NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
DAYTONA 500
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 22, 2014
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway and discussed the process of getting a third car ready for the Daytona 500 after being involved in a crash in Thursday’s Budweiser Duel race, his thoughts on how the Daytona 500 will play out on Sunday and many other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
NOT THE FINISH TO THE DUEL THAT YOU WOULD LIKE, BUT COMING INTO THE DAYTONA 500 WHAT IS GOING TO BE YOUR FOCUS TODAY AS YOU GET PREPARED FOR TOMORROW?
“Just getting some more laps on this race car.  We have been very impressed and happy with the speed this third car has had. Not a situation we wanted to be in by any means, but I wasn’t aware of the preparation and our car count coming down here.  Obviously we want to bring our best two race cars and we felt that was the case.  But we brought two cars that we had a lot of success with last year and a build on those cars that were last year’s kind of mindset and technology.  Some of our teammates built new vehicles and brought them down here and they have had a little speed on us even through qualifying.  I wasn’t aware that we had a generation car like this and that is what is our third back-up is.  With our single car runs yesterday the car had a few tenths more speed in it than our best car, the car that we had slated for the Daytona 500.  So with all that it is nice to have the speed and we will take it from there.  We will go out today and make some more single car runs, make sure we get the attitude of the car right and there aren’t any tires rubs or any of that kind of stuff that can plague you and take it from there.”
 
CAN YOU TAKE US THROUGH THE PROCESS AFTER THURSDAY WHEN YOU WENT TO THE THIRD CAR?
“Chad (Knaus, crew chief) always has a plan.  When I left the infield car center I went to the bus and I didn’t know anything until the next morning.  I walked in for practice and there was a painted No. 48 car sitting there.  I assumed it would be a wrap around the car and we unloaded a No. 88 car or No. 24.  That is kind of how we have been in year’s past.  We will build two and focus on Phoenix and Vegas and really the rest of the season.  I knew there would be a car, but I thought it would be a sticker wrap instead of a paint job.  I was pleasantly surprised to see it was paint.  I knew that of course Chad had his bases covered.  Then it really just boiled down to what kind of speed the car had in it.  That was a welcome surprise to see that it was a little quicker than the car we had slated for the (Daytona) 500.”
 
WHAT IS SO HARD ABOUT WINNING THIS RACE AND WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO PUT YOURSELF IN POSITION TO WIN?
“Plate racing is so different than the racing we all grow up doing.  Competing, perfecting and then just working on that skill set.  Here we have heard the comparisons to playing chess and it kind of is that way.  You spend more time playing defense and your defensive moves and blocks create your opportunity to pass and to win.  Then the timing of when people’s decisions behind you when they take place and if you are able to block it, it gives you that surge down the backstretch or through (turns) three and four that brings you to the finish line.  So it is just different, it’s a different mindset and I think you have to work really hard to change your mind set at these four tracks in order to be successful.  All that being said (Dale) Earnhardt (Sr.) would probably be the exception to that with how many plate races he won and how long it took to win down here.  I think he just had a black cloud over him for all those years and wasn’t able to get it.  It’s a totally different mindset of racing.”
 
IN THE FIRST THREE CUP RACES WE HAVE SEEN HERE THERE WAS NOT A LAST LAP PASS FOR THE VICTORY.  WILL WE LIKELY SEE ANY LAST LAP PASS FOR THE VICTORY TOMORROW OR IS THE NEW CAR MAKING THAT MORE DIFFICULT?
“I’ve been surprised when I’ve been in second how little of a run I have had at the leader.  I’ve felt like this taller spoiler would increase that closing rate and really help out.  It’s created that opportunity further back in the pack and there is a lot more energy in the meat of the pack, but near the front there has been a little less closing rate.  No necessarily closing rate, but when you pull out I guess the air gets on that tall spoiler and it is just like throwing a parachute and it stops you.  The other component to that is I think we have crashed before we had a chance to get to the stripe.  The Unlimited there just wasn’t a big enough field to create the energy and then us running out of gas prevented the opportunity for something to take place in the duel.”
 
IT’S BEEN 10 YEAR’S SINCE DALE EARNHARDT, JR. WON THE DAYTONA 500 AND HIS LAST PLATE WIN WAS 2004.  DO YOU SINCE ANY FRUSTRATION FROM HIM HAVING FINISHED SECOND IN THREE OF THE LAST FOUR DAYTONA 500’S?  WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT HIM PLATE RACING 10 YEARS AGO THAT MADE HIM SO DOMINANT?
“Definitely know he’s irritated by not winning.  I mean he’s an extremely competitive guy and wants to win.  I know last year he was probably a lap or two away from having a shot at the win, just kind of ran out of distance.  Made a great move and got to second and he’s very sharp and understands how to set up a pass for the win.  I know he wants to win and I know he’s irritated that he’s been so close.  I guess it maybe boil into a little bit of frustration.  He’s a competitive guy and wants to win.
 
“The difference, you know things have changed so much with the draft.  I feel like last year’s combination was very similar to the generation of car when Junior won.  I know that the ‘13 rules package felt a lot like the ’06, ’07 in that time frame in what the cars did and how they react and how you set up passes.  I want to say even Junior’s stats reflect that.  I know mine certainly do.  There was kind of a dry spell through some of the gen-5 stuff especially the push drafting a lot of DNF’s, although we did have one win, but our average is way down.  I’m not sure you would probably have to ask him, but I think we have similar reasons why our style of drafting fits the gen-6 car and maybe his stats reflect that too.”
 
WHEN YOU HEAR CRITICISM THAT YOUR DOMINANCE AND YOUR SIX CHAMPIONSHIPS IN EIGHT YEARS IS DETRIMENTAL TO NASCAR AND THE INDUSTRY WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO THAT CRITICISM?
“It is a short sided comment.  There are so many components and pieces to our sport.  That is just a fan of another competitor with a narrow mindset or a short sided mindset.  There are so many pieces of the puzzle as we all know from the economy.  We look at the construction that is going on out here and understanding how this facility is going to be like a football stadium before long.  I was talking to Chani (Johnson, wife) about that this morning she couldn’t believe that there aren’t the mezzanine levels for concession stands and restrooms and all that stuff.  When you really break down the sport and when you know the sport there are a lot of areas that need work and everybody is addressing that.  One driver’s dominance is not the reason why.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
DAYTONA 500
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE
FEBRUARY 21, 2014
 
 
CHIP GANASSI, OWNER OF CHIP GANASSI RACING TEAMS WITH FELIX SABATES, met with members of the media and discussed Kyle Larson, outlook for season, state of the business of motorsports, changes NASCAR has made to qualifying, the Chase, etc., racing at Daytona and other topics. Full transcript:
 
THOUGHTS ON KYLE LARSON GOING FORWARD: “I think it is one step-at-a-time, and I thought he did a great job last night (in the Duel at Daytona). He kept his nose clean; he stayed out of trouble; he learned a lot; he went to the front; went to the back…well almost to the front…went to the back and came back to where he was, so I thought it was mission accomplished last night.”
 
TALK ABOUT HOW JAMIE MCMURRAY IS SUCH A GOOD RESTRICTOR PLATE RACER: “You know, that is a big thing, especially for a guy like Kyle coming along to have a guy like Jamie that he can ask questions to and get an honest answer.  It might not always be the answer you want it to be, but I think it will be an honest answer. I was pretty happy with that, and couldn’t be happier with how the two of them are meshing, and how the teams are meshing together…couldn’t be happier.”
 
CAN YOU RELATE TO KYLE’S SITUATION, AS YOU WERE A ROOKIE ONCE IN INDY CARS: “Well that was maybe more than 25 years ago or so. So, I don’t know.  To some extent, I think the important thing to a young guy walking through the gates here, this place can be awful daunting. It is what racing is all about…Daytona. So often times, my advice is to tell him what is important and what is not important is maybe the best advice I can give him.”
 
ON PRACTICE PLANS FOR REMAINDER OF WEEK HEADING INTO DAYTONA: “Obviously with engine changes, and the obvious ability to hurt your car between now and Sunday, I have always left that in the driver’s hands. They know where they are at. They know if they need practice. They know what they need, and they are professionals.  Nobody goes out there to crash, so I leave in their hands.”
 
DOES THIS SPEEDWEEKS SEEM MORE EXPENSIVE TO CAR OWNERS IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF CARS DAMAGED OR IS THIS A NORMAL COURSE OF DAYTONA? “For us, it is kind of the normal course of Daytona I would say. I don’t want it to be, but it is. You just hope and pray, Number one, you want to be at the front, and number two you want to roll your car on to the truck down here. You see that even the best teams can make mistakes, and take out the field.”
 
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGTHS THAT NASCAR HAS MADE FOR THIS SEASON – QUALIFYING, THE CHASE, ETC.? “I like them. I think it is good. I’m a fan of new things like that. When you are in it every day, week in and week out, year in and year out, it is nice to see some change, and have some change and some new ways to approach the weekend. New ways to approach the Chase. I like it. I’m all in favor of it.”
 
DOES THE FACT THERE IS MORE NIGHT RUNNING MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN YOUR RACE STRATEGY? “Whether you run all at night, or all in the day, or half day half night – it is all the same for all of the teams. So it is just a matter of adjusting your car to what it likes in that condition. It’s nothing no one has ever done before. The last time I looked, Sunday starts at 1:00 o’clock. I hope we are not running at night. But I will say, that when we did run at night, we did have some success there in 2010 as I recall.”
 
