NASCAR CUP SERIES
INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY R.C.
VERIZON 200 AT THE BRICKYARD
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
AUGUST 11, 2023
DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAY.COM CAMARO ZL1, met with the media prior to the NASCAR Cup Series race weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course. Media Availability Quotes:
I’m told you just finished up doing something pretty cool. Can you tell us about that?
“Yeah, as some of you guys know, my fiancé Julia (Piquet), her father raced here at Indianapolis (Motor Speedway) back in 1992. He had a big accident and he destroyed his legs pretty much. Julia and I just met with Terry, who was the doctor that actually saved his legs. And not just his legs, but many other drivers that year and some more over the years, as well. It was very special, especially for Julia, to get to meet him because she has had a lot of conversations with her dad about that day because actually she was born the same day. She was born the day that her father had the accident, 12 hours later. So yeah, it’s very crazy. Drew was the one that put all of this together, my PR, so it was pretty cool. Actually he was here, as well. You can tell how old he is (laughs). But yeah, it was definitely a great moment. For me, I always love meeting new people, but it was a very special moment for Julia and I was able to enjoy her excitement.”
You have a couple of races left of the regular season. You’re getting close to pointing your way in, but obviously getting a victory is going to take the pressure off. You’re a good road course driver, so what do you think your prospects are of winning here?
“Honestly, I think our chances are as good as anyone’s out there. I feel very good about it. Last year, we were running up front in this race – in the top five for most of the race. So I have good expectations for this race. Personally, I’m not really paying much attention to the points right now. I’m just trying to focus on one race at a time. Obviously once in a while, it’s impossible not to look at the points because everyone is talking about it.. everyone is posting about it. But no, I feel pretty good about it and I believe that we’re going to be very strong the next couple of weeks, especially here at the Indianapolis (Motor Speedway Road Course) and at Watkins Glen (International). Obviously Daytona (International Speedway) is a free card for everyone.
I feel good about it. I think a win here in Indianapolis, it would be like a dream. This place is like none other. Every time you go through the tunnel and you see what’s in front of you, it’s quite special. I remember it like it was yesterday, the very first time that I drove through the tunnel. I still get goosebumps like the very first time, so it would be very, very special to get a win here and I think we’re fully capable of doing it. Like I said, I think our chances for this weekend are as good as anyone’s and I can’t wait to start the weekend tomorrow.”
Inaudible… How do you expect your performance to be at Watkins Glen (International)?
“Yeah, I mean you’re right – honestly I’m not even thinking about Watkins Glen (International) at this point, but if we win both, that would be pretty amazing. Honestly I think that we can do it. I think that it would change our year around in a heartbeat, and I don’t see that being impossible at all. We just have to stay present – do our thing, have fun and I believe that we’re going to be in contention. I think we’re going to have a good time and hopefully we can be kissing some bricks on Sunday afternoon.”
Inaudible…
“Maybe a little bit, but I don’t think it’s going to take long for the racetrack to make those transitions. I think that tomorrow is going be the same because we only have 20 minutes of practice and qualifying. But for Sunday, maybe the first 10 minutes is going to be different, but then we’re going to start applying the rubber off our tires. The way I see those things is that it’s going to be the same for everyone. I think it’s one of those things that you know about it, that it’s going to change, and you try not to focus too much about it because you know that it’s going to be very temporary.. the transition of it. But the good thing is that the race track is going to be clean and most likely very racy.”
Turn One here has obviously been ‘calamity corner’ the last couple of years. NASCAR has backed the restart zone up between turns 13 and 14 before you get to the frontstretch. Do you think that will change anything trying to spread you guys up a little bit more down the frontstretch before you get to Turn One?
“Yeah, definitely.. definitely. I think that, in my opinion, that’s going to fix 70 to 80 percent of the problem. We can thank the drive council for that one (laughs). We pushed very hard for that – to do it here and hopefully in the future at Circuit of The Americas, as well.
I think it’s very important. You guys want to watch a race.. you guys want to watch a real race. Nobody wants to watch a crapshoot in corner one. That’s not real racing. I was re-watching the race from last year and at one point, we were like six wide in corner one.. that’s impossible. I don’t think you can go six wide on a bicycle race in there without contact, so it’s not real. It was about time to get rid of that because it was starting to become a little bit of a joke, in my opinion. So I’m happy that NASCAR was open to listen to this option and they were open to a change. Sometimes you’re always concerned about – OK, does NASCAR really want to change these, or do they care about the show only? But NASCAR was very good about it. Yeah, it’s entertaining, but we don’t want to look bad either. So I thought it was a great decision and really looking forward to seeing how it works.
I do believe that you’re still going to have a couple of guys, maybe, that still try to do some crazy things. But there’s more racing, more normal. I think if we restart back there, I think the field is going to be more spread out.”
