The Auto Racing Journal

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Michigan quotes 8/10

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

CARFAX 400

MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY, BROOKLYN, MI

AUGUST 15, 2010

KASEY KAHNE, No. 9 FORD FUSION

What should we expect on the track this weekend at Michigan? “There is so much racing room out there that you have to really work on your setup. I feel like that is one of the tracks where it is really critical to have a good aero and engine package. The racing at Michigan can be great at times. It also can be a race where cars run away and get strung out and there’s not a lot of passing going on. As far as the width of the race track and racing groove, there’s plenty of room. If you have a good car, you’ll be able to pass and it will be a fun race.”

KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 SHELL/PENNZOIL CHEVROLET – POINT LEADER: "Michigan has been tough for us. We've had a tough time just trying to figure out the package that we need to. Everywhere else we've been this year one of us has been able to figure something out but Michigan has been a place where we all struggle. This time going back we'll have a couple of days with the new Nationwide car that we're going to hopefully use to our advantage to get a direction on some things. Hopefully when Cup practice starts, I feel like last time we got a good direction that we needed to go last time in qualifying and hopefully our stuff that we came up with this time will be a little bit better than what we raced last time. So we're looking to go being competitive with a lot of different changes than what we had last time. We just struggle finding the balance of the car. We have great horsepower, so that's not a problem; and our cars are great week in and week out. But for whatever reason we just find it tough to find the balance on the car whether it's too loose or too tight. But it's a fun race track and I really enjoy going there and you have a lot of options as a driver to move from the bottom to the top. It's a fun place to go. Hopefully this is the time we can turn it around."

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT CHEVROLET – 2^ND IN STANDINGS: “I love coming to this race track. Whether it’s on a double-file restart late in the race or just racing one guy ahead of you, there are a lot of places to go here. Because we can get fanned out and run multiple grooves in the corners and down the straightaways, that makes this one of the best tracks we race on in my opinion. We’ve run well here recently. Those two second-place finishes were fuel-mileage races, but I think we were a top-five car in both. In June, we were a top-five car again but we just didn’t really have enough to battle for the win. I don’t think we were too far off, so hopefully we can make those gains and battle for the win on Sunday.”

JEFF BURTON, NO. 31 CATERPILLAR CHEVROLET – 3^RD IN STANDINGS: “Michigan has been our worst race track. It has been a track where we have struggled and have not been good at all. It has pushed us, tricked us and made us mad. But, it’s a place where we have to find a way to improve. We had some circumstances and have been in some situations that made the finishes look worse than they really were. I like going to Michigan because it’s a fun race track. It gets pretty slick and there’s a lot of options and those are the places I tend to run well on. We took a step forward in the spring and we ran well. That was a step forward from what I’ve been doing there and I hope to be able to improve on that. Michigan has really been one of our weak points. I think the thing that really sticks out is the width of the groove. There are a lot of options at Michigan. You can run all the way down on the white line or run almost up by the wall. You don’t have to follow somebody around. It’s certainly not a one-groove track. That makes it so the driver has options. It also makes it a challenge for the team because the car has to work in multiple grooves. Running the groove that you feel good about in practice is important, but you also need to run the groove that you may have to run in the race. Getting the car to work well in multiple grooves is important. The only way to save fuel is to save fuel. You can’t go fast and save fuel. There’s varying degrees of saving fuel. Let’s say that you have to save fuel for four laps over 38 laps. To help that, you have to get out of the throttle a lot. If you have to save for a half of lap, then you have to get out of the throttle a little bit earlier and getting back in the throttle a little bit later but, if you have a lot to save, you just have to go partial throttle. You have to do a lot to keep fuel from going to the carburetor.”

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE'S CHEVROLET – 5^TH IN STANDINGS: It’s fun trying to get one (track where he hasn't won yet) off the list. Really happy to get two very difficult tracks for me off the list with Bristol and Sonoma. Excited for Michigan. It’s been a really good track for us. We had a decent finish there in the spring. Didn’t really perform like we wanted to during the day and we were trying some things. We feel like we’re going to come back closer than what we were in the past. We had a lot of speed in the car during the race and we’ll take it from there. We’re optimistic, excited, no idea what to really expect. It could be a fuel mileage race. It’s been a good track for us although we haven’t won there, we’ve led a lot of laps over the years and hopefully we can take home a trophy. Especially after last week with the disappointing finish after we ran so well and passed so many cars to then have a late-race incident take us out of a good finish. I don’t like sliding down in the points any further than I am right now and looking forward to a good finish and hopefully to go up in the points a few spots.”

CLINT BOWYER, NO. 33 CHEERIOS/HAMBURGER HELPER CHEVROLET - 13^TH IN STANDINGS: “Michigan has been one of those tracks that we’ve always run well at. We always have some ups and downs as far as crazy, off-the-wall things that happen to us. We had a top-ten run going last time, but we pitted while others stayed out. We ended up in the fence and had a horrible finish. You never know how these races will shake out. These multiple attempts at green-white-checkered allow guys to get two laps back, put tires on, race their way into the top ten and knock you out of the way in the process. There are a lot of things that are happening and you have to play your cards right throughout the whole race, not just half of it. If we can do that, we’ll be successful. Michigan is a track that we can run well at. We just have to get there, get a feel for our race set up in practice, lay down a solid lap in qualifying and be there at the end. I know we can get a good run there. We just have to go there and perform.With the way the cautions are coming out, we haven’t seen anyone win on fuel strategy this year. If you think back to all the big tracks, fuel mileage always played into your race strategy. But, with the way things are shaking out this season, I just don’t see that happening.”

RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 TORNADOS CHEVROLET – 14^TH IN STANDINGS: “For a driver, it’s just a great racetrack. In fact, I normally tell people that anyone can drive Michigan. It is so wide that cars can race three- and four-wide there every lap. The track has long sweeping corners, which helps to promote some really good racing. From a driver’s standpoint, you get to draft and bump-draft on the straightaways. I just think it’s a track that is conducive to good racing. To have a good run at Michigan, there are definitely a couple of key things that you have to have. The first thing is speed. You have to have horsepower to get around this ultra-fast racetrack. I’m confident in that area because we have such strong horsepower from Hendrick under the hood of our No. 39 Chevrolet. The second key is handling. The handling of the racecar is crucial, especially in turns two and three. The car can’t get too tight off two or be too loose off three. In June, I felt like we had a pretty good handling car for the most part during the race. I think we hung around the top 10 for most of the day. Unfortunately, we ran over a piece of debris on the racetrack and that really changed the complexion of the race for us. The handling went away, the front of the car didn’t work, and we ended up losing a lap. What happened was really perplexing and unfortunately it ended up costing us at the end of the day. Despite that, I think we have some good notes going back to Michigan this weekend, so I think we should have a good racecar. I feel like our performances at the mile-and-a-half and 2-mile tracks have improved this season. We just need to have a little luck this weekend, and I’m confident that we’ll have a solid finish. And right now, that’s what’s important to this race team. We’re on the outside looking in, and our goal is to make this Chase. To do that, we have to have a solid day at Michigan.”

JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 PHILIPS NORELCO BODYGROOM PRO CHEVROLET – 15^TH IN STANDINGS: “Racing at Michigan is pretty significant for all of us at this organization. The region is home to General Motors so we always want to perform well when we come to Michigan. The track is pretty wide and gives us plenty of room to pass. Michigan typically has a lot of green flag runs, so we just make sure that our Chevrolet has the horsepower and the handling that we need all afternoon. While we started from the outside pole for the last race at Michigan, we just couldn’t seem to get the setup right for the race. So, we’re looking to return with a couple of new ideas, and I know Bono feels pretty confident in some of the things we’ve found since the last Michigan race. As a team we’re welcoming another new partner to the track this weekend in Philips Norelco. This is just another great opportunity to welcome a well known, and successful brand like Philips to our team. We certainly hope to have another great weekend following our overall EGR performance this past weekend in Watkins Glen.”

DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD “DRIVE THE GUARD”/AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET – 16^TH IN STANDINGS: "Lance (McGrew, crew chief) and the guys unloaded a great car last time at Michigan. We've had some good runs with this car. I enjoy going to Michigan because it's so wide. It has a lot of different grooves, and we can move around and find places to run on the track. We like coming here because it's in the backyard of the manufacturers. Hopefully we'll get a win for Chevrolet."

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET – 19^TH IN STANDINGS: “I’ll be honest with you-it would be nice if we could carry over our momentum into Michigan this weekend. That win in Watkins Glen was big for us and we’d like to keep it going. I’ve said it all along our cars are fast and we’ve come along away with our program now it’s just going out there and getting that oval track win. We haven’t had a whole lot of luck at Michigan but maybe things are turning around for us now.”

BOBBY LABONTE, NO. 71 TAXSLAYER.COM CHEVROLET – 31^ST IN STANDINGS: “I am looking forward to the weekend. The cars that Dan and the guys are putting together for the ovals have gotten better with each race. I like Michigan, so we should have a good weekend. Michigan is different than Atlanta, Fontana, Charlotte, and the Las Vegas type of tracks. It is still flat. You really have to keep your momentum up, which means having a good engine. It is an exciting track. It is a multi-groove track. You can enter the turns high, low or in the middle and exit them the same way. It has a lot of different characteristics that lend to some great racing, including running two tires below the white line or the right side right up against the wall all the way through the corners. You feel the draft towards the end of the straightaway more than you do at those other places. The draft helps you to a certain extent, but not really through the corners. It is to your advantage to catch guys down the straight and pass them into the corners with your handling. There are not many yellows historically at Michigan. This means we will have to focus on track position and knowing when to come for tires. Track position is so important these days. Sometimes tires will be better for you, but track position is always important and Michigan. You can have your car where it runs flat down the straightaway, a Daytona type look to it. At the same time you have be aggressive on the set-up to go faster through the corners all day as opposed to worrying about the speed down the straightaway. Years ago teams would take their Daytona car to Michigan. Those guys would go fast down the straights and then hit the corners and they would be in trouble.”

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

An intimidating visit...

Here's an excerpt from Angel In Black: Remembering Dale Earnhardt, Sr.

Jerry Gappens, the longtime publicist for Lowe's Motor Speedway, recalls track president Humpy Wheeler wanting to get Earnhardt for a couple of functions, but Earnhardt's schedule didn't permit it. Wheeler, who had a good relationship with Earnhardt, was a little upset, and that got back to Dale. That's when Gappens got an intimidating visit.

This is the most I've ever been intimidated by Earnhardt: I was trying to hook up with him for a press conference and an autograph session for one of our big Auto Fairs. Typical bad luck: every time I wanted him to do something, he had a conflict and couldn't do it. I was working through his publicist and Don Hawk, his business manager at the time. Humpy wanted to know about Earnhardt, and I said, "He was busy and couldn't do it, blah, blah, blah." That kinda made Humpy mad.

