NASCAR CUP SERIES
GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
AUGUST 4, 2021
ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE, Teleconference Transcript Highlights:
LOOKING AT PENSKE RACING AND ROUSH FENWAY RACING AND THE CHANGES GOING FORWARD, WILL THAT GIVE HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS A JUMP TO FEND OFF THOSE CHANGES?
“I really haven’t thought about it to be honest with you. You just never know. It can be an advantage or a disadvantage. It could be opportunity to bring it to a new perspective and some energy or it could be time spent getting somebody up to speed. It’s just really tough to say. With Brad (Keselowski) leaving and solidifying where he’s going to go after his driving career and working through that. It could be a significant advantage for him, or it could be re-energizing and motivate him, or it could be a tough transition and a distraction. So, it’s just really tough for me to say. For us, I just think it’s all about us focusing on what we can do to be the best we can. I feel like if we’re at our best and certainly we’re competitive to win races and championships. To me, it’s always been about Hendrick Motorsports and optimizing what we can control. Mr. Hendrick gives us the resources, and Chevrolet and all our partners give us what we need to win, and we just have to optimize it and do what we can internally to be the best we can. If we can do that, regardless of what goes on around us, we’re going to be in good shape.”
THE FOCUS FOR THIS WEEKEND AT WATKINS GLEN SEEMS TO BE ALL ABOUT CHASE ELLIOTT AND HE WILL THREE-PEAT. IS THAT A DISTRACTION TO YOU?
“I try not to pay attention to any of the talk, positive or negative, and not let that influence me. That’s personally how I handle it. I try to lead by example for my guys and what we’ve accomplished in the past is great and we’re super-proud of that, but it’s ultimately not going to really do much for us this weekend besides us knowing the lessons we’ve learned from racing there and being successful. We still have to do our jobs and we still have to be prepared and be ready and we still have to execute. We focus on those things and race it like it’s your last race and in doing the best you can and try to do that every week.”
YOU TALK ABOUT RACING LIKE IT’S YOUR LAST RACE, BUT HOW MUCH OF IT IS THAT, AND HOW MUCH OF IT IS LEARNING AND MAKING SURE YOU’RE AT YOUR BEST ROAD COURSE WHEN IT COMES TO THE ROVAL?
“Obviously Watkins Glen is much different than the ROVAL. The backwards pit stops at Watkins Glen aren’t unique to Watkins Glen but certainly not something that we’ll take to the ROVAL. It is a bit more opportunity I think, than normal, so it’s certainly going to apply to Indianapolis, the pit stop side of it, and then the course configuration at Indy is probably going to be more like the ROVAL than it is what Watkins Glen will be. So, you always try to consistently improve and learn and push forward. But too me, Watkins Glen is really a lot about Watkins Glen. You’re always learning but I think in this situation it’s more about that track. It’s pretty specific.”
YOU LOST 25 POINTS. DOES THAT IMPACT ANY OF YOUR DECISION-MAKING AT ALL AND HOW MUCH DO YOU GET INVOLVED, ASIDE FROM WHAT ENGINES GO IN THE CARS, TO MAKE SURE IT DOESN’T HAPPEN AGAIN?
“It’s an unfortunate mistake and we’re all in this together and it’s not my specific job. But I think there are some things we could have done as a team to be a safety net and to make sure that doesn’t happen again. And yeah, we learned a lot of lessons from that and it’s an unfortunate error and oversight. So, 25 points hurts. We’re trying to make it as far up the points ladder as we can for those bonus points, and we’ve made some progress and then we get disqualified at Nashville and it’s a big hit and then the 25 points. It hasn’t really changed my perspective but it’s not a good thing. It’s stuff we have to clean up and to answer your question, no, I don’t think it’s changed our perspective and yes, I think there are things that we can do. There’s always an opportunity for second, third, and fourth checks and verifications and that’s something we’ve just got to stay on top of so it doesn’t happen again.”
HOW MUCH DID THE YEARS WITH JEFF GORDON HELP YOU WITH CHASE ELLIOTT?
“My years with Jeff absolutely have helped me be a better crew chief and a really a better person in general. The experience with him was amazing and yeah, absolutely. I think I’ve learned a ton from Jeff, and still learn a lot from Jeff. He’s an amazing person. He has a ton of experience so absolutely; I think that’s helped me get to a better spot. I certainly owe Jeff tremendous gratitude and what he’s done for me. Mark (Martin) and Kyle (Busch) and other guys I’ve worked with too, absolutely, have been a huge part in helping me become the crew chief that I am and the experience I’ve had with them pay off and is certainly very valuable.”
