MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
AUTO CLUB 400
TEAM CHEVY RACE NOTES & QUOTES
MARCH 17, 2019

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL FINISHING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
6th KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1
10th AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW COATINGS CAMARO ZL1
11th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1
12th KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1
15th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL FINISHING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st Kyle Busch (Toyota)
2nd Joey Logano (Ford)
3rd Brad Keselowski (Ford)
4rd Kevin Harvick (Ford)
5rd Ryan Blaney (Ford)

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season continues next weekend at Martinsville Speedway with the STP 500 on Sunday, March 24 at 2 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

TEAM CHEVY NOTES AND QUOTES:

KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 6th
“We had a good day. I was just hoping to get a top 5 and came home just a bit short. But the growth rate of us at Ganassi and the adjustments we’re making, I couldn’t be happier. I’m smiling as I’m driving the car. It’s so much fun to toss it down in there with all this downforce and the horsepower, you just pitch it sideways and see if it’s going to stick. But, we know we’ve got our work cut out for us. It’s awesome to run up front. I’m smiling. But, we know at our growth rate, we’re not on a plateau yet. I’ve got to keep going.”

TALK ABOUT KYLE BUSCH, YOUR BROTHER’S ACHIEVEMENT OF 200 NASCAR WINS TODAY?
HE GOT A SPEEDING PENALTY BUT CAME BACK AND WON HIS 200TH. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THAT?
“Yeah, I thought he was done. Denny (Hamlin) got back up to 7th. Those guys, man, when they’re dialed in, they’re hard to catch. And, at the growth rate we’re growing at Ganassi with the No. 1 car, we’ve got to keep going because these guys are a couple steps ahead of us, maybe even more than that, but we’ve done well as a team to find the speed we need to and to come away with good consistent finishes. But, this is a big day. For my little brother to have 200 wins, they’re all added up through his hard work and his dedication to perfection. Not bat for two kids with an attitude from Vegas.”

IT’S A BUSCH FAMILY TRADITION, ISN’T IT?
“As far as attitudes and winning? I’ve got to hold up my end of the bargain. I’ve gotten too nice and I’m not winning enough; but I’m having fun. I love the Ganassi guys. Matt McCall (crew chief) wants more. I know he does. I want more. I was hoping for a top 5 today but we’ll take it. All in all, we’re running where we need to be running.”

ARE YOU PROUD TO BE LEADING THE CHEVY CONTINGENT? THIS IS THE THIRD TIME THIS YEAR THAT YOU’VE BEEN THE TOP BOWTIE
“I want to see more Bowties up there all around me. It’s those teams that are there right now with Penske, SHR, Gibbs, that’s what’s towing the boat and towing the whole sequence. For us at Ganassi, we’ve got to cross over that threshold and get to that next level. Whether Chevy is going to help us or we’re taking them, we’re just going to continue to work hard as a team no matter what it is.”

AT VEGAS, YOU HAD YOUR STRONG RUN THAT WAS HELPED BY MATT’S PIT DECISION, BUT TODAY IT SEEMED LIKE IT WAS MORE ABOUT WHAT THE CAR COULD DO. HOW DO YOU FEEL THE CAR AND YOU GUYS HAVE IMPROVED IN THE LAST TWO WEEKS BECAUSE YOU DIDN’T NEED A PIT CALL TO GET POSITION?
“The biggest thing is we’re not getting stage points. At the end of the day, I think we might only get 30 points today. It’s fun to finish well and to have that accolade, but the way you run this series is you’ve got to have stage points. So, we’ve got to qualify better. Right now the RCR guys are doing that. As a Chevy group, Hendrick was good at Phoenix last week. We’ve got to cover more bases quicker. We’re going a good job of getting entrenched with each other, but we also need to start pinpointing where we can gain that time.”

WAS IT A CHOICE OF PICKING YOUR SET-UP FOR QUALIFYING OR YOUR CHOICE OF PICKING YOUR SET-UP FOR RACE DAY WITH THE SHORT TIME YOU HAVE TO PRACTICE NOW?
“I didn’t like the way our car was handling and I didn’t want to jump out in that draft. I didn’t think I was going to be able to even add throttle being in the draft. And so, I just went rogue and qualified on my own. We ended up 21st. It wasn’t the right thing to do, but we know we need more help and we have to do more work on Fridays.”

WHEN YOU SAID DURING THE RACE YOUR CAR WAS ALMOST TOO GOOD, WHAT DID YOU MEAN? WAS EVERYTHING JUST GOING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION AT THAT POINT?
“Well, when I say too good it means it’s not doing anything severely wrong and yet our lap times were two tenths too slow. Then when we loosened it back up, I’m driving with elbows out as hard as I can, and we got our lap time back, but then we’ll cook our tires off at the end of the run. And that’s what happened where we didn’t quite bring hope the top 5.”

TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO CAMARO ZL1 – Finished 27th
“We had a really great GEICO Camaro ZL1 at the start of this race. It was handling the best it had all weekend. My guys had found something that was going to work and keep our good finishes going, but the flat tire under green at the end of Stage 1 really hurt us. We had strategy plans to get our laps back if we could ever catch the cautions that we needed, but those just didn’t happen. It’s unfortunate that a tire ruined our day, but that’s not going to get this team down. We are going to keep grinding and working hard to be ready for Martinsville next weekend.”

Fourth-Place Finish for Acura at Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring
• #7 Team Penske Acura ARX-05 recovers from two-lap deficit to finish fourth
• Both Meyer Shank Racing Acura NSX GT3 Evo’s contend for GTD victory, but are hampered by late-race issues
• GTD pole qualifier Trent Hindman stars in wet weather run

SEBRING, Fla. (March 16, 2019) – Early-race difficulties for Acura Team Penske and late-race issues for Meyer Shank Racing led to a disappointing day for the two Acura teams at Saturday’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Continue reading Fourth-Place Finish for Acura at Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring →

CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING:
Valiant Effort Lands No. 3 Corvette on Podium

SEBRING, Fla. (March 16, 2019) – Corvette Racing closed its marathon weekend of racing Saturday on the class podium at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, bringing one of the team’s most demanding events to an end.

Antonio Garcia, Jan Magnussen and Mike Rockenfeller placed third in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) category of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. It was a remarkable effort for the trio of the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R as they competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s eight-hour race at Sebring International Raceway on Friday. Continue reading Valiant Effort Lands No. 3 Corvette on Podium →

CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING: Solid Effort in FIA WEC Round
Garcia, Magnussen, Rockenfeller finish eighth in class with No. 63 Corvette C7.R

SEBRING, Fla. (March 15, 2019) – Corvette Racing gave a solid effort during the 1,000 Miles of Sebring on Friday as Antonio Garcia, Jan Magnussen and Mike Rockenfeller finished eighth in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s GTE Pro category. Continue reading CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING: Solid Effort in FIA WEC Round →

AUSTIN DILLON PUTS CAMARO ZL1 ON THE POLE AT AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
Three Team Chevy Drivers Qualify in the top 12

FONTANA, Calif. (March 15, 2019) – Austin Dillon powered his No. 3 DOW Coatings Camaro ZL1 to the pole position for Sunday’s Auto Club 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) race at Auto Club Speedway. Dillon recorded the fastest lap in the knockout qualifying session in what became a sprint to the end in each of the three rounds in the format. Drivers waited to take to the track in drafting groups — and resulted in no driver reaching the start-finish line in time for a third-round qualifying lap. The top positions were then set by second-round speeds. Continue reading AUSTIN DILLON PUTS CAMARO ZL1 ON THE POLE AT AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY →

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
AUTO CLUB 400
TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING NOTES & QUOTES
MARCH 15, 2019

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL QUALIFYING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW COATINGS CAMARO ZL1
8TH CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1
11TH JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1
14TH CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 KROGER FLAVOR FILL UP CAMARO ZL1
15TH KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL QUALIFYING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1ST Austin Dillon (Chevrolet)
2nd Kevin Harvick (Ford)
3rd Aric Almirola (Ford)
4th Kyle Busch (Toyota)
5th Joey Logano (Ford)

The Auto Club 400 is scheduled to begin on Sunday March 17th at 3:30 pm, ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
TEAM CHEVY NOTES AND QUOTES:

AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW COATINGS CAMARO ZL1 = Pole Winner
“It was good. We had a good car off the trailer. They made some good adjustments going into qualifying. And we kept the speed that we needed. It came down to Round 2 and putting the placement right. Andy Houston (spotter) did a great job. We didn’t panic. And, that ended up putting us in a great position for Round 3. I’m really happy for our guys and everybody back at the shop, who has been working really hard. We’ve been frustrated the last couple of weeks because we’ve had fast cars and not gotten the finishes, so this definitely feels good.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 8th
WHAT WAS THE COMMUNICATION LIKE WHEN YOU GUYS REALIZED THAT YOU WERE NOT GOING TO MAKE IT BACK? WHAT WERE YOU HEARING?
“Well, I don’t know. Obviously nobody wants to be the first guy so it’s unfortunate. I don’t know what the fix is. I feel like it’s entertaining with us going out there and drafting and trying to set-up that gap to do it right. It’s just tough because nobody wants to be the first one. And obviously you’re not going to go if you’re going to be first.”

