NASCAR CUP SERIES
WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY
ENJOY ILLINOIS 300
PRESENTED BY TICKETSMARTER
TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING REPORT
JUNE 3, 2023
Busch, Chevrolet Tops Qualifying for Pole Position at WWTR
Team Chevy’s Fifth NCS Pole of 2023
· Kyle Busch (No. 8 3CHI Camaro ZL1) posted a lap of 32.80 seconds, at 137.187 mph, in the final round of qualifying to capture the pole position for tomorrow’s Enjoy Illinois 300 Presented by TicketSmarter at World Wide Technology Raceway.
· The pole win is Busch’s first of the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, and his 33rd career pole in NASCAR’s premier series.
· This marks Chevrolet’s fifth NASCAR Cup Series pole of the season; the manufacturer’s first NCS pole at World Wide Technology Raceway; and its 739th all-time in NASCAR’s premier series (series-best).
· FS1 will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300 Presented by TicketSmarter on Sunday, June 4, at 3:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can also be found on the MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 STARTING LINEUP:
POS. DRIVER
1st Kyle Busch, No. 8 3CHI Camaro ZL1
7th William Byron, No. 24 Axalta Camaro ZL1
8th Ross Chastain, No. 1 Moose Fraternity Camaro ZL1
TOP-FIVE UNOFFICIAL STARTING LINEUP:
POS. DRIVER
- Kyle Busch (Chevrolet)
- Ryan Blaney (Ford)
- Denny Hamlin (Toyota)
- Kevin Harvick (Ford)
- Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota)
KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1 – Pole Winner Quotes
TAKE US THROUGH YOUR POLE-WINNING LAP HERE AT WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY?
“Yeah, it was a really good lap for us – being able to qualifying number one, get the number one pit selection for tomorrow and that’s hopefully going to pay really good dividends for our No. 8 3CHI Chevrolet team. Being able to hit turns one and two, it seemed like that’s where a lot of the speed was today. But overall, the whole lap has to be put together. I feel like the adjustments we were making and the feedback I was giving to Randall (Burnett, crew chief) and the guys, they did a good job of being able to get me what I was looking for and make it better as we went. We saved the best for last there on that last run.”
IT’S YOUR FIRST POLE SINCE PHOENIX RACEWAY IN 2019. HOW SIGNIFICANT IS THAT FOR YOU AND TO DO IT FOR RCR?
“It is. I haven’t necessarily been known as a great qualifier lately, apparently. Claire was telling me I had 33 career poles and I was like – wow, is that it? She was like, that’s a lot, and I’m like, no – I’ve been here a lot longer than you realize.
But all-in-all, being able to get a pole here with Richard Childress Racing, Team Chevy and everybody on this No. 8 team is good for us and just try to get some momentum rolling. Our short track stuff hasn’t been the greatest this year so far, but this isn’t the short track aero package here this weekend, so that might pay dividends hopefully for us to just have a better day than what we anticipated. Just excited to have the guys pumped up and raring to go, and knowing that their hard work is paying off.”
LAST YEAR WAS THE FIRST TIME THE NASCAR CUP SERIES RACED HERE AT WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY. WHAT HAVE YOU GUYS LEARNED FROM LAST YEAR TO THIS YEAR, AND WHAT ARE YOU EXPECTING FOR SOME OF THE BIGGEST CHANGES FOR THE RACING ACTION TOMORROW?
“Yeah, whether good or bad, I think we’ll find out. Last year, there was still some leftover resin from the previous year, so we were able to move up the race track; kind of get into that and use that for some speed and have some different lines you can kind of maneuver through. It didn’t seem like any of that was coming true today, so I’m anticipating a bottom race and a lot different than what it was last year. So it might be a little bit tough to pass. But overall, I hope I’m wrong; it widens out and we can put on a great show for the fans that are coming out here to sit in this heat and packing the house. It’ll be a good one.”
YOU MENTIONED THE TRACK – IT’S TRICKY BUT YOUR CREW CHIEF GREW UP JUST DOWN THE ROAD AND RACED PLENTY ON THIS TRACK. DO YOU SEE THAT AS ANY TYPE OF ADVANTAGE, AS FAR AS THE THRILL TO WIN? DO YOU WANT TO WIN FOR HIM MAYBE JUST A BIT MORE?
“I don’t care where we’re at.. I want to win any week. Anytime you can get one, I’ll take one. Certainly, anytime you have a home game, it certainly makes it a lot cooler. Being from Las Vegas, anytime we go out there, it’s almost like the Daytona 500. It’s just a big deal. You want to run good in front of your hometown crowd and at a race track that you remember racing at as a kid or a young guy, and I think Randall (Burnett) is the same way. Working with him and being a part of this team and his leadership that he’s brought the last few years to this team, but also with me being new this year, has been really good and really fun. I’m hoping for the best for us for tomorrow, and being able to lead the field to the green will be a good start to that.”
CONGRATULATIONS ON THE WINS AT DOE RUN THIS WEEK. WAS THAT THE FIRST TIME YOU AND BREXTON (BUSCH) WON ON THE SAME NIGHT?
“Thank you. No – we won the first time together with him in a junior sprint and me in a micro in Arizona at Adobe Mountain Speedway. So that was the second time.”
NASHVILLE WAS ONE THAT KIND OF GOT AWAY FROM YOU LAST YEAR. HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT THAT AND WHAT WOULD YOUR STRATEGY BE GOING FORWARD?
“Yeah, looking forward to Nashville (Superspeedway). It was one that I felt like did get away from us. We were really good through much of the race. We actually had trouble in qualifying; had to start in the back and drove through the field. We got up to the front and got up to the lead. We led for a little bit and then out of nowhere, Chase Elliott and the No. 9 team came on really strong there the second-half of the race and was able to get by us. They were better than us there at the end. I just wish we were able to adjust on our car to keep the speed that we needed when it got to true nighttime so that we were able to prevail. But just didn’t work out for us there – we pitted late, took tires and that was absolutely not worth it. We didn’t make up any ground on that last restart.
So definitely would like to go back there and change fortunes with that. Thankfully I’m with the No. 8 Chevy team this year, where we can look at some of what the No. 9 was doing and what they did to make their stuff better and go from there.”
About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.
