NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
COKE ZERO 400
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
JULY 4, 2014

CHEVROLET DRIVERS CAPTURE FOUR OF TOP FIVE STARTING POSITIONS
IN RAIN-SHORTENED QUALIFYING SESSION AT DAYTONA

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – July 4, 2014 – After a bizarre and rain-shortened qualifying session for the Coke Zero 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race at Daytona International Speedway, there were a few uncommon names at the top of the final time sheet, but another solid contingent of Chevrolets at the front.   Reed Sorensen led the way for Team Chevy with his first top-10 start of the 2014 season by qualifying on the outside of the front row in his No. 36 Golden Corral Chevrolet SS with a lap of 45.176 seconds, 199.322 mph.

During the first 20-minute session a number of strategies were unfolding between the 44 teams vying for transfer spots.  At times there were packs of cars on track but running considerably slower speeds on purpose and cars jockeying for partners on pit lane and on track.  Just as the session came to an end, steady rain began to fall and eliminated any further qualifying rounds.  NASCAR set the field based on speeds from the first and lone session.

Landon Cassill, No. 40 Newtown Building Supplies Chevrolet SS, earned the best start of his NSCS career by qualifying third with a time of 45.182 seconds,199.194 mph.  Bobby Labonte, making just his second NSCS start of 2014, scored a top-five start by qualifying his No. 33 Thunder Coal Chevrolet SS in fourth position.  Jimmie Johnson notched his seventh top-five start of the season by posting the fifth fastest time in his No. 48 Lowe’s Patriotic Chevrolet SS.

In Saturday night’s 43-car field, Team Chevy will occupy nine of the top 15 starting positions for race No. 18 of the season.  Daytona 500 winner, Dale Earnhardt Jr., will start his quest for a Daytona sweep from the seventh starting position in his No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet SS while Earnhardt’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate and NSCS point leader, Jeff Gordon, qualified ninth in his No. 24 Pepsi Real Sugar Chevrolet SS.   Stewart Haas Racing teammates Tony Stewart, No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Ducks Unlimited Chevrolet SS and Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevrolet SS will start 12th and 13th respectively.  Kasey Kahne, in the No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet SS, qualified in the 14th position.

David Gilliland (Ford) won the pole for the race to round out the top-five.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
COKE ZERO 400
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUALIFYING NOTES & QUOTES
JULY 4, 2014

DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 7th
ON DESCRIBING THE FLOW OF THE FIRST QUALIFYING SESSION TO HIS TEAM
“I gave up trying to describe it to them. But I sure they want to know what’s going on. It’s a mess. You have to be in the very back and try to get a big tow. I ain’t ever seen anything like it. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.”

JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 CESSNA CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 36TH:
CAN YOU DESCRIBE QUALIFYING TODAY?
“Well, it’s just about being lucky as to who can make it through and who gets the right run. It’s just so crazy that everyone pulls out and doesn’t go and then stops. It is what it is. Everyone has the same conditions. It just doesn’t feel like racing I think is the way to put it because half the time people are running 40 mph. I don’t even really know what to say because it’s so messed up that I can’t explain it.”

KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 4 BUDWEISER FOLDS OF HONOR CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 13TH:
Qualifying was a better spot for us than it would have been if we had gone on practice speeds. The new qualifying format is great. It is probably not 100% refined for Superspeedway racing yet. It was a definitely a chess game.  It worked out okay because our car is still rolling.”

MARTIN TRUEX JR., NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 19TH:
DESCRIBE WHAT THAT WAS LIKE? THAT SEEMED MORE DIFFERENT AND WILDER THAN TALLADEGA?
“It was definitely interesting. Everyone knew what everyone else was trying to do. There was no way to get a small line of cars behind a big line of cars. Everybody was trying to do the same thing so it was kind of interesting. I don’t know… I think they need to look at doing something a little bit different here for next time. I wish we could get another round in because we made the top-24 and we were hoping to get a good starting spot out front and good pit spot.”

WHEN THE RCR ALLIANCE GOT TOGETHER TOWARD THE END, YOU WERE TRYING TO PACE YOURSELF TO GET THAT ONE LAST LAP. WAS THAT THE CASE? IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS HARD TO DO THAT WITH SO MANY OTHER PACKS OUT THERE.
“Yeah, it was hard to get in the right position. Again, everyone was trying to do the same thing. Everyone was trying to get behind a big pack of cars so they could get that big run, but no one wanted to go and be that big pack of cars.”

HOW GOOD IS THIS CAR?
“It’s the one we ended up racing in the 500, and it was awesome in the race. It didn’t last very long. But I don’t know. It’s hard to say. We didn’t do much drafting yesterday. We kind of did what we were doing today… we got in line, put in a lap and parked it. It’s driving good. I know it will have good speed so looking forward to tomorrow night, getting in the right spot and hopefully be there in the end to win this thing.”

RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 31 WIX FILTERS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 20TH:
YOU WERE QUICK HERE IN FEBRUARY AND AT TALLADEGA IN MAY. I KNOW THE ENGINES ARE GOOD BUT WHAT IS THAT HAS MADE THESE CARS SO GOOD AT THESE (RESTRICTOR) PLATE TRACKS?
“It’s a combination of everything. It takes a little bit of everything on top of keeping your foot off that middle pedal, which is an important part of this as well. Qualifying went kind of the way we wanted it to but we just didn’t have control of the weather. We made the top-24 cut but in the end, our Wix Filters Chevrolet isn’t going to be on the pole so we will get ready for tomorrow night.”

IN THE RACE, WE TALK ABOUT HOW THE TRACK IS DIFFERENT HERE NOW THAN HOW IT IS IN FEBRUARY.
“It used to be 10 times different just because of the slickness of the track before it was repaved, which has been the big differential. The new asphalt kind of narrowed that gap between the February race and the July race. Overall, it’s somewhat the same; it’s just so much hotter inside the race car. You still have to deal with the track position side of it and you still can’t afford to make mistakes on pit road. A speeding penalty can end your night really easily. There don’t seem to be a whole lot of cautions here no matter what the race is, but in the end just keeping your head above water will keep you there to the end.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
COKE ZERO 400
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
JULY 3, 2014

MICHAEL ANNETT, NO. 7 PILOT/FLYING J CHEVROLET SS AND REED SORENSON, NO. 36 GOLDEN CORRAL CHEVROLET SS met with media and discussed the season to date, changes of making the Chase, racing at Daytona, and more. Full Transcript:

DO YOU THINK THIS IS YOUR BEST OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE THE CHASE WITH A WIN HERE AT DAYTONA?
ANNETT: “I think so. It’s hard to say. We’re both very competitive race car drivers but we also know what we’re up against. Just going off of the past, you see small teams that circle the superspeedways as probably the most even playing field that we’re on. The way we ran at Talladega, I don’t see any reason why we couldn’t come out of here with a win. I’m 30th in points right now and it’s something I keep looking at thinking man, if we go to Daytona and won that race, we’d be in the Chase. If our team is going to pull that off I think it would be something pretty special.”
SORENSON: “I agree. It’s pretty special. This is probably the best chance for us to win a race. Any of the restrictor plate races kind of evens the field. Everybody knows that. So, yeah, if one of us could get a win that would be great.  And that’s what the new system has kind of enabled a smaller team like ours to have that opportunity if you were able to win a race. So, this would be a place to do it, for sure.”

BEFORE THE KENTUCKY RACE YOU SAID YOU HAD A PRETTY GOOD CAR. WHAT DID YOU LEARN THERE THAT WILL HELP YOU MOVING FORWARD?
ANNETT: “Kentucky was just a whole weekend where you always go out for that first run when you unload off the truck and it kind of sets the tone for the whole weekend. I knew right away that it was a really good car just throughout practice, I knew it. I’ve had a lot of success at Kentucky in Trucks and Nationwide and everything. So I had a really good feeling about that weekend. I can’t pinpoint exactly one particular thing that we learned, it was just fun to be running up there in the top 20 all night. It’s a totally different ballgame. Moving up to the Cup Series was a big step, but when you actually have a good car like that and the whole night you’re racing with those guys, you definitely learn a lot. So, if (Kevin) Bono (Manion, crew chief) learned something, I don’t know. He’s forgotten more than I’ll ever know. But I just learned a lot the whole night racing with those guys.”

DOES IT GIVE YOU MORE CONFIDENCE COMING INTO THIS WEEKEND AT DAYTONA?
ANNETT: “Yeah, I’ve had a lot of success here and Daytona is a place where sometimes you love it and sometimes you hate it. I had to miss three months of the year a few years back when I broke my sternum here, but I won an ARCA race here and it’s a place you love to hate. But I’m looking forward to the weekend. It’s always a crapshoot, but I think we have as good a shot as anybody else to win the race.”

YOU HAVE TOP 20 FINISHES AT THREE OF THE LAST EIGHT RACES, HIGH HORSEPOWER TRACKS WHERE TYPICALLY A SMALLER TEAM DOESN’T DO AS WELL. SO WHAT HAS HELPED YOU IN THAT SENSE?
ANNETT: “I can’t point one thing out that we’ve been doing different. My relationship with Bono just keeps growing and our guys are working as hard as ever. We have a really good alliance with RCR and we’re starting to see those cars (like) Paul Menard in the top 10 every weekend. We have a good alliance there. When they learn, we’re learning the same stuff. Across the board, I think all the teams are starting to run better.”

LOOKING AT PRACTICE TODAY, IT WAS WINDY. IF WE HAVE THE SAME CONDITIONS FOR QUALIFYING TOMORROW, HOW DO YOU THINK THAT WILL PLAY OUT? DESCRIBE HOW THE CAR FELT IN THE WIND
SORENSON: “I asked how windy it was because I was in the car the whole time before that storm rolled in. My car was moving around, too. He (Annett) said his drove good, so maybe it wasn’t the wind, maybe our cars weren’t driving correctly. It shouldn’t affect qualifying.”
ANNETT: “The wind is going to be the least of our worries (laughter).”
SORENSON: “During qualifying at Talladega, our biggest issue was see-sawing back and forth trying to get runs on each other. It’s kind of a cluster out there. Even today in practice, we went out there and then pulled back in and then went back out. Everybody wants to be in the back to get that run. So, that’s going to be fun.”

