy tonight. It was a great effort by (crew chief) Chad (Knaus) and everyone.  We just came up a little short.”
 
DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY.COM CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 28TH:
“It was a tough night. The car was just kind of all over the place at the beginning. Tony Gibson (crew chief) and the GoDaddy guys kept working on it all night and we made some improvements on it. The pit crew did a good job on the stops. We just need to get better on the 1.5-mile tracks. I know the team will keep working at it. We’ll see what we can do in Kansas.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
TEXAS 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 12, 2013
 
FT. WORTH (APRIL 12, 2013)  – Kurt Busch, No. 78 Furniture Row Racing/Serta Chevrolet SS, led a strong contingent of five Chevrolet SS drivers who posted top-10 qualifying times today for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway.  Busch will start second in the 43-car field, his best qualifying effort at the 1.5-mile speedway.
 
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet will start sixth when the green flag waves Saturday evening at 6:30 p.m. CDT.  Jimmie Johnson put the No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet SS in the seventh starting position for the 334-lap, 501-mile race.
 
Jeff Gordon will start the No. 24 Cromax Pro Chevrolet SS in the eighth spot on the grid. And, Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target/Kellogg’s Chevrolet SS will roll off in the ninth starting position.
 
A total of 17 Chevrolet SS drivers will take the green flag for the seventh race of the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.
 
Kyle Busch (Toyota) was the pole winner. Aric Almirola (Ford) – third, Marcos Ambrose (Ford) – fourth, and Martin Truex, Jr. (Toyota) complete the top-five qualifiers.
 
Live coverage of the NRA 500 will be provided by FOX TV, PRN Radio and Sirius NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
 
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW/SERTA CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED SECOND
 
TALK ABOUT THAT QUALIFYING EFFORT:
“It was a great run for us. Real happy the way the car unloaded right off the truck. Had good practice speed yesterday in race trim and qualifying trim. To back it up, it’s the strength of the team. It’s there. For us to be second, outside pole, is a great achievement from where we have been the few weeks past for qualifying. I think we found some things this weekend that will translate to all the mile and a half’s and we are hoping that combination gives us that stability that we need to build up the foundation in points that we have lost this year at Martinsville and Phoenix.
 
“Starting up front it’s awesome.  We will have great pit box selection.  We will have track position early in the race.  We will need to pace ourselves to understand how the race will unfold going from 7:00 p.m. (CT) start time into the evening when the track will be blistering fast at night.  I’m just real proud of my guys, really. Vegas was a struggle and we turned it around quick at California and posted a top five; and here we are at the third mile and a half track in a sense, and we are outside pole.  It’s definitely exciting for the Furniture Row Chevy SS guys and the team and everybody that is involved.  We want to keep pushing hard and get the mattress sponsors that we have with Serta, Simmons and Sealy the exposure they want out of partnering with a NASCAR team and advertising with Furniture Row.”
 
IS IT STILL TRUE THAT YOU AND YOUR BROTHER KYLE (BUSCH) HAVE NEVER FINISHED ONE-TWO IN A SPRINT CUP SERIES RACE?
“You might be right.  We have won on weekends and he has won on weekends.  Then it turned into four weekends or five weekends in a row for the two of us.”
 
MIGHT THIS BE THE BEST CHANCE FOR THAT BEING THAT YOU ARE STARTING ONE-TWO?
“Yeah, in 2009 we raced each other for the finish.  It turned into a little bit of a fuel mileage race at the end.  We won it and he dropped off at the end he might have been third or fourth, but the two of us were the fastest two cars throughout the race.
 
WHERE?
“Here at Texas, 2009 fall.”
 
OBVIOUSLY PIT BOX SELECTION IS KEY AT THE SHORT TRACKS WHAT TYPE OF DIFFERENCE WILL IT MAKE TO YOU AT THE BIGGER TRACKS LIKE THIS?
“Just having a bigger cushion to not have guys run into you by choosing a pit box with an opening close to it.  Then the timing lines are all important on big tracks where the timing lines are spread further apart.  It just helps with the ease of operation throughout the day when you have a nice pit box selection.”
 
WHICH WOULD YOU CONSIDER TO BE A BIGGER ACCOMPLISHMENT FOR THIS TEAM: TO COME HERE AND UNLOAD AS FAST AS YOU DID OR TO BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN IT AND CAP IT OFF WITH A POLE AT THE END OF THE DAY?
“I would say with where we were at (Las) Vegas to unload this weekend and to be as fast as we were that means we are doing our homework right at the shop.  When you get to the track you get into the groove of some common adjustments where you can’t move the needle that far.  When you unload and you are fast that means you moved the needle back at the shop that is a big accomplishment especially where we were at (Las) Vegas.”
 
AT SPEEDS LIKE THIS, ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT THE CLOSING RATE AND WHAT ABOUT THE BRAKES? I KNOW YOU DON’T USE A LOT OF BRAKE HERE BUT YOU COULD BE USING A LOT OF BRAKE TO STABILIZE THE CAR GOING INTO THE CORNERS.  ARE YOU WORRIED AT ALL THAT SOME OF THE TEAMS MIGHT HAVE PROBLEMS IN THAT AREA?
“No, the cars have good stability in them with the rear camber and the rear spoiler that is on the car is very tall so you have the drag number that slows it down a little bit.  We could see much higher speeds at the end of the straightaway but the spoiler slows it down a little and then you have the extra downforce for the middle of the corner.  Brakes are no issue what so ever you just have to put some heat into them before you come to pit road.  Because you really are not going to be using the brakes all that much when you are out on the track going 190 (mph).”
 
IS THERE ANY CONSOLATION IN THE FACT THAT IT WAS YOUR BROTHER AND IT TOOK A TRACK RECORD TO KNOCK YOU OFF THE POLE:
“Track record is a small feather in the cap.  The fact that it’s Kyle (Busch, brother) I wouldn’t want to lose to anybody other than him, but it is bitter because I did lose to him.  The biggest issue is if they are still giving away an $80,000 shotgun he doesn’t even know how to use it (laughs).  That is where you could say I’m bitter.  He got the shotgun and if I grab a rubber band leaving the media center that is all I will have for weaponry.
 
THANK YOU, KURT
“But I have a question. Do they still hand out a shotgun?”
 
NO.
“No more shotguns. Oh, well. I tried for years to get one. I got close.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
TEXAS 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUALIFYING NOTES & QUOTES
APRIL 12, 2013

DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY.COM CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 42ND:
ON HER QUALIFYING LAP:
“It was horrible.  I was fine coming to the green and then I was fine in (turns) one and two and it was just really tight in (turns) three and four.  Tony (Gibson, crew chief) tried to say I was two tenths quicker than the pole sitter going into (turn) three which means I lost 1.2 seconds in (turns) three and four.  That seems like a lot, but it sucked in (turns) three and four.  It’s not going to be a good qualifying.”
 
PAUL MENARD, NO. 27 QUAKER STATE/MENARDS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 19TH:
ON HIS LAP:
“We probably just over adjusted a little bit. We were too loose in practice and just a little bit too tight right there. I feel like (Turns) 1 and 2 were good. I kind of got off the bottom in (Turns) 3 and 4 and just lost some time. But we have a good race car, for sure. We’ll be fine.”
 
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 TIME WARNER CABLE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 14TH:
TALK ABOUT YOUR LAP:
“It was a really good lap. We made great changes to get to that point. I was just on the free side, so I had to back pedal in the center of (Turns) 3 and 4. I think we would have been pretty close. It felt really good.”
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA, NO. 42 TARGET/KELLOGG’S CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 10TH:
HOW WAS YOUR QUALIFYING EFFORT?
“Our car was really good. We picked up where we were supposed to pick up. I was maybe a little too tight for what I wanted. But I think, to be honest with you, this year I can say everywhere we’ve been really good, like set-up wise (and) really close. But we were miles away here when we unloaded. We are closer, but we still have a lot of work to do.”
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW RACING/SERTA CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED SECOND
JUST SAYING IT WAS A GOOD LAP BUT THERE ARE STILL SOME GOOD GUYS TO GO.  NOT READY TO JUMP ON THAT BANDWAGON YET ARE YOU:

“Well, we will take it.  It’s a great lap for us and our Furniture Row Chevy.  We unloaded fast and we stayed fast and we delivered there. A pole would be nice, but we do have a couple of strong cars still left, don’t want to put the cart in front of the horse.”
 
YOU HAVE HAD SOME GOOD RUNS THIS YEAR WITH THIS TEAM.  IS THIS A SIGN THAT THIS TEAM IS BECOMING A BETTER AND BETTER TEAM ALL THE WAY AROUND?
”I think we have A-Z in front of us as far as parts, people, just the knowledge and the know-how.  We just like last week got bit by a brake issue and a fuel pump issue.  Those are things that if we can get that weeded out that will help us.”
 
WILL YOU BE THE LONE STAR WHEN QUALIFYING IS OVER TODAY?
”I hope we are.  It was good.  A little bit still left out there but just the improvements of this team.  When we unloaded we were fast.  That car has kept its speed.  I have delivered right now and now we can start moving into the 500 miles for the NRA 500.  Make sure we are on the right pit sequence and make good calls throughout the race and see what night time brings us with this new Chevy SS.”   
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S DOVER WHITE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED SEVENTH
IS THAT WHAT YOU EXPECTED?  
”I expected to have a good lap and we certainly did.  I thought that was good enough to get Aric (Almirola) but hats off to him and his team.  That was one whale of a lap.  I thought mine was pole worthy and ended up third.  Still have a chance to get beat there are some good cars coming out here a little later and the track is getting cool.  Very thankful for a fast Lowe’s Chevrolet.  We have a cool white paint scheme on the car and hopefully we give it a good run this weekend.”
 
ANNOUNCED THIS WEEK YOU ARE EXPECTING YOUR SECOND CHILD.  IS GENEVIEVE EXCITED? 
”I think she does.  She seems to get it and is excited about things.  She takes very good care of her little baby dolls.  I think she understands things in the scheme of things.  We will see.  I’m sure they will be siblings and they will do what siblings do.  I know what I did to my two younger brothers beating up on them over the years.  We are very happy to have a second on the way.”
 
YOU PICKED UP A TON FROM PRACTICE TODAY:
”The second practice we worked on race runs.  We elected to make our qualifying run in the first session.  We felt really good about our car.  I felt really good about that lap.  My hats off to Aric (Almirola) he put up one heck of a lap there.  I thought I was pole worthy there and I’m still probably two tenths away from him.”
 
TONY STEWART, NO. 14 MOBIL 1/BASS PRO SHOPS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 13TH
ARE YOU HAPPY WITH YOUR LAP?
”Yeah, I’m pretty happy with that. We picked up a second there, so, that’s a lot of speed to pick up here at Texas.  Man these cars are fast around here today.  I told Steve Addington (crew chief) I said I would like to rerun that lap because I think I could go quicker, but I just really don’t want to do it today (laughs).”
 
YOU WERE LATE GETTING TO THE GRID WAS THERE A PROBLEM?
”I don’t know.  I don’t know what the holdup was but they said everything was fine when we got there.  My job just to get in it and drive it.”
 
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS, QUALIFIED 6TH:
ON HIS QUALIFYING: “I think our balance was just a little too tight. The guys did a good job though.  We got a good draw. The track was in great shape. We had a good shot at good qualifying lap, and we got one.
 
“I think I over-drove the car quite a bit, and the balance on the car just a little off. The wind is blowing off of (turn) two down into (turn) three so it makes the cars just a little bit too tight; a little bit tighter than you are expecting. The way it drives in (turn) one and two is great. You try to go into three thinking you are going same response out of the car, and it’s just a little bit tight.”
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 CROMAX PRO CHEVROLET SS, QUALIFIED 8TH:
ON HIS QUALIFYING: “The track has picked up so much from practice. So it is hard to really predict how hard to push it, or what adjustments to make as a team. They did a great job. The car was a little bit better than that actually, I kind of feel like I left a little bit out there. Still a real solid lap, so happy with that.”
 
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 BELL HELICOPTER CHEVROLET SS, QUALIFIED 11TH:
ON HIS QUALIFYING: “The car has been really good actually all weekend. I am happy with it in race trim. I bottomed out right there a little bit in (turns) one and two, and it got us up the race track a little bit. Really, it’s been a good weekend. It was a good lap again for us. Happy with that. Our cars have been much better this year, so really pleased.”
 
