NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
BANK OF AMERICA 500
CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY POST RACE DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
OCTOBER 12, 2013
 
 
KAHNE AND JOHNSON SCORE TOP FIVE FINISHES AT CHARLOTTE
FIVE TEAM CHEVY CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDERS IN TOP 10 OVERALL
 
CONCORD, NC – October 12, 2012 – With a really solid No. 5 Quaker State Chevrolet SS race car, Kasey Kahne led the most laps, 138 of the 334-lap Bank of America 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Charlotte Motor Speedway to finish second overall.  It was Kahne’s 12th top-10 finish in 20 races at the 1.5-mile track and his 12th top-10 finish of the 2013 season. He currently ranks 13th in the Chase standings.
 
In spite of leading the most laps, having a strong race car, and contending for the win, Kahne came home just behind race winner Brad Keselowski (Ford).
 
“We had a great race,” said Kahne.  “I was on two (tires) and he (Keselowski) was on four (tires) and he could just move around a little bit better.  I was trying to move around, but I was just a little bit on the tight side with the front end, then I would get loose if I got the front working. I was doing all I could and felt pretty good, but he made some nice moves and just really had some speed there late in the race and was able to get by me.”
 
Kahne’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jimmie Johnson, also had a fast race car in his No. 48 Lowe’s Dover White Chevy SS. Johnson led 130 laps and finished in fourth place; giving Team Chevy two of the top-five finishing spots. He holds strong in second place in the points, with five races remaining in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
 
Championship contenders Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Jimmy John’s Chevrolet SS finished sixth, Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Axalta Chevy SS was seventh, and Ryan Newman, No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS finished eighth. All three drivers maintained their positions in the current standings. Harvick is third, Gordon is fourth, and Newman is in 12th place overall.
 
It was a tough race for Kurt Busch, who struggled with handling issues with his No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevy SS, but was able to finish in the 14th position. And although he had a solid start to the night, Dale Earnhardt Jr. also fought handling problems with his No. 88 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet SS and finished 15th.  Busch remains seventh in the points; Earnhardt Jr. fell one position and now ranks ninth in the standings.
 
Rounding out the top-five finishers were Matt Kenseth (Toyota) in third and Kyle Busch (Toyota) in fifth.
 
The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup continues with race number six of 10 next Sunday, October 20th at Talladega Superspeedway.
 
 
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 QUAKER STATE CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED SECOND 
 
KERRY THARP:  We’re going to roll right into tonight’s Bank of America 500 post‑race NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, No. 5 in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.  Our race runner-up is Kasey Kahne.  He drove the No. 5 Quaker State Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, and Kasey, certainly had a very, very competitive race car out there tonight.  You led a lot of laps, contended for the win, and just fell a little short.  Just talk about your run out there this evening.
 
KASEY KAHNE:  Yeah, we had a really good Quaker State Chevrolet throughout the whole race from the time it started, and it was really solid until about lap 160 or so, it changed a little bit, and then we had to ‑‑ (inaudible) just got it back.  At that point we lost our speed and was then kind of second to Jimmie.  We took two at the end.  That was a great call to stay on the front row there and have a shot.  I was able to clear Jeff.  I thought I did pretty good, but as soon as I got to Turn 1 my left side was a little bit ‑‑ I could feel they weren’t working quite as well.  They were just rough, kind of bouncing a little bit, so I knew I was in trouble at that point.  So I just tried to run good laps, and Brad caught me and I tried to switch it up and find momentum and find speed.  He got by me in 3 and got back by him the front stretch and then he came up again.  He ran a really good race and they were close, but felt really good, felt strong the whole night.  I wish we could have won, but this was a good race for us considering the last four races.
Q.  Given the struggles you had in the last few laps, did you ever get a sense that you were going to be able to catch him, or did you kind of resign yourself that it was going to be a challenge?
KASEY KAHNE:  Yeah, he got by him, he got back by him and he was able to keep with me on the corner and I knew what his car felt like compared to mine because of tires.  I was trying to find speed, and after he got by me I found a little bit up high in 1 and 2 (inaudible) still could get through there pretty good, and Brad ran a strong race and did a good job and we fought until the end, and I got into the wall in 4 coming to the white (inaudible).
 Q.  I know it’s not quite the finish you wanted but what kind of momentum boost is this?
KASEY KAHNE:  Yeah, it’s a good boost.  Charlotte always gives us a pretty good boost.  We always seem to run pretty well here.  We always have, and hopefully we always do.
Q.  Kasey, Brad was talking about how he felt comfortable racing with you even though you guys raced so hard.  He said there’s other guys who freak out when he gets that close to them but you have a good respect for each other.  Can you talk about that?
KASEY KAHNE:  Yeah, I think we do.  I could feel him a lot, not too much the first half of the straightaway but towards the end of the straightaway getting in he’d really put pressure on me, on my left‑rear quarter or my right rear depending on which side he was.  I could feel him.  It would move my car.  He did it down the whole backstretch once and I tried chasing him and just about lost it in the middle of the back straightaway.  So we ended up playing kind of the air game and trying to give our cars as much speed as we could.  But neither one of us ever came close to wrecking each other.  It was just about racing hard.  He drove it into Turn 3 way far to clear me, and I got back under him, so it was a great battle.  I had a good time racing with him.  We came out on the wrong side of it.
Q.  On the restart were you wondering, where is Jimmie, why isn’t he coming up behind me?
KASEY KAHNE:  Well, I saw Jimmie.  He started right behind me, and we went ‑‑ I was racing Jeff, so I didn’t look in my mirror until I cleared Jeff off of 4, and then I didn’t see Jimmie once I cleared Jeff.  So I was coming to complete the first lap after the green flag.  I had no clue where he went.  I didn’t know if something happened or what.  And then I saw him again later in the race.  He came back through to I think to fourth or fifth.  Either way I was surprised.  I don’t know what happened to him.  He was strong the last half of the race.  He was really strong.
Q.  Kasey, intermediates seem to play well for you but you mentioned that Charlotte always gives you an extra big boost.  What is it about this place that brings out the best in you?
KASEY KAHNE:  I don’t know, we just always have ran pretty good at this track.  I wish I knew how to get my car to drive like it does here at other places.  I don’t know if it’s the tire or the track itself, what it is.  But we just always run pretty good here.  It’s a confidence, kind of always gives us confidence when we leave here.  So it’s nice.  Hopefully we can run to Texas to test and hopefully we can run pretty strong the rest of the year.  I don’t want to finish last in points, so we’ll see what happens.
Q.  In V
ictory Lane, Brad said there are a handful of guys you can’t race hard with in this deal because they freak out, but Kasey Kahne is not one of them.  I know you kind of addressed this a little bit, but do you kind of agree with Brad’s assessment, and do you agree that if so, are you guys among those that seem to not have a problem racing hard?
KASEY KAHNE:  Well, I think there’s a bunch of guys like that myself, that I’ve raced with.  But yeah, I don’t feel like me and Brad have a problem racing.  I think we’ve raced hard in the past and we’ll race hard for a while.  But tonight was a good battle.  He had four tires and I had two, and I did all I could, and he just got by me and cleared me.
 
