NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
THE COMBAT WOUNDED COALITION 400 AT THE BRICKYARD
INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
JULY 22, 2016
JEFF GORDON, INTERIM DRIVER, NO. 88 AXALTA CHEVROLET SS – FINAL PRACTICE QUOTES
LIKE RIDING A BIKE?
“No, I mean yes and no. When you get to drive a race car like this it certainly just helps you focus on what you need to do out there. Being out of the car that long and not really having a lot of experience with this package it was a tall task, I will be honest. It was one of the most challenging days I’ve had in a race car to try to get comfortable, be consistent, have the speed and give good feedback. I mean I still love this track and I’m glad that we are doing this, this weekend because I think that helps me have the confidence to be able to learn faster, but it’s tough. It was tough. That first run I was like ‘wow’ I forgot how hard of work this is.”
IS THE SIMULATOR AS CLOSE AS YOU HAD HOPED? ARE YOU IN SHAPE?
“I feel good on being in shape. I mean they have come a long way on cooling the cars. I feel pretty good there. I mean I sweated it out pretty good today and feel good. I’m sure my back will be hurting when the day is over. Yeah, the simulator was great. Visually and the break marks and the way you drive the track and the way the car handled was very very similar which I was very impressed with that. Obviously, real life is a lot tougher than in a simulator because you can scrape the wall, you can make mistakes and it’s not going to cost you a race car. Just knowing that is on the back of your mind and knowing that there is a lot of pressure out there that I put on myself to go out there and make the most out of the laps that we had which is a lot more challenging than the simulator.”
WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR IN QUALIFYING TOMORROW?
“Well, I will just walk you through our day a little bit. The first lap on the track was a good one. That was nice, but at the same time we were off on pace after that and needed a few tenths I felt like. Which when we went to make a qualifying or two qualifying runs, unfortunately, we missed it a little bit so that didn’t go so well. But I felt like here in Happy Hour we made some really good gains in the car in race trim. I think that there are some of those things that will translate over to qualifying. The nice thing is the car has good speed and I actually ran the fastest lap of the day on that last run. That will help me, I think, for tomorrow’s qualifying session.”
ARE YOU HAVING SECOND THOUGHTS? WOULD YOU RATHER BE IN FRANCE?
“France is good, but no this is very rewarding to be here to be a part of this race. To fulfill this position that … I will tell you that I’ve got a lot of appreciation for Alex Bowman. Whether you are a four-time champion and a five-time Brickyard 400 winner or the accomplishments that Alex has, I can’t imagine what he was going through at New Hampshire, because I know what I was going through today and it was a tremendous amount of pressure and anxiety. I’m glad we got through day one clean and looking forward to day two.”
GIVEN THE IRONY OF THE SITUATION OF A GORDON IN AN EARNHARDT CAR HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT THAT AT ALL?
“Yeah, how can you not think about that? I think that is what makes the story so appealing and just the whole set of circumstances being here at Indianapolis on the 24th, I think I was 24th fastest too. It’s kind of crazy when you start doing the numbers games and the scenario and everything. It’s a pretty crazy set of circumstances that I could of never have imagined happening.”
DO YOU CARE IF THIS EXTENDS YOUR NASCAR HALL OF FAME ELIGIBILITY DATE?
“I’m in no hurry. I mean, first of all, I think there are plenty of big names and personalities in our sport that belong in that Hall of Fame. I’m not even thinking about that right now. When that day comes it’s going to be a very proud moment and right now I’m just living life and taking what comes at me next and this was a curveball. Taking that one and all of it one step at a time.”
NOBODY HAS ASKED FOR THEIR RETIREMENT GIFT BACK HAVE THEY?
“No, this is not a Mark Martin moment. It’s not like ‘okay I think I’m going to come back full-time and run a whole season.’ That is not happening, not happening at all.”
Connect with Team Chevy on social media. Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/TeamChevy, follow us on Twitter @TeamChevy, and add +TeamChevy into your Google+ circles.
Team Chevy racing photos are available at:
About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 115 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with 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.