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 51 BRUCE LOWRIE CHEVROLET/REALTREE CHEVROLET SS, QUALIFIED 12TH:
ON HIS QUALIFYING: “I’m really happy with that. The Phoenix Racing guys have done a great job all weekend long. The car has had speed in it, so I’m really happy with it. Bruce Lowrie Chevrolet on the hood, and Realtree on the side of hit, it is going to be a fun NRA 500.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
NRA 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 12, 2013
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 CROMAX PRO CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Texas Motor Speedway and discussed yesterday’s test session, practice today, the difference between the 1.5-mile tracks of Texas Motor Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway, plus many other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
TELL US ABOUT HOW PRACTICE WENT TODAY:
“We did qualifying runs in the second one where a lot of guys did qualifying runs in the first practice.  I felt like we’ve had a good day, good week here so far.  I think we have made some improvements from previous mile and a half’s and the team has worked really hard so I’m proud of them for that.  Our race run stuff I thought was really close.  Qualifying trim we have a little work to do, but even so you are practicing during the day and you are qualifying late afternoon, you are racing at night.  It’s a real guessing game right now.”
 
HOW TO LAS VEGAS AND TEXAS COMPARE AND HOW ARE THEY DIFFERENT?
“I mean I kind of throw California in there just that type of race track, high speed, aerodynamic, downforce race track. They are definitely a lot different.  This track is abrasive, this track you can really search around the race track to find a groove that works for you.  Tire management is important, but they are still high speed fast places that the attitude of the car has got to be right, grip level has got to be there and you have to be comfortable to be able to carry good speed through the center of the corner.  Those were things we were missing in (Las) Vegas that I feel like we’ve made gains on.”
 
NEXT WEEK YOU WILL TAKE A NEW CAR TO A FRESHLY PAVED 1.5-MILE.  HOW DIFFICULT IS THAT GOING TO BE TO ONLY BE ON THAT TRACK ONCE AND NOW HAVING THE NEW CAR TO GO ON IT?
“It’s going to be tough.  Those are not my favorite kinds of tracks the newly repaved tracks.  The tires are extremely durable so that makes it very edgy not a lot of grip.  So we are going to really have to be on our game.  We are going to be challenged at that one.  I think we have made gains so I’m confident that we can make improvements for when we get there, but it’s going to be tough.”
 
AS A KID WHAT MUSCLE CAR, HOT ROD CAUGHT YOUR FANCY? WHAT WAS THE ONE YOU REVERED GROWING UP AS A KID?
“Probably ‘68/’69 Camaro, I remember a friend of mine who was older had one.  I remember riding in it.  It was a beautiful car and I thought ‘wow if I grow up if I could ever have a cool car this is the one.’ I never have had one of my own, but I always thought that was a very cool car.”
 
WHAT GOES THROUGH YOUR MIND WHEN YOU GET THE SENSATION THAT THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY OF A RIGHT-FRONT (TIRE) GOING DOWN AT A HIGH SPEED TRACK LIKE HERE AT TEXAS?
“Well, one going down I don’t mind so much because usually when one is going down you can feel it going down.  It’s when it just blows and you don’t have any warning that is the toughest thing.  We are keeping a real close eye on our shoulder temperature and our bead temperature.  We had a tire come apart here the last time we were here.  We were running strong up towards the front, I think we had a shot at winning that race had that not happened.  We are certainly keeping a real close eye on it.”
 
FROM A DRIVER STANDPOINT IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN DO TO PREVENT THE AFTERMATH?  JUST TRY TO KEEP IT OFF THE WALL AS BEST AS YOU CAN?
“There is not much you can do.  If you can kind of feel that something is happening they are all different.  Sometimes it’s delamination and you can have a little bit of a warning.  Sometimes it’s stuff in the tread so when those cords break then you can usually feel that, but other times you don’t feel it at all and you just ride the fence.  Basically if it happens you just slow down and hit pit road.  You don’t want to do it too quick because then you will damage the tire more.  Just about trying to find that right pace to get back to pit road and hope the caution comes out soon.”
 
DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE A GOOD HANDLE ON WHO THE CONTENDERS ARE AT THIS POINT OR IS IT STILL TOO EARLY?
“I will be honest with you I don’t even think that is where our focus is right now.  Our focus is on making our car go faster each time we get to the track.  I think our short track program is good but the mile and a half stuff is really where you have got to be good if you are going to be a threat for the championship.  We have not really been a threat at those tracks.  Our focus is just improving our own cars and set ups so for us being 12th in points that was a good gain from last week.  We were 18th prior to that.  You don’t think about who you are beating for the championship when you are that far back in points.  You think about how do we get in the top 10 and we get ourselves solidly in the top 10 and start competing for wins then we will start thinking that way.”
 
HOW FAR AWAY DO YOU THINK YOU ARE BEFORE YOU FEEL YOU ARE READY TO BE A TOP 10 GUY?
“This sport is too competitive it doesn’t happen overnight in one race. We are gathering as much information as we can.  That test yesterday was valuable for us.  The weekend off was crucial for us to work on some things, gather information from our teammates who have been good at (Las) Vegas, but not so good at California.  Just trying to see all that information looking at our competitors things that they are doing what they’ve got and trying to apply that to our set ups.  I think we made gains.  This is a good track for me.  We have run good here the last couple of times we have been here.  It is a bit of a unique mile and a half compared to come of the others that are out there right now.  I think this one suits my style a little bit better like an Atlanta.  I think we have a shot at being more competitive here regardless even if our program is off a little bit.  I do think we have made some gains.”
 
DOES THE PAINT SCHEME SEEM WEIRD TO YOU AT ALL?
“It is not weird to me, it just brings back a lot of memories. This is kind of that paint scheme that we’ve had for years. Really, all the people I am working with; the same paint brands like Cromax Pro; they are the same as what I have been dealing with. It is just a new company. My biggest thing right now is trying not to say DuPont. They haven’t finalized their logo yet, so that’s why it’s not on the car. It a big company. This is a big paint company; a lot of big paint brands underneath them. It takes a long time to structure all of that. I look forward to when we can have that logo on the car – that will be fun. The flame paint scheme on the black car – that’s the one common thing that we do have that really is tying…in trying to explain how this company is really the same, just a different name.”
 
DID YOU SAY IF YOU COULD BE ANY OTHER ATHLETE, YOU’D BE SHAUN WHITE?
“Yes, man, I would say so. I mean, flying through the air on a skateboard or a snowboard is something I think would be pretty awesome to do. He’s won gold medals, X-Games and I’ve met Shaun, and he is a great kid too, doing some Pepsi commercials with him years ago. Growing up as a kid, I used to ride a skateboard, so that always something…Tony Hawk is a guy that I always idolized, but I was never really on a half-pipe and things. Shaun is kind of the ultimate when you think of it now. I had just gone snowboarding on our time off for Easter, so that was kind of fresh in my mind. Looking at that half-pipe thinking about what Shaun does on that, it’s pretty amazing.”
 
BY CONTRACT, ARE YOU NOT ALLOWED TO DO THINGS LIKE SKATEBOARDING?
“I might, but it doesn’t stop me. LAUGHS I mean, I try to be smart in everything I do and not go do
something that is going to get myself injured – you know, push the limits. I was snowboarding, and I wasn’t going down black diamond runs or anything, I was just cruising. I like to scuba dive too. Usually they are more in the insurance policy than they are in the driver’s contract.”
 
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE PLACE TO EAT ON THE CIRCUIT?
“I don’t go out to eat any more. I used to. When we are in Sonoma, I get to go out and eat. There’s a place called Auberge du Soleil that I love. I just love the atmosphere. The food is awesome. Other than that, I’m cooking on the bus. We have chefs that cook for the drivers. Between that, if my wife is with me like she is going to be tonight, sometimes she’ll cook a great Belgian meal. I’ll be honest, I stay put in the infield these days. I don’t really get out that much.”
 
NO KANSAS CITY BARBEQUE NEXT WEEK?
“We went to Oklahoma Joe’s. That place is awesome. We stopped on our way home, and that place was really good. I would definitely go there again.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
NRA 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 11, 2013
 
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS – met with media and discussed last week’s race at Martinsville, his expectations of on-track testing at Texas, classic cars, team reactions to disappointment, and more. FULL TRANSCRIPT:
 
WHAT MAKES TEXAS SO SPECIAL FOR YOU AND YOUR TEAM?
“It’s just the fact that you got a win here; won your first race here. That’s what makes it so special.”
 
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE LAS VEGAS TRACK AND THE TEXAS TRACK?
“Well, the asphalt is a little bit newer in Vegas. There are a lot of different bumps. Vegas has got a lot of bad bumps going into Turn 1 and this place has got a pretty bad bump in the middle of (Turns) 1 and 2; and 3 and 4 as well, where the tunnels are.”
 
HOW IS THIS TRACK GOING TO BE FOR THE NEW RACE CARS?
“I think it’ll be just fine. It’s not a whole lot different than what we’ve brought here in the past. There are a couple of things different on the aero and the chassis is pretty much the same as last year. So, we’re not going to have to really go scratching our heads trying to figure anything out.”
 
WHAT WAS WRONG WITH YOUR RACE CAR LAST WEEK AT MARTINSVILLE? WAS IT THE TRACK BAR?
“Yeah, the track bar came loose on the left side and was moving all over the place. We just had, what (crew chief) Steve (Letarte) labeled as ‘improper installation’. There’s a key in the back that holds the sway bar in place on the mount and that key came out and got turned. And so when they tightened the sway bar up in the morning, the key wasn’t in place to hold the sway bar tight and the bowl was able to back-out rather easily with just the general forces that it sees in the corner and laterally and on the load.
 
“So, it came loose and it dropped down and when you move the track bar down, that really tightens the car up. The left side seems to tighten the center of the corner up at the majority of the race tracks. It moved an inch, which is a big major change and it really affected the handling of the car. The car just wasn’t driving very well, especially at the end of the race.”
 
UNDER THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES, ARE YOU SURPRISED YOU RAN AS WELL AS YOU DID?
“No. I’m surprised I didn’t get run over sooner.”
 
THERE WAS A LOT OF TALK ABOUT JIMMIE JOHNSON LAPPING YOU WHILE THE CAUTION WAS OUT; AND THAT MAYBE HE SHOULD HAVE LET YOU STAY IN FRONT OF HIM. IS THERE ANY SORT OF PROTOCOL IN THAT SITUATION?  WERE YOU UPSET AT ALL ABOUT IT?
“No, Jimmie couldn’t slow down. If you slow down, the guy behind you has the rights to take your position. I lost a position to Hamlin under caution at Phoenix, so I know all about that too well. Jimmie, leading the race, couldn’t take the chance.
 
“He did actually try to slow down and I think that he saw that I had two left-side flat tires and it was pretty pointless for him to wait. If he stopped at all, the guys behind him would have been able to pass him for that position. He couldn’t give up that opportunity or take that chance or that risk. I would have done the same thing Jimmie did. I’m leading the race. I’ve got to think about my team and my car and what I’m trying to do. I don’t think he did it out of spite or anything like that. He just was driving is race.
 
“We shouldn’t have been back there in the first place and been in that position to be run over. But unfortunately it was just a bad day for us and it just seemed to get worse. But he wasn’t doing anything that he wasn’t supposed to be doing. The guy is leading the race, you know? He’s got to take care of what he’s doing. He’s got a race to win.”
 
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT RICK HENDRICK BEING NOMINATED AS ONE OF THE FINALISTS? DO YOU THINK THIS MIGHT BE THE YEAR THAT HE GETS IN?
“Yeah, I think Rick gets in. He’s accomplished a lot. The other thing that might keep him out is that he is technically still an active owner. There are a lot of guys that aren’t with us anymore that started this sport back in the ‘50’s and ‘60’s, that maybe should go in before him because of that reason. But I think he’s got a great chance.”
 
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF BRUTON SMITH FINALLY MAKING THE TOP 25? HE’S BEEN LEFT OFF THE LIST THE WHOLE TIME?
“Yeah, I think he deserves to be in there. I think that he probably has a real good shot, too. He’s going to get a lot of exposure, probably more exposure than some of the other names on the list, through the press and through the media, building up to the voting for the five. So, I think he’s got a good shot.”
 
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE NRA AND THEIR SPONSORSHIP OF THIS RACE?
“I think it’s a good fit for Texas. I think it’s obviously a decision the track made; they partnered with them. I think that our opinion is if we get an opportunity to win the race, we’re going to treat Victory Lane just like any other race and we’ll be happy to celebrate just like everybody else has celebrated here in the past.”
 
DO YOU HAVE A MESSAGE FOR YOUR FANS REGARDING THE NRA SPONSORSHIP?
“I own guns.  I like to hunt.  When I’m not hunting I keep my guns in a safe, (where they are) out of reach from my younger family members and my nieces and nephews.  I like to hunt and I believe in ownership, but I also believe in responsibility.  You can’t ever be safe enough in regards to that, especially with gun ownership.”
 
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOUR AGENDA ON THE TRACK TODAY VERSUS TOMORROW?
“It’s kind of the same.  I’m going to treat this like it’s part of the race weekend.  I’m not really looking at this like a test.  I’m looking at this like this is us preparing for the race.
 
