MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
COKE ZERO 400
DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 29, 2017
TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO MILITARY CHEVROLET SS, met with media and discussed his throwback paint scheme for the upcoming Darlington race, his season to date, the stage races, and more. Full Transcript:
REGARDING DARLINGTON PAINT SCHEME
“As far as for me, the history and tradition behind the Unick family, the race team and NASCAR…..there is so much history behind what their family has done in this sport. So, it’s quite the honor them at Darlington in what has become one of the coolest events of the year with the throwback scheme and this is a really awesome car. I know a lot of people are a little superstitious about the number 13 and there is a lot of history that goes back in the sport, but there is also a lot of history yet to be gained. Johnny Rutherford won a qualifying race here in Daytona and that is the only win that has come about for a 13 car. Hearing that gets me a little bit excited about being able to be the first Cup driver to win a points-paying race in the number 13. So, it’s cool to pay homage back to a family and a race team that means so much to our sport, the history, and getting it all started at a track that is the oldest in our sport too. I’m excited, it’s a cool looking car, cool looking hat, and it’s going to be a fun weekend. Everybody loves that whole Darlington throwback that was started a couple of years ago. Very excited and can’t wait.”
SO YOU AREN’T SUPERSTITIOUS ABOUT THAT?
“I am not superstitious. I think you create your own luck in this sport. I actually like having the number 13 and like having other people being more worried about it than I am. (laughs)”
WHAT ABOUT HERE AT DAYTONA?
“Ah, it’s like anywhere else. Luck is sometimes you create it and I feel like here at Daytona you feel like there is a lot of luck that is involved and there is. But you can change that percentage of how much you rely on luck to finish the race just by running good and putting yourself in good position throughout the race. Knowing your surroundings and knowing the situation, you can help your percentages on that. I think a good driver can find his way and still be racing at the end of these races.”
RATE YOUR SEASON SO FAR IN WHERE YOU EXPECTED TO BE AND WHERE YOU ARE
“Yeah, it’s kind of weird and I have been coming here my whole life and the guy that is first in points is always in that garage stall. That was kind of a goal of mine and every time I walked by and I was like, ‘I want to have that garage stall one day’. Well, we are 23rd in points and we have that garage stall. So that kind of killed that for me. Now I want to be on the other end. So, we are working on it and it’s been a good start to the year for me in coming to a new race team, a new group of guys, a new series. I had some starts in years past but I don’t know if there were two or three consecutive starts with the same crew chief or same team. So, it’s been good to build that continuity over the first half of this year and I am really looking forward to coming back to some of these tracks the second time. Bootie (Barker, crew chief) has had to learn me, Bootie and the guys have had to learn me. Hopefully through the first round of all these tracks we have created a box of where they know the kinds of things that I need in the race car to go out and compete. We have had some really good races that we have run inside the top ten and have been very competitive. And every time you do that, you get a little bit better. You get the feeling that when you are running around in the top five or top ten against these guys that end up winning the races you get a little more comfortable in knowing what you need to go out and get better. So going back to these places a second time as a driver and knowing what I am looking for at these places in a Cup car helps a lot. So, I am looking forward to more improvement but I think it’s been a good season so far. I would give it about a C+. I feel like there have been some times where we can do some things better, but I think we have surprised a few people with how competitive we have been. I know deep down we are capable of a lot more.”
THERE WASN’T A LOT OF DRAFTING IN PRACTICE SO NO ONE REALLY KNOWS WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE RACE, WHAT ABOUT QUALIFYING?
“You know, qualifying is qualifying at superspeedways. We have no emphasis as far as our Geico Military Chevy to qualify very well, we are more focused on racing well here. So, we didn’t do any qualifying runs and we actually went out there with the RCR cars and a couple of Hendrick cars and drafted as much as possible and worked on our race car mainly making sure I am comfortable and things like my mirror are in the right positions so that I am aware of who is around me. It was really, really hot so that was something I was able to practice and making sure that my feet and everything are going to be comfortable. They were blazing hot in practice so we are going to do some things to make sure I am comfortable in the car during the race. Which I am very thankful for, for tomorrow night. It’s kind of a simple approach here right up until the race starts and it gets chaotic and then the real race weekend starts. So, for us we are not focused on qualifying or the pole we are more focused on finishing the race and running good.”
YOU USUALLY DON’T KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT IN THE RACE UNTIL THE RACE UNFOLDS
“Not a lot of people seem to be putting a lot of emphasis on qualifying. More or less everybody is focused on getting those stage points and winning the race on Saturday night.”
REGARDING IF YOUR TEAM IS IN COLLABORATION WITH RCR AND IF YOU TALK TO BROTHER AUSTIN A LOT ON RACE WEEKENDS AND HOW DOES THAT WORK?
“Yeah, I think a lot of people think the collaboration between Germain Racing and RCR has changed a lot, and it has because I am driving for Germain. But Germain and RCR have been working together for several years before I even stepped into this ride. That relationship and that amount of information has not changed at all. It’s mainly that I am part of the family and I talk to my brother all the time, I talk to my grandfather, and actually this relationship with Germain has taken a bit of pressure off of me in being under the wing of my grandfather as the team owner. It’s been nice for me this year and I have been able to relax in my own body and have my grandfather at the race track as a grandfather. And I have my brother at the race track as a brother that I can talk to. We do have similar cars and we are not afraid to bounce information off of each other, but for me I think the better thing is that my dad and my grandfather are not my owners and my bosses but can just be my dad and my grandfather. That helps me just be myself at the race track and makes me a better me I feel like.”
TALK ABOUT YOUR PERSONAL LIFE, THAT SEEMS TO BE GOING PRETTY WELL RIGHT NOW
“Yeah, it’s going great and we are about halfway through our first pregnancy and I am looking forward to meeting our little girl. She has been kicking the side of Haley’s belly and every week it’s been something new and exciting. We have been very, very blessed and I hope she continues to grow and be healthy.”
YOU TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT POSITIONING. HOW IS THAT AFFECTED BY THE STAGE RACES, AND HOW DO YOU GET SET UP FOR THAT?
“It’s tough being a rookie and not knowing totally what to expect. Our strategy has been to run hard and try and get ourselves in position. When you get within ten laps of a stage ending and you are in a spot where you can be in that top ten and get points, then we are going to stay up there and battle and stay up in it. If we are in tenth to fifteenth/sixteenth and you can kind of feel the animosity growing at the end of these stages on whether you feel like there is going to be a crash or not happening. And that comes down to me feeling it or my spotter Billy O feeling it. As you do this more and more, you can kind of feel if a crash is coming and it’s going to be really hairy coming down the line. So, we have been kind of playing that by ear and if we feel like we are in a good spot where we can be ahead of a crash, we stay in it and try and get those stage points. If not, it’s better for us to get back out of it and go to the back and regroup for the next stage and see how that plays out. But the main thing for us is being there at the end of this race and getting the full points at the end of the race.”
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