Category: NASCAR Cup PR

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY
CAMPING WORLD 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 29, 2019

AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 DOW UNIVAR SOLUTIONS CAMARO ZL1 Media Breakout Session Highlights:

INAUDIBLE
“I definitely think there is. I think you are going to see guys ringing the top and guys that can run the bottom. At this place, as more rubber gets laid down, you are just trying to constantly fight for clean track. If you can find clean track, there is a little bit of an advantage there.”

YOUR BROTHER (TY DILLON) WAS JUST SUGGESTING THAT NASCAR CHANGES SOME IDEAS, MAYBE ADD A CAUTION WITH STAGE BREAKS. DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS IN THAT AREA?
“I think it’s racing. I think it has been pretty good. You have races that go green and you have races that don’t, so it gets interesting either way.”

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS WITH WHERE THE SPORT CAN GO?
“I love sporting events, I’m all about sports. I go to them all of the time. I feel like our sport is one of the best sports out there. I feel like we’ve made a lot of changes over the last couple of years and I feel like we just need to keep building our brand and get it to where it needs to be.”

HOW DO YOU LOOK AT THIS RACE?
“This is one of the best tracks that we go to all year. It’s pretty amazing. The finish you saw last year kind of speaks for itself and I feel like you will see one of those again on Sunday. It’s cool because the tires wear out and that is the type of tracks I like coming to because it creates good racing and passing. As the tires fall off, it creates some really good passes here and if your car keeps turning, you’ll have some good forward drive.”

HOT AND SLICK, THAT MAKES IT GOOD HERE?
“Hot and slick is always fun. I think that’s what we always come back to with growing up racing short tracks in the summer. It makes for some good racing for sure.”
“I think having the new asphalt, there is a little bit of grip there. If you catch it in the right place and your car is tight, it’s not a bad thing.”

RCR HAS EXPERIENCED SOME STRUGGLES THIS YEAR, BUT YOU’VE BEEN QUALIFYING VERY WELL. WHAT IS IT GOING TO TAKE TO HAVE THOSE QUALIFYING RESULTS RELAY INTO THE RACE ITSELF?
“We’ve had some really good races too, but the last couple of weeks have been really hard for the 3 Team. We had a wreck at Michigan, wreck at Pocono, and a wreck at Charlotte. Three wrecks in a row in a season looks way worse and people are way down. You just have to go get a good finish. We’ve had cars capable of good finishes. If we would have finished where we should have in those three races, we would be in the top sixteen. We won a stage at Michigan. I made a move going into Turn One, it didn’t really work out and William Byron got into me. It’s a couple of decisions here and there that you wish you could have back and some of them are out of your own doing. Pocono, we just got turned and wrecked. We’ll work hard to dig ourselves out of the hole, but this could be a great turning point for our season and we are looking at it like that. We’re going to go out there, score stage points and try to win the race.”

DO YOU HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ON THIS BEING THE LAST TIME DAYTONA WILL BE HELD DURING INDEPENDENCE DAY WEEKEND?
“It’s a little different. July 4th has always been Daytona weekend in my past, so it’s a little different for sure. We’ll be down there having a good time and treating it like it’s July 4th weekend. Daytona is just a good place to do it at; the fireworks are beautiful and everybody has a good time at Daytona.”
“I feel like we did a lot of things during July 4th weekend growing up, but Daytona was definitely always been there. I remember when Cracker Barrel was the sponsor and all of the July 4th fireworks. I feel like we were there a lot during July 4th growing up.”

THIS TRACK COULD BE A TURNING POINT FOR YOU. IS THIS THE TIME IN THE SEASON WHERE IT BECOMES URGENT?
“Definitely, it’s been urgent. Points are so close, so you can’t give up any. We aren’t trying to by any means these last couple of weeks. A win is in my thoughts. We need to get a win or string together some amazing races coming down to the end of the year to put us in a good spot in points.”
“I think it’s desperate for teams from the start because there are only a certain amount of races before the Playoffs start and I think that’s why the intensity is so good in our sport right now. You see a lot of intensity out there and people making moves. Every race has had some intense moves in it and people moving each other to put their cars in position.”
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.

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY
CAMPING WORLD 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 29, 2019

DANIEL HEMRIC, NO. 8 LIBERTY NATIONAL CAMARO ZL1 Media Breakout Session Highlights:

DO YOU FEEL GOOD IN PARTICULAR ABOUT ANY OF THE TRACKS YOU HAVE COMING UP?
“It’s kind of a double-edge sword. I look at it and a lot of the tracks we go to, I feel confident in what I want and confident in what I need. You try to not lose faith in yourself through moments of struggle. Some of the places we’ve struggled the most at, it can get you down and maybe make you question what you’re doing. On the other side of it, you’ve got to know that you can have success and you just have to get everyone on the same page. Everyone on this 8 Team has been getting closer and closer to getting on the same page as the weeks have went by and that has made for greater success. I’m just trying to be more confident in the things I want and the things I need, as well as deciding as a group how to approach certain things that make a weekend what they are.”

WE ALL TALK ABOUT THE HISTORY OF DAYTONA BEING HELD ON INDEPENDENCE DAY WEEKEND. DO YOU ASSOCIATE JULY 4TH WITH THE DAYTONA RACE?
“Growing up, I was always going across the country going short track racing. I always felt like we were at a different place every year, depending who was having the bigger show. That week, we knew that there was a Super Speedway race and you would hang out at the house if you were in town to watch it.”

“I don’t really have a real mindset on it moving weekends either way. My entire life, watching Daytona in July, the timeframe just seemed right. But I was always going short track racing, so there wasn’t ever a real tradition in my family or my life. There is something special about being on one of the best stages on such a special weekend, but everything is evolving and changing. Change isn’t always bad.”

RCR HAS BEEN HAVING A LITTLE BIT OF A ROUGH YEAR, BUT YOU’RE QUALIFYING VERY WELL. I ASKED YOUR TEAMMATE, AUSTIN DILLON, WHAT IS IT GOING TO TAKE TO TURN THOSE QUALIFYING RESULTS INTO RACE RESULTS?
“It’s about having a better process and a better approach to what our cars need for the race. Austin (Dillon) has had a ton of experience at these places and I’m getting to the point where I feel like I’m getting a decent amount of experience as well. But it’s about figuring out what the package itself needs to qualify and race. It’s been a million dollar question all year for everyone, some weeks you see certain teams hitting on it better than others. A lot goes into that. The good thing is it’s not like we’re missing both sides of it. We can make the cars go fast, we can make the cars qualify good and we can make our cars race better. It’s about finding that balance.”

YOU’RE ABOUT HALFWAY THROUGH YOUR ROOKIE SEASON NOW. HOW IS IT BEING IN THE CUP GARAGE NOW?
“It’s been good to finally feel like that’s my new normal. Earlier in the year, you got a lot of stuff going on and you’re getting pulled in a lot of different directions. You’re trying to put your best effort in to be the best you can be for your sponsors and your team. You can find yourself in situations where you are a bit overwhelmed. I think that with every week that has went by, you find that you belong here. It’s felt more and more like that as each week has went by and it finally does feel normal. Now, it’s about going to the racetrack and getting to work.”

THIS IS GOING TO BE THE FIRST TIME RACING THIS PACKAGE AT DAYTONA. WHAT DO YOU EXPECT?
“I think some of what we saw at Talladega, we’ll see again. I think you’ll see a lot more of the teams and their manufacturers working closer together, especially with Chevrolet. The handling is going to be so much bigger and so much more critical. You need to have handling at Talladega, but nowhere near what you have to have at Daytona.”

YOU RUN PRETTY GOOD AT DAYTONA. DO YOU LOOK AT IT AS YOUR CHANCE TO GET A WIN?
“I definitely think the opportunity is greater. I think what we did at Talladega and Speedway racing in general has never really been a huge strong suit for me, so it’s good to kind of get my feet on the ground.”

YOU’VE COME A LONG WAY, BUT STILL HAVEN’T REACHED VICTORY LANE IN ANY OF THE THREE SERIES. WHAT HAS THIS JOURNEY BEEN LIKE FOR YOU?
“You just have to keep building on your finishes and the opportunity to win will be there. That’s what I feel like I have to prove to myself coming through the ranks. I knew that when I got into the 14 truck in 2015 that it wasn’t a winning truck and our goal was to go run tenth, then try to go run eighth. Throughout the year, we got better and better with it. I knew we weren’t at the level of KBM, so it’s about managing those expectations and not trying to get more than what’s there as you progress. I don’t feel like I’ve yet to jump into something that has come off of a record-setting year as far as a team standpoint. I’m confident in what I came in, but I’ve had to grind it out and that’s what my career has been about. It’s been about grinding it out and help building the race teams I was with. To a point, I kind of enjoy that because I get to see the labor transpire into success.”
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.

