RYAN NEWMAN, 2014 DRIVER OF THE NO. 31 CHEVROLET SS AT RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING AND TORREY GALIDA CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER FOR RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING, WERE THE GUESTS ON THIS WEEK’S NASCAR TELECONFERENCE.
 
BELOW IS THE TRANSCRIPT:
 
 
THE MODERATOR:  Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to today’s NASCAR teleconference.  We are joined by Ryan Newman, who will drive the No. 31 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing starting in 2014.  Also joining us is the Chief Operating Officer of Richard Childress Racing, Torrey Galida.
 
 
Ryan, we’ll start with you.  Instead of asking an opening question, I’ll just throw it to you to talk about driving the No. 31 Chevrolet in 2014, and what you’re looking forward to most about joining Richard Childress Racing?
 
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Just extremely excited about the opportunity.  Richard and I had talked five years ago, or roughly five years ago before I went to Stewart‑Haas racing, and didn’t have the moons correctly aligned to do what we needed to do there, and this is just a great opportunity for me personally.
 
 
Really looking forward to driving the 31 Car with Caterpillar.  I think with Richard’s goals and my goals and the things that we do aside from that away from the racetrack that I think are a lot of fun as well, I’m just really looking forward to all of 2014, not just the races ‑‑ 2014 and beyond, not just the racing season.
 
 
THE MODERATOR:  Torrey, clearly Ryan has enjoyed a lot of success in his NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career.  What do you think he’ll add to the Richard Childress Racing organization?
 
 
TORREY GALIDA:  Thanks, Amanda.  First, I wanted to just say to everybody out there that Richard sends his regrets.  He couldn’t be with us this afternoon.  He is traveling, but he did want me to let everybody know if you have questions specifically for him, he’ll be available over the weekend or is more than willing to do another teleconference if we need to.
 
 
So with that being said, I think Ryan is really going to add a lot to our organization and add another dimension for us.  He’s a proven winner.  He’s been very, very successful throughout his career, and we are always looking to add that kind of talent to our organization.
 
 
We talked to him for a while about potentially becoming a fourth team here.  Weren’t quite able to pull that all together, but did find a scenario that we believe is going to work for everybody.
Q.  Ryan, have you had any time to spend with Luke Lambert yet?  What are your first impressions?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I shouldn’t laugh, because it’s probably taken the wrong way, but I actually think it was Atlanta race weekend, right before the race started.  Luke and I were in line together at the outhouse before the race started, and we talked for about three minutes, so that’s why I laugh.
 
 
But we’ve talked a little bit over the phone, very little, but definitely have an understanding of his background and know that Richard believes in him as well as the team that they have associated there together on the 31 car.  So just really have only scratched the surface on getting to know somebody in Luke.
Q.  First off, just how many teams did you talk to, and kind of where was Richard Childress Racing in the pecking order of the people that you talked to?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I talked to a few, which, in my world, is three or more.  Richard, honestly, to start the whole conversation, came to me Daytona 500 week and wanted to know what I was doing in 2014.  I told him at that point I needed to lay some ground work with the new team that we had started with Matt Borland and all the guys, and that it was too early to even think about that, but I appreciated the offer.  Our conversations matured over time.  After Loudon when I was told what I wasn’t going to be doing, the conversations intensified.
 
 
So to answer your question, at the top, without a doubt, Richard and everybody at RCR are in a position to control their own destiny.  They build their own cars.  They build their own engines.  They hang their own bodies.  Everything is at the RCR compound, and that means a lot to me, because that keeps that information right there, and that, I think is extremely important with the technology in our sport right now.
 Q.  Obviously this is the first time we’ve seen you since Saturday night.  Have you seen any of the replays and heard any of the MWR audios?  Just curious if you have any sort of opinion on the Bowyer spinout now that we’re a couple days later?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Yeah, right now it’s tough to comment on it because I know it’s being reviewed.  My ultimate answer is it’s pretty obvious to me the decisions that were made and the communication that’s led up to that.  I don’t know how anybody is going to react or put their foot down or penalize or do anything in respect to all of this.  So I guess I’m kind of waiting to see what comes of it.
 
 
But I do know that based on my opinion inside a race car and watching and listening and understanding the communication that there was then, that it was not entirely an accident; and the second part of that is maybe somebody could look up for me how many times this year Clint Bowyer spun out all by himself and get me an answer on that, if you don’t mind.
 
Q.  Ryan, it was pretty obvious from things you said at Richmond and maybe even back to Atlanta about you could say but it was inappropriate to say it was pretty clear you had a good idea that today, Monday, the 9th was coming and this announcement would happen.  Even so, with making this official, does that help take any of the sting out of what happened to you Saturday night or is that going to sting for a while, regardless?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  To me, what happened to me Saturday night is the toughest thing that I’ve ever gone through in any kind of racing in my 30 years of driving because of the way everything went down and, in hindsight, how it hurt that much more.
 
 
This, for a week, yeah, I knew this announcement was coming, but in the end, I don’t think it’s anything to compare or contrast or say that the positive outweighs the negative or even compensates for it.  They’re two different things.  This announcement is to show and tell everybody how much we look forward to it and what we have coming down the pipeline as far as racing and our relationship with RCR and myself and Chevrolet and everybody else and Caterpillar included.
 
 
So it’s really tough to comment on anything about Saturday night right now until an announcement is made.
 
Q.  I’m curious about how much do you think we’ll be able to transfer over from SHR to RCR as far as your notes and stuff?  Obviously, if you’re going to a different manufacturer, I’m sure things would be protective or more protective about information.  Will you be able to be allowed to take any notes with you as far as set‑up stuff that can be sent over like how you like a car in a certain place?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  No, I don’t have a set of notes.  I don’t have a backlog of information when it comes to that.  I don’t write anything down.  To me, what is important, is my feel for the race car.  The way the team works together.  The way we can accomplish adjusting to either weather conditions or a racetrack or a new Goodyear tire or whatever it is.  I don’t see that ‑‑ I think there are some principles that I understand and can carry over.  I did that from Penske to SHR and will from SHR to RCR, and no different from what Kevin Harvick will do when he goes over to SHR.  But, in the end, you have to adjust and liv
e in the moment.
 
 
From a driver’s standpoint, that’s not a matter of bringing out the notebook.  That is the crew chief’s responsibility, and that is my responsibility to communicate with the team and tell them what I need the race car to do so that we can work on it collectively.
 
Q.  The first question, you found out in July that you were looking for a job.  At that time there were not many seats available, and even more so, there are not many great seats available.  Was there any concern for you at that point?  What are you going to do?  Are you even going to be able to get a ride?  In hindsight, you’ve landed a very good job, but does any panic set in?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Thank you, first of all.  I don’t think I really ever had any panic.  As Torrey mentioned, the real question was how can we make it make sense for myself and for RCR, whether it was a third car, fourth car or whatever.  And I wanted it to be, as I said from the beginning, for me personally, some place where I was wanted and some place that is super competitive, and we have the opportunity to live out our common goals.
 
 
RCR is, as I said and mentioned earlier, was part of my interest five years ago, and obviously when Richard expressed that interest back in February, it was a no‑brainer for me to go back and knock on his door.  That being said, I’m just excited about the opportunity that we have from a team standpoint, the resources with Chevrolet.  I know that Richard has the drive and dedication to be as successful as he possibly can, and that is as simple as that.
 
 
I told Richard when I sat down in his bus a while ago, I said every driver’s going to sit here and tell you that he wants to win.  He wants to win races.  He wants to win a championship.  He wants to win a pole.  But it’s the drive and dedication and the inflection you hear in my voice when I say that to you.  I think that that makes a difference.  Because every car owner wants to win.  Every car owner wants to make money and be successful too.  But I see the same things in him that he does in me, and that’s why I look forward to the next three years.
 
Q.  Second question, which I apologize for reverting back to Saturday night, but just based on what you said.  You called it the toughest in your 30 years of racing.  I don’t know what your relationships might have been with anyone at MWR or Clint in the past, if you had relationships, but will you have trouble going forward?  Will you be able to look at those people the same?  Is this something that will be damaging going forward in the garage area?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I’d say the potential is not good for us to be cordial to each other, but at the same time, as I said earlier, at announcement was made that NASCAR is reviewing what happened.  So until NASCAR does their due diligence of how they proceed with what happened, and that could go several different directions, I really don’t know.  In the end, I was extremely disappointed to see and hear some of the things that went down, and I think that that’s relatively obvious to any fan or non‑fan of our sport to know that it kind of goes without saying what happened.
 
 
We’ll see how it all works out, but, yeah, it’s not an easy thing to work through mentally, emotionally, and even physically afterwards.
 
Q.  For you it’s got to be a little different situation from Penske to Stewart‑Haas to now Childress where you’ve had traditionally veteran teammates.  Can you talk about what the team dynamic you think will be with the three cars, with Paul, and with the rest of the line that may be forthcoming?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I look forward to it.  I’ve talked to Paul a good bit going back probably even to Coke 600 weekend.  We had a couple of conversations.  Look forward to working with him and everybody.  Obviously, Austin and Ty are there.  I don’t know what capacity they’ll be in, but at the same time, no matter what, we are a team together.
 
 
Even racing with Austin going back to the truck race at Eldora, we had a lot of fun together, and clean and raced hard.  That is something that even, if you look at the last five years, Tony and I have done very well and done a good job of as far as racing, clean racing hard and having fun as a competitor.
 
 
I also want to make mention too that I’m extremely respectful and I have a lot of admiration for the way Jeff Burton’s handled himself and all of this with his situation and the opportunities that we have to be able to just make all of this workout.  He’s been great and I’ll leave it at that.
 
Q.  Ryan, based off your question you were asking earlier, I haven’t finished reviewing the stat, but just a quick look.  I think I found two instances where the 15 was involved in a single‑car spin at Auto Club Speedway and at Michigan this year?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Yeah, he blew up at both of them, if I remember right.
 
Q.  Something like that.  My question to you as being a student of the history of the sport, you understand that the competition has not always been the most pure and really some of that is celebrated with the things that have been done in this sport.  How would you explain what happened Saturday night is potentially different from what has happened in the past?  Because there have been various things that have happened that have not always been on the up and up, and certainly some things have been penalized, but not everything.
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I think our sport is unique, and we all that are involved kind of know this.  In the instance that we don’t have instant replay.  We can’t hit the pause button, we can’t blow the whistle.  I would say that there might have been a different perspective had anybody from NASCAR or from what I’ve understood in the way it works, the NASCAR officials, the way that each inspector monitors the communication with respect to their car that they’re handling on pit road.
 
 
My point is that that communication very easily could have been communicated about, in the end, may have caused a different reaction immediately versus talking about it two days later.  It’s a tough situation in our sport, because we can’t just kick them in neutral and think about it or figure out what we need to do or take a couple of extra pay slats because we’re sitting out there burning fuel and figure out how it should work.  It’s just unique.  I think that’s the task at hand for NASCAR is how to handle this as well as these situations in the future.
 
Q.  Because you mentioned and you talk about the officials on pit road monitoring the teams, you know, there has been the talk about NASCAR reducing the number of officials on pit road and reducing the number of officials at the track.  If something like that happens, how does that impact that? Suddenly there is the potential that an official could be monitoring more than one radio frequency?  Might stuff get lost if there is a reduction in officials on pit road or reduction in officials on the track?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Without a doubt.  It’s already lost because it’s not monitored.  If it was monitored, in my opinion, it would have made a difference in the way it got handled immediately on Saturday night.  That is probably my point more so than the fact of what and where are we next year?
 
Q.  For Torrey, I guess Ryan mentioned it was a three‑year deal.  I’m curious, did Caterpillar extend through the end of this deal?  Are your other sponsors for Ryan already signed?
 
TORREY GALIDA:  Our policy is not to discuss our contracts, but we do still have some work to do on the sponsorship front.  As
you know, Cat takes the majority of the season, but we do have some work there to get everything finished getting sold out.  And we hope it is a very long‑term relationship with Ryan.
 
 
We’ve been lucky to have Caterpillar for five years, and part of us making this move was to make sure that we kept a very strong relationship with Caterpillar for the long‑term.  I think everybody here at Richard Childress Racing would love nothing more than to be part of RCR winning another championship, and we think that Ryan is the kind of guy that can do that for us.  So we’re hoping it is a long‑term relationship.
 
Q.  Ryan, I guess my question is were you surprised about what you kind of saw and heard on, I guess, probably late Saturday night or Sunday when looking at all of what happened?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Yeah, I pretty much had to stress myself to sleep Saturday night.  I had my phone in my hands and was communicating with different people at different times about different things.  You know, some of the homework was done by you guys as far as the media goes, and some of it was done internally at SHR as far as tying everything together and the communications that were made between some of the MWR cars and what reactions that they created on the racetrack and how it affected the points, not just at the end of the race.
 
 
So in the end, it became more disappointing the more we dug into it.  So that’s, I guess, and what I hope NASCAR is investigating as well.  But it didn’t just affect me, it affected Jeff Gordon and at the same time Logano and Truex.
 
 
And we knew there was potential for this going into this race, so I guess from my standpoint, I would have hoped that we would have been able to monitor this situation.  I mean, this is something that is brought up in every Richmond driver’s meeting.  You know the quotes and you know what was said.  In the end, it’s like we saw there was potential for fire, but nobody grabbed the extinguisher.
 
Q.  Do you think they should put you in the Chase?  Should they add drivers to the Chase?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I don’t even want to really comment on that.  I just know that we were deserving of it at one point without a doubt Saturday night, and we put ourselves in that position.  To me, there was nothing up to that point that would have changed that until Clint spun out and that changed everything.  That’s why I told you after I told everybody after the race, I was still disappointed in the fact that we still had the opportunity to control our destiny, come off pit road, even if we came off second behind Menard, we still should have been able to come off first car on four tires and win the race, just as Carl did.  And we didn’t do that.  That would have changed everything on our part.  It may not have changed everything on Jeff or Truex’s or Logano’s part, but we still had control of our own destiny and didn’t pull that off.  So I was disappointed from that standpoint.
 
 
But, yeah, there are so many things that we knew going into the race, could have, would have, should have, and the fact of the direct influence somebody could have by manipulating that situation, which I do feel happened.  But in the end, how NASCAR handles this is extremely important for all of us.
 
Q.  Just wanted to ask, with the location of the racetrack, do you expect to spend a lot of time there and do you expect to work with the grandsons since they’re young and up and coming?  Obviously, Austin’s already doing some Cup, but Ty is expected to move in that direction as well.  Do you expect to be a mentor to both boys?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I can’t say that.  I guess maybe your wording, I don’t expect to be a mentor.  I want to be a good teammate, a good friend and be able to mentor, no more than they’re capable of for me.  This is kind of an off‑the‑wall comment, but the last two races, I’ve gotten the opportunity to work with Mark Martin, and he brings a different perspective, some of it because of his age.  Some of it because of his age and some of it the places that he’s been and the things that he’s experienced.  But everybody has a different perspective.
 
 
You know, a couple young boys like the Dillon boys can have a different perspective and mentor me no different than I can mentor them.  So I look forward to the team work and potential that we all have together.  No different than Paul or anybody else if a fourth car ever is added.  So that’s my perspective of it.
 
Q.  Not to keep harping on Saturday night, but is there anything that will give you solace that NASCAR can do at this point?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Repeat the question, please?
 
Q.  Is there anything that will give you solace after Saturday night?  Any kind of decision mass car could make that would give you solace?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I don’t know.  It’s one of those things where I really don’t know until if, and when, and how they say something.  I mean, I don’t know.  To me there are so many people involved and anything could happen because of how important it was.
 
 
I mean, we spent 26 races to get to that point, and we missed it by a tie, but we also missed it by what happened.  Other people can say that they were in.  I mean, it’s just so touchy.  I’ll just leave it at that.
 
Q.  Saturday night a different topic, what did you think of that final restart?  You had a good view of it.  Did you think it was an okay start?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  I honestly didn’t have a real good view of it.  I spun my tires just a little bit and had the intentions of getting underneath Mark going into one, and didn’t.  So I drove up and around him.  Unintentionally, actually, put Truex up in the fuzz.
 
But, yeah, I watched the replay as well as many other replays that night later and saw that there was a defined moment where he beat the leader back to the line, which is the rule of what not to do.  And no penalty was enforced, no different than the night before in which they brought up in the drivers’ meeting that you couldn’t do that.
 
 
So there is more than one issue at hand with respect to the race on Saturday night and how rules and how NASCAR needs to enforce things in the future.
 
Q.  That’s been a gripe of Jimmie Johnson’s many times this year, the restarts.  As someone who has talked a lot about technology, do you wonder why there is not a technology that NASCAR can lean on that that is a black‑and‑white thing, the restart?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Well, I said this when it came up a few weeks or months ago.  To me, when the green flag drops, the race resumes.  If the second place guy beats the leader, then so be it.  The leader has the opportunity to get going however he needs to get going.  If he has lesser tires, then he chose to have lesser tires.  There is no penalty for the fourth place guy to beat the third place guy.  There is no penalty for the eighth place guy to beat the seventh place guy.
 
 
Why should there be for the second place car to beat the leader?  It doesn’t make any sense to me.  The reason we’re there is to race.  There is nobody that has control of the race until you get to the start‑finish line.  That doesn’t mean anything.  It’s who gets back to the next lap if we can’t go green and checkered in the same instant.
 
