MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
BOJANGLES’ SOUTHERN 500
TEAM CHEVY POST-QUALIFYING NOTES AND QUOTES
AUGUST 31, 2019
TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL QUALIFYING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 HENDRICK AUTOGUARD/CITY CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1
2nd KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CLOVER CAMARO ZL1
4th KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 CHEVROLET ACCESSORIES CAMARO ZL1
6th JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1
8th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1
TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL QUALIFYING RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st William Byron (Chevrolet)
2nd Brad Keselowski (Ford)
3rd Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)
4th Kurt Busch (Chevrolet)
5th Daniel Suarez (Ford)
NBCSN will telecast the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway live at 6:00 p.m. ET Sunday, September 1. The NBC Sports Gold app will stream the race and live coverage can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
TEAM CHEVY NOTES AND QUOTES:
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 CLOVER CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 3rd
“I felt good about my lap, the balance was fine. I could have maybe come to the green a little bit better, but I don’t think I would have had a shot at the pole. We had a lot of speed in happy hour, so I’m pretty confident going into the race tomorrow. You never know until the race starts, but I felt really good about it.”
“I feel good about it. Our car was handling good in qualifying there and then yesterday in practice, we had probably one of the best cars. So, hopefully it translates over to tomorrow, but you never know. Last year, it was the win we didn’t get that I wanted to get the most. I don’t really think I did anything wrong, I felt like I ran a perfect race. There wasn’t anything I could do differently to have a different outcome. I just hope things go differently this year. I think our car is as good or better than it was last year. Hopefully cautions fall at the right times, we can do a good job on pit road and execute a little bit better than we did last year.”
WHAT’S YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE THROWBACK WEEKEND?
“It’s a weekend that I think we all look forward to because all the crews and teams get very involved in the history of the sport, which is what it’s all about. I always look forward to getting here this weekend and seeing what crews’ kind of dress up, shave their facial hair a certain way, have a mullet, or whatever it might be. It’s just a fun weekend for all of the teams.”
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 CHEVROLET ACCESSORIES CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 4th
“For us, I thought it was a good lap. Everything seemed to match up. We ran a fast lap in practice yesterday, we just didn’t pick up as much as everyone else did. That half of a tenth adds up quick in qualifying. We have a really good race car with the downforce that’s on it and we weren’t too trimmed out, so to speak, for a run at the pole. We were really digging hard to get another pole at the Southern 500. Fourth is a good spot to be and we’ll go from there.”
“This is the most important part of the season. These 12 races, with the Southern 500, the Brickyard 400 and the 10 Playoff races, means its go time now. This is what we prepare for all year long, with a build up to this.”
“I think the Throwback Weekend is a great attention-drawer and also a show to create more elements for the fans. Most importantly, its to pay respect to the pioneers and all the old school drivers, teams, and people that have helped build up this sport to what it is today.”
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 6th
HOW DID YOU FEEL OUT THERE?
“Yeah, all is good. We made a decent lap there. We’ve picked up from what we had in practice and we are ready to go.”
IS EVERYTHING OK WITH THE CAR AFTER THE INCIDENT IN THE GARAGE?
“Yeah, for sure. I was so fearful that when it fell, someone was underneath of it. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case. There was plenty of damage to the car, but NASCAR gave us an extra hour to get things fixed and you really can’t tell from looking at it.”
ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT THAT EFFECTING ANYTHING?
“No. Fortunately, NASCAR gave us ample time to kind of work on getting it right. It did some significant damage, but the guys in really a short period of time had the area cut out and the patch was spot on there pretty quick.”
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 8th
HOW IS IT TO SEE MULTIPLE HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS CARS IN THE TOP 10?
“Yeah, it’s cool to see. I’m happy for William (Byron), he did a really good job and got the pole. It’s nice to have a few Hendrick cars up towards the front and there’s some Chevrolet’s up there too. I think our run was OK. It’s just such a tough race. Really, I feel like until you get to the half way mark tomorrow and really kind of understand where you stack up, it’s hard to tell. Once that sun starts to set, I think you’ll definitely see the players.”
WHY DO YOU REFERENCE THE HALFWAY MARK? IS IT BECAUSE OF THE SUN SETTING?
“A little bit of that and just the track conditions changing. We spent all day yesterday practicing in the sun for a race that is going to end at night. That will certainly come with a characteristic change somewhere along the line and whoever is best suited for that I’m sure will be fast the second half.”
CHRIS BUESCHER, NO. 37 KROGER FAST LANE TO FLAVOR CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 12th
THOUGHTS ON HIS RUN
“It wasn’t a bad qualifying effort for us. For the cars that had gone before me, it was a good run. I feel like I gave up a little bit over in three and four. There was definitely more grip there than there was yesterday. With all the long runs at the end of practice when we did the mock run, there was a lot of rubber that went down and it was just greasy and slick. That wasn’t the case there. So, I was a little bummed that I left a little bit on the table over in three and four, but the guys did a good job. They have us in a good spot and got our balance better yesterday. That will put us in a good place to start this race. I love this race track. The Throwback Weekend is just really cool and I’m ready to just get into race day.”
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 AXALTA THROWBACK CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 16th
HOW DID YOUR CAR FEEL OUT THERE?
“I think we will be OK. I’m not really sure why I went so slow in qualifying, I’m definitely bummed about that. It is what it is and we’ll move on the race and be pretty good.”
WITH THE PACKAGE, YOU HAVE TO ENTER TURN ONE A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY. HOW ELSE HAS THIS PACKAGE ALTERED THIS PLACE?
“There’s just no passing. We’re going to be a train rolling around this place. Hopefully with more cars on the race track and tire wear, that will change. It’s really frustrating not being able to pass. I’m really frustrated with how we qualified. We’re going to have to figure out how to pass starting that far back, but we’ll be OK. All I’m focused on is running well and unfortunately we didn’t do that there in qualifying.”
BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 VICTORY JUNCTION 15TH ANNIVERSARY CAMARO ZL1 – Qualified 28th
HOW DID YOUR CAR FEEL OUT THERE?
“It feels good. We were a little slow in qualifying, it is what it is. We will probably be around our normal 25th or so. At the end of the day, it’s not about where you start but where you finish. We set ourselves, hopefully, for the long haul. Last year, we could run around 15 laps and then it would start to fall off hard. So, I think we’ve gotten a little bit better. Our Victory Junction Chevrolet wasn’t bad in practice. With this package, it was a little bit different with being able to attack turn one harder and being wide open in qualifying trim easily. It was a little different than last year, but all in all, it should be a good race. The cars look awesome. Our car is the best looking one in the garage; that’s just from fans telling me that. It’s cool to be able to represent Victory Junction, Adam Petty, Kyle Petty, the whole Petty family, and the vision he was able to start 15 years ago. Seeing what it is now is truly special.”
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