Toyota Racing – Martin Truex Jr.
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Chicagoland Speedway – June 29, 2019

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. was made available to the media in Chicago:

Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

This is the first time you have had multiple teammates in several years. What has the dynamic been like?

“I think it has been fun. Something that drives you, pushes you. Nobody wants to be third or fourth of the group. You want to be the best. You want to win championships. You want to be the fastest every week. But at the same time, it’s difficult because we are working together, and we are sharing everything. There are no secrets. I can’t keep any secrets from him; he can’t keep any secrets from me. It’s a real reality check in your own mind on how things are going, when you are looking at those guys and how they are doing and how you are doing. You are constantly comparing yourself. It has been different for sure from the last couple seasons, but I think in a good way. I think it’s just another little push. It makes you work and try and look at everything just a little bit harder and a little bit closer.”

How has things changed from you being at Joe Gibbs Racing regarding information?

“I think more so for them, especially Kyle (Busch). He was always saying in the media ‘I don’t know how the 78 is doing that.’ There is definitely more insight into that now. For me, I am always kind of trying to look at what everybody is doing, but there is not a really big change there.

Do you consider it a friendly rivalry with your teammate Kyle Busch now that you are in the same shop?

“I think it’s definitely more of a friendly rivalry now that we are in the same shop. I think there was some challenges throughout the years with two different teams at teams. It wasn’t always on track stuff. Definitely now, it’s more so a friendly rivalry. It has been really good. We were joking all weekend last weekend. It was cool to put it in victory lane and get the back-and-forth on pit lane. It was really cool that he stuck his head in there and to see all those guys after the race was really good. I’m sure they weren’t over the moon happy with me winning, but they were very respectful and great teammates about it.”

Next week is the final July race in Daytona. Best and worst memory from there?

“I have a lot of bad memories at Daytona. It hasn’t been very good to me. Second in the Daytona 500, and winning a Busch Series race in ’05 was pretty good memories, and then stuff off the track. I have had a lot of fun times there over the years. It’s definitely a cool place to go to. As far as the package goes, I don’t know. We learned a lot at Talladega what it’s going to be like. I think Daytona is such a different race track than Talladega. The way you draft there; it’s typically two and three wide there. That really changes things. You will just have to wait and see. I expect it’s going to be typical Daytona: hot and slick, the cars were pretty on edge at Talladega. I expect handling to come into play and be a bigger issue than it has been in the past because of the speeds and the amount of downforce we had.

Your teammate, Erik Jones, is kind of in limbo if he is going to resign with Joe Gibbs Racing. You have been in that situation before; have you been able to talk to him and give him any advice?

“I haven’t talked to Erik at all about it. I don’t know if he has talked to any of the other drivers about it. I think it’s one of those things you handle on your own away from the track. We talk mostly about our cars and setups in the meetings. He’s not one to ask a lot of questions or do things outside of the meetings. We have just kept it normal.”

This race had one of the best finishes last year. How do you think the new rules package is going to help that?

“I think it definitely setups for a good finish like that. There is multiple grooves and the package this year has done what they wanted and expected. It has brought us all closer together. It is going to be hot and slick tomorrow. That will help us put on a good race. We will just have to see how it plays out with this package. The Truck race last night showed multiple grooves. We should be similar to that. I am looking forward to hopefully having a good run.”

There are analytics that age 39 is the best year for a driver. What do you think about that? Are you still getting better as a driver?

“That sounds great. I can’t argue with it. I have no idea. I feel good. I feel like there is always room to improve. I think the biggest thing with our sport is not only do you have to try to get better all the time, but so many things change. This year is a perfect example. We came off a great year last year, and most won a championship. Now we have all different cars and all different rules. They run differently and race differently. It’s just a challenge to do this job. It’s definitely fun, but it’s a huge challenge, but I think that is what makes it fun. That is why people love the sport. You are always critiqued; you are only as good as your last race. If you have a couple bad weeks, it doesn’t matter how good you are, people are asking questions. It is a tough sport, but I feel good. I feel like we are doing a good job and hopefully we can keep that up.”

Do you feel like if you beat your three other teammates, that is what you need to do to win races?

“It seems like this year, yeah. To beat a Penske car or to beat a Gibbs car, you have a good shot at winning. It has been interesting to see that dynamic. All of our cars have been strong all year. That is another part that makes it so difficult. You are racing against your teammates, and you all have the same stuff. You share everything. There are no secrets, so it is hard to get an advantage there.”

How are you and Kyle different?

“We are definitely a lot different people. In the garage or in the car, I would say we are very similar. Very intense, very focused, not settling for anything but first. But outside of the car, I would say I am a lot calmer. I can hold my emotions in check a little bit better than maybe Kyle. I think aside from that, we are very similar. I don’t know how he is with his family or away from the track, so I cannot answer that. But I would say we are similar for sure at the race track, besides maybe being able to keep calm when the microphone is in my hands.”

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY
CAMPING WORLD 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 29, 2019

CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 MAXWELL HOUSE – USO CAMARO ZL1 Media Breakout Session Highlights:

NEXT WEEK IS THE FINAL RACE AT DAYTONA THAT IS HELD ON INDEPENDENCE DAY WEEKEND. WHAT DOES THAT WEEKEND MEAN TO YOU AND WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT RACE WEEKEND HAS MEANT TO NASCAR OVER THE YEARS?
“With Daytona being known for its big races, I definitely think it’s going to be something that’s going to be a loss to the racetrack. It’s cool to see all the paint schemes come out for our holiday weekends, especially for the Fourth of July. It’s always been a pretty neat weekend. I don’t think anything is going to lose its flare. With Daytona going to be a cut-off race next year, it will have its own different kind of drama and a whole different look going into the playoffs.”

SPEAKING OF DAYTONA, YOU HAD 2- FIFTH PLACE FINISHES THERE LAST SEASON. YOU’RE GOING IN THERE WITH A DIFFERENT PACKAGE NEXT WEEKEND. WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS?
“I would say it will be pretty similar. The package at Talladega didn’t really change a whole lot with what restrictor plate racing is. I thought that the pack racing was the same. Some of your runs were a little bit different, but Daytona is also a lot tighter than Talladega. I don’t think it’s something that is going to throw a big curve for us at that race. I think it will be something similar and we have some good notes to go off of. We’ve got a good baseline and some more strategy to look at to try to figure out how to make sure the 500 result doesn’t happen in this one. We’ve got a good chance of going back out there and getting another top-five finish.”

IS THAT A RACE THAT YOU CIRCLE ON YOUR CALENDAR AS ONE THAT IS A POTENTIAL TO SNEAK IN THERE AND GET SOMETHING DONE?
“No, not for me. I look at Bristol as that opportunity. We can go there and pretty consistently get into the top-five and be able to pull something off there. You just have to have everything go right there at the end and be mistake-free at that point. Daytona and Talladega have the opportunity there, but it’s one that you go in to and keep a good attitude about it, hope you can get through all of the chaos that happens and not get caught up on a mistake of your own or a mistake of someone else. To me, there is so much luck that goes into those races. There’s a definite skill to it and there are drivers that have figured out how to be way above the rest of the field, but for me, there’s so much luck involved. It’s a place I don’t get too excited about I guess you can say. I try to go there, be positive about it and have a good time. At the end of the day, you have to have a lot of things happen the right way to come out with a good finish.”

YOU HAVE THREE- TOP TEN FINISHES SO FAR THIS SEASON. IS THAT A PRODUCT OF THE NEW AERO PACKAGE OR WHAT HAS MADE THIS YEAR A LITTLE BIT BETTER FOR YOU?
“That’s a product of hard work. Everyone back at the shop through the off season worked extremely hard trying to be ready for this package, be ready for the season, better our cars and just have something that is ready to hit the ground running. We did that. With all of the support that we had from Kroger, Bush’s Baked Beans, and Scott Products, it’s something that we’ve been able to build our program up each year over the past couple of years and we are getting results out of it. We’ve been able to get some really good finishes and actually miss out on a handful of others that we ran within the top ten. It’s the most competitive I’ve been in my Cup career and I’m just really thankful for the opportunity and the effort everyone has put in to get to this point right now. I can’t say just because of the change in the package is what has helped us the most, but it’s really come down to the fact that we’ve put in the hard work to be ready for it and it’s paying off.”

