Tag: Pocono Raceway

  • Kasey Kahne Pays Tribute to Jason Leffler in Pocono Victory Lane

    Kasey Kahne Pays Tribute to Jason Leffler in Pocono Victory Lane

    Kasey Kahne, driver of the No. 5 Farmers Insurance Chevrolet, came from the eighteenth starting spot to finish first in the GoBowling.com 400 at Pocono Raceway.

    And in the midst of his celebration in Victory Lane, he took a moment to pause and pay tribute to his friend Jason Leffler, with whom he had ridden home with before and after the last Pocono race prior to Leffler’s fatal sprint car accident.

    “This summer has been tough on some racers,” Kahne said. “I thought about it on my way up here because Jason flew up and back with me.”

    “It was tough and there are so many people that were good friends with Jason so I wanted to mention him.”

    This was Kahne’s 16th victory in 345 NASCAR Sprint Cup races, his second victory in 2013, and his second victory at Pocono. He advanced one position in the point standings to the eighth spot.

    “I felt like our Farmers Insurance Chevrolet was the best car,” Kahne said. “Once I cleared Jeff (Gordon), that was pretty much the race.”

    “To come here and dominate the race and get the win was really cool,” Kenny Francis, crew chief said. “We were all about to jump off the box when Kasey made that pass.”

    Jeff Gordon, who suffered that fateful pass by teammate Kasey Kahne, celebrated his birthday by finishing runner up in his No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet.

    This was Gordon’s 29th top-10 finish in 42 races at Pocono and his ninth top-10 finish of the season.

    “He was super-fast all day,” Gordon said of Kahne. “Those guys deserved and earned that win today.”

    “We had them though,” Gordon continued. “We had the position and got a good restart and I’m pretty disappointed that I allowed him to get to the outside of me in Turn One.”

    “That’s the advantage you have of being second, just like the restart before that where I had a little bit of an advantage being in second and got position on him,” Gordon said. “I thought that last restart I did everything I needed to do and I looked in my mirror and I really thought that the inside lane got a good run. I thought all I needed to do was get the bottom but man, he caught me by surprise and blasted by me.”

    “And in that scenario, it just kills your momentum.”

    While Gordon was disappointed, he was definitely counting his blessings, especially as it pertains to the point standings and getting into Chase contention.

    “I feel fortunate to come in second,” Gordon said.  “I feel like we had a great day all in all and I’m very proud of that.”

    “That’s something we can build a lot of momentum on,” Gordon continued. “Yeah, I’m frustrated right now because we had a shot at it and I know how important wins are, but second is a great points day for us as well.”

    Gordon moved up one spot in the point standings up to the ninth position.

    Fellow birthday boy Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet, finished third. And for him it felt like a victory, having conquered some of the demons that had plagued the team.

    “It was definitely a run that we were able to close the chapter on having little problems here and there,” Busch said. “What I mean by that is that we executed really well today.”

    “It was pit strategy, pit stops, two tires, four tires and all to be in position at the end,” Busch continued. “When the 48 had their trouble, we were even able to get into the pits before they closed them.”

    “It just seems like the team is flowing really well and I’m excited for this portion of the season because we now get to go back to all these tracks a second time and we have fresh notes,” Busch said. “So, working together, what I’m happy about is that we’re small but we can shoot from the hip a lot and make up a lot of ground by being aggressive.”

    “Even though we didn’t win, I feel good about this third place finish because this was a championship effort.”

    This was Busch’s 14th top-10 finish in 25 races at Pocono and he moved up one position to 13th in the point standings.

    Ryan Newman, coming off the race win at the Brickyard, continued riding the momentum wave with a fourth place finish in his No. 39 Haas Automation 30th Anniversary Chevrolet.

    “Well it was a good run no doubt,” Newman said, in spite of some pit road challenges. “Big for Quicken Loans and their ‘Bring it Home’ sweepstakes.”

    And of course Newman reminded all that Bloomin’ Onions would be available for all at Outback on Monday.

    Rounding out the top-five was Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in the No. 88 National Guard Youth Foundation Chevrolet.

    “We had a good car but not as good as it needed to be,” Junior said. “We just didn’t have the edge that we needed.”

    “I want to thank my guys who did a good job on strategy and pit stops.”

    While Chevrolet dominated the top five, team Penske flew the Ford team colors, with Brad Keselowski finishing sixth and Joey Logano finishing seventh.

    “We were close to the 5 and 24 but they were probably a tad faster,” the reigning champ and driver of the No. 2 Redd’s Apple Ale Ford said. “Damn, we were just a little bit short.”

    “We were a lot better than we finished,” the driver of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford said. “Seventh isn’t bad but I thought we were a top-three car today.”

    “We just have to keep our heads in the game and keep trying to make up points.”

    Both Logano and Keselowski each moved up one position in the point standings, with Logano now in 17th and Keselowski now in wild card contention in 12th.

    Kyle Busch was the highest finishing Toyota. He brought the No. 18 M&M’s Peanut Butter Toyota to the checkered flag in the eighth spot.

    “We were just a little bit off today,” Busch said after starting from the outside pole. “It seemed like we could get going good on restarts and it would drive well for a few laps, then we couldn’t keep up as well on the long run.”

    “That’s about all we had.”

    Points leader Jimmie Johnson had a very eventful day in his No. 48 Lowe’s Planes Chevrolet, but battled back to a 13th place finish after blowing a tire and hitting the wall. In spite of all that, Johnson actually increased his points lead over Clint Bowyer to 77 points.

    “Yeah, my day kept needing to be calibrated as the day went on,” Johnson said. “I really felt like we had a shot to win, unfortunately blew a tire off of Turn One and ended those hopes there.”

    “We worked on the car and got it better,” Johnson said. “Then I hit the wall so hard that it knocked a spark plug wire off the spark plug.”

    “They were able to get everything hooked back up and the engine took off,” Johnson continued. “Off we went and salvaged a very nice finish.”

     

  • Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Danica Patrick Have Kids In Mind at Pocono

    Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Danica Patrick Have Kids In Mind at Pocono

    In addition to tackling the ‘Tricky Triangle’, testing schedules, and making the championship Chase, the stars of NASCAR, from Jeff Gordon to Jimmie Johnson and Danica Patrick, also took some time to talk kids in the midst of their on-track activities.

    Even Miss Coors Light Rachel Rupert got into the kid-friendly act after qualifying was completed for the GoBowling.com 400.

    Jimmie Johnson, Pocono pole-sitter, five-time champion and current points leader, was all about kids when it came to talking about the new paint scheme on his No. 48 Lowe’s Planes Chevrolet, which features all kinds of kid-friendly characters from the new Disney movie ‘Planes’.

    “The paint scheme is really cool,” Johnson said. “It’s great to have them on the race car.”

    “It gets my daughter excited.”

    Johnson also had the future fans of the sport of NASCAR on his mind as well, especially hoping that his cool new paint scheme might just attract the next generation.

    “The way I became a fan was going to the race track as a kid,” Johnson said. “If we can capture young eyes and have them watch a race for whatever reason, if it’s a cartoon that they enjoy or a movie from Disney that they enjoy, it’s helpful.”

    “It’s fun to have the car look different and everything that kind of spins off from it,” Johnson continued. “We have had very fast race cars when we have had the Disney movies on our race car.”

    “I think it’s good for all of us.”

    Johnson almost sounded like a kid himself when he talked about meeting comedian Dane Cook, star of the animated film ‘Planes’ and voice of the character Dusty, a little crop duster with a ton of heart. Johnson is also pretty stoked for the ‘Planes’ inspired flyover as well.

    “Excited for the opportunity that Dane Cook is going to be here this weekend, which will be fun,” Johnson said. “I’m sure he will make some people smile and laugh.”

    “From what I understand, the fly over is going to be exciting too with the plane from the movie,” Johnson continued. “All in all, just a fun way to tie it all in.”

    “I think it’s good for the track, good for Lowe’s, good for myself, good for NASCAR and hopefully we get some new young fans out of it.”

    Jeff Gordon, who will be celebrating his 42nd birthday at Pocono this weekend, also had kids on his mind. In fact, he even speculated if his own children, daughter Ella and son Leo, would follow in his footsteps to become racers in their own rights.

    “My daughter, I kind of want to wait and see what kind of interest level she has,” Gordon said of Ella potentially jumping behind the wheel of a race car. “Just knowing the things she’s interested in, I don’t see her being one, but she is very competitive.”

    “My son just loves race cars already at a very young age,” Gordon continued. “He reminds me of myself.”

    Gordon also admitted that Leo reminds him of himself in terms of initially not being interested in being in a race car, but then once in it, falling absolutely in love with it.

    “I never wanted to get behind the wheel of a car and I was always like ‘no, no, no, no,” Gordon said. “But when you got me in it, I loved it and I was good at it.”

    “That’s kind of how he is,” Gordon continued. “Not really the first one to just go jump in at it, but once he does, he’s pretty excited about it and he does very well.”

    “I think both kids will driver a race car at some time and then to me, it’s introducing them to it and seeing what kind of interest level they have and whether they’re enjoying it and whether they’re good at it and go from there.”

    Gordon admitted that, if his children do race, he will be one of those worrying parents as he watches each of them compete.

    “It’s nerve-wracking for me to consider and think about that option because every parent that I talk to says that it’s like the worst torture you could ever have because you’re just no in control,” Gordon said. “That’s your child so you have this fear of just them not winning or getting hurt, all these things that you didn’t think about when you were doing it.”

    Even Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet got into the mix of kid talk, although it was certainly not about any children of her own.

    Patrick was sharing her discussions with the new CEO of GoDaddy Blake Irving when the subject of kids came up in the mix of the new business relationship talk.

    “We’ll Blake loves racing which is good,” Patrick said. “He’s got a lot of great ideas and a lot of big plans for GoDaddy.”

    “His son is really into cars and that’s always a good thing when someone like that likes racing,” Patrick continued. “But you know, it’s still about making that relationship work and making sure there is a return on investment for what they’re doing.”

    So, is the next generation of NASCAR fans, drivers and sponsors ready? If Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Danica Patrick have anything to do with it, the future of the sport does indeed seem kid-friendly, at least for this race weekend at Pocono.

  • Brendan Gaughan Is Living Long and Prospering

    Brendan Gaughan Is Living Long and Prospering

    While Brendan Gaughan, driver of the No. 62 South Point Chevrolet, is pretty much an open book thanks to his regular appearances on the Sirius NASCAR radio channel, one thing that fans may not know about the charismatic driver is that he is an admitted Star Trek nerd.

    Given that, the lanyard around his neck with the ‘Live Long and Prosper’ motto suits him perfectly and is exactly what the driver is experiencing this season with team Richard Childress Racing.

    “All I’ve cared about in my career, whether Truck, Nationwide or Cup, is having good equipment,” Gaughan said. “If you have great equipment in this sport, life is easy.”

    “I spent my career in decent equipment but at RCR, this is the first time that I’ve had great equipment and great people,” Gaughan continued. “So, for me, I don’t care what series, all that I have wanted is sitting here.”

    “It just took me eight years of my career to find it.”

    “So, I’m happy whether it is Truck or Nationwide and I am running Nationwide next week,” Gaughan said. “Every time you touch a car at RCR, you are going to be fast.”

    “So when you come to the track, you smile,” Gaughan continued. “And when you come to the track, you have a sigh of relief because even when you come to the track experimenting and it doesn’t work, you just chuckle and say ‘Put the other stuff in and we will be fine.’

    “I’m just so happy with the equipment.”

    Gaughan is also living large and prospering thanks to his success at Eldora, with a top-five finish, and his hopeful success at Pocono Raceway this weekend.

    “We all went to Eldora with cautious optimism,” Gaughan said. “We went into it not knowing formats and worrying that guys were going to spin every two laps and that it might end up being a bad show, but Eldora ended up being the coup of the 21st century so far for NASCAR.”

    “It was a phenomenal event,” Gaughan continued. “The fans showed up.”

    “The fifty-fifty drawing was $17,000 to a fan so that was amazing,” Gaughan said. “I told Tony Stewart right before the race that I wanted a couple of raffle tickets because it was more than I would win for winning the race.”

    “On TV, it showed great,” Gaughan continued. “The format worked out really well for NASCAR.”

    “You had passing and slide jobs and from inside the race car, it was a ton of fun.”

    Gaughan is also hoping to live large and prosper at Pocono Raceway, which will be relatively new to him since he has never raced on the re-pave.

    “I ran Cup here and then it was off the schedule,” Gaughan said of the ‘Tricky Triangle.’ “When they added it, I raced with Germain Racing in 2011 but this is my first time on the new asphalt.”

    “The track is unique,” Gaughan continued. “Some people say this race sometimes gets boring but as a driver, it’s fun because you have three completely different corners.”

    “That makes for a difficult day as a driver.”

    “You’re working hard, your spotter can’t see a damn thing because he is a mile and half away with binoculars,” Gaughan said. “My favorite is when my spotter says ‘clear’ on a close call in turn one and you’re like, you are so full of crap.”

    “You know he has got no clue and is just guessing.”

    “It’s a fun race when you understand all of it,” Gaughan continued. “It’s a really neat race from a strategy perspective because you can almost run it backwards like a road course.”

    Gaughan is also fond of the area around the race track and is especially effusive when it comes to the Pocono Raceway family ownership.

    “I like the area,” Gaughan said. “I’m an outdoorsy type guy and this is just a really pretty area when it comes to that.”

    “There’s four ski mountains here and Pocono is a pretty famous place.”

    “And when you talk the track you can’t say anything but talking about the Mattioli family, who are one of the greatest all time owners in the sport,” Gaughan continued. “You have to like a place that has such great family history.”

    Gaughan is also living large and prospering in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, where he currently sits seventh in the point standings, with his sights still set on a championship run.

    So, what does Gaughan value the most about competing in the Truck Series?

    “First, we had Eldora,” Gaughan said. “This is a series that NASCAR can get away experimenting with.”

    “The trucks put on some of the best racing,” Gaughan continued. “The races are shorter and that fits into the shorter attention spans of the fans.”

    “And because it is shorter, there is no room to ride.” Gaughan said. “You have to go and you have to make your moves early.”

