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Toyota Racing – NCS Bristol Quotes – Christopher Bell – 03.16.24

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Official Release
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Toyota Racing – Christopher Bell
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 16, 2024) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell was made available to the media prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday.

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 DEWALT Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing

Would you like to see COTA continue on the schedule going forward?
“I think that COTA is a world-class facility and a world-class race track. If we road courses on the schedule, it is probably a good one to go to. I’m okay with it. I’m okay with us getting the road course schedule back down, which we have slowly, but surely been doing, but I think that COTA is a good one to go.”

Where would you want a dirt race to be on the schedule?

“I think that there are a lot of different dirt venues out there, but Eldora is the one that really comes to mind, and I’m sure everyone will say the same thing. I don’t think we should go down the path of having one dirt race a year – and I’m just talking about getting rid of some road course races – but we don’t need to have one road course race either. Whenever you have that single event, it becomes easy to overlook and then people don’t take it seriously. We saw that in road course racing early on in the sport, where if you weren’t a good road course racer, you would just kind of put it behind you and it was easy to put it behind you, and on to the next one. The dirt race was very much that same way. For all of the teams that didn’t have a dirt driver, it was just kind of an off week for them, a throw away event. Certainly, the guys that had dirt drivers took it seriously, but I think if you want to go down that route you need to add two to three of them to make it a priority in the schedule, so that you have to actually have to work on it to become better and it becomes more of a real race.”

Do you think some of the things have worked for you in the night race at Bristol could work for you in the day race?

“I would say so and I would say that is a fair comment about saying how concrete tracks are not as sensitive to ambient conditions. It’s certainly been a while since we’ve had a daytime race at Bristol and I think it will probably be a little bit different, but no one knows how different it will be with the Next Gen car. Our team, at least, just found out that the treatment at the bottom is a little bit different last year, so yeah, it is going to be a little bit different than we’ve had the last couple of years in Spring Bristol for sure. I can promise you that. (laughter).”

How does winning early help you focus on getting Playoff points to set you up strong for the Playoffs?

“That has been our focus ever since that ’21 season, where we won early and then we never got any more Playoff points after that, but then ’22 and ’23, we’re kind of the same. We just have not been able to execute on multiple race wins and multiple stage wins. That has been a focus the last several years, of us trying to be the team going into the Playoffs that has the points buffer, because certainly when you get into the round of 12, round of 8, I had to win basically if I was going to make the final 4. I don’t know other than to say it is the same mentality that we’ve had, just we had to do a better job of executing it. Getting Playoff points is hard. The only way to get Playoff points is to win races, win stages – and being up in the final regular season standings. We need to win more. I need to win more, and good news is we want to win more, so that is what it is all about.”

With the road courses coming up, does it allow you to be on the opposite strategies to get those Playoff points?

“With the yellow flags being back in place, it definitely opens that back up on the road courses. You are really going to figure out where you stack up on Saturday, where you practice and qualifying, and then where the race falls, if you feel like you have a car capable of winning the race, then you are probably going to jump the stages and you are not going to get the stage points, but say that you are a guy that doesn’t have the pace to win the race, if the Playoff point is given to you by everyone short pitting the stages and racing for the win, then it is definitely something that we would consider. I believe that we did that at Indy road course, a couple of years ago, where we knew that we didn’t have the pace to win the race, so everyone short pitted the stages and we took the points. That’s one of the few rare occasions that it happens, maybe Pocono, or something like that. Certainly, at the road courses, we hope to have the pace to win, but if not, it does open that possibility to take the stage points and the Playoff point.”

After all the success you had at Phoenix, are you excited to get to Richmond with the same short track package?

“I think that Richmond will be a good track for us. Statistically, it is probably one of my best Cup tracks too, but obviously haven’t reached victory lane there. It’s a unique place, because in the Xfinity Series, the strategy is pretty self-explanatory. You are going to run to the stage break, you are going to put tires on, and do the same thing all race, but the Cup race, you have to make a green flag stop, and the tire fall off is so big that you might have to make two green flag stops in one stage. There is a lot that goes into it, and in order to win at Richmond, you have to have the whole package. You have to have your entire team clicking. It is not a place where a driver can make up for a bad car or a bad pit crew or anything like that. Richmond is a team race track. You have to have great pit stops, you have to have a good driver and obviously a good car. We have been close. I think I’ve been a top-10 car there the majority of the time but haven’t sealed the deal yet. Maybe this year is the year.”

How much of an adjustment is it from coming to a bigger track to Bristol?

“There is an adjustment period for sure. That is a little unique to Bristol because even at Martinsville, it’s a half-mile in length, the speed is slower than here, so the acclamation time isn’t as big, but definitely that first run of practice, I think all of us are going to be holding our breath and the crew chief is going to be asking what we need on the car, and we are going to be like hang on, I’m trying to breathe in here. The acclamation period at Bristol is probably the biggest of the schedule, and the runs at Bristol – while the lap times are short – the lap count is really, really high. A 90-lap run at Phoenix is probably a little bit easier on us than 125-lap run, which we have to do stage one of the race on Sunday. The lap count being high here makes it a little bit tougher.”

How do you think the Netflix show raised your and NASCAR’s visibility? Is it important for NASCAR to have a superstar that people outside of the sport would know?

“I think that is the name of the game for the whole Netflix deal was trying to get more eyes, more casual fans, engaged with our sport and try to understand the process of what a NASCAR race is. It is not just cars turning left. I can promise you that. Getting superstars is what getting fans to watch. It all goes hand in hand, so hopefully that was step one of getting us more exposure and getting this sport back to where it was.”

How important is it for you to show your personality to NASCAR fans and the general public?

“It has been something that I haven’t been very good at – showing my personality, showing who I am, to the general public, so whenever I got the opportunity to be on the Netflix show, I tried to open up as much as I could. I just hope that we are able to keep it going, keep the momentum going. I know that the ratings have been really good this year, and there has been a lot of positivity going into 2024, so hopefully we can keep the ball rolling.”

You won the dirt race here last year. Do you feel like the defending race winner?

“I don’t feel like the defending race winner. It feels like we are at a different venue right now, compared to what it was 12 months ago. It is cool that I won the last dirt race. I take pride in that because I’m a dirt track racer. That’s what I grew up doing, but it definitely, definitely feels like a new venue. When you came here for the dirt race, it didn’t feel like you were at Bristol.”

Have you felt underappreciated by the NASCAR fans? If so, does that motivate you?

“I would say that it motivates me a little bit. I want to be clear, that inside my team and the competition industry, I feel like people know where the 20 car is at. Just the outer regions don’t or haven’t. Frankly, I’ve got to win. I’m not a talker. I’m not a shower. I hope to be a winner, and I know for people to talk about me, I have to win. Winning seven races is not there. I want to win, and I want to make you guys have to talk about me because of the on-track product.”

How will the restart zone and the portions that have been repaved change racing next weekend in COTA?

“I have. I actually did a little bit of simulator work last week and there is a lot of patches. They added some last year, and they did more this year, so that is definitely, I would think, affect the strategy a little bit as far as tire management, when you are going to put tires on, stuff like that, and then the restart zone. While I don’t think it is going to be a home run, I think it will be in the right direction of trying to get us spread out, so that we don’t look like a bunch of buffoons running into each other getting into turn one, so I think the road course stuff is going to be a work in process as far as getting the cars where we don’t run into each other going into those 90 degree corners. Another learning experience for us.”

What makes a superstar to you?

“I think I’m probably the wrong person to ask that question. I have a hard time of understanding who a superstar is in general. I would say in my eyes the superstars in the sport are Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, probably (Joey) Logano and (Brad) Keselowski – the guys that have won the most races out of the group. It’s becoming harder and harder to do that. The days of the big three – (Martin) Truex, (Kevin) Harvick and Kyle Busch – are a long way away now. I don’t know if we will ever get back there. There’s positives and negatives. We’ve gotten away from those key guys winning races, but now we have more parity in our sport and you never know who is going to win going into a Sunday. It could be one of 15-20 cars. I guess in my eyes, the superstars are the winners and the guys have ton the most, just like Kyle and Denny.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 45 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 26 electrified options.

Josh Berry Bristol 1 Media Availability

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Official Release
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Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Food City 500 Advance | Saturday, March 16, 2024

Josh Berry, driver of the No. 4 SunnyD Ford Mustang Dark Horse, will be making his fifth start with Stewart-Haas Racing this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. The Tennessee native stopped by the infield media center before qualifying to talk about his season to date.