WILL YOU RUN ALL THE ECR CARS TOGETHER IN QUALIFYING?
ANNETT: “We always have an idea.”
SORENSON: “I don’t know and I’m going to find out after this what the plan is.”
ANNETT: “Obviously we want all the ECR engines to qualify up front. So, that’s pretty much what we tried to practice today. There are a lot more small teams like us where guys want that run too, so they jump in line with you and that’s why we rode around. I was in second gear I think and then came down pit road.
SORENSON: “At Talladega, I was supposed to go with him in Qualifying, behind him; but I don’t think I ever saw him in Qualifying at all. It’s hard to plan it but I think that’s the plan.”

WHAT’S IT LIKE OUT THERE GOING IN SECOND GEAR?
ANNETT: “It’s something I’ve never been a part of until we started doing this. It’s pretty crazy. It’s different. I kind of laugh at how much thought goes into it because it doesn’t matter as soon as the green flag drops, where you qualify. If you’re lucky enough to get the pole, obviously that’s a huge boost for your team, but second through 43rd doesn’t matter where you qualify.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
COKE ZERO 400
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
JULY 3, 2014

DALE EARNHARDT JR. NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS met with members of the media and discussed the first half of his season, the recent plate race at Talladega, his quest to sweep the two races at Daytona this year, Twitter, and more. Full Transcript:

TALK ABOUT YOUR QUEST TO WIN BOTH RACES AT DAYTONA THIS YEAR AND OUTLOOK THIS WEEKEND
“Yeah, I guess Jimmie did it last year and before that it was Bobby Allison who did it around ’82 or ’83 or something.  So it’s tough to do, especially the way the package is now.  It’s real hard to get by the leader and we know that pretty well now from the way we ran in Daytona earlier this year.  I really haven’t gotten a chance to see how this car is going to respond to the track.  I am certain it’s going to be competitive, but knowing it’s not the same car though; we are going to have to see if it has any different characteristics in the balance.  It’s a lot different surface temperature than we had in February so we have to figure out how that is going to affect the way a car drives and if the balance of the car is going to be different.  I would welcome the car to be more challenging as far as the balance at this place and to where we use a little bit more of the race track.  Getting handling to come into play would be a bit more fun.  Hopefully the surface is starting to age a little bit and we will see when we get out there, but I don’t anticipate it being a whole lot different in the change over time.”

TALK ABOUT YOUR INTERVIEW THIS WEEK WITH ELI GOLD AND HOW YOU WERE ALMOST APOLOGIZING FOR YOUR RACE AT TALLADEGA EARLIER THIS YEAR
“Yeah, it was embarrassing man.  I hate to talk about it.  The way we ran and what I chose to do at the end of that race is just really uncharacteristic of anybody that is in the field and trying to compete.  I just got really frustrated with the way things were working out for us.  I lost sight of the overall big picture, what you are out there trying to do, who all is out there depending on you to do it, and what you need to do.  I learned some lessons and you are never too old to learn them.  You are never too old to be taught a lesson either.  I definitely experienced that in Talladega this year.

“So I think when I was out there running this year, I got real selfish at Talladega, and how the result affected anyone – I never took into account.   I was just out there really thinking about me, and what I thought, and what I wanted to do, and how frustrated I was.  I forgot that there was a team behind me, and depending on me.  Lot of fans there to see us race, showed up to spend hard-earned money, so it was a difficult thing to go through.

“I would love to sweep the races at Daytona because that is a cool thing, but I just love winning here.  So to go to victory lane here regardless of what we did in February, would mean a lot to me.  I expect that we will try to do the best thing that we can to help us strategy-wise so that we are toward the front.   We did it perfectly for the 500 and we were in a position at Talladega to gamble and make it work like several guys did. We learned a little bit there too as far as how we could be a bit more aggressive with our pit strategy considering where we are in points and the wins we have.

“Hopefully we can do that.  If we run out of gas, I can take that if we are trying to win a race.  So we need to be willing to make that happen because I think that is what it’s going to come down to.  The way they do these races these days, you have to get that track position and you have got to be first.  When everybody is done pitting, you don’t want to have to drive through the pack.  It’s hard to pass and you get boxed in.  So what happens is that you need to be doing is putting fuel in your car as often as you can so that the last time you have to come down pit road to get in that window, you only need to put a few gallons in the car to reach that window.  It’s where most of the field is putting 12 to 22 gallons in on that stop and you are only putting in what you need, and you beat them off pit road.  And there you are – in position to win.  As long as you, as a driver, can maintain that track position over the restarts and all the things that are going to go on over that run.  So we know we need to do it that way, it’s just hopefully everything else falls in place that way such as the cautions and everything else.  Steve (Letarte) is the master of those things and I have seen him improve so much over the last four years.  So I feel like I have the right guy on the pit box.”