    “And then you beat and bang more than the Cup guys,” Gaughan continued. “You have a little less to lose so to speak and you can kind of get a little more aggressive.”

    Gaughan also appreciates the battles between the veterans, of which he considers himself one, and the young up and comers in the Truck Series, which he feels makes the Series most unique.

    “It’s fun watching the teenagers versus the Hornadays and the Todd Bodines,” Gaughan said. “In this series you have such a big age gap.”

    “In Cup, you get the phenom and he gets the big ride and there is a ton of pressure and he doesn’t get to be himself,” Gaughan continued. “You come down here and oh my goodness, you get to see who the person really is.”

    “You start in the Truck Series and you see great kids like a Ross Chastain, who is really trying to make it in the sport and you’ve got kids like James Buescher, who is finding his own way,” Gaughan said. “And you’ve got my teammates Ty and Austin (Dillon), who both have learned what they want to be without the pressure of being a Sprint Cup star.”

    “It’s a fun series and NASCAR has done a great job of making it that home for those who want to have careers and start careers.”

    Gaughan also is living large and prospering because he knows just how to balance having fun with the sport and putting on his game face when it is time to race. And even he admits that he still gets just a little bit nervous when it comes time to cinch his belts tight.

    “I don’t like to use Bobby Knight much for quotes because I’m a John Thompson guy, but I like his famous quote of what is a game face and he may a bunch of goofy faces illustrating that,” Gaughan said. “Everybody has a different way that they take their competitiveness.”

    “We all have our different rituals as to how we prepare and how we balance having our own personalities and putting the game face on when we are behind the wheel of our race trucks,” Gaughan continued. “But if you don’t have butterflies before every race, like I do, then it is time to hang it up because you are not getting excited anymore about your sport.”

    “I still get butterflies every time and when I quit getting them, then I will know it’s time for me to think about moving on.”

    But most of all, Gaughan is living large and prospering thanks to his family including his wife Tatum and two young sons.

    “That is one of the most difficult things to do is to find that balance between racing and family life,” Gaughan said. “I try to bring the family along as much as I can but so much of it falls to my wife to make those arrangements and pack everybody up.”

    “I’ve been lucky this year that I have a motor coach available to me and I try to bring my family to the track as much as possible,” Gaughan continued. “And that’s how I try to maintain my balance.”

    So, does Brendan Gaughan think that he will continue to live long and prosper for the remainder of the 2013 season?

    “I’ve been pleased with the season so far,” Gaughan said. “We have the most top-five finishes so far and we are definitely fast and we are not out of the championship hunt yet.”

    “But overall, I just love my scuba diving and my family and I am just that every day nerd that hopes to ‘Live Long and Prosper.’

     

  • Crunching The Numbers: Pocono & Iowa

    After a weekend of racing at the Brickyard for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and NASCAR Nationwide Series and a Wednesday night of dirt racing at Eldora for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, all three series head off to new destinations this week with the Sprint Cup Series and Camping World Truck Series heading to Pocono and the Nationwide Series heading back to Iowa Speedway for the second time this season.

    NASCAR Sprint Cup Series – GoBowling.com 400 at Pocono Raceway

    From the rectangular shaped Indianapolis Motor Speedway last weekend to the triangular shaped Pocono Raceway this weekend, this section of the Sprint Cup Series schedule takes the drivers to tracks that are anything but your run-of-the-mill oval. Especially Pocono, with its three distinct turns all based off of turns from three different tracks. Turn 1 is based off of Trenton Speedway, Turn 2 is based off of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and Turn 3 is based off of The Milwaukee Mile. Many say that drivers who run well at Indianapolis tend to run well at Pocono, so at the end of 400 miles on Sunday, we’ll see if that holds true.

    Driver Races Win Top 5 Top 10 Pole Laps Led Avg. Start Avg. Finish
    Jimmie Johnson 23 3 10 16 2 690 9.0 8.7
    Jeff Gordon 41 6 18 28 2 965 11.4 10.2
    Denny Hamlin 15 4 8 10 2 663 6.3 10.5
    Tony Stewart 29 2 12 21 2 156 12.7 11.0
    Mark Martin 53 0 20 34 3 448 9.4 11.2
    Ryan Newman 23 1 8 11 2 182 10.3 12.0
    Carl Edwards 17 2 5 8 0 221 18.0 13.5
    Kevin Harvick 25 0 5 9 0 5 19.2 13.9
    Matt Kenseth 27 0 3 10 0 54 18.0 14.7
    Brad Keselowski 7 1 2 2 0 31 18.1 14.7

    Who To Watch: Five-time champion Jimmie Johnson seems to be having another one of those championship caliber seasons this year with his 75 point advantage heading into this weekend, so it’s no surprise that he leads all active drivers at Pocono. In 23 starts, Johnson has three wins, 10 top fives, 16 top tens, two poles, 690 laps led, and an average finish of 8.7. Let’s not forget just how dominant Johnson was during his June Pocono win. If anyone is going to win this race, Johnson will be the man to beat.

    Johnson’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jeff Gordon, also has an impressive career at Pocono with six wins, 18 top fives, 28 top tens, two poles, 965 laps led, and an average finish of 10.2 in 41 starts.

    Others who run well at Pocono include: Denny Hamlin, with four wins, eight top fives, 10 top tens, two poles, 663 laps led, and an average finish of 10.5 in 15 starts; Tony Stewart, with two wins, 12 top fives, 21 top tens, two poles, 156 laps led, and an average finish of 11.0 in 29 starts; Mark Martin, with 20 top fives, 34 top tens, three poles, 448 laps led, and an average finish of 11.2 in 53 starts; and winner of last weekend’s race at Indianapolis, Ryan Newman, with one win, eight top fives, 11 top tens, two poles, 182 laps led, and an average finish of 12.0 in 23 starts.

    NASCAR Nationwide Series – U.S. Cellular 250 at Iowa

    For the second time this season the Nationwide Series heads to Iowa Speedway for a standalone event on the short track. With the Sprint Cup Series in Pocono for the weekend, the Nationwide regulars will practically have the track to themselves, except for a Cup regular or two that will be making the double duty trip down to Iowa.

    Driver Races Win Top 5 Top 10 Pole Laps Led Avg. Start Avg. Finish
    Brad Keselowski 3 1 3 3 0 151 8.3 2.7
    Elliott Sadler 5 1 5 5 3 100 3.2 2.8
    Kyle Larson 1 0 1 1 0 0 10.0 5.0
    Regan Smith 1 0 0 1 0 0 5.0 7.0
    Sam Hornish Jr. 4 0 2 2 0 91 3.5 10.8
    Justin Allgaier 7 0 1 5 0 150 6.6 10.9
    Parker Kligerman 2 0 0 1 0 0 11.0 11.0
    Austin Dillon 5 0 2 3 1 260 5.8 11.8
    Michael Annett 7 0 1 2 0 6 20.3 13.0
    Cole Whitt 3 0 0 1 0 4 14.3 14.0

    Who To Watch: As the only Cup regular in the field, Brad Keselowski also boasts the best statistics in the Nationwide Series at Iowa. In three starts, Keselowski has one win, three top fives, three top tens, 151 laps led, and an average start of 2.7. The No. 22 car that Keselowski will be driving has won three times previously this season, so Keselowski should be strong on Saturday night once again.

    Elliott Sadler is the top Nationwide regular at Iowa with one win, five top fives, five top tens, three poles, 100 laps led, and an average finish of 2.8 in five starts.

    Others who run well at Iowa include: Rookie Kyle Larson, who finished fifth in his lone start this season; Regan Smith, who had a top ten of his own earlier this season at Iowa with a seventh place finish; Austin Dillon, who was well on his way to a victory in the first race at Iowa this year before fading late, and has two top fives, three top tens, one pole, 260 laps led, and an average finish of 11.8 in five starts; Trevor Bayne will also be strong as he won the first race at the track this year by overtaking Dillon late in the race.

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series – Pennsylvania Mountains 125 at Pocono

    After a historic night of dirt racing last Wednesday night at Eldora, the Camping World Truck Series heads back to the pavement to take on the Tricky Triangle at Pocono. The Trucks have only been racing at Pocono for the last three seasons as a companion to the second Cup Series date at the track. There will be no Cup regulars racing this weekend, so who wins this race is pretty much up in the air as to who can get the job done on Saturday.

    Driver Races Win Top 5 Top 10 Pole Laps Led Avg. Start Avg. Finish
    Joey Coulter 2 1 1 2 0 7 8.0 2.5
    Matt Crafton 3 0 2 3 0 0 13.3 5.0
    James Buescher 3 0 2 2 0 6 7.3 5.3
    Ty Dillon 1 0 0 1 0 0 2.0 6.0
    John Wes Townley 1 0 0 1 0 0 11.0 8.0
    Ross Chastain 1 0 0 1 0 0 20.0 10.0
    Timothy Peters 3 0 0 2 0 2 10.7 13.3
    Johnny Sauter 3 0 1 1 0 0 13.7 15.0
    Miguel Paludo 2 0 0 0 0 0 8.5 16.0
    Ron Hornaday Jr. 3 0 0 1 0 0 8.3 19.0

    Who To Watch: Since the Truck Series has only run at Pocono for a few years now, the only winner at Pocono in the field is Joey Coulter, who has the one win, one top five, two top tens, seven laps led, and an average finish of 2.5 in two starts.

    Others who have raced at Pocono previously and run well there include: Series points leader, Matt Crafton, who has two top fives, three top tens, and an average finish of 5.0 in three starts; 2012 champion James Buescher, with two top fives, two top tens, six laps led, and an average finish of 5.3 in three starts; and Ty Dillon, with a sixth place finish in his first start at the track last year.

    Any conversation on who is likely to win a Truck Series race this season also has to include the rookies in the series who have been running strong all season long . So, Jeb Burton, Darrell Wallace Jr., and Ryan Blaney could find themselves in Victory Lane this weekend as well.

  • Jimmie Johnson Runs from Tech to Track Record Pole at Pocono

    Jimmie Johnson, who after having issues in tech and sprinting to the qualifying grid, flew his Disney Planes car to the head of the field to qualify P1 for the GoBowling.com 400 at Pocono Raceway.

    Johnson put his No. 48 Lowe’s Planes Chevrolet into pole position with a speed of 180.654 miles per hour and a time of 49.819 seconds, scoring a new track record.

    This was Johnson’s second pole of the 2013 season, his 31st pole in his 420 Cup Series races and his third pole at Pocono Raceway. This was also the eleventh track qualifying record broken so far this year by the new Gen-6 race car.

    “I knew it was fast but I didn’t know how fast,” Johnson said. “I was challenging the car and it stuck.”

    “Track records are cool,” Johnson continued. “It makes all drivers and teams smile.”

    Johnson had an interesting time making it to the qualifying grid, once again having difficulty getting through tech and having to run with his car and team to make it in time.

    “We had the left rear tow off by one thousandth of an inch,” Johnson said. “We got on the clock, which is always a scary thing, but we beat the clock.”

    “I’m glad we got it sorted out.”

    Johnson said that he would not wish that stress on any other driver and took exception to the notion that his team might have delayed a bit to go out a bit later in the qualifying order.

    “I wish there was some master plan behind it,” Johnson said. “My heart was pounding out of my chest and I don’t wish that stress on anyone.”

    “That’s not what I want to go through.”

    Johnson admitted that in spite of the stress, both he and his crew chief Chad Knaus really do enjoy the ‘Tricky Triangle’ and all of its challenges.

    “Shifting here makes this track so much fun,” Johnson said. “The gear change makes in interesting.”

    “We have excelled on quirky race tracks,” Johnson continued. “Chad really enjoys setting up the car and the engineering side of it.”

    “We’ve had that knack for odd-shaped race tracks.”

    Kyle Busch, in the No. 18 M&Ms Peanut Butter Toyota, came in runner up in the qualifying effort, with a speed of 180.639 miles per hour and a time of 49.823 seconds. This will be Busch’s 17th top-10 start of 2013 and his tenth top-10 start in 18 races at Pocono.

    “Our Peanut Butter Camry was really fast in practice today,” Busch said. “One run we got a little bit off base but then we backed it right up and the third run we were pretty good.”

    “So, we were excited going into qualifying,” Busch continued. “Fortunately, it was a really fast lap for going that early in qualifying.”

    Busch admitted that going later in the qualifying order would have been beneficial, especially at a track where pit selection and track position are key.

    “I wish we would have gone later because we would have had a better race track, but it was about all I could get,” Busch said. “I wish it was the pole.”

    “That’s what you’d like to have,” Busch continued. “You get so close and it would be nice to have that award, being able to start first and get the number one pit selection.”

    “We’ll take it,” Busch said. “It was a good effort.”

    “And hopefully our car will be better and beat the other guy who beat us today.”

    Busch did, however, take a bit of a jab at pole sitter Johnson during his media availability after his qualifying run.

    “Probably not the clock that he was on made the difference but the draw he had being twenty cars later was beneficial,” Busch said. “It’s just that a lot of these other teams figure out how to play by the rules, you know.”

    “It seems like there is one that is quite often late, more often than the rest.”

    Carl Edwards was the fastest Ford in qualifying, with a time of 49.950 seconds and a speed of 180.180. The driver of the No. 99 Fastenal Ford came in third in the Pocono time trials.

    Edwards posted his seventh top-10 start at Pocono and his eleventh top-10 start in 21 races this season.

    “We got very fortunate with our draw because the track kept getting faster and faster,” Edwards said. “That and my superior skills and my humility helped.”

    “We didn’t expect to pick up that much and have that much grip,” Edwards continued. “Starting position is really important here.”

    “I’m ready to go racing,” Edwards said. “I’m pretty excited about hopefully our turnaround from last week because that was miserable.”

    Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Haas Automation 30th Anniversary Chevrolet, and Kurt Busch in the NO. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet, rounded out the top five.

    “It was a good lap,” Newman said. “We picked up a second from what we practiced.”

    “Man that is fast here.”

    “To go for the pole, we were just a little bit too tight,” Busch said. “The pace was so fast that you are on the edge.”

    Three Fords took the sixth, seventh and eighth spots in qualifying, with Joey Logano, Greg Biffle and Marcos Ambrose in those spots respectively.

    “Yeah, that was not bad,” Logano, behind the wheel of the No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, said. “I feel like my lap was pretty good.”

    “I think I got what I needed,” Biffle, driver of the No. 16 3M Ford, said. “I’m really happy with that lap and our pick up.”

    “I wish I would have gotten a little more out of it but that’s all the car had.”

    Denny Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota, and Aric Almirola, in the Petty No. 43 GoBowling.com Ford, qualified in the ninth and tenth spots.

    “That was definitely good pick up,” Almirola said. “We had to make so many adjustments and I was trying to be a little conservative.”

    “I will take that.”

     

  • Todd Peck Has One Word for Pocono: Incredible

    Todd Peck, behind the wheel of his No. 40 Arthritis Foundation Chevy, will be making his first ever run at Pocono Raceway, as well as his first start at a track larger than a mile and a half. And he has just one word to describe how he feels about it all: “incredible”.

    “Without using expletives, it is incredible all the way around,” Peck said of his Pocono debut. “It’s incredible that we’ve made it this far.”

    “It’s incredible that we’ve had the opportunity to do this,” Peck continued. “Anybody would trade us places in a heartbeat and we’re just so incredibly lucky to be able to do this.”

    “To be here, to get this opportunity, I feel like I’ve reached the pinnacle,” Peck said. “To be able to race with these guys and be part of this organization is incredible.”

    Peck is finding Pocono Raceway pretty incredible in and of itself, in spite of its reputation and three challenging turns.

    “I’ve had a whole lot of fun with this place so far,” Peck said. “I am very tempered in my expectations for coming here because I know it has a reputation as the ‘Tricky Triangle.’

    “This is my first time on a two and a half mile track,” Peck continued. “I’m not a speedway racer…yet.”

    “It’s proven to be a whole lot of fun,” Peck said. “The long straightaway gives you a whole lot of time to think about what am I going to do better this time or what am I going to hit if it doesn’t work out.”

    “Our whole goal coming into this weekend is to whip the ‘Tricky Triangle’ into one straight line.”

    While Peck has incredible expectations for himself, he also is realistic in understanding that the three-turned track can give the best of racers pause and concern.

    “Of course we come to win, but that being said, we do know better than that,” Peck said. “Our goal every week is to be better than where we were last week.”

    “If we can finish top-20, that would be great,” Peck continued. “If we finish top-15, we’ll be giving high fives and anything on top of that, I’ll do a back flip off the top of the hauler.”

    Peck also admitted that being at a larger venue affords him and his team the incredible opportunity to continue to improve so they can not only move on to the next race but also to the next level of the sport.

    “Where we are as a team, we’re growing,” Peck said. “We ran at Kentucky and thought we needed to pounce on this opportunity to get on something bigger here at Pocono.”

    “If we come to the race track and we’ve made gains from where we were last week, that’s a victory,” Peck continued. “We need to run all the laps, be as competitive as we can, and improve upon our previous performances.”

    “Our expectations all year are to either be fast or be spectacular.”

    Peck also feels incredibly fortunate to race on a track that he considers ‘home.’ The driver, who hails from a racing family, is originally from a small south-central Pennsylvania town just outside Hanover, a municipality known for producing Utz Potato Chips.

    “Racing goes back in my family and we ran dirt tracks in the area,” Peck said. “I can remember being a little kid sitting on the golf cart and driving along the front stretch was the coolest thing.”

    “Coming to these places is what made me want to race and to do this.”

    “That’s what I grew up with and I thought it was the greatest thing in the world,” Peck said. “That’s what I fell in love with and it was places like this that made me feel that way.”

    “You remember those things from your past and that has formed me into what I am,” Peck continued. “I love where we are in Pennsylvania.”

    Photo Credit: Gary Buchanan
    Photo Credit: Gary Buchanan

    Another incredible aspect to Peck’s Pocono debut is the cause that he carries on his race truck. For his inaugural race, he is sporting an Arthritis Foundation paint scheme, featuring helmets designed by children impacted by the disease.

    “That’s one of my favorite parts of all of this deal,” Peck said. “The relationship with the Arthritis Foundation was borne out of a necessity for me.”

    “When I was 15 years old, I was diagnosed with arthritis,” Peck continued. “I thought that can’t be right.”

    “My grandparents have arthritis not me so I knew it had to be wrong,” Peck said. “But we learned that it wasn’t wrong and that kids get arthritis too.”

    “And that’s one of the messages we send out, that arthritis affects so many people,” Peck continued. “The Arthritis Foundation helped me to learn about it and cope.”

    “We now have a bigger stage with NASCAR racing to get the message out,” Peck said. “People want to talk about it and it’s an opportunity to give back, whether through awareness or donations or if they just need somebody to talk to.”

    “That’s what we’re here for,” Peck continued. “It’s gratifying for me because it not only helps the Foundation but it helps me help people.”

    Peck is also giving some children with juvenile arthritis an incredible experience. They will be able to see the race from an insider’s point of view, be honorary crew members, tour the garage, watch the crew prepare for the race, and see the main event from the team’s pit stall.

    “Everywhere we go, we extend the invite to the Arthritis Foundation staff and most importantly to kids who are suffering from arthritis and their families in the area,” Peck said. “We give them the gear and all the swag and the experience.”

    “It gives the kids a break from having to go to hospitals and just be a kid,” Peck continued. “If we can give them inspiration, that is important.”

    “I don’t let my arthritis slow me down and if we can inspire them to go out and maybe make the baseball team or whatever, that’s awesome.”

    “That’s my favorite part of this,” Peck said. “The racing is great but working with the kids is the best.”

    Peck will also be sporting an incredible newly designed helmet, thanks to the winner of the Arthritis Foundation’s design contest.

    “The cool thing about my helmet is that it was designed by one of the kids with arthritis as part of a contest,” Peck said. “They sent in their designs, everyone at the shop voted on their favorites, we put them on line and Brianna Hutton was chosen as the winner.”

    “Her design is on my helmet,” Peck continued. “The response was so awesome and not everyone could win so we took the available space down the bed rails of the space and put the rest on the truck.”

    As incredible as helping children cope with the same disease that he has had to live and race with is, Peck cannot wait to take the green flag on his first-ever Pocono run.

    “It’s exciting,” Peck said. ““I need to maximize and learn everything I can and I’ll give it one hundred percent.”

    “And wherever that shakes out at the end of it, we’ll all go back to the shop Monday morning and say let’s go do it again.”

     

  • Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch in an Indy State of Mind

    Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch in an Indy State of Mind

    While Jeff Gordon and Kurt Busch are in the Granite state for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race weekend, they were both in a bit of an Indy state of mind, having watched the IZOD IndyCar Series race the weekend before at Pocono Raceway.

    Both drivers took in the IndyCar race with their loved ones, Busch with his father and Gordon with his son Leo and his nephew. The only difference was that Busch watched from the safety of his couch while Gordon attended in person, watching the start of the race from the Pocono Victory Lane roof top.

    “It was fun to sit on the couch and watch that on Sunday,” Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Chevrolet, said. “To understand it from the in-car telemetry and to see the pit strategy side of it, it was just fun.”

    “I sat there with my dad and watched the race,” Busch continued. “We were rooting for Marco Andretti and it was just crazy to see how the Ganassi guys came out on top.”

    “I was just thinking of it from a purely entertainment standpoint seeing my son see a different kind of car,” Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger Chevrolet, said. “Most of it was for him and my nephew, who was also with me.”

    Even as fast as both drivers go in the Sprint Cup cars, Busch and Gordon were also most impressed with the speeds of the open wheel cars at Pocono, which topped over 220 mph.

    “It was cool to see the speeds,” Busch said. “The speeds are incredible at Pocono and that track now that it’s smoothed out is why the Indy cars went back there.”

    “The track is smooth enough for them to race on and I thought it produced a decent race.”

    “For me it was being amazed at how fast those cars go through the corners, corners that I’m used to going through at much slower speeds,” Gordon said. “I was amazed with just the technology of the cars.”

    Would Busch or Gordon be interested in racing in the IndyCar Series themselves, especially since both have been exposed to open wheel racing?

    “Would I like to drive one of those cars somewhere?” Jeff Gordon asked himself. “Yeah I would.”

    “My biggest thing that holds me back from doing a lot of things is I want to be competitive in whatever it is I’m in and I know if I go run five or ten laps, whether it be a rally car or an IndyCar or whatever car, that’s not enough for me to go be competitive,” Gordon continued. “If I can’t go and be competitive in it then I usually don’t have fun.”

    “That’s just my personality,” Gordon said. “It’s not about just sliding the car sideways or feeling it stick at 220 mph, it’s about can I be as fast as somebody else and so no, honestly watching that race didn’t persuade me to want to go do it.”

    Gordon also expressed some trepidation just based on seeing one of his IndyCar friends James Hinchcliffe wreck hard into the wall on the first turn of the first lap at Pocono Raceway.

    “As a matter of fact, when I was speaking to Hinchcliffe on the grid and then moments later he’s spinning back in the wall, the guy barely flinched and he couldn’t catch it,” Gordon said. “I felt bad for him and also thought I had no desire to get in that car.”

    For Kurt Busch, the interest in another series may just be something on his horizon since he has not yet inked any deal for his 2014 season.

    “It’s been one thing I’ve been trying to answer in my own mind,” Busch said. “There are a lot of irons in the fire.”

    “Contract negotiations and things are in discussion, but you try not to let that weigh any on what’s going on right now,” Busch continued. “Right now is the most important thing.”

    “I’m living in the present.”

    While Gordon and Busch may be in Indy states of mind, they also have to focus on the race at hand at the Magic Mile. And both had good qualifying runs, with Busch moving to the outside pole and Gordon moving to the fifth starting position after Jimmie Johnson’s qualifying time was disallowed due to failing post-race inspection.

    “We tested here,” Gordon said of New Hampshire Motor Speedway. “Conditions I think have changed from the test quite a bit on us so it’s pretty challenging.”

    “But it’s always a track I look forward to.”

    “This track if your car is running well, you can go to the low side and make up a lot of time,” Busch said. “You are not stuck in traffic if you have a good car.”

    Busch was especially thrilled with his qualifying run at a time of 28.040 seconds and a speed of 135.835 mph. But he also admitted his time trial lap had some moments that gave him pause.

    “For us, our lap was pretty exciting,” Busch said. “I hit the rev chip so soon that I thought the guys missed the setting.”

    “It was such a weird lap because I thought we were going to be 20th,” Busch continued. “If we can screw up and be that good, I’ll take it.”

    While Busch and Gordon may be in an Indy state of mind, they also have Chase contention on their minds as well. Busch currently sits in the ninth position in points while Gordon is further back in the fourteenth spot.

    “To be in the top ten in points is great,” Busch said. “It’s a nice feather in the cap but there is still a long way to go.”

    “You can lose points real easily, but it’s tough to gain the points,” Busch continued.  “So basically from eighth to 18th, everybody fits in one shoe box right now.”

    Once both Gordon and Busch leave New Hampshire, they will enjoy a rare weekend off and then be in a real Indy state of mind as they prepare for the Crown Royal Presents the Samuel Deeds 400 at the Brickyard Powered by BigMachineRecords.com at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

    For the off weekend, Gordon will be attending a friend’s wedding and Busch will be whisking girlfriend Patricia Driscoll to Argentina for a getaway. But after that, Indy will be totally on their minds and both drivers cannot wait, especially Jeff Gordon.

    “I’m very much looking forward to Indianapolis,” Gordon said. “The same thing kind of applies to Indy as it does here at New Hampshire.”

    “We tested there which is always great and beneficial,” Gordon continued. “All signs of that test and things that we have planned, I’m very excited.”

    “We had a shot of winning that race a couple years ago and I always go to that track with confidence and feeling good,” Gordon said. “When the car and the team are feeling the same way, then that’s a great combination to have.”

  • Scott Dixon and Team Ganassi Make Indy History at Pocono with Win; Podium Finish

    Scott Dixon and Team Ganassi Make Indy History at Pocono with Win; Podium Finish

    Scott Dixon, driver of the No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, made history at Pocono Raceway in the IZOD IndyCar Series as the eighth different winner in eleven races, scoring his 30th career win, as well as the 200th win for Honda and the 100th team finish for team Target.

    “Going into this morning, I was not thinking we could win,” Dixon said. “The team definitely hasn’t given up and you’ve got to hand it to Honda as well.”

    “The fuel mileage was the key today and we still had speed up front without having to save all the time.”

    “I don’t know what to say,” Dixon continued. “It’s the 100th win for Target as well which is just so fantastic.”

    “It’s been a long drought, almost a year, so it’s fantastic to be back in winner’s circle.”

    With the return of IndyCar Racing to Pocono Raceway for the first time since 1989, Team Ganassi also made history, finishing one, two, three for the first time ever in any form of competition, including IZOD IndyCar Series, CART, NASCAR or GRAND-AM.

    With teammate Scott Dixon in Victory Lane, Charlie Kimball, behind the wheel of the No. 83 NovoLog FlexPen Honda for Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing, finished second, and teammate Dario Franchitti, behind the wheel of the No. 10 Energizer Honda for Target Chip Ganassi Racing, finished third.

    “The whole Chip Ganassi Racing crew, as evidenced by the 1-2-3 finish, was focusing on race day knowing that’s when it mattered,” Kimball, who matched his career best finish of second, said. “Throughout today, the guys made it better on each pit stop and the car just got quicker and quicker.”

    “A lot of credit to Honda, they gave us the fuel mileage and speed today.”

    “The Honda today, it’s so good on fuel mileage and that really, really helped us,” Franchitti, the third place finisher, said. “We went for a very aggressive downforce so every lap was an adventure.”

    “It was a good day.”

    “I had no idea we’d finish one, two, three after coming back late from Daytona,” Chip Ganassi, team owner, said. “When I got out of bed this morning, I wouldn’t have guessed this.”

    “I actually forgot that the next win would have been our 100th; it’s been so long since we’ve had a win,” Ganassi continued. “It’s a really great place to do it – in Pennsylvania, my home state.”

    “It’s great for the Series to have a 1-2-3 finish,” Ganassi said. “Honda needed a boost.”

    “The drivers did a great job and the team did a great job,” Ganassi continued. “Hopefully we’ve turned the corner.”

    Will Power finished fourth in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. This was Power’s third top-five finish of the season.

    “I didn’t realize Charlie (Kimball) was for position,” Power said. “It was quite tough to pass.”

    “It was physical but a lovely track,” Power continued. “There was a good crowd and it was a good race.”

    “But it was an awesome day for Verizon.”

    Josef Newgarden, driving the No. 67 SFH Racing/Rotondo Weirich for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing, rounded out the top-five, matching his best IndyCar Series finish of fifth in Sao Paulo.

    “We had a great day,” Newgarden said. “To get representable results, I’m super pleased for all our guys.”

    “Pocono is incredible,” Newgarden continued. “I wasn’t even born that time they had the last race here.”

    “We’ve got to come back here because it’s an IndyCar track,” Newgarden said. “I’m super pleased for our group.”

    The race was not without drama as James Hinchcliffe, driver of the No. 27 GoDaddy Chevrolet, wrecked on the very first lap.

    “I’m not entirely sure what happened,” Hinchcliffe said. “We’ll have to take a look at it.”

    “The car just snapped loose on me,” Hinchcliffe continued. “We went a bit aggressive on setup because we had an understeering car all week, and we didn’t want that in the race.”

    “Maybe we overstepped it a bit; I’m not quite sure,” Hinchcliffe said. “It’s a 400-mile race so to go out on Lap 1 is just devastating.”

    “It’s really unfortunate.”

    Another pair of unhappy campers was Ryan Hunter-Reay, driver of the No. 1 DHL Chevrolet, and Takuma Sato, behind the wheel of the No. 14 ABC Supply Co/A.J. Foyt Racing Honda, who collided on pit road.

    “I think I misjudged it,” Sato said. “Extremely sorry.”

    “It was my fault.”

    “I couldn’t believe it,” Hunter-Reay said. “I thought a plane crashed in there.”

    “I didn’t expect it would have been Sato,” Hunter-Reay continued. “We had a great car to challenge for the win and then get creamed from behind.”

    “He unplugged his brain entirely,” Hunter-Reay said. “It’s just so frustrating when someone comes from nowhere completely unglued.”

    Hunter-Reay admitted that the hard hit on pit road exacerbated an injury with which he has been struggling.

    “I have to go get my thumb x-rayed now,” Hunter-Reay said. “That made it worse than it was before.”

    “It is what it is and we’ll deal with it.”

    The most upset driver, however, was hometown hero and third generation driver Marco Andretti. The driver of the No. 25 RC Cola Chevrolet for Andretti Autosport finished tenth after leading a race high 88 laps and sitting on the pole.

    This was the fifth race this season in which Andretti led and the fourth oval race he has led. Yet he still remains winless for the 2013 season.

    “I’m so frustrated right now,” Andretti said after the race. “We were so dominant.”

    “I’m just absolutely gutted,” Andretti continued. “I just sat there and watched the lead go away from me and it ripped my guts out.”

    Helio Castroneves, driver of the No. 3 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, finished eighth and extended his points lead to 23 over Ryan Hunter-Reay after the Pocono IndyCar 400 Fueled by Sunoco.

    “For us getting a lot of points in the championship is fantastic,” Castroneves said. “It was a tough race.”

    “It was a lot of thinking and I’m terrible at thinking!” Castroneves continued. “It’s one of those races that nobody knows what to do.”

    “It was crazy and quite exciting,” Castroneves said. “At the end of the day, it was a great day for championship and that’s what we’ve got to think.”

  • Marco Andretti, Dario Franchitti and Takuma Sato Take on Tricky Triangle

    Marco Andretti, Dario Franchitti and Takuma Sato Take on Tricky Triangle

    Although legends the likes of A. J. Foyt, Rick Mears, Al Unser and Mario Andretti have raced there, it has been since 1989 that an open-wheel race occurred at Pocono Raceway.

    But on this July 4th holiday weekend, the IZOD IndyCar Series returns to Pocono with drivers like Marco Andretti, Dario Franchitti and Takuma Sato, who hope to add their names to the list of winners at the track known as the ‘Tricky Triangle.’

    “So far, so good,” Marco Andretti, driver of the No. 25 RC Cola Chevrolet for Andretti Autosport, said after the first test session at Pocono. “I have to give credit to IndyCar for the aero and Firestone for the tire choice.”

    Andretti, a third generation racer who considers this is ‘home’ track, will make his first start at Pocono and his 125th career start.

    Although Andretti admits that he does go to his grandfather for advice, especially with his familiarity with the ‘tricky’ track, he said that this time he had to make it his own.

    “At this level of the sport, we have to learn by driving,” Andretti said. “My grandfather is supportive…but only if I’m quickest.”

    Andretti said that so far the triangle has been a bit ‘tricky’ from his perspective. But he is loving every minute of it, at least so far.

    “The trickiest part is getting the balance between turns one and three,” Andretti said. “You can make the car good in one corner and then not the others.”

    “That’s the cool part about this track.”

    Fellow competitor Dario Franchitti, driver of the No. 10 Energizer for Target Chip Ganassi Racing, echoed Andretti’s excitement at racing returning to Pocono, in spite of being on ‘Scotland time.’ He had been up bright and early at 6:00 am at Pocono after visiting his homeland for a weekend of rest and relaxation.

    “It’s great to be here at Pocono,” Franchitti said. “It’s a great rack.”

    “These cars are bloody quick right here.”

    Franchitti also agreed with Andretti that the triangle is a bit tricky, especially trying to negotiate the three very different corners.

    “It’s a tough place to figure out,” Franchitti said. “The tunnel turn – I don’t know what it will be like with ten cars in front of me.”

    “But I really hope there will not be ten cars in front of me.”

    Franchitti admitted that his season has been one of struggles, both on the road courses and the ovals. And when one of the media followed up with a question about his brief stint in NASCAR, Franchitti said that was equally as painful as his season so far.

    “I went to the dentist and had work without anesthesia and I broke my back,” Franchitti said. “It was less painful than NASCAR.”

    “This season has been tough,” Franchitti continued. “We haven’t got it together on road courses and we have struggled on the ovals.”

    “We went down the wrong development path with parts and it’s been a difficult year so far.”

    Takuma Sato, driving the No. 14 for A.J. Foyt Racing, echoed the excitement of his fellow drivers in making his first appearance ever at Pocono Raceway. And he even had an opportunity to enjoy the beautiful scenery on his way into the track.

    “I’m very excited to be at Pocono,” Sato said. “It’s always interesting to be in a new venue, especially with the long history here.”

    “On the way to the track, it took me a half hour but it’s a nice drive,” Sato continued. “I like the nature.”

    Sato agreed with his fellow competitors that the three-cornered race track is indeed one of the most ‘tricky’ that he has ever experienced.

    “It’s quite a challenging track,” Sato said. “Quite tricky in Turn One.”

    “It took me awhile to get the right lines and figure out how to do it.”

    “Turns One and Three are challenging for both the driver and the engineers,” Sato said. “By myself I’m doing a good job but I’m not sure about in the pack.”

    “There is a huge balance shift between those two conditions.”

    Like Andretti, Sato has a mentor who has vast knowledge of the track in A.J. Foyt. So, did he garner any advice from him prior to taking to the track at the ‘Tricky Triangle?’

    “We talked about it knowing he is a master here,” Sato said of his mentor and owner Foyt. “But it’s a different time.”

    “He did give me tips about setting up the car,” Sato continued. “I’ll speak to him later today and tomorrow.”

    Sato was also incredibly analytical when it came to breaking down each of the three turns at the ‘Tricky Triangle.’

    “Turn One is like Fontana because of the banking and that you have to go through all the seams,” Sato said. “In Turn Two, you have to be careful because it is easy and flat.”

    “Turn Two is like a little kink for me and there is no need to count it as a corner,” Sato continued. “Turn Three is Milwaukee-style, with no banking and a high speed.”

    “There is a sensation of the cars that feels weird and challenging too,” Sato said. “It is a good corner.”

    Two of the three drivers were also asked to react to another change just announced by INDYCAR race director Beaux Barfield, the return of the three-wide start to the race. So, what did they think of that change?

    Marco Andretti definitely had some thoughts on the three-wide start, the types of which have been utilized for the Indy 500 since 1921 and also at Pocono Raceway in the 1970s and 1980s for the ‘triple crown’ legs.

    “That one is really for the fans,” Andretti said. “I’m all about tradition so I love it.”

    “I’m just hoping we can get it sorted out by Turn One.”

    Dario Franchitti agreed that the three-wide race start may be quite interesting at the ‘Tricky Triangle.’

    “Three wide won’t be an issue at first because it’s so wide,” Franchitti said. “But Turn One narrows up quickly, so that will be the tricky part.”

    Probably the driver with the highest expectations placed upon him at the ‘Tricky Triangle’, however, is hometown ‘son’ and hero Marco Andretti. While he feels a win would be spectacular at his home track, he really just wants to get that ‘W’ in the worst way.

    “The monkey is on my back anyway for a win,” Andretti said. “We’re on the right track.”

    “But a win here would be extra special.”

  • NASCAR BTS: Race Fan Carol Messinger Experiences Healing Power of NASCAR

    NASCAR BTS: Race Fan Carol Messinger Experiences Healing Power of NASCAR

    In this week’s NASCAR Behind the Scenes, one race fan Carol Messinger, who has been battling Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma for eight years, experienced one of the best days of her life thanks to Pocono Raceway and the Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Foundation.

    But to understand the significance of her day at the race track just last week, one must understand her journey with cancer that began with her diagnosis on June 2, 2005. She decided right from the start that she would approach her fight with lymphoma just like her favorite driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. approached every NASCAR race.

    “The hardest part is not having a cure and knowing you have cancer that can at any time cause a secondary cancer,” Messinger said. “Mine has not been in remission for more than a year.”

    “I have been given chemo and radiation for six out of the eight years,” Messinger continued. “I decided from day one that this was going to be a fight that I would challenge like my favorite NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr. does as he races and competes for the championship.”

    “Being a life-long NASCAR fan, it was easy to tie in the strategy of working for that prize.”

    Messinger’s battle included months of treatment that would seemingly show good results, however, the cancer would rear its ugly head time and time again. Yet, she kept returning to the sport she loved, her favorite driver, and her home track for help in her healing process.

    “We started with six months of chemo and had no ‘caution flags’ come out until completion of the treatment,” Messinger said. “But then six months later the PET/CAT scan showed the cancer was active and growing.”

    “So we did more chemo and got back racing again,” Messinger continued. “All went well until another caution and then more chemo.”

    “I felt like I was a stock car in need of major adjustment,” Messinger said. “This went on for seven and a half years and they just can’t seem to get it right.”

    “We kept spinning our wheels,” Messinger continued. “So, that is the connection to Dale Junior as his past few years have been filled with adjustments, wins and struggles.”

    Messinger, a life-long Dale Earnhardt Sr. fan and member of Junior nation, admitted that cancer and the treatments she has had to endure prohibited her racing passion, especially in not being able to attend a race in person.

    “Cancer and chemo has taken away my favorite things,” Messinger said. “I cannot be in the sun, I have very bad pain in my feet and back so walking is challenging.”

    “And I get very tired so I have not been able to go to races because you have to be in the sun, walk and handle a long day or night,” Messinger continued. “And of course, finances are tight as well with all the medical bills.”

    Messinger’s dream came true, however, on race weekend at Pocono when the owners of the track, the Mattioli family, provided her with a special ticket package, with seating in the covered terrace level, a special parking pass, and an elevator pass to her seats.

    “When I was told it would be possible to go to Pocono Raceway and that I was going as the guest of the owners, I was thrilled,” Messinger said. “I could not believe that someone would do that for me.”

    “I had been feeling a little down because of the almost eight years of chemo, radiation, nuclear chemo and a really bad dose of chemo that put my heart in jeopardy of being damaged,” Messinger continued. “So I was excited to be able to do this and get back into the race.”

    “My husband saw the immediate joy I was feeling when I knew I was going to the track again,” Messinger said. “From the time I crossed through the gate, I loved every second of being there.”

    But the healing power of the NASCAR community continued and, thanks to the Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Foundation, Messinger got one more surprise during her day at the Party in the Poconos 400.

    “Then I found out I was also going to a Dale Junior fan event with the National Guard,” Messinger said. “I was overjoyed and that was putting it mildly.”

    “I was on top of the world.”

    “When we arrived at the National Guard tent, they fed us, gave us bags of all kinds of #88 goodies, but most of all they talked to me and were very happy to have us there,” Messinger said. “We talked to those in the Guard and heard their stories as well.”

    “Then Junior showed up and immediately there was a sense of respect in the hospitality tent,” Messinger continued. “Junior let us ask him questions.”

    Messinger was able to ask Dale Junior about seeing his nieces race and giving them pointers with their racing. But the ultimate healing thrill for her was yet to come, as he chose her number to receive a signed die cast race car.

    “Here he was talking to us,” Messinger said. “He is such a super star and handles it so well.”

    “There I was standing next to my hero, the one I watch and try to get some relief from this life of cancer,” Messinger continued. “And he put his arm around me for a picture as he gave me the car.”

    “He gave this sick old lady the thrill of a lifetime,” Messinger said. “You can’t find a better hero anywhere in this world.”

    Messinger returned to her seat to watch her hero race and finish third at the Party in the Poconos 400. Little did she know that she had also attracted the attention of another person in a very similar situation.

    “The seats were wonderful and no sun ever got to us,” Messinger said. “Then a young girl in her 20’s tapped me on the shoulder, took off her hat and showed me her six months after chemo growth of hair.”

    “She told me to ‘hang in there’ as she was fine now and that I would be too,” Messinger continued. “She hugged me and walked away.”

    “I was overcome with emotion as I realized that everyone, my family my friends, Dale Junior and even people that I did not know cared enough to help me feel the magic and forget for just one day that cancer was ruling my life.”

    “NASCAR has been my escape and my encouragement,” Messinger said. “I am going to win the race and get my checkered flag too one day.”

    “The memories of the day are locked in my heart and mind forever,” Messinger continued. “It took me a few days to come down to earth.”

    “NASCAR fans are family and I’m proud to say that I am a NASCAR fan, a Dale Earnhardt, Jr., fan and a fan of Pocono Raceway,” Messinger said. “And I always will be.”