TOYOTA NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS)
Post-Race Notes & Quotes
Texas Motor Speedway
Race 34 of 36 – 293 laps, 439.5 miles (rain shortened)
Sunday, November 6, 2016
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS — at Texas Motor Speedway
1st, CARL EDWARDS
2nd, Joey Logano*
3rd, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
4th, Chase Elliott*
5th, KYLE BUSCH
7th, MATT KENSETH
9th, DENNY HAMLIN
33rd, DAVID RAGAN
34th, JEFFREY EARNHARDT
35th, REED SORENSON
38th, RYAN ELLIS
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA DRIVER IN NSCS POINT STANDINGS – following Texas Motor Speedway**
1st, Jimmie Johnson 4,074 points#*
2nd, Joey Logano 4,074 points#*
3rd, KYLE BUSCH 4,074 points#
4th, MATT KENSETH 4,073 points#
5th, DENNY HAMLIN 4,072 points#
7th, CARL EDWARDS 4,049 points#
9th, MARTIN TRUEX JR. 2,265 points
34th, DAVID RAGAN 433 points
35th, MATT DiBENEDETTO 356 points
#competing in the 2016 Chase for the Sprint Cup championship
*non-Toyota driver
**unofficial point standings
TOYOTA NOTES
· Camry driver Carl Edwards was victorious in the rain-shortened NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) race at Texas Motor Speedway to clinch a spot in the ‘Championship 4’ in two weeks at the season-finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
· Edwards led the field for 36 consecutive laps (of 293) before rain ended the race early and gave the Toyota driver his third win of the season.
· The win is the 16th of the season for Toyota in NSCS competition and the 95th victory since joining the series in 2007.
· The Texas victory also marks the 45th NASCAR win by Toyota drivers across the three national series – the most by the manufacturer since earning 44 in 2010.
· Camry drivers Martin Truex Jr. (third), Kyle Busch (fifth), Matt Kenseth (seventh) and Denny Hamlin (ninth) also earned top-10 finishes at the rain-delayed race in Texas.
· Truex led the field twice for 66 laps, Busch led two laps and Hamlin paced the field once Sunday night.
· With Edwards advancing to the ‘Championship 4’, Busch (third), Kenseth (fourth) and Hamlin (fifth) remain in the top-five in the unofficial point standings as the ‘Round of 8’ heads to Phoenix International Raceway next weekend with two spots available to compete for the championship at Homestead.
TOYOTA QUOTES
CARL EDWARDS, No. 19 Sport Clips Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 1st
What were your feelings as you took the lead and rain was in the area?
“I actually enjoyed it. That pressure was really mounting and obviously this is what we had to do. Dave (Rogers, crew chief) and the guys they got me off of pit road first. That’s what won it for us. My pit crew has worked really hard this year so I just can’t thank them enough. Sport Clips, Arris, Stanley, Toyota, everybody that’s behind this team. We’ve got a shot at the championship going to Homestead. This is going to be great.”
What did the 11 second pit stop mean to get you off pit road first?
“I’ve got an amazing group of guys. They work so well together. They’ve got my back all of the time. Dave (Rogers, crew chief), man, he’s like a brother. Just a great guy. And, all of my guys, I can’t thank them enough. TRD (Toyota Racing Development), Comcast, Xfinity, Subway, Stanley, Cessna, Sprint, this is a – we have a shot at the championship and that’s all we wanted this year and I can’t wait to go to Homestead. It’s going to be a blast.”
How concerned were you if we did go green to the finish with Joey Logano looking strong behind you?
“We were in a bad spot if we went green again, but like I said the last run before it rained I think we could’ve held them off. I’m not sure. He (Joey Logano) was really good on the bottom. My car was starting to go away. I ran pretty hard there at the start, but man, that’s fun. And, Martin (Truex Jr.) did a great job. If we wouldn’t have beat him off of pit road obviously we wouldn’t have got this, but man it was really fun chasing him down and racing with him the run before that.”
Will we get to see your backflip tonight even though we aren’t in victory lane?
“Man, I don’t know. I think I’m going to keep the backflip for Homestead. It’s probably a safe thing to do.”
How big is it for you to be one of the ‘Championship 4’ at Homestead?
“This is huge. I don’t think it’s sunk in yet. This is cool. This team is really worked hard all year and man it’s just really cool. That’s all we said we needed was a shot and now we’re going to go to Homestead and we’re going to do what we have to do. This was a great test. We came here and knew what we had to do, we performed the way we needed to and I really believe we can do that at Homestead.”
How does it feel to know you’re part of the four drivers who will compete to be Champion at Miami?
