Category: NASCAR Cup PR

Track: Pocono Raceway, 2.5 Mile Tri-Oval
Race: 14 of 38
Event: Pocono Organics 325 (325 miles, 130 laps)

John Hunter Nemechek
No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang

Started: 20th
Finished: 24th

Stage One: 26th
Stage Two: 27th
Stage Three: 24th

Following a short weather delay, John Hunter Nemechek took the green flag in Saturday’s race at Pocono Raceway in the 20th position. He noted early on that his No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang was tight in all corners, and particularly rough going over the bumps in Turn 2.

Nemechek stayed out under the Stage Break Caution. Despite needing to be freer, Nemechek managed to crack his way into the top 10 as Stage 2 got underway. During a cycle of green flag pit stops, Crew Chief Seth Barbour made the call for 4 tires, fuel and a wedge adjustment to continue freeing up Nemechek’s No. 38 Death Wish Coffee machine. On Lap 64, Nemechek got loose underneath while passing the No. 27 car and made contact, bringing out a caution for debris. Luckily, Nemechek sustained only minor damage. After a round of repairs, he took the green- and-white checkered flag in the 27th position.

Nemechek had a quiet Final Stage in his No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang. He radioed on Lap 90 that his handling was “possibly still a touch tight.” He continued to struggle with that tightness through the rest of the race, crossing the finish line in 24th place.

Nemechek on Pocono:

“We fired off pretty tight in our No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang today at Pocono. We made some adjustments to try and free it up and made some progress, but I just got loose under the 27 at one point, and slid up into him a little. We still struggled toward the end of the race and needed to be freer on our runs, but we made some good notes for tomorrow. Really appreciate our partners at Death Wish Coffee and Rich Mar Florist for coming on board with us this weekend and I’m glad we have another chance tomorrow for a great finish.”

LONG POND, Pa. (June 27, 2020) — Chris Buescher drove his Fastenal Ford to a 10th-place finish Saturday afternoon in Pocono, securing his fourth top-10 of the season after a strong performance at the Tricky Triangle.

Buescher rolled off the grid 24th in the rain delayed start to Saturday afternoon’s race. After a few extra caution laps, sunny skies prevailed, and all 130 laps were completed. The driver gained seven spots and was already up to 17th early in the race. When the competition caution flag was displayed at lap 12, the team elected to pit for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. Restarting 22nd, the team maneuvered up two spots before another caution flag came out at lap 20. The driver took the green-white checkered flag for stage one in 19th.

The Prosper, Texas native elected to stay out during the stage break and restarted 11th for stage two. Buescher held track position and even made his way up to fifth by lap 49 as green flag pit stops cycled through the field. At lap 58, the team made their way down pit road for a standard four-tire pit stop with fuel and a track bar adjustment. The No. 17 team fell a lap down but was able to gain it back with the free pass when a caution for debris waved at lap 64. After restarting 24th, the team gained a few more spots to finish stage two in 20th.

Buescher lined up 18th in the final stage of racing in Pennsylvania. The driver reported that his No. 17 machine handling needed to be tightened up, but the team stayed on track. With 45 to go, Buescher had driven his way up to 15th. The team stayed out on track as green flag pit stops shuffled through, finding their way up to fourth and eventually settling into third. Teammate Ryan Newman had a similar strategy as he was able to take the lead. With 18 to go, both teammates made their way down pit road. The 17 team took two right side tires and fuel and headed back to the track 15th with 15 laps to go. With ease, Buescher worked his way up five more positions to finish 10th at ‘The Tricky Triangle.’

Buescher and the Fastenal Ford team return to action tomorrow, June 28 for another race at Pocono Raceway. Race coverage begins at 4 p.m. EST on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
POCONO RACEWAY
POCONO DOUBLEHEADER
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 26, 2020

BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 VICTORY JUNCTION CAMARO ZL1 1LE, met with media and discussed the things that have happened this past week, the demands on his time, the importance of bringing new fans to the sport of NASCAR, and more. Full Transcript:

THE LAST FEW WEEKS WITH EXTRA DISTRACTIONS, BUT ALSO LOOKED UPON AS A SPOKESPERSON AND SYMBOL. WITH ALL THAT RESPONSIBILITY, HOW ARE YOU NAVIGATING THAT?
“It’s just another day. The clock resets at midnight every night and we’ll go through whatever is on the schedule then and I’m just excited to get back in the race car come tomorrow. But we’ve got media in between then and now, so we’ll see.”

WHEN YOU RAN OVER TO THE FENCE (POST-RACE) ON MONDAY AND THERE WERE A GROUP OF BLACK FANS THERE TO GREET YOU AND IT SEEMED LIKE THEY CAME JUST TO SEE YOU. IT’S ONLY BEEN A SHORT TIME SINCE THE CONFEDERATE FLAG ISSUE HAS COME UP WITH YOU, BUT HAVE YOU FOUND MORE BLACK FANS OR PEOPLE WHO SEEM INTERESTED IN NASCAR THAT WEREN’T BEFORE?
“Yeah, absolutely. I think just from the following standpoint, it’s been pretty big. Before all the chaos and madness started a couple of weeks ago at Atlanta and Martinsville and now this, it was like 180 thousand fans on Instagram and now I’m at 450 thousand, or something like that. I don’t know. A lot of people of color are coming out and saying that they’re going to be watching for the first time and have been watching since; so yeah, I think there’s a huge following that we will see and I’m excited to see when the full racing schedule gets back to normal from COVID to allow fans to come back in full capacity and see a new face there. That was pretty damn cool to see that new crowd there at Talladega with all the support. So, we’ll see how it continues to grow.”

WHO HAS INSPIRED YOU TO BE A LEADER IN CHANGE? AND CAN WE EXPECT TO SEE ANY NEW COOL CARS FROM YOU LIKE THE ‘BLACK LIVES MATTER’?
“I don’t know if anybody has inspired me. I think it’s just what I feel in my heart and what feels right and finally voicing my opinion on the tough subjects that a lot of people are afraid to touch on. I’m not afraid to speak my mind. I’ve done it and gotten in trouble and learned from it. So, people that know me, I’m 100 percent raw and real. I’ve told you that before, as well. As far as another paint scheme, I’m not sure. That was an unsponsored race where we paid out of pocket for that one and basically took a bet on ourselves and took a chance on ourselves and that was big. I think with all this stuff we’re starting to get some partners involved and who knows if we’ll have another unsponsored race this year. If so, we’ll see what we can do.”

WITH EVERYTHING THAT YOU’VE BEEN DOING, IT’S VERY IMPRESSIVE, WHEN YOU ACTUALLY GET INTO THE RACE CAR, DO YOU HAVE TO FLIP A SWITCH AND CHANGE YOUR MINDSET THAT IT’S RACE TIME. HOW ARE YOU STAYING FOCUSED DURING THE RACE?
“I’ve always said there’s that concrete wall around the race track and you don’t want to hit that. And, I’ve hit this wall pretty hard that we’re going through this weekend. So, I know what that feels like. But, through it all, we’ve got to have good finishes. We’ve got to have a good season and we’re still continuing to have that. We’re running in the top 15 most e very weekend. That’s about seven to 10 spots better than we were last year, so I can’t let anything else tear me away from the momentum we’ve been having. So, I’m not going to let anything else take that away from us. So yeah, as tough as it may be, it’s quite easy for me to climb in and get away from all the chaos.”

YOU MENTIONED THE OUTPOURING OF SUPPORT FROM FANS. WHAT ABOUT YOUR COLLEAGUES? ARE THERE ANY WORDS THAT YOU DIDN’T EXPECT FROM MAYBE ANOTHER DRIVER THAT HAVE STUCK WITH YOU AND WILL STICK WITH YOU?
“No, it was good to see everybody out there and I appreciate the support. Two people that stuck out were Aric Almirola sent a nice text right before all that on Monday saying how we’re not friends and we don’t act like we are, but we’re going to stand next to each other and he’s proud to stand next to me as a brother and being human beings because he and I don’t click at all very well. We’ll both tell you that; and Alex Bowman coming up and saying we don’t see eye to eye on everything, but he stands by me 100 percent, something along those lines. I thought that was pretty cool. I’ve always had respect for Alex but we’ve definitely butted heads and have lost respect at times for each other, but it shows that we can all come together. Jimmie Johnson has been the guy at the top of the list the whole time. He texted me Tuesday after all the chaos going on to just check on me. So, it’s been good to have him in my corner there, for sure.”

YOU DON’T SEEM LIKE A REAL EMOTIONAL GUY. DO YOU GET EMOTIONAL WHEN SOME OF THESE GUYS DO HAVE YOUR BACK AND SEEING EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK?
“I don’t even think the videos and pictures can answer that for you. Yeah, when you go through a lot and whatnot, I mask a lot of things. I hold a lot of things in and it comes out at times like that. So, yeah.”

YOU SAY IT’S JUST ANOTHER DAY IN THE LIFE, BUT AT THE SAME TIME YOU’VE NEVER BEEN THROUGH ANYTHING LIKE YOU WERE THIS WEEK WHERE YOU’RE IN THIS FIRESTORM OF THE MEANS COMING FROM PEOPLE ALL OVER THE PLACE AND JUST THE ACCUSATIONS OF HOAX AND ALL THIS STUFF, AND YOU’RE OUT THERE TRYING TO TELL YOUR STORY AND IT SEEMS LIKE NO MATTER WHAT YOU SAY THERE’S GOING TO BE THIS GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ARE JUST GOING TO KEEP ILING ON. HOW DO YOU GET THROUGH THAT? HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH IT?
“You stay off social media as much as you can. Corey LaJoie texted me yesterday and asked if I was all good. I said every time you stand behind the truth, you’re always good. I know people are going to try to knock me and bump me off the throne, the pedestal I’m on, the same pedestal that I’ve been on for 16 or 17 years now since I started. So, I’m fine with it. It’s fine. I love to get out and compete and have really good runs. It’s just motivation to go out and to have really good races. We’ll never shut them up. They’re afraid of themselves. They’re afraid of change. Sometimes those are the people that you can’t help throughout all the chaos in the world. Those are the ones who need the most help. But, you quickly realize they don’t give a damn about you and I don’t give a damn. About them.”

LOOKING FORWARD TO POCONO, THEY APPLIED PJ1 TO THE TRACK LAST YEAR AND A LOT OF DRIVERS DIDN’T USE IT. DO YOU THINK MORE DRIVERS WILL VENTURE UP THERE AND TRY TO USE IT DURING THE TWO RACES THIS WEEKEND?
“Yeah, I forgot about that. It was there last year. I think it was kind of far off in the areas where it was applicated. It was pretty far off. I think that’s why we didn’t use it. When I get to the track tomorrow, I’ll re-watch the race and get a for-sure idea. We’ll see when we get there.”

