Toyota Racing – Martin Truex Jr.
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (October 21, 2023) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. was made available to media after earning the pole for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series event at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Truex’s pole is the 500th for Toyota across the NASCAR National Series (Cup, Xfinity and Trucks), its seventh pole in the last eight races and 15th Cup Series pole of 2023, which leads all manufacturers. With 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick qualifying second and third, Toyota drivers will make up the top three positions for the second time this season, following the Darlington spring race where Truex also took pole.

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing

Do you feel like you and the team are in a good place right now?

“Yeah, I feel good. I felt good coming into this round even though last weekend didn’t go as we would have hoped. There was more potential there than what we achieved. Coming here, I felt good coming in as it’s a good track for us and we’ve always run well here. It’s just a comfort zone for me. I had confidence coming in here but didn’t expect to get the pole. After practice, our car felt good in the long run, but pretty excited to be on the pole here. Always good when things go the right way.”

After last weekend, are you more willing to overrule James (Small) in strategy decisions?

“No, but in that situation, yes. And James (Small) told me after the fact I should have in that situation. But in the end, crew chiefs know a lot more than racing drivers when the race is going on, so I go with that. But in that scenario, I did feel weird about the decision.”

What are the feelings coming back to Miami after winning a championship here a few years ago and usually running well here?

“Yeah, I wasn’t thinking about those things necessarily, but I always enjoy coming here and feel like it’s always been a good track for us. Going back to the Busch Series, and learning about this place, it was good then. I almost won my first race here in the Cup Series. I feel comfortable and have fun here, and it’s nice coming to a track you’re not dreading.”

What do you remember from that night when you won the championship in 2017?

“I remember everything about it – the whole weekend, race, every lap. Only thing I don’t remember, is when I crossed the finish line until the back straightaway. The party was fun, but nothing crazy as everyone was so happy and excited. We didn’t get to do much as I was on the track until 3 a.m. with obligations. The funniest part was a few of my crew guys and team members took a van around the racetrack. I was sitting off turn 4 doing an interview with Jamie Little and FOX, and we see those guys screaming in the van. Just everyone having a big time and happy for everything that happened.”

What would it mean to win another championship?

“It’d mean everything. It’d make me and the entire team very happy. Put a stamp on all of the hard work we’ve put in since the start of the Next Gen car last year. We’ve had a lot of good runs and wins with the group, but this is the reason we do what we do. Winning it all again would be everything would make me feel better about doing another season.”

Do you feel this is a wildcard race?

“No, I don’t, I don’t think it’s anywhere near one. It’s a tough place and a lot can happen. But, if your car’s good and you’re good on long runs, taking care of what you need to, it’s not a wildcard where guys can take two-tire stops and flip track position. It’s more of a straightforward race for the most part.”

How important is it to get through a weekend where you execute a race to its full potential?

“It’d be great. It’s very important as we’re only two points above the cutline, so we can’t afford to give up points. We have to get all we can tomorrow. I feel like we missed a few in stage 2 last weekend. Hopefully, that doesn’t come back to haunt us.”

Did you guys do anything different for the windshield to help with the sun glare issues?

“Yeah, we’ve tried a few different things, so I’ll let you know tomorrow how they work. The biggest thing from the incident last year was just there was a lot of debris on the windshield at the time and needed a tear off. We should have a better pit stall too tomorrow. It was just a crazy situation with us and (Kyle) Larson last year. Wish he tapped the brake, but it wasn’t really his fault in that situation. Just a bad scenario.”

How does winning a championship or not change your outlook on driving for more years in the future?

“I think competing for championships and having the ability to keeps you going. In years past, when we’ve had heartbreakers, we’ve been right there and had a chance. Whether things went right or not, we still felt like we were a championship team. You can’t always control circumstances, and outcomes aren’t always what you want, but feeling that you did everything you could feels a lot better than not even making it. I feel great about where we’re at and feel a lot better about our direction after signing up for another year.”

How do you feel the dynamic of the Martinsville race next weekend will be?

“It’s been disappointing so far with the NextGen car. We haven’t been able to get the tires just right there and now that we’re shifting, it hurts the racing. But if we don’t shift, the racing would be worse as we wouldn’t have enough power. It’s just been a tough one. It’s always been such a fun track, but this car is so much different than what we’ve ever had before, so it just needs some work. I think they were tire testing there earlier this year, so don’t know if it’s different, but that’s definitely something that needs some work.”

Will next weekend be more aggressive than normal?

“I doubt it. I think it’s going to be as aggressive as it’s been with this car. You can only beat and bang with this car so much, and then you can’t get to someone’s bumper to get them out of the way. Just the way it is.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM), creator of the Prius hybrid and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota and Lexus brands, and directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America (more than 49,000 in the U.S.).

Over the past 65 years, Toyota has assembled nearly 45 million cars and trucks in North America at the company’s 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, the company’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.

Through our more than 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.), Toyota sold more than 2.4 million cars and trucks (more than 2.1 million in the U.S.) in 2022, of which, nearly one quarter were electrified vehicles (full battery, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell).