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 11th
“I understand why we’re in this box. Single car qualifying isn’t all that entertaining. So, I guess we’ll just have to see what the opinion is from this and go with the lesser of the two evils in the end.”

CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 KROGER FLAVOR FILL UP CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 14th
HOW DID THIS QUALIFYING SESSION PLAY OUT? WAS IT BAD OR WORSE THAN YOU THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE?
“Round 1 went better than I thought it would with everybody going and getting it out of the way. The caution almost got us within a second or two. We didn’t finish our lap. So, that was lucky. Round 2 went exactly like I expected the whole thing to go. We have good speed in our Kroger Flavor Fill Up Camaro ZL1. I’m happy with that. We should have been a little bit better based on practice, but I love this race track. And, it’s a fun race. It’s just been a lot of fun to race everywhere this year. I’m glad the qualifying portion is over and we can get into the race and have some fun.”

KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 15th:
DESCRIBE YOUR RUN HERE
“I was the lead car for that big draft there. We ended up 15th. After last week you don’t want to mess up and not get a lap again. So, just trying to be as patient as you can be but still not be the lead car. But we wanted to leave ourselves some time. So we were just the lead car and were hoping that other people wouldn’t make it to the line in time.”

TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 16th
ON HIS RUN
“I’m pretty happy with 16th place for our GEICO Camaro. That’s a massive improvement over last year’s results. And we’ve been really succeeding in this style of qualifying. It’s different, for sure, but we also we’re all out there trying to do the same thing and be the fastest car. So, I’m proud of our effort and proud of what we’re doing as a team and we’re definitely embracing this style of qualifying.”

DANIEL HEMRIC, NO. 8 LIBERTY NATIONAL CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 17th
It was definitely hectic. The whole format it nuts. Our Liberty National Camaro ZL1 was good. We just kind of find ourselves on the back end of a draft that put us side-by-side racing cars and that’s not ideal when you’re trying to run a fast lap. We’ll roll off in 17th and it’s good to see a Bowtie on the front row there with (Richard Childress Racing teammate) Austin Dillon getting the pole and it’s really cool for RCR. Those guys are putting in a lot of effort and Chevrolet and ECR and all our partners are doing a lot of good things to give us speed and it’s good to pay off. We thought we should have had two or three poles by now so it’s good for one of us at RCR to finally get one.)

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
AUTO CLUB 400
TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING NOTES & QUOTES
MARCH 15, 2019

AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW COATINGS CAMARO ZL1 = Pole Winner
“It was good. We had a good car off the trailer. They made some good adjustments going into qualifying. And we kept the speed that we needed. It came down to Round 2 and putting the placement right. Andy Houston (spotter) did a great job. We didn’t panic. And, that ended up putting us in a great position for Round 3. I’m really happy for our guys and everybody back at the shop, who has been working really hard. We’ve been frustrated the last couple of weeks because we’ve had fast cars and not gotten the finishes, so this definitely feels good.”

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MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
AUTO CLUB 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MARCH 15, 2019

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 NATIONWIDE PET INSURANCE CAMARO ZL1 met with media and discussed the new pit road speed rules for qualifying, the affect of windy weather for practice, looking ahead to Martinsville, and more. Session Highlights: Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Fontana–Alex Bowman →

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
AUTO CLUB 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MARCH 15, 2019

CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 KROGER FLAVOR FILL UP CAMARO ZL1 met with media and discussed his season to date, his qualifying frustration. Session highlights:

WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY?
“I ran my first Cup race at this race track back in 2015, I believe. I love this race track. And it’s just a lot of fun. And it’s worn out. It’s got that surface like Atlanta but it’s bigger. It’s got the same lines. You can run the wall, you can run the apron, you can mow the grass. You can hit whatever you want to hit and there’s ways to make it work. This package, with the draft being as important as it is going to be and how dirty air will affect the cars is going to change some of it, but I think we’re going to see a lot of the same old Fontana here. It’s just a fun race track. You’re sliding around and trying to get control of it and trying to figure out how to make speed while sliding around. That’s the hardest thing. You could slide around and have a fun time but to be able to go fast while doing it, that’s the hard part.” Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Fontana–Chris Buescher →

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
AUTO CLUB 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MARCH 15, 2019

KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CREDIT ONE BANK CAMARO ZL1 met with media and discussed the windy weather, driver codes, his California fan base, and more: Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Fontana–Kyle Larson →

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
AUTO CLUB 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MARCH 15, 2019

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 met with media and discussed recent rule to enforce pit road speed during qualifying, social media, fitness, and more. Full Transcript:

