Kasey Kahne Racing

Kasey Kahne Racing–3/4-3/19 Update

Kasey Kahne Racing – Results Recap
March 4 through March 19
 
Daryn Pittman wins at Thunderbowl
 
The STP World of Outlaws west coast swing continued with a Friday / Saturday show at Thunderbowl Speedway in Tulare, Calif. this past weekned, and defending series champion Daryn Pittman and the No. 9 Great Clips/Sage Fruit/ASE team found victory lane on the first of two nights at the tricky 1/3 mile race track. Brad Sweet was fast night one, but a mechanical failure relegated the No. 49 team to a 23rd-place finish, while Cody Darrah brought home another solid top-10 finish.

Night two was more of a challenge for Pittman and company with a 23rd starting spot for the feature. However at the end of the 35 lap race, Daryn had advanced to the 11th position while capturing the the Hard Charger Award advancing the most positions of the night. Brad Sweet bounced back with a fifth-place run and Cody Darrah had a hard crash after contact from another car, finishing 18th. Cody was uninjured.

The next race on the Outlaws schedule is Saturday (March 22) at Stockton 99 Dirt Track in Stockton, Calif.
_______________________________________________________

Follow A Dream Racing

Follow A Dream–New Monte Carlo Debuted

Marstons Mills, MA -March 19, 2014-Jay Blake’s Permatex/Follow A Dream team debuted its new Monte Carlo Top Alcohol Funny Car with one great run after another at the Amalie Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla. Driver Todd Veney ran better on all four runs at Gainesville than any run he made all last year – 5.57, 5.57, 5.55, and 5.54.
After shaking down the car with a couple of abbreviated blasts in a test session at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta, Ga., earlier in the week, Veney ran a 5.573 on the car’s first full run ever, followed by an identical 5.573 later that afternoon. A 5.55 in last-shot qualifying positioned the team No. 6 of 19 cars in attendance and set up a first-round match with Stockholm, Sweden’s Jonnie Lindberg, who had a better reaction time and won with a slower time, 5.60 to 5.54.
“That’s probably the worst way there is to lose,” Veney said. “We had the better car and lost, but the most important thing is how the car ran. If we keep running like that all year, we can really win some races.”
“There isn’t anybody who hasn’t lost on a holeshot, and that time it happened to us,” Blake said. “It’s tough, but the way the car ran all weekend was absolutely unbelievable. It’s a testament to all the hard work everyone on the team put in all winter and to tuner Tommy Howell, who made all the right calls and had the car running great right out of the box.”
The team’s next race is the Eastern Regional Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event April 4-5 in Richmond, Va., where two years ago Veney picked up the first of three wins on the way to the East Region championship.
 
 

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–Tuesday Teleconference–Kyle Larson

KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS, WAS THE GUEST ON THIS WEEK’S NASCAR WEEKLY TELECONFERENCE.
 
BELOW IS THE TRANSCRIPT:
 
THE MODERATOR:  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.
The Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender is coming off a career‑best 10th‑place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway, as he gets set to make his Sprint Cup Series debut at Auto Club Speedway.
 
Kyle, talk about heading into this weekend’s race with at momentum of a 10th‑place finish.
 
KYLE LARSON:  It’s definitely a good feeling going into the California, my home state, with a good finish at Bristol.
 
We’ve had really fast cars all year long.  Just haven’t really caught the right breaks to get those top 10s.  I feel at Phoenix and Vegas both we had top‑10 cars.  I got stuck a lap down there from mistakes.
 
I think with the good finish at Bristol, it’s really going to hopefully turn things around, hopefully bring a lot of consistency.
 
THE MODERATOR:  We’ll now go to the media for questions.
Q.  I saw the tweet you sent yesterday saying that it was a good finish after the first few weeks.  You mentioned mistakes you made, can you expand on that?  I know the troubles you had early in the Daytona 500.  What’s really been the biggest issue in the first three weeks?  I know Bristol is a completely different track.  Maybe the style of track was different, but what was the biggest change for you that made you have this breakthrough performance at Bristol?
KYLE LARSON:  Well, at Phoenix we got caught under green‑flag stops where we had a long stop there went a lap down.  Just kept barely missing the Lucky Dog.  Like I said, thought we had an eighth‑ to 12th‑place car there.
 
Then at Vegas I sped in pit road and we had lots of green‑flag runs and could never get a Lucky Dog there, so…
 
Finally at Bristol, we finally had a race that nothing went wrong for us.  Daytona I got in the wall, got in the wreck late.  Bristol was the first week of the season that was mistake‑free and drama‑free, I guess, didn’t have anything happen to us.  Hopefully we’ll have more and more of those.
 
After the first three weeks I realized to even get a top 15, you have to be almost perfect or have a perfect race.  It’s tough to come back from mistakes in this series.  I learned that really quick.
Q.  When you’re up there chasing Matt Kenseth for the lead, are you getting excited?  Ultimately you finished 10th, but can you sort of see it and feel it, Holy cow, I might be able to get this win?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, I definitely thought that through the midpoint of the race.  Our Target car was extremely fast in the middle of the race.  I thought if we were quick enough that if everything works out, maybe we can win.
There at the end maybe we pitted when we shouldn’t have and then it was tough to pass.  It’s really actually exciting to be a little bit disappointed in a top‑10 finish in the Cup Series.  Like I said, this series is really competitive and hard to do well in.  I thought we had a top‑five race going for sure and ended up 10th.
 
Career‑best Sprint Cup finish for me and a little bit disappointing, too.  I guess that’s a good thing, though, from where this team has come from.
Q.  Obviously you made a few starts last year in the Cup Series.  What has been the biggest adjustment in the first four weeks of this year making that transition to Cup?
KYLE LARSON:  The biggest adjustment?  There are a lot of adjustments.  Maybe the one that stands out is trying to get your feedback right to your crew chief from Happy Hour to the race.  That’s something we’ve struggled with at Phoenix and Vegas both were making the right adjustments on the car to start out the race good.  We got behind a little bit in the beginning of both races and it’s hard to come back from those.
 
Communicating well with your crew chief, even though I ran those Cup races last year, these really are the first four races I’ve got to work with Chris Heroy.  I did some testing with him last year, but it’s totally different than putting yourself in situations in races and stuff.  The communication part has been a big adjustment.
Q.  Is the extra seat time you’re still getting in the Nationwide Series helping you on the Cup side at all?
KYLE LARSON:  I think it helps a little bit just knowing how the track might change throughout a race.  I really think it helps for my Nationwide race running the Cup stuff.  Now when I get in the Nationwide car, it feels slow.  Things happen slower.  I have more confidence in that.  That’s why I’ve been running really well in that car so far, too.  I think it helps the Cup Series a little bit, but I think it helps the Nationwide Series a whole bunch.
Q.  There’s always talk about Cup guys running in Nationwide.  How important is it for you to have that extra track time?  If they made rules saying that Cup guys can’t do Nationwide, how would you feel about it?
KYLE LARSON:  I would be disappointed if they ever did that.  I don’t see them ever doing it.
 
I think the Nationwide regulars like Cup guys running with them.  I know I do.  I consider myself still young, I guess, in racing stockcars.  Whenever I’m out there with guys like Matt Kenseth, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, I can see them in front of me, I’m learning a lot from them.
 
I like it.  I think it’s good for the development side of the young drivers ’cause it is a development series for those kids.  I think it’s a good thing for NASCAR to have the Cup guys in there because it’s just going to make their series more competitive when those young guys move up.
Q.  Do you feel like your start of the Cup season has proven anybody wrong, has shown that you do belong in Cup?
KYLE LARSON:  Maybe just that Bristol race, then moments of the race in Vegas I felt like I was really competitive, too.  I hope fans see that I’ve been competitive each week, maybe not at Daytona, but every week since then I feel like I’ve been pretty competitive.  I hope they see that.
Q.  You’re running all the Nationwide companion events.  Was that your idea, Turner Scott’s idea?
KYLE LARSON:  I think that was everybody’s idea.  Chip Ganassi, he really wanted me to do double duty.  I think I read a stat somewhere before the year, I’ve only ran 40 something stockcar races in my career.  I’m getting double the amount of experience in stockcars this year running both.  I think it’s a good thing. I think it’s good for Turner Scott Motorsports to have me still over there racing.
 
Now that Dylan is a development driver over here for Chip Ganassi, me and him get to work together a little bit.  I can teach him some things and all that. It’s kind of cool I guess being the veteran of that team over there.
Q.  Does part of you wish you still could be eligible for the Nationwide championship given the year you’re having so far?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, yeah, I thought about that the other day.  Obviously I like where I’m at right now.  Yeah, we’ve been running really well for far.  I guess I can still try and get Harry Scott and Steve Turner the owners championship.  Maybe I can help them accomplish that.
Q.  I know you were talking earlier about the communication being one of the adjustments.  Have you found it much different running since you ran mid‑pack and towards the front just what it’s like running in those situations, how it differs from the Nationwide Series, what the pace has been like in the Cup Series with these limited starts
?  Anything struck you about those situations?
KYLE LARSON:  Just the whole field is really aggressive in the Cup Series.  The pace, like you said, throughout the field is a lot quicker.  It’s more aggressive.
 
Nationwide, you get up to the top three or four, that’s really when the pace quickens.  But in Cup, everybody is so even, it’s tough to get an edge on somebody.  It’s just extremely tough.
 
I don’t know.  It’s a lot of fun doing that.  At Bristol I got to be up front.  You get in the back, it’s tough to pass because everybody is going so hard, a lot of the same speeds.  It makes it interesting for us and makes us try harder.
Q.  You talk about the aggressive thing.  Some people might be surprised because they might say that the Nationwide races would be aggressive because they’re shorter races.  Can you explain what you mean by things are more aggressive?  What’s happening out there that is more aggressive than what you’ve seen?
KYLE LARSON:  You know, in the Cup Series, there is a little bit more of a give‑and‑take.  I just feel like the top 25 guys are all racing really hard.  Even though it could be a 500‑mile race, you’re still racing as hard as you can to position yourself to be up near the front at the end.
 
It’s hard to give up a little bit when you know it might affect you at the end.  I know everybody thinks that when they’re racing.
 
As a fan, before I ever came over here, Oh, they’re long races.  They just ride around till the last hundred laps or whatever.  But for my first race at Charlotte last year in the Cup Series, I realize there’s not as much give‑and‑take as I thought.  It’s all racing really hard the whole time, and it’s a lot of fun.
Q.  I like how you said that you still consider yourself really young, you feel young.  A lot of times we forget how young the drivers are.  You are in the Cup Series.  I wonder if you feel that way when you go into the garage, not just the learning part but the way people treat you in there or address you as you’re around these veteran drivers?  If so, since you are a Cup driver, how long will it be before you don’t feel that?
KYLE LARSON:  I don’t know, I think it takes a little bit of time.  It’s nice, I think being there’s so many rookies in the Cup Series this year.  The veterans aren’t eyeing one rookie because there’s seven or eight of us out there.
 
I am extremely young still.  But I think it’s a good thing for everything really in this, being the new style of rules or whatever for this car.  I’m not used to how it was in the past.  I think that’s good.
 