“It’s not going to but it could rain tomorrow so you’ve got to anticipate anything happening that might not get you on the race track tomorrow.  We are just going to work toward getting our car ready to race and getting our car fast enough to try to win the race on Saturday night.”
 
DO YOU LIKE THE HANDS OFF APPROACH NASCAR IS USING THE PUSHING AND SHOVING AND SO FORTH?
“I think there is a way to manage it.  I think being able to get out there and show raw emotion and race hard is real important. The fans need to see that, the fans want to see that.  I think you’ve got to also carry yourself with respect and treat people the way you want to be treated.”
 
YOU TALKED LAST WEEK ABOUT SOME OF THE FAVORITE CARS YOU OWN AS A KID WHAT WAS THE FIRST CAR YOU REALLY REVERED WHAT CAUGHT THE APPLE OF YOUR EYE?
“I don’t really know.  I didn’t really have a favorite car growing up when I was a kid.  My favorite car was the one I drove.  It was a 1986 single cab short bed (Chevrolet) S10 pickup truck 4×4.  I got that when I was 16 (years old).  I wish I still had it.”
 
HOW MANY CLASSIC CARS DO YOU HAVE?
“I don’t own a lot of cars.”
 
IT SEEMED LIKE SOME OF THE STORIES YOU HAD KIND OF HAVE A MEMORY WITH EACH ONE?
“No, not really I don’t own a lot of cars, but I have a few that I appreciate. I like the 70’s era cars the way that I perceive how the world was back then.  So the cars the Camaro’s and stuff like that from ’73 and the Oldsmobile 442 from ’77 stuff like that is pretty cool to me.”
 
IT’S EASY TO TEST A RACE TEAM WHEN THINGS ARE GOING GREAT, BUT WHEN YOU HAVE A ROUGH WEEKEND HOW IS YOUR TEAM HANDLING THAT?
“Everybody handles that kind of stuff differently.  I really didn’t get over that run last week until we touched down today in Texas. I wanted to get to the race track as soon as I could just to get that behind me and put a good result on the board and just forget about that run.  You can’t really do that until you can
get to the race track.
 
“Steve’s (Letarte, crew chief) got kids. Kids seem to get you over thing like that a little faster.  You get home and you see what they are doing and get involved in their lives and you kind of forget about all the bad things happening in your life.  I did spend some time with my nephew this week that helped out a little bit.  It’s just everybody handles it differently.  It’s hard for me to get over stuff like that.  It takes me until I can get to the race track and redeem myself really to be able to get over it.”
 
DENNY HAMLIN LAST WEEK SAID THE HARDEST PART FOR HIM AT THAT RACE AND HE DIDN’T THINK IT WOULD BE THAT WAY WAS THE START.  DID YOU FIND THAT?  WAS THAT THE SAME FOR YOU OR DID YOU FIND SOMETHING ELSE TOUGHER ABOUT HAVING TO SIT OUT?
“I can definitely understand where Denny (Hamlin) is coming from.  I think that was the way I felt when I first started watching them practice.  Practice was televised on television it was tough to watch; just sitting at home being so far away and not being able to be in there working and grinding.  You get so used to working with those guys, working with the group you are with and then you are not there and they are moving on they are doing what they are supposed to do and you are not a part of it.  It’s a really tough, odd feeling.”
 
CAN HE (DENNY HAMLIN) MAKE THE CHASE?
“Absolutely, they have a good enough team to win races and get into a wild card spot.”
 
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT GOING TO KANSAS NEXT WEEKEND?
“I haven’t raced there, missed the race last year with the reconfigure so I’m really anxious to get out there and see what kind of speed we have.  See how I can get ahold of the race track really quick and those guys that I’m going to be racing against have a race on me there.  I feel a little bit behind the eight ball with that deal, but looking forward to getting there and seeing what kind of speed we have.  I think we tested really well before we had the crash.  I thought we had good speed.  I was enjoying the race.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
NRA 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 12, 2013
 
DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY.COM CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Texas Motor Speedway and discussed her experience at Texas Motor Speedway, last weekend’s run at Martinsville Speedway and other topics. Full Transcript:
 
THIS IS A TRACK YOU HAVE A LOT OF EXPERIENCE AT IN VARIOUS FORMS OF RACING.  HOW MUCH OF THAT EXPERIENCE DO YOU BRING OVER TO THIS WEEKEND’S RACE?
“Every car you drive on tracks that you have been on feels different; other than being familiar with how to get to the track and how to get to my bus at the track that is really about it.  I almost felt like coming from IndyCar the tracks that I drove an indy car on it was almost more confusing to drive a stock car because the line is different.  You find different bumps out there.  Sometimes it’s nice to come with a clean slate.  It’s fine.  I came here at the end of the year last year and raced the Cup race.  I have some notes and some things to remember.  This is the first race Tony Gibson and I worked together.  We’ve got something to start with this weekend because we were here last year.”
 
WAS IT HARD NOT TO BE OVERLY EXCITED ABOUT LAST WEEK?
“I don’t know if I necessarily get overly excited about much.  I was probably overly excited that I won playing golf last night, but that is because I didn’t expect to.  Driving a race car I’m supposed to go fast and I’m supposed to have good results.  It was a satisfying moment, but I think it’s a reminder that is what we work hard for and that even after Daytona and qualifying on the pole and running basically in the top three most of the day knowing that was one that we didn’t come away from too high either.  We just know that we are going to have those days and we know that we are going to have days like (Las) Vegas where it’s just a very trying day.  That’s what we work hard for.  I think that is more of what we felt.”
 
CAN YOU COMPARE THE 1.5-MILE TRACK OF LAS VEGAS AND THIS TRACK?  ANY COMPARISONS ANY DIFFERENCES THAT YOU HAVE NOTICED?
“Every track is a little bit unique, but mile and a half’s are mile and a half’s. Usually you can take set ups and move them across the board through a lot of them, generally, at least a platform direction from one track to the next. Even Fontana we are using the stuff we learned there too.  Again, every track is a little bit unique.  Also, the tires change from track to track.  We don’t always get the same manufacturing processing compound.  Everything is a little bit unique.”
 
HAVE YOU TALKED TO (BRIAN) VICKERS AT ALL SINCE LAST WEEK?
“No, but I talked to Kevin Harvick.”
 
WHAT DID HE (KEVIN HARVICK) SAY?
“I said thanks because it looked like he was giving me a hand there with someone that was a little upset.  He was a little upset with him (Brain Vickers) too I think there were a lot of people upset with (Brain) Vickers after Martinsville.  I don’t know.  I haven’t raced with him very much so I’m getting on with my day.  You saw what happened and like I was told by a couple of people I just got hit and I did.  At least I only lost one spot.”
 
WHAT DOES A RACE LIKE LAST WEEK DO FOR YOU CONFIDENCE WISE, GROWTH WISE IN THE SPORT?
“I think it’s a nice reminder sometimes that I can drive a race car.  Sometimes you get a little down on yourself and it’s those days that help bring it back.  Like I was just saying it’s a nice reminder of what we work hard for and why we need to have a good attitude.  Being at Martinsville for the first time, we all expected to have a tough weekend and nobody really new exactly what to expect.  I think that it’s a good reminder that when you do kind of go in a little open minded and with a good attitude and knowing that if you just keep trying and take what comes and stay positive that good things can happen.  I feel like it was just a nice reminder.”
 
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THIS YEAR AND LAST YEAR?  LAST YEAR YOU ONLY RAN A HANDFUL OF CUP RACES, THIS YEAR YOU HAVE THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT YOU WORK WITH WEEK IN AND WEEK OUT:
“I mean it just ends up feeling more comfortable.  More comfortable with the car, more comfortable with everything that has to do with the Cup Series.  I am adjusting to more work though.  There is a lot more going on.  You basically have over a month worth of extra work just because you are at the track one day.  Then there is lots of testing, but for me as a rookie drive in the Cup Series that is a great thing.  Definitely keeping me a lot more busy, but we’ve got all the 10 crew we have a really good relationship.  We have a lot of fun and I’m really happy to be working with this group.”
 
IS THE BELT BUCKLE YOU ARE WEARING FROM (RICKY) STENHOUSE?
“It is.”
 
DO YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHO MADE IT OR HOW IT CAME TOGETHER BECAUSE IT’S BEAUTIFUL:
“Thanks.  This started at the beginning of last year when I said that… he (Ricky Stenhouse) wanted some Twitter followers.  So I was like ‘well if I help you with that can I have a belt buckle?’ So that started at Daytona and so anyway he had it made.  I got it just before the second Texas race last year.  I wore it last year at the end of the year.  It was very nice.  I know these things they are handmade. They are not cheap and it’s really cool to have.  It says ‘fastest girl in town’.  That was a nice gift.  He didn’t actually need to live up to that bet, but it was nice that he did.”
 
DO YOU HAVE THE MATCHING COWBOY BOOTS?
“I will be honest.  This is what y’all show up for these answers.  I put on the cowboy boots this morning because I got a new pair and the jeans are too short first off and you just can’t wear boots if the jeans are too short.  They look really good, but man I kind of feel like I’m dressing up for the track.  Being someone who likes to dress up you think that would be okay, but I felt weird walking through the garage with boots instead of tennis shoes.  I’m going to wear them tomorrow though.  Race day they are going to be my game day shoes. I’ve got to find some longer jeans and I’m going to wear them.  I will be a little taller, but I will look the part.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
NRA 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 12, 2013
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S DOVER WHITE CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Texas Motor Speedway and discussed the importance of leading the points, last fall’s race at Texas Motor Speedway, the importance of yesterday’s test session and other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
TALK ABOUT MARTINSVILLE AND COMING HERE WITH THE POINTS LEAD:
“It’s real early in the year so it’s hard to get too excited about the long term picture of what Martinsville means.  Very excited to win another race, the team works so hard to bring quality equipment week in and week out that is a big thing for the race team and great for everybody it builds a lot of confidence.  The thing I look at the most is that it’s a track within the Chase.  Coming back there in the fall we have a great place to start and hopefully can have the same type of performance.  All in all good, my mind is clearly on big picture and championship, but we won a great battle there.  My mind is really focused on the war and trying to win a sixth championship.”
 
TOO EARLY TO WORRY ABOUT BEING FIRST IN THE POINTS?
“I like it.  I love being up top.  I think it sends a message to the garage area that we are buttoned up and we are ready and we are able to lead.  Leading in the Chase has a bit more impact than leading now, but I will take it.  I have always said that.  I want to lead every weekend if I can.”
 
THERE WAS AN OPINION ABOUT LAST YEAR’S RACE HERE AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY THAT THERE WAS A LACK OF EXCITEMENT.  DOES THAT RACE SORT OF STAND ALONE OR IS THAT THE KIND OF STYLE OF RACING THAT YOU WILL SEE AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY?
“It just depends on circumstances.  This track and the age of the surface, the bumps that are on the race track really promote great side-by-side racing.  I think the fall race speaks to that the battle that (Brad) Keselowski and I had racing for the win and for the point’s title essentially.  There are different circumstances that control it. Some of it just the teams and a couple of guys every now and then hit on it and stretch away from the field and you don’t have that side-by-side competition, but there is no doubt that last fall, especially the final stages of the race was awfully exciting.”
 
YOU HAD BIG NEWS THIS WEEK (ANNOUNCED HE AND WIFE CHANDRA ARE EXPECTING THEIR SECOND CHILD IN SEPTEMBER) CONGRATULATIONS.  IS IT TOO EARLY ALREADY TO START THINKING ABOUT HOW YOU WILL HANDLE IT SINCE THE BABY IS DUE AS THE CHASE BEGINS?  DO YOU HAVE A BACK-UP DRIVER?  HAVE YOU GONE THROUGH ALL THOSE PARTICULARS YET?
“We haven’t yet. We know that we need to, but we still have some time.  We are not sure who will be available come that time.  I was joking with Aric Almirola last weekend that if he wanted to be my back-up driver again he clearly has a full-time gig and can’t do it.  We will just have to see, but we will definitely have a plan like always we will be buttoned up.  Our doctor has told me that a father has never missed a birth.  That gives me a lot of confidence that I will be able to do my weekend job and then be around during the week to meet number two.”
 
HOW IMPORTANT WAS THE TEST YESTERDAY?
“It’s important, but I think the teams have all changed their mind set some.  The second practice today, really all of our practice sessions are during the day so they don’t give us the accurate track conditions of what we are going to qualify on or race on.  So, this morning practice will be helpful and useful.  Yesterday the temperatures were cool enough that I think a lot of teams focused on race practice and will use that practice to set them up for the event.  The afternoon practice today, I don’t know how productive it’s going to be.  I know for us, yesterday was very important and we treated it as if it was a practice session.  This morning we will be in qualifying trim.  If we are way off, which I don’t think we will be the way yesterday went, we will work harder in the second practice today.  If not it will be a pretty casual afternoon for us.”
 