YOU SAID EARLIER THE TEAM HAS HAD SOME CONSISTENT TOP 15 FINISHES THIS YEAR. WHAT HAS BEEN THE MAIN CATALIST FOR THE SUDDEN UPTICK IN PERFORMANCE?
“It’s just the resources have been good, and they’ve been coming in steadily and helping us out. The alliance with RCR has been good; and Chevrolet, a new body this year has been good. There are a lot of different factors that go into it. Jerry Baxter (crew chief) has been doing a hell of a job being a leader of our team and calling great races and taking chances; staying out when others pit to capitalize on some really late finishes, good finishes there; so, there’s a lot of key factors. Just everybody in a collaborate group that helps support our program together.”

THE LAST TIME WE’VE HAD SOMEBODY WHO HAS THIS MUCH PRESSURE ON HIM WAS DALE JUNIOR AFTER 2001. ON THAT NOTE, HAVE YOU TALKED TO HIM ABOUT WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO HAVE THE WEIGHT OF THE SPORT ON YOUR SHOULDERS?
“No, I haven’t talked to him about that. I guess I don’t see it as the weight of the sport on my shoulders. I guess I haven’t had time to think about it, honestly. I’ve been so damn busy, sitting right here in this setting (on a Zoom call) to think about that and to reach out to feel that. I haven’t felt the pressure yet. I don’t know if that’s just me masking it, but I haven’t talked to him.”

I SAW YOUR DAD ON CBS, THE MORNING SHOW, AND GIVEN THE FACT THAT HE IS WHITE, I ASSUME AT SOME POINT DURING YOUR LIVE YOU WERE GIVEN THE TALK, I’M WONDERING WHO THAT CAME FROM ON YOUR SIDE OF THE FAMILY
“The talk. What are you getting at?”

JUST AS FAR AS THE TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE TALK, I GUESS IS WHAT I’VE ALWAYS HEARD IT REFERRED TO
“The talk. You’ve got the birds and the bees talk. You’ve got whatever talk you’re talking about. I don’t know. I don’t know exactly what you’re talking about. Don’t be afraid to say it.”

WELL, I’M SAYING FROM THE STANDPOINT OF A LOT OF YOUNG AFRICAN MEN AND WOMEN WHEN THEY LEAVE THE HOUSE, THERE ARE OUTSIDE FACTORS THAT AFFECT THEM THAT I WOULD ABSOLUTELY HAVE NO IDEA ABOUT
“You could have been talking about having sex for the first time. I didn’t know what you were talking about. Yeah, no, we never had that conversation just because we’ve always went at it as treat equal with respect with respect and fairness and that’s how it always was in our family. I had the best of both worlds. I had my dad’s side and my mom’s side. And so, when I was outside, I didn’t worry about being treated differently than others. I just lived life to the fullest. I lived life how I wanted to live life and I went through those things on my own, discrimination, and stuff. And, it’s part of it. You learn from it.”

PART OF YOUR MESSAGE HAS ALWAYS BEEN GROWING THE SPORT AND YOU TALK A LOT ABOUT INCLUSION. YESTERDAY, BRAD DAUGHERTY TALKED ABOUT WHAT TYPE OF INCLUSION HE FELT GROWING UP AS A RACE FAN AND GETTING INTO THE SPORT AS A RACE OWNER. WHAT LEVEL OF INCLUSION DID YOU FEEL AS A FAN GROWING UP AND THEN BECOMING A DRIVER?
“Growing up, I didn’t even watch NASCAR. Even when I was racing, I didn’t pay much attention to it. It was on, but I was outside playing with friends and doing whatever. At the race tract, I didn’t feel like I wasn’t wanted there unless we were winning each and every week and we started doing that once we got better and better. But, as far as inclusion, I was too young to understand if we went through anything that would shy us away. And by the time I got to NASCAR, I was a driver. So, it was the next race on the schedule, we would be with the NASCAR teams. So, I always felt welcome.”

WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS NASCAR CAN TAKE TO ENSURE INCLUSION FOR THE LONG-TERM INSTEAD OF THIS BEING A SHORT-TERM TREND?
“I think we just have to get out in our communities and we’ve created a group of us to be leadership at NASCAR as some key drivers to be a part of how we can put action to our words that we’ve been speaking and spreading the gospel, but it’s tough right now with everything that’s going on with COVID and it sounds like lockdowns are coming back into place. So, seeing people face-to-face and talking to them and telling them about NASCAR and educating them on NASCAR and how we’re making changes and how we want people to come out. It’s tough. So, it goes back to our great partner at World Wide Technology of being able to set up something and using technology to talk to people virtually, like we are now, to get out there and help those efforts until we can get back to a normal place to where we can in the communities and be able to raise more awareness.”

DO YOU AGREE WITH THE FBI SAYING THERE WAS NO HATE CRIME? AND NOW THAT NASCAR HAS RELEASED THE PHOTO, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT PICTURE?
“Whether it was tied sometime throughout 2019, the fall race there, someone did it with whatever intent they had. We weren’t in that garage stall at that time, so we can’t say it was directed toward me, which is good. It wasn’t directed toward me or my family. But somebody still knows how to tie a noose and whether they did it as a bad joke or not, who knows? But it was good for the public to see. It still won’t change some people’s mind of it being a hoax, but it is what it is.”

STEVE PHELPS SAID HE WISHED HE WOULD HAVE HANDLED THIS A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY WITH LESS EMOTION AND MAYBE REFERRED TO IT AS AN ‘ALLEGED’ NOOSE OR AN ‘ALLEGED’ HEINOUS ACT. HAVE YOU TALKED TO HIM ABOUT THAT AND HOW THINGS MIGHT DONE MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS SORT OF THING? HE SAID HE WOULD HAVE DONE IT WITH LESS EMOTION.
“Yeah, we’re in a crucial time in the world right now. And, we see what’s going on outside of the sport. And the way we reacted to it and the way it was brought to my attention, I thought it was done in the right way. Worded it differently, sure. You can’t let that slip-up and be just like oh, it might be a mistake. I encouraged him to do the same thing over and over again. I tried to do my research behind the scenes with my guys to make sure it wasn’t a garage pull. You’ve seen the numbers and how many garage stalls they inspected. Eleven had knots and only one had a noose.”

BEFORE THE TALLADEGA RACE, I’M SURE YOU SAW THE VIDEO OF THE CONFEDERATE FLAGS OUTSIDE THE TRACK AND THE ONE FLYING OVER THE TRACK THAT SAID, ‘DEFUND NASCAR’. IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT CAN BE DONE TO STOP THIS FROM CONTINUING TO HAPPEN?
“It’s the right for peaceful protests. It’s part of it. But you won’t see them inside of the race tracks where we’re having a good time with the new fans that have purchased their tickets and purchased their favorite driver’s apparel. You won’t see it flying in there. Outside, they’re just going to be making a lot of noise. It’s part of it. It’s exactly what you see on the flip side of everything going on in cities as they peacefully protest. But we won’t see cops pepper-spraying them and shooting them with rubber bullets, will you.

WITH BEING OUTSPOKEN, AND YOU’VE TALKED ABOUT THE PUSHBACK FROM OTHERS. FROM YOUR POINT OF VIEW IN SPEAKING UP AND BECOMING A LEADER, FOR THOSE FOLLOW YOU AND MAY WANT TO BE AS STRONG AS YOU AND SPEAK UP, BUT ARE AFRAID OF THE PUSH-BACK AND ALL THE THINGS ON SOCIAL MEDIA, OF A RACE TRACK OWNER IN NORTH CAROLINA SAYING HE’S SELLING ‘BUBBA ROPE’ THIS WEEK, AND THINGS LIKE THAT. HOW DO YOU ADVISE SOMEBODY? YOU HAVE TO BE STRONG TO HELP OTHERS TO BE AT A LEVEL LIKE YOU AND BE OUTSPOKEN AND PUT THOSE THINGS ASIDE IF THAT’S EVEN POSSIBLE?
“Yeah, you’ve just got to be immensely strong. Where I’ve gotten my strength from, I couldn’t tell you. I do read into it and I do get pissed off and part of my emotions are hey, it’s one, being worn out, and two, being frustrated. Three is just finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. But, I’m probably a fool for thinking that because it’s 2020 and something else would happen, probably tomorrow, and I’ll be right back where we are. So, yeah, you’re put on a pedestal. Athletes are put on a pedestal and there’s not a manual or a guidebook to tell you how to handle yourself off the race track or off the fields. But it’s all something you learn and you go through the trials and tribulations to grow from those incidents. And, I think that’s what makes you tougher throughout. The people that are sitting on the couch that have never done anything to their lives to be able to amount to something. And they’re jealous of your lifestyle. They’re just trying to throw hate and spew hate. And that’s unfortunate. But you just have to think like, you’re living in your own life. You don’t have time to worry about other people’s lives. So, you shouldn’t let them dictate how you live your life. Live life to the fullest.”

HOW MUCH OF AN INFLUENCE CAN YOU BE AND HOW IMPORTANT OF A ROLE CAN YOU PLAY TO HELP THOSE WHO ARE MAYBE A LITTLE BIT FEARFUL OF STANDING UP?
“I don’t need to go out of my way. I’ve never gone out of my way to do anything. This is, I’ve been right here this whole time talking about what’s going on in the world and it’s just easier for me to talk on it because I can relate to it. When we struggle with things we can’t relate to, that doesn’t affect you directly or indirectly, then you don’t want to touch it. We’re in a sport where money drives our careers. Sponsors. They don’t want you to touch it. And I say this with the utmost respect, but ever since I’ve been speaking out I haven’t been thinking about my sponsors. I’ve been thinking me being a human being and standing up for what’s right. And I hope that sponsors would see that and back me up on that. And, we’ve had some sponsor drama this year that I’m quite frankly glad I’m not a part of anymore because they wouldn’t stand-up for what’s going on right now. So, you just speak what’s on your mind and do your research and educate yourself and move on from there.”

YOU SAID YOU ARE WORN OUT AND A LITTLE BIT FRUSTRATED. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE US (THE MEDIA) TO START FOCUSING ON NOW IN ORDER FOR YOU TO BE ABLE TO PUT THIS BEHIND YOU AND START RACING AGAIN?
“It don’t matter. Just focus on racing. Damn, it’s as easy as that. Let’s focus on how we can continue to push the message of compassion and understanding and let’s help fight the good fight in what’s going on in the world today. And let’s get new fans out to the race track and encourage our fanbase now to welcome them with open arms and show them a good time. I think that’s one important piece that we can focus on right now. Let’s get away from what happened at Talladega. Let’s move on from that and put it to bed. Let me go out and have some good races, have some bad races, and try to figure out what the hell we’re going to do to rebound from bad races and get back into race car life. As much as it’s tough for me to balance both the human being side and the racing side, it’s part of it and I accepted that. But, yeah, we’ll just continue to move on and push the narrative on, let’s go back a couple of weeks ago, on how we can implement our ways to help bring new faces in and help bring more diversity inclusion and make everybody feel welcome. And, yeah, that’s about it.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

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Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Friday, June 26, 2020

Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang, and John Hunter Nemechek, driver of the No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang, are headed to Pocono Raceway for this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series doubleheader. Both drivers participated in a conference call with reporters this afternoon and made the following comments.