As far as the way the other drivers have been treating me, it’s all been good so far.  I’ve raced everybody clean so far, and they’re doing the same with me. We’ll keep trying to do it the same way.
Q.  Are you a goal setter setting where you should be right now?  Do you do the best you can and you don’t set yourself specific areas?
KYLE LARSON:  Well, I want to be fast each week.  I feel like we have been fast each week.  I felt, like, as far as the speed of the cars, where they’re at, I feel like our goals are close to being met, just our finishes haven’t met our expectations. But, yeah, I think as far as how the cars have been, our goals have been met there.
Q.  About your Rookie of the Year contention, obviously you won it last year in the Nationwide Series.  This year you’re competing with Austin Dillon. You finished 10th, he finished 11th this weekend.  When you’re racing someone week in, week out for the top rookie honors, do you naturally start having a little rivalry to where you’re paying attention to what he’s doing?  Also, what would it mean to win Rookie of the Year in Cup after winning it in Nationwide?
KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, I pay attention because obviously Austin is the favorite, I would say, for winning that title.  I definitely pay attention to where he’s at on the speed charts or in the running motor, wherever, during the race.  I don’t know if he does the same with me or not.
 
I think it’s fun.  I had a lot of fun racing at the end of the Bristol race on Sunday.  He was quite a bit faster than I was.  I was driving as hard as I could, as hard as I did the whole race, to try to stay in front of him.  We ran clean and hard.
 
I’m sure we’re going to have a lot of good races this year with Austin.  I hope it’s a nice, tight battle to the end.  It would mean a lot if I could win that Rookie of the Year award.  Like I said, I only had 40 something stockcar races in my career before I got to the Cup Series.  I think it would mean a lot if I could beat guys that have a lot more experience in stockcars.
 
Austin has won Nationwide Rookie of the Year, Truck Rookie of the Year, and championships in both series.  So if I could stop him this year and win that Rookie of the Year, it would be really special.
Q.  Regarding the points standings, is it too early to start thinking of those in terms of Rookie of the Year or do you set your goals that high and sort of let the chips fall where they may?
KYLE LARSON:  I don’t know.  I think you still have to worry about points a little bit to position yourself to make the Chase if you don’t win a race.  I always try and pay attention to that.  Like I say, I pay attention to where Austin’s running so hopefully I can beat him for Rookie of the Year.
 
It’s nice that you win a race, you get locked in.  But you still have to try your best to gain as many points as you can.
Q.  You’ve driven many different types of cars.  What was the biggest change when you started driving Cup cars?
KYLE LARSON:  I think the biggest change between everything versus Cup is just the competition level.  You’ve grown up racing winged Sprint cars, I used to think the best drivers in the world were in the World of Outlaws Series.  I still think they are very good, but the depth of the really good drivers in the Cup Series is really amazing.  That’s what makes it really tough, is there’s 25 to 30 drivers out there each week that are extremely good and fast.  You go to the World of Outlaws race, there might be seven or eight guys you have to beat.
 
I think that’s what makes it really tough.  Probably the one thing, I don’t know, that didn’t surprise me but made me realize how tough it really is.
 
THE MODERATOR:  That’s all the time we have today.  Kyle, thanks for joining us this week and good luck at Auto Club.
 
KYLE LARSON:  Thank you, guys.

Bigfoot

Team Bigfoot World Tour

March 18, 2014 (Hazelwood, MO) – As a whirlwind of a first quarter winds down and we get ready for the second quarter to begin, we thought this would be a perfect time to give an update on our upcoming international shows.  While Team BIGFOOT has been to some exotic locations in the past couple of years, this years’ international events are shaping up to be just as exceptional.  Rick Long is continuing his appearances abroad with Clive Featherby with more shows in Australia plus they will be in the capitol of the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi.  JR Adams, along with his US BIGFOOT truck, will be getting together with Nigel Morris from the UK BIGFOOT team to do a number of monster truck shows that will feature 2 BIGFOOT monster trucks!  They will do shows throughout the EU, including Poland, Scotland and the UK.

Abu Dhabi – 3/27-29 – Clive Featherby / Rick Long

Peterborough, UK – 5/4 – Nigel Morris / JR Adams

Utrecht, Netherlands – 5/19-5/22 – JR Adams
                            (Vi-Cor trade show)

Beaulieu, UK – 5/25-26 – Nigel Morris / JR Adams

Woombye, AU – 5/31 – Clive Featherby / Rick Long

Lodz, Poland – 6/1 – JR Adams (2 shows)

Krakow, Poland –  6/7 – JR Adams (2 shows)

Nambour, AU – 6/13-14 – Clive Featherby / Rick Long

Wroclaw, Poland – 6/14 – JR Adams (2 shows)

Wandal, AU –  6/21 – Clive Featherby / Rick Long

Malvern, UK – 7/5-6 – Nigel Morris / JR Adams

West End, AU – 7/19 – Clive Featherby / Rick Long

Edinburgh, Scotland – 8/2-3 – Nigel Morris / JR Adams

Belfast, UK – 8/16-17 – Nigel Morris / JR Adams

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–IndyCar Media Availability

CHEVROLET INDYCAR V6 DRIVERS MIKE CONWAY, SCOTT DIXON, TONY KANAAN AND JUAN PABLO MONTOYA met with members of the media at the open test for the Verizon IndyCar Series at Barber Motorsports Park.  Full transcript:
 
 
MIKE CONWAY, NO. 20 FUZZY’S ULTRA PREMIUM VODKA ED CARPENTER RACING CHEVROLET:
“So far it’s been very good.  Really enjoying working with Ed Carpenter Racing and the whole group of guys there.  I know a few of them from before that I worked with.  Still it’s good to get back together and work on a program for the season.  Preseason testing has gone well, but still need to keep working hard.  Obviously we are trying to learn as much as we can once we are allowed on track over these next two days.  That will be our final prep then really for St. Pete.  I’m looking forward to all the races ahead really.  I think we still have a little bit of time to find maybe, but we are working hard to find that and hopefully we will get that over the next two day and looking forward to the season ahead.  I got a good few races last year which I was fortunate to get and then obviously really happy to get all the races I’m getting this year with Ed Carpenter Racing. Really thankful for that and can’t wait to get going.”
 
BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK HAS BEEN GOOD TO YOU IN THE PAST.  TALK A LITTLE ABOUT RACING AT THE TRACK:
“I love the track as opposed to when we first came here in 2009. It’s more of a track I’m used to with the European style of tracks being quite fast flowing.  It’s good fun here.  It’s always very testing on the tires and the car. It’s always some parts of the circuit compare to other it’s a bit of a give and take sometimes with set-up.  It’s always good to get that going.  It’s a fun place to come to and I think one of the best tracks including all the facilitates and the cool museum they have here. It’s always good to be here.”
 
DO YOU HAVE A PROGRAM LINED UP IN EUROPE BESIDE YOUR INDYCAR COMMITMENT?
“No, I have a deal with Toyota doing the testing with the LMP1 program and some LMP2 running as well in the WEC Series (FIA World Endurance Championship).  Yeah, keep me busy a lot of back and forth to Europe this year.  It’s good.  Lots of seat time which is good for me.  I’m glad, very fortunate to have a few programs going on.  I’m happy about that.”
 
HOW DIFFICULT WAS IT TO GET THE CAR TO YOUR LIKING COMING IN KIND OF FRESH WITH MAYBE HOW ED (CARPENTER) LEFT IT WITH WHAT HE LIKES IN A CAR VERSUS WHAT YOU LIKE IN A CAR?
“It’s been good I’ve been able to take my time a little bit longer obviously with all the testing we have had or we are going to have before the first race.  It’s been good for me to really kind of all the little details that you kind of don’t have time to work on during a race weekend has really been good to work on those.  Yeah, really explore different things, just testing loads of different items which you can’t do on a race weekend.  It’s been really good for me to learn a bit more about the car and how they have been running it and the way we progressed it over the last few tests that we have had. It’s been good; every time we have gone out we have improved it which is the main thing.  Still some bits to work on but we are looking good I think.”
 
WAS IT THAT FAR OFF WHEN YOU GOT IN THE CAR?
“No I mean straight away the car felt good when we got in at Sebring.  No I was happy with the car, but you know you always try and get it in more of a direction that you like or you are used to.  But not they definitely did a good job with preparing the car.”
 
IS IT A BIG CHANGE TO GO BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN INDYCAR, LMP1 AND LMP2?  IS THERE A BIG DIFFERENCE FOR YOU?
“No, it’s not really a big thing to jump back and forth to.  Yeah, each car has obviously got their own little details, intricacies and the way you have to drive them.  It’s good for me I think just to develop new skills and to apply them to different cars.  I think it’s been really good for me in terms of driving different things.  I’m enjoying that and it is certainly helping IndyCar again too it’s definitely helping me.  It’s been fun.”
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA, NO. 2 VERIZON TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET:
 
TONY KANAAN, NO. 10 TARGET CHIP GANASSI RACING CHEVROLET:
 
SCOTT DIXON, NO. 9 TARGET CHIP GANASSI RACING CHEVROLET:
 
WHAT IS THE TRANSITION LIKE COMING FROM SEBRING TO PREPARE FOR TESTING AT BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK?

SCOTT DIXON: “Not too bad.  We were just talking about it, but I will say a 12-hour is a lot easier to recover from than a 24-hour.  I think my biggest issue was staying up for the Formula 1 race and then falling asleep 10 minutes before it started.  I think the race for us was a lot of fun.  The car was really competitive.  We had a few up’s and down’s at the end, but it was really successful for the team which was fantastic to see.  I’m really proud of the No. 01 guys, but I don’t know.  It feels good and the travel was pretty easy to get here obviously.  I had a day to relax so definitely ready to go.  Unfortunately it’s a little wet out there now which has added to the delays today so far.”
 
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS YOU GUYS ARE LOOKING TO LEARN FROM TODAY?
 
TONY KANAAN: “I think it’s a lot of we have all of us, we have our race engines for the first time.  It’s going to be making sure everything runs okay and we can get a couple… the last two good days before the season starts.  I think it’s getting rid of some of the issues that we probably can’t avoid up until we get to St. Pete and just have a good test.  We are coming back here to race, but still a track that we haven’t tested this year as a team so it will be pretty important for us to come out of here with a pretty good idea of what we wanted to have.”
 
MAKING YOUR RETURN TO INDYCAR THIS SEASON I KNOW YOU HAVE BEEN TO A FEW TESTS WITH A LOT OF CARS ON TRACK WITH YOU.  THIS IS THE FIRST SERIES OFFICIAL OPEN TEST WITH THE FIELD YOU WILL BE PARTICIPATING IN.  AS YOU CONTINUE THAT ADJUSTMENT PERIOD WHAT ARE SOME THINGS YOU WILL BE LOOKING FOR TODAY?

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: “For us it’s work on the car and myself a little bit on new tires.  Just trying to find a good balance on long runs.  Just learn.  We just have to keep going through a learning process again and just see what happens.”
 
WHEN YOU CAME BACK TO OPEN WHEEL FROM THE NASCAR BUSINESS HOW DIFFICULT WAS IT TO ADAPT THE CAR?  IS THERE STILL SOMETHING YOU CAN USE WHEN YOU WERE DRIVING CHAMP CARS WITH THESE NEW DALARRA CARS?

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: “I think a little bit of everything that I have done helps me with experience.  Adjusting to the cars no I got up to speed pretty easy.  There are a lot of things still to learn.  Sebring was easy because I have been there before.  I was there before in the Champ cars so I knew the track really well.  Did a lot of laps back in the day.  It hasn’t changed, it’s bumpier than hell, but has always been.  It is what it is.  I’m very open minded about this year.  I think being with Team Penske and Verizon is really exciting.  We have a hell of a car, hell of a team and I’m very open minded right now what’s coming.”
 
