1st, CARL EDWARDS
3rd, DAVID RAGAN
4th, KYLE BUSCH
5th, DENNY HAMLIN
8th, MATT KENSETH
18th, CLINT BOWYER
35th, MATT DiBENEDETTO
36th, JEB BURTON
39th, JJ YELEY
CARL EDWARDS, No. 19 Sport Clips Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Starting Position: 1st
How happy are you to earn the pole at New Hampshire?
“I’ve struggled at this race track so this is big for me personally. Everybody at JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) has been working so hard. These Toyotas are fast. I’ve got Sport Clips on here so I know there is some guy sitting there in his chair getting his hair done right now and he’s probably watching this and just having a good time. This is pretty cool. Everybody has worked really hard. We had a strategy that Darian (Grubb, crew chief) had to stick to that first round. We almost went a second time and he took a huge gamble. My guys did a great job today and this is really cool.”
What does it say about Joe Gibbs Racing having another strong run following the performance in Kentucky?
“Right now it just feels right. Everybody is just working hard and these are two kind of standalone race tracks. There is really nothing else like them. It’s fun. At the beginning of practice, Matt (Kenseth) was on top of the sheet and then I got up there and then Kyle (Busch) got up there. I leaned on Denny’s (Hamlin) data a bunch coming here. The guys used a lot of his information to prepare me for this race. It’s just cool. It’s good to be driving a Toyota with TRD (Toyota Racing Development) and Joe Gibbs Racing right now.”
What are your expectations for the race on Sunday?
“Expectation is to do the best we can. My hope is that we win this thing. We need to get another win. Joe Gibbs and I talked a little bit and Darian (Grubb, crew chief) and I have talked – we’ve been working very hard on bringing this team together and being the best that we can be. It just feels right now and this is cool. This is a lot of fun.”
How fast is your car and why did you go out in the final minute of qualifying?
“It’s pretty fast. That was not the best lap I had completed all day. I thought maybe I could go faster and I didn’t want to leave something out there. It turned out to just be a victory lap, which was nice. It seems kind of surreal. I guess I didn’t believe that we had the pole. This place has not been great to be in qualifying. Just a cool day and a lot of fun. It’s neat to see Darian (Grubb, crew chief) smile that big.”
How difficult has this track been for you in the past?
“This track is tough, well for me it has been very tough to pass at this track. Qualifying we knew would be important and after the first couple laps of practice, I knew we had a really fast race car. Qualifying went well. We tried to put as few laps as we could on the tires and it was hard to sit there about 19th that first round and not go again. I give a lot of credit to Darian (Grubb, crew chief) for being able to gamble like that. We very well could have been 25th and wishing we would have gone again. That was awesome. Just the whole group at JGR, it’s been really good the last couple weeks. We’ve been working really well together. Kentucky was huge obviously and to come here and for all of us to be this fast is great. I’m really excited about the race.”
Are you surprised at the amount of different aero packages you’ve run in recent weeks?
“I grew up racing at three or four different race tracks where you raced at the same race track with the same race car week after week after week and the most notable change in my career was when I started driving in the Truck Series and it was like every week was a new track and completely different. Everything felt different and I really enjoy that, I enjoy that challenge. Me personally, I know a lot of the drivers and definitely the team members don’t agree with me, but I really don’t care if we show up and they change the rules package halfway through the race doesn’t bother me. You’re supposed to be able to adapt and as long as it’s the same rules package for everyone, it really doesn’t matter as long as everyone is racing the same thing. It’s competition. I just want to be very clear, I don’t like a specific style of racing. I just like racing to be difficult so that you have to try very hard and you have to work with your team. To me, making it difficult is what makes it a good competition.”
How do you feel about the aero package from Kentucky and what do you expect NASCAR to change moving forward?