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang – IS IT EXCITING TO HAVE TWO RACES AT POCONO THIS WEEKEND? “I think with these doubleheaders, especially at Pocono, I kind of in a way I look at Darlington earlier when we came back from our little break is almost a doubleheader because we raced and then a couple days later we come back, and it was a completely different race. Yes, the length and the stages and all that were different as well, but if you looked at who the dominant car was that no one can keep up with, and then we come back there a few days later and everyone has changed their cars and that car that was the dominant car was still good, but not nowhere’s near as strong as he was, so I would expect the same thing at Pocono without practice, and that’s what we’ve seen all year long so far since we’ve come back without practices. Some teams hit it and some teams completely miss it and you can’t really fix your car the way you want to until the race is over, and you can’t really do much about it once the race is over. Well, this is our opportunity to work on our car and get better the next day. So it’s gonna be a lot of work, I think, overnight. When we’re done racing Saturday, we’ll be far from done for that day. We’re gonna be continuing to try to find our weaknesses, look at areas to improve our car and give it another shot the next day. So it’s just gonna be a hectic couple days for sure with a lot on the line, but I will say this – I’ve said it 100 times since we announced the doubleheader at Pocono. I know after every race I always say, ‘Dang it, I wish I could do that again. I would do this and this and this different.’ And every time, every race I always say that. Well, this time I get the chance to actually do it again and hopefully be better.”

YOU HAVE SOME GROUPS THAT RUN WELL AT POCONO AND THEN SOMEONE LIKE KEVIN HARVICK WHO HAS NEVER WON THERE. IS THAT SURPRISING? “If you look at the speed that they’ve had though, the 4 is not slow there. Maybe all of the stars haven’t aligned yet to win the race, but I could think of multiple times that I feel like we should have won and we’ve had a car that can win there. Strategy is just a big player of Pocono. Track position is huge. Throughout this race, at some point, I’m pretty sure it has gone this way for years now, that you’re gonna have to make a decision whether you want stage points and try to get a playoff point by winning a stage and collecting some stage points, or giving up your stage points for track position later in the race and a chance to win. Those are decisions that we’re all gonna have to make. Do you want the finish, or do you want the points that are sitting right in front of you right now? It’s a tough call. It probably depends a lot on the speed in your race car, but it’s a tough call. That, to me, is what makes Pocono so much fun is because, yes, restarts are crazy. It becomes a little bit challenging to pass once we get going, but the strategy calls that can be played is crazy, to where you don’t even know where you’re running sometimes. At one point you’re running in the top five and the next thing you know you’re 25th and you’re like, ‘What just happened?’ So it’s just how Pocono works and because you can pit without going down a lap if you’re 11 or 12 seconds back from the leader, it just presents a lot of opportunity there.”

WHAT WILL BE LOOKING TOWARD MOST ON SATURDAY TO ADJUST FOR ON SUNDAY AND WILL THE INTENSITY CHANGE WITH THE LENGTH OF BOTH RACES BEING SHORTER THAN USUAL? “You always kind of go on the restarts here because that’s your big opportunity to pass, so the intensity level I don’t think changes – at least for me. Maybe it does for others, but I’m wide-open from when the green flag drops. I don’t know if that’s good or bad, but that’s just the way I race and it’s worked out all right, so I’m gonna say it’s good at least for me. I think the biggest thing we’re gonna be looking towards is the PJ1 that’s down on the racetrack. They lowered it a little bit from what we raced there in the past last year and when we first get there, I believe the truck race is before our race, but then there’s gonna be an XFINITY race and then another Cup race. That’s gonna be evolving throughout the weekend of how much it’s used and what that does to your car. That, to me, is the big question mark of the weekend from a racing standpoint of what line becomes the dominant line, and what do we need to do to adjust towards that as the race goes and as the weekend goes. You know I’m gonna be glued to the TV watching the truck race to see where that ends up and try to take advantage of that early in our race.”

YOU DIDN’T USE THE PJ1 A LOT LAST YEAR. DO YOU THINK IT COULD BECOME THE DOMINANT LINE BY SUNDAY WITH ALL THE RACES TAKING PLACE OVER THE WEEKEND? “It’s a great question and I would say yes, but who knows? A lot of it depends on how early we get up there and clean it off, how thick it’s applied is a pretty big player on how that works, and how the truck race goes. If trucks are up there, it’s gonna run in pretty quick and it will be good for our race. If they don’t, it’s gonna get really dirty and it’s gonna be not very good for our race. But my thoughts are the fact that they lowered it down I think it’s three, maybe four feet. Don’t quote me on that because I don’t know exactly what it is, but I think it’s three-ish feet. You can quote ish, that will kind of make everyone get up in there sooner, I believe, because if you’re in the second lane you’re in it. On the restarts you can’t avoid it if you’re two-wide, so that’s gonna kind of naturally clean it off.”

HOW WOULD YOU RATE THE CREW CHIEF CHANGE AT TEAM PENSKE NOW THAT ALL THREE HAVE WON A RACE? “Yeah, that’s what I was gonna say. All of us got a win, so I’d say pretty good. I look at coming out of the gates with the 22 car is the one I can probably speak to the most because I drive that one. With Paul Wolfe and that whole team, we came out of the gates super-strong, being able to win at Vegas and then right after in Phoenix, getting a Duel win down in Daytona. We came out of the gates super-strong and I’d say since then we’ve had opportunities to win. Bristol comes to mind. We’ve had some other races that we were close and were in the ballpark, particularly on the 750 races. I think those have been our strong ones. Our 550 races have been our weakness that we need to continue to work on throughout the season. The challenging part to all this is there’s no practice. That’s the most challenging part of having a new crew chief and trying to built that relationship up, and what works and what doesn’t work. We’re going to these race tracks together for the first time and although I’ve been there 100 times and he’s been there 100 times, we’ve never done it together, so we’re trying to put two and two together of what I like and what’s worked in the past for him and Brad. That’s a tough combination to put together without practice. I think that’s why we came out of the gates so strong is because we had practice to tune our car in to be ready to go for the race. Some practice would be nice at this point as there are some questions that we’re definitely wanting to answer, but this weekend kind of presents that opportunity with a doubleheader to figure that out. To answer your question of the whole change in general, I think it’s really worked well for Team Penske. I think it’s opened a lot of communication barriers and has broken those walls down where you’re forced to talk to each other about your previous races and I think that’s been great. I honestly was happy to see the 12 team win. You work with those guys for so long. That was my old team, so I was with them for eight years or so and I was happy to see them be successful early in the year already with a lot of top fives, but getting that win at Talladega was cool to see Todd and the boys got that. I think it’s brought the team closer, in my opinion.”

DO YOU SEE IT AS AN ADVANTAGE THAT ALL THREE OF YOU HAVE WON? CAN YOU BE MORE AGGRESSIVE ELSEWHERE NOW? “Oh, for sure. I don’t know if it’s from an aggressive standpoint, but the momentum standpoint is definitely there. Any team that wins within Team Penske, I think, builds momentum throughout the shop – the guys building the cars, everyone working in each department. When somebody wins at Team Penske you think about the sponsors, all our partners, everyone that goes along with this, they’re happy. There’s momentum. There’s confidence in what we’re doing and that just trickles down, I think, throughout all three teams no matter what. So, obviously you want that win to be your car, don’t get me wrong, but I do believe that a win is good for everybody.”

CAN YOU SEE YOURSELF TAKING CHANCES YOU WOULDN’T ORDINARILY TAKE WITH IT BEING A DOUBLEHEADER THIS WEEKEND? “Honestly, my mindset stays the same. It’s go from the green flag. Whether we’re racing tomorrow or not, I’m gonna go. Now, the inversion is something you really want to make sure you’re in because the last thing you want to do is finish 21st and you miss the invert. That would really stink. So, you want to make sure you’re within that if you’re not having a good day one way or another is if you have an issue, whether it’s on pit road or get in a crash or something like that, you can almost make both races bad, where if you can at least have a mediocre day, you can set yourself up for a good day the next one by the invert. So the goal is to win both of them. We’re not gonna lay up for an invert, I can promise you that, so you’re aggressive the whole time.”

TEAM PENSKE HAS HAD ONE MEMBER TEST POSTIIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS. ARE THERE ANY EXTRA PRECAUTIONS TEAM PENSKE IS TAKING WITH THE VIRUS? “I think the extra precautions have started from the get-go. I can’t speak for all the teams, but I know that Team Penske is very strict about how they’re taking this virus and taking it so seriously. Everybody in that place has a mask on all day long. If you get on the team plane, you’re mask and rubber gloves the whole time. They’ve done a really good job at that. If you look at who else they needed to quarantine after that is a very small group because everyone has been so strict at Team Penske to where it doesn’t shut down our whole race shop because we’ve done a really good job at social distancing where we can, but also wearing our PPE all the time. That’s the most important thing we can do, so, to me, some of the best advice I got out of all this is assume everybody’s got Coronavirus and what would you do? You’re obviously not gonna shake someone’s hand. You’re gonna stay a little bit more distant. You’re gonna wear a mask. You’re gonna wash your hands off or use hand sanitizer. You’re gonna do that stuff. If you have that mindset that the person next to you has Covid-19, you’re obviously gonna be nervous about it. So I’ve tried to treat everybody like they’ve got Covid-19. That’s at least my way of trying to stay safe, but I think in general our sport has done a really good job at it, and I think Team Penske has done even better, in my opinion.”

YOU HAD THE VIDEO RIGHT AFTER NASCAR ANNOUNCED THE NOOSE IN BUBBA’S GARAGE STALL. HOW DO YOU FEEL THIS WEEK HAS PLAYED OUT THE WAY NASCAR HANDLED THE WHOLE SITUATION? “What I applaud NASCAR for the most is the honesty. That’s kind of where it was. You heard Steve Phelps’ interview yesterday, where he came out in the clean. He said, ‘This is what we saw.’ At the time we didn’t know if it was hate crime or not, but it’s something that should not be around, I can tell you that much, and I applaud our family of NASCAR – not just our officials and the NASCAR brass that tells us to do things. What you saw on the racetrack Monday after the rain with all the drivers, all the team members, all the officials pushing Bubba Wallace’s car to the front and standing around it and showing that he’s part of our family – that we’re not seeing color. Yes, we complete. Yes, we all want to win and we don’t care about anything but winning when we put our helmet on, but when our helmet is off it’s love. Choose love. Bubba and other minorities in our sport are part of our family and that’s the way we want to treat our people. That, to me, was the coolest story of it. The noose side of it and taking the right precautions by getting the FBI involved and getting to the bottom of the story, I’m so thankful that they came to the bottom of it and know that it’s not a hate crime – something that was there in a previous race. Not that a noose should be around anywhere or however you want to look at this, but kudos to NASCAR for getting to the bottom of it and then honestly telling everybody what happened, and then also the sport showing the support for Bubba. That’s what, to me, I was proud to be a part of. To me, I thought it was a history-making day and I thought it was really cool to be a part of that.”

