Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Auto Club Speedway
Race 5 of 36 – 400 miles, 200 laps
March 17, 2019
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS**
1st, KYLE BUSCH
2nd, Joey Logano*
3rd, Brad Keselowski*
4th, Kevin Harvick*
5th, Ryan Blaney*
7th, DENNY HAMLIN
8th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
18th, MATT DIBENEDETTO
19th, ERIK JONES
*non-Toyota driver
Camry driver Kyle Busch won his 200th NASCAR national series victory at Auto Club Speedway when he captured the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) victory on Sunday.
Busch has won 179 of those NASCAR victories in a Toyota – 49 MENCS, 83 NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) and 47 NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series (NGOTS).
Busch has made a combined 998 starts in three NASCAR national series – 503 MENCS, 348 NXS and 147 NGOTS.
The win was Busch’s second-consecutive MENCS victory in 2019 after winning last weekend at ISM Raceway.
Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin (seventh) and Martin Truex Jr. (eighth) also placed inside the top-10 at Auto Club Speedway.
TOYOTA QUOTES
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 1st
You finally did it. It’s complete. How does 200 feel?
“Feels just like number one. Feels just like yesterday. Man, that was such an awesome racecar. I mean, dang. This Interstate Batteries Camry was awesome today. I’m glad we put on a heck of a show for all these fans out here in California at Auto Club Speedway. It takes green to get in Victory Lane today. Today is St. Patty’s day. All these other guys were at a disadvantage. The Interstate Batteries Green Machine was flying today. Just awesome. Just awesome. To win 200, I mean, whatever it means, it means a lot to me. It means a lot to all my guys, everybody at Joe Gibbs Racing. You guys are all the best. Toyota, TRD. It’s an amazing opportunity to drive for Joe Gibbs. I cherish every minute of it, love it always. Just wish that we could keep it going, keep it going like this, running strong, running well, and winning these races.”
When that speeding penalty happened, what was going through your mind? Did you think your chances of winning this race and getting to 200 were maybe over?
Yeah, that thought certainly crosses your mind. I knew we had a great racecar. We had a great racecar all day long. We were fast. I wasn’t sure how well we were going to be able to come through the field, get back in traffic, get our way worked back up to the lead. Brad (Keselowski) was really fast that run, he was way out front. We were catching the 22 (Joey Logano), the 4 (Kevin Harvick). If it went green to the end, I wasn’t sure how it was going to play out. Sometimes you have to a little bit of luck on your side. Fortunately, we were in the Interstate Batteries green today with being St. Patty’s day. Cool to get all these guys in Victory Lane. To win my 200th race with Interstate Batteries, with Norm Miller (Interstate Batteries), Scott Miller (Interstate Batteries), everybody that does such an awesome job of supporting us since day one, the reason why Joe Gibbs Racing exists. It certainly is a monumental moment for all of us, including M&M’s, Skittles, Snickers. Maybe the stars aligned a little bit more perfectly today.”
Can you take us through the rebound from the speeding penalty to win today’s race?
“Well, we just had an awesome race car all day long. Adam Stevens (crew chief) and the boys never cease to amaze me and the way they’re able to work and the way they’re able to do things for me is pretty awesome. Just having a fast Interstate Batteries Camry and being able to come back through after our speeding penalty, I wasn’t sure if we were going to be able to get there and get it done, but once we got about four or five laps in on that last run we really charged through there and got to those guys and we were able to drive away. Just an awesome day for us. This is pretty cool to be able to come out here to California, a place where I remember getting sat out and then I remember winning my first Cup Series race and now to bookend it with 200 right here, it’s pretty awesome.”
What original goals did you have when you entered NASCAR?
“I think the original goal was just to get to NASCAR and then once I got here, it was to win a race. Once it was winning a race then it was about trying to sustain and being able to be a winner here and to be a champion here. To have the opportunities to continue down the line to be able to be successful each and every year and we’ve been doing that. We’ve only won one title, but certainly I feel like I have the best team out there right now and we just have to be able to do it all year long.”
What did your Mom say to you when she got to the car?
“Just that she couldn’t believe it and how she remembered number one here as well and the special night that was and the opportunity that was with me being able to win number one. To solidify that stance in NASCAR and to then be able to continue on and win 199 more of them and close it out with 200 here was pretty cool.”