IS THERE ANY CONCERN IN THE GARAGE ABOUT CARS GETTING AIRBOURNE? “I don’t think any more than normal. I think everybody is interested in safety, I don’t think anyone wants anybody to get hurt. The fans want to see a good show. It is the same ole thing, coming to the checkered. Between turn four and the start/finish line, anything can happen.”
 
WILL YOU CONSIDER A THREE-CAR TEAM FOR 2015? “Those things kind of come and go. There are guys out there, and we’ll be in the market if something presents itself. If not, I don’t see us replacing drivers. You kind of take those things as they come and go.  You know, kind of take those things as they come and go.”
 
IS KYLE WHERE YOU THOUGHT HE WOULD BE? “I think he is showing more mature than his races would tell him. I thought he looked good in the draft. I thought he learned some things.  He popped out and went to the back, and then was mature enough to keep his nose clean and come back up to the front slowly. That showed a lot of maturity to me.”
 
THAT IS STUFF YOU HAVE SEEN OUT OF HIM BEFORE? “Somewhat. Somewhat. But, you never know until you get there.  You’ve never seen him in a Cup race at Daytona. That is a different animal.”
 
HAVE THE ECONOMICS OF RUNNING A RACE TEAM GOTTEN ANY BETTER IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS? “No. Absolutely not. What would make you think that? Costs continue to go up. Just the increase in the entry fee. Increase in hard cards…I mean just increase after increase. And we are not getting increases from our sponsors. So it puts a lot of pressure on the teams to squeeze a little tighter, and it is getting difficult.”
 
ANY GLIMMER OF HOPE ON THE HORIZON? “I don’t know. I’m waiting to hear something good out of NASCAR. A lot of team owners I know are concerned.”
 
IS KYLE AS CALM AND UNFLAPPABLE AS HE APPEARS? “He seems to be. You know you saw him last night. He shot out of the….I guess that (David) Ragan was in front of him and he checked up. Kyle scooted out of line, and went down on the inside. He said ‘I don’t know what that guy was doing there, but no problem’, he got back in line and kept going. He lost about eight or so spots.”
 
DO YOU COMPARE KYLE WITH ANYBODY ELSE THAT HAS COME ALONG IN THE LAST 10-15 YEARS?  “That is for you guys to do, not me. We have a plan we want to work our plan with him. No one ask me about any other drivers, they always ask me about my drivers, so I am not good at comparing them to other people. I only compare our drivers when their careers are over.”
 
JUAN (PABLO MONTOYA) SAID HE MIGHT WANT TO RUN THE BRICKYARD, WOULD YOU CONSIDER THAT? “I would never say never. I wouldn’t never say no to that. I think he is talking about Penske though. They  are certainly capable of doing that. He says he is enjoying it over there.”
 
WITH THE NEW TV PACKAGE STARTING NEXT YEAR, IT HAS BEEN INDICATED THAT WILL HELP PROVIDE STABILITY. IS THAT NOT THE CASE? “New revenue next year doesn’t do anything for increased costs this year. Granted, new TV should be more money. Sounds good.”
 
ARE YOU EVER GOING TO BE ABLE TO ASK SPONSORS FOR MORE MONEY AGAIN UNTIL RATINGS GO UP OR THERE IS SOME SORT OF METRIC THAT SHOWS IT IS BETTER? “I think every sponsor is different, and everyone wants something different out of the sport. Increase ratings are not just the single factor. There are lots of metrics; there are new ones all the time. I’m sure there is some sponsor in the garage that has a new metric. I’m just saying my  metrics are different than Jack Roush or Rick Hendrick or someone elses.”
 
DO YOU THINK WE WILL GET TO THE POINT TO WHERE THEY WILL AGREE TO MORE MONEY –  TO SPEND MORE? “I remember in racing when a $1 million sponsor, I’ve been around that long, when a $1 million sponsor was….I thought boy we’ll never get more than a million dollars. And every one of those increments along the way, you just think… I’m sure there is some ceiling somewhere at some time. Thank God we haven’t gotten there yet.”
 
LOOKING AT  YOUR NASCAR TENURE, WHERE YOU HAVE COME FROM…WHERE ARE YOU GOING? “I thought our team had a lot of momentum there, and then when the financial crisis hit, that took a lot of wind out of our sails for a year or two there, and it took us awhile to rebound from that. I would have been perfectly happy
if Sterling Marlin didn’t hit his head and crack his neck. I would have been perfectly happy if that didn’t happen. I would have been perfectly happy if Jack Roush didn’t come along and offer Jamie McMurray a ton of money way back when. So, you look at things… But, I’d say, given all the challenges we’ve faced during that time, I would rather have a few more wins, but we are okay.”
 
HOW FAR AWAY FROM A CHAMPIONSHIP ARE YOU? “About as far as I was a couple of years ago, or four years. I think we have the impetus now, and the time and the basis of that. We are with a good foundation now. I think we have a strong foundation now to bui8ld upon.”
 
DOES IT FEEL DIFFERENT NOW TO HAVE A DIFFERENT DRIVER?  YOU HAD THE SAME DRIVER LINEUP WITH MCMURRAY AND MONTOYA THERE FOR SEVERAL YEARS?  DOES IT CHANGE THE ENERGY OF THE TEAM A LITTLE BIT? “Any time  you bring someone new into a team, especially a driver, it changes the energy. I don’t think it is anything other than business as normal. Kyle is certainly a capable race driver. It is not like we plucked him out of or took him off a dirt track last night and brought him to Daytona. The guy certainly has plenty of experience, and plenty of racing knowledge. Race craft…it is not like we are teaching the guy. Just one degree here, one degree there is about all we are working with. We aren’t talking about major, major changes.”
 
ARE THE GIBBS CARS THAT FAR AHEAD OF EVERYBODY? “When it comes to those kinds of things, one week in Daytona doesn’t make a season. I am very cautious to start coming to conclusions there. Let’s see what happens. Certainly it is the Daytona 500 on Sunday. But let’s see what happens when we get to Phoenix, and Vegas and Bristol. We’ll start to see some trends develop. I think to start calling it now is a little premature.”
 
FOR JUST THIS WEEK ARE THEY? “Good for them. They’ve been doing a good job. Good for them.”
 
HAS YOUR ANXIETY YOU HAD ABOUT THE  HYPE AROUND KYLE SUCH AS THE SUPERSTAR COMMENTS FROM TON Y STEWART AND JEFF GORDON  SUBSIDED AS HE SETTLES IN? IT DOESN’T SEEM TO HAVE AFFECTED HIM: “Those guys are going to say what they want to say, and don’t think that those comments by those guys; those aren’t just off the cuff comments those guys make. There is a reason they make those comments. I don’t get involved in their business, and I would be perfectly happy if they didn’t get involved in mine.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
DAYTONA 500
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 21, 2014
 
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway and discussed his outlook for this Sunday’s Daytona 500, his rapid ascent into the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, his relationship with teammate Jamie McMurray and many other topics.  Full Transcript:
 
TALK ABOUT YOUR OUTLOOK FOR THIS WEEKEND:
“It’s going to be a lot of fun come Sunday.  I feel like I learned a ton last night in the second duel.  I was able to make a few moves, most that didn’t work so I learned from that.  Sunday is going to take a lot of patience’s to log some laps there for the first half of the race, then to try to position yourself good for the end of it.  We got a little front-end damage yesterday in that wreck.  My Target guys made some repairs on that stuff.  I’m sure it will be fine come Sunday.  Just really looking forward to it and hope to get a good finish.”
 
WITH JUST THE ONE YEAR OF NATIONWIDE AND NOT A TON OF TIME RUNNING WITH A LOT OF GUYS IN THIS SERIES ARE YOU FINDING THAT PEOPLE ARE COMFORTABLE WORKING WITH YOU ON THE TRACK?
“I think it’s tough for any veteran to trust a rookie like me, especially on a superspeedway.  I saw it a little bit last night where people would bail on me, which I understand.  You just have to try and be as smooth as you can and earn their trust.  That is kind of what I tried doing last night.  I felt like I kept it in a straight line most of the time. There was once where I got a little squirley, but for the most part I haven’t had any run in’s with any of the veterans yet.  I think that is good that I haven’t done that and hopefully they will work with me come Sunday.”
 
EVEN THOUGH YOU HAVE BEEN RACING FOR THE MAJORITY OF YOUR LIFE DO YOU EVER WONDER OR HAVE THE FEELING THAT MAYBE YOU DID RUSH THIS STEP A LITTLE BIT?
“No, not really because everything I’ve done in my career even from the times I was racing go-karts everybody thought it might have been a rush at the time.  But then it all worked out and did really well.  I think and I’m hoping this isn’t anything different.  I’m ready for this season. I think we are going to have a strong year.  The guys at Chip Ganassi Racing have built really fast cars.  They have changed some things on the pit crew, more engineers and stuff like that.  I think it’s going to be good for me. We have done a lot of testing where not only have we been working on the cars we’ve also been working on stuff with me.  By doing fuel mileage things, pit stops and stuff like that.  So it’s going to benefit me come race season.  I think they have done a great job with me.  I think we are prepared and hopefully we can get the Rookie of the Year and have a lot of good finishes this year.”
 