Well, Earnhardt always comes here to get his tickets. He had a condo here, and Humpy would give him his tickets. Earnhardt'd make a tour through the speedway offices, say hi to people, pick up his tickets, sign stuff for employees. After I told Humpy about not being able to get Earnhardt over this three-month stretch, it made him mad. Dale had a lot of respect for Humpy; he and Humpy were very close. Humpy said, "I'll talk to him the next time I see him. He's not too big to help out."

I'm on the phone one afternoon, and the door was open. All of a sudden, Earnhardt walks through my door, followed closely by Don Hawk. Eanhardt stops, shuts the door, and locks it. I think, Oh, my goodness, this is big here. He's towering over my desk, so I say, "How are you doing?" He said, "I'm doing fine. I just want to find out what our problem is. I just went to Humpy's office, and I'm sideways with Humpy." That's exactly how he said it, "sideways with Humpy. He said. "I don't need to be sideways with Humpy. He mentioned some press stuff that didn't get done. I want to try to straighten it out."

I gave him the three situations we were talking about. He says, "Here we go: If you need a press conference, call J.R. Rhodes, my publicist. If you need an autograph, call Don Hawk. Hawk, give him your numbers." Hawk gave me his business number, his home phone number, his cell-hyone number. I had about six numbers for Don Hawk.

He said, "Jerry, all I ask is that you give me enough advance notice so I can get it on my schedule, because my schedule is cramped." I said, "I understand," and he said, "I don't need to be sideways with Humpy. This is my home track, and I don't want to be sideways with anybody here. I want to help out, just like I always have. We have an understanding. And I understand my role it that." So he says, "Are we square?" and I say, "Yes sir." And he reached over and pinched my nose, twisted my nose a little bit. If he liked people, he always pestered them a bit.

I'd just been put in charge of public relations. Eddie Gossage had just gone to Texas to be the general manager there, and I though, Here I have one of Winston Cup's best drivers in my office, and he's going to whip my butt right here. It was a real businesslike conversation, and he that me that real crappy Earnhardt-like grin. After it was over, he even asked me about my pictures of my kids, what they did, what they liked. He looked around the office because of the racing mementos.

After that, he always helped us out, but I understood where he got the name "the Intimidator."

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Kevin Harvick wins at Daytona

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

COKE ZERO 400

DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

JULY 1, 2010

Kevin Harvick Wins at Daytona and Extends Points Lead; Team Chevy Drivers Capture Four of Top-Five Finishing Positions

Daytona Beach, FL - It was a wild night at Daytona but when the checkered flag flew, Kevin Harvick, No. 28 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet, scored his second victory of the season and extended his lead in the standings to 212 points with eight races remaining until the start of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

After rain delayed the start of the scheduled 160-lap/400-mile race for approximately one hour and thirty minutes, Harvick survived nine caution flags, a multi-car wreck on lap 147 that involved 19 cars resulting in a 19-plus minute red flag and a green-white checkered finish that extended the race five laps to claim the victory. He led eight times for a total of 28 laps.

Team Chevy drivers captured four of the top-five finishing positions tonight. Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet finished third and led five times for a 13-lap total. He jumped three positions in the points to second behind Harvick.

Dale Earnhardt, Jr., No. 88 National Guard 8 Soldiers 8 Missions/AMP Energy Chevrolet, finished fourth and now sits 11th in the Chase standings after 18 races.

The fifth place finisher was Jeff Burton, No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet. He led four times for 11 laps and remains eighth in the point standings.

Mike Bliss, No. 71 TaxSlayer.com/TRG Chevrolet, finished ninth to give Chevrolet drivers five of the top-10 spots in the final order.

Several Team Chevy drivers were caught up in the "Big One" with just 13 laps remaining in the race. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe's/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet, now sits third in the standings after finishing 31st as a result of the accident.

Tony Stewart, No. 14 Burger King Chevrolet, remains ninth in points after finishing 25th, also as a result of the multi-car wreck.

Mark Martin, No. 5 CARQUEST Auto Parts/GoDaddy.com Chevrolet, was another victim of the wreck. With a 28th place finish, he dropped to 13th in the standings, 39 points out of the Chase top-12.

Clint Bowyer, No. 33 Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet was involved in an accident on the final lap of the race while battling for the win in the lead pack. His 17th place finish actually moved him up one spot in the points order to 14th, 49 points out of the Chase battle.

Ryan Newman, No. 39 Tornados Chevrolet, was another victim of the major accident and was relegated to the 26th finishing position. He is 15th in the standings, just 80 points out of 12th place.

Kasey Kahne (Ford-2nd) completed the top-five finished.

The next race for the Series is July 10, 2010 at Chicagoland Speedway.

RACE WINNERS KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 SHELL/PENNZOIL CHEVROLET, CREW CHIEF GIL MARTIN, AND RICHARD CHILDRESS, OWNER OF RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

THE MODERATOR: We're now joined in the infield media center by tonight's winning driver, driver of the #29 Shell Pennzoil Chevrolet, Kevin Harvick. Tell us about your run.

KEVIN HARVICK: Obviously it was a good night. Same old Daytona, cars moving around and bouncing around, and handling came into play, and you saw a lot of passing and shuffling, and then there at the end we had the big wreck and we were fortunate to be in front of it. And really coming to the white I thought it was going to be the 33 first and us second, and then the caution came out and we could see the white flag. I was content about that. I knew those guys needed a good day, and I knew you never know what's going to happen on the last lap with people pushing and shoving from the back. But on the last restart, once the 24 pulled out and slowed those outside two lines down, that was pretty much the end of it.

THE MODERATOR: We're also joined by tonight's winning crew chief, Gil Martin. Gil, your thoughts about how the race unfolded tonight and your view from on top of the box.