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK, No. 38 Death Wish Coffee Ford Mustang – WHAT CAN YOU USE FROM YOUR PREVIOUS RACES AT POCONO THAT MIGHT HELP THIS WEEKEND SINCE THIS WILL BE YOUR FIRST TIME IN A CUP CAR HERE? “I think the experience is everything, from running a truck to an XFINITY car and now to the Cup car. At least with the Cup car package it drives a little bit like a truck around Pocono as far as in that the downforce and drag that you have. The XFINITY car races that I’ve run there have been dragged up races with the lower horsepower, so pretty much everything I’ve ever run around Pocono has been a lower horsepower package, a higher downforce package, so I feel like being able to have that experience in the past and just having laps at Pocono is definitely gonna be beneficial. I feel like everywhere I go this year pretty much in the Cup car is for the first time with no practice, so you just have to adapt fast and move forward and try and do the best that you can every single lap. Having the doubleheader, Saturday is more of a learning day. Hopefully, we can still run very well and do great things on Saturday, but, if not, then we can take what we learned from Saturday and put it into Sunday and gain that experience and a little bit of a notebook and just try to be better for Sunday.”

HOW DO YOU LOOK AT THIS DOUBLEHEADER WEEKEND? “I like running multiple races in one weekend. If I could run all three series, I would. Just being able to race as much as possible and be on the racetrack as much as possible. Every time that you’re on the racetrack you’re learning. I don’t feel like fitness for myself from running two races in one weekend is gonna play a huge factor as far as being out of shape or anything, so I feel good about it. I feel like Saturday to Sunday you can always learn things on Saturday and hopefully you can apply it to Sunday kind of like we did at Charlotte. Darlington wasn’t that great for us, but Charlotte we learned a lot in the Coke 600 on Sunday and we went back Wednesday and had an even better run and a better finish, so it’s all what you can take away from the experience side and the note side and just try to build that notebook of experience.”

WHAT DO YOU FIND REALLY HARD ABOUT POCONO? “All three corners are different. How to set up your car to go around all three corners and how to make sure that your car handles well enough to make the straightaways longer. It’s a tricky race track. That’s why they call it the Tricky Triangle.”

YOU GUYS HAVE HAD SOME GOOD RUNS SINCE THE RESTART. WHAT HAS GONE INTO THAT? “I definitely think from the standpoint of not having practice has gone into that, but Front Row Motorsports as a whole has been trying to increase their program to become a contender every single weekend that we’re at the racetrack. So being able to go and try and contend for top 10s and top fives and the wins and just have the speed in our cars, I feel like we’ve been able to get more speed in our cars so far this year and we just want to continue to do so, and we need to strive to get the finishes as best we can and we just have to be able to close out races.”

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE PRACTICE AND QUALIFYING COME BACK AFTER THIS PANDEMIC ENDS? “I think that’s all circumstantial in the event and racetrack that we go to. If it’s a place that we struggle at, then I definitely feel like you want to see practice, but if it’s a place you have a good notebook at and you feel comfortable about your setup and you feel comfortable about where you’re gonna start and how you’re gonna adjust on your car, then I like the no-practice stuff. I feel like it creates an amazing race. I feel like everyone has been super-racy and it’s got a lot of the cars really close. I feel like when you have practice some teams are able to get out in front of others on adjustment-wise from how they make adjustments, how fast they can make adjustments, how well their simulation tools are and what-not to be able to fine-tune what they need to and it gives some of the bigger teams an advantage. So having no practice for myself at Front Row Motorsports right now, I think, is a little bit of an advantage to us just from the resource side of maybe not being able to make the changes that some of the bigger teams with four cars can make from different setup-wise. If one of their teammates gets onto something, then all of the other three cars can switch to that setup, whereas for myself at Front Row it’s just Michael McDowell and myself, and it’s pretty much whichever one is better that weekend that’s what we end up going to.”

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE NASCAR TAKE AWAY SOME PRACTICE WHEN WE GET BACK TO A NORMAL SCHEDULE? A LOT OF DRIVERS THINK THE LACK OF PRACTICE HAS IMPROVED THE RACES. “Yeah, I definitely feel like the lack of practice time has improved some of the racing on track. I think it goes back to kind of what I was just saying as far as some teams can get a bigger advantage than others through practice on making adjustments faster than others, or finding something through practice that others may not find that they get that little bit of an advantage, whereas with no practice it comes down to you run what you brung and hope that you brought enough from the setup standpoint and it goes back to communication with your team, with your engineers, with your spotter, with your crew chief and hoping that you make the right decisions through the race. But I feel like some guys have short-run speed, some guys have long-run speed and it mixes it up. Who is out front. Who is racing. It completely mixes it up, compared to trying to fine-tune short-run and long-run speed in a car through practice and just focusing on that.”

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW FRONT ROW WOULD BE IN HAVING BACKUP CARS READY IF NASCAR GOES BACK TO PRACTICE AND QUALIYFING EACH WEEK? “I’m sure that we have cars that are in the shop, some that aren’t put together that would have to get put together, but I feel like all of our focus and attention at this point to try and run the best that we can with no practice has been putting all of our time and effort into our primary cars that we’re gonna run that weekend. Only having to take one car to the race track every single weekend kind of puts an emphasis on the fine details and fine-tuning and going through the setup two or three times and being able to talk over what we’re going to the racetrack with, compared to having to focus on building two cars for the same weekend and maybe not fine-tuning all the details with the personnel that we have. I’m sure that we could get it done. The backup cars I probably wouldn’t want to unload compared to the primary cars with all the fine details that we’ve put in, but I’m sure if it came down to it, the no work hours and everything, we could get it done as an organization.”

WHAT HAPPENED ON THE LAST LAP AT TALLADEGA? “We got down to the final few laps and it was time to try and make a move. We came down pit road and got gas there that last caution. We were really close on making it on our fuel. Our teammate ended up sputtering going down the back straightaway coming to the white flag, I think. It was kind of in and out running out, so I’m glad that Seth, my crew chief, made that call to come down and be on the safe side. We got hooked up with Erik Jones in the middle lane there coming through the tri-oval to the white flag, and then coming through the white flag and down the back straightaway we were in the middle lane. The bottom had kind of stacked up and I’m not sure what caused them to stack up. Erik was behind, I think it was the 10 car or somebody pushing them, and we ended up all going to the outside lane and into turn three, and I got hooked onto Erik Jones’ bumper and kind of just started pushing him. I wish there would have been an in-car camera for his hands because I know what the back of the car looked like as I was pushing him and that thing was every which way from sideways, so it was an interesting technique. He made the move to go to the middle and kind of cleared the top lane, and then he got a run and we were hooked up and we came through the tri-oval and it was about that time I had a lot of momentum. The 10 was kind of coming to my bumper and I pulled out trying to get to his right-rear quarter panel and I got there and I felt like it was gonna kind of be a photo finish at the line, three-wide between the 12, Erik and myself and when Blaney came up to block the 20 he kind of door-checked him, which you’ve seen in a lot of superspeedway races to try and kill momentum, and when he actually doored him it turned Erik sideways and it put himself and myself in the fence. So, what looked like it was gonna be a promising day or a shot to win we ended up finishing eighth, but, overall, at superspeedway races all you can do is keep yourself out of trouble and put yourself in a position to have a shot to win it at the end and we were able to do so, so you can’t be disappointed about that.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
POCONO RACEWAY
POCONO DOUBLEHEADER
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 26, 2020

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE, spoke with media via teleconference to discuss going into the first doubleheader race weekend in NASCAR history at Pocono Raceway, what it takes to be successful at Pocono, and more. Transcript:

THERE’S BEEN A LOT OF TALK ABOUT THE FORMAT FOR THIS WEEKEND. WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS GOING INTO SATURDAY’S RACE AT SUCH A UNIQUE TRACK WITH NO PRACTICE?
“Yeah, for sure. I feel like Pocono is one of the places that probably takes the most time to kind of get up to speed and to get rolling. So, not having any practice will probably be pretty unique and the guys with a lot of experience there will maybe have a little advantage on the guys that don’t have a ton of races there. But, I’m looking forward to it. I think the format is neat. I’m all for no practice. We’re supposed to be the best at what we do, so I don’t know that we need the amount of practice that we used to have on normal weekends. I’m enjoying the no practice thing and I’m ready to go.”

I WANTED TO ASK YOU ABOUT BRISTOL AND MOVING THE ALL-STAR RACE TO THAT TRACK. CAN YOU EXPAND ON THAT?
“I’m a little bummed – we were really, really good at Charlotte for the first two races. We led a lot of laps and let two of those get away from us. I really felt like we had a really good shot at winning a million dollars and we still have a good shot at it going to Bristol. But Charlotte was really, really good for us. We didn’t have the finishes that we deserved, but had some really fast racecars. Going to Bristol, we were OK at the beginning of that race and then everything that could possibly go wrong, went wrong for us. We had a calamity of errors take us out that day. So, I don’t really know what to expect going there. But I think we’ll be pretty good. The atmosphere there is awesome and it sounds like they’re going to have a good amount of fans there, so that will be really good. Charlotte was going to be good to us, so hopefully our Bristol car is every bit as good.”

DO YOU HAVE ANY INTEREST IN EXPANDING YOUR OWNERSHIP DUTIES ON THE DIRT SIDE?
“If somebody else wants to pay for it, yeah I’m all in (laughs). That stuff costs a lot of money. The one race I do a year costs enough.”

TOYOTA HAS WON THE LAST FIVE RACES AT POCONO, WITH JOE GIBBS RACING’S KYLE BUSCH WINNING THREE OF THEM, DENNY HAMLIN TAKING HIS FIFTH CHECKERED FLAG AT THE TRACK IN JULY. WHAT DO YOU THINK HENDRICK HAS FOR IT AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TOYOTA’S AND YOU THINK ‘WOW, THEY’RE PRETTY GOOD THERE’ – I KNOW THAT DOESN’T INTIMIDATE YOU.
“I’m not scared (laughs). I think our cars are much better at that style of race track than we have been in the past couple of years, so I’m looking forward to getting there. I think our intermediate stuff and our big race track stuff has been really strong this year. Obviously, Pocono is its own thing and completely different than anywhere else we go, but at least the most similar places we go, we’ve been really strong at. So, I’m looking forward to it. I think we can be really strong. I guess we don’t know until we start the race, right? But I think we’ll be really good.”