WHY IS IT GOOD FOR THE SPORT THAT NASCAR HAS TAKEN A HANDS OFF APPROACH?
“I think rivalries are good.  That is the fine line that sports walk.  Unfortunately, regardless of sport if it’s someone charging the mound like what happened yesterday to drivers charging other drivers that draws a lot more attention to whatever sport it is.  There are a small percentage of people that like that and they want to see punches thrown, but I think in general sports fans like rivalries.  We all thrive for that moment.  That is kind of a line we walk and where the wave crashes.  We want the rivalries, we want heated emotions and we want door banging.  I don’t think the fans want a sterile environment they want some trash talking.  That is the part we want, but we don’t want broken backs.  We don’t want drivers injured issues like that.  It’s a fine line that our sport walks and all sports walk.”
 
YOU ENGAGED YOUR FANS LAST WEEK SOME OF THE PEOPLE WHO DON’T LIKE YOU WAS THERE A REASON WHY YOU PICKED LAST WEEK TO ENGAGE THEM?  WAS THERE SOMETHING THAT THEY SAID THAT MAYBE PUSHED YOU OVER THE EDGE?
“It wasn’t just last week.  You have seen them before where I will call someone out in kind of a polite way and thank them for their dislike or whatever it may be.  I just honestly wanted to have fun with it.  I saw a theme developing and I just felt like having a little fun with it and kind of stirring the pot.  It’s funny after that tweet I haven’t had much negative coming in.  Again, I even said this in interviews earlier in the week there is a small, but loud fan base.  I think all of us that work in the sport can sense that through the social channels.  The majority, I think there is a large chunk that are pro No. 48 then the majority are respectful of No. 48 then there is a small portion that aren’t.  I will take those numbers that is fine by me.”
 
HAS IT EVOLVED INTO A ONE ON ONE COMPETITION BETWEEN YOU AND BRAD KESELOWSKI?
“It’s not really fair to say that it’s just a No. 2 and No. 48 thing.  It wouldn’t surprise me if it does.  I expect a lot out of that No. 2 car.  They proved it last year.  They are only getting smarter and the more time they spend together the more experience they have. They are only getting stronger.  It’s evident that the relationship Paul (Wolfe) and Brad (Keselowski) have is something like Chad (Knaus) and I have had.  Ray Evernham and Jeff Gordon had.  You can go down through the list of the great pairings of driver/crew chiefs.  I absolutely expect him to be there in it, but the garage area is full of a lot of very competitive drivers and crew chiefs.  It wouldn’t necessarily be fair to say it’s a No. 48, No. 2 thing, but again it wouldn’t surprise me if that is what it came down to.”
 
HOW WOULD YOU CHARACTERIZE YOUR ON TRACK RELATIONSHIP WITH BRAD (KESELOWSKI)?  YOU GUYS AREN’T EXACTLY RIVALS?
“No, and I have this relationship with a lot of guys where we are going to race hard. I think Brad (Keselowski) and I what we showed here in the fall showed that.  We are going to race hard and get right to that line, but there is nothing malicious involved in it.  Absolutely, I want to crush him, I want to lap him every race and I know he wants to do the same to me.  I feel that way about others, but I will get out and I will have a beer with him.  I will get out and shake his hand and congratulate him for a win, but in the heat of the moment I want to crush him.  I don’t want bad things to happen to him, but I absolutel
y have that competitive spirit and want to crush him.”
 
HAVE YOU WATCHED THE END OF LAST YEARS RACE AND CAN YOU APPRECIATE WHAT IT MEANT AS A MOMENT?  ALMOST REMOVED FROM THE CHAMPIONSHIP RACE?
“Yeah, it was awesome.  I enjoyed it in the car.  Thought I was going to get turned around in (turns) one and two one of the restarts we had, but we didn’t.  We raced right to that ragged edge and pulled it off.  Of course I had a good perspective of it after the race when I watched the video and I smiled.  That is just good hard racing.” 
 
DID YOU GAIN MORE RESPECT FOR THEM?
“For sure, for sure. I have that great relationship with quite a few guys. There’s others that you get around that maybe don’t have a lot of experience racing for a win so you’re not sure how they are going to handle it or maybe they’re in a position where they are very hungry and aggressive and you have to weigh those things out.  With Brad (Keselowski), I put Brad in that category of racing — Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, Carl Edwards and guys that I really trust and don’t even think about it — just racing for the win.”
 
DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE A BETTER HANDLE ON THE NEW CAR?
“Just depends on the week.  In California we were ready to throw away all of our cars and notebooks and setups and ideas. Go to Martinsville and we had a dominant weekend. I think it’s a work in progress. We’re still evolving with the car.”
 
ON FAN RESPONSE TO YOU NOT BEING A GOOD TEAMMATE WHEN DALE EARNHARDT JR. SPUN AT MARTINSVILLE:
“It was all kind of equal, from being a bad teammate to being lucky and having a cheated up car. They all sting in a relatively similar manner, but to be honest the sting isn’t all that bad. I’ve been in the sport long enough to know that people are going to say whatever they want, especially hiding behind their laptop or their phone. You just have to take it with a grain of salt. Honestly, I was just having fun with him and just kind of stirring the pot. If they are going to say those types of things then I’m going to play into it and get a good laugh out of it.”
 
WHY DIDN’T YOU STOP TO LET DALE EARNHARDT JR. GET HIS LAP BACK?
“When the caution came out down the back, the amount of time I had to get the car stopped, my spotter is telling me whatever the car is now blocking the road and I show up. The car is stopped in the middle of the road and now it backs up and I know that I am the head of 42 cars. I assume he’s (Dale Earnhardt Jr.) backing up to let me by and I’ve been in that position where I’ve got to get turned around in front of the field and can’t and my goal is to get the hell out of the way. I just assumed he was backing up to let me go through. After talking to him and Stevie (Letarte, 88 crew chief), really the situation, I was just trying to get going and would liked to have not put him down a lap, but there is no fault held there by what I did. Again, I thought he was backing up to get out of the way.”
 
ON THE TITLE SPONSORSHIP OF THE RACE
“It’s clearly a sensitive subject and I think that’s a question to be answered by Eddie Gossage or the staff here at the track. It’s a very sensitive subject; and as drivers, we’re here to do our job and put on a great race this weekend. The title sponsorship of an event is well outside of the driver’s focus or anything we have to do with. I do recognize that it is a very touchy topic right now.”
 
HOW IMPORTANT IS RUNNING WELL AT KANSAS?
“Winning there or running well to try to keep her (Kristine Curley, PR director) happy, she is from that area so as long as I keep Kristine happy then we are in good shape.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
NRA 500
TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 12, 2013
 
DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY.COM CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Texas Motor Speedway and discussed her experience at Texas Motor Speedway, last weekend’s run at Martinsville Speedway and other topics. Full Transcript:
 
THIS IS A TRACK YOU HAVE A LOT OF EXPERIENCE AT IN VARIOUS FORMS OF RACING.  HOW MUCH OF THAT EXPERIENCE DO YOU BRING OVER TO THIS WEEKEND’S RACE?
“Every car you drive on tracks that you have been on feels different; other than being familiar with how to get to the track and how to get to my bus at the track that is really about it.  I almost felt like coming from IndyCar the tracks that I drove an indy car on it was almost more confusing to drive a stock car because the line is different.  You find different bumps out there.  Sometimes it’s nice to come with a clean slate.  It’s fine.  I came here at the end of the year last year and raced the Cup race.  I have some notes and some things to remember.  This is the first race Tony Gibson and I worked together.  We’ve got something to start with this weekend because we were here last year.”
 
WAS IT HARD NOT TO BE OVERLY EXCITED ABOUT LAST WEEK?
“I don’t know if I necessarily get overly excited about much.  I was probably overly excited that I won playing golf last night, but that is because I didn’t expect to.  Driving a race car I’m supposed to go fast and I’m supposed to have good results.  It was a satisfying moment, but I think it’s a reminder that is what we work hard for and that even after Daytona and qualifying on the pole and running basically in the top three most of the day knowing that was one that we didn’t come away from too high either.  We just know that we are going to have those days and we know that we are going to have days like (Las) Vegas where it’s just a very trying day.  That’s what we work hard for.  I think that is more of what we felt.”
 
CAN YOU COMPARE THE 1.5-MILE TRACK OF LAS VEGAS AND THIS TRACK?  ANY COMPARISONS ANY DIFFERENCES THAT YOU HAVE NOTICED?
“Every track is a little bit unique, but mile and a half’s are mile and a half’s. Usually you can take set ups and move them across the board through a lot of them, generally, at least a platform direction from one track to the next. Even Fontana we are using the stuff we learned there too.  Again, every track is a little bit unique.  Also, the tires change from track to track.  We don’t always get the same manufacturing processing compound.  Everything is a little bit unique.”
 
HAVE YOU TALKED TO (BRIAN) VICKERS AT ALL SINCE LAST WEEK?
“No, but I talked to Kevin Harvick.”
 
WHAT DID HE (KEVIN HARVICK) SAY?
“I said thanks because it looked like he was giving me a hand there with someone that was a little upset.  He was a little upset with him (Brain Vickers) too I think there were a lot of people upset with (Brain) Vickers after Martinsville.  I don’t know.  I haven’t raced with him very much so I’m getting on with my day.  You saw what happened and like I was told by a couple of people I just got hit and I did.  At least I only lost one spot.”
 
WHAT DOES A RACE LIKE LAST WEEK DO FOR YOU CONFIDENCE WISE, GROWTH WISE IN THE SPORT?
“I think it’s a nice reminder sometimes that I can drive a race car.  Sometimes you get a little down on yourself and it’s those days that help bring it back.  Like I was just saying it’s a nice reminder of what we work hard for and why we need to have a good attitude.  Being at Martinsville for the first time, we all expected to have a tough weekend and nobody really new exactly what to expect.  I think that it’s a good reminder that when you do kind of go in a little open minded and with a good attitude and knowing that if you just keep trying and take what comes and stay positive that good things can happen.  I feel like it was just a nice reminder.”
 
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THIS YEAR AND LAST YEAR?  LAST YEAR YOU ONLY RAN A HANDFUL OF CUP RACES, THIS YEAR YOU HAVE THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT YOU WORK WITH WEEK IN AND WEEK OUT:
“I mean it just ends up feeling more comfortable.  More comfortable with the car, more comfortable with everything that has to do with the Cup Series.  I am adjusting to more work though.  There is a lot more going on.  You basically have over a month worth of extra work just because you are at the track one day.  Then there is lots of testing, but for me as a rookie drive in the Cup Series that is a great thing.  Definitely keeping me a lot more busy, but we’ve got all the 10 crew we have a really good relationship.  We have a lot of fun and I’m really happy to be working with this group.”
 
IS THE BELT BUCKLE YOU ARE WEARING FROM (RICKY) STENHOUSE?
“It is.”
 
DO YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHO MADE IT OR HOW IT CAME TOGETHER BECAUSE IT’S BEAUTIFUL:
“Thanks.  This started at the beginning of last year when I said that… he (Ricky Stenhouse) wanted some Twitter followers.  So I was like ‘well if I help you with that can I have a belt buckle?’ So that started at Daytona and so anyway he had it made.  I got it just before the second Texas race last year.  I wore it last year at the end of the year.  It was very nice.  I know these things they are handmade. They are not cheap and it’s really cool to have.  It says ‘fastest girl in town’.  That was a nice gift.  He didn’t actually need to live up to that bet, but it was nice that he did.”
 
DO YOU HAVE THE MATCHING COWBOY BOOTS?
“I will be honest.  This is what y’all show up for these answers.  I put on the cowboy boots this morning because I got a new pair and the jeans are too short first off and you just can’t wear boots if the jeans are too short.  They look really good, but man I kind of feel like I’m dressing up for the track.  Being someone who likes to dress up you think that would be okay, but I felt weird walking through the garage with boots instead of tennis shoes.  I’m going to wear them tomorrow though.  Race day they are going to be my game day shoes. I’ve got to find some longer jeans and I’m going to wear them.  I will be a little taller, but I will look the part.”

IZOD INDYCAR SERIES
GRAND PRIX OF ALABAMA
BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
APRIL 7, 2013
 
Ryan Hunter-Reay Wins at Barber Motorsports Park
With Strong Run, Helio Castroneves Takes the Points Lead
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.  (April 7, 2013) – Defending IZOD IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay started the No. 1 DHL Andretti Autosport Chevrolet on the pole, and finished the day atop the Victory Lane podium celebrating his 10th career-win, and his first at Barber Motorsports Park.
 