HOW DO YOU SEE THE REST OF THE SEASON AS YOU GET TOWARDS THE PLAYOFFS? DO YOU THINK YOU CAN MAKE A RUN FOR IT?
“We can. It is hard, it will be very hard to get to that point. We have a lot of work to do. We are in a window where it is feasible and we have the possibility to get there. That’s pretty awesome at this point. A win would fix everything and make it much easier. We could have had a couple of things go our way, Daytona being one of them. It is cool to be talking about it. That was one of our long-shot goals at the beginning of the season; to be able to make the playoffs. It might be a little bit of a long-shot, but it can be done. We’ve been steadily working our way up in points since Talladega. We’ve had a lot of comebacks and good finishes at different racetracks, which is really cool. A lot of places that have been challenges for us in the past we’ve been able to turn around, so that’s excellent as well.”
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.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Saturday, June 29, 2019
Camping World 400 Media Availability — Ryan Blaney

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 BodyArmor Ford Mustang — YOU HAVE SOME COOL STUFF GOING ON WITH YOUR FOUNDATION THIS WEEKEND, CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THAT? “Yeah, it is Alzheimer’s awareness month and that is the main focus of our foundation. This weekend we have a pretty neat promotional deal where you could go online and donate to the Alzheimer’s Association and nominate a loved one to be on the decklid. I think we ended up getting over 100 names from people and I thought that was pretty neat. After the race tomorrow we are going to cut that decklid up and send those names out to the people who donated to put a name of a loved on on there. It was nice of BodyArmor to let us do that. It really means a lot. We are just trying to do all we can with this foundation that we just started. We went to Lehigh Valley Hopsital up in Pennsylvania earlier this week and we were able to talk to some of the doctors there about what they are doing. Any help we can provide will hopefully go a long way.”

BUBBA WAS TALKING ABOUT PLAYING MARIO KART THIS MORNING, DO YOU PLAY WITH HIM? “I don’t play it. Not like they do. They get serious about it. I don’t have that kind of cash flow to compete with them. They bet big money. I can’t do that. I haven’t gotten in on that.”

HOW WILL DAYTONA BE DIFFERENT WITH THE NEW PACKAGE? “It will be different for sure. You got a little bit of a taste of it at Talladega. Obviously they are different kind of race tracks a little bit in their own ways and I think teams will go to Daytona with a little different mindset of what they had at Talladega. I think we are going to, a little bit. Just trying to figure it out. I think it will be a good race. I thought Talladega was a pretty good race and I think it will get better as teams start to understand this package. It was a mixed bag at Talladega. Some teams had it dialed in better than others. Teams are smart, they will figure it out. It should be a good one. I have always enjoyed that race, the night race on that weekend. It is unfortunate that we won’t be back there next July. That is just the way the schedule goes. It should be a good one though, it is a race I look forward to every year.”

IS THIS THE TIME OF YEAR WHEN GUYS START RACING DIFFERENT? “I race like it is the last race of the year at every single race. From race one to race 38, I don’t really change the way I drive depending on what part of the year it is. That is just me personally. Other people might do something different. Sometimes maybe people will make a little bolder moves, I think especially teams with the strategy deal with drivers that are close to the cut-off line our outside of that line, to try to win the race and make a big move. That is kind of sometimes – I think you saw that a lot last week at Sonoma with the way the stages are. Some teams that were close to that cut-off line wanted stage points. That was their main thing. It was easy to get them there and have them for that cut-off if they are close to it. I think you will see more of that. More of people playing around with stage points and maybe sacrificing track position to try to win a stage or run top three or four in a stage and then reset again and try it all over again. I think you might see more of that. But we race hard all the time. There might be a few more bold moves toward the end if you are close to that cut-off and trying to win the race or things like that.”

HAS THE DAYTONA JULY RACE BEEN LIKE A HOLIDAY TRADITION FOR YOU? “Yeah, I think it is a pretty good tradition race. It marks pretty much the halfway point of the season on July 4th weekend. I wouldn’t really put July 4th as a holiday but it is a special weekend. Anytime you are back to Daytona it is a special weekend whether it is the 500 or the July race. Going there twice a year as a kid, I really enjoyed it. You realize the difference between the two. I think it is cool that you have both. Night racing there is really cool. Night racing anywhere is really neat but you get to a place like that and it makes it that much more special. I always liked having the Daytona race that weekend but at the end of the day it is just a weekend and just a race and you can move it to whatever date you want. As long as you are going there you know you are going to a very special race track. I always enjoy it being on the weekend of the 4th.”

I THINK THEY MIGHT SAY THAT IT ISN’T JUST ANOTHER RACE NEXT YEAR BECAUSE IT BECOMES THE CUT-OFF RACE FOR THE PLAYOFFS: “Yeah, that is really exciting to have a cut-off race right before the playoffs at a speedway. I hope I am in before I get to that race. I don’t want to have to throw a hail mary and put it up to fate there. It is going to make for a really good race and it will be exciting to watch. Teams that are just in or just outside the playoffs, that will be neat. I hope I am way in by that point.”

YOU THREW OUT THE FIRST PITCH AT WRIGLEY THE OTHER DAY. WHAT WENT INTO THE KIMBREL POSE YOU DID AND WERE YOU NERVOUS? “Yeah, my Craig Kimbrel pose. The poste he has I think is neat. I am a fan of his> I think he is a good pitcher. There was a thought that he was going to start but he ended up closing. He pitched the ninth. I was happy he finally pitched. The field was never as loud as when he came on the field when he came in from the bullpen. That was pretty cool to see. I thought the fans would get a kick out of that. He was playing against his old team, Atlanta. That was neat. The first pitch thing, I have never done that before at a major league ballpark. I wasn’t really as nervous. I feel like I can throw a ball. I am hoping I can at least. If I can’t then I wouldn’t have said yes to it. I went third. The guy before me completely screwed it up so I was like, ‘Oh, I’ve got this.’ It was just a matter of how hard I wanted to throw it. I toned it down. I just wanted to get it to the plate. It was good. That field has a lot of history. I am not a Cubs fan really but you have to respect the history of ballfields and things like that. It was a great game. It was a lot of fun. It was cool of NBC and NASCAR and BodyArmor for letting me do that.”

WHEN YOU ARE SO CLOSE TO THE TOP, HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP WHILE ALSO UNDERSTAND THERE ARE A LOT OF TEAMS THAT HAVE MADE GAINS THROUGHOUT THE SEASON? WHAT IS THE CHALLENGE OF TRYING TO CATCH GIBBS WHILE KEEPING OTHERS AT BAY? “We have been lucky this year because the Penske group has been one of the top-two teams, us and Gibbs. I think they are just a little bit ahead of us right now. Things change every week, every single week teams can show speed and show up. There was a time when Hendrick was looking really strong. I think they are still strong looking at practice. I think they were fast in practice today. The Haas cars are looking strong here. You have to be on top of your game. We have been lucky that we worked so hard in the offseason to try to be up towards the top teams from the get-go. I think we have done that. We have been able to stay there. This sport is a big cycle of teams driving to the top and teams finding things and it goes round and round. It all goes back to hard work and dedication of wanting to stay up towards the top and not being happy with where you are if you are fast at the time. You are always looking forward. A lot of people talk about how the 2 has won a few races and the 22 has won a couple races and you think, ‘Alright we are good, we don’t need to do anything.’ but that is how teams catch up. YOu have to change things up and approach things and change for the better. You can never be satisfied with things. You have to keep working because you know your competition is working and you don’t want them to catch up. You already have a leg up on them and you want to find things here and there that can make more of a difference.”

QUESTION INAUDIBLE: “I lost by 30 seconds last week but I still thought we made gains on them. The thing from last year, at that point in the season I felt like we were struggling to run top-five. We were kind of stuck. All three of our cars were stuck back in that eighth to 12th range. When you make a big gain on a weekend and don’t win the race, you may lose by a lot but run solid all day and get your cars better throughout the night, at that point we wouldn’t get better through a race. Everything we tried wasn’t working. It was a big thing to get progressively better throughout the night. That was encouraging for our group. You can maybe not win the race but you can find the positives in it and see that you got better here, or better here. You just keep adding on to those. You can get better and not dominate races. You kind of inch at it. It is so hard to make big gains now with the rules so tight. You try to find little things that will eventually add up and that can really rise up above the other teams.”

