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Featured interviews from SpeedwayMedia.com

  • Interview-First Seasons: Mario Andretti

    Interview-First Seasons: Mario Andretti

    In a continuation of the column “First Seasons” that highlights the early years of a driver’s career, Speedway Media caught up with racing legend Mario Andretti. During this interview, Andretti discusses his early USAC Champ Car days, his first race as a USAC driver, his first Indy 500, and if he would do anything differently all these years later.

    SM: You broke into the sport driving for the USAC Champ Car Series. Was that a dream come true for you?

    MA: “Oh absolutely, Andretti said. “That was my objective since I started in 1959 to reach the top level in getting to USAC. You know before getting to USAC, you’re going to be driving against big names in racing. You would be racing against A.J. Foyt, Roger McCluskey, Parnelli Jones just to name a few. The bottom line is, I am going through the ranks. I started my own car. I was driving TQ Midget Racing, URC (United Racing Club), ARDC Midget Racing (midgets in the east). In ARDC, I felt like I was up against the best midget drivers ever in that era. But in a way, you’re almost never satisfied until you reach the top level. It’s kind of like a University.”

    “For me, it was pivotal for finally getting a chance in USAC. When I was first offered a ride, they weren’t winning rides, but I think I showed I belonged there. You always have an angel somewhere. I remember one of the chief mechanics in Champ Car, Joe Langley in Indianapolis. I had never met the guy, but for some reason, he was saying really nice things about me. The word started going around about me and that’s how I landed a ride with Rufus Gray. That was the ultimate blessing for me. The previous driver had left to go race elsewhere. It was not the latest chassis, but at the same time, it was a good car and the engines were great. Rufus was a great guy. He gave me everything I could want.”

    “In addition, I finally won the 100-lapper at Salem toward the end of ’64. It was a great feeling because of who I was up against. That ultimately solidified my ride with Clint Brawner. I am forever grateful for those people who believed in me and that kicked start my full season in 1965.”

    SM: With that, you raced with a lot of legendary racers that year. Jim Clark, Al Unser, A.J. Foyt, and the list goes on and on. Did you feel at all intimidated racing against those names knowing what they are today?

    MA: “Well you know, these were the guys that were setting the standards,” he said. “They were just a little bit ahead of me. Big Al (Unser Sr) was a rookie like me. But A.J. was five years ahead of me, was totally established. And of course, you had guys like McCluskey and Jones. They were bigger than life at the time. I figured that if I could measure up against this type of talent, it could give me the confidence and the feeling that I belong.”

    “I had a regular job that was flexible and the owner of the company, we were building golf carts. The owner of the company understood my passion for racing and he allowed me to leave early to go race. In ’64, I told him I am taking a full month off because there were three Sprint Cars races during May and I wanted to be at Indy. He said, ‘Well Mario go ahead, but I can’t guarantee I can hold your job. I said, ‘that’s fair enough.’ So of course, I never went back. My objective was to be a 100 percent race driver and not have to worry about anything else. My wife was very quiet, but a supporter of everything I did.”

    SM: During those initial years, you were driving for different owners. Was that ever a challenge for you?

    MA: “I had no choice,” Andretti said. “I did everything I could. You take your best shot at what is available. Certainly, it wasn’t a top ride that you would hope for, but people in the know they can see if you’re doing a good job with what you have. That’s what I had to demonstrate. You can’t perform miracles. When the experts see, let’s see if we can put him in a car that has good quality. I think in some of those rides, the owners gave me the best they could. It was limited, but still did a decent job. It was just a matter of stepping stone to stepping stone.”

    “I think the only season I drove a full-season was in ’64. In a couple of years, I was venturing on to different Motorsports like Sports Cars. I look back at my career and there were some important things that had to happen to propel me to the next level. Once I reached the USAC level, I thought well, this is my home. I better perform to my standards.”

    SM: Your first race that season was at Trenton. Was it everything you expected as a driver?

    MA: “There no preparation at all,” he said about preparing for that race. “It was only mental. I didn’t have the luxury of having a test. Doug (Stearly, Mario’s First Owner) was a great guy. He was watching me in Midgets. He was another guy who believed in me and he offered me a ride at Trenton. It was a small team and there was no testing.”

    “I arrived there on race day. Back in those days, it was a one-day show. You didn’t have a practice session the day before. It was practice in the morning, qualify later, and then eventually, the race. The guy who had driven that car before me was Troy Ruttman, who was twice the size as me physically. I had to ask him to do some padding on the seat, so I can get a feel of the car and didn’t have a lot of time to do a good job. The seat was foam rubber and I needed something more solid. I had no feel for the car and I was concerned about that.”

    “You know, I have to tell you this story. I was watching someone in practice because I had never run Trenton before. In a Champ Car, I wasn’t used to that type of speed. I was watching people backing off in Turn 1, so I could regulate myself. I told my brother, ‘go on the back straight before Turn 3.’ There was a big tree there on the left side. I said, somewhere along the line, ‘stand there where some of the top guys are backing off, so I can judge myself.’ He went down another 20-yard deeper and so I go out there, and I was already too deep (going into the turn). I ended up spinning and luckily I did not hit anything. Later on I told him, ‘What were you doing to me?’ He said, ‘Well you wanted to go fast.’ I questioned him and said, ‘Are you trying to kill me?’

    “But for the race, I think it was a respectable performance. I think I finished 11th in my first race as a roadster like that. I was obviously happy with that. In those days, you didn’t get a Champ Car license. I got a huge chewing out by the race director and he said, ‘Kid if you do that one more time, you’re out.’

    SM: In 1965, you made your first Indy 500 start. Talk about that race and what you remember to this day?

    MA: “Well going into that first 500, I didn’t have any experience in a rear engine car,” Andretti said. “Up to that point, the only experience I had was driving a roadster. When we arrived at Indy, the car was late. I didn’t get a chance to drive at all during the first week of practice. The final day you could take a drivers test was Wednesday. My car didn’t arrive until Tuesday, the day before. I was chomping at the bit to get in there, as I had no idea what to expect.”

    “For the grace of God, I was pretty good right out of the box. I took the drivers test that Wednesday and I finished it in good shape. I remember one of my crewmen told me, ‘Okay, tomorrow (Thursday of that week) we’ll see how fast it goes.’ I told them, ‘I would really like to get a crack at this before 6 p.m.’ So, I went out and I had the third quick time of the day. After that, I was sleeping a lot better. Before that point, I had a lot of sleepless nights as you can imagine. I had never ever sat in a rear engine car before that. Our team did a phenomenal job on the car. It was a blessing for me, because that gave me Rookie of the Year.”

    “During the race, we were very conservative. Everybody was using 20-30% nitro, while in qualifying we were using straight gasoline. We ran straight gasoline in the race. We still finished third. And afterward, to go win my first national championship in my rookie season was huge. I had only won one road race that season, which occurred at Indianapolis Raceway Park.”

    SM: Would you say, that was a fond memory that you still remember to this day?

    MA: Oh my gosh, definitely,” he said. “I mean think about it. Did I expect to win the championship over the competition that I was facing in my very first full season? No way. That did wonders for my career. After that, I drove everything from NASCAR to Sports Cars. I wanted to spread my wings and I was ambitious.”

    SM: it’s hard to believe that it’s been 56 years since your first season. What would an 80-year old Mario Andretti tell a 24-year old Mario Andretti if you had the chance to time travel? Would you do anything differently?

    MA: “Not really,” Andretti said. “At the same time, I made some mistakes. When I look back, what I know now if I had the opportunity to revisit, you’re damn right I would do it better. Realistically, do I have any regrets? Hell no. Those mistakes taught me. Every mistake teaches you a lesson unless you’re some kind of a dumb-dumb. There were mistakes I made and there were definitely some races, I wish I can have back. Not a lot of them, but there are some. That’s the only thing I would probably do differently. However, the rest of it, I look at it on how blessed I was at the opportunities I had. I was a young lad and you had to be there, and race when that opportunity came up.”