YOUR CREW CHIEF SAID LAST WEEK THAT WE’VE GOT A WAYS TO GO. HOW FAR DO YOU HAVE TO GO? DO YOUR TALENTS AT THIS RACE TRACK STILL OVERCOME ANY WAYS TO GO THAT YOU GUYS HAVE TO ACCOMPLISH YET?
“I think last weekend showed that if we have a mistake-free race that we can run in the top 5 and in the top 10 and how last year went, that’s a step in the right direction. So, we do have some pride in that. Clearly we’re putting a lot of time and work and effort to get better. So, it’s nice to have those better funs. But it’s not where we want to be. It’s not where I want to be, or Mr. Hendrick or Kevin (Meendering) or this whole team. We’re trying to celebrate the small victories but at the same time if you look at the speed that the No. 18 (Kyle Busch) had on the field and his ability to pass, we want that. And we’re not going to stop until we get that.” Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Fontana–Jimmie Johnson →

CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING:
Garcia, Milner to Start on Second, Third GTLM Rows
Program going for 12th class victory at Sebring 12 Hours

SEBRING, Fla. (March 15, 2018) – Corvette Racing will go for its 12th victory Saturday in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring from the second and third rows of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s GT Le Mans (GTLM) category.

Antonio Garcia qualified the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R third in class during Friday morning’s time trials at Sebring International Raceway. His time of 1:56.158 (114.686 mph) wasn’t far ahead of Tommy Milner in the No. 4 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R, who set a best lap of 1:56.248 (114.597 mph).

The top eight cars in class were separated by just 0.832 seconds. Continue reading CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING: Garcia, Milner to Start on Second, Third GTLM Rows →

CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING:
Fifth-Place Class Start for Sebring 1,000 Miles
Garcia quickest in GTE Pro during two-driver qualifying session

SEBRING, Fla. (March 14, 2019) – Corvette Racing will roll off from the fifth position in the GTE Pro category for Friday’s FIA World Endurance Championship’s 1,000 Miles of Sebring – the team’s first of two races during the Super Sebring weekend.

Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen averaged a lap of 1:57.844 around the 3.74-mile, 17-turn Sebring International Raceway in the No. 63 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C7.R. Unlike single-driver qualifying in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, each FIA WEC entry averages the best lap time from two of its drivers. Continue reading CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING →

CHEVROLET AT GAINESVILLE

What: 50th Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals
When: Friday, March 15-Sunday, March 17
Where: Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville, Florida
TV: FS1 taped eliminations and finals, 7 p.m. ET March 17

Chevy Racing aims for multiple celebrations on St. Patrick’s Day
Team Chevy enters the 50th anniversary Gatornationals with strong lineup

DETROIT (March 13, 2019) – John Force isn’t of Irish descent, though securing his ninth victory in the 50th anniversary Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals on St. Patrick’s would be extra special to 16-time Funny Car champion.

A win March 17 at Gainesville Raceway would mark the 150th of his celebrated career. Force posted five consecutive (1992-96) Funny Car wins in the Gatornationals and six of his eight victories overall in Chevrolet and GM models.

“Gainesville has been very good to me over the years,” said Force, whose most recent win at the track came in 2017. “I’m really looking forward to going to the Gatornationals with PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil, and rockin’ and rollin’.”
Chevrolet drivers have picked up 22 Gatornationals victories in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock in addition to 34 Funny Car and Pro Stock wins in GM models. Bill Jenkins gave Chevrolet its first win at the track and second overall in Pro Stock in the 1970 NHRA season.

Force has had a solid start to the season in the PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS. He’s tied for sixth in the Funny Car standings through two races in which he’s lost to teammate and points leader Robert Hight (Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS) in the semifinals and quarterfinals.

“I’ve won eight races there, I’ve crashed on their premises, been on fire, been in the burn center, but the crowds, the locals and all those fans that come out of the north to come to the warm weather, it’s just unbelievable,” Force said.
Hight, the low qualifier in both races this season, holds the track Funny Car elapsed time and speed records, set in 2017. He’s won at Gainesville in 2012, ’14 and ’16, when he combined with teammate Brittany Force (Top Fuel) and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) for a Chevy Racing sweep of the pro car categories.

Anderson (Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS) and KB Racing teammate Jason Line (Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro SS) are four-time Pro Stock winners at the track.

With 799 round wins, Anderson will seek to join John Force (1,313), Warren Johnson (874) and Tony Schumacher (842) as the only drivers in all pro categories with 800. Anderson, a four-time Pro Stock champion, is also tied with Bob Glidden (102) for third on the all-time No. 1 qualifier list.