JAMIE MCMURRAY YOUR TEAMMATE IS CONSIDERED A PRETTY GOOD RESTRICTOR PLATE RACER.  HAVE YOU TALKED TO HIM ABOUT MAYBE A PLAN FOR SUNDAY?   HAS HE GIVEN YOU ANY ADVICE?
“Jamie is definitely one of the best plate racers I think right now.  I have definitely leaned on him quite a bit, with just little questions and stuff.  He actually said ‘don’t feel the need to help me out all the time because a lot of times it doesn’t work out and we both go backwards.’  When it comes down to the end of the race I’m sure we will work together or try to if we are around each other.  He really just told me you have to be patient like everybody knows and pick and choose your right moves at the right times and try to go forward.”
 
IN GENERAL WHAT HAS JAMIE MCMURRAY BEEN LIKE FOR YOU?  HOW HAS HE KIND OF CLEARING THE PATH FOR YOU IN YOUR ROOKIE YEAR?
“It’s been good working with Jamie so far.  He’s probably the easiest guy to talk to in the garage or really out of anybody I’ve ever met. He’s extremely personable.  Especially when it comes to the plate races, Daytona being the first race of the season it’s easy to go to him with a lot of questions.  I’ve definitely been talking to him as much as I can whenever I have questions.  He is always willing to give me a truthful honest answer.  I think that is good for me.  There will be times too this year where I’m sure he will have questions for me.  If I’m faster than him in the weekend, I think we are going to work really well together and it’s going to be great for the both of us and great for the team.”
 
YOU ALWAYS SEEM VERY CALM.  DO YOU EVERY GET NERVOUS?  DO YOU EVER GET SCARED?  DO YOU EVER GET INTIMIDATED?
“No, I mean probably the only time I get nervous is during single car qualifying and we don’t have any of that anymore.  That will be good.  I don’t think I ever get intimidated.  Early in different series and stuff I go back to running with the World of Outlaws when I was 15 or whatever.  You line up next to guys like Sammy Swindell and Steve Kinser and you are like ‘wow this is pretty crazy’ and you can let them get under your skin pretty easy.  But then after you realize you are just as good as they are if not better than them some nights it builds your confidence and stuff.  Then you start beating them.  I’m sure I will experience a little bit of that this year.  Hopefully not too much and it should be fine.”
 
WILL YOU HAVE THAT ‘WOW’ MOMENT WHEN YOU LINE-UP NEXT TO JEFF GORDON?
“No, probably not.  I don’t think so.  I guess if you count last night this will be my sixth Cup race now.  I think the ‘wow’s’ are done.”
 
YOU DIDN’T THE FIRST TIME YOU RACED AGAINST HIM?
“No when I ran Charlotte I didn’t get that way.  I wasn’t more so ‘wow’ I’m lined up next to so and so, because I had raced with them a lot in the Nationwide Series, but the biggest thing I was excited about then was just that I’m here and in the Cup Series.  That was the biggest ‘wow’ moment for me then.”
 
WHAT HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST CHANGE FOR YOU?
“The biggest change for me so far, I mean there are a lot of big changes, but the one that sticks out to me the most is that all the racing I’ve done kind of growing up has been business, but has been relaxing as well.  So has this, but this is extremely, everybody on the team is extremely focused and professional.  It just seems to be really like a business more than anything.  That has been the biggest thing.  Once I get used to it, it’s all going to come easier.  It will be different and be back to feeling normal I think after I get used to things.”
 
DID YOU FIND ANYTHING AT ALL FROM COMPETING IN THE ROLEX 24 HOUR THAT WILL HELP YOU IN ANYWAY DURING THIS WEEK?
“Nothing they are really different race cars and I mean you are out there with different types of cars that are going 40 to 50 miles per hour slower than you.  You really can’t take anything from that race to help you for this one other than maybe just patience.  That would probably be the biggest thing from that.”
 
TALK ABOUT YOUR PARTICIPATING IN THIS MORNING’S FISHING TOURNAMENT:
“Yeah that was a lot of fun.  I enjoy fishing I just don’t go do it very often at all really.  The only time I do it or have done it was when I was living in Indiana a little bit.  Everybody has got a pond behind their house and we would fish in that.  This was a little bit different.  We didn’t catch very many fish, but still had a good time and it was for a good cause too.  Hopefully I can do it every year and get better at it.”
 
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
BUDWEISER DUEL NO. 2
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
FEBRUARY 20, 2014
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED SECOND
DESCRIBE THAT LAST LAP:
“Well it was a pretty calm race for the Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet team.  We were up in the top three most of the time.  It got pretty wild after the pit stop.  Me and Carl (Edwards) were having a heck of a drag race leaving pit road.  We got into a good position there and I just kept seeing everybody back up behind me trying to get that big run when the white flag came out.  I felt like we had a good shot at getting a good run as well.  They split up behind us and then it was just chaos to the end.  I made one run on the No. 41 and couldn’t quite clear him and then when we got off of (turn) four I got one more push and was able to get inside of him for a great second place finish.”
 
HOW DIFFICULT IS IT AS A RACE CAR DRIVER KNOWING THAT YOU HAVE TO SIT THERE AND BE PATIENT FOR SOMEBODY TO GO WITH YOU AND WORRY WHEN YOU DO THAT SOMEONE IS EVEN GOING TO GO?
“Yeah, it’s nerve racking.  Your heart is pounding for sure plus this is the car we want to race in the Daytona 500 so how aggressive do you want to be?  We are here to win it and we wanted to be aggressive and I feel like we were with our pit call, which was a great one.  Aggressive trying to get to pit road, aggressive in the moves we made, we just didn’t have a lot of opportunities there because we didn’t have the whole pack behind us the way we would have liked it to have been.  But hey that is Daytona racing and it was a lot of fun.  I think the fans are going to have a heck of a race for themselves on Sunday.”
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 41 HAAS AUTOMATION CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED THIRD
WILD FINISH IN THIS ONE.  DESCRIBE THE WAY THIS RACE WENT FOR YOU GUYS:
“I had a gift from Tony Stewart.  He raced his way in and that gave us the champions provisional, which meant we could go race our car and not have to worry about side-effects.  When somebody says the green light is on I want to go.  With Gene Haas thanks to him and all this Haas Automation crew it’s fun going to race at these restrictor plate races when you don’t have to worry about racing your way in.  I tried to put on a show.  Denny Hamlin was strong. He won the race off pit road.  Who would have known that would have been where the difference maker was.  With all four of our Chevy’s lined up I thought we could get a run on them.  The problem is when you are running there second place, third place the fifth and sixth place guys are developing their plan.  I blocked Jeff Gordon once coming off turn four.  I couldn’t block him twice otherwise I would have been in the wreck.  So I have to thank everybody that is involved with this Haas Automation team Chevrolet, Monster Energy, it is going good.”
 
PAUL MENARD, NO. 27 PEAK/MENARDS CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED FOURTH
TELL US ABOUT YOUR RACE TONIGHT AND ESPECIALLY THAT LAST LAP:
“Really good car all night.  It was our back-up car our primary (car) got wrecked yesterday, but everybody at RCR, the fab shop, body shop, ECR engines they build fast race cars as we have shown all Speedweeks.  All of our cars have been really quick.  It drove pretty good there.  We made quite a few changes actually, chassis changes, from last night to tonight.  Actually drove pretty decent, but I think there are a couple of things we can do to improve for the (Daytona) 500.  Just proud of everybody at RCR the Peaks/Menard Chevy was fast.”
 
WHAT DID YOU LEARN TONIGHT?
“That RCR builds fast plate cars. It was a back-up car, and it’s really good. We got a couple of laps in it yesterday. Wasn’t all that great I didn’t think in the draft. We changed a couple of things and it was really fast tonight. ECR motors. The RCR Peak/Menards Chevy was really fast. Just really looking forward to getting in the 500 and keeping this thing clean for 490 and go race like hell the last 10.”
 
BRIAN SCOTT, NO. 33 WHITETAIL CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED FIFTH
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON EARNING A SPOT IN THIS YEAR’S DAYTONA 500:
“Well you know I’m just really excited.  The first part of the race we were just riding fourth and I thought it would be great if the whole race will go this way.  I knew that pit stops would shake it up.  We kind of committed to the bottom and we got the outside groove to go around us and we fell to the back.  I knew it would get exciting there at the end.  I’m just proud that we were able to get the Whitetail Chevrolet back towards the front and finish fifth and get us a good starting spot in the Daytona 500.”
 
HOW DID YOU SEE THAT LAST LAP UNFOLD?
“Well I saw my teammate Paul (Menard) he went down to the bottom and Billy O’Dea my spotter has got a lot of experience.  He said ‘go with him, go with him’ so we went with him and it started jostling in front of us and we were just trying to get our run going.  Coming out of turn four I caught something just in my mirror it was like sparks and stuff.  I kind of looked up and I saw them all wrecking behind me.  Then I knew that our fate was sealed and that it was nice to have the good Lord looking down on us to keep us safe and to bring us to the start/finish line with relatively no damage.”
 
MARTIN TRUEX, JR., NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED EIGHTH
DESCRIBE THE LAST LAP FROM YOUR POINT OF VIEW:
“Cars spinning and crashing into the wall and nowhere to go.  I mean really that is all you can say about it.  It’s unfortunate obviously, last corner, last lap to have something like that happen.  It’s not the end of the world.  We’ve got a good back-up car and it doesn’t matter really where you start here.  It is what it is.  Guys will get to work on the back-up I guess tonight and get ready for Sunday.”