  • Interview – First Seasons: Tony Stewart

    Interview – First Seasons: Tony Stewart

    In this week’s interview highlighting driver’s first seasons, we caught up with NASCAR Hall of Famer, Tony Stewart. The Stewart-Haas Racing co-owner and former IndyCar Champion discussed his early IndyCar days that occurred in the 1996 – 1997 seasons.

    You entered the IndyCar Series in 1996-97 at the age of 25 for your first full season. What was it like entering the series when it was still young and getting the opportunity to drive for John Menard? Was it a dream come true for you?”

    TS: “Yeah, absolutely,” Stewart said. “I didn’t really know much about John (Menard) at the time. However, on January 2nd of 1996, I got home from Australia and had been racing over there during the winter. I went to bed at 4 in the afternoon because of the time change but got woken up by a phone call a couple of hours later and Terry Dolan (former Chevrolet Director, Motorsports Marketing and Activation) told me I needed to get on the first flight I could to go to Orlando the next morning.”

    “I said, ‘Terry, I just got home from Australia’ and he says, ‘I know but we’re going to go down and test an IndyCar for Team Menard Racing.’ I said, ‘you’ve got to be kidding me.’ So, I dumped out the dirty clothes, piled up a few clean clothes I had left and went down for the test session for three days.”

    “There was interest before I went to Australia because I had talked to A.J. Foyt and had done a test with him at Phoenix. But, I’d been working with the Laniers’ on the NASCAR side. They were fine with letting me run both (NASCAR and IndyCar), but Foyt wasn’t. I had to turn away the opportunity of working with my hero. To get to go down there (Orlando) and test was really cool.”

    Do you recall meeting John? If so, when did it happen?

    TS: “I didn’t even get to meet John (Menard, Team Owner) until the day of the race,” he said. “John wasn’t at the test, because he was running his business. I had met part of the team down there (during the test). To go down there for the race, I was totally a duck out of water and had never done anything except for the IndyCar stuff. I had no idea what the procedures were, so I had no clue what was going on. It was extremely overwhelming that whole weekend, you know, just meeting John, the team. We were really just a two-car operation and I was the third car. The guy who called the race for me was the parts manager. At the same time, it was a fun weekend. It was new for everybody and it was the first IRL (Indy Racing League) race for everyone.”

    Disney was a strong run for you by finishing second right out of the gate. Is there anything you recall about that first race?

    TS: “What I remember about it was practice seemed pretty sanitary,” Stewart said. “When you ran around there, it was kind of like testing for the most part. It was definitely warmer when we went back for the race. During the race, it didn’t take long to realize everyone was extremely loose. Looking back, I had a tough time getting off Turn 1 there because I was loose, and the pace had slowed down so much that when you were off the gas, and when that turbocharger kicked in, you had too much horsepower than what you were asking for. It was easy to shake the back of the car and I just remember how many times that happened. When you did that, it caught my attention during the race.”

    “It was so bad that my teammate (Scott Brayton), that he just parked it. He told me, I could not drive it anymore when I talked to him after the race. But as far as driving in the race, Turns 2 and 3 were pretty sane. However, the exit of Turn 1 was the slowest corner on entry. I remember that I just had a lack of knowledge about those cars and I think had I kept the turbo at a pace, it would have helped tremendously.”

    A few weeks later, you made your first start at the Indianapolis 500. What did it mean to you to make your first start with you being from the state?

    TS: “It was like being in heaven,” Stewart said. “Not because of the talk around us, but we did quite a bit of testing before we got to the Month of May. I remember the first day we tested, there were snow flurries and I questioned if it was safe to be out here. And the officials said, yeah, as long as it’s not getting the track wet.”

    “But, I remember we tried breaking rookie orientation in the least amount of laps, I still think we ended up doing that. During orientation, we ran a 237 mph average lap in practice, which was way over the track record at the time. Pretty much from that moment on, the media was following us for the entire month because of that.”

    Kind of take us through what it was like being in the garage area, on the grid, and the pace laps before the green flag. Was that overwhelming for you at all?

    TS: “The amount of people on race day for sure (overwhelmed me), because I had never been there,” he said. “On race morning, there were a lot of people. I pretty much stayed around Larry (Curry, crew chief) the whole time and followed his lead on stuff we had to do, you know, as far as mandatory things go. He was pretty calm about everything and that really helped me. It’s kind of funny because you would get caught up being a racecar driver, but also get caught up in the moment of being a race fan at the same time. It seemed as though the time leading up to the green flag took forever. I got to the point where I was thinking, ‘Can we please get in the car? I am losing my mind.’ By the time I got in the car, I was over ready.”

    You finished 24th in that race after starting on the front row and leading 44 laps and ultimately had an engine problem taking you out of the race. Was that a heartbreaker for you since that was your first Indy 500?

    TS: “Oh definitely,” Stewart said. “We realized early on that if it just stayed together, we were going to win this thing. At one point, I was told to have the boost turned all the way down and then we still weren’t satisfied with the pace. When I did that, I was actually going into Turn 1 and Turn 3. It got so bad that my lap times started to become inconsistent. The car was so easy to drive that we had so much speed left. All we had to do was finish. There’s not one percent of me that thinks that it wasn’t our race to win. It was our day, all we had to do was to keep it running.”

    Going into 1997, you got your first win at Pikes Peak and completely dominated the race, leading 192 laps. Does winning at Pikes Peak still mean a lot to you to this day? Do you ever go back and watch that specific race?

    TS: “You know, I haven’t watched,” he said regarding the race. “Maybe, I have caught clips of it at some point. I just remember leading the majority of the laps and the laps we didn’t lead were during the pit stop sequence. I honestly don’t remember a ton about it, but I wish I could. Aside from that, it was an awesome day. To say I won in an IndyCar was a huge accomplishment to me. My family was also there, which was very unusual. We actually drove up to Pikes Peak the next day.”

    At what point during the ‘97 season, did you and your team realize that you might have a shot at winning this championship? 

    TS: “It was probably with two races to go,” Stewart said. “We kind of realized that earlier in the year, but we were in the stages of a new car, new engine package. We would still occasionally have motor problems and trying to navigate around that. We didn’t really focus on points. We just took each event one at a time and focused from there.”

    You won the IndyCar title by six points that year. What did winning the title mean to you, despite the points battle being so close? I am also sure the post-race celebration was memorable.

    TS: “I wish I could remember it,” Stewart said jokingly. “It seemed as though I liked the Vegas track. For some reason, we got out of balance with the car and the car got tight during the race. I remember hitting the wall off (Turn) 2. Those cars are extremely fragile. To bump the wall like that is way different than a Cup car. So during the rest of the race, I questioned if anything was going to break on me. We kind of limped along there and had enough points to win it.”

    During that time, there was the CART/Indy split. Were there ever any offers that you received from the CART side to compete over there? 

    TS: “I did get an offer,” he said. I got an offer from Team Green Racing at the end of the ’96 season. Barry Green called me and offered me a full-time ride. It was kind of weird at the same time because I had only run eight races in NASCAR and only ran five IndyCar races. Literally, in two days, I got a call from Rick Hendrick to drive the No. 25 Cup car. I had never driven a full suspension car that I had to shift on a road course. During those eight NASCAR races I drove in, I just didn’t have very good luck. I felt like I wasn’t ready to make that next step. I thought it was a great opportunity and was flattered to get the call from Barry about the IndyCar deal. I just didn’t have the confidence to drive on a road course and also wasn’t ready to go on the Cup level.”

    When you look back on your IndyCar days, what are some of your fondest memories? 

    TS: “I think the team more than anything,” Stewart said. “I really enjoyed the guys at Menard. John and I weren’t super close, because he worked on the car for Robby (Gordon). I enjoyed the opportunity. I remember John taking me up to Wisconsin and we went up to race on the ice, and I enjoyed that day up there. I thought back at the end of my IndyCar career of what Larry Curry and John did for me. To sit there and take a chance on somebody that had never driven an IndyCar was something else. John didn’t have to go out on a limb to take a chance since he had great equipment. I was real appreciative of that. I had a lot of fun with those guys.”