Five-time Pro Stock champion and 2018 class championship runner-up Jeg Coughlin Jr. (JEGS.com/Elite Performance Chevrolet Camaro SS) marked his 1,000th elimination round with the win at Phoenix. He could surpass 650 round wins this weekend.

Gainesville Raceway will host the first of eight rounds of the SAMTech.edu Factory Stock Showdown. Stephen Bell of Shreveport, Louisiana, won the 2018 event in his Chevrolet COPO Camaro, and David Barton of Robesonia, Pennsylvania, was the 2017 series champion.

“I’ve said it many times; it’s a dream come true that new muscle cars are being made right now,” said Barton, referencing new supercharger technology for this season.

This weekend, they’ll be joined in their COPO Camaros by 2018 event winner Arthur Kohn of Richmond, Texas; Randy Taylor of Artesia, New Mexico; Leonard Libersher of Wilmington, Illinois; L. Scott Libersher of Wilmington, Illinois; Doug Hamp of York, Pennsylvania; Waldemar Rodriguez of Cidra, Puerto Rico; Jesse Alexandria of West Bend, Wisconsin; David Janac of Caldwell, Texas; Robert Falcone of Pleasant Valley, New York; Peter Gasko Jr. of Monroe Township, New Jersey; Daniel Condon of Wilmington, Illinois; Kevin Lumsden of Caddo Mills, Texas; Ryan Priddy of Chino, California; Richard Bierie of Acworth, Georgia; and Terry Munroe of Beaver, Pennsylvania.

Jeff Strickland of Red Bay, Alabama, the 2016 Stock Eliminator champion, leads the Chevrolet COPO Camaro contingent in the class this weekend. Also entered are Vic Cagnazzi of New York City; Adam Badgett of Mount Airy, North Carolina; Jack Matyas of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; Dan Fletcher of Churchville, New York; Marion Stephenson of Williamsport, Indiana; and L. Scott Libersher of Wilmington, Illinois.

Entered in Super Stock in their Chevy COPO Camaros are Brandon Bakies of Alexandria, Louisiana; Steve Szupka of Northampton, Pennsylvania; Bob Bagley of Warsaw, Virginia; and Cagnazzi.

FS1 will telecast eliminations and finals at 7 p.m. ET March 17.

Fans will have the opportunity to tour the Chevrolet Performance display in the infield and meet Chevy Racing drivers this weekend.

CHEVROLET FROM THE COCKPIT

TOP FUEL:

BRITTANY FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, ADVANCE AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (2017 class champion; No. 4 qualifier in opener): “Gainesville has always been a special race for me. It’s the Gatornationals. The first East Coast race of the season, It’s the racetrack that I’ve always gone to as a kid. I’ve watched my dad, watched Ashley, and it’s where I had my first win. That is a big one, a very special one. To do it at a track that is so prestigious. I’m looking forward to getting there and to repeat a little bit of history. After Phoenix, we stayed and did an entire day of testing with the Advance Auto Parts dragster and got some good runs under our belt. We made four runs down the track and on our last run put a 3.75 on the board. My crew chiefs, David Grubnic and Mac Savage were both very happy with that and we’re excited going into Gainesville. We’d like to go out there and turn our luck around. Get this Advance Auto Parts team in the winner’s circle.”

AUSTIN PROCK, JOHN FORCE RACING, MONTANA BRAND/ROCKY MOUNTAIN TWIST CHEVROLET DRAGSTER (Making third start; won maiden elimination round at Pomona opener): “We’ve had two good race weekends so far. We qualified No. 6 in Phoenix, so I think we’re getting a good momentum. We’ve made some good passes down the racetrack and we’re looking to keep things going into Gainesville. I have some full-time guys now, and Jon Schaffer and Ronnie Thompson have done an excellent job. My team is putting in the work and it’s showing, so I’m excited to see what this dragster can do. Gainesville Raceway has a lot of history for my family and it’s where I got my Alcohol Funny Car and Nostalgia Funny Car licenses. Getting back there with my Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist Top Fuel team is going to be exciting.”

FUNNY CAR:

ROBERT HIGHT, JOHN FORCE RACING, AUTO CLUB OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (2017 class champion; won season opener; holds track Funny Car speed and elapsed time records; points leader): “We’re starting the season off strong, carrying over our momentum from last year. We’ve had successful test sessions, been low qualifiers, gone rounds and won a race and we’re only two races into the season so we’re feeling good with where we are and what’s ahead. I always look at Gainesville as a major race in the NHRA series. I’m excited and to win the 50th anniversary Gatornationals, that would be a big one. It seems like John (Force) always wins the special races but I’m looking to get it this year.”