DO YOU EXPECT YOUR TEAMMATES TO BE AS HELPFUL AS THEY HAVE BEEN IN THE OFF SEASON ONCE THE SEASON STARTS?
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: “Yeah I think we work really well together.  We have a really good friendship with Helio (Castroneves) and Will (Power) and we understand that the ultimate goal is the team.  We get that.  I think we do a really good job of working together and maximizing everything and helping ea
ch other.  Yeah, I don’t see why not.”
 
COMING INTO ST. PETE WHAT IS GOING TO BE YOUR MINDSET WITH THE NEW DIFFERENT FORMAT TO THE WEEKEND, THE FAST SIX QUALIFYING ALL THOSE THINGS YOU HAVEN’T REALLY EXPERIENCED?
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: “I haven’t experienced for example red tires.  I asked why they don’t give us red tires for practice or like official tests like today would have been useful to get on a set of reds to get an idea of what they do, but have to wait until St. Pete and see what it does.  I think the positive is I did a lot of testing in Formula 1 with a lot of different tires, hard, soft so you learn to drive them all.  I think that will play into my hands a little bit.  Of course I think the guys that do it every week know what the tires doing they are going to be a little bit ahead of me on that, but we will see.  It’s a matter of putting a good lap together.”
 
YOU SPENT A LOT OF TIME IN NASCAR, REGRETS MAYBE NOT LIVING UP TO THE EXPECTATIONS THAT YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO DO ON THAT SIDE OF THE RACING WORLD?
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA: “Not really. We did what the team could do and what the car could do.  When we had a good car we made the Chase we won races and we competed for wins on oval and stuff.  But when you don’t have the car to win it makes it impossible.  When the car was competitive and it was good we were good when it was bad it was bad.  As a driver you can do so much, but at the end of the day if your equipment is not where it needs to be it makes it impossible.”
 
JUST THE FACT YOU MIGHT GET TO TRY OUT BOTH RAIN TIRES AND DRY TRACK TIRES DOES THAT HELP?

TONY KANAAN: “I think we are going to be using slick tires.  Maybe some people will do an installation lap with the slicks, but the track is going to be damp for sure this afternoon, but it looks like tomorrow will be better.  Different conditions for a fact I believe that when we come back here it is not going to be this cold.  Just have to play with what we got.  Track time is extremely important especially now a days that we don’t have much track time. This is really the first time that we are all together.  It’s just a different day.”
 
HOW DOES BARBER STACK UP WITH OTHER VENUES IN TERMS OF TESTING?
 
SCOTT DIXON: “I think at this point of the season it’s just getting miles.  We have only done three days so far this year. It doesn’t really apply to any other track that we go to.  At least this year Sonoma, Mid-Ohio we run similar tires so that actually helps a lot.  Years previous the tires have been different from track to track to track.  Barber is a unique circuit.  It’s kind of close to Mid-Ohio and Sonoma, but in a lot of ways it’s not.  It’s unique, it’s a lot of fun, it’s a fantastic facility and definitely for the fans and people out this way it’s been a fantastic event for us.  This early in the season to get miles is the important thing as Tony (Kanaan) touched on.  Everybody has got their first new engine spec for one of the four engines for the season.  There is a lot to be learned on drive ability.  There are some brake options that are sort of being circulated out there that we need to get through and it’s just trying to get everything ready for the first race which is in a week and a half.  There is a lot to be achieved and obviously with the weather today it’s sort of hindered that a little bit, but I’m sure we will be out this afternoon to get some laps in.”
 
CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT IT’S LIKE NOW TO SWITCH TO THE TARGET TEAM AND HOW YOU HAVE KIND OF FOUND A NEW HOME THERE?
 
TONY KANAAN: “Well in a way it was a very easy transition for me.  I’ve known a lot of the guys there and I’ve hung with Scott (Dixon) and Dario (Franchitti) forever outside the race track so it wasn’t like everything new.  The new thing for me is just the size of the team, the resources is just like it’s endless.  For me it took me a little bit of time to adjust to that.  They made me feel extremely welcome.  It definitely helped a lot by doing the Tudor United Sportscar Series races with them because some of my crew actually was on the No. 02 car.  I had a lot of time with them.  We had a 24-hour race and a 12-hour race together already.  It’s not like I don’t know those guys.  I’m happy I’m extremely excited about the season.  I think I still have a lot of things to get a grip as far as the way the Target Chip Ganassi team works, but so far it’s been pretty good.  Now we just need to go to the track and do what we know.”
 
YOU ARE THE DEFENDING SERIES CHAMPION.  IT’S GOING TO BE A NEW SEASON FOR YOU WHAT IS THAT PRESSURE LIKE DEFENDING THE SERIES TITLE AS YOU ENTER A NEW SEASON?
 
SCOTT DIXON: “I think it’s obviously a good problem to have.  I’ve been in this situation a couple of times before and we actually haven’t defended it that well.  In ’09 we had a close shot and nearly won another championship.  We will just have to sort of see how it goes.  For us in the past when we have come close to another three championships I think it’s always been the start of the year that has kind of hindered us.  I think we need to focus on making a good start in the first three or four races.  Barber has always been – I think I’ve finished second here every year I have come here.  It would be nice to improve on that maybe.  I think we need to start the season stronger and I know the team will be very good.  The transition to Chevy has been very smooth and very exciting I think for the team in a whole.  Expect us to be competitive it’s just hopefully we don’t give out too many point’s at will.”
 

Richard Childress Racing

Richard Childress Racing–Food City 500 Post Race

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Food City 500 Post Race Report
Bristol Motor Speedway
March 16, 2014
 
Race Highlights:
Richard Childress Racing teammates Austin Dillon, Ryan Newman and Paul Menard finished 11th, 16th and 21st, respectively.
Ryan Newman ranks ninth in the Sprint Cup Series championship point standings, trailing current leader Brad Keselowski by 38 points, while Austin Dillon ranks 13th and Paul Menard ranks 17th.
The No. 31 Chevrolet team ranks ninth in the Sprint Cup Series owner championship point standings, with the No. 3 team 13th and the No. 27 team 17th.
Carl Edwards earned his first victory of the 2014 season and was followed to the finish line by Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., Aric Almirola, Tony Stewart and Marcos Ambrose.
The next Sprint Cup Series race is the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday, March 23. The fifth race of the 2014 season is scheduled to be televised live on FOX beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern Time and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Satellite Radio, channel 90.
 
Austin Dillon Posts 11th-Place Finish at Bristol Motor Speedway
 
Austin Dillon drove Richard Childress Racing’s Realtree/Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet to an 11th-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday afternoon, after starting the scheduled 500-lap event from the 27th position. During the early stages of the race, Dillon ran in the 27th spot as he reported a loose-handling condition on his No. 3 Chevrolet, especially on entry to the corners. The handling began to improve as rubber built up on the racing surface. However, as Dillon began to pass a significant number of competitors, a caution flag was displayed to the field slowing the pace of the race. Routine pit stops allowed the Gil Martin-led team to further adjust the handling of the car, which varied from loose to tight depending on the amount of rubber on the racing surface and the outside air temperature, which dropped significantly as weather set in over the Bristol, Tenn. track. On lap 119, Dillon was scored in the 27th position when the field was directed to pit road for a red flag that lasted more than 3 hours as rain started to fall. Green-flag racing resumed on lap 137. Dillon fell one lap down to the race leader during an ensuing long green-flag run, but earned his lap back before the race ended advancing into the top-20 on lap 263, and into the top-15 by lap 424, ultimately posting an 11th-place finish.
 
Start – 27th          Finish – 11th       Laps Led – 0    Points – 13th      
                                                   
 
AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:
“It was a solid effort by everyone on the Realtree/Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet team today. I really wish we could have gotten the No. 42 (Kyle Larson) and passed him for one more position at the end of the race so we could have finished inside of the top-10, and earned Rookie of the Race honors. But overall, we really have to be happy with a performance like that our first time out in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Bristol Motor Speedway. The car changed a lot during the race with the weather and rubber build-up on the track, but Gil Martin and the team were well-prepared with chassis adjustments on pit road.”
 
 
 
2011 CC Team Icon 27 NSCS Menards
 
Paul Menard Hangs Tough for 21st-Place Finish at Bristol Motor Speedway
   
 
Paul Menard and Richard Childress Racing’s No. 27 Richmond/Menards Chevrolet SS team qualified 28th for Sunday’s 500-lap race at Bristol Motor Speedway. After the final practice on Saturday, the Slugger Labbe-led team had an indication there was something amiss in the motor. They discovered a concern and opted to change motors on Sunday morning before the race. This resulted in starting at the rear of the field because of the NASCAR-mandated penalty for making the change after qualifying. After an almost two-hour rain delay, the 43-car field took the initial green flag. From the start, Menard raced through the field from the back breaking into the top-20 by lap 43. After pitting during a competition caution on lap 50 to take four tires and fuel, he restarted 17th and moved up to 15th when rains forced another delay for three hours and 19 minutes. When racing resumed, Menard went from 13th to 19th by lap 246. He radioed in that it felt like something was coming apart causing him to loose speed and handling. Forced to pit under green on lap 271 for tires, fuel and adjustments, the crew discovered the left-front tire suffered severe wear. Now back in 33rd place two laps down, Menard used the remainder of the race to work his way through the field, take advantage of wave-arounds under caution and a strong race car to finish in 21st place.

Start – 28th       Finish – 21st     Laps Led – 0    Points – 17th

PAUL MENARD QUOTE:
“We had a really strong race car here at Bristol. We took off there at the beginning and moved towards the front before we had that issue around the halfway point. After that, we didn’t have any more problems and still had fast lap times. Bad part was we got trapped laps down when we pitted under green there in the middle of the race. Great effort by everyone on this team, the finish just doesn’t show how good we really were out there.”
 
 
 
 
Ryan Newman Rallies To 16th-Place Finish at Bristol Motor Speedway
 
Ryan Newman drove Richard Childress Racing’s No. 31 Quicken Loans Billion Dollar Bracket Challenge Chevrolet SS to a 16th-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway on Sunday. After qualifying ninth, Mother Nature delayed the start of the event by more than an hour. When the 43-car field finally took the green flag, Newman drove conservatively for the first 50 laps before the competition yellow flew with the No. 31 scored in 11th position. The only handling concern was a tight condition through the center of the corners and off. The South Bend, Ind. native raced up to seventh position before hitting pit road for a four-tire service on lap 120 while rain moved in for a second time to stop the race until 7 p.m. Eastern Time. When it was time to go back to work, Newman competed in 13th position with plans to break back into the top 10. Unfortunately, an issue with the left-rear tire forced the No. 31 onto pit road for unscheduled service on lap 220. The RCR driver returned to the track in 35th position, but with plenty of speed and laps for crew chief Luke Lambert to formulate a plan to race back onto the lead lap after the mishap cost the team two laps to the leader. Then, with less than 40 laps remaining, Newman was in line for the free pass and got it when the caution waved on lap 498 for an accident. But moments later, the skies opened up and ended the race forcing Newman to finish 16th, which was rally of 19 positions. The top-20 result enabled Newman to remain ninth in the championship driver standings, less than 40 markers out of first. Next Sunday, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competes at Auto Club Speedway in the Auto Club 400.
 
Start – 9th           Finish – 16th       Laps Led – 0       Points – 9th   
 
RYAN NEWMAN QUOTE:
“We had a top-10 Quicken Loans Billion Dollar Bracket Chevrolet today, but had an issue with the left-rear tire. It seemed out of balance or something, so I held on as long as I could but we had to pit. It put us back in the field two laps down, but this Richard Childress Racing team never lost faith and Luke (crew chief – Lambert) put
a really good game plan together to allow us a chance to race back onto the lead lap. Unfortunately, the rain prevented us from taking the final restart. I think we could have gained a lot more track position and possibly get ourselves a third-straight top-10 finish. All in all, it was a solid weekend for us. We were able to come back from adversity and put ourselves in contention for a run at the win. That’s all we can really ask for and I am proud of this team. We now head to back out west to California to a good track for me at Auto Club Speedway. I hope we can keep this positive momentum going.”