    Some drivers keep memorabilia while some don’t. Are you a collector of your own merchandise and if so, is there anything in your collection that reminds you of your rookie season in IndyCar?

    TS: “I still have most of my helmets,” he said. “I don’t have every one of them, but I have my rookie year helmet. I have both of the helmets from ’97 that I wore on the way to the championship. I also have the double duty helmets from 1999 and 2001. The helmets are a big thing to me that I want to keep.”

    It’s hard to believe that it has been 24 years since your first IndyCar start. What would a 48-year-old Tony Stewart tell a 25-year-old Tony Stewart if you had the chance to time travel? Is there anything you would do differently? 

    TS: “I would have done it the same way,” Stewart said. “I felt like I was with the right organization. If I knew I was going to have the ability to time travel and learn what the problems were with the motor, I think taking some knowledge back to help with the motor liability with that side of it. We had a lot of chances to win in the IRL. I know three (wins) doesn’t show it. If I could go back to fix the motors, especially in ’96 and ’98, those two Indy 500s, I felt like we had cars capable of winning the race for sure.”

    *Special thanks to Misha Geisert for setting up the interview and for Tony Stewart for taking time out of the day.

  • Interview: First Seasons – Kasey Kahne

    Interview: First Seasons – Kasey Kahne

    In continuation of our feature on “first seasons,” Speedway Media catches up with former NASCAR driver and World of Outlaw team owner, Kasey Kahne. During this interview, Kahne talks about his 2003 Busch Series season, which was his first full season in NASCAR driving the No. 38 Great Clips car. He also discusses what it was like breaking into NASCAR at a young age, whether it was the right time for him, and if he ever had the chance to time travel, what he would tell a younger version of himself.

    SM: Coming out of your 2002 Busch Series season, you ran part-time but got a full-time ride with the No. 38. What was it like breaking into NASCAR at the age of 22? Did you think it was the right time to break in or maybe too young?

    KK: “I thought it was the perfect time to break in and have the opportunity to have a great sponsor (Great Clips) and a really good team who had a lot of potential, you know? I thought we did a really good job that year in ’03. I learned a ton of that style of racing cars, the cars, working with people and things. It was a blast. I didn’t know a whole lot going into it, but I learned a lot throughout that season.”

    SM: After running a partial schedule in 2002, you got connected with Brad Akins in the No. 38. Describe how you got connected with him to give you a full-time shot?

    KK: “The biggest thing I remember was, it was Brad Akins and Doug Stringer was running it for him (Akins). I remember when I ran a partial season in ’02, Ford was wanting me to do all that and pushing me to be in the Busch Series. However, Yates and the Ford owners weren’t super into it, you know? They were more focused on their Cup teams and what they had going on there. So, I was kind of like getting pushed into it because of Ford and the other guys didn’t really care a whole lot about what we were doing. But then, Doug Stringer and Brad Akins came along and they wanted to make that program go, and wanted me to be the driver. That was the first time in NASCAR, where everybody wanted me including Ford. Yeah, so they (Stringer and Akins) pushed hard to make gains. The first race out at Daytona, we were really competitive right off the start. It just showed it was about the people, who wanted it and who didn’t. At that point, I was in a really good position and a good situation.”

    SM: You were also racing Sprint Cars along with NASCAR. Was that ever a challenge for you trying to go back and forth? How long did it take for you to get adjusted?

    KK: “It wasn’t a ton of a challenge. The Sprint Cars is where I had a lot of laps and done a lot there in that style of racing. Going back to those, going to Midgets, going to Silver Crown cars was fairly easy. As long as I was on pavement, I was really competitive. If I was on dirt, it was a little bit more difficult. On pavement, I was competitive at everything we did at that point in time. That would give me some confidence, because we would run really well and win some of those races, then get back in the Busch car and feel good, confident, excited to be back in that car as well. I thought it was a good time for me at that point in time.”

    SM: Upon entering the 2003 season, do you remember having any high expectations like a set win total in mind, or take it race by race and see where we stand at the halfway point in the season?

    KK: “I wanted to win, ever since I raced cars, it was all I ever wanted to do. At that point in time, I really struggled in that first year in the Busch car with Yates. So, I was unsure (going into 2003). The Great Clips team that I was going with, Stringer and Akins, they were in the 30s in points the year before. I was unsure how we would do, but I thought we could do better than the previous year. Right off the bat, we were competitive and fast. At that point, I had confidence and was excited to see what we could do that season.”

    SM: Going into that season, did you know any drivers that you sought advice from in the garage?

    KK: “Tony Stewart would have been the guy, the lone survivor, who I had a ton of respect for and looked up too. He was excited for my opportunity because of where I had come from, racing the similar cars like he was doing. I remember at specific tracks, he would go down in the corners and watch me, try to give me advice and help me throughout the weekend once in a while, that was really cool.

    “As far as learning the cars and trying to understand more about what I needed, how the cars worked, I learned from Shane Hmiel. He would always have really good advice and he drove really well and knew a lot about cars from his dad. So I thought, I learned from Shane Hmiel in that situation and then, Tony Stewart as far as driving it.”

    SM: That first year was also your first trip to Daytona as a driver. What was it like for you making your first trip to Daytona? When did it hit you where you said, “Wow, I’m here at Daytona?”

    KK: “What I thought was really cool was going through the tunnel for the first time. Just going through the tunnel and you come out of the tunnel, and the banking of the racetrack, you’re in the infield and you’re like, wow. I’m here and I get to actually race this track. You know, I had been there the year before just to watch. But actually going in, getting to race my first time at Daytona was incredible and really cool.”

    SM: Was there ever a point in that season, where it started to click for you in driving behind the wheel and getting comfortable with a new team?

    KK: “I thought right off the bat, we were better than a lot of people, including myself, in terms of what we were expecting. It was nice right off the start. I feel like any time in racing, the more you’re doing it, the better you’re getting in every aspect. The experience is so key in racing in what we do. I felt like, I was learning all season long which I needed.”

    SM: Every driver has a race they wish they could have another chance to do over again. For you, is there a specific race that comes to mind in the 2003 season that you wish you had another shot at?

    KK: “In ’03, I really don’t have a lot that I think about still to this day. I feel like 2004 I did. Only because, we were so close to winning more often and didn’t win in the Cup Series that year. I remember those well because we were the best car in some of them and different things happen to hold us from winning. In ’03, I felt like we kept getting better as the season went and by the end of the year, we won the final race of the season (Homestead), as that was our best showing.”

    “That year seemed like it worked the way it was supposed to. You keep improving all season long and won at the end.”

    SM: Speaking of winning that final race at Homestead. What does it still mean to you after all these years? Is it something you look back on fondly and do you ever go back to watch that race?

    KK: “Yeah, I watched it plenty of times. I haven’t watched it here recently and I remember it well. The track had just been repaved. It’s Homestead and the track was such a cool place when they repaved it like that. The pavement was black and today, it’s white and grey. So it changed real quick.”

    “I remember we had speed, the whole time. I was really excited. Things were going my way at that point in time. It was pretty awesome to finish that season with a win.”

    SM: Looking back, is there anything you would have changed during your first full-season in 2003?

    KK: “Not in that season,” he said. “I felt like that season was such a good year for learning. I was so focused and into it back then. Learning and taking everything in as I could. It was a great start for what my goals were. I was really happy with 2003 and how it all worked out.”

    “I mean, I could go look back at it and say, if I had this experience in ’03 or ’04, I would have done so much better at certain tracks but I didn’t have that experience. It was just a really nice year.”

    SM: Are there any memories that you still remember to this day about that specific season?

    KK: “Winning that final Busch race and going into Rockingham in 2003,” Kahne said.

    “I was slow in 2002 at Rockingham when I ran in the Busch Series. I had always wondered if it was me or the car, and I figured out right away at Rockingham, it definitely wasn’t me because in 2003 we were fast right off the bat. It showed I had a better car from being slow with the 2002 car when I ran part-time. I think I ran fourth in 2003 at Rockingham. I still had a ton to learn at that point in time and that’s what I worked on all season. But the reason I was slow the year before, it was not me as much as it may have appeared at the time.”

