Category: NASCAR Cup PR

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MAY 11, 2024

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance to the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Darlington Raceway.

Media Availability Quotes:

Can you take us through your win last year at North Wilkesboro; what it meant to win at such a historical place?

“Yeah, it was awesome. I got to compete in the truck race, as well. I had a great race. It was great to win there in the truck. And then for the Cup race that weekend, I think it was extra special just to win there. But for how our weekend was before the race, we made it even more special because we were not competitive, I didn’t think, at all. We were really, really bad. We didn’t practice well. I think we were quickest on lap time, but over the course of a run, we were really bad. So, practice wasn’t good. We didn’t do great in the pit crew challenge. In the heat race, we backed it up; fell back and really was just kind of frustrated with how the weekend was going. But the team was working hard; recognized that we were really bad and threw a bunch of changes to it for Sunday’s race. I could feel pretty early on that we had a competitive car. And then yeah, cruised up through the field and dominated the race. To win was great; win a million bucks was awesome. But then to win at a historic racetrack that I never envisioned myself racing at was pretty neat. To sweep that weekend was cool.”

Despite your crazy schedule for that weekend, how will this race be different with the repave and the tire situation?

“Yeah, I mean I wasn’t a part of that test, but I think William (Bryon) was and they just said how fast it was. So, I imagine that it would be harder to pass, for sure, which it’s always difficult to pass on a repave. But I feel like repaves open up opportunities because the groove is so narrow, and typically when you get out of the groove, it’s very slick so there could be a lot of mistakes made, which opens up opportunity. But we’ll see.. I don’t know what to expect yet.”

I hate to bring up a worst-case scenario, but I need to ask you – if the Indy 500 starts on time and you’re well into it and it rains briefly, who makes the call on whether you stay in Indy or come to Charlotte?

“Yeah, hopefully that doesn’t arise. But I’m not sure who the one is to make that call. I’m sure there’s a window of time that when it gets to a certain point I have to leave because the Coca-Cola 600 is the priority that weekend and chasing another NASCAR Cup Series championship is the priority.

Yeah, I just hope that doesn’t come about (laughs). Tony Kanaan is there for reserve, if something like that does happen, to fill in for the (Indy) 500. But yeah, just pray that doesn’t happen.”

There’s a lot of focus these days on mental health and everything. With your schedule getting busier and busier with the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 prep and Kevin Harvick helping out the team next weekend a little bit – how are you staying mentally strong and sharp during the month of May?

“I don’t know.. I think I stay prepared for things like this because I race all the time. These next two weeks, honestly, I feel like are simpler than most of my weeks. I’m in Indiana for a full week, and I’m behind one certain type of car for the majority of that week. A lot of times, my schedule in the summer will get crazy, where I’m racing on a Sunday and then I’m flying to go race a sprint car one day. And then I’m driving three hours to go race a dirt late model and then something else that weekend. So, I think times like that probably prepare me for the month of May more than anything. I think having good people around you too; having good, organized logistics help, as well.”

You mentioned Tony Kanaan is the reserve driver for the Indy 500. We know that Kevin Harvick is going to be in the car for practice for the All-Star Race. Do you have a backup driver in case something happens and you can’t make it for the All-Star Race or you can’t make it for the Coca-Cola 600, who’s going to be in that car and racing?

“No, I haven’t heard that yet. No.. I don’t know, I’m not sure. I guess maybe those are all last-minute calls I think, or we’ll probably just like try to manifest a perfect weekend in our minds (laughs). Maybe behind the scenes, they’ve been working on that. I think it all depends on weather and stuff; kind of forecasting what that might look like and maybe plans will change. But no, I don’t know.”

Obviously we have the option tire next weekend at North Wilkesboro. Is that something you’d like to see on a regular basis in the Cup Series on ovals and road courses, where teams have an option to go hard or soft compounds?

“Well, I think it just depends on how it goes next week. Yeah, assuming it goes well, I don’t know because I don’t know what ‘well’ looks like. I’m not sure. I mean if it’s great, then yeah, maybe we can utilize it. But I really don’t know until I get some experience on it.

I remember we ran – I guess was it the All-Star Race, however many years ago, I think we had an option tire. I don’t know if we all had it on during the same run or even how it works next week, but I don’t remember it being any different. I think it has to be drastically different for you to notice a difference on the racetrack. We’ll see. Hopefully that’s what it is next week.”

Being able to do something that not many people get to do here the next few weeks, what are you looking most forward to, or even intrigued about what these next couple of weeks might be like?

“I don’t know.. I think for me, I don’t think about that a whole lot. I think more about – I get excited about learning new things and being presented a new challenge, which an IndyCar is a new challenge. Learning that style of racing a little bit and seeing what translates some. Racing against other drivers that I’ve watched on TV for quite a while or whatever – like that’s kind of what I get most excited about. But mostly, just learning and seeing how quickly you can learn and if you can be competitive. I think if you can do a good job with all of that, then all the other stuff that would be seen as more important on the result end of things would be great.

But yeah, I think I’m just excited to learn something new.”

Going back to the finish last week, when Chris (Buescher) made his move into turn three that allowed you to have the outside, did you feel like at that point – OK this is perfect because now I’m going to win it because I’m on the outside like that? Or even if he had gone on the outside, I guess you could have gone down and done a slide job type of pass. Did that change how you looked at it when he essentially took middle?

“I was planning to go to the outside no matter what. I honestly thought that he would just run low and fast; kind of run the shorter distance. So, when he kind of ran the middle, I was like – oh yeah, like wow.. here we go! But it wasn’t until l got exited off of the corner, like to the straightaway, that I thought we still had a shot here. Like when I had initially got there, I thought he was going to throttle up and kind of like – not move me up, just like I wasn’t quite there enough I thought.

It’s weird.. like when you watch a replay, it looks different than what you see in the helmet. I remember when I kind of throttled up to try to get to his quarter, I thought he was going to be able to throttle up; get clear in front of me and then I would get aero-tight. But then when I stayed there, I still was like – alright, now I’m crashing because I’m just in an awkward spot here with aero and the way that turn four kind of sharpens up on exit. I just thought I was going to run out of space.. not even like him doing anything dirty or anything like that. He left me enough room and all that. Yeah, we got off the corner and then it was just about how the run was going to work out, and thankfully it barely worked out.”

A lot of times, you guys get more credit than maybe you deserve at times, and sometimes you get more of the blame than you deserve at times… I mean this is still a team sport. When you’re in a situation like that and obviously for Chris (Buescher), it’s easy to say he lost it. You guys always have to look at yourselves each week or the team is looking at things. How tough of a situation is it, even with all the self-critical thinking you have to have, if you feel like you’ve lost it, and how do you get through something like that? What would be the case where it’s lingered for you?

“Yeah, I mean I’ve definitely lost plenty of races late in the going, I feel like, than I’ve won. So yeah, it’s tough, especially in a finish like that. You think about it a lot. You overthink it. There are many different ways that you can think about running the last lap to have a different result where you win. And I think you just have to kind of process all of those different scenarios in your head; log it and then try to be better for the next time a situation, if it ever happens, occurs like that.

And then you just have to try and move on from it, which is difficult. But the best way to move on from things is just to get back behind the wheel. That’s what’s always been good for me. When I’ve had tough races, or good races, it seems like I’ve got a race a day or two later. I don’t kind of ride that wave too much, or the wave is quicker, I guess, which kind of steadies me out maybe a little bit.

Yeah, it’s tough. Losing like that is very difficult, but he seems like a very even keel guy that probably doesn’t let it linger too long.”

With Corey Day starting to dabble in the pavement world a little bit, what can you tell the NASCAR community about Corey as a racer? Are you involved, even in like in a just talking to him role, in getting him acclimated to maybe pursuing this?

“Yeah, I mean a little bit. But I feel like he’s kind of a lot like me in that sense, where like I’ve never really reached out to anybody like – hey man, I’m getting ready to run this. Even in IndyCar, like – hey, I’m getting ready to run an IndyCar.. what do I need to do? I’ve always just tried to figure things out on my own, and he seems to be the same way. So yeah, it was cool to see him have a good run at Hickory. Obviously the invert and all that kind of worked out for him, but it was cool to see him adapt to something new. I think that was his first time on pavement that weekend.

He’s just an extremely great race car driver. He’s only 18-years-old. He’s got a ton of experience. I’ve obviously paid a lot of attention to him now the last few years, and he’s just continued to get better and better each weekend. Watching his style, I feel like that’s what I look like a lot out there with how hard he runs. I was not that in control at 18, but he’s very in control with how hard he runs. He’s very calculated. I feel like he makes really smart, quick decisions out there on the track. Yeah, I hope he gets opportunities at this level to showcase his abilities, and I’m sure there’s a lot of teams, manufacturers and organizations that are after him. He’s in a great spot, so I’m excited to kind of see where his career ends up. Yeah, it would be fun getting to compete with him; not only on the sprint car side, but hopefully on the NASCAR side of things down the road.”

About Chevrolet

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Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Darlington Media Advance | Saturday, May 11, 2024

Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 38 gener8tor Ford Mustang Dark Horse, and Chris Buescher, driver of the No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang Dark Horse, both came into the media center and held Q&A sessions before today’s practice and qualifying session. Here’s a transcript of both interviews:

TODD GILLILAND, No. 38 gener8tor Ford Mustang Dark Horse – WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT YOUR THROWBACK SCHEME? “It’s always really cool, for me being one of the younger guys in the Cup Series still, I would say I’m still kind of seeing what the past is kind of like brought onto a present race car and all that stuff. For me, going back to my first late model win, it’s cool. That’s where it all started. It was my first CARS Tour race ever, kind of a cool tie-in there too. It definitely brings back a lot of memories, back when I was just trying to learn and doing a lot of stuff wrong and working really hard. I think all of that stuff is really cool to kind of revisit and rethink about.”

WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER FROM THAT FIRST CARS TOUR RACE? “I don’t remember a whole lot. It’s kind of just a blur of how the night went. Looking back at stuff, it seemed like we had speed most of the day. I think we were the fastest in practice and I think we were pretty much third the whole race. I’ve watched the finish of it a million times and racing against Deac McCaskill, all bunch of those guys that are still racing on the CARS Tour and are kind of like the veterans that you have to beat. I think I kind of moved him out of the way on a restart and was able to just barely get away for those last few laps and win the race. That was an awesome finish.”

IS THERE OPTIMISM IN THE 38 CAMP THAT WITH A LITTLE LUCK GOOD FINISHES ARE COMING? “Yeah, I would definitely say that’s how we feel running-wise, but at the end of the day you only have results to go off of and they don’t look good, for sure. I definitely do feel like we’ve been running better. We’ve been starting the weekends much closer, faster in practice, all those things that are helping us set up better. On the plus side, we’re faster, but on the downside I feel like we had such a long ways to go at some of these mile-and-a-halves. We still have a long ways to go, but we’re in the race now, where before we had probably on average just three-tenths to get to the back of the racing pack. I feel like we’re there. We can race hard. I feel like Kansas was one of our best mile-and-a-halves yet, and it was nice to be able to get out of there with a good finish, whether it’s strategy, restarts or whatever. Our car was still pretty fast, so that was definitely a big confidence booster.”

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT WHETHER YOU’RE SURPRISED MCDOWELL IS LEAVING AND HIS CONTRIBUTION TO THE COMPANY? “There are definitely two sides to that one. Part of me is surprised that he’s leaving, just because the same as what you guys see – he’s been there for a long time and really built the organization up to where it is today, in my opinion. He’s been a huge part of that, so, yes I am surprised he’s leaving, but at the same time he’s been doing so well you would have to think there are gonna be opportunities. I’m definitely sad to see him go, for sure, just based off how much he does, his leadership within the team. The day he told us was kind of the day they announced it that morning to our whole shop. We were talking about it after that. I did some interview or I said that hopefully one day I can take the torch of the leadership deal and I joked with him that I didn’t want it to be this soon – ‘you didn’t need to leave this early.’ But he’s been such a great teammate to me. I feel like he’s just been an open notebook when he doesn’t need to be. I really have nothing but great things to say about what he’s meant to me and meant to our race team.”

HOW DO YOU BUILD MOMENTUM WITH THE TEAM WHEN YOU’RE ALWAYS ON A ONE-YEAR DEAL? “It’s definitely nerve racking throughout the years, but I feel like Front Row is making so many steps in so many areas. That’s another area we’re working in, whether that’s crew chiefs or personnel that are gonna be under longer term contracts. That’s really the next step. We’re getting to a point where we have a lot of great people and you have to really take care of your great people or else they’re gonna get other opportunities. I think we’re definitely working on that and working in a good direction, whether that’s with drivers, crew chiefs, anyone in the whole company. I think that’s going to continue to get better over the years.”

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HOW TEMPERAMENTAL THIS TRACK IS? “Like you said, I feel like I can do 10 laps in a row and feel like I’m doing good, and then slip up by like one tire width and you’re in really bad shape and stuffed in the wall. To me, it’s always a super fun place. You do have to be super technical, super on your game all day, whether it’s today during practice or qualifying. I think qualifying here is one of the craziest things we do. Even sitting on the end of pit road waiting for your turn to go out, you see other guys go out and it’s unbelievable the speed and the throttle that you carry into turn one up the hill. All you can see is that wall turning right in at you. It’s a lot of commitment, a lot of trust, but also these cars make a lot of grip nowadays and that’s what makes it so much more fun. I’m excited. Darlington is always a tough place. And then on the flip side it’s one of the most high commitment places, but then after 10 laps you’re just hanging on and trying to baby the thing around here to make it another 40 laps or so. I think just the multiple layers to it makes it super fun.”

SO YOU WILL BE THE NEW LEADER AT FRONT ROW? “That’s not what I said. I hope so. I don’t know. That’s definitely the goal for me, for sure. I definitely feel at home at Front Row Motorsports and they’ve been nothing but good to me, so we’ll see, but that’s definitely my plan.”

YOU SOUNDED LIKE IT WAS A DONE DEAL FOR NEXT YEAR. “I wish it was all done, but we’re working on it and I’m definitely excited for the future.”

WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO TAKE AWAY FROM WORKING WITH MCDOWELL? “I think everything. I think a few moments that really stick out to me, I think at one of my first Next Gen tests, like from the very beginning, I think we were testing Phoenix and he had tested the whole first day. I hopped in the second day and we were relatively fast and we were laying down some really good laps, but then I spun and I nudged it into the wall. I was obviously super disappointed, but he’s just a guy. He’s been such a good role model and just kind of put his arm around me and said, ‘It’s gonna be alright. It’s not the end of anything.’ It’s just super nice to have somebody like that. I obviously have a great support system with my dad and my whole family, but I feel like MIchael is kind of that same figure, but almost like within the race team. He’s just way more involved in the day-to-day stuff, so I would really compare it to how I talk to my dad or how he talks to me. It’s maybe not a good comparison for him, but it’s definitely the kind of relationship that I feel.”

YOU’VE BEEN AROUND THE FRM SHOP FOR YEARS. WHAT HAS IT BEEN LIKE NOW DRIVING FOR THEM? “Yeah, that’s definitely true. I think one of my favorite pictures is there’s a picture of me on one of the Front Row pit boxes when I was probably 12 years old or something like that. I’ve been around the team for a long time, whether that’s a good relationship with Bob Jenkins, the owner, their whole family. It’s cool to have the roots for that, but at the same time the team has changed dramatically since my dad was there. They were struggling to maybe even get to the racetrack at times, where now we definitely feel like we can be a competitive race team in the Cup Series. It’s changed in a lot of ways, but at the same time it’s definitely great to have a good relationship with the whole team and kind of just build my own building blocks on top of that.”

YOU GET A LITTLE BETTER QUALIFYING POSITION THIS WEEK. HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO BREAK OUT OF THAT WITH THE QUALIFYING? IS THIS STILL THE FAIREST WAY TO DO IT? “It definitely can snowball, for sure. If you have a bad race finish, you’re first out to qualify in Group A and then you’re probably gonna be in the back half of the field for the next Sunday. I feel like momentum, you could say it’s real or not, but that’s kind of our momentum is if you get a good finish and now the track is gonna be cleaner when I go out this week and I can get a good starting spot and you really just start rolling the ball in the right direction, but, at the same time, it can definitely go the other way. I do feel like the qualifying format is much better now that it’s the inside row and the outside row. You even look at last week. I think my lap time would have made the second round in Group A, but I was probably 12th or 13th in my group, so the track just changes so much with these cars for whatever reason that I think it’s definitely better off having the bottom lane and the top lane. I think that’s made it a lot more fair, but it definitely is tough. From our side of it, we get bad finishes and we’re legit the first ones out, where Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, those guys have enough points, have a fast enough lap that if they have a bad finish, it doesn’t hurt them as much. I think, to me, it just shows that we need to be more consistent and need to be better on our end and it won’t be as big of an issue.”

HOW QUICKLY WERE YOU THINKING ABOUT A BETTER QUALIFYING SITUATION FOR DARLINGTON AFTER LAST WEEK’S FINISH? “I don’t know that’s something you think about initially. You’re just kind of excited about the finish, but I will definitely say that Tuesday afternoons when the qualifying order comes out, I’m probably the first one to look at it, just because I don’t love being in Group A. I feel like there’s no advantage to that. It’s nice to be in Group B and see your teammate go out and get some data. You can look at the SMT for a long time, know what lap times are gonna be, and you can just be so much more prepared, but, at the same time, it’s the same thing really. I definitely feel I start the weekend off better when I’m in Group B.”

CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang Dark Horse – HOW DOES THIS TRACK CHANGE ON A YEAR TO YEAR BASIS? “There’s definitely a notebook to it. It has aged surprisingly fast since the repave, and then we’ve had a handful of patches put in. The patch in turn two is probably the bigger item that we’ve been trying to adjust to the past couple of years. There was a ton of grip the first time we came here with that really dark black patch, but still had really rough transitions in and off of it. The transitions are still there and they’re still pretty rough, but the grip has gone down significantly. We’ll learn little things about it, but I would say that’s the bigger item we look at. The rest of the track has been a pretty progressive aging of the asphalt. It’s not really getting a whole lot rougher as far as ride quality goes. We’re still chasing that last two or there inches right there at the fence, and maybe we’ve been able to get a little bit more aggressive with using that in the Xfinity and the Cup Series with composite bodies, so we’re able to not have as much consequence to find that last little bit. We’re still chasing grip like good old fashioned Darlington, but the patch has just been one of those little things that has definitely changed how we’ve gone about things. It is definitely the limit of what we can get away with for speed heights versus ride quality.”

HAVE YOU WATCHED THE FINISH FROM LAST WEEK OR NOT BARE TO WATCH IT? “Yeah, I’ve watched it. I’ve replayed it in my head no less than 100 times and that’s probably pretty conservative. I’ve got a list of things I would do different going back and I just need to be in that situation again. I’m taking a lot of good things out of it, a couple bad, but ultimately what I look at is that is the most competitive mile-and-a-half that we’ve had, ever in my career with RFK for sure as well. That was a better weekend than we had at Michigan when we won. I take that as the highlight of how it all went down and it kind of gets you through some of the bitterness of it as well. What we’re talking about it is how do we make that our baseline for mile-and-a-halves and see what we’re able to transfer here to Darlington. Obviously, they’re not the same racetrack whatsoever, but you still feel like we have things that we can apply. We’re all doing our best to try and laugh about it after the race and hung out and actually stayed and watched cars go through tech to make sure we were good and the 5 was good, obviously. Just trying to let it all unfold and take a breather. Our whole team stayed and was standing around the truck just trying to ultimately have some peace in the fact that we had a great day and try to laugh about the situation knowing that it was gonna be a tough one for the rest of every one or our careers.”

ARE YOU GOOD WITH HOW NASCAR DECIDES THE FINISH WITH THE CAMERAS? “I’ve certainly learned a lot and some things that I did not know about. We’ve had a couple ways to laugh, but obviously the wavy line across the finish line has been fun to pick at, but ultimately I understand that’s not what we go by. The transponder loops or camera, that’s some of the things I’ve learned is knowing that we use a camera system versus transponder loops. We’ve been, not in such a grand fashion, but a part of some of these races that have ended under a yellow all of a sudden and we’ve been chasing loops and cameras and never really understood how we ended up where we did on a couple of races the last couple of years and I think we have a better understanding now. It’s all good at the end of the day and we’re ready to make the next one easier to talk about as a win and not have to pull up that camera footage again.”

AS A DRIVER HOW DO YOU PUT THAT BEHIND YOU AND FOCUS ON HAVING THAT SAME LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE HERE? “It was bothersome for two days. There’s no way around that. I really just picked it apart. Ultimately, the way we see it is you need to be in those positions to know what you want to do better next time. Someone told me, not about this weekend, but a long time ago that you’ve got to lose some to win some and had a handful of scenarios throughout my career where I felt like we had a race that we were gonna win or finally had and something came up or a mistake being made here or there and got told that you just have to have that knowledge and until you do, you don’t know the right decision. Fortunately, we’ve been in these situations more to have that fight to the end. It’s good to be in that position and, like I said, that’s how we’re gonna learn and how we’re gonna put notes away and be more prepared for it when it happens, hopefully not this weekend. We want to make it a little easier on everybody to celebrate ahead of time, but it’s just a learning experience at this point. It’s something that we need to take in and just make sure our performance stays elevated to the point where we’re able to be in those conversations again.”

