Toyota Racing – Derek Kraus
NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series Quotes
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (February 13, 2020) – McAnally Hilgemann Racing driver Derek Kraus was made available to media at Daytona International Speedway:
DEREK KRAUS, No.19 Shockwave Toyota Camry, McAnally Hilgemann Racing
What’s the biggest track you have been on before this?
“I did the ARCA test a few weeks ago, but before that it was Gateway and Las Vegas in at truck.”
What was your first impression going around this place?
“It was a lot of fun. I didn’t really know what to expect at first. There’s a lot of history here at Daytona. I took a few laps in the draft and that helped a lot.”
This truck race has a history of wrecks. Is there any apprehension to that at all?
“I think I can look past all of that and look forward to the race. I can bide my time, and be there at the end of the race. I feel like if I’m there at the end of the race, we will get a good finish.”
What is your plan for practice?
“The plan is to draft a little bit in practice. We will try to get a few Toyotas together to draft and then get a few single car runs.”
What’s your expectation for this race?
“Just to try to finish. As you said, there are a lot of wrecks and you have to keep your nose clean and keep the fenders on it for all the laps in Daytona. If we are there at the end of the race, I feel like we will get a good finish.”
Is qualifying a big deal for you?
“Yeah, we have to make the race. We do not have any points to fall back on to. We have to try to qualify good enough to lock ourselves in the show.”
What’s your deal for the rest of the year?
“Full-time trucks with MHR. I feel like we have a lot of good people behind us. We will go to the race track and try to finish all the laps and be there at the end of races.”
When did you see this coming together?
“It was in the works for a while. We were pretty much working on it all of the off season and towards the end of the off season, we put everything together and were able to make the announcement of being full time. I’m really having fun so far, and I’m really looking forward to the race of the season.”
What are your expectations for the season?
“I feel like just finishing all the laps and being at the end of the races will be really important for me, and just having good runs and good finishes will be good for the confidence as we go throughout the season.”
# # #
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 38 million cars and trucks in North America, where we have 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama (10 in the U.S.), and directly employ more than 47,000 people (over 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold 2.8 million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2018.
Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit ToyotaNewsroom.com.