    “I was always really proud of Rockingham and finishing the year off with a win. I was proud of those accomplishments.”

    SM: Is there anything in your memorabilia that reminds you of your 2003 season?

    KK: “I have my rookie year (fire) suits and a diecast when it was the Great Clips car when it was Ford. It was only one-year like that (Ford) and the next year, it was Great Clips and Dodge. But yeah, that’s all I have are those and it’s really cool to see them.”

    SM: It’s been 17 years since that season. What would a 40-year-old Kasey Kahne tell a 22-year-old Kasey Kahne if you had the chance to time travel?

    KK: “I’d have a lot of things to tell him. I think there were a lot of ways at the time, to focus and learn. I thought I did a really good job of it, but looking back at it today, if I know someone else in that same situation, I can help in a lot of ways to keep them pointed in the right direction. I just feel like, adapt and learn quicker than I was able to.”

  • Quarantined with Corey LaJoie

    Quarantined with Corey LaJoie

    It’s been a little over a month since NASCAR had to postpone the 2020 racing season due to the Covid-19 pandemic. NASCAR hopes to resume the season potentially in May but without fans in attendance. In the meantime, NASCAR has implemented the iRacing Pro Invitational Series to fill the gap. While many of the current drivers are participating, it is, at best, a substitution for the real thing.  

    This week I caught up with Go Fas Racing’s Corey LaJoie to find out how he’s coping during the stay-at-home order that most states have issued. On March 10, LaJoie and his wife, Kelly, welcomed their first child, Levi Ronnie, into the family.

    While he misses the racing action, he is enjoying this unique opportunity to spend more quality time with his family and embrace his new role as a dad.

    SM:  Are you enjoying the time off or going stir crazy while you wait to get back to racing?

    CL: A little bit of both. I’m enjoying spending time with Levi and my wife but I’m ready to get back to the racetrack.

    SM: Are you typically the kind of person who enjoys alone time or do you miss being around people?

    CL: I tend to go many places throughout the day whether it be the Cup shop or different businesses so I miss that part of my routine.

    SM: What’s the one thing you miss most other than racing?

    CL: I miss being able to go to the Joie of Seating and work on projects or build things.

    SM: If for some reason you couldn’t race anymore, what career would you choose and why?

    CL: I’d probably stay in racing in some sort. Maybe spotting while diving into Dad’s business a little more to help grow that.

    SM: What has been your favorite thing to do while you’re stuck at home?

    CL: Just chilling with Levi and doing projects around the house. I’ve retrofitted my garage into a gym.

    Lately sleep is a hot commodity that is hard to come by so that’s something I love but I know nighttime is tough with little man.

    SM: Have you picked up any new hobbies or gotten back to a hobby you didn’t have time to pursue before?

    CL: I’ve been mountain biking a lot more since it’s a great way to social distance while also training hand-eye coordination and stamina.

    SM: Have you started any new projects around the house?

    CL: Painting the garage, cleaning out junk drawers, organizing the man cave.

    SM: Are you cooking for yourself at home? If so what’s the one thing you can cook well?

    CL: We cook almost every meal now. I actually like cooking some things. I’m decent at steak and breakfast but Kelly can cook just about anything.

    SM: What’s your favorite music or band to listen to while you’re isolated at home?

    CL: I listen to a lot of country. I like Luke Combs, Sturgill Simpson and some good Christian music.

    SM: What are you doing to stay active and keep in shape?

    CL: Mountain biking and using some Onnit kettlebells, medicine balls and weighted vests keep the workouts intense.

    SM: Are you participating in iRacing? If so, does it help pass the time while you wait for the season to restart?

    CL: I haven’t done much on it yet. I don’t have much time to get away and fire up the simulator. It’s a great platform for the sport to stay relevant during the delay but I’ll be glad when we have real life topics to talk about every week.

    SM: What are you doing to keep positive and motivated?

    CL: The wife and I have been digging into the Word quite a bit and spending some great quality time together with Levi. We live next to a park so we get over there for a couple mile walks a day.

    SM: What’s the first thing you will do when the quarantine is over?

    CL: I’ll still be pretty cautious of where I go even when the lockdown is lifted since I don’t want to risk bringing anything home but I’m ready to go to the shop and start getting busy.

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

  • Interview – First Seasons: Graham Rahal

    Interview – First Seasons: Graham Rahal

    In this week’s interview, Speedway Media catches up with NTT IndyCar Series and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver, Graham Rahal. During the interview, we talk about his first season in the IndyCar Series and what he remembers about being a rookie. We also discuss whether there is anything he would change after all these years, his recollection of his first Indy 500, and what his 31-year-old self would tell his 19-year-old self.

    SM: You entered the IndyCar Series in 2008 at the age of 19 after completing a year in CART. What it was like transitioning from CART to IndyCar? Were there any differences between the cars and did it take some time getting comfortable with the IndyCar style car?

    GR: “The cars are very different, as you can imagine,” Rahal said regarding the difference between a CART and IndyCar. “They’re a little more of a challenge. The hardest part was there are a lot of very good drivers. In fact, Sage Karam and I were talking about this the other night. We talked about how we were all young and came into this deal, you know? We think we’re going to go out there and crush it, life is going to be good and easy. But then you go, wait a second. This isn’t like Star Mazda or anything else.”

    “The point being is the competitive nature and that’s the hardest part of our sport. There’s a lot of very good guys.”

    SM: Can you just talk about what it was like entering the series as a rookie at such a young age? Were there any nerves entering this series?

    GR: I mean, we all have nerves,” we said. “I think we all have nerves and we all understand that it’s a tough sport. My hope was to always race in IndyCar and be in the sport, all that sort of thing. How quickly does that take shape? You never know. That type of thing is always a question mark. But for me, I had hoped my opportunity was going to come. Thanks to Newman-Haas, it did come. It came at a young age and there was a lot to learn.”

    “If I look back today in some ways, I could have been too young. You know what I mean? I really didn’t fully comprehend what I had gotten into. Even though I spent my whole life around it, there’s a lot of learning left to be done when you first personally step foot into the series. But in trade, I enjoyed every aspect. I’ve had my good years and bad years. Certainly, it’s all I ever wanted. It’s the only dream I ever had was to be in this sport. I feel like I’m one of the lucky ones to see that through.”

    SM: I am sure when you entered the IndyCar Series for the first time, there were probably some high expectations with being the son of Bobby Rahal. What do you remember about that and if there was any hype, or criticism from the garage from other drivers? Or, were they very supportive? Was there a specific driver you got along with and sought advice from?

    GR: “I don’t think there was any criticism about it,” Rahal said. “I think everyone was pretty nice to me. For me, a lot of the guys had respect for my dad. I mean, it wasn’t easy. You know, you had the rookie orientation you had to take part of. The first time you go out on an oval, Tony Kanaan is going to scare you. He’s going to do it on purpose and he does it to teach you a lesson. You have to accept that and learn that, and take it for what it is worth, move on.”

    “I don’t think anyone was extra hard on me or anything like that. We were all kind of in it together.”

    SM: In your first season you got off with a bang by winning in your first start at St. Petersburg after starting ninth and leading 19 laps. Winning that race, I am sure had to have felt good. Describe what that race was like for you all these years later.

    GR:  “It means a lot,” he said. “I think it means the world to get that first win off your back. I kind of came up short for many years after that. In the midst of all that, I don’t think I would have changed anything. Why is that? We all learn at a different pace. My win kind of came quick, but then you need to reset. Take a step back and learn. You know, understand the value of what you’re doing, the importance of what you’re doing. How much it means and how hard you have to work for it.”

    “A lot of times when you come in, you win a race or a few races, you ultimately grasp what you’re doing. So yes, from my perspective, I was fortunate enough that it worked out. Obviously, I would have liked to not go eight years without a win, but at the end of the day everything happens for a reason.”  