YOUR EMOTIONS RIGHT NOW HAVING HAD A FRONT ROW STARTING SPOT:
“It stinks for the guys who have worked so hard on that car, and have a great race car, only to have that happen on the last corner of the last lap. Somebody running out of gas is kind of like you never really think that can happen. It is what it is.  We’ll get our back-up out to race. It doesn’t matter where you start anyhow. We’ll be fine; I just hate it for the guys and got the front row starting spot. That was all their work, and it stinks that they can’t keep it. It is all good. Restrictor plate racing, it is what it is.  Unfortunately 90% of the time you get caught up in other people’s mistakes, and that’s what happened tonight. It happens. It’s part of the deal. We’ll just get ready to go racing on Sunday.”

DO YOU KNOW HOW YOUR BACKUP WILL BE?
“They say it is just as good. So I’m sure it will be fine. The car was good tonight. I was just kind of hanging out there. At the end, my brother got a lap down, somehow lost the draft and I got him in front of me, and I just pushed him the rest of the race to help and see if I could get him in. So my main concern right now is to figure out if he even made it. So I am going to go find out.”

JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 MCDONALD’S CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 11TH
WHAT HAPPENED?
“I wasn’t real sure. I had my hands full obviously trying to gather my car up. But I thought I saw a car flip and then when the wreck was all over and I came back on pit road, I didn’t see any cars that had appeared that they had flipped. So that was really lucky that Clint (Bowyer) was able to land on his feet.
 
HOW ARE YOU, PHYSICALLY? YOUR CAR IS OBVIOUSLY TORN UP:
“Yeah, our McDonald’s Chevy is torn up. We had a good car and I felt like we were in a good position in the end. I felt like I was far enough back that Jeff (Gordon) and Jimm
ie (Johnson) and those guys would make a move and maybe I could just try to suck back up to the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin). The No. 27 (Paul Menard) started the inside lane earlier than I think than what we wanted to. And then, once we got to Turns 3 and 4, I was content on just pushing Jimmie and I didn’t know what happened. I saw him just swerve to get out of the way and things happen so fast when you’re going that quick on the track. You make a decision and you just have to stick with it. I’m glad to hear that he was out of gas because I felt like I had caused that entire wreck. It’s frustrating. But we’re going to unload our Unlimited car that I thought was actually a little bit quicker than this car. So, we’ll unload that and get a little bit of practice in and put a fresh engine in it and look forward to the Daytona 500.”
 
ON THE FINISH:
“It was a wild finish When we got to Turns 3 and 4, we were just side-drafting each other. I was content on just pushing Jimmie to the start/finish line. I thought I could probably get a big run and maybe get to second and third. And then I guess he ran out of gas is what they’re saying. When he started getting out of the way I went to get underneath of him and when a car turns sideways in front of you, it takes so much air off of your car that you lose control and there’s just nothing you can do about it. And then obviously there’s a huge chain reaction and you’re just fighting to stay off the fence after that.”
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 16TH
YOU HAD YOUR HAND OUT THE WINDOW; DID YOU RUN OUT OF FUEL?
“I did, and I feel terrible. To tear up that many race cars; to see the No. 15 flip.  I feel terrible, and certainly want to apologize to everyone.  I tried to get up out of the way; I had my hand out of the side. But last lap coming to the checkered, there is so much going on right there. So much energy in the pack that I knew I was going to get run over if I ran out because guys warned me about it – and it did. Thankfully everyone is alright, and I certainly feel bad for the torn up race cars.”

ARE YOU OKAY AND WHAT HAPPENED?
“I’m fine.  I feel terrible all these cars that were caught up in that crash.  I ran out of gas, man at the most inopportune time right in front of everybody.  I feel terrible.  Thankfully it looks like everybody is okay, but a lot of great race cars were torn up. Clint (Bowyer) flipped over.  I just feel real bad about it.  Certainly glad everybody was alright.”
 
UP UNTIL THAT POINT WHAT WAS THE RACING LIKE?  DID YOU LEARN ANYTHING THAT IS GOING TO HELP YOU ON SUNDAY?
“You definitely learn out there.  Everybody seems to want to run that top lane.  I tried to race a little bit on the bottom and slip back.  Then just kind of settled in on the top and logged some laps.  I thought I was going to bring home a great race car and then all that happened off turn four.”
 
GREG ZIPADELLI, VICE PRESIDENT OF COMPETITION AT STEWART-HAAS RACING
 
ON THE NO. 4 CAR FAILING POST RACE INSPECTION:
“The track bar had more rake in it than allowed after the qualifying race. (John) Darby and them are up top; we’ll wait for them to come down and see what it is. I guess they’re telling us we’re starting at the rear. It’s one of those areas.  There’s a rule, it’s three inches. Everybody in the garage has adjusted their cars during the race and it’s never been an issue afterward. But I mean it’s a different deal here. We need to figure that stuff out on our side and make sure we don’t put ourselves in this position again.”
 
WHAT ADVANTAGE IS IT IF ANY?
“You can dictate the rear travel, the amount the car travels by the amount of rake you have in it. That’s kind of how we got on that rule; people were coming up with just ridiculous amounts of track bar rake and it was pulling the back of the car down so they came up with this rule and you can only have three inches of rake. It doesn’t matter where. You can have it way down on the bottom if you need rear grip, you just can’t have more than three inches.
 
“It went through (inspection) that way. They go down and check you every week. It just came back with more than it was supposed to have.
 
“For something that honestly as little as it was didn’t probably amount to anything other than changing the handling characteristics of the car. We needed a little bit of an adjustment during the race. So it’s disappointing because it knocks the wind out of your sails. You had a good car, had a great run, did a great job tonight. Just a little setback. But we’ll have a few of our cars back there, we’ll team up and haul ass to the front.”
 
           
POST RACE PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT WITH:
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 2ND
KURT BUSCH, NO. 41 HAAS AUTOMATION CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 3RD
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 7TH
LANDON CASSILL, NO. 40 HILLMAN RACING CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 9TH
 
KERRY THARP:  Let’s roll into our post race for our second qualifying Duel.  Our top finishing Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate, coming in seventh tonight, is Kyle Larson.
            Kyle, congratulations on a strong showing.  Your thoughts about lining up now for Sunday’s Daytona 500.
            KYLE LARSON:  Yeah, it was definitely a really exciting race from my viewpoint.  The beginning we were three wide there really early in the race.  We all got in line.  I was riding around there, just logging laps.  It looked like I think it was David Ragan got tight off four.  I rolled off the gas.  I don’t know if Jamie was to my rear bumper or not, but I got a little loose, had to correct it, lost the draft for a little bit, had to catch back up.
            There late in the race, wasn’t really trying to make anything happen on the bottom, but it was how it was kind of working out.  Coming off four was pretty scary.
            Glad to stay out of that wreck and come away with a seventh place finish, get a better starting spot for this Target car and try and get a good finish on Sunday.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Racing his way into the Daytona 500 is Landon Cassill.  We also have Jeff Gordon who came in second tonight.
            Landon, tell me about your excitement about racing your way into the Daytona 500.
            LANDON CASSILL:  I’ve been stressed out about this since July.  I think I’ve played this race over in my head, what I think it could do, for months now.
            The team, Hillman Racing, we came down for the test and felt like we had a decent car, but we didn’t have the motor that we were going to race.  They came back and made some serious investments in it.  For a small team, this race kind of makes our whole season, just the prize money alone to start on Sunday gets us through the next six or seven weeks.
            It’s just huge for us.  Carsforsale.com jumped onboard to help us out for this weekend.  We have a big deal we’re really working on, good people that we’re talking to, just this positive accomplishment is going to help tremendously.
            The team is just so pumped up.  I’m really proud of them.  M
ike Hillman and Joe Falk have put a ton of faith in me, probably too much.  I can’t appreciate it more.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Jeff Gordon, talk about this Duel here tonight.  A lot of drama on the last lap.  Talk about your outlook now for Sunday’s Daytona 500.
            JEFF GORDON:  It’s always interesting when you watch the first Duel.  Never fails, if that one is really exciting, then the second one can be a little more calm.  If the first one is calm, the second one can be more exciting.
            Looks like they were shaking it up a little bit more in the first one, guys trying to get the lead.  In our race we seemed to be content to wait till the end.
            I thought it was going to happen with three to go.  Looks like it didn’t materialize until one to go.
            I’m really happy with our racecar.  I think we snuck in there with a quiet, under the radar, very fast car that’s capable of winning this race.  I like it that way.  Let some of those other guys get all the attention and get that target on their back.  And hopefully we can just go along our week working hard to get in that perfect position on Sunday.
            But, no, I was trying to make something happen there at the end.  They just kept stacking up behind us, backing up the pace, trying to get some big runs.  I tried to back up to Jimmie.  I know he was backing up.  Guy behind him was backing up.
            Finally on the white flag lap, the 27 pulled out.  That’s what happens.  You stack it up like that, further back, guys are going to say, Hey, somebody has to make a move here.  He did.
            We had big runs, but never big enough runs to get to Denny.  I was happy to get that big run to get by Kurt to get to second.  You want to try to move forward to keep the momentum going, so that was a really good run for us.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Questions.
 
