TOYOTA RACING – Taylor Gray
NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series Quotes
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (September 2, 2026) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Taylor Gray was made available to the media on Wednesday as part of NASCAR Chase Media Day at the Charlotte Convention Center.
TAYLOR GRAY, No. 54 Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
Do you have confidence going into the Chase that you have the speed despite the results?
“For sure. I saw a stat last week that I’ve had issues in 17 races in the regular season. To be able to still, going into Daytona, have a fighting chance of a Chase spot, I feel like shows how much speed we do have, but to your point, we have to execute races. We have to score stage points, which we haven’t done a good enough job of doing this year. Really just need to focus on winning races.”
How hard is it to stay mentally in the game when things don’t go your way?
“It is tough. I’ve had a really good group of around me, and I’ve surrounded myself with really good people to bounce stuff off of, whether it is Trevor Bayne (competition advisor, TRD), Jason Ratcliff, my crew chief – recently, I’ve been talking a lot to Christopher Bell, so thankful to have those guys I can reach out to. I have Trevor in my corner, really, every day. It has been important to me. This year has really been a trying year for our group, but we have had a lot of speed, and that is what I’ve tried to focus on throughout the tough times this year. When we do have a hard day or we DNF or whatever it may be, going back and figuring what we did do right, and that we did have speed and learning from the things that I didn’t do right.”
Do you look at the Chase as an opportunity to reset?
“In a way. Yes and no. Being the 11 seed, being 70 or 75 points back, whatever it may be. We are starting fresh-ish, but still not fresh. I think mentally wise, and as a race team, it is a good opportunity for us to put some good wind in our sails and understanding that we are the 11 seed and we have nothing to lose in this post season. We lose one spot in the points, okay. That’s not what we want, but at least we know we were going for it. I think that it is almost a psychological thing. You are already 11th, so give it everything you have. Take chances, things like that. I do think that it makes it hard for us, but it also puts us in a spot where we could be dangerous.”
Do you feel like you are close performance wise to JR Motorsports?
“Props to them. They’ve done a really good job. They’ve had a lot of speed everywhere this year, and all of their cars have been fast. It hasn’t just been Justin (Allgaier). Carson (Kvapil) – whenever he has been in it, I would say the majority of them are fast. The beginning of the year, we were definitely working hard to catch up. I think we are in a good spot right now, where JRM (JR Motorsports) has their weekends, and we have our weekends. That is just how racing goes. We are constantly working to get better, and I’m proud of everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing, the guys in the shop, the guys that travel on the road are all working really hard.”
What tracks do you look forward to in the Chase?
“Honestly, I would say eight of the nine tracks we are going to this postseason, I’m looking forward to going to. They are all really good tracks for our race team and our company. Talladega is the one that stands out for me, can’t say I’m looking forward going there, but really feel like we have a strong set of racetracks.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for nearly 70 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 nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of over 50 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina began to assemble automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.
For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.