JOSH BERRY, No. 4 SunnyD Ford Mustang Dark Horse – WHAT KIND OF PLACE WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE ADDED TO THE SCHEDULE? “Japan seems like a long ways away (laughing). Montreal, I remember growing up and watching racing there. It seemed like a good racetrack to put on a good show. I feel like North America, to me, is the extent of it, whether we’re going north or south.”

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR NASCAR TO HAVE A SUPERSTAR? “Obviously, I think it’s important for the sport to have those guys that are household names. I mean, to me, the way somebody does that is by winning a lot of races and championships. That’s how those guys beforehand did it. It’s about winning a lot and the difference, I think more than ever now, is it’s just so competitive that it’s hard to stand out compared to everyone you’re racing with. Even the guys that are winning races aren’t winning as much as they were year’s back, so it’s just more competitive than ever. It’s a good thing at the same time, too, from when you’re sitting there watching it.”

THIS ISN’T THE START YOU WANTED, SO HOW DO YOU GUYS TURN IT AROUND? WHAT ARE THE OVERALL VIBES LIKE? “It’s been a little bit disappointing. Even when I started this going back to last summer people asked me all the time what my expectations were and I always said that I expected it to be hard and it is hard. Cup racing is hard. So with that side of it I think each race we’ve had little-ish different things happen that maybe hurt our finish or not, but I feel like when we get everything put together and the car is handling like I want and we execute, we have speed, we make progress, we’re faster, so, for me, I made a couple of mistakes over the last few weeks. Spinning out in qualifying at Phoenix put us really far behind all these guys. All week all they talk about is how you can’t pass. I mean, having a mistake like that puts you really far behind and makes your day look worse than it really is, so, for me, it’s just hopefully getting some of these mistakes out of the way early on and start qualifying a little bit better and I think we’ll be fine.”

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT BUBBA POLLARD MAKING HIS DEBUT AT RICHMOND? WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO SEE HIM HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO TELL HIS STORY AND SHOWCASE HIS SKILLS? “I think it’s really cool and I think he’s going to a great place. I think the Xfinity car at Richmond, when I think if we go back probably seven or eight years, I did that. I had a race there, I think in 2015. It was probably my second or third start and I was racing Cup guys that night and raced up into the top five and had a really good race. I remember coming in the media center afterwards and nobody knew who I was. Everybody was like, ‘Who’s this guy?’ So I think the opportunity is there for Bubba. I watched Dale’s video and he said, ‘If we give him a good car, he’ll race it to the front,’ and, honestly, I believe that. I think that platform at Richmond, I think, is a lot like the short track racing that he does and that I did for years, so I’m excited to watch how he does for sure.”

WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND MOST DIFFICULT OR WHAT HAS SURPRISED YOU THE MOST ABOUT DOING THIS EVERY WEEK? “Nothing in particular. I think throughout my opportunities last year I realized how competitive it was and how hard it was. I think just building the relationship with your team, working on the communication of practice to qualifying to the race and learning that. That’s where I feel like I need to grow a little bit. Last year, you’re on borrowed time each race. We didn’t know which race they were coming back or not and we kind of just raced. We didn’t really think about any of that stuff and now whenever you’re trying to build, you build piece by piece into something bigger. This is an important time for all of us right now to learn each other and just do a little better job of that, and I think it’ll come with time.”

WOULD MISTAKES BE THE BIGGEST THING THEN BEHIND THE WHEEL? “Yeah, I think so. Each race has been different. Daytona, we lost a lap getting spun out on pit road. I don’t really know what I would have done different in that scenario. The Duels, we had an issue with the fuel pump. Each race has been a little different. I had back-to-back speeding penalties at Atlanta, which was silly but just an honest mistake of understanding the car and everything there. I think you can’t have those mistakes. You’ve got to execute each practice session, qualifying session and, to me, I think that’s where I’ve missed it a little bit. I’ve got to clean that stuff up. If we can get our car a little bit better here in different spots of the race, I feel like we can run in the top 15, top 10 pretty easy.”

HOW FAR OFF DO YOU FEEL YOU ARE FROM THAT? “I feel like when our car is balanced and driving pretty good it’s fast. The speed is there, so, to me, it’s just about learning how to communicate that, those different pieces, to Rodney. When I go out to practice at Phoenix and feel like I’m tight, I don’t know how tight I really am. I don’t know what adjustments we need to make exactly, so just learning that and understanding that stuff, so I can give him better information, is gonna be important. That starts with practice and qualifying and the start of the race. I feel like the last two weeks are a little bit more a gauge of where you’re at. We’ve had one bad run in each race where we fell back and lost a lap. Really, if we didn’t have those two runs our finishes look a lot better.”

IS THE MOST CHALLENGING THING FOR YOU TO GET THROUGH IN THIS TRANSITION THE ROAD COURSES? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS HEADING TO COTA? “Yeah, for sure. I think even when I went to the Xfinity Series I hadn’t raced on road courses at all, so next week is gonna be tough. I definitely know that, especially with all the extra guys that are really talented coming in. I think that’s just gonna make the field that much more deep, but, all in all, going into next week I don’t really have expectations. It’s everything that I said. However we start to learn, to get faster, to get better, get more competitive, not make big mistakes, keep the car on the racetrack and dodge the chaos that is a lot of times if we have late-race restarts. I think if we can do all that, we can get a solid finish.”

HAVE YOU SPENT MORE TIME IN THE SIM TRYING TO WORK MORE ON ROAD COURSES? “Yeah, over the last couple of years that’s definitely been a big effort of mine, and I felt like the biggest thing that I was against learning – a lot of times in the Xfinity car was just learning the racetracks. I felt like when I went back to a place for the second time I was considerably faster. I would qualify better. I would practice better. All of those things we’ve talked about helps you so much if you can just start practice faster, you qualify better and then you have better track position to start the race and you race better. Next week will be another chance to do that. Obviously, adapting to the new car I’ve watched the races. I can kind of see it’s probably more of a purpose-built kind of road course car. I don’t know if that will make me more comfortable or less comfortable until I get out there and experience it, but I’m excited for that. After that, we’re gonna be part of the tire test at Sonoma. That’s gonna be the first time I’ve ever tested with data on the car, so that will be fun for me to take what I learn at COTA and go be a part of that test and continue to learn.”

WHAT’S THE DATA THAT HELPS? “Just all the data. Throw out all steering, braking, just a little bit more detail than what you would normally have.”

WHAT AFFECT DOES THIS LEARNING CURVE HAVE ON YOU WHEN YOU GO FROM SUPERSPEEDWAYS TO SHORT TRACKS AND HAVE DIFFERENT PACKAGES FOR EACH? “I don’t put much thought into it. I just don’t have the knowledge and understanding and experience yet of this car to really know how it’s gonna affect it. I just go and try to learn as quick as I can and take in all the information that I can to be prepared, but really it just comes down to going out and doing it and feeling it for yourself. That’s the most important part. It was funny, I thought even last week I thought it was a step in the right direction and a lot of people said it was the opposite. There was a lot of mixed reviews on that, but I thought it was a step in the right direction. Sure, there’s a ways to go, but I thought it was an improvement in just how the car felt to what I remembered the year before, but we’ll let all these other guys talk about it, I guess.”

CHEVROLET NCS AT BRISTOL 1: Kyle Busch Media Availability Quotes

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Official Release
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NASCAR CUP SERIES
BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY
FOOD CITY 500
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MARCH 16, 2024

KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 FICO CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series’ practice and qualifying session at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Media Availability Quotes:

I KNOW IT’S THE FIRST TIME THAT WE’VE BEEN ON THE CONCRETE HERE IN THE SPRING IN A COUPLE OF YEARS, BUT DO YOU NOTICE AS MUCH OF A CHANGE COMPARED TO OTHER TRACKS THAT WE VISIT TWICE, WHERE YOU’VE GOT A DAYTIME RACE VERSUS THE NIGHT RACE WHEN WE COME BACK IN SEPTEMBER?

“Probably not as much here at Bristol (Motor Speedway) as normal. I would say that both races here tend to act very much more similar than other places we go to. Even Martinsville (Speedway), the way the gaps are between the asphalt and the concrete, they change from spring to fall. But here, being all concrete and not much temperature variation in the concrete surface itself compared to asphalt, you don’t notice as much.”

HAVE YOU SEEN WHERE THEY’VE REPAVED AND PATCHED AT COTA? AND IF SO, HOW WILL THAT IMPACT THE RACE?