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–Bristol Post Race

CHEVROLET SS DRIVER TONY STEWART EARNS BEST FINISH OF SEASON AT BRISTOL
STEWART FINISHES FOURTH IN RAIN MARRED FOOD CITY 500
 
BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 16, 2014) – In a race plagued by inclement weather for the entire day and into the evening, the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway was shortened by 2.5 laps when the skies opened-up again and forced Round 4 of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series to end under caution. Mother Nature finished ahead of Team Chevy’s Tony Stewart in his No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet SS, who collected fourth place, his best in the 2014 season thus far, after a leg injury in mid-2013.
 
After starting 37th, Stewart navigated his Chevrolet SS through on-track turmoil, rain delays and ever-changing track conditions, to earn his best finish since the 0.5-mile track was reconfigured in 2012. The finish moves Stewart up four positions in the standings to 23rd.
 
Having halted the race for nearly three and a half hours, wet weather conditions intervened again with a sudden soaking shower, leaving the field to scramble for top finishing spots. Five-time Bristol Motor Speedway winner Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS, earned his fourth consecutive top-10 finish of 2014 with a seventh-place spot at the ‘World Fastest Half-Mile’.  This marks the first time in Gordon’s 23-year NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career he has started the season with four top-10 finishes. Gordon’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate and 2013 Bristol winner Kasey Kahne, piloted his No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet SS to an eighth-place run.  Rookie-of-the-Year contender, Kyle Larson, drove the No. 42 Target Chevrolet SS to a 10th place finish and impressed many onlookers with his solid run at the difficult short-track.
 
Carl Edwards (Ford) was the race winner, Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. (Ford) was second, Aric Almirola (Ford) was third and Marcos Ambrose (Ford) was fifth to round out the top-five.
 
The series travels back to the West Coast to take on Auto Club Speedway on Sunday March 23rd.
 
TONY STEWART, NO. 14 BASS PRO SHOPS/MOBIL 1 CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 4TH
ON HIS RUN:
“It was great. To start 37th and end up fourth today, I’m pretty excited about that. I’m really excited for Chad Johnson and everybody on the Mobil 1/Bass Pro team. Everybody just worked hard all weekend. We had a long way to go from Friday, when we weren’t very good and every day we just got better and better. So, I’m really proud of this team.”
 
HOW DO YOU FEEL?
“I feel great! Let’s do it again!” (laughter)
 
I DON’T KNOW WHAT THE FINAL CAUTION WAS FOR, BUT A GREAT RUN FOR YOUR TEAM TONIGHT:
“Well I think the end result of it was going to be the same.  Man really proud of Chad Johnston and everybody on this Bass Pro/Mobil 1 Chevy team, awesome job, Rush Truck Centers, Code 3 and Associates.  It’s not a win, I know that, but it feels like a win.”
 
HOW WOULD YOU ASSESS THE NIGHT?
“I think we will take that.  Come to Bristol and run 500 laps here and a top five that is just what the doctor ordered.”
 
I KNOW IN YOUR MIND A COMEBACK ISN’T COMPLETE YET.  THIS HAS TO BE A BIT OF A RELIEF:
“Yeah it’s a step in the right direction for sure.  This is a big one.  If you come out of this place with a top-five you’ve had a good day. Track position was big like it always is here.  We were pretty strong at the end we just couldn’t run those guys down in front of us.  Carl (Edwards) was obviously really strong at the end.  Happy with the day that we had.”
 
TALK ABOUT MAKING YOUR WAY UP THROUGH THE FIELD YOU HAD A LONG WAY TO GO:
“Us and Brian Vickers both.  We started 37th and 38th and ended up 4th and 9th I would say we both had really good days.  It’s not impossible to do it, but you have got to think through your way.  We stayed around the top 15 all day.  We had a really good car, very balanced and very driveable.  Chad just kept working on it all day and making it better for us.”
 
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE ENTIRE TEAM?
“Obviously it wasn’t the day we wanted for our teammates.  It is something I needed for sure.  Obviously for Chad and I to work together for the first time for four or five races into the season be able to get a top five at Bristol that is pretty big for us.”
 
HOW MUCH WAS A TEST FOR YOU PHYSICALLY?
“It’s big.  I mean this is a physical place.  If you look at the lap times we were running mid 15 second laps around here all day it is no walk in the park by any means.”
 
LOTS OF THREE WIDE RACING OUT THERE TONIGHT:
“It’s pretty cool.  When leaders caught traffic you had to make holes.  We saw that yesterday in the Nationwide race and knew it was probably going to be the same today.  The closing rates weren’t quite as big, but if people don’t like the racing here tonight I don’t know what they want.  Unless they just want a wreck fest I thought the racing was pretty good.  Like I said you run mid 15 second laps on a half mile track and run three wide that is pretty impressive.”

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 AXALTA CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 8TH
GOOD FINISH ANOTHER TOP 10 YOU GUYS BATTLED BACK AFTER THAT PIT ROAD INCIDENT TELL US ABOUT YOUR NIGHT:
“Yeah we did.  It was a great battle by this Axalta Chevrolet.  The whole team did an awesome job.  We had a really good race car at different times throughout the night.  It’s crazy when we went back racing after the rain delay we just completely wore out the left-front tire in just like 20 or 30 laps.  I mean we were going backwards in a hurry.  Thankfully for that competition caution, but we fixed that and got the car better.  Drove up into the top five, I was pretty happy.  The car came up through there so good on four tires that we decided to put four more on.  The restart just didn’t go the way I needed it to and we never got up through there again.”
 
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 10TH:
ON HIS RUN:
“We had a really good run today.  Started off the race in 20th and got to the top 10 pretty easily there in the beginning, and then pretty much stayed in the top 10 for the whole race and inched our way up to the front.  Ran in second and third for a long time.  Our Target Chevy was great in the middle part of the race.  I just think we didn’t keep up with it enough the last two pit stops.  May have made a bad pit call there at the end also to come in for two.  Just got a little bit too tight there in the center and ended up 10th.
           
“It’s crazy to think it’s kind of a disappointing finish for the way we ran for most of the race, but all in all it was a good race.  It was a lot of fun racing with Austin Dillon there at the end.  We must have ran side by side or so for the last 20 laps.  I definitely had to got up on the wheel and get the elbows up and try not to make any mistakes.”
 
DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 18TH
ON HER RUN:
“The GoDaddy guys worked hard all weekend. We had to go to a back-up car just four laps into practice, so I appreciate the effort of Tony Gibson and the guys. It was a tough weekend, so to come out of here with 18th, I’ll take it. It was an eventful night. The 26 (Cole Whitt) wasn’t clear and got into us and so we had some damage. Then I lost 1st and 2nd gear and then finally 3rd gear, so the last 100 or 200 laps I only had fourth gear. That’s why I hit Clint (Bowyer) in the pits. It wouldn’t go, so I dipped the clutch and got sideways and when it was about to spin around, I lifted, it caught and then it went straight and it wouldn’t stop. So I hit him. I apologized to his crew after the race. And then it was like yellow after yellow and if
there was any day I didn’t want yellows, it’s today because I didn’t have any gears. We survived and got a decent finish out of it. Gibson made good calls all night and hopefully we can build on this going to Fontana.”
 

Honda Racing

Honda Racing–HPD, Honda Finish Second at Sebring

The Honda-powered Extreme Speed Motorsports trio of David Brabham, Ryan Dalziel and Scott Sharp challenged for victory throughout the second half of Saturday’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring.  But a late-race caution in the final hour gave a vital track position advantage to the rival Chip Ganassi Racing Team, which held on for the victory, just over four seconds ahead of #1 HPD ARX-03b Honda.

The second round in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, a new sports-car racing series resulting from the merger of the American Le Mans Series and GRAND-AM, featured a near-capacity field of 63 cars, including 17 prototypes.  The race also was notable for the large number of cautions, 12, almost all of which took place during the first half of the race, and a record 10 different race leaders.

As evening approached, however, the race became a much cleaner contest, and Brabham moved into the lead shortly after the nine-hour mark, first passing the #5 Action Express Corvette of Joao Barbosa and then prevailing in an intense battle with Memo Rojas in the #01 Ganassi Riley Ford, the eventual race winners. 

At the 11-hour mark, Dalziel had a 7.5-second lead over Bourdais, now in the #5 Action Express machine, with both needing just one more pit stop before the finish, while Marino Franchitti had takenover the #01 Ganassi car in its final stop.
A caution flag for a stalled car in the final hour was the break the Ganassi team needed, giving Franchitti the lead when Dalziel and Bourdais made their final pit stops under caution.  When the green flag waved with just 20 minutes remaining in the race, Franchitti had the advantage of several lapped cars between himself and his pursuers, and he drove a mistake-free final six laps to claim the victory.

Extreme Speed’s second LMP2-style prototype, the #2 HPD ARX-03b Honda co-driven by Ed Brown, Simon Pagenaud and Johannes van Overbeek, also led today’s contest and was a potential race winner, taking command of the field for the first time at the seven-hour mark.  But after leading for more than an hour, contact with a lapped GT car resulted in damage to the left side of the HPD, and an unscheduled pit stop to effect repairs. 

Returning to the track after losing a lap to the leaders, van Overbeek and Pagenaud combined to put on a strong charge in the final hours, regaining the lead lap and eventually finishing fifth, just 17 secondsbehind the victors. 

HPD, the two-time defending LMP2 manufacturer and engine champion in the former American Le Mans Series, introduced Honda’s first Daytona Prototype at Sebring, and development of the new chassis/engine package continued throughout the race weekend.  Pierre Kaffer qualified the Starworks Motorsport Riley Honda entry 13th, with fellow racing veteran Scott Mayer taking the wheel at the start of the 12-hour contest.  The Honda-powered Daytona Prototype was taken back to the garage area after 90 minutes of racing and retired with cooling issues.  Additional development for the Daytona Prototype package is planned for the next round, at Long Beach.

Both HPD-developed Honda engines used in the TUDOR championship are derived from the same Honda “J35” series of production V6 engines and include relevant twin-turbocharger technology, along with the efficiency provided by direct fuel injection. Key production-based components that are utilized include block and heads, crankshaft, direct injection fuel system, valve train components, drive-by-wire throttle, alternator, sensors, fasteners, etc. The engine even utilizes a stock Honda oil filter.

Video News Releases from this weekend’s action at Sebring International Raceway, featuring both theTUDOR United SportsCar Championship and supporting 2.5-hour Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race, are being posted on a new, specially created “Honda Racing/HPD Trackside” YouTube channel produced by the Carolina Productions Group.  Headed by longtime motorsports broadcaster Rick Benjamin, CPG will be providing video highlights packages following Honda Racing/HPD events during 2014.  The video packages can be found at: youtube.com/hondaracingtrackside.The inauguralTUDOR United SportsCar Championship resumes next month with the first temporary street circuit event of the 2014 season, the Grand Prix of Long Beach on Saturday, April 12.

Allen Miller (Project Leader, Honda Performance Development) on today’s race:  “Extreme Speed did an outstanding job today with both entries, and it is quite disappointing that contact from a much slower car damaged the #2 car, and the late-race caution prevented Honda from scoring our first overall win at Sebring with the #1 HPD.  Despite the late start with our Daytona Prototype program, we made significant gains this weekend and learned a lot, which will be applied to the future development of the car.” 