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Chris Buescher Media Availability | Saturday, October 21, 2023

CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang — DID ANYTHING CHANGE FOR YOU WHEN BLANEY WENT FROM 56 POINTS BACK TO 17 POINTS BACK WHEN NASCAR CHANGED THEIR MIND? “No, I think they already changed the penalty back before I even knew about it in the first place. By the time I got the news it was like, ‘Oh, never mind.’ No, it really doesn’t. We are in a spot where we are within striking distance still from really strong points days but really it is going to be about winning in this round, it typically is. We have to work hard for that and go out and run good all day. If we can go run well in the stages and be up front, that puts us in a position to win the race but if not at least you have acquired points in the meantime. That is the main part of it. I really can’t control what goes on elsewhere.”

DID YOU LEARN ANYTHING FROM YOUR WINS AT MICHIGAN OR RICHMOND THAT CAN GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE FOR THE NEXT TWO RACES? “Just the fact that we have been better for the second half of the year in general is great. Nothing that is really going to carry over from those styles of race tracks but we know what we are capable of as a group and we really have to dig deep and get into that for this race and for next week. There is nothing here that really follows those two styles of tracks, maybe Darlington more than anything, but certainly made some really big gains at Martinsville in the playoffs for us. I don’t feel like we are way off as far as the car goes right now. We are in a smaller tweaking area. We just have to keep doing that. We just didn’t unload as close as we wanted to, but I don’t feel out to lunch.”

WHAT HAPPENED ON PIT ROAD LAST WEEK AND HOW MUCH DID YOU GUYS ADDRESS THAT? “Yeah, Vegas is a slick pit road and we go in knowing that. We thought we had a pretty decent box with a lot of rubber in it beforehand and I guess that gave me a rather false sense of security for our first stop and I ended up all but blowing through the white line. I really just didn’t do a good job on pit road last week. A couple of more times after that trying to back it up, I had to back up an obnoxious amount I felt like in order to get on the marks. That is just my fault. I didn’t catch on quick enough and put us in bad spots throughout the race. Our pit crew did a nice job and tried their best to keep up with me and where I was parking. That was just my fault. I didn’t do a good job there.”

YOU PICKED IT UP A LOT GOING FROM PRACTICE TO QUALIFYING TODAY, WHAT CHANGES DID YOU MAKE TO GET THAT SPEED? “That is outside of my wheelhouse exactly. We just freed up a lot. We got into practice there and we were super tight, especially on our fire-off laps, and really could not finish the corner. We took a pretty large stab at freeing up and certainly got us very close. Still scrubbing the fronts pretty hard through three and four but I at least felt like I was able to pull on the wheel a little and make something happen, so it is a lot better, we just need a little more yet.”

HOW CRAZY DO YOU THINK MARTINSVILLE WILL BE? “We aren’t there yet. Everyone keeps putting me two weeks out and I can’t do it. Since the playoffs started, I have been driving off the hood pins and whatever is immediately out in front of us is where I have been. I used to rag on people for doing that a lot growing up because I felt like they were always the first one to crash, but in this sense, I feel like it is the best way we can take it, one at a time. I am really not that far ahead yet.”

FOR A SHORT TRACK IT HAS APPEARED A BIT LACKLUSTER OF LATE. DO YOU THINK THERE WILL BE MORE ROOTING AND GAUGING OR THE DYNAMIC OF THE RACE WILL CHANGE WITH SO MUCH ON THE LINE? “Maybe. It always does, right? It is always in the playoffs and always gets a little dicey there. It is going to have its moments I am sure. Like I said, I really just haven’t gotten that far ahead yet.”

WHAT KIND OF CHALLENGE COULD RESTARTS BE IF YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT BEING BETTER ON A LONGER STINT? “That is why we need to work on that fire-off speed to get it better immediately so that we can make some progress on restarts and be able to move around a little more. This race track is a ton of fun and gives you a ton of options. With that, if you are a little tight or a little loose usually you can find something. We just have to get a little more free to where we can point and find something a little bit better. Again, without sacrificing too much of the long run speed because we know we will have 35 or 45 lap runs tomorrow, so you can’t throw them away, but you just have to be able to find a little bit of fire-off speed. Just another step of what we did for qualifying, really.”

HAVE YOU LEANED ON BRAD FOR PLAYOFF ADVICE THE LAST FEW WEEKS? “It really hasn’t changed a whole lot. It is really a lot of what we have done as an organization since Brad has come over as owner and on the teammate side. Not that we are really going into any differences, it is always just a lot of communication and teamwork between our two groups. We have several opportunities throughout the week where we sit down and go over what we are looking at for the immediate race weekend and what we are looking at going forward. There is obviously advice coming our way and things that we talk about but it is not really any more or any less than it has been throughout the entire last two years really. It is the same stuff that has been able to get us to this point, it is now just about focusing on the last three races, really two as we try to just get to Phoenix. It is the same amount of teamwork and the same conversations that we have been having that have put us in a good spot.”