“I don’t think it’s going to impact the race any. I have seen it, yeah. I think they got rid of a bump on the exit of turn one, and I think they did a little bit into the backstretch straightaway through 12 or 13, and then out of the carousel and into 19. I don’t foresee it changing a whole lot. Like you’ll have lack of grip probably through the carousel, and then you’ll pickup grip on the exit and be able to go much faster through 19. But then out of 19, it’s back to the old asphalt and turn 20 is very slow with old asphalt being as slick as it is. I don’t know that it really opens up any more opportunities of passing or anything like that, just smoother surface I would imagine.”

WE’RE NOT EXPECTING ANY CHANGE IN HORSEPOWER, BUT LET’S SAY THAT IF NASCAR WERE TO CHANGE THE SPACER AND GIVE YOU MORE HORSEPOWER, WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU NEED TO KNOW? WOULD YOU NEED TO CHECK GEARING, THE TIRES, THE TRANSAXLE? FROM YOUR MECHANICAL KNOWLEDGE OF THE CAR, WHAT ELSE WOULD NEED TO HAPPEN BEFORE YOU COULD ACTUALLY GO OUT ON THE TRACK?

“I would say the only thing that would be a limiting factor might be the transaxle. But honestly, I’ve never really looked inside one or seen the components of one to see how sturdy the gears are. That would about be the only thing in my book of just knowing whether or not it would withstand the horsepower gain. I would imagine that it would.. that it wouldn’t be that big of a deal because I think Xtrac builds transmissions and such for off-road racing and things like that, where they’re over 1,000 horsepower. So I’m sure they’re used to, or at least have experience, in that realm of the higher horsepower.

The brakes are fine. We don’t blow the tires off enough. I think that’s what we’re all kind of talking about. We need these things to be faster going into the corner; utilizing the brakes more, utilizing the tires more and having the opportunity to overdrive the cars more to burn the tires up to see guys struggle over a run.”

YOU’VE HAD VARIOUS RUNS HERE OVER THE YEARS WHERE YOU’VE BEEN REALLY, REALLY GOOD. THIS PLACE HAS CHANGED A TON, WHETHER IT’S BEEN THE SURFACE OR THE WAY THE TRACK WAS CUT-UP ON THE TOP OR WHATEVER. WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT MAKE YOU GOOD AT BRISTOL MOTOR SPEEDWAY, AND DOES THIS CAR, THE CURRENT VERSION OF THE TRACK AND THE RESIN GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE HERE GIVEN WHAT YOU’VE HAD BEFORE OR IS IT JUST A COMPLETELY DIFFERNET PLACE?

“The car really changes a lot for it, for me. We won here with this car on the dirt surface, but I would say that since we’ve been bringing the new Next Gen car to the concrete surface, I have not found my way with it yet. I definitely had a way with understanding this place; having a sense of setup, how to drive it and whatnot with the old stuff, but not with the new stuff. We’ll see what happens here this weekend with our No. 8 FICO Chevrolet. Looking forward to the truck race. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a truck here. I think the last time was 2017 when I won, so certainly would be nice to come out here and go back to victory lane with one of those.”

I KNOW YOU HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT FOR BUBBA POLLARD, AND HE’S GOING TO MAKE HIS XFINITY DEBUT HERE IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO NASCAR, THE SHORT-TRACK INDUSTRY, TO HAVE HIM GET A CHANCE AND TELL HIS STORY TO THIS AUDIENCE?

“Yeah, I love it. A guy that works as hard as he does and does as much on his own as he does, I mean he’s a really smooth guy. I’ve raced against him a lot and we’ve had some really good battles. We’ve always been cordial with one another. I think the only time was when one of the younger kids was racing for me, he punted him out of the way, I think it was at Alabama one time at a race down there. He said, ‘well that’s what Kyle would do’. And I called him and I was like, ‘bro.. when have I ever done that to you.. like come on man’. We’ve always had a good relationship, so I respect the hell out of him for what he does. He’s honestly one of the best. Definitely one of the best from the south in the super late model ranks. I’ve raced against a lot of greats out on the west coast, up in the northeast and Midwest.. a lot of different names that always come to mind.”

LAST YEAR, YOU GOT OFF TO A QUICK START. HOW WOULD YOU CATEGORIZE WHAT HAS HAPPENED THIS YEAR IN THE OPENING PART OF THE SEASON?

“Yeah, the Clash was great.. we ran really well there. Daytona, we were fast. If I would have choose a different line on a restart, we probably would have had a top-four at Daytona, for sure. Atlanta, coming oh-so-close there with just needing a couple inches to win that thing. And then Las Vegas, we were really fast. We were probably one of the only guys that could keep up with Kyle Larson. We had a great shot there and pit road was our demise. And then last weekend (at Phoenix), we just weren’t very good, in general, with the short-track stuff still. We’ve tried everything, so I don’t even know where to go with what we do next. We’ll see, with some new ideas, if anything works here at Bristol.. being as though it’s a short-track race, but it’s still the different aero package. But yeah, I mean we’ve come to find what our strengths are, what our middle ground is and where our weaknesses are, for sure. We keep trying to improve on all of them.”

IS THE PIT CREW STILL AN UNSETTLED SITUATION, OR DO YOU THINK YOU’VE GOT THE PIECES TOGETHER AND YOU’RE GOING TO KIND OF LET THEM WORK THEIR WAY THROUGH IT AND SMOOTH EVERYTHING OUT?

“I would say it’s still unsettled. The proof is in your results, right? You’re only as good as your last race, as us drivers tend to say. So you’re only as good as your last stop, I guess, is what a pit crew guy should say. But I know that everybody at the shop and all of RCR is working hard on trying to figure something out and get through it with the resources that we have. Each week, we’ll keep trying to fine-tune the personnel and make the best that we can out of the situation we’ve got to have at least decent stops. My thing is – they’re either the defense or the special teams unit, however you want to look at that. When you come down pit road, I’ve been saying it the last couple of years since we’ve been racing this car – the easiest time to pass people is when they’re sitting still.. it’s when they’re in their pit box. And so, we can’t be the ones that are always getting passed. We need to hold our own.”

YOUR TEAMMATE, AUSTIN DILLON, WAS TALKING LAST WEEKEND ABOUT MAKING THE WIDTH OF THE TIRE SMALLER. HE SAID IT WOULD MAKE YOU GUYS FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE MORE SPEED WITH THE NEW SHORT-TRACK PACKAGE. I’M CURIOUS IF YOU FOLLOW THAT PHILOSOPHY, AND HOW DO YOU THINK THAT PACKAGE WILL REACT AT RICHMOND?

“Yeah, I mean I can see where he’s coming from. I think we’ve all kind of said that, when the tire got wider, we all knew it was going to produce more grip. We all expected it to be softer so it would wear, and it would wear out and then you would have less grip over the course of a run and have some falloff. But unfortunately, we haven’t seen that.. we haven’t seen that softer compound yet. We saw last year here at this race in particular where guys stayed out on 60 or 70 lap tires; went the rest of the way in the first stage and won the stage. Guys were finishing in the top-10 by staying out. You don’t want to have tire blowouts.. I get that. I understand Goodyear’s stake on that part. But I think when we have had softer tires in the past and have had blowouts, that’s because they were softer.. because they wore out.. because we punished them, you know. So you’re kind of to your own demise, in a sense. I guess tires not holding air probably don’t sell well on Monday.”

HAVING DRIVEN THIS PACKAGE AT PHOENIX, DO YOU THINK IT WILL HELP THE RACING AT RICHMOND?

“No… no… no. The problem starts at the front of the car; the splitter and the way the air is, and everything that we all do on setup stuff for make these things rely on the air as much as they do. That’s the problem.. I think they went about it.. that’s a funny way to say it.. backwards. There’s another way of saying that, but I’ll leave it for another day.

But they started at the back of the car. That’s not the problem.. it’s at the front of the car. So, that’s it.”

WITH ALL THE TALKS OF WHAT COULD BE CHANGED, WHAT ARE TODAY’S FANS NOT ABLE TO SEE YOU DO THAT YOU COULD HAVE DONE OR HOW YOU COULD DISPLAY YOUR TALENTS 10 OR 15 YEARS AGO IN THE CAR? WHAT IS THE KYLE BUSCH THAT FANS ARE SEEING NOW, AND HOW MUCH IS THIS NOT THE 100 PERCENT KYLE BUSCH THAT WE COULD HAVE SEEN 10 YEARS AGO.. IS THERE THAT MUCH DIFFERENCE?

“I get what you’re saying. I feel as though that when the teams were able to build the cars, with the manufacturers and they were able to design them the way they wanted to design them, you’d have particular teams that would really focus on chassis build. They would work on their front clips. They would work on their rear clips. They would work on their bodies, and they’d work on their engines. You had a lot more feasibility in where you wanted to dump your resources. Did you want superspeedway cars? Did you want intermediate cars? Did you want short-track cars.. road course cars? You get it, right?