THAT’S THREE RUNNER-UP FINISHES FOR RFK IN THE LAST FOUR RACES. DO YOU FEEL THE ORGANIZATION IS CLOSER TO WHERE YOU WANT TO BE ON A WEEKLY BASIS? “Yes. We went through the offseason and obviously we had a really strong last third of the season. I was able to make a really good run in the playoffs and have real potential at tracks that I have not been good at in the past. To me, that was a good measure of the success we were having and the potential when you can take races that you used to try and stay optimistic about, but ultimately dread going into and turn those into opportunities to feel like you had a shot to win and run top five or whatever it may have been. That was big for the end of the season and our offseason was spent talking about, ‘How do we start off the season like that?’ Our first eight races of most every season have just been off. That was very important for us this year was to make sure that we started in a much better spot. We’ve got four runner-up finishes between the two of us on the year now. I guess that’s a really good useless stat for everybody in here. No one is gonna talk about that one except us, but it is a measure for us to say we’re inching up on it or we’re right there knocking on the door. It’s just about sealing the deal at this point.”

DO YOU FEEL ANYTHING NEEDS TO CHANGE ABOUT WHERE THE TRANSPONDERS ARE LOCATED? “No, I mean all of our chassis are built by Technique, so every transponder in every car is in the exact same spot. That’s actually as even as it’s ever been. When it was up to the teams, you’d always have those little gray areas being explored like we’re prone to do around here, but, right now, it’s all coming from single source suppliers, so there’s nothing that puts you in a position to be able to play those games. It is where it’s at, so I think the stuff on race cars is as equal as it’s ever been and really is ever gonna be. It’s where it’s at, so I don’t feel like there’s anything we can do to change that.”

SHOULD IT BE SOMEWHERE ELSE ON THE CAR FOR EVERYBODY? “It really doesn’t matter with the timing line being that offset back off the start-finish line, basically when the splitter trips that typically straight white line, the transponder should be right on the beacon. Just like the end of pit road. We used to have a thought and we’re smarter now and should have been back then, but we used to have a thought that, ‘OK, you have to get that transponder across that line to truly beat somebody,’ and a long time ago we figured out, ‘No, the transponder line is actually set back the exact whatever it may be – call it 15 feet – from that yellow line on the end of pit road, so that we are going off of the front edge of the splitter essentially. I think it’s the same that we use for pit road stuff, for speeds, for timing loops there. I don’t see where moving it is gonna change anything.”

A DIFFERENT RIGHT SIDE COMBINATION THIS WEEKEND AT DARLINGTON. HOW DO YOU THINK IT WILL WORK OUT HERE? “I would say as much as I am not a proponent of change most weeks, I’m a little stubborn and set in my ways as I’ve gotten a little older. Yes, it’s different for Darlington, but it’s what we’ve used at all of these mile-and-a-halves. It seems to have been decent. It’s not something that we’re running into unknowns with. We’re not having issues. We’ve got notes on it that are leading us to be able to be confident in the decisions we’re making for setups going into weekends. I don’t have anything off the top of my head that says it’s gonna change much here for Darlington. It’s had fall off in it. It may be more stair-stepped than just that progressive loss of time, but it seems like it’s been a step in a good direction for us and our bigger track product.”

HOW WOULD THE REPAVE AFFECT NORTH WILKESBORO? “In every way we can and can’t imagine, I’d say. The closest thing I’d ever been to North Wilkesboro last year was Berlin, Michigan in an ARCA car, which is probably still just as bad as North Wilkesboro was. I think we got wide-open two times, not even two laps, two times throughout an entire ARCA race there and that was a long time ago. You’re going from the absolute extreme of lack of grip to what’s ultimately gonna feel like infinite grip. I would say that you’re gonna be talking about exponentially more braking applied. You’re really gonna change up everything you do there. Speeds are obviously gonna be way, way faster. Throttle time is gonna be way more. You’re gonna turn it back into a horsepower war to some extent, and short track racing it’s not as big of a deal, but you’re gonna be wanting it. I hope that we have enough racetrack to be able to move around and be able to make passes. I hope the progressive banking that is in Wilkesboro that was supposed to stay in there and seems like it has, I haven’t seen it in person, but it looks similar from what I can tell right now, so if that comes in and we’re able to have good racing, it’s just going to be a whole lot faster this go-around. I know new paves have not been our friend typically as far as really good racing goes through the years, and I really kind of blame it on technology and new asphalt being too good. I don’t know if that’s accurate or not. I’m not educated enough to even have that argument, but it seems like everything nowadays is too good. It goes down too smoothly. People know what they’re doing and it can suck the character out of a lot of our racetracks for a period of time. I hope that we’re learning that we can have something that comes round and hopefully ages enough to where we’re able to put on some good racing.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MAY 11, 2024

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 AND THE NO. 17 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO SS, met with the media in advance of racing double duty in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series at Darlington Raceway.

Media Availability Quotes:

It seems pretty rare anymore that you get an opportunity to jump back into a Xfinity car, but you have had a lot of success in them over the years. Do you enjoy a weekend like this, where you have the chance to run both races? I guess for the lack of a better way to put it, just go play and seek a trophy in the Xfinity race?

“Yeah, I mean I think we kind of strategically plan these races out to places that I wanted to come to, and just thankful that HENDRICKCARS.COM and Hendrick Motorsports was able to put that together and have me be able to choose which races I want to go do, so that’s great. I would love to race more, it’s just a matter of finding the right funding and the right teams to do it with.

Yeah, I’m excited. I think the laps will help me. The cars are very different, but I think with the racetrack and learning some nuances there will help for Sunday and just give me something fun to go do and try to go compete for a win. Try not to put too much pressure on ourselves with no practice, and just try to figure out what we have in the beginning of the race. But once we kind of get a feel for that, I think we’ll be able to march our way forward and see how we do.”

This weekend, there’s a new right-side tire for Darlington (Raceway), but it’s a familiar tire, the intermediate tire. What are your thoughts on that? How could it possibly change the racing?

“Yeah, I mean just my immediate thoughts are – for us as a team, just working through the balance and what that tire needs. I feel like we’ve had good speed this year, but just trying to work on what that tire needs because it is different than what we ran here and different than what we ran at some of the mile-and-a-half’s last year.

I think with the racing, you’ll see pretty similar stuff. I think this tire has been really good though. I would say this tire has a bit more feel to it.. like you can slide the car. You can manipulate the car a little bit more. I like that, but it’s not a huge difference. I think the falloff is similar and all those things.”

For next weekend, do you have a read on the option tire and the things it could provide with the racing? What would make it look successful?

“Yeah, I’ll have to look back through my notes from the test. I think that we definitely ran that tire. It had a lot of speed on the short run fire off. And then we were just kind of getting to the point where it was starting to wear and fall off in 25 laps. We did 50 laps run with the control tire. I think it’s going to be really quick on the short run, so hopefully that creates some comers and goers, where if you have a couple tenths on the guy in front of you, you can pass them.

So, I’m all for it. I think it’s a good idea. They did it a few years ago, but hopefully this is a more drastic difference between the two tires. We did that test and ran through a lot of different sets, and we tried to go as soft as what they felt comfortable with. Hopefully that’s a good things. The racetrack – the groove in (turns) one and two is fairly wide. The groove in (turns) three and four is pretty narrow. So hopefully we can kind of widen that out through lap cars and having to run inadvertently in the second lane when you’re trying to pass.”

You’ve been on the good and bad end of late-race moments the last two spring races at Darlington Raceway. How do you assess those situations, whether it’s an overtime restart, just a late restart or you’re in a tight battle for the lead?

“I don’t really think about it too much. I mean I don’t lose sleep over how the races end here. Really, if there’s any racetrack you’re not thinking about that, it’s here. You’re thinking about – how do I be good for 50 laps. That’s just what it takes all day long to be fast year. And then you might get that caution in the end and have to re-rack them and have a good restart. So, for sure, I pay attention to launches on restarts. I pay attention to lane selection, but I’m not losing sleep on what’s going to happen on a green-white-checkered here or late in the race. It’s just how I manage my tires and my equipment to make the best 40 -lap, 50-lap run I can do.”

This will mark the halfway point of the regular-season. You were the first guy to get to three wins. How would you assess your season, so far?

“Yeah, I mean Jeff Andrews and I were on the way up here and he was talking about the first 12, middle 12 and last 12. I’m always kind of looking for new ways to think of it, and I think that’s a great way to view it. I feel like – yeah, our first 12 (races) have been up-and-down, right? But our ups are very up, and we’ve had a lot of pace each weekend. Last weekend, we were fastest in practice; good averages. And then the issue in qualifying. We just kind of missed the balance in the race; going into a night race that we didn’t expect to happen and we couldn’t adjust enough.

We just have to be a little more consistent, but we have the pace. I feel like that’s what you’re really striving for – to have pace to win races. We have that, it’s just that we’re not consistently putting the weekends together, in terms of balance and execution. Our execution also – whether that’s me hitting the wall in qualifying and putting us in a bad pit stall. We get boxed in a few times and we’ll lose multiple stops. Or the week before, we had some issues on pit road; had a jack issue and lost several stops. So, it’s just kind of all around execution, but luckily it’s early in the season. I feel like I’m fresh. I feel super fresh this year and ready to attack the summer stretch and just start putting some of that consistency together.”

Looking ahead to North Wilkesboro, do you think it’s important for the sport to always have an All-Star Race? How much do you think that really always brings to the sport?

“Yeah, I mean I think it’s super important. I think it’s a sense of pride as a race team to be in the All-Star Race. I think our All-Star Race is more important than other sports. We actually put the same effort, same everything, into it. We race the same.. maybe even more aggressive than other sports.

I think for us, we actually take it seriously and there’s a lot on the line. It’s a chance to learn. You can’t just take a week off. If you just approach the All-Star Race like it’s a week off, you’re going to have some bummed out feelings after that race. We want to win it. Obviously there’s some money on the line, as well, so that would be nice.”

You’ve won at a lot of places, but does it feel any different coming back to Darlington Raceway as a winner at this place?

“No, not at all. It’s still a tough place. If anything, last fall would have felt that way. We had a bit of a tough weekend leading up to the race. So no, I mean it just feels good coming here. I feel like I have a pretty good history here. I enjoy getting around this place. I’m going to try to not read that much into it because the cars are different; the tire is different this week. I’m just thinking about those factors.”