“I have a couple of comments on it, first of all, regardless of the results of the race, which were good for Joe Gibbs Racing and good for me personally – I had fun racing. I had more fun in that race at Kentucky than I’ve had at any mile-and-a-half in years. To me, if some is good then more is better. We should continue down that path in my opinion. As far as the physics of being able to have stock car racing like that and to have pack race or drafting, I don’t think that’s possible. I think they’re two completely different things. I think we have plenty of pack racing in my opinion in this sport with the four race that we have that are like that. I think we should stay as far away from that at the other tracks as possible. That’s my opinion. But NASCAR is not going to make changes based on one driver’s opinion or three or four driver’s opinion. I think Brian France made that clear. I want to be very clear that I don’t prefer a style of racing, I prefer stock car racing where you slide cars around and you can race close to one another. The coolest thing is that NASCAR is trying all these things. Kentucky went well, I believe everybody agreed that went well and they’ll try other packages. That’s a scientific method and whatever turns out to be the best direction, hopefully they go all the way down that path and go that direction and let it rip.”
What do you expect NASCAR to adjust, if anything on the package for Chicago?
“I have no idea what they’re going to do for Chicago. If it were my sport, you just cut the splitters completely off and the spoilers completely off of them and just go race. That’s what I would do.”
How does it feel seeing all of Joe Gibbs Racing run so strong recently?
“I was thinking about that after qualifying and it feels to me like we’re in this sweet spot that I’ve only been in a couple times in my time in this sport where all of us are fast and we’re all pushing one another, but we’re sharing information and it’s really neat. It’s fun to have teammates like I have that motivate me and push me and challenge me, but we all do it and at the same time celebrate each other’s successes. It’s really cool and I think there will be a lot of good things to come. I do recognize that Kentucky is a standalone event and this track is really unique so this might not continue, but for now it’s really fun.”
How much confidence do you have for Sunday’s race with the experience of Darian Grubb at this race track?
“I think we’re going to be pretty good and there is a lot of confidence. The cars are fast. In practice we were fast. Not just fast, the car drives very well and Darian (Grubb, crew chief) has a ton of confidence basically everywhere we go. He’s seen it all and done it all so it helps me to have a guy like him in my corner. We’ve been working very hard together to communicate the best that we can and to be prepared the best we can for the Chase because we have not finished and performed the way we’re going to have to in order to win the championship. We have to keep getting better and we know that. The last couple of weeks we’ve really focused on working together and I think it’s paying off.”
What do you expect with the package you will race at Indianapolis?
“I don’t know, I just don’t know. It could turn out to be spectacular, but I don’t think you know until you see it. I think the one thing that I’m very impressed with Brian France and everyone involved is that they’re willing to try things, they’re willing to make changes. I’m telling you, I’ve sat in not just meetings, but private conversations with Brian France and Brent Dewar and Mike Helton and Steve O’Donnell just talking in the motorhome lot and they want the exact same thing that the drivers want and the fans want, they just want this to be the greatest sport on earth and to have the most fun watching it and doing it and have it be competitive. I think with that in mind, regardless of everyone’s opinions, if you try a bunch of different things, you pick the best one and move forward or pick a mix of things. I really applaud NASCAR for doing that.”
Do you feel NASCAR is trying to make the Indianapolis race look like the Indy Car race?
“Try to follow me on this, the way a race looks and the way a race is are two completely different things. You can take and just leave the pace car out there and we can all sit in line nose to tail, that’s a pretty good picture, but it’s not a race. A race to me, a stock car race is guys taking cars that are not meant to go that fast, they’re not aerodynamic devices, they’re just cars that go race on pavement and they can race close and guys have to manage the cars because they’re heavy and they’re powerful. That’s a race. I think it’s a very fine line that NASCAR has to walk on between putting on the best competition, which is one thing and putting on the show that looks the best, which is another. I think there’s less substance there. In the long run, there are a lot of fans who turn on the TV and say, ‘Man, that’s kind of interesting.’ Then they look at their buddy or their friend or their dad or somebody who knows a lot about racing and asks what’s happening there. If he says, ‘Man, those guys are man-handling those race cars, that’s amazing.’ If he says, ‘They just have their foot on the floor and following each other around waiting for the last lap,’ I don’t think that’s as intriguing.”
How important is this race as you look ahead to the Chase?
“This is a very important race and we need to run well here and we need to try some things tomorrow that we might not get a chance to try between now and the time we come back or during practice next time. You just never know. You want to be best prepared that you can be for the Chase so this is an opportunity for us to do that.”
DAVID RAGAN, No. 55 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing
Starting Position: 3rd
How strong was the car in qualifying?