GIL MARTIN: The good thing about it is Kevin come from the back a couple times early on in the race. We took two tires early in the race and it kind of got us behind the 8 ball because it was good for about five laps and it then it kind of wasn't any good. We got a little bit loose after that, so we knew towards the end of the race that we were going to have to get four from then on.

The lucky thing about it, we got that out of the way and didn't have to gamble with that later on. Can't say enough about ECR engines and the way all three cars ran up front. It was a good night.

Q. Kevin, you and Clint had worked so well right there before the last caution just blowing by Gordon, and y'all looked like at the latter stage of the race you were just unstoppable as a tandem. When y'all lined up from the green white checkered did you sit there beside him, thinking, hey, buddy, it's all over; one of us is going to have to go? Or was there any way you could have pulled off y'all getting back together?

KEVIN HARVICK: No, it was every man for himself at that point, just for the fact with the double file restarts and the way that it all shook out. You know the guys behind you are going to push you as hard as they can, so if I slow down to let him in or something like that, it's just going to give the other line some momentum. At that point you just hope that your line goes faster than the other line, and fortunately tonight we were in the right line on the bottom. And it wound up working out.

Q. Kevin, obviously you're still in the lead with points with this victory. How confident are you that you can unseat Jimmie Johnson this year, and how much of a goal is that for you and the other drivers?

KEVIN HARVICK: Well, I think until somebody beats him, he's still the until we get to Homestead and that happens, he's still the guy to beat. For us we've just got to keep working hard. We're in a fortunate position with the start to our season, and we need to we've got to plan to keep working on our cars and keep trying to make things better, and hopefully when the stress starts with ten weeks to go, we'll be as ready as we've ever been from the 29 and RCR standpoint, and I think we have a good plan for that.

But you never know what's going to happen until you get in there. You've got to be on your hot streak. You've got to do everything right. You've got to minimize the DNFs, you've got to win a race or two, you've got to finish in the top 5 and do all the things that we've been doing in the Chase. You've just got to make it happen at the right time.

Q. At the end of the race there, really at any race, are the top five or six cars there, is there a lot of difference in them? Are there better cars, or is it all still just a crap shoot?

KEVIN HARVICK: Well, I think when you get to the end of the race here, obviously I think the only car that didn't have tires tonight was the 33. Some of them had two, and four tires is the way to go. So you have a mixture of that stuff. So you have cars that are able to take pushes a little bit better and be able to keep the throttle down wide open getting into the corners.

You know, at that point you're hoping for a good push or something to happen so if you're fourth or fifth you can break through to get in the mix coming to the white flag. Tonight it didn't come down to the white flag, but usually it does, and usually it comes from a push down the back stretch.

Q. A year ago you guys were really struggling, RCR, and now this year you've turned it all around. Can you talk a little bit about what's made the difference this year, what maybe happened in the off season, and what's just different?

KEVIN HARVICK: Yeah, I don't think I would say definitely didn't happen this year. Most everything happened the middle of last year. A lot of management changes, pretty much started over on our race cars, took a different direction with the engineering and really just kind of came up with a new plan.

But Richard pulled the trigger on a lot of different things, whether it was reorganizing people, whether it was getting us the funds to build new cars. I mean, he stepped out on a huge limb to spend the money to start over with basically four teams halfway through the year, and it's paying off now for us.

So at least we got back to where we could start this year and everything has been progressing through the year, and we've been competitive every week. After last year you don't complain about anything, whether you've won one race or no races or two races now. You're happy with where things are. I think we were 27th or 28th in points after this race last year, so really excited about the turnaround. It's pretty remarkable to tell you the truth. But in the end, I think Richard is the one who pulled all the triggers to make everything happen.

Q. I have a question for both of you. For Gil, can you talk a little bit about the tires and why so many people had trouble with the tires at the start? And for Kevin, right after that 19 , 20 car wreck in 4 you came over the radio and said I don't know why Burton pulled out of line. Did that have something to do with everything that backed up behind him and just kind of triggered it?

GIL MARTIN: As far as the tires, I think a lot of that, the issues that everybody had at the beginning of the race was just due to the rain. The track was so green and the tires were just wearing in, and a lot of guys probably were over cambered in the right front, and so I think we were getting a lot of tire wear because of that.

Fortunately we were pretty conservative on that, and as the track came in I think it played into our favor.

As far as Burton getting out of line, I'll let Kevin answer that. I mean, you get a momentum run and I guess you try to seize the opportunity.

KEVIN HARVICK: Yeah, I mean, it's hard to tell. I'm sure he had such a run that he had to get out of line and had to go somewhere because sometimes you're going so fast that you don't want to hit the guy in front of you because you're scared that you're going knock the nose off your car or the back bumper off his car, and I think that's ultimately what happened; somebody hit him in the back and actually spun him sideways.

In the end, Jeff is the ultimate team player, and he's not going to be the guy that breaks up anything from an RCR standpoint. I'm sure he just had a huge run. But unfortunately I think it got tore up a little bit, but fortunately he kept going, so it all worked out for him.

THE MODERATOR: We're also now joined here tonight by tonight's winning owner, Richard Childress. Obviously a lot of good RCR cars running on the track tonight. Your thoughts on how everything unfolded?

RICHARD CHILDRESS: I'm just proud of everybody at RCR for all the hard work they did to get these cars going. ECR engines were running great and just proud of them. Proud of Kevin. Kevin is becoming one of these guys that wins the restrictor plate races. He's kind of like Dale, Sr.; you knew he was going to be a factor in it. To have all three RCR cars up there leading the race, racing with each other, it was really cool to watch.