I don’t know, I always race him pretty good, and we raced hard.  I don’t really know what else to say about it.
Q.  With the testing coming up on Monday and looking at rules for 2014, with all the slicing and dicing you were doing out there but then a bunch of people bitching about the cars being tight and everything else, where is the balance that we’re looking for moving forward with what changes, modifications need to be made to these cars?
KASEY KAHNE:  I don’t know.  I heard they have a lot of ideas and some different things to try, I think, I’m pretty sure here Monday.  We’re not part of that test, but I would imagine they’ll learn some things.  I had a great car tonight and I could race pretty good, but everybody is just so fast.  All the cars, all the teams do a really nice job, and if you look in practice, the speeds are so close, we qualify and are all within I think the top six or so, within half‑a‑tenth or a tenth or somewhere in there.  When everybody is running those types of speeds, it’s going to be tough to pass regardless of ‑‑ it just is.  Hopefully they keep looking at stuff.  I think the tire is a big part of it, and I think Goodyear definitely gave us a better tire this week to race on than last week, so I definitely thank them for that. But I think the tires can always get better and help the racing and the cars, as well, and hopefully we learn some things in the next week to keep gaining.
 
But tonight’s race wasn’t too bad, I don’t think.
 
KERRY THARP:  Kasey, thanks for putting on a great performance tonight, and we’ll see you at Talladega.
 

CORVETTE RACING AT PETIT LE MANS: One More Title To Go
Garcia, Magnussen look for ALMS GT drivers’ title at end of 1,000-mile enduro
 
DETROIT (Oct. 14, 2014) – Only one more race separates Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen from the American Le Mans Series’ GT drivers’ championship. Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta is the site of the final round of the 2013 ALMS but also the series’ finale as well. The 1,000-mile/10-hour endurance classic has been a staple at Road Atlanta – an hour northeast of Atlanta – since its first running in 1998.
 
After nine of 10 rounds in this year’s championship, Garcia and Magnussen in the No. 3 Compuware Chevrolet Corvette C6.R lead their sole remaining challenger – Dirk Muller – by 16 points with 24 available to the winner at Petit Le Mans. The Corvette Racing camp is aiming for a second straight clean sweep of the ALMS GT titles. It clinched a 10th series team championship and won Chevrolet’s 10th manufacturer title in the previous race at Virginia International Raceway. The championship chase concludes at Road Atlanta with live coverage starting at 11 a.m. ET on FOX Sports 2; the race’s broadcast alternates between it and FOX Sports 1.
 
No duo in the GT class can match Garcia and Magnussen’s three victories in 2013: Laguna Seca, Baltimore and Austin. For Petit Le Mans, they will team with newly crowned GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series Daytona Prototype champion Jordan Taylor. The group must finish seventh or higher at Road Atlanta for Garcia and Magnussen to win the driving title; they were second last year.
 
If they do, the duo would succeed Corvette Racing teammates Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner as champions. Richard Westbrook returns to join them in the No. 4 Compuware Corvette; the trio opened the ALMS season with a remarkable, come-from-behind victory at Sebring. Gavin is the team’s winningest driver at Road Atlanta with five victories.
 
With five wins on the season, Corvette Racing is assured of being the ALMS’ most successful entrant in series history. The list of achievements is remarkable – 82 victories, 10 team and manufacturer titles, and 64 pole positions. All are American Le Mans Series records.
 
Starting in January, a new era begins with the debut of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship – a result of a merger between the ALMS and GRAND-AM. The season will open with the Rolex 24 at Daytona and close with Petit Le Mans.
 
EDITORS: High-resolution images of Corvette Racing are available on the Team Chevy media site for editorial use only.
 
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 COMPUWARE CORVETTE C6.R
(Championship strategy) “We need to keep racing as we have up to this point. We need to use a percentage of caution; we won’t risk as much during the race as we normally would. But in this case, you can’t hold back and wait. If you hold back a little too much, you become vulnerable. We need to keep the same strategy – try to be up front and stay out of trouble.”
“We all just need to stay calm and relax. The key is to remain consistent and keep doing the same things we have earlier in the year.”
(Being successful at Road Atlanta) “The key thing is that we normally have a few more cars and new people running in the race. The amount of traffic rises, as does the risk. Because Road Atlanta is not so easy on traffic due to the layout, you need to take it easy. You also need to have a smart, safe strategy and don’t try to do something out of sequence and completely different than anything from the season.”
 
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 COMPUWARE CORVETTE C6.R
(Championship strategy) “We will have to keep our eye on the ball and win the championship. That’s not to say we can’t go for a victory, but we do need to make sure we get the championship. The situation is looking quite good for us but it is a long race. Our main competitors will be strong but our car is usually excellent as well at Road Atlanta. We need to be clever about it – push when we need to but also smart when need to.”
(Keys to victory) “Because of the race’s length, the team plays a much bigger part. There is a ton of strategy involved and there are more pit stops. Fortunately for us, we have been able to do a really good job at both. The longer distances will suit our team even more and usually we are quite strong. We do put a lot of time and effort into stops and making the right strategy calls.”
 
JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 COMPUWARE CORVETTE C6.R
“Finishing the last three races in the Rolex Series and winning those races, there isn’t a much better feeling. Having those victories and a championship is the best possible way to come into Petit Le Mans. I’m really excited to get back to the Corvette and the team since the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The No. 3 team has had a great season so far. My job is to help them to win a championship.”
(Taming the track) “Road Atlanta is one of the more traditional courses we have in America. There is a lot of speed, and the track flows very well. It’s a fun track to drive but when you get into a race situation with traffic, it can be frustrating and stressful if you’re stuck behind a slower GT car or trying to hold off a prototype in certain sections. Things can get pretty stressful and it’s easy to lose a ton of time. If you lose a little bit of rhythm or momentum at a place like Road Atlanta – where you are going by rhythm or momentum – you can lose sync of everything and wonder where your lap time went. It’s a big track for confidence and believing in yourself and the car.”
 
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 COMPUWARE CORVETTE C6.R
“The race really is one of the crown jewels of the sports car racing world. It’s an event many teams from outside the series want to do. A thousand miles around Road Atlanta is a great challenge. The track is fast and unforgiving. It can frustrate you when you’re in traffic, but sometime you can use that your advantage if someone is chasing you. It’s a track that is suited for this race with the fact you go from starting in the middle of the day and ending at night. Those last couple of hours, you know is going to be hard and tough after racing all day. It will be a fine way to finish off the story that has been the ALMS.”
(Adding a Petit Le Mans win to Sebring) “That has to be the goal. We’ve had some ups and downs starting at Sebring. We had a great victory in Canada before things started going downhill for us. When you have three bad races in a year, you have to be super-lucky to come away with a championship. Considering how difficult this class is, you get one ‘get out of jail free’ card. Jan and Antonio played their card at Sebring, but since then they have nailed it every single weekend. They’ve had a very strong season and deserve to be leading the championship with one race to go. Let’s hope they can seal it at Petit Le Mans and get us all three championships again for Corvette Racing. It would be an amazing feat to close the American Le Mans Series with Corvette Racing and Chevrolet as champions in everything we can win.”
 