 
So, to me, it’s a dumb rule in my opinion just because it doesn’t ‑‑ it just creates more confusion.  There is no need for it.
 
Q.  A lot of times in the past we’ve seen teams that haven’t qualified for the Chase to use the last ten races to get a
head start on the following season.  With you not coming back to the 39 team, what will your focus be going into the last ten races?  What do you hope to accomplish?  Also, will that put them at any sort of disadvantage because they can’t really use those ten races knowing that you’re not going to be there?
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Our goal is to win each and every one of these last ten races.  I feel that we have the potential to.  I want to do it for myself, my team, my sponsors and everybody involved, especially all of the things that we went through and fought through to get back to where we were on Saturday night and to be in a position within seven to go to race our way in.  These guys deserve it.  That’s as simple as that.
 
 
There are things that we can learn that are going to make our race car go faster.  I don’t think there is any announcements for any big changes for the cars for 2014 with respect to wholesaling them where it takes a different set‑up or different package or anything like that.
 
 
So I think what we do in these last ten races, from my standpoint, it’s going to help SHR, but it also helps me.  I have to finish it out just as if we were going to be starting 2014 together.  I think that’s the right and fairway to do it for myself, my team, and my sponsors.
 
 
THE MODERATOR:  Ryan, thank you for joining us today and best of luck this weekend in Chicago,  and congrats again on driving the No. 31 Cat Chevrolet in 2014.
 
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  Thank you so much.  Thanks for having us, thanks for the questions, and I look forward to it.  Hopefully we can talk about great things in the future.
 

MONTEREY DOMINATION: Taylor, Angelelli Win Going Away at Laguna Seca
in No. 10 Corvette DP
Season’s fourth win extends DP championship lead; Said, Curran Corvette 3rd in GT
 
MONTEREY, Calif. (Sept. 8, 2013) – Wayne Taylor Racing’s Jordan Taylor and Max Angelelli continued to show championship form Sunday as they won their second straight race in the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series. Angelelli started from outside the front row, and Taylor put on a dominating display as Wayne Taylor Racing’s No. 10 Velocity Worldwide Corvette Daytona Prototype won the Continental Tire Sports Car Festival at Laguna Seca.
 
The victory extended the lead of Taylor and Angelelli in the Rolex Series’ DP standings to eight points with one race remaining. Chevrolet also retained its advantage in the class’ engine manufacturer championship, and Wayne Taylor Racing moved to second place and within nine points in the team standings.
 
Taylor led 72 of the race’s 105 laps. Richard Westbrook in the pole-winning Spirit of Daytona Racing Corvette DP led the first 22 when the yellow flag came out for a full-course caution. Angelelli, running second at the time, pitted and handed over to Taylor, who won the race out of pit lane thanks to quick pit work from the Wayne Taylor Racing crew. Over the next two-plus hours, the young American’s lead grew to nearly a half-minute before late-race caution periods tightened up the field.
 
He finished 2.692 seconds clear of Scott Pruett, whom Taylor fended off to win at Kansas City in the previous Rolex Series race. IZOD IndyCar Series driver Scott Dixon was third and pressured Jordan in the race’s latter half, as well.
 
“It was definitely a good race,” Taylor said. “Once we got past that first yellow and had a bunch of green-flag running, we pulled a good lead. I was hoping to stay green and use that buffer to my advantage. But once it went yellow, that went away. Having Pruett and Dixon right on you is intense. I was glad to be able to hold them off and get a win for the guys.”
 
Corvette DPs took three of the top-five places. Unofficially, Chevrolet leads the engine manufacturer standings by 32 points with 35 available in the final race at Lime Rock Park in on Sept. 28.
 
“Congratulations to Jordan Taylor, Max Angelelli and everyone at Wayne Taylor Racing on a flawless effort at Laguna Seca,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet Program Manager, Rolex Sports Car Series. “Not only was this a tremendous victory in today’s race but an important step toward the Daytona Prototype drivers’, team and engine manufacturers’ championship. The competitive nature of the DP class makes today’s effort even more impressive. This is a great day but no one at Team Chevy will let up with one race remaining.”
 
In GT, Marsh Racing’s Corvette of Boris Said and Eric Curran placed third after starting second in class. The result matched their season-best at Barber Motorsports Park in the spring, and Curran led for 10 laps late Sunday. Andy Lally and John Potter were the winners.
 
Stevenson Motorsports’ Robin Liddell and John Edwards placed seventh in their No. 57 Camaro GT.R and stand third in the class drivers’ championship – 13 points behind leaders Lally and Potter.
 
Earlier in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, Matt Bell went from fifth to second in the final four minutes in Stevenson Motorsports’ No. 9 Camaro GS.R. Bell and Edwards were runners-up to Spencer Pumpelly and Jim Norman in GS and extended the class championship to the season finale at Lime Rock Park.
 
ROLEX SPORTS CAR SERIES QUOTES
JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP
(Did lessons from holding off Pruett at Kansas help today?) “It definitely helped a lot. But guys in GT also are great drivers. So in my career in GT, I’ve learned a lot from those guys and how to hold them off. Having Pruett on me for an hour-and-a-half (at Kansas) was intense and having Dixon on me here was another good experience. I’m glad to have that one in my book and move on.”
 
MAX ANGELELLI, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP
“Our team is just the best in my opinion. Jordan, as usual, delivered. He always has this year. I’m very proud of him. He did a fantastic job – was very strong, very fast and made no mistakes. This is the way to win championships.”
 
WAYNE TAYLOR, OWNER, NO. 10 WAYNE TAYLOR RACING CORVETTE DP
“I can’t even talk. The team was flawless. Max did a great start. Everyone did a great job. These boys never cease to amaze me. I’m just so proud of them all.”
 
ERIC CURRAN, NO. 31 MARSH RACING CORVETTE
“We’ve always been strong here. Today was just a great day. We had a strong car and good pit stops; on the last one, we kind of got hung up on a lug nut (during a tire change). We had a strong car overall and had a car that could have won today but we will take third place and a podium finish. We’ve struggled the last couple races so it’s really good for the team to get some results and have such a strong finish. I’m really happy for all these guys at Marsh Racing. All their efforts and hard work that they’ve put into this program is really paying off now. I couldn’t be happier for them. It’s a good result beginning of a big future for us looking toward our DP program.”
 
CONTINENTAL SPORTS CAR CHALLENGE QUOTES
JOHN EDWARDS, NO. 9 STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS CAMARO GS.R
“It really wasn’t all that crazy of a race until the last couple of laps when people started getting desperate, but Matt kept his head on straight and made a great move around the outside of (Joey) Atterbury.”
(On Bell’s late pass) “He said he saw Atterbury getting loose and tried the outside and since Atterbury had to pinch it, Matt was able to get the run. I have to say that I never thought that would work when I saw him try it on the outside and we were all on the intercom going, ‘Oh that’s not going to work, that’s not going to work!’ and then it worked.
“At the same time (Bill) Auberlen fell out so we inherited second and then there was mayhem behind us. This Camaro is pretty beat up at the end of this race, but I think it’s actually put together better than it was at the end of last year’s race here. We’ll take the points, and I think we’re looking pretty secure here for second in the championship.”
MATT BELL, NO. 9 STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS CAMARO GS.R
“This wasn’t the car it’s been here – actually the last two years it hasn’t been the best car here that we could have had, but really (the team) kept making decisions to make it more drivable when the tires were burning off of it. Everybody was having the same issues. I kept seeing the No. 51 car in front of me get loose in braking zones so I tried the outside and he kind of pinched over and I was braking in the dirt, but it all worked out. We still kind of willed ourselves into that because there were a lot of people spinning all over the place. Maybe I caused that, I don’t know, but it worked. I want to thank all the Stevenson guys. They worked really hard.”
 
MIKE JOHNSON, TEAM MANAGER, NO. 9 STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS, CAMARO GS.R
“It was just another crazy race. Our whole goal was to stay with the No. 55.  We had some really good pit stops. We made a really good call on the dive in which got us some track position. Matt fought hard with that No. 15 car for a long time. We just did what we had to do, which was stay with the No. 55 car, not do anything silly. I guess technically we still have a shot at the championship, but our goal was really just to finish out this season on a high note. This was probably one of the most fun second places we’ve had, so we’re really happy right now.”
 

Federated Auto Parts 400
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Richmond International Raceway   
September 7, 2013
 
Race Highlights:
Richard Childress Racing teammates finished fifth (Paul Menard), 11th (Kevin Harvick), and 18th (Jeff Burton) in the Federated Auto Parts 400.
Following the event at Richmond International Raceway, Harvick is tied for the fourth seed in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, six markers out of the lead, while Menard is 17th in the driver championship point standings and Burton sits 22nd.
The No. 29 Chevrolet SS team ranks fourth in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series owner championship point standings, with the No. 27 team 18th in the standings and the No. 31 team 24th.
According to NASCAR’s Post-Race Loop Data Statistics, Menard was the ninth-Fastest Driver Late in a Run.
Menard posted the eighth-fastest Speed in Traffic.
Completing 38 passes while running in the top 15, Harvick was fourth in the loop data category of Quality Passes.
Harvick gained two positions during the final 10 percent (40 laps) of the 400-lap event, ranking him sixth in the Closers category and was the sixth-Fastest Driver Late in a Run.
With a 9.185 Average Running Position, Burton held the eighth-best average position of the 43-car field.
Burton spent 84.5 percent of the 400-lap race running in the top 15 (338 laps).
Carl Edwards earned his second victory of the 2013 Sprint Cup Series season and was followed to the finish line by Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, Jamie McMurray and Menard.
The next Sprint Cup Series race is the GEICO 400 at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday, Sept. 15. The 27th race of the 2013 season is scheduled to be televised live on ESPN beginning at 1 p.m. Eastern Time and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Satellite Radio, channel 90.

   
Menard Earns a Fifth-Place Finish Under the Lights at Richmond International Raceway
 
Paul Menard and the No. 27 Pittsburgh Paints/Menards team brought home a fifth-place finish after starting from the 22nd position Saturday evening at Richmond International Raceway. Throughout the opening segment of the 400-lap event, the Eau Claire, Wis., native reported that his Chevrolet was free in and needed better drive off the corners. While running in the 21st position, Crew chief “Slugger” Labbe called the No. 27 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver to pit road on lap 92 for four tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment under green-flag conditions. The evening’s first caution flag was displayed on lap 135, allowing Menard to pit for a second time taking four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. During the next lengthy green-flag run, Menard moved inside the top-15. Throughout the evening, the crew continued to adjust the handling on the Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Chevrolet SS allowing Menard to turn the fastest lap times of the field. By lap 341 he was shown in the fifth position and charging forward. For the final 50 laps the Richard Childress Racing driver battled inside the top five. Labbe brought Menard to pit road for right-side tires only when the caution flag waved with eight laps remaining, giving him the lead for the green-white-checkered finish. Menard ultimately brought home a fifth-place result and his second top-five finish of the 2013 season. Menard remains 17th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver championship point standings heading into the next race at Chicagoland Speedway.
 
Start – 22         Finish – 5         Laps Led – 3         Points – 17th
 
PAUL MENARD QUOTE:
“We had a great Pittsburgh Paints/Menards Chevrolet tonight. We started out a little loose but, “Slugger” (Labbe, crew chief) called for the right adjustments all night and we got dialed in to run up front. We tried strategy in hopes of bringing home a win, but two tires couldn’t hold off the guys with four. I’m proud of our efforts this weekend in the garage and on pit road. I’m looking forward to Chicagoland (Speedway) next week.”
 
 

Harvick Finishes 11th at Richmond International Raceway
 
Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 Budweiser team collected an 11th-place finish under the lights of Richmond International Raceway on Saturday night after battling handling issues and experiencing an untimely caution. The California native started the 400-lap event from the 17th position and fell back into the top 20 during the early laps as he battled handling issues on the red and white Chevrolet. The Gil Martin-led pit crew made multiple chassis adjustments during routine four-tire pit stops on laps 91 and 137 to improve the handling of the car. As the race progressed, Harvick worked his way into the second position on lap 307, but a powerful run was halted by bad luck when the caution flag was displayed while the No. 29 Chevrolet was on pit road for a scheduled pit stop on lap 342. Harvick returned to the track in the 15th position, one lap down to the leader. Before going back to green-flag racing, the Richard Childress Racing driver took the “wave around” and returned to the lead lap in the 14th position for the ensuing restart. Harvick slowly worked his way forward during the final laps, ultimately crossing the finish line 11th. Harvick is tied with Carl Edwards for the fourth seed heading into the first event of the 10-race Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup at Chicagoland Speedway.
 
Start – 17         Finish – 11         Laps Led – 0         Points – 4th
                      
KEVIN HARVICK QUOTE:
“Well, if the caution didn’t come out I feel like we could have won the race tonight. The Budweiser Chevrolet was really good, but we had made a lot of adjustments. The car was just really loose to start the race, so when you can do things to adjust your car and take it from a 25th-place car to a winning car in the same night, that’s a sign that things are going to be okay. We are as good as we’ve ever been, and hopefully we can continue to get better over the next few weeks. I’m just really proud of everybody for their work tonight.”
 
 
 
 

Untimely Caution-Flag Period Thwarts Burton’s Top-Five Run 
at Richmond International Raceway
 
Jeff Burton and the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet team finished 18th at Richmond International Raceway after an untimely caution-flag period trapped the Richard Childress Racing driver one lap down to the leader late in the race. Starting the 400-lap affair from the 19th position, Burton entered the top 15 early and was scored in seventh place after a fast pit stop by the Caterpillar pit crew on lap 91. Finding speed on multiple long green-flag runs, the 21-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner cracked the top five by the halfway point of the 300-mile event. Burton maintained a top-five running position throughout the majority of the race, running as high as third while turning some of the fastest laps in the 43-car field. After making a routine four-tire pit stop on lap 339 under green-flag conditions, disaster struck when Jimmie Johnson made contact with the outside retaining wall, bringing out the yellow flag. The untimely caution-flag period trapped Burton one lap down to the leader and forced the 46-year-old driver to take the “wave around” and earn his lap back under caution. Restarting 15th, Burton reported handling issues as the black and yellow machine was trapped in heavy traffic and the RCR driver battled hard to an 18th-place finish when the checkered flag was displayed. Burton remains 22nd in the Sprint Cup Series driver championship point standings.
 
Start – 19          Finish – 18        &nb
sp; Laps Led – 0           Points – 22nd
 
JEFF BURTON QUOTE:
“That’s the story of our season right there. We had a top-five effort taken away from us with bad luck in the form of an untimely caution. I am proud of the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet team. We will keep working hard until the end of the season and try to get to Victory Lane.”

FOUR CHEVROLET SS DRIVERS GRAB TOP FIVE FINISHES AT RICHMOND
 
A TOTAL OF FIVE TEAM CHEVY DRIVERS CLINCH POSITIONS IN UPCOMING
CHASE FOR THE NASCAR SPRINT CUP
 
RICHMOND, Virginia – September 7, 2013 – The Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway (RIR) closed the first 26 races of the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) season and set the field for the 10-race Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in dramatic fashion. Team Chevy captured four of the top-5 finishing spots at RIR, and locked-in two additional Chevrolet SS drivers for the championship run.
 
After a round of pit stops and various strategies on tires, both the race and Chase field were decided on a final restart with three laps remaining.  Kurt Busch, in his No. 78 Furniture Row/Beautyrest Chevrolet SS, came away with a second place finish after leading five times for 73 laps in tonight’s race. The finish put the single-car team from Denver, Colorado in the Chase for the first time.
 
Ryan Newman, No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS, led late in the race but had to settle for third place at the finish line.  Newman’s sixth top-five finish of the season was not enough to land a spot in the Chase. He leaves RIR 14th in the overall point standings.
 
Jamie McMurray, driver of the No. 1 Cessna Chevrolet SS, had a strong car all night and led six laps before finishing in fourth place.  McMurray, who had an outside shot at a Chase berth, came away with his second top-five finish of the season.   Paul Menard had the lead on the final restart, but had to settle for fifth in his No. 27 Menards/Pittsburgh Paints Chevrolet SS.  It was his second top-five finish and seventh top-10 finish of 2013.  
 
Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevy SS, was in the spotlight throughout the 400-lap race as he bounced on and off the Chase bubble many times throughout the night.  His eighth-place finish left him just a single point out of the Chase and 13th in points overall.  Mark Martin, still subbing for the injured Tony Stewart in the No. 14 Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevrolet SS, was ninth at the finish.
 
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s/KOBALT Tools Chevrolet SS, Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet SS, and Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Farmers Chevrolet SS had secured Chase positions leading into tonight’s event.  Dale Earnhardt Jr, No. 88 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet SS, who finished 13th, joined Kurt Busch as Chevrolet drivers who earned positions in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup with their performance at RIR.
 
Carl Edwards (Ford) was the race winner.
 
The next event on the tour, and first in the 10-race run for the title, will be September 15th at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, IL.
 