“We unloaded with our Aaron’s Dream Machine and the car had a little bit of speed right off the truck. Brian Pattie (crew chief) and our engineers thought we should run a little more in race trim because there may be a little bit of weather here tomorrow morning. We ran a few more laps in race trim and I really didn’t have that high of expectations for qualifying and we made a very quick run at the end of practice and our Aaron’s Toyota had some good grip and good speed so I was pretty optimistic going into qualifying and here it’s so important throughout the three rounds to limit the amount of laps on your tires and if you’re close to that cutoff range in that first or second session, it really hurts you going for the pole. If you can just get by running one lap per round, there is such a big advantage to that. We ran two the first round and we were fortunate enough to only have to run one the second so I think that certainly helped us a little bit. Brian Pattie and our team made good adjustments. It’s a great lap. Anytime you’re in the top-five, you want a chance to sit on the pole. That would have been great, but that was a good lap for us and looking forward to some race practice tomorrow to see if we can get our Aaron’s Toyota comfortable in race trim.”
How encouraging is it to know this team has won at New Hampshire previously?
“It’s encouraging to know that this car won a few years ago here, but a lot has changed. It was a different engine package, a different aero package – a lot has changed on the setups over time. Obviously that was with Billy Scott and our other crew chief that we started the year with. It’s still encouraging for our team to know that we’ve won here recently. You see the pictures walking around the shop and that gives you some confidence. A lot of guys on our pit crew were part of that team that went to victory lane. Absolutely, that’s something that we can build some confidence from. We have to work hard and make sure we do the things right today for this package and what this car needs to go fast.”
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Starting Position: 4th
Did you feel like there were areas of qualifying where you could have picked up more speed?
“No doubt, there were a lot of areas for me to be able to pick up. We just didn’t quite hit on it there. I thought we were really good in practice and the slight changes that we made weren’t quite the right way, but all in all we improved every round. That was a good thing for our team and a good thing for our starting position come Sunday. That’s not too bad – we can see the front from there so it should be a good one.”
What does today’s qualifying effort by Joe Gibbs Racing after last week’s strong performance say about the organization?
“I think everybody has kind of done their work and everybody has really been digging hard at being able to put everything together for us. Real pleased with all of that effort. I can’t say enough about everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing. We’ll just hope that continues and we’re hitting our stride at the right time as a company and that we can continue those things all the way throughout the rest of the year. So far so good for the Interstate Batteries Camry here this weekend. We’ll hit on a few more things hopefully tomorrow and be ready come Sunday.”
How important is good track position for the start of this race?
“Just to start the race, it’s always best to have a really good starting position so you don’t have to try to hold people off or make your way forward or whatever it might be. Just the particulars of this place, it’s so hard to pass and you don’t want to wear your stuff out too early in the race and not have anything to go run them down with at the end. Definitely, it’s always a positive thing. Unless you’re really, really good and you screw up qualifying like the 11 (Denny Hamlin) did a few years ago and you come back and just wax them anyways – that always makes you feel really good too.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Starting Position: 5th
MATT KENSETH, No. 20 Dollar General Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Starting Position: 8th
Is your car stronger in race trim than in qualifying trim?
“I’m not sure. We should be better in race trim than we were in qualifying trim. We weren’t very fast in practice – I think we were 28th so eighth is a big improvement over that. Happy with our speed in the Dollar General Camry. All of our JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) cars are fast. The other three are a lot faster than I am – we had some catching up to do. Hopefully we can do that tomorrow and be competitive on Sunday.”
How do you feel about your starting position for Sunday’s race?
“It’s a three hour race so it’s a long race and this is probably the best I’ve ever qualified here or close to it. We’ll take that and be happy with it, get a good pit stall and hopefully have something we can race with them on Sunday.”
CLINT BOWYER, No. 15 5-hour ENERGY Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing
Starting Position: 18th
How was the car in qualifying?
“The 5-hour ENERGY Camry was fine, we just got off a little bit in practice there and kind of got to chasing our tail. We did put a couple things to bed there – changed some stuff and it felt better. That change kind of sparked another problem so I think we can nip that in the bud tomorrow and be fine.”
MATT DIBENEDETTO, No. 83 Burger King Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Starting Position: 35th
JEB BURTON, No. 26 Maxim Fantasy Sports Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Starting Position: 36th
JJ YELEY, No. 23 Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Starting Position: 39th