JOHN FORCE, JOHN FORCE RACING, CHEVROLET ACCESSORIES PEAK CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (has 149 class victories; advanced to semifinals in opener; eight-time winner at the track): “My car is coming around, it’s fast and it’s showing the numbers. It was a good car for my daughter Courtney last year. She won four races and had 11 No. 1 qualifiers. Her team really loved her, but I’m finally getting to know them all and it’s been going well. I’m really looking forward to going to the Gatornationals with PEAK Coolant & Motor Oil, and rockin’ and rollin’.”

PRO STOCK:

JEG COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM/ELITE PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (five-time class champion; runner-up in 2018 points; won at Phoenix; will have throwback paint scheme): “We have a brand-new RJ Racecars Camaro and it looks completely badass with the design Dad ran back in the early ’70s. We’d love to break it in with a big weekend in Gainesville. This new car, obviously it’s a bit different than what we’ve run the last nine months, is working extremely well in testing. The car feels amazing. Ergonomically speaking, it fits my frame perfectly, so the comfort level is already very high. I’m extremely optimistic, with the talent we have, that we won’t miss a beat.”

GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (four-time class champion; with one elimination round, will become fourth driver in all pro classes with 800; four-time winner at track): “Gainesville Raceway has always been a special place for me. It has a kind of magic feel to it, a lot like Indy. It’s a great track for Pro Stock, and the fans there are just awesome. For me, it’s one of the most special places on the whole tour because my father, Rod, used to take us down there for family vacations. We’d go to Disneyworld and spend time with my dad’s brother, but the best part was that we’d get to go to the race. That was something you just don’t forget.”

JASON LINE, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (has 100 Pro Stock final-round appearances; runner-up in opener; four-time winner at track): “We knew leaving Phoenix that we had a lot of work to do before this race, and I think we’ve had a productive couple of weeks. We’ll find out just how productive it was in just a couple of days when we take our Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaros out for the first qualifying session. This is always an exciting time of year because things are really started to get going, and from here there’s no looking back. Gainesville can be very fast, and it’s a fun racetrack. The KB Racing team has good history there, and we’d like to add to that with a win at the 50th annual Gatornationals. That would be a special trophy, and it’s one I’d like to have, for sure.”

BO BUTNER, JIM BUTNER AUTO, JIM BUTNER AUTO SALES CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (2017 class champion; winner of Pomona opener): “It’s going to be a fun weekend. I’ll be racing in the Factory Stock Showdown, if all goes as planned, but I’m ready to hop back in the Pro Stock car. My Jim Butner Auto Group Chevy is a great car, and I still feel like it might be the best car out there. Of course, you want to win this deal. I won Stock Eliminator in Gainesville a few years back, and that was just a great feeling. Any win in Gainesville is big – it’s always a trophy you want, but even more so this year because it’s their 50th anniversary. I’m looking forward to it.”

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
AUTO CLUB 400
AUTO CLUB SPEEDWAY
FONTANA, CALIFORNIA
MARCH 17, 2019

BOWTIE BULLETS

NATIVE SON:
California native, seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion and career-long Chevrolet driver, Jimmie Johnson, is the all-time wins’ leader at Auto Club Speedway with six victories. The driver of the No. 48 Camaro ZL1 also has more top five (13) and more top 10 (17) finishes than any other driver at Auto Club Speedway. Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Fontana Advance →

CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING:
‘Super’ Weekend on Tap for Corvette C7.Rs
Team set for races in WeatherTech Championship, FIA WEC on same weekend

• Corvette Racing seeks 12th victory in Sebring 12 Hours with pair of Corvette C7.Rs
• Garcia, Magnussen, Rockenfeller to pilot Corvette in 1,000-mile WEC race
• Chevrolet among leaders in Sebring victories for manufacturers

DETROIT (March 11, 2018) – Corvette Racing is used to facing sports car racing’s toughest tests. But this year’s trip to Sebring International Raceway may be its challenging yet. Continue reading CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING: →

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
STREETS OF ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA
TEAM CHEVY – POST RACE RECAP
MARCH 10, 2019

Josef Newgarden Puts Chevrolet in Victory Lane at St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg, Fla. – (March 10, 2019) – Josef Newgarden checked off another milestone-win in the NTT INDYCAR Series season opening race. The 2017 NTT INDYCAR Series champion led three times for a total of 60 of the 110-lap race on the way to his 11th career victory.