AN INTERVIEW WITH
KURT BUSCH, No. 78 Furniture Row/Beautyrest Chevrolet SS, finished 2nd to make Chase
BARNEY VISSER, Furniture Row Racing Team Owner
JOE GARONE, Furniture Row Racing General Manager
 
KERRY THARP:  We have a special treat right now.  Kurt Busch makes the Chase.  He’ll be going for his second NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.
            Kurt, before the seeding would have been in eighth position.  After the seeding, he goes to 10th.  Kurt, congratulations.  He’s joined by Joe Garone and owner Barney Visser.  Single‑car race team.  Terrific accomplishment.  I think it’s a cool deal.
            Kurt, your thoughts about making the Chase?
            KURT BUSCH:  Well, how about them apples?  Unbelievable.  The way this team has grown, what we’ve been able to accomplish, it’s an amazing feeling.  We achieved something very special tonight.  Barney Visser and his dream of a NASCAR Sprint Cup team, to be a competitive team, he deserves all the credit.
            Joe Garone, the general manager, all the people that he’s aligned to help build this team.  Then there’s guys like Todd Berrier that are veterans of the garage that make big differences in small places like this.  Everybody at the Furniture Row shop back in Colorado, it was a dream, now it’s a reality.
            It’s an amazing feeling to sit here at Richmond after such a long journey for myself, but to be able to deliver, to do my part along with these guys.  I can’t thank them enough.  Very proud to have driven the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevy into the Chase this year.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Barney, your thoughts?
            BARNEY VISSER:  I want to thank Joe Garone, who we built the team around eight years ago.  He’s collected all these people.  Everybody has just been putting in a lot of hours this year.  I think the road crew put in several hundred‑hour weeks testing.  It’s all kind of paid off here, I think.  Kurt expressed it really well, how we feel about everything.
            But thank you, Joe, and thanks to the team.  I mean, a lot of time, a lot of effort.  It’s been real good.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Joe, your thoughts about making the Chase.  Great accomplishment.
            JOE GARONE:  It is a great accomplishment.  I have to go back and say at the beginning of the year as the team has grown, you start setting goals, again coming to Barney, after Kurt coming onboard, being able to bring Todd Berrier, some of the guys we’ve had come onboard at the shop, Barney making the comments, I expect to make the Chase.
            When you’re out in Colorado, you’ve gone through what we’ve gone through, you realize just how difficult of an accomplishment that is, to have a leader that’s got that kind of vision, we all just fell in right behind him.
            I don’t know that we had that vision.  Maybe Kurt did with his experience, but we all filed in right behind Barney and his lead there.  Dream comes true today.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Questions, please.
 
            Q.  Barney, we’ve seen a lot of single‑car owners come and go over the years.  To have Kurt, to be able to accomplish this, what kind of a dream come true is it for you?
            BARNEY VISSER:  Well, I don’t know that it’s a dream come true as much as I’m kind of in awe of Kurt and Joe, the whole team, what these guys have been able to do.
            Like I said, it’s been a lot of hard work.  They put in a lot of hours.  It’s much appreciated here.
 
            Q.  Kurt, you were sort of safely into the top 10 pretty much all night, not by a great margin, but by a little bit.  Were people telling you, We’re 12 points in, we’re 8 in?  Did you have any idea how safe you were within the top 10?
            KURT BUSCH:  When the race started and the 24 was fast and dominant, that’s when I knew we had our work cut out for us.  If he was going to win tonight, we had to finish second, not knowing what was going to happen with Biffle and Logano.< br>            As the race progressed, I didn’t see the 24 as often.  I was able to relax a little bit.  But still, the nerves and the feelings, the emotions were all there of making sure that I hit my marks, making sure I didn’t slip any tires, try to protect the car, stay out of trouble.
            Any time that I did ask, I was just doing it just for conversation’s sake.  I needed to break up my rhythm, my intense white knuckles just to say something.  They’d go, Yeah, you’re fine, keep digging.  It was more of a verification and a check, then just get back into work and focus on making my lap times.
 
            Q.  Obviously your alliance this season with RCR has helped a lot.  How much of a role do you think it will help you in the last 10 races?
            KURT BUSCH:  I think it will still be business as usual.  We have a great group of crew chiefs on the other side there at RCR.  Gil Martin, the way he’s helped us and Harvick, those guys stand out in my mind.  We all know what Harvick’s future is and my future is.
            Then we look at the 27 car, the help they’ve given us this year.  I would say that should continue.
            Then you have Luke Lambert in the 31 car.  They’ve always been helpful.  I would say it’s going to be business as usual.  We’ll expect to be there to do our part, to help the 29.  Right now it’s the 29 and the 78 coming out of that situation.
            But overall, very happy for our guys, everybody that works in Colorado.  It’s an amazing group of guys.  They’re at the race shop at 5 a.m. every day.  The way that our logistical situation is, you have to stay ahead of the game, about 10 days ahead.  Todd Berrier does an amazing job of balancing that.
            Garone is the one that’s helped allow us to operate like a big‑time team in the state of Colorado.
            JOE GARONE:  Yeah, I think Kurt said a lot there about the same things that I would say.  What I would add is the partnership that we have with RCR, when we first started, Richard was very supportive, really to the point of saying, I’m not going to do this unless we do it all in and really support you guys.
            Whenever we’ve needed it, on projects when we’re working back and forth, they’ve always been right there with us.  We look forward to growing that as we move forward here.
 
            Q.  Kurt, you won a championship in 2004.  That’s obviously considered the pinnacle of anyone’s career.  With a decade of racing between then and now, is this something that you can really appreciate and savor for how difficult it was?
            KURT BUSCH:  Yeah, you’re right.  I took some of the performance levels of Roush Racing for granted, then expected the same thing at Penske.  It was a tougher road there.
            But we made the Chase in a fashion to where it was supposed to be a given.  When you didn’t make it, it was a devastating feeling.
            Now to be back after missing it last year, the work that it takes, the commitment, the things that you just can’t expect to happen, not necessarily with the odds stacked against you, but you have to dig in deep and you have to find something from within.  Barney has been a great shepherd for me and this whole team.
            It’s something special we achieved tonight, to put a single car into the Chase.  We have our friends, other drivers.  But yet it’s every man for themselves out there.  We have some muscle left in us.  We have a great 10 weeks ahead of us.  We have a test session we’ve saved.  I think we can make a run through this Chase.  We just have to do the same thing we did tonight:  keep plugging away, let everybody else worry about what has to happen and we’ll keep doing what we’re doing out in Colorado because nobody can look over our shoulder.
 
            Q.  Your first pit stop on pit road under yellow didn’t go the way that you wanted it to, but they got better as the night went on.  Talk about the way the pit crew stepped up and rose to the occasion.  Also, do you think the 99’s final restart was okay?
            KURT BUSCH:  I feel like the pit crew did their job.  We needed them to hold serve tonight.  We lost a few sets or maybe a breakpoint.  We went in leading once, came out seventh.  That’s not acceptable.  We came in third one time, came out first.  I was happy for them, and they felt it.  They knew what they did.
            Overall I think we did what we could on pit road tonight.  Can we get better?  Yes.
            The way the restart went, I couldn’t tell you if he went early, he went late.  I was on the outside just trying to protect my car and not get hit from behind.  Then if I could have been more aggressive instead of on the defensive, maybe I would have had a shot to win.
            I didn’t care if Carl went a hundred yards too early, I was just going to go when I saw bumpers moving.
            KERRY THARP:  Congratulations to Kurt, Barney and Joe.
                      
   
AN INTERVIEW WITH
RYAN NEWMAN, No. 39 Quicken Loans Chevrolet SS, finished 3rd
 
KERRY THARP:  Ryan, I know it’s a difficult time.  Just talk about the run out there this evening, anything else you might want to say.
            RYAN NEWMAN:  We did everything we needed to up until the last caution.  I’m not sure exactly what unfolded there.  We still had the opportunity to win it on pit road and we didn’t.  Coming from 6th to 3rd in a couple laps is not bad.  But we had to win, so it’s disappointing.
            Didn’t expect to make up for everything we didn’t get in the first 25 in the last race, but we were in position.  We did everything we needed to with the exception of the pit stop.  I’m not sure what happened with the 15 on that caution.  Obviously we were in a position to take that second wild card with two wins.
            Nevertheless, I still feel like we lost it on pit road.  It’s disappointing.  We’ll go on.  But just thank Quicken Loans and all our sponsors to give us the opportunity to go out and do what we do and we got more to go.
 
            KERRY THARP:  Questions.
 
            Q.  Ryan, I know you can’t be inside Clint
Bowyer’s head, but a teammate of Martin Truex did that?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  They are teammates.  I don’t know if he looked at the scoring pylon, knew I was leading.  It doesn’t matter.  If that was the case, I’ll find out one way or the other.  At the same time we still had the opportunity to make our own destiny and win it on pitroad, and we didn’t.
            That being said, we’re out.
 
            Q.  Ryan, you took four tires.  Whose call was that?  In hindsight does it matter?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  We came down pit road first.  Carl came off pit road second.  We should have been at least second at that point.  We didn’t do our job on pit road.  Four tires won the race.  We were the first car to be in position on four tires and we didn’t get the job done.
            KERRY THARP:  Ryan, thanks for coming in.
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY POST RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
SEPTEMBER 7, 2013
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW RACING/BEAUTYREST CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED SECOND
TALK ABOUT YOUR RUN TONIGHT TO GET INTO THE CHASE:
“This feels incredible.  The way that we worked together as a team and built up over the year it’s amazing that we have come this far and we have put ourselves in position and here we are in the Chase.  We didn’t win a race yet this year.  We still have some work to do to get to that point, but we have a lot of good tools on this team that help us and it’s an amazing feeling to go up against these big teams and to put a little lone Chevrolet from Colorado into the Chase against the big boys it doesn’t start with one person it’s a team effort.
 
“I was happy to guide the ship, but I had a great skipper, the way that Todd Berrier (crew chief) led this group into the off season last year and Todd the way that he followed Barney Visser’s dream.  We are in the Chase and we have a shot at the championship so we are not done yet, but it feels great to deliver and to achieve something very special tonight.”
 
AFTER ALL YOU’VE BEEN THROUGH THE LAST COUPLE YEARS IT’S MY PLEASURE TO BE AMONG THE FIRST TO WELCOME YOU BACK TO THE CHASE.  WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO YOU? “Thanks.  It’s been a journey.  It’s been a great ride of trying to persevere and going up against the odds when certain things are against you that are out of your control and sometimes you induce things that put you in a position where you have to dig hard and keep working.  This shows to people that when you can just pull through and believe in yourself and find good people like Patricia and little Houston, he said he wanted to go to victory lane this summer and I didn’t get him to victory lane yet, but we’re going to celebrate on the Chase stage.  I’m getting all emotional about the eight year old hanging out with me.
“But to make the Chase with these guys is an unbelievable feeling.  It’s been an 18‑month work in progress, and I’ve been through a lot, and I’ve learned a lot, and I feel like I’m better ready for the Chase and life in general as a 35 year old.
“I’ve got a little one that’s in a go‑kart looking up to me now.  Just these guys, it’s an unbelievable feeling; Barney Visser started this in Colorado years ago, and here we are in the Chase.  You get a guy like Todd Berrier that comes in and helps arrange things, starts cutting weight out of cars and knows his way around the garage, he’s a veteran leader, and I’ve always loved veterans and car guys.  Todd Berrier reminds me a lot of Jimmy Fennig, who’s a guy that helped me win a championship years ago.  We’ve got some muscle in us.  We haven’t won a race yet this year, but we’re in the Chase, and we’ve got a good 10 weeks ahead of us where we can do some good things.”
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 QUICKEN LOANS CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED THIRD
PUT INTO WORDS YOUR THOUGHTS RIGHT NOW AS YOU HAVE CLIMBED OUT OF THE CAR:
“The car was good no doubt.  Matt (Borland, crew chief) and the guys did a good job making it fast.  The pit crew left me hanging on that last stop there is no doubt about that.  In the end I’m proud of the guys we came from nowhere this year to be in this position.  If it wasn’t for that last caution we would be in the Chase.
 
“Thank Quicken Loans, Wix Filters, Aspen Dental, Code 3 Associates, State Water Heaters, just everybody that helps out with this Outback we got another Bloomin’ Monday.  Just unfortunate, I don’t have really anything good to say.”
 
YOU WERE IN AND THEN THE CAUTION FELL.  HOW DO YOU DESCRIBE WHAT’S GOING THROUGH YOUR MIND RIGHT NOW? “I mean, I told Matt when we came into this race that we couldn’t make up everything we’ve missed in the first 25. Now, winning would have changed everything and that last caution definitely hurt us, but we got killed on pit road, there’s no doubt about that.  Carl and those guys beat us on four tires.  The guys that took two were just doing some strategy, but we should have been able to come off pit road first and come off pit road first if we were a championship contending team.  We needed a championship contending pit crew, and we didn’t have that tonight.”
 
PAUL MENARD, NO. 27 MENARDS/PITTSBURGH PAINTS CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED FIFTH
GOOD FIGHT OUT THERE TONIGHT DESCRIBE THE WAY THE EVENING WENT FOR YOU:
“We just had a really good long run car.  Restarts, especially that last restart old left side tires, we had to try something.  We weren’t going to beat those guys heads up so we had to try a little strategy, but awesome Chevrolet on long runs.  Just couldn’t take off very good.”
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED EIGHTH
DID EVERYTHING YOU COULD THERE THOSE FINAL FEW LAPS KIND OF BRING US THROUGH YOUR NIGHT:
“Yeah, it’s disappointing to miss it that close.  Another great effort and come back with our Drive To End Hunger Chevrolet team.  Again, we started up front and the car was good and then we got off and had to fight our way back.  Got a lap down, had a loose wheel so I love the effort this team put in and didn’t need to see that last caution.
 
“We were in and that last caution you know it’s going to be wild and crazy out there and great show for the fans, but unfortunately with those two guys with old tires we just couldn’t get our line to move.  Just didn’t make up the spots we needed to.  It’s unfortunate we didn’t make it in.  We are going to fight like that all the way to the end of the season.”
THE ADVERSITY THAT THIS 24 TEAM FOUGHT THROUGH TONIGHT, THE UPS AND DOWNS JUST LIKE LAST YEAR.  WHAT IS THIS EMOTION LIKE MISSING IT FOR JUST THE SECOND TIME?  “Yeah, it’s unfortunate.  We haven’t had the kind of year that this team is capable of, and that’s where our focus is these next 10 races is just to know that we put in every bit of effort we possibly could.  We fought through a lot of things.  It wasn’t pretty but we were getting it done until that caution came out, and you know, we still could have made it in.  The restart just didn’t go the way we needed it to, so that’s unfortunate.
“But yeah, it’s tough.  I’m just bummed for this team.  They worked so hard, and I don’t know why we’ve had the kind of rough year that we’ve had.  We’re going to do everything we can to go these next 10 races and step it up and get ourselves in position to be more competitive.  Hopefully we can win a race or two and get ourselves in position to go be in a better position when it comes to Richmond at this time next year.
I KNOW THE EMOTION FOR JUST US WATCHING AND LISTENING TO YOU ON THE TRACK.  WHAT IS IT LIKE BEING AT RICHMOND AND RACING LITERALLY FOR EVERY SINGLE POSITION? “ I don’t know what it is about this track lately with me and this race team.  We started off so great and we’ve done this before, and then all of a sudden we start fading, and I was getting pretty frustrated at that time because it was that kind of condition where you’re real tight landing and real loose off, and we’re like, how do we fix this.  I don’t know how to drive it any different and I don’t know what to tell them.  But they did an awesome job.  We stayed calm, and we got a lot done, had a loose wheel, had all these things thrown at us, and yet we come back and finish eighth.  I’m blown away that we finished eighth.  I think that’s a testament to this race team and the fight that we have in us, and it was fun to fight back like that.  I wish we could have got a couple more.”
MARK MARTIN, NO. 14 BASS PRO SHOPS/MOBIL 1 CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED NINTH
ON HIS RACE:
“Really proud of all the guys on this Bass Pr
o Shops/Mobil 1 team. They improved the car throughout the race and made some great calls. We got our first top-10 together. We’ll take that and build on it.”
 
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 BUDWEISER CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 11TH
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR CHANCE TO RUN FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP?
“Well if the caution doesn’t come out I feel like we win the race tonight. The Budweiser Chevrolet was really good and we had made a lot of adjustments tonight.  The car was just really loose to start the race and so when you can do things like that, adjust your car and take it from a 25th-place car to a winning car in the same night that is signs that things are going to be okay.  We are as good as we’ve been over the years and hopefully we can take our team and get better over the next few weeks and the car was really good tonight.  Just really proud of everybody.”
 
DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 TIME WARNER CABLE CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 13TH
TALK ABOUT THE RACE TONIGHT.  A LOT OF LONG GREEN FLAG LAPS DID THAT CATCH YOU GUYS OFF GUARD?
“No, I like it when it goes long green runs because I feel like we can take care of our tires and get some that work on their car too hard at the start of the run.  It’s a slick old race track so if you just take care of your car no matter how bad the car is handling you can actually be pretty good at the end of the run.  I like that and I think that plays into a different style of racing and plays into other drivers hands and I think I’m one of them.”
 