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Saturday, June 29, 2019
Camping World 400 Media Availability — Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

RICKY STENHOUSE JR., No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang — “For us, there are tracks this year that we have ran better than we have in the past. I feel like all the mile-and-a-halfs are tracks we can look at to gain points as well. Obviously getting a win would be big at any race track but I feel like we have a better shot at Daytona and Bristol out of the ones that are left. We have been gaining points on mile-and-a-halfs as well. We look this weekend at Chicago and hopefully we can run similar to what we have at Kansas, Charlotte and Vegas and even Atlanta. I think we’ve got a lot of good race tracks in front of us.”

WHY DO YOU THINK DAYTONA IS ONE OF YOUR BETTER SHOTS? “Just our success in past races at Daytona. The laps we have led, the races we have won. Just being in contention just about every race that we have been there is always good confidence going in.”

DO YOU FEEL STRESS ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE THUS FAR? DO YOU FEEL THERE IS A LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL? “I don’t feel stress. The runs we have had that have been good are a lot better than we have had in the past, definitely and mile-and-a-half race tracks. We had about three races in a row there where we had some tires issues and then we had that incident at Bristol that cost us a lot. All in all I feel like we have had better speed in our race cars at the race tracks that we have struggled at. There are still some race tracks like Pocono and Michigan that we still seem to be a little bit off of where we need to be.”

HAVING DAYTONA BE A PLAYOFF CUT-OFF RACE NEXT SEASON, YOU MAY BE ONE OF THE FEW PEOPLE THAT REALLY LIKES THAT IDEA BASED ON YOUR PAST PERFORMANCE THERE: “It is funny, yeah it is a cut-off race next year but I don’t look at it any different than if we had Daytona the first two races of the year. You still push hard to win because a lot of people in the garage know that is an opportunity. For us that kind of feel like we don’t have opportunities at other race tracks, we are going to push hard no matter when that race is on the schedule. For some, we have that race and then you get done with that race in July and you kind of know, ‘alright, I have eight races to kind of figure out where I need to be.’ Those that are close on the cut-off are probably going to be real nervous.”

ARE WE AT THE POINT IN THE YEAR WHERE THE INTENSITY IS STARTING TO PICK UP AS WE APPROACH THE PLAYOFF CUT-OFF? “For us, we are 43-points or something out. We have seen races where we have gained 30-points in one race and also lost 30-points in one race. For us, we know that there are 10 races left and we don’t need any big home run races. We can chip away at it. Every race that goes by obviously the more points you have to make up in a shorter amount of time. For us, we are looking at the race tracks that we know we can look to take a chunk out of that. This weekend here, I feel like we could do something like Kansas where we get points in both stages and run up front and get a top-10 finish and we will be gaining those points that we need. For us, I think that is still taking it one week at a time and not panic yet but I think once we get through probably Kentucky we will kind of really know where we are at. I feel like Chicago, Daytona and Kentucky are really good tracks for us and we can kind of cut that deficit. If we can cut that deficit in those three races then it becomes about trying to be consistent and maintain it.”

“We look at Chicago and Kentucky as a place to gain points and Daytona as a place we can win. It is a different mindset going into those races. For us, yeah, we feel confident going to Daytona that we can get the job done and go out and get a win and then the points will not really matter at that point. That is our plan. We would like to be able to run well at Chicago, Kentucky and the rest of the races as well.”

YOU SEEM TO BE ON AN UPWARD PROGRESSION WITH THE ADDITION OF YOUR TEAMMATE RYAN NEWMAN. WHAT HAVE YOU SEEN IN THE SHOP AND PLACES IN REGARD TO RYAN? “Ryan is great. I feel like he has a lot of great insight. He has been in the sport for a long time and seen ups and downs at different teams and how different teams work through those things. He has a lot of great feedback. He and I talk quite often about what he feels in his car and what he feels like he needs and vice versa. One of the things is that he is able to – which I have noticed when he was with other teams – even though they might not be very good they are able to get good finishes. That is something that I need to tap into and make sure that we continue to do that same thing.”

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Saturday, June 29, 2019
Camping World 400 Media Availability — Aric Almirola

ARIC ALMIROLA, No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang — DOES THE TRACK SURFACE HERE REMIND YOU OF ATLANTA? “Yeah, I would say that. I would say Chicago is definitely one of the most worn out tracks that we go to. Atlanta I think is the oldest pavement of all the tracks and then Chicago follows closely behind. I think it is fun. It is fun to come to the tracks where the pavement is old and worn out and we can run all over the track. It gives you options as a driver and makes it challenging to find grip and get the car set up the way you need it to.”

IN FIRST PRACTICE, IT LOOKED A LITTLE CRAZY WITH CARS GROUPED TOGETHER ALL OVER THE PLACE: “With the package we have now you have to go out there and practice and put yourself in positions that you will find yourself in the race. Running by yourself doesn’t really tell you a lot other than what the raw speed of your car is. You really have to put yourself in traffic. At different points in the race you are going to find yourself in that position. It is important during practice to get a feel of what your car is going to do and how it is going to drive when you are in a pack of cars.”

WHEN DO YOU FEEL LIKE TEAMS BECOME DESPERATE? “Man, it has to be getting close. How many races until the playoffs? 10? Yeah, we are only 10 weeks away. Honestly, if you look back over the last 10 or 15 years, really where you are at in points at this part in the season, you move one or two spots either way, either forward or backwards from now until the start of the playoffs. It is really hard to make up a lot of ground. It is easy to lose ground if you have a couple bad weekends with a mechanical failure or wreck and you can lose a lot of points. By now, at this point in the season, the guys you are racing around in points are the same guys you are racing around on the race track so you don’t really gain a lot of points or lose a lot of points to them if you are running at the finish. It puts and emphasis on winning and continuing to elevate your program getting ready for the playoffs.”

WOULD YOU TAKE ISSUE WITH THE FACT THAT SO MANY PEOPLE ARE JUST TALKING ABOUT TRUEX AND KYLE BUSH AS THE TOP GUYS? “I think it is obvious when you just look at the results right? They have run really well. They have good speed in their cars and their cars are driving really good and they are making the most of their weekends. They are flawless on pit road and doing a good job with their cars on the race track and they are executing. They are doing the things they need to do to win races. I don’t think that is any different than anything we have seen in the past several years to be honest. They are the teams to beat right now but we have seen in the past that they can be beat. At this point you have to gear up and get ready for the playoffs and once the playoffs get here everybody takes it to another level. As the playoffs go on, once you get to Homestead it is back to a level playing field and you have to go get it done in that one race.”

IS IT KIND OF SHOCKING TO YOU THAT YOU HAVEN’T WON YET? “I think we are all a little surprised. That is the hard thing about our sport. It is very cyclical. Teams come and go. The teams that are on top today might not be on top tomorrow. Everybody just works so hard to chase whoever is on top. It is hard to be king of the mountain week after week, year after year. Last year was a phenomenal year for us at Stewart-Haas Racing and for me personally in my career. This year we just haven’t out-classed the field like we did last year. Last year we hands down out-classed the field. I went back and watched the Chicago race from last year on the flight here and it was crazy. At one point in the race we were running 1-2-3-4. We did that a lot last year where we had all four cars in the top-five or ran 1-2-3-4 a lot. Dover comes to mind. We ran 1-2-3-4 there. When you go back and look at those races, we actually gave those races away. We ran 1-2-3-4 for a lot of those races and none of our cars won those races. So when you look at the amount of wins, I think we had 14 wins as an organization last year, if you look at all of the race we probably should have had 18 to 20. It was just a phenomenal year for us. Honestly the guys are working harder now than they ever have. We are trying. It is not from lack of effort, I can promise you that. We are just trying to figure it all out and put all the pieces of the puzzle together.”

YOU CAN’T QUITE PUT YOUR FINGER ON IT OR DO YOU HAVE YOUR FINGER ON IT AND GETTING CLOSE TO SOLVING IT? “I feel like we are getting really close. There are still some question marks that we don’t have the answer to and some differing of opinions from track to track and week to week. That is the really challenging part about this package. We go to some race tracks like Michigan and it is really easy to run wide open so everyone works hard on making their cars go fast and trimming them out. Then you come to Chicago and there is a balancing act that you have to play. You can trim your car out and make it go fast but then there is less downforce in your car and the tires fall off and you don’t know how it is going to drive at lap 30 or 40. That is the balancing act the teams are going through. Us at Stewart-Haas Racing we are continuing to go through that and really pinpoint what we need at each individual specific track. It is not universal. One solution doesn’t fix all your problems.”