“We’ve started on the right foot, for sure,” said an elated Newgarden after climbing from his No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet. “I think we made a big step. We felt positive about the step that we made, so I’m really looking forward to the rest of the year. I just can’t thank Chevy enough for all their support and what they put in this weekend. We had an incredible engine, we had everything we needed in fuel mileage and reliability and all the power,” Continue reading Josef Newgarden Puts Chevrolet in Victory Lane at St. Petersburg →

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
ISM RACEWAY
TICKETGUARDIAN 500
TEAM CHEVY POST RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
MARCH 10, 2019

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL FINISHING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
6th Kyle Larson, No. 42 McDonald’s Camaro ZL1
7th Kurt Busch, No. 1 Global Poker Camaro ZL1
8th Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1
14th Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hooters Camaro ZL1
15th Ty Dillon, No. 13 GEICO Camaro ZL1 Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Phoenix Post Race →

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
STREETS OF ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER POST RACE QUOTES
MARCH 10, 2019

DRIVER QUOTES:

JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 2 HITACHI TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, RACE WINNER:
WHAT A BIG WIN FOR YOU AND TEAM PENSKE. YOU START 2019 THE RIGHT WAY HERE IN VICTORY LANE AT ST. PETE. TALK ABOUT HOW YOU AND TIM CINDRIC FLIP THE TRACK POSITION AND ALSO HOW KEY WAS THAT RUN ON THE REDS TO MAKE A GAP ON SCOTT DIXON
“We were literally talking about it right before the race. We were trying to figure out should we go used or new reds and we made the call at the last minute was to stay used. We’ll have that advantage if we need it, and we used it. It just worked out perfectly. I just can’t thank Chevy enough for all their support and what they put in this weekend. We had an incredible engine, we had everything we needed in fuel mileage and reliability and all the power. I’m telling you, we really figured things out on Saturday and it was a rocket ship. I’m so thankful to our group. We have the best of the best working at Team Penske.”

DURING THE OFF-SEASON, YOU SAID STREET COURSES WERE THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY. IT LOOKS LIKE YOU’VE FIGURED THAT OUT
“Well, we’ve started on the right foot, for sure. I think we made a big step. We felt positive about the step that we made, so I’m really looking forward to the rest of the year. At street courses I think we feel better on. We’ve got to convert that to road courses now at COTA and then obviously, Indianapolis is going to be a priority. Let’s see where we’re at a little later on in the year.”

HOW TOUGH WAS THAT LAPPED TRAFFIC TODAY? YOU HAD TO USE A LOT OF PUSH-TO-PASS TO GET AROUND THEM
“I’m telling you! It was definitely manufacturers playing good guys with each other, but it was really tough. I just didn’t want to see people in front of me. I wanted to keep running my laps. I knew I had the pace to keep in front of Scott (Dixon), but I was just worried about something going wrong. And when you have that many cars in front that can happen. But, everyone was kind enough, I would say. It was still hard, but kind enough.”

ROGER PENSKE, TEAM OWNER: “It’s always great to have so much success on the track, especially to start the season. We’ve had a strong start with our NASCAR program and locking Brad and Joey into the playoffs. And getting two early wins with our Supercar program and the new Mustang has been great for our group in Australia.

“Now to come out here and have a pole with Will, sweep the front row and win the race with Josef is a great way to start our season on the INDYCAR side with Chevrolet. Next week, we will be at Sebring and try to get our ACURA Team Penske program in victory lane in the historic 12 hours race.

“But we need to keep looking out the windshield. The competition in all these series is strong and they will keep improving. So we need to keep pushing. There is a long season ahead of us.”

WILL POWER, NO. 12 VERIZON TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, FINISHED 3RD: HEAD OF THE RACE, YOU SAID HEY, IF YOU’RE NOT GOING TO WIN THIS ONE, AT LEAST COME AWAY WITH A GOOD SOLID POINTS DAY. SO, WAS IT MISSION ACCOMPLISHED?
“Yeah, it was definitely a lot better points day than I’ve had in the past two years so I’m really happy about that. We put ourselves in a tough position pitting early there. We had not defense. And really, me losing that position on the restart, I was stuck. I couldn’t pull the gap to negate the cold tire penalty because I was pitting early. I just kind of did my best to maintain a third place finish. That was as much as we could do in that situation. We got more points than in the last two years, so we’re in the game.”

IT GOT RACEY BETWEEN YOU AND SCOTT DIXON BUT HE SAID HE THOUGHT THE RACING WAS CLEAN BETWEEN THE TWO OF YOU. DID YOU ENJOY THAT?
“Yeah, that was good clean racing. Man, he was so good off that last corner, I was surprised. He got a run on me and we were wheel-to-wheel there for a bit. It was good racing for sure.”

IT WAS A GOOD DAY FOR TEAM PENSKE. HOW DOES THAT SET THE TONE FOR TEAM PENSKE?
“NASCAR and now IndyCar shows how strong the team is, and Chevrolet. They’ve done a great job with the engines. When I think about it, we’ve done a lot of work for street courses in the off-season and that’s paid off.”