You said it fixes 70 to 80 percent.. what are the other issues and how do you fix what’s left to completely avoid the carnage that we’ve seen down there?
“Yeah, I say 70 to 80 percent just because we haven’t seen it yet and that’s just my guess. And also, if you have a couple of guys that have a good run, you can still be three or four wide over there and it can lead into a wreck. But what we have seen in the past of cars pushing each other five wide or six wide, like what I call embarrassing racing or like bumper cars, I don’t think we’re going to see that again. I think that’s pretty much 98.7 percent of the equation. But still, I think there’s going to be good racing. I think there’s going to be a little bit of contact.. it’s going to be a little physical. But I don’t think we’re going to see the crazy bumper cars that we’ve seen in the past here, at COTA and some of these places.”
For this track, what section do you find technically the hardest to navigate, and what is the best passing zone?
“So the most difficult part of the track.. that’s a very good question. I think that the more technical part is between corner, I would say from seven all the way to 12. I would say those are the most technical.. the more technical part. When it comes to passing zones, obviously corner one and corner seven. I think those are the best passing zones. I think actually corner 12 can be a passing zone, but it’s a little more tricky.. along with corner 13, as well. But they are a little more risky. I would say that corner one and seven are the more straightforward, just because you have a longer straightaway so you can do different things with brakes and things like that.
But overall, here at Indianapolis (Motor Speedway Road Course), it’s an amazing racetrack. I personally love it. I love coming here and it would be very special to have a good run here and getting a win on Sunday. Hopefully we can do it.”
I know it’s a very busy weekend schedule for both series, but have you had a chance to spend some quality time with Pato O’Ward?
“No, I haven’t even talked to him. We messaged a couple of weeks ago, but no I haven’t even talked to him. I arrived yesterday afternoon and I already had dinner plans. This morning, I was very busy the entire morning. And then I’ve been doing appearances and media stuff for a sponsor, so I haven’t even had the opportunity to talk to him. I don’t even know where he qualified.. I think he qualified in the top-five, right? Top-Six? I think he qualified well. I’m going to catchup with him for sure tomorrow. This is the crazy thing.. we’re so close and too far, as well. We’re in the same place, but also he’s very busy with his schedule and I’m very busy with my schedule. But I’m very sure we’re going to catchup tomorrow before his race. That’s going to be fun. I’m pretty sure he’s going to be strong here. Last year, I remember talking to him – he was very strong on the short runs, but he was struggling a little bit on the long runs. Hopefully they’ve got that one figured out.”
If you go back to Daytona (International Speedway) in 2021, Trackhouse Racing was a one car team. They’ve got a team owner that’s very ambitious, and now here we are in 2023, Trackhouse Racing is big-time and may be getting even bigger. What’s it like to see how far this team has come in such a short period of time?
“I hope it continues that way. Justin Marks is an amazing racecar driver and an amazing team owner. He’s very, like you mentioned, he’s very ambitious. There’s no limits and I really like that. He loves to think outside the box and I think that’s what’s gotten Trackhouse Racing to this point, and I don’t think we’re at the limit. I think the future of Trackhouse is still very, very bright and there’s a lot more things that are going to continue to happen. Right now, we have two cars full-time, but Shane (van Gisbergen) is kind of that guy that’s going in and out, and I wouldn’t be surprised if more things happened with Shane or with someone else. I think Justin – his gears are always clicking and he’s always thinking ahead, and I like that about him. I think we have an amazing race team – great people, great sponsors, great drivers, great overall. We have something good going on, we just have to continue to build and continue to get better because I feel like this year has been good, but not great. So we still have some work to do and we know what we have to do.”
You were talking about Indianapolis being a very special place. Would you want to see it go back to the oval or stay on the road course?
“You know, I have mixed feelings with that. I love road course racing. I love Indianapolis. But I love the oval, as well. The oval – that’s Indianapolis. That’s the history of this place. I think winning on Sunday, it would be unbelievable. But I think winning on Sunday on the oval – I don’t know why, but I feel like it would have a little bit of a different feel. I could be wrong. I hope I get to experience both. But whatever happens in the future, if we go back to the oval or not, I know I’m going to enjoy it so much because I love both so much. I’m looking forward to those opportunities. Honestly, selfishly talking, I hope we can do two races or one and one – one next year on the oval and the following year road course, and then oval again. I think that would be amazing just because I love both so much. When we changed from the oval to the road course, I was super excited. And right now, if we get to change again, I would be excited, as well. I just like the change and I don’t think that you can go wrong with either. I think the race track is just unbelievable and it has so much opportunity and it’s just so special to be here. I just wish we were coming more often. This is an amazing place.”
About Chevrolet
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