YOU HAVE WON BOTH OF THESE RACES.  IS ONE A TALLER ORDER THAN THE OTHER?
“They are both similar physically to win.  It’s the mental picture that the Daytona 500 gives you and the pressure that comes with that spectacle.  There are so many people here, and just the driver’s meeting alone will set the tone and take you out of the race and intimidate you if you let it.  There is so much happening, so many people on pit road, and you are being thrust in front of all these people to shake hands.  You just want to think about the race and get in your car and you don’t want any distractions so you are just kind of struggling through that in the pre-race.  It won’t be like that for the 400.  It will be a typical weekend.  The Daytona 500 is just so crazy before the race and that just gives you a different feeling and makes you understand how big that race is and how many people must be paying attention to what is going on at the moment.

“I don’t know if the viewers are any different, I am sure they are for the 500.  And you imagine that as a driver. But all those things really take a backseat once you get in the car.  I mean I remember when we were running there at the end and just how nerve-racking all those restarts were.  That is much more of a bigger deal in the Daytona 500.   But winning here regardless, it’s a great feeling.  So you are going to try your guts out but I think you get much more nervous and certainly aware of how big the situation is when it’s the 500.  So mentally, it’s tougher.”

WHEN YOU COME INTO A WEEKEND, IS IT THE WINS THAT GET YOU GOING OR THE RACES LIKE AT SONOMA OR KENTUCKY WHERE YOU DIDN’T EXPECT A GOOD RUN BUT GOT ONE?
“Well, we have surprised ourselves a couple of times like at Sonoma and Kentucky after how practice and everything was going.  I just couldn’t believe how well they got that car put together as competitive as it was for that race.  Those are the things that build momentum and build confidence.  So when we struggled, I used to get really frustrated on Friday’s or Saturday’s when practice wouldn’t go well.  You definitely don’t allow it to affect you as much anymore knowing the potential of how it can turn around for this team so well.

“So on weekends like last weekend four or five years ago, we wouldn’t have rebounded or run as well.  The ship was sinking on Friday and it would have been under water on Sunday.  But we seem to be able to calm down, talk it out, patch it up, and make something work.  It just comes from a lot of experience, great engineers, and it’s really amazing work that they are doing.  The speed in the cars directly relates to Kevin Meendering and my engineers.  It doesn’t directly relate to Steve Letarte.  He is the orchestrator of the individuals, the people, and running the team.

“But the pure speed the car has comes from the engineers and how they choose to set the car up to work on it through the weekend.  They are doing an amazing job and when we can go to Sonoma and run like we did and then go to Kentucky and struggle and rebound so quickly in the matter of a day, it makes you feel good.  But that is how this sport has always been.  You can win the Daytona 500 one day and then the next day can be the worst day you have ever experienced in this whole deal.  And that is just the way it goes and I have had those days back-to-back.  You wonder why in the hell it’s like that but that is the way it goes.”

DID YOU WATCH ANY FILM OF THE DAYTONA 500 OR TALLADEGA TO PREPARE YOU FOR THIS WEEKEND?
“Not really, I didn’t watch any film.  I have a pretty good understanding of what I was going through and what I was thinking through the last 100 miles of the 500.   I understand what was working for me and what mentality I need to have.   You just really have to crack the whip and push yourself mentally as hard as you can for every position.  Once we got the lead in Daytona we started battling with (Greg) Biffle, the 99 car, and whoever else was up there.  You just had to really reinforce to yourself how important it was to not settle into second or third and allow that to be alright.  It was so important to be the leader on the restarts, to have that control, and to have that control of the person behind you and who was starting on the outside of you or if you wanted to be in front of your teammate and start on the outside line, or in front of your teammate on the inside line.  That was so important and we saw that on those last several restarts and to have Jeff (Gordon) behind me on that last restart.

“So you had to keep reinforcing to yourself as you were running, that if someone would get up beside you for the lead, how important it was not to let that person have the position.  You had to run extremely aggressive side drafting and try to box them in on the fence.  You wanted to make it really hard on them to take a position away.  I realized that if I get put in that position again that you are going to have to play to some pretty hardcore, cut-throat racing.”

WHAT IS IT YOU ENJOY ABOUT TWITTER THE MOST?
“Sometimes I feel like I am tweeting too much.  Sometimes I feel that Twitter has got filters on my account to keep me from seeing all the negative stuff.  But it’s been fun, and been so positive.  I really underestimated how enjoyable it would be.  I really enjoy sharing what I am doing, what I think is cool, and what is important to me.  I enjoy seeing that feedback and also that interaction, the conversational interaction about topics.  I enjoy a good comment, or a smart aleck.  My momma was a good smart aleck, so I can appreciate a good smart ass.  I enjoy the going back and forth and stuff like that.   And also just reading and seeing what everybody else is talking about or whatever interests everyone else has.  Basically and mainly in our own industry and just seeing what people are talking about, what they think is important today. It gives you so much access.  I know the fans feel like they get a lot of great access, but for me it just taps you into the heartbeat of everything.  What is going on in here (media center), what is going on in the garage, what some of the executives are thinking, and just gives you an idea of what direction everyone is going.  It’s pretty neat so I am having fun with it and not trying to make any missteps.  It’s been very positive.”

ABOUT HOW CONSISTENT YOU HAVE BEEN RECENTLY
“I am just thrilled with the way the team is competing obviously.  I don’t look at those stats directly but I know we have been doing some great work since the beginning of the Chase last year.  And maybe even a little bit before that.  I thought in the Chase we had done everything just right except for Chicago.  I thought that whatever happens in the offseason is going to tell us if we can be good enough to win a championship this year.  If you look at the graph going back to 2011 when Steve and I got together, if you look at our performance, it’s been a linear trajectory in improvement.  It just seemed to make sense that this year would be that much better.

“Then we won, and then we came out of the box and ran second a couple of times and I was thinking man, this is awesome, this is the best I have ever had it.  It’s as good as I have ever run at Hendrick and maybe even DEI – consistently.  We were running up front every week, and having a good car that could stay in the top-five every week.  I remember when we put together a couple of top-15s a couple weeks in a row, and then it became a couple of top-10s.  And then man, if we ran in the top-five a couple of times, we were really doing it.  So it’s steadily gotten better and that progression makes sense to me, but at the same time when you do look at the numbers it really surprises me that the team has been able to sustain it.  That has been the tough part for me over my career, is to sustain momentum and get ourselves running well for a long period of time.  We would start off great, then have a terrible summer, then end well. It just never was complete.  So it seems that this team is as good as it’s ever been and hopefully we can maintain it.

“We will worry about next year and the change at crew chief and all that good stuff.  But man, it’s important for us to sustain this for this season.  More important than anything else and we are going to concentrate on that.”

Chevrolet IndyCar V6 Teams Ready for Challenging Triangle-Shaped Pocono Raceway
·         Chevrolet  Leads Series Manufacturer Standings with 10 of 18 races in the books

·         Chevrolet IndyCar V6 has won 5 of 10 races held to-date in 2014

·         Will Power Continues to Lead Driver Point Standings 39 Points Over Team Penske Teammate Helio Castroneves

DETROIT (July 3, 2014) – The unique triangle-shaped Pocono Raceway is next on the schedule for the Chevrolet IndyCar V6 teams and drivers.  On the strength of five victories, Chevrolet heads to the 200-lap/500-mile Pocono 500 on the 2.5-mile tri-oval leading the Verizon IndyCar Series Manufacturer standings.

“We are eager to get back to Pocono,” said Chris Berube, Chevrolet Racing Program Manager Verizon IndyCar Series. “We feel Team Chevy can really get it done there this year. Our speedway performance is solid and with double points and 500 miles to race, there is a lot on the line. Our Chevrolet IndyCar V6 engines will be in the sweet spot as most have mileaged out recently which has bolstered our lead in the manufacturer championship.”

Team Chevy driver Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, brings a 39 point lead over his teammate Helio Castroneves, No. 3 Hitachi Chevrolet, in the 2014 IndyCar driver standings.  Power scored the first victory in 2014, bringing the Chevrolet 2.2 liter direct injected twin turbocharged powered race car to Victory Lane at the Streets of St. Petersburg.  His second victory of the year that propelled him to the lead in the point standings was race one of the Chevrolet Dual at Detroit.  A total of six top-five finishes and eight top-10 runs thus far this season has kept him on top of the standings.

The first oval was the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  Three time Indy 500 winner, Castroneves, came within just six one-hundredths of a second from claiming his fourth victory in the iconic track. Castroneves took the momentum to Detroit and scored a top-five finish in race one in the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit, and a dominating victory in Sunday’s race two of Chevrolet sponsored weekend.

Team Penske’s third driver, Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 2 PPG Chevrolet, sits fifth in the driver standings in his first season returning to IndyCar competition.

Scott Dixon, No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Chevrolet, is the defending race champion at Pocono.  The 2013 Verizon IndyCar Series champion sits ninth in the standings, and is looking to repeat at Pocono, and score his first win of the 2014 season.

Sebastien Bourdais, No. 11Hydroxycut KVSH Racing Chevrolet, heads to Pocono eighth in the standings, and fueled by the momentum of two top-five finishes in the doubleheader Grand Prix of Houston.

SECOND CONSECUTIVE DAYTONA SWEEP THE GOAL FOR THE CHEVROLET SS
Chevy’s Dale Earnhardt, Jr. looks to be second Chevy driver to sweep Daytona

DETROIT – (July 1, 2014) – In 2013 Jimmie Johnson debuted the new Chevy SS at Daytona International Speedway in spectacular fashion winning the prestigious Daytona 500 in the SS’ first points paying race.  Johnson followed up that success by completing the ‘Daytona Sweep’ winning the Coke Zero 400 in July at the 2.5-mile superspeedway.  This season Chevrolet has the opportunity to do it again.  Dale Earnhardt, Jr. piloting the No. 88 National Guard Chevy SS won the season opening Daytona 500 and is poised to complete the sweep by pulling into Victory Lane this weekend at Daytona.  Earnhardt, Jr. a three-time Daytona winner is no stranger to success at restrictor-plate racing.  Of his 21 career victories eight (8) (38.1%) of those have come at Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway the two tracks on the circuit that feature large pack racing and depend on aerodynamic superiority as well as a set-up for handling conditions have been one of Earnhardt, Jr.’s career strong suits.

Over the years Chevrolet has been the most successful manufacturer at Daytona winning 18 races in July and 44 total at the birthplace of NASCAR, Daytona Beach, Florida.  Chevrolet has won the last four races at Daytona. Since the beginning of racing at the superspeedway the Bowtie brand has swept Daytona 11 times beginning with the first sweep in 1986 when Geoff Bodine won the Daytona 500 and his teammate Tim Richmond followed up with a victory in the Firecracker 400. This weekend Chevrolet teams and drivers will once again compete under the lights over July 4th weekend celebrating the independence of the United States America and the freedom to compete in a sport built on heritage and history.

Not only will the drivers and teams be busy so will the staff at the Team Chevy display.  Fans visiting Daytona International Speedway for the July 4th holiday weekend will have the opportunity to stop by the Team Chevy display located in the midway area.  The display will feature a number of Chevrolet production cars including: Malibu, Impala, Traverse, Silverado Double Cab, Silverado HC, Camaro, Cruze, Silverado HD, Suburban and Equinox.

Several Team Chevy drivers will also make appearances at the Chevy display including: Reed Sorenson, Michael Annett, Kevin Harvick and Kasey Kahne.  As a special treat this weekend the Chevrolet Florida Fishing Report team of Captain Rick Murphy and crew will be on site doing demonstrations and signing autographs at the Chevy display.

In support of NASCAR’s American Salute initiative Chevrolet has partnered with Tommy Baldwin racing writing letters to soldiers.  Chevrolet has donated phone cars to mail with those letters so soldiers fighting overseas can call their families back home.  This weekend is the last weekend fans can write letters to soldiers.  There are letter bins located in the Team Chevy display where fans can drop of their letters this Fourth of July weekend.

A fun filled holiday weekend is in store for fans, drivers and teams alike.  Chevrolet looks to sweep the races at Daytona for the 12th time in the manufacturers’ history. On both Friday and Saturday night the fields for both the NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will be led down to the green flag by Chevrolet productions vehicles.  The Chevrolet Camaro will lead the Nationwide field to the green flag and on Sunday the all-new Chevrolet SS will set the pace as the 18th race of the 2014 season gets underway. All of the Bowite branded drivers and teams will hope to beat the heat, miss the ‘big one’ and make their way to Victory Lane to celebrate under the lights at the historic Daytona International Speedway.

KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS, WAS THE GUEST ON THIS WEEK’S NASCAR WEEKLY TELECONFERENCE.

BELOW IS THE TRANSCRIPT:

JENNIE LONG:  Good afternoon, everyone.  Today we’re joined by Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 42 Target Chevrolet for Chip Ganassi Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.  Kyle, you’re halfway through a strong rookie season and you’re on pace to become the first rookie to make the Chase since 2006.  To solidify that goal you need a first win.  What do you think your chances are this weekend at Daytona and in the remaining nine races before the Chase?

KYLE LARSON:  Yes, well, I think going into Daytona everybody has a good chance of winning.  We’re really confident, but at the same time it’s a track where things can go really badly.  Just kind of setting goals as every other week, try to finish the race and get a top 10 and see if we can put ourselves in position to get a win at the end, that would be great.

The biggest goal is to try and stay out of the big one because it’s going to happen.  I’m sure there will be one or two of them throughout the race.  Try to stay out of trouble.  But yeah, it’s been nice being ‑‑ running as well as we have, and if we could get a win sometime before the Chase, that would be great.
Q.  Kind of a two‑part question.  First of all, what does it mean or how does it feel to be part of such a big rookie class with so much talent, and then to follow up on that, how does it feel to actually be leading that class at least based on the first half of the season?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, I’m really happy and stuff that there is such a great rookie class.  In past years maybe there’s been one or two rookies, and the award doesn’t really mean a whole lot, and I think this year with having a bunch of kids having great résumés, to win that would be awesome.  Austin Dillon has won a championship and Rookie of the Year in the trucks and the Nationwide Series, so if I could beat him to win the Rookie of the Year award at the end of the year, that would be great, just because I’ve only got a couple years of stock car experience right now.

It’s definitely one of our main goals, and so far we’ve been doing well, staying ahead of him.  Had a couple bad races the last couple weekends, but we’ll rebound from that and hopefully get back going.
Q.  To win Rookie of the Year and join the list of guys who have won that award, what would that mean just to have your name on that list?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, it would mean a lot.  Like I said, I think this year is really special just because there’s so many rookies and really good rookies.  And to win Rookie of the Year in the Sprint Cup Series is every rookie’s goal.  To keep some other good guys from winning, it would be great.  That’s why we’re trying to stay consistent and be ahead of those guys each week.
Q.  I have two questions, as well.  The first one is you really haven’t had too many times this year where you had back‑to‑back not as great as you’d like to finish, and just kind of talk about getting through that.  And then secondly, what do you like coming up where you think you might get that win prior to the Chase?  You’ve got kind of a mixture of races, and the summer is a little bit less predictable, a little more varied in the tracks.
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, you know, we’ve had two bad races here the last couple weeks.  I think my crew chief said it best.  He’d be worried in the last couple years, but now our car has been fast, so he’s not worried at all.  That’s good, and gave me some more confidence because I think any other two weekends or having two bad races would be less nerve‑racking, but then you go to Daytona where the chances of another bad weekend are high, so it’s easy to get nervous about that.

Yeah, you know, we haven’t had many struggles all year, and now we’ve had a couple bad ones.  Just got to get back on track.