SIMON PAGENAUD, NO. 22 MENARDS TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, FINISHED 7TH: “I had a fantastic time out there, the Menards Chevy was phenomenal today. It was really unfortunate we didn’t have an opportunity to put a lap down in qualy yesterday which put us way back on the starting grid. Being able to come up through the field with this high level of competition was pretty amazing. The No. 22 crew was on it today making great calls and executing fast pit stops. We’re off to a great start for 2019.”

SPENCER PIGOT, NO. 21 ED CARPENTER RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 11TH: “Overall, it was a fairly frustrating first half of the race. I got shuffled back at the start and we really didn’t find our groove until later on. After that, we were able to make up some ground and gain some positions. Overall, we definitely have come away with a lot of things in mind to improve on for next time out at COTA. I appreciate all the support from Autogeek and my guys, we’ll try our best to fight up higher on the grid in a couple of weeks.”

TONY KANAAN, NO. 14 ABC SUPPLY AJ FOYT RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 15TH: “Tough race for us. We didn’t have the pace today. I mean we tried. We had a pretty good start and then we caught a yellow that we didn’t need. It was one of those days nothing goes right. Once we got going we definitely didn’t have the pace to fight with those guys so we just settled in. We needed a finish. Tough day.”

MAX CHILTON, NO. 59 GALLAGHER CARLIN CHEVROLET, FINISHED 16TH: “It was a very long day, but it was nice to finish on a high, if you can call it a high. On our last stint the No. 59 Gallagher Carlin Chevrolet showed good pace and good fuel save, but the weekend just didn’t go where we wanted it to. I made a mistake halfway through the race and went into the run-off area, but we got back going fairly quickly and only lost one spot. The second half of the race was actually pretty decent, but to get a good result here you have to get to the the front and stay at the front to have a good race.”

CHARLIE KIMBALL, NO. 23 TRESIBA CARLIN CHEVROLET, FINISIHED 17TH: “It was a disappointing result from a day with a lot of promise, but I can’t thank the No. 23 crew enough. The No. 23 Tresiba® Carlin Chevrolet was quick all day carrying over from qualifying yesterday. We just got caught out and knocked the front flap off on one of those restarts. Even though the restarts are pretty frantic, you really have to make the most of them with it being so hard to pass around here. It was just unfortunate. We had to come in and change the front wing putting us a lap down, but we kept fighting and learned a lot about the car and what we need to do on the next street circuit.”

BEN HANLEY, BEN, NO. 81 10 STAR DRAGONSPEED CHEVROLET, FINISHED 18TH:

ED JONES, NO. 20 ED CARPENTER RACING SCUDERIA CORSA CHEVROLET, FINISHED 21ST: “It’s been a frustrating weekend so far. We had the pace to be at the front in qualifying. Then today, the guys gave me a great race car. We had to take risks to get forward quickly. I made it from 16th to ninth, then I just tried to get a run on (James) Hinchcliffe and unfortunately I clipped the inside wall in Turn 9 and that was it. I’m sorry for the team, they did great work and they deserved a better result.

MATHEUS LEIST, NO. 4 ABC SUPPLY AJ FOYT RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 22ND: “Unfortunately not the ideal race that we wanted. I ended up hitting the 20 car on the restart, so another bad race here in St. Pete but it is what it is. Sometimes it’s just not your day and you’ve gotta keep working hard for the next one, so looking forward to the next one in COTA now.”

CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
STREETS OF ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA
TEAM CHEVY WINNER QUOTE – JOSEF NEWGARDEN
MARCH 10, 2019

JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 2 HITACHI TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET – Race Winner
WHAT A BIG WIN FOR YOU AND TEAM PENSKE. YOU START 2019 THE RIGHT WAY HERE IN VICTORY LANE AT ST. PETE. TALK ABOUT HOW YOU AND TIM CINDRIC FLIP THE TRACK POSITION AND ALSO HOW KEY WAS THAT RUN ON THE REDS TO MAKE A GAP ON SCOTT DIXON
“We were literally talking about it right before the race. We were trying to figure out should we go used or new reds and we made the call at the last minute was to stay used. We’ll have that advantage if we need it, and we used it. It just worked out perfectly. I just can’t thank Chevy enough for all their support and what they put in this weekend. We had an incredible engine, we had everything we needed in fuel mileage and reliability and all the power. I’m telling you, we really figured things out on Saturday and it was a rocket ship. I’m so thankful to our group. We have the best of the best working at Team Penske.” Continue reading Chevy Racing–INDYCAR–St. Petersburg–Josef Newgarden Winner →