TEN RACES TO GO TO TRY TO WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP. WHERE DO YOU FEEL LIKE THIS TEAM IS RIGHT NOW?
“I don’t know you know.  We are pretty excited to be in the Chase.  Especially to do it with Time Warner Cable on the side of the car tonight was pretty cool.  We’ve got some things to do to sort of get our cars in order and give ourselves a good shot.  We are going to do the best job we can.”
 
JUNIOR, YOU WERE BEHIND THE NO. 15 (CLINT BOWYER).  WHAT DID YOU SEE? “He just spun right out.  That’s the craziest thing I ever saw.  He just came right around.  He got ‑‑ we were going into, through 3 and 4, and I don’t know if they can put up his brakes and his gas.  We got all the technology.  But he was hemming around on the brakes and jerking the car around, and then the thing just spun out.  It was crazy.  I don’t know what was going on. It was right there, I almost run into it, so I’m glad we were able to get out of there without any trouble.
SIXTH TIME YOU ARE IN THE CHASE.  HOW CLOSE ARE YOU AND STEVE LETARTE TO GETTING INTO VICTORY LANE AND BEING A REAL FACTOR TO WIN THIS CHAMPIONSHIP? “You know, I don’t think a lot of people were counting us as one of the favorites, so last year we were definitely putting up the kind of numbers where I think we were in that conversation.  Maybe not this year.  We’ve had a lot of races that we haven’t been able to finish, but we’ve had fast cars, and I’m real confident in our ability to perform well enough in these 10 races.  We’re going to work real hard.  I think we’ve got as good a shot as anybody, so we’re going to go in there with a good attitude and work real hard and see what we get.”
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 FARMERS INSURANCE CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 14TH
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS GOING INTO THE CHASE?
“We have got to start at the back.  We weren’t able to race our way in.  We just weren’t good enough tonight.  It’s discouraging to not be as fast as we would like to be.  I thought we were going to be a lot better than that tonight.  We just weren’t.  We’ve got five days to think about it and try to put a good plan together and prepare.  Hopefully these final 10 we can make some noise.  I feel good.  I feel like there have been times this season where my team and myself and our whole group the way we have communicated and worked together we have been as strong as any car here.  We will see if we can do that in the Chase.”
FRUSTRATED FROM THE PERFORMANCE YOU HAD TONIGHT.  LET’S ADDRESS TONIGHT AND THE ISSUES THAT YOU HAD.  WHAT WENT WRONG? “ I’m just happy we have a couple wins or we wouldn’t have made the Chase.  We just wouldn’t turn in the center all night, tried to get looser in, looser off and could never turn the center, so it was a tough race.  We stayed out there and tried to do the best we could for Farmer’s and Quaker State, Time Warner Cable, Great Clips, everybody that was part of it, but we weren’t very good.  Looking forward to preparing this week and we’ve got 10 races to make up some ground.
 YOU WON AT BRISTOL, YOU WON AT POCONO.  DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO MAKE THE CHASE? “I would hope so.  There’s times this year that we definitely have, and then there’s other times like tonight where I’m like kind of wondering what’s going on.  I would say the majority of the season we’ve had as much speed as anybody, and if we can put that together for nine or 10 of these next 10, we’ll definitely have a shot.
 
 
TRANSCRIPT FROM MEDIA CENTER:  MODERATOR:  At this time we’ll call up our two wild card participants.  That’s Kasey Kahne
            Let’s hear from Kasey right now.  Kasey, certainly you actually had wrapped up at least a wild card berth last week at Atlanta.  Maybe just talk about your race here tonight.
            KASEY KAHNE:  Yeah, just glad we had it wrapped up because we were struggling tonight throughout the race.  Just off.  Never really got it figured out.  Tight first 20 laps, then spinning the last 60.
            It was a tough race for us.  Wish somehow Jeff would have got in, but that didn’t happen.  That’s it.
           MODERATOR:  Questions for Kasey
 
            Q.  Kasey, did you at any time during practice expect the race to be this way tonight?
            KASEY KAHNE:  As far as my car?
PAGE 6
 
            Q.  Yes.
            KASEY KAHNE:  No.  I thought my car was decent in practice.  We made a 25‑lap run.  It wasn’t as good as some, but it was better than most.  So I thought we were all right.
            Once the race started, I knew we weren’t.  I mean, we made some adjustments four times.  We came out last and really worked on it and didn’t go anywhere after that.
            We struggled here the first race also.  Tested here.  Never felt good in the test.  Clint, Martin.  Martin wasn’t as good as Clint.  Clint was the best guy at the test I thought.  We knew we were off.
            I haven’t been able to figure it out.  I don’t know if it’s the way I drive this track with this tire, track, car combination, the way I lift, how I hold the car out on entry, things like that, or if we’re missing it setup‑wise.  I’m not sure.
            I’m definitely glad this isn’t one of the final 10.
 
            Q.  So are you glad there’s nothing like this coming?
            KASEY KAHNE:  Glad we had two wins coming in.
 
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S/KOBALT
TOOLS CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 40TH
YOU ARE IN THE CHASE, BUT IT WASN’T THE NIGHT YOU WERE LOOKING FOR:
“Yeah, that was a tough night.  We just would run through the right-front tire for whatever reason.  It would wear it out and finally blew it on one of them.  The car was tight, but just really would wear out that right-front tire.  Just a bummer we ended the regular season like we did.  As we look forward to the Chase those are 10 awesome tracks for the No. 48 team and we will go to Chicago and get this Chase started off on the right foot.”
 
A LOT OF PEOPLE WONDER WHERE IS THE TEAM RIGHT NOW AFTER ANOTHER BAD FINISH TONIGHT: “ Yeah, it was definitely a bad run tonight.  When I look at the Chase and the tracks that are in the Chase, those are tracks that we’re really good at historically, and when I look at August, August is normally tough on the 48, and this year it was once again.  I think the big tracks we have plenty of speed.  Some of the shorter tracks we’re off.  The big tracks leading into the Chase we had speed but had some issues, mechanical with the engine and then blew a tire at Pocono.
“So I’m not pleased with where we’re at, but I’m still very confident and feel that going into the Chase it’s a clean sheet of paper for everybody, and we’re going to be where we need to.  People can speculate and wonder all week long, but I really look forward to getting to Chicago and showing people what this team has in it.”
MEDIA CENTER TRANSCRIPT:  MODERATOR:  What a night it was here tonight at Richmond.  It was quite the event.  Jimmie Johnson is our five‑time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion.  He’ll go into the Chase as the No. 2 seed as he contends for his sixth championship.
            Before I even get into NASCAR racing, congratulations, dad, on the birth of another beautiful young girl.
            JIMMIE JOHNSON:  Thank you.
            MODERATOR:  Just your thoughts maybe about that and just now your thoughts about the Chase.
            JIMMIE JOHNSON:  Obviously extremely happy, proud.  Tired from the last few nights.  Chani is home.  Lydia is home.  They’re both doing really, really good.  Got them about 11:00 today.  Got some food in everybody.  We all took some naps.  Flew up here.  Got in the car and went at it.
            Just the five‑time thing is awfully cool, but two‑time, I’m much more proud of being two‑time than anything (smiling).  Just an awesome couple of nights.
            Ready to get home and see my girls.  I’m obviously out‑numbered in the household with my daughters, wife, two female dogs.  I need to find a male fish to put in the corner of the room so I have more testosterone around.
            Unfortunately tonight here at the track things did not go well.  We would literally wear the right front tire off the car as the night would go on.  Start off kind of fast, run through the right front tire, had some issues there.
            Unfortunate night here.  But as I look at the string of bad races we’ve had here over the last three, four weeks, the majority of the tracks that resemble the Chase, we’ve been fast.  We had a blown engine and tire failure at Pocono.  Bristol, here, tracks we don’t see in the Chase, we’ve had our issues.
            I’m glad Richmond and Bristol aren’t in the Chase.  I feel the 10 tracks that are in the Chase are very good for the No. 48 team.  We’ll start over on a clean sheet of paper next weekend and go at it.
            MODERATOR:  Questions for Jimmie.
            Q.  Kyle Busch was in here yesterday and he was asked about the bad finishes you had.  He shook his head and he said, The 48 team will flip the switch next week.  Do you believe that or are you concerned at all with four bad races in a row?
            JIMMIE JOHNSON:  There’s always a little concern.  Without a doubt you want to enter the Chase with momentum.  I think every team falls back on past history.  We have won championships without momentum going into the first race.
            So we’re going to fall on our experience and also the experience of knowing the Chase is so different than anything else.  You’re only racing 12 guys, not 43.  So things change a lot.  We’re going to go to a track that is very good for us.  We had a tire test there earlier in the year.  It went really well.
            I’m going to reserve any major concern or overwhelming confidence until after Chicago.  I’m going to go in there with confidence I can go out and win because I know that I can.  We’re going to enter nice and smooth and see how Chicago goes.
            Q.  Did you know you’ve never finished 28th or worst in your entire career.
            JIMMIE JOHNSON:  No.
            Q.  Because he asked that, we’re going to ask a group question here.
            JIMMIE JOHNSON:  Group?
            Q.  Are you glad that the baby is here and that all the personal stuff is finished and you can now just focus on the racing?
            JIMMIE JOHNSON:  Yeah, without a doubt.  I don’t believe that the personal side has distracted my focus by any means.  I think moving forward with Lydia here, there’s going to be more demands on my personal side.  It’s been pretty easy.  Chani is extremely supportive of my career, lets me have all the time and space I need to do my job.  As the Chase starts, I’m going to have more going on at home.
            We’ve had some bad tracks we’ve run bad at.  Then the tracks we run good at we’ve had some issues.  Definitely don’t want to enter the Chase with no momentum like we have right now.  But Chicago is a whole new world.  The personal side, you know, things will pick up at home a little bit more now than they have.  No way around that.
 “I think more than anything, I’ll get less sleep.  Have to come to the motorhome and get a good night’s sleep on Thursday and Friday (laughter).
            Q.  Jimmie, did being away yesterday in a more important part of your life affect how you raced tonight at all?  Was that a negative not being able to practice?
            JIMMIE JOHNSON:  Yeah, it definitely hurts the efforts of the team.  We tested here a couple weeks ago, felt like what we learned during the test was going to translate and be fine.  We had confidence in the decision not to be in the car yesterday.
            Without a doubt, it would have been best if I was in the car.  I’m not sure we w
ould have gotten where we needed to.  We were pretty far off tonight.
            Speed was okay on the short run, but it would run through the tire and blow the tire.
            MODERATOR:  Jimmie, thank you very much.
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 CESSNA CHEVROLET SS – FINISHED 4H:
“That was a great night for our team.  Our car was really good early in the race, but we struggled a little in the middle of the race.  I am proud of the work from our guys all weekend on our Cessna team.  We had really good pit stops tonight that put us in position for that top-five finish”.                   
 
 

GREAT START IN MONTEREY: Westbrook Leads Front-Row Sweep for Corvette DPs
Edwards’ GT pole means Team Chevy locks out front rows in both Rolex Series classes
 
MONTEREY, Calif. (Sept. 7, 2013) – Team Chevy couldn’t ask for a better start to the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series weekend at Laguna Seca. Richard Westbrook took pole position in Spirit of Daytona’s No. 90 Corvette Daytona Prototype for Sunday’s Continental Tire Sports Car Festival as Chevrolet power swept the front rows of both Rolex Series classes.
 
Westbrook, last year’s race-winner in Monterey with Antonio Garcia, posted a qualifying lap Saturday of 1:21.557 (98.787 mph) in the entry he shares with Ricky Taylor. It marked the first pole of the season for Westbrook and Spirit of Daytona. Max Angelelli in Wayne Taylor Racing’s No. 10 Velocity Worldwide Corvette DP qualified second and was just 0.021 seconds off Westbrook’s pace.
 
Angelelli and Jordan Taylor enter the weekend leading the Rolex Series’ DP drivers’ championship, and Chevrolet is first in the engine manufacturer standings. Corvette DPs took four of the first six spots on the Daytona Prototype grid.
 
Sunday’s two-hour, 45-minute race is the next-to-last round of the 2013 Rolex Series. The race airs live at 5 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1.
 
John Edwards and Boris Said gave Team Chevy a 1-2 finish in GT qualifying. Edwards captured the class pole with a 1:27.529 (92.047 mph) lap in Stevenson Motorsports’ Camaro GT.R. The young American, driving with Robin Liddell, took his third pole of the season.
 
Boris Said was second and just 0.099 seconds off Edwards’ pole time. Said drives Marsh Racing’s No. 31 Corvette with Eric Curran.
 
Edwards and Liddell sit third in the GT drivers’ standings but are just three points out of first. Stevenson Motorsports holds the same position and interval in the team championship.
 
“This is an ideal start to a critical championship weekend at Laguna Seca,” said Jim Lutz, Chevrolet Program Manager, Rolex Sports Car Series. “Congratulations to Richard Westbrook and everyone at Spirit of Daytona for their work in an incredibly close session that sees Corvette DPs lock out the front row. Likewise, congratulations are in order for John Edwards and Stevenson Motorsports with its Camaro GT.R. If qualifying is any indication, tomorrow’s race is certain to be a thrilling one.”
 
In qualifying for Sunday’s Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race, Edwards qualified fourth in Stevenson Motorsports’ No. 9 Camaro GS.R. Edwards’ lap of 1:36.645 (83.365 mph) put the Stevenson entry, also driven by Matt Bell, fourth overall and on the GS grid. Edwards was 0.283 seconds off Brandon Davis’ pole-winning time.
 
RICHARD WESTBROOK, NO. 90 SPIRIT OF DAYTONA CORVETTE DP
“It’s not quite enough to make up for what has been a truly woeful season for us – definitely by our standards. It shows we have a good car and shows we can bounce back off a run of really bad results. Obviously it’s a good track for us but we still have to work very hard at these places. The competition is so much harder this year. It was pretty close out there.”
 
JOHN EDWARDS, NO. 57 STEVENSON MOTORSPORTS CAMARO GT.R
“This place has been good to me, but it’s never easy. It always seems to be a pretty hard fight. I think we have a really good car — one of the best cars we’ve had all year on new tires. But I think this weekend in GT everyone seems to be struggling with a big difference in time at the end of the stint versus the beginning. We’ve never seen track temperatures this high here in the past couple of years, so it’s really hard on the tires. I think the key is going to be trying to keep the car underneath us and keep it from going loose in the race as the tires get older.
“This race also with our fuel windows and everything opens up more options for strategy than somewhere like Kansas. I think that’s one place where Stevenson excels and also on pit stops, so I’m optimistic about tomorrow. But it’s definitely going to be a tough fight between the Ferraris and the Porsches.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUALIFYING PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 6, 2013
 
 
JEFF GORDON SETS NASCAR RECORD IN WINNING THE POLE AT RICHMOND
FIVE TEAM CHEVY DRIVERS POST TOP 15 STARTING SPOTS
 
RICHMOND, VA – Sept. 6th, 2013 – With a track record qualifying lap of 20.674 seconds and average time of 130.599 mph, Jeff Gordon put his No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet SS in the pole position for Saturday night’s 56TH Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway (RIR). This was Gordon’s first pole of the season, giving him 21 straight seasons with at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) pole – which breaks the record he had shared with David Pearson of 20.  This was also his sixth pole in 42 races at RIR, and 73rd career NSCS pole in 715 races – which makes him third on the all-time list.
 
Kurt Busch, No. 78 Furniture Row/Beautyrest Chevrolet SS, qualified in second position – his eighth front row start and 12th top-10 start of the 2013 NSCS season.  Busch, who sits 10th in points, is just six points ahead of Gordon for the coveted top-10 in points needed to make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.  Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Cessna Chevrolet SS, qualified in seventh position for his sixth top ten start of 2013.
 
While Hendrick Motorsports driver, Jimmie Johnson, was in North Carolina with his wife, Chani, because their second child was born early this morning; Regan Smith took over practice and qualifying duties for the No. 48 Lowe’s/KOBALT Tools Chevrolet SS.  Although Smith qualified the car in 10th, Johnson will have to start from the rear when he returns for the race tomorrow night.
 
Other Team Chevy starters in the top 15 are Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Target Chevrolet SS – 12th and Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Time Warner Cable Chevrolet SS in 14th.
 
Brad Keselowski (Ford) qualified third, Clint Bowyer (Toyota) qualified fourth, and Matt Kenseth (Toyota) qualified fifth to round out the top-five starters.
 
The Federated Auto Parts 400 will take the green flag on Saturday evening, September 7th at 7:30 p.m. ET and air live on ABC and PRN Radio.
 
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS, POLE WINNER:
PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
 
TALK ABOUT YOUR QUALIFYING RUN: “Obviously that was big – it was really big. Of course to address the record with (David) Pearson. It is not very often you get to break a record that David Pearson set. So that is really incredible. I’m pretty overwhelmed, and blown away by that record in itself and to be able to accomplish that.  I didn’t think it was going to happen this year. We just have not been qualifying well. I like to pride myself in my qualifying, and it has just been little things here and there that have kept us from getting it. Today just went really smooth. The car was good in the first practice in race runs.  We swapped over for qualifying trim in the second one and went straight to the top of the board. The car was just driving well. I saw Kurt (Busch) put that great lap up at the beginning. Then I saw the cloud go away. I was a little bit nervous as to whether we had enough.  On the first lap the car stuck good, and I knew I had a little bit more in me for the second lap. It did all the things I wanted it to do. That’s huge to be able to do that at a crucial time. Get that number one pit stall, and set ourselves up to do what we are going to have to do tomorrow. It is going to be tough. It is going to be a hard fight. That little bit of confidence that we needed; this is what this gives us. The car just feels really good, and I am just excited to get the race going tomorrow.”
 
