Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Goodyear 400 Qualifying | Saturday, May 13, 2023

Ford Qualifying Results:
10th – Brad Keselowski
11th – Ryan Blaney
14th – Harrison Burton
15th – Joey Logano
17th – Aric Almirola
19th – Michael McDowell
20th – Kevin Harvick
24th – Todd Gilliland
25th – Austin Cindric
26th – Ryan Newman
27th – Chris Buescher
31st – Chase Briscoe
32nd – Ryan Preece
36th – Brennan Poole

BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 6 Castrol GTX Ford Mustang – “We were a little free, but we had a shot at the pole. I swung for the fence and got it. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the pole, it was the fence, but, all in all, a top 10 starting spot for tomorrow. We want more than that, but it wasn’t a bad deal. It’s just small, cosmetic stuff to the car and we’ll just patch it up and race Sunday.”

RYAN NEWMAN, No. 51 Biohaven/Jacob Co. Ford Mustang – “It’s fun to be back and at my favorite racetrack. I will say that the practice and qualifying session was less dynamic than I thought it was gonna be. The changes from the old car, the shifting and all that stuff, I felt like I adapted to all that stuff rather quickly, but the track is still my favorite, so that made it a lot easier. It’s easier to dance with a girl that knows how to dance.”

WHAT INTRIGUED YOU ABOUT THIS OPPORTUNITY? “Just the opportunity, really. Ultimately, I’m a week on, week off with my kids and just the way the schedule worked out my daughter is not racing. Obviously, there was a change in the driver lineup with the 51 car and gave me the opportunity to come and do this. I literally started this conversation prior to Martinsville and it was by accident when I texted Tommy Baldwin asking him about an opportunity to race a modified. He asked me if I wanted to go to Martinsville and I said, ‘In a modified?’ And he goes, ‘No, in a Cup car.’ And it all worked out for us to put all this together and do this, so thanks to Jacob Companies and Biohaven and Rick Ware Racing to give us the opportunity to, I say, play, but ultimately I feel like we’ve got a pretty competitive car that we just have to execute and see if we can move up from where we start.”

HOW MANY RACES WILL YOU BE DOING? “One at a time.”

WHAT ARE YOUR IMPRESSIONS OF THIS CAR? “It drives pretty good. I mean, it’s totally different with the steering and transmission, shifting and all that stuff. It’s the first time I’ve ever shifted here at Darlington on a competitive lap, so the steering was probably the biggest change. The second biggest change was the way you drive the car and the fact that you can’t afford to get it sideways. I did a couple times just crossing seams and things like that, but it felt like we had a good practice session. I just wanted to get some laps under my belt, take some time and really kind of impress myself, I would say, in my qualifying lap to pick up a second from where we practiced and know that we’re still not top 10 on the speed charts, but, ultimately, it was a good, competitive lap.”

WHAT DOES A SUCCESSFUL SUNDAY LOOK LIKE? “I’ll let you know on Monday. Realistically, I feel like today has been successful and I feel like if we can just progress from where we are today and our competitive level, then Sunday will hopefully take care of itself. I don’t come here expecting to win or lead the most laps or anything like that. I’m realistic in those thoughts, but, ultimately, if we have the opportunity to just keep moving forward in the field and have good execution.”

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE SAFETY ASPECT OF THIS CAR? “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t feel like I was putting myself at a significant risk. I mean, we’re always at some kind of risk, but based off the last 14-18 months proved myself right with some of the injuries and situations that we’ve had and talked about in the Cup garage. Ultimately, I know NASCAR is doing their job to make the cars better as they always have and this has been an entirely new beast that I think has surprised them in some of the aspects that they thought weren’t going to be an issue. Ultimately, I’m here because I feel comfortable and if we do something else, it’ll be at a comfortable place.”

WHAT’S IN YOUR HEART ABOUT BEING BACK AND RACING AGAIN? “I’ve paid attention to everything in respect to the car’s development, driver’s comments, safety, roll bars and crashes and data and things like that. I’ve been in tune, so it’s not like I’ve just been out on the farm making hay. I feel like it’s fun to be back and it’s fun to have the opportunity and I look forward to tomorrow.”