WHAT DOES IT TAKE FOR A DRIVER THERE? IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE KEVIN HARVICK HASN’T WON AT POCONO. IT’S ONE OF THE FEW TRACKS HE HASN’T WON AT. DOES THAT SURPRISE YOU? AND THEN YOU THINK ABOUT WHAT IT TAKES FOR A DRIVER TO BE GOOD AT POCONO.
“Yeah, that is pretty surprising. I didn’t realize he hadn’t won there. I think for a driver to be good there, your commitment level has to be really high. Especially now with this rules package, it’s really on edge. You have some guys that commit to it and run it wide open. It’s really, really uncomfortable and hard to do throughout the race. I think that’s become an added element to it, just how high your commitment level has to be for the tunnel turn. But then really just knowing what you need to split the balance between three completely different corners and knowing how to get the car there is really important.”

ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HAPPENED MONDAY WAS YOU AND BUBBA (WALLACE) HAD A NICE MOMENT – YOU TWEETED A VIDEO OF IT ON YOUR PAGE. CONSIDERING EVERYTHING THAT’S HAPPENED BETWEEN YOU GUYS, HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT? OBVIOUSLY, EVERYONE HAS BEEN TRYING TO SHOW SUPPORT, BUT CAN YOU TAKE US THROUGH THAT?
“Yeah, I think there’s no secret, we’re not best friends, right? We’ve had our fair share of run-ins and the on-track stuff is just going to happen – tempers are going to flare and if you run into the same guy a couple of weeks in a row here and there, it’s not going to go great for your relationship. But that’s as a racecar driver and that’s on the race track. As a human-being, I have a big appreciation for him pushing us all to be better, speaking up and us do the same. It really comes down to, on the race track, we’re probably not going to be friends. But as a person, I appreciate what he’s doing and just wanted to show my support for him.”

WITH TWO RACES HEADING TO POCONO THIS WEEKEND, WHAT ARE SOME THINGS YOU CAN DO TO HELP YOUR CREW CHIEF GET THAT CAR PREPARED FOR SUNDAY DEPENDING ON WHAT HAPPENS ON SATURDAY?
“Yeah, that’s a big depending on Saturday thing. The Cup cars especially are so fragile – really hard to keep clean. You can’t lean on each other without really tearing the car up in a big way. Trying to keep the car clean on Saturday is going to be really important. And then also, having a good understanding of where the race car was at the end of the race to know what we need to be better on Sunday is going to probably be the biggest way I can help Greg (Ives, crew chief).”

IN THE EARLY PORTIONS OF YOUR CUP CAREER, HOW DIFFERENT IS THE LEARNING CURVE AT POCONO RACEWAY COMPARED TO EVERY OTHER TRACK? WHAT ASPECTS OF THE TRACK HAVE YOU COME TO APPRECIATE VERSUS THE ASPECTS THAT CONTINUE TO CHALLENGE YOU?
“I think the learning curve was probably a little bigger when I first started going to Pocono than it is going now, just because you were shifting every corner. That was a big difference. There weren’t any other ovals that we shift at, so just figuring that out. I didn’t run Trucks and Xfinity didn’t race there. I had some ARCA races there, but you didn’t shift. It was just different in a Cup car. Now, it’s a little more normal without that shift. The tunnel turn is still really, really tricky and knowing how to build runs. It’s pretty hard to pass – dirty air is pretty tough there. But then if you mess up, the straightaways are super long and you’re going to have five guys blow your doors off. The track itself is tricky, but it’s probably a little easier now than it used to be without shifting and all that.”

YOU TALKED ABOUT YOU AND BUBBA (WALLACE) NOT BEING THE CLOSEST FRIENDS. DO YOU FEEL LIKE BUBBA RACES PEOPLE TOO HARD BECAUSE OF THE EQUIPMENT HE’S IN?
“No, I mean I think everybody races different. You have guys that race really hard and you have guys that if you catch them, let you go. And some guys don’t let you go and are going to race hard for every spot. I think Bubba and I just ran into each other quite a few times back-to-back-to-back. He crashed me a couple of times in a Xfinity car and an East car, and then I got into him at the Roval. We’ve had so many incidents on the race track – race car drivers end up remembering everything. I don’t know, I think that was just a situational thing where we had run into each other so many times – it’s hard to like somebody that you’ve wrecked with like five times, right (laughs).”
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Toyota Racing – Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

LONG POND, Pennsylvania (June 26, 2020) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media via videoconference in advance of the race at Pocono Raceway:

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

Based on your past success at Pocono, can you pick up on things for the second race?

“I think maybe logic works in reverse there because I don’t have more to learn there and maybe some of the newer drivers will make the bigger strides from one race to the next. Overall, I like our chances going there and turning around to put another setup in. If the first one doesn’t work, we’ll bounce back from a bad day if we were to have one. I think we’re going to be pretty solid both days.”

How would you describe Pocono?

“It’s different. It’s a race that can get strung out just a little bit. You do see pretty crazy restarts there in the past. It’s just a race track that is difficult because you have to get your car working right all through the corners, and the corners are all so different that it is challenging. If your crew chief does his job, he’s going to get you pretty close. The driver just has to do his job.”

How much does having a good day, or bad day, affect your outlook on the second race?

“I think if you have a good day, you’re going to just tweak your setup a little bit for the second day. You will have a bad starting position, but I think the race is plenty long enough as to where if your car is good, you’ll make up some positions. Getting back to the front will be difficult. I think without a doubt it will be difficult for somebody to win both races simply because that track is a little bit harder to pass at unless you have a superb, a dominant car over the field. Even if you have that, it’s going to be difficult to really pass guys simply because the big aero that you have there when you’re behind someone. If you get out of there with a couple top-fives, it’s a good weekend. If one of them can be a win, that’s a very, very good weekend. You definitely have to set your goals even though you want to win both. You can still get back up front with strategy in certain places, but I think that’s the goal. If it’s a bad day, you can essentially overhaul your car and put a new setup in and come up with new ideas and you’ll be starting up front. I think you can really bounce back. You could have flip-flop days between the two races.”

How did the drivers come together to support Darrell Wallace Jr.?

“I don’t think it matters really who it is. You show solidarity and I think as drivers, even if you have differences with someone, you show that solidarity to show the family that we are. Driving for change or wanting change in our culture is something that we are all unified on. I don’t think it matters what our differences or friendships are with a certain driver. That is something that we are all going to get behind.”

How have you adjusted to this new type of racing given the requirements?

“In the car it really doesn’t (matter), when you’re in the race and nothing has really changed. You’re in a cocoon environment where you can’t really see a whole lot, you can’t hear a whole lot because you’re listening to your radio. It’s the before and after that has been the most transition for us. It’s not being able to celebrate after race wins – that has been the biggest difference being as we’ve won a couple races now since this has all happened. It is different. We’re starting to get some crowds back. The next three weeks we’re not going to have any because of state regulations, but certainly it hasn’t had any effect on the on-track product. I think we’re a different sport when it comes to that. It’s not a sport that feeds off of the crowd, or the crowd emotions. It’s not a play to play like baseball, or football, or something like that. It doesn’t feed off that energy once the race gets going. The energy is before and afterwards.”

How have you been able to maintain your focus with everything going on?

“I can only control what I can control. Whether that comes with age or experience, or whatever it might be, you can only control what you have in front of you and the effort that you put in to each and every weekend is something you can control, and your attitude. I think I’ve maintained a positive attitude through this whole thing. I’ve put in the work to be good. When we get to the race track we’re seeing the results because of that.”

How have you viewed everything that has gone on over this week?

“It’s been not difficult, but just interesting to see how it’s all played out and I think that everyone has just got a little bit of a heightened awareness of every little thing. Not to minimize it and say it’s a little thing by any means, but I think the way things were worded in kind of the opening statement, and NASCAR already addressed this, that they would’ve worded things a little bit different because it sounded a little bit different than what it actually was or turned out to be. I think that had we all known that hey this was attached to the garage door, the industry probably could’ve helped out and said, ‘Hey, we tie knots on the end of those garage doors to pull them down all of the time. Now, that doesn’t mean that it should be tied in that fashion by any means, and like they said, that was the only one that was tied that way. But I think the industry probably could’ve helped out had we had a little bit more information right from the get-go. But, like I say, it’s hard for me if I were to switch positions and been in Bubba’s (Wallace) position or the 43 team’s position, especially with the heightened (awareness) of the flag and everything that weekend, you’ve got to hope that your sanctioning body is going to take it seriously. And I think that they did. Short of just their opening statement, I don’t know if I really blame them for anything they did. I think that they did exactly what they were supposed to do. The investigation was done, and when it was done, they provided the facts, and so I do appreciate the transparency that they had throughout the week as things became more available.”

How do you feel about the All-Star race moving to Bristol where you’ve been successful in the past?

“I feel good about it. I like Bristol. It’s a track we probably should’ve won about a month ago if I didn’t make a big mistake there at the end. I think that a mix up is good. I think any change is a good thing. It gets people excited. You saw the first time we went to the Roval, there was a bunch of excitement there, but if you keep going there enough, it eventually becomes stagnant and people lose interest. So, moving things around whether it be the All-Star race or the schedule itself, any change in my mind is welcome.”

What have you learned after going to the National Civil Rights Museum?

“Well, I think that before last week, and then going to the museum, probably I was a little bit narrow-minded when it came to what my perspective was of things going on in our society and in our country. I think I became more open-minded after I went and kind of heard the history, because I didn’t really learn that stuff growing up. Some of it, but maybe it just didn’t resonate with me as much as it does now at the age that I’m at. I think for me I saw it as an opportunity to go there, and especially during this time. Like I said, I promised that I would listen and this was a way for me to just sit there and listen to these ladies talk about the museum, the timeline in which everything went on from 1800 to the present, and it made me think about things a little bit differently, and be a little bit more sensitive to other people’s thoughts and other people’s ideals. That’s what it has done for me so far and it will continue to have a lasting effect on me for time to come.”

Were there any exhibits at the museum that were the most impactful to you?

“When we were kind of going through pictures of ones I wanted to post on my Instagram post, I’m looking through 100s of photos and I tried to pick out 10 that meant the most or were the most impactful 10 that I knew those specific moments that resonated with me. I thought the ones kind of with the sit ins were big. The march through Selma was huge. The bus boycott, that whole time was big and seeing all of the women who — when you kind of look at Rosa Parks was kind of the face of that boycott, but actually there were a bunch of women who boycotted well before that and had the same outcome of getting kicked off and whatnot. But they felt like Rosa Parks was the best one for kind of the movement they were looking for, the face they were looking for. But, just seeing the women that all got arrested in this same timeframe for the same thing. Just kind of seeing all of that and the freedom buses that came through and people testing the system to see if it was working back then. Those were all significant things that I didn’t understand quite as much as I do now and you kind of see that through the Instagram posts.”