IT MUST GIVE YOU SOME CONFIDENCE THOUGH TO BE AS HIGH IN THE POINTS AS YOU ARE AND RUN AS WELL AS YOU DO: “Yeah, when I look at last year versus this year, we are a little higher in points and have had a little higher consistency finish than last year. As an organization though I feel like we are a little off from where we were last year. That makes me feel good about what we are doing inside the 10 team and just getting the most out of what we have. Last year I felt like being new to the organization and learning everything I felt like we were not making the most, especially for the first four or five months of the season. Then we got on track and were leading laps and running up front and challenging to win races and then we won and did really well in the playoffs. That second half of last season was really good for us. Going into this season our expectations have gotten higher and I feel like we are doing a better job but we still have more to get. There is still more growing pains and learning each other. Last year as an organization we showed up with fast race cars every week. This year has been a little hit and miss. Learning how to go through some of those tough times as a team has been something new for us.”

Stars And Stripes-Studded Conclusion To NASCAR Salutes Refreshed by Coca-Cola® Celebrates Nation’s Armed Forces

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (June 27, 2019) – NASCAR Salutes Refreshed by Coca-Cola, (#NASCARSalutes) a continued effort to show appreciation for the United States Armed Forces, concludes with two full weekends of military appreciation at Chicagoland Speedway and Daytona International Speedway, where a NASCAR Xfinity Series windshield header salute to military units and installations will take place during the Circle K Firecracker 250 Powered by Coca-Cola.

“For NASCAR as an industry, it’s a privilege to honor the military men and women who protect our country’s freedom,” said Jill Gregory, NASCAR executive vice president and chief marketing officer. “As we culminate NASCAR Salutes in Chicago and Daytona Beach, we remain humbled by the opportunity to recognize our military community and thank service members for the sacrifices made on our behalf.”

Through the NASCAR Salutes Refreshed by Coca-Cola race weekends, “Future” will be the celebrated theme during the Chicagoland Speedway Camping World 400 race weekend alongside the 10th anniversary of NASCAR Troops to the Track hosted by Coca-Cola, a season-long initiative that pays tribute to the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces by inviting service members from local military installations to a VIP race day experience. At Chicagoland Speedway, NASCAR Official Partners Comcast, Mack Trucks and SiriusXM will provide a behind-the-scenes look at their work in the sport and veteran-hiring efforts, showcasing opportunities within the industry as they consider their future transitions to civilian life.

For the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Chicagoland Speedway, a patriotic red, white and blue Comcast NBCUniversal “Salute to Service” paint scheme will adorn Jeffrey Earnhardt’s No. 81 Xtreme Concepts Racing Toyota Supra and raise awareness of Comcast’s military community hiring efforts. Comcast NBCUniversal is committed to hiring 21,000 military community members – veterans, National Guard and reserve members, and military spouses by the end of 2021.

Camping World, parent company of NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series entitlement partner and sponsor of the Chicagoland Speedway race weekend, provided more than 2,500 tickets to the military community for the race weekend. Additionally, local service members with their families will receive grandstand tickets and access to NASCAR Xfinity Series race day activities on behalf of Comcast.

As part of the NASCAR Salutes Refreshed by Coca-Cola “Patriotism”-themed weekend at Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers will bear the names of active military units and installations on their race car windshields during the Circle K Firecracker 250 Powered by Coca-Cola on July 5 (7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The 3rd Infantry Division, 33rd Fighter Wing, and aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) are among the groups from all five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces that will replace the Xfinity header on NASCAR Xfinity Series race cars for the fourth-consecutive year.

NASCAR Xfinity Series teams were given the opportunity to identify a unit or installation to honor for the Circle K Firecracker 250 Powered by Coca-Cola, while NASCAR worked with Comcast’s Military and Veteran Affairs team to match units with the remaining teams for the tribute. Many teams have connections to the units being honored on their cars, such as Cole Custer’s team, who will honor the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia, where crew chief Mike Shiplett’s family member serves. The Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19 team will honor the 39th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Arkansas National Guard, where driver Brandon Jones’ cousin serves.

New for the NASCAR Salutes Refreshed by Coca-Cola race weekend at Daytona International Speedway is a free Coca-Cola fan element in the midway where a local Publix chef will offer food samples, Coca-Cola products and the opportunity to write a “thank you” message to the military community. A VIP section is available for military members and their families by showing their military ID.

For the 11th consecutive year, Daytona International Speedway will honor two Medal of Honor recipients throughout the race weekend. Honorees include Retired U.S. Army Command Sergeant Major Gary Littrell (Vietnam) and U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Ronald Shurer II (Afghanistan). Retired U.S. Army Colonel Hal Kushner, a Daytona Beach resident who served in Vietnam and was held as a prisoner of war for more than five years, will drive the Honorary Pace Truck for the 61st annual Coke Zero Sugar 400 on Saturday, July 6 at Daytona International Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

In addition, all active, veteran and retired military members and their families will have access a Midway suite within the Daytona facility on Saturday where they can take a break from the busy day of activities to cool off and enjoy complimentary Coca-Cola products and snacks. The suite will be accessible from 3 p.m. through the end of Stage 1 of the Coke Zero Sugar 400. Throughout the day, various special guests will visit the suite and participate in Q&A sessions including Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Bubba Wallace at 4:45 p.m.

Tickets to NASCAR national series events are available at NASCAR.com/tickets.

About NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. (NASCAR) is the sanctioning body for the No. 1 form of motorsports in the United States. NASCAR consists of three national series (Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series™, NASCAR Xfinity Series™, and NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series™), three regional series, one local grassroots series, three international series and the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA). The International Motor Sports Association™ (IMSA®) governs the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship™, the premier U.S. sports car series. Based in Daytona Beach, Fla., with offices in eight cities across North America, NASCAR sanctions more than 1,200 races in more than 30 U.S. states, Canada, Mexico and Europe. For more information visit www.NASCAR.com and www.IMSA.com, and follow NASCAR on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat (‘NASCAR’).

‘The Windy City’ on Deck for Roush Fenway Racing

Roush Fenway Racing heads to the Midwest and the land of deep dish pizza as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) returns to Chicagoland Speedway this weekend for action at the 1.5-mile track. Jack Roush has one win all-time at Chicago with 48 overall top-10 finishes.

Chicagoland Speedway
Sunday, June 30 | 3 p.m. ET
NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90
·         Ryan Newman, No. 6 Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs Ford Mustang
·         Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Overall, Roush Fenway has started 133 races at Chicago, earning a total of one win, 24 top-five and 48 top-10 finishes, four poles and 1,111 laps led across the MENCS, NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Gander Outdoor Truck Series (NGOTS).

The Breakfast Club

Roush Fenway has started 71 MENCS races at Chicago, recording six top-five finishes, 17 top-10 finishes, an average finish of 18.4 and has led 528 laps.

Uncle Buck

Roush Fenway has finished in the second position on three separate occasions in the Windy City with former drivers Matt Kenseth (2005 and 2007) and Carl Edwards (2010).

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. earned Roush Fenway’s first victory at Chicago in the Sept. 2012 NASCAR Xfinity Series event after starting from the third position and leading 22 laps. The victory, Stenhouse’s fifth of the 2012 season, helped catapult the Roush Fenway driver to his second consecutive Xfinity Series championship.

Where They Rank

Coming off the first road course race of the season at Sonoma, Ryan Newman remains in the playoff picture, now 16th ahead of Jimmie Johnson (-1) and Erik Jones (-5). With just 10 races remaining until the playoffs begin, just 17 points separate Newman from 15th as the playoff battle heats up. Teammate Ricky Stenhouse Jr., checks in 20th.

Roush Fenway Chicago Wins

2012-2   Stenhouse          NXS

By the Numbers at Chicagoland Speedway

Race      Win       T5           T10         Pole       Laps       Led        AvSt      AvFn     Miles

71           0              6              17           1              18311    528         18.3        18.4        27466.5

61           1              17           30           3              11706    583         13.0        13.0        17559

1              0              1              1              0              150         0              10.0        3.0          225

133         1              24           48           4              30167    1111       15.8        15.8        45250.5

Denny Hamlin
#11 FedEx Express Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing

Race Info:
Race: Camping World 400
Date/Time: June 30/3:00 p.m. ET
Distance: 267 laps/400 miles
Track Length: 1.5 miles
Track Shape: Oval
Chicagoland 2018 Winner: Kyle Busch

Express Notes:

Sonoma Recap: Extra twists and turns added to the Sonoma Raceway road course didn’t stop Denny Hamlin from earning his seventh top-five finish and his second stage win of the 2019 season. Hamlin finished fifth Sunday after climbing back from outside the top 15 three times. The No. 11 FedEx Ground Toyota started sixth for the 90-lap race at the 12-turn, 2.52-mile course. The circuit included the sweeping downhill corner called “The Carousel” for the first time for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series since 1997. The team’s strategy had them pitting later than most of the leaders and caused Hamlin to have to charge back through the field three times without the help of any cautions. But the strategy also led to a stage win, with Hamlin taking the green-and-white checkered flag to end Stage 2.