Q. For all three of you or anyone that wants to take it, as consistent as you guys have been all year, how big a deal is it to get another win with Jimmie winning the last two in a row? How big is it to get another win and stay patient with bonus points?

KEVIN HARVICK: That's all we have talked about for the last two or three weeks, what do we have to do to win more races before the Chase starts. We had this conversation Friday night. We had this conversation Wednesday afternoon at the shop. It's just something that for the 29 team it's just something that we've talked about for two or three weeks, and to be able to come out and capitalize on it tonight is what we have to do.

Q. For Kevin or Gil, you guys talked about the points lead. With just a few races left before you get to the Chase, how comfortable can you be in rolling the dice to try to pick up some more wins, balancing that with trying to keep your momentum and keep the cars running week in and week out as good as they have been?

GIL MARTIN: Well, obviously we're in a fortunate position to be where we are right now in the points lead. And as far as rolling the dice, we're going to try to do that as much as possible because we need to get to victory lane as much as we can because basically that's what Richard pays us to do. So we've got to get there. But at the same token we've got to get there smart and make sure that we're not only consistent but we have some speed, but luckily we're going to be able to take some chances possibly that we haven't been able to take in the past. Like Kevin said, we're going to be in a situation where we're going to have a fleet of cars that's ready to go to the Chase, not one that we're just barely able to get there. That's what we're looking forward to more than anything.

Q. For Kevin, this goes back to what you were talking about, about the change around. How important is it to be in a situation in this race where you have teammates that are running with you up front? I think Jeff Gordon showed that you can have a fast car, but without anybody else there, a teammate, he wasn't able to stay out there very long.

KEVIN HARVICK: Yeah, I really felt over those last 20 laps I didn't think they could beat us nose to tail with myself and the 33, and I really thought, like I said, coming to the white, I really thought that was how we were going to finish.

But we worked really well together tonight. Everybody is getting along really well. I know we all have our moments where we get mad at each other, but I think we were all on the same page tonight and really working well together, and I think it showed up on the racetrack with the results that were about to happen coming to the white flag, and we were fortunate to get into the victory lane. But all the cars ran really well tonight, and from a team standpoint that's all you can really ask for.

Q. Two parter first for you, Kevin. How much in this whole turnaround, in the performance and winning and being back on top, how much did getting all that contract junk out of the way play into that? And for any of you guys, it almost seems like this track, this is the last race on this old pavement, and we're all talking about the new pavement. It's almost like this is some kind of mystical thing thumbing its nose at you as wild as this thing was tonight, the last race on this pavement.

KEVIN HARVICK: Yeah, I think as far as the contract stuff, that stuff all started the end of last year and really took off at the beginning of the year before we even got started. I felt like I'm sure Richard feels the same way. I felt like we handled it amongst ourselves and there was really a lot of progress as we moved month to month. It just took time to get it all done.

I really think as we went into the year, everybody was headed in the same direction and knew what we wanted to do. But it just took time, and it really other than answering the questions, it really didn't affect us internally. Gil does a great job with the guys in the shop and making sure that they are motivated, and nobody we never talked about it from a team standpoint. Nobody ever said a word.

As far as thumbing the nose, I think this racetrack is obviously the most historic racetrack that we race on, and I think if that asphalt could talk, you can go back and look at all the stories. But it's just such a neat deal to be able to win the last race on that particular asphalt. It's going to be a lot different race when we come back.

Any time you can win, though, whether it's new asphalt or old asphalt, it's always going to be the baddest place to win, and that's Daytona.

Q. For Kevin and also Gil, if you might want to chime in, you talk about you've had these conversations about what it takes to win. And I'm just wondering how in this situation that you're in, how much how challenging is that? I'm sure it's one thing to say, okay, we want to win, but how do you go about doing that? And how is that thinking process different than, say, last year when winning wasn't the concern, it was just trying to be competitive? How do you try to force yourself or think of new things and be willing to take risks or things like that?

GIL MARTIN: Well, I think one of the biggest ways that we've been challenged is two years ago we were in the Chase, had all three cars in, and we were third, fourth, fifth, or wherever we were at. And I think we were trying to hit a home run to win the championship. And I think that we've learned from that mistake, that we've got to keep chiseling away every week. You get a little bit every week with these cars because the guys that you're racing against, you're racing against the best guys in the world, obviously. To race with the 48 every week and to get to the level to where they've been, they're not looking for home runs every week, they're looking to refine their product every week, and I think that's what we've done a really good job throughout the whole company this year is we've taken a product, refined it, and by the time we get to the Chase, hopefully it will be.

Last year we might have a car that we'd have to run two or three races, go home, turn it around and work really hard on that to now we've got Richard's afforded us to have a fleet of cars that we've got probably seven or eight downforce cars right now. He probably doesn't want to hear me say we've got that many, but we've got that many cars that are capable of winning races every week to know if we have a problem on Friday or Saturday, the one in the truck is just as good if not better than the one we unloaded on Friday.

Q. How does that change what you can do or don't do on the track?

KEVIN HARVICK: Well, I think from the confidence level, the way you race now is you race knowing that you have a chance to win with your equipment every week. Obviously last year we were in a little bit of a slump and really trying to figure out the direction that we needed to go to to make the cars better. But we've all won. We all know how to win. It's just a matter of getting the stuff right, putting it on the racetrack so it's competitive enough to be in contention to win, and that's what we've done this year.

The mindset is so different. It's not even comparable, just because you know that every time you go on the racetrack you have a shot.