# # #

About Toyota

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NASCAR CUP SERIES
POCONO RACEWAY
POCONO DOUBLEHEADER
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 26, 2020

GREG IVES, CREW CHIEF FOR THE NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE FOR HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS, spoke with media via teleconference to discuss going into the first doubleheader race weekend in NASCAR history at Pocono Raceway, his thoughts as a crew chief on single-day shows without practice, and more. Transcript:

HOW EXCITING AND HOW CHALLENGING WILL IT BE TO BE RUNNING BACK-TO-BACK DAYS AT A TRACK LIKE POCONO?
“Unfortunately for us, the doubleheader is going to be new to us, but our friends over at JRM just experienced that at Homestead a couple of weeks ago. Talking to Dave Owens, Travis Mack, and those guys, the crew chiefs over there, just getting some of their ideas and the problems they had. I know on the 9 car, they had to replace some body panels and those types of things. It’s definitely going to be new and exciting. I grew up short track racing myself and having twin-125’s and those types of things. Obviously, different scenarios on different days, but it’s definitely going to be fun to do something different.”

IF I READ THE RULES RIGHT, IT LOOKS LIKE YOU MAY HAVE 8 TO 9 HOURS TO WORK ON THE CAR FROM SATURDAY TO SUNDAY. THAT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF TIME.
“Yeah, I mean it’s always a lot of time until you’re down to the last 20 to 30 minutes. Typically, that’s what the race teams do. They utilize every minute they possibly can, either to make their car better or to double-check things. We have a full list of items that we’re going to either check or inspect to make sure that we don’t have any issues. Who knows what types of incidents we’re going to run into. You’re planning for some pushing on restarts, so are you going to have tail or rear bumper damage that doesn’t necessarily make you want to go to a backup car, but you have to fix it before you go back into the next race. There’s a lot of things like that you don’t have the luxury of your fabricators at the track to make sure it’s right, so that all takes time. Multiple runs maybe through the hawk-eye system and that nine hours is going to go by pretty quick. I think NASCAR is putting that amount of time in just because it’s new. Let’s not try to hit a home run the first time – make sure these guys have enough time to diagnose any issues they may have. And the next time we do this, maybe we can trim back some time.”

YOU GUYS HAVE BACKUP CARS THIS WEEKEND – THAT’S BEEN A REASON WHY THERE HASN’T BEEN PRACTICE OR QUALIFYING. HOW CLOSE DO YOU THINK YOU GUYS ARE TO BEING ABLE TO HAVE BACKUP CARS EVERY WEEKEND IF NASCAR WANTED TO START HAVING ANY PRACTICE OR QUALIFYING?
“I think the one thing that backup cars cause issue with is the workforce in the shop. Just having to prepare two cars each week and do that without maybe all one hundred percent personnel in the shop. That tends to make for some long hours and you know what happens when people work long hours – they tend to get grumpy and we don’t want that to happen. This is a fun sport and enjoy what we love to do. Eliminating some of the mid-week races, the Wednesday races, helps that. But all-in-all, you just have to look at the pro of having practice versus what we’re doing already. I feel like what we have right now as a product on the race track is pretty good and that is without a backup car, without qualifying and without practice. I think for the short term, to continue on like this is probably the best way to go.”

FROM A CREW CHIEF STANDPOINT, YOU SAID IT LOOKS LIKE THE SHOWS HAVE BEEN BETTER WITHOUT PRACTICE AND THE SINGLE DAY SHOWS. WHEN THINGS GET BACK TO NORMAL, ARE YOU ITCHING TO SEE PRACTICE BACK? DO YOU THINK THE TEAMS CAN GO WITHOUT PRACTICE IN THE FUTURE? HOW DO YOU SEE IT?
“I would like to see practice come back, just from the sense of I have some things I’d like to try to make the car better. You can run as much simulation as possible, but getting it on the race track is the true test. The true feel from the driver and also the stopwatch. I would definitely like to do that being in the Playoffs. Usually this time is used for experimenting and finding that next tenth or two, which is so hard to find in this sport because of how close everything is with rules and the competition. I would like to have practice – not necessarily because I think it’s going to make the racing better on Sunday or easier for the guys in the shop. But I feel like from my standpoint, I go to tests to make my car better and as a crew chief, that’s what you want to be able to do. That’s what I would like to do – have a little bit more time on the track without actually racing.”

WITH EVERYTHING THAT’S GOING ON WITH THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, YOU GUYS FIND YOURSELF IN AN UNIQUE POSITION WHERE YOU HAVE TWO RACES AT THE SAME RACE TRACK ON THE SAME WEEKEND. SO, IT’S ALMOST LIKE YOU GET A PRACTICE SESSION NOW WITH THE RACE ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. WHAT ARE THE THINGS YOU’RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO ADJUST BETWEEN SATURDAY AND SUNDAY TO MAKE THE CAR BETTER, DEPENDING ON HOW ALEX (BOWMAN) IS FEELING?
“You really can’t change the body configuration. You can to a certain point. If you come there with more of a downforce car versus – you hear that a lot- I had too much drag in the car. It’s going to be difficult, probably, to change that style. There’s some tweaks you can make to get some of the drag off or maybe put some downforce in. But you can’t, obviously, rebuild the whole car. From my springs, shocks, camber settings, those types of things – you definitely can adjust. By the time it’s the end of stage one, usually my engineer is over there ‘hey, we should have done this or we should have done that’. I’ve already got a laundry list of items going of what we need to adjust and that’s not even for a doubleheader. Fortunately for us, I feel like we’ve had good baselines, a good foundation, each week and had a lot of speed. Just have to figure out how to execute and finish some of these races. I think for Pocono, I think the strategy side of things, you’re going to see how different people adjust. They may do one strategy on Saturday and one strategy on Sunday. That’s definitely going to be interesting to see how that plays out.”

OF ALL THE THINGS THAT MIGHT HAPPEN WHEN YOU HAVE A DOUBLEHEADER WEEKEND, WHAT ARE YOU MOST INTRIGUED TO FIND OUT?
“Over the course of every year, every race, the track gains character. And what I mean by character is the bumps. Pocono, for example, it started out as a pretty smooth race track. You could stiffen up your front wheel brakes and mainly work on the attitude of the car, and get that so it really doesn’t move like a go-cart. But as the character of the track zones in over the tunnel and gets a little bit more bumps – and now people complain about the front end washing out because you hit a bump and it pushes up the race track, and now you have to work a little more on handling – those are the things that you can’t really predict when you don’t have practice. Typically, when you show up, you have a couple of laps – the driver comes in and says ‘yeah, I’m hitting the splitter too hard, we need a little softer front wheel or it’s way too rigid’, and you can work on that. Once you get into the race, it’s definitely difficult to know that or even change that once those laps start clicking off. The character of the track, you’ve probably even seen it at Talladega, that new tunnel in the entry of Turn Three, you can see the cars moving around a lot more. And you didn’t know that until either watching a race – the ARCA cars or the Xfinity cars – but once we got out there, definitely saw some different things like that.”

WHO DO YOU THINK BENEFITS FROM THIS KIND OF SCHEDULE? THE BIGGER TEAMS WITH TWO RACES IN A WEEKEND? DRIVERS WHO RACE A LOT? DRIVERS WITH EXPERIENCE? YOUNG GUYS?
“I definitely think those that kind of have it together with a good foundation. Like I said, we were able to start the year, when we had practice, dialing our setup a little bit. Once we were able to start racing again, we were able to have some really strong runs and, potentially, could have had multiple wins. As the weeks start clicking off, everybody starts zoning back in on what they need to compete – either getting their cars better, setups better, drivers knocking the rust off, teams correlating their splitter heights and what the tires need for air pressure and grip. I think just having that solid baseline to start with and not trying to hit a home run, and ‘hey, we know this package is going to race well, so let’s not try to re-invent the wheel and just go out there and have a solid foundation’. Obviously, the bigger teams are able to feed off of each other. I have a lot of great teammates at Hendrick Motorsports that I can lean on for advice and what their thoughts are going into each week. So, I think it tailors a little bit better to the bigger teams and those that have more experience. The smaller teams, it’s maybe just taking a couple of weeks to zone in on what they need.”

JUST WANTED TO ASK YOU ABOUT POCONO AND INDIANAPOLIS – THE PAST, PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO LOOK AT IT AS BEING ABLE TO TAKE WHAT YOU HAD IN POCONO INTO INDIANAPOLIS. IS THAT STILL A CASE WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THE CHARACTER OF POCONO?
“I think everything is relevant. I feel like, as a crew chief, every lap I learn. We used to test at Nashville or Kentucky back in the day, down to New Smyrna – every lap we learned. Pocono definitely has a lot of characteristics with the flat corners, in some sense, and understanding what your package is going to do there. Like I said, the character of Pocono is just going to be a little bit different than Indy. How your car is going to draft down the front straightaway versus at Indy with their long straightaways. So, there are a lot of similarities that you can definitely pull from. If you feel like you selected the wrong aero package at Pocono, it’s probably going to be the wrong one at Indy. And you’re going to do some more things to maybe trim the car out or vice versa – if you trim the car out too much and you still need the handle at Indy. There’s definitely a lot of similarities and like you said, you can learn from Pocono, you can learn what not to do to bring to Indy. Ultimately, definitely a different character at each track, so it’s not a complete ‘hey, I just won Pocono, now I’m going to go win Indy because of this package’. That’s probably not the best way to think about it, but it definitely correlates a lot. Both tend to have the fuel mileage race and that strategy at the end of each stage to win stage points or put yourself in the best position at the end of the race. So, a lot of similarities, a lot of things you can carry over, but it’s not a complete one off.”

CERTAINLY, I’M SURE YOUR AWARE, THE CHARLOTTE AREA HAS MORE CORONA VIRUS CASES. I’M CURIOUS, HOW DOES THAT AFFECT THE GUIDANCE THAT YOU GIVE YOUR TEAM TO PROTECT THEMSELVES?
“Definitely. On an individual basis, you have to have those conversations with each guy that you have on your team. Like you said, from the comfort level of traveling to different areas. I’ve had that conversation with them. The other thing is, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports is taking this time seriously. When we are traveling to Pocono, how are we going to feed our guys and supply them with the food they need. It may sound trivial, but not having them go to restaurants to potentially expose them. And we’ve come up with plans where basically we give them the meals they need so they are only going to one location. Making sure they eat at the track versus going out to somewhere else. Those types of things, even from how we are feeding the guys to how we are protecting them, is definitely very much important to not only myself, but everybody at Hendrick Motorsports. I feel like we’re doing it the best way, the safest way. For those that may feel uncomfortable in those scenarios or situations, we’re definitely hearing their voice and taking the proper protocol.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

2020 NASCAR Doubleheader Weekend News & Notes

LONG POND, Pa. (June 26, 2020) – Pocono Raceway will host five NASCAR and ARCA events over the next three days. This will include two NASCAR Cup Series races, taking place on consecutive days – a first in NASCAR history. Spectators will not be in attendance during the June 26-28 events at ‘The Tricky Triangle’ in accordance with guidance on professional sporting events, issued by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf on May 27, 2020.

RACE WEEKEND TUNE-IN DETAILS

Friday Tune In Details: The ARCA Menards Series kicks off the Pocono event weekend with the General Tire #AnywhereIsPossible 200, live on FS1 and MRN, starting at 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, June 26. And, use #AnywhereIsPossible to engage with others during the race on social media.