So now, we all have the same LEGOS and it’s just about how you assemble the LEGOS, which apparently we’re not smart enough yet at the short-track LEGOS to have that program scienced-out. For me anyways, I feel the practice limitations that have been set forth – I don’t have time to work through and dissect the car as much as I once did of being able to go through practices; look at the data, go through another practice, go through qualifying, go through weeks of being able to do that to build on your program and to give that feedback to the team, engineers and everybody back at the shop to make your stuff better. So I would say that’s probably a big part of it.”

ALL THIS TALK ABOUT SIMULATION, AND HOW FAR IT’S COME AND HOW YOU’VE SEEN TO COME THROUGH YOUR YEARS. WITH WHAT YOU TALKED ABOUT, NOT BEING ABLE TO GET THAT FEEL IN PRACTICE AND SO FORTH, WHY CAN’T THAT BE DONE IN SIMULATION OR WHERE DOES SIMULATION FALL SHORT THAT PREVENTS YOU FROM GETTING BETTER IN PRACTICE SITUATIONS?

“I would say that there’s nothing like the real thing. There’s nothing like the asphalt dyno, as my dad would always say. Going to the race track with your stuff and competing against the rest of the competitors to see where your shortcomings are.

The smartest robot in the world will never be what a human is, you know what I mean? It takes a human to build that robot, so there’s going to be way too many circumstances that would come about to make sim life what real life is.”

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR NASCAR TO HAVE A SUPERSTAR? SOMEBODY WHO TRANSCENDS THE SPORT, LIKE RICHARD PETTY, DALE EARNHARDT OR JEFF GORDON, AND DO WE HAVE ONE NOW? WHAT WOULD IT TAKE TO GET THERE IF WE DON’T?

“You’re looking at him.. no, I’m kidding (laughs).

I think his name is Chase (Elliott). He’s the man, so ask him.

But yeah, for whatever reason – I’m not sure what it is, but you have the diehard fans of NASCAR, of Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, Terry Labonte, Mark Martin, Harry Gant. You name it – guys from the 90s, mid-90s, late-90s, all of that. Our world now, today, of 2024, is a lot different fan base that’s following along. I don’t feel like we were able to transition a lot of the fans that were fans of those drivers of the names that I just mentioned, into a William Byron fan; into a Kyle fan or whoever. They kind of all probably went away.. just stopped following as much. Which is hard to say because honestly, when you look at NASCAR, the fans love the drivers. The driver star power, that’s what brings people to the race track, is the drivers. When you look at the NFL, for instance – those players on that team change so often. You guys think my pit crews’ names changing every week is a lot.. look at the roster changes of NFL teams, and what they do; what they go through with their 53-man roster. But fans are fans of the teams, and a lot of times – I’ll throw out a name.. Jacksonville, for instance. The last few years, they’re coming back because of Trevor Lawrence, right? They’ve got somebody back that has brought the team back into the forefront. But before that, their stadiums were empty, you know what I mean. You can find the same struggles across different sports, is what we see sometimes.”

I WANT TO GO BACK TO WHAT YOU WERE TELLING MATT (WEAVER) ABOUT HOW IT’S BEEN HERE FOR YOU IN THE NEXT GEN CAR. HOW MUCH OF THAT IS THE FEELING OF THE CAR BEING SO DIFFERENT FROM WHAT YOU WERE USED TO HERE, AND HOW MUCH OF IT IS RHYTHM WHEN IT COMES TO THIS RACE TRACK? JUST KNOWING WHAT YOU WANT TO FEEL AND HOW YOU WANT TO BE ABLE TO RUN THIS RACE TRACK.

“Well Bristol is a lot of rhythm, but it takes a feel of what you’re looking for here, as well, too. This car just drives a lot different, and it drives a lot different because of the limitations in which it’s built. It just has a different way of you needing to go about it. I’ve learned some of that, but I guess I’m not the best of figuring out how to be better than some of the other drivers. Or maybe their cars are better than my car.. I don’t know. It’s not like we can swap seats. I’d always run this place more round.. like I would always try to make it as much of a circle as I possibly could, and now you kind of run this place in a diamond. You go up to the wall; do you try to come off the wall? Do you up to the wall in the corner? Do you come up the wall, you know what I mean? So it’s more diamond-shaped. It’s definitely a different way of running it. That seems to be a little bit more of the faster way this day in age. It’s a different technique to get used to, but that’s not to say that I can’t do it. It’s just a matter of sometimes you can’t out-race your own equipment, and you’ve got to go and get what you can get out of it, but nothing more.”

 

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands. Chevrolet models include electric and 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.

Toyota Racing – NCS Bristol Quotes – Kamui Kobayashi – 03.16.24

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Official Release
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Toyota Racing – Kamui Kobayashi
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 16, 2024) – 23XI Racing driver Kamui Kobayshi was made available to the media prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday.

KAMUI KOBAYSHI, No. 50 Mobil 1 Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

What are you expecting next weekend at COTA?

“I’m definitely excited for next weekend at COTA. My first race last year at Indy, I think I was a little bit surprised, but I think the race went quite smooth. I think I dropped back in the early stage, and I didn’t get any caution. It was quite difficult in the back end of the field, but I had great fun. I had this opportunity with Mobil 1’s 50th anniversary for this opportunity at COTA. I’m definitely looking forward to next week. We’ve had more preparation. I’ve raced COTA five times already in Formula 1 and WEC. I think Indy – it was my first time ever racing there, but next week I have more experience, so definitely looking forward to the race.”

What was the reaction to you in Japan from running the NASCAR Cup Series race?

“NASCAR – we don’t have it on broadcast for example. Last year, for the Indy race it was live. I think the last broadcast was like in 2016. So, I think maybe people were watching NASCAR and seeing how exciting it was. People have been following my social media. I think we are again going to have the live broadcast in Japan next weekend in COTA, so I think people will get more knowledge of NASCAR. The racing in NASCAR is very different, so hopefully people get more of an understanding on what NASCAR racing is.”

What do you know now to expect that you didn’t know racing at Indianapolis last season?

“I think I learned quite a lot about how you handle the car and how the race goes, and how the race weekend goes. I think the second time I can manage myself better, and I’m putting in the preparation now. I’m spent quite a lot of time in the simulator. We will see.”

Was this always on the radar or did it come together more recently?

“I think it was because of Mobil 1’s 50th anniversary that it came about. It’s not something consistent. It just happened the one time. Toyota and TRD managed to find a partner, so that’s how it came together.”

What feel did you find in the Cup car that compares to anything you’ve competed in, in the past?

“I think the closest race car for me is Supercar in Australia. I think that is the closest one, which I’ve never driven. I’ve driven GT3 for example, it’s way different compared to that car. We have ABS and traction control. With the Cup car, you really don’t have any sensors taking the data. I would say the techniques that I’ve learned are way different. When you look throughout different motorsports, you have BOP and it’s easier for the driver to perform at everything, but in NASCAR, I think you have more of a demand. That’s why I’m happy to be here and challenging myself.”

Any interest in trying any oval race?

“I think I would have to start with a truck first.”

Do you foresee any additional races in NASCAR and how do you like competing in NASCAR?

“It totally different from European racing. The whole event is a huge difference. My dream was to race NASCAR a long time ago. My first race was NASCAR, when I was like four years old. It was an oval race, so that’s why I was dreaming to be here. I think generally we struggle in motorsports with the spectator or the fan with too much detail. I think Formula 1, if you look at the championship – I think something we need to learn when we go to European races – it’s too much detail. It’s difficult to understand as a fan, but when you look at NASCAR. It is simpler. I know there is technology behind, but I think as a motorsport the fans can understand what is making a difference at the end of the day. It makes a huge difference. I think there is more connectivity from the fans to the drivers.”

What did you think at Bristol? Could you imagine racing anything around here?

“First time coming to Bristol. I’ve done the sim here. I think the first time was four years ago for fun. I didn’t expect this big of a stadium, when I drove in the sim. I didn’t expect how the banking is. From when I looked on the outside, it’s not like a race track – something you can see like football in or something like that. It surprised me. As I drove by, it was something I was looking forward to seeing. I think a Cup car is probably what you should race here. It’s probably too small, too fast for anything else. It’s something that I’ve never experienced. I think the biggest banking I’ve seen is Daytona. I think for spectator – there is something very interesting about watching this type of race.”

Is there an audience of NASCAR fans in Japan? Should they race there again?