DOES IT GIVE YOU MORE CONFIDENCE TO BE AT THIS PLACE WHERE THE DRIVER MAKES A DIFFERENCE? “It’s definitely nice to have the driver be more a part of the equation as long as you feel like you’re a good driver. If you feel like you’ve got a good car at Daytona, Talladega, Atlanta, whatever you want to call it, then it’s more about the car. I feel like we have a great combination to work towards progress and that’s where we’re starting here. Today is a starting point. I don’t know where the ending point is, but we’ll take it one step at a time.”

DO YOU WANT TO DO MORE? “I told them when I did it. I said, ‘The only way I’m gonna do this and continue to do this is if it’s fun,’ and today was fun, so we’ll see.”

HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT WANTING TO BE A CUP DRIVER AGAIN DURING THIS PERIOD? “I always said if the opportunity came and it was right, then I would do that. Obviously, the Hendrick lineup and the Gibbs lineup and the Penske lineup and what-not are fairly full and intact. I don’t see any changes there. This is an opportunity, especially with this car that’s somewhat equalized the field and the competition. When you tell the guys that they have to put this nut, this washer, this bolt, this whatever and have all these tolerances, then you’re taking a lot of the team characterization out of performance. Obviously, when I left Gibbs was stout. Hendrick was stout and there was obvious advantages per chassis that got grandfathered in. Who had the best nose and things like that, so I think it’s a good opportunity for me to sample where the series is right now.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
GOODYEAR 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MAY 13, 2023

KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 LUCAS OIL CAMARO ZL1, met with the media prior to the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Darlington Raceway. Press Conference Transcript:

WE’RE HONORING THE 75 GREATEST DRIVERS IN NASCAR HISTORY. HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING ON THAT LIST? DID YOU EXPECT THAT AND WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION TO IT?

“Yeah, I guess to answer ‘did I expect that’ – yeah, I did. So it wasn’t necessarily going to be a surprise, but I feel like it’s a cool honor and a humbling one in that to be a part of that group, just with my past successes and all the people that have brought me to this point of my career. It wouldn’t have been possible without the very beginning of time, racing in Las Vegas in legend cars and late models, all the way through the ranks to get to the top. And then all the great team members that I’ve worked with from HMS, JGR and now RCR. Obviously you take that as much as you can with the accolade and the things that you’ve done. To say that you’ve had a really good career is great. Obviously hopefully it’s not over.”

FROM THE DRIVING SIDE OF IT, WHAT MAKES PASSING DIFFICULT AT A PLACE LIKE THIS? WE ALWAYS TALK ABOUT THE ‘LADY IN BLACK’ AND BEING SUCKED IN, BUT WHAT IS IT LIKE TO TRY AND PASS HERE OR NAVIGATE A RACE?

“Yeah, I think the biggest thing that makes it tough is just the one groove, one lane race track here where it’s very narrow and there’s kind of one way in getting around turns one and two, for sure. You go in low; you wash up to the wall and you turn back down off of turn two. (Turns) Three and four are a little bit more racy because you can go low and you can go high. But as tires wear, everybody tends to migrate to the top and be on the top. It’s hard to find that clean air in order to get enough front downforce under your car to make it turn and not get tight behind that guy in front of you. So that’s the biggest deficit and that’s what makes it really, really tough here.

I remember 2008 when they first repaved this place. We were running around and I was leading, and I caught Juan Montoya as a lap car and I couldn’t pass him for 20 laps. Second-place caught me and actually got by me for the lead, and then got by Montoya and I was still stuck behind Montoya. So there is a trend here of how to make passes and stuff. Whoever that is with the slide job better go back and watch recent history because nobody lets you in. So if you try and throw it off into the corner underneath somebody and wash up in front of him, you’re going to crash because that guy is going to stuff it back on your outside. That doesn’t happen anymore these days.. anybody letting you in.”