Saturday Tune In Details: The Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series kicks off a doubleheader day number one with the Pocono Organics 150 to benefit Farm Aid race will be broadcast on FS1 and MRN starting at 12:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 27. It will be followed by the NASCAR Cup Series’ Pocono Organics 325 in partnership with Rodale Institute, airing live on FOX and MRN, starting at 3:30 p.m. ET. And, use #RaceForFamilyFarms, #PoconoOrganics150 and #PoconoOrganics325 to engage with others during the race on social media.

Sunday Tune In Details: The NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers will compete in the Pocono Green 225 Recycled by J.P. Mascaro & Sons race, live on FS1 and MRN, starting at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 28. It will be followed by the second NASCAR Cup Series race of the weekend with the Pocono 350, live on FS1 and MRN, starting at 4:00 p.m. ET. And, use #PoconoGreen225 and #Pocono350 to engage with others during the race on social media.

CELEBRITY GRAND MARSHALS, MUSICIANS AND MORE

Charlize Theron and Kiki Layne: Charlize Theron and Kiki Layne have been announced as Grand Marshals to give the ‘virtual’ command to fire engines for the Pocono Organics 325 in partnership with Rodale Institute on Saturday, June 27. The race will air live on FOX and MRN starting at 3:30 p.m. ET. Theron stars with Layne in “The Old Guard” This action-thriller, based on the acclaimed graphic novel by Greg Rucka and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, will be available on Netflix starting July 10. Led by a warrior named Andy (Theron), a covert group of tight-knit mercenaries with a mysterious inability to die have fought to protect the mortal world for centuries. But when the team is recruited to take on an emergency mission and their extraordinary abilities are suddenly exposed, it’s up to Andy and Nile (Layne), the newest soldier to join their ranks, to help the group eliminate the threat of those who seek to replicate and monetize their power by any means necessary. To learn more, visit www.netflix.com.

Jamey Johnson: Eleven-time Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Jamey Johnson will perform the “Star Spangled Banner” prior to the Pocono Organics 325 in partnership with Rodale Institute on Saturday, June 27. The ‘virtual’ National Anthem will air live on FOX and MRN starting at 3:30 p.m. ET. Johnson one of only a few people in the history of country music to win two Song of the Year Awards from both the CMA and ACMs. To learn more about Johnson, visit www.jameyjohnson.com.

Mike Phillips: World-renowned saxophonist Mike Phillips will perform the “Star Spangled Banner” prior to the Pocono 350 NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday, June 28. Phillips’ ‘virtual’ performance of the National Anthem will air live on FS1 and MRN starting at 4:00 p.m. ET. Phillips has three solo albums, most recently his 2020 album titled “Pulling Off The Covers” and has been featured on albums recorded by Price, Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson. To learn more about Phillips, visit www.thisismikephillips.com.

Evie & Lydia Johnson: In honor of Jimmie Johnson’s final full-time NASCAR season, Pocono raceway has announced Evie & Lydia Johnson will serve as Grand Marshals to ‘virtually’ give the command to fire engines for the Pocono 350 NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday, June 28. The race will air live on FOX and MRN starting at 4:00 p.m. ET.

Team GT Anglers: Skeet Reese, Mark Rose, and James Watson, part of Team GT’s Anglers, will serve as Grand Marshals to ‘virtually’ give the command to fire engines for Friday’s General Tire #AnywhereIsPossible 200 ARCA Menards Series race. Reese is an 18-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier, won the 2009 Bassmaster Classic Champion and earned the 2017 Major League Fishing Summit Cup Champion. Rose has recorded 11 tournament wins, 55 top-10’s and earned the 2018 Fishing League Worldwide Angler of the Year. Watson started his professional fishing career in 2013 and won the gold medal as a member of the 2018 US Bass Team in the Black Bass Championship. To learn more about Team GT, visit https://generaltire.com/our-world/team-gt.

Jeff Moyer: Jeff Moyer, CEO for Rodale Institute, will be the Grand Marshal to ‘virtually’ give the command to fire engines for the Pocono Organics 150 in partnership with Farm Aid race. Flag-to-flag coverage of this NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race will air live on FS1 and MRN starting at 12:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 27. To learn more about the Rodale Institute, visit www.rodaleinstitute.com.

James Mascaro: James Mascaro, Director of Special Project for J.P. Mascaro & Sons, will serve as the Grand Marshal and will deliver the ‘virtual’ command to fire engines for the Pocono Green 225 Recycled by J.P. Mascaro & Sons race on Sunday, June 28. This NASCAR Xfinity Series race will air live on FS1 and MRN starting at 12:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 28. To learn more about J.P. Mascaro & Sons, please visit www.jpmascaro.com.

SPECIAL RACE WEEKEND-RELTATED EVENTS

Supporting Family Farms: The Race For Family Farms program is an unprecedented collaboration between Pocono Organics, Farm Aid, and Rodale Institute. Fans are encouraged to join to celebrate and raise resources to benefit the local and dedicated heroes of our food system – family farmers – who tirelessly worked across our country to keep food on our plates during the COVID-19 pandemic. Post thank you messages to farmers on social media and using #RaceForFamilyFarms. The Race For Family Farms program will be featured throughout the Pocono Organics 150 to benefit Farm Aid and Pocono Organics 325 in partnership with Rodale Institute on Saturday, June 27. To learn more, visit https://www.poconoorganics.com/race-for-family-farms.

Pocono Honors Jimmie Johnson: In addition to the Jimmie Johnson Legacy Scholarship, Pocono Raceway will honor Johnson’s final full-time season during the 2020 NASCAR Doubleheader Weekend at ‘The Tricky Triangle.’ Johnson’s daughters, Evie and Lydia, will give the command to fire engines before the Pocono 350 on Sunday, June 28. The track has also dedicated one of their racing legends ‘rocks,’ located in Pocono Raceway’s infield, to include Johnson’s number and name. Other racing legends with dedicated rocks include but are not limited to Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Mario Andretti and AJ Foyt. Additionally, one side of the start/finish line has been changed from the painted word ‘Pocono’ to ‘Jimmie’ for this weekend’s events.

Dash 4 Cash Finale: Pocono Raceway marks the finale for the 2020 Dash 4 Cash program. Justin Haley, Ross Chastain, Alex Labbe and Austin Cindric are the four drivers competing for the $100,000 in Sunday’s Pocono Green 225 Recycled by J.P. Mascaro & Sons. Xfinity is making donation in each Dash 4 Cash race market to reaffirm their companywide commitment of connecting families, veterans and seniors to the digital tools necessary for navigating these challenging times. At Pocono, the donations will go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Boys & Girls Clubs give young people in need the developmental tools to achieve great futures as productive, responsible citizens in the community. This donation will help ensure these academic and character-building programs continue through the crisis, so young people have the tools they need to live healthy lifestyles and contribute to the community.

Virtual Fan Experiences: In addition to enjoying the NASCAR and ARCA races on FOX, FS1 and MRN, Pocono Raceway is offering fans the opportunity to participate in virtual experiences on social media and their website. This includes the Virtual Fan Fair presented by Weis Markets, digital race event programs, driver appearances with Ryan Blaney, Kurt Busch and Chris Buescher, live and pre-recorded music, digital race event programs and so much more! Visit https://www.poconoraceway.com/pocono-digital-race-experience-hub.html for info.

NOW, A WORD FROM OUR RACE WEEKEND PARTNERS

Pocono Organics: Pocono Organics, awarded the 2019 Environmental Innovator of the Year by the Green Sports Alliance, is poised to be the largest regenerative organic farm in North America. Located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, Pocono Organics has more than 380 acres of farm land and, at full build out, will have 120,000 square feet of greenhouse space. Pocono Organics operates through a strategic partnership with Rodale Institute, the global leaders in Regenerative Organic Agriculture practices and research. Sustainability is a hallmark of Pocono Organics which will draw power from 3MW, 25-acre solar farm and irrigate its greenhouse crops via reclaimed rain water coming from more than 75,000 square feet of facility rooftops. Pocono Organics also serves the local community through its Clean Food, Dirty Hands school education program as well as veterans in transition through a Veteran Farmer Training Program. In addition, the property includes an organic farmer’s market and café, and with a 56-room adjoining hotel, is an agritourism destination, and host location for annual festivals. Please visit www.PoconoOrganics.com to learn more about Pocono Organic’s mission and work.

Farm Aid: Spearheaded by Willie Nelson more than 35 years ago, Farm Aid continues to be a voice and advocate for American farmers and their families by raising nearly $60 million to support farmers and has continued during the COVID-19 pandemic through its Farmer Resilience Initiative and will raise funds through the Race for Family Farms program via www.farmaid.com/Pocono.

Rodale Institute: Rodale Institute is the global leader in regenerative organic agriculture research and education for more than 70 years. The Institute has led groundbreaking research studies that put science behind the power and impact of regenerative organic farming on local and global levels. Pocono Organics is one of Rodale Institute’s largest satellite farms where they collaborate on research and best-practices initiatives to drive industry-wide advancements. Learn more at www.rodaleinstitute.org.

J.P. Mascaro & Sons: Founded and headquartered in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, J. P. Mascaro & Sons is a private, family-owned company and a solid waste industry leader. Through hard work and excellent service, Mascaro has grown into one of the largest and most successful waste service companies in the country. Mascaro provides comprehensive services for customers in the residential, commercial, industrial, governmental, institutional and educational sectors. Service and commitment are the keystones of Mascaro’s success. The Corporate Motto, established by company founder, Joseph P. Mascaro, Sr., is “If it’s service, it’s us!” and the company’s commitment extends not only to its customers and its employees, but also to the communities and organizations where it does business. For more information about J. P. Mascaro & Sons, its facilities, services and sustainability commitment, visit www.jpmascaro.com.

About Pocono Raceway

Pocono Raceway, also known as ‘The Tricky Triangle,’ is family-owned and situated in the beautiful Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. In business for over 50 years, the Raceway hosts multiple, national motorsports events including two NASCAR Cup Series, one NASCAR Xfinity Series, one NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and one ARCA Menards Series events each year. The facility’s calendar also consists of over 200 events including a wide-range of car clubs and racing schools. Pocono Raceway is recognized as the world’s first, privately-owned solar-powered sports facility. Their 25-acre, three-megawatt solar farm provides the energy needs of the Raceway, as well as, adds electricity to the local power grid. Each member of our raceway staff is committed to creating exciting experiences and lifelong memories. For more information, please visit www.poconoraceway.com.

Progressive Insurance to be Primary Partner Saturday

CONCORD, N.C., (June 26, 2020) – Roush Fenway Racing has announced that Progressive Insurance – who joined the fold at RFR as the primary partner at Atlanta – will return to Ryan Newman’s No. 6 Ford Mustang for this Saturday’s race at Pocono Raceway.