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 COMPUWARE CORVETTE C6.R
“There is a lot to race for, that’s for sure. We can’t win the championship – we’re one point out of having a chance. We’d love to be second in the final standings. But from my perspective I’d rather go for a win at Petit Le Mans – the last ALMS race and one race I haven’t won yet. That’s higher on my list than finishing second or staying third in the standings. It’s a big race – where the ALMS started. Sebring and this one were races coming into the year that I definitely wanted to win. We got Sebring in March and if we can get Sebring, I’d be able to look back on this season and be satisfied with what Oliver, Richard and I have accomplished. There would be nothing better to end the season and the ALMS’ run with a victory.”
(Track characteristics) “Road Atlanta is a track that suits multi-class racing. There is an ebb and flo
w with traffic throughout the race within our class. It’s one I’ve always enjoyed. It’s incredibly fast and fun circuit. For whatever reason, I seem to get a little more excited for Petit Le Mans. The whole picture of that event makes it pretty special. It’s always well-subscribed by fans.”
 
RICHARD WESTBROOK, NO. 4 COMPUWARE CORVETTE C6.R
“Petit Le Mans is one of the classics. In the sports car racing world, you’ve got the Le Mans 24 Hours, Sebring and Petit Le Mans. This is where the ALMS started. It will always be a very special event. Any driver that wins it will put it straight away on their CV. Driving a Corvette in Petit Le Mans also is a very special thing. We have a great turnout with the Corvette owners in the Corvette Corral – one of the biggest of the year. So being a Corvette driver at Road Atlanta is an incredibly special thing.”
(Dealing with traffic) “For a driver, and it’s something I have to be mindful of – you have to be patient. It’s a short track with a very large field. It’s easy to get bottled up for half your stint or even your whole stint in traffic. It’s so easy to be caught up in other people’s battles. You need to be patient early and let the racing take care of itself in the last couple hours.
(A good track) “This definitely is a track that suits our car. It’s has a long straight, a really fast section with a lot of high-speed corners. You also have the slow chicane where you are braking from very high speed. It’s a great indicator of how your car is generally because it has a bit of everything.”
 
DOUG FEHAN, CORVETTE RACING PROGRAM MANAGER
“Over the years, Petit Le Mans has proven to be one of the most exciting events on our schedule. From a driver’s perspective, the Road Atlanta circuit presents an extremely difficult challenge featuring a lot of elevation change mixed with very high-speed corners. And none of that is wasted on our fans who truly understand how important this year’s race will be to Corvette Racing. We come in having wrapped up both the ALMS manufacturers’ and team championships, which leaves the all-important drivers’ championship still up for grabs. Jan and Antonio have fought back all year to take the lead in points and Petit Le Mans will decide who goes home with the crown. You can’t ask for any more drama than that!”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
BANK OF AMERICA 500
CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
OCTOBER 10, 2013
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S DOVER WHITE CHEVROLET SS met with media and discussed racing this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where he currently sits in the Chase and other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
TALK ABOUT COMING BACK TO CHARLOTTE, A PLACE WHERE YOU’VE HAD SO MUCH SUCCESS, AND WHAT YOU’RE HOPING TO GET OUT OF THIS WEEKEND
“I’m definitely excited to be home and sleep in your own bed through the course of the week is obviously nice. Having Lowe’s corporate headquarters just down the road is really cool, too. We’ll have a lot of their executives out. In year’s past, we’ve been able to perform with them right here watching and joining us in Victory Lane. It would be nice to experience that once again with all of them.
 
“The track is great. We all know the history of the track and have really had some strong runs here over the years. And I think the last couple of All-Star races, we’ve been able to hit the first race really well and then when we come back for the 600 we are competitive; but it’s a little different than it was five or six years ago when they resurfaced the track. So we’re still trying to find that magic where we can separate ourselves each time we come back. But I still feel like we’re in that top 3 or top 5 group, week-in and week-out. As long as Matt (Kenseth) isn’t winning, then top 3 or top 5 wouldn’t be too bad this weekend.”
 
TALK ABOUT PHOENIX AND WHAT YOU LIKE ABOUT THAT TRACK. YOU HAVE THE MOST WINS THERE.
“It’s changed quite a bit. We’ve struggled there since it’s been resurfaced. Our spring race seems to go well each time, but the fall race is pretty tough on us. It’s a totally different rhythm now through (Turn) 2. I call it ‘Turn 1, then Turn 2, then Turn 3 and Turn 4’, but some call it (Turns) 1 and 2 and the Doglegs. So whatever that little section of road is over there is really different than what we had before. And then the surface is this new asphalt that we can’t get a tire to stick to all that well. It’s obviously an extreme climate area, but hopefully that asphalt will give up and we can get a second lane working. They’ve spent a lot of money to build progressive banking in some areas and on their modeling; they had two and three lanes working around there. But we haven’t been able to see it yet and I hope that we go out there this fall and we get it.”
 
A LOT WAS MADE OF THE MIND GAMES YOU HAD WITH DENNY HAMLIN IN 2010; AND THEN LAST YEAR WITH BRAD KESELOWSKI. NOW THAT YOU ARE CHALLENGED BY A GUY LIKE MATT KENSETH, HOW DO YOU PLAY THOSE KINDS OF GAMES? OR, CAN YOU PLAY THOSE KINDS OF GAMES?
“I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about the games. I felt like with Denny, whatever our personalities; we’ve always given each other a hard time in a good way. There was just some opportunity there where I could jab at him. And I think Kevin Harvick, at the champion’s press conference we had, really opened the door for it all to start happening there. Harvick had a very helpful hand in all that and getting it going. Honestly, with Bad last year, I’m not trying to play games. You are asked so many questions over the course of that week and you’re talking about somebody’s experience level; if they are defending something and what are those emotions and those conversations come out of kind of playing head games and stuff like that. But really, I’m just answering questions and stating the facts; and also stating facts that I know I’ve lived through and the challenges that I’ve had to fight through. So, with all of that, Matt has the experience. He’s been a champion. And no one is immune to it, but I feel like with someone that hasn’t won their first (title) you can suggest a few things that make them think more about it. And I don’t know what or if or how or any of that with Matt, if it would develop. And there are other years when I’ve raced Jeff (Gordon) for the championship or Mark Martin, and there really wasn’t anything to really mention there. So, I don’t have an agenda, or plan to. I didn’t necessarily those years, either. But I’m sure there will be something to talk about once we get to Homestead.”
 
ON HOW WHITE KNUCKLE OF AN EVENT IS TALLADEGA FOR YOU? WHAT IS THE LEVEL OF TENSION, KNOWING YOUR CHAMPIONSHIP COULD GO UP IN SMOKE AT ANY MOMENT?
‘Yeah, it’s tough. With this rules package, riding is not the things to do. You’ll never get back to the front. So, you’ve just got to go race and cross your fingers and go for it. You just hope that Lady Luck is on your side and that you make it through. The guys that we’re racing with right now in the championship historically go and race there. They don’t ride. So even if that opportunity was there, it would have forced our hand to race. So, we’re just going to show up and race. I’ve been able to finish all three (restrictor plate races) so far this year, and I think all three in the top 5. Hopefully we can keep this streak alive.”
 