YOU EXPRESSED SOME FRUSTRATION WITH ROSS CHASTAIN OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. DID YOU FEEL LIKE WHAT HAPPENEND LAST WEEKEND NEEDED TO HAPPEN, AND DO YOU THINK DRIVERS SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO DUKE IT OUT OR WAS IT GOOD THAT SECURITY STEPPED IN?

“OK – so yeah, I’ve had issues with a lot of guys and (Ross) Chastain has been the most frustrating one because he has it every single week. So when it happens with you, because it’s every single week and it’s so repetitive with one guy, then you get even more frustrated because it’s like the guy hasn’t even learned a single lesson or any bullet point of what the problem is. There’s a common denominator. And he’s got an aggressive style. We all want to say that he is and whatever.. well we’re all aggressive to a point because we’re all going to push hard and try to make runs; get spots, get good finishes, things of that nature.

Did that need to happen afterwards? Yeah, I don’t know if Noah (Gragson) was the right guy (laughs). I think Denny (Hamlin) has more reasons to do that. But Noah obviously wanted to show his frustration and I think Noah had a somewhat similar philosophy as I did, where it’s like the same guy all the time. I’m not going to take that crap and go up to him and confront him. I feel like security stepped in about 10 seconds too quick. You let one guy get a hell of a hit and then you block the other guy from getting a hit back. At least let the guy try and then maybe get one in. I would seriously urge NASCAR to go with some hockey rules, you know? Once you get to the ground, we’re going to break it up; or when one of you guys look gassed, we’re going to break it up. Let them get a good 30 seconds in.. it’s going to be way better for TV and ratings are going to go off the charts.”

EVERYTIME SOMEBODY WINS, WE HEAR ‘OH THEY’RE IN THE PLAYOFFS NOW AND THEY CAN JUST FOCUS ON GETTING READY FOR THE PLAYOFFS’. FOR YOU, PSYCHOLOGICALLY, HOW DOES A WIN EFFECT YOU? DO YOU BREATHE A SIGH OF RELIEF AND GO – OK, I’M IN THE PLAYOFFS NOW, I CAN FOCUS ON JUST RACING, OR HOW DOES THAT EFFECT YOU?

“Yeah, there’s a lot of things that change in that. So by being able to get a win, I would say – yes, it relaxes you to a point where you’re able to say OK I’m in the playoffs. You’re not stressed out about every single move all of the time, and what positions gained or loss are going to do for you. I would say for us, for me, right now – having the wins that we have, I’m still super, super frustrated in our last couple of weeks and now dropping to 12th in points I think it is. I’m still under the mindset and thought process to get as many points as we can. Get ourselves up the points ladder. We need to be able to contend for stage points. We have probably the least amount of stage points this year of anybody, so it’s very frustrating in that respect for us. We just have to get our act together and run up front. A lot of that is on me, too. Like me speeding on pit road, right? I’m winning that award this year, but I’m also number one rolling on pit road this year, too. So what’s the risk versus reward there? We’re always going to push and having that win allows you to push. It allowed us to push fuel at Talladega to grab another win. You’re going to put yourself in some tighter spots on restarts and things like that because you do have that win and you’re going to be a little bit more aggressive. As long as you don’t look like Ross Chastain, you’ll be fine.”

IS THE PRESSURE TO WIN – WHETHER THE INTERNAL OR SPONSOR PRESSURE – THESE DAYS CREATING MORE DRIVERS WILLING TO BE AGGRESSIVE MORESO THAN 15 YEARS AGO?

“Yeah, I think a little bit of this car and the parity of this car allows drivers to be more aggressive and push harder because they feel like they’re the difference and they need to makeup the difference if they’re not running upfront or contending every week. So they’re going to push harder.. run into more stuff and run into more guys because they’re trying to get a better finish or whatever out of themselves. You used to have cars that had a little bit of discrepancy between them when you go to the race track. The good guys that ran good would know that they were good and would race for wins, and the others that are 12th on back know they’re place and they’re going to run 12th on back. Well now those guys 12th on back think that if they do some things on restarts and whatnot to get themselves further upfront, that they’re going to finish further upfront. They’re not 100 percent wrong, but there is a place in there where you still have to find your home in the running order.”