“I think for sure there is an opportunity. It is very different than any type of motorsport. It’s the sound. NASCAR has amazing sound. It’s amazing compared to any type of car, even Formula 1. It sounds noisy, but it’s one of the greatest sounds. When you are watching them race that close to the wall, it’s something that is hard to believe. I’m impressed. When you look at older sportscars, it’s hard to define the noise. If you bring it to Japan, I think people will be impressed with the sound. There’s a big opportunity to bring NASCAR to Japan. I think many people are looking forward to watching the Cup car.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 45 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 26 electrified options.

For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

Troubling Concerns Autonomous Cars Will Bring to the Road

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SM
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Image by capital street fx from Pixabay

The market for self-driving cars is expected to be worth a staggering $536 billion by 2030, with experts saying at least 70% of new cars will be fitted with autonomous features by 2040. But while there are undoubtedly many reasons to invest in AV technology, such as lower emissions and better fuel efficiency, there are also concerns.

The advent of autonomous vehicles (AVs) has sparked a heated debate about their potential impact on road safety. While proponents tout the technology’s promise of reducing accidents caused by human error, recent incidents have raised troubling concerns about the performance of driverless cars in real-world situations.

AV Accident Stats

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data shows there were 11 fatalities in a four-month period in 2022, with 9.1 crashes per million miles. On the face of it, that’s a relatively low number, but it’s important to remember that autonomous vehicles are relatively new, so there are not that many of them out there yet. Once autonomous vehicles become more mainstream on US roads, the number of accidents is likely to rise. 

Collision Hotspots in Missouri

There were 991 motor vehicle accident fatalities in Missouri in 2023, with Jackson County the worst crash hotspot, closely followed by St Louis and Green County. Drivers aged 30-29 are most at risk, and when it comes to distracted driving, males are disproportionately to blame for accidents.

Autonomous vehicles significantly reduce the risk of accidents caused by driver error, but this doesn’t mean they are completely safe. 

Uncertain Safety Standards

While proponents claim that AVs eliminate the risk of human error, the evidence on their safety is far from conclusive. According to a New York Times reporter, “We don’t know yet whether it’s safer than a human driver.”

However, data from Waymo and Cruise’s operations – the two leading self-driving car operators –  suggests that their vehicles may be safer than human drivers. Over roughly 6 million miles of driving, the two companies reported 102 crashes, equivalent to one crash for every 60,000 miles driven – approximately five years of driving for a typical human motorist.

Regulatory Challenges

While regulatory oversight is crucial for ensuring the safe deployment of autonomous vehicles, there is a delicate balance to be struck. Overly restrictive regulations could stifle innovation and delay the widespread adoption of a technology that has the potential to save lives by reducing human-caused accidents.

Legal Implications

If you or a loved one have been involved in an accident with an autonomous vehicle, it is crucial to seek legal counsel from an experienced lawyer. According to Stephen Schultz, a Columbia car accident attorney, the complexities surrounding liability and accountability in such cases can be daunting, and you may be entitled to compensation for injuries, damages, or losses incurred.

As the adoption of autonomous vehicles accelerates, it is imperative that policymakers, technology companies, and the public work together to address the troubling concerns surrounding their performance on public roads. While the potential benefits of this revolutionary technology are undeniable, ensuring the highest standards of safety must be the top priority. Only through rigorous testing, transparent reporting, and effective regulation can we pave the way for a future where autonomous vehicles truly enhance road safety and save lives.

STOUT LINEUP OF POTENTIAL WINNERS READY TO RUMBLE FOR FOOD CITY 500 VICTORY

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Official Release
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Last year's Night Race winner Denny Hamlin (11) may have the most momentum heading into the Food City 500, while Chase Elliott (9) wants to add a regular season victory at Thunder Valley to his 2020 All-Star victory at Bristol.

BRISTOL, Tenn. (March 16, 2024) – There’s an all-star cast of drivers who have proven over the years they have what it takes to get the job done at Bristol Motor Speedway.

That stout contingent of drivers will put it all on the line Sunday afternoon during the sport’s return to concrete racing in the springtime at Bristol Motor Speedway (3:30 p.m., FOX, PRN Radio).

Perhaps first in line among the pre-race favorites to win the legendary Food City 500 is Christopher Bell, who won here last spring on the Bristol dirt in the final year of a three-year run on the clay that took the sport back to its roots around NASCAR’s 75th anniversary season.

Bell has proven over the years he knows the preferred line around the .533-mile bullring that’s been called the “Holy Grail of Short Tracks”. He took the win on the dirt but the Oklahoma native feels just as confident on the Bristol concrete, having posted finishes of third and fourth the last two seasons at America’s Night Race.

“I love racing Bristol,” Bell said recently. “It’s literally my favorite race on the schedule. I’m very thankful we get to go twice this year. It’s a track we have excelled at the last couple of times we have been there – we’ve been close.”

Another top contender is looking for a little payback from Bristol after getting knocked out of the playoffs last year in a mid-race crash. Joey Logano has won enough at Bristol on both dirt and concrete to be reckoned with and he will be looking to add another famed BMS Gladiator Sword to his collection if he can keep his No. 22 Penske machine out of trouble.

“The track always changes from what you have there in practice and qualifying to what you have by the end of the race so it’s always cool,” said Logano, who won the Night race in 2014 and 2015 and claimed the inaugural Food City Dirt Race there in 2021. “I like Bristol, it’s my favorite track. I love going there and having that great stadium environment with the fans right there on top of you. It’s always a tough, grueling 500 laps around there.”

Last year’s Night Race winner Denny Hamlin feels like he might have a leg up on the competition if he goes back to last September’s setup and continues to keep the crowd upset if he can “beat all their favorite drivers” like he famously said following his win six months ago.

Hamlin will try to capture his fourth Bristol victory at the controls of his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing machine and first in the Food City 500. He says the fans always get him revved up inside ‘The Last Great Colosseum.’

“The energy is why I love this track,” Hamlin has said. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s cheers or boos, you’ve earned the right to be on that stage for that given moment… But to have just the electricity, that’s fun. It’s really fun in NASCAR to have that many passionate fans one way or another. That’s good for our sport.”

And last but not least of the highlighted pre-race favorites is Kyle Busch, who is the active win leader at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile with nine Bristol Cup Series victories, including eight on concrete and one on dirt. All of those wins came in a Toyota. He drives the No. 8 Chevy for Richard Childress Racing now and is no doubt champing at the bit to try and grab another Food City 500 victory, since his last one came way back in April 2019.

Busch will try to sweep the race weekend in a double as he is also entered in the No. 7 Chevy Silverado in the WEATHER GUARD Truck Race on Saturday night. Busch is the only driver in NASCAR history to ever sweep a triple at a race and he accomplished that feat twice at Bristol, in 2010 and 2017.

“I love Bristol,” Busch said. “Bristol is always fun and has got more challenging over the years, and it’s a little bit difficult to pass there now. The challenge there is the amount of banking and the load you see there. There’s just no time to relax and rest and that just wears on you lap after lap after lap, the repetitious nature of it. It’s been a while since I have been able to race the Truck race there and I am looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of a truck at Bristol.”

The list to watch also includes defending Cup Series champ Ryan Blaney, who is seeking his first Bristol win in the Cup Series, multi-time Bristol winner Brad Keselowski, recent Night Race winner Chris Buescher, and the Hendrick Motorsports tandem of Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott and William Byron, who are all three always a major threat to win at Bristol.

A trio of rookies also will take their turn at trying to join the Intimidator, Dale Earnhardt, in the record book as a rookie that was able to win at Bristol Motor Speedway. So far Earnhardt’s amazing effort in 1979 has stood the test of time, but the talented trio of Josh Berry, Carson Hocevar and Zane Smith will give it a shot this season to try and join the NASCAR icon as the second rookie to accomplish the feat.

The Bristol race weekend also will feature Saturday afternoon’s (March 16) Bush’s Beans Practice and Bush’s Beans Qualifying for both the NASCAR Cup Series and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will set the starting lineups for each race and precede Saturday night’s WEATHER GUARD® Truck Race.

In addition to Busch and fellow Cup regular Zane Smith, a host of tough NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series stars will battle in the Truck race, including Ben Rhodes, Grant Enfinger, Nick Sanchez, Las Vegas winner Rajah Caruth, Corey Heim, Ty Dillon and Christian Eckes, among others. The green flag is scheduled to drop at 8 p.m. ET for the 250-lap thriller (FS1, MRN Radio).

To purchase tickets for the Food City 500 or the WEATHER GUARD® Truck Race, please visit the BMS website, or call the BMS Ticket Sales Center at (866) 415-4158.

