Ford Racing NSCS Notes & Quotes:
Pennsylvania 400 (Pocono Raceway)
NSCS Friday Advance (August 3, 2012)
· Ford Racing enters Pocono with three drivers in the top-12 of the latest NASCAR Sprint Cup standings, including second place Matt Kenseth (-14) and third place Greg Biffle (-22) while Carl Edwards stands 12th, 61 points out of the 10th position.
· Two current Ford drivers have NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins at Pocono. Carl Edwards has a pair of victories (2005 and 2008) while Greg Biffle is the most recent Ford driver to win in 2010.
· Although winless so far at Pocono, Matt Kenseth has enjoyed decent success at the track over the years, achieving three top-five and nine top-10 finishes at Pocono in the Cup series
· A Blue Oval has claimed victory 21 times at Pocono, second most among manufacturers.
Matt Kenseth, driver of the No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford Fusion, met with media members prior to the opening practice at Pocono Raceway Friday afternoon.
MATT KENSETH, No. 17 RFR Ford Fusion – LAST TIME HERE THERE WERE A BUNCH OF SPEEDING PENALTIES ON PIT ROAD. DO YOU THINK WE WILL SEE THAT AGAIN? “Well, as long as it isn’t me getting caught I hope we see a lot of them. It certainly helps with track position. I think it all depends on whether people speed on pit road or not.”
LAST WEEK JIMMIE JOHNSON SAID THAT HIS ULTIMATE GOAL WAS TO WIN EIGHT CHAMPIONSHIPS. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THAT COMMENT? “Well, when you have five in a row you can make comments like that. If it was somebody making a comment like that that hasn’t won one or maybe won one eight or 10 years ago like myself, you would think that was kind of arrogant or something. Coming from Jimmie it really isn’t. It is realistic. They have proved that team and that combination of Chad and Jimmie and the guys at HMS have been the premier team and been the best over the last five to eight years or however you want to look at it. I don’t think that is unrealistic. I hope I can make it unrealistic and we can win some of them but coming from them it is not bad.”
HOW HAS THE EMPHASIS TEAMS HAVE PUT ON ROAD COURSES CHANGED IN RECENT YEARS? “Well, I think people have always worked on it a lot it is just different because you can’t really test at tracks that we race at. There are only two road courses but it is easier to go to a road course and pack up and test than maybe some of the oval tracks. There are not many oval tracks that are similar to other oval tracks we race at. I think people have always worked on it. I am not sure they work on it harder than what they used to, I just think you try to do well everywhere.”
WHAT IS THE MOST CHALLENGING SECTION OR TURN AT WATKINS GLEN? “I can’t think of one that isn’t a challenge for me. I think it is all tough. I think probably for me the most important part to your lap time is getting through the esses the fastest. The more throttle you can use going up the hill and through the esses the less you have to lift it seems like that really adds a lot or takes a lot away from your lap time because that back stretch is long. They are all important and unique at Watkins Glen. When it comes to racing, I think whatever they call it now, the last turn, is very important to get off that and into turn one so you don’t get passed there. The esses are always important leading up to the bus stop because that is another passing zone. The more cushion you can get through the esses and the top of the hill the less likely you are to get passed.”
THERE HAVE BEEN SIX DIFFERENT WINNERS HERE IN THE LAST SIX RACES. WHY IS THAT? “I think it is always pretty competitive and every year the rules get tighter and cars get closer to being the same speed. The closer we are to the same speed the more opportunities it gives people to win.”
ANYTHING JOEY (LOGANO) DID HERE LAST TIME THAT YOU CAN TRY TO SIMULATE? “Yeah, you want to sit on the pole and be as fast as you can every week and try to win for sure. They had a real fast car and did everything right and made the move there at the end for the win. That was really a good weekend for him for sure.”
HOW DID THE RACE BEING SHORTER AFFECT YOU LAST TIME? “I don’t really think it changed it to be honest with you. I think that you always are racing hard and for track position and trying to get your car as fast as you can and be up front at the end, whether that is 400, 500 or 600 miles. You always aim to be up there at the end.”
AFTER WHAT HAPPENED WITH ELLIOTT (SADLER) AND THEN THE SPEECH YOU GOT ABOUT RESTARTS, DO YOU FEEL EVERYONE IS COMFORTABLE ABOUT THAT NOW OR IS THERE A GRAY AREA THERE? “Yeah, I wasn’t a part of that race but watching it I was confused on the initial start. The last one with Elliott, I wasn’t that confused on. In my opinion it was fairly cut and dry although there are certain drivers that try to get you to get a penalty. You can watch it and there are a couple of the same guys that will maybe try to do that or sucker you into a penalty. The rule is he has to be there first and you have to try to slow down at least to make a good effort at not beating the leader there and trying to make it look good. I don’t know. I think we are pretty clear on it. The initial start I didn’t understand because that was by six or seven car lengths and the leader wasn’t ready to go yet when you watch the in-car camera. There rest of it I think everyone is pretty clear on.”
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE OLYMPIC SPORT TO WATCH? “I have been watching a little bit. My wife has been watching a lot. I don’t know. I am not really into the swimming and some of the gymnastics and all that stuff. Probably the running and the beach volleyball is pretty fun to watch. I got to meet Kerri Walsh a few years ago at the Super Bowl so we were watching her play the other night. Some of that stuff is fun to watch. It is all fun and interesting I guess.”
IS THERE ONE THAT YOU WOULD MOST LIKELY PARTICIPATE IN? “Probably none of them because I am not talented enough to keep up in any of them probably. If I was an Olympic athlete I would still like to do this, but I would be doing something else. I think the best I can do is watch.”
WHAT ABOUT HAVING RACING IN IT ONE DAY? “How could we do that? We are supposed to be in Pocono?”
YOU AND DALE JR. HAVE BEEN CONNECTED SINCE YOUR ROOKIE YEAR. HE JUST PASSED YOU IN THE POINTS. WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF HIS SEASON? “I think it is good. It is funny because all the race fans are really passionate but I always get a kick out of his fans and how passionate they are about it. He has had a great year. It has been a lot of fun. Earlier in the year we ran together a lot and finished good together a lot and been by each other on the track. It has been fun when we have both been in the top-five to park out there and talk a little bit. I really like racing with him, I always have. We had a great time in the Nationwide series together. He won those two championships and then we went up and started racing Cup together. We have gone through a lot of years where maybe he was running good and I am not or vice versa and you might not even see each other all day. It is really fun when we get to race against each other out on the race track. I look forward to that and enjoy it.”
CAN YOU DESCRIBE GOING THROUGH THE HAT DANCE IN VICTORY LANE? “You need to ask somebody that is winning more. We haven’t been winning much lately. You should ask someone that gets to do it all the time like Jimmie. There is nothing that is not fun about victory lane. When you go through a losing streak or maybe the older you get or longer you have been around I think you enjoy all of it more than maybe you would earlier on.”
WITH SIX RACES LEFT, HOW MUCH ARE YOU LOOKING AT THE POINT STANDINGS WEEKLY? “I don’t really look at it very close. I think you try to pace, depending on where you are at, pay attention to where you are in front of 11th. They re-rank them for wins when you get to the Chase so for us where we are and after a bad week last week you glance at it and see your cushion for being in the top-10. You race as hard as you can every week and finish as high as you can and don’t worry about the points.”