            Q.  Landon, with this race being so important for you, what is your strategy?  Is it to be safe and avoid what happened in the end?  What happened to your face?
            JEFF GORDON:  Did you really just ask that (laughter)?
            LANDON CASSILL:  I’ll answer your first question first.
            I think we kind of will celebrate, take a deep breath, then treat Sunday like a typical superspeedway race for a team like ours.  We have a speedway car that’s a pretty good car for our team and we’d like to take it to Talladega in one piece.
            It’s also important for us to get good points from Daytona to carry us once the 2013 points are no longer in effect, which I think is really only three races.
            We’d love to come out there and win the Daytona 500, but the priority is to bring it home in one piece.
            As far as my eye, I was riding my bicycle in Daytona on Saturday and got hit by a car.  It was pretty bad, but I’m all right now (smiling).
            JEFF GORDON:  Good question.
            LANDON CASSILL:  Thank you.  Any other questions?  NASCAR medical?  Everybody good?
 
            Q.  Did you go to the hospital?
            LANDON CASSILL:  Yeah.  Got checked out and released.  Got approved by NASCAR medical on Sunday before I qualified to race.
            It’s actually healed pretty well.  I’m really lucky.  Got some road rash on my arms and legs.  Inside of my knees were bruised up pretty badly.  But my face took most of the fall.  Just the chin.
            It’s okay, Jeff.  Your face is cool, man.  It’s all good.  Just sitting there with your face.
            JEFF GORDON:  I was riding my bike the week before I came down to Daytona and I was thinking about that, I could have gotten hit by a car.
            LANDON CASSILL:  I don’t know.  It’s dangerous.
 
            Q.  Whose fault was it?
            LANDON CASSILL:  Unfortunately, it was the motorist’s fault.  I mean I blame myself a lot for the position I put myself in.  I was in the bike lane and had the right of way.  It’s really not funny, I could have gotten really hurt.
            But, yeah, I was in a bike lane.  The woman was trying to cross the road from a side street and cleared herself to the right, kind of rolled the stop sign, I believe, T boned me really.  Destroyed my bike.  Face plant, blood.  But I made the Daytona 500 and she doesn’t know that.
 
 
            Q.  Jeff, based on what you’ve seen, the Gibbs cars are three for three.  Have you got anything for them or are they clearly the prohibitive favorites for Sunday?
            JEFF GORDON:  If you’re going to pick a favorite, I would consider them the favorites.  They’re very fast.  They won both races today.  They won the Unlimited.
            I don’t know if that means anything, but I would definitely say they’re very quick and very capable of winning this race, along with 42 other guys (smiling).
 
            KERRY THARP:  Finishing third tonight is Kurt Busch.
            Congratulations on the performance here tonight with a new race team.  I heard you on the television talking about the excitement of starting now the Daytona 500 for this new race team.
            KURT BUSCH:  What a fantastic night for the Haas Automation Chevy.  Thanks to Gene Haas for giving me this shot.  Building a team over the off season with Daniel Knost, it’s been a great progression.  To deliver on our first night a top five finish, that’s solid.
            I got to race my way tonight, and that was due to Tony Stewart locking himself into the Daytona 500 the first race.  That meant we had the champion’s provisional on the 41 car if we needed it.  I was able to hammer down and race to the front.
            It was solid execution, though, on Daniel’s part, the crew chief, with our pit strategy, the dra
ft playing into our hands, except for just that last lap.  I wish I would have had a shot to win.  Had Jeff Gordon and a Chevrolet behind me, Jimmie Johnson there, McMurray.  When those fifth and sixth place guys get dicey, you haven’t made a move yet, it’s going to be tough to generate enough speed to clear the leader.
            Coming off turn four, I had to block Jeff Gordon high.  If I had to block him low, I would have been involved in the wreck as well.  I took the approach of let’s protect our car at that last moment and it brought home as many Chevys as we could in that top five.
            It’s a great start for us.  Thanks to Gene Haas and Tony Stewart.  Away we go.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Questions.
 
            Q.  Now that you’ve been with the team for a little bit, has the experience been what you’ve hoped so far?  Does anybody have anything for the Gibbs Toyotas that look so strong?
            KURT BUSCH:  You know, it’s been everything I would have hoped it to be.  It’s a first class organization that’s built on a championship foundation with Tony Stewart’s name, with Gene Haas, the partnership there is as solid as it’s ever been.
            The four cars that we brought to Daytona didn’t qualify where we wanted to, now it’s time to race.  This is where you roll your sleeves up.  This is when the communication really starts clicking within the team.  So you lean on the crew chief, Daniel Knost, the lead engineer Wes, then it goes right on down the train.
            It was great to execute tonight flawlessly and bring home a top five finish, put that checkmark next to the 41’s number to say, Hey, we’re in the great American race in style, we’re prepared and ready to do this.
            Those Gibbs guys, they’re strong.  I’ve been coming down here 15 years.  You see cars qualifying really well and some of them don’t race well.  Then you see guys that don’t qualify well and they race really well.  I’m starting to draw some conclusions.  I’m not the smartest guy, maybe it’s taken me way longer to figure this out than most, the Gibbs cars, those Toyotas, don’t throw in all that snake oil and magic for qualifying.
            If you’re 18th on your own, like Matt Kenseth was on his own, Denny Hamlin was 23rd, that’s pretty strong when you’re going with basically your package you’re going to race with.  So now it’s shown up three times.  Denny Hamlin has two wins, Kenseth has a win, those Gibbs guys are on their game.
 
            Q.  You’re not going to have help early in the race from your teammates because they start in the back.
            KURT BUSCH:  What did Harvick do?
 
            Q.  His car failed inspection.
            KURT BUSCH:  That’s not good.  Maybe there was a 12 pack in the trunk.
 
            Q.  That was almost the way he said it, too.
            KERRY THARP:  Track bar over three inches.
 
            Q.  So you’re going to have to make new friends.
            KURT BUSCH:  For us, Gene Haas came over and patted the hood of the car.  It was his name on the hood of the car.  It says Haas Automation, and the car doesn’t have a scratch on it.  I’ve never seen a guy that doesn’t say much show so much with that one genuine pat of the hood on his car, in the top 10 in the Daytona 500.
            It’s our best bullet on the 41 car.  It’s his pride.  It’s his Haas Automation company with the Chevy emblem and with Monster Energy onboard.  It’s what we all want on the 41.
            We’ll race from there.  I know the Stewart Haas teammates will show up.  It’s a long 500 miles.  You have pit road, you have drafting mistakes.  There are plenty of things that will mix up the field.  We’re proud to be up front in the great American race.
 
            Q.  What do you perceive is the major difference in the feel of this year’s car with the tweaking versus a year ago?  I know you were in a Chevy, but a different Chevy last year.
            KURT BUSCH:  It just seems like everybody has more things ‘scienced’ out.  There’s more speed in the cars.
            What I’ve noticed is maybe we’ve gotten so aggressive with trying to find speed that teams are starting to sacrifice stability.  When you sacrifice stability that means your cars are wandering around a little bit more.  We’ve seen some wrecks on the tri oval.  The tri oval is a corner; it’s not a straightaway.  The car is not as loaded in the tri oval as it is in the banking on turns one and two, three and four.  The car skates on the looser side or the unstable side through the tri oval.
            It’s now starting to get to the point where you got to make sure you put some comfort back in the car and not necessarily go for that raw speed.
            But it’s not like years past where the asphalt was old, it was about handling.  It’s still about raw speed, but the cars are wandering around a little bit more.
 
            Q.  Is the skating around more the 18 degrees versus the 31 degrees where you have more to grip?
            KURT BUSCH:  Yeah, you’re right.  The corners are 31 degrees of banking and it holds the car better.  The tri oval is 18, therefore it slides around a little bit more through that corner.
            KERRY THARP:  Kurt, congratulations and good luck on Sunday.
            KURT BUSCH:  Thank you.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
BUDWEISER DUEL NO. 1
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
FEBRUARY 20, 2014
 
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 4 BUDWEISER CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED SECOND, BUT WILL START AT THE REAR OF THE DAYTONA 500 DUE TO FAILING POST RACE INSPECTION
TAKE US THROUGH THE LAST LAP, SPECIFICALLY TURNS THREE AND FOUR TO THE START/FINISH LINE:
“Well I was prepared to go with a couple of laps to go it just depended on when they group really started getting antsy and getting tightened up as much as they could to get that run that you needed.  I had to just go whenever I thought that run was going to be the biggest.  We waited a lot longer.  Everybody I guess was waiting for me to go and then we went.  The way it all timed out we just went a little too late.  I was able to side-draft and not clear him and I knew the side-draft was going to come back and just a matter of when I got back to him it was just too late for me to get back by him.”
 
DID YOU DO THAT IMPRESSIVE SIDE-DRAFTING MOVE TOO EARLY? OR, WAS IT ABOUT THE RIGHT TIME?
“Well, the first thing I would say is thank you to Budweiser and Jimmy Johns, Outback, and everybody on these guys. And I can’t tell you how bad I want to win a race with these guys early, just to repay them for all the hard work and effort that everybody at SHR has put in. But I knew I had to go when I had the momentum. So whoever those guys got to me, I knew had to pull out, whether it was two laps or one lap. When they were jammed up the tightest, is when we had to pull out. So, I pulled out. And I thought that I’d gotten under him soon enough to where he could get back to me and kind of do like we do a long time ago in the Daytona 500 but just the timing of the side-draft was off just a little bit. And then we about both lost it because when I went up to chase him, I noticed the No. 5 (Kasey Kahne) come to the bottom. But what a great way to start Speedweeks. We’ve had two solid races and we’ve just got to keep doing what we’re doing and everybody on this Budweiser team and give ourselves a chance to finish the race on Sunday and hopefully we’re in the same spot.”
 