Hunter-Reay was credited with leading a race-high three times for 53 of the 90 laps that comprised the Grand Prix of Alabama, race two of the 2013 season. The win moved Hunter-Reay to third in the overall championship standings.
 
“Congratulations to Ryan Hunter-Reay on his hard-fought win today, and to Andretti Autosport on their second consecutive victory in 2013,” said Chris Berube, Chevrolet Racing Program Manager, IZOD IndyCar Series. “Back-to-back wins and poles, is a tremendous way for the Chevrolet IndyCar twin turbo V6 program to start the season. As we suspected, the competition was fierce and the win required very high execution levels from the team and tremendous focus and concentration from Ryan in the cockpit.  As we head to Long Beach, Team Chevy will be doing our part with the same tremendous focus and concentration to allow the Chevy IndyCar twin turbo V6 to put our Chevy Teams in a position to win again.”
 
With his third place finish, Helio Castroneves, No. 3 AAA Insurance Turbo Team Penske Chevrolet, jumped to the top of the point standings.  The three-time Indianapolis 500 winner started sixth and led once for a total of 25 laps during the race that saw only one caution flag for a total of four laps.
 
Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, finished fifth to give the Chevrolet IndyCar V6 engine three of the top-five finishing positions on the 2.38-mile, 17-turn road course.
 
James Hinchcliffe, No. 27 GoDaddy.com Andretti Autosport Chevrolet, was the point leader going into today’s event after his victory at St. Petersburg in the season-opening race, but sustained damage on lap one when several cars stacked-up in turn one.  Unable to return to competition, he was credited with the 26th finishing position, and now sits fifth in the point standings.
 
Scott Dixon (Honda) finished second, and Charlie Kimball (Honda) was fourth to complete the top-five finishers.
 
Next on the IndyCar schedule will be the Long Beach Grand Prix on April 21, 2013. The race on the Streets of Long Beach be televised live beginning at 4:00 p.m. (ET) by the NBC Sports Network (Verizon FiOS 90/590, DirecTV 220, DISH 159 and AT&T UVerse 640) and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network, including on Sirius and XM Channels 211 and www.indycar.com. Race timing and scoring can also be found on

IZOD INDYCAR SERIES
GRAND PRIX OF ALABAMA
BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER POST RACE QUOTES
APRIL 7, 2013
 
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES:
 
RYAN HUNTER-REAY, NO 1 DHL ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT CHEVROLET, RACE WINNER: ON THE RACE: “Helio and I always race clean. I had a little bit of contact with him before, I just couldn’t slow the car down and he was on the outside of me. Luckily we both just kept going from that, he took the lead at that point. His tire strategy worked in our favor, we had new reds on when he had blacks on, and he was just a sitting duck at that point. Will, on the other hand, did an unbelievable job keeping me behind him on reds. It was our worst set of reds though. I just kept patient and made it happen when I needed to. It was very challenging out there today, I’d like to thank all the other drivers, though, for keeping it on track and not going yellow because man, I didn’t want it to go yellow at the end. I had a little contact there with Helio (Castroneves), I feel bad about it.  Good thing nobody was affected by it but man, I was driving my tail off trying to stay in front of (Scott) Dixon.  Will (Power) did a good job staying in front of me on blacks, not sure how he did it. A lot of great racing out there. It’s just great to get a win for DHL, Sun Drop, Circle K and Chevrolet back in victory lane.  A good way to start the season.”
 
ON GETTING ANDRETTI A WIN AT BARBER: “It is excellent. It shows what we’re about, it shows that last year wasn’t a fluke. We really worked for it today. Unreal. I’m exhausted.”
 
IS THIS TEAM EVEN MAYBE BETTER THAN IT WAS LAST YEAR?  WHAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE? “It is. You know, we’ve never had a car like this at Barber. So, to do that is just unreal. But man, I’m really disappointed that my wife and my little boy aren’t here. We’re going to have to go win many more.  This one is for the little boy at home. It almost brings me to tears that he’s not here right now. But it is what it is. He’s going to Long Beach and all the rest of them.”
 
MICHAEL ANDRETTI, TEAM OWNER, ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT – RACE WINNER: ON THE RACE: “It really was a perfect weekend. We got the pole in both races and the win both races and led most of the laps, you can’t ask for much more than that. I’m really happy and proud of the whole DHL crew. They did a great job all weekend, and the whole Andretti team and it was really good. We knew we had to get it done because we had the reds and Helio had the blacks, and that’s how Helio was able to get us, so we had to try to return the favor. The team did a great job all weekend and Ryan did a hell of a job. This is awesome. I’m so happy for DHL and with the DHL car and also Sun Drop and everybody and Chevy. We’re happy to keep their streak going. So it was a good day.”
 
HOW MENTALLY EXHAUSTING WAS IT FOR YOU?
“It was a tough race because there are so many different things going on with the tires and all that. You just had to have faith in our strategy and it worked.”
 
HELIO CASTRONEVES, NO. 3 AAA INSURANCE TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, FINISHED 3RD: YOU LOOK PRETTY FRESH, CONSIDERING, BUT YOU WERE NOT IN A GOOD PLACE AT THAT START:  “No, because I was boxed-in. I saw Dixon trying to pass Will and then he got shoved to the side. Everybody went wide. And all of a sudden, I’m like c’mon Will, go! And we were at that point to the rear. It was a shame because we were hoping for a good start. And then we had to change the plan of strategy and Turbo was there in the end. Let me tell you, that little snail was awesome because he was pushing me totally all the way to the end.”
 
BUT THE SNAIL (FROM THE MOVIE TURBO) WISHED HE HAD REDS AT THE END, RIGHT? “Yeah, but that’s the price we pay. We change strategy in the middle of the race and we got to make time and that’s what we did. I thought we would be able to hold on, but it was 15 or 17 laps to go, it was too many laps; the blacks were a little bit tough to hold on to those guys. At least we got a podium and hopefully more points for the championship.”
 
YOU ARE NOW THE POINTS LEADER. DID YOU KNOW THAT?
(Laughter) “See, that’s good. Let’s keep going that way and hopefully we’re going to be there. So, a good job by the boys and everyone. Everybody did a hell of a job and I appreciate the support.”
 
WILL POWER, NO. 12 VERIZON TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, FINISHED 5TH: ON HIS RACE: “It was a tough start for us, we couldn’t get in the right slot and then committed to a different strategy to hopefully get the Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet on the podium. We thought we had a good plan and just needed a yellow at any point after Lap 31. Unfortunately it didn’t come and we fought for the fifth place finish. It isn’t exactly what we wanted to get out of the weekend but is still a good points day and gets us closer to the top.”
 
MARCO ANDRETTI, NO. 25 RC COLA ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT CHEVROLET, FINISHED 7TH: ON HIS RACE:  “I thought we the RC Cola car was quicker on track than where we ended up. Coming into barber, you can always expect this to be a physical race. Not finding the podium is always tough to swallow, but having back to back top ten finishes keeps us in a good position going into Long Beach.”
 
E.J. VISO, NO. 5 TEAM VENEZUELA PDVSA CITGO ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT HVM CHEVROLET, FINISHED 12TH: ON HIS RACE: “Probably not the race that we wanted. Anyways, we stayed out of trouble and we did all we could. Unfortunately in our race there were not many red flags to give us any margins to risk and to work on strategies. It was a very clean race. Not much action on track – just trying to keep the pace with the others. That’s about it. I’m very happy for Ryan – he won the race! Hopefully my turn is coming.”
 
TONY KANAAN, NO. 11 HYDROXYCUT KV RACING TECHNOLOGY SH RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 13TH: ON HIS RACE: “It was just a long day. I started the race on the primary tires in order to get them out of the way and was hoping to get more speed out of the red alternates to pick up some track position, but once I got stuck in traffic in the middle of the pack there was nothing I could do. Lost a handful of spots during our pits and managed to get some of them back at the end of the race, but it was still not our day. Let’s move on to Long Beach in a couple of weeks and focus on getting a better result there.”
 
ORIOL SERVIA, NO. 22 CHARTER PANTHER DRYER & REINBOLD RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 15TH: ON HIS RACE:  “That was a disappointing race. On the first lap, I was involved in the first crash. I got hit from behind and I hit Hinch (James Hinchcliffe), which I’m sorry for. I saw three cars abreast in front of me and I tried to take it easy, maybe Graham [Rahal] didn’t see it and we all just ran into them. It was a bad start and it’s hard to come back from last. We had a decent car, but I had the rear bumper ripped off in that first crash so the car was not behaving at its best. We did what we could, we were never as fast as the top five cars, but we definitely as good as those running 6th, 7th, and 8th. If we would have been able to jump up front, we would have been able to stay there.”
 
SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS, NO. 7 MCAFEE DRAGON RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 16TH: ON HIS RACE: “We knew it was going to be a long day starting in the back of the field. We had a good car and were able to make it up to 11th, but I made a mistake and we lost our position and fell back to 13th. On the last lap I was confused with a call on the radio and thought it was the end of the race, so I backed off and lost 3 more positions. Disappointing way to end the day.”
 
JR HILDEBRAND, NO. 4 NATIONAL GUARD PANTHER RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 17TH: ON HIS RACE:  “I felt good all day, and the Panther team did a great job in the pits as well. But I felt like we had a couple varying scenarios that inevitably didn’t go our way. We were definitely expecting
for there to be more yellow flags as the race went on, and with it being so tough to pass, we were trying to get off-sequence with the group of cars that we were around. And early in the race we had the pace to get away from a lot of those guys. In our effort to get off-sequence it was always so close, but never ended up working for us, and that’s the frustrating part. We had to run a long stint there at the end and we lost a few positions, but we were able to fight hard to keep our spot in the last few laps and I think at the end of the day we need to continue moving forward and working with what we have to get better. These last two races if we would have started up front we would have stayed there, so that’s the aim going into Long Beach.”
 
SIMONA DE SILVESTRO, NO. 78 NUCLEAR ENTERGY AREVA KV RACING TECHNOLOGY CHEVROLET, FINISHED 18TH: ON HER RACE:  “It was a tough race for us. We were always in traffic and there was always something going on. At the start I kind of got pushed out and lost a few positions and had to work my way back up. You know we were always fighting with different people and different tires and it was really hard to get by, so we kind of got stuck there and it wasn’t great. But, we’ll go on to the next one and hopefully we’ll be alright there.”
 
A.J. ALLMENDINGER, NO. 2 IZOD TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 10TH:  ON QUALIFYING:  ON HIS RACE: “All in all today was a good day in the No. 2 IZOD Team Penske Chevy and there are a lot of positives to take out of it. We had a good start and I thought I was pacing myself well, we could have had a top-10 day without the couple breaks against us. It was a good day with a bad stall and unfortunately after that point we were saving fuel so it made it tough to make up ground. But I know that I can compete with these guys and look forward to getting even better at Long Beach.”
 
SEBASTIAN SAAVEDRA, NO.  6 TRUECAR DRAGON RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 20TH: ON HIS RACE:  “I’m really disappointed with the way our day ended here at Barber. We had an amazing car and I was really happy with it, challenging drivers like Will Power for position. Pit stops did not go as planned and we lost what we had gained, moving to the back of the field. I’m ready to move onto Long Beach and go for the results I know we can get. “
 
ED CARPENTER, NO. 20 FUZZY’S PREMIUM ULTRA VODKA ED CARPENTER RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 22ND: ON HIS RACE:  “We tried to top off the fuel tank early under yellow and then do a two-stopper.  But the Fuzzy’s car wasn’t very good on the Black Firestones.  I thought the car felt good with the Firestone Red tires.  We ran some pretty consistent laps for a while there.  We committed to a strategy with just two stops and it just didn’t work out for us.  This track is tough and it is very hard to move forward.  We had a good first day here and I disappointed myself on Saturday in qualifying.  But today I felt the car was better and we learned some things for the future.  We had a pretty good at St. Pete and I think we’ll have a good run at Long Beach now.  At the end of the today, we have to take the positives and move on.”
 
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE, NO. 27 GODADDY.COM ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT CHEVROLET, FINISHED  26TH – AS A RESULT OF DAMAGE RECEIVED IN MULTI-CAR INCIDENT ON LAP 1 AND STOPPED ON LAP 3 OF THE 90-LAP RACE: ON WHAT HAPPENED: “From what I have been told, we all piled into turn eight; I was behind Tony (Kanaan). From what I hear, (Graham) Rahal hit (Oriol) Servia who got in the back of me. I got in the back of Tony a little bit, but it was pretty square, and it didn’t do any damage to the front. I knew I had gotten hit, but everything was fine at first, but I guess, under caution, things started to work itself loose. As I started to warm the tires up, the wheel actually broke, that was what it was. That goodness it happened under caution where it did, because there are a lot of fast parts of this race track where if your wheel goes flying, it could have been really big. If there is anything to take out of this weekend, it’s all we did is lose a wheel, and didn’t write-off a car.”
 
ON NOT BEING ABLE TO GET BACK TO PIT LANE: “It was frustrating to sit there for 75 laps, watching everybody else go around, when you can ‘t do anything.  Thank goodness Ryan (Hunter-Reay had a good race, he was keeping me excited. I stayed out there the last 15 laps with the safety crew, who are awesome by-the-way. They were trying everything to get me back. It was just awesome to watch Ryan get the win. Happy for him. Two weekends in a row Andretti Autosport on the top step of the podium, and that is what it is all about.
 
“Certainly not the race that we wanted, but it wasn’t really our weekend at all. You know we had problems in practice, obviously the issue we had in qualifying, and then got hit on the first lap of the race. It’s too bad because I think the strategy we had with the tires was going to be a good one, and obviously the car was strong with Ryan bringing home the win. It sucked to have to sit there – praying for a yellow, staying in the car, hoping we’d get the car back to the pits and maybe salvage a position or two. But ultimately it didn’t work out for us; just one more thing that didn’t fall our way this weekend. We kind of laugh it off because there’s nothing else you can do at this point – put it behind us and move on to Long Beach, and try to put the Go Daddy car into a better position.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
STP GAS BOOSTER 500
MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY POST RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
APRIL 7, 2013
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS – RACE WINNER
FOR THE EIGHTH TIME YOU WIN AT MARTINSVILLE. EVERY WIN HAS A STORY. YOU HAD A HUNGRY GUY BEHIND YOU THERE IN CLINT BOWYER. WHAT WAS THE STORY OF THIS WIN?
“It was just a long-fought day. Martinsville stays the same over the years and you just have to dig-in and get into a rhythm and drive your own race and see how things unfold at the end and how things happen. Fortunately we didn’t have any craziness with two tires or four tires at the end. I feel like the fastest car won the race. It was a very standard Martinsville race; although I thought some guys might peel off and take tires. It was just a hard race. This race track is tough to get around. But we have a great notebook. I’ve got to thank (crew chief) Chad Knaus and all my guys and everybody back home at Hendrick Motorsports. I want to encourage everybody, if you didn’t go already today, to go to Lowe’s and buy some stuff. It’s springtime. Life is good. We’ve had two wins this year.”
 
YOU SAID WHEN YOU ARE GOOD AT A TRACK, SOMETHING JUST STICKS. HOW WERE YOU ABLE TO HOLD OFF CLINT BOWYER AND JEFF GORDON?
“I think the last stop or two we really got our car adjusted right and got some clean air and track position, which was very important. For a period of time there, I kind of thought Matt Kenseth was going to win this thing and he hates this race track. I couldn’t believe he ran that well here today. I’ve got to give him a hard time about that. Just as the day wore on and we got to the end, they were flawless on pit road and I did my job on the race track to maintain track position, and we could control the race at that point. Being stuck on the outside lane on a restart would have been the death of whoever was out there. Fortunately we had control of the race late and held off a lot of hard-charging guys.”
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED THIRD
AT THE END, DESCRIBE THAT FINAL RESTART
“Well, we just didn’t need those cautions there at the end. I made a mistake on pit road and got us way behind. But, what an incredible effort for this Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet team. They had good pit stops and then they also made great adjustments. We were real tight there at the middle part of the race. And then boy that thing just took off. And on the long runs, I feel like we had the best car. But you know those cautions are going to come out there. We tried to free it up. We just didn’t get it quite freed-up enough. So, I was just trying to get the front end to cut and I knew that we just didn’t quite have it. We just needed more laps there at the end. Congratulations to Jimmie (Johnson, race winner) though; yes he is so impressive here but the thing that impresses me the most are those darn poles! Where did that come from? He used to at least give us a shot when he would qualify like 15th. So when those guys get that number one pit stall they’re almost impossible to beat. It was a lot of fun. We needed that third place finish. So I’m very proud of this team.”
 
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 NOVO NORDISK CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED SEVENTH
YOU HAD A REALLY STRONG RUN AND WHAT LOOKED LIKE AN EVENTFUL DAY WHAT WAS IT LIKE FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE?
“We had a really good car at the beginning of the race.  Even if we fell back I could get back in the top five and then after that little incident we got in.  I don’t know, I thought the car was going to be better without the bumper cover on it.  In the wind tunnel that is a big advantage.  I was actually kind of pumped up that it got ripped off.  The car just wasn’t as good after that.  I think the track, even though you couldn’t see rubber, the track got tighter and tighter as the race went on.  We adjusted for it, but just didn’t have enough speed there at the end.  Made a good pit call at the end and got a couple of extra spots.  That was a really good day for us.”
 
DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY.COM CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 12TH
YOUR FIRST TIME AT MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY.  DID YOU IMPRESS YOURSELF?
“I don’t know. I think you take what the car gives you and Tony Gibson (crew chief) has a really good track record here, he is a great crew chief, and my car was good all day.   We kind of balanced her out after being a little loose to a little tight but we got the GoDaddy.com car back up there.  We obviously went down real early with that spin and then were two laps down at one point.  So I feel that is one of the things that I am most proud about is coming back from two laps down and being on the last lap.   Then grabbing a 12th place finish in the end was good and I think it was the right call to stay out because I don’t think tires were quite worth enough to pit, so it was a good run today.”  
 
TELL US ABOUT THE END OF THE RACE
“Yeah, well, never being at Martinsville before, I didn’t know what to expect. All I knew was that it was going to be a little bit crazy. The bumping and banging sure gets going. I tried to guard the inside right there at the end and then (Brian) Vickers gave me a bump and I get it. I was trying to defend and hold my position. We still came away with a 12th place finish. It was good to do that for GoDaddy and obviously Hendrick Engines was very strong today. I felt like I made a lot of passes. I feel like I just passed all day. But I’m sure a lot of people do that on a short track. It was a nice day for us. It was nice to have a good weekend. We’ve had quite a few bad ones since Daytona. So, we’ll take this and get rolling into the summer because we don’t have a break until July.”
 
THERE WAS A LOT OF DOUBT ABOUT HOW YOU WOULD TAKE ON MARTINSVILLE SPEEDWAY. YOU IMPRESSED A LOT OF PEOPLE TODAY. DID YOU IMPRESS YOURSELF?
“I don’t know. I think you take what the car gives you. Tony Gibson (crew chief) has a really good track record here. He’s a great crew chief. And my car was pretty good all day. We kind of bounced around from being a little loose to a little tight but we got the GoDaddy car back up there. We obviously went down real early with that spin and were two laps down at one point in time. So I feel like that’s almost one of the things I’m most proud of is coming back from two laps down to being on the lead lap and then grabbing a 12th place at the end was good and I think it was the right call to stay out because I don’t think tires were quite worth enough to pit. So it was a good run today.”
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW/SERTA CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 37th
WHAT HAPPENED THERE AT THE END THAT RESULTED IN CONTACT WITH THE WALL?
“Something let go in the brakes.  The brakes got real spongy and then the pedal went straight to the floor.  I had to turn the car to the right otherwise I was going to hit harder than what we did.  Fuel pump issue and then a brake issue, bummer day for the Furniture Row guys.  They work really hard and we buy a lot of the same parts all the big teams do we just had some bad luck today.”
 
QUICK THINKING BY YOU TO PULL THAT FIRE EXTINGUISHER IN THERE ARE YOU OKAY?
“Yeah, just couldn’t get the window net down as quick as I needed to so we will look at exactly what that was.  It’s one of those things where we were running 38th 20 laps down what more can go wrong? But I will find it out there for sure.”
 

Ryan Hunter-Reay Wins the Pole at Barber Motorsports Park
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.  (April 6, 2013) – Defending IZOD IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay will start the No. 1 DHL Andretti Autosport Chevrolet from the pole of tomorrow’s Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park (Barber). With a lap of 1 minute, 07.0871 seconds at 123.422 miles per hour (m.p.h.), Hunter-Reay went to the top of the Firestone Fast Six leader board with less than a minute remaining in the 10-minute final session.
 
Today’s Verizon P1 Award is Hunter-Reay’s third-career pole, and his first at Barber as well as his first of the 2013 season.
 
Making it an all-Chevrolet IndyCar V6 front row is two-time Barber race winner, Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, who will start alongside Hunter-Reay for tomorrow’s 90-lap race on the challenging 2.38-mile, 17-turn, purpose-built road course.
 
“Congratulations to Ryan Hunter-Reay and the entire No. 1 DHL Andretti Autosport team on winning the pole for the Grand Prix of Alabama,” said Chris Berube, Chevrolet Racing Program Manager, IZOD IndyCar Series. “As always with this exciting method of qualifying, it was tense down to the last seconds of the Firestone Fast Six, but Ryan Hunter-Reay and Will Power were focused and managed to deliver at the end to secure the top two spots. We are very proud to have Chevrolet IndyCar twin turbo V6 engines on the front row to lead the field to the green flag at Barber Motorsports Park for the second consecutive year.”
 
Helio Castroneves, No. 3 AAA Insurance Turbo Team Penske Chevrolet, will start sixth tomorrow giving Team Chevy three of the top-six starters in Round Two of the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series season.
 
The 90-lap Grand Prix of Alabama will be televised live at 3 p.m. (ET) by the NBC Sports Network (Verizon FiOS 90/590, DirecTV 220, DISH 159 and AT&T UVerse 640) and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network, including on Sirius and XM Channels 211 and www.indycar.com. Race timing and scoring can also be found on

Chevrolet Drivers Score Double Wins in Rolex Sports Car Series at Barber Motorsports Park
Max Angelelli and Jordan Taylor Win Overall and DP; John Edwards and Robin Liddell Take Top Podium Spot in GT
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (April 6, 2013) – Max Angelelli put the No. 10 Velocity Worldwide Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette Daytona Prototype (DP) in the lead with 45 minutes remaining in the third race of the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series season.
 
The determined driver never stopped pushing, leading the final 33 laps around the 2.38-mile, 17-turn circuit to post his 22nd DP victory. Co-driver Jordan Taylor, who led five laps during the opening hour, scored his first DP triumph after winning twice in the GT division. It was team owner Wayne Taylor’s first win of 2013.
 
The Angelelli/J. Taylor duo led a trio of Corvette DP’s across the stripe to make it an all-Chevrolet podium in the DP class.  Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty took the checkered flag in second place, with Gurney handling the driving duties for the final stint in the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing Corvette DP. In third place was Richard Westbrook wheeling the No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Racing Corvette DP with co-driver Ricky Taylor.
 
Bringing home the victory in the Grand Touring (GT) class were John Edwards and Robin Liddell in the No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Camaro GT.R. Edwards started the race from the pole, and Liddell won the race off pit lane from the final stop, and held off a hard challenge to win by 0.733 seconds.
 
 “Congratulations to Max Angelelli and Jordan Taylor on their win today at Barber in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet Racing Program Manager, GRAND-AM Road Racing.  “And to John Edwards and Robin Liddell for winning the GT class with the No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Camaro GT.R.  Both teams did an excellent job with pit strategy throughout the race, and the drivers in both cars held off stiff competition in the closing laps of the race to get their wins. It was an exciting finish, and we are pleased that the No. 99 and No. 90 Corvette Daytona Prototypes were on the podium as well. Race results like this are very rewarding for everyone at Chevrolet, our teams and our technical partners that work tirelessly on the GRAND-AM Road Racing program.”
 
Eric Curran and Boris Said brought the No. 31 Marsh Racing Corvette, to the finish in third place in GT, giving Chevrolet two of the three podium positions in-class.
 
 In the 2.5-hour Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race, Stevenson Motorsports teammates John Edwards and Matt Bell finished second in the No. 9 Camaro GS.R to capture their best finish of the season to date.  Lawson Aschenbach and Eric Curran brought the No. 01 CKS Camaro GS.R to the checkered flag in fifth place, equaling their strongest run of the season so far.
 
“In addition, congratulations to John Edwards and Matt Bell on their second-place finish in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race this afternoon,” Lutz concluded. “It was also a very tense race with an edge-of-the-seat exciting finish. Chevrolet had a good presence in the finishing order with the No. 01 CKS Autosport Camaro capturing the fifth finishing position.”
 
The next event for Team Chevy in GRAND-AM Road Racing will be at the GRAND-AM Road Racing debut event at Road Atlanta, in Braselton, Georgia, April 18 – 20.  The GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series race can be seen live on SPEED, Saturday, April 20, at 4:30 p.m. EDT/1:30 p.m. PDT. The Continental Tire Sports Car Series race will run Saturday, April 20 at 11:30 a.m. EDT, with television coverage set for broadcast on April 27, 2:00 p.m. EDT on SPEED.
 