Regarding the All-Star Race, growing up as a fan of the sport as you were, are there any All-Star Races that you’ve watched that stick out in your memory?

“Yeah, I mean I think the All-Star Race had a really good stretch there at Charlotte (Motor Speedway). You know, 2007 with Kyle and Kurt getting into it; and 2010 I believe, or 2009, when they were three-wide for the lead. There were quite a few good years there, and then it kind of dulled out with the Gen-6; just had a rough patch there where they were trying a lot of stuff and it was really single-file at the end, and it was basically about who the good launch on the restart with 10-to-go.

But yeah, it kind of ebbs-and-flows when the All-Star Races have been good. I would say those kind of 2007 to 2010 were some really good races. I also remember the one with Jimmie and Kevin. I think Kevin won.. yeah, I think that was 2007. So yeah, there were some good ones.”

About Chevrolet

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Toyota Racing – Erik Jones
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

DARLINGTON, S.C. (May 11, 2024) – LEGACY MOTOR CLUB driver Erik Jones was made available to the media prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway on Saturday.

ERIK JONES, No. 43 AdventHealth Toyota Camry XSE, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB

What makes you so good at this track?

“I don’t know. I think it is a combination of things. I don’t think it’s one thing. Through the years, I’ve had some good cars here, which obviously helps. I always feel comfortable here, and always have. I came here in the Xfinity Series in 2016 for the first time, and felt good, but first race here in Cup in ’17, I was just really comfortable with what the track was doing and how it changed and transitioned and how the tires fell off and how you need to manage your race. I feel like I have a good feel for that. I think that is a lot of it. It’s the feel of how the car transitions through the run, how these tires fall off. The track is changing every year as it is getting older. We have the patch off of (turn) two, which has changed things more than probably a lot of people thought, but overall, I think a lot of it is being able to manage through the run, and through the race – really racing the track too. You hear that term, less and less now, but being able to go out and race the track is something useful as well.”

Do you feel like it helps to come back at a place like Darlington?

“I think so. I think the schedule looking at it – kind of worked out well, knowing what my injury was, what the timeline looked like. There was probably a possibility coming back right away with the injury, but Dover was not a place where that was going to happen. Even Kansas was a place that was going to be challenging with high speed and a lot of risk being an incident – not of your own doing necessarily. Coming to Darlington, I feel like you can control your own destiny a bit. There is less risk for an accident like that. Also, three weeks in, I feel like we are on the safe side of 100 percent, and I feel 100 percent. It does make me feel comfortable though, about making laps today. When you are out of the car for a couple of weeks, it is tough in some ways, probably tougher than you realize until you hop back in and you are a couple of weeks behind everybody, but coming to a place like Darlington, where I feel like I get around well and know what I need to do as a driver to be strong and contention – it does ease your mind a bit.”

How do you evaluate where LEGACY MOTOR CLUB is?

“I thought Dover – Dover was a hard one, because Corey (Heim) – it was his first race in Cup, and he was trying to learn, drinking through a firehose a bit. I thought Kansas was kind of a better evaluation, and I thought all three of our cars were decent in Kansas. John Hunter (Nemechek) ended up having a good finish – he finished 13th. But our other two cars – Corey was capable of a top-15, except for that restart in the end. Jimmie (Johnson) was definitely top-15 without getting wrecked, maybe top-10. He was one of our best cars through the early part of the race there. I thought that was good. Our mile-and-a-half program has been more of a struggle than it has been, and in the last couple, that’s been our strong suit. I hope that bodes well for here – what we did at Kansas, and can transfer some over. It is a lot different, but there is some stuff that you can bring. We are getting there. We are making some big changes right now that are going to take some time to get into play. I think that everything is taking longer than we anticipated, but we are making the changes and taking the steps to get there now.”

How much time have you got to spend in the simulator, and did you have to change anything with your seat?

“I got back in last week before Kansas, and I felt good. I ran about an hour and a half, and actually ran a couple of tracks in there, just trying to pick tracks that it was going to move the sim a lot and put some bigger impact on my back and make sure everything was good – and I felt fine from the impact and also being in there that long. So that was good. I have changed a lot in the car. I changed my seat, and some belt angles – a handful of things that we found that could have been better before the wreck at Talladega. I think it has been a big learning experience, really, I think we have all learned a lot internally at what we can do better at with safety. There are all kinds of different opinions out there on what you can do, and we are always learning, but I feel like we are in a better spot – for me at least – and what I can do in the car. I haven’t made a lot of changes, frankly, in a lot of years. I’ve ran the same seat for about eight years. It was time to switch things up.”

How would classify your health?

“I would say 100 percent. Well maybe 95. I feel 100 percent, but I say 95 because I can’t go in the gym and lift weight. I can’t put that kind of load on my spine from a precautionary standpoint. I would say 95, just from that, but I feel 100 and ready to get back.”

What other restrictions do you have on yourself?

“Not much right now. Through this injury, it has kind of been a pain tolerance thing, more than anything. It is a stable fracture – there is not really a risk of it become unstable or anything like that – so it is mostly what I feel like I can take. Some of it has just been getting back outside, working at my house seeing what feels comfortable and what makes me sore and what doesn’t. I would say we are at three weeks tomorrow. Four weeks, next week, I feel like I will be able to get back in the gym and do my normal thing again, and at five weeks, be totally back to normal.”

What are you referring to when you say that you missed some things by being out of the car the last two weeks?

“I think just being in that rhythm week-to-week. In the Cup Series, you are running nearly 38 straight weeks every year. Everybody has stayed in that rhythm the last couple of weeks, and they are hopping in today, and it’s a normal weekend for them. For me – it’s only been two weeks – but still you have to get your bearings again, recalibrate them when you strap back in. I don’t think it will take long. I would say I’m way behind, but you lose that rhythm of it being week-to-week, and communication with the crew. I’ve stayed talking to them a lot these last two weeks, but that was also two weeks of them with a different driver, different feedback, different work through the week, so getting back in that flow of normal things for everybody is going to take a second.”

Do you have a feel or an opinion on the option tire for the All-Star Race next weekend?

“I looked at it some. I don’t know how much that tire is going to be different. I know the compound difference, and you don’t know how that adds up on track. I remember the All-Star Race a few years ago with the option tire, and that was not what we wanted. The true win with the option tire would be for someone to come in, get the option tire – maybe one or two cars – and go to the back and drive straight to the front in 10 laps. I think that would be a win for the option tire. If it goes green and it falls off, so be it. That is kind of the box you are in with that tire. You are going to have to see a large variance in lap time with that tire for it to be a win – three tenths, probably, of track lap time at North Wilkesboro to really make it work and cut through the field and do what you want to do. I don’t know if that is possible. I don’t know if that is what it is going to be, but it would have to be that to be a win.”

Are there any merits to run the short track package at Darlington versus the intermediate package?

“I think it is too marginal. I think that we don’t have a proper tire for the short track package that would wear enough. Maybe here would be an exception – just with the surface. I think that is some of the problem at short tracks, just the tire doesn’t wear out and there is no load on the car either with the downforce that we have. I don’t know. I think we through messing with aero. I think the package on mile-and-a-halves has shown good. It is more challenging here than some, but you able to work around and move. I don’t think it would make a huge difference right now.”

How is a driver convinced to not get in the car the moment they’ve been cleared?

“It is tough because in one way – in that moment – when you get the all clear, you are thinking that I’m coming back and then you have more conversations and you realize that it is not going to happen, but I think at the end of the day, you are talking with multiple people through it, and figuring out the best options through it – it is for the best – and at that point, I think look – if I really pushed it – I could have been in the car last week, I think, if I really, really wanted to be, but if I make that call on my own, and overrule and go out and re-injure myself, I kind of look like an idiot in some ways, right? Barring anyone else’s words. I think sitting down, thinking about and getting past that first moment of you get cleared and you’re coming back, and then taking a moment to step back and say okay, yes, we are clear, you’ve done some things to make yourself feel good, but where are you really at? This was on Thursday morning. I was still sore. I still had soreness at that point, really until Sunday. Sunday of Kansas was really when I started feeling better, so to say that I could have gotten in last week and truly been at my full potential, and not – number one, be sore – and not, number two, be in the back of my mind saying, if I hit the wall right now, how is that going to go? I think I would have probably been lying to myself, so when you take those conversations and take a step back for a second, I feel like you get a broader picture and that’s kind of where I ended up on the weekend.”

How did you get to that point?
“I think the way that we really looked at it – at the end of the day – I’m 27, 28 this month, years old. I hope to race in NASCAR for a handful of more years, right? I hopefully have a more than a decade. That is a lot of races. That is 500 or something like that. You look back, and say what is the difference of one or two? We go to Kansas twice a year – 20 more times in my career, at least to go back there. There is so many more races down the road are really the conversations that we had, and those conversations that we want to have those races together, and be in this sport for a long time, and not do something right now that is going to put me in a spot where I would have an early in to my career, and we’ve seen it happen with drivers over the years with these nagging injuries – they add up and eventually guys are out of the seat sooner than they want to be, whether it is, head or body, along those lines. I think it was along those lines of those conversations that I really had with people to come to a peace with that decision that one more week out – we look back two years from now – it is just such a small blip on the radar.”

What is your team going to do to give you more comfort for the upcoming Coke 600?

“We’ve changed the seat a lot. This will be the first race on that seat. I’m sitting in a pretty different position than I’m used to for almost all of my racing career. Guys that have went through this similar injury have gone through the same transition to their seating position as well. Fortunately – it is not a short race, it’s 400 miles – but it feels short here, I feel like. It will be a good test here, and next week at (North) Wilkesboro – how does the seat feel, what can I change before the 600. I would say it is two good weeks of that, seeing how I feel, seeing what is bothering me – especially after Darlington tomorrow, and saying this what hurts, this is what we are going to change, and this is how we are going to more forward. Hopefully, hopping out after tomorrow, I feel great after the race. That is the ultimate goal, but with as much as we’ve changed there is going to be different things that are going to be bothering me, or that I’m going to want to move or do different. It is the first time in eight years that I’ve really moved a lot of things in the car, and how I’m sitting and how I’m positioned in there, it is definitely going to be different.”

What have they allowed you to do physical therapy wise? What did the doctors ask from you before you got cleared? Are you wearing a back brace?

“I didn’t have any back brace. My injury was on the minor side – just one vertebra – so with it being stable, there was really no brace required from the start. As far as what I did getting back in the gym, really it was right after I sat out that week of Dover. Right after Dover, I was back on Tuesday getting in the gym. Some of it was pain management, treatment stuff – hot, cold – everything we could to make it feel better, and then I just started with walking, walking on the treadmill, walking on a high incline. Got up, started jogging a little bit to see how the impact felt on my back, and that felt good. So right now, it is more body weight workouts. I can’t lift a lot of weight or it’s going to put pressure on my spine, downward, but I can do any kind of bodyweight movements – just a lot of stretching, trying to keep – when you have an injury like that in your back, your back is spasming a lot to try to support your spine, so trying to loosen that back up is mostly what I’ve been doing, so the physical therapy side, there wasn’t much. Unfortunately, I learned with this injury – there is not a lot that you can do to speed things up – it’s more of one that you have to rest and wait. It has to heal on its own. The bone doesn’t grow back. It’s just going to harden. You’ve lost that chunk of vertebra forever, so I guess, I’m a little shorter than before, but you just have to wait for it to harden back up and where it can support and feel good again.”

About Toyota

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Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Darlington Media Advance | Friday, May 10, 2024

Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Cole Custer and Riley Herbst answered questions from the media before today’s practice and qualifying session at Darlington Raceway.

COLE CUSTER, No. 00 Haas Automation Ford Mustang Dark Horse – IT’S 10 YEARS SINCE YOUR FIRST WIN WITH THE TEAM WHEN YOU WERE IN THE TRUCK SERIES. WHAT DOES SHR MEAN TO YOU? “The truck series win wasn’t with SHR, but starting with the Xfinity Series and going from there and seeing what that’s built into since we started, I mean, it was a lot of work when the Xfinity team started and how much went into that, and seeing it get a championship last year was really rewarding. So, hopefully we can keep it going here. I think we really hit our stride in Dover and felt like we had a really fast car that could compete for a win. The rain had a little bit to do with stuff at Dover, but hopefully we can kind of keep that momentum rolling here and have a shot of winning this thing because Darlington is one of the coolest places you can ever win at. Having a Johnny Sauter throwback this weekend also would be really cool, so hopefully we can give him a good run.”

IS THERE ANY FRUSTRATION WITH NOT YET WINNING OR ARE YOU CONFIDENT WITH WHERE YOU’RE AT RIGHT NOW? “I think any driver or team expects to win. We’re obviously a little bit frustrated that we haven’t won yet, but at the end of the day I think we’re really good as a group at just continuing to grind it out and communicating how to get our cars that little bit better. I think it showed last weekend at Dover, so I know we have a great group around us and we just have to keep it rolling. If you keep knocking on the door, it will happen, so we just have to keep doing what we do. We’ve had fast cars. We just have to keep that consistency going.”

IT TOOK UNTIL PORTLAND LAST YEAR TO START YOUR CHAMPIONSHIP RUN. WHAT DID YOU LEARN LAST YEAR THAT WILL HELP FOR THE REST OF 2024? “I think just being patient. It doesn’t happen overnight. For whatever reason, we ended the season so strong last year and this year there was a little bit of a rule change in the Xfinity Series, so I think maybe just adapting to that and getting everything back going how we were, we just needed a little bit of that. I think at the end of the day what we learned last year was you just have to be patient. Eventually, if you keep working on it and keep finding the things not to do and then you find things that you need to do it will come to you eventually with how you need to get the cars. From there, you just try and execute. When you bring fast cars to the racetrack it makes things so much easier, but you just have to communicate to get those cars where you need them.”

DO YOU LIKE DARLINGTON? IS IT INTIMIDATING? “I think for me it’s usually a little bit cautious. I’ve been here, actually last year in the second race I hit the wall on lap one, so it’s definitely a place the first lap or two you just try to get your feet wet and see what the track has in store for you this weekend. It’s one of those places where you just have to know when to be aggressive and when to just take what it gives you because the first half of the race you don’t want to get yourself in trouble and then you don’t have anything for the second half. You have to be smart around here, but it’s always such a challenge. There are so many different things you can do. You have to run up against the wall with it being so slick out and it’s just one of those places you take a lot of pride in running good here.”

DO YOU LIKE IT? “Yeah, I’d say I’ve always liked it. I feel like I’ve had some pretty good races here and it’s just a place you always look forward to coming to because it is such a challenge and when you do run well here it’s really rewarding.”

WHAT’S MORE INTIMIDATING, GOING OFF IN TURN ONE AT DARLINGTON OR HITTING THAT FIRST TEE SHOT IN FRONT OF A CROWD? “Man, it’s about equal almost, I think. Coming here and knowing you have to be up against the wall, but then also going there and hopefully you don’t shank it off into the woods into somebody’s head is a little bit intimidating when you’ve never done it before. I would say those two things are neck-and-neck.”

YOU HAVE A WIN HERE WHEN DENNY HAMLIN GOT DISQUALIFIED IN 2019. HOW DO YOU PROCESS THAT? “I don’t know if I go boasting around that I’ve won at Darlington, but I take a little pride in it because it is a tough place to run and we’ve always run pretty good here. To finish second to Denny is something to be proud of here, but obviously I think it’ll be way more sweeter if you actually cross the finish line first. I’ve been chasing that here ever since then and I think whenever that happens, it’ll mean that much more.”

RILEY HERBST, No. 98 Terrible Herbst Ford Mustang Dark Horse – “I’ve been very fortunate to be part of a really cool family and to honor the Terrible Herbst name and the Terrible Herbst roots here at Darlington is only right and to have that bright red car is pretty cool and I’m honored to do so.”

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT DARLINGTON THIS WEEKEND? “It should be good. I’m excited to be back in the Xfinity car after the Cup car last weekend. I feel like we have some good tracks coming up, this and Charlotte, so I’m excited for what’s in store and hopefully we get to practice without any weather, but we’ll see how that goes.”

HOW WAS YOUR CUP EXPERIENCE LAST WEEK AND HOW MANY LEFT DO YOU HAVE? “I have two more. I thought from 2500 feet not very good with a 35th-place finish. My goal on Monday was to run all the laps and learn as much as I can and be there at the end and I felt like we accomplished those goals. It’s really hard. Obviously, Cup is the premier series and I’m grateful I got to do it. Hopefully, the next time out will be a little bit better than it was at Kansas and we keep learning and progressing.”

WILL ALL OF YOUR STARTS BE WITH RICK WARE RACING? “Yes. I’ve got two more. The next one is Nashville and I don’t know after that, but Nashville is the next one.”

THEY’RE SHR-PREPARED CARS? “It’s a Rick Ware car with some SHR personnel, but a majority of it is Rick Ware Racing.”

ARE YOU FEELING THE SAME DEFICIENCY ON THE XFINITY SIDE AS THE CUP SIDE? “I don’t think so. I think at Stewart-Haas Racing in the Xfinity program I think us and the 00 have the fastest cars, or it’s a coin flip between who is fastest each week. I think our Xfinity program is really figured out and it’s switched on right now. It’s my job to capitalize on it. The Cup car, it’s not fair for me to come back and say the Fords are lacking here, here and here is meaning the driver is lacking here, here and here and just experience, so I’m looking forward to the next start and hopefully it’s better than Kansas.”

HOW DO YOU APPROACH DARLINGTON? “I think Darlington is super interesting. When people bring up Darlington I bring up COVID when I was a really green race car driver and we didn’t get any testing or practice. We had a random start and I started sixth on the outside of Justin Allgaier for my first laps around Darlington, so that’s a special memory for me and it’s extremely challenging with both ends being very, very different and the patch seems to lose grip every time we come here from the spring to the fall and the fall to spring, so I’m excited to see what it holds in practice, if we get to practice, which I think we’ll be able to. I feel like we’ll have a pretty fast car like we’ve had all year and hopefully capitalize on that.”

WHAT ABOUT THE LENGTH OF THE TRACKS EACH WEEK? “I don’t know if the track length is truly an adjustment for us, but this truly is one of the shortest Xfinity races we do with only 200 miles, so that’s probably the biggest adjustment for us race car drivers is the stages are shorter and the race length is shorter, so we have to be about it a little bit more aggressively and put it on the fence a little bit sooner.”

AS YOU LOOK AT YOUR CAREER IS IT HARD TO NOT LOOK BEHIND AND SEE SOME OF THESE YOUNGER KIDS DOING WELL? “I think this is a pivotal season for my career, honestly. These next few races are gonna be big. There are a lot of cool opportunities and big things possibly for my future, but that kind of falls back on my shoulders to perform. I think things are happening a lot sooner this year than in year’s past, so it’s gonna kind of be a sprint to the summertime and I think things are gonna start to happen a lot sooner than people anticipate.”

HOW DOES THAT NOT IMPACT WHAT YOU DO OR DON’T DO IN A CAR? “I think it’s just kind of an internal thing on the 98 team to kind of buckle down and get going because all of us are kind of looking around and seeing some writing on the walls for the inside the outside, so we want to perform the best we can and put ourselves in a good position. I know people are watching the 98 team, so hopefully we can excel when the eyes are on us.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MAY 10, 2024

 KYLE BUSCH, DRIVER OF THE NO. 8 RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING CAMARO ZL1 AND NO. 7 SPIRE MOTORSPORTS SILVERADO RST, met with the media in advance of racing double duty in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Darlington Raceway.

Media Availability Quotes:

If you had not spun and you weren’t the caution last weekend, are you making decisions now to win a race, or do you have to play the points considering where you’re at in the standings?

“I would say that we would go for the win and make the decision based off of trying to get that. We were in the fourth position – man, that would have been really, really hard for us to choose only two tires with that many laps on the left. So I think we would have taken four, which ultimately would have put us a little too far back because four didn’t win, right? That would have been the call, but obviously it wasn’t the one needed to win the race. We need to think about that and put ourselves in that position had we not been the caution.”

What do you think it is about this car that has taken you awhile to get acclimated to? When you were at Joe Gibbs Racing the first year of the car, we just assumed they were not giving you the best equipment, I guess might be the fair way to say it, since you were a lame duck at that point. You had a successful season last year with three wins, and I’m just kind of curious – just from what you told us, you seem to stumble a little bit with the car, in general?

“Yeah, I mean I think the better piece that you have at the racetrack, it’s going to mask a lot of things. It’s going to make your job easier and the opportunity of going out there and getting strong finishes or wins a lot easier. Some guys have done a better job of that. We were leading, I think twice, and had engine failures in the final races of the JGR cars. And then last year, we were good out of the gate. We had some good stuff, and then as times have changed, the setups have evolved and guys have found how to make their stuff go faster. We just haven’t been able to do that.

It looked good the last two weeks. I felt like the last two weeks at Dover (Motor Speedway) and Kansas (Speedway), we were respectable; contenders and much closer. That was a nice change of pace. We were consistent top-five runners. Being a consistent top-five runner; get those top-five finishes and then that consistency will build into putting yourself in the right place, at the right time, in the end of these races to get a win.”

Inaudible..

“It definitely drives different than the old car. What that is, I’m not exactly sure. I mean it seems – when you lean into the corner and the right-front is outside the right-rear, the car is much tighter. When you get to the center off of the corner and the right-front is inside the right-rear coming downhill, it’s much looser. And so trying to find that balance of that has been difficult.. trying to get that right. But the old car didn’t have that sensation. It was easy to just make a smooth corner and have the balance stay the same the whole time, where now I feel like I’m fighting many more balance issues. And on top of fighting those balance issues by yourself, throw in the aero deficiencies that you have in traffic and now you’re just confused. You think that you’re going to expect it to do one thing, and it does something else and you lose a tenth of a second because you’re trying to garner that feel of what it is. We’re literally all grasping at half of a tenth of a second to be the best car on the racetrack. Many of our pace studies that come out after these races – two-tenths is the difference between first and 25th. So you’re literally grasping at very small gains to move yourself up that pylon.”

Is there this confusion – and I can’t related because I don’t have your experience, but is this type of confusion anything that you’ve gone through at any point of your career with different types of cars, or is this a new realm of an experience in that sense?

“No, this is all new – a new realm of confusion. I think the last time we had this much confusion was when we had the high downforce package on the Cup cars – the old Cup car where you didn’t know if you wanted to be the downforce guy or the less drag guy at the different racetracks, you know. So like, I think (Martin) Truex (Jr.), if I remember right, like they poured all the downforce on his cars and he was fast his way, and they made Denny’s (Hamlin) cars less drag and he was fast that way. So it was like – OK but which way is the way, you know? I think that was the last time I was confused. But that’s just car build stuff, not even lap-to-lap as you’re going through the turns with your balance issues and aero issues that you have.”

Looking ahead to the All-Star Race, you were the winner the one year they had the option tire. I know it didn’t work as well as everyone hoped back then, but what’s your hopes and thoughts about this idea of going back to an option tire and trying this again? What would the signs be that it works, or even if it doesn’t work, it’s still worth looking forward and moving forward on?

“Yeah, I mean I think it’s definitely something interesting. You know, I feel like – the last time, we all kind of put it on at the same time, so there was no difference in putting it on, right? So this time, I feel like we’re probably all going to strategize the same way again. Like there’s not that many different ways that you can skin the same cat to figure out how to win these races. You know, it’s no different than every Sunday, right? Every Sunday, you’re going to split the first stage. You’re going to split the second stage. You’re either going to split the third stage, or you’re going to two-stint the third stage. Like it’s spelled out.. there’s no thinking at all anymore to strategy. So like, I’ve made the suggestion years ago and they’ve skipped right over it – in one ear and out the other – of find or make a defined number at some of these racetracks. If it’s 75 laps green and you want to go 75 laps green.. when the green flag falls, we’re going 75 laps green. And if no caution comes, you throw a caution. OK and then the clock resets – we go 75 laps again, but then there’s no caution in the last 50, 25 or whatever laps. So that throws some strategy into things, and that would give the crew chiefs, if we had option tires at all these other races, like – hey, do we want to run the option tire for 75 laps here? Will it make it 75 laps, that’s another question.. you know, and how all of that would look. That would definitely throw some more options into these races, where right now, it’s all the same, man. It’s so cookie-cutter that it’s all the same.”

Regarding the 75 laps – you’re potentially going to have natural cautions..

“You start over.. the clock starts over, right? It’s kind of like the caution clock, except it’s just laps. It’s defined by laps. So you start the race green and you go 75 laps. If there’s no natural caution, you throw one, right? And then if there’s a caution at lap 50, once it goes green again, you’re going 75 green again, you know? But at least there’s not a set and defined pit strategy at that point, in my opinion.”

A lot of talk recently about the future of the engine in the Cup Series.. abandoning pushrod V8’s and bringing in some kind of hybrid technology. Is there optimism that maybe that could get the horsepower back up like a lot of drivers, including yourself, have advocated for over the past few years?

“Sure.. just depends on what they build it to, you know? There’s plenty of engine opportunities that are out there. There are superchargers. There’s the electrification piece that could be used. I’ve heard that ours would only be under caution and not used under green, so what is the horsepower that we would utilize under green? Could it happen that overhead cam engines come to the Cup Series and they’re less than 650 horsepower.. boy, that would be a detriment (laughs). Definitely we would advocate for more, it’s just a matter of who’s going to listen.”

When you spun out there at the end of the race last weekend, was that just pushing too hard or did something happen?

“Yeah, so I had smoked the tires. I had gotten really loose about six laps prior to that, and I was running the top and I was just barely hanging on. And then I went to the bottom and I found a little bit of pace around the bottom, and that’s when I got by Kyle Larson. And then, I don’t know if it was a lap or two later, I just kept trying to maximize my speed, knowing that we were falling off and I didn’t want to lose any more positions to anybody behind me. I just over pushed it. I came in and they said the whole right-rear was just feathered, and Kyle’s right-front was corded, splitting and unraveling. We both just smoked our tires. I think it’s a little bit weird that he smoked a right-front and I smoked a right-rear. I would think opposite of that, right?”

Inaudible..

“It could be just the balance that you had at that particular time of the race. Like we had been trying to free up the second-half of the race and I felt really neutral. And honestly that whole run, like I felt like I was trying to stay under the tire and not over push because it was going to be one of our longest runs to end the race. When the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin) and the No. 17 (Chris Buescher) were racing really hard for the lead and I was in third, I was just like – you guys burn your stuff up… you guys do what you have to do. This is fun.. I’m going to watch for a second and you’re going to come right back to me. And so I was just hanging out.. like I didn’t even want to get in the fray. And then I don’t know, it was about 15 laps later and I wasn’t getting any closer to them. I started slipping in different ways and I’m like – hmmm alright.. I’m not going to get a payoff for trying to take care of my tires here (laughs).”

Is running the Truck Race fun for you? Do you like doing that kind of stuff when you can these days? Can it help with what you do on Sunday? And also, this year with the “Throwback Weekend”, they’re celebrating grassroots racing and things like that. How important is that still to get that path from when you’re running around as a 10 or 11 year old to making it to the big series?

“I enjoy the truck stuff. It’s a lot of fun for me. It’s still the same group of people on my truck that I worked with last year at KBM, so thanks to the Spire Motorsports guys for giving me the five races they did this year to get out there and get some track time. For here at Darlington (Raceway), I think it’s – I wouldn’t say you need it, but it is helpful to just kind of get out there to learn and build a comfort with the fence; where you’re at, how close, the speed and just getting the feel for that. So being able to do all of that tonight with the truck and then get into a Cup car tomorrow, I think you’ll fire off a little bit faster, you know? Beside that, I don’t know that you learn much more than that. Just the comfort of where the wall is.

And then you look at the grassroots effect and all of that – that’s what drives our sport, really. I mean it could be driven from the top down, of course, with the Cup Series and everything that it is. But there’s obviously a dream that these younger guys and gals have to make it to the top and they want to get there one day and they come from the grassroots level. For support that certain companies put into the grassroots levels, I’m grateful of that. It’s really neat that Brexton has the companies that he has that are helping him. And then of course too, with others across the country – I know the Toyota dirt program has been very instrumental in a lot of those drivers coming up into here and getting here. You see a little bit more of Chevrolet on some of the stuff, as well too, with grassroots racing and the dirt stuff, so that’s been fun to see. But yeah, it’s always cool to have the “Throwback Weekend” in Darlington. Excited about seeing some of the schemes out there.”

About Chevrolet

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Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway… In 143 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington Raceway, Richard Childress Racing has eight wins, all by Dale Earnhardt. Earnhardt claimed the checkered flag in 1986 (spring), both races in 1987, 1989 (fall), another sweep in 1990 plus spring events in 1993 and 1994. RCR drivers have 26 top-five and 48 top-10 finishes at the historic South Carolina speedway.

Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at The Lady in Black… Richard Childress Racing is looking to find Victory Lane for the first time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at Darlington Raceway. Austin Hill owns the most recent top-five result, a second-place effort in the September 2023 event. The Welcome, N.C. based team has 13 top-five and 30 top-10 finishes.

Catch Saturday’s Action… The Darlington 200 will be televised live Saturday, May 11, beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET on FS1. The race will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Watch Sunday’s Show… The Goodyear 400 will be televised live on Sunday, May 12 beginning at 3 p.m. ET on FS1. The race will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Boats Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Darlington Raceway… Austin Dillon has made 15 career starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway, posting a career-best second-place finish in September 2020 when he missed Victory Lane by a narrow margin over Kevin Harvick. Dillon also had a fourth-place finish in 2017. Dillon has made four appearances at The Lady in Black in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, securing his best finish of fifth in 2012. The 2011 NASCAR Truck Series champion has two starts at the track in the Truck Series, earning his best finish of fifth in August 2010.

Throwing It Back… Dating back to 1998, the long-standing partnership between Bass Pro Shops and RCR began with an associate sponsorship on Dale Earnhardt’s No. 3 Chevrolet. In that year’s NASCAR All-Star Race, Earnhardt drove a special gold Bass Pro Shops design, which served as the inspiration for Dillon’s Camaro that will hit the banks of Darlington Raceway for this weekend’s annual NASCAR Throwback event.

About Bass Pro Shops… Bass Pro Shops is North America’s premier outdoor and conservation company. Founded in 1972 when avid young angler Johnny Morris began selling tackle out of his father’s liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, today the company provides customers with unmatched offerings spanning premier destination retail, outdoor equipment manufacturing, world-class resort destinations, and more. In 2017 Bass Pro Shops united with Cabela’s to create a “best-of-the-best” experience with superior products, dynamic locations, and outstanding customer service. Bass Pro Shops also operates White River Marine Group, offering an unsurpassed collection of industry-leading boat brands, and Big Cedar Lodge, America’s Premier Wilderness Resort. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Forbes as “one of America’s Best Employers.” Bass Pro Shops has a long relationship with NASCAR, dating back to 1998. For more information, visit http://www.basspro.com/.

Meet Dillon… Dillon is scheduled to appear at the RCR Merchandise Hauler in the Fan Zone at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, May 12 at 11:45 a.m. ET. Stop by to meet the driver of the No. 3 Chevrolet and get new merchandise to wear on race day.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:

400 miles at Darlington Raceway is grueling. How do you stay focused?

“We always have a long, hot race at Darlington Raceway. Keeping hydrated is key leading up to the event, and working out in the gym and running laps on the simulator helps me maintain focus during 400 miles. I am looking forward to racing at Darlington. This is one of my favorite tracks. I have finished second here in the past, so we want to improve on that. We need to qualify well on Saturday because track position is extremely important and a good pit stall can make the difference in the race.”

Do you enjoy racing at Darlington Raceway?

“I enjoy racing at Darlington Raceway. It’s challenging. The track gets slick and wears tires quite a bit. The key to Darlington is trying to race the track and not the competition.”

Kyle Busch and the No. 8 zone Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Darlington Raceway… Kyle Busch will make his 25th NASCAR Cup Series start at Darlington Raceway on Sunday afternoon. The Las Vegas native scored his first victory at the historic track in 2008, coming in just his fourth start at the egg-shaped speedway. During that win, Busch led a race-high 169 of 367 laps and crossed the finish line over three seconds ahead of second-place Carl Edwards. Entering this weekend’s event, Busch has recorded six top-five and 14 top-10 finishes at Darlington Raceway. He ranks third overall among current drivers in laps led at Darlington (899).

Did You Know? Busch is the youngest NASCAR Cup Series race winner in the 74-year history of Darlington Raceway. Busch was 23 years, 0 months, and 8 days old when he captured the checkered flag at the South Carolina speedway in 2008.

The Points Chase… Entering Sunday’s race at Darlington Raceway, Busch holds the 12th position in the Cup Series driver championship point standings, 17 markers outside the top-10.

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KYLE BUSCH QUOTES:

Has the Next Gen car changed how you race at Darlington Raceway?

“I don’t know that it’s really changed the race a whole lot at Darlington Raceway. I think we’ve always kind of had trouble passing there to begin with, because the track is so narrow and it’s really, really tough to pass regardless. The Next Gen car has definitely created more gaps between the cars so it is harder to get to the back of the guy in front of you.”

Do you still have the same approach with keeping the car off the wall and staying out of trouble?

“It’s changed a little bit with the ability of being able to lean up against the wall and be closer to the wall with the body, because the flange fit body allows it to flex in and flex out. But the car is still very brittle with the components to it. You can bend a toe-link pretty easy.”

How challenging is entering pit road off the track between Turns 3 and 4?

“Pit road entry in the middle of Turns 3 and 4 is not really that bad. You just have to know where it’s at. Experience is obviously the best key. You’ve got to maintain that slowing down time up on top of the racetrack and then the turning down. You’re only running between 45 and 50 laps on tires versus years ago when you’d run 60 or so. The tires are old and worn out and they feel bad, but they’re not as bad as they could be.”

Do you enjoy the challenge of racing at Darlington Raceway?

“I do feel like Darlington has its own unique challenges and those challenges are pretty fun. It kind of gives to that old school nature of NASCAR but yet still has its own unique differences between any of the other one-mile or mile-and-a-half racetracks that we go to.”

Jesse Love and the No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet Camaro SS at Darlington Raceway… Jesse Love will make his inaugural run at Darlington Raceway this weekend during the Darlington 200. The rookie driver’s first-ever laps at the track “Too Tough to Tame” will take place during NASCAR Xfinity Series practice on Friday evening.

Points Check In… Love currently sits in the fourth position in the Xfinity Series driver championship point standings. The rookie is 40 points behind teammate, Austin Hill, who sits in third. The 19-year-old has had a constant hold on the Sunoco Rookie of the Year points standings since the start of the season and sits in the first position, 124 points ahead of second place Shane Van Gisbergen.

Supporting Our First Responders… The No. 2 Whelen Chevrolet will sport their iconic red-and-white design at Darlington Raceway, but there will be a little something extra. As a way to honor those who protect the community, the rear TV Panel will feature “Trusted to Protect First Responders” under the Whelen logo. Whelen products are all proudly manufactured in America and Whelen is committed to protecting first responders with reliable products that keep them and their communities safe.

About Whelen Engineering… Whelen Engineering is a family-owned company with a pioneering spirit and a passion to protect the lives of those who protect and serve others. The company mission is to provide industry-defining safety solutions around the world, while creating a community of problem-solvers who are inspired to push boundaries and continue our legacy of delivering ground-breaking innovation. As a global leader in the emergency warning industry, Whelen has been trusted to perform since 1952, when George Whelen III invented the first rotating aviation beacon. Whelen now encompasses two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire with over 750,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing space and the largest design staff in the industry. Every part of every Whelen product is proudly designed and manufactured in America. We embrace quality as our foundation, we celebrate innovative engineering in every product we produce.

JESSE LOVE QUOTES:

How do you prepare to race at a track you haven’t seen before?

“The simulator helps a lot; I utilize that as a good tool and talk to my crew chief and my spotter. I talk to my teammate, Austin Hill, and my friends who have been there before. I also watch a lot of film.”

Darlington Raceway is one of the toughest tracks on the NASCAR circuit. Is it intimidating for you to go out there without any time on the track?

“At Darlington Raceway you have to use driving techniques that I feel I am pretty good at: running the wall, sliding around, being free and doing a lot with your feet because of the corners and how Turns 1 and 2 are built. I feel it’s not a big disadvantage for me and I’ll be able to fire off pretty well there.”

What would you consider a good day at Darlington Raceway? How will you measure your success there?

“Just having a shot to win the race would be a good day. There’s a lot of things you can’t control, but we need to put ourselves in position to win, get some stage points, have a good qualifying effort and be there at the end with a shot to win. That’s all we can ask for. If we do that, it will be a successful day.”

Austin Hill and the No. 21 Bennett Transportation and Logistics Chevrolet Camaro SS at Darlington Raceway… Austin Hill has made five career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Darlington Raceway, earning a top-10 result in each event. Last fall while piloting the No. 21 Bennett Transportation and Logistics Chevrolet at the historic South Carolina track, the Winston, Georgia native posted his best finish of second. Hill has also competed in three NASCAR Truck Series races at Darlington, posting a best finish of third in 2020.

Celebrating 50 Years of Trucking… In celebration of the Official Throwback Weekend of NASCAR and 50 Years of Trucking for Bennett Family of Companies, Hill and his Bennett Transportation and Logistics team are honoring the companies’ roots with a design that resembles a beloved truck from the 1980’s. The classic blue and white scheme will feature gold keyline accents to commemorate Bennett’s golden anniversary.

About Bennett Family of Companies… McDonough-Ga. based Bennett Family of Companies is a woman-owned, Women’s Enterprise Business Council (WBENC) certified, diversified transportation and logistics company. Through its 14 affiliated operating companies, the Bennett Family of Companies delivers integrated transportation and supply chain management solutions worldwide. Bennett has 4,625 drivers/owner-operators, over 1,000 employees and 600 agents located across the United States. For more information, visit www.bennettig.com.

Meet Hill… On Saturday, May 11 at 10:30 a.m. ET, Hill is scheduled to sign autographs at the RCR Merchandise Trailer located in the Fan Zone at Darlington Raceway. Stop by to get your No. 21 gear and have Hill sign the items purchased.

AUSTIN HILL QUOTES:

What makes Darlington Raceway so difficult?

“Darlington Raceway is a tough place to get around. Tire wear is a big issue there and we always see a good amount of tire fall off. You have to make the decision of how hard you are going to push at the beginning of a run or how much you are willing to fall off at the end of a run. It’s always a game of chess to position yourself around other guys who may have made the same decision as you. How hard are they pushing right now compared to me. You want to stay under the limit of the tire and not overstep the right front or right rear to burn it off too early. I personally love to race on any tracks that have an old, worn-out surface where you see a lot of tire fall off. You see a lot of strategies play out differently. It’s a very unique racetrack that no other racetrack can mimic.”

Would you rather be better in Turns 1 and 2 or Turns 3 and 4?

“In racing, your car is never going to be 100% perfect. Drivers will always complain about something, whether the car is too tight, too loose, or doing something that we don’t like. For me, when I go into Darlington weekend, I focus on how my car is driving in Turns 3 and 4. I hope I can just get through Turns 1 and 2 but be really strong on the other end. Everyone gets through Turns 1 and 2 fairly decent. You can move your line around to make up speed. But in Turns 3 and 4, you have to turn really well and have drive on exit with how tight the overall corner is. When you see guys who win races at Darlington, I feel like they are really strong in Turns 3 and 4.”

21-year-old racing prodigy heads to Nashville to race No. 50 in honor of the Mobil 1 brand and its 50th anniversary

Huntersville, N.C. (May 10, 2024) – 23XI Racing, in collaboration with Mobil 1 and TRD (Toyota Racing Development) USA, announced today that Corey Heim, 21-year-old racing prodigy, will compete in the No. 50 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry XSE in the NASCAR Cup Series event at Nashville Superspeedway on June 30. The No. 50 Camry, a third entry for 23XI, is racing at select Cup Series races this year as part of a larger global celebration for the Mobil 1 brand to commemorate its 50th anniversary. The car returns to the track after competing at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in March with sportscar racing star Kamui Kobayashi behind the wheel.

“I’m very thankful for this opportunity I’ve been given by Mobil 1 to compete with 23XI in Nashville,” said Heim, who is ranked the top Cup Series prospect by FOX Sports. “Through my time with Toyota, I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many amazing people, including those from Mobil 1. We have seen this season how strong 23XI’s Camrys have been, which makes me even more excited to get behind the wheel in Nashville. I’m putting in the effort to be prepared for this opportunity and cannot wait to get on-track with the No. 50 Mobil 1 Toyota team in a few weeks.”

In 2023, Heim claimed the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series regular season championship and is currently a seven-time winner in the Series. He will make his first Cup Series start at Nashville where in two previous Truck Series starts, he has one top-five finish. Heim’s consistency has been impressive since joining the Truck Series full-time in 2023, earning top-10 finishes in 27 of his 30 starts in the Safelite Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. The Toyota Development Driver has also delivered in select starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series for Sam Hunt Racing, including leading the most laps in team history before finishing fourth at Richmond Raceway in March. While the race at COTA featured the motorsports legacy of Mobil 1 with a world-renowned driver in the No. 50, the race in Nashville highlights the Mobil 1 brand’s commitment to continue growing that legacy and being ready for what’s next.

“This year has been off to an incredible start as we continue to celebrate the brand’s 50th anniversary with strong racing talent like Corey Heim,” explains Rob Shearer, Director of Global Sponsorships and Marketing Services, on behalf of Mobil 1. “He continues to prove himself on track as he grows with his career and proves his commitment to the love of racing. Nashville is such a great market for the brand, and we are proud to partner with 23XI Racing for another event for the No. 50 Toyota. Drivers and racing fans know that quality products can help them and their team get the most out of their engine, and we are proud to add another driver to our motorsports legacy in the NASCAR Cup Series.”

Heim holds a NASCAR Cup reserve driver position with both 23XI Racing and LEGACY MOTOR CLUB and was called into action to substitute for Erik Jones last month. While Heim will be racing the No. 50 Toyota at Nashville, fans can expect to see the No. 50 – a nod to Mobil 1 and its 50-year heritage – competing at three total events this season. Together with 23XI and TRD USA, Mobil 1 will continue to bring fans a season filled with memorable races and experiences to further deepen its commitment and relationship to the sport.

“We are excited for Corey to join the 23XI team in Nashville as he helps us celebrate our partners at Mobil 1 and its 50th anniversary,” shares Steve Lauletta, President of 23XI Racing. “Corey is undoubtedly an up-and-coming star, and we look forward to working with him as he prepares to race at Nashville. Mobil 1 has a history of working with some of the best young talent in racing, and I can’t think of a better person than Corey to drive the No. 50 Toyota at Nashville.”

“Our partnership with Mobil 1 continues to grow as we near two decades of collaboration,” adds Tyler Gibbs, general manager, TRD USA. “We are thrilled this relationship is giving Corey the opportunity to compete for 23XI Racing in Nashville. Throughout his time as a Toyota Development Driver, Corey has continued to grow as a driver in both the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series as he pursues excellence in his race craft with diligent work in the simulator, film study and through his training sessions at the Toyota Performance Center. He has truly earned this opportunity with Mobil 1 and 23XI, and we look forward to watching him compete against the top drivers in the sport.”

About Mobil 1

For 50 years, Mobil 1 has been trusted by drivers to keep their engines running longer. Our products combine the latest technology and innovation to exceed the toughest standards of vehicle manufacturers and tuning shops—so consumers can get the most out of their time behind the wheel, both on the road and on the track. Turn every day into an adventure with Mobil 1, the world’s leading synthetic motor oil brand. Learn more at www.mobil1.us or and follow @Mobil1Racing on Instagram and X. Join us. For the love of driving.

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM), creator of the Prius hybrid and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota and Lexus brands, and directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America (more than 49,000 in the U.S.).

Over the past 65 years, Toyota has assembled nearly 47 million cars and trucks in North America at the company’s 12 manufacturing plants. By 2025, the company’s 13th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.

Through our more than 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.), Toyota sold more than 2.6 million cars and trucks (more than 2.2 million in the U.S.) in 2023, of which more than one quarter were electrified vehicles (full battery, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell).

About 23XI Racing

23XI Racing – pronounced twenty-three eleven – was founded by NBA legend Michael Jordan and three-time Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin in 2020. With rising NASCAR star Bubba Wallace selected to drive the No. 23 Toyota Camry, the team made its NASCAR Cup Series debut in the 2021 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Wallace made history on October 4, 2021, when he captured his first career Cup Series win, becoming just the second African American to win in the Cup Series, and earning 23XI its first-ever victory. 23XI expanded to a two-car organization in 2022 with Cup Series Champion Kurt Busch driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry. With a win at Kansas Speedway in May of 2022, Busch earned 23XI the team’s first-ever playoff berth. 23XI currently features the lineup of Bubba Wallace in the No. 23 Toyota Camry and Tyler Reddick in the No. 45 Toyota Camry. In 2023, both Wallace and Reddick earned spots in the NASCAR Playoffs. The team operates out of Airspeed, a state-of-the-art facility in Huntersville, N.C. that opened in January of 2024.

JUSTIN HALEY | KAZ GRALA
Darlington Advance

Event Overview

● Event: Goodyear 400 (Round 13 of 36)
● Time/Date: 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, May 12
● Location: Darlington (S.C.) Raceway
● Layout: 1.366-mile oval
● Laps/Miles: 293 laps/400.2 miles
● Stage Lengths: Stage 1: 90 laps / Stage 2: 95 laps / Final Stage: 108 laps
● TV/Radio: FS1 / MRN / SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Justin Haley, Driver of the No. 51 NC Fraternal Order of Police/CMPD Tribute Ford Mustang Dark Horse

● Sunday’s Goodyear 400 will mark Justin Haley’s seventh NASCAR Cup Series start at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. While several of his competitors will honor the grassroots of motorsports with their respective racecar paint schemes, Haley’s will honor four heroes who gave their lives making a difference in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg community.

● On Monday, April 29, 2024, law enforcement officers from the U.S. Marshals Task Force and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police department (CMPD) were attempting to serve a felony warrant when a suspect opened fire from inside the house. Four heroes were mortally wounded – CMPD Officer Joshua Eyer, NC Department of Adult Corrections Investigators Samuel Poloche and William “Alden” Elliott, and Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas M. Weeks, Jr. – while four additional officers were injured.

​The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge #9 Foundation has established a fundraiser to honor the fallen officers. All donations made will be split equally between the four families of the fallen officers to help with necessary expenses. Haley and his family will match donations made through the end of Sunday’s race.

● Haley’s two best Darlington finishes came in the two most recent May races at the 1.366-mile, egg-shaped oval. In May 2022, he charged to a third-place finish from his 29th starting position. He followed that up in May 2023 with an eighth-place run.

● In the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Haley has posted five starts with one top-five and five top-15 finishes from 2021 to 2023.

Kaz Grala, Driver of the No. 15 N29 Capital Partners Ford Mustang Dark Horse

● Kaz Grala will make his first Cup Series start at Darlington in the No. 15 N29 Capital Partners Ford Mustang Dark Horse that is designed to honor the 1969 Bud Moore Ford Mustang Boss 302 driven by Rufus “Parnelli” Jones in the original SCCA Trans Am Series. The Ford Mustang Boss 302 was Ford’s answer to the Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 both on the street and on the track, created to compete for the SCCA Trans Am championship. On May 11, 1969, Jones battled through rain, sleet and snow at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn to win the four-hour, 11-minute, 104-lap, 344.24-mile Trans Am season opener. It was the first victory for the Boss 302. Jones collected a second win July 6, 1969, at the 3-mile Donnybrook International Speedway in Minnesota, now known as Brainerd International Raceway.

For the 1969 season, Jones finished first or second in six of the 11 races. The Bud Moore team recorded DNFs in the other five events.

As the 1970 SCCA Trans Am season began, Jones returned in the Bud Moore-engineered Ford Mustang Boss 302 for the 1970 Trans Am season with his sights set on contending for the championship. Meanwhile in California, the Ware family was busy preparing for Johnny Ware’s Trans Am debut. After completing SCCA road-course training, the father of RWR team owner Rick Ware made his first start in the final event of the 1970 season – the Mission Bell 200 at Riverside (Calif.) Raceway. The elder Ware qualified 23rd in a field of 35 cars and finished 15th, seven laps down to race-winner and 1970 SCCA Trans Am champion Jones.

● Grala also spent time in the Trans Am Series on his way to NASCAR’s premier series. In 2022, he competed in the Trans Am Series TA class at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington and Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. He won the pole in his debut at Mid-Ohio and set a track record, then followed that up in the next event at Road America by winning the pole and leading every lap en route to the win.

● In two NASCAR Xfinity Series races at Darlington, Grala has a best finish of ninth, earned in the May 2023 race.

Rick Ware Racing Notes

● The Progressive American Flat Track (AFT) tour is back on track at Ventura (Calif.) Raceway this weekend. Mission SuperTwins rider Briar Bauman is looking for this first podium of the season and sits fourth in the standings three top-five finishes in the first four events. AFT Singles rider and two-time champion Kody Kopp holds a 17-point lead in the title standings thanks to a pair of wins and a pair of runner-up finishes through the first four races.

● Rick Ware has been a motorsports mainstay for more than 40 years. It began at age six when the third-generation racer began his driving career and has since spanned four wheels and two wheels on both asphalt and dirt. Competing in the SCCA Trans Am Series and other road-racing divisions led Ware to NASCAR in the early 1980s, where he finished third in his NASCAR debut – the 1983 Warner W. Hodgdon 300 NASCAR Grand American race at Riverside (Calif.) International Raceway. More than a decade later, injuries would force Ware out of the driver seat and into fulltime team ownership. In 1995, Rick Ware Racing was formed, and with wife Lisa by his side, Ware has since built his eponymous organization into an entity that fields two fulltime entries in the NASCAR Cup Series while simultaneously campaigning successful teams in the Top Fuel class of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, the LMP3 class of the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge, Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup, Progressive American Flat Track and FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX), where RWR won the 2022 SX2 championship with rider Shane McElrath.

Justin Haley, Driver Q&A

Talk about how special your paint scheme for this week is.

“I’m honored to represent the North Carolina Fraternal Order of Police and their efforts to honor the fallen heroes of the CMPD and the U.S. Marshals. These men and women put their lives on the line to protect and serve their communities knowing there’s a day when they may not return home. I’m proud to carry them with me at Darlington and to help their families as they move forward through these difficult times.”

There has been steady improvement out of the No. 51 camp. How tough will it be to take that next stop into the top-15 at a track like Darlington?
“I think it’s definitely possible. There has been a lot of progress made and we just keep taking it a little further each week. Darlington is a difficult track in and of itself. The track is so unique and it takes a lot of focus for a driver to drive the car into the corners correctly. It’s just a physically demanding track. Certainly not as much this weekend as when we come back for the Southern 500, but there’s a reason it’s known as being ‘Too Tough To Tame.’ The older surface presents another challenge for teams as the tire fall-off is so quick there, so you really have to take advantage of those first few laps because, after that, it all comes down to just how good the car and driver are. It can be one of the most difficult tracks for us, but also one of the most fun tracks we go to.”

Kaz Grala, Driver Q&A

You’re back in the No. 15 and taking on another track for the first time in the Cup Series. What have you learned in your two Xfinity Series starts there?

“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is it’s just as tough as you are led to believe. You can have a great day and think you’ve got it figured out, only to show up the next race and have your hands full. Darlington is definitely one of those unique tracks with its two different corners and it can be difficult to navigate. Still, these Cup cars handle so differently from the Xfinity cars. I feel like I’ve done a good job learning and adapting quickly, but at a track like Darlington, I’ll have to get up to speed fast.”

You’ll be running the Parnelli Jones 1969 Trans Am tribute paint scheme. What do you think about the red-and-black livery?
“It’s really exciting to run this paint scheme for my throwback. It’s such an iconic Ford paint scheme and Parnelli Jones was one of those racers who did it all. He dipped his toe in what seemed like every different motorsports series – Trans Am, NASCAR, IndyCar, Sprint and Midget cars, off-road racing. And then he turned around and became a team owner and won the Indy 500. We just celebrated the 60th birthday of the Ford Mustang and now we’ll get to continue the celebration by honoring a car that was created to outperform in the motorsports world. Hopefully we can do it justice.”