HAVE YOU TRIED TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH ROSS (CHASTAIN), OR IS THAT KIND OF LIKE THE DENNY HAMLIN THING WHERE IT JUST FELL ON DEAF EARS AND IT WASN’T REALLY WORTH THE TIME OR ENERGY?

“Yeah, I talked to him I think it was either after the Darlington thing with (Kevin) Harvick here or his next one after that. He asked me a couple of questions and I talked to him about it.. just told him don’t be the headline every week and chill a little bit. Don’t push and force as hard each week. Like those two – whether Harvick won or Chastain – he would have looked a hell of a lot better finishing second to Harvick than he did with a crashed car here at Darlington. So yeah, no he hasn’t learned. He hasn’t listened to anybody and I’m sure there’s more than me that have tried to talk to him. I’m not sure what that is.. I don’t know that guy. Don’t need to know the guy.”

LOOK AHEAD TO THE COCA-COLA 600, WHAT KIND OF MEMORIES DO YOU HAVE ABOUT BRUTON SMITH, THE WAY HE RAN THINGS AND THE WAY EVOLVED THE SPORT OVER THE YEARS?

“Yeah, to me, Bruton (Smith) was just a class act. He obviously had a knack for fans and putting on a show. He hired one of the best of them, Humpy Wheeler, a long, long time go to run Charlotte Motor Speedway. He certainly has done a lot for our sport; with SMI and all the race tracks that they have. Seeing and having a vision of a lot of different things that have come through and he’s kind of led that onto Marcus (Smith), and I feel like Marcus has really done a great job of being a visionary, as well. Trying things and not being afraid to try some things. A couple of them probably not so good ideas.. Texas (Motor Speedway) repave.

With Bruton, give the guy and the family credit where credit is due. They’ve put a lot of time and effort, blood and sweat, into our sport and it’s very appreciated.”

WE’VE SEEN AT TIMES WHERE CREW MEMBERS GET INVOLVED IN FIGHTS. I THINK WITH YOU AND (JOEY) LOGANO YEARS AGO, YOU GOT TAKEN RIGHT DOWN BY CREW MEMBERS. SAME CONCEPT WHERE CREW MEMBERS SHOULD STAY OUT OF IT? THEY WANT TO PROTECT YOU GUYS, BUT DO THEY NEED TO STAY OUT OF IT AND LET YOU GUYS HANDLE IT?

“Yeah, like I said, to a point. Rodeos are eight seconds, right? A round in boxing is three minutes. There isn’t a damn one of us that’s going to make a round of three minutes, I’m going to tell you that (laughs). So if it’s 15-, 20-, 30-seconds, whatever.. come up with a number, start the clock, let’s go.”

AUSTIN (DILLON) HAD A CHANCE TO TEST TIRES UP AT NORTH WILKESBORO. GIVEN SOME OF HIS FEEDBACK, WHAT KIND OF RACE DO YOU EXPECT UP THERE AND HOW MUCH ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO NORTH WILKESBORO AND THE ALL-STAR RACE THERE?

“Yeah, I think it’s going to be interesting, for sure. The tire falloff at that race track is by far the worst I think we’ll ever see. So 50 or 60 lap runs on tires that you have to go – I mean that’s a long time anyways, but it’s not quite 100 laps like late model races or modified races that are going to run there next week. Still, I think you’re going to have to figure out how hard to push. If you’re a guy upfront, do you push for a little while? If you’re a guy in the back, how much do you ride? Is the field going to catchup and are you going to go a lap down? Things of that nature.