THIS IS YOUR 10TH CHASE. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT WHERE YOU ARE RIGHT NOW WITH ALL THE EXPERIENCE YOU HAVE? DO YOU FEEL GOOD ABOUT WINNING ANOTHER ONE OR DO YOU THINK IT’S GOING TO BE MORE OF A CHALLENGE THIS YEAR THAN IN THE PAST?
“It’s never easy. I do feel very good about our chances. Post-Talladega, depending on how things play out there, we’ll see where we stand. But the only thing I can do right now is look back on the races we’ve had and think what points we’ve left on the table. And there really aren’t many that we’ve left behind. So, yes there are a few points out there, but we’ve been very consistent. We’ve been competitive. We’ve won a race. I feel good with that. I know if we keep this pace up, we’ll definitely be a contender come Homestead. The big question is just Talladega; and then you do have some general risks that you take during the course of the weekend. Last weekend we had that engine fail with two (laps) to go and luckily, I limped it home. So you do have that mechanical aspect that’s out there. But again, it’s something I can’t control. I really work hard to worry about the things that I can control and forgetting about the rest.”
 
YOU MADE YOUR FIRST SPRINT CUP START HERE IN 2001. THAT’S ALSO WHERE YOU STARTED YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH LOWE’S. WHAT DOES THAT RELATIONSHIP MEAN TO YOU? AND, DOES THIS RACE HAVE ANY MORE SIGNIFICANCE BECAUSE OF IT?
“Yeah, I definitely think about this being my first start. It was a tough week for me. My close friend, Blaise Alexander, unfortunately lost his life on the front stretch here. So it was a weird and emotionally-charged weekend for me. The ultimate high of qualifying for my first Cup race, my relationship with Lowe’s, the Lowe’s car that they had at the time didn’t make the show, so there was that big positive emotion-swing in that direction and the tragedy of my friend, pulling me in another. So, it was a crazy week. And by the time Sunday came around, and I was in the race, my emotions were back under control and I really enjoyed the experience on the track. And I’ll never forget that first ah-ha moment I had was leaving the end of pit road. And I was running somewhere in the top 10 or top 15, and Mark Martin and Dale Jarrett, and Jeff Gordon were all around me. And I still kind of get the goose bumps now, just thinking about it. I just rolled off the end of pit road and I’m like here! This is where I’ve always wanted to be and I’m here.
 
“Shortly thereafter, I spun out and right in front of my teammate, Jeff, who was racing for the championship and I about took him out of it (laughs). It was a taste for me of how humbling the sport can be. I leave pit road on top of the world and it wasn’t five laps later when I was over there backwards in the wall. It’s a challenging sport.”
 
THERE WAS AN INCIDENT WHERE A CUP D
RIVER WAS ARRESTED A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO. WITHOUT GETTING INTO THE SPECIFICS OF THAT, SO MANY TIMES NASCAR GETS HAILED AS BEING UNLIKE OTHER SPORTS WHERE ATHLETES MIGHT BE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO BEING INVOLVED IN A POLICE BLOTTER OR HEADLINES FOR THE WRONG REASONS. WHEN SOMETHING LIKE THAT HAPPENS, DO YOU HAVE ANY CONCERNS ABOUT HOW IT MIGHT COLLECTIVELY IMPACT DRIVERS’ BRANDS AND KNOWING THAT SPONSORS GET INVOLVED IN THE SPORT BECAUSE OF THAT IMAGE-CONSCIOUS-TYPE THING. DO YOU THINK NASCAR SHOULD TAKE ANY ACTION WHEN SOMETHING LIKE THAT HAPPENS?
“I hadn’t thought about it on that level. I was shocked when I heard about it. But it’s not good for our sport, for sure. I think that most realize that it’s an individual situation and nothing to do with the team or the sponsor. It might shy a sponsor away from that particular organization or driver, but I would hope that it wouldn’t impact any further than that. I guess there could be some repercussions there. But again, I hadn’t thought about it too much in a global perspective for our sport. It’s not good press, so it can’t be helpful by any means. And it is pretty rare. I think that’s something that we all pride ourselves on that we don’t have a lot of that drama in our sport. So, I’m sure there is a negative impact to a small degree.”
 
KEVIN HARVICK WAS IN HERE BEFORE YOU AND SUGGESTED THAT ONE REASON ROOKIE STRUGGLE THESE DAYS IS BECAUSE THE TRUCKS AND THE NATIONWIDE CARS JUST AREN’T AS FAST AS THE CUP CARS AND THE TRANSITION IS SO HUGE.  WHEN YOU THINK BACK TO YOUR BUSCH DAYS IN THE EARLY 2000’S WERE THE CARS THAT MUCH CLOSER?
“Man I can’t really remember and I haven’t been in a Truck or a Nationwide car much since.  Kevin would really be the perfect one to ask that.  My mind quickly goes to how little testing you can have as a rookie.  When I came in the sport I think it was 12 two-day test sessions.  So I got 24 test days to sort stuff out.  As an individual team didn’t race at Martinsville so we went to Martinsville.  Didn’t race at, trying to remember the tracks now, Pocono, went to Pocono and tested.  So we were able to get me up to speed because when a weekend starts, if you are a rookie coming in and you haven’t had a chance to test.  By the time you get up to speed and comfortable on the track the good guys are five, six changes ahead of you.   And you are behind that the entire weekend.  It’s hard to catch up.  That is the part that I can really relate to the most.  I’m thankful that in my generation I was able to test a lot.  I don’t think it’s a bad idea to open up testing more in general.  We are kind of trending that way which is encouraging.  With (Kyle) Larson making the move as he has inevitably other drivers their names come along I think Austin’s (Dillon) make the change.  When you grow up in a high horsepower vehicle at least from my own experience I struggle in the slower cars.  I need the throttle to turn the car.  I have a good feeling for both of those guys.  It’s certainly going to be a tough road for them, but coming from the dirt, coming from high horsepower cars I think the Cup car is going to fit their style a little better.”
 
GIVEN THE STRUGGLES THAT YOU HAD LEADING UP TO THE CHASE HOW GOOD DO YOU FEEL?  DID YOU THINK YOU WOULD BE SITTING HERE DOING AS WELL AS YOU’VE DONE IN THE FIRST THREE RACES?
“I honestly and genuinely felt like we had a great chance to win the championship when all that was going on.  Bristol and Richmond we don’t have any tracks like that in the Chase.  The other tracks we struggled at we were running very fast, competitive, fighting for wins and had some weird things go on.  It did add a little stress there is no doubt about it.  When you have a new stat of your four or five worst races ever in the history of a team it’s not anything to be proud of.  There was a bit of, I don’t know exactly what to call it, stress, or frustration that went with that.  But we genuinely knew that we would be fine once the Chase started and got back to our tracks, good tracks and had a little luck turn around for us.”
 