About Bristol Motor Speedway
Forged amid the scenic mountains of Northeast Tennessee near the Virginia state line, Bristol Motor Speedway is The Last Great Colosseum, a versatile multi-use venue that hosts major auto races, football games, concerts and many other captivating events. The facility features a 0.533-mile concrete oval race track with 28-degree corner banking and 650-feet straightaways that offers racing in several NASCAR touring series, highlighted by two major Cup Series weekends each year. In 2020, the track also served as host of the prestigious NASCAR All-Star Race, and from 2021-2023 converted to a temporary dirt track each spring to take the Cup Series back to its racing roots. While at the track, fans are offered a unique viewing experience courtesy of Colossus TV, the world’s largest outdoor center-hung four-sided video screen with a 540,000-watt audio system. The adjacent quarter-mile dragstrip, Bristol Dragway, offers more than 50 events annually, including the marquee NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. The Thunder Valley Amphitheatre presented by Ballad Health transforms Bristol Dragway into a premier outdoor concert venue for the world’s greatest music performers. Three football games have kicked-off inside the oval, most notably the 2016 Pilot Flying J Battle at Bristol, where border rivals the University of Tennessee and Virginia Tech met before an NCAA-record crowd of 156,990. In existence since 1961, Bristol Motor Speedway was purchased in 1996 by Speedway Motorsports, a leading marketer and promoter of motorsports entertainment in the United States.

Cadillac locks out front-row starting spots

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Official Release
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No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R grabs pole at Sebring; No. 01 Cadillac second

SEBRING, Fla. (March 15, 2024) – For the second consecutive race and the second year in a row at Sebring International Raceway, Cadillac Racing secured the front-row staring spots.

Cadillac Racing earned its 25th pole award in IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship prototype competition since 2017 as Pipo Derani topped Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) qualifying for the 72nd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Cadillac. That total includes five at Sebring International Raceway.

Derani, the reigning IMSA GTP champion, toured the demanding 3.741-mile, 17-turn course in 1 minute, 48.152 seconds to pace the 10-car field. The No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R, driven by Sebastien Bourdais, qualified second with a best lap of 1:48.299 during the scheduled 15-minute afternoon session that was interrupted by a red flag. The field had 4:04 after the stoppage to put in their best laps.

“Congratulations to the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R on securing pole position in qualifying for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Cadillac,” said John Roth, global vice president of Cadillac. “We are excited to get back on the track and compete for the overall win this weekend.”

Derani was also the pole sitter for the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona in late January and Bourdais was close behind in second. It is also the same order as the 2023 race.

“It is a good start for the race, but it’s a long race,” said Derani, who will share driving duties with Jack Aitken and Tom Blomqvist.

Notables

  • Cadillac has won the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring the past three years and five times since joining IMSA prototype competition in 2017.
  • Derani is a four-time winner of the race.
  • The race will mark the 100th IMSA start for Renger van der Zande, co-driver of the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R with Scott Dixon and Bourdais. He has at least one victory in each of his 10 IMSA seasons.
  • The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R leads the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup standings after the Rolex 24 At Daytona.
  • Bourdais holds the Sebring circuit lap record of 1:45.166 (128.025 mph) set on March 18, 2022, in the No. 01 Cadillac DPi-V.R during qualifications.

Peacock will provide flag-to-flag streaming coverage beginning at 9:30 a.m. ET Saturday, March 16. USA Network’s telecast is from 4-10 p.m. IMSA Radio’s race broadcast begins at 9:30 a.m. on IMSA.com and RadioLeMans.com along with Sirius channel 211, XM 207, Web/App 996, at the track at 100.9 FM, and Sebring station 99.1 FM).

An interview with Pipo Derani (drove No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R in qualifying; best lap of 1:48.152; starts first)

Tell us about qualifying. How is it shaping up for tomorrow?

“It was a difficult qualifying session. It’s never easy when you have a red flag situation and you have to put the lap in. I was told over the radio that I could potentially have a second flying lap if I pushed. So, I obviously pushed but I was way too close for comfort to the No. 40 Acura. I was able to put the lap in but was a little bit disrupted because it wasn’t such a clean lap because he made a few mistakes in front of me, so I lost a little bit of time trying to control that distance to make sure I guaranteed a lap in case I didn’t have a second one. For sure, there’s more from the lap time. It wasn’t a perfect lap because of those things I said. Nevertheless, it was enough to be on pole. It’s never the nicest way to get a pole – for the grid – when you know that no one was able to achieve the full potential of their cars. Nevertheless, it’s still the same for everyone. You still have to put a lap in. You make no mistakes in such a pressure situation. I was able to extract to a certain extent enough out of the car that was good enough for pole. Very hot conditions, which makes it even more interesting how you operate the tires. It’s a tricky situation.”

Where to you think the Cadillac is best around the track?

“I don’t think there’s a place where it’s stronger. If you look at the DPi era, I think the car was better throughout the race. I think in GTP the Cadillac seems to be, at least here in Sebring, very positive on the heat of the day compared to the others. We tend to lose a little bit that advantage at night, I believe. Last year we saw Acura and Porsche very strong at the end. We restarted first and we lost some of that edge that we had throughout the day. We led a bunch of the race last year, but at the end we weren’t as competitive as in the beginning. It’s an area that as a team we’ve been working on from last year to try and improve. Obviously also last year at the very beginning of the race I had a contact with a P3 car that spun right in front of me, which damaged the floor of the car. We as a team are not sure how much of that damage influenced the end of the race. I think my honest opinion is that it’s not a matter of having a part of the track that it’s better for us, it’s more a matter of how the tire is reacting to the temperature. It still remains to be seen if a good car without any damage, if we are as strong as we were during the day, at night. Obviously the 01 didn’t get to the end of the race last year. It’s a bit of a question mark on that point. I would say it’s more temperature related as to a specific part of the track itself.”

How difficult is it to put in a flying lap in a short session?

“Well, the reality is that it’s the same for everyone. It’s not like there was someone who had put a lap in and then all the others were just basically waiting. In the end of the day, when you think of it this way, you just got to go and do the best you can. I honestly don’t feel much pressure in those situations. I feel like I handle it quite well. At the end of the day sometimes it’s better to be a bit on the conservative side and put a lap in than try a little bit over and make a mistake. In our car, I went out with a set of tires, had a red flag. I asked the team to change the tires and go with another new set, which was a risk because we didn’t know how much time the red flag was still going to be on. As you guys saw, as we went out, the 40 car, I think he kept the warm tires from the previous run, so he overtook me on cold tires. That’s the only situation where in that situation you don’t really know whether you’re going to have enough time to get the tire ready to do the lap. I think what helped us is it’s really hot out there and it helped us to bring the tires in a different way on the out-lap so that they were ready. That’s not always the case. It could in a much cooler condition be disruptive to one team or another because you might make the wrong choice whether you keep or not the tires, then you don’t have enough time to have them in the right window for a lap. I like pressure situations like that. I was happy to be able to put the lap in.”

Did you use three sets of tires?

“No, I went out on one, then as we came into the pit for the red flag, I asked them to change.”

What are track conditions like?

“I think the whole weekend the track is not as quick as last year. At Sebring, it’s quite usual to see that happen. Sometimes even during the day there’s periods of the day where you’re much quicker than others. Especially compared to when we were here a month ago during private testing, we were quicker than we are now. It’s just the condition that we have right now I think is a track condition and not cars. I would say, let’s say, if I had a perfect lap, it’s hard to say, but you could possibly be 4/10ths quicker than what I was, which would still be, if I’m not wrong, far from the pole position last year.”

Sebastien Bourdais (drove the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R in qualifying; best lap of 1:48.299; starts second): “It was a bit of a longshot (for pole) with the pit position we had. Couldn’t really put any heat in the tires on the second attempt (after red flag) and started the lap in the tail of the 10 (car). There really wasn’t any gap for me and the Lambo started to check up before the last corner and I knew I had to do the last corner somewhat quick and I ended up really close to the 10, but there was nowhere else to go. Just a shame that they put the red flag on us just before I could complete the first timed lap. That would have been enough for pole. We’ll take out second and go from there.”

Celebrating 50 years

The No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R has a special gold Mobil 1 livery for the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Cadillac, celebrating the brand’s 50th anniversary. ·Mobil 1 is the factory fill for all Cadillac CTV-5 Blackwing production cars, and has been available to customers in GM dealerships since 1986.

