Toyota Racing – LA Clash Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes
LOS ANGELES (February 3, 2024) – Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin were made available to the media prior to the Clash at the Coliseum on Saturday afternoon.
CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
What do you think about the decision to race today?
“The weather forecast was pretty telling that there wasn’t going to be any racing tomorrow. I’m happy that they made this decision and I think it was the right one.”
What is your favorite and least favorite parts of the Daytona 500?
“My favorite part of the Daytona 500 is just the big event feel – it’s a really big race and you can tell that. You have probably the most casual fans that we have over the entire schedule that tune in for the Daytona 500. My least favorite thing is just the style of racing – the restrictor plate racing is not my favorite. It is what it is. It is the Daytona 500 and it’s the biggest one of the year. It definitely has that big event feel.”
What track do you look forward to most every year?
“Definitely Bristol. That is my favorite. I’m definitely excited about having two concrete races this year.”
NASCAR was supposed to debut an electric race car tomorrow. Have you thought about what electric car racing would look like?
“I would be very intrigued just to drive to just to see what it sounds like because obviously the sound would be definitely different – I would be intrigued by it.”
Do you think in 10-to-15 years you will inevitably be racing electric cars?
“NASCAR, in general, has always been about the stock production vehicles. We have our three manufacturers in the series based on what is available on the showroom. I guess if the showroom is going that direction, it seems that we would go that way.”
Is that exciting to you?
“I don’t know. It seems so far-fetched, I really don’t have an opinion on it.”
What are you hoping people learn about you and your wife from the Netflix show?
“That is a great question. I don’t really know how to answer it. I feel like most people don’t know who I am – people have general conception that I’m not a bad person, or whatever, but hopefully, they learn that I’m just a regular normal person, and I try to leave good impressions on people and that’s hopefully what they learn from the Netflix show.”
Did you like how you were portrayed?
“I’ll be honest, I haven’t watched it yet. I can’t watch interviews of myself, so I can’t watch it. I have got a lot of positive comments about it, so that’s good.”
What does the format for the race mean to you now?
“Yeah, it doesn’t really change anything from my standpoint. I think NASCAR made a genius call to try to get this race in. Everybody was nervous on what was going to happen if we didn’t race today – which we weren’t even planning on racing today – that’s awesome, and I’m happy we get to race.”
Has your recognizability changed since the Netflix show?
“No, not at all.”
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Sport Clips Haircuts Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing
Was there any consulting with the drivers or owners about the decision to move the race?
“I’m not sure. I just got here.”
How do you feel about the decision to move the race?
“I feel like this is the right move. You risk not running it at all. We’ve all come out here and we are in the window now where we know there is not going to be any rain for the next 12 hours or so. It’s like a Deal or No Deal – you had to take the bank on this.”
What is your favorite thing about the Daytona 500 and your least favorite thing?
“My favorite thing is how big it is – how historic of an event it is. The only downside is it is the first race of the season. There is no time for buildup in the sense of seeing where you are at with the season. Usually all the big events in any given sport are towards the end of the year – I’m not advocating to switch it, just that’s the only negative to it.”
What is the legacy of this race?
“I think it’s a huge win for NASCAR – no matter if we choose to come back or not. I think this event certainly did what they were hoping it would do and that was to create buzz in the area, create better ratings and I feel like they accomplished that.”
Do you feel like the teams have made any progress with the charter process?
“I don’t know that much progress has been made, but it has all kind of been stated in articles this week where everything stands, and everything is pretty accurate.”
How does the shoulder feel?
“Very good. I feel pretty good about it, and I’m happy to start a season knowing I don’t have any physical ailments ahead of me. I feel really good about that for sure.”
NASCAR was supposed to debut an electric race car tomorrow. Have you thought about what electric car racing would look like?
“I haven’t – just simply because we don’t know what the future of electric or hybrid is going to be in the general population sense, much less in the racing sense. I haven’t put too much thought into it at all. I’m just letting them progress it as they see fit.”
What is the feedback you’ve gotten on the Netflix series?
“It’s been positive. I mean you have some negatives, here and there, but overall, I feel like it has been really positive for the sport and certainly, I hope we bring it to some new eyes and that is what it is all about.”
Did you feel overexposed at all?
“Again, no one had editing rights except for Netflix, so they are ultimately the ones that put out the ones that they thought were compelling, and obviously, my quest for this Cup has been 18 years in the making, so they thought that was a compelling story.”
Do you have any comments about Fontana?
“The big track will never come back, and I feel like that is what we will miss the most – it had some incredible races, and certainly the crowd rejuvenated around that race track the last few years. Economically, I’m probably in the boat with Kyle (Larson), I’m not sure if we will ever see it come back, but you never know. I think it depends on what happens with the economy, situations, and land prices around that area that will dictate whether that place comes back or not.”
Do you think the California market should figure out somewhere else?
“This area is really, really important for us. This area has been pretty good from a fan standpoint, and when you look at ratings and where our fan base comes from, it is actually a pretty decent market on the list, so certainly we need to try to figure out something in this area that will keep us around.”
About Toyota
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Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 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 26 electrified options.
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