SPEAKING OF THE ENGINE AT KANSAS DID YOU GUYS FIGURE OUT WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS?  HAVE YOU EVER HAD AN ENGINE COME BACK LIKE THAT AFTER IT STARTED TO FAIL ON THE FINAL LAP?  IT SEEMED LIKE THAT MIGHT HAVE SAVED YOU ABOUT TWO OR THREE CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS AND COULD MAKE A DIFFERENCE:
“It really was bizarre.  I was trying to manage how hard the car was shaking with my throttle inputs and looking back on it all I just got lucky with the parts that were failing.  They decided to work in harmony for another mile and a half or something. I could use a lot more throttle and maintain that sixth position.  We had a big meeting on Tuesday and they walked all the drivers and crew chief through and it’s amazing how thorough things are in our engine shop.  We feel very comfortable and confident that they have the issue sorted out that was in the valve train.  We are feeling good about it.” 
 
YOU SAID A FEW WEEKS AGO YOU WERE ONLY REALLY FOCUSED ON THE PEOPLE IN FRONT OF YOU IN POINTS. DO YOU STILL LOOK AT IT THAT WAY NOW THAT KEVIN (HARVICK) HAS A WIN?
“Kind of the same.  Even before when I mentioned looking forward you have to be aware of people behind you.  I think any psychologist or type of coaching you would listen to nobody wants you to look behind they always want you to look forward.  I’m certainly focused forward and just trying to get that top spot.  I was really motivated last week and hopeful that we could leave Kansas as the point’s leader came close, but it didn’t turn out.  I certainly have to be aware of the No. 24 and the consistency they have had and the fast cars and great performances and the same thing with the No. 29.  Kevin has got it all. He’s won championships he understands the pressure.  He is a hard-nosed racer things don’t rattle him.  He’s got that all there and the cars have been trending faster and faster and he showed that last week with a dominating weekend.  Looking forward but I certainly know who is behind us.”
 
YOU TALKED ABOUT HOW YOU CAUGHT A LITTLE BIT OF A BREAK THERE AT KANSAS ON THE LAST TWO LAPS WITH THE ENGINE GOING SOUR.  HOW IMPORTANT IS IT THAT YOU HAVE BOTH GOOD LUCK AND FAST CARS TO OVERCOME THE BAD LUCK IN THE CHASE?  DO YOU LOOK BACK AT THAT AND SEE THAT AS KIND OF A DEFINING MOMENT OF YOUR CHAMPIONSHIP RUN THIS YEAR?
“Well it’s early.  Talladega is still out there so it’s tough to look back on four races and spot the defining moment.  When the motor first started going I thought it was over and I was looking for white smoke and thought that I wouldn’t finish the last lap.  Started to develop the opinion ‘okay I’m going to finish, but I will be 15th.’  I know the No. 20 didn’t have the best day going so I’m not going to lose a ton of points. Then the engine started running smooth again and I was able to maintain sixth.  So I went through a variety of emotions trying to get that baby home and was very thankful that it did stay running and it got me back.  We’ve still got a little while before we try to look back and spot that moment.  I’m pretty sure there will be some other hairy moments out there we’ve got to deal with.”
 
WHAT ARE THE KEY VARIABLES OR INTRICACIES THAT MADE YOU GO FROM A GUY THAT WON FIVE OUT OF NINE TO START YOUR CAREER AT THIS PLACE AND THEN HAD A 1 OUT OF 15 DROUGHT? OBVIOUSLY I THINK THE REPAVE PLAYED INTO IT, BUT WHAT WERE THE OTHER VARIABLES INVOLVED?
“The overwhelming majority of it is repave I think.  We had a set-up there is a line that I ran and you go back and look at the video and I guess guys would have figured it out and explored and probably got better at it.  But the old surface, the b
umps, how tough it was to get around this place just worked really well for me.  We were able to find a little advantage especially on long runs.  Now with the surface like it is it’s just far different.  There really aren’t any bumps very little fall off due to the tire, so within that is where I think the majority of it went.  Sure, teams get stronger so I guess the other sliver to it is guys getting stronger.   I think of Kasey Kahne and how consistent he’s been here.  It’s been a good track for the No. 29 at times for Matt (Kenseth) regardless of the car that he’s in.  I was going to say the No. 20 but also in the No. 17 you know he’s had some wins here.  I think the competition getting stronger and then certainly the track change.”
 
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
BANK OF AMERICA 500
CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING NOTES & QUOTES
OCTOBER 10, 2013
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 AXALTA CHEVROLET SS – POLE WINNER:
IT WAS EXCITING TO WATCH. HOW EXCITING WAS IT TO DRIVE A LAP LIKE THAT?
“Man, that was awesome. It’s been a while since we’ve had a pole here at Charlotte as well as doing it in that fashion. The way that the draw was today, there’s a lot of fast cars going late in qualifying. But when you didn’t see the lap times picking up as much as we thought they were going to, I didn’t know if that late draw was going to really be a big factor. But I saw that the guys ahead of me were putting down good laps and I knew the grip was there and what the car did in practice. And the guys just did an phenomenal job on our Axalta Chevrolet all day long making good adjustments. The car just did everything I wanted it to do.”
 
SO MANY GUYS’ TIME DROPPED OFF BETWEEN TURNS 3 AND 4, PARTICULARLY OFF TURN 4. YOUR’S DIDN’T. YOU REALLY GOT OFF THE CORNER GOOD. DID YOU FEEL THAT?
“Well we got through (Turns) 3 and 4 good in practice. But I thought I was a little bit tight. They freed the car up a little bit and I thought there was a little bit I could do to help my car in (Turns) 1 and 2. As long as the guys helped it turn in 3 and 4, I thought it would be a good lap. There was a lot of speed and a lot of security and it allowed me to have a lot of confidence.
 
“When I went through (Turns) 1 and 2 as good as it did, I thought all you can do is be committed at this point and hope that it sticks. The front end just kept cutting and I knew a lot of guys were getting tight and I just kept pushing the throttle down and it just carried great speed. But I didn’t know if it was going to be enough and then I found out how close it really was and that was pretty amazing.”
 
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 JIMMY JOHN’S CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 2nd:
TELL US ABOUT THAT QUALIFYING LAP. YOU MISSED IT BY ONE. DID YOU LEAVE SOMETHING OUT THERE?
“I felt like I didn’t get everything in (Turns) 3 and 4. I knew from the way things were going and the way practice was that I needed to try to get everything that I could n (Turns) 1 and 2 and not get tight coming off of Turn 4 and I probably lost the pole right there. I’ve just got to thank all these guys on my Jimmy John’s Chevy. They’ve done a great job. We knew we needed to qualify better in the Chase. We knew we needed to run better on the 1.5-mile race tracks and they’re capitalizing on last week and doing that. We would really have liked to have the pole tonight. But everybody knows how we have qualified in the past and to be on the front row is a great benefit for us.”
 
WHAT WAS GOING ON WITH THE TRACK TONIGHT?
“We ran about the same time, maybe a tenth faster, than what we did in practice. Or just a touch faster. Once we saw where the session was headed with everybody saying they were going slower, as a driver you kind of know what you need to push forward and what you don’t. I just didn’t want to be 25th and make mistakes. The race is no problem. It’s the qualifying sessions for me that stress me out.”
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S DOVER WHITE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 4th:
HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR QUALIFYING LAP?
“That was really nice.  I was really happy with that lap.  Great pick up we made some good adjustments to get the car right.  I’m not sure many guys have picked up two almost three tenths in the session so we did the right things.  I’m excited.”
 
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 QUAKER STATE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 5TH
ON HIS LAP:
“Turns 1 and 2 were way better than I did in practice, but worse than (Turns) 3 and 4. So that’s why I kind of equaled out. I just got a little tight off and I couldn’t go back to wide-open soon enough. It was still a good lap for our Quaker State Chevrolet. It’s just not quite where I want it to be.
 
DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 6TH
“Our National Guard Chevy was pretty good all day and I thought we made some good adjustments in between practice and qualifying. I think I underdrove Turn 2 a little bit. We had a real right car through that corner and I just feel like I underdrove it a little bit.”
 
HAVE YOU HAD A CHANCE TO DO MUCH WORK SO FAR IN RACE TRIM?
“Yeah, we ran a couple of runs early and thought that we had a good handle.  We were really in the ballpark and really happy with how the car came off the trailer.  That is a good sign for us.”
 
TALK ABOUT MAKING YOUR 500TH CUP START THIS WEEKEND:
“Yeah, it’s not that big of a milestone to me.  I just hope I’m around for at least 250 or 500 more.  I’ve really been blessed to have the opportunity to do what I do.  I feel thankful every weekend to be able to get in some of the best cars in the series.  I really mean that from my heart.
 
“It’s truly been a dream career for me and I never took it for granted that I would be driving race cars all my life and be able to make a living doing it.  I’m real thankful and it makes me reflect on that kind of thing.”
 
HAVE YOU HAD A GOOD BIRTHDAY?
“It’s been great.  Getting older is not awesome, but it’s all how you feel I suppose.”
 
HOW OLD DO YOU FEEL?
“I feel 20.  I feel good.”
 
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 QUICKEN LOANS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 7th
HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR LAP?
“I had a good lap.  I didn’t nail (turns) three and four.  I thought I had a pretty good (turns) one and two, but a good run for our Quicken Loans Chevrolet.  I think we were 23rd in practice and we are sitting fourth right now with less than a handful of cars to go I think.  Good effort I obviously wanted a pole, but coming from 23rd a pole would have been a really big surprise.”
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA, HO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 8th
HOW WAS YOUR LAP?
“It was okay. We really thought we had a little more in the car. But to be honest our Target Chevy is pretty good. I had to bail a little bit in (Turns) 3 and 4.  I was just surprised to run a .91. I was really good through (Turns) 1 and 2. (Turns) 3 and 4 have always been a struggle here. We’re a lot better than we used to be, but I got there and it turned and I’m like oh yes, and it turned and I got on the gas and kind of missed the bottom. I got too much throttle. I was too keen.”
 
WHAT WOULD A GOOD SHOWING HERE DO FOR YOU?
“These guys work really hard and we’ve got about five weeks or six races left, or something like that. I’m having a good time. We have a great bunch of guys. I think we have a great relationship and we all want to have a good ending of this. And so we’re working hard. I’m excited about next year and IndyCars and everything, but I’ve still got to keep my mind on what I’m doing right now.”
 
BRIAN SCOTT, NO. 33 SHORE LODGE CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 19th:
“I don’t really remember much of it. I remember I was not breathing as well as I normally do (laughs).  It was exciting. This Chevy SS has a lot of power and it’s just fun to get behind the wheel obviously to enjoy this moment and make my first Sprint Cup Series start is really cool. I’m proud to do it with Chevrolet. And happy to be doing double duty. We have a really good Camaro in the Nationwide Series. This car, I think, is going to be good when we go into race trim. The guys have done a phenomenal job. They’ve given me a car that I can learn a lot in and the car is obviously better than my ability now.”
 
KYLE LARSON, NO. 51 TARGET CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 21st
IN YOUR SPRINT CUP SERIES DEBUT, HOW HAVE THINGS GONE SO FAR THROUGH PRACTICE AND NOW YOUR FIRST QUALIFYING EFFORT?
“It’s been a lot of fun working with all the guys. I feel like our Target
Chevy is pretty good. We just got a little too free there in qualifying. We were good in (Turns) 1 and 2 and in our mock run; and tight in (Turns) 3 and 4. We just kind of got 3 and 4 good but loose in 1 and 2. I just couldn’t connect to the gas like I needed to. Maybe this is good enough to be 18th. We’ll see.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
BANK OF AMERICA 500
CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
OCTOBER 10, 2013
 
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 JIMMY JOHN’S CHEVROLET SS, met with the media at Charlotte Motor Speedway and discussed his win last weekend at Kansas Speedway, his expectations for this week at Charlotte Motor Speedway, his thoughts why rookies are not more successful these days in the Cup Series and other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
TALK ABOUT YOUR MOMENTUM AFTER LAST WEEK’S WIN AND COMING BACK TO CHARLOTTE:
“Yeah well obviously last week went about as well as you could write it down on a piece of paper for us.  Sitting on the pole and winning the race is a little bit out of character from what we have done in the past.  But I think for us it gives us a lot of confidence in the things that we can do and need to do to keep ourself in position to continue to race for this championship over the next several weeks.  We have went to a few race tracks that obviously haven’t been great for us in the past and we had a good run in Chicago, didn’t fare so well in Loudon, and had a decent run in Dover and Kansas.  We just need to continue that and I think as the schedule goes toward the end of the year the race tracks get better for us as we move further down the line.”
 
A COUPLE OF YEARS I THINK IT WAS WHEN YOU WON THE ALL-STAR RACE YOU SAID YOU HATED THIS PLACE EVEN THOUGH YOU WON IT.  YOU ALWAYS STRUGGLED HERE AND SINCE THEN YOU’VE WON THE COKE 600 A COUPLE OF TIMES.  ARE YOU MORE COMFORTABLE AT THIS TRACK?  DO YOU LIKE IT BETTER NOW?
“I think for us that was a few years ago that was one of our goals was to figure out what we needed to do. I think probably see in our Nationwide schedule it’s a race track that we run a couple of times a year.  We have focused a lot on trying to not have that be the stigma that sticks in our minds as we come to this particular place.  We have run a lot better since the car changed I think for us was a good thing.  It created new set-up packages and things that fit more of my driving style and the things that I felt in the car were better for me once we switched cars.  It’s been a good place for us over the last several years and feel good about coming into the weekend.  Obviously we won the first race here so we just have to keep doing the things that we have been doing.  Feel good about where we are and coming to the track.”
 