Darlington Reveal: On Friday, June 21, Denny Hamlin unveiled his paint scheme for Darlington Throwback weekend, honoring NASCAR legend Darrell Waltrip. This unveil was timed during Waltrip’s last race as a FOX broadcaster, with the paint scheme scheduled to take to the track at Darlington in September. FedEx offered Hamlin the opportunity to design his own throwback scheme in appreciation for his Daytona 500 win in February. Hamlin had originally chosen two Waltrip paint schemes that were voted on by JGR employees, who ultimately decided to go with the Western Auto replica scheme honoring DW’s final win at Darlington in 1992.

Chicagoland Preview: The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will be returning to oval racing next weekend with a 400-mile event at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday, June 30. With another top-five finish at Sonoma, moving up to sixth in the Cup Series standings, Hamlin and team will be seeking Denny’s second-career win at Chicagoland Speedway and the team’s third win of the 2019 season.

Hamlin Chicagoland Statistics:

Track: Chicagoland Speedway

Races: 13

Wins: 1 (2015)

Poles: 0

Top-5: 3

Top-10: 7

Laps Led: 13

Avg. Start: 15.4

Avg. Finish 14.5

Hamlin Conversation:

Your team is back up to sixth; what must remain consistent for your team to continue moving up in the standings?

“We had a really fast car in Sonoma, and I drove it as hard as I could. It felt good to be back in the top-five, and it’s always good to hear that we’ve moved back up in the standings. Every race is a new opportunity to win and get more points, and we look forward to that challenge week-in and week-out.”

How is your team preparing for the return to an oval track at Chicagoland Speedway?

“We’ve had some success on oval tracks this year, with our wins at Daytona and Texas. But, each week is a different challenge and we have to be prepared for any unexpected obstacles that come our way.”

FedEx Knoxville, TN Location Along for the Ride at Chicagoland Speedway: For the Camping World 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, the FedEx #11 will feature the letters TYSR on its B-Post to recognize team members for excelling in metrics that earned the location an Ace Audit from the Air Operations Division (AOD) audit group.

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
CAMPING WORLD 400
CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY
JOLIET, ILLINOIS
JUNE 30, 2019

BOWTIE BULLETS:
LARSON CONSISTENT AT CHICAGOLAND:
Kyle Larson, coming off a pole start and 10th-place finish on the Sonoma Raceway road course, leads active Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers with an average finish of 7.0 at Chicagoland Speedway. Larson, driver of the No. 42 McDonald’s Camaro ZL1, has three top-five and four top-10 finishes — with a best of second on July 1, 2018 — in five career starts.

CHEVY LEADS THE WAY IN WINNER CIRCLE VISITS:
Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with eight MENCS victories at Chicagoland Speedway. Chevrolet has powered five different drivers, paced by Tony Stewart’s wins in 2004, ’07 and ’11, to Victory Circle. Chevrolet won the inaugural MENCS race at the 1.5-mile oval in 2001. Six other times in MENCS history has Chevrolet won the inaugural race at one of the tracks currently on the schedule (Auto Club Speedway – ’97; Charlotte Motor Speedway – ’60; Daytona International Speedway – ’59; Indianapolis Motor Speedway – ’94; Kansas Speedway – ’01 and Watkins Glen International – ’57).

JOHNSON A FAST STARTER, FASTER CLOSER:
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1, leads active MENCS drivers with two pole starts at the 1.5-mile Chicagoland Speedway oval (2005, ’12). Overall, the seven-time MENCS champion has 26 poles and 227 top-10 starts in 420 races on superspeedways, which is almost as impressive as his 63 wins and 252 top-10 finishes. Johnson is a three-time runner-up at Chicagoland Speedway.

TUNE-IN:
NBCSN will telecast the Camping World 400 live at 3 p.m. ET Sunday, June 30. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

LEADERS OF THE PACK:
Tyler Reddick, a three-time winner in the No. 2 KCMG Chevrolet Camaro SS, leads the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship standings entering the June 29 race at Chicagoland Speedway (3:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN). Stewart Friesen, driver of the No. 52 Chevrolet Silverado, is second in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series standings entering the June 28 race at Chicagoland Speedway (9 p.m. ET, FS1).

BY THE NUMBERS:
* Johnson leads active MENCS drivers with 695 laps led at Chicagoland Speedway.
* Kurt Busch, No. 1 Global Poker Camaro ZL1, is tied for the most starts at Chicagoland Speedway with 18.
* A Chevrolet driver has sat on the pole at Chicagoland Speedway seven times.
* Chevrolet has won 39 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer Championships.
* Team Chevy drivers have scored 780 wins and 708 poles in MENCS competition.
QUOTABLE QUOTES:

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 – 7th IN STANDINGS:
What makes Chicago different from other mile-and-half tracks?
“The age of the surface is the fun part about it. The last couple times we’ve been there we’ve been able to move around and stuff, which is cool. I hope that with this package we are still able to do that and I think if so, it will be a fun race.”

KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 GLOBAL POKER CAMARO ZL1 – 8th IN STANDINGS:
“I’m looking forward to Chicago, the worn-out asphalt, and trying to figure out where the best line will be. With this new package, it has allowed us to move around the racetrack and find the optimum grip level. So, we don’t know yet if it’s going to be a low, middle or high groove that will play out with the best lap times. Hopefully our car will navigate traffic well and we can continue to build the momentum from a solid run we had at Michigan a couple of weeks ago.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 – 10th IN STANDINGS:
Bowman’s thoughts on Chicago:
“Last year this No. 88 team brought a great car to the track. We unloaded pretty good and were really fast right off the truck. We missed it a little bit there for the race, but still got a nice top-10 out of the day. The last two 1.5-mile tracks that we have gone to this season, we have done the same thing. We unload pretty good and the guys just continue to make great changes throughout the weekend.”
Bowman on Comparing Chicago to Kansas:
“Chicago and Kansas are both really similar, but they drive extremely different. Chicago is kind of bumpy compared to Kansas. They would be a lot similar if they paved the track.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 – 14th IN STANDINGS:
“Chicago is really rough and probably the closest to Atlanta (Motor Speedway) of the tracks we have raced at so far this year. I’m excited to see where we are now to where we were earlier in the year with this being a low-grip track. It’s always hot there so we can count on that. The name of the game is always trying to stay hydrated for this type of race. With tire wear being a factor, we need to manage aggression level as well. With the way the car slides around there, you really have to manhandle the car. It’s more about managing your car and not putting yourself in a bad spot. I feel like it’s going to be a really interesting show there this weekend.”

CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 MAXWELL HOUSE – USO CAMARO ZL1 – 21st IN STANDINGS:
“I’m looking forward to getting to Chicagoland Speedway this weekend. The 1.5-mile program at JTG Daugherty Racing has really seemed to take off this season. Chicagoland is really similar to Kansas Speedway, a track where we scored a top-10 finish earlier this season. We’re also honoring a special guest of Maxwell House and The USO this weekend on our Maxwell House Camaro ZL1, and I really want to be able to get a good finish as a small token of appreciation for all they do for us, and our freedom. I’m honored to have MSgt. Craig Thurman and his family at the track this weekend.”

RYAN PREECE, NO. 47 KROGER CAMARO ZL1 – 26th IN STANDINGS:
“I’m ready to head to Chicagoland Speedway and see what we can do in our Kroger Camaro ZL1 this weekend. The past several weekends have not gone the way we would have hoped, but we are not giving up and we keep working hard each week to continue to improve. Every week we are adding to our notebook, and I think once we start heading back to tracks we have already raced on this season, we’ll be able to see that improvement. While we haven’t raced at Chicagoland Speedway yet this season, it’s very similar to other 1.5-mile tracks that we’ve raced on, and I feel like we have some good things that we can bring and begin to turn our season around.”

