Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Bristol Motor Speedway
Race 8 of 36 – 266.5 miles, 500 laps
April 24, 2017
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Jimmie Johnson*
2nd, Clint Bowyer*
3rd, Kevin Harvick*
4th, MATT KENSETH
5th, Joey Logano*
8th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
10th, DENNY HAMLIN
17th, ERIK JONES
18th, DANIEL SUÁREZ
24th, COREY LaJOIE
29th, GRAY GAULDING
31st, DERRICK COPE
35th, KYLE BUSCH
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA DRIVER POINT STANDINGS**
1st, Kyle Larson 360 points*
3rd, MARTIN TRUEX JR. 323 points
11th, KYLE BUSCH 214 points
12th, ERIK JONES 192 points
15th, DENNY HAMLIN 184 points
20th, MATT KENSETH 159 points
22nd, DANIEL SUÁREZ 144 points
34th, COREY LaJOIE 52 points
38th, GRAY GAULDING 25 points
*non-Toyota driver
**unofficial point standings
· Toyota driver Matt Kenseth (fourth) had the highest-finishing Camry in Monday afternoon’s rain-delayed Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
· Camry drivers Martin Truex Jr. (eighth) and Denny Hamlin (10th) also scored top-10 finishes on the half-mile short track.
· Truex (116 laps) and Hamlin (10 laps) both took turns at the front of the field during the 500-lap race.
TOYOTA QUOTES
MATT KENSETH, No 20 DeWalt Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 4th
Are you pleased with your finish today?
“Well we haven’t had a top-five in a long, long time. We got better there at the end and got a little bit of track position finally. It was an uphill battle all day without qualifying and then I sped on pit road and got us to the back. At the end we had a car that was good – most of the day it wasn’t very good, but the last two runs we were fairly competitive.”
How was the car in the closing laps?
“We were pretty good the last couple runs, but the rest of the race we weren’t very good really. I thought we were going to run top-15 until the top came in. When the top came in I think that played into our setup a little bit better and I was able to run better laps.”
What were your thoughts on the track surface?
“I liked it better when the top came in, I liked having an option. Whenever you ask drivers after the race, however they ran is how they’re going to rate the track. When I was stuck on the bottom we didn’t run very good, but when the top came in then we could do a lot. Once that rubbered in, we got back to our old setup and driving style and we were able to make a little ground.”
Will this finish give you some momentum heading into Richmond?
“I hope so, to say it’s been a terrible year so far would be a great understatement. I hope so, we weren’t really up front very much today and we didn’t get any bonus point, but we were able to get a top-five at the end of the day so I guess we’ll try to build on that.”
MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota Camry, Furniture Row Racing
Finishing Position: 8th
What happened with the late-race speeding penalty?
“We were going for it you know. Wish we could have had a shot there just to see if we could have won. This Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota with everyone that helps us make it right – Toyota, TRD 5-hour, Wix, Bass Pro and just everybody. This is the best run we’ve had here in a long time. It’s bittersweet, I wish we could have seen if we could have beat the 48 (Jimmie Johnson). We were close there before that last caution, but it is what it is and you try to get what you can get and sometimes you cross the line and today we crossed the line. All in all, it was an awesome day and a lot of fun. Had the VHT not worn out quite as bad then we would have really killed them. The top lane came in and some guys could run that better than I could, but overall it was a good day and a lot of fun all day.”
How big of a difference did you see from the top groove to the bottom groove?
“It wasn’t a huge difference, but I felt like I was the best car on the bottom all day – enough to where those guys that got the top working kind of evened out to us and maybe got a little better even on the long run. Early in the race on the long run we killed them on the bottom and then slowed down a little bit and the top got faster and I couldn’t run the top quite as good as a few of them. That last run there I got three and four where I could stay with the 48 and I could actually catch him a little in one and two on the bottom. All in all, it was a fun race track. You could move around and it was a blast. I think next time they’re going to want to make the bottom stick around a little longer and I think that’s good news for us because our car was really good down there.”
Did you believe you were speeding on that last pit stop?
“I thought I was exactly where I was the time before so the time before must have been close. Typically we don’t get many speeding penalties for this team, but today we were just pushing the issue trying to get a win and sometimes they’ll get you.”
What happened when you received the speeding penalty?
“I went too fast. I thought I did real, real similar to the times before, but when you’re pushing the limits to three or four tenths of a mile per hour and you only have lights and no rev limiter or mile per hour gauge, sometimes you just get a little jump there in the gas pedal and all it takes is two or three tenths of a mile per hour. I would like to see just how far over we were and I’m sure it’s going to hurt my feelings a lot.”
How strong was your car today?
“It was really good. I don’t know if we could have beat the 48 (Jimmie Johnson). Certainly right before that last caution, I felt like we were just starting to get maybe a touch better than he was and we were right there holding him on us. I wish we could have raced him to the end, but those are the breaks and that’s how racing goes. We haven’t had a whole lot of speeding penalties in the last year so just bad timing to get one today. All in all, a great day and to come here to Bristol and run that good is big for us. I’ve had strong cars here the last few times and nothing to show for it. At least today we had a decent finish, not as good as we should have, but we ran strong here.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 10th
How was your car today?
“We were average, we were about a fifth to 10th place car most of the day. Just kind of where we ended up. We just haven’t had the speed to run with those guys so we have to keep gambling with our strategy to try to make something happen and steal a win because we just don’t have a car fast enough to do it right now.”
ERIK JONES, No. 77 Sport Clips Toyota Camry, Furniture Row Racing
Finishing Position: 17th
What happened that caused the damage to your car?
“The 23 (Gray Gaulding), we were side-by-side passing him and I don’t know if he got loose, but he got down into us about halfway down the backstretch and must have cut a tire – cut the right front. Pretty unfortunate, I thought we had a really good car and a car that if we could have got some track position and maybe got up front, I think we could have led some laps and had a shot at the win. I thought we were just as good as the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) for the majority of the day. We’ll keep working on it and we have a good package to come back in the fall.”
CHRIS GAYLE, crew chief, No. 77 Sport Clips Toyota Camry, Furniture Row Racing
How pleased were you with the race before the damage from the cut tire?
“I thought it was going to be a really great day for us. We were strong in all three practice sessions this weekend and Erik’ (Jones) done a great job. I felt like there right before we got into the accident and cut the tire that we were actually going to have a shot to compete for the win here. I was looking forward to getting that next set of tires off and getting ready for the last 100 laps. Just unfortunate that a little contact there cuts a tire and turns what could have been a really great day for us into just an okay points day for us.”
What damage did the car suffer?
“Definitely the upper control arm is bent and a couple other things. We just had to limp it in and get the best finish we could.”
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M’s Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 35th
What did you need in the last run to continue making your way to the front of the field?
“I didn’t need anything, I was the fastest one out there those last two runs picking cars off and driving from the back to the front after we lost our track position the first time. We had our issues and we were trying to march our way back up towards the front and get there and thought we were doing a good job of that and trying to be conservative with the tires because obviously they can’t make it through a full distance for us for some reason. I don’t know, I don’t know if it’s fundamentally wrong what we’re doing, but it seems like all the rest of our five JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) cars are fine.”