I look at Josh Berry probably today as being one of the absolute best of that world, coming in through the late model stock ranks that he did. I remember a race he ran at Myrtle Beach – it might have been the last one at Myrtle Beach – where he fell all the way around to be about a lap down to the leader. He rode there in front of that guy for 40 laps, and then with 30 to go or something, he took off and drove all the way back around, passed that leader and won the race. I have no clue how to do that. I remember me racing at Berlin trying to ride around and save tires, and then the caution came out and there was a restart with 10 or 15 laps to go. I was like – alright, I’m going to get ‘em now and I had nothing to go with. So that’s the biggest thing that I see sometimes, is like how hard are you pushing. Really, you kind of don’t know until it’s time to go. But I think you’re going to see different strategies and if that race goes green the whole way, it’s going to be way more beneficial to the guys that are upfront and have the track position versus if a caution comes out. It’s going to be way more beneficial to those that rode and saved a little bit.”

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. 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.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
GOODYEAR 400
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT
MAY 13, 2023

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 WORLDWIDE EXPRESS / UPS CAMARO ZL1, met with the media prior to the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Darlington Raceway. Chastain Media Availability Quotes:

ROSS, TALK ABOUT THE HONOR OF BEING ABLE TO RUN THE CLASSIC DALE JARRETT PAINT SCHEME ON THE ‘TRACK TOO TOUGH TO TAME’?

“Yeah, it’s all sinking in right now just walking in. And I’m going to do it – I’ve known Mr. Jarrett for a few years. He doesn’t like me to call him that, but I have. In passing in the garage and talking on the phone – he called me after my first Cup win and we talked for a little bit that night. But then walking up here and knowing that we’re walking up here to do something together, it’s just absolutely incredible. I can’t even think about what it’s going to feel like pulling out on the track in that car yet.”

YOU SAID YESTERDAY YOU DON’T WANT TO BE FIGHTING, BUT I’M CURIOUS, WHAT’S THE TRIGGER POINT? WHAT’S THE POINT WHERE YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO TAKE THINGS INTO YOUR OWN HANDS?

“I don’t have any preconceived ideas of what that would be. It’s more just in the moment – living and reacting. But knowing this is big-time auto racing, this is not hockey. I standby last week what happened. I’m not saying that every time in a little bit different situation it’s going to react like that. I want to talk to guys and have conversations, but last week was too far.”

YOU SAID THAT YOU AND NOAH (GRAGSON) TALKED IT OUT MONDAY A LITTLE BIT. CAN YOU WALK ME THROUGH THAT? DID YOU APPROACH HIM OR DID HE APPROACH YOU, AND WHAT WAS THAT CONVERSATION LIKE?

“Yeah, he called me Sunday night. I was still in the garage and I didn’t feel like I had the bandwidth to think about it or talk about it. I was just happy we got out of there with a top-five and was ready to get home. I called him back Monday. I was heading up to Hickory to run a late model stock. I’m kind of doing a lot of this racing stuff backwards and now I’m driving a late model stock at Hickory for the first time. So I called him on my way up there. We talked for a little while and was in a really good place. And then we both went to Millbridge Monday night and with the Chevy program; we ran micros and had a blast. Just bonded over fast, little sprint cars. It was good – just laughing and joking, and we’ve been good at the gym all week.”

HOW DO YOU LOOK AT LEADING THE POINTS AT THIS PARTICULAR POINT OF THE SEASON? HOW IMPORTANT IS THIS REGULAR-SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP TO YOU, AND IS IT MORE IMPORTANT NOW TO HAVE THE BONUS POINTS WITH THE FACT YOU HAVEN’T WON YET?

“Yeah, look I’ll always take one more point than one less. In today’s world, you’re just trying to grab as many points as you can. I missed out on a really big opportunity last week by not staying out for that Stage Two late restart that the No. 22 (Joey Logano) ended up winning. That would have been an – execute on the restart, win the stage and then reset only a couple spots back. Phil Surgen (crew chief) made the call to stay out and to do that. I saw how many people were pitting and I decided to pit. So those little things, I just look at it as I missed 10 points right there. But everybody is missing chunks of points every stage and every race.

I think it’s big. It’s so crazy to think we’re leading the points. But then again, it’s not. We belong there and we belong to be parked at the front of the garage. I’ve been here for the spring Darlington race and parked second from last, so it’s pretty wild to walk down that same line. I still caught myself yesterday coming in ahead of the Truck race and Cup tech and just walking, purposely, from this end to that end to just look at it. I still take these moments to try to realize what all of this is. This isn’t always going to be the case. We’re not always, for the rest of time, we’re not going to be the Cup Series points leader, so some special times right now. If we keep running like this, I fully believe the wins will come.”

ARE YOU FEELING THE PRESSURE? I WAS LISTENING TO THE PODCAST OF KYLE LARSON WITH BRAD SWEET AND HE SAID – ROSS CHASTAIN OWNS IT AND HE SAID HE’S MOVING THE NEEDLE AND THAT HE MAY END UP BEING MORE POPULAR THAN CHASE ELLIOTT. ARE YOU FEELING THE PRESSURE FROM OUTSIDE?

“There’s two things, right? There’s on the track and off. And on the track, I am. I’m comfortable making these guys uncomfortable and that’s not always going to come across well, but I’m OK. Get out of the car and I’m learning to become comfortable in this role. I’m not the guy that grew up wanting to be on camera. I wanted to be like my dad – I wanted to farm watermelons. I wanted to be like all the other guys in our town that we knew and I grew up around. I wanted to drive my three-quarter ton diesel truck to the farm; work, grow a crop and go home. Out there in the field, you can go all day and never see anybody if you want to. Everybody thinks about Florida and beaches, but you come inland where we’re at and there’s nobody out there. It’s something I’m growing into off the track. Sometimes I’ll get on camera and I see it when I watch it back – I’ll kind of bring my draw in and protect, in my mind.

But just being myself is the best thing I can do and if people like it, they do. I’d say last night at the Truck race, it was maybe 70/30, cheers to boos. I’m interested to see what Sunday is. But no matter what, I’m proud to be moving the needle. I hear it, I see it. People come to me, either online or in person, and they’re telling me the good and the bad, and I kind of just walk away and I’m like – that’s pretty wild that they’re watching my racing and they care that much. I’m learning to become comfortable in that role, too.”

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. 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
Goodyear 400 Media Availability | Saturday, May 13, 2023

Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang, stopped by the Darlington infield media center before NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying to answer questions from the media.

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang – CAN YOU BELIEVE HOW MUCH HAS HAPPENED IN A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME WHEN 10 YEARS AGO YOU STARTED WITH TEAM PENSKE AND NOW YOU’RE ON A LIST OF THE 75 GREATEST DRIVERS? “It’s obviously an incredible honor, especially when you look at the other drivers that are on the list and to have your name involved with those guys – a lot of them are ones I grew up watching racing and some that I raced against. A lot of them I remember the first few years of my career kicking my butt and thinking, ‘Boy, I just hope I’m in the sport. Forget being on a list like this.’ I was talking to Walt Czarnecki this week. Afterwards he called me and congratulated me and I thought, ‘You know what? This is really kind of our award because I would never have made it if it wasn’t for you.’ It’s really a shared thing. I was this close of not having a Cup ride and you look at the last 11 years – to rack up enough stats to make that list is pretty cool for me.”

SHOULD SECURITY BREAK UP FIGHTS ON PIT ROAD? “I don’t know. I don’t have an answer for you on that. I’m not a huge fan of tearing up race cars because that’s dangerous, but it’s also probably not safe to have fights on pit road either if they’re not equally matched. A big guy versus a little guy, you might want to go run into a wall. I don’t know. I don’t have the answer. You look at the NHL and sometimes they let them fight and sometimes they don’t. I don’t know. Usually, it never escalates into too much. Typically, it’s just a shoving match or people yelling at each other, but I don’t know. I don’t have an answer.

HOW DOES IT CHANGE YOUR MENTAL FEELINGS AFTER YOU WIN AND KNOW YOU’RE IN THE PLAYOFFS? “It’s a relief for about a day and then you’re back at it again. It’s kind of like one box is checked, but not the ultimate box. It’s like one stepping stone to get there. If your goal is to win the championship, well, first we have to make the playoffs. Now we’ve made the playoffs and now we need to get as many playoff points as possible to stack ourselves into the playoffs the best we possibly can to up our chances. So that’s pressure again. And then you get into the playoffs and it’s, OK, we made it to the next round. OK, we made it to the next round, but we’ve got to do it again. It’s gonna get harder and harder. The NASCAR schedule and point system is there to apply pressure all the time. It is not like it used to be, where you won a race and you’re locked into the playoffs and everyone is stacking up pretty close in the points to where you can have a bad race and it doesn’t matter. It’s not like that anymore. The regular season points it turns into playoff points. It’s about the regular season championship and the top 10 in points is big. Every stage is big. Every race win is now big. You can’t let your foot off the gas. You’ve got to go all the time and the schedule is designed to do that and the points are designed to do that as it should be. That’s what fans want. That’s what I get a little confused sometimes when fans say they want it to be like it used to be. Do you remember what that was? That sucked. This is great. The intensity is ridiculous all the way through the whole season and then each round of the playoffs it just gets more and more. As a driver, I’m never comfortable and I never go, ‘Well, that race really didn’t matter.’ I never say that. I am disappointed after every bad race because there’s a lot on the line.”

CALE YARBOROUGH TOOK YOU AROUND DARLINGTON IN YOUR ROOKIE YEAR. WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER? “I’ll remember it forever. I know that. I don’t sit in the passenger seat very often, but when it’s Cale Yarborough around Darlington I’ll strap in and go for a ride because that’s like the coolest thing you can do. I remember some of the things he told me about how to get around this place and it hasn’t changed much since he raced because it all lined up really, really well about how you get around the place and what to do. Part of it was cool, just sitting in the passenger seat and watching him wheel it around here. That was really neat obviously, but, like I said, his advice really transferred over to the modern day – even to today.”

HOW BIG OF A DEAL IS NEXT WEEK AT NORTH WILKESBORO? “I think the atmosphere is gonna be amazing. I mean, you’ve got two throwback weekends in a row if you ask me. You’ve got this weekend, which is great, and then you’re gonna get North Wilkesboro, which is the most hyped race of the year. That’s the race everyone has been talking about, kind of like the Clash before there was the Clash. What’s it gonna be like right before we went there the first time. Now it’s North Wilkesboro and what’s it gonna be like? Everyone has talked about it. I’m pretty excited to get up there and see what the racing is like. You’ve got a million bucks on the line. It doesn’t matter where you race it’s gonna be intense and exciting, but I think the nostalgia going back there and that excitement that a lot of fans and competitor have as well has added a piece, for sure.”

THE FORMAT IS OLD SCHOOL. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THAT? “Yeah. There’s no reason to change it up until you race there the first time. How do you know what you would adjust? I think tires are gonna be key and that will be important, but let it just be a race. Let it be a normal race and see what it comes out like.”

WHAT IS IT LIKE WITH KEVIN HARVICK IN THE BROADCAST BOOTH? “Kevin does a good job up there. He’s fun to work with. We’ve gotten to know each other really well, whether it’s flying back and forth to some races or being up there in the booth. Obviously, he has an incredible eye for the sport to kind of know what’s going on. He’s been in it for so long he can see it really quickly. He’s obviously got a lot of experience up there over the last few years to be ready for his next venture and I think he’s gonna be great for the sport. That’s one of the things I think is best about Kevin is that he’s not just leaving us high and dry. Kevin has a big fan following. He is very vocal in our sport in a positive way to make it better all the time, and for him to just race and leave would hurt all of us. The fact that he’s staying around to still be involved with the sport, whether it’s just from being around or being on TV and talking to the fans is all really, really good.”

HAS HE GIVEN YOU ANY TIPS ON HIS BROADCAST STYLE? “No. We don’t talk about that. We usually talk about race cars.”