Chevrolet Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Statistics

Manufacturers Championships:
Total (1949-2018): 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 (1949-2018): 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)

2019 STATISTICS:
Wins: 1
Poles: 9
Laps Led: 1,021
Top-five finishes: 17
Top-10 finishes: 48

CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:
Total Chevrolet race wins: 780 (1949 to date)
Poles won to date: 708
Laps led to date: 233,276
Top-five finishes to date: 3,986
Top-10 finishes to date: 8,220

Total NASCAR Cup wins by corporation, 1949 to date

GM: 1,114
Chevrolet: 780
Pontiac: 155
Oldsmobile: 115
Buick: 65

Ford: 782
Ford: 682
Mercury: 96
Lincoln: 4

Chrysler: 466
Dodge: 217
Plymouth: 190
Chrysler: 59

Toyota: 132

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.

CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY (1.5-MILE OVAL)
LOCATION: JOLIET, ILLINOIS
EVENT: NASCAR CUP SERIES (RACE 17 OF 36)
TUNE IN: 3 P.M. ET, SUNDAY, JUNE 30 (NBCSN/MRN/SIRIUSXM)

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Chase Elliott
No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Chase Elliott Hometown Dawsonville, Georgia
Age 23 Resides Dawsonville, Georgia

2019 Season
7th in standings
16 starts
1 win
2 pole positions
6 top-five finishes
7 top-10 finishes
406 laps led

Career
129 starts
4 wins
6 pole positions
39 top-five finishes
66 top-10 finishes
1,649 laps led

Track Career
3 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
2 top-five finishes
2 top-10 finishes
117 laps led

Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, will be available to the media on Saturday, June 29, at 12 p.m. local time in the media center at Chicagoland Speedway.

CHICAGOLAND STATS: This weekend, Chase Elliott will make his fourth NASCAR Cup Series start at Chicagoland Speedway. In his previous three starts, he has garnered two top-five finishes and averaged a starting position of 8.3 and finishing position of 8.0. Elliott has led a total of 117 laps at the venue, ranking him third to teammate Jimmie Johnson (695 laps) for most laps led without a win at the track. Chicagoland is one of seven venues on the Cup circuit where the Dawsonville, Georgia, native has led at least 100 laps (117). He also has five NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at the track, collecting a win in his first start at the speedway in July 2014. The driver has finished in the top-15 positions in each of his Xfinity starts to earn an average finishing position of 9.8 along with an average starting position of 7.8.

GUSTAFSON AT CHICAGOLAND: The No. 9 team crew chief Alan Gustafson will call his 15th Cup Series race at Chicagoland Speedway from atop the pit box this weekend. In his previous 14 races calling the shots for five different drivers (Elliott, Kyle Busch, Casey Mears, Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon) at the Joliet, Illinois, track, Gustafson has collected five top-five finishes – including a win in 2009 with Martin and two runner-up results – and 403 laps led. In Gustafson’s previous six races at the track with Elliott and Gordon, he averages a starting position of 8.2 and finishing position of 7.7 and has accumulated 206 laps led.

1.5-MILE TRACK STATS: Elliott will make his 40th start on a 1.5-mile track this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. At 1.5-mile tracks, the driver has led 412 laps and averaged a starting position of 14.1 and finishing position of 13.2. So far this season, Elliott has earned the second-highest amount of points (185) on 1.5-mile tracks. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native scored his first 1.5-mile track win last October at Kansas Speedway. Along with that win, Elliott has collected 13 top-five finishes – two of which are runner-up results – and 22 top-10s on 1.5-mile tracks.

LAST SEVEN: The driver of the No. 9 Chevy currently holds the longest active streak in the Cup Series by leading laps in seven straight races. He has collected top-five finishes (Talladega – first; Dover – fifth; Kansas – fourth; Charlotte – fourth; Pocono – fourth) in five of the seven events. Elliott ranks second – tied with teammate Alex Bowman – for the most top-10 finishes (five) in the last seven races. Kyle Busch leads the rankings with six.

RED, WHITE AND BATTERIES: On Tuesday afternoon, Elliott’s patriotic scheme for the Fourth of July weekend at Daytona International Speedway was revealed. The No. 9 NAPA Batteries Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 will promote Military Month. During the month of July, a portion of the proceeds from select products will go to the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund.

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William Byron
No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver William Byron Hometown Charlotte, North Carolina
Age 21 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina

2019 Season
14th in standings
16 starts
0 wins
3 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
4 top-10 finishes
171 laps led

Career
52 starts
0 wins
3 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
8 top-10 finishes
232 laps led

Track Career
1 start
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
0 top-10 finishes
0 laps led

SPEED IN SONOMA: Making his second career NASCAR Cup Series start at Sonoma Raceway this past Sunday, William Byron kicked off the weekend by qualifying a track-best second. When the green flag dropped for Sunday’s 90-lap race, Byron immediately took over the top spot and raced out to a substantial lead. With the No. 24 Hertz Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 pacing the field for the first 21 laps, Byron picked up his first stage win of his Cup career as well as a valuable playoff point. From there, the No. 24 team played pit strategy to maximize their points accumulated, capturing a top-three finish in Stage 2. However, in the closing laps, the handling of Byron’s Hertz Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 went away, swinging to the tight side, resulting in a 19th-place finish.

BYRON TO THE FRONT OF THE STAGE: Byron’s front-row qualifying effort last weekend at Sonoma Raceway added to his impressive sophomore season run. The driver is tied for the most poles in 2019 with three but now leads all drivers this season with seven front-row starts. In fact, Byron has started within the top three positions in five of the last six races. He has led laps in the last six races, as well, which ranks him second to teammate Chase Elliott, who holds the longest active streak with seven. Byron has finished inside the top 10 in seven of the last eight stages, including his first stage win at Sonoma, and has gained 44 points on the current playoff bubble, putting him 14th in the point standings with 10 races left in the regular season.

LIBERTY RETURNS: Making its return this weekend, Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet will sport the Liberty University colors for Sunday’s race at Chicagoland Speedway. Returning as a primary sponsor of the No. 24 team in 2019 for 12 races, Liberty University has a long history with Byron starting back in 2014 in the late model ranks and is in its fifth season of sponsoring the 21-year-old driver. Liberty University has been Training Champions for Christ since it was founded in 1971. Located in the mountains of Central Virginia, Liberty is a liberal arts institution with 17 colleges and schools that offer more than 600 degree programs from the certificate to doctoral level, on campus and online. Working on an undergraduate degree in business communication, Byron is now in his junior year at Liberty University through its online program, and he started his online classes on June 24.

CHICAGO CREDENTIALS: Making the trip to the Windy City for this weekend’s race, Byron will make his second career Cup Series start at Chicagoland Speedway. Currently, the sophomore driver has made one start at the 1.5-mile oval in each of NASCAR’s top three national series. In all three races, Byron has shown speed, qualifying in the top 10 each time, with his best effort of eighth coming in the Cup and Xfinity Series. However, various issues have hindered the young driver’s finishes. Last year, a tight-handling Chevy resulted in a 20th-place finish in the Cup race, while transmission issues in the 2017 Xfinity race relegated him to a 33rd-place result. In his Chicagoland debut in 2016, an on-track incident early on during the Truck Series race ended his day in the 30th position.

HEADING HOME: This weekend, No. 24 team crew chief Chad Knaus will have extra motivation when he climbs on top of the pit box for Sunday’s race. The veteran crew chief hails from Rockford, Illinois, which is approximately 111 miles away from the Chicago-based track. Before cutting his teeth in NASCAR, Knaus was the crew chief for his dad at nearby Rockford Speedway, where they won multiple track championships together. However, in 17 Cup races at the 1.5-mile oval, Knaus has yet to capture a win at his hometown track. Coming close on multiple occasions, Knaus has three runner-up finishes as well as seven top five finishes and 11 top-10s. Chicagoland Speedway is one of four tracks left on the Cup Series schedule where Knaus has yet to visit Victory Lane.

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Jimmie Johnson
No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Jimmie Johnson Hometown El Cajon, California
Age 43 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina

2019 Season
17th in standings
16 starts
0 wins
1 pole position
1 top-five finish
6 top-10 finishes
68 laps led

Career
631 starts
83 wins
36 pole positions
225 top-five finishes
358 top-10 finishes
18,771 laps led

Track Career
17 starts
0 wins
2 pole positions
7 top-five finishes
11 top-10 finishes
695 laps led

1.5-MILE FINISHES IN 2019: Since the beginning of the 2019 season, Jimmie Johnson, crew chief Kevin Meendering and the No. 48 team have made some gains on 1.5-mile tracks. They recorded a 24th-place finish at Atlanta and a 19th-place finish at Las Vegas, but shortly after came a pole and fifth-place result at Texas Motor Speedway and a sixth-place finish at Kansas Speedway. Johnson then finished eighth at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. His three straight top-10 finishes at 1.5-mile tracks is the longest active streak in the Cup Series.