Q. Primarily for Richard, you just made the comparison about Kevin reminding you of Dale, Sr., and how he's been racing at Daytona, and of course you won last night with Dale, Jr., in the 3 car. What does a weekend like this mean to you as an owner, not just from your future with Kevin and what happened with Dale, Jr., but looking back on the history of this track that you had with Dale, Sr.?

RICHARD CHILDRESS: Well, Daytona is really special, and like Kevin said, any time you win at Daytona it's really special. Fortunate to have won a lot of races with Dale here, won one 500 with him in '98, come back and win with Kevin in 2007. You know, it was real special.

And last night was a special deal put together through JR Motorsports and Kelly, and my involvements with being with the 3 and being in there and going and meeting with them and talking and putting that deal together was special. And to see him win the race was real special to see the 3 on the board. It brought back a lot of memories, not only to me but to all the race fans. Had all kind of texts and messages and everything from people how proud they were to see it back out there racing.

Comparing Kevin, you just watch how he runs these speedway races, he has that knack of knowing how to run on these speedway races.

KEVIN HARVICK: The coolest part last night was the reaction from Tony, Jr., on the pit box. I don't know if you've seen it, but that was the best part for me.

RICHARD CHILDRESS: It was an emotional deal for a lot of people. I know a lot of people called in and texted and stuff about how emotional it was.

Q. For Richard, after the last crash you had said something on the radio that you were wondering if the white flag had come out before the caution. Did you think at some point that Clint had won that race?

RICHARD CHILDRESS: No, I just said, why didn't it come out is what I said, was why didn't the white come out at the end. NASCAR made the call that they made, and it ended up one of the RCR cars won the race.

KEVIN HARVICK: It was out. I could see the white flag, we just never got to it.

RICHARD CHILDRESS: That's what it was, it was just one of those deals. I feel bad for Clint and all these guys, but at the end of the day, can't but one of those guys win, and here we are tonight. I'm just glad the way all three of them ran that we were able to come out of there with a win.

Q. Richard, just on that with Clint, is there anything that you can say? To fall from 1st to 17th, he's still in a tight battle to get into the Chase. There was a lot of points lost tonight. Whether that affects him come September or not we'll find out. But is there much you can say or have you had a chance to say anything to Clint?

RICHARD CHILDRESS: No, I haven't. I haven't talked to him. I'll talk to him later, probably wait until tomorrow, let things kind of cool off a little bit.

I don't know if the 24 got into his tire back there or what happened, but I know he was not happy with the 24 at that point.

THE MODERATOR: Gentlemen, congratulations, and thank you for your time.

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT CHEVROLET – Finished 3^rd

POST RACE PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:

THE MODERATOR: We're joined here tonight by tonight's third place finisher, driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, Jeff Gordon. Tell us about your run.

JEFF GORDON: Man, I'm just happy to survive one of these restrictor plate races. It's been a while since we've done that. We had a pretty good night, car drove good, especially on the long runs, and we avoided the big ones and got ourselves in a good position to win the race. Got out in front, and I felt like I had a pretty good handle I liked being up front while those two guys were lined up; we were good.

But once they split down, one and two, they kind of faded, and I didn't know I thought they were passing one another, and instead they lined back up and I was just a sitting duck. At that point it was just about the restart, and got a good restart, was pushing Clint, and I don't know what happened. It just seemed like he was riding the brakes, and we weren't going anywhere. So I went to pass him, and that kind of just messed up our momentum to really have a shot at winning, so we're pretty happy to finish third.

Q. Jeff, if you could describe your last two laps there, too.

JEFF GORDON: I was pushing the 33. I mean, we got a great start, and I gave him a big shove, and I think maybe he was afraid that he got too big of a shove or something and it seemed like he let off the gas or got on the brakes. I hit him again, and you know, again, until I talk to Clint and try to find out what happened but these cars got a lot of drag in them with the spoilers, so maybe it was just the car was just dragging down that much when I was trying to push him.

But I felt like that last time I was coming up on him too fast and I needed to go. So I went to the outside of him. I think when I went to the outside of him, the 29 and the 9 pretty much cruised right on by, and then it was just trying to get the momentum back down the back straightaway.

The 31 pretty much got by me, but I was able to get to his quarterpanel and get right back by him and finish third.

Q. With all the crazy stuff out there, how relieved do you guys feel to get out of here with top threes?

JEFF GORDON: We've been in so many of those wrecks here recently on restrictor plates that our good stats that we've always had on the restrictor plates have been going down fast. So this was a nice way to rebound.

Yeah, you know, the 18 and 42 got together right in front of me. I just avoided that one. The other one, I don't even know how I avoided it, the one where Burton was a pinball and they were all wrecking. I just dove to the apron and just did a big slide. I don't know how we didn't have more damage. But we were one of the few cars that made it through there. And then the rest of them were in my mirror, like Kasey was saying.

Q. For Jeff, you move into second place. What does this do with the time, the races ticking down right before the Chase?

JEFF GORDON: I'm second? Really? I don't believe it.

Q. That's what they said up here. We don't have the points or anything up here.

JEFF GORDON: Well, I mean, I'm excited that we're second in points, but I'll be honest with you, all I look at is where we are with wins right now. When you're positioned well in the Chase, like we are currently, then it comes down to wins and being seeded for when that Chase comes around.

I think these top fives that we've had here recently build momentum to get us an opportunity to get us those wins. So that's really more what's on our mind right now. It's about what we've got to do to win a championship. I feel like we've got to get a few wins before that Chase starts.

But you know, it certainly helps when you're further up in the points because it gives you that opportunity to take more chances and try more things to make sure that you either get those bonus points or that you're the car to beat when the Chase comes around.