Media resources

  • Event guide: Cadillac storylines, bios, stats and more * Wins: Cadillac Racing results 2023-2017 at Sebring. * 2024 so far: Cadillac IMSA GTP statistics. * On-track photos: The Sebring race weekend

Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Cadillac V-Series

In addition to being the presenting sponsor of the main event, Cadillac is the Official Luxury Vehicle of Sebring International Raceway and is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its V-Series sub-brand that was unveiled during the Twelve Hours of Sebring.

Spectators have the opportunity to see the exciting roster of Cadillac vehicles, including the award-winning CT5-V Blackwing and Cadillac Escalade, at the Cadillac display in the Fan Zone Saturday from 8 a.m.-7 p.m.

NHRA RETURNS TO LAS VEGAS FOR FIRST FOUR-WIDE EVENT OF 2024 SEASON

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Official Release
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LAS VEGAS (March 15, 2024) – A definite highlight for every NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series driver and fan is the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Las Vegas, which returns to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway April 12-14 for the unique four-wide drag racing spectacular.

As an added bonus, the event will host the first-ever four-wide Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, which brings competitive racing to the Saturday schedule. Introduced last year, the Saturday specialty event puts a bonus purse and bonus championship points on the line. It will debut at the Four-Wide race in Las Vegas for the first time in 2024, with four standouts aiming for the Challenge victory to close out qualifying on Saturday in each professional category (Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock).

That leads directly into Sunday eliminations, giving fans non-stop action all weekend in Las Vegas as NHRA’s fiercest competitors prepare for the ultimate test of skill and performance at the 24th annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Las Vegas. The race is the fourth race on the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series circuit and promises to deliver all the wild, incredible action only a four-wide race can deliver.

The 2023 event saw Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Matt Hagan (Funny Car) and Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) take home the coveted NHRA Wally trophies and this season’s race will again be broadcasted on FS1, including eliminations coverage at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 14, showcasing all the entertainment from Las Vegas.

Brown, a three-time NHRA world champion, took home his sixth Las Vegas victory last season when he bested a quad of Steve Torrence, Brittany Force and Josh Hart in the final round. To repeat his win, he’ll need to past the field of Top Fuel competitors including Shawn Langdon, who kicked off the season with a win in Gainesville, reigning champion Doug Kalitta, Billy Torrence and Mike Salinas. Also joining the Top Fuel ranks this season is motorsports legend and NHRA team owner Tony Stewart, who won the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals last season in the Top Alcohol Dragster division.

In the Funny Car category, Hagan picked up his fifth Las Vegas win when he took out Tim Wilkerson, John Force and Chad Green. Hagan went on to claim the Funny Car championship last season – the first title for Tony Stewart Racing – giving him four NHRA world titles. This season he’ll be up against the likes of Gainesville winner J.R. Todd, Austin Prock, who moved over to the Funny Car ranks this season, Bob Tasca III, Daniel Wilkerson, Cruz Pedregon and three-time world champ Ron Capps.

Pro Stock standout Glenn took home his second Las Vegas win last season after defeating a foursome that also included Troy Coughlin Jr., Cristian Cuadra and Deric Kramer in the finals. In the fight at this season’s race will be reigning champion Erica Enders, who is the winningest NHRA racer at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with 10 wins to her credit. Also in the mix will be multi-time champs Greg Anderson and Jeg Coughlin Jr., who returned to full-time racing this season.

The NHRA Four-Wide Nationals also will feature thrilling competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, featuring some of the top racers in the country. Also on deck will be Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown, while a special jet car exhibition featuring the “Muy Caliente” and the “Iceman” jet dragsters will follow the conclusion of nitro qualifying each day as well.

Fans will also be invited all weekend long to the Nitro Alley Stage, which will help create a festive atmosphere leading into the nitro pits. The Nitro Alley Stage will be the main entertainment hub in the pits when the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series competitors are not on the track, hosting Nitro School, meet and greets, music and much more.

Race fans at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway can enjoy the special pre-race ceremonies that introduce and celebrate each of the drivers racing for the prestigious Wally on Sunday and includes the fan favorite SealMaster Track Walk. The final can’t-miss experience of any NHRA event is the winner’s circle celebration on Sunday after racing concludes, where fans are invited to congratulate the event winners of the first four-wide race of the season.

As always, fans also get an exclusive pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction on the planet in Las Vegas. This opportunity gives fans a unique chance to see teams in action and service their hot rods between rounds, get autographs from their favorite NHRA drivers, and more. Fans can also visit NHRA’s popular Nitro Alley and Manufacturers Midway, where sponsors and race vendors create an exciting atmosphere that includes interactive displays, simulated competitions, merchandise, food, and fun for the entire family.

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. PT on Friday, April 12, and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, April 13 at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Eliminations will begin at 12 p.m. PT on Sunday, April 14. Television coverage includes qualifying action at 11:00 p.m. ET on both Friday and Saturday on Fox Sports 1 (FS1), leading into eliminations coverage at 7:00 p.m. ET on Sunday at FS1.

To purchase tickets to the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, fans can visit www.NHRA.com/tickets. Children 12 and under are free in general admission areas with the purchase of an adult ticket. For more information on NHRA, please visit www.NHRA.com.

About Mission Foods

MISSION®, owned by GRUMA, S.A.B. de C.V., is the world’s leading brand for tortillas and wraps. MISSION® is also globally renowned for flatbreads, dips, salsas and Mexican food products. With presence in over 112 countries, MISSION® products are suited to the lifestyles and the local tastes of each country. With innovation and customer needs in mind, MISSION® focuses on the highest quality, authentic flavors, and providing healthy options that families and friends can enjoy together. For more information, please visit https://www.missionfoods.com/

About NHRA

Headquartered in San Dimas, Calif., NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 20 national events featuring the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series and NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, as well as the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+, NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown™, NHRA Holley EFI Factory X and Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock at select national events. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street® program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for youth ages 5 to 17. With 110 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services® (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Young’s Motorsports Bristol Motor Speedway Spring Truck Series Team Preview

By
Official Release
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Young’s Motorsports | NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series
Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway | WEATHER GUARD Truck Race at Bristol

Fast Facts
No. 02 Young’s Motorsports Team:
Driver: Mason Massey
Primary Partner(s): Young’s Building Systems | Randco Industries Inc.
Manufacturer: Chevrolet Silverado RST
2024 Driver Points Position: 21st
2024 Owner Points Position: 26th
Engine: Ilmor Racing Technologies

Notes of Interest:

Welcome To The Team: In February, Young’s Motorsports announced that Mason Massey will compete full-time in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series this season aboard the team’s flagship, No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado RST continuing with Saturday night’s WEATHER GUARD Truck Race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

Massey arrives at Young’s Motorsports after running a limited NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule last season for SS-GreenLight Racing, including a top-10 performance at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

The Douglasville, Ga. native started his 2023 Truck Series season with Reaume Brothers Racing and competed in seven races with a season-high 11th place finish at Texas Motor Speedway, but later shifted his presence to Xfinity for five races throughout the 33-race season.

About Mason: Massey has over 20 years of experience behind the wheel, launching his racing career at age five. Since then, he has garnered over 200 feature wins, 11 championships, and 10 track records across multiple series, including the U.S. Legends Pro National Championship.

Amongst the many Late Model victories to Massey’s credit during his tenure in the Bill Elliott Racing Development Program is the 2012 triumph in the Alabama 200. He eventually graduated to NASCAR in 2019, competing in the Truck Series before advancing to the Xfinity Series in 2020.

After part-time Xfinity stints in 2020 and 2021, respectively, the Georgian captured the attention of many with an impressive sixth-place finish in the spring 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series contest at Atlanta (Ga.) Motor Speedway in front of the hometown crowd.

With 32 more NASCAR starts to his resume since his first career NASCAR top-10 effort, Massey has landed with Young’s Motorsports, a longtime fixture in the Truck Series, hoping to impress and land the organization back in Victory Lane this season.

All-Aboard!: For the fourth of 23 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series races this season, Young’s Building Systems and Randco Industries Inc. will serve as the co-primary marketing partners on the No. 02 Chevrolet Silverado RST for the 250-lap race on Saturday night.

Since 1981, Young’s Building Systems has been providing West Texas with all their metal building needs. This family-owned and operated business has become an industry favorite due to the experience gained and the professional results completed. Young’s Building System is a division of Randco Industries, Inc. We have expanded into a company that has the ability to erect any type of building, from a small single story to a city high-rise.

Our customers have multiple uses for our buildings, including commercial, residential, agricultural, industrial, skid-mounted buildings, and compressor station buildings. We also have a team that specializes in stairs and railings of all shapes and sizes. Young’s Building Systems is fully insured for your peace of mind so we carry workmen’s compensation and general liability that go above and beyond State requirements.