What was the other question?
Q.  The other question was simply where do you like your chances best here if you want to try and get a win before the Chase, which of these upcoming tracks?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, I mean, I don’t know.  Eldora in the truck.  I thought we were good at Pocono.  I think we were really good at Michigan even with the rear bumper off, or with it being on I think we would have been good.  Maybe Michigan, I think, because our engines are really strong there and the cars are good.  It would be a really nice win at the Brickyard.  Any of those three races.
Q.  You kind of jokingly said Eldora in the truck.  Are you going to run the truck at Eldora coming up?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, I believe that’s the plan.  I don’t know if I was supposed to say anything or not about the truck race.  But yeah, we’re running that race.  I’m really excited about that.  We’re going to go test here pretty soon and get ready for that one because that’s definitely a race I want to win.  We were close last year, so it’s nice to get to go back and give it another shot.
Q.  I just want to ask you about Daytona and plate racing.  You’ve run the Nationwide and the Cup.  Is there much difference in just what it’s like in those two different races?  Is there a different feeling in the Nationwide race and how people race from the Cup?  Are there many differences or is it pretty much the same thing?
KYLE LARSON:  No, I think they’re way different.  The Cup car there is the aerodynamics and stuff make them hard to handle in the pack, and seems like you can change lanes a lot more and actually move forward, wherein the Nationwide race is super frustrating and not very hard at all to hold your car in a straight line.  But more than anything, it’s just really frustrating because the bottom lane is so much faster, and when you’re in the lead ‑‑ you can work the top and middle lanes and kind of move forward but you can’t get to the lead, where in the Cup Series I feel like you can work any lane and get to the lead, where the Nationwide Series, if you don’t start up there you’re not going to finish up there unless you really luck out to get up there.
Q.  Who are you running the truck for, and was it much of a challenge just to allow Chip to allow you to run that race?
KYLE LARSON:  I’ll be running for Turner Scott Motorsports again, and no, no, it wasn’t a struggle at all, I think just because it’s in a stock car.
Q.  I’ve got a couple quick ones here for you.  I ran into you back in 2011 when you ran here at Lucas Oil Raceway in the USAC midget in 2012 and 2013 where you had some success.  Just quickly here, just talk about you mentioned the Brickyard and what it would be like a little bit, would be nice to win here.  You kind of know the history at IMS as well as Lucas Oil Raceway.  Does this place hold any special spot for you as far as racing?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, I think especially just because I spent a couple ‑‑ well, a year there in Indiana and have a lot of friends there, and sprint car racing is huge in Indiana.  That to me is like the most special.  And then if you were to win a race at the speedway, that would be a dream come true, it doesn’t really matter what type of car it’s in.

And I think it would mean a ton to Chip Ganassi just to see the Target stock car in victory lane there, too.  Yeah, I’m definitely looking forward to that one.
Q.  David Ragan has already committed to run the ARCA that weekend at Lucas Oil Raceway.  Have you given any thought to jumping in a midget car like some of the other guys do there that weekend?
KYLE LARSON:  I gave a lot of thought into it, and I’ll probably just be there to watch.
Q.  How are you dealing with all this attention?  Is it something that you thought was going to be like this, or is the attention that you’re receiving from the media and from all the fans a little bit more than what you figured, and you look for some solace by jumping in the race car?
KYLE LARSON:  I mean, I don’t know.  I think it’s really cool.  I don’t pay a whole lot of attention to it.  I mean, I guess if you have a lot of attention on you, that means you’re doing something good.  I guess even more attention would be even better.
Q.  So you don’t mind all the press inquiries and people asking you all kinds of questions and all the attention?  That’s okay?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, I don’t see why it wouldn’t be.
Q.  What have you learned from Chip Ganassi or what do you take from him or why do you like running for him?  What is it about Chip Ganassi that you’ve learned?
KYLE LARSON:  I guess one thing, everybody that drives for him has learned is that to do the obvious things right.  That’s his quote before every race.  It’s probably true, makes us think about that when we’re in the car.  But yeah, racing for Chip is awesome just because he’s a racer himself.  He loves it, and he does a lot for auto racing in general with all the different series that he’s a part of.  He’s a character for sure, and that makes it fun for all of us drivers to drive for Chip.  You never know what you’re going to get from him.  I get to see him almost every weekend at the racetrack and sit down and talk to him.  I’m getting more and more comfortable around him to where I can crack jokes at him and stuff and not be worried about what his reaction is going to be.  I’ve definitely enjoyed racing for Chip.
Q.  He was struggling so hard like say a year ago where he would not give up on it, but the performance, now he’s seeing some success, and you probably see that in his eyes, and he’s given so much to the sport that you look at what you’re able to contribute and he’s so focused on that program having turned around and being a winner.  Is it good to deliver that to him?
KYLE LARSON:  Oh, yeah, yeah.  I mean, the whole team, from Chip to everybody in the shop and just everybody in the whole organization has done a great job to get into both mine and Jamie’s teams, being able to compete for wins every week, which is awesome.  It’s definitely lit a fire in Chip and everybody at the shop again.  We’re all super pumped up to get to the track.

