Toyota Racing – Todd Gilliland
NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series (NGOTS)
Charlotte Motor Speedway – May 17, 2019
Kyle Busch Motorsports driver Todd Gilliland was made available to the media in Charlotte:
TODD GILLILAND, No. 4 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra, Kyle Busch Motorsports
You were one of the fastest trucks in first practice. How is your Tundra for tonight’s race?
“It was pretty comfortable. I don’t think we have race-winning speed yet, but I feel like we’re in the ballgame. That’s a big change from other times. We unloaded really good. We were fast in the first practice. We’re kind of back to where we started. If there’s any good adjustments we can make now, it’s going to be the right time and hopefully we can contend in the race.”
Is this race any different for you being pretty much in your backyard here in North Carolina?
“It’s okay. I don’t think I really like racing here as much. I like being in the hotel with my team and kind of being focused. I feel like once you get on the plane going out of town, your mindset is on that race and with your team. It’s a little bit harder here for me, but at the same time it’s something you have to balance and get your focus going.”
What’s been the toughest adjustment for you this season?
“Communication in general with my team, my teammates and everything. I think unloading fast is a big part of it and that’s not something I can work on. I just have to work on the things that I can control and I’m kind of focusing on that. Even throughout the races if there’s something good. If I got one good restart and the rest were bad, I need to kind of dissect that one of why it made it so much better than the rest.”
Is there anything about racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway that you enjoy?
“I just really like that they’re really trying to make it a multi-groove race track with the PJ1. All of truck practice we ran right on the bottom and it has really good grip down there. It takes a while for the top to come in. Racing at Kansas, that was probably one of my favorite races yet and being able to run top to bottom and if your truck is good, you can make passes. That’s what hurts us at some of the truck race tracks we go to – you get stuck behind. We have a little bit more splitter angle this weekend. NASCAR is trying a lot to make the trucks the best race out here this weekend.”
What do you predict about the race based on first practice and the PJ1?
“I think it’s going to be good. The PJ1 has a lot of grip just where you run through it. It all happens with heat. You see that at every race track. Once people start running up there and they get a good lap, the next guy runs up there and then five minutes later everyone is up there. It’s just about paying attention if you can be the first one to make it work, but if anything else, just not losing too much time and being able to work in it.”
Is your performance as of late reassuring for you especially after your top-five finish in Kansas?
“Absolutely. It’s been a long time since we qualified in the top five and finished in the top five. That was our goal. At the end of last year – middle of last year, I felt like no matter what we did, we were running back half of the top five and if I missed out or the pit crew or something, we’d finish eighth or 10th. This year we’ve struggled to run in the top 10, so that was definitely a good thing for our whole team. We’ve kind of just said we’re going to go and take our best truck and put our best foot forward every single week and we’re just going to make it happen.”
How do you keep yourself from getting down or losing any confidence during times that you’ve struggled this year?
“It has to do with the people around you. My confidence was really low, but I just look back and say we can all do it. My crew chief, Marcus Richmond, has won a lot of races. I’ve won a lot of races and it’s just about putting it together and getting the whole weekend more fluid.”
Has Kyle Busch talked to you about it at all?
“I haven’t really talked to him too much about it. He’s got so many good people at Kyle Busch Motorsports that know exactly what they’re doing. It’s just easier sometimes to talk to someone that’s been to the race track every week with us. Kyle sees a lot of different things from the outside that are really helpful as well. Just a couple of different point of views.”
What are your thoughts on the ‘Triple Truck Challenge’ starting in a couple of weeks?
“I think it’s really cool. The guy from Gander Outdoors was at Daytona and he was really pumped up. Just to see people that are excited about your series, it makes a big difference to me. Every time I go to the race track, I’m so excited to just get in a race car and go to another race track, so to see someone that shares the same excitement about that and to be involved with our series the way those guys are is really cool to see.”
How do you handicap Texas, Iowa and Gateway during the Challenge?
“We’re going to go win them all. I don’t know. That’s our goal every time we go to the race track. It’s a lot of fun having that goal. Hopefully once we get the first win, they’ll keep rolling. Texas has been a really good race track for us. Iowa, I’ve won two K&N races there. Gateway, I finished second last year. Sounds pretty good!”
Do you look to your dad at all for advice when you have had struggles this season?
“Absolutely. I think any race car driver has been through it at some point. Whether it’s in late models up to the Cup Series. It’s just one of the situations you get put in and put yourself in. I made a lot of mistakes and put my whole team behind. My team has made mistakes and put us all behind too. We’re all in this together and it’s about admitting your mistakes and going out there the next week better.”