Q. Jeff, you've been a part of a lot of wild races, but where does this one rank in terms of restrictor plate craziness?

JEFF GORDON: I'll be honest with you, I'm starting to get used to the fact that every race we go to is basically bumper cars at 190 miles an hour. You know, my favorite part of the race to be honest was the first half when we were spread out, and while it might not be as exciting for the fans, it's awesome as a driver to be out there knowing you're making a difference in how you drive the car, the team is making a difference how they set up the car. The pit stops under green, to me that was just a blast out there racing in those long runs, managing tires, all that stuff. That's what I love about the older surface.

But, you know, when it comes down to the end, you pretty much know that it's not going to end like that, that you're going to have cautions and double file restarts, and it's just hold on tight.

For me, honestly, tonight, other than after I made Clint Bowyer mad, which what's new, I'm making a lot of guys mad these days, but he ran into the back of me so hard down the back straightaway because I know he's mad at me, plus I know he's trying to get us going. Other than that it was a pretty uneventful green white checkered compared to some others I've seen. I'm sure that's not quite the case for guys that were behind me.

THE MODERATOR: Gentlemen, thank you, and congratulations.

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Chevy fast facts

CHEVY FAST FACTS
COKE ZERO 400 POWERED BY COCA-COLA
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
July 3, 2010

A total of 15 Team Chevy drivers will start the Coke Zero 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race at Daytona International Speedway, Round 18 on the 2010 tour.

· As a result of qualifying cancelation due to severe weather conditions, five Team Chevy drivers will start in the top-10 in today’s race:

· Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet, will start on the pole for today's race

· Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe's/KOBALT Tools Chevrolet, will start 2nd

· Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet rolls off 5th

· Jeff Burton, No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet will start 8th

· Tony Stewart, No. 14 Burger King Chevrolet will start 9th

CHEVROLET AT DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY:

· Team Chevy drivers have won 39 of 126 previous NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) races at Daytona International Speedway (DIS)

· Chevrolet drivers have won 38 poles at DIS

· Team Chevy drivers have scored 171 top-five finishes and 334 top-10 finishes at DIS

· A Chevrolet has led 6,544 laps (34.3% of possible 19,067) at DIS

· Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet, has six (6) DIS wins- most of active drivers

· Tony Stewart, No 14 Burger King Chevrolet, has won at DIS three (3) times

· Dale Earnhardt, Jr., No. 88 National Guard “8 Soldiers 8 Missions/AMP Energy Chevrolet, has two (2) wins at DIS

· Jeff Burton, No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet, has one (1) DIS win

· Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet, has won once (1) at DIS

· Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet, has one win (1) at DIS

· Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet, has one (1) DIS win

· Ryan Newman, No. 39 Tornados Chevrolet, has one (1) DIS win

TEAM CHEVY IN 2010 NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES (NSCS) COMPETITION:
· Race wins – 8 as of race 17 of 36

· Poles – 7 as of race 17 of 36

· Laps led – 2,609 (48.6% of possible 5,368)

· Top-five finishes – 47 (55.3% of possible)

· Top-10 finishes – 87 (51.1% of possible)

· Has six (6) drivers in top-12 points positions

· Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet is the points leader

Friday, July 2, 2010

Tony Stewart Daytona quotes

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

COKE ZERO 400

DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

JULY 2, 2010

TONY STEWART, NO. 14 BURGER KING CHEVROLET met with media and discussed the paint scheme for this race, his expectations for Saturday's race, the back-up car, and more. Full Transcript:

TONY TELL US ABOUT YOUR UNIQUE CAR PAINT SCHEME THIS WEEKEND AND BEING AT DAYTONA

“We have 48,000 signatures on the hood this week in the Burger King logo which is pretty cool and they got 25,000 people who registered online within the first 48 hours so it’s a pretty cool promotion and the hood is actually going on Ebay with the 48,000 plus signatures plus my signature so it’s pretty cool and obviously this is a weekend that was big to Burger King last year and its big for us this year to have them back on board and hopefully we will have similar results but really excited about it and really excited to get the race fans involved and have them on the hood and let them ride along with us.”

GIVEN THE SPOILER BROUGHT RECORD LEAD CHANGES AT TALLADEGA LAST TIME, WHAT MIGHT THE SPOILER BRING TO THIS RACE AND HOW SIMILAR OR HOW DIFFERENT MIGHT IT BE? DOES THE SPOILER MAKE THIS A DIFFERENT RACE THAN THE ONE YOU WON LAST YEAR?

“I think the grip level is what makes it different. When you compare Daytona to Talladega, you are really comparing apples to oranges. At Talladega handling is not an issue at all. I mean everybody’s cars drive really well and that is the situation six or seven months from now we will be in. As far as tomorrow night is concerned this track is still now very much a handling track and I am not sure the spoiler versus the wing is not going to make much of a difference as far as the racing is.

’The laps that you saw guys run yesterday versus what we did at Talladega….you are watching guys that are working on the handling of the car versus just trying to make their car suck up so this race is very, very different. Its polar opposite from what you get at Talladega even though the tracks are similar in size and it’s a restrictor plate race, it two races that race total opposite from each other.”

ARE THE ACCIDENTS FROM PRACTICE YESTERDAY ANY INDICATION OF WHAT TOMORROW NIGHT IS GOING TO BE LIKE?