“Man, it’s unreal. This is so cool. I’m so fortunate to drive these race cars. It was really pressure packed there. I actually enjoyed it. I appreciate all the fans for sitting out the rain and coming out here. I’m sorry for them it rained again, but it worked well for us. I appreciate everyone being here. Great for Sport Clips and Toyota and TRD (Toyota Racing Development) and everyone that makes this happen.”
How important was this victory in your career?
“It doesn’t get bigger than this. My goal is to win the championship and that’s what this 19 team wanted was an opportunity to do that and now we have it. This was a great little gauntlet to run and we made it through and now we go do it at Homestead.”
Would you have held the lead if the race went the length?
“If we went back to green, we would have been in deep trouble. Those guys had tires – it was over for us. They were watching the radar and knew it was going to rain a little bit and fortunately it rained enough.”
Is this redemption to advance because of rain after it ended your championship hopes at Phoenix last year?
“Yeah, I didn’t bring it up that way but you’re right. That was bad and this is good. Just like anything, you have to take what happens in racing and in life and take it and have fun with it and we did that tonight. Whatever happened was going to have to be okay – but this is great.”
MARTIN TRUEX, JR., No. 78 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Toyota Camry, Furniture Row Racing
Finishing Position: 3rd
How was your race?
“Well, it was obvious earlier today we didn’t know if it was going to rain or if it wasn’t. That kind of threw a loop into things. The track was quite a bit different today for probably the first 20, 25 laps. That first run was really hard on tires. A lot of guys were struggling at the competition caution. Honestly aside from that, the track was real similar to practice, I felt like. We struggled with the same issues. Seemed like everybody was having similar issues as practice, just being loose. Interesting that the tires were so much different the last time around. But all in all it was a good day for us. We battled hard. We fought. Had a great racecar at times. Looked like we were in position to have a shot at winning. Then the last pit stop, we had a little bit of an issue. Then inside restarts after that are just really tough. The leader on the outside has a big advantage. I guess all in all, happy with third, but wish we could have won tonight.”
Were you praying for the race to end or were you hoping it didn’t?
“No. I needed another stop. I needed it to go all the way to the end. We were really good on the long runs. We were really good on new tires after green flag stops. I was really hoping it would go all the way. That was going to be our only chance to win after that last restart. Was hoping it did. Cole was telling me how far out the rain was, that he thought. So he was keeping me in the loop on that. I was just like, ‘There’s nothing I can do, I need 20 more laps to even have a chance.’ It was a little frustrating tonight. But like I said, all in all, a good weekend for us, a good run.”
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M’s Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 5th
How do you feel heading to Phoenix with the points as tight as they are?
“We just have to keep doing what we know how to do. We have to make sure we can run in the top-five and make sure we can go to victory lane if possible. We’ve had all the finishes that we need thus far, we just have to be able to go out there one more week and be able to get another one. We gained a couple points on the 20 (Matt Kenseth) and 11 (Denny Hamlin) today, but we have the 19 (Carl Edwards) in the Chase. If you look at Phoenix and you pencil in (Kevin) Harvick to win that one, that’s only two Gibbs cars.”
How was your race?
“We are in the hunt. I wouldn’t call that a top-five, I would call that working really, really hard to get a top-five finish. Out of myself, Adam (Stevens, crew chief), my pit crew – the guys did a great job on pit road tonight and kept us in the game. It’s just unfortunate, there at the second half of the race our car was really better on the long runs unlike it was in the first part of the race. Everybody kept short pitting so bad because it had so many sets of tires that they were able to come on 40 laps instead of running it out to 50, 55 laps. That kind of hurt us a little bit because we weren’t able to make up the time on those guys in front of us that were really struggling on the long run where we were starting to get our car better.”
How key was the end of the race and your pit crew with fixing the hole in the front of your car?
“Yeah, that was a hard fought top five right there. That was a battle for sure by myself behind the wheel but of course my pit crew did a great job being able to get the tape on the nose and being able to fix that earlier in the race. And, of course, Adam (Stevens, crew chief), some great calls being able to fix that car. It was a handful for sure early on but we made it a heck of a lot better there at the end. I just wish that those long runs were actually real long runs. We had so many sets of tires tonight that everybody was short pitting the long runs and only running 40 laps instead of what a fuel window was, was about 55 or 53 laps. So, I couldn’t make up the time that I wanted to on the long runs against those guys. I wish we could’ve ran a little bit longer there. I felt like we had a top three car there but also we gained points on the 20 (Matt Kenseth), we gained points on the 11 (Denny Hamlin) tonight, so again can’t say enough about this M&M’s Camry. Guys did a great job, we came out of here with a top five and that’s what we were hoping for. Certainly wish it was a little higher but it gives us – keeps us in the game and gives us a good perspective for going into next week.”
What is your outlook for Phoenix next weekend after how hard Joe Gibbs Racing has worked to improve there?