    SM: After that race, you had some okay runs throughout your rookie season leading up to the Indianapolis 500. When the Indy 500 came, it was your first as a driver. What was it like in the weeks leading up to your first 500?

    GR: “Oh, I mean it’s huge,” Rahal said regarding the Indy 500. “It’s a crazy world to be in that position. I think the Indy 500 has always stood on its own, it stood out from the rest. I always enjoyed that aspect of having the honor to go race there. I was lucky enough to get that opportunity at a young age.”

    “The one thing I can say about Indianapolis is, I never took that one for granted. Going to Indy was always an eye opening experience and it will be forever. You know, right now and meet it, it’s like wow. We’re here.”

    SM: How did you prepare for the 500 in your first year?

    GR: “I’m one of the guys that likes to go back and watch old races,” he continued regarding the 500. “You learn to figure out what I could do better and differently. So, I am one of those guys that likes to take a step back and soak it all in and understand what it is all about.”

    SM: Looking back, it wasn’t the results you wanted after crashing out and being credited with a last place finish. Is there anything you would have done differently in the race to have a better finish?

    GR: “In my first year, we actually had an issue where the right front shock failed,” Rahal said. “I was lucky the way it happened on how it did. It could have been a lot worse. In my second year in 2009, it was a major screw up. In 2009, we had a really good chance of winning that race. That’s the race that opened my eyes up. You know, what am I doing, why did I screw up so badly?”

    “And the reason was, I was racing with Helio (Castroneves) a lot that day. I had tons of opportunities to pass Helio. I thought I was being patient and wise. On that specific day, our car was better than his. We were faster. I had a lot of opportunities to pass him and I didn’t. I crash out and who wins the race? Helio. I’ll never forget. I sat there after that race, like are you kidding me? How did that just happen? How did I let that opportunity go? It was a real lesson for me to understand how that race can change so quickly. I took that to heart and as I go forward, I think about that often.”

    SM: How long did it take to get over that race?

    GM: “Oh, it took a long time,” he added. “I could bounce right out of Indianapolis and go to Detroit, and take a lot of my frustration, anger out. Detroit was always a good opportunity at redemption.”

    SM: In every driver that I have talked to, they kind of wish they had another shot at a specific race or just another shot at a better finish, or erase a mistake. For you, is there any race that sticks in your mind about your 2008 season, where you wish you had another do over/chance?

    GR: “There has been plenty,” Rahal said. “I can’t really name one. I messed up on millions and you know, that’s the truth. I think everyone makes their mistakes and unfortunately for me, I made my mistake a few times.”

    “Probably if I look back, Milwaukee in ’08 was a good opportunity. We sat on the front row and we were very strong in the race, and I crashed. That’s when it started to hit me. Like, man you’re fast, but out of control. So that was a bad one. Richmond also comes to mind. I started on the front row and crashed. Those are hard, short ovals. Those two taught me really good lessons.”

    SM: It’s been several years since your rookie season in IndyCar. Do you have anything you look back on fondly or is it just all a blur to you?

    GR: “Well, there’s a lot of blur, but yes I have some memories,” he said. “I have always really enjoyed what I have done.”

    “When I look back at the initial years and the races that meant most to me, like Indianapolis was always extremely special. Because in that time, era, it is so weird for me to talk about it today. Indianapolis was about three-weeks long. You didn’t run every Monday and Tuesday. We practiced Thursday and Friday. So instead, Monday and Tuesday were all activities. Like for example, a drivers golf tournament. A charity golf tournament and another charity event, or a fashion show.”

    “All these things weren’t crammed into a week, where you can’t absorb any of it. So in that time, it was kind of a lot more fun because it was a lot longer to be able to take it all in. Nowadays, it’s a little harder to enjoy the Month of May because there is no time.”

    SM: An additional follow up to that. Some racers keep their memorabilia and some don’t. Do you have a specific piece in your collection that reminds of your rookie season?

    GR: “I don’t, but I have one of my first helmets back home,” Rahal said. “My first Indy 500 helmet. So often, I think about that. When I see it, I think it through and all that kind of stuff. Typically not a lot, but I’m not somebody who dwells on that stuff or thinks back about that stuff, if that makes sense? I kind of focus on the here and now. You know, what do I need to do today to be better?”

    SM: It seems hard to believe that your rookie season was 12 years ago. However, what would a 31-year-old Graham Rahal tell the 19-year-old Graham Rahal if you had the chance to time travel?

    GR: “Oh man, a lot,” he said. “I think patience is a virtue, you know that old saying? Also, take advantage of every opportunity that you get. Live it to the fullest. I tell this all the time to all the young guys. Taking an opportunity doesn’t mean you have to go out there and be the fastest guy. Opportunity means don’t make mistakes. That’s a huge deal. For me, that’s all I really think about and focus on nowadays. Each and every race weekend, make the most of it.”

  • Quarantined with Jeremy Clements

    Quarantined with Jeremy Clements

    It’s been a month since NASCAR had to postpone the 2020 racing season due to the Covid-19 pandemic. While the current plan is to resume competition on May 3, it seems likely that it could be much longer before we once again see cars on the track.

    In the meantime, NASCAR has implemented the iRacing Pro Invitational Series to fill the gap. While many of the current drivers are participating, it is, at best, a substitution for the real thing.  

    This week we caught up with Xfinity Series regular Jeremy Clements to find out how he’s coping during the stay-at-home order that most states have issued.

    SM: Are you enjoying the time off or going stir crazy while you wait to get back to racing?

    JC: I’m definitely going stir crazy and can’t wait to get back to the track to race.

    SM: Are you typically the kind of person who enjoys alone time or do you miss being around people?

    JC: I miss being around people and just doing things like going to a restaurant together, a bar, movies, etc. Things that before you took for granted, I guess, now thinking about it. 

    SM: What’s the one thing you miss most other than racing?

    JC: Going out and not worrying about getting too close to people and touching things thinking it has the virus on it. 

    SM: If for some reason you couldn’t race anymore, what career would you choose and why?

    JC: I don’t know really, that’s a tough one. I would say I would be an Uber/Lyft driver or move to a Caribbean island to do excursion tours. 

    SM: What has been your favorite thing to do while you’re stuck at home?

    JC: My favorite thing to do at home is play with our dog Molly. She keeps me entertained most of the time. I’m always chasing her around messing with her and taking her for walks. 

    SM: What is your least favorite thing to do?

    JC: My least favorite thing to do at home is take my wife’s pictures and videos for her social media. Ha Ha, she’ll probably get mad I said that. 

    SM: Have you started any new projects around the house?

    JC: The projects around the house just consist of organizing, cleaning up, and some maintenance. My wife wants to repaint the bathroom since she doesn’t like the colors I’ve picked so I’m sure I’ll be doing that soon. 

    SM: Have you picked up any new hobbies or gotten back to a hobby you didn’t have time to pursue before?

    JC: I haven’t picked up on any new hobbies really. I try and stay active working out, playing basketball, and running. I’ve been catching up on some Xbox too as well as some Netflix series and movies. 

    SM: I noticed you digitally signed a lot of photos on Twitter and it seemed to be a big hit with the fans. Have you thought of any more new ways to interact with fans until you can get back to the track?

    JC: Yeah I did sign a lot of digital photographs for fans. That just kind of happened and was really cool to do. I haven’t really thought of anything else yet but I’ll get on that.

    SM: Are you cooking for yourself at home? If so, what’s the one thing you can cook well?

    JC: I do a lot of cooking. I really like these healthy homemade banana pancakes I’ve been making. I put blueberries and strawberries in them too. I always have enough for a few days as well. I also love to grill out on my charcoal grill. Anything from steak, ribs, fish, shrimp, chicken, pork. I’m always looking at something else to try. I’ve been looking at pellet grills so I’m probably going to get one of those soon since they seem so much easier to control the temperature and still get that smoky taste. 

    SM: What’s your favorite music or band to listen to while you’re isolated at home?

    JC: I generally listen to hard rock a lot. I like to listen to The Rise Guys which is a local radio show in the morning or catch their podcast if I don’t wake up in time. There’s also one channel on XM I like, which is Octane. I listen to it a lot. 