AT TIMES WE’VE SEEN AT ROAD COURSE RACES WHEN THE WINNER DOESN’T NECESSARILY WIN STAGES, BUT LATELY OTHER TIMES THEY HAVE. HAS THE GAME CHANGED IN TERMS OF HOW THE STRATEGY HAS PLAYED OUT OR ARE THESE INSTANCES WHERE CARS ARE SO MUCH FASTER THAT COULD MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE RACE?
“I think certainly the cars have a lot to do with it and that helps. And then it’s circumstantial, I think, depending on your fuel windows and where they fall and can you make it to the end, and that’s just stuff to watch at The Glen. I would say, if I had to answer the question with one answer, I would say the performance of the car is the bigger indicator in that. I don’t think it’s necessarily change that comes with a strategy play.”
AT THE DAYTONA ROAD COURSE, WAS THAT BECAUSE OF THE WAY THE PIT STRATEGY WENT AND YOU GUYS GOT FURTHER BACK THERE AND HE (KYLE LARSON) GOT COLLECTED IN SOME TRAFFIC, WAS THAT A LEARNING LESSON OR WERE YOU MORE IN THE RIGHT POSITION BECAUSE IF THINGS WOULD HAVE PLAYED OUT, YOU WOULD HAVE HAD FRESHER TIRES AND THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A BETTER SITUATION?
“if you rewind that race, we were leading at the time, the No. 20 (Christopher Bell) was second. I think we were the two best cars. We were slightly better than the No. 20, but not much. We were really pretty close and even. We pitted and didn’t get a great line-up lane, restart; and the No. 20 was able to make it through the first incident and we weren’t, and he won the race and we finished pretty dismal. But on the flip side, the No. 22 finished and stayed out and he certainly didn’t have the caliber of car that we did, or the No. 20 did. So, you can guess these things to death. I would have rather, hindsight being 20/20, I would have stayed out in that situation. But you just never know.
“It’s what makes it so tough, right? That’s what makes it so much fun and that’s why it’s so great to win these races is because it’s tough to make all the calls right and all the circumstances go your way and at Daytona, we didn’t get it done. It wasn’t the right call for the circumstances and that’s just another way to put it. You just have to navigate.”
SINCE KYLE LARSON JOINED THE FOLD, HOW HAS IT ELEVATED THE LEVEL OF COMPETITION AT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS?
“He’s an amazing driver. He’s as good as anybody out there and he brings a huge amount of talent. He’s got a tenacity about him. He wants to win everything. I think the best way to describe it is I heard him say this in a recent interview. He said he wanted to be the best race car driver ever, like period. Like not just as a stock car driver. He wants to be the best race car driver of all time. It’s how he races. So yeah, he brings that level of competitiveness and that talent. He’s really good. He sets a bar that’s high and everybody wants to eclipse so it elevates the talent or however you want to describe it, and yeah I think it trickles down through all the facets of our company.”
ARE YOU SURPRISED THAT CHASE ELLIOTT HAS THE DESIRE TO GO RUN DIRT? HE HAS LIMITED EXPERIENCE AND IT’S A CHALLENGE
“It’s a huge challenge. I commend him. He’s got a lot of guts, right? He’s willing to go out there at a young age and with no experience, where a lot of people are insecure and won’t put themselves out there like that to get the experience. He just won a Cup championship. It would be easy for him to just sit at home and tweet about the race, right? But he goes out there and jumps in and knows he’s going to be in a very difficult situation to be successful, and he goes in and enjoys and works for himself. I commend him. There’s no doubt in my mind, with time, he will win anything he drives. There is just no question to me. He just needs some time and to be in the situation that’s the right situation and I think he’ll get there. I think it’s great he does it and I think it’s great he’s experiencing it. Life’s short. You’ve got to go out there and enjoy it.
“You know, when they go to race those races, it’s so much about just the true pleasure of driving and there’s not all of the other constraints and demands. I think it’s great they can keep it fresh and go out there and really have a good time. Certainly, it’s going to make it better when they drive Cup cars or whatever else it is. Certainly Chase, for putting himself out there with no experience; and like I said, I’m very confident he’s going to be at the top sooner or later, probably sooner than later. He just needs a little time”.
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
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