POST RACE OWNER AND DRIVER QUOTES:
ROLEX SPORTS CAR SERIES:
MAX ANGELELLI & JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 10 VELOCITY WORLDWIDE WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP – OVERALL AND DP CLASS RACE WINNERS:
 
THE LAST TIME YOUR CAR WENT TO VICTORY LANE HERE WAS 2005 AND YOU WERE A DRIVER, ALONG WITH MAX. NOW YOUR GET YOUR SON, JORDAN, HIS FIRST DP WIN IN A TAYLOR-OWNER CAR. CONGRATULATIONS:
 
WAYNE TAYLOR:
“Thank you very much. This team did an outstanding job this weekend. They worked really hard the whole year. Our pit stops are just terrific and Jordan and Max did an absolutely outstanding job. I owe this to the team. The team has worked so hard since the beginning of the season and, clearly, we’ve been better than the rest in the pits all season. Sometimes, you need to have a little bit of luck to win these things, but I just can’t say enough about this team and how everybody has elevated their game to perfection. A huge thanks to Velocity Worldwide coming on board at the time they did. You know, it was really a tough time at the end of last season trying to get everything together. I owe a special thanks to Paul Blakely, Enda McShane and Brian Stockman from Velocity. And, to Toshiba, who have stuck with us through everything we’ve done over the years. I have so much to repay them. And then there’s General Motors. Everything that Mark Kent, Jim Campbell, Mark Reuss – the support that they’ve put behind the series and behind these Corvette teams is just incredible. I can’t thank them enough. I’m just so happy for everybody.”
 
MAX, YOU LAST WON HERE AT BARBER IN 2005 AND YOU ARE VICTORIOUS AGAIN HERE TODAY. CONGRATULATIONS:
 
MAX ANGELELLI:
“Thank you very much. It’s been almost ten years and so I’m happy. After ten years, that’s good. Thanks to the team and to Jordan. They deserved it. They won the race.”
 
WATCHING THE LAST 15 MINUTES OF THAT RACE, IT LOOKED LIKE GURNEY COULD GET CLOSE TO YOU, BUT THEN YOU COULD PULL AWAY ALMOST AT WILL. WERE YOU JUST KIND OF RUNNING YOUR OWN RACE AND CONSERVING? WERE YOU PLAYING WITH HIM A LITTLE BIT OUT THERE?
 
MAX ANGELELLI:
“When you have the car to do that, it’s pretty enjoyable to inflict philological pain. So, I just enjoyed myself.”
 
AFTER THE DISAPPOINTMENT OF AUSTIN FIVE WEEKS AGO, HOW SPECIAL IS IT TO GET THE WIN HERE TODAY?
 
MAX ANGELELLI:
“It is great for the guys; not for me, for the guys. That’s it.”
 
THIS IS YOUR FIRST WIN IN A FAMILY-OWNED DAYTONA PROTOTYPE. HOW DOES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL?
 
JORDAN TAYLOR:
“Yeah, it’s cool. We had a strong car in Daytona and Austin, but it just didn’t go our way. Little things held us back. So, we knew we had it coming and it’s nice that it came this early in the season and that sets us up in a good position for the rest of the championship, so we’re looking forward to it.”
 
ROBIN LIDDELL AND JOHN EDWARDS, NO. 57 STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS, STEVENSON AUTOMOTIVE GROUP CHEVROLET CAMARO GT.R – GT CLASS RACE WINNERS:
 
THIS CAR STARTED ON THE POLE WITH JOHN EDWARDS AND YOU BROUGHT IT HOME TO VICTORY LANE TODAY, BUT IT WASN’T EASY. YOU HAD YOUR HANDS FULL OUT THERE IN THE CLOSING LAPS:
 
ROBIN LIDDELL:
“Yeah, we were under quite a lot of pressure. Alessandro (Balzan) was doing a good job in the No. 63 Ferrari was doing a good job. He’s not been in the series very long and we’ve already had a good few races with him and with those guys. Obviously the car was out front with John starting on the pole and that helped a lot. It takes the pressure off as the second driver. It’s not an easy track to pass around here and although the car was very good, it was key for us getting track position and trying to stay there rather than trying to fight out way through the field. The second pit stop was very key. We just managed to sneak out ahead of those guys. Great job by the team and the crew to do that and I had a pretty risky move in the pit lane just to stay ahead of him going down past their box. So, I figured that was going to be the key to the race. We obviously managed to come out ahead. We were certainly good on new tires and I think we were even better in the traffic. Overall, they
were very strong and they were closing the gap pretty tight and pretty quickly at the end there. So, hat’s off to all our crew and thanks to everybody on our side: Stevenson, Chevrolet, John, Mike Johnson, and everybody did a super job today.
 
“I think I gained a little bit from some track experience here. Obviously Alessandro has not been at some of these tracks and I think I just knew where to position the car and when the tires started to go off, I think I could cope with that a little bit better. He was a wee bit quicker in the end and obviously we were under quite a bit of pressure. But generally speaking, I seemed to get the breaks; and where I was able to stop a DP going by to get a run out of the corner and keep him between us, I was able to do that. We were looking very strong in the last section into the last couple of turns and I full expected him to have a lunge being made at me in the last lap, but he wasn’t close enough to me. So, all credit to the guys. The team did a wonderful job. In the end the guys did a super job in the pits and it was very, very tight on the way out because the No. 63 car came out of the box and I really thought we were going to make contact. I just my foot in because I figured that would be the key to the race, which I think in the end, it was. So a great job by everybody.”
 
YOU WON THE POLE AND YOU STARTED FROM THE FRONT WHERE YOU WANTED TO. AND YOU GUYS MADE IT WORK:
 
JOHN EDWARDS:
“Yeah, I had a pretty intense stint there because we chose to take tires and other people didn’t. So we were a bit faster but the tires were starting to go off as I was catching Jeff Westphal who hadn’t taken tires. And I didn’t think I was going to get by him without a mistake or some traffic, so I saw an opportunity with traffic and took it; and ended-up going sailing off the road, so I hope I didn’t give the team a heart attack doing that. But we ended up pitting behind Jeff and came out ahead. So full credit to the Stevenson crew and the tire change. We weren’t waiting on fuel for that stop. So the guys with the tires and Robin and Mike with the driver change, really deserve a lot of credit for taking that spot because if we had come up behind Alessandro, I don’t think we would have had a shot getting by him.”
 
 ALEX GURNEY & JOHN FOGARTY, NO. 99 BOB STALLINGS RACING, GAINSCO AUTO INSURANCE CHEVROLET CORVETTE DP – FINISHED 2ND:
TALK ABOUT THE DAY, AND THOSE LAST LAPS:
 
ALEX GURNEY: ON HIS RACE: “Well actually the last four (laps) we were on fumes there so I backed it way down. But for a while there, when I’d get free of traffic I’d try to mount a run on it and it seemed like I could gain a little bit, but he (Max Angelelli, race winner) did an awesome job. He never made a mistake. Hats off to him. We were about the same. I think if we were in the lead, we probably would have won, as well. But anyway, it was a good solid race and a great points day, for sure.”
 
JON FOGARTY: ON HIS RACE: “The opening part of my stint was great.  The car was really perfect and I was able to open up a gap and kind of maintain my pace.  Then a yellow came out, people kind of mixed up their strategies, and we came out in the middle of the field.  Working our way through traffic we came up upon a bunch of slower cars and I just picked the wrong line. I ended up following a GT car through the grass and was just fighting from there. We had a good clean race. The 10 car went around the outside of me for position, it was a good move, but I feel like that is what put us in second place. It would have been great to win, but we are conscious of the fact that we play for championships.  Podium points are solid and this moves us closer to the championship.”
 
RICHARD WESTBROOK AND RICKY TAYLOR, NO. 90 SPIRIT OF DAYTONA RACING, VISITFLORIDA.COM/GOPRO CORVETTE DP – FINISHED 3RD:
RICKY TAYLOR RAN PRETTY LONG THERE AND PUSHED THE FUEL ENVELOPE IN THE FIRST RUN, BUT YOU PICKED IT UP. DID YOU HAVE ENOUGH TO TRY TO GET TO VICTORY LANE?
 
RICHARD WESTBROOK: “No, we were pretty much out of fuel; but that’s car racing. Sometimes you’ve got to play the fuel-mileage game. It’s a real shame when you’re driving because you know how good the car is and you’ve got to save fuel. Even with saving fuel, we could race them up to a point and then there was no point and we’d get overtaken in fuel-saving mode. So, we backed-off and brought it home. Good points and I think when we wake up tomorrow we’ll all be happy.”
 
ON HIS RACE:  “It’s good to get our season going with some points.  A little bit disappointed because we had a really good car, like we always do here.  When we wake up tomorrow we will be happy with the points when we look at the points table because it looks a lot stronger for us.  The team did a great job.  Just a little bit unlucky with the strategy. We had to save a lot of fuel during the race, which is part of sports car racing, but it’s not nice when you drive in it and you know the car is good. You want to race, but you’ve got to back off just to get around.  That is what makes this sport so interesting sometimes the strategy that is played out.”  
 
RICKY TAYLOR:
ON HIS RACE:  “We had a good car and thought pit stops and strategy were really good.  I was a bit disappointed with the way I drove today. It was a good day.  I think we can build on it in Atlanta.  It’s good to have a podium after a rough start to the season.”
 
MORE: “The car was really fast in clean air. I felt like we were definitely as good as the 99 and then the 10 and 01 didn’t have the pace we did for sure. I was a bit frustrated with myself in traffic and I kind of let them get away. But at the end of the day it’s a good podium and I think we can build on this for the rest of the year.”
 
CONTINENTAL TIRE SPORTS CAR CHALLENGE:
 
JOHN EDWARDS AND MATT BELL, NO. 9 STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS CAMARO GS.R, FINISHED 2ND:
 
JOHN EDWARDS: ON HIS RACE: “It’s the elusive double win (referring to his win earlier in the day in the Rolex Sports Car Series GT class). Bill (Auberlin) has been able to do it twice, and I’ve come close once before, and can’t pull it off quite yet. I hate sound depressed to finish second, but when you are leading with 20 – 30 minutes to go, and just make a rookie mistake, I just missed a shift and let Hugh (Plumb) right by. Hugh drove great. After the restart, I got in a scrap with David Empringham. We had some contact in (turn) five, which is fine; we were side-to-side. Then going down the straightaway, he just turned right into me. So, don’t know what he was doing.”
 
MATT BELL: ON HIS RACE: “We didn’t have a car for second place. To come away with it is really, really impressive. Not enough can be said about the Stevenson team. Really, I mean…when I started driving the car, it was really good for two laps, but I was in traffic and couldn’t capitalize on it. We had a pretty good lap, but they just immediately faded. One I got a handle on it; the car was just getting looser and looser, just almost to the point of being un-drivable. They made a decision to make a change, and the change was perfect. The next stint they made another change, so John’s drive was even better. Then again, on the final stint, they made more changes.  Like I said, we didn’t have a second place car; to come away with it is really impressive.”
 
LAWSON ASCHENBACH AND ERIC CURRAN, NO. 01 CKS AUTOSPORT CAMARO GS.R, FINISHED 5TH:
 
LAWSON ASCHENBACH: ON HIS RACE: “We actually had a really good Team Chevy CKS Autosport Camaro. But, we just really had nothing for them today; it was a little bit frustrating. We got put back a little bit on our last stop; we took four tires instead of two. It’s hard to come back here with track position. Considering everything that happened, and what happened with
Eric in the beginning of the race, I’m pretty happy with fifth place. A little bit disappointed, but to get out of here with a fifth…hopefully we will just regroup and get a little bit better for Road Atlanta.”
 
ERIC CURRAN: ON HIS RACE: “The race was good. The Continental Tire Series is always tough, but this Team Chevy No. 01 CKS Camaro was great all day long. I got tangled up with an ST car early running in the top-five, but got back up to the fourth position. Lawson did a great job finishing up in fifth. We needed the points. We had a tough race at COTA. We’re excited to finish in the top-five. With the other Camaro, the Stevenson car, in second, It has been a good day overall for Chevrolet. We finished third with Corvette in the GT class of the Rolex race earlier. There were a lot of Chevrolets on the podium today, so I’m excited for that.”
 
POST ROLEX SPORTS CAR SERIES RACE WINNER’S PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:
 
MAX ANGELELLI AND JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 10 VELOCITY WORLDWIDE WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP – OVERALL AND DP WINNERS
TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE RACE FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE:
MAX ANGELELLI: “For my side it was kind of easy because I only had to maintain the gap looking after the tires so I really babysitting the tires all along.  The car was great.  Jordan (Taylor, co-driver) allowed me to have such a race.  Easy race, easy stint because he put the car in such a good position ahead of the No. 99 that really helped.  On top of it the team really made a good call.  I never thought about it and I was the one pushing the team for only a one stop race but they, as usual, they didn’t listen to me.  So we won the race.”
 
TELL US ABOUT YOUR FIRST ROLEX DP WIN:
JORDAN TAYLOR: “It was a pretty exciting day I would say.  I would say the first 10-15 minutes before that first yellow wasn’t great for me.  I got caught in a bit of GT traffic with (Memo) Rojas.  We were also saving a little bit of fuel at that point.  I knew if the yellow had come and we had to take a stop we would be in a good position to jump them maybe and our guys are always strong in the pits so we were able to get back by them, but we lost a lot of track position.  I think we were sixth or seventh in line, but the car was super strong.  We were able to kind of maintain a decent pace and pick off guys not aggressively and not taking high risk it was kind of in traffic.  I think when I got Jon (Fogarty) he was held up by a GT car over the hill and I was able to get around him.  I don’t remember a couple of the other ones, but Ricky (Taylor) was another one, he got held up by one of the Nonnamakers I think and I was able to get around him.  It was exciting.  When you are in the car for that kind of a period of time you don’t really know what is going on around you.  I didn’t know where we were track position wise or fuel wise when we put Max (Angelelli, co-driver) in.  So once I got out of the car, spoke to the guys, heard that we had a decent gap and we were the only ones at that point fully fueled to get to the end I was pretty excited.  Those last 50 minutes were pretty stressful.  I’m used to finishing the races in GT so it’s a little different on this side, but it was good.  Max did a great job.”
 
CORVETTE HAS FINISHED 1, 2, 3 TODAY AND QUALIFIED PRETTY WELL.  WHAT ABOUT THIS TRACK SUITS THEM?
MAX ANGELELLI: “Probably we have the best teams.  Chevy had the best teams.  That is what I think and best drivers.”
 
JORDAN TAYLOR: “We definitely have strong teams, good strategy and like if you look at the driving pairing in the Corvettes compared to the Riley’s it is pro/pros in most of the Corvettes and pro/am in most of the other cars.  I think if you look at the fastest laps the Riley’s were right there.  I think Brendan Harley even had the fastest lap of the race.  Over a lap over a stint I think if you have pro/pros in both cars it’s going to be a fight at the end.  I think the only difference was it was an all green race and the pro/pro line-ups made that gap at the beginning where it mattered.  I think that is kind of where you see the difference.”
 
THERE WAS PRETTY MUCH A LACK OF DRY RUNNING TIME FOR MOST OF THE WEEKEND.  DID THE CAR FEEL AS WHAT YOU EXPECTED IT TO BE OR DO YOU THINK THERE COULD HAVE BEEN IMPROVEMENTS IF YOU HAD MORE DRY TIME?
JORDAN TAYLOR: “I think there were definitely rooms for improvement. Qualifying was basically the only dry session we had.  It was basically my first time back in the DP here in a couple of years.  I don’t think my feedback was that accurate.  We didn’t really want to take a risk on a change before the race.  We knew we had a decent car.  We qualified third so we were safe in that respect, but I was able to have good running in the race and Max (Angelelli, co-driver) only drove in the wet the whole weekend.  His first dry lap was actually his first lap in the race.  He had to adapt pretty quickly and not lose that gap that we had already.  It was an exciting day, a lot of firsts for everyone.  I’m just glad we were able to get through it the way we did.”
 
IN REGARDS TO THE TRACK SURFACE:
JORDAN TAYLOR: “It’s always nicer when you have more grip and compared to last year we had the predicted lap on the dash from the year before and that is always nice to see that ticking down the whole way around the lap.  The new Continental tire was much better as well so we were able to push throughout the stint and not really have to maintain a pace.  That made I think the racing more exciting.”
 
WITH ALEX GURNEY HOUNDING YOU TOWARD THE END WHAT DID YOU HAVE TO DO DIFFERENTLY TO HOLD HIM OFF?  WERE YOU AWARE OF HOW CLOSE HE WAS?
MAX ANGELELLI: “No, I wasn’t worried.  I knew what I had.  My car was so strong.  I could pull away. I think I show it to him.  There was not a worry. I had the situation in my hands and just managed the gap.  I just kept him around two seconds I guess.  That is it. Our car was really good.  It’s been a good weekend.”
 
THEY GROUND THE TRACK DOWN AND YOU HAD A NEW TIRE COMPOUND THIS WEEKEND.  HOW DID THAT COMBINATION WORK OUT FOR YOU GUYS TODAY?  WHAT DID YOU THINK DIFFERENTLY FROM LAST YEAR?
MAX ANGELELLI: “Continental delivered a great tire compound. Finally they were able to decide their own destiny changing the tires.  It was about time.  Finally we can practice; finally we can race hard so that was great. Now we have good tires and we can push all the way to the end.”
 
HOW DOES IT FEEL TO GET YOUR FIRST DP WIN?  WITH YOUR BROTHER ON THE PODIUM HOW WILL THE FAMILY GO ABOUT CELEBRATING THIS EVENING?
JORDAN TAYLOR: “I don’t know if he will be celebrating as much as us.  We both want to win, but it’s cool that we were both on the podium.  I know he probably wanted to be on the top step like we are and vice versa.  If I was in his position I would want the same.  Our brother relationship isn’t really like other brother relationships.  We don’t look at it as a competitor wanting to kill each other out there.  I think you can see from both races that we race respectably.  Same with (Jon) Fogarty we never touched once in Austin or here.  It’s good racing and we know one of us is going to be better one weekend the other is going to be better the other weekend.  I don’t think any comparisons need to be made.  I think someone is going to have a good day and a bad day and the other day is going to be vice versa.  We enjoy it.”
 
JOHN EDWARDS AND ROBIN LIDDELL, NO. 57 STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS CAMARO GT.R – GT WINNERS
IN REGARDS TO HOW THE RACE UNFOLDED:
JOHN EDWARDS: “I had the first stint, then we pitted and took tires and a l
ot of people didn’t so I had to try to work my way through the field and I think that was still the right call because we saw Boris (Said) struggling on his tires at the end of his stint and lost a lot of track time.  I think that was the right call, but it did put us back in traffic and I had to work hard to make that up.  Made a pretty opportunistic move with some traffic when I caught Jim Norman was trying to go around the outside of (Jeff) Westphal while he was inside Jim Norman and went sailing off at the exit of turn four.  That was maybe not my wisest decision, but in a two hour race we are flat out the whole time and you know that those positions are really going to matter.  In the end I didn’t get by him and pitted from P2 (position 2) and the crew did an awesome stop.  We were a bit concerned that driver changes it’s tough to do within the tires and the driver change went perfectly and got done before the tires.  The crew did a great job on the tire change.  Dropped the car and beat the No. 63 out of pit lane and that was really the key to the race.  After that Robin (Liddell) with two maybe dry laps in practice went out and did a 27.7 on his first lap and then held off (Balzan ) Alessandro the whole time.  Excellent job by him as well.”
 
ROBIN LIDDELL: “Although it was a short race and reasonable uneventful from my point of view I felt under quite a lot of pressure.  Obviously, same sort of deal for everybody this weekend.  It was a wet weekend up until qualifying.  Although I did a couple of laps at the end of that final practice it really wasn’t completely dry.  Obviously, the track has changed quite a bit.  I think the testing that we did here in November helped us quite a lot.  Or helped me at least just being able to go out and get into the groove straight away.  I knew that was important plus with only fourteen minutes or so to go, fifteen minutes I guess maybe.  I felt the pressure of being able to go out and basically stay in front of those guys, but got into a good rhythm pretty quickly.  The car felt good.  The track has improved quite a lot from our point of view although there is some fall off in the tire degradation it’s not as bad as it used to be so it’s definitely a step forward.  That is a credit to the team here at the track for dealing with that and the Continental guys.  Obviously, John (Edwards) as usual did a good job, got the car on pole, drove a really good stint and really I think it came down to the guys in the pits.  We had a pretty good second pit stop and I came down pit lane and the Ferrari had dropped and started to go.  He came out at quite an angle, but of course by that time I was doing 45 (mph) and I just literally thought to myself ‘if he comes out I am just going to crash into him.’ There was no way I was lifting I just had to stay on the outside lane.  I wasn’t willing to lift.  I figured at that point if he got ahead of us in the pit that probably was going to be the game changer.  We managed to stay ahead and we were pretty strong on new tires actually compared to them.  I think in the traffic as well we were able to keep them at bay quite effectively.  I think in some respects they have proven themselves to be pretty strong competitors already.  We have had a few tight races with them so far in the short time they have been in the series, but also in terms of our experience here at this race track and on fading tires with traffic, etc.  I think that did play out a little bit to my advantage and was able to choose my moments better and keep the advantage in the traffic situation.  All in all very happy, I must say I wasn’t expecting to come out of here with a win.  I really thought we were going to have a tough time this weekend.  Very happy for all the team and everybody else at Stevenson and Chevrolet.”
 

Ryan Hunter-Reay Wins the Pole at Barber Motorsports Park
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.  (April 6, 2013) – Defending IZOD IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay will start the No. 1 DHL Andretti Autosport Chevrolet from the pole of tomorrow’s Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park (Barber). With a lap of 1 minute, 07.0871 seconds at 123.422 miles per hour (m.p.h.), Hunter-Reay went to the top of the Firestone Fast Six leader board with less than a minute remaining in the 10-minute final session.
 
Today’s Verizon P1 Award is Hunter-Reay’s third-career pole, and his first at Barber as well as his first of the 2013 season.
 
Making it an all-Chevrolet IndyCar V6 front row is two-time Barber race winner, Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, who will start alongside Hunter-Reay for tomorrow’s 90-lap race on the challenging 2.38-mile, 17-turn, purpose-built road course.
 
“Congratulations to Ryan Hunter-Reay and the entire No. 1 DHL Andretti Autosport team on winning the pole for the Grand Prix of Alabama,” said Chris Berube, Chevrolet Racing Program Manager, IZOD IndyCar Series. “As always with this exciting method of qualifying, it was tense down to the last seconds of the Firestone Fast Six, but Ryan Hunter-Reay and Will Power were focused and managed to deliver at the end to secure the top two spots. We are very proud to have Chevrolet IndyCar twin turbo V6 engines on the front row to lead the field to the green flag at Barber Motorsports Park for the second consecutive year.”
 
Helio Castroneves, No. 3 AAA Insurance Turbo Team Penske Chevrolet, will start sixth tomorrow giving Team Chevy three of the top-six starters in Round Two of the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series season.
 
The 90-lap Grand Prix of Alabama will be televised live at 3 p.m. (ET) by the NBC Sports Network (Verizon FiOS 90/590, DirecTV 220, DISH 159 and AT&T UVerse 640) and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network, including on Sirius and XM Channels 211 and www.indycar.com. Race timing and scoring can also be found on

Ryan Hunter-Reay Wins the Pole at Barber Motorsports Park
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.  (April 6, 2013) – Defending IZOD IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay will start the No. 1 DHL Andretti Autosport Chevrolet from the pole of tomorrow’s Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park (Barber). With a lap of 1 minute, 07.0871 seconds at 123.422 miles per hour (m.p.h.), Hunter-Reay went to the top of the Firestone Fast Six leader board with less than a minute remaining in the 10-minute final session.
 
Today’s Verizon P1 Award is Hunter-Reay’s third-career pole, and his first at Barber as well as his first of the 2013 season.
 
Making it an all-Chevrolet IndyCar V6 front row is two-time Barber race winner, Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, who will start alongside Hunter-Reay for tomorrow’s 90-lap race on the challenging 2.38-mile, 17-turn, purpose-built road course.
 
“Congratulations to Ryan Hunter-Reay and the entire No. 1 DHL Andretti Autosport team on winning the pole for the Grand Prix of Alabama,” said Chris Berube, Chevrolet Racing Program Manager, IZOD IndyCar Series. “As always with this exciting method of qualifying, it was tense down to the last seconds of the Firestone Fast Six, but Ryan Hunter-Reay and Will Power were focused and managed to deliver at the end to secure the top two spots. We are very proud to have Chevrolet IndyCar twin turbo V6 engines on the front row to lead the field to the green flag at Barber Motorsports Park for the second consecutive year.”
 
Helio Castroneves, No. 3 AAA Insurance Turbo Team Penske Chevrolet, will start sixth tomorrow giving Team Chevy three of the top-six starters in Round Two of the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series season.
 
The 90-lap Grand Prix of Alabama will be televised live at 3 p.m. (ET) by the NBC Sports Network (Verizon FiOS 90/590, DirecTV 220, DISH 159 and AT&T UVerse 640) and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network, including on Sirius and XM Channels 211 and www.indycar.com. Race timing and scoring can also be found on