    SM: What are you doing to stay active and keep in shape?

    JC: Trying to stay in decent shape by lifting some weights, doing a few sets of this workout I found online and running, along with basketball. 

    SM: Are you participating in iRacing? If so, is it a good substitute for the real thing?

    JC: I haven’t gotten to do any iRacing, unfortunately. I have a rig but I need a new PC and going to have to spend some money to get it back going. It’s definitely a good tool to use especially going to road courses to learn the tracks. 

    SM: What are you doing to keep positive and motivated?

    JC: Trying to stay as much positive as can be and just rely on my faith in the good Lord knowing he’s got a plan. We’re in a storm now but it won’t last forever. 

    SM: What’s the first thing you will do when the quarantine is over?

    JC: The first thing I do after quarantine is hopefully get some friends and go to Topgolf to have some fun to celebrate. 

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

  • Jeffrey Earnhardt ready to put on ‘one hell of a show’ when NASCAR racing resumes

    Jeffrey Earnhardt ready to put on ‘one hell of a show’ when NASCAR racing resumes

    While everyone in the NASCAR community was disappointed to learn that the current race season has been put on hold due to the Covid-19 outbreak, it was particularly disheartening for Jeffrey Earnhardt.

    After parting ways with sponsor iK9 and Joe Gibbs Racing in Aug. 2019, Earnhardt was set to make his Xfinity Series comeback this year after reuniting with JD Motorsports with Gary Keller for at least 12 races.

    He previously drove for JDM in 2014, competing in a full Xfinity Series season, and is excited to team up with them again.

    “Well the biggest thing is what they can offer,” Earnhardt explained. “It was the chance to run the most races and be competitive. Seeing what they were able to do with Ross (Chastain) showed they can do it if the funding is there.”

    His first race was scheduled for Atlanta Motor Speedway on March 14 but it was postponed indefinitely until the current health crisis has resolved.

    “It was heartbreaking, honestly,” he admitted. “I have been itching to get back behind the wheel and we were so close to doing so and then this happened. It just really sucked for everyone honestly and now it’s became a bigger struggle for all these teams to figure things out financially but also the sponsors that were promised these races are also on our minds.

    “We have great sponsors that are very understanding. I think the effects of this mess have touched everyone and because of that I feel it’s only gonna make everyone stronger and more understanding. At the end of the day we will still try to always over deliver on any expectations and make all our partners proud.

    “I just hope a cure comes soon and people remain safe.  It’s been very sad to see what’s been happening with the virus.”  

    There is no timetable for when the drivers will be able to get back to racing but NASCAR has mentioned the possibility of racing mid-week and double-header weekends.

    Earnhardt and JDM are open to all of the options and the demands it may place on the organization.

    “I’m all about it because I want to race every day I can,” he emphasized. “The stress comes from being a smaller team and having to have cars ready to go. Its gonna be a challenge but I know the guys at JD Motorsports can handle it.”

    In the meantime, Earnhardt is focused on staying motivated and healthy.

    “I try to be around the shop as much as I can and help out. Outside of that, like everyone, recently iRacing has become a big tool and trying to stay physically fit as well. Of course, getting outdoors and hunting when I can to keep my sanity.” 

    He is also taking advantage of iRacing, but says, “I’ve got to practice up because these guys are good and some have a lot of time on there.”

    Earnhardt’s last race in the Xfinity Series was nine months ago at Chicagoland Speedway but he doesn’t think there will be much of a learning curve when racing resumes. If anything, he welcomes the challenge.

    His goal for the season is to “back up and exceed what they did with Ross (Chastain), results wise.”

    “Some of the guys at JD Motorsports I have worked with but it’s always a challenge in a new atmosphere. That being said, last year was all new to me and we came out of the gates swinging. I like that style.”

    Earnhardt also had a message for his fans.

    “We will always love their loyalty and support and when we get to go back racing there are gonna be some hungry drivers just waiting to put on one hell of a show for all the fans.”

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

  • Exclusive-Getting to know ARCA Menards Series/Fast Track Racing member Dick Doheny.

    Exclusive-Getting to know ARCA Menards Series/Fast Track Racing member Dick Doheny.

    In this week’s interview Speedway Media catches up with Fast Track Racing crew member and former ARCA Menards Series driver, Dick Doheny.

    Doheny has a unique relationship with Andy Hillenburg, former owner of Rockingham Speedway and current owner of Fast Track Racing. Last year he would start the race and then get out of the car to crew chief for someone else on the team. But in 2020, Doheny has stepped away from driving duties and is building race cars for the Fast Track Racing team. During the interview, we talk to Doheny how the opportunity came about to race ARCA, why he is good friends with driver Ed Pompa, and the advice he would give to drivers.

    SM: You have a unique story in racing. You start a race, run a few laps and then get out of the car to work as the crew chief for the same team. Explain how that all came about?

    Doheny: “Last year, we started with three cars committed at Daytona and Talladega,” he said. “Only with the point structure in ARCA, we decided to fill in the remaining three races of the first five. It kind of snowballed from there.”

    SM: Do you find it challenging having to race a few laps and get out in time to crew chief for someone else?

    Doheny: “Yes, it can be,” Doheny said. “While the rest of the crew tries to keep me apprised of what is going on with the other cars, I still have to play catch-up after I get out of the car. In practice, I try to go out early and get my stuff done, then I can concentrate on getting the No. 11 car up to speed. It can get confusing at times, but having just been on the track, it can also help in giving feedback to the other drivers.”

    SM: With that in mind, what brought you to racing and how did you get connected with Andy (Hillenburg, Team Owner) to give you your shot?

    Doheny: “I have always been a big fan of auto racing,” he said. “I decided to give it a try myself. After pit crewing on a few local race teams, I built myself a Hobby Stock and then a Late Model and I got to run a Small Block Dirt Modified a few times. I had some success with a few wins and a track championship. Like a lot of racers, life happened. The bank doesn’t want to hear that you can’t pay the mortgage because you had to put a new motor in the race car. So, racing got put on hold while I helped raise a family. After several years, I felt that I needed to scratch the itch and did one of Andy’s three-day racing schools. I’ve been scratching ever since. I don’t think Andy was as impressed with my abilities as much as my willingness to work cheap.”

    SM: While being connected with the team, you and Ed Pompa have become great friends through the years. Describe why that friendship is very special between the two of you?

    Doheny: “Ed (Pompa) and I go back a long way,” Doheny said. “I would tell you how long, but then you would know we are a couple of old farts. We grew up in the same small town, working in family businesses. While we went to different schools, we knew each other from working in racing. At the time, I was driving at the local short track, Ed was the track photographer. We both ran tech for a radio control racing club. We both wound up at Fast Track from completely different directions. Ed has concentrated primarily on driving, while I have come to realize I am better at building them (cars) than driving them.”

    SM: I’ve heard for some drivers that racing is a hobby for them. Is that a correct term to say that?

    Doheny: “Everybody has a hobby,” he explained. “Some people whack a little ball and go chase it. I can say that because my son-in-law is a golf pro. Some people whack a ball and someone else chases it (softball), while I build race cars and drive in circles. Fortunately, for me, I get to do my hobby full-time.”

    SM: Before you made your career debut at Pocono in 2006, what else were you doing? In follow up to that, what are you doing aside from racing?

    Doheny: “I own a small building mechanical business,” Doheny said. “It’s HVAC design, building automation, etc. Most of what I do is design and planning. So my nights and weekends are spent on the computer doing that. I still go home about half a dozen times a year to oversee large projects.”

    SM: Do you wish you were full-time actively and winning races?

    Doheny: Sure, but I need to be realistic about it,” he said. “If you put me in a top-flight NASCAR Cup ride, I would still probably finish last, if I could even make the show. Like I said, I’m better at building them than driving them.”

    SM: What is it about the ARCA Menards Series you enjoy so much?

    Doheny: ARCA is just a big family,” Doheny said. “I can go from discussing ideas with an ex-Cup crew chief one minute and then with another grassroots weekend warrior the next minute. We all fight like crazy to beat each other, but in the end, if you have a problem, everyone, ARCA officials and series competitors will be the first one to give you a hand.”