Scott Sharp (#1 Extreme Speed Motorsports HPD ARX-02b Honda) finished 2nd in Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring:  “It was a great day for the Patron ESM Team.  To come out of Sebring with two top-five finishes and both of the cars in one piece is phenomenal.  Ryan [Dalziel] and David [Brabham, co-drivers] did such great jobs, and we came so close. I thought with 45 minutes left the race was ours, and then came that unfortunate yellow.  The Ganassi cars pitted fortuitously, and we both came out behind them, and that was the race.” 

Honda Racing

Honda Racing–HPD Ready for 12-Hour Sebring Contest

Extreme Speed Motorsports led the way for Honda Performance Development in qualifying Friday for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, with Ryan Dalziel posting the fourth-fastest time in his HPD ARX-03b Honda, and teammate Johannes van Overbeek qualifying eighth in the second Extreme Speed HPD. 

The single, 15-minute qualifying session featured several changes to the overall order in the final minutes, as former LMP2 and Daytona Prototype machines, which were merged into a single “Prototype” category this season for the new TUDOR United SportsCar Championship, evenly split the top eight qualifying positions.

HPD, the two-time LMP2 defending manufacturer and engine champion in the former American Le Mans Series, is introducing Honda’s first Daytona Prototype this weekend at Sebring, and Pierre Kaffer qualified 13th in the Starworks Motorsports Honda Riley. 

Both HPD-developed Honda engines used in the TUDOR championship are derived from the same Honda “J35” series of production V6 engines and include relevant twin-turbocharger technology, along with the efficiency provided by direct fuel injection. Key production-based components that are utilized include block and heads, crankshaft, direct injection fuel system, valve train components, drive-by-wire throttle, alternator, sensors, fasteners, etc. The engine even utilizes a stock Honda oil filter.

A Video News Release from today’s action at Sebring International Raceway, including both TUDOR United SportsCar Championship qualifying and the 2.5-hour Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race, will shortly be posted on a specially-created “Honda Racing/HPD Trackside” YouTube channel produced the Carolina Productions Group. 

Headed by longtime motorsports broadcaster Rick Benjamin, CPG will be providing video highlights packages following tomorrow’s Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring and at future Honda Racing/HPD events.

Allen Miller (Project Leader, Honda Performance Development) on Sebring qualifying:  “It was a satisfying qualifying effort from both of our teams.  Both Extreme Speed Motorsports cars qualified solidly in the top eight, and are ready for the race.  We’re continuing to sort through the usual, small, new installation issues with the Daytona Prototype car, and have made steady progress through the weekend.  We’ll continue to work to improve it, and we’re looking forward to an exciting and highly competitive race.”

NHRA

Gatornationals Results

Top Fuel — Doug Kalitta, 3.830 seconds, 323.74 mph
Funny Car — Robert Hight, Ford Mustang, 4.074
Pro Stock — Allen Johnson, Dodge Dart, 6.566, 211.73
Pro Stock Motorcycle — Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 6.912, 191.32
Pro Modified — Mike Castellana, Chevy Camaro, 5.865, 244.52
Top Alcohol Dragster — Duane Shields, 5.335, 266.74
Top Alcohol Funny Car — Dan Pomponio, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.662, 258.52
Competition Eliminator — Steve Ambrose, ’23-T Ford, 7.718, 166.85
Super Stock — Brad Zaskowski, Chevy Camaro, 10.135, 124.19
Stock Eliminator — Gene Jordan, Chevy Camaro, 10.198, 129.43
Super Comp — Gary Williams, Dragster, 8.898, 154.76
Super Gas — John Taylor, Dodge Dakota, 9.910, 161.19
Top Dragster — Steve Cohen, Dragster, 6.723, 192.08

Mopar Racing

Mopar Racing–Bullseye: Johnson Drives Mopar Pro Stock Dodge Dart to Historic First Win in Race Debut at NHRA Gatornationals

Bullseye: Johnson Drives Mopar Pro Stock Dodge Dart to Historic First Win in Race Debut at NHRA Gatornationals
 
In the race car’s competition debut, Allen Johnson takes the Dodge Dart all the way to victory
Team Mopar racer Johnson scores back-to-back NHRA Gatornationals triumphs and his second consecutive win of the 2014 season
Johnson puts his ‘Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar’ Dodge Dart in the points lead for the NHRA Pro Stock series championship
Mopar Dodge Pro Stock cars are 1-2 in the standings after three events, with final-round appearances in each race thus far
Coughlin reaches the quarterfinals in the debut of his Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart
Capps races his Mopar-powered Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car to the semifinals
 
Gainesville, Fla. (Sunday, March 16) —Allen Johnson had boldly predicted that the new Mopar Dodge Dart NHRA Pro Stock car will ultimately rank among the greatest to compete in the class — and it looks like the Team Mopar veteran might have a bright future as a prognosticator.  In the vehicle’s competition debut Johnson wasted no time in igniting a winning legacy for the Dodge Dart, powering to a history-making event win at the 45th Annual NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla.

Johnson also captured his second consecutive NHRA Gatornationals crown and his 22nd career win in 47 final-round appearances en route to become the first Pro Stocker to drive a Dodge Dart into Victory Lane. The win is also the Greeneville, Tenn., native’s second in a row this this season —Johnson raced his Dodge Avenger to a farewell victory at the recent NHRA Phoenix event before christening the Dodge Dart in triumphant style.

“Congratulations to Allen Johnson for taking the new Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar Dodge Dart straight to the winner’s circle in its debut to earn the prestigious Gatornationals title,” said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group’s service, parts and customer-care brand. “What a fantastic way to demonstrate the quality of Mopar products and team work. To defend his title, earn consecutive wins and take the early lead in the championship points makes us very excited about the future of the Dodge Dart and Allen’s bid for another NHRA Championship amid some strong competition.”

In the maiden race for his Dodge Dart, and the first with “Magneti Marelli Quality Auto Parts Offered by Mopar” as his primary sponsor, Johnson qualified No. 4 and recorded his fastest career run with a speed of 214.04 mph. He navigated a nail-biting route to the semifinals, tracking down rookie Jonathan Gray in the first session of eliminations after Gray recorded a near-perfect reaction time. Johnson used a 6.559 second /211.83 mph run to catch Gray (6.593/209.98) just past the 1,000 ft. mark.

Johnson’s Dodge Dart veered sharply left in the quarterfinals as he fought the machine down the strip, however, opponent Shane Gray encountered even more trouble on his way down the quarter-mile, and Johnson was able to reel in his ride for a winning 7.414/149.88 pass. Johnson showed that the new Dodge Dart is ready for prime time in the semis, unleashing a 6.569/211.79 to knock off top qualifier Dave Connolly (6.583/211.20). In the money round Johnson demonstrated that the driver is just as important as the car, leaving first with a quicker .017-second reaction time to score a holeshot win over Erica Ender-Stevens, despite a 6.566/211.73 pass to her quicker and faster 6.551/211.96.

“What a great job the Mopar engineers, everybody at Chrysler Group, Dodge and SRT did,” said Johnson, the 2012 NHRA Pro Stock champ and 2013 series runner-up. “I just can’t say enough. For the last two weeks since the Phoenix win, it’s been nonstop. My guys haven’t had a day off. It says a tremendous amount about our crew, and the engineering efforts behind it (the Dart). 

“Everything to do with the design of the Dart, the engineers took our input and really came up with a great car. To be able to do that (win in its first race) is a huge accomplishment.”

After posting his fastest speed ever (214.62) mile per hour during qualifying in the debut of the Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Dart, defending NHRA Pro Stock series champ and No. 3 starter Jeg Coughlin Jr. bested Rodger Brogdon in the opening round, reaching the finish line first with a 6.550/211.89 paired with a .019 reaction time. Coughlin’s reflexes were even quicker in the quarterfinals, leaving on Vincent Nobile with a .015 reaction time compared to his opponents slower .021. Unfortunately, the 6.591/211.69 pass by Coughlin wasn’t enough to overcome Nobile’s quicker 6.580/210.60 at the stripe.

The Pro Stock points leader entering the NHRA Gatornationals following two runner-up finishes to start the season, V. Gaines slipped to No. 2 after Gainesville.  His 6.571/211.79 in his Dodge Avenger (Gaines will take delivery a new Dodge Dart body shortly) couldn’t match the 6.535/212.59 laid down by Enders-Stevens in the quarterfinals.  Mopar-powered Dodge driver Matt Hartford drew Connolly in the first-round, where his day ended.

No. 6 qualifier Ron Capps was forced to take out two fellow Mopar-powered Dodge Charger R/T drivers in the first two rounds, sending home Jeff Arend to start Sunday on the strength of a 4.132/308.14 run. In a showdown of Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) teammates, Capps’ Dodge (4.136/307.16) came out on top in the quarterfinals, with No. 3 starter and Mopar Dodge pilot Jack Beckman (5.844/121.34) dealt the loss. Facing Robert Hight with lane choice in the semifinals, Capps saw his hopes for a Gatornationals triumph go up in smoke early, smoking the tires and slowing to a 7.663/89.63 as Hight pulled away to a 4.168/301.20 winning pass.

Seeking his first final-round appearance at the Gatornationals, Matt Hagan’s DSR Mopar Express Lane Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car led past the 660-ft. mark but made a sharp move near the finish in his first-round duel with Courtney Force, forcing the 2011 Funny Car champ to reel it in. The result was a losing 4.307/226.92 to his foe’s winning 4.102/315.56. Hagan’s DSR teammate Tommy Johnson Jr. was defeated by Del Worsham in the opening round (4.157/303.78 to 4.117/308.92), and Dodge Charger R/T pilot Blake Alexander also was sent to the trailer in round one, losing to Bob Tasca III (4.251/296.24 to 4.140/308.14).

John Force Racing

John Force Racing–HIGHT RACES TO VICTORY AT GATORNATIONALS

HIGHT RACES TO VICTORY AT GATORNATIONALS

GAINESVILLE, FL (march 16, 2014) – Robert Hight qualified his Auto Club of Southern California Ford Mustang Funny Car in the No. 10 spot at the day’s end on Saturday, setting him up for what would be his first victory of the 2014 season. The Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals win put a 55” flat screen TV in the hands of Robert Houston of Gainesville, Fla., compliments of BrandSource and the “Win with Force” promotion. It was a lock for Houston considering Hight was racing JFR teammate John Force in the final.

“This win was huge. That guy (Force) has 16 championships and he is the best out here. To add to that he is driving for my old team. There was some added pressure there and it is hard to go up there and get motivated and do your best job. You just have to focus. I wasn’t as focused in the first round and semis as I should have been. I was alright in the second round,” said a fired up Hight from the winner’s circle.

“I got up for the final because I started to think about last year and not making the Traxxas Shootout. That was no fun to get to the US Nationals and not be running for the $100,000 prize at the Traxxas Shootout. We needed this win for the Auto Club. We got two finals in a row and now a win. This could not be a better start.”

Hight defeated Tony Pedregon, Bob Tasca III, Ron Capps and John Force in route to his 30th career event win. He had low ET of the weekend with a 4.061 on Sunday. This is the second TV JFR has given away in 2014.

At each NHRA national event when a JFR team qualifies No. 1 a lucky fan that has signed up at the JFR “Win with Force” display located in Nitro Alley will be eligible to win the BrandSource No. 1 Qualifier Award, a front loading washer and dryer set.  If a JFR driver wins the event a different fan will win the 55” flat screen TV Winner’s Circle Award from BrandSource.  At the end of the season a grand prize winner of the “Win with Force” Sweepstakes will be awarded a 2014 Ford Escape S-Series.