It would be nice to start delivering him some wins frequently, but we’re close.  We’ll get there.  I know Chip is always excited and looking forward to the races.
Q.  I know last year as we headed into this season, a lot of the talk from your team was that you had to cut back quite a bit on running hundreds of sprint car races throughout the course of the year, but now as we head into the heat of the summertime, is there anything that just feels weird to you about not spending so many days in sprint cars and such?  How is that going for you so far?
KYLE LARSON:  It’s not been bad at all, really.  I was surprised, being such a die‑hard sprint car racer and fan and everything.  I thought not racing a lot of dirt track stuff this year would be bad, that I’d be bored.  But I’m not.  I’m so busy with everything that I’ve got going on in the NASCAR stuff that even if I was to go race sprint cars, I really wouldn’t have time to do it.  And I really enjoy racing in the cup series and doing double duty with the Nationwide Series, too.

I’ve been to a handful of sprint car races and maybe only one of the times or two of the times I’ve been, I actually was like, oh, I wish I was out there.  I enjoy watching and cheering for my friends and offering advice and watching the racetrack to let them know how it’s changing and stuff.  Yeah, like I said, I enjoy doing the out‑of‑the‑car stuff there.
Q.  With nine races to go, just want to ask you how confident are you that you and your team will qualify for the post‑season in September?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, we’re pretty confident.  We’ve just got to stay consistent and put ourselves in position like we have all year if we don’t win a race to get into the Chase.  If we do win a race, that would be awesome.  Just got to make sure we finish every race and can’t have weekends like we’ve had the last couple races.  I think if we do get in the Chase, too, we’re well capable enough to make it on each round to the final round at Homestead.  If we do get there, I’d be super confident that we’d pull it off, so I am hoping we can get into the Chase for sure.  I think we have got a good shot.
Q.  If you can pull it off this weekend, what would winning your first Cup race at Daytona International Speedway mean to you?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, it would mean a lot.  I could win anywhere in the Cup Series and it would mean a lot.  I think I have a good chance of winning as well as everybody else because the field seems to be really close when we go to superspeedways.  Everybody’s confidence will be up, the racing will be intense, and just got to stay out of trouble.
Q.  Could you talk a little bit about how much fun you had last year at Eldora and why it’s important for you to do that?  Is that just kind of like a relief and a fun situation for you to be up against these guys on dirt?  Just talk about that.
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, it was a blast last year at Eldora.  You know, a race that I looked forward to when it was announced last year, and then to get to race it and see how well the show was run and how great the racing was made me even more excited for this year.  Getting beat last year made me really pumped up for this year’s race.  Anyway, I don’t get to do a whole lot of dirt racing anymore, so to get back to kind of my roots makes it fun, too.

I’m really looking forward to when we go test here.  I think it’s next week.  So it would be nice to get back in the dirt and get dirty and sweat a little bit and get mud all over my face and stuff.
Q.  Kyle, as a rookie moving up into Cup, usually the expectations aren’t too high and the learning curves are way high, and you seem to have hurdled a lot of learning curves.  Do you feel like you’ve hurdled a lot of learning curves in the Cup Series?
KYLE LARSON:  Well, I think growing up racing like a lot of different types of cars and being young at that helped me learn things quick.  You know, when I was 15, 16 years old, I would be racing winged sprint cars one night, non‑winged the next, a pavement track the next night.  I got good at adapting to things and learning really fast.  I think that helped train me a lot for now being young and in the Cup Series with still not a lot of stock car experience.  I think that all my dirt track and World Outlaw, USAC, all that kind of background of racing helped me learn fast and helped me for each weekend learn the tracks, learn the cars, learn the style of racing and all that. Definitely happy with where I came from in racing.
Q.  Your team members, do you think that they feel like you’ve grasped things real quickly and you’ve been able to conquer these learning curves?
KYLE LARSON:  I don’t know, I guess that would be a question for the team guys, I guess.  I don’t know, I feel like I’ve done a good job at it so far.
Q.  I know obviously the last couple of weeks have not been what you guys have wanted, and I’m wondering how concerned you are about the small drop in points and how critical it is the next month, especially with tracks like Daytona where it’s going to be a crap shoot, New Hampshire where you’ve never raced before?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, you know, really I don’t worry about New Hampshire at all because I’ve raced there in a K & N car or ‑‑ I don’t know if we ran two Nationwide races there last year or one.  But I’ve got two Nationwide races there.  I think the one you worry about is Daytona.  It would have been nice to have a solid weekend last week at Kentucky and kind of go to Daytona and be like, oh, we could have a good race here or a bad race and it wouldn’t affect us a whole lot.  But now that we’ve had two bad races in a row where I’m close to being back to the 16th spot in points, it definitely makes you think about it and approach the race weekend a little bit differently.  Just got to stay out of trouble and gain as many points as we can.
Q.  Do you think you’ll be more conservative this weekend or just go out and just do what you need to do and just try to put points out of your mind?
KYLE LARSON:  I feel like I’m pretty conservative most weekends and just try to be up front but not get into trouble.  I’m sure I’ll do the same thing this weekend.

JENNIE LONG:  Kyle, thank you so much for joining us today, and good luck this weekend at Daytona.