    SM: Every racer always remembers their first time at Daytona. What was it like going there for the first time?

    Doheny: “Not going through the tunnel as I had already been there as pit crew, but rolling out of the garage,” he said. “The first five laps were spent saying to myself, ‘holy crap! This is Daytona! What am I doing here’? At the end of the first practice, my spotter said, “welcome to Daytona, you can cross this off your bucket list.” I replied, ‘this was never on my bucket list.’ Back when I was running my local short track, I had never considered that someday I would be able to race at a place like Daytona.”

    SM: Since then, you’ve had some pretty special moments in ARCA. What’s been your favorite racing memory in your career so far?

    Doheny: “Probably some of the obvious ones,” the New Yorker said. “The first Daytona start (2014), 12th at Springfield, and ninth in the final points (2019). However, also building and crewing cars that have been competitive.”

    SM: That said, you finished ninth in ARCA points in 2019 while driving and being a crew chief at the same time. Do you pay attention to that and if so, what does that say about you and the team? What are your goals in 2020? How long do you plan to keep doing ARCA?

    Doheny: “Andy came to me early in the season and said, he thought I could wind up with a top-10 points finish,” Doheny said. “I was more like, let’s get the other cars performing where they need to need to be first. By the end of the season, I was willing to flat tow a car to Kansas just for the points. Fast Track Racing consists of two full-time people and three part-timers in the shop. Last year, we put three cars in the top-15 in points and two drivers in the top-10. I think overachievers would be a good description. We have been able to consistently race in the top-15. For 2020, I want to see that change to top-10s. Personally, I’ll keep going in ARCA until they throw me out.”

    SM: If someone came to you after your career is over and asked if you would do it all over again, would you? If not, what would you change differently?

    Doheny: “On one hand, I wish I had started earlier,” he said. “However, I would never have been able to have the home life with my family that I have. So no, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

    SM: To wrap things up, what advice do you have, if any, for future drivers or crew chiefs that hope to make a career out of it?

    Doheny: Keep your eyes open and your mouth shut,” Doheny said. “Show me what you can do, just don’t tell me. The people in charge will see your abilities and act accordingly. Working long hours, being on the road, not having a weekend off is all tough. But the results can be very gratifying. Above all, have fun doing what you do.”

  • Exclusive: Catching Up with former Busch Series Owners Champion Greg Pollex

    Exclusive: Catching Up with former Busch Series Owners Champion Greg Pollex

    Today’s generation of race fans may not know the name Greg Pollex. However, at the end of this interview, they will appreciate what he brought to the racing world and why his team was so successful during the late 90s and early 2000s.

    In this week’s interview, Speedway Media catches up with former Busch Series Owners Champion and father of Sherry Pollex, Gregory Pollex. Pollex owned a Busch Series team called PPC Racing with NFL star and quarterback Mark Rypien. PPC Racing is most notably known for its success with Chad Little, Jeff Green, and Jason Keller. During this interview, Pollex talks about the rise of his race team, the struggles he faced early on and eventually closing up shop in 2007.

    Before getting into NASCAR, the Michigan native shares what he was doing before his NASCAR heyday.

    “I was always a car guy,” he said. “I was mechanically inclined. One day, I was going by the racetrack because I grew up in Northern Michigan and stopped in to watch a Dirt Late Model race, and thought, wow this is cool. After that, I built a racecar and started racing in 1970. I did that for about five years, but eventually, real life work makes it difficult and it was just my dad and I. We did really good for what we had, we didn’t have much. So, that was my background to racing. I obviously followed NASCAR and always watched the Daytona 500 and things of that nature.”

    Pollex also talked about what interested him and drew him into being a NASCAR owner.

    “I don’t practice law, but I put together a lot of financial plans on that side of the resolution,” Greg said. “One of the things I did was worked with a hospital and you know, people who lived off-shore set up these insurance companies owned by the hospital and doctors. It’s sort of a way to self-finance. I thought this makes sense and could work for NASCAR. I called NASCAR and said, ‘Hey, I want you to tell me how many drivers you have that have a college education.’ NASCAR says, “We got three.” They were Alan Kulwicki, somebody else and I don’t remember who the other one was, and Chad Little. By the way, Chad has a law degree. So I said, ‘Well hell if he has a law degree, he’ll understand what I’m talking about.”

    “I got his contact information and I called Chad, he had a little bit of the concept of what I was trying to do, but immediately when I called Chad, his ears went to motion. In all honesty, he was better at it then I was. He sucked me into this deal and said look, I went to school at Washington State with Mark Rypien who played for the (Washington) Redskins. I think I can get Mark to help, so we formed the first company called Mark Rypien Motorsports. Mark didn’t do anything, except his name because it helped get us sponsors. That’s how we got started.”

    Pollex went on to discuss the progression of the team.

    “We had a little shop about 5,000 square foot,” he said. “Our first race was Darlington in March of 1993. We ran a limited scheduled that year with limited success. So in 1994, we decided we were going to get some sponsorship and run the full season and we’re still running V6. We go out at Daytona and finish third there. Then we had problems following that. We started wrecking and had some issues internal. I was spotting and I could see a lot of things, Bristol was one of them. We go to Bristol and we go behind the wall to fix the car and put a set of tires on to go back out. We’re hotter than a firecracker, I mean he (Chad Little) is just slicing and dicing. I told him, let’s be conservative of the other guys racing who can win because he was getting aggressive. The crew chief at the time threw his headset down and that was the end of him since I fired him for his attitude. I believe a guy by the name of Gary Cogswell and Harold Holly, I install them both as crew chiefs. I told them, hey we got to turn this around. Then we rattled off 10-12 top-10 finishes.”

    It wasn’t until 1995 that he went to victory lane at Daytona after starting 42nd. Pollex described the events leading up to the win and how it took a few years for the significance of it to sink in.

    “Before 1995, we were pretty damn hot by the end of the year. We finished like the top three in 1994. 1995 comes about and we have to change the 9 to 1 compression ratio on the motor. So, I have to find an engine builder. I found a guy named Mike Egge, who used to build engines out in California.

    So here’s the story. We go to Daytona and I think 45 cars show up, and we were having some problems, I can’t figure out what’s going on. Finally in last practice, we had an in-car camera and I asked whoever was doing the race if I could sit on top of the box and watch. We thought we had an aero problem. I eventually said something to Mike Egge and said something is lacking, let’s back this thing up. So we go up three jets on the carburetor and it takes off flying.”

    “Eventually, we get into the race and Chad is dodging wreck after wreck. We passed Mark Martin with two laps to go, Mark is pretty loose and he wrecked behind us. We obviously went on to win the race.

    “It was amazing to win at Daytona. I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t know how to appreciate it. I didn’t know what it meant to me until the years passed.”

    He then recalled the problems they faced that season.

    “We went to Rockingham and you knew who the big deal was back then, Mark Martin. You couldn’t beat him if you’re not going to win. We went there and smoked them. It was a 200 lapper and led 177 laps. We were just awesome. Then we went to Richmond, leading all the laps there and the motor breaks. At Atlanta, we lapped everyone in the field except for Martin and Johnny Benson in the first portion of the race and then, we dropped a cylinder. We were still in the lead, but then we dropped another cylinder and fell out. So we had that kind of season, we probably could have won 12-14 races.”

    The former Busch Series Owner Champion described what cost him the series championship in 1995.

    “The biggest thing that happened that year was, everyone was catching us motor wise. Then NASCAR and Goodyear changed the tire. It was the last part of the season, Chad could not figure it out. He did not like the tire at all. We were winning and then kind of went down after the tire change. It was a wild recovery by then, it was a little too late. I think we were going to be the first Ford to win a Busch event at Hickory, but Kevin Lepage, a lap car, takes us out with 20 to go. We had stuff like that happen all year long. We could have won the title by 500 points. Not winning that title still stings a bit after all these years later.”

    Pollex shared the key to having so much success early on.

    “Here’s one thing that is really important,” he said. “My relationship with my guys was always one-to-one. I was very good with my guys. Examples were, I would go to the race shop, pick up a broom and sweep the floor. People thought I was crazy. I said, no I’ll take care of sweeping the floor. You guys have more important things to do. I believe that creates loyalty to the team. Back in the early 1990s, the crew chief would say to the driver, just shut up and drive like I asked you to. On my team, if there was any of that, I stopped it. That’s not how it works with me.”

    After a couple of years of short success, Pollex went into detail about why he had to close down after the 1996 season.

    “After a real successful season in 1995, Pontiac came to the sport,” he said. “Pontiac came to us and they wanted us to be on their program. So, we did. We had parts and money for Pontiac, but their racecars were awful. We set a goal to win eight races in that thing. Chad Little ran okay at Daytona but when we went to Rockingham (the year before we dominated), Chad spins out on all his own. We struggled through all of ‘96. Had a chance to win at Indianapolis and got wrecked. We could barely get a handle on how to get the body done. So here’s what happened.

    “I brought John Deere into the sport in 1997. John Deere says, I don’t want to be in the Busch Series any longer, we want you guys to go to Cup. We negotiated a deal with Cup, but John Deere didn’t give us enough money to race Cup. When we went to Cup, we struggled. We missed qualifying for the Daytona 500 and periodically, we would miss a race. When we ran, it was tough. We didn’t have near enough equipment. We only had three million dollars for that season and I said, we can’t do that.

    “I would fly out of the races with Jack Roush. What had happened was, Jack bought the program by August of 1997. I had a shop built in Mooresville, North Carolina. We ran that car out of there. After I sell the program, I am basically out of the sport. It drove me crazy because of my love for the sport. I thought I was done.”

    Despite the struggles with the Cup program, Pollex was looking for new ways to get back into the sport.  

    “In December (1998) of that year, I buy Keller Racing from Jason Keller and his dad. I rented some space from Bill Simpson for a small little shop. We had no sponsorship, but we ran the whole (1999 Busch Grand National Series) season. I think we finished second as I ran that out of my own pocket. In conclusion, I saw we could do this again. I had a lot of people working for me that gathered sponsorship and eventually, I got a deal with Kleenex. Kleenex came to me and wanted to run, so I hired Jeff Green. Jeff was running with Felix Sabates at the time. That was a crazy time for us.”

    “At Rockingham that year, we were awesome. We are three to four tenths faster than the whole field. We were fastest in every practice. Qualifying came and then it rained. We weren’t allowed to race because the No. 32 didn’t have any points to fall back on. I told NASCAR, this was crazy. We were the fastest car there and you’re not going to let us race? It was funny later on because I went to Jeff Burton and asked, can we use your car to let Jeff Green start your car and then you can get in it? Burton was on-board with it, but Jack (Roush) said no due to sponsor commitments. We raced the whole season and finished second to Dale Earnhardt Jr. Should have won the title that year.”

    From 1999-2002, Pollex had the team to beat in the Busch Series, setting the series on fire. He explains how that all happened.

    “During that time, I forced my two crew chiefs Harold Holly and Steve Addington to work together,” he explained. “I told them, we’re going to work, share notes, going to debrief, and we’re all going to sit in the truck together and do it. At first, both of them hated the idea, but they eventually saw the value in that. I created fellowship and brothership with my team. I wanted people to work together and be successful. One of the things I did was create an open-door policy, where the guys could come in and talk about anything they wanted to me.

    “In 2000, we had 28 people working for us and we finished first in the standings. Then people started doing the same thing we were doing. But it felt good at the time seeing these people having success in their lives while working for the team.”

    After a strong 2001 season with Jeff Green, Pollex describes what led to Jeff leaving the organization at the end of the year.

    “Let me tell you, Richard Childress is a smart guy,” he said. “If you look at all those years we finished second, it was always to a Childress, Hendrick, Roush. In 2001, we’re running extremely well, but what does he do? He offers Jeff a Cup ride, while we were leading the points that year. For the next six to eight weeks, Jeff was all about it. Richard kept talking to him about how we were going to do this and all that stuff. He basically got into Jeff’s head. By the time Jeff got it together, we fell so far behind and ended up finishing second in the points to Kevin Harvick. He hired Jeff and bombed out of that car.”

    With a few years of success under Pollex’s belt, he went into detail about the downfall of ppc Racing and how it affected him.

    “One of the things that hurt us was Cup owners,” Greg said. “They had so much money, I couldn’t do all the things they could. They had more advantages than we did. I was very outspoken about that to NASCAR. Otherwise, I think we could have won five to six titles. Here’s the other thing that happened. Kenny Wallace brought Stacker2 to the team and meanwhile, Scott Riggs filled in and won some races for our team. But, Kenny brings in Stacker2 and we’re racing the first half of the season. However, Stacker2 filed for bankruptcy, Chapter 11. We lose sponsorship, but we go and get AutoZone. What happens after that? We lost AutoZone as well.

    “Ford came to us as well and wanted to run a program with us. So then we were running two Busch programs and a Truck program with Terry Cook driving. John Andretti came along and wanted to drive for the Cup program in 2005. We became really overloaded. A lot of people, a lot of money flying around, bought another building. We raced in 2006, but I don’t think we were very competitive. We actually brought Camping World into the sport in late 2006 and early 2007. However, they would only pay for primary sponsorship. Eventually, we went out of business due to not having sponsorship. I sold my team to Braun Racing at the very beginning of 2007. I will tell you, it was the most sour time of my life. I had to tell my family, we weren’t running anymore. Todd Gordon was my last engineer. I actually set up a deal between him and Jason Keller. I was management on that team for a little bit. After that, however, I was done. That was it.

    “I never went back to the racetrack for several years with the exception of Keller making his 600th start. I went to the track, did a photo session, then flew back home. I just couldn’t do it because I had given so much to the sport. It was a really dark time for me. So, I had to go back to Michigan and go back to work.”

    After closing its doors in 2007, Pollex reflects all these years later about what he would do differently.

    “Yeah, I think I would do a lot of things differently,” he explained. “I would have been more careful with the money. You can’t go back and change parts and pieces since you will never know about that. I think what I would have done is worked much harder. I think what happened is I got into a comfort zone thinking sponsorship was easy. It’s much more different today than it was back then. I wasn’t aware enough with my money trying to work hard to bring in the extra funds. We were building everything at the time and the only thing we didn’t do was own it. In 2002, we bought engines from Yates and thought nothing would go wrong. We blew six to seven motors that year and just questioned what was going on. But more than anything, I think being more careful with the money would have been the biggest then.”

    With the ownership side done for now in racing, he shared what a day in his life looks like now in 2020.

    “Well, I have four daughters,” he said. “Sherry works in the Martin Truex Jr. Foundation and my oldest daughter also works there. My two younger daughters are going through college. Angela (24-years-old) and Claudia (21-years-old) are equestrians. They are top equestrians and make top shows. We spend a lot of time with that. Other than that, I’m back in Michigan and doing work in the litigation resolution business. Sometimes when I get the need to go back to the track, I’ll go back and say all my hellos. I rarely watch a race from pit road and normally go back to the motorhome, and that’s about it. I stay in touch with all my friends and obviously hang out with the Truexs’ from time-time. 

    Today, the Michigan native is still involved in some aspects of NASCAR and speculates about the possibility of coming back as an owner.

    “I still do some things in the sport but not much,” Pollex said. “What I really love to do is watch the ARCA Menards Series East (Formerly known as K&N Series) and ARCA. If I was going to do it, I would do it in the lower-level series. I also stay close with a lot of my old guys from back in the day with a Christmas party every year.”

  • Episode 3: Brian Obiedzenski talks Late Model racing, family, and 311

    Episode 3: Brian Obiedzenski talks Late Model racing, family, and 311

    NASCAR Whelan All-American Series driver Brian Obiedzenski (@TheRealObie29) drops in to talk about his 2020 plans, life as a Late Model racer, and a love for the group 311.