“Unfortunately that is just a product of restrictor plate racing the fact that you race that close but yes, that easily could happen. I think the reason that you see it in practice though too is because that is where you learn what you can and can’t do in practice sessions. Everything that happened yesterday was mistakes but a lot of times the reason you see so much of it in practice is that guys cars are not handling the way that they would like and somebody that may have a good handling car behind them doesn’t realize that and so that kind of gets us in predicaments in practice so hopefully by the race we will have it all sorted out. It could be that way but it also could go 400 straight miles and not have a problem. It’s hard to predict it so as long as you are running 190 mph two and three inches from each other that’s always a possibility it could happen.”

REGARDING THE REPAIRS TO THE TRACK MADE OVERNIGHT, DID YOU NOTICE ANYTHING ON THE TRACK AND DO YOU HAVE ANY CONCERNS FOR THE RACE?

“I really didn’t notice anything yesterday and I found out about an hour ago that they had to do another patch. The sports cars ran across it this morning and didn’t have any problems so I guess there is not really a reason to be concerned about it because it’s going to work out fine or its going to come apart…one of those two things. The big patch that they put down is working out really well so I can’t say I really have a big concern about it.

"If it comes apart they will do what they need to do to fix it. I was told that there is already paving equipment on the backstretch getting ready to get to work on the track after this race is over so the good news is that we will get through this weekend and it looks like the track staff is on top of it right now as far as looking at it and making sure if they see something might be a problem, they will be able to address it right away. So I think it will be fine.”

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT PARTICIPATING WITH YOUR SPONSOR THE US ARMY ON A MENTAL STRENGTHENING PROGRAM? "Well, look at me; I've got a lot of room for improvement in that category (LAUGHS). I'm probably the best test they could have for that. But, it is cool! It is nice to have a partner like the US Army and be able to utilize some of the technology that they have. And you think about our sport, it's not just myself, but it is Darian Grubb on the pit box, it is our crew guys. The pit stops now are so competitive that a tenth of a second here and there could be the difference losing one or two spots or gaining one or two spots on a pit stop. To think about having those kinds of resources available to you, it is a pretty cool feeling."

ARE YOU INTERESTED IN GETTING A PIECE OF THE OLD DAYTONA ASPHALT JUST AS A SOUVENIR OR MEMENTO? "Yes, actually I would be. I would love to get a piece of the start/finish line if at all possible. We've won 14 races, I think, here now. It has been the first guy to get to it. But, yes, if I could get a piece of the start/finish line, it would be awesome. That is a keepsake that not too many people might have the opportunity to get. I would say the track is probably already on top of that and already selling sections of it, if they are smart. It will help offset some of the astronomical cost it is going to be to re-pave this place. It would be need to have a piece of the start/finish line like that but it would also be neat to see them take the time to cut up sections and sell it to the fans because I know a lot of fans would like to have that opportunity to have that also. There is going to be plenty of it available. It would be pretty cool to have that opportunity. I may have to sneak out there Saturday after the race and go out there with a hammer and chisel to get my own section just in case I don't get anything (LAUGHS)."

CAN YOU GIVE US A RECOLLECTION OF HOW THE LAST LAPS OF THE RACE WENT DOWN WITH YOU AND KYLE (BUSCH) LAST YEAR? "I don't remember the whole last lap. I just remember coming off of four and we got a run on him. I remember he went to the inside to block us and we just kind of stayed to the outside and let the momentum carry. When he realized we were to the right, he went to block to the right and we were already there and it spun him across the nose. I would rather not have quite that dramatic of a finish from the standpoint of his side of it, more than ours. I would like our side to be about the same, but I don't want to see a big wreck afterwards because of it. It was definitely cool. It would have been interesting to see whether we were actually going to get all the way by him or if we were going to fall short if it went all the way to the line. But because of him driving across the nose, if definitely sealed the deal for us."

CAN YOU POINT TO ANY ONE THING THAT HAS CHANGED OVER THE LAST FEW WEEKS THAT HAS AFFECTED YOUR INCREASED PERFORMANCE? "I think it is just the work that everybody has been doing. You know it is kind of weird how last year we started off the season really well, literally the first half of the year was right on pace with what we were looking for then four or five weeks before the Chase started, we started falling off and then really we were struggling during the Chase. It was kind of frustrating from that standpoint and we couldn't really put our finger on what we were doing different and what we were doing wrong that was causing us to not have that kind of performance. It seems like this year we got a slow start to the year and it seems like we are picking it up so hopefully we're having the polar opposite of what we had last year, we are going to start slow and finish strong this year. I just think it is due to everybody's work at the shop and there is one thing about our guys-they just don't quit. They don't give up. They are all racers whether they've come from...we've got a lot of guys that have come from sprint car racing or modified racing or pavement late models across the country. It is neat to have a shop full of what I call true racers. People that race because they love racing and we're all lucky that we get paid to do it. That is just the mentality of good racers. If things get tough, they don't give up. They sit there and sort it out and try to figure out what it is they have to do to make it better and that is what our guys have done I feel like. They keep digging in. Keep trying and I think the results the last couple of weeks have shown that."

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT STARTING THE RACE WITH JUST TWO LAPS ON THE CAR? "The good news is that the car, the backup car, is actually the car I won the race with last year, so it is not a brand new car. Obviously we haven't run it this weekend so we will have to...the challenge with it is figuring out the ride heights and making sure the thing is going to travel the same as the other car. I'm confident in that car. Obviously, it was a good car last year and handled well. I'm not really too scared from that aspect of it of running the backup car. The biggest thing is starting the race, whether it is traveling enough or not traveling enough in the front-end, that is going to be really critical and it's very feasible the first or second stop of the race we might still be working on ride height and getting it exactly where we want it. As far as feeling comfortable with that car, I'm very confident that car will work."

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