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HOW FAR YOU HAVE COME WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE LOW POINTS OF ROUSH FENWAY TO WHERE YOU ARE NOW AS RFK. DOES THAT JUST CHANGE YOUR WHOLE OUTLOOK ON WHAT IS POSSIBLE GOING FORWARD? “Yeah, I have been a part of RFK for 15 years. I have seen a lot. I have seen a lot of good and a lot of bad. I would say it is really exciting right now to see the positives. Not for myself, selfishly, it is a lot more than that. It is the positivity of individuals we have had there since well before I started and people that have always tried to fire off each new season with a positive outlook and made it three or four weeks into a year and realized that it didn’t change enough and that was not going to be the amount of improvement that we needed. I lived through that and have seen how it can certainly get everybody fired up through an offseason but can bring it back down really quickly if the success is not there. We haven’t had that. That is the best part, seeing everyone really get fired up around the shop and seeing the work and the effort that everyone is putting in and seeing the results of that. It keeps everyone in a much better state of mind and that has been a big part of it. It has certainly been a lot of fun to be a part of a big positive swing as an organization. As I said, being a part of it for a decade and a half, it is a lot of fun at this point.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
4EVER 400 Qualifying | Saturday, October 21, 2023

Ford Qualifying Results:

4th – Brad Keselowski

10th – Ryan Blaney

15th – Michael McDowell

17th – Chris Buescher

21st – Chase Briscoe

22nd – Kevin Harvick

26th – Austin Cindric

28th – Harrison Burton

29th – Ryan Preece

30th – Aric Almirola

31st – JJ Yeley

32nd – Todd Gilliland

34th – Ryan Newman

36th – Joey Logano

BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 BuildSubmarines.com Ford Mustang — (Qualified 4th)

“It was really solid. Our Mustang has reasonable speed and I am happy for that. I felt like we executed a really good lap and it was a really good day. The car feels really good in race trim so I am excited about tomorrow.”

YOU SPENT QUITE A BIT OF TIME TRYING TO FIGURE OUT YOUR PIT STALL SELECTION, THERE IS A LOT THAT GOES INTO THAT ISN’T THERE? “There is a lot that goes into our sport as a whole that people don’t realize but that is part of the fun of it, trying to get all of the details right.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Duracell Ford Mustang — (Qualified 10th)

“It was an okay lap. I thought we learned some stuff in that first round of qualifying and I am happy we snuck into the second round. I think our race run car was really strong and I was really happy with it on the long run. It wasn’t a great effort there in the second round, but I am happy with the speed we have for the race, so that is good.”

CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang – (Qualified 17th)

“We definitely made some really big gains from practice with our fire-off speed with our Fastenal Mustang so I am happy with that. Just missed the second round though with it. At the same time, we needed just a little more there. Maybe a half a tenth, if I am remembering correctly. It was big pickup for us there on those laps. Our long run speed was pretty good in practice, it just took us way too long to get to that point to get decent. We had to make some changes that I think we have already started tackling for the qualifying lap and beyond to get going a little quicker but still maintain pace as we get deep into this thing. Good work today. There were some rather large changes there to get us in the ballpark and we are there now. We just missed the second round by just a little bit.”

WERE YOU TIGHT? “Yeah, we were really tight in practice and ended up just a little too tight still in our qualifying lap. Yeah, in practice we were plowing tight but really trying to get that long run in to see where it went so I didn’t want to come down and waste much time getting adjustments. Wanted to get 20-plus laps in on a run because we felt that was important to see. Our long run speed stayed decent because of that but we have to be able to get some more turn.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY
4EVER 400 PRESENTED BY MOBIL 1
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
OCTOBER 21, 2023

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1, met with the media ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Media Availability Quotes:

Obviously the high line here is talked about every time we come here. Why is it so important to be able to run the wall well here?

“I don’t know, for me it is.. it’s important. It seems to be how I’ve figured out how to go fast here. You have to be comfortable against the wall and I know there’s a lot of drivers that aren’t that comfortable against it. So that gives guys like myself and (Tyler) Reddick an advantage when we come here.

Yeah, I don’t know. It just seems like the Next Gen car is a little bit easier to run up against the wall. It was a big advantage last year on the long run and hopefully we’ve gotten our car better on the short run, but still really good on the long run like we were last year.”

(Inaudible)

“Well I don’t know. It’s obviously a longer way around, but you can get to the gas so early. As long as you’ve entered high enough, you can get to the gas early and just build that momentum and the lap times just compounds from there. I know last year, there were points of the race on the long runs where we’d be like three-quarters of a second faster. Just being able to enter with a lot of speed and then carry a lot of speed on exit.”

What is it like being a driver coming into a race where, you want to win obviously, but you’re already set for Phoenix. What is the mindset for you guys and how does that feel when everyone else you’re competing against has all this pressure?

“I don’t know. Obviously the pressure is a lot less than what other drivers are feeling, but I feel like I want to win just as bad as everybody else does, too. I’m not treating this weekend, or these next two weekends, like they don’t matter. I think they matter just as much to me as everybody else, but it’s nice not having to think about the points or feel the pressure all week. Yeah, as the rounds go on, you definitely feel more pressure. I’ve only been in the Round of Eight three times, and two of them, I won the first race. So I don’t really remember, honestly, what the pressure is like. But I know what it’s like in the other rounds and I know what I felt like at the ROVAL, so I can only imagine that as each race moves on, you feel more pressure and that’s not a fun feeling.”

How much of this week was spent on Homestead and how much was spent on Phoenix?

“For me, zero on Phoenix (Raceway).. all Homestead (Miami Speedway). Yeah, I mean obviously your mind thinks about Phoenix a little bit, but I haven’t watched any film. I haven’t looked at any data or anything like that. I love this weekend. I love Homestead and just trying to watch as much video of this place as I could to get my mind ready to run the wall.”

What do you remember that you did well a couple of years ago at Phoenix to win the title that you hope to repeat?

“Well we started the weekend off by getting the pole.. that was huge to get the number one pit stall. And then in the race, at different points, we had a good car. And then in other points, we weren’t. I felt like at certain points of the race, all four of us had the best car. Not that we had the best car at the end of the race, but our pit crew did a really good job and that number one pit stall paid off. So yeah, going back, obviously I know how important that pit stall is, so you put a big emphasis on qualifying. We had a weekend similar to 2021 earlier this year in the spring – getting the pole and then just didn’t execute the last restart right. Looking at those sort of little mistakes that we had in the spring, and then also just try to execute like we did in 2021, I think is where my mind is at on what we need to do to win the championship. And two, you need a fast car, which I know we will and we’ll have a good weekend.”

Normally on your schedule, you’re a busy dude. You’re going from this race, to that race – from what I understand, correct me if I’m wrong, you’ve kind curtailed that now that the championship is getting closer. Is it more pressure not to be doing all that stuff because you get in a groove, or is there a sense of FOMO or anything?

“I mean I’d be racing if there were races to run. It’s not that I cut it back because I want to focus on this. It’s more that there’s no more mid-week racing left. I’m not going to race in Texas last night and then come to Homestead and be in the media center at 8 a.m. the next day (laughs).

Yeah, I just can’t race. It’s been a busy week. I tested the late model on Monday. And then we’ve been in Oklahoma Wednesday and Thursday, and then flew here yesterday. Owen was there racing. I think next week is fairly calm for me, and then it’s Phoenix and my racing picks back up after that.

Yeah, it’s not that I’m cutting back because I need to. I’m cutting back because I don’t have the opportunity to go race.”

In the Next Gen era – of all the ovals, is this the track where the driver can do the most or control the most with the ability to run the high line, or are there other tracks where the driver can make that much of a difference?

“Yeah, I mean I don’t know – that’s a good question. I won this race last year, so I want to say it’s all driver, but I don’t know. I think for whatever reason, it didn’t seem like you could run the wall quite as good as I could last year, so we were able to have a big advantage on the long run. But yeah, I don’t know – I still think it’s a little harder to pass, probably, than what the old car would have been potentially. I don’t know – I spent most of the race in the lead last year, but when I caught traffic and stuff, it looked like there were like big groups of people like it was tough to pass.

Yeah, I don’t know – hopefully our car is good again and we can be upfront the whole race; have good pit stops, restarts, stuff like that. But yeah, I think regardless, I do think Homestead is probably a track where the driver probably means a little bit more than somewhere else.”

Can you refresh my memory how you figured out that the high line was going to work so well for you here?

“Well I remember when I ran the truck race here in 2012, that was my first time here. We had a really good race and led some of it. I got to battle with Kyle Busch for a while. I was running fairly high and then he passed me and stuck his hand out the window and told me to get higher, so I just started running as high as I could. There were points in the corner where I’d get really close to the wall and once you do that a few times, you can feel the effect that the right-side of the car has against the wall. So then over time, you start pushing it – entering higher and you start getting to the wall at an earlier point in the corner and eventually you just end up running up next to the wall the whole lap. I watched a little bit of my first Xfinity race I ran here in 2013 last night and just seeing the difference of how I ran back then – even back then, I cheated the entry some and would slide up to the wall. I think just as years go on, like I said, you just get more comfortable entering higher. Obviously they’re reading lap times off to you and you can feel it, too. But when you read a lap time off that’s two-tenths better than the lap before, you know that it was faster so you just keep pushing it. Obviously I’ve hit the wall here a lot, but to get comfortable, you have to make those mistakes.”

(No Mic.)

“(Laughs) No, he wasn’t flipping me off, I know that. Maybe he wasn’t saying that back then, but he did that again somewhere this year. He passed me and like stuck his hand out. I asked him later, I was like – what were you telling me.. I was already running the top. And he said – no, that was me telling you that I was going to run the bottom and I’m going to leave you a lane up top for some fresh air. So maybe that’s what he was telling me back then, but I took it as I needed to run higher. Like I was this young rookie – I mean it was only my fourth-ever truck race at the time, so I took it as I needed to get higher, so I just started running higher and passed him back a few laps later and we’ve been really good here ever since.”

You seem to have an ability at the extreme lane that not everybody has. Tyler Reddick is kind of the same way. Does that relate, at all, to all the years the two of you spent banging cushions in sprint cars and midgets over the years?

“Yeah, I mean I definitely think coming from the background that we have, it definitely helps. I think Homestead, to me, it reminds me a lot of Eldora (Speedway) – the way both ends are.. the way you kind of cup into turn one. Three and four seems a little flatter and all that, but you still run against the wall. It just feels similar to me. And then, also the feel that you get of packing the air against the wall, kind of feels like running a soft cushion at a dirt track.

Yeah, I think that’s why dirt guys kind of excel here. I can’t think of any pavement-background driver that is really comfortable against the wall. Maybe (Martin) Truex Jr., he’s really good. Denny (Hamlin) is good on occasion running the wall. But yeah, Reddick and myself, we seem to be really good at running the wall here.”

Somes drivers say you can actually hear the sound – do you go off the sound.. are you able to do that when you’re running the wall if you can’t see as well? Have you been in that situation? I don’t think for Cup here, that the sun will be a problem..

“Yeah, I think you use all your senses. You use sight, sound, feel.. all that. The sound gets really loud as you touch the wall, so you don’t really want it to change too much. But yeah, the sun is really bad in (turn) one, so I’m guessing that’s where he (Cole Custer) was talking about it being difficult. As it gets later into the day, it’s kind of right in your eyes on the high line into turn one, and it needs to get behind the suites and stuff there in one to be able to see well enough again.

But yeah, I think I just more go off the feel of the air pushing against your car and the wall. That’s kind of where I get most of my feel from I think, but I’m sure sound, as well.”

How often in your mind are you completely sure that you’re there at that line and not going over it, and how many times would you take the chance when you’re running the wall to get so much closer?

“You still get into the wall – like last year, I ran up next to the wall the whole race basically. You scuff it a little bit here and there. It’s less of a penalty now to scrap the wall now as it was with the old car because the bodies are so tough. So that allows you to be a little bit more aggressive with how close you get to the wall, I feel like.

But yeah, I don’t know – you race these cars every weekend so you get a good feel for the proximity of yourself to the wall and others. So yeah, that helps. And two, like I said, you can just feel it – you can feel the air really easily, so that is a good gauge, for sure.”

You finished second at Martinsville Speedway. Do you have any recollection of what was going on behind you with Ross Chastain?

“Yeah, I was in second, but I remember – like they didn’t say anything on the radio or anything like that, but I came off turn four. You look in the mirror to see kind of how close the guy is behind you, and I remember just seeing something kind of going on… like coming off turn four, there was a new car in my mirror, so that’s all I really remember from that. And then you see the replay and all that. Yeah, that was crazy, for sure, and I’m sure we’ll see the highlight of it a million more times as we lead into Martinsville. But yeah, that was definitely wild.”

As Owen gets older, does he have a little bit more of an understanding and appreciation of what dad is doing going for a championship?

“I don’t know – that would be a good question, I think, for him. He would get nervous if you were asking him a question, I’m sure.

I don’t know – I think he understands what we did last week and what that means for a few weeks from now. But I don’t know if he thinks it’s like cool.. I don’t know what he thinks about it (laughs). I know he knows that we get to race for a championship and all that. Even Audrey, she was three years old – she sees the pictures of her sitting in the trophy and all that, and she understands what that races means a little bit. Maybe not to the magnitude that all of us think that race is and what a championship really means to somebody. But yeah, I think as he gets older and all my children get older, they’ll understand a little bit more. I think when a kid is that young, dad’s not really that cool yet (laughs), so I think as they get older, they’ll really appreciate it even more.”

You were talking earlier about things you learned at Phoenix. Are there things, even with the success of 2021, that you’ll look to go back and change this time around?

“No, I mean I feel like that whole week was a great experience last time. It’s your first opportunity at a championship, so there’s a lot of friends and family coming and all that. That was really special to me, and basically the same group of people are already planning on coming this trip. So yeah, hang out with them – grab dinner and all that. Try and treat it as a fairly normal week and not try to distance myself from my friends and family. So yeah, I plan on doing basically the same stuff I did last time.

I’m curious how media week will be different. Stuff like that will probably be a little bit different.. where that location is and stuff like that. But yeah, my friends and family are really important to me, so it was awesome they were there last time and we got to celebrate afterwards. I’m happy that they’re coming back and hopefully we’ll get to celebrate again later that night.”

Looking back on the championship race in 2021 – I think four of the five pit crew members on your team today were pitting your car back then. To see them be able to continue to be an elite crew despite the change from the five lugs to the single lug – how important has that been to the success of the No. 5 team, and is there any kind of bond you have with those guys since they’ve been on your car for so long?

“Yeah, I mean they’ve been in the sport for a long time, even before I got into the sport. So I’m not sure how many championships a few of them have, but it’s got to be a lot because they were on Jimmie’s (Johnson) team, as well. But yeah, this year for sure, they’ve done a great, great job. In 2021, they were the best pit crew all season. This year, they’ve been in the top two or three all season. A big improvement from where they were at last year.. I think there was a lot to be learned with the new style of pit stops last year, and it just took them a little bit of time. But all season, they’ve been really strong. All of Hendrick Motorsports, really, has been really strong on pit road.

Yes, they’ve been important to every one of our wins this year. To win a Cup Series race, it just takes your whole team, for sure. Like last week, we gained two spots on pit road – got control of the race for the last run and that was it. Richmond, Darlington.. they’re a part of every win in a big way.

Yes, I hope we can continue that. I think what I like the most about them is that they’re the best when it matters at the end of the race. That’s really important to win these races.”

Do you have a favorite Kevin Harvick story on the track?

“I’ve just really enjoyed racing with him. He’s such a tough racer. I feel like he can do a lot more with his race car than most drivers can. I’ve had some great battles with him. I think he’s only been mad at me like one time, so that’s pretty good, I feel like. He probably doesn’t even remember when he was mad.”

What was he mad about?

“It was Phoenix.. I don’t know, a long time ago. He was battling to make it into the Championship Four. There was a restart – I think Joey (Logano) ended up winning the race, but he was second row and I was third row, inside. I didn’t even like get in there, but I just kind of showed my nose and he was mad about that. He came down afterwards – I can’t remember exactly what he said, but I explained to myself that he wasn’t going to win anyways and he was fine with it afterwards. That went smoother than I thought it was going to. He was walking over and I was kind of scared (laughs). He’s just an intense guy.”

What about off the track?

“Off the track, I just really appreciate, notice and pay attention to how great of a father he is. How dedicated he is to Keelan, for sure, but even his daughter Piper. You can tell she’s a daddy’s girl, and Audrey is a daddy’s girl, as well. So yeah, watching him balance all of that. I feel like his kids are very well behaved and very mature for their ages. So yeah, just try to pay attention to how he parents and put a little bit of that into my parenting, as well.”

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.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Ryan Blaney Media Availability | Saturday, October 21, 2023

Ryan Blaney, driver of the No. 12 Menards/Duracell Ford Mustang, met with media members at Homestead Miami Speedway ahead of Saturday practice and qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series 4EVER 400 Presented by Mobil 1. Blaney addressed the emotions surrounding the end of the Las Vegas race, his prospects for advancing into the Championship 4 and more.

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Ford Mustang — “We talked about it internally Monday morning as a group before we went to NASCAR and was able to talk to them. I appreciate NASCAR for being receptive to it and talking with us Monday and meeting with the parts at their R&D Center and understanding what the disconnect was between pre-race and post-race. That is a sealed part, so. Elton Sawyer and Brad Moran were really great to us at being understanding and understanding that there was an issue there with the process and they were able to fix it. A lot of emotions but it was nice that it ended up, I think, as it should have.”

WERE YOU CONFIDENT IT WAS GOING TO END THE WAY IT DID? “I don’t know. It is out of your control. I don’t know the whole inspection process. I am not there for that. So me trying to learn about where the issue was and all that stuff was a little bit difficult for me. I was more getting information from Jonathan and Travis Geisler and stuff like that. When I heard about all the parts and pieces before they went to NASCAR, I felt like maybe they would be able to hear our case and work with us and figure out where was this disconnect. Luckily it was. I wouldn’t say I was confident or unconfident, I was just hoping to see what happens I guess.”

WHAT WAS THE RANGE OF EMOTIONS? “It really didn’t change a ton for me. We had a good day at Vegas. It stinks we had a good day and lost points, so that kind of stinks. Then we lost a lot more points that evening. I flew on someone else’s plane and right when I turned my wifi on, that was the first text I got, that we got DQ’d. So then it was like, ‘Okay, we have to win one of the next two weeks.’ Then when it got rescinded on Monday night, it was just about that it would still be hard to make it but it isn’t a must-win now. So it gives you a little more hope. I wasn’t like distraught or anything. That was the spot we were in and had a job to do, but now it is just a change a little bit.”

WHAT ABOUT THE MENTAL MINDSET THAT YOU CAN HAVE A GREAT RUN AT A TRACK AND LEAVE LOSING POINTS IN THE PLAYOFF BATTLE? “That is what the Round of 8 is. There are so many guys that run in the top 10. It is so hard to gain your ones and twos there and it is easy to lose them. Especially when you are coming in behind the eight ball already into the Round of 8 and you have guys that you know you are going to be racing with those guys unless they have problems. They aren’t going to go run 15th. It is super tough. You have to perform. This is the round and I don’t expect anything different from this round. You have to go out there and do your job.”

HOW OFF THE CHAIN DO YOU THINK MARTINSVILLE IS GOING TO BE? “It could be wild. I think that race always gets exciting. Last year’s race was incredibly exciting, the ending of it. We were a part of it. We sniffed it. I think Martinsville being the last cut-off race is more exciting than when it was the first one of the Round of 8. I think it puts on a great show regardless and you will have some guys that need a win when they get there or guys who are a handful of points out. it is going to be wild. This one will be just as crazy because those races always are.”

THE FACT YOU ARE SO GOOD ALWAYS AT MARTINSVILLE, DOES THAT GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE GOING IN? “Martinsville has been a good track for us. I feel like we do really well there. We haven’t won there but I feel like we should have won there a few times. It is just hard to put it together. It gives you confidence going in. Qualifying good there is really important now, which is unfortunate, but you have to qualify good. The Chastain thing last year, I saw glimpses of it in my mirror and didn’t know what the heck was going on. Watching the replay after it didn’t look real. It looked fake to me. I saw it in the mirror and didn’t know what it was. I found out shortly after what it was and it was pretty unique. Something you will never see again.”

WHAT WERE THE EMOTIONS LIKE FOR THE PERSON ON YOUR TEAM THAT DEALS WITH THE SHOCKS? “Yeah, it is a few different people that determine those. We have a shock guy, that is his job and he works with the crew chief and engineers on what we are doing. Marcus is our shock guy and his emotion was, ‘Oh my God, I don’t know what is going on.’ We were good to go in practice and now we are failing after having a good day. Marcus was upset for sure but everyone is a part of it, it is a team deal. He wasn’t too beat up about it. He understood I think what we wanted to talk to NASCAR about, so he was fine.”

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE FOR YOU OF BEING 56 POINTS OUT TO BEING UNDER 20 POINTS OUT? “If you are 56 points out you have to win a race. 17, you can do it on points but it is going to be hard. I still think you probably have to win one of these things unless some guys have problems, you just never know. Here you can have problems. Running the wall you can break some stuff pretty easy. You just go race, and do the best you can. You try to run up toward the front. I thought last week was the best mile-and-a-half speed we have had since Charlotte, so that was encouraging. Hopefully, we can keep building on that. It is a little better when you are a little closer in points.”

YOU WERE RUNNING THIRD HERE LAST YEAR BEFORE YOU SPUN OUT. IS THERE CONFIDENCE THAT YOU CAN PUT TOGETHER A CAR TO UNLOAD WITH WHAT YOU NEED TO GET A WIN? “I hope so. I would like to rely on past races here and having good runs but you can never fully count on that. It is good to have a baseline, but things change over the course of a year so much with everything. It is nice to have a baseline and it gives you some confidence but you can’t really rely on it. You have to be willing to try new things you have learned this year that have helped you. It definitely doesn’t hurt but I am not thinking that we were running third last year and will definitely be top-five this year. You have to keep an open mind when it comes to that.”

WAS THE TWITTER STUFF WITH YOU AND BUBBA (WALLACE) THIS WEEK REALLY YOU? “It was 100% real. He started it. I didn’t see his tweet on the Monday. I don’t really get on there too often. My PR guy does most of it. But that was me. I shot one and he pulled out a bigger gun and shot back and then I pulled out a rocket launcher and shot back. it was funny. I like how people thought we were being serious but we were joking around. That is the kind of friend you want to have … that you can bust up like that.”

WHAT IS YOUR RELATIONSHIP LIKE OFF THE TRACK? “Bubba and I have known each other for 20 years. We grew up together and we have been great friends for a long time. It is one of those relationships where you have known someone for decades and you are comfortable with busting them up every now and then and you laugh about it afterwards. We called each other that night and wanted to go to dinner but he had something he had to do, but we were laughing at the responses of people on Twitter. I am lucky to have a good friend in him and it works both ways.”

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO HAVE LOOSE RELATIONSHIPS LIKE THAT WITH OTHER DRIVERS TO BE ABLE TO MESS AROUND AND STILL BE COOL IN THE GARAGE WITH THEM? “You have to separate it, right? It is a job at the end of the day and our livelihood but you have to be able to have fun with it and also know when to be serious with it. You have to be fun to an extent and be able to let loose a little bit but then when it is time to turn it on, you turn it on.”

WHO HAS THE BETTER GOLF GAME? “I am a little better than him right now but it goes in waves.”

WHO HAS WON THE MOST MONEY? “On the golf course? I think we are probably even right now. It just goes in a pot and evens itself out eventually.”

DID NASCAR SEND A MESSAGE LAST WEEK BY PENALIZING TWO DRIVERS FOR LAYING BACK AND DOES THAT IMPACT HOW YOU WILL DO RESTARTS GOING FORWARD? “They have been talking about that for a while and have been kind of mentioning it for a little bit in our drivers deal. I think they got somebody at the Truck race at Talladega for it and got a couple guys last week. I saw one replay of the situation. I think it is important, especially when you get the sixth or seventh row back, laying back is so huge because it stacks and you can make a run three-wide easy. I think it is good and you need to enforce those rules if you are going to talk about them otherwise guys are going to keep doing it. So I think you are going to see it be a little more tidy because two guys did get popped last week for it and when you do that, people stop. I think that was good that they addressed that.”

YOU ARE THE SECOND DRIVER TO SAY YOU HAVEN’T LOOKED AT BOTH REPLAYS YET. THAT KIND OF SURPRISES ME. DO YOU KNOW WHAT IS GOOD? “You know when you are in the gray area when you are laying back and not. If you are back a car length plus into the restart zone, then you are laying back and they are going to probably catch that. Before, that was pretty normal and you would normally do that. Now that they are looking at that and watching it, you are going to be half a car length from somebody and can’t really do that. You understand when you are laying back. Drivers know what they are doing.”

HAVE YOU GOTTEN COMFORTABLE RUNNING THE WALL HERE? “This is a place where you are going to have two or three guys that are super good at it. Larson is ridiculous here at it. Reddick runs really good here at it. Then you will have one or two other guys that kind of pop in and can rip the fence pretty good right on it. But you have to make it work off the fence too. I think it depends on what your car is doing and a lot of it is confidence in how well you can run it. I think Larson runs it no matter what his car is doing just because he is really good at doing it. I like to think that I am pretty decent at it. I am not Larson level, not even close, nobody is. I am fairly confident though and I am more about getting my car working to what I need it to do to run up on that fence. A couple of guys that are super good at it will work their driving style around that to be able to run the fence. Everyone is a little different. I think you have to be good at it because there is obviously speed up there but you have to be good off of it because if everyone is running the fence you have to go somewhere and pass them somewhere. You have to work on all that stuff during practice.”

ARE YOU WILLING TO TAKE CHANCES UP THERE RUNNING THAT LINE? “If we were still 56 points back I would be glued to it. During practice and during the race, I would be glued to the damn thing. Now it just depends. You understand what spot you are in. If you are having a good day and coming down to the end of the race or so, maybe you don’t plant it on the fence. Maybe you have gotten a good amount of points and running top five, you are assessing risk at that point. Larson will be dangerous because he is already in. He will be planted on the fence. It is just about the spot you are in at the time.”