 
EXPLAIN WHAT THE SIDE-DRAFT DOES AND WHAT IT FEELS LIKE IN THE CAR:
“It’s like putting the brakes on, exactly like putting the brakes on.  When you go to go by a car basically the front air off the car that you are passing packs up against your rear spoiler and just slows the car down.  It’s very effective with this package and made for an exciting finish tonight.”
 
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 FARMERS INSURANCE CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED THIRD
THIRD-PLACE FINISH, BUT ONLY BY A FENDER SO YOU HAVE TO BE PLEASED WITH THE WAY THE CAR PERFORMED TONIGHT:
“Yeah, I was really happy with our Farmers Insurance Chevy.  We had speed from the start of the race.  I kind of screwed up and went to the back there at the start.  I didn’t realize everybody was going to get single file, but we caught back up through there pretty quick and had a great run.  We were really close.  Tried to stick with Kevin (Harvick) there and Dale (Earnhardt, Jr.) was behind us and we just about got it.  It was close, it was exciting.”
 
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE NIGHT?
“I thought it was pretty good. I was really happy with my Farmers Insurance Chevrolet. I went to the middle early and dropped to the back and then we drove back through the middle there and got back to the front. So we had a strong car. When do you go when do you get the run and if you can get to the front. Matt (Kenseth) did a good job of being able to hold us off. Kevin (Harvick) was right there as well and Dale (Earnhardt Jr.). So, I had a good time.”
 
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED FIFTH
WAS THIS RACE ABOUT LEARNING AS MUCH AS IT WAS ABOUT WINNING?
“Well we found out we’ve got a real good race car.  We slid the left-front tire and got real tight that last run.  So I’m not sure if we need to work on the balance or whether it was just that flat spotted tire.  Real happy with the way my car drove.  Sat there all the way until the end to make a move and you know that is what we are doing.  We are all waiting to make a move and I went to make a move and nobody got on the elevator with me.”
 
A LOT OF YOUR FANS WERE CONCERNED IF THAT TIRE, WHICH WAS FLAT-SPOTTED, WOULD LAST. BUT FOR YOU, THE MOST DIFFICULT DECISION WAS ANTICIPATING WHEN EVERYBODY WAS GOING TO MAKE THEIR MOVE
“Yeah, knowing when to be at the top with everybody and then knowing when the bottom was coming.  And just trying to make that decision and we made some good ones tonight. We slid the left front tire coming onto pit road but that held up and we were able to make some spots up there at the end. We had a little trouble fueling the car, but this National Guard Chevrolet is real fast and I’m happy to be able to find that out tonight and load it up and deliver it to the starting grid on Sunday. That’ll be good.”
 
AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO.47 KROGER/USO CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED EIGHTH:
ON LOCKING INTO THE DAYTONA 500:
“It was really good. We were right on the edge, if we didn’t get in the top-15, whether we make the race, so we kind of had to be smart.  I haven’t done a lot of drafting in these cars since I only had one race in this thing last year. More learning trying to watch the really good guys – (Matt) Kenseth, (Kevin) Harvick – really. How they moved around (Dale Earnhardt) Junior and all that. I felt like I learned a lot. Had to play it a little safe at the end. I felt like I gave a couple spots up, could have got aggressive. Overall we have a pretty fast race car. I think we work on a couple of little things. But, we are in the show, and I think we have a good shot on it.”
 
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 31 CATERPILLAR CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 10TH
ON HIS RACE:
“The outside lane won the race.  The outside lane won the start of the race and the outside lane won the end of the race.  Like I say my race isn’t until Sunday and we will see how we do then.”
 
DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO BE IN THE OUTSIDE LANE TO WIN THE RACE?
“Who knows you get 43 cars out there on a restart and you never know what is going to happen.  We will see.  The guys had a good pit stop, feel confident.  We were a little short on raw speed that time it felt like for the first time.  Just need to have a little look at that.”
 
TONY STEWART, NO. 14 BASS PRO SHOPS/MOBIL 1 CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 11TH
ROUGH WEEKEND, BUT A PRETTY GOOD NIGHT:
“Yeah the good thing is I’m pretty certain that the No. 41 (Kurt Busch) is in now because we are in.  It’s nice getting all four cars in and not having to worry about it half way through the qualifying races.  We at least know we are going to have all four in.”
 
GOT A BIG THANK YOU FROM GENE (HAAS):
“Yeah, I mean that is what it’s all about.  It’s hard to get four cars in, especially when you’ve got to race a couple of them in.  Just to get through one qualifying race and know that you are going to have all four cars in that is a comforting feeling.”
 
HOW WAS THE RACING COMPARED TO WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT? 
“I think it is just how many guys get on the bottom.  I mean everybody gets on the top and then they start having to lift.  As soon as they have to start checking up then the guys that can hold it wide open and go around the bottom can make time, it’s just a matter of who wants to be the first one to start it.  We were kind of in a position there where we didn’t want to take any chances and we were where we needed to be at the beginning anyway.  So, no need to get in a hurry.  We just stayed in line up there and rode around with the guys we were with there for a while and let it shake out.”
 
IS THE BOTTOM LANE GOI
NG TO HAVE TO DEVELOP FROM THE GUYS IN THE BACK?
“Whoever the strong cars are if they, Matt (Kenseth) is a strong car so he gets on the bottom he is going to get takers to go with him and they are going to make ground.  It’s not saying it can’t happen, but you are going to have to have a strong car leading it to do it.”
 
DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 14TH
ON LOCKING INTO THE DAYTONA 500:
“I think every time there is a chance that something could happen, then you worry that it could happen. From a couple of days ago, it was really more the mentality ‘Let’s just go out and race’ and ‘Let’s just see if we can make something happen. Let’s see what happens when we try various different things. That is kind of what I did out there.  I kind of keep getting the same results when I try things as in like when I try this, this happens. When I try that, that happens. That’s all good information for Sunday to be honest.””
 
IS IT GOING TO BE POSSIBLE TO DRAFT UP FROM THE BACK?
“It could be challenging, but I think if you get a few people behind you, I think it will be fine.   I know my pit crew is really good, so I know when it comes to pit stops; they’ll help get cars behind me.  They are awesome.   In know that (Tony) Gibson will try strategy to get me track position. With those two things, we’ll get in the thick of it. From there it will be a matter of using those things that I have learned over the last week, and put them to good use.”
 
AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 19TH
ON THE RACE:
“I wanted to know that we had something I can move around with in the race. And, now we get to have some fun. Man, that car is super-fast. I think we could get to the draft from anywhere we wanted to.”
 
YOU LED A LOT OF LAPS. THEN, DID YOU DECIDE TO DROP BACK TO BE SAFE?
“Yeah, we ran on the outside there for a while. As soon as we got kind of going backwards and three-wide or whatever I said all right, now it’s time to go back there and play the patient game. It’s no fun, but we get to start on the pole for the Daytona 500 with a really fast car.”
 
WHAT’S YOUR PLAN FOR THE DAYTONA 500? IS IT TO RUN IN THE BACK AND BE SMART AND MAKE IT TO THE END? OR UP FRONT AND STAY OUT OF TROUBLE?
“I like leading laps. I like being up front. We’ll see what we can do. If it gets hairy; the only thing is trying to get to the back you can get yourself wrecked, too. So, we’ll work hard and see where we end up.”
 
AS A ROOKIE, DID YOU HAVE ANY ISSUES ABOUT GUYS NOT WANTING TO WORK WITH YOU?
“They were working with me well. It was good. I knew I had a chance to get in front of (Dale Earnhardt) Junior at one point and I didn’t want to take that chance that early. We already led laps. We wanted to lead some laps. It was a good day for us.”
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 4 BUDWEISER CHEVROLET SS, FINISHED 2ND, BUT WILL START AT THE REAR OF THE DAYTONA 500 DUE TO FAILING POST RACE INSPECTION
 
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 FARMERS INSURANCE CHEVROLET SS, FINISHED 3RD
 
KERRY THARP:  Let’s roll into our post-race for tonight’s first Budweiser Duel at Daytona, the first qualifying race for Sunday’s 56th running of the Daytona 500.  Our race runner up is Kevin Harvick.
            Kevin, you said you were doing almost really good, but you have to feel good about this racecar as I know you’re trying to get that second Daytona 500 win under your belt.
            KEVIN HARVICK:  Yeah, just I want to win bad for everybody at SHR, on the new team.  It was really close tonight.  Obviously we’ve won some races that close, we’ve lost some races that close.
            We’ve had two good races.  Our cars have been fast.  We’ve been able to run up front and lead some laps and do the things we need to do.
            On Sunday we just need to do the same thing and keep it rolling for 500 miles.  I think when you get more cars in the pack, it’s going to be a little more intense than what it was tonight.  It was obviously a great finish.  But I just had to go whenever the pack bunched up and decided to make a move like that.  We made it just a touch too late to be able to get the last side draft by Matt there at the end.  So it was a good race.
 
            KERRY THARP:  We’ll take questions now for Kevin.
 
            Q.  Kevin, was conservative driving more a function of less cars or also a function of you guys didn’t want to bust anything up in this race because Sunday is the most important one?
            KEVIN HARVICK:  I think we’ve all done a pretty good job at tearing a few things up along the way so far.  I think everybody was a little bit conservative.  I think obviously there was only 18 cars in the Unlimited and we tore the whole field up.
            I think everybody wanted to do what they had to do to get the best finish that they could.  Obviously those of us running up front tried to win the race.  It just didn’t time out exactly perfect.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Our third place finisher has joined us, that’s Kasey Kahne.
            Let’s hear first from Kasey.
            KASEY KAHNE:  I had a really good Farmers Insurance Chevy.  Was happy with it throughout the race.  Was right behind Kevin, trying to get a run.  We got one right there at the end.  Came close to getting by Matt.
            It was a great finish.  I was able to move around all over the racetrack depending on when people wanted to race.  If people wanted to race, I thought our car was really strong.  That’s really about it.
 
            Q.  Based on what we’ve seen so far with this, think we’ll have a good package to race in the 500?
            KEVIN HARVICK:  We just had a three wide finish for the win.  I guess if you guys don’t like that, we’ll have to try something different (smiling).
            Yeah, I mean, I think when everybody gets antsy and wants to go, you can group up and go.
            KASEY KAHNE:  Absolutely.  If the guys want to race, then the cars suck up quicker.  A bit more of a handful than what they were last year.  I felt like, too, in the pack.
            It will be exciting and a lot going on when people do want to race.
            But 500 miles, you’re probably not going to run three wide all 500, I wouldn’t expect.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Congratulations for putting on a heck of a show.  We look forward to Sunday.
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
DAYTONA SPEEDWEEKS
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 20, 2014
 
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO.88 NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway and discussed past success at restrictor plate races, side-drafting, his expectations for the Daytona 500, and more. Full transcript:
 
TALK ABOUT YOUR OUTLOOK AND HOW THINGS ARE SHAPING UP FOR THE TEAM:
“We have a good car. This car has a ton of preparation and time put into it compared to even the backup car. Hopefully we can get through qualifying race without any problems and get through the rest of the practices so we can deliver this car to the starting grid on Sunday because I think it gives us the best opportunity to win the Daytona 500.   So just sort of going through the processes this week, trying to learn what we need to learn and trying to find what we can out of the car for additional speed.  We were able to do a little bit of that yesterday in practice and in the evening.  But otherwise, it’s been pretty uneventful.”
 
THE RESULTS OF WHAT WE SAW YESTERDAY IN PRACTICE, WAS THAT THE RESULT OF SIDE DRAFTING AND WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS?
“I wasn’t out there in the accidents that we had.  Obviously I think Cole (Whitt) cut a tire on something that came off of another car and that created the first accident.  The second accident was just a product of the side draft and these cars getting stuck beside each other a whole lot easier than anything we have ever driven down here, ever since I have been driving down here.  Whether it’s the fenders being flared and the wheel wells not sealing up to the tires, but there is something going on with these cars.   We had it last year and we first noticed it last year when we raced them at the plate tracks where they kind of get stuck beside each other.
 
“You just have to sit there beside someone until someone pushes you by and when everybody kind of gets jammed up behind a couple of guys that are stuck beside each other, you have what we had in the second accident.  Just about 12 cars packed up really tightly behind a couple of guys that are sitting there drafting side-by-side without any help and a couple guys were trying to get out of the draft.   I think Parker Kligerman said he was trying to get out of the draft, and a couple of guys are trying to get in the draft with the 5 and the 27.  So it’s just a challenge in practice and you have cars pulling out of the pack and you have cars blending into the pack and it makes things a little bit challenging sometimes.”
 
WITH YOUR RECENT SUCCESS HERE AT DAYTONA DO YOU FEEL FRUSTRATED THAT YOU HAVE HAD SUCH A LONG DROUGHT SINCE YOUR LAST PLATE WIN?
“I don’t have time to do that honestly, and I have run second in three of the last four Daytona 500s.  Neither one of them were a win, but that is nothing to be ashamed of.  I still feel like that we run well enough at these tracks for me to continue to come into them with confidence, and just in myself regardless of the car.
 
“I still feel like I do restrictor place race well, understand how the draft works rather well, and enjoy racing at
them.  You know, I hope that is always the case.  It’s a different challenge every time you come back and that makes it enjoyable.   The packages may change and maybe the package doesn’t change, but the dynamic weather and this track surface always changes, so the way you draft is always different no matter what.”
 
WITH PACK RACING AND THE ACTION IN PRACTICE YESTERDAY, IS THAT A PREDICTOR OF A WILD RACE ON SUNDAY?
“I hope not.  I think that the qualifying races have me a little nervous because they are at night and just running at night is going to be unique and new for everybody.   You just hope everybody realizes that we have got the Daytona 500 to run on Sunday and this isn’t for all the marbles yet.
 
“So as much fun as it is to run and win a qualifying race and set the tone for your team, you definitely want to go out and try to win those races for your team, but you don’t want to be pulling out a back-up for the 500 if you don’t have to.  You definitely want to start your primary car because of the preparation, time, and development put into the primary car is vastly superior to the back-up.  It gives you the best opportunity to win on Sunday.
 
“I think just saying 500 miles changes everybody’s demeanor, and everybody’s approach to that race.  Those wrecks in practice definitely surprised me and surprised a lot of people and I hope it’s just a product of a lot of cars just trying to get out of the draft, cars blending in, and cars put in a bad position that they could not get out of.
 
“I think definitely this package and the way it drafts is bringing things a lot closer together and making things where guys are racing double file more often.  That is good and we need that and we definitely didn’t race enough in the Daytona 500 last year….you couldn’t race because you would just go to the back and couldn’t risk pulling out because you just didn’t know and going to the rear was a likely result. So we really won’t have that this year and won’t have to worry about that because the bottom seems to be able to put together runs and that is going to make for a better race.  
 
“We have been able to race side-by-side here forever and I think we can do it Sunday without any trouble and put on a great show.”
 
IT SEEMS LIKE YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO ADAPT AT THESE PLATE TRACKS WHEN THEY CHANGE THE RULES.  DO YOU FEEL THAT GIVES YOU AN ADVANTAGE ON SUNDAY?
“I definitely try to keep an open mind and try to understand how the packages and the changes, whether it be a little bit of spoiler or opening up the plate or closing the plate up, and how that does change the draft and the way you get runs and the way the car is going to react to runs. And so you sort of pre-determine and pre-estimate what’s going to happen out there as you’re driving around the track. I feel like I do that well. And I feel like that’s been a part of my success at these places. Just trying to finish off the job has been a little bit difficult in the last several years, but we’ve still had some good runs and have been able to maintain our good track position throughout the races. When we’ve gotten good cars, we’ve been able to put them toward the front.
 
“You just have to have an open mind. What you learn when you first start racing at these tracks is important, but how it works is always changing and you’ve got to be ready for that. You can’t expect it to react at the exact same time every time you come back here. And how the car’s side-draft; they side-draft, for lack of a better word, they are a little more frustrating to side-draft with now. You used to use a side-draft as an offensive move, where you would get up on the guy’s quarter panel and stall him out and it would give you a boost and you’d pull away like jumping a boat wake and get out away from him so he could not do the same thing to you and you would make a pass. That was how we used to use that with success. But now, there’s an extreme stall when you side-draft a guy and it really kills his car. But before you can get out and get away from him, it starts to kill your car and you sort of sit there and just fight on each other’s quarter panels until somebody tucks-in behind one of you and pushes you through. So that’s more frustrating. You’d rather just make the move on your own and move on to the next guy. But you’ve got to be open to those things changing. And when the do change, recognize it and understand it.”
 
IS THERE ANY MORE CONCERN AMONG THE DRIVERS WHEN YOU SEE CARS GETTING UP IN THE FENCE? DOES THAT INCREASE THE AWARENESS?
“It doesn’t.
We’ve seen accidents, bad accidents; but as a driver, we’ve seen that in the history of the sport for as long as I can remember and before my time. But as a driver, your gut feeling to your core is that you’re as safe as you’re ever going to be in that car. And that you worry about driving your race and doing what you need to do and you’re not going to be in that situation. So, I feel like there is still a lot to be learned as far as how to protect the spectators and how to do some things with the catch fence that can prevent things from going into the stands. And I think that NASCAR understands that and we’re obviously always learning and trying to learn and trying to improve.
 
“Unfortunately, those types of accidents give us some of the best knowledge that we can get to improve that situation. But as a driver, you don’t worry about that. When you see that happen, that’s just man, that’s unfortunate for that gut. And that’s a rare occurrence and that’s not going to happen to me. So, that’s how I feel about it.”
 
HAVE YOU NOTICED A DIFFERENT VISION PERSPECTIVE IN THIS CAR VERSUS PREVIOUS CARS?
“I don’t feel like I am struggling to see, or struggling to understand where cars are around me more than any other time down here.  I don’t feel like these cars are any different than the C.O.T. or even the generation before that.  There is nothing about the A-post, or the B-post or the C-post that really annoys me as far as being able to see out of the car.  I am pretty satisfied with my vision out the front and out the back of the car, and what my spotter is telling me.  The thing about it is that one of the things I hear from people who watch these races, and that I see myself and my spotter sees is a car will get a run out of nowhere almost seemingly. We’ll be running along in the pack, and somebody in the middle of the pack will just find something draft-related that will just shoot their car up into a hole.  You always could pre-determine what lane was going to move; how they were forming; how close they were together and you could almost pre-determine where you needed to be by seeing how people were lined up around you.
 
“But with this car, and the way we sort of get stuck side-by-side in the side draft, guys are sort of finding big gaps of air, and their cars and just getting theses boosts out of nowhere and they’ll come running up on you. The other day in the Unlimited, I never knew the No. 9 (Marcos Ambrose) was on the outside of me or trying to go to the outside of me. I wasn’t really paying attention n to him because I didn’t think that him pushing me was keeping his car connected to mine. I didn’t think he had enough power to push me, and then pull out and go around me.
 
“That just isn’t something you really see that often. You can underestimate the runs these guys are getting around you, and you’ll be three-wide more often than you know. I think there were definitely three-wide in that second accident in practice, and I think that a lot of those guys didn’t know they were three-wide because it was inches just the way these cars are getting runs. But I can see fine out of my car. I’m not concerned with the vision at all.”
 
IT SEEMS YOUR DRIVER CHASE ELLIOTT TAKES A LOT OF FLACK FROM OTHER DRIVERS IF SOMETHING HAPPENS ON-TRACK.  WHAT IS IT ABOUT IN YOUR OPINION AND DID YOU HAVE PROBLEMS LIKE THAT EARLY IN YOUR CAREER?
“I think Chase is going to be under a microscope a little bit because of his last name because of the expectations put upon him and because of his alignment with Mr. (Rick Hendrick), and maybe even with his alignment with us.  He’s going to have a lot of expectations.  Take for example the ARCA race where he had something to do with that accident. The guy that spun out – everything him had some influence on him losing control of his car. Chase had no intention of spinning the guy out.  I don’t think he even thinks he did it.
 
“And maybe you could argue that he didn’t spin the guy out. But just the way the air works, that guy got tight and put a lot of wheel of wheel in his car and Chase was right up on him. If he didn’t hit him, he was an inch off of him, and that’s all it took. I’ve done the same thing. I came down here, I can’t remember, I think it was the second 300 that I came to. Maybe It was the July race, we were out there practicing and was running down the front straightaway drafting with Jeff Burton, Dick Trickle and a couple of other people. Michael Waltrip pulled out on the track and he was blending up on the track, and I had a run on somebody and pulled out to make a pass. I was basically going three wide in the middle. Michael was about 50 mile-an-hour slower than we were. Just going by Michael that fast blew my car up into the guy beside me, and we all wrecked; about 10 cars in practice.  Jeff Burton and Dick Trickle were both in my garage in 10 minutes trying to chew my butt.
 
“Those things are going to happen to every driver that comes into this sport. And, more importantly, I think it happens more often with guys like myself, or Chase number one, because they are angry. But number two; they expect more out of you.  They expect you to know better than to do that because you are Bill Elliott’s son, or you are Dale Earnhardt’s son and you’ve been around this forever and you ought to know better. And they want you to know better.  As much they were there to chew my butt, they were there to help me to understand to not make that mistake again. If I am going to get it, and going to make it, you have to learn not to make that mistake again.   So, that is going to be part of the process for Chase, and part of the growing pains, but he is such a quick study, and he handles those situations just really well.  He said ‘Hey, I might of done it; I don’t know if I did it.’ He’s sitting there in the car under caution with a pretty level head about the situation, which I felt pretty good about. He doesn’t get excited. He doesn’t bad mouth; he doesn’t point fingers and say ‘It’s that guy’s fault’ or ‘It wasn’t my fault’. He just has a real level head and open mind about things, and I like that about him.  I think that is going to benefit him as he is going through these growing pains, and trying to process everything happening to him.”
 
HAS YOUR APPRECIATION CHANGED FOR THE DIFFICULTY OF WINNING A PLACE RACE WITH THE LONG GAP SINCE YOUR LAST WIN?
“Those were different cars. Those cars were pretty amazing that I was driving back then. I will be honest. Those cars should have won. Those were pretty fast cars. I can’t as much credit as I would like for how good those cars were back then, and how we had ourselves separated from the competition I think.  Under the current rule package, and strict guidelines with the rear shocks and springs; really there is no area that the teams are able to work in to set themselves apart from anybody. So everybody pretty much has the same car these days. It is a lot harder to win these races and rightfully so. I definitely appreciate the challenge we have today. But if it were the same playing field, I would be asking myself a lot of questions. But it has changed so much since then. At least that is my story.”
 
YOU HAVE BEEN SECOND IN THREE OF THE LAST FOUR DAYTONA 500S. IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN TAKE FROM THOSE BECAUSE THE CARS KEEP CHANGING?
“You are always trying to learn, and every time I go out on the track, I want to be around a pack of cars that I can learn from every time we practice.  Every time we practice this week, I want to go out there and try to learn my car.  Maybe we’ve changed something that makes my car do something it couldn’t do. Maybe it does something better or worse that I need to pinpoint. So I am eager every time we get an opportunity to go on the track to do that.  As far as trying to win  one of these races, or not
run second again, I think we need to be up front.  We’re not far enough toward the front.  When we’ve run second; we’ve come from third, or fourth, or fifth, or sixth I those last few laps.  You are not going to win the race from back there. You might run second, but you aren’t going to win.  You need to be leading the race. I would much rather be leading the race tonight, and the Daytona 500 inside of five laps to go than be anywhere else.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
DAYTONA SPEEDWEEKS PRACTICE
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER NOTES & QUOTES
FEBRUARY 19, 2014
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS  – AVOIDED CRASH DURING FIRST PRACTICE SESSION, BUT A PIECE OF DEBRIS, A COWL FLAP, WAS STUCK IN THE HOOD
 
YOU HAVE BEEN AROUND A LONG TIME. HAVE YOU EVER HAD SOMETHING LIKE THAT HAPPEN TO YOUR RACE CAR?
“I can’t say that I have. The whole thing happened so quick. I haven’t even made half a lap. The field had just gone by me. I actually, as the field was going by me, I came on the radio and I said, ‘Alan (Gustafson), do we want to be in the middle of this because it looks like a debris big mess’. I’m not exactly sure what happened in front of me; I think it the No. 26 (Cole Whitt) or somebody had gotten into the wall. And it looked the No. 55 (Brian Vickers) moved down to avoid him and came across the nose of the No. 13 (Casey Mears) or somebody. But yeah, I just tried to avoid them and this (points to a cowl flap) got stuck in my hood. I thought I was in pretty good shape until I saw that. That’s a bummer. So, our Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet is a little damaged right now. We’ll fix that damage and I don’t know if we’re going to come back out after this (laughs).”
 
CASEY MEARS, NO. 13 GEICO CHEVROLET SS – INVOLVED IN AN ON-TRACK INCIDENT IN PRACTICE
WHAT DID YOU SEE OUT THERE?
“I was just kind of cruising through the middle and the No. 55 turned down.  After looking at the replay it looked like the No. 26 got into the fence and he (the No. 55) was just pulling down to avoid him.  These things happen.  This is definitely one of those tracks you kind of expect these things to happen.  As bad as it is and as much as we don’t want to get involved in something like this you also expect it.  It’s not good for the GEICO Chevy, but at the same time these guys will get it fixed up.  It seemed like it had pretty good speed in the draft so I like the way it drove.  Got to work on it to get it to turn a little bit better, but other than that we are good.”

WHAT DID YOUR CREW CHIEF BOOTIE BARKER SAY ABOUT THE DAMAGE?
“They are obviously going to try to repair it where this car is probably going to be useful.  That is a good thing it wasn’t bad enough where we have to pull out a back-up.  Not the work that we wanted to do.  I don’t think we will get in the second practice because they are going to have to take their time to repair it right.  But hopefully we will be good for the 150’s.” 
 
PAUL MENARD, NO. 27 PEAK/MENARDS CHEVROLET SS – INVOLVED IN MULTI-CAR PRACTICE CRASH
WHAT HAPPENED OUT THERE?
“What I saw in the car was just the front half of the No. 20 car getting kind of squirley like somebody ran into the back of him to try and bump draft.  Turns out Joey (Logano) was bump drafting the No. 20 in the middle of the pack when we were trying to get up to speed.  I guess that is the end result.  Fortunately Parker (Kligerman) is okay and nobody in the stands got hurt.  It could have been a lot worse.”

WHAT WAS IT LIKE OUT THERE WITH THE SIDE DRAFTING? 
“I literally just got up to speed and the side draft is huge on these cars with this new style of car.  We knew that coming in, but we were just three wide.  I’m pretty sure the No. 20 got hit by somebody and the next thing I know I’m sideways.”

THOUGHTS GOING INTO THE DUEL AFTER THIS HAPPENED?
“We had a really fast Chevrolet as you saw all the RCR cars have been extremely fast this week.  Our back-up car is pretty good too.  It comes out of the same shop obviously, so it’s not as good as our primary because it’s our back-up, but sometimes a slower car drives a little bit better too.  We will see.  I have no reservations about the 150’s.  We will try to race our hardest to get the best starting position we can and if we crash, which is 50/50 shot at these places we crash and we will try to get another car out of the shop.”