Thanks to a winning season by John Force Racing in 2013, BrandSource gave away eight flat-screen televisions and nine washers & dryers to lucky fans. More than 24,000 race fans registered to win prizes at the “Win with Force” display in NHRA’s Nitro Alley. Another 91,000 fans signed up online at BrandSource.com.

Fans can sign up to win at the John Force Racing interactive midway display. This 53-foot trailer will be in the Nitro Alley area of every NHRA Mello Yello Series national event in 2014. The “Win with Force” promotion now includes JFR team partners Castrol, BrandSource, Ford, Traxxas and Mac Tools, all joining together to create an incredible promotion for the fans.

John Force Racing

John Force Racing–Gatornationals Race Report

TEAM JFR RACE REPORT
3rd of 24 races in the NHRA Mello Yello Series

 

45th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals

Auto Plus Raceway

Gainesville, FL
March 16, 2014

* * * *

 

Final round results from Sunday’s 45th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatorationals at Auto Plus Raceway, third race in the 2014 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series:

 

FUNNY CAR – Robert Hight, Yorba Linda, Calif., Auto Club Ford Mustang, 4.074, 314.46 mph def. John Force, Yorba Linda, Calif., Castrol GTX High Mielage Ford Mustang, 6.435, 118.29 mph.

TOP FUEL – Doug Kalitta, Ypsilanti, Mich., Mac Tools dragster, 3.830, 323.74 mph def. Antron Brown, Brownsburg, Ind., Matco Tools dragster, 5.106, 147.50 mph.

PRO STOCK – Allen Johnson, Greeneville, Tenn., Magneti Marelli offered by Mopar Dodge Dart, 6.566, 211.73 mph def. Erica Enders-Stevens, Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro, 6.551, 211.96 mph

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE – Steve Johnson, Birmingham, Al., Suzuki, 6.912, 191.32 mph def. Scotty Pollacheck, Medford, Ore., Buell, 7.093, 190.81 mph

* * * *

 

HIGHT DOMINATES FIELD FOR SECOND GATORNATIONALS WIN

GAINESVILLE, FL —- Robert Hight may not have had a strong two days of qualifying at the 45th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals but when it counted his Auto Club Ford Mustang Funny Car was the class of the field winning for the first time in 2014. Hight reached the final two weeks ago in Phoenix but today he notched his thirtieth career win tying him with Funny Car legend Kenny Bernstein for sixth all-time in the Funny Car class. Hight outran John Force, 4.074 to 6.345 seconds.

“I can’t even believe my name is associated with guys like that. Guys like Kenny, John Force and Don ‘The Snake’ Prudhomme were my heroes. Kenny is a guy I always watched. He was always so professional. He was a businessman. He was one of my all-time favorites, He worked very hard to get where he was. To tie him with Funny Car wins is amazing. He is a four-time champion in Funny Car and I am trying to win my second,” said Hight.

Hight had to beat teammate and 16-time Funny Car legend John Force in the final. Both Funny Cars had strong performances on race day but their qualifying efforts left a lot to be desired. Hight was the No. 10 qualifier and Force raced to the final round from the No. 16 spot.

“If you would have told me this morning that John and I would be in the final I don’t know if I would have taken that bet. I know our teams work really hard and work well together but we were struggling. For both of us to get to the final round and do it on performance was awesome. My Auto Club team was great today. In the final I had some motivation. I wanted to lock up a spot in the Traxxas Shootout. We got our win and John is already in there so he didn’t need another win. We are trying to chase him down in the points. We picked up another round on him. This is a major win for us. The Gatornationals is the East Coast kick off. I have won this race twice and my crew chief has won this race before. We always carry Eric Medlen with us and today was a good day,” said Hight.

“I could lie to you and say we were playing with them but that is not the case. We go up there every run trying to do well. Usually we will test if we are in solid and we have been running good. That is when we might take a run to try something. Truthfully you really need four runs to get ready for race day. You test on Monday if you get a chance. Going up there in the final I am racing the all-time leader in Funny Car. It is tough to race him.”

Hight started the day in a tough first round match-up with Tony Pedregon. Hight and his Mike Neff tuned Auto Club Funny Car stepped up and posted the best ET of the event 4.061 seconds to get the win. Prior to staging Hight watched as Neff did something unusual before the body was lowered.

“Mike Neff is a smart racer. First round he did something he never does. We backed up from the burn out and they lifted the body and he got in the box. We set low ET of the event first round. He is just a savvy racer,” said Hight of his crew crew chief.

“He must have thought of a change he could make when we made the burn out and he wanted to make that change before we ran. We were racing Tony Pedregon and his brother (Cruz) was low ET. He just wanted to play it safe. I have a lot of confidence driving for Mike Neff. He was a driver before. He always comes up and says, ‘No pressure let’s have some fun.’ I am very fortunate to be on this team. I can’t wait to be with him for a full season. I think we are going to hurt some feelings.”

The Hight Force match-up was the 40th all JFR Funny Car final and Hight’s win was the 227th Funny Car win for JFR.

After qualifying No. 16 with a less-than-impressive 4.38 ET, John Force drove his Castrol GTX High Mileage Mustang to the finals today. This was John’s twelfth Gatornationals final round appearance and the fourth time he has faced teammate Robert Hight in a final round at any NHRA event. John Force maintained the Funny Car points lead, with event winner Hight in second place and daughter Courtney in tenth.

“We shouldn’t have even been in the race as we were the 16th qualifier and got in with a 4.38. But you know, maybe I’m guilty of wanting to win every race and I know my team is trying as we’re pitching Corporate America. With Robert winning with the Auto Club Ford Mustang, that puts him into the Traxxas Shootout and I’m already in so we need to get Courtney in. You got to look at positives and negatives as I wanted to win. But it’s a win-win for us here at the Gatornationals,” said John Force.

Even though the 16-time champ has made hundreds of runs down Auto Plus Raceway in Gainesville over the past three decades, he was a little rushed during the final round when he went to stage against Robert Hight.

“I actually screwed up and drove up and put on my top light on the Christmas tree. It didn’t hurt me leaving or nothing but I was a little too quick and I didn’t want Robert to think I was trying to screw with him. What’s funny is Robert is president of John Force Racing and we are constantly in the boardrooms meeting with major companies fighting to get sponsors for next year, yet we hardly talk when we’re at the race track and that’s because we’re both going after that points lead,” said John Force.

Going into the final round, John Force was determined to give Robert Hight a run for the money despite Hight having the quicker Mustang and lane choice. When the Christmas tree flashed green, both John and Robert’s Mustang’s had almost identical reaction times. Unfortunately for Force, the Castrol GTX Mustang hazed the tires at mid-track and Hight motored by him to get the win light.

Despite struggling in qualifying, crew chief Jimmy Prock and the team addressed several possible issues following the final session yesterday and then tuned Force’s Castrol GTX High Mileage Mustang into a round-winning race car today. It was during the semi-finals that John Force would defeat his daughter Courtney in the Traxxas Ford Mustang.

“You know you’re on the right team and the right family when your own daughter Courtney in the Traxxas Ford Mustang says ‘Dad, I know how bad you want to win; don’t worry about me, just go get ‘em’. She knows I’m chasing sponsors and she went after me and they blew the tires off and we did too but it was down track. I love her with all my heart as I do with all my kids,” said John Force. 

Courtney Force came to compete at the 2014 NHRA Gatornationals, No. 12 in the Mello Yello Funny Car point standings, but after a semi-final finish today, she is sitting comfortably in the No. 10 position.

“We had a great weekend out here at the Gatornationals. I’m really proud of my Traxxas Ford Mustang team. These guys have been busting their butts and working hard. We struggled the first two races,
so to test and Phoenix, come out here and get things turned around is great,” said Force.

Force qualified in the No. 5 spot and took on Matt Hagan in the opening round today. She posted a 4.102 ET at 315.56 mph to his tire-smoking effort of 4.307 seconds, putting her 6-5 to him on race day.

“I’ve got great crew chiefs behind me with Ron Douglas and Dan Hood. To be able to come out here and qualify in the top half of the field was big for us, but to get that first round win against Hagan was huge for my team,” said Force.

She went on to dismiss fellow Ford driver Tim Wilkerson in the second round, setting her up to take on teammate, dad and boss John Force in the semis. She smoked the tires and pedaled it to put a 6.090 on the board.

“We got all the way to the semis; our car was running pretty consistent up until the semifinal round against my dad. Unfortunately he was able to take that win. I tried to pedal the car and get it down there and had it sideways.

“We really wanted to go after it, but at the end of the day we’re happy. I think we’ve learned some things here. I’m excited for my teammate Robert Hight and my dad. It was great to see all three JFR Ford Mustangs go to the semifinal round and to have an all Force final. I’m excited Robert was able to pick up the win and get into the Traxxas Shootout” said Force.

Despite making her best run of the weekend, Brittany Force’s Castrol EDGE Dragster came up short in round one of eliminations. Facing eventual Top Fuel winner Doug Kalitta for the fifth time this season, Brittany’s impressive 3.82 second ET along her nearly identical reaction time was not enough to hold off Kalitta’s 3.79 second ET.

“It’s always disappointing to go out in the first round, but to be able to have four qualifying passes and your best pass of the weekend be on Sunday, we’re happy about that. We left pretty closely off the line and Doug beat me by a little bit,” said Brittany Force.

At any race, qualifying is important key when getting the car dialed-in and set-up for the track conditions come race day. Unfortunately, the Castrol EDGE team and its crew chief Todd Smith were plagued with mechanical issues during some of the sessions.

“Qualifying was not what we hoped for as we had a couple of small parts issues that caused us really big engine damage. We knew we had a good car and we just had to fix these parts issues and get the damage repaired. We had our best shot this morning and we plugged the numbers and the car ran what we wanted,” said Todd Smith, crew chief on the Castrol EDGE Dragster.

Just as crew chief Todd Smith and Dean “Guido” Antonelli are always working to improve the performance of the Castrol EDGE Dragster, Brittany Force is also striving to be a better competitor. One key aspect that Brittany is focused on as a drag racer is her reaction times.

“I’ve been working on improving my reaction times as my crew guys have changed some things in my car such as the throttle pedal. For a while, my reaction times weren’t that good and we knew part of the reason was the throttle set up in the cockpit. Since we changed that, I think we’re heading in the right direction,” said Brittany Force.

The Top Fuel sophomore leaves the NHRA Gatornationals in seventh place in the Mello Yello series points and only one round out of fifth. With the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals less than two weeks away, Brittany Force will once again hit the strip in search of her first Top Fuel win.

 

Chevrolet Racing

Summit Racing–Line makes steps in the right direction in Gainesville

Line makes steps in the right direction in Gainesville
 
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 16, 2014) – Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jason Line was two rounds shy of where he wanted to be at the conclusion of the 45th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals, but for Line and Team Summit, the final result belies the truth: the KB Racing team is making progress on the racetrack with every bite they take out of NHRA’s 2014 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series tour.
 
Line, of Mooresville, N.C., qualified his blue Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro in the No. 8 position with a best time of 6.525 at 212.76. Qualifying started on a sour note for the team as a malfunction in the clutch halted progress before Line could even begin, but each run thereafter was a step up and in the right direction.
 
Line cleared the finish line in the second qualifying round with a 6.541, 213.20 and was 6.526 at 212.63 in the third session. He was prepared for raceday following one final qualifying pass that moved him up a notch in the line-up, a 6.525 at a solid 212.76.
 