HOW INTERESTING DO YOU EXPECT THE FIRST LAP TO BE WITH KURT STARTING ALONGSIDE YOU AND BRAD (KESELOWSKI) STARTING RIGHT BEHIND YOU? “It depends on everybody’s attitude and goals are. I think we all know Kurt is a very aggressive guy, so I would think he is probably going to try to fight pretty hard to get himself in position. Not only for track position, but it is important for him to lead a lap just like it is important for me to lead a lap. I would imagine that there will be a little big of battling there. I have been in this sport a long time; the race is not won on the first lap. I will try to get the best start that I can and try to get the lead. If I feel like I’m not wearing the tires out too much to get it, or to keep it. Then we will try to stay up there. But, this is a long race. You have got to be smart. We found that out last year. Halfway through this race, we were done. We didn’t give up on it, and look what happened. So we have to take that approach when the green flag drops tomorrow. You have to fight hard, and you have to be smart as well.”
 
DID YOU GET EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD GET OUT OF THE CAR ON THE LAP? OR WAS THERE MAYBE A LITTLE BIT LEFT? “There is always a little bit left Stan (Creekmore). You know that. Until a computer is driving the car, I don’t know if it going to be perfect. I felt like I got everything out of it. If you scan me, you know that when I cross the line, I make comments. When I crossed the line, please tell me that’s it, because I thought it was. And, it was. Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) was a little confused because he was on his stop-watch, and his stop-watch said a .70 so he knew it was really close. Then he came back and said it was a .67. I knew that was a great lap. Didn’t know if that was going to hold up,
 
‘”We got behind a cloud there, especially when the NO. 20 (Matt Kenseth) went. And it was really, really close. So, I knew it was a good lap though. The car has been good all day and I was really thrilled that we backed it up when we went to qualifying. When you qualify here, you pick up six-tenths from practice and/or half a second. When you push as hard as you can in practice, you just can’t comprehend that the track has that much in it. And yet you go and push it and it does. Today it stuck and that was great.”
 
DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU MADE A STATEMENT TODAY?
“We made a better statement than it we would have qualified 35th (laughter). If you think qualifying 35th meant something, then I think qualifying first means something as well.
 
“To me, it’s just really about building momentum and confidence throughout the weekend to know that we’re fune-tuning but we’re not looking and searching for big things. That’s the kind of day that we’ve had and specially since we’ve gone into qualifying trim. But that number one pit stall is big.
 
“Track position is big. So, did we make a statement? Yeah. But so did Kurt (Busch) and Brad (Keselowski). I find it so fascinating. You come into this race and there’s all these guys that are all in this bubble or whatever you want to call it to make the Chase. And all of a sudden, they all just step up to another level and I think that makes for a really interesting conversation of what’s going to happen prior to the race, and when that green flag drops of what’s going to happen throughout the whole race.”
 
THIS IS THE SECOND YEAR IN A ROW YOU’VE HAD TO RACE YOUR WAY INTO THE CHASE. DO YOU THINK  YOU ARE MORE CONFIDENT KNOWING WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO TO ACCOMPLISH THAT? AND HOW IS STARTING AT THE FRONT GOING TO HELP YOU ACCOMPLISH THAT?
“I’m certainly a lot more comfortable. Last year I was really on edge and it was stressful. The entire weekend was stressful. And I’ve been a lot more calm this weekend. I don’t know exactly why other than I think because we went through so much last year that it does help prepare you to deal with whatever is thrown at you and know that you’re giving your best. This is only step one. We started pretty good here last year, if I remember correctly.
 
“This is a good track, qualifying-wise, for me. I thought we started pretty good but we faded fast. We did the same t
hing here earlier this year. That was our primary goal why we tested here, and our primary goal goal to learn today when we got here. And that’s what I’m excied about. Not only did we qualify well and get the pole, but I think we have a much better car for the race in the long runs as well.”
 
NORMALLY QUALIFYING SECOND WOULD BE A GOOD THING AND KURT BUSCH WAS. BUT THE FACT THAT YOU QUALIFIED FIRST DOESN’T MAKE IT AS GOOD FOR HIM ANYMORE. ARE YOU HAPPY HE IS THINKING ABOUT THAT AND WHAT HE COULD HAVE DONE AND THAT IT’S KIND OF IN HIS HEAD NOW?
“I that there’s not doubt we all recognize what’s on the line here. We all recognize the conversations that are going on about who is going to do it and who is going get in the top 10 and who is going to be the wild card. And I think that while I don’t necessarily agree that we should be singling us out, it does seem like that was the questions I was getting asked about yesterday. I think there are too many other guys out there that we really have to race; not only to win this race, but also to make it in. But then, we go one-two in qualifying. So that’s pretty ironic. At this point, I’ll take every little boost and bit of confidence and little victory that we can, and today was a good one.”
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW RACING/BEAUTYREST CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED SECOND
PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:
 
TALK ABOUT YOUR QUALIFYING EFFORT AND WHAT YOU THINK IT MEANS FOR TOMORROW NIGHT:
“It was a great lap for us.  We made a lot of changes and it turned out to be a great lap.  I didn’t know if it would stick for the pole or not.  We end up outside pole which I think now that is like you said seven outside poles for us this  year, eight, one pole and a bunch of outside poles, I don’t know if that and a dollar bill gets you a Big Glup (laughs).
 
“It’s cool that we are on the front row and hanging out up front with (Jeff) Gordon.  The way that it shakes out it’s just a front row starting spot which is great for our crew guys.  We will have a good pit box selection.  We will probably choose the one with the opening that is in front of it back around I think pit box 17.
 
“That first pit box is nice.  I got the pole here once at Richmond before and you can just fall right off the jack and trigger that line.  We will see that No. 24 use that to his advantage all night.  So we know that little bit of difference in the lap time we just ran will give him a nice advantage all night long.  Our guys will know that and then once we settle into the race it’s a matter of just making sure we focus on our drive off and not spin those rear tires.
 
“This is cool.  Here we are the two guys battling it out for the last spot.  Like the bottom of the seventh I feel like we have a one run lead and it’s off to the final few innings.”
 
WHY DO YOU THINK THAT IS IN SITUATIONS LIKE THIS IN HIGH PRESSURE SITUATIONS THAT GUYS WHO HAVE THEIR BACKS AGAINST THE WALL THEY SEEM TO RISE TO THE OCCASION? 
“I’m going to just draw the parallel that all three of us have and that is the Sprint Cup trophy that is sitting in our trophy room.  It also comes down to great teams making the adjustments to know how the track speed is going to pick up and then the driver has to drive with that increased speed. We picked up eight tenths from where we practiced.  Eight tenths is a lot and also on our computer and some of our simulation it said that from the beginning of qualifying to the end of qualifying the track is going to pick up eight hundredths.  (Jeff) Gordon went out right around in the middle and he beat us by four hundredths.  It’s ridiculous how close computers are getting these days with simulation.  That is all the teams doing that and the drivers have to go out there and back that up.  That is why you probably see us three up there.”
 
IN THINKING BACK, WAS THERE A SINGLE INSTANT IN YOUR QUALIFYING LAP THAT YOU THINK COULD HAVE KEPT YOU AT THE TOP OR WAS IT JUST TIMING?
“You know the track going out fifth it was very early to go out, but we also had cloud cover in the beginning and I think that helped us equalize some of that track conditions picking up a quicker pace towards the end.  I don’t know I look at turn two maybe.  Didn’t quite swat the throttle as hard as I maybe could have, but I also watched Brad (Keselowski) slip his tire off turn two and end up third.  We are going to take second.  We came from all the way back in 19th in practice now we are outside pole and now we get into our comfort zone of going through the debrief and looking at our set-up notes.  Maybe we can translate a couple of things from our qualifying run and add them to our race trim and carry those with us all night long.”
 
WATCHING THE MONITOR AND WATCHING THE TRACKER IT SEEMED LIKE IF YOU EVER GET BELOW INTO THE RED NOBODY EVER COMES BACK UP.  IS THAT THE WAY IT IS WHEN YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’VE MISSED A TURN DO YOU KNOW YOU ARE PROBABLY NOT GOING TO GET IT BACK ?  NOT YOU BUT EVERYBODY IN GENERAL?
“When you are at a short track there is really no time to gain that little slip.  I’m having a hard time explaining, but at a short track any time you throw away you are never going to get it back.  At a mile and a half you can get it back on the other end of the track because there is that much more space left, track distance.  I learned that in drag racing.  In a quarter mile there is no time to waste.  Once you throw away a thousandth you are never going to get it back.  So the moment you feel like at a short track that you slip well there is only three quarters of a mile around here you can’t get that time back.”
 
DO YOU EXPECT A LOT OF DICING ON THE FIRST LAP FOR YOU GUYS TO TRY TO GET THAT BONUS POINT BETWEEN THE THREE OF YOU?
“Yeah, there is the bonus point for leading a lap and I’m looking at our car over the long run.  We’ve got a job to do to complete 400 laps and the first one isn’t the important one.  It’s lap 400.  So we will see how it shakes out if Jeff (Gordon) slips his tires I will take advantage of that and try to lead the first segment of the race.  Otherwise the game plan is to let him lead on the start because I’m on the outside. It’s not the preferred lane and then by lap 10 we will see how the sequence pans out or even sooner if our car is going to come to life and want to pass his.”
 
YOU ARE A STRONG RICHMOND RACER ARE YOU GLAD THIS IS THE TRACK YOU HAVE FOR THE CHASE?
“This is a cool place to come to because of the balance of the short track atmosphere versus the speeds here are greater at this track than the normal short tracks.  Then the tire drop off the pace is so fast for qualifying and then by lap 30 you are going to hear everybody on their radios asking for rear grip, the rear is sliding all around and the rear can’t hook up.  So you’ve got to manage your tires throughout the tire run.  It’s a great challenging track that you could get caught pinned down by a pit sequence as well.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUALIFYING NOTES & QUOTES
SEPTEMBER 6, 2013
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – POLE WINNER:
YOU RACED YOUR WAY INTO THE CHASE LAST YEAR WITH THAT LAP ARE YOU ON THE WAY TO DOING IT AGAIN?
“Well this is only part of it, but that’s certainly a great run and we’ve had a really good AARP Drive To End Hunger, Hunger Action Month take action and we just did.  I’m excited about the day that we’ve had.  Our car has been good in race trim and certainly been good in qualifying trim.  When those guys start laying down laps like they were laying you just don’t know what it’s going to take how much further you can push the car and weather it sticks.  It did the things that I wanted it to do.  The first lap was sort of a feel out lap and the second lap was going for it. It stuck good, turned good, and got off the corners good.  I felt like it was capable of it and then they came over and said it was.  The sun is going down and clouds are out anything can happen with these cars that are coming up, but all in all really nice day.  It was a great moment for us to get this weekend started right.”
 
CAN YOU COMPARE YOUR FEELINGS NOW TO HOW YOU FELT HERE LAST YEAR?  
“Well we had a good qualifying run last year I believe.  We actually had a good start to the race.  Then it all went downhill from there.  We really had some revelations when we were here testing a few weeks ago of some things that we had to work on.  I’m so glad we did that test because we have made some huge strides and not only from last year some of the issues that we had, but earlier this year when we didn’t run very well here at all and I think they kind of came to the front of what was kind of maybe hiding underneath and we solved some issues and I think we made our car a lot better.  It’s been reacting really well so far this week. We still have a little more work to do.”
 
FIRST POLE OF 2013 IS SIGNIFICANT FOR THE RECORD BOOKS HE NOW MOVES AHEAD OF DAVID PEARSON WITH 21 YEARS IN A ROW THAT HE HAS HAD AT LEAST ONE POLE.  WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?
“That is amazing.  I didn’t think it was going to come this year I’ll be honest.  Qualifying has not been very good for me and for our team this year.  Very proud of this one, boy, it comes at a great time.  We know how important making this Chase is.  We know how important that number one pit stall is and starting up front.  ‘Whoo’ I can breathe now.  Don’t forget it is hunger action month so take action go to drivetoendhunger.org to help out this great cause.  I’m so proud of this race team.  That was huge.  To have to go out there and beat the No. 78 you know what I mean there are just so many story lines you don’t know where to begin.  So many things that are going to happen in this race this is just step one.  Very proud and happy that this moment came and that we are stepping it up when we need to.”
 
KURT BUSCH, NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW RACING/BEAUTYREST CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 2ND:
HOW BIG DO YOU THINK THAT CLOUD COVER WAS HELPING YOU?
“We will take the cloud cover and we will take those adjustments we made.  That lap came out of nowhere.  Awesome lap.  I don’t know where it will end up, but that is big time team stuff when you are off in practice and you have to throw quite a few changes at it and it makes a good reaction to the changes.  The car handled really well there for qualifying.  I don’t know where that will stack up, but that was nice for us to have to come from behind in qualifying practice.
 
“I think we are okay for the race, so real excited about that lap. These Furniture Row guys and this Chevy we will keep plugging along here we are in good position.”
 
HOW FAR BEHIND WERE YOU IN PRACTICE?  HOW MUCH ADJUSTING DID THEY HAVE TO DO?
“Well we were 19th overall.  We might of got blocked on one of our qualifying laps.  So it might of hurt us by a tenth or so.  So that was 15th, 15th is the right end of where we have to draw the line.  We have to stay ahead of (Martin) Truex and all those guys.  15th is the worst we want to be.”
 
IT WILL BE THE EIGHTH TIME THIS SEASON YOU HAVE STARTED ON THE FRONT ROW.  THAT IS A CAREER BEST.  YOU WERE 19TH IN QUALIFYING TRIM IN THAT FINAL PRACTICE HOW DID YOU PULL IT OUT THERE WITH A SECOND FASTEST QUALIFYING TIME?
“We just threw a couple of things at it and it stuck.  There are days when you make changes and it doesn’t necessarily translate into speed.  Just got to thank these guys, these Furniture Row guys keep working, we keep finding things and qualifying has been strong for us this year.  I’m glad that we could lean back on some of the knowledge we had from earlier this year.  I didn’t think we would get the outside pole, but man that is what eight outside poles, it’s crazy.  It’s just cool to be in position.  Now at the start of the race we are right there with (Jeff) Gordon and we will settle in and race our 400 laps.”
 
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU STARTING ON THE FRONT ROW TOMORROW NIGHT?
“Well since (Jeff) Gordon is on pole he will lead probably the first lap.  If we were on pole we would have lead the first lap and that is a two point swing.  So we will see how that shakes out.  We want to make sure we pace ourselves, do the right thing.  We will have a good pit selection that will help our guys.  From there we just have to go back over the notes on today’s practice runs and then look at what we did here in qualifying to pick up that speed and see if we can use any of that to add to tomorrow night.  We are feeling good about this.  I love these challenges and right now (Jeff) Gordon and I are one-two.”
 
ON HOW IMPRESSIVE SS HAS BEEN THIS SEASON:
“It’s fast. The way they allow us to take all the fuel out of it; the center of gravity is so low that when you are at a smooth track like Richmond, you can really gain from that center of gravity difference. I’m just impressed by the changes we’ve made; and to have a shot of being in the top-10 in qualifying. In practice, we were just off when we switched over to Q trim. A bit surprised, but to be able to make changes like that, and get a good reaction out of the car, that is big time team stuff.”
 
REGAN SMITH, INTERIM DRIVER FOR JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S/KOBALT TOOLS CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 10TH:
WHAT HAS THE EXPERIENCE BEEN LIKE FOR YOU THIS WEEKEND AND WHAT DOES JIMMIE (JOHNSON) HAVE TO WORK WITH TOMORROW NIGHT?
“Well, it’s been a great experience for me.  Number one the seat time has been awesome and numbers two getting to hop in a car after Jimmie does in a test session and then feel what he looks for out of his race car.  He’s got a great car tomorrow night.  I know they were real happy in the test, we were happy at points this afternoon.
 
“Qualifying trim I was like a fish out of water for a little while there.  Chad (Knaus, crew chief) did an awesome job with the Lowe’s/KOBALT Tools Chevy before I hopped back in it.  It was good.  I didn’t quite get all of it, but proud of these guys for working with me all day and all weekend.
 
“They will have the regular guy back tomorrow.  Hopefully they are doing good with the baby back home.  Hopefully things are going well there and look forward to watching it.”
 
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 CESSNA CHEVROLET SS, QUALIFIED 7TH: ON HIS QUALIFYING: “It wasn’t a bad lap. We’ve struggled being fast on our second lap, and it seems like most guys can go quicker on their second lap. We seem to always have the fastest first lap, but just can’t get the speed out of the car on
the second lap. It wasn’t a bad lap I don’t think. It was better than I expected.”
 
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET SS, QUALIFIED 12TH:
ON HIS QUALIFYING: “It was okay. We haven’t been that good this week to be honest with you. We really struggled in practice. It’s okay. It didn’t drive as good as I wanted it too, but it’s not bad.”
 
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 QUICKEN LOANS CHEVROLET SS, QUALIFIED  24TH:
ON HIS QUALIFYING: “We have just been struggling on short-run speed. That kind of goes along with all year with a couple of exceptions. We’ll see how we shake out. It’s not where we want to be. But I feel confident that we have a good long-run Quicken Loans Chevrolet.”
 
MARK MARTIN, NO. 14 BASS PRO SHOPS/MOBIL 1 CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 16TH:
“I got loose there on the first lap getting off of (turn) two and that kind of put a little damper on our second lap. I thought we were pretty close in terms of setup, but as it turns out, we could’ve used another adjustment and tightened the car up.”
 
DANICA PATRICK, NO. 10 GODADDY CHEVROLET SS – QUALIFIED 36TH:
“The rear of the car was a little jumpy. We picked up from practice, but were hoping for a better lap with the GoDaddy Chevy. Well be ready for tomorrow. I appreciate the hard work of the GoDaddy guys today. They put a lot of effort in.”
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 6, 2013     
 
CHAD KNAUS, CREW CHIEF NO. 48 LOWE’S/KOBALT TOOLS CHEVROLET SS, met with members of the media at Richmond International Raceway and discussed the birth of Jimmie and Chani Johnson’s second daughter, Regan Smith practicing and qualifying the car, Jimmie racing Saturday night and other topics.  Full transcript:
 
CONGRATULATIONS UNCLE CHAD KNAUS: SMILES “It is pretty cool. We are all excited about.”
 
TELL US WHAT YOU KNOW AND HOW THE DAY IS GOING TO GO: “As far as the day goes, Regan Smith is going to practice the car, and he is going to drive the car at qualifying today. Jimmie will be back here tomorrow, and he will race tomorrow evening. As far as Jimmie and Chani go and the baby – everything is fine there. They had her early, early this morning. Healthy; all her fingers, all her toes; all that stuff looks good.  Chani is doing great. They are recovering and hopefully be home tomorrow.”
 
HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH THE HEIGHT DIFFERENCE OF REGAN AND JIMMIE? “Actually they fit in the same car. This has been the plan since the onset. We felt that if we went into Loudon (New Hampshire) weekend, we were going to have some difficulty with the mixed schedule. We were hoping she was going to come this weekend. We actually tested here a few weeks ago. It was a company test. Regan joined us at the test, and made some laps in the No. 48 car. He felt very comfortable in the race car. Turned some pretty respectable laps. It is actually working out better than we had hoped.”
 
DID YOU ACTUALLY GET A CALL AT 2:30 IN THE MORNING? “I was getting text messages all night last night. Jimmie sent me a text, and we bantered back and forth a bit. It was quite exciting.”
 
HOW IS JIMMIE? “He is great! He’s having a good time. He is enjoying the moment with Chani. He really wanted to be here, but after talking it over with him last night, and really trying to put some sense to it; it made a lot more sense for him to take the day off. Get some rest. Spend some time with Chani. That way when he showed up here tomorrow night, he was actually fresh and ready to go instead of sleep deprived and wanting to be with his kid.”
 
WHAT IS THE IMPACT WITH HOW IT IS GOING TO WORK TODAY? “Really, as poorly as we have qualified here, I don’t think the implications are going to be too bad. We start toward the rear typically anyhow. So we are going to go out there; we’re going to try and qualify as best we can so we get a solid pit selection. We will have to start toward the rear of the field tomorrow. We have 400 laps to try to work our way up there. I feel very confident with it. Regan is actually a fantastic qualifier. We’ve seen that time and time again, so I feel like he can get the Lowe’s/KOBALT Chevrolet qualified in the top-10, top-15. Get a good solid pit pick and go in there and race.”
 
HOW MUCH LESS PRESSURE IS THERE KNOWING IT’S NOT GOING TO BE A DISTRACTION OR AN ISSUE NEXT WEEK? “It is just the thing, man. Life happens, so we are prepared for everything. We tried to be as prepared as we could for all of it. We were ready for Chicago in case Regan needed to go in there as well. It’s nice to know that we don’t have to worry about it, but if it had crept up, we would have dealt with it. We would have been okay.”
 
DO YOU HAVE ANY INPUT ON THE BABY’S NAME? WE HAVEN’T BEEN GIVEN A NAME: “I think Genevieve has the biggest influence on that right now.”
 
DO YOU HAVE TO MAKE MANY CHANGES INSIDE THE CAR FOR REGAN VERSUS JIMMIE? “No, he (Regan) fits in the car really well. It is really, really close. If it gets to the point where he needs to drive the car in the race, we’ll need to make some small modifications to it. But, for what he is going to be doing, we don’t really change much at all.”
 
HOW MUCH OF A CHANCE IS THERE THAT HE WILL HAVE TO DRIVE THE CAR IN THE RACE? “Very slim.”
 
DID YOU DISCUSS AT ALL HIM MISSING TOMORROW’S RACE? “We did talk about him not attending the race.  It would have had to have been because of some form of complication, or the baby came later today than what we had anticipated. But since she came at a reasonable hour, and Jimmie is going to be able to take the day off, he feels like he will be well-rested and be able to come out here and perform the way he needs to tomorrow night.”
 
IT’S BEEN A ROUGH STRETCH FOR THE TEAM LATELY, HASN’T IT?
“Oh yeah, absolutely. It’s been tough but the thing is our cars have actually been very fast. At Atlanta we were running well and everything was going to be fine. At Michigan, we were clearly very, very fast in both race cars; and at Pocono we were fast, and so on and so forth. So, it’s unfortunate that we’ve had these situations, but quite honestly, it’s actually helped us, because our team was a little rusty on fixing crashes and repairs and on-road stuff. And it’s given our guys an opportunity to get back in the swing of things. So, if it were ever to happen, it was a great time for it to have happened. And we’re looking forward to the next 11 weeks. We feel like our race cars have been super-fast every weekend. We’ve qualified well. We’ve run very fast in the back-up cars, so we feel like we’ve got the packages that we need. We’ve just got to try to get out there and not have these silly problems.”
 
DO YOU EXPECT ALL HELL TO BREAK LOOSE HERE AT RICHMOND? NOT SO MUCH FOR YOUR TEAM, BUT IN GENERAL BECAUSE OF THE WILD CARD SCENARIOS?
“Yeah, it’s crazy. There are a lot of different scenarios that are going to potentially play out. I’m glad I’m not involved in it, how’s that? We were talking about it in the competition meeting the other day and I was like darn, can I just stay home and not even get in this mess? Because it’s going to be show, I can tell you that. But it’s going to be exciting and that’s what we want. We’ve seen it year in and year out, that coming into Richmond a lot of guys and a lot of players make some petty critical decisions to take them out or put them into the Chase.”
 
WILL THE NEW DAUGHTER BE LIKE A BREATH OF FRESH AIR AND MAYBE CHANGE THE BACK LUCK YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN HAVING FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS?
“I hope she brings us good luck. I don’t know. I’ll take it. That’s good luck, yes. Absolutely Everything from here on out is going to be perfect. How’s that? (laughs)”
 
YOU HAVE BEEN THE POINTS LEADER FOR MOST OF THE YEAR, BUT MOST LIKELY WON’T BE FOR THE START OF THE CHASE UNLESS YOU WIN SATURDAY NIGHT
“Oh, so you’re counting us out already?”
 
OH, NO, I’M NOT. BUT HOW WOULD THAT AFFECT THE TEAM?
“Not at all. Not at all. We’ve started the Chase in a lot of different scenarios. We’ve started leading the points. We’ve started 10th in points. We’ve started Chases with DNF’s and been able to come back and run competitively. So, we don’t really focus on that stuff as much as everybody else does. We focus on how the team is performing. We focus on what we’re capable of doing and how we’re going to approach the situation. And right now, we’re coming in with our heads high and our shoulders back and we’re ready to go. We feel very confident that we’ve got a great race team and a great driver and good race cars; and we can go out there and race our way into this championship.”
 
WILL YOUR DAY TODAY BE SPENT CONCENTRATING JUST ON QUALIFYING?
“We’re going to do some race runs in the first practice session and then we’re going to switch over to qualifying trim the second practice. We were fortunate enough to be here for the test a few weeks ago and we were able to test during the nighttime hours, so we feel confident that the set-up that we have for the No. 48 car is going to be good at night.”
&nbs
p;
IS THE FACT THAT YOU TESTED AT NIGHT ACTUALLY MORE BENEFICIAL THAN ANY PRACTICE YOU WOULD HAVE GOTTEN TODAY?
“Yeah, basically. Today is going to be mainly to get Regan (Smith) acclimated to the race car again and try to turn some fast laps and try to get a solid qualifying effort.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 5, 2013
 
 
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 QUICKEN LOANS CHEVROLET SS – WILD CARD CONTENDERS MEDIA AVAILABILITY:
 
RYAN NEWMAN:  To me, everything is like an ordinary race weekend.  Once the checkered flag drops, it all changes.  We have to do the same thing that we chose and want to do back in Daytona for the 500, at Phoenix and Vegas, everything else.  That is the same task at hand.  That’s to win the race.
            Again, for so many of us, winning answers so many things.  A few of us, some people can win and still not make it in.  In my position, if I win, I’m in.  I can run 2nd and still not make it.  It’s just a matter of going out there and seeing how everything falls.
            I mean, I finished 21st in Bristol, went out of the wild card spot to into the wild card spot.  Anything can happen in a short track race.  I think the guys that we’re all racing, even if you look back at Atlanta, I looked at the pylon after the race, guy trying to make the Chase, guy trying to make the Chase, had to get to like 6th or something to get out of that group for guys that are battling for that tight spot.
            Anything can happen.  I think it’s just an ordinary race up until that point.
 
            Q.  If you get in, how competitive do you think you can be?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  That was the question and answer to myself before Atlanta.  If we can’t do what we need to in these two races, we won’t be able to achieve anything in 10 races.
            These last two races, Atlanta, I think we did a good job there, kept ourselves in the hunt.  I think we can be competitive.  We’ve proven we can win.  Everybody says you have to be a winner to be a champion.  I don’t know that’snecessarily the case, but obviously it does help.
            I mean, I’m not going to sit here and say, Yeah, I think we can win it, I know we can win it.  I think we can be a true contender and shake some things up.
 
            Q.  Tony said the other day they didn’t want to talk about him being out for the season because they didn’t want to put any distraction.
            RYAN NEWMAN:  (Laughter).
 
            Q.  I know.  I know.
            RYAN NEWMAN:  Two U‑turns, going back in the same direction, right (laughter)?
 
            Q.  Has trying to figure out what you’re doing next year been a distraction while everything else is going on as well?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I think no matter what, trying to figure out anybody’s future is somewhat of a distraction.  When it compares to living in the present, trying to figure out and perform like we need to perform for the Chase.  I think it takes a pretty good mind to separate all those things.
            I think if you look at somebody like me and Kurt, I think we’ve done well managing that.  I think in the end it is a big challenge, but that’s what we enjoy, is challenges.  We’re out there competing against 42 other people to try to win a race.  Don’t expect anything to be easy.
            They say the more challenging it is, the more rewarding it is, so…
 
            Q.  How much of this is the mental game?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I still say in our sport, just like I said when I drove the Army car, it’s a 33% deal.  There’s mental, physical and emotional.  They all weigh evenly.  Some at times more than others, but in the end they all weigh evenly.
            I think there will be a part of racing here in Richmond that is mental, physical and emotional.  Emotion may be the first lap or the last lap, but in the end there will be a 33‑and‑a‑third balance of all three.
 
            Q.  If you could have one race back from earlier this year, which would it be?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  Two of the first three were DNF’s.  You pick the engine failure, the blown tire, either one of those were 40‑ish‑place finishes.  That was tough.  30 points we couldn’t get back, if you take a top‑10 finish.  That was huge.
            So many guys in our position could say the exact same thing.  There’s several races like that.  You go back to when we had the ball rolling, then we had Loudon and everything kind of blew up, then we came back and won Indy.  Loudon we got crashed running 6th on a restart in our last fuel window.  We ended up 36th there.
            So many of us could say the exact same thing, exact same story.  We just all have one race to make it happen.
 
            Q.  Did you watch Tuesday with Tony?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  No.
 
            Q.  Fans have been hard on him.  He’s been bothered by it, people feeling like he lied to you or deceived you.  Do you feel that?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I don’t think Tony lied to me.  I don’t think anybody lied to me.  I don’t have any of that feeling or emotion.  I don’t think any of that matters because the plans they made are for 2014 and I’m not part of that.  I knew that going in.
            I don’t think there were any hidden agendas on Tony’s behalf.  I had a good relationship with him and been up front with him.  My communication has been mostly with him in my whole relationship at Stewart‑Haas Racing.  No surprise.
 
            Q.  No hard feelings?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  No hard feelings.  I know a lot of things became tough for Tony once he was injured.  That all kind of happened at the same time.  Kind of like what we do in our business, you have to get through the tough times.
 
            Q.  This week did you do a lot of things not making your car go fast?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I spent some time this week working on next year, which I can’t really talk anything about.  I also spent a lot of time around my farm.  It was the first week we’ve had no rain.  I was actually able to do some of the things I wanted to get done.
   &nbs
p;        To me that helps balance out some of the mental sanity of dealing with next year, dealing with this year.  I think everybody has to have that in some shape or form.
 
            Q.  You said you’re not ready to say anything about next year.
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I’m ready to say it (laughter).
 
            Q.  Just not allowed?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  It’s not that I’m not allowed.  It’s just not the right time.
 
            Q.  Are you able to feel there is a peace of mind with the other stuff?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  Yeah, you know, I’ve actually watched and heard and saw some of like Kurt’s comments about how he’s focused on the race, he’s focused on other things during the week.  I’ve been the same way.
            With our history, you look at our age, when we started in the Cup Series, we’ve gone through the same growingpains, the same highs, some of the same lows.  In the end, I mean, I’m focused on what I need to focus on when I need to focus on it.  That could change any minute depending on the next phone call.
 
            Q.  When do you think you can say something about next year?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  Shortly (laughter).
 
            Q.  How does this track play to your strengths?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  It’s easy to say that when you’ve won at a place, you feel like you can do it again.  I think our series and sport is so competitive, there’s no guarantee to that.
            I mean, I won here 10 years ago on a track before they repaved it, they tared it, it was coming up.  The cars were three generations old at that point.  A lot of things have changed.  The wall is still in the same spot.  The way you drive the racetrack is similar.
            There’s guys now that are great at driving here.  You look at some of the guys that really stand out here, it’s a very challenging racetrack.  You look at Denny, Kevin, those guys can dominate this place.
            Not to say that I can’t, I’ve been good here, but I don’t have the stats they do.  I’ve won here.  Kevin has won here.  Denny obviously has won here.  Just because you have doesn’t mean you will again.
 
            Q.  There’s so many guys so close to get in the Chase this year, how do you feel the race will take place this weekend?  Do you think guys will be more aggressive than usual here?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I think it all depends on how things go.  All it would take would be an hour rain delay and it drives people nuts.  I think that totally changes the tempo, the emotion that goes into the start of the race.  I’ve seen that happen in the last few years at different racetracks.  What happened to these people?  Did everybody have too much sugar in the rain delay or what?  That can change everything.
            I don’t know.  I think there’s a little bit of potential for everything.  I think there’s a chance it could be calm, a chance it could be caution after caution after caution, a chance that could be the exact same scenario in the entire same race twice.  It could be a couple long runs, then four cautions in a row, or vice versa.
            I sound like I’m rambling, but it really could be anything.
 
            Q.  What would happen if you found yourself in a situation where the only way you’regoing to make the Chase, running the second‑to‑the‑last lap, you have to take out the guy running first for the win.
            RYAN NEWMAN:  Guy or girl.
 
            Q.  Would you take out the girl?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  She’s taken (laughter).
 
            Q.  What do you anticipate you would do?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  It all depends.  Everything is a situation.  If that guy roughs you up to get to where you are, maybe.  If that person is the one that caused you mischief earlier in the season, maybe.  If that person is somebody you extremely respect, know they wouldn’t do that to you, maybe not.
            It’s so situational.
 
            Q.  Considering some of the struggles that the organization had earlier in the season, does this feel like a small victory to be in a position to make the Chase or once things started rolling for you would you have hoped it wouldn’t be this close?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I’ve been stuck in this spot so many times in my career over the last five or six years, I’m kind of used to it.  I’ve made it.  I’ve missed it.  I know the highs and lows of both of them.
            Yeah, it’s a little bit of a reward knowing how we started with two DNF’s in the first three races.  To finish 5th in Daytona, two DNF’s, then struggle with some tires at Martinsville, rebounded after losing my job, so to speak, with a win and a track record and pole at Indy.  There’s been highs and lows throughout the season.  That can happen four different times Saturday night.
 
            Q.  What is the responsibility you have to do everything you can to make the Chase to your team?  At the end of the day it’s about making the Chase, is it not?  Don’t you have a responsibility to the team to be eligible for the championship?  Are you going to suddenly sprout morals?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  My responsibilities to my team is the same responsibilities my team has to me.  If they expect me to go out there and hit somebody, then why wouldn’t I expectthem to go and grab somebody and trip somebody on pit road.  There’s no rule against it.  Why wouldn’t it?  It’s not the way we operate.  It’s not responsible.  I mean, yeah, as a driver we take on the majority of that responsibility in racing.  But, I mean, if we’re pitted next to somebody, block them in.  Have the 14 block them in, have the 10 block them in.
 
            Q.  That stuff happens.
            RYAN NEWMAN:  It does happen.  But that’s not where my mind is, to answer your question.  I don’t feel that’s part of the responsibility.
 &
nbsp;          My responsibility is to go out there and do the best job I can, not do the best job I can knowing the rest of myteam, organization, is going to sacrifice their night to make mine better.
 
            Q.  If you’re in a situation, you have to make an aggressive move, are you comfortable making an aggressive move knowing there may be some contact?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  You can be comfortable making that move and take the assumption in the next 10 races they’re going to get you back.  Is that move really worth it at that point if you’re going to take yourself out of running for a championship later by getting yourself into the Chase.
 
            Q.  How do you balance when to be aggressive or not?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  It goes back to what I said before about being situational.  There’s going to be that feeling and emotion for myself, my crew chief, for the pit crew guys, other drivers on restarts.  Some drivers have more respect for guys that are racing to get into a championship.  It’s all situational.
            I kind of say the same word over and over, but I really feel the same.
 
            Q.  What went through your mind when Kasey went out and you knew things were flipping at the back end of the points, you went from wild card in, wild card out?  Was that frustrating?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I never asked the first word about points.  I knew we had a good car and had a good shot at winning.  Then I had a couple bad restarts which took us out of the running.
            In the end I knew Kasey was in that crash and that changed our situation.  I also knew that Martin had to come in for a pit stop late in the race, unscheduled pit stop under caution.  That put him I think 18th or something at the time.  He came back from that and fought back.  Probably wouldn’t if it had stayed green.  We were running 2nds chasing down Logano.  That would have changedeverything coming into Richmond.
 
            Q.  (Indiscernible).
            RYAN NEWMAN:  I equated it, and I’m not really good at other sports, comparing to other sports, but to me what we’re going through in the Chase is like watching golf on TV. You have a leaderboard, you can see it, some people can’t see it, but you know you have to perform and do your best.  If you just do your best, you’re good enough to beat the other guys, you will.
            When you have that leaderboard, you can watch who is doing good, who is not.  Sometimes we see it, sometimes we don’t.  Sometimes we see it under green because somebody’s engine blows.  It all changes.  Again, it’s all situational.
 
            Q.  Would you like to see the tracks change in the Chase every year?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  To me Talladega doesn’t belong in the Chase just because of the type of racing that we have there.  You can criticize and say what you want, but it’s not the same kind of racing that we have in the other nine races, and for that matter the other 32 races throughout the season.
            Does it add a sense of energy or different type of excitement?  Absolutely.  Is it fair for the racer?  All depends on who you are.  But I don’t know that is the best thing.
            Moving races around or tracks around, in and out, geography, all those things, you could probably argue those things till you’re blue in the face.  I don’t think there’s anything bad with the way it is, and it probably could be better.
 
            Q.  Would you be against a road course in the Chase?
            RYAN NEWMAN:  There’s control.  All depends on how fast the racecar you have is.  That’s the tough part of it.  I’ve been jumping to the back of the field instead of trying to jump to the front of the field because I didn’t feel I had a car that could lead a bunch.  You have to lead a bunch in order to stay out of trouble, and there’s still no guarantee.
            I’d usually opt to watch the crash and try to avoid it.  I feel a road course is a better option.  I’ve said several times, going to Birmingham, to race that road course, even though I’ve never seen it or been there, would keep everything else the same as far as the geography, the market, put a road course in the Chase.
                      

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 5, 2013
 
 
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 CESSNA CHEVROLET SS – WILD CARD CONTENDERS MEDIA AVAILABILITY:
 
JAMIE McMURRAY:  When I think about Richmond, it always seems like the unexpected can happen here.  It always produces a little bit of drama. So I wouldn’t expect this year to be any different.
            I think as a fan watching the race, there’s more scenarios this year than in the past.  I assume Saturday night is going to be interesting to watch on TV and probably a little bit chaotic from the driver’s seat.
 
            Q.  Have you looked at all the permutations?
            JAMIE McMURRAY:  No.  Our deal is going to be a huge challenge because, first off, you have to win, then you also have to have other guys have unfortunate nights.
            I think if you can put yourself in a position to win the race on Saturday night, there will be some drama that happens with other guys.
            So, yeah, there’s still a chance, but it’s obviously grasping a little bit.
 
            Q.  Does that put more pressure?
            JAMIE McMURRAY:  No.  To me, of the guys that are trying to fight their way in, I think I would have the least amount of pressure because it is somewhat of a longshot.  I’ve been in this situation where you’re only five points out or ten points out.  That’s tough because you first off look at practice, where you’re at, where those guys are at, then you look at qualifying.  As the race goes on, it seems like you pay more attention to those guys than the race because you’re not really racing the race, you’re racing those few guys you’re around.
 
            Q.  If it comes down to helping another Chevy, a lot of times we’ve seen manufacturer alliances play out, have you and your group talked about that at all, helping a Hendrick car, a Childress car?
            JAMIE McMURRAY:  I think that’s grasping.  Yeah, no, no.
 
            Q.  Having said what you did before, does it make what Jeff did last year, doing everything he absolutely had to do to claw his way in, is it that much more impressive?
            JAMIE McMURRAY:  What Jeff did last year is impressive because he was laps down early in the race.  I remember passing Jeff.  His car was terrible.  Normally when your car is that bad at the start of the race you can’t fix it unless something is broke and you replace that part.
            I was shocked to see that he was able to race his way back up.  I think he finished 2nd last year.  That was super impressive what he was able to do.
 
            Q.  If there’s one race you could take back from earlier this year, which would it be?
            JAMIE McMURRAY:  Well, Dover would be the race I look back at.  I thought maybe we had the best car, had the piece fall off of the 11 car, go through our radiator.  Everyone has had those.  That’s why we’re in the situation we are.
            I don’t think our year has been results‑wise tremendously better than others.  Everybody from 8th in points to 20th has had a lot of bad luck and unfortunate races.
            Dover would be one definitely that you’d like to have back just because you had such a good car.  Wasn’t anything we did wrong.  A part fell off the 11 car and went through our radiator.
 
            Q.  Earlier you talked like you felt you were getting over the hump.  Do you still feel it’s moving in the right direction?  Is it where you want it right now?
            JAMIE McMURRAY:  Both of our cars were good last week at Atlanta.  The 42 and the 1 ran well.  When I look at our race team, where I think we need to work the most is executing the races.  I feel like our cars have been better than where we finished in the races.  A lot of that I wouldn’t place blame on anybody for that.  Just kind of the circumstances you’ve been put in.  I don’t feel like we’ve executed the races as well as we have.
            I still believe our cars were better than they were in 2010 when both cars were able to win races, big races.  We haven’t done a good enough job, I don’t feel like, in the race itself.
 

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 5, 2013
 
 
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS – WILD CARD CONTENDERS MEDIA AVAILABILITY:
 
THE MODERATOR:  Obviously Saturday night, got to go for broke.  Your thoughts about coming in here Saturday.
            JEFF GORDON:  Well, after last year, this is going to be easy.  We went through so much last year that I think it allows us to be more relaxed, be more prepared knowing that you got to race as hard as you can till the final lap, till you cross that start/finish line.  It can change every split second.
            We’ve run good in recent weeks, which I’m excited about.  We tested here.  We didn’t have a great test, I’ll be honest.  But I feel like we learned what not to do, made some big changes to improve the car as the test went on.  That’s certainly going to benefit us this weekend.
            This is certainly a track I enjoy.  I think we’re up for the challenge.  So looking forward to Saturday night.
 
            Q.  You mentioned the fact you were in a specific place last year.  How can it help you that you were in the same spot last year and you did make the Chase?
            JEFF GORDON:  I’ll be honest, I think we were in a tougher spot last year than we are this year.
            I think the way it prepared us was knowing no matter what happens, you can’t ever give up.  You just have to put every bit of effort into every single moment, every lap.  If the car’s off, you got to work on it.  Sometimes take big swings at it.  If your car’s perfect, don’t get complacent.
            Pit strategy, as we saw, really played out huge here the last time.  Of course, the rain, all that played a factor as well.  It’s going to be crazy and intense.  There’s so many factors that play into who’s going to make it in, who’s not, it’s certainly going to be an exciting race to watch and be a part of.
 
            Q.  How are you this race weekend?  Are you any different?
            JEFF GORDON:  I’m a lot more relaxed this year than I was last year.  Last year I’d never been through that before, so I was pretty nervous.  Obviously the way the race went for us, it was probably one of the most stressful situations I’ve ever been through.
            Kind of glad to have the rain, not only because it seemed like our car came to life after that, but also kind of breathe and relax.  Things were going pretty bad up to that point, then it turned around in a big way for us.
            To me, I feel very relaxed this week.  I’m anxious to get the race started.  I feel like our chances are good.  I know that our team has been in this situation and knows how to fight and overcome this type of adversity.
            I’m confident with the group we have going into it.
 
            Q.  How critical will your first practice session be?
            JEFF GORDON:  We’re practicing during the day for a night race.  That’s why we tested here.  We tested at night.  That was huge for us.  It’s not a typical thing that the track does here when you test.  It was one of those things where we asked for it and they were able to, you know, pull that together and get us that valuable time on the track under more suitable race conditions.  There were quite a few cars here, as well.  I think the conditions were pretty much what we’re going to be expecting and better than what we’re going to practice in.
            So I think the value that we are going to get out of our track time here is going to be able to compare what we had in the test if we continue to make improvements like we did in the test.
 
            Q.  How much will you want to know where Kurt Busch is on the track?
            JEFF GORDON:  I won’t ask.  To me, even last year in the closing laps, it changes every single lap.  I mean, you don’t really want to focus on that.  You just want to focus on pushing as hard as you can.
            I hope we’re in a similar situation as last year where we’ve got the tires, we’ve got the car, and I’m able to focus on go get that next car, go get that next car.  That was the nice thing about last year was the way it ended.  You never were thinking about what other guys were doing, you were only thinking about what you were doing.  That’s something else we take from last year, try to incorporate into this weekend.  Focus on what you’re doing, don’t focus on what anybody else is doing.
 
            Q.  How impressive is it what he’s done with a one‑car team this season?
            JEFF GORDON:  Yeah, it’s definitely been impressive.  They’ve had a lot of speed this year.  They’ve really come together.  Any time you see that out of a smaller team,it’s a great story with Kurt, as well, with all that he’s been through, to be able to do it with that smaller team.
            I look for them to have a lot of speed again Saturday night.
 
            Q.  The 78 has been fast all year.  They’ve struggled a lot on pit road.  You seem to be more consistent.  Do you think you have an advantage on pit road?
            JEFF GORDON:  Yeah, I think we have a slight advantage on pit road.  I think the advantages kind of weigh out with the speed that they’ve had.  If we can have one of our better‑performing racecars this weekend and the pit stops, definitely we’re going to have a good advantage.
            But, I mean, the reason why we’re in this situation is we’ve had inconsistent speed this year with some other issues.  They’ve had speed, but inconsistent pit stops, some other issues that have kept them from being higher up in the points.
            I mean, there’s a lot of teams out there, more so than just Kurt, that we are going to have to deal with.  Anybody can have that breakout race that you didn’t expect.
            All I care about is we bring our A game and perform at a level we’re proud of when we leave here.
 
            Q.  You talk about not focusing in the race on Kurt or anybody else, just on your own program.  This week have you looked at some of the stuff?  NASCAR has put out different scenarios that have to happen for you positively or
negatively.
            JEFF GORDON:  John Edwards shared some of it with me because we thought it was comical.  I mean, it definitely put a smile on our face when we were starting to go through some of the scenarios.  I think I stopped him about halfway through and said, Stop, I really don’t want to know any more.  It gets too confusing.  It’s going to change when the green flag drops anyway.
 
            Q.  FOX put out some quotes from their analysts.  They were asked to analyze the contenders, what they thought.  Darrell Waltrip commented on you and Brad.  He said, Gordon is going through a tough time in his career personally.  I think he doubts himself.  It affects the race team.  They feel it, see it and hear it.  I wonder why he thinks you doubt yourself and you’re going through a tough time.
            JEFF GORDON:  That’s no revelation.  I don’t see anything unique about that.
            I think this year I’ve admitted there’s been times when I’ve lacked in confidence when qualifying poorly.  I’ve lacked in confidence many times throughout my career, but that’s because the car speaks to you.  If you go through, let’s say three weeks in a row, where the car is not speaking to you, you’re not getting the speed out of it, things aren’t going well, I question everything.
            I question our setups, I question my driving, I’ll question tires, engines, everything.  That’s just normal for me, and I would say most people.
            The one thing I also agree with, when that green flag drops, if that car sticks in turns, stops, then there’s nobody that’s going to have more confidence thanme.  Same with my team.
            You know, Pocono, I love Pocono, because after the Pocono race, my team is high‑fiving, fired up, Yeah, that was awesome.  That’s because I was making passes on restarts, and we drove to the front.  We haven’t done enough of that this year.
            There’s no doubt that our confidence has been tested, mine personally.  There’s no doubt that this team is not riding high like some of the other teams that are out there.  That’s why we’re 11th or wherever we’re at in points right now.
            So I don’t dispute any of those things.  That doesn’t change what our mission is on Saturday night, though.
 
            Q.  When it takes all you’ve got to get into the Chase, how much does that set you back?
            JEFF GORDON:  I’ll be honest.  For us, it didn’t set us back at all.  What set us back was the throttle issue that we had in Chicago.  I mean, we came out of this race, went to Chicago, I think we had a car capable of winning, butcertainly top 5.  If you would have matched that up with some of our other performances, take out Phoenix, I mean, I think we were capable of being in the top 3 or 4 in points, maybe even a slight contender.
            If we just sneak our way in through the race where we do the bare minimum, but it actually gets us in, that’s different.  When we did it like we did it last year, Whoa, that was awesome.
            The track, it’s all about your car at that track, at that moment.  You could have the worst year you’ve ever had and hit it.  We’ve seen that happen this year with different teams, where they just hit it.  All of a sudden it’s like, Where did they come from?  How did they win that race?  It can happen to anybody, and it certainly can happen to us.
            Once we get in it, I feel we’re stronger at this point now than earlier in the season when things happened that kept us out of being a championship and Chase contender.  But I do think we’re much stronger right now if we make it in, our chances of being in the top 5 in points are actually pretty good.
 
            Q.  So much racing now is determined on pit road and who wins on the last restart.  Has that worked against your driving style?
            JEFF GORDON:  At some tracks it has.  I mean, restarts have definitely not been my strong suit this year.  I think it depends on the track, it depends on the tire.  This past weekend in Atlanta, our restarts were really good.  I mean, you can look at some of the spin in the tires at the start/finish.  Some of it’s the line.  Now that we’re double‑file restarts, that leader controls a lot of things.  To me, 1st and 3rd, a lot of times have more of an advantage over 2nd than we’ve ever seen before.
            Pit strategy and pit stops and track position just continue to increasingly get more and more important.  That’s just the way technology and aerodynamics are these days.
            For me Saturday night, it’s going to be crucial for me to have good restarts.  That’s been a thing that I’ve criticized in myself.  I would say definitely my team, you know, recognizes that hasn’t been our strong suit.  But I like to surprise them and everybody else.  You know, this is a track where I feel like we’re actually pretty good on restarts.
 
            Q.  With the experience of going through the year here where you didn’t make the Chase, is that something that has come to mind or just now that you mention it to you?  Is that something you think about?
            JEFF GORDON:  Every experience you go through is valuable, positives and negatives.  I can tell you not making the Chase is tough.  I mean, you’re always looking for something to get behind and build momentum, step it up.  When you don’t make the Chase, that’s tough.  It’s hard to rebound from that.
            Yet we’re motivated by it, as well, in the last 10 races to get whatever it was we were lacking turned around.  I think that it proved to be good for us because we went into the next season much stronger.
 
            Q.  Is it a motivator now?
            JEFF GORDON:  It is slightly a motivator.  At this point you don’t accept not making it.  You’re only focused on what you have to do.  I think if we do our job, this is a great track for us, we can make it in.
            Try not to really think too much about that until that time came, if it does come.
 
            Q.  You’re in a situation where you have a teammate in Kasey Kahne, but he’s guaranteed a wild card spot.  If it came down to it Saturday night where you were on the cusp of being in the top 10, but Kasey was there, team orders?
            JEFF GORDON:  The thing
is we’re in a unique situation where we all have something on the line.  I mean, it’s forcing us really to just go out and race as hard as we can and all get the best finishes.
            There are still scenarios, though, in the right situation could play out to help us if we needed it.
            But Kasey, from our meetings we had this week, he wants to be in the top 10, utilize those wins that he has.  Jimmie knows that right now he’s not leading the points when they start the Chase.  Dale knows that there’s an outside chance that they wouldn’t make it in.
            We all have a lot to push hard for and not take into consideration too much about how we’re going to help our teammates in those situations.
            But if we get into it, all right, Kasey is not going to win the race or get into the top 10 in points, there’s a chance I can, then that would certainly be an open option.  For other teammates as well.  If Jimmie is not going to win the race, is there a situation that would help me or Kasey or Junior even?
            You have to consider all options.  When we left our meeting this week, talking about just preparing for this race and everything else going on, I think it was pretty clear we all felt like we got to go race hard and not overthink that.
 
            Q.  You don’t expect Kasey to give up those six points in the Chase to get you in?
            JEFF GORDON:  Of course not.  Who would?  Now, you know, unless Rick Hendrick has a different agenda…  He’s the boss so I listen to what he says (laughter).
 
            Q.  Out of the first 25, is there one race you would like to have back?
            JEFF GORDON:  Oh, several, several.  First Bristol, Texas.  Those two seem to stand out to me.  Martinsville.  I think we had a shot at winning that race.
            Yeah, I mean, we’re in the position we’re in because a lot of bad things have happened to us this year.  There’s been some reason we just ran poorly.  I’d like to have those races back, too.
            But the ones that we were running good at, little things happened that cost us big in the points as well as a shot at winning, love to have those back.
 
            Q.  Anxiety the next 48 hours?  Is it tough being in the position you’re at, where you just want to see how it plays out, period?
            JEFF GORDON:  I mean, I said this last year.  You don’t really know until you’re getting ready to go out for the first practice session.  And last year I was feeling calm.  In the first practice session, I was a little nervous.  You know from hour, two hours you have on track, you want to get the most out of it, you want to be productive and get you prepared.  Same thing with qualifying.
            I feel very relaxed right now.  Over the next, you know, 24 hours, till we get on track tomorrow at noon, I don’t think I’ll be anxious.  But at noon when we get on track, I’ll be a little anxious the first couple laps.
            Then the car, again, will speak to me.  If the car is feeling good, I’m going to feel good, the team is going to feel good.  You start to build on it in that way.
 
            Q.  A couple weeks ago Kasey had a chance to move Kenseth out of the way for a win at Bristol.  He didn’t do it.  A lot of people applaud that.  If you were in a situation where you could drive through somebody to make the Chase on Saturday night, what do you do in that situation?  Is that fair game?
            JEFF GORDON:  Well, it all comes down to who it is, how they raced you, how you’ve raced them in the past.  It’s one of those things where you stick your nose in there.  You’re not going to give anybody an inch.  If you’re leading and they stick their nose in there, you’re not going to give them that.  You’re going to force them not to wreck you.
            On the flipside, if you dive in there, you feel you have a fender inside of them, they don’t give it up, you’re going to take it.
            You know, the intensity of this race, being in this situation, is very high.  It forces people to make more aggressive moves.  So I think you understand that and your competitors understand that.  That’s a part of it.
            That’s certainly not the way I’d want to do it.  I probably won’t do that.  I had the opportunity to do that at Atlanta last year.  A lot of people said, Oh, you could have made it in the Chase right then and there, all you had to do was wreck the 11.
            I’m not going to wreck a guy by just running straight in the back of him.  That’s not racing.  But if you’re racing the guy, you guys make contact, then that’s where you can start to draw the line or kind of understand the situation.
            Kasey, that’s the kind of guy I want to have as a teammate and who I want to race out there, is a guy that’s going to race hard, race clean, take chances, but he’s not just going to go out there and wreck you.
            Could he have roughed him up a little bit more? Maybe.  I thought Kenseth was tough.  I don’t know their history.  It worked out the way it did.
            Chase, that’s a totally different situation.  Two young, very aggressive drivers.  Certainly Chase being the younger.  He didn’t go into that corner going, I’m going to take him out to win this race.  He said, I see an opportunity and he went for it.  That’s what young guys do.
            You can sit there and criticize him if you want, but I think we all want to see young guys be aggressive.  We want to see old guys be more aggressive, right?  Either way it’s going to give somebody things to talk about.
 
            Q.  Roughing up somebody is acceptable.  If whoever is racing you for a spot, comes down to you or them, regardless of who it is, how they’ve raced you, don’t you expect if they get to your bumper that you arefair game, and understandably something is likely to happen?
            JEFF GORDON:  Absolutely.
 
            Q.  To be honest, to get in the Chase, if you have to block somebody or hit somebody, you’ve got to do it.  How do you not go back to your team or your owner and say, I wasn’t going to wreck ’em, we’re not in the Chase this year?  I’ve denied us the opportunity for
a championship because I have higher morals.  At the end of the day this is about winning.
            JEFF GORDON:  Well, yeah, wow.  Good thing you’re not out there racing (laughter).  You’d have a lot of enemies.
            You know, again, I look at every scenario, every situation different.  For me to just right now sit here and say, I don’t care who is in front of me, if I can get to his bumper, I’m turning him to win the race, to get in the Chase, is not very realistic.
            In the heat of the moment, with the intensity that’s going to be in this race, you don’t always know what you’re going to do.  Sometimes that’s the driving force behind you making those choices and decisions.
            In a better scenario for me to think about, I want to feel like I’m running the guy down, I’ve tried him on the outside, I’ve tried him on the inside, he’s blocked everything I have and left me no other option, kind of made the choice for me.
            Let’s say the guy passes me, I just go in there and knock him out of the way.  When you hit somebody, you don’t know what the outcome is going to be.  You don’t know if he’s going to back into the fence, move up the track a lane or two, or not even go up the track at all.  He might be able to get back to you and wreck you.  You don’t know what’s going on behind you.
            This is the thing about this race.  You could hit that guy, he collects you, you fall back to 3rd, somebody else does something on the last lap, and you might be out. You might even win the race and something happens on the last lap and you might not make it.
            You have to race as hard as you can, make the best choices you can, be smart about it.  If you decide to make that big, aggressive move that ticks somebody off, do it and be ready for the consequences because you still got 10 weeks ahead of you.
            This is not the last race of the year.
              

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS 400
RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 5, 2013
 
 
DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 TIME WARNER CABLE CHEVROLET SS – WILD CARD CONTENDERS MEDIA AVAILABILITY:
 
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  We’re not locked in by no means, but we’re in a comfortable enough position to be able to pay attention to the race we’re running.
 
            Q.  Do you expect a team order thing, that if your teammates can help you or Jeff, they’ll do that?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  We haven’t really talked about that.  I know from my point of view it would be hard for me to understand exactly what I could do to help one of my teammates.  The crew chiefs can see the picture a lot clearer than the driver can.  I want to help my teammates.  I want my teammates to be into the Chase.  I want Rick to have as much opportunity to have a chance to win a championship as he can as an owner.
 
            Q.  You say you’re comfortable enough.  Have you been able to plan ahead or do anything looking at the final 10 given your situation?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  If we knew what to start planning, we probably would.  You can only just run one race at a time.  You show up at Richmond, and Richmond is an important race, a race we want to win.  So we focus on that objective before we start thinking ahead.
 
            Q.  In terms of how competitive you could be when you get in, you don’t want to go there yet?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  I don’t even know.  I don’t even know what the answer to that is.  Who is going to win the Chase?  Who is going to win the championship?  Order the drivers are going to finish?  I don’t think anybody can predict that.  You have to get in there and do your best.  I think we’re all capable of doing a good job and everybody’s capable of winning the championship.  Some guys are going to catch some breaks and some aren’t.
 
            Q.  Something horrible would have to happen to you to not make the Chase.  Is there anything you can do to prevent that or is it just a normal weekend?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  It’s just a normal weekend to me.  Fortunate enough we’ve had enough good runs over the last couple weeks to put ourselves in this situation, not have to be nervous or worried.  It wasn’t much fun over the last couple weeks having to make sure we didn’t make any mistakes and give up too many points to the guys behind us.
 
            Q.  On Saturday, the only way you’re going to make it in is to move somebody out of the way, is that something that you would do or is that not part of your makeup?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  I’d have to do whatever it took to make the Chase.  I’d have to do whatever it took to give ourselves an opportunity to run for the championship.
            You know, it just depends on the individual you’re racing.  Wins are hard to come by in this series.  You work all year long for an opportunity to run in the Chase to be part of the championship.  I don’t know that anybody could blame you for not taking that opportunity and taking what’s there, taking advantage of a situation.  That’s racing.  That’s why we got bumpers on these cars.  Sometimes you got to use ’em.
 
            Q.  Everybody goes back to when your dad took out Terry Labonte.  It’s a fond memory.  Now a lot of drivers talk about you wouldn’t want to do that, because it doesn’t take talent to drive through somebody.  Why did that change or has it?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  I think some of society has shifted away from that.  There’s still personalities in the sport that would race like that with no guilt whatsoever, no remorse, no concern.
            But I think as a whole society, we’ve kind of shifted in the other direction.  We haven’t gotten more aggressive, for sure.  And I don’t really know what plays a role in that, whether that’s something that starts from the very beginning of your upbringing.
            I think it changes to the drivers, the situations involved.  You got guys out there that really don’t like each other.  When you can put them in the perfect storm where they’re the two on the stage at that moment with a lap to go, you’re going to get the fireworks that you want to see.
            But when you put other individuals together that have a lot of respect for each other, have been somewhat friendly off the racetrack, they’re more than likely notgoing to run over each other.
            Again, you know, I don’t know.  I was driving in that race at Bristol.  It was slick, it was real hard to get to people.  As much as it looked from the viewpoint of the fan or anyone watching the race, it seemed like Kasey could just drive up there.  He’s right there, why didn’t he just tap him?  But it was so hard to get that extra inch, even to get another foot to a guy.  You were on top of the racetrack, chasing the car.
            I don’t know how much he could have done even if he wanted to, even if he was the baddest SOB out there.  I don’t know if he could have moved him enough without wrecking himself or getting himself in enough trouble control‑wise to make a pass even.
            You know, I don’t know how Kasey feels, but I know when I am put in that situation and I don’t take advantage of it, I do relive it with regret ’cause, like I said,wins are hard to come by.  As much as you hate running through people, running over people, winning races is pretty damn important in this sport, really defines your career, defines the success the team’s having, can make a big difference for a team.  Sometimes you got to do everything it takes.
 
            Q.  Where do you rank the 88 as it stands now compared to other teams you’ve gone into the Chase with?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  I think this team’s in the top percentile.  I don’t really know how to rank it specifically.  Last year I thought we were really, really strong.  I thought we were going to be in the top 3 battling to the championship at Homestead.  I felt like we were that capable of a team.
            We were in the conversation.  The media had earmarked us as one of the teams.  We were leading the points, still strong in the summer months.  Even drivers themselves were earmarking us as contenders.  I felt like last year we really had put ourselves in a great position.
            This year the speed has been the
re, if not even better.  Even though we’re working with a new car, the speed has been really good with the car, but we’ve not finished all the races.  Mistakes I’ve made, crashes I’ve gotten myself into, engine failures, things like that that have taken away from our ability to show how strong we are to get consistent finishes like we did last year.
 
            Q.  If you get in, do you think this could be your shot?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  Every time you’re in, you think this is your shot.  Every time you’re in, you got to go in with the most confidence that you’re going to get it done.  This is a great opportunity that I’ve got.
            We’ll have to see if we’ve got anything extra in the tank as a team.  We’re going to be up against tough competition.  But I’ve raced all these guys for a long time and I feel like we belong in the Chase, feel like if we can put 10 races together, I think we can do it as good as anybody when it comes down to it.  Hopefully we can make it happen.
 
            Q.  You talked about mechanical failures, crashes.  If there’s one race you could have back this year, which one would it be?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  It’s hard to say.  I think the first Michigan race where we was running so well, had the engine problem.  That was a good car.  We had good speed.  Even the second Michigan race where we had the tire issue, I thought the car had good speed there, too.
            We’ve had a lot of good runs, just not been able to capitalize like last year.  We started the season off stronger than anybody in the sport in the first five races there.  Just came unraveled a little bit at times.  But the speed still has been there.  That’s been important.  That’s one thing we haven’t had in years past, was just the pure speed.  We’ve always been good enough to run 8th, 5th, whatever.  We were able to do that without any problems, do it consistently.  But that wasn’t going to win championships.
            This year we’ve gained a little speed, seem to be getting faster each year.
 
            Q.  (Question regarding controlling your own destiny.)
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  You control your destiny every week, whether it’s a short track, mile‑and‑a‑half.  We’re all good enough drivers you’re not in a whole lot of danger out there.  You just have to drive a smart race, use your head, drive people with respect.  You want to get run over, you can make a few wrong turns and tick some people off, get yourself put in the fence real quick.
            There are guys in there that aren’t going to make the Chase, aren’t too happy about their situation, going to have some pretty short fuses out there.  You don’t want to rough up anybody.  You want to take your time getting around some of these guys.
            It’s about that time where it’s toward the end of the season, guys are kind of looking for payback from some situations before.  You’re going to start to see some of that stuff start to surface a little bit.  You want to be there to capitalize and come out on the good end of most of that stuff.
 
            Q.  You talked about the stress of the last couple weeks, trying to make sure you stay in the Chase picture.  Did that take any of the fun of what you do out of it?  Is that something that just comes with the territory?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  Yeah, I definitely understood last year when we were set, locked in, that it was a much easier ride, much more enjoyable.  The last couple weeks have been pretty stressful from a points standpoint.  Difficult for you because you have to focus so much on those points, you have to focus on all those guys, that handful, half a dozen guys, that are around you in points, wonder what they’re doing.  You can’t help it.
            I think it makes perfect sense to want to know how they’re doing in the race.  As much as you try not to do that, at any other point in the season,when it comes down to it, it’s one or two races to go, you’re all tight on the points, you got to watch those guys.  You’re curious as to where they’re at.
            That’s not much fun.  You really like to concentrate on the balance of your car, working on your car with your crew chief, trying to give yourself a chance to win the race.
 
            Q.  How do you balance the ability about when to be aggressive or when not to be aggressive?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  We’re always aggressive.  Might not be apparent just watching the race from the point of view that you see it.  But, you know, every lap we run, we run as hard as we can run it.  We don’t hold back any.  We don’t put anything in our pocket, leaveanything on the table.  We go out there and run as hard as we can every lap, try to win the race.  It’s that competitive in the sport to where I guess at times it looks like we’re all kind of content.
            I think that’s one thing you have to keep in mind when you’re watching every week, every guy on the track you’rewatching is running 10/10ths, as hard as he can go.
            I think once you start to see potential for yourself as a winning car, you may get a little more aggressive, you may get a little more physical, but when it comes down to it, you know deep inside I think toward the end of the race just how capable your car is, howmuch potential you have that night to win.
            If you start realizing you have that potential, you might get a little more physically aggressive, not really work harder, but fight a little bit harder for positions and stuff like that.
 
            Q.  You mentioned speed is the biggest thing that gives you confidence.  What concerns you the most heading into theChase?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  The only thing that really concerns me is gremlins like tire failure, engine failure, myself making a mistake, getting myself out of control and in a wreck, doing anything that’s going to tear the car up, anybody making a mistake, us making a mistake on Saturday and getting the car out of the racetrack, not putting a good car on the starting grid, just struggling all day in the race.
            You worry about those kind of things.  To run well, you need to be able to put a good car on the grid every week that will be quick and fast.  You need to be able to put together solid races and take care of that car and make sure it finishes as good as it can.
            There will be sometimes when Steve is going to have to mak
e some gut decisions that aren’t going to be easy to make.  But you just hope he makes the decision that goes the right way for you.  We saw Brad Keselowski and those guys gamble, had a great mix of when to gamble, when to be smart, when to be clever, when to take risks.  You’re going to have a lot of that if you want to win that championship.  You’re going to have to be able to pull those strings at the right time.
 
            Q.  We heard the question earlier about moving people to get in the Chase.  What type of race do you think we’re going to see here Saturday night?
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  I think it’s going to be similar to what we always see.  I really hate to harp on it over and over, but this racetrack has so much potential that’s just not realized because of the way the surface of the racetrack has been utilized over the past several years.
            We used to see multi‑groove racing here.  They haven’t sealed the racetrack in a really long time.  Really, the only place to run is right on the bottom.  You almost have to hook the left front on the apron a little bit all the way around the track.  There’s no second groove.  It’s there if they want it, if they want to seal the racetrack and create that kind of racing again.  You don’t have to pave the place or nothing, just throw some sealer down and everything.  Be so much better.
            But it’s going to be right on the bottom.  Everybody’s going to be hunting for the bottom.  Some guys aren’t going to roll the center very well.  Some guys will.  The guys that get through the middle, can keep that left front working that line, are going to have good runs, going to have good cars.  But otherwise if you get off the bottom, man, it’s just so slick, you can’t really make any ground up there.
 
            Q.  Last year Jeff Gordon’s performance in this race, a desperate situation, he had to do what he ultimately did.  This year again he’s in a similar situation.  People are doubting him.  Can you talk about how amazing it was last year to pull it off and his chances on doing that again this year.
            DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:  I think Jeff has great chances to make the Chase.  He always seems to bring his A game when it’s needed, when it’s really vital that he has a good run.  He always seems to find a way to get what he needs.  He runs well here.  This is a good track that I think he has a lot of confidence at.
            I hope that we’re all able to make the Chase.  They have a very strong team with a lot of speed.  I think if all four of us can be in the championship Chase, I think we all have really great opportunities of winning the championship.
            I think against the competition, we’ll be pretty tough.