“We were thrilled to welcome Progressive on board back in Atlanta, and we’re encouraged any time a partner comes back for more,” said Newman. “I feel pretty confident at Pocono, a track that features unique challenges with each turn, but is fast down each straightaway. We’re looking forward to the uniqueness of this weekend with back-to-back races, and hope to have a great run with Flo back on board Saturday.”

Progressive helped carry Newman to a 14th-place finish three weeks ago at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and the insurance company is back on board with a new look this week for Saturday’s 325-mile event. This weekend will mark the first-ever doubleheader in the modern era (1972-present) for the NASCAR Cup Series, with the sport’s elite set to drive 675 combined miles from Saturday to Sunday.

Newman will make his 37th Cup start at Pocono on Saturday, a track he has an average finish of 13.1 with one win, 15 top-10s and nine top-fives – his third-best average finish of any track on the Cup circuit. Newman won from the pole back in 2003 at ‘The Tricky Triangle,’ and finished runner-up in the spring of 2007 after starting from the pole.

Coverage for Saturday’s race from Pocono is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX. Race coverage can also be heard on MRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.

About Roush Fenway Racing
Roush Fenway Racing is one of the most successful teams in NASCAR history, fielding multiple teams in NASCAR Cup Series. In its 33rd season, Roush Fenway is a leader in driver development, having launched the careers for many of the top drivers in the sport. Off-track, Roush Fenway is a leader in NASCAR marketing solutions, having produced multiple award-winning Social Media, digital content and experiential marketing campaigns. Roush Fenway is co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Fame team owner Jack Roush and Fenway Sports Group, parent company of Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox and English Premier League’s Liverpool F.C. Visit RoushFenway.com, become a fan on Facebook and Instagram, and follow on Twitter at @roushfenway.

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
POCONO DOUBLEHEADER
POCONO RACEWAY
LONG POND, PA
JUNE 27-28, 2020

RACE #14 & #15: POCONO

For the first time in NASCAR history, Pocono Raceway will be the host of a NASCAR doubleheader race weekend. The ground-breaking weekend schedule will feature five races in three days, including two NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) events on back-to-back days: the Pocono Organics 325 in Partnership with Rodale Institute on Saturday, June 27th, and the Pocono 350 on Sunday, June 28th. The NCS doubleheader around the 2.5-mile track known as the ‘Tricky Triangle’ will mark the 14th and 15th races on the revised NCS schedule. In compliance with the pandemic guidelines, all events during the doubleheader weekend will be run without spectators.

ALL-TIME WINS LEADER
Of NASCAR’s premier series’ 84 trips to the 2.5-mile tri-oval, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with a total of 32 all-time wins. NASCAR Hall of Famer and career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordon leads the way in wins at Pocono Raceway with six victories (1996, 1997, 1998, 2007, 2011 and 2012). Two Team Chevy drivers are in the record books as multiple race winners, including Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, and Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, both with three career wins at the track.

BOWTIE BULLETS
· Of the NASCAR Cup Series’ 84 races at the ‘Tricky Triangle’, Chevrolet has recorded 168 top-five’s, 367 top-10’s, and 7,180 laps led.

· Career Chevrolet driver Jeff Gordon leads the series in laps led at Pocono Raceway with 1,040 laps in 47-career starts. Of active drivers, Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, has recorded the most laps led with a total of 743 laps in 36 starts. Of other lap leader statistics, Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, holds the record for the most laps led in a single NCS race at the track with 175 of 200 laps (August ’07).

· A Chevrolet has led the field to the green from the pole position 34 times, more than any other manufacturer. The most recent Chevy pole winner at Pocono is William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 (June ‘19).

· Chevrolet team Hendrick Motorsports has the most wins at Pocono of any team with 17 trips to victory lane: Jeff Gordon (six), Tim Richmond (three), Jimmie Johnson (three), Dale Earnhardt Jr. (two), Kasey Kahne (one), Geoff Bodine (one) and Terry Labonte (one).

· Of active drivers, Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads the way in runner-up finishes with five and top-five finishes with 14 at the track. In other top-finishing statistics of note, Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch lead all active NCS drivers in top-10 finishes with 20 each in their careers.

· With 13 races in the books thus far, Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE, leads all NCS drivers in an Average Running Position of 8.2, as well as topping the Fastest Laps Run list with 317. Following the GEICO 500 at Talladega, Elliott broke his longest career streak for races led (eight).

COMING TO THE GREEN
The race weekend format continues on with no practice or qualifying. The starting lineup for Saturday’s Pocono Organics 325 in Partnership with Rodale Institute will be set by virtue of owners points and a random draw. Here are Team Chevy’s top-20 starters:

5th Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE
7th Kurt Busch, No. 1 Monster Energy Camaro ZL1 1LE
10th Alex Bowman, No. 88 ChevyGoods.com Camaro ZL1 1LE
12th Jimmie Johnson, No 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE
14th Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE
15th Tyler Reddick, No. 8 Caterpillar Camaro ZL1 1LE
16th William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1 1LE
17th Austin Dillon, No. 3 American Ethanol Camaro ZL1 1LE

The starting lineup for Sunday’s Pocono 350 will be set by the finishing order of Saturday’s event, with an inversion of the top-20 finishers.

TUNE-IN
FOX will telecast the 130-lap, 325-mile Pocono Organics 325 in Partnership with Rodale Institute live at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, June 27th. FS1 will telecast the 140-lap, 350-mile Pocono 350 live at 4:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 28th. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

QUOTABLE QUOTES:
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 4th IN STANDINGS
“So far, our prep hasn’t been any different for this weekend’s doubleheader. We ultimately want to run one car the whole weekend. I think keeping that in mind during the race on Saturday, but at the same time I don’t know that you are really going to approach it much different. You always want to try and finish, and finish toward the front, so I don’t think that is going to change. I do think track position is going to be really important with the shorter races, though, especially lining yourself up for the last stage in each event because it is going to be so short. It’s going to be hard to make up a lot of ground in a hurry.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 8th IN STANDINGS
BOWMAN’S THOUGHTS ON POCONO:
“Pocono is a really fun track. It is one of my favorite tracks we go to. We are typically really fast here. This track is an interesting track because there is a big compromise in all three corners. It is definitely one of the more technical places that we go to.”

BOWMAN’S THOUGHTS ON PASSING AT POCONO:
“Pocono is a tough place to pass cars. One of the keys is to qualify decent, but since we aren’t qualifying, we need to hope we get a good draw. The track is really a one groove track and since it doesn’t widen out a lot, it is tough to get by cars. Hendrick Motorsports is building some fast cars right now and I know when we go to Pocono this weekend, that is what we will have.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 14th IN STANDINGS
BYRON ON THE POCONO DOUBLE HEADER:
“I think overall it’s going to be a fun weekend. I really enjoy racing at Pocono. I think it’s one of those racetracks we go to that’s cool to race at, but is also really tough to get around. The restarts are really difficult and usually pretty treacherous. It’s important to have good, clean and consistent restarts there. You also need a good long run car that turns well to make speed. Now add in back-to-back races there, I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to bring a new challenge and I think we’re up for it. We’ve ran well at Pocono in the past so this is a chance for us to really capitalize.”

BYRON ON IF A GOOD CAR AT POCONO IS SETUP TO RUN BETTER IN ONE CORNER OR CONSISTENT IN ALL THREE:
“I think there’s still some truth to when people say you need to have your car setup better in one corner than the others at Pocono Raceway. However, I honestly think nowadays with the way engineering is, you have to figure out how to make it work in all three corners pretty well more than you use to. You have to be close to exceptional in all three turns to be competitive, but I think Turn 3 is the most important, personally. The way that corner is and how difficult it is for the majority of the field, you want to be better there than everyone else. I always look at racetracks and try to see where the majority of the field will be weak and usually the best cars throughout the race excel in those areas of weakness. With that being said, I think the saying still holds true today with the three corners and having to be good at one end over another.”

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CATERPILLAR CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 16th IN STANDINGS
“The toughest thing to overcome at Pocono Raceway has got the be the dirty air. I’ve gotten in these Cup cars a few times on 1.5-mile tracks, and we ran a similar aero package in our Xfinity cars at Pocono a couple of years ago, and the draft is a huge part of your handling. Managing your track position to avoid as much dirty air as possible is going to be very important. If we’re entering that weekend on a draw, that draw could be the very thing that dictates the first half of the Saturday race and how you’ll need to go about getting track position. With the track being so flat, it’s also important to keep the front of the car rotating through all three corners, which is a challenge since you get tighter the longer we run. With this package, that’s going to get enhanced the longer we are in dirty air. It’s going to be a dogfight on the restarts because of how valuable the air is.”

AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 18th IN STANDINGS
TALK ABOUT POCONO RACEWAY. IT’S AN INTERESTINGLY-SHAPED TRACK.
“Pocono is a fun, fast track and I feel like we’ve been able to build a good notebook there so I’m excited to get there this weekend for a double-header. Good finishes will be important for us and the points battle following Talladega. At Pocono Raceway, speed is definitely carried through turn two and through three to the start-finish line. I think those are the most important corners. Of course, every corner is important, but turns two and three are a little bit more important because it’s the flat end of the track.”

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 20th IN STANDINGS
“Coming off of a really strong weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, I’m looking forward to the doubleheader at Pocono this weekend. The doubleheader is obviously going to create its own set of unique challenges. The races are shorter, and you could hit on something during the race on Saturday that could really help you on Sunday. We have definitely shown a lot of speed at the big tracks so far this season, and while Pocono Raceway has been a struggle for me in the past, I think Brian Pattie has hit on some things that will give us a strong run Saturday and Sunday in our No. 47 Kroger Camaro ZL1 1LE.”

RYAN PREECE, NO. 37 P&G CAMARO ZL1 1LE – 29th IN STANDINGS
“I really like the fact that Pocono Raceway is a doubleheader. I like racing twice in one weekend because of the opportunity it gives you to try something on Saturday and if that doesn’t work, you can readjust for Sunday. I think track position is huge at Pocono and being able to have clean air is a big advantage as well. It’s truly a ‘Tricky Triangle’ with the different turns and straightaways. We’ve got a new paint scheme with our partners at P&G this weekend, and I encourage our fans to go to pg.com/TakeOnRace for more information.”
Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics

Manufacturers Championships:
Total (1949-2019): 39
First title for Chevrolet: 1958
Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)

Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015

Drivers Championships:
Total (1949-2019): 31
First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)
Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)

Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016

Event Victories:
Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)

2020 STATISTICS:
Wins: 2
Poles: 3
Laps Led: 1,095
Top-five finishes: 19
Top-10 finishes: 49

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 788 (1949 to date)
Poles won to date: 717
Laps led to date: 235,401
Top-five finishes to date: 4,033
Top-10 finishes to date: 8,331

Total NASCAR Cup wins by corporation, 1949 to date

General Motors: 1,122
Chevrolet: 788
Pontiac: 154
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65

Ford: 793
Ford: 693
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 191
Chrysler: 59

Toyota: 147

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.