On raceday, the 32-time Pro Stock winner drew Summit Racing teammate Jimmy Alund as a first-round opponent. Line got the nod when Alund left the starting line too soon and illuminated the red light. Line raced to a 6.567-second blast at 211.30 mph in the Summit Racing Camaro and advanced to a second-round meeting with Dave Connolly, the No. 1 qualifier.
 
The race with Connolly was decided at the starting line, as Line’s opponent was first to launch and carried the lead to a 6.584, 210.87 to 6.568, 211.39 win.
 
“The driver didn’t do a good job today, but the good news is that the Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro got better and better over the course of the weekend,” said Line, who leaves the event positioned fourth in the Pro Stock series standings.
 
“We were respectable today, and even though we got off to a late start after losing that first run in qualifying, we made progress. The KB Racing team worked well together this weekend, and hopefully we can pick up momentum heading into the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals in a couple of weeks in Las Vegas.”

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–Bristol

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FOOD CITY 500
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
MARCH 16, 2014
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 KOBALT TOOLS CHEVROLET SS – CURRENTLY 39TH
YOU HAD A GREAT CAR YOU HAD GREAT TRACK POSITION THEN YOU HAD THE TIRE COME APART CORRECT?
“Yeah, it was a really weird deal.  The tire has air in it and is fine over there it’s just the tread came off the top of it.  That slowed me down lost control I thought I had a flat.  Came to pit road, the tire wasn’t flat, but the tread isn’t on it anymore.”
 
BEYOND THAT IT LOOKED LIKE YOU HAD A GOOD CAR AND WE STILL HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO:
“Yeah, we only went down three laps.  We should get the wave around here, be down two laps and hopefully we can get some quick cautions and get back on the lead lap. We have a great KOBALT Chevrolet and we just need to get back to green and get going.”
 
WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR TIRE?
“We are just trying to figure out what happened.  The tire still had air in it.  It didn’t wear it out.  You can see the wear indicator on there (referencing a piece of the tire that came off the car).  It certainly didn’t wear the tire out.  Something made it come apart in this real long 50 foot section.  I don’t know if we clipped something on the track that kind of scored the tread and then it unraveled or if something else happened with the tire.  Now we are down multiple laps and we think it’s only three which there is a lot of racing left maybe we can get those three laps back and get on the lead lap and race for a win here.”
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 AXALTA CHEVROLET SS – CURRENTLY 16TH
TOUGH LUCK ON THAT FIRST PIT STOP.  NOW THAT YOU ARE WORKING YOUR WAY BACK UP THROUGH THE PACK HOW IS THE CAR HANDLING?
“Yeah that first incident was on us.  It is our responsibility to get out of the box clean.  With so many cars there on the lead lap with the competition caution we just made a little mistake there.  That definitely got us behind, but man what a race car.  I’m having so much fun out there.  Not that I want to come from the back, but it sure is fun when you have a race car like what we have right now with our Axalta Chevy SS.  We are just going to keep tuning on it.  Obviously this rain is going to change a lot of things, wash that rubber away and hopefully takes off as good as it did at the beginning of the race.”
 
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 FARMERS INSURANCE CHEVROLET SS – CURRENTLY NINTH
HOW DO YOU LIKE YOUR RACE CAR SO FAR?
“It’s alright.  We’re wearing pretty good on the left-front that first run so we fell back a bit and got a pretty good vibration.  It made it tough the last 20 laps of that run, but other than that I feel like we’ve been better, just a little free working on that.  Now with the rain it will probably go back that direction again.  Just trying to keep up with what’s going on, but yeah I feel pretty good about our Farmers Insurance Chevy I think the longer the race goes the better we will get.”

JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 MCDONALD’S CHEVROLET SS – CURRENTLY SECOND
CURRENTLY RUNNING SECOND HOW HAS YOUR RACE BEEN SO FAR?
“The McDonald’s Chevy has been really good.  I felt like the first 10 laps with that green initially when the race started that the car was too free, but then it just started getting better as the run went on.  I felt like our car isn’t that good on the take-off, but it seems to stay up there really well.  It’s going to be interesting to see what the track does now that it’s rained again and they are going to blow all the rubber off of it.  Overall Keith Rodden (crew chief) and all the guys on this Chip Ganassi team have done a really good job.”
 
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 4 BUDWEISER CHEVROLET SS – CURRENTLY SIXTH
ON HIS DAY THUS FAR:
“The team has done a great job once again.  We had a tough Friday, but everybody just sits down and we are all new together and they are trying to figure out what I like and all the new rules and everything that goes into everything we have going on with the new team as well.  They just do a great job at figuring out what they need in the car and have done a great job again this weekend.”
 

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–CORVETTE DPs AT SEBRING: Podium Finish for Action Express Racing

CORVETTE DPs AT SEBRING: Podium Finish for Action Express Racing
Three top-10 finishes in Corvette DP program’s first race at Sebring
 
SEBRING, Fla. (March 15, 2014) – Action Express Racing followed up a victory in the Rolex 24 At Daytona with a third-place result in the 62nd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida on Saturday. The No. 5 Corvette Daytona Prototype of Joao Barbosa, Christian Fittipaldi and Sebastian Bourdais finished less than 10 seconds behind the winning car.
 
The second round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship saw both the Action Express entries – including the No. 9 of Burt Frisselle, Brian Frisselle and Jon Fogarty – and the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP of Ricky Taylor, Jordan Taylor and Max Angelelli lead during the race.
 
Bourdais, who drove the final stint in the No. 5 Corvette DP, went around the Oak Racing Morgan entry for third shortly after the race’s final restart with 20 minutes remaining.
 
“Our Corvette DP teams put on a strong show in their first race at the Sebring 12 Hours,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet Program Manager for Corvette Daytona Prototypes. “Three of our five Corvette DPs finished in the top-10, and Action Express Racing continued its stellar start to the season. Chevrolet still leads the Prototype Engine Manufacturer’s championship after two tough races. Next up is another new challenge for the Corvette DPs – the streets of Long Beach.”
 
The next round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship takes place on the Long Beach (Calif.) street circuit from April 11-12.
 
JOAO BARBOSA, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP
“Third place in Sebring is always a great achievement. We are leading the championship right now, which is a plus. It was a really tough race. Very competitive. A finish on the podium is always a great result here at Sebring.”
 
CHRISTIAN FITTIPALDI, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP
“It was tough, but we managed the car very well. That was fun. Hats off to the Ganassi guys. They were in the right place at the right time. That made all the difference in the world. I want to thank Chevy. Our car ran flawless from the beginning to the end. We definitely had a shot at winning. Unfortunately it didn’t happen. But we scored some points, so we will turn the page and go on to Long Beach.”
 
SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS, NO. 5 ACTION EXPRESS RACING CORVETTE DP
“It was a tough race, but we gave it our best. We started from the front and stayed there for awhile.  It looked like we had the pace and everything we needed to win the race. As things got a little more complicated, we lost the lead as everybody started to show their hand. At the end we just didn’t have anything for these guys. I gave it my best the whole race, and we set some pretty fast laps. But at the end of the race, they just turned it up and I told them ‘That’s all I got’. On top of the fact that it was very much a game of track position because you couldn’t pass anyone. It was closely matched. The No. 1 was in front of us, and the No. 01 cycled to the front and left the GTs in between us. By the time we crossed the start/finish line, the gap was six seconds… game over. It is a little disappointing because I was really hoping we could win. I’ve finished second here overall twice before. It is one of these deals where it didn’t work out. But that is all I had. No regrets. That is all we had. That is the way it is.”
 
JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP
“That was the toughest race I think we’ve ever had and to come out with seventh place probably doesn’t do justice to all the hard work everybody put into it. But it was just a matter of not being able to bounce back all the way from the few issues we had today – the early penalty, my having to go off with cars spinning and colliding in front of me in the middle of the race, and Ricky getting his windscreen oiled up and going off, which necessitated another pit stop toward the end of the race. All in all, I think we might have had a solid podium car, at best, despite all the things we had to deal with. But we brought it home in one piece both at Daytona and here at Sebring, and we’re still sitting second in the points, so we’ll head to the early sprint race part of the schedule and try to build some serious momentum.”
MAX ANGELELLI, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETE DP
“To win races like this, you have to be good, but you also have to have things go your way. Our car definitely was maybe a fourth-place car. With a little bit of luck maybe a podium finish. If I had to put my finger on one thing in particular, I think we underestimated the heat in the track and what it did to our car from a setup standpoint. That’s my opinion. This is a great race and we would have loved to have had a better result.”
RICKY TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP
“There seemed to be no passing during that last run. I think it was because the pace was just so high and I think everybody was in the position they belonged in after racing for almost 12 hours. I feel really bad that we had to make an extra pit stop because of the oil (on the windscreen). I don’t know if anybody else had that problem out there. That was frustrating. But when I had a clean windshield, the car was the best it’d been all day at the end, there. Finishing seventh is kind of ho-hum when you look at it. It was a long race. I’m just happy we got through the middle because it was so difficult to keep the car on the track and stay out of trouble.”

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING: Disappointing End in Florida Classic

CORVETTE RACING AT SEBRING: Disappointing End in Florida Classic
After leading during the day, sixth and eighth for Corvette C7.Rs
 
SEBRING, Fla. (March 15, 2014) – Corvette Racing’s two Chevrolet Corvette C7.Rs each led in class at Sebring International Raceway on Saturday but ultimately ended the 62nd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida on disappointing notes.
 
The No. 4 Corvette C7.R of Oliver Gavin, Tommy Milner and Robin Liddell finished sixth in GT Le Mans for the second round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship. The car led in class for significant portions throughout the race before two late spins and an engine issue with 30 minutes remaining put a halt to the car’s charge.
 
Up until that point, it was smooth sailing for the No. 4 Corvette. Gavin set the class’ fastest race lap (1:59.521).
 
The No. 3 Corvette C7.R of Antonio Garcia, Jan Magnussen and Ryan Briscoe had an up-and-down day with the “down” part coming into play again with four hours to go. The trio eventually finished eighth in class after suffering an opening-lap collision and fuel pressure problems that ultimately resulted in the replacement of the Corvette’s fuel pump just past the eight-hour mark.
 
The No. 3 Corvette also lost a lap early with front bodywork damage it sustained on the opening lap when Garcia was hit by a competitor from behind and shoved into a BMW ahead of him on the opening lap. But timely yellows and strategy calls put the Spaniard into the lead just past the halfway point.
 
The next round of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship takes place on the Long Beach (Calif.) street circuit from April 11-12.
 
ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R
“It is a shame. It went from a disaster to really enjoying the fight back. The car was running really good. The team did a really good job just to get it back after we crashed on the first lap, and the car was behaving really good. Good strategies, and step-by-step we were going up. It was going perfect. Then again, everything went south. It’s definitely something we need to take care of for sure. We can take this as learning and try to fix every single thing because we have the speed, we have best team and we have a really good car. “
 
JAN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R
“It’s been up and down all day. It didn’t start so well. Antonio got hit from behind on the first lap and smacked into somebody else. There was quite a bit of damage to the front – the fenders and we had to change the whole nose. We went a lap down but got that back and into the lead of the race. Then we had the unfortunate issue with the fuel pump and spent time trying to fix it. The car was pretty good. We could drive as fast as anyone out there. It was a shame about the little things. But the Corvette Racing guys were great. We all are massively disappointed.”
 
RYAN BRISCOE, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R
“The engine started running worse off the corners like it wasn’t running clean. It started to get worse and worse and worse as we went on. In the end it was the fuel pump. At least we were able to go until we got a full-course caution so that helped us out a little bit. Unfortunately we were three laps down. It was just so good to have the lead and run 1-2. We were the quickest cars on the track, for sure. It’s just a real shame.”
 
OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R
“It’s very frustrating that we had that problem and issue at the end. Up to that point we were looking very strong. I got in the car toward the end to do the last couple of stints. I had a couple of issues inside the cockpit with lights that we moved around after night practice. And we’re still finding our way a little bit with this new car. I got a bit hot coming into Turn 17 and had a bit of a spin. We caught back up to the Viper and Porsche. As I was right there with them, we started to have this problem with the engine and it started to miss a bit. I was pushing harder and harder to try and keep up. I pushed a little too hard coming out of Turn 5 and looped it off there. It was pretty clear we had a problem after that. It was a case of managing the situation until the finish. But I think the guys did an absolute fantastic job with the car this weekend. For 11 hours we had one of the quickest cars and best cars. We were in a position to fight with anyone and seemed like we were the class of the field.”
 
TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R
“It’s a bummer. It’s unfortunate, for sure. It was kind of like Daytona, unfortunately. The car was good for 95 percent of the race. That last five percent now has been a little bit of a problem. But it’s a new car. I’m excited about how quick we’ve been… and good teamwork. The No. 3 car guys had a problem early on and they were able to fight back from that. We had our own little issues throughout the race. I kept fighting and got back up front there toward the end. It was just unlucky.”
 
ROBIN LIDDELL, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE C7.R
“It was disappointing obviously. Tommy (Milner) and Olly (Gavin) did the lion’s share of the work, by far. And it would have been their win really, and the team’s win if we’d gotten to that point. But obviously it’s disappointing. We came pretty close at Daytona and then again here. But ultimately we’ve got to be reasonably happy with the performance of the car and obviously the team. But it’s always hard when you get close to the end in a race like this, looking like you’re going to get results, and then you start running into difficulties. But essentially it’s just new car blues. Having these two races as the first two of the season makes it incredibly tough. I think the car has shown itself to be not just a contender, but a race-winning car. It’s been a great experience. I’m happy to have the opportunity to drive for Corvette. On that side, it’s good.”
 
DOUG FEHAN, CORVETTE RACING PROGRAM MANAGER
“The Sebring 12 Hours typically is one of the most challenging and unpredictable auto races in the world. Today was no different. Similar to the first race of the year at Daytona, the Chevrolet Corvette C7.R showed its tremendous potential with both cars leading significant portions of the race – including the No. 3 after facing adversity on the opening lap. At Corvette Racing, we don’t give up and that was on full display again. We’re encouraged with the performance of both Corvette C7.Rs and are eager to get back to racing at Long Beach.”
 

Summit Racing

Summit Racing–Alund again improves career best elapsed time heading into raceday at Gatornationals

Alund again improves career best elapsed time heading into raceday at Gatornationals
 
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 15, 2014) – Qualifying is complete at the
45th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals, and Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jimmy Alund continued to impress as he bettered his career best numbers and qualified in his highest position of the season. Alund, a native of Sweden and an eight-time FIA Pro Stock champion, is the No. 9 qualifier at Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville and will race Summit teammate Jason Line in the first round of eliminations.
 
“This car was behaving exactly the way that we wanted it to,” said Alund, who was a quick 6.527 at 212.79 in the first round to immediately make a statement and followed up with a 6.537, 212.90 before racing to his best elapsed time ever in NHRA competition, a 6.525 at 212.36. He finished with a slowing 8.97.
 
Alund was ever-so close to qualifying in the top half of the field for the first time on American soil, but Line swooped in and scooped up the honor in the final hour. Although the two clocked identical 6.525-second blasts, Line got the nod on speed – his 212.76 mph topped Alund’s 212.36.
 
“We sure could have been a little bit faster [in the first round], but we had to race the racetrack and that’s what it could give us right there,” explained Alund. “Second round we made a good run in my opinion, and third round was also a really good run in my opinion. We were working on it for the fourth round, and we just had a little mishap. I felt something wasn’t right so I lifted. Anyway, we’re going to race Jason tomorrow. The only good thing about that is that we’re going to have a Summit Racing car in the next round.”
 
Alund continues to enjoy his six-race stint on the NHRA tour as KB Racing’s Greg Anderson recuperates from heart surgery to repair a bicuspid aortic valve. This weekend in Gainesville, the pit area and stands are overflowing with drag racing enthusiasts who have taken kindly to the friendly Swede.
 
“I have a lot of friends in the grandstands here, and when the pits are full like they’ve been today, I sign a lot of autographs and talk to a lot of fans,” said Alund. “It was a really fun experience. I like Florida; this is a good place to be. I couldn’t be more happy, and it’s going to be fun racing Jason tomorrow. Both of us want to win badly, I can tell you that.”
 

Summit Racing

Summit Racing–Line Bounces Back from Tough Start, Looks to Gain Momentum on Raceday in Gainesville

Line Bounces Back from Tough Start, Looks to Gain Momentum on Raceday in Gainesville
 
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 15, 2014) – As always, Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jason Line was looking for immediate success at the 45th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals at venerable Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville, and although the first round of qualifying left him feeling a bit jilted, the following sessions were more in line with expectations.
 
Line, of Mooresville, N.C., clocked a best time of 6.525 at 212.76 mph and will start from the No. 8 position. He will square off with Summit Racing teammate Jimmy Alund in the first round of eliminations.
 
A malfunction in the clutch prevented Line from powering his blue Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro down the racetrack in full force in very good conditions that set the stage for a quick field.
 
“We got behind the eight ball, losing that first run. That was a killer, and it was tough to make up for that,” said Line, who came back in the later session to record a 6.541 at a big speed of 213.20 mph. On Saturday, Line improved to a 6.526 at 212.63 in the early round and then closed out the day with an even better 6.525, 212.76.
 
“You’ll have that some days, though,” he continued. “Racing doesn’t always go as planned, but it’s all good because we have a pretty darn good car for tomorrow with our Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro. We definitely feel like we can make the car even better for Sunday. Losing that first run wasn’t the end of the world, it was just another challenge for us.”
 
Line will have lane choice over Alund and the duo will race one another for the first time on Sunday.
 
“The bad news is that we have to race each other; the good news is that one of our Summit Racing Camaros will for sure go to the next round,” said Line. “Sometimes things just don’t go the way you want them to, that’s all. But we did improve with both cars in qualifying, and we feel good about that going into tomorrow.”
 

John Force Racing

John Force Racing–Gainesville Qualifying

TEAM JFR QUALIFYING REPORT
2014 NHRA Final Qualifying Summary
3rd of 24 races in the NHRA Mello Yello Series

 

45th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals

Auto Plus Raceway

Gainesville, FL
March 14-16, 2014

Photos courtesy of Gary Nastase Photography for media use only

* * * *

 

C. FORCE GEARED UP FOR GATORNATIONALS AFTER STRONG SATURDAY

 

GAINESVILLE, FL – Courtney Force will take on the NHRA Mello Yello Funny Car field from the No. 5 spot on Sunday at the 2014 Amalie Oil Gatornationals. Force entered Saturday not in the show, but quickly turned things around for her Traxxas Ford Mustang team. The 25-year-old started the day with a 4.131 ET at 308.85 mph and moved solidly into the show at the No. 7 spot and picking up three bonus points as the quickest Funny Car of the session.

“I’m excited that our Traxxas Ford Mustang team was able to come out here on Saturday of qualifying and improve on our last two qualifying sessions. We moved up to the top half of the field and that’s what we were going for,” said Force.

In the fourth and final qualifying session, the 2012 Rookie of the Year posted a 4.121 ET at 308.64 mph and moved up to the No. 5 spot and gaining her team two bonus points for being second-quickest of that session. That run set her up to take on competitor Matt Hagan in the opening round on race day.

“It definitely feels great. We changed some things around and it seems to be going in the right direction. We went out there and ran a 4.131 and a 4.121 so we were able to improve on the last run down the track,” said Force.

This will be the eleventh time the pair have matched up on race day since Force’s Funny Car debut in 2012. They are 5-5 in previous match-ups.

“We’re excited going into tomorrow. I think we have a good feel for both lanes. We have lane choice, but we have tough competition going up against Hagan. We’re just going to give it all we got and hopefully go some rounds,” said Force.

Robert Hight and the Auto Club Mustang team made a strong run to start the day. His Mike Neff tuned Funny Car posted the second quickest ET of the session and gave the team a great boost going into the final qualifying session. With temperatures cooling slightly after a number of delays in the Top Fuel session Hight’s Mustang hazed the tires at the top end and he will go into eliminations as the No. 10 qualifier and will race former teammate Tony Pedregon.

“Today was a good day. We made another solid run in the first session under race day conditions. In the last session Neff was looking for the edge and we just missed making another good run. Every time we go down the track we learn something plus we learn from our teammates. Courtney’s Traxxas Mustang made two good runs and we were right with her in the early session. The crew chiefs will get together tonight and we will all have a good game plan for tomorrow,” said Hight.

“The lanes are pretty even and I don’t see any reason we can’t have a long race day tomorrow. Tony Pedregon will be tough and we can’t look past him. I will do my job on the starting line and I know these Auto Club guys will give me a great race car.”

Hight is 9-15 against Tony Pedregon and he defeated him in the first round of last year’s Gatornationals.

John Force tried to tame the unpredictable track surface of Auto Plus Raceway for two straight days. The 16-time NHRA Mello Yello Funny Car champion struggled through four qualifying sessions and could only manage a 4.38 second elapsed time, placing his Castrol GTX High Mileage Mustang in the 16th spot.

“It’s been tough and we’ve struggled with this car but all our cars are in and the dragster is running good. Even though the Castrol car is struggling, but they said to me down there on top end during the interview after that last qualifying run, ‘Cruz is low qualifier like you were in Pomona and now and you’re number 16’. At the end of the day when you’re number one and I was low ET and got both ends of the track record, I was sick over that on Sunday morning because you know that car is right on the edge because no one else can do it. We’ll be fine tomorrow,” said John Force.

While most racers agonize by not qualifying in the top-half of the field, it doesn’t faze John Force who has won the Gatornationals seven times. 

“Being the 16th qualifier, I’ve got nothing to lose I’m going out there with a full heart and going after that kid. I love Cruz, it’ll be a fun race, a Toyota against a Ford and we’re going to have some fun.”

Force is 61-29 against Pedregon, 3-1 at the Gatornationals and 13-8 in previous first round meetings. Force has never won a race after qualifying No. 16 so this is an opportunity for him to achieve another milestone.  Force’s streak of No. 1 qualifying performances ends at five.

Coming off her first Top Fuel final round appearance just last month in Phoenix, Brittany Force struggled to qualify in the top half of the field today. Brittany’s Castrol EDGE Dragster to ran a 3.86 second elapsed time placing her in the 13th spot. She narrowly missed picking up a qualifying bonus point in the first session on Saturday posting the fourth quickest Top Fuel run of the session.

“Qualifying didn’t actually go as expected as we’ve had some crazy runs and little bit of confusion in the first qualifying session,” said Brittany Force, who was recently named Rookie of the Year by RACER magazine. 

In trying to get a hold of Auto Plus Raceway crew chief Todd Smith has been trying to get Castrol EDGE Dragster back to its consistent ways. As a driver, Brittany knows the unpredictability of conditions come race day. She is 2-4 against Doug Kalitta but 2-1 in first rounds.

“It’s been very past two days for us but the important thing is we’re No. 13 and we’re are in the show and we’re ready to play tomorrow. We’re running Doug Kalitta and we’re beaten him before so I’m pumped and ready for tomorrow and we’re ready to go some rounds,” said Brittany Force.  

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