MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
BASS PRO SHOPS NRA NIGHT RACE
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING DRIVER PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
AUGUST 18, 2017
KYLE LARSON IS TOP QUALIFIER FOR TEAM CHEVY AT BRISTOL
Four Chevrolets Will Start in the Top 12
BRISTOL, Tenn. – (August 18, 2017) – Fresh off his win last weekend in Michigan, Kyle Larson set the pace for Team Chevy with a second-place qualifying run in his No. 42 Huggies Little Movers Chevrolet SS at Bristol Motor Speedway. He will start on the outside front row for the 500-lap Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, Round 24 of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS). This marks the 14th top-10 start of the season thus far for Larson, and his second in eight races at the track known as the ‘World’s Fastest Half-Mile’.
“I wish I could have gone just a few thousandths faster, but I ended up second,” said Larson. “So, not bad. I really wanted that pole there just because I was doing something different than everybody, but we’ll start on the front row tomorrow and hopefully be there at the end.”
Kasey Kahne, who won the Brickyard 400 in July, posted a third-place effort in his No. 5 Rated Red Chevrolet SS; and his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Chase Elliott, qualified fourth in the NAPA Chevy SS. Larson’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate, Jamie McMurray, earned an 11th place starting position in his No. 1 McDonald’s/Cessna Chevy SS. To give Team Chevy four of the top-12 starters overall.
Erik Jones (Toyota) was the pole winner and Matt Kenseth (Toyota) qualified fifth to round out the top five qualifiers.
The Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway is scheduled to begin on Saturday August 19th. Live coverage can be found on NBC, PRN, and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 at 7:30 p.m.
POST QUALIFYING PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT:
KYLE LARSON, NO. 42 HUGGIES LITTLE MOVERS CHEVROLET SS – Qualified 2nd
WHAT IS IT ABOUT THAT HIGH LINE THAT REALLY WORKS FOR YOU?
“I don’t know it is easier to run up there for me anyways. It is easier and more consistent and a lot of speed up there. I kind of wish I would have went top both ends for my good lap because I felt like my third lap I made up a lot of time. I think if I would have had a little more ‘goody’ on my tires I could have went a little bit better. I wanted that pole really bad. It would have been cool to kind of snooker them and get the pole just because they all were committed to the bottom and I knew that the top was better. But came up just a few thousandths short of the pole, which isn’t bad, but looking forward to tomorrow.”
DOES WINNING AND WINNING IN THIS SERIES MAKE YOU FEEL DIFFERENT OR MORE COMFORTABLE OR CONFIDENT?
“I don’t know. I think, yeah, running well makes you confident for sure. I don’t think it’s changed me as a person any or made me any happier. I’m always pretty happy, but it is just cool to be running good or up front in this form of racing with the toughest competition I think is out there. So, I’m proud of that and proud of my team and hopefully we can finish these next few weeks out strong and start the playoffs good and go for a championship. Because I feel like we have a great opportunity in front of us to win the championship so yeah, we just got to focus on that and confidence is a big thing. So, hopefully we can maintain that confidence throughout the rest of the season.”
DO YOU THINK WINNING MAKES OWEN (LARSON, SON) HAPPIER?
“Yeah, I think winning makes Owen happier for sure. He likes taking pictures.”
DO YOU SEE THIS RACE PLAYING OUT TO HOW THE SPRING PLAYED OUT WHERE THE STICKY STUFF IS ON THE BOTTOM FOR THE FIRST PART WEARS UP YOU MOVE UP? IS THAT HOW IT WILL PROBABLY UNFOLD AGAIN?
“Yeah, I mean I don’t see how it wouldn’t. I almost think… well, I know the top will actually come in a lot quicker than it did in the spring just because there is already more rubber up top and there is going to be a lot of rubber up there after this Xfinity race and then we also don’t have any weather I don’t think from this point on until tomorrow. I know it can always change, but I think there is going to be plenty of rubber up there. They are not putting the ‘sticky stuff’ quite as wide around the bottom this time as the Spring, so that is going to make the pace down there a little bit slower already. Yeah, I mean I think the top is going to be really good. It’s going to be racy as always. Bristol is also, to me, one of the raciest tracks we go to, most exciting for sure. So, I’m looking forward to it. I think it’s going to be fun to move around and get the traffic and there is never any time to relax here.”
COULD YOU SHARE YOUR REACTION TO CHARLOTTESVILLE AND ALSO YOUR REACTION TO HOW THE PRESIDENT HAS HANDLED THAT SITUATION?
“I mean I don’t really have a comment on it. I was really busy last week, so honestly didn’t get a whole lot of time to catch up on social media or television. Yeah, I don’t really have an opinion on it, sorry.”
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