Do you pay attention to various milestones other than this number 200 accomplishment?
“It’s something that I don’t necessarily pay attention to. As long as you’re successful and doing a good job and doing your job about what you know how to do and you’re winning those races then you’re going to be eclipsing a lot of milestones and certainly it’s been pretty awesome so far.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 7th
How was your race?
“We were fast. We were a little bit off of the No. 18 (Kyle Busch). I was as good or better than everyone else, but we struggled on the long-run and had the speeding penalty. For the third time this season, we pitted right when the caution came out. That set us back and we couldn’t get to the front when we needed to.”
How did this race play out?
“As soon as we single-filed out, we were grip-limited. The best handling cars get to the front. There is a big draft and we’re not pack-racing by any means.”
How much did the early pitting handcuff you?
“A little bit. It definitely hurts with 30 laps to go or so. The speeding penalty got us to the back of the pack. We were fast, but once we got in the back of the pack, we just couldn’t get there. We hung with Kyle for the first 20 laps getting through the pack, until we got to seventh or eighth. Then we lost the handling.”
MARTIN TRUEX JR, No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 8th
What did you think of the racing today?
“It’s not up to me to decide. We had an awesome race car. Drove to the front, got in a bad spot on the restart when a couple guys stayed out for God knows what reason – the 17 (Ricky Stenhouse) was on old tires, the 14 (Clint Bowyer) was blowing up and we were just in the wrong lane. We were going to have a shot to win this thing had that not happened. Really proud of my guys. We fought hard all day, we never gave up on it and we finished eighth with a car that probably shouldn’t have finished eighth. Proud of them and we just can’t catch a break. Kept fighting back all day. First the damage and then getting caught in the pits when the caution came out and had to take the wave around. Just fought hard all day long and came home with a decent finish.”
How do you fight the frustration?
“Just chew on that steering wheel and do all you can and try to get everything you can. We were pretty sideways all day and it was fun and it was frustrating all at the same time. Just glad we had a decent day out of it. We didn’t need to have a terrible day obviously. Just a shame. I know we could have had something for them, but that’s the way it goes and congrats to the 18 (Kyle Busch) guys. They got it rolling right now for sure.”
Did you realize how bad the damage was from the incident with the 17 car?
“To be honest with you, I didn’t know how bad it was. I went off of what Cole (Pearn, crew chief) said and he was like, ‘Yeah, it’s pretty bad.’ I asked him what to expect and you can’t see in your mirror, you can’t see that right-rear corner you know. I didn’t really feel like I hit anything hard in that wreck, it just got bashed in enough and it broke one of the seams enough that it was very detrimental to the handling. We got it patched up real good and even then it was all caved in and pushed to the left, which is the complete opposite of what you want so I was pretty much completely sideways most of the day, which was somewhat fun, but frustrating at the same time.”
How did the track change today compared to the test session when the cars ran together?
“It’s hotter, there’s more cars on the track and more rubber on the race track. It’s just slicker, you’re looking for air, you’re looking for clean track and looking for grip. I really can’t explain to you how slippery this place gets after five or 10 laps on tires, especially after 30. You’re never going to keep us all together. There’s going to be good cars and there’s going to be bad cars. The equalizer is the slow speeds and the new tires at the beginning of the run, but once the tires get wearing out, we get separated. It’s just the way it is. Unless we go 60 mph, it’s going to happen.”
Does it feel there is a big difference between the Joe Gibbs Racing cars and the Penske cars compared to the rest of the field?
“I don’t know. We’ve had some strong runs and certainly we were strong early in the race driving by a lot of cars. It’s so hard to say, a lot of it is setups and even we can be way off. We qualified 27th because our car didn’t handle, it wasn’t because we were slow. These things are very temperamental and we’re in the throttle so much and if you’re off just a little bit on handling, it just gets magnified. You can’t make it up with horsepower so I think that’s one of the reasons that some guys have been able to hit it. The guys that have been handling good have been racing good. I like that part of it, I like the part that you still have to handle and you still have to drive the thing, that’s what makes it fun and that’s what makes the good cars rise to the top.”
