Toyota Racing – Ty Gibbs, Chris Gayle and Brian Haaland
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes
NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. (May 19, 2023) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Ty Gibbs, crew chief Chris Gayle and pit stop coach Brian Haaland were made available to media after winning the Pit Crew Challenge at North Wilkesboro Speedway on Friday:
TY GIBBS, No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
CHRIS GAYLE, crew chief, No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
BRIAN HAALAND, pit stop coach, No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
What has the process been like and the challenges been with the new pit stop choreography?
Brian Haaland: “I think that is a fair question. We put in a whole lot of work in the other choreography. When it hit perfect, it is still the fastest way to do a pit stop, but the reality of it is, when you get to pit road, there is a lot of different obstacles that take place, and everything has to be perfect for you to be able to run as fast as that stop is capable of. I think we also had to take a look in the mirror and say fundamentally, we are not as good as we need to be, so taking a step back and running this traditional pit stop to work on getting a little bit better visually and fundamentally within the pit stop, and maybe when we start to master that on a consistent basis, it is something that we take a look at again.”
Did you recruit guys based on the other choreography?
Brian Haaland: “I think it is just the way this sport is going, and pit crews are going. There is a big shift on what is happening at JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) and up and down pit road. These are crazy awesome athletes that are doing these jobs now. We are a little bit on the inexperienced side, but we had mix of that on the 54 car today and we got a pretty awesome result.”
Do you feel pressure to make the All Star Race now?
Ty Gibbs: “It’s just what it is. I’m going to do the best that I can and race the best I can – just like another race there. I feel like we’ve got a great car, so keep my head down and stay consistent.”
How did you prepare for this event?
Brian Haaland: “We really started over the last couple of weeks. When we went to traditional pit stops, we were really focused on consistency. I think I coached a lot of the raw speed out of our pit stop and kind of going into Kansas and then Darlington, I think you saw all of our teams get a little bit faster. It’s really a change of pace in the practice pad area. We are no longer just trying to do 9.5’s every time, because the reality is, you get to the race track and those become 10.5’s, so I’m pushing the guys to get 8 flats or 8.5’s in the practice area, and hit that at the race track or closer to that. It is a little bit of a change of pace over the last couple of weeks at practice. What they did tonight is where we hope to be every single pit stop.”
How has this season gone from your perspective?
Chris Gayle: “I think it is going as I expected or hoped. Obviously, we with me going back to Cup, Ty (Gibbs) is a rookie in Cup, I think you are going to expect some ups and downs, but I think if you really look at, we’ve been pretty consistent. We haven’t fallen out of many races, Ty hasn’t made many mistakes, and we probably made more mistakes on little things on our side. We needed four or five top-10s down the stretch there, and we did four of those, and I felt like, Kansas and Dover specifically were two top-fives that we probably left on the table, that would have really made our season look better at this point, so I feel like we are on pace. I feel like we need to keep nudging forward and get those top-fives consistently, fifth-to-tenth consistently, and then a win will come from there. It’s kind of a unique season right now. We are sitting close enough in points halfway through the regular season that as long as we don’t get a lot of new winners, we could still potentially point our way in – there is a bunch of time to still do that. You are right on that point on where you see where you rank with that with everybody and do I need to change strategy to stay the course.”
What does it mean for you to race here and be in victory lane tonight?
Ty Gibbs: “It’s really cool. I came in here five years ago and kind of saw it when it was in its earlier stages, so coming back here and seeing it redone is really cool and seeing the asphalt, kind of reminds me of Hickory a little bit. It’s really special. It was definitely really cool to ride up the elevator. It’s a cool experience for sure.”
What did you notice about the energy in pit crew practice this week?
Brian Haaland: “I think that kind of hit everybody today. In our preparation this week, you didn’t really see it too much. I actually put Chik-fil-A burritos on the line for the fastest stop yesterday – which the 54 won that also. When it comes to an event like this, you try to keep them loose. You don’t want them to tense up. They know that all eyes are on them and all of their competitors’ eyes are on them. You just really hope that everyone does their best across the field and let the best team win. I think the 54 – they have a ton of talent there, and they have a lot of top end speed, and when they hit it right – they go pretty fast.”
What does it mean to be back to victory lane tonight?
Chris Gayle: “It’s different for me. This one I focused totally on the pit crew – this is totally about the pit crew. I think we win a race on our own merit, and then I will feel more satisfied – and I’m sure Ty (Gibbs) would say the same thing. I’m just happy for those guys. We had a two percent part in this one – Ty more than that – but me specifically. I want to win a race – that’s what I want to do.”
Ty Gibbs: “Like I said, I give all credit to the pit crew. They did this. They deserve it; this is their victory lane.”
How close are you with your pit crew?
Ty Gibbs: “I feel like those guys are my family. I spend a decent amount of time with them. I enjoy being around them. I grew up around the professional athlete side of sports, so being able to be around them again, kind of reminds me of that. I truly enjoy being around them and I feel like they are all great people and fun to be around and I appreciate them.”
Brian Haaland: “I would take that a step further. Ty (Gibbs) is around all of our pit crews – from the guys that just started last week, to guys that have been there for 10 plus years. He knows every one of them by name and it is a really special thing having a driver that is so committed to what we are doing on the pit crew side of things. The guys love it and appreciate it.”
When you are preparing for a race weekend, what does the schedule look like, and do you allow people to challenge for positions?
Brian Haaland: “Yes, we definitely have a competitive environment and guys know what is on the line, and they know what the expectations are of performance. At that point, we have a pipeline that is building hopefully guys that move up into the JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) house cars. We pit the 42 and the 43 and we have very capable guys on there – hopefully, putting pressure on our in-house guys. It is not like someone can come out and say I’m a better jack man, I’m going to challenge you today. It doesn’t work quite like that – we study film, and we look at a lot of data to make really good decisions as a staff, before we make a move. As far as preparation throughout the week, we will have a race on Sunday and then Monday is spent just studying film, studying the numbers from it, getting a practice plan put together and then practice goes Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday – we usually give the guys Friday and Saturday off, if we are performing at a certain level, then they go back to the race track on Sunday. Everybody comes in at 7 o’clock. We do a full team warmup, and then two teams go together and practice, another two teams are doing rehab and film and another two teams are working out. That’s how our six Cup cars that we coach kind of operate, and that goes to – we finish about at 11, but most of the guys are still hang around, they go to lunch together, they come back, they get another workout in, they watch film, they hang out. Joe Gibbs Racing is such an awesome place, and sometimes we have to tell them to go home, get out of here. We have a very special group of athletes.”
Does 23XI Racing have their own pit crews?
Brian Haaland: “Denny (Hamlin) has his own pit crew coach. They use our facility. They actually come in, in the afternoon about 1 o’clock and they are there till about four or something. They kind of rent the facility would the best way for everybody to understand it. The six teams refer to the 42 and 43. We provide the pit crews for those guys.”
Are you recruiting certain body types for positions on the crew?
Brian Haaland: We are constantly looking at body types and different positions and finding what’s going to be the best. The best jack man – we found that a tight end is a really good jack man. We’ve got a new tire changer on the back of the 20 car – he was a former baseball player with the Kansas City Royals. We kind of bring them in, see how they do with our test and then we have a partnership with a company called P3. We send them there for an assessment, and they have all kinds of data on top levels of athletes, because we really want to make sure that we start with the right athlete, because nobody grows up learning how to be a pit crew person, so if we get a great athlete to start with, we are confident that we can coach them to be really good for us.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 45 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 22 electrified options.
Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.