SO CLOSE AT CHICAGO: The 695 laps Johnson has the led around Chicagoland Speedway are the most all-time of any driver in NASCAR Cup Series history at the venue. Johnson has also won two pole positions, the most of any driver at the track, but has yet to find Victory Lane. Three of Johnson’s seven top-five finishes at Chicagoland have been runner-up results – the closest was July 12, 2008, when he was edged out by competitor Kyle Busch in a wild finish where the margin of victory was a mere 0.159 seconds. His most recent runner-up finish at the track came in 2012 when he started from the pole position and led 172 laps.

ONE OF FOUR: Chicagoland is one of just four tracks on the Cup Series circuit where Johnson has not scored one of his 83 career wins. The other tracks are Watkins Glen, Kentucky and the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course.

LONE XFINITY WIN: Though a Cup Series win has eluded Johnson so far at Chicagoland, he did record his only win in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in the inaugural event at the 1.5-mile track in 2001.

CHICAGOLAND TIES: Adam Wall, an engineer on the No. 48 team, is a native of Teutopolis, Illinois, but moved to North Carolina after high school and went to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to pursue his NASCAR engineering dreams. Tanner Andrews, front-tire changer for the No. 48 team, hails from North Aurora, Illinois, and graduated from Northern Michigan University with a degree in criminal justice. He was a four-year Greco-Roman wrestling standout and trained at the United States Olympic Education Center. Andrews was recognized as one of two recipients of the 2012 Jacob Curby Memorial Award, which is presented annually to a wrestler from each of USA Wrestling’s Olympic Training Centers for displaying strong personal character and commitment. He was a 2011 University Nationals champion at 70 kilograms and also won a bronze medal at the 2011 Dave Schultz Memorial International Championship. Andrews wrestled at the U.S. Open four times and placed fourth in his final tournament.

SONOMA RECAP: Johnson and the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet team had a strong car for 20-lap runs at Sonoma, but the last run of the day was 28 laps. Johnson’s car became so tight he lost the grip on the front tires and slid from fifth to 12th in the closing eight laps, just missing a top-10 finish.

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Alex Bowman
No. 88 Axalta Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Driver Alex Bowman Hometown Tucson, Arizona
Age 26 Resides Charlotte, North Carolina

2019 Season
10th in standings
16 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
3 top-five finishes
5 top-10 finishes
94 laps led

Career
133 starts
0 wins
2 pole positions
6 top-five finishes
19 top-10 finishes
368 laps led

Track Career
4 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
0 top-five finishes
2 top-10 finishes
6 laps led

AXALTA ON BOARD: This weekend marks the seventh of 12 events in which the Axalta colors will adorn Alex Bowman’s No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Last year, Hendrick Motorsports announced that Axalta signed a four-year contract extension that will take the partnership through 2022. The leading global supplier of liquid and powder coatings unveiled a new Axalta Racing website last year that includes plenty of behind-the-scenes content, photos, and videos. Check out Bowman’s page here.

BOWMAN IN CHICAGO: Bowman is set to make his fifth start at Chicagoland Speedway this Sunday. The Tucson, Arizona, native has two top-10 finishes at the 1.5-mile track. In 2016, Bowman piloted the No. 88 machine to six laps led after qualifying 17th. In his last appearance at the track, the driver had a qualifying position of 15th and took the checkered flag in 10th to earn his second top-10 finish at the Illinois venue. The 26-year-old driver has made three starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the track, earning an average start of 13.0 and an average finish of 19.7. Back in 2012, the driver made his first and only start in the ARCA Series at Chicagoland, finishing eighth after 100 laps.

1.5-MILE STATS: On 1.5-mile tracks this season, Bowman has two top-10 finishes and four top-15s. The driver of the No. 88 Chevy finished in the runner-up position at Kansas last month and finished seventh at Charlotte. The No. 88 team has an average finish of 10.6 and an average start of 13.8 on the track length so far this season.

TRENDING TOWARD TOP-10s: In his 133 starts in the NASCAR Cup Series, Bowman has 19 top-10 finishes. The 26-year-old has three top-10s at Kansas and two top-10 finishes at Bristol Motor Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Chicagoland and Talladega. The driver is tied for the second-longest active streak of top-10 finishes on 1.5-mile tracks with two.

IVES STATS: No. 88 team crew chief Greg Ives has called the shots four times at Chicagoland Speedway for Hendrick Motorsports. The Michigan native has two top-10 results at the track. Ives’ drivers have completed 99.9 percent of the total laps run during those four events.

PITCH TO WIN BIG: Small Business Week ran from May 5-11 and recognized small businesses everywhere. Nationwide and BlueVine are teaming up to give away up to $100,000 to one small business to help it grow. Until June 30, small-business owners can visit www.pitchtowinbig.com to enter for a chance to win funds to achieve their business goals. Nationwide and BlueVine will select the contest finalists, who will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Nationwide’s headquarters in Columbus, Ohio, to pitch business leaders during a live “Pitch to Win” event. The winning pitch will win the $100,000 prize, with second place receiving $20,000 and third place taking home $10,000.

EYES SET FOR THE GLEN: On Monday, June 17, Hendrick Motorsports partner Axalta Coating Systems, along with Bowman, announced a joint branding initiative with CARSTAR for the upcoming race at Watkins Glen International on Aug. 4. CARSTAR is North America’s premier network of independently owned and operated collision repair facilities. The CARSTAR logo will be featured on the television panel and roof of the No. 88 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at Watkins Glen. In addition to the branding on the car, Bowman will also wear a special helmet designed through the “Accelerate the Cure” contest. Those affected by cystic fibrosis can design a helmet for Bowman in order to raise awareness for the disease. Those interested can visit the “Accelerate the Cure” website to submit an entry. The deadline to submit is July 5.

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Hendrick Motorsports

HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS AT CHICAGO: At Chicagoland Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports has two wins, four pole positions, 22 top-five finishes, and 34 top-10s. Mark Martin most recently visited Victory Lane for the organization at the track in 2009. Hendrick Motorsports has led laps in 17 of the 18 races run at Chicagoland and had at least one car finish in the top 10 in all but two of the 18 races.

PLAYOFF POSITIONING: Hendrick Motorsports has three drivers currently in playoff position, with Jimmie Johnson on the bubble ranked 17th, just one point behind the 16th-place driver. At the moment, positions 15 through 18 are separated by just 22 points while 16 through 18 are separated by five points.

ORGANIZATION STATS: To date, Hendrick Motorsports has a total of 12 championships, 253 race victories, 221 pole positions, 1,055 top-five finishes and 1,809 top-10s in points-paying NASCAR Cup Series competition. Its teams have led more than 68,400 laps since 1984.

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QUOTABLE /
Chase Elliott on what makes Chicagoland different from other 1.5-mile tracks:
“The age of the surface is the fun part about it. The last couple times we’ve been there we’ve been able to move around and stuff, which is cool. I hope that with this package we are still able to do that and I think if so, it will be a fun race.”

William Byron on Chicagoland:
“Chicago is really rough and probably the closest to Atlanta of the tracks we have raced at so far this year. I’m excited to see where we are now to where we were earlier in the year with this being a low-grip track. It’s always hot there, so we can count on that. The name of the game is always trying to stay hydrated for this type of race. With tire wear being a factor, we need to manage aggression level as well. With the way the car slides around there, you really have to manhandle the car. It’s more about managing your car and not putting yourself in a bad spot. I feel like it’s going to be a really interesting show there this weekend.”

Jimmie Johnson on 1.5-mile track performance:
“I know the finish last week didn’t show it, we did have way stronger car than the finish showed. Our 1.5-mile track performances have really improved over the last few races and I am excited to see how we have built on that for this weekend. Chicago is a race that we have shown so much strength in the past and just never have been able to finish the job. It’s been so frustrating to have led so many laps and just been so close and not taken the checkers.”

Alex Bowman on Chicago:
“Last year this No. 88 team brought a great car to the track. We unloaded pretty good and was really fast right off the truck. We missed it a little bit there for the race, but still got a nice top-10 out of the day. The last two 1.5-mile tracks that we have gone to this season, we have done the same thing. We unload pretty good and the guys just continue to make great changes throughout the weekend.”

Bowman on comparing Chicago to Kansas:
“Chicago and Kansas are both really similar, but they drive extremely different. Chicago is kind of bumpy compared to Kansas. They would be a lot similar if they paved the track.”