Our company is fully equipped with moving and lifting equipment along with compressors, generators and welding equipment. We have the tools and equipment needed to support large, demanding projects. Our work ethic is based on the principles of quality, promptness, and customer experience.

Young’s Building Systems approaches each job with the mindset. We continuously raise our standard of excellence and work hard to make sure that each and every one of your needs are met.

Longtime Massey supporters BRUNT Workwear and Anderson Power Services will serve as associate partners for the series’ first of two trips to the Thunder Valley in 2024.

Mason Massey Truck Series Bristol Motor Speedway Stats: Saturday night’s rumble will mark Massey’s inaugural NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series race at the 0.533-mile speedway on concrete.

Previously, the Georgian has competed at Bristol Motor Speedway in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series, but the track was in the dirt mode configuration.

Massey, however, also holds two NASCAR Xfinity Series starts for B.J. McLeod Motorsports and DGM Racing, respectively.

In 2021, Massey’s Xfinity track-best finish was 30th after starting 34th in the Cheddar’s 300 presented by Alsco.

Mason Massey Truck Series Career Stats: Entering Bristol, Massey has 17 career NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series races to his credit, earning a career-best 11th place finish at Texas Motor Speedway after starting 27th in the SpeedyCash.com 250 for Reaume Brothers Racing.

Since 2019, he has carried an average finish of 24.9.

Las Vegas (Nev.) Motor Speedway | Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 Race Recap: In the third race of the 2024 Truck Series, Young’s Motorsports and Massey searched for another solid finish in Sin City.

Massey was able to have a productive night under the Las Vegas spotlight, qualifying his No. 02 Anderson Power Services Chevrolet Silverado on time with hopes to maneuver forward during the 134-lap race.

Steadily moving forward and continuing to work on the balance of his truck, Massey was able to climb from his 29th-place starting position and gamble during a fuel mileage race in Stage 3 – controlling the Truck Series field for six laps before having to pit for a splash of fuel in the closing laps of the race.

Massey returned to the track for a respectable 21st-place finish.

Young’s Motorsports’ NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series at Bristol Motor Speedway: This weekend will mark Young’s Motorsports’ 23rd NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series start at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

The organization posted a team-best finish of 14th at the track on August 16, 2018, with dirt standout Tanner Thorson at the wheel in the 2018 UNOH 200.

Since 2012, the Mooresville, N.C.-based Young’s Motorsports team has had an average starting position of 23.9 and an average finish of 24.8 in 22 Bristol Motor Speedway starts overall.

Young’s Motorsports’ NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series History: Since entering the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series in 2012, the Mooresville, N.C., – based organization has logged 475 starts from 59 drivers, resulting in solid performances that include two victories (Talladega Superspeedway 2019 and 2021), seven top-five finishes and 33 top-10 finishes, with an average starting position of 22.8 and an average finishing position of 21.9.

Follow on Social Media: For more on Mason Massey, please visit masonmassey.com, like him on Facebook (Mason Massey Racing), and follow him on Instagram (@mason_massey) and X |Twitter (@mason_massey).

For more on Young’s Motorsports, please visit YoungsMotorsports.com, like them on Facebook (Young’s Motorsports), and follow them on Instagram (@youngsmotorsports) and X |Twitter (@youngsmtrsports).

Mason Massey Pre-Race Quote:

On Bristol Motor Speedway: “Bristol is a place that I’ve circled for a few weeks. Qualifying is going to be super important, and that’s something I’ve been focusing on over the off-weekend.

“We’ve done a good job so far getting the best finishes and finding a good balance on the truck throughout the race. I think we can keep that going on Saturday night with our No. 02 Young’s Building Systems | Randco Industries Chevrolet Silverado RST!”

Race Information:

The WEATHER GUARD Truck Race at Bristol (250 laps | 133.25 miles) is the fourth of 23 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN® Truck Series races on the 2024 schedule. A fifteen-minute practice is slated for Sat., March 16, beginning at 3:00 p.m. Qualifying will immediately follow, beginning at 3:40 p.m. The field will take the green flag later that night, shortly after 8:00 p.m., with live coverage on FOX Sports 1, the Motor Racing Network (Radio), and SiriusXM NASCAR Channel 90. All times are local (ET).

Connor Zilisch to Pilot Spire Motorsports No. 7 Chevy Silverado in Select NCTS Races

By
Official Release
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17-Year-Old Prodigy Joins All-Star Lineup

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (March 15, 2024) – Today, Spire Motorsports announced Connor Zilisch will make his NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) debut in next weekend’s XPEL 225 at Circuit of the Americas (COTA).

In addition to next weekend’s 42-lapper at the 3.14-mile Austin, Texas road course, Zilisch will be at the controls of the No. 7 Chevy Silverado later this season at Talladega Superspeedway. Additionally, Spire Motorsports will coordinate a separate entry for Zilisch at the October 27 NCTS playoff race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Zilisch, 17, is an accomplished karting and road racer who, most notably, was part of Era Motorsport’s LMP2 class win at the 2024 Rolex 24 at Daytona International Speedway, making him the second-youngest driver, ever, to win the iconic race. He is a 10-time Trans-Am TA2 class race winner and a central component of Trackhouse Racing’s driver development program.

“I can’t wait to make my NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series debut at Circuit of the Americas, as well as other select races with Spire Motorsports this year,” said Zilisch. “Spire has obviously had a lot of success already this year, so I know that I’m getting into winning equipment. I’ve been doing a lot of preparation for COTA, and I feel that it’s a track that suits my style. I can’t wait to get to work with these guys and hopefully get my No. 7 Austin Hatcher Foundation Chevy Silverado to Victory Lane.”

The Austin Hatcher Foundation for Pediatric Cancer, through the generosity and support of Hixon Motor Sports, will serve as Zilisch’s primary sponsor for all three races.

The Mooresville, N.C., native is the 2022 Mazda MX-5 championship runner-up where he also claimed rookie-of-the-year honors for Hixon Motor Sports. The Trackhouse Racing development driver made his ARCA Menards Series debut last season at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International where he led 34 of the race’s 42 laps before securing an impressive runner-up finish.

The Austin Hatcher Foundation is a leading nonprofit organization committed to helping families impacted by childhood cancer at no cost, for the entire family’s entire lifetime. The Foundation provides comprehensive, coordinated care through evidence-based therapies, counseling, family programs, grief groups, educational resources and more, fostering resilience and hope for families. The Foundation’s focus not only assists families coping in the present, but helps them thrive in the future following a childhood cancer diagnosis.

“This is an exciting opportunity for Spire Motorsports in a couple different ways,” said Spire Motorsports president Doug Duchardt. “We’re thrilled to have Connor Zilisch drive the No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado this season, but separately, we’re looking forward to working closely with our friends at Chevrolet and Trackhouse Racing to help Connor get some vital seat time. Connor is an exceptionally talented young racer whose credentials speak for themselves. It’s almost hard to get your arms around how accomplished he really is, given that he’s just 17-years-old. Based on what he’s done already, we expect Connor to be a key contributor as we race for a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series owner’s championship.”

The XPEL 225 from Circuit of the Americas will be televised live on FS1 Saturday, March 23, beginning at 1:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The fifth of 23 NCTS races on the 2024 schedule will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

About the Austin Hatcher Foundation for Pediatric Cancer …
The Austin Hatcher Foundation for Pediatric Cancer is a leading nonprofit organization committed to helping families impacted by childhood cancer at no cost, for the entire family’s entire lifetime. The Foundation provides comprehensive, coordinated care through evidence-based therapies, counseling, family programs, grief groups, educational resources and more, fostering resilience and hope for families. The Foundation’s focus not only assists families coping in the present, but helps them thrive in the future following a childhood cancer diagnosis.

About Spire Motorsports …
Spire Motorsports is a NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race team co-owned by long-time NASCAR industry executives Jeff Dickerson and Thaddeus “T.J.” Puchyr. In 2024, Spire Motorsports will campaign the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series with drivers Corey LaJoie, Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar, respectively. The team will also field the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Silverados full time in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. An all-star driver lineup will rotate throughout the 2024 season in the No. 7 Chevy. Rajah Caruth will drive the No. 71 entry and Chase Purdy rounds out the team’s fleet of Chevrolets in the No. 77.

Spire Motorsports earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado to its inaugural NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win on April 7, 2022, at Martinsville Speedway. The team’s most recent win came on May 20, 2023, when Kyle Larson took the checkered flag in the Tyson 250 at North Wilkesboro Speedway.

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