“Yeah, that’s the key right there is we’ve worked a ton about everywhere but especially at Phoenix and getting better there. Carl (Edwards) almost won that race in spring so good job to the 19 bunch getting themselves back in the game here tonight. That gives one (Joe) Gibbs (Racing) car for sure going to Homestead. We’d like to make it two more but all in all we’ve had a good season this season. Good to see Carl win here, get himself back in. We want to be one of the other Gibbs cars that get to go there at Homestead to battle this out.”
MATT KENSETH, No. 20 DEWALT FLEXVOLT Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 7th
How was your race?
“We were just sort of mediocre, a little better than where we finished. I couldn’t keep the track position or get a lot of it back. It was really hard for me to pass cars today. When we had a clean track we could run some decent lap times, but I was just kind of stuck where I was most of the day and we got like fifth and then we lost some spots and got back to them and I just couldn’t make them up.”
Do you feel like you have to win at Phoenix to advance to the final round at Miami?
“Same as every week, I would love to win last week, I would love to win this week and I’d love to win every week. Doesn’t really change, you go there and run as hard as you can. If you’re running seventh, there’s nothing you can do to miraculously win. We’re going to go there with the idea of winning, that’s on everyone’s agenda with us all stacked in there pretty tight in the points. Winning is obviously what you’re looking for.”
What kind of a day was it for you today?
“Yeah, we were just kind of middle of the road. We qualified decent, we kept that track position. Jason (Ratcliff, crew chief) did a good job. One time we pitted early and got a few spots and got up to fifth but then we just got behind on the second to last pit stop and when I get behind people we were just kind of mediocre. I just couldn’t really pass anybody but if you put me in line in fifth I could run fifth. Unfortunately a couple of those guys got in front of me and I couldn’t get back around them. So, we had a good stop our last one, had a good restart and got a couple spots but that was about all I could get.”
How do you like your chances of getting into the ‘Championship 4’ as you race at Phoenix next weekend?
“Well, you never know what’s going to happen. I would’ve loved to win last week, I would’ve loved to win this week and I’d really love to win next week so that’s the plan every week is you show up and try to win. Obviously Kevin (Harvick) is dominant is an understatement at Phoenix so you almost have to pencil him in for that third spot. So, really I feel like the rest of us are fighting for that fourth spot next week. You know, we’re just going to have to go there. It hasn’t necessarily been our best track but we’ve ran pretty well there lately so we just have to go there with the idea to try and win the race, try to lead some laps, get some bonus points and hopefully get a good enough finish.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 9th
How was your race?
“We struggled with our car yesterday and got it quite a bit better for today. Definitely a lot more race-able, but a top-10 finish is not what I wanted, but we battled back this weekend. It’s about par for what we had. We got to go to Phoenix and have a great run and try to win it and hopefully our FedEx team is able to do that and hopefully make it to Homestead.”
What was the most challenging aspect of the race?
“I think the hardest thing is we lost our pit selection and we kept getting blocked in by the 88 (Alex Bowman) each stop. He had to try to get out as well from whoever was in front of him. Just a bad part of losing your pit selection, you don’t get a good spot and I thought he was a little bit wide a few stops and it really slowed our stops and lose positions on pit road where we usually gain and then I was on the outside just about every restart. Nothing really went well for us on pit road, average day.”
What will be your strategy heading to Phoenix?
“Phoenix is a good track for us in the Spring. I look to go back there and have another great run and go out there and try to win. That’s what we’re going to do. We saw the 19 (Carl Edwards) win right there with a great run today and got in. Great day for Joe Gibbs Racing.”
How was your race?
“It was just kind of in between. I thought we had a little bit better car than that at times. We just had a tough deal on restarts. We would always get the top line which was bad and we got blocked in on just about every time and that cost us a few spots as well. So, that made for a tough day track position-wise. I thought that if we could’ve just gained a couple spot here and there on runs and then pit stops our car was much better in clean air. So, we just kept gaining a little and losing them a little bit on pit road. That was frustrating, but still a decent day for our FedEx Office team. Our Camrys obviously were good. Carl (Edwards) got the win which is great for JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) and hopefully we’ll go to Phoenix and try to get a win there.”
What will you have to do at Phoenix to get above the cut line and into the ‘Championship 4’?
“Anytime I’ve been below (the cut line) on an elimination race I’ve found a way to get in on the final in the elimination round so I like our chances. It’s a pressure race and I like pressure.”
DAVID RAGAN, No. 23 Dr. Pepper Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Finishing Position: 33rd
JEFFREY EARNHARDT, No. 83 ZAK Backs the Blue Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Finishing Position: 34th
REED SORENSON, No. 55 Trump-Pence Toyota Camry, Premium Motorsports
Finishing Position: 35th
RYAN ELLIS, No. 93 Science Logic Toyota Camry, BK Racing
Finishing Position: 38th
