Toyota GAZOO Racing – John Hunter Nemechek
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes
NEWTON, Iowa (Aug. 2, 2025) – LEGACY MOTOR CLUB driver John Hunter Nemechek was made available to the media on Saturday prior to the NASCAR Cup Series race at the Iowa Speedway.
JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK, No. 43 Dollar Tree Toyota Camry XSE, LEGACY MOTOR CLUB
The track surface seems to be much different than last year, what are you expecting this weekend?
“I think everyone is going to be fighting for the repaved strip, from a grip standpoint. The color of the new asphalt has changed drastically since last year. It’s very light compared to how dark it was last year. It’s going to be very interesting to see the grip level for us as we get out there today. The asphalt with the shoe test seems to have way more grip than the old asphalt did. With a new tire here, it’s going to be a lot of unknowns for us. I know that they had a tire test here and a wheel force test here so there’s data on the tire. So, there’s a lot of unknowns this weekend with falloff and how slick it’s going to get and how tires are going to wear. Definitely a lot of differences from last year.”
With the newness of the surface, what is the process you go through to try and get the car right in practice and qualifying?
“It’s difficult, because it’s a 25-minute practice session with the impound rule, so you kind of got what you got. You can change heights and load on the springs and wedge and things of that sort, but as far as changing springs and shocks, you can’t do that. Hopefully all of our guesswork on the simulator kind of pans out for us. We’ve definitely got our correlation way closer than it has been in the past six to eight months. I feel like we’ve been making strides along with car speed and grip and things of that sort with Erik (Jones) and I. With having to prep, hopefully we can go P1 on the board and we’re really fast. But if not, it’s going to be sitting down and studying the SMT data and figuring out where your speed is lacking on the speed trace. Why can’t I pick the throttle up 50 feet sooner while am I not using more brake, things of that sort from a car handling characteristic to try and pinpoint a problem and fix that going into Sunday. Who knows how the tire is going to race, there’s a lot of unknowns every week. Whoever can maximize their race and have the best strategy and have track position all day is going to be become victorious. Last year was a huge track position race, so hopefully with the asphalt wear some and the new tire compound it will be easier for us to move around.”
What are your thoughts on the In-Season Challenge now that it’s over?
“Mad I didn’t win it (laughing). I think overall it was a really great experience to be honest with you. Props to TNT and to NASCAR and everyone that came up with the idea and made it possible. It was really fun to be a part of. It was great from a fan perspective. When you didn’t have a chance to win the race, you want to try and get the best finish that you can. At Dover, Ty Dillion and I didn’t have the best cars all day and we kept trading it off and we knew we were racing them. It gives you something to race for when you are running 25th that day, or 15th that day or whatever that may be. The trash talking on social media and the content capture, that was a lot of fun for me. I think you saw a lot of different personalities come out through that and a lot of engagement you wouldn’t normally see on a weekly basis unless you were racing for something like that. I know we gained some fans, Ty Dillon gained some fans, for making it all the way through to the final round. Thank you to everyone for making it happen and it’s definitely a step in the right direction for our sport.”
Do you think the In-Season Challenge should come back for 2026?
“For sure. I think it should be a thing kind of like what March Madness is. The bracket challenge is really neat and it’s cool that fans get to fill out a bracket. It’s a lot of fun to be a part of and I hope they bring it back.
Do you think they should mix up the tracks that are in it next year?
“I think so. It would be neat to have different racetracks every year, kind of like the championship race. One of my thoughts on that is to change venues every year, to keep going back to places and ultimately having a good time.”
You are making your 100th Cup Series start tomorrow. What are your thoughts on reaching this milestone?
“It’s really neat. I don’t know how many starts I have in the NextGen car now, I’m going to say it’s close to 60 or something like that. For me, approaching 100 starts in the Cup Series, as a kid growing up and watching my Dad race in the Cup Series and growing up at the racetrack. Now to not only compete in the Cup Series, but compete at a super high level and competing for Top-10’s and Top-five’s trying to go for race win and hopefully eventually championships is something I’ve always dreamed of. To be at that 100 start milestone has been really neat for me. It’s been a good week and what better place to do it than Iowa. It will be good to get on track here, this place has been really good for me in the Truck Series and the Xfinity Series and hopefully the Cup Series this year.”
What do you think they should do with the track surface in the future at Iowa? Should it be repaved or be repaved all the way up to the corner?
“I don’t have too many thoughts on that. I liked the old surface, I’ve run in Trucks and Xfinity cars here. It was really fun for me. I don’t know you’ll see it get past lane two this weekend, just with the new asphalt and the grip it has as opposed to the old asphalt, which is yet to be determined. When it was the old asphalt without the corner repaved you could move all the way up to the fence. We would come here in the Truck Series and I’ve won it on a restart by making it three-wide on the top in turn 1 and 2. Places where you can move around and adjust your car handling where the driver can make a big difference are places that I like. I think as the asphalt ages it will be pretty interesting to see how we can move around and race and pass and things of that sort. It’s going to be doing whatever we can to speed up the aging and that process.”
You need a win to make the playoffs. How close are you to winning?
“I had the fastest car last weekend and I drove it into the fence in qualifying and had to start in the back. I think we are getting closer. The last eight or nine months at LEGACY MOTOR CLUB, from the personnel changes and the process changes, the procedural changes, the whole culture in the shop has completely changed. Jimmie (Johnson) becoming the majority owner and being involved in the day-to-day aspect, he’s here full-time now as of a couple of weeks ago, so he’s been in the shop every day. It’s been really neat to have him here and in our corner and here in person. He did a great job when he was overseas and living in London, but to have him here in person and to create a closer relationship with him and a closer bond. Not only for my myself, but everyone that works at LEGACY MOTOR CLUB can help things. I know we are getting closer. We have four weeks left to win before the playoffs start. Overall, even if we don’t make the playoffs this year, I would say this year has been a success for us. From last year running 30th or 35th every week to consistently running in the Top-20 each week. Having speed and showing up with speed and being able to execute races. Finishing in the Top-10 a lot this year has been good for us. It’s brick by brick we are building from the ground up and I think we are getting way closer to that win. We have some good racetracks coming up for me, I like Iowa and Watkins Glen, we all have to figure out how to beat SVG (Shane Van Gisbergen) there. Then we have Richmond and Daytona. The summer race at Daytona last year we led a bunch of laps and had a shot to win it before I went Tokyo drift style through the infield, but looking forward to going back there. Richmond is another one I’ve also circled myself. There are definitely some racetracks coming up before the playoffs that I’m really excited for.”
Do you think Jimmie’s presence makes people either work harder or be more detailed?
“I don’t necessarily think it makes them more detailed. I just think if anything, the way he has shared his vision for the company and the way that he has helped change the culture in the shop has made the biggest impact. Him being around on a day-to-day aspect is more culture driven than necessarily everyone working harder. I wouldn’t say people are stepping up their game and working harder just because he’s there. But I think the way he has shaped his vision and his dream of LEGACY 2.0 as a team owner and the culture change I think that’s made the biggest impact for us as a team. The personnel we continue to hire, the changes we’re making internally and all the department heads, everyone has bought in internally at this point. Everyone is bought in on what Jimmie wants to do and how we are going to achieve that. I think it’s shown here over the last little bit.”
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