NASCAR CUP SERIES
WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY
ENJOY ILLINOIS 300
TEAM CHEVY POST-QUALIFYING NOTES
JUNE 4, 2022

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL QUALIFYING RESULTS:

POS. DRIVER
4th TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1
10th ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 MOOSE FRATERNITY CAMARO ZL1
15th KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1
16th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1
19th COREY LAJOIE, NO. 7 BUILT.COM CAMARO ZL1
21st ERIK JONES, NO. 43 BOMMARITO AUTOMOTIVE GROUP CAMARO ZL1
23rd DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 TOOTSIE’S ORCHID LOUNGE CAMARO ZL1
24th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 RAPTORTOUGH.COM CAMARO ZL1
25th ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1
26th TY DILLON, NO. 42 CHEVROLET MILITARY APPRECIATION CAMARO ZL1
27th RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 SUNNYD CAMARO ZL1
28th JUSTIN HALEY, NO. 31 LEAFFILTER GUTTER PROTECTION CAMARO ZL1
29th AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 GET BIOETHANOL CAMARO ZL1
33rd JOSH BILICKI, NO. 77 ZEIGLER AUTO GROUP CAMARO ZL1
35th AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 16 GOLD FISH CASINO SLOTS CAMARO ZL1

TOP-FIVE UNOFFICIAL QUALIFYING RESULTS:

POS. DRIVER
1st Chase Briscoe (Ford)
2nd Austin Cindric (Ford)
3rd Christopher Bell (Toyota)
4th Tyler Reddick (Chevrolet)
5th Ryan Blaney (Ford)

· Group A Qualifying – Round One: Ross Chastain led Chevrolet as the fifth-fastest car in Group A, Round One of qualifying, advancing his No. 1 Moose Fraternity Camaro ZL1 to the final round of qualifying.

· Group B Qualifying – Round One: Tyler Reddick advanced to the final round of qualifying after posting the second-fastest lap in Group B, Round One of qualifying in his No. 8 3CHI Camaro ZL1.

· The top-10 lineup of the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway was set after a final single-car, single-lap run. Tyler Reddick qualified in fourth, with Ross Chastain rounding out the Team Chevy top-10 in tenth.

· FS1 will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300 Presented by TicketSmarter at 3:30 p.m. ET Sunday, June 5. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

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.

Richard Childress Racing at World Wide Technology Raceway … The NASCAR Cup Series will make its debut at World Wide Technology Raceway this weekend. Richard Childress Racing has tasted success at the 1.25-mile speedway located near Madison, Ill., racking up two wins with Kevin Harvick in consecutive races in 2000 and 2001. Harvick led 221 of 400 possible laps 55.25 percent) in those races. Harvick gave Childress his first Xfinity Series title as a owner in 2001.

NASCAR Xfinity Series at Portland … This will be the first NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Portland International Raceway. NASCAR has held events in the area at Portland Speedway. The NASCAR Cup Series competed at the half-mile speedway in 1956 and 1957 while the Truck Series held four races at the facility from 1995-1998. Mike Skinner, driving an RCR truck, won the inaugural event in impressive fashion, winning the pole and leading all 200 laps. The NASCAR K&N Pro Series West and Northwest Series competed at Portland Speedway until 2000.

Catch the Action … The Pacific Office Automation 147 at Portland International Raceway will be televised live on Saturday, June 4 beginning at 4:30 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Follow Sunday’s Action at WWTR … The Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway will be televised live on Sunday, June 5 beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1 and will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

This Week’s Get Bioethanol Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway … Although this weekend marks the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway, Austin Dillon does have one start at the track in the NASCAR Truck Series, finishing seventh after starting sixth in 2010.

Delivering Performance On the Track and For the Planet … Austin Dillon will race the Get Bioethanol Chevy at World Wide Technology Raceway, showcasing the performance benefits of racing with earth kind and engine smart bioethanol blended fuel, Sunoco Green E15. Whether it’s delivering cleaner and cooler high octane on the racetrack or a more affordable option for summer road trips, plant-based bioethanol makes a positive impact on our planet. Sunday’s race marks 20 million NASCAR miles driven on Sunoco Green E15, a notable milestone for the environment as NASCAR’s partnership with Get Bioethanol has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent across its three national touring series while also increasing horsepower on the track. Learn more about bioethanol at getbioethanol.com.

AUSTIN DILLON QUOTES:

You’ve competed at World Wide Technology Raceway in the NASCAR Truck Series, but it’s been a few years. What are your thoughts about the weekend?

“Like everyone else, I’m not sure what to expect. It’s been a long time since I’ve raced at Gateway in the NASCAR Truck Series. I remember we did okay in the race, but a lot can change about a track in 12 years. I do think our Richard Childress Racing team has performed well this season, and a mile-long track like World Wide Technology Raceway will play into our strengths. I’ve been spending time on the simulator to prepare for the race, and I feel ready and excited to get there.”

This Week’s 3CHI Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway … Although this weekend marks the first NASCAR Cup Series race at World Wide Technology Raceway, Reddick made three starts at the track in the Truck Series, highlighted by an eighth-place finish in 2015.

3CHI Blazed the Trail for Another Industry First … 3CHI and Richard Childress Racing created another first with their partnership for the 2022 NASCAR season. 3CHI began with roots as a CBD producer and quickly became a pioneer in science-based hemp and cannabis innovation. The company was the first to commercially develop and market Delta 8 THC, and today, 3CHI is an industry leader with unsurpassed product quality and purity as verified by top independent labs and benchmark organizations. 3CHI products are sold in a majority of the United States, and the company produces and markets a variety of gummies, tinctures, lotions, edibles and vape products. All 3CHI products meet federal requirements for full legal compliance, with a commitment to promoting responsible adult use. See 3CHI.com for more information.

TYLER REDDICK QUOTES:

How are you feeling heading into the race weekend?

“There are a lot of unknowns this weekend at Gateway for sure. This is the first Cup race there with the Next Gen car. We’ve spent a lot of time in the SIM preparing for this race but I’m sure once we get on the track there will be other things we’ll need to work on. This practice on Friday afternoon is extremely important to get our 3CHI Chevrolet driving good. I’m excited for this new challenge.”

This Week’s Whelen Engineering Chevrolet Camaro SS at Portland International Raceway … Sheldon Creed will be making his first start at Portland International Raceway, joining the rest of the NASCAR Xfinity Series field for the inaugural race at the Oregon road course. Creed is coming off of a much-needed eighth-place finish at Charlotte Motor Speedway last weekend and looks to maintain the momentum on Saturday afternoon. Creed has six top-10 finishes to his name in 13 starts, with a best finish of sixth coming in the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. He enters this weekend 15th in the series driver standings, 59 points below the Playoff cutline. Creed has three road-course starts to his name with one top-10 finish.

About Whelen … Whelen Engineering is a family-owned company with a pioneering spirit and a passion to protect the lives of those who protect and serve others. The company mission is to provide industry-defining safety solutions around the world, while creating a community of problem-solvers who are inspired to push boundaries and continue our legacy of delivering ground-breaking innovation. As a global leader in the emergency warning industry, Whelen has been trusted to perform since 1952, when George Whelen III invented the first rotating aviation beacon. Whelen now encompasses two state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in Connecticut and New Hampshire with over 750,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing space and the largest design staff in the industry. Every part of every Whelen product is proudly designed and manufactured in America. We embrace quality as our foundation, we celebrate innovative engineering in every product we produce.

SHELDON CREED QUOTES:

What’s your mindset heading to Portland this weekend?

“Road course racing is always really fun, I’m excited to get to Portland and start practicing to see what we’ve got and how the track feels. It’s going to be a challenge for sure, but it will be for everyone, I think. We’ve got some momentum on our side heading into the weekend and I’m hoping we can use some of the information we’ve got to help us. We went out to Portland a few weeks ago for a quick trip but we were still able to take some notes. I’m looking forward to the challenge and getting our Whelen Chevrolet on the track.”

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This Week’s Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet Camaro SS at Portland International Raceway … Like all of the other drivers in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Austin Hill will be making his debut at Portland International Speedway on Saturday in the inaugural event at the Oregon road course. Hill finished 14th last weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. He enters this weekend’s race eighth in the series driver standings. Hill has one top five and one top-10 finish on road courses to his name.

About Bennett Family of Companies … McDonough, Ga.-based Bennett Family of Companies is a woman-owned, Women’s Enterprise Business Council (WBENC) certified, diversified transportation and logistics company. Through its 12 affiliated operating companies, the Bennett Family of Companies delivers integrated transportation and supply chain management solutions worldwide. The company will use race experiences to recruit and retain hundreds of truck drivers for their organization in 2022. For more information, visit www.Drive4Bennett.com.

AUSTIN HILL QUOTES:

What’s your mindset heading to Portland this weekend?

“Portland is going to be fun this weekend. We haven’t been to a road course in a while and I’m hoping that all of the past notes and experiences from road courses will give us an advantage when we get out there first thing Friday. We had the opportunity to run out there in Portland a few weeks ago for a tire test and any extra time on the track is always helpful when you’ve never been there. We’ve just got to keep our Bennett Transportation & Logistics Chevrolet out of all the trouble and keep ourselves on track and we will be up front at the end. That’s all you can really hope for when you go to a new track. Our team is looking forward to bouncing back after our finish at Charlotte.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY
ENJOY ILLINOIS 300
TEAM CHEVY POST-PRACTICE NOTES & QUOTES
JUNE 3, 2022

TEAM CHEVY: TOP-20 IN NASCAR CUP SERIES PRACTICE
5th ERIK JONES, NO. 43 BOMMARITO AUTOMOTIVE GROUP CAMARO ZL1
6th TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1
8th KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1
9th ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 MOOSE FRATERNITY CAMARO ZL1
14th CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1
16th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 RAPTORTOUGH.COM CAMARO ZL1
18th TY DILLON, NO. 42 CHEVROLET MILITARY APPRECIATION CAMARO ZL1
20th AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 GET BIOETHANOL CAMARO ZL1

· The NASCAR Cup Series participated in a 50-minute practice session to kick-off the series’ inaugural race at World Wide Technology Raceway.

· At the end of the practice session, four Camaro ZL1’s placed in the top-10 of the speed charts, with Erik Jones leading the way for Chevrolet as the fifth-fastest car overall.

· Tyler Reddick (6th), Kyle Larson (8th) and Ross Chastain (9th) rounded out the Team Chevy top-10.

· Qualifying to set the lineup for the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series event at World Wide Technology Raceway will take place tomorrow (Saturday) at 10:00 a.m. CT.

· FS1 will telecast the NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300 Presented by TicketSmarter at World Wide Technology Raceway live at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 5. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1; ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 MOOSE FRATERNITY CAMARO ZL1; AND WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 RAPTORTOUGH.COM CAMARO ZL1, met with media after the NASCAR Cup Series practice. Media session highlights:

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 HOOTERS CAMARO ZL1

HOW DID YOU FEEL AFTER THE PRACTICE AT GATEWAY – ABOUT HOW THE SIMULATOR TOLD YOU IT WAS GOING TO BE LIKE OR WAS IT DIFFERENT?

“Yeah, it’s about like everything I’ve watched here before. It’s kind of like a big Martinsville, honestly. It reminds me a little bit of that, just on a larger scale. I think the racing is going to be a lot like Martinsville was this year, too, so it should be good.”

WILL IT BE AS TOUGH TO PASS BECAUSE EVERYONE HAS TO SHIFT ?

“I’m not sure it has as much to do with the shifting as it is just the proximity of the guy in front of you. The entry is pretty narrow, so for you to get some fresh air is pretty difficult to do. So, you’re always kind of following that guy in front of you on entry. It’s hard to position yourself in a different spot to gain some comfort via clean air; therefore, you kind of get to a certain point in disturbed air and it’s going to be difficult to feel as comfortable as you would if you weren’t.”

QUALIFYING TOMORROW IS VITAL?

“Pit stops and restarts will be vital on who wins.”

HAVE YOU SEEN ANY MORE FALLOFF WITH THE TIRE BECAUSE YOU COMPARED IT TO MARTINSVILLE; AND PART OF THE PROBLEM AT MARTINSVILLE WAS THE FALLOFF OF THE TIRE.

“I don’t think the falloff and the shifting was the issue at Martinsville. I really don’t. I feel like it was just the lack of ability of being able to be close to someone on entry. It was very difficult to be right behind a guy without missing your center. I think you have to be in position in the center to pass a guy on exit. You’re not going to pass them unless you’re in a position to do so.

The tire falloff has been minimal at Martinsville for a while, especially when the temperatures are as cold as they were. That wasn’t the first time we’ve seen that. So, I don’t agree with that narrative.”

JUST THE FEELING ABOUT COMING HERE TO ST. LOUIS AND THE INAUGURAL RACE AND THE ENERGY SURROUNDING THIS. I’M SURE YOU’VE HEARD THAT SUNDAY IS SOLD OUT, SO WHAT IS THAT LIKE FOR YOU AS A DRIVER?

“It’s great to come to a new market like this and a market that seems like they want us to be here. It’s always exciting. I did a NAPA event in Litchfield, Illinois, this morning and there were a lot of people there and there was a lot of excitement about the race this weekend. I would say 80 percent of the people that were there are coming to the race and were excited about all the things that were going on here.

I think there’s a lot of traction, so now, we need to make sure we put on a good show number one. And then, we’ve seen this before, where the track gets an influx of people for the first time like they’re going to have this weekend; and the roadways aren’t prepared and we have a lot of traffic. If I was a spectator, I wouldn’t want to sit in four hours of traffic leaving this thing or be late getting in. We had that issue in Nashville and we had that issue in Kentucky years ago. So, I hope we’re prepared this weekend and we’ve learned our lesson there.”

DID YOU FIND ANY QUIRKS ABOUT THIS PLACE THAT YOU DIDN’T EXPECT?

“No – honestly, don’t take this the wrong way, I don’t have it figured out by any means – but nothing really surprised me.”

ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 MOOSE FRATERNITY CAMARO ZL1

HOW WERE THINGS OUT THERE DURING PRACTICE?

“Good. The track is different than what I remember it from the truck races I did in 2018 and 2019. By myself out there, it was fun. The ends are so different and tire falloff is just enough that I was starting to lose grip. I wasn’t really slowing down as much, but I was starting to get loose and get tight. It’s like a new challenge; it’s like a new race track.”

WHEN YOU WALKED IN THIS MORNING AND THE TRACKHOUSE RACING HAULERS WERE ALL THE WAY UP TOWARDS THE FRONT, WAS THERE ANY SPECIAL PRIDE IN THAT OR DO YOU NOT CARE?

“I do care. I accidently walked in from the other end of the garage, so I got to walk down the whole lane and it’s wild. I kept looking around – I mean I knew it, but I was like ‘holy cow’. Just to think that we’re second in points, I feel like we’ve out kicked our coverage a little bit. Week in and week out, we’ve had speed and raking in the points.”

THAT FEELING OF WALKING INTO THE GARAGE, WHERE THE HAULERS ARE AND BEING SECOND IN POINTS – IS THAT A FEELING THAT YOU WANT TO STAY; OR DO YOU THINK EVENTUALLY IT SHOULD BE A NORMAL FEELING FOR YOU GUYS?

“I think it’s human nature to get more comfortable in your surroundings once you’ve done it awhile. Everybody tells me I should expect to be fast. I should expect to be here; I should expect to race with my heroes. But until that day, I don’t really know how that’s going to happen. I mean it is getting more normal, but I still have the same feeling.

Yes, I think I should find some middle ground. I think looking back on this year, I’ll hopefully come back next year and have a different mindset of some things. I hope to evolve; I hope to be better. But I hope that it’s still special to walk into the garage for a long time. I hope that feeling never goes away.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 RAPTORTOUGH.COM CAMARO ZL1

BYRON ON THE FLAT TIRE IN PRACTICE:

“I think it was just not knowing what our travels were going to be and putting ourselves in a little bit of a bad spot there. We definitely kind of had some ride quality issues down the straightaway. I started bouncing and I was a little bit nervous about it. I’ve had a couple of them, so as soon as it went, I knew. Luckily, it was on the straightaway.”

IS IT SOMETHING THAT YOU’RE CONFIDENT THAT IT WILL BE FIXED TOMORROW?

“Yeah, it was fine the next two runs. I think we ran 15 laps the next run and we were fine. The base of the car seemed decent, we just made kind of a testing change that last run and tried to learn some stuff. It wasn’t what we needed for right now.”

YOU HAVE 13 PLAYOFF POINTS; YOU AND ROSS (CHASTAIN) HAVE THE MOST. THERE ARE AROUND EIGHT DRIVERS WITHIN SEVEN POINTS. TYPICALLY IN SOME YEARS, WE’VE SEEN BIG GAPS. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE REST OF THE SUMMER AND INTO THE PLAYOFFS?

“Yeah, it’s going to be a dog fight this year. We’ve had speed, but then we’ve had some weeks where we just miss it. We’re just learning this car. I feel like the times that we’ve missed it, it’s definitely tough to overcome. I feel like we’re still trying to find our footing; but when we nail the setup, we’re great and we can win. And when we miss the setup, we’re like 15th. So, we’ve got to figure out how to put our window closer together so we’re not a first-place car or a 15th-place car. It’s just a matter of figuring out those little things; me doing a good job communicating; and just bringing us together so we learn this car even better.”

Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

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.

Toyota Racing
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

MADISON, Ill. (June 3, 2022) – Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr. and Christopher Bell were made available to media after practice for the World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway race this Friday:

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

How is this race going to play out? Is it going to be decent or one-lane?

“I don’t know. Turns one and two, it seemed like were starting to widen out a little bit. Hopefully, we can have multiple lanes. (Turns) three and four will probably be a little bit of a challenge to have multiple lanes, but you never know. Our cars don’t like single lane tracks. They like ones that can spread out, hopefully, this one of the better short tracks that we have. It drives like a short track. It’s something that we certainly need to work on – short, flat tracks, it seems like the cars struggled, but you never know. This weekend could be different.”

Is the best comparison Phoenix or New Hampshire?

“Yeah, I think the tires are similar as well. My team told me that there is hopefully some stuff we are going to learn for those tracks here.”

Is this race important for the championship?

“Yeah, maybe, but we are so far off ways from it. Teams are still developing and learning like that, that I just don’t know you are going to take whoever runs up front here and say wow, they are going to be the championship favorite. There is just too much time between the two.”

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Reser’s Fine Foods Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing

How was practice?

“Not nearly as fun as I remembered. We were struggling there a little bit. I don’t know. It felt pretty and we were slow on the charts, so we have some work to do figure it out. We have 20 minutes now to get ready for tech. It’s going to be hard to figure out, but we will see. Tomorrow is a new day, so hopefully, they will make the right changes and we just debriefed and tried to figure out what we need to do. We will just have to see what happens.”

Is it nice to be able to make those changes unlike most weekends?

“We got to change a lot more in practice than we normally do. Unfortunately, we didn’t really hit on anything that helped it, so I don’t know if we would have been better off to have the old style. I don’t know. Short tracks have been a little tough this year for us to figure out this thing. I don’t think we have really gained on it much, but you never know. Track position is going to be important here, strategy, all of those things. Stay positive, keep working on it. Hopefully, we have a good qualifying run in the morning and make the car better for the race. Do a good job executing, which we haven’t been doing as well as we need to lately, but we are working on it, so we will see.”

Does the track feel like it has any characteristics of any other tracks?

“Not really. It’s kind of unique how this place is, especially with all of the shifting that we are doing. It’s unique track. The transitions into the corners, downshifting twice in turn one, it’s just really, really different. Once you get into the corner in three and four, it’s really similar to Phoenix, I think – other than it’s more bottom dominate. You can’t really move around as much. (Turns) one and two are not like anything we go to. Fun track when your car is working well, but we were off pretty far to start.”

CHRISTOPHER BELL, No. 20 Rheem Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing

How do you like coming to a new facility?

“I think it is really good to change the schedule up. I’ve been a big proponent of going into new venues, going to new tracks. I think every year we should go to a new schedule – have different places to go, really diversify. Going to tracks, especially two times a year, like we’ve been doing, I feel like it dilutes the event. It would be really good if we could go to venues once a year or maybe every other year and just rotate the schedule to make every event more special and popular. I think it would make every race a bigger deal.”

Do things change for you when you go to new venues?

“It was definitely different today like talking to everybody – we didn’t know how to get into the infield. It is cool to go to new venues for sure.”

Did you find any quirks about this track besides the tight turn one and two?

“I ran the truck races here a couple of years ago and it was on the old pavement and now with the repave it was really smooth, but with (turns) one and two being super tight, your throttle application and brake application is really different than (turns) three and four.”

How was your practice overall?

“It was a struggle. I’m glad that we have time to work on the car now. This was probably one of our worst practice sessions of the year and now we have time to look at our teammates – I think some of our teammates were respectable. None of them are great, but at least get our stuff closer for tomorrow and Sunday.”

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About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 43 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With the more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, more than a quarter of the company’s 2021 North American sales were electrified.

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
Enjoy Illinois 300 | Friday, June 3, 2022

Joey Logano, driver of the No. 22 Ford Mustang and Ryan Blaney, driver of the No. 12 Ford Mustang, both for Team Penske, finished 1st and 2nd in the opening Cup Series practice session at World Wide Technology Raceway Friday afternoon. Blaney and Logano met with media following the practice.

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford Mustang — WHAT DID YOU THINK ABOUT BEING BACK OUT THERE ON THIS TRACK? “I’ve missed it. This is a fun race track. It was already fun out there and memories are coming back from 2008, although they repaved it and the track is a fair amount smoother than it used to be. Turn 1 and 2 is one of the best corners in our sport. You can move around and try different things and you are shifting. It is fun to be able to get off the gas pedal and on the brake and manage both pedals again. I have enjoyed that. 3 and 4 is a part of the track where you really gotta push yourself and hustle it. It makes for a pretty fun track to go around by yourself. We will see what the race is like. It seems like 1 and 2 are already taking rubber and cars are moving up the race track already.”

I ASSUME YOU ARE SHIFTING. ANY ISSUES? “Yeah, we are shifting. I felt like a trucker with as many gears as I grabbed.”

CAN YOU TALK ABOUT WHAT 50-MINUTES OF PRACTICE GIVES YOU? DID YOU LEARN A LOT IN THAT TIME? “Yeah, it is a lot more fun because you have items you can actually try and change and try to make your car better. You can throw tires on it and get clean reads and actually improve your car and feel confident about what you changed. So that is fun.”

ARE YOU COMFORTABLE WITH THIS TRACK NOW? “Yeah, as comfortable as you can be without racing yet but I feel pretty comfortable, yeah.”

ANY CHARACTERISTICS OF OTHER TRACKS? “Probably Phoenix. I think Phoenix is probably the closest comparison you can make with 3 and 4 to 1 and 2 at Phoenix. There are also some differences. YOu have a flat long corner at Phoenix and a banked corner in Phoenix even though the shape is a triangle and this is a true oval. The way the corners are laid out there are some similarities there. You are definitely slowing down a lot more in 1 and 2 here than you do at 3 and 4 in Phoenix.”

ARE WE MAKING TOO MUCH OF THE SHIFTING HERE? “I think it is just unique and different. To hear third gear on an oval is probably surprising to most. It was surprising to me when I first heard it but it is what it is. We are going to shift and that is okay. I think it is fun. It adds something to it. Are we talking about it too much? I don’t know. Whatever. It is probably the unique story until the race starts and then you will have a new story to talk about.”

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes

NASCAR Cup Series

Enjoy Illinois 300 | Friday, June 3, 2022

Page 5

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Dent Wizard Ford Mustang — HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR PRACTICE SESSION? “I thought practice went fairly decent. We got a lot of laps in and I thought our Mustang was fairly good. It is a neat place. I raced here a long time ago but passing is going to be very rare on Sunday. That is the best way I can put it. If you get behind somebody you are stuck and can’t go anywhere. Hopefully the track widens out. Hopefully they do something about that. I figured they would have done something before we came here. I thought our practice was decent but it puts a bigger emphasis on qualifying up front tomorrow and then trying to stay up front.”

DO YOU THINK IT IS TOO NARROW TO PUT ON A GOOD SHOW SUNDAY? “The racing groove is just too narrow, yeah. These cars, it is going to be the same thing as Martinsville, a bigger Martinsville. I felt like in practice what traffic was like and they definitely need to do something. This racing groove is narrow. I would have thought they would add some resin or something. Who knows. Maybe we will be able to move around. Hopefully the trucks will. That is all you can do, hope.”

HOW MUCH DID YOUR TRUCK EXPERIENCE HERE HELP YOU TODAY? “It took me a little bit to kind of remember the place. That was eight years ago and it feels like a long time ago. I did have some things I remembered about it but it took me a handful of laps to get up to speed. I do think it helped a little bit. I think it helps the guys who have been here recently. Harrison Burton was really fast right out of the gate and he was here just a couple of years ago. Some of those guys that have been here recently I think it helps them out but I think it did help me a little. I am just trying to dig back into the memory bank of what it was like.”

DO YOU THINK IT WILL PLAY A FACTOR IN THE RACE ON SUNDAY, AN ADVANTAGE TO GUYS THAT HAVE BEEN HERE RECENTLY? “I don’t think so. Everyone learns so quickly and get up to speed so fast. Even if you have never been here I think you will learn it really quickly. I don’t know if it will be big. It might have helped in practice to get them going and getting up to speed fast. Everyone gets used to it after 50 minutes.”

Toyota Racing – Kyle Busch
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

MADISON, Ill. (June 3, 2022) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch was made available to media prior to the World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway race this Friday:

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Snickers Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing

What can you use from your past history here?

“Your visuals and your frame of reference I feel like – the inside white line and the curbing. That doesn’t seem like it has changed much, so obviously being able to remember some of that once you get out there but besides the that, the way the cars drive, the way the cars are is irrelevant, not even close to the same as those 2005, 2006 and 2009 Xfinity cars were when I ran here – I think those are the three years I ran here – I don’t know that it is going to be similar.”

Do you remember those races well?

“I remember winning in ’09, but ’05 and ’06, I do not remember.”

What should be done with the All-Star race?

“I don’t know – an off weekend. Seriously. I’ve won this year, so I don’t know if it’s how the calendar works or leap year but having an off week would be nice. This question was asked last week, and I said – we’ve done enough with the All-Star race in years past that now every race is now an All-Star race. Stages started in the All-Star race; double-wide restarts started in the All-Star race. Other things started in the All-Star race, so we now have that in our everyday racing on every single weekend. It’s not that it’s different, it’s just that you are racing for a million dollars in that one particular race, but honestly, I think second-place takes home what a regular Xfinity Series win is throughout the Xfinity season. It is quite a financial jump, yeah, so. I think I went too far there.”

What has been the biggest surprise and biggest frustration with the Next Gen car?

“I’ll start with the biggest frustration. I think passing, traffic. This car is worse in traffic than the previous car. I feel like all of the underbody stuff is not at all what we anticipated it to be. The cars drive fun. They are good. The pleasant part of it is that they drive good when they are by themselves, and they have full air. If what we were striving to do was to better with cars in traffic, we did not do that. That’s kind what I feel like has been the biggest struggle in myself and around my team is some of that, so what do you do to fix that? I don’t know. I think there is a Martinsville test in the next week or two and I’ve been highly politicking to take all of the underbody off and let us go make a couple of runs with that and see what we can figure out with that. It would also save the team owners a heck of a lot of money if we trashed those components and went on without them from here on it. It wouldn’t hurt my feelings.”

Have you noticed that the intermediates have become more competitive with the new car?

“There’s definitely been the good guys. The guys that are good can come through traffic better than the guys that are mediocre or the guys that aren’t very good can’t come through traffic. I guess when you are frustrated that you can’t come through traffic you need to get your stuff better, but you can’t really do that throughout a race. It’s hard to change enough on those cars to make a big enough difference in the event, while in the event. I guess to me, I won’t argue that fact. Unfortunately, we could’ve should’ve won Vegas, could’ve should’ve won Kansas. A Toyota car did win Kansas. We were fast up front at Charlotte and then when we spun again the underbody – we killed the underbody. The car was terrible the whole rest of the day all because of a spin. I don’t know that spinning while battling for the lead to stay in the lead to have a potential to win a stage. People would say, well, why don’t you just concede the position? Because there are stage points in 30 laps or so. It’s just a matter of trying hard and trying to drive the thing. Sometimes they step out from underneath you and you would like to not have to pay such a huge penalty.”

Would tires make more of a difference if they had more of a fall off at these short tracks?

“Yes, I believe that tires being the name of the game. That’s the first thing that touches the pavement – it’s very important. I’ve been slated to do the Martinsville test, so I hope that I can do my due diligence and do my job to help with that product and make that what it needs to be, but I also need help around me with the decision makers in our industry to listen to input and be able to utilize that to understand what will make a good race.”

What do you think about changes to Sonoma this season?

“This car is faster on the road courses, because it has more grip. It is a more central built racecar meaning that it’s not just built to go left. I don’t think the race will be any much longer unless (Will it be more competitive?). It should be. All of the cars are the same right? So, it should be more competitive. It’s just a matter of who runs over who – if we look like the local go kart track or we look like professionals. That will determine the race length.”

Toyota struggled at Phoenix; do you worry that is going to carry over to here?

“I don’t know. You can kind of compare Phoenix, Richmond, Loudon, Gateway – those all kind of fit in the same family. Loudon and Gateway I think for sure are really close. Phoenix, really close – just places that are harder to pass. Aero means more. Being out front, clean air, being at the bottom of the racetrack, line wrapping the curbs, all of that sort of – there is curbs here, rumble strips, whatever. Phoenix is kind of more open. With the aero deficiencies we discussed earlier, with Martinsville not being great, Phoenix not being great, am I looking forward to this weekend? Probably not. That’s the short answer. I do feel like we have learned more and hopefully enough about this car that we are better this weekend.”

With the Playoff point leaders being bunched together, does that make you focus more on getting those points?

“My answer to that or my mindset to that is you want to create some separation for yourself amongst the rest of your competitors. That betters you throughout the Playoffs. With everyone being so close together and keeping bunched up and with the season being as unpredictable, up and down for everybody, Playoffs could be that exact same way – where there are just way more unknowns. I think it was (Jeff) Gluck who asked a few weeks ago, who is your championship favorite right now? We are all like who knows? I feel like that you are still at that point to say the Gibbs guys have been fast at the mile-and-a-halves. I would say the TrackHouse guys have been fast about everywhere. The Phoenix style track we struggled. The Penske guys were a bit better. There was an SHR (Stewart-Haas Racing) car that won that race. Again, I don’t even know where to go, but certainly Playoff points are always on everybody’s minds. That was on my mind last week in the first stage trying to win that first stage to get that Playoff point knowing how important those are going to be when it comes time.”

Your brother, Kurt, is coming up to help with Brexton’s racing tonight. Is that helpful?

“No. (laughter). Too many cooks in the kitchen. You need one Chief and the rest Indians. Yes, I have one guy who does our program, and we race junior sprints, outlaw karts, quarter midgets, now I’m adding a micro to that. We’ve got a lot going on. I beat on Aaron a little bit just the fact that let’s get some stuff done – let’s get the cars built. They should be sitting there ready to go. He’s like ‘In what time?’ But my dad’s there. I really don’t know what my dad does (laughter). I think he creates more chaos than he helps, sometimes. He’s a little difficult as you can imagine (laughter). Do I need another guy? Yes. I need another guy, so if anyone is out there that is looking. I do need another guy. Now this job does not pay great, right? It is Brexton Busch that is paying you, so he doesn’t have a whole lot of income right now. He’s working on it, but we are working hard. Kurt (Busch) is coming which is great. A little bit of help from the uncle. He can about set air pressures, so I’ve just got to tell him what I want.”

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About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 43 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With the more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, more than a quarter of the company’s 2021 North American sales were electrified.

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.

Toyota Racing – Kurt Busch
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

MADISON, Ill. (June 3, 2022) – 23XI Racing driver Kurt Busch was made available to media prior to the World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway race this Friday:

KURT BUSCH, No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota Camry TRD, 23XI Racing

Can you talk about your preparation for this weekend?

“It’s exciting to go to a new market for our sport, for the Cup Series. Just the excitement here in the St. Louis area is very similar when we went to Road America. We had Nashville, again, it’s the newness and the fun of preparing for something different and then experiencing it. Our team at 23XI with the simulator with TRD and Toyota’s help. That’s been the best sequence and I’m happy that we have an hour of practice and a qualifying session tomorrow. We have like a normal – well the old normal – of a nice Friday, Saturday, Sunday sequence. For me, that’s the best rhythm to get into as a driver. Raced here 22 years ago in the Truck Series. It has been fun to tell that story. We were at Brexton’s (Busch, Kurt’s nephew) race last night over at the dirt track. Tons of fans coming up all excited about race weekend, so it was fun to circle around with everything. Yes, I do remember 22 years ago racing the trucks. I was leading with about 10 to go. We were trying to stretch the fuel and ran out of gas, but it is a fun racetrack to race on and I think it’s going to put on a good show on Sunday.”

What is like coming to a new market as a driver?

“I think NASCAR has done a good job. Ben Kennedy, Steve Phelps, the whole NASCAR team. We just didn’t arrive here by planning it a month ago – this has been years in the making with all of the different schedule changes and it’s exciting. With the tracks all being locked in, with the contract with the TV or whatever that was – with SMI, ISC, all of that has seemed to dissolve and we have all of these new opportunities. When it’s new, yeah, things are different but it’s fun and I like that. For me, driving rally cars, IndyCars, Pro Stock in the NHRA, I’ve always challenged myself with new things and different things, so this weekend as a veteran it’s terrible because for a certain degree it’s something new and something different.”

How important is it to have the racing governing bodies working together?

“I think all of the motorsport groups that are here have all – if this one is making a move, this one is helping. It’s now a collective effort. That’s what I feel like. It’s key. With the race fans like last night, they are there watching all of the different divisions. (Kyle) Larson is running the midgets. He’s running the late models. Brexton’s (Busch, Kurt’s nephew) running two divisions and I told my little brother (Kyle Busch) that he is understaffed so I’m going again tonight to try to help with Brexton’s cars. It’s fun. The fans love all different types of racing. A girl I met last night sitting on her golf cart said I’m not much of a dirt track person, I’m more of a drag racing person but we are going to race on Sunday too. That’s sort of the vibe, I think. Everything just feels new to this area just with Cup group showing up, but this is some of the best dirt track racing in the country. I heard the sequence is how high the corn grows, that means it is better for dirt racing. The corn grows really tall around her; that means the dirt was awesome last night, just watching it. The stickiness and how fun the dirt track was.”

How grateful are you going to be to get an off weekend here shortly?

“The off weekend after Sonoma is going to be very welcomed. Our team knows we have worked as hard as we have, but it is nice to have a reset to get ready for the second half of the year. The summer months leading into the Playoffs have those different style tracks within them. Those are things that will help us grow as a team. Also, as we get closer to the Playoffs, we need to prep for those tracks – just taking it in chunks. But yes, an off weekend will be nice just to get away and have everybody have their time with their family.”

Are you working closely with your teammates or the other Toyotas in the Cup Series?

“I think the easiest way to explain it is with the six cars there is two agendas, and you have three drivers doing it this way and three this way to help confirm and cover as much ground and then everybody can circle back around because it is not an impound. We can still change things after practice tonight. That’s my normal feel. I can change right front camber. I can change a right rear spring, whereas most of the races this year is impound. Whatever you show up with is what you have basically. It’s nice to get into extra detail today and for me it’s just getting out there and getting acquainted with the track and verifying shift points and seeing what the simulator has for comparability to real life.”

What should be done with the All-Star race?

“I raced in the All-Star race. I didn’t think it was not good. I did my best to try to win it and put on a good show. I don’t have a solution to your question right off the bat. There is different tracks and different atmospheres that you can throw at the All-Star race, whether it’s a short track, or a mile-and-a-half like we’ve been on. Daytona, restrictor plate style. There’re so many options, and maybe that is something we can look at. I don’t have an exact answer, but again, I think Bubba (Wallace) said it a week or so ago after the All-Star race, and that’s where the tracks and cities bid on it to build up the hype and make it a big event before you even show up.”

What are your feelings on Phoenix getting the championship race for another season?

“I think Phoenix is a great track. It’s a great market. NASCAR owns the track, and they own Homestead, where we were at for 20+ years. I think it is almost a bridge of the last question. The All-Star race is an important staple in the sport, just as the championship race is the most important and we can move it around and shake it up and take it to different places and have the cities bid on it and want to host it. Again, some of the northern tracks may be blocked out just due to weather. Who knows what TV is going to bring us on the next contract, where their markets will be important. There are a lot of factors involved. Just keeping it real and keeping it fun.”

Looking forward to Indianapolis, could these cars run better on the oval versus continuing on the road course?

“It’s tough to answer. I think the racing has shown really well in certain tracks, certain situations, whether it’s the short run or the long run speed that we still need to have more stability in because left rear tires are wearing out more aggressively than we thought. To me the quickest answer is watching the Indy 500 and racing in it a few years back, there is options for downforce that teams have in other forms of motorsport. In NASCAR, we’re basically boxed into this very small box of adjustments. Let the teams have more downforce that they can take out of the front or put in the front, in the rear or out of the rear. That would create a window for guys have this package and guys having that package at the same style track. That might open things up to who has short run speed versus long run speed in a different way or a different opportunity.”

Do you think taking off the diffuser can help with short track races?

“That bridges right off that last question. As aero and diffusers and front splitter and how the airflow works and how it looks in the wind tunnel with one car doesn’t necessarily act the same as two cars out on the track in real life conditions. Again, it’s a balance and learning and applying it the right way. I think this summer test session at Martinsville is where they are going to take the diffuser off to help see what it does for short track balance and then you have to execute a long run while you are doing that and it is tough to do when you only have the 10 cars or so that are there versus the 40 that start the race. You just have to keep piling up information – not necessarily looking or collecting data – let’s apply it and let’s go for it.”

Do you think this track is similar to Phoenix?

“This is as close as you will get to a Phoenix sequence in track style, so that is how we have prepped to show up here. This is an important race because of the Phoenix championship race on what data we can gather here. Weather is perfect. It’s like 85 this weekend and that’s probably what we will see in Phoenix for the finale. This is an important weekend for a championship style effort in November.”

Can you compare the different celebration styles for the different owners you have competed with?

“There’s the different rival points on how you get to those wins whether it’s building a team up like this year or Jack Roush and Roger Penske and their legendary heritage in motorsports and how they have had the Cup team there already and asked me to come in and just perform for wins. Where Toyota and Monster and this whole project with 23XI asked me to come in as a veteran and build the team up. I have strong emotions, I guess, of how each win happened or unfolded, but again there’s the respect. There’s the understand that this is their team and it’s not me. Each one has their own unique way of doing things. I remember celebrating with Jack Roush in Detroit at the company’s headquarters. I remember going to Nantucket with Roger Penske to his vacation house to have Michael Jordan send me back his rookie card that I had as an ongoing structure as how we were going to build the team. Those are all moments that I will remember forever and I’m very grateful for each of the teams that I have raced for to have opportunities to win. Just like with Barney Visser. We never won together, but there was always that family atmosphere and then with Stewart-Haas, with Gene (Haas) and Tony Stewart, there was different was that we put parties together and functions afterwards.”

Have you figured out what you are going to do with the Michael Jordan card?

“It’s in the safe, but I think with the Daytona 500 entry blank, the card and then something to symbolize the Kansas Speedway win in the Jordan Brand car, that will be how I think I will put the display together. I’ve got to get in my art frame mode and put it together.”

Would tires make more of a difference if they had more of a fall off at these short tracks?

“As far as the tire and short tracks, there is always that balance that drivers want as far as a tire that if you push it to hard you end up wearing it out and slipping sideways and struggling towards the end of the run. There’s a durability question and then there is the flat out – you want a tire that is able to grab each of the track’s asphalt the right way. Tire codes that might work at Phoenix might not be the best application for a Loudon or the best application for Richmond. I think Goodyear, NASCAR and the teams just have to continue to work together in a frame of mind to put on the best show possible, to have durability and to give the car the grip it needs, but also if you step over that line, the driver then has to pay the penalty.”

#

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs more than 48,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 43 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With the more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, more than a quarter of the company’s 2021 North American sales were electrified.

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
Enjoy Illinois 300 | Friday, June 3, 2022

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Light Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing, met with media members prior to the first practice session at World Wide Technology Raceway Friday afternoon.

KEVIN HARVICK, No. 4 Ford Mustang — WITH A NEW TRACK LIKE THIS, HOW MUCH DO YOU USE THE FORD SIMULATOR TO PREPARE? “Yeah, we use it ever week just to try to familiarize ourselves and help the guys with their sim stuff and try to develop and advance the simulator. So, yes, the answer to that is yes.”

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT ON A WEEK LIKE THIS COMING TO A NEW TRACK? “Well, it does really depend on the week. It is important from a development side more than I would tell you it is important from my side but without the driver feedback, it is hard to develop it correctly and properly with the pre and post and all the things you need to do. As you go forward it just becomes more important every year in my opinion as you get less track time. The more relevant it is, the better off you are going to be.”

THEY ARE SAYING THIS TRACK IS PHOENIX-ISH AND NEW HAMPSHIRE-ISH. ARE THERE THINGS THIS TRACK DOES THAT FITS YOUR STYLE? ARE YOU OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THIS TRACK BECAUSE OF THOSE THINGS? “It is obviously a flat race track and I think as you look at this particular car it is kind of a crap shoot every week until you have some notes and know what you fight and where you are good or bad. We were all good at Phoenix, so hopefully some of that carries over. I would consider this a much different race track than Phoenix, just because of turns 1 and 2 and how unique it is with possibly downshifting twice and all the things that could happen. So, the expectations and the things that happen and don’t happen, I would have told you that last week was going to be just a horrendous race after Texas. It wound up being pretty exciting. It is really hard to tell what is going to happen until you actually just get out there and go.”

WOULD YOU PREFER THAT YOU GUYS DIDN’T HAVE THE ABILITY TO SHIFT HERE? “No, I think it would be way worse if you didn’t shift. I think I ran my first race here in probably 1998 in the Truck Series. I remember shifting in the Busch Series car. That corner is so tight down there that you have to be able to have something to get it out because otherwise everyone just stomps the throttle and it doesn’t go anywhere because it isn’t turning any RPMs. I like less rules. The less rules the better. It is easier to interpret.”

WHAT SHOULD BE DONE WITH THE ALL-STAR RACE? “That is out of my pay grade. I can tell you we had a fantastic race last week. I think as you look at that, and you look at the Clash, you have some pretty good options. One is a quarter-mile in a football stadium and one is a mile-and-a-half long. We have had some great races as we have gone through the season and going to different venues and having different things happen. If it was mine, I would do things probably in a different way, but it is not mine, I just drive. It is like I tell my son, make a couple billion dollars and then you can buy it and decide what the schedule looks like. I think you have to respect that part of it. Other people’s decisions that are running businesses to what they think is appropriate. We have had a lot of good races this year, so you have options. You will know where it all stands when you get done with Phoenix and you have run at all the tracks.”

BASED ON WHAT YOU HAVE SEEN AT THE 1.5 MILE TRACKS THIS SEASON WITH THIS CAR, DO YOU THINK THAT IS ENOUGH TO CONSIDER GOING BACK TO THE OVAL AT INDIANAPOLIS? “It could be the greatest race on earth. What is the real ingredient that made Charlotte so much better than Texas? I don’t know. I don’t think anybody knows. You just have to do it. I think that would be the only way you would find out. It is kind of a stumper to try to figure out exactly what the ingredients are that make a good race or a bad race and what tracks are good and what tracks are bad. I wish somebody could tell me because I would have bet a million dollars last week that Charlotte was going to be horrendous. Then all of a sudden we are running up on a part of the race track that we haven’t run in five or six years. I have quit trying to guess what my car is going to drive like, what race is going to be good, what race is going to be bad, because there is no rhyme or reason to it. I think that is just because there are so many new variables that we all just don’t completely understand and it is kind of trial and error. I don’t know. I hate driving into the Brickyard and driving backward down the straightaway and driving the road course. I think it is terrible for our sport and almost degrading to a certain degree that you take the best racing series in the country and take it to what most would consider one of the greatest race tracks in the world but race on the road course.”

IT WAS ANNOUNCED THIS WEEK THAT PHOENIX WILL HOST THE CHAMPIONSHIP RACE AGAIN IN 2023. YOU HAVE TALKED IN THE PAST ABOUT A WANT TO MOVE THAT RACE AROUND. DO YOU ACCEPT IT AT THIS POINT? “It is kind of like the All-Star race. There are so many variables and factors that go into it from a business standpoint and from a city standpoint. The crowds have shown up and wrapped their arms around it and they are good at hosting those types of events. There is way more that goes into it than just my opinion on what I would do if I was spitballing things to try to create something that was exciting. It is a much deeper mix of things that have to be decided from a business standpoint and there is a lot more that goes into it than what I would do just because it sounds fun. It is way more in-depth than that. I think the races have been good and the city hosting it has been great and the fans have shown up and that is what we want, we want people to show up and watch us race and that is the most important thing.”

YOU ARE 31 POINTS ABOVE THE PLAYOFF CUT-OFF RIGHT NOW. DO YOU LOOK AT STUFF LIKE THAT RIGHT NOW? DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO WIN? HAVE YOU STARTED TALKING ABOUT RACE STRATEGY IN TERMS OF POINTS? “Just tell me where I am at the end of 26. If we are in, we are in. If we are out, we are out. We are either good enough or not good enough. I have so much other stuff to think about to try helping with the cars and going to different places every week that you can’t really count points.”

DO YOU THINK THERE WILL BE ANY PLAYOFF SPOTS ON POINTS? “I don’t know. I will tell you in 11 weeks or 12 weeks, whatever it is.”

AFTER RUNNING THE CAROUSEL THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS AT SONOMA THEY ARE GOING BACK TO THE SCHUTE THIS YEAR. WHICH DO YOU PREFER? “Yeah, the carousel just didn’t work very good for where our cars were in time. I ran the carousel back in 1995 in the southwest tour car and I don’t remember it being like it was the last couple years where the cars didn’t really go through well and it kind of took that Turn 4 to Turn 7 passing opportunities away and just kind of slowed the speed down. I don’t know. It just didn’t feel great with our car so I think it is a good move to go back where we were. I think that fits these cars better.”

ANY BIG PLANS FOR THE OFF-WEEKEND? HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR YOUR GUYS TO HAVE THAT TIME TO KIND OF REJUVENATE AFTER THE YEAR THEY HAVE HAD TRYING TO PUT THIS CAR TOGETHER? “Yeah, I think it is important. I think for us, having that early season off-week has really been missed this year because you didn’t have time to kind of get your thoughts together. I thought it would be great to have no off weekends but I would retract that statement quickly after not having that early-season off-weekend. I wish they would just shut the shops. I wish it would be mandatory doors locked all week, like F1 to make sure those guys don’t get overworked. I know a lot of them will take some time and hopefully take a week and kind of get rejuvenated and go from there.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY
ENJOY ILLINOIS 300
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
JUNE 3, 2022

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice session at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway. Press Conference Transcript:

KYLE, YOU HAVEN’T RACED HERE HAVE YOU? YOU’VE RACED CLOSE BY, BUT NOT AT WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY. CAN YOU TELL US HOW YOU’VE PREPARED FOR THIS? ARE YOU EXCITED AND WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO?

“Yeah, I haven’t raced here. I’ve raced at Tri-City (Speedway), which is 15 minutes from here. Pevely (Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55), which is probably 35 minutes; and then at the Dome. So, I’ve raced all around it, but never here.

I’m excited. I haven’t had too much time at all to prepare. I hadn’t gotten to run any laps here to test or nothing on a simulator. So, we’ll get the hang of it hopefully quickly here later on today. I’m excited about the opportunity. I’ve always wanted to race here, so it’s nice that we have Cup weekend here now.”

DID YOU WANT TO DO THE SIM AND JUST COULDN’T GET IN; OR DID YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’RE JUST SO USED TO COMING TO TRACKS AND LEARNING THEM THAT YOU DIDN’T NEED TO?

“No – my schedule is just pretty busy and by the time I realized it was Gateway week, I realized I was racing every day this week. So, just didn’t have time. I wasn’t at home at all. But I think it will be fine. I go to more new race tracks than anybody does on our circuit, so I feel like I adapt pretty quickly. Usually we have a really good track record at tracks we go to the first time and hopefully this weekend is no different.”

WHAT IS THE KEY TO GETTING UP TO SPEED AT A NEW TRACK? CAN YOU GO ALL-OUT THE FIRST COUPLE OF LAPS? DO YOU HAVE TO WORK UP TO IT?

“Usually I think you work up to it just a little bit. All of us have a lot of experience in racing stock cars and going to new tracks that I feel like you’re kind of close to those limits even right off the bat and then you can find them pretty quickly. I don’t think you’re going to see anybody struggling or anybody way better than the next person. I think we’re all really good drivers and we will all figure it out quickly. I’ll definitely probably try and brake sooner than what I think is the potential and then kind of creep up to it.”

SHIFTING ON OVALS HAS OBVIOUSLY HAPPENED MORE THIS YEAR THAN EVER BEFORE. DRIVERS HAVE SAID IT MAKES IT HARDER TO PASS AND IT DOESN’T MAKE THE RACING GOOD ON OVALS. WHERE DO YOU STAND ON THAT? DOES IT MAKE IT MORE DIFFICULT?

“Yes – I think it makes it tougher to pass because it keeps your pace up it seems. If the lap times start to slow down, you start downshifting to go faster. I think we’ve all learned that you need pace falloff to pass. Now with shifting, the pace doesn’t fall off quite as much, so it makes things a little tougher. These cars and the aerodynamics makes things a little tougher, as well.

We’ll see. I don’t know how this place will be this weekend. I definitely think it will be hard to pass, whether we would be shifting or not. I think it’s just a pretty flat, looks like high grip, style race track. Those are typically hard to pass on, so with shifting, who knows. Regardless, I think it will be difficult to pass anyways.”

TWO WEEKS AGO, WE RAN THE ALL-STAR RACE AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY AFTER SO MANY YEARS OF RUNNING IT AT CHARLOTTE; AND THEN AT BRISTOL AND TEXAS AGAIN. AFTER THE SUCCESS OF THE BUSCH CLASH, WHAT DO WE DO WITH THE ALL-STAR RACE NOW?

“I don’t know – It’s kind of, I feel like, in Marcus Smith’s hands. Whatever they want to do, I think we’re all OK with. Maybe not OK with, but we’re going to be there.

I’m not really sure. I don’t think Texas (Motor Speedway) – I hate to be another one of the guys to bash it – but it’s not a good track at all. It just doesn’t produce good racing and it’s tough to have an exhibition-style race there when the track isn’t very racy at all.

I think we’d all like to see it move around probably. You look at other sports, all-star games and stuff – they move from city to city each year. I think maybe the cities and the arenas are taking bids on it, I’m not sure. But I think that would be a fun thing to do; move the All-Star Race around. I think it would add some excitement to the event.”

I’M CURIOUS ABOUT ADDING THE CHUTE AT SONOMA (RACEWAY). SINCE YOU WON THERE LAST YEAR, HOW DO YOU THINK IT WILL CHANGE THE DYNAMIC?

“I don’t know. They raced there forever with I think the layout they were going to now. I’m sure it will be a lot like those races, I would guess.”

DO YOU THINK HAVING THE DIRT TRACK GOING FULL BLOWN RIGHT NOW DURING GATEWAY WEEK THAT IT IS A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO BRING PEOPLE BACK AND FORTH FROM ONE TRACK TO THE OTHER AND BUILD THE FAN BASE BETWEEN THE TWO SERIES?

“Yeah, I hope so. The crowd was really big last night. I wish it would have been a day later and I wish we could have raced there tomorrow night at Tri-City (Speedway) because I think Saturday night would be extremely big. But I think tonight with the World of Outlaws Late Models and sprint cars with myself running a late model; I think (Alex) Bowman and (Chase) Briscoe are running sprint cars. I’m not sure if (Christopher) Bell is running or not. But yeah, it should be an even bigger crowd I would imagine.

It’s exciting. The crossover is always good.”

IT WAS ANNOUCED THIS WEEK THAT PHOENIX (RACEWAY) WILL HOST THE CHAMPIONSHIP RACE AGAIN NEXT SEASