KANSAS SPEEDWAY
RACE: HOLLYWOOD CASINO 400 DATE: SEPTEMBER 9, 2023

AUSTIN CINDRIC
No. 2 MENARDS/RICHMOND FORD MUSTANG
FINAL PRACTICE – 27TH
QUALIFYING – 18TH

RYAN BLANEY
No. 12 WABASH FORD MUSTANG
FINAL PRACTICE – 5TH
QUALIFYING – 17TH

JOEY LOGANO
No. 22 SHELL-PENNZOIL FORD MUSTANG
FINAL PRACTICE – 26TH
QUALIFYING – 11TH

NOTES – The NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs roll on this weekend in the Sunflower State as teams venture to Kansas Speedway for the second race in the Round of 16 after an eventful start to the postseason last weekend at Darlington Raceway. On-track activities at the 1.5-mile track got underway this afternoon with group practice and qualifying to determine the starting lineup for tomorrow’s Hollywood Casino 400.

The No. 12 Wabash Ford Mustang of Ryan Blaney led the Team Penske stable in practice with the fifth-fastest pace, followed by Joey Logano (26th) and Austin Cindric (27th). In qualifying, Logano clocked the fastest time of his teammates in the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang and will take the green flag from the 11th position on Sunday. Blaney and the No. 12 team are set to start 17th with teammate Cindric and the Menards/Richmond Ford Mustang qualifying 18th.

Wood Brothers Racing’s Harrison Burton will roll off the grid from the 29th position in the No. 21 Menards/Masterforce Ford Mustang.

WHAT THEY SAID: “Our Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang was good. Turns one and two were decent. I got right at the two-thirds mark of turn four, got tight, and had to lift too big. It was trending in the right direction in one and two. It felt like I was going to turn well enough to be able to use that much throttle there but it just didn’t hold. We were so close to being able to go to the second round and have a shot at the pole but that’s how the game’s played.” – Joey Logano

WHAT’S NEXT – Sunday afternoon’s 267-lap, 400-mile race at Kansas Speedway begins at 3:00 p.m. ET with coverage on USA, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Toyota Racing – Christopher Bell
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

KANSAS CITY (September 9, 2023) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Christopher Bell was made available to media after winning the pole for the NASCAR Cup Series event at Kansas Speedway on Saturday:

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 DeWalt Perform & Protect Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing

Did you even realize how quick your lap was?

“No, I didn’t. Ross (Chastain) ran a 29.9 in round one, so I knew the track had it out there and whenever I looked at the data in between the rounds, I felt like I could at least get better than I was in round one. The guys did an excellent job making adjustments and getting the balance a little closer and I was able to drive a little harder, and 29.9 was the answer.”

Last week, pole at Darlington, but not a great result. How do you avoid mistakes?

“By controlling what you can control. There’s – I don’t know how many people – but a handful of people on the team that just have to control what they can control. I’m a big part of that equation. Last week, I made a mistake early in the race that ruined our finish and that was me not doing my job. I’m glad I get another opportunity this week to control what I can control and get the best finish I can out of it.”

Does you winning the pole help your guys relax going into tomorrow?

“Hopefully, it makes them feel good because the number one pit stall is a pretty big advantage. I’m super excited to be driving for this pit crew. They’ve proven themselves throughout the entire season, and I didn’t give them a fair opportunity last week to show what they are made of. I’m glad we get another no. 1 pit stall opportunity and I’m confident that myself and the pit crew will do a much better job this week.”

Toyota typically has speed at Kansas, and you have as well with the 20 team. How do you complete the race tomorrow?

“The races are long. Cup races are really long – there is a lot of things that are going to happen between the green flag and the checkered flag. The biggest thing is just being there at the end and not taking yourself out of it. I think that we have the equipment, we’ve got the pit stall, I’ve got the pit crew – so if I keep my guys in it and get our race car, which is super-fast to the end of the race, we are going to be in a really good spot. I’m really excited about tomorrow. I love this race track. I love qualifying here too. It’s so much fun to be able to drive as hard as you can, put it right up against the wall and see what she’s got. Fun day, and I’m excited for another fun day tomorrow.”

What does this track mean to you?

“That was a big one. It was my first win for Joe Gibbs Racing, and it was in my part-time Xfinity Series schedule. I’m sure it meant a lot to the people at Joe Gibbs Racing because they saw me win in the Truck Series, but that was my first win for them. That was cool. I consider Texas my home track, but this is my second home track. I normally have family whenever we come here and race, it’s one of my favorite stops on the schedule. The track is awesome. It’s definitely one that I enjoy. It’s special to me.”

How did your early Xfinity Series win here help move your career forward?

“It’s a tough question, because winning in a lower series typically gets you an opportunity in the next series, but your wins in the lower series mean nothing in the next opportunity. It’s all about when you get that next opportunity maximize it and make the most of it. I was fortunate to have great trucks and I won in the Truck Series, and that got me an opportunity in the Xfinity car. Being able to win in the Xfinity car, so early in my career, was a huge moment. It meant a lot to me personally, I can’t speak for Joe Gibbs Racing, but hopefully it meant a lot to them too.”

How much did that win mean to you?

“You are always hoping for that opportunity to prove to yourself that you can do it, and any time you can go out there and do something good – win a race, win a pole or whatever it may be – it certainly resonates in your head that I can do this. This opportunity is not too big for me. This moment, this series – I’m ready for it. It was a special race, and an important race in my career. Looking back of how I got to where I am, if you take that Kansas win out – it certainly changes things. It was a big race for me.”

How cool has it been to see Brexton Busch start in kind of the same path you started on?

“It’s been fun following Brexton’s (Busch) career for sure. I’m glad that Kyle (Busch) has got him starting out basically right where I did 20 years ago. It’s cool, and I’m excited to see Brexton’s career path too – what way Kyle takes, if he’s going to stay dirt track racing or go pavement racing, but hopefully, Kyle is seeing the advantage that dirt track racing provides a young driver.”

How difficult is it not competing in dirt races this season?

“It’s been a change of pace for sure, but I recognize the importance of my day job and how important it is for me be here week-in and week-out. We saw it with the 9 (Chase Elliott) and 48 (Alex Bowman) – they are both not in the Playoffs because of what they did outside of their day jobs. I’m so fortunate to be in this position driving Coach Joe Gibbs. I understand that this is the priority.”

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.

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Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Hollywood Casino 400 Qualifying | Saturday, September 9, 2023

Ford Qualifying Results:
7th – Michael McDowell
11th – Joey Logano
12th – Brad Keselowski
13th – Chris Buescher
17th – Ryan Blaney
18th – Austin Cindric
20th – Kevin Harvick
25th – Aric Almirola
26th – Chase Briscoe
27th – Cole Custer
28th – Ryan Preece
29th – Harrison Burton
31st – JJ Yeley
32nd – Todd Gilliland

MICHAEL MCDOWELL, No. 34 FR8Auctions.com Ford Mustang – “Just like every weekend, just a lot of hard work. I’m proud of everybody at Front Row. We’re fighting hard. We got ourselves in a hole at Darlington, so we know our backs are up against the wall. We all know – I know – how important track position is. I mean, I risked it all in qualifying. I know a lot of people did, but that was everything I had – plus some. Just thankful that I have a great car, have it stick, and we’ll have a good starting spot for tomorrow. Just trying to stay alive in this Playoff.

OVER THE LAST COUPLE DAYS AND IN TODAY’S QUALIFYING, IT SEEMS LIKE WE’RE GETTING A LOT OF BRUSHES AGAINST THE OUTSIDE WALL. IS THAT A CONCERN HEADING INTO THE RACE? “This place, especially right now in qualifying, is such high-commitment, because you’re entering almost wide-open right against the wall and not pulling it down much. It’s nerve-racking laps here in qualifying. I watched that Tyler Reddick in-car from Darlington last week – he must’ve hit the wall 17,000 times. So, I think I’ll be less concerned about the little brushes up against the wall tomorrow. Just seeing how much he was able to bounce off the wall and not have any toe-link problems or anything like that. But just like anything, there’s going to be a limitation of hitting something too hard.”

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford Mustang – “The balance was too tight in four. We were trending okay right before that – just got too tight. We’re not quick enough, and we need to go to work. I think on the restarts, everyone is going to be really aggressive with each other. So, you just hope that you’re in the right place at the right time on these restarts, pick the right lanes and do the right things. We’ll study that stuff tonight, and we’ll try to make our car faster as well. If we have both, we’ll be all right.”

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Hollywood Casino 400 Advance | Saturday, September 9, 2023

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford Mustang, met with the media to discuss the NASCAR Playoffs, his Kansas Cup Series farewell and more. Harvick last won at Kansas during its spring edition in 2018.

KEVIN HARVICK, No. 4 SunnyD Ford Mustang – WHAT’S QUALIFYING LOOK LIKE FOR YOU TODAY? “Well, I think Kansas is a lot of throttle. Obviously, you have to be comfortable with leaving the throttle down, coming to the green well and doing all the things that you need to do to put the car in the right spot. So, I have no idea how the car will be. I’ll tell you in a couple of hours.”

WHAT IS YOUR OUTLOOK HEADING INTO QUALIFYING AND THIS WEEKEND? “I think you go through practice and you kind of adjust on the car, and go from there. Really with the way things go now, I try not to have an outlook one way or the other, because you just don’t know if it’s going to go perfect or if it’s going to be way off… or whatever it is. You can obviously fix it between tonight and tomorrow with adjustments – look at all the heights and everything that goes with it. So, I just try to go into it with as much of a neutral-minded approach as possible, to know that you need to be ready to work on whatever.”

DID YOU CHANGE ANY PIT PROCEDURES IN REACTION OF DARLINGTON? ARE THERE ANY RULE CHANGES NASCAR CAN MAKE TO PREVENT A SIMILAR INSTANCE FOR THE FUTURE? “I never even watched it. It was done. I was three… two… one… light’s on. From that point, I just go down pit road and do what you’re told, and go from there. It is what it is. I never even looked at it.”

BEYOND THE ADDITIONAL SAFETY REASONS, WOULD IT HELP HAVING AN INDICATOR OR LIGHT ON THE DASHBOARD WHEN THE CAUTION COMES OUT? “I think the chances of being in that scenario… I mean, that’s the first time I’ve ever been in that scenario in my whole career. I’ve done this for a long time, and I think that the odds of it happening – at that particular time, racing for the lead, and being coupled one or two car-lengths from the line… having it affect your whole race, finish and everything that happened is probably slim-to-none. I think that protecting yourself or changing rules, or something along those lines – I don’t really know. I don’t know what you really do, right? I think if you back the line up and put it in a different spot, it might be the same scenario all over again. I’m not really sure. I think there are a number of ways that you can look at that. It’s just an untimely situation, unfortunately. Happened to be us.”

WHAT HAVE YOU SEEN, FROM A COMPETITION PERSPECTIVE, THROUGH THE YEARS AT KANSAS? THERE SEEMS TO BE MORE SIDE-BY-SIDE ACTION WITH THE NEXT GEN CAR. “I don’t know if I’d agree with you on your last statement on side-by-side racing with the car. I think this particular racetrack has just been racey in general. I think when they redid the racetrack with the progressive banking and the way that the groove has moved around – you can run the middle, top or bottom – it gives you a lot of options from a driver standpoint. I think that’s just a product of the racetrack. I don’t think it has anything to do with one car or the other. So, I think that the other thing that happens here is on the restarts. You have so much room to go into Turn 1 and 2 and go all over the racetrack, and look for empty space to try and make a move. You can be super aggressive with the pushing. I think that usually causes the issues that happen on the restarts – just everyone being aggressive. Because you know that you have to go and do what you have to do, and take chances in order to put yourself in the position to be in a good spot. Ultimately, I think it’s a product of the track. For whatever reason, it’s just been one of our racier mile-and-a-half racetracks with the way that the asphalt has aged and the way that the racetrack has progressed. You can move around the track. So, I think it’s definitely more track than car with what promotes that good racing.”

SOME HAVE CONSIDERED BRISTOL A “WILD CARD” AS A SHORT COURSE. HOW CONFIDENT ARE YOU, ESPECIALLY HAVING GOOD RESULTS THERE? “It has been a good racetrack for us. I think that really all these races can be wild cards. There’s not one racetrack that really is any different to me. They can all have something happen to turn into pure craziness. This one has been way crazier than some of the Bristol races, and Bristol has been crazy in its own way. I think that they can all turn upside-down quickly, and you hope that you’re not on the other side of where you need to be. Bristol has been a great racetrack for us, and you just hope that you can go in there and have that continue – capitalize on that. I think that really, these are all good racetracks for us and can be all good racetracks for us on one day or another. It’s just a matter of getting it all together and having it all work out.”

HAVE THE EMOTIONS SET IN THAT THIS IS “IT,” NOW THAT WE ARE IN THE PLAYOFFS AND CLOSER TO THE END OF THE SEASON? “It really doesn’t matter to me. I think for me, we’ve been so set on how this year was going to go. We started planning in November, and I’ve had my arms wrapped around what this whole year was. I think for me, it’s been everything. Even if it’s regular season or playoffs, it really doesn’t matter to me as far as how I approach it or what I feel. I think for me the feelings were, every week, another piece of closure as to what we’re heading toward – wrapping up as far as my driving career. I think a lot of that comes with planning everything that we have, so there’s really no new emotions for me going from one racetrack to the other. It’s been a lot of fun just to be able to hear the fans’ stories and the different moments at the racetracks – to be able to celebrate all those moments and things that have happened through the years, but for me, I’m very content with the decisions that have been made and the path, going forward, that is so far into play. This whole process seems like old news to me, just because of the fact that it’s been happening for so long throughout the year. Not that I’m not going to enjoy the last eight weeks as far as those last moments, celebrations and moments of things that happened with fans, people or sponsors or whatever it is. That’s just how I am. We make a plan. We lay things out. We organize it. Obviously, we can always do some things better, but it’s been just a well-executed plan and a lot of fun to have the fans, friends, people and sponsors – all the things that have been a part of what we’ve done week-in and week-out. It has been pretty cool to see it all executed. For me, it’s a plan. There are a lot of things that go into it, but it’s just not a new emotion for me – like going to Kansas, or Bristol next week. There’s just not going to be anything new that pops up for me, because I’m so far into knowing what to expect.”

HOW IMPACTFUL HAS RODNEY CHILDERS BEEN TO YOU AND YOUR CAREER? “I think that, for us, it’s been a great relationship and friendship. For the guys on the team, it’s been a good ride that a lot of us have been on together for almost 10 years. Rodney and I have a good relationship and have been able to execute and do things well on and off the racetrack – work through good moments and bad moments, and just move onto the next one. I think it’s rare that you see a group of people work together for the amount of time that we’ve worked together and I’ve enjoyed that. It’s worked out well.”

HOW DO YOU RECOVER AND REGROUP AFTER BEING FACED WITH A SITUATION LIKE LAST WEEKEND? “Well unfortunately, I’ve lost a lot of races in my lifetime and that’s what I try to explain to our young kids: You better figure out how to be a good loser. Even if you’re really good, you might win 10 percent of your races. So, it’s just part of it. It’s not, ‘Well, somebody had it out for you,’ or ‘You should have done this or that.’ Sometimes, it’s just the way it works. You’re in the wrong place at the wrong time, and when you’ve been around it for a long time, you go about your business. I’ve just got too many things to do to dwell on one moment because it’s not going to do anything but get me behind. You think about the moment, and if there’s something that needs to be addressed, then you look at that, address that and move on. This one was pretty simple in my mind as far as what you could work on. I don’t know. From that standpoint, there’s really nothing you can work on. I came to pit road, came down pitroad looking at my lights… three… two… one… caution’s out. See the light, look back at the tach… by that time you’re across the commitment line, so there’s really no changes there from my standpoint.”

FANS ARE RALLYING BEHIND YOU, ESPECIALLY THIS SEASON. DO YOU SENSE THE OVERWHELMING SUPPORT, AND HOW SPECIAL IS THAT TO YOU? “I think for me, it’s definitely something that you recognize, feel and try to appreciate, just because that’s what our goal was this year, right? You want to go out and do everything right, as you walk out the door and have everybody respect and like the things you’ve done throughout your career. Really, your first impression is kind of like your last impression, right? As you walk out, you try to do as many things right as possible, and one of our main goals this year was to be competitive and be in contention, and try to have a chance to win races… race for the championship and walk out that way. Obviously, winning the Southern 500, being in that position, and having all those people root for you and want that to happen is exactly what we want. There’s no way to force that stuff. You can’t control so many things that happen, but I can definitely sense the support and it’s really been that way all year – since we started this season. The fan support and the industry support has been over-the-top. I told somebody, ‘You almost can’t screw this up.’ But, it would be spectacular if you could win, and do those things that so many people are coming to the racetrack hoping that they get to witness in person. No matter what market it is. Obviously, that one was right there toward the end of the race –racing for the lead and doing all of the things that you want to do. But, it’s a brutal sport – you win one week, and the next week you’ll be wrecked-out and finish last. It’s been that way for as long as I’ve been around it, but I think it is different this year just because it’s the last year with the fans, the people and everything they have going on. They want you to achieve that moment.”

WAS IT A SILENT DRIVE HOME LAST WEEK? “You guys listen to me every week, and I know everyone wants me to have a different answer, but I have a five-year-old and an 11-year-old in the backseat that are completely delirious from being up way past their bedtime. Just oblivious to the impact of things that go on, and it literally, as soon as you get out of the car and walk into the motorhome and you’re mad, you’re trying to process everything… all the sudden you just go into a different world. I know it’s not the fancy, great story that everybody’s looking for, but it’s the way my life operates. It’s switch on, switch off. I think that makes it better. It’s better for me, personally and mentally, and it’s a way easier way to process things. But, yeah. We drove home, listened to them talk about whatever they did during the day and that was it.”

WHERE DO YOU CURRENTLY FEEL YOU STACK UP AGAINST THE OTHER FORDS IN THE FIELD? “We had the fastest Ford last week, so that’s all that really matters until we roll onto the track this week. Actually, we probably had the fastest car last week – in general.”

HOW IS RYAN PREECE DOING? “He seemed fine. I’m not going to answer questions for him.”

IF A WIN WASN’T IN THE CARDS THIS SEASON, WOULD YOU BE AT PEACE WITH THAT? “I think for those who have been here every week know that I’m pretty at peace with everything.”

WERE THERE ANY DIFFICULTIES PREPARING FOR KANSAS THIS TIME AROUND? “I don’t think so. We’ve already raced here this year, so we have a pretty good idea of what we’re looking for.”

Toyota Racing – Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

KANSAS CITY (September 9, 2023) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media after before practice for the NASCAR Cup Series event at Kansas Speedway on Saturday:

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Yahoo Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing

Did the Playoffs starting make wanting to get the deals done or was it naturally?

“A little bit of both. I would say more natural time than anything. Obviously, you have to prepare for all different kinds of scenarios, so you need a certain amount of time to work all of those out. I just think it happened naturally, more than timeline with the Playoffs for sure.”

How much does the stage wins help you with the result you ended up with?

“It was big. That is why we started the stages years ago – for those scenarios where you just get a bad break at the end – at least you get rewarded for what your performance was in the beginning. Certainly, it was crucial for us to keep us in a stable position coming into this weekend.”

As you look at 23XI for 2024, how many races would you look to run in the third car?

“I don’t know – I think a handful at the most is what we would look to do, but the situations would have to be perfect and aligned. There’s talks about who we can put in where and when, but it wouldn’t be a big bulk of races for sure.”

Is your driver length the same length as the manufacturer deal for 23XI?

“I’m not at liberty to say.”

How close did the discussions with Ford get?

“I don’t have any comments on the speculation there.”

What is about Kansas that has played into the strength of Toyota?

“I understand the reasoning for thinking it’s a Toyota track, but we’ve seen a lot of contenders throughout the races, sometimes it just hasn’t worked out for some reason or another, but certainly, the results have shown that Toyotas have been strong here, but it is so hard to think or bank on what has happened in the past and that it will relate to right now. I do think for the 11 team, all I can speak to is me personally, there is a feel in the car that I try to find. It doesn’t matter what tire changes or car changes or anything like that. I search for that feel, and if I get it, we typically run up front. That’s the correlation for us, and if a team struggles here, they typically look at the notes of the guy who runs well and they copy it somewhat and then all the teams run well, so that is kind of the correlation. It seems like we’ve built upon some setups that 23XI and JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) has shared that has been successful for both.”

Does this track have any more significance for you because of 23XI’s success here?

“It has. It’s been a special track because when 23XI has won, I’ve been in the top-three both races that it has happened. It is special in that sense. I got my very first Cup start here in ’05. It is. It’s a special track. One you feel confident going, when you come.”

What do you look for in the practice session today?

“I don’t know typically why I haven’t been totally up to speed in practice. The Spring was an outlier. We were dominate from lap one of practice, all the way through, but typically, all of the other Kansas races we’ve been pretty middle of the road and I’ve kind of panicked overnight because we are not where we should be, and then the race – they dropped the green and then we just go to the front. Hopefully, we can be pretty solid in practice. The track changes so much from practice to race, so I just look for characteristics that I know will be good for passing. Everyone is going to try to run up top because that is going to be the fastest lane, but I’m looking if I can run somewhere else and have the speed be really close, because that is how you make passes. You just can’t run in the wake of the car in front of you, so I try to make sure my car can maneuver, and sometimes that gives us slower lap times in practice.”

Can you talk about the growth for Bubba Wallace?

“It has been a progression. I think last week is a good example of where he’s progressed. Typically, in racing you very seldom have a trouble-free, adversity-free race. I think early on in his career a couple of years, if he had something adverse – like a spin out, like he had at the end of stage one – it would derail his day. Just mentally it would derail him, and he would struggle to come back from it. The difference is we see him rebounding and finishing better probably than where he was running all day, so that is a good trend for that team – is get better as the day goes, versus the opposite – where they used to be – which was they are as good as they are going to get right off the truck, and typically went down from there. That is what I’ve noticed – is he has been able to mentally overcome adversity better.”

Have you been a part of his progression?

“We’ve constantly tried to point out drivers that have come back from penalties or crashes early and show the result of this what is capable of happening if your stay in the game and that is where your character gets defined – is when you face adversity, how do you respond to it?”

How do you look at signing what could be your last racing contract?

“It does for sure. When you are younger, you see it as a financial stabilizer. For me, it’s how many more Daytona 500s do I have left? How many more opportunities do I have to win certain events that are special to me personally or help me accomplish a goal that I’m trying to accomplish? It really puts in perspective the urgency of accomplishing as much as you can here in the short term. When you are younger in your 20’s or low 30s, you have so much runway, where if you don’t get it this time, I’ll get it the next. I’ve been very, very fortunate in the financial planning that my team has put together – we never planned past 40 as far as income was concern, so this is all me telling myself, how many more opportunities will I have? I want to compete at a high level in my final year. I don’t want to kind of trickle off. I’m way too competitive to do it. There is no way I could go to the race track not knowing that I could win. I understand there will be a day when things fall off. Things get slower for you. You will never know when that day will come, but now, that I’ve been doing it so long – it definitely puts some urgency in years like that, where I have all of the things, I need to compete each and every week. This could be one of the best shots we’ve had to win it all. You really put an emphasis on it knowing there is only so many total races left. If you want to get to your personal goals, you’ve got to capitalize on every single weekend.”

How have you grown throughout your career?

“I would say it’s natural to get a little more emotional when those situations come about because like last week – how many more chances at the Southern 500 will I have to win? We don’t even know – will our cars compete next year? Will we be as strong? No one knows. There is so many ebbs and flows in the sport, so you always want to take advantage of the opportunities. Chris Gabehart (crew chief) keeps a strict tally of when our running or winning capability is a one. Last week marked our 59th race winning capability weekend. We haven’t won nearly that many – 59 times. That is a lot since 2019. When we look at why we haven’t? I feel comfortable saying I’m doing all I can do. Sometimes these things are just out of our hands. I can only do my job to the best of my ability and continue to try to bring the team up. I really feel confident – no matter what the outcome – that I’m not letting any weekends slip away. I wish I honestly had the discipline way back when. In the early 30s, and 20s, that I do now with my work ethic. It’s paid huge dividends.”

Was the tire loose?

“It was. What happened – on the video – it takes a while to get high-res video, but the socket is turning, turning, turning and it never stopped. The left rear is one of the most sensitive corners. If it was the left front, we probably could have gotten away with it, no problem. It is just the way that track works. It’s the most sensitive corner on the car. When it’s not all the way tight, you are going to feel it dramatically and it would continue to just back off to that safety clip and then it would have damaged the hub so bad, that we wouldn’t have been able to get a tire on.”

What does it mean to you to re-sign with Joe Gibbs Racing?

“I said from the very beginning. I want to start and end my career at Joe Gibbs Racing. That’s continued to be the goal and I think this is another step towards that. I don’t know if this is the last one or not, but I know how many more times that I will run for sure, but that doesn’t mean that it’s over at that point. There is still an opportunity to go beyond that as long as I know I’m competitive at a high level. I think people like Kevin Harvick are an anomaly being that fast and that competitive that late in his career. That is going to be really, really hard to do. I don’t think the runway is that long, but certainly it is capable of being one more beyond this one, but that is all pending. You just never know. Next year, I could show up and start running into things that I didn’t even see. Who knows how this goes, but I think being with the Gibbs family as certainly been at the forefront of my goal. I’ve always wanted to end my career in one car. That’s still the goal, and knowing they give me the best opportunity to win a championship is something you don’t want to take for granted because there are only so many championship-caliber race teams out there, and they are certainly one of them.”

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.

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