Ford Racing NSCS Notes & Quotes:
Quaker State 400 (Kentucky Speedway)
Friday Advance (June 29, 2012)
Greg Biffle, driver of the No. 16 American Red Cross Ford Fusion, spent time with media outside his hauler between the final practice and qualifying session at Kentucky Speedway Friday afternoon.
HOW WAS THAT PRACTICE FOR YOU? “We ended up third in that practice session, which is nothing to brag about really because there were only four or five guys in qualifying trim there at the end. We are struggling a little bit in qualifying trim but our car is pretty good in race trim. We will keep working at it.”
HOW IS THE TRACK? WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON IN PARTICULAR? “I am just having a hard time. Some laps the car and track feels good. Sometimes it feels really slick. We are trying to get the balance right. Right now it is really hot and slick. It is hard to get hold of.”
IS THIS HEAT TROUBLESOME? “Not right now but it would be tough racing in this. We know we have to in a couple weeks at Indy but it just makes the cars slip and slide around a lot when it is this hot. It will be a lot better racing tomorrow night.”
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON MATT KENSETH’S ANNOUNCEMENT? WERE YOU SURPRISED? “Yeah, I was a little bit surprised. Matt and I are good friends but we don’t talk about business much when we are together, other than racing. We don’t talk contracts or anything like that. I am going to lose a good teammate in the garage area. I am not going to lose a friend I guess, but I will lose a friend sitting in all the meetings and all that. We will still be good friends but certainly I lose a good teammate and that will be tough but Ricky is moving up into that car I guess and Ricky has done a great job. We have all felt, including Matt, that Ricky could probably do the job of our fourth car coming up. It will just end up being the third.”
THOUGHTS ON HIM MAKING THAT ANNOUNCEMENT AS HE IS LEADING THE POINTS AND YOU ARE RIGHT BEHIND HIM? “I wish I was leading the points and he was right behind me. I don’t think it really dictates where you are at in the points. He made a decision based upon whatever it was and I think it didn’t really reflect where he was in the points on his decision making.”
LOOKING AHEAD TO DAYTONA, YOUR THOUGHTS ON RESTRICTOR PLATE RACES THIS YEAR. “Restrictor plate racing is the same as it always has been. It is a love hate relationship. It is a lot of fun at times but a lot of times it is pretty intense and other times you end up in a big wreck. It is one of the three. It is usually never boring but it is what it is.”
IS IT WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE RIGHT NOW OR WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE SOME CHANGES? “I think it was decent at Talladega and decent at the 500. I don’t know, we could always sit and tweak and polish a little bit but for the most part I think it is pretty good.”
DO YOU THINK TRACK CONDITIONS WILL BE DIFFERENT FEBRUARY TO NEXT WEEK? “Yeah, it will be hotter and lost grip. That will be a factor.”
HOW ABOUT NEW HAMPSHIRE, YOU HAVE HAD SUCCESS THERE. TALK ABOUT GOING THERE IN A COUPLE WEEKS. “I love that place. It is a fun race track. I have been really close and won a couple races there and we run good there. That being a Chase track, we are looking forward to that race to see how we run.”
THERE HAVE BEEN 12 DIFFERENT WINNERS IN 16 RACES. ANY THOUGHTS ON WHY? “I think it has a lot to do with how competitive the teams are and that also plays into not seeing so many cautions. We saw a lot less caution flags and are seeing a lot of different winners. This thing is getting competitive and all those things are being a factor.”
IS IT GOOD TO BE A FREE AGENT OR IS IT NERVE RACKING? “You like it if there are five guys calling you wanting to hire you and you dread it if nobody is calling you or trying to renegotiate and salvage what you have. There are different kinds but I have always been on the good side of it. I have a great sponsor with 3M and American Red Cross and Ford and everybody. I am in a pretty good position and I know that everyone is looking for sponsorship and things and it is what it is. It is different every time it comes up.”
Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 43 Eckrich Ford Fusion, met with media members following the final practice at Kentucky Speedway to talk about the heat, his practice session and his season to date.
ARIC ALMIROLA, No. 43 Eckrich Ford Fusion – HOW IS THE HEAT AFFECTING THE HANDLING AND EVERYTHING ELSE OUT THERE? “It is affecting everything. It is hot, incredibly hot and I can’t remember the last time it was this hot. It is plenty warm and our car has been slipping and sliding around quite a bit. We have some work to do. In qualifying trim I thought we were pretty good and we finished up sixth in the first practice. I think we will be okay in qualifying trim but we have to come up with something better in race trim.”
WHAT HAS MIKE FORD BROUGHT TO THE TABLE FOR YOU? “It has been really good. Mike is very thorough and he is a really good leader. It has been great to work with him. He has a lot of experience and has kind of taken me under his wing and helped me a lot with the racing part of it and with racing at this level. He has been more than just a crew chief, he has been a mentor and it has been fun to work with him and all the guys really respect him on the race team. He has been a great addition to Richard Petty Motorsports.”
HAS IT BEEN A BIG CONFIDENCE BUILDER? YOU GUYS HAVE ROLLED OFF PRETTY WELL IN RECENT WEEKS. “It has been a huge confidence boost to have him up on top of that box and making calls and adjustments. Ever since he has come on we have shown signs of being better. There are still things we need to work on and improve on. He has a lot of ideas he is still trying to get working into the system but it is a process. That is one thing that he reiterates time and time again, that it is a process and we look to keep trying to make it better and better. We feel like we are doing that. The last couple weeks have not been what we wanted but everything leading up that has been good and we know we unloaded here and are sixth in the first practice and as long as week keep doing things right and seeing positive results and we keep getting better, that is what it is about.”
IT IS THE KING’S 75TH BIRTHDAY MONDAY, ANY SPECIAL PLANS AROUND THE SHOP? “I don’t know. I think they might be secret and I don’t want to spill the beans.”
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HOW YOU WERE IN PRACTICE? “I thought in the first practice in qualifying mode we were pretty good and had a really good package. We were sixth quick, so I am happy with that. We needed a little more speed but I thought we were really close. We switched over to race trim and we were not very good, so we have to go to the drawing board and figure something out a little different than what we’ve got. What we have isn’t good enough. Mike and our engineers are up there in the lounge working pretty hard at it and poking away at the computer trying to make it better. We will go out here and hopefully get a nice lap for qualifying. We got a good draw going out late and that is going to help. Track position is going to be really important so hopefully we lay a good lap down tonight in qualifying and get a good race package for tomorrow.”