ABOUT A DECADE AGO THERE WAS A STRETCH OF YEARS THERE WHERE ROOKIES CAME IN AND THEY SUCCEEDED RIGHT AWAY.  WE DON’T SEE THAT AS MUCH ANYMORE.  WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON WHAT HAS CHANGED?  WHY CAN’T ROOKIES GET TO VICTORY LANE LIKE THEY USED TO?
“I think there is really not as good of a training ground that there used to be.  I think that the Nationwide cars and Trucks are so slow.  You get into a Cup car and the driving style that has been created for the younger drivers is so drastically different than what a Cup car is and has made the experience of the Cup drivers more valuable.  Just for the fact that the driving style is so unique.  I think you know when I was coming in the cars were more similar.  You raced on pretty much the same tire, pretty much every week.  The cars were a little bit faster.  I have definitely mentioned that and I think it would be good for our sport to see some of the guys come in.  Obviously Kyle Larson is running this week, I think he is going to be successful in the sport and hopefully they give him the time to do what he needs to do.  It’s just hard.  Obviously the chances with the economy and the things of people taking chances aren’t there, but the training ground is just not as good as it used to be.”
 
THE HISTORY AND THE NUMBERS SAY IT’S VERY DIFFICULT AFTER FOUR RACES TO COME FROM BEHIND TO WIN THE CHAMPIONSHIP WITH THIS FORMAT.  GIVE US AN HONEST ASSESSMENT OF YOUR CHANCES AND HOW IMPORTANT MOMENTUM IS?
“Well the thing that I relate it to.  I saw two of you when I sat in my media session coming into Daytona.  Everybody has written us off from the beginning of the year to not be in the Chase and let along be competitive and winning race in the Chase.  We will just keep bucking the system and hopefully it works out.”
 
HOW FRUSTRATING IS IT FOR YOU TO TRY TO GET MAX POINTS AND GET BACK IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP AND THOSE GUYS (JIMMIE JOHNSON) ALWAYS SEEM TO HAVE THE GOOD LUCK OR IS IT A CASE WHERE JIMMIE (JOHNSON) AND THE NO. 48 THEY MAKE THEIR OWN LUCK?
“I think for us we controlled the things that we could control last week and that was by scoring max points.  You have to have some luck on your side to be around at Homestead.  Hopefully you catch some of those breaks whether it be at Talladega or Martinsville and hopefully you can counter balance that with some lucky breaks of your own.  Running good and running up front you will probably get more good breaks than you will running mid-pack because you will just have more options.  That is just like qualifying last week.  I think that really opened our eyes to realizing when you have a qualifying day like that you had a lot more options when it came time to come down pit road and not having to scramble all day to keep yourself in the game.  You’ve just got to try to create some of your own opportunities, but you also have to have some luck go on your side.  Obviously, Jimmie (Johnson) had some luck go on his side, but that is just part of winning this championship.  I think that is probably something that we’ve learned.  You are going to get some bad breaks and it’s just how you overcome those and then when you get the good breaks it’s how do you capitalize on those.”
 
IS PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY A TRACK THAT YOU NORMALLY RUN WELL AT OR IS IT KIND OF A HOT AND COLD TRACK FOR YOU? HOW WOULD YOU CLASSIFY THAT?
“I don’t even know when that race is.  Right now I’m concentrating on Charlotte.  Phoenix has been a good place for us.  We won this race last year.”
 
IT’S BEEN ABOUT A MONTH SINCE THE CHEATING SCANDAL.  I’M WONDERING IF THERE IS ANYTHING THAT LINGERS FROM THAT AND IF THERE IS GOING TO HAVE ANY SORT OF LASTING IMPACT CHANGING THIS SPORT MOVING FORWARD?
“That’s a great question.  I think as you look at it I think obviously from the outside looking in there was probably a hundred different things that you could have done to handle the situation different from a sanctioning body standpoint, from a team standpoint.   There are just a lot of things that happened that everybody I’m sure looks back on it and say’s I would have done ‘this, this or this different’.  I’m sure that you could say that about the NFL too.  They look back on the concussion thing and the way that it’s been handled and so you have to make reactions at the moment to make decisions and the sanctioning body made the decision.  Obviously for us not sitting in that position to make those decisions I think it’s easy to criticize, but they are tough decisions to make.  I think that the repercussions that the team has seen from it are obviously pretty big.  I think if they look back on it they would probably say that they would have done things a little bit differently to protect the things and the sponsors that are expected from their fans. You listen to the reaction to Clint (Bowyer) and you hear the fans boo and you hear the things that they think about it.  I know that bothers him, but it’s had a lot of repercussions.  I think if everybody had it to do over again I’m sure that they would do things differently, but you have to make decisions at the time and those were the decisions that were made.  Everybody is trying to move on and it will definitely be something that is talked about for a long time.”
 
THERE WAS R
ARE NEWS THIS WEEK OF A SPRINT CUP DRIVER GETTING ARRESTED SO MANY TIMES NASCAR HAS SORT OF BEEN HAILED AS BEING UNLIKE OTHER SPORTS WHOSE ATHLETES MIGHT BE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO BEING CAUGHT IN A POLICE BLOTTER OR HEADLINES FOR THE WRONG REASON.  WHEN SOMETHING LIKE THAT HAPPENS DO YOU HAVE CONCERN ABOUT HOW IT REFLECTS ON THE BRAND OF NASCAR DRIVERS COLLECTIVELY?  AND DO YOU THINK NASCAR SHOULD TAKE ACTION?
“Well I don’t think anybody knows all the details yet.  It would be hard for me to comment exactly on what did or didn’t happen.  I think everybody wants the sport to be represented in the right way, but without knowing all the details it would be hard to give an opinion.”
 
THEY ARE HAVING THE MODIFICATION TEST OUT HERE ON MONDAY. WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR TO COMING OUT OF THAT OR WHAT DO YOU SEE FROM THAT?
“I don’t even know what it’s for to be honest with you.  I have no idea.  I know my current team isn’t inviting me and I know that my future team can’t.  I hadn’t been involved in many of those discussions if any.”
 
CHANGES FOR NEXT YEAR WITH THE CARS TO HELP OUT THE RACING OR THAT KIND OF THING:
“I hadn’t been paying attention to it to be honest with you.  I have a tough time keeping up with what I’ve got going on.”
 

RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 QUICKEN LOANS CHEVROLET SS, WAS THE GUEST ON THIS WEEK’S NASCAR WEEKLY TELECONFERENCE.
 
BELOW IS THE TRANSCRIPT:
 
 
JENNIE LONG:  Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to today’s NASCAR Cam teleconference with Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet for Stewart‑Haas Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.  Newman is 12th in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings with one win and 14 top‑10 finishes.  He returns to Charlotte Motor Saturday on Saturday night, where he has a career‑best nine poles.  Ryan, despite your qualifying success and some strong races at Charlotte, you’re still searching for your first Sprint Cup Series win at the track.  What will it take for you to earn a Bank of America 500 win this weekend?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Well, I hope we can just build off of where we were in the Coca‑Cola 600.  I think we ended up sixth if I remember right in the Coke 600, fifth or sixth or something like that, but we had a good car, and were in position at the end.  I’ve been in position several times at the Coke 600 and actually I think about five years ago led everything ‑‑ led coming to the white and then crashed in Turn 1.  I’ve been close at Charlotte.  It’s one of my favorite racetracks.  I look forward to going back.  Obviously I have been successful on qualifying nights, usually Thursday nights.  So look forward to that, as well.  Just a good rebound weekend from what we had in Kansas would be good for not just me but for everybody.
 
Q.  I was curious as far as the NASCAR test on Monday, what do you hope they look at?  We’ve heard a lot about no ride height rules.  Would you like to see that implemented?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I mean, I don’t know if ‑‑ you’re talking about the Martinsville test or are you talking about a different test?  Charlotte test?
 
Q.  I’m talking about the Charlotte test this Monday that’s on the 2014 rules that they’re looking at for the 2014 rules package.
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Yeah, I mean, I don’t know how to answer that or what to say.  It seems like they’re very complimentary of the product that they have.  They talk about how great it is and the racing and everything else, and then it seems like we can’t just keep things the way that they are for more than one year, more than six months at different times.  The whole ride height rule, that doesn’t ‑‑ I think there’s two different ways of looking at it.  Do we change the car or do we change how we work the car.  The ride height rule being work the car.  We’ll see what comes out of it.  I guess it’s good to be proactive and test, but I think that ultimately all that we need to do is take some downforce all these race cars, and I think it’ll help the end product.
 
Q.  Do you have any update for us as far as who your crew chief will be next year, and do you know is RCR anywhere close to knowing who they will be?
RYAN NEWMAN:  Honestly I don’t know that they have announced it.  I think I know what’s going on but I don’t know that they’ve announced it 100 percent.  With that in mind, I’d rather not answer.  But I don’t want to ‑‑ I think everybody knows but I don’t want to say.
 
Q.  Kind of along those lines, knowing that the Chase hasn’t really panned out the way you expected, are you starting to look ahead to next year knowing that the championship this year appears to be out of reach?  Are you starting to focus more on the RCR side?
RYAN NEWMAN:  No, not at all.  Entirely 100 percent focused on 2013 and having an opportunity.  I mean, there’s a sixth of the season still left.  We have a lot of great opportunities, a lot of good racetracks to go to.  We’re mathematically a long ways out, but we’re mathematically not out of it.  Realistically, yeah, it’s going to be a challenge, but we can move up.  We can do good for our sponsors and ourselves and prove that, as I said before several times, Indianapolis was a great weekend for us, and we need to show that we can duplicate that again.
Q.  There have been some other drivers such as Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth the last couple years that have elected to kind of draw a line there of demarcation which they don’t cross and they don’t go to the other team’s shop.  Are you doing the same thing?  Or are you starting to at least touch base with them every once in a while?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  It’s more of a touching base.  It’s not about sharing ideas or anything else.  It’s more about getting things lined up, making sure that we have seats and seatbelts and helmets and all those things getting in order.  The second part of that is photo shoots and things like that are still starting and always do start this time of year, so I’ve actually done one photo shoot with them already.  I’ve been to the shop, but there’s no ‑‑ no reason not to.  I’m not sure what Kevin Harvick is doing with SHR right now or anything else.  We do what common sense has to happen.  The engineering side, the strategy side, the performance side of that, none of that’s even at all in consideration right now.
 
Q.  The test Monday at Charlotte, are you in the 39 car still, or was there any consideration if you’re not to putting you in the Childress car for next year?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  We’re not going to the test at all.
 
Q.  Normally I know when teams go to a race, after the race they’ve gotten notes and everything that they’ve used for their notebook for the next time they go back and everything.  With you switching teams and with everything that went on this past weekend at Kansas, what did you take away from that race?  What did you learn, if anything?
 
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I look forward to Kansas next year.
 
We were in the wrong place at the wrong time and got taken out by somebody else’s misfortune when Justin crashed.  I don’t think that our car was great, but I know we were capable of a top 10 run because I know we were better than some of those guys that finished in the top 10.  From a points standpoint our day could have been so much better, but we got pretty tore up.  I hit him really hard, and he hit the wall really hard and knocked off a lot of speed before I hit him, and I just had nowhere to go.  But with respect to where RCR is and where SHR is, like I said, I’m focused on 2013 and doing what we have to do.
 
I guess it’s a little bit reassuring to know all three of their cars did run good in Kansas and it is one of the earlier races in the 2014 schedule, at least I think it’s going to be.  That’s something that’s nice to look forward to.
 
Q.  I know this is a little bit obviously speculation, but you know Tony well and know he’s gone through that third procedure.  Do you see him at all changing his approach, how he deals with managing his short track runs with the fans of the Cup schedule?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  You’re asking the question if he would change the way he manages short track racing with respect to ‑‑
 
Q.  Yeah, in terms of the schedule, whether you’d dial it down a little bit.
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Tony Stewart was born a short track racer, and he just happened to be a Sprint Cup driver and an IndyCar driver and different kinds of drivers at different times.  I think he’ll always race short track.  I think that there’s potential that with respect to sponsorship that they might ask different things of him in the future, but I don’t know that ‑‑ I think that’s all situational and depends on the sponsor.  In Tony Stewart’s heart, in Tony Stewart’s blood, he will be racing short track racing no matter what year it is and if he’s got 10 fingers and 10 toes.
 
Q.&nbs
p; You’ve gone through an abundance of challenges and changes in 2013 and survived well.  What helped you most do you think, and do you believe that maybe sometimes what can wear you down can also make you stronger?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Well, yeah, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, no doubt.  It’s been an up‑and‑down year on several fronts, career‑wise, race‑wise, Chase‑wise, all those things.  But I have an extreme passion for the outdoors.  I literally an hour ago was sitting in my tractor planting alfalfa on my farm.  I enjoy those things that are a release for me to get away.  I used to spend a lot more time at the race shop, but those guys have to focus on their things, and I spend a lot of time at the racetrack talking to those guys, and probably more so than some other drivers.
In the end, there’s a balance there.  Whether it’s feeding baby deer or taking care of my kids or fishing or whatever, I just enjoy those things that are entirely different from what we do in any given weekend.
 
Q.  And would you recommend that for some of your fellow drivers?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I’m no doctor and I’m no therapist, but I do know that everybody needs some sort of release, whether it’s shooting a gun, whether it’s just enjoying the peacefulness and quietness.  There’s people that need to balance their lives in different ways.  Some people like punching bags is my point, and some people like smelling flowers.
 
Q.  How do you feel today, looking back at the days when you ran Winchester and sprints and the midgets and everything?  Did you envision that life would be like it is now?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  That’s a very good question, one I didn’t expect, but I would say that I never thought to predict the future.  I just knew what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be, and that was a Sprint Cup champion.  I’ve still got that opportunity mathematically, somewhat unrealistic, but there’s a lot of fight in me, and I guess that kind of comes from back in those days of racing in Winchester and Salem of 30 laps of fight, 30 laps of desire, 30 laps of making it happen.
 
I enjoyed those days then.  I enjoy those days now looking back on them, even go on YouTube once in a while and look at those old races and just kind of remind myself of who I was and where I am, and still at the same time, having not won a championship, who I want to be.