Toyota Racing – Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (October 21, 2023) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media before practice for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series event at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Saturday:

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Sport Clips Haircuts Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing

What did you think of NASCAR’s decision to rescind (Ryan) Blaney’s disqualification from last weekend in Las Vegas and does that change how you race your competitors?

“It doesn’t change anything in how I race. It’s just a different sidebar. It was the right call, even my crew chief (Chris Gabehart) mentioned it was the right one at the time. It’s good they got it right for sure.“

What do you remember from the finish in Martinsville last year?

“I don’t remember anything about it (the Ross Chastain last lap pass) and my crew was counting me off as the race was ending. We dominated the race, but then had a bad pit stop and went back to seventh or eighth. Then, Chris (Gabehart) told me how many spots we had to get (to advance to the next round) with very few laps. I was trying to get as many as I could, and Chris was constantly telling me where we were. I just remember him saying we were two points ahead going down the back straightaway on the last lap, battling Brad (Keselowski) for one more position. At that point, I didn’t think there was a need to push the envelope anymore. But yeah, ended up out of it and all I remember is him being there beside me at the end.”

How would you describe to the average fan how to run so close to the wall here at Homestead?

“Certainly, the closer you can get with a certain amount of speed is advantageous. There’s a little bit of a buffer there with the amount of air between the car and wall to stay there, but then that bubble can burst, and it can go wrong, going into the wall. It’s a very fine line and a lot of the time, it’s also dependent on the body of the car. Some bodies are better off doing that than others because of how aerodynamics wrap around the car. It just changes between the series – Xfinity, Cup cars, it’s all different, but certainly, the trend has seemed that with this track being so low grip, the top line and using that air buffer gives you the extra grip where it’s the fastest line if you can do it right. But you have to wait to do it right as well. You can just jump up there on lap one, it’s just not going to be there yet. It’s definitely a game of that and last year, it didn’t get going until a certain amount of time. You have to work around some other lanes to see where you’ll be good.

Would you say you’re in the category of someone like Kyle Larson in running the high line?

“I’ve had some wins here, Darlington, and other tracks where you run the wall. I think I’m better than average, but not at the level that Kyle (Larson) and those guys are. They’re willing to take a level of risk than I am. It depends on the scenario as well. When you’re going down to the end of the race and need some spots, you’re willing to push it a little bit more. I just manage risk a little differently. I’m not willing to fight for that little extra inch there to gain a small bit more lap time. If I can gain that somewhere else, I’ll do that.”

At a racers forum this week, Jeff Gordon mentioned teams should be more invested in themselves rather than drivers. What are your thoughts/opinions?

“If he’s wanting fans to resonate with the teams more than the drivers, good luck I don’t think that’ll happen. Our fans really latch onto a driver, it’s always been that way. There’ll generally be fans of the bigger teams, but there’s not that many there and it’s just different. It’ll be tough to make that happen and what campaign to do so, I’m not sure. The drivers are the stars and that’s where our fans resonate to.”

Do you have a favorite on-track Kevin Harvick story?

“Every time I try to think of one, it’s not a favorite, that’s for sure. Just the battles we’ve had over the years. In 2020, when we were winning a bunch of the races, we just had so many 1-2 battles. One in particular, was at Loudon that summer. It was really interesting, as he knew what I was thinking but I thought I was playing a chess move ahead of him, yet he was onto it. The way we battled there at the end was a lot of fun and I gained a lot of respect for him as a racing driver.

A favorite off-track Kevin Harvick story?

“I haven’t had a lot of interactions with Kevin (Harvick) away from the track, but one was when I was vetting Kurt (Busch) for 23XI Racing through some of his former teammates. I went to lunch with Kevin and talked with him about business, and things he learned from KHI (Kevin Harvick, Inc.). Those were really good conversations and may have been the first time I had lunch with a competitor that wasn’t necessarily my friend. I learned a lot from him in that moment. We also discussed how our teams work, our similar career paths and more. It was really cool.”

You and Kevin Harvick are lauded in the garage for your leadership. What have you seen from him there?

“He’s very calculated and he likes to be in control, that’s for sure. I really like his style and how he leads. I believe he’s a very important person in the sport. In my opinion, he’s like a Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart type person in the sport and when he leaves, you’ll notice he’s gone. I think he’s been a leader in the sport for a long time and may be the last legacy guy we have that knows how it used to be, so he’s an important figure. We’ll certainly miss him on this side.”

You’ve seen Kyle Larson up close for years. Any ideas on what makes him so good at what he does?

“Other than willing to take a few more risks, not really. I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary. There are some very minor things here and there, but nothing I’ll share publicly. There’s nothing that jumps off the page, just a couple really small things.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM), creator of the Prius hybrid and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota and Lexus brands, and directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America (more than 49,000 in the U.S.).

Over the past 65 years, Toyota has assembled nearly 45 million cars and trucks in North America at the company’s 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, the company’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles.

Through our more than 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.), Toyota sold more than 2.4 million cars and trucks (more than 2.1 million in the U.S.) in 2022, of which, nearly one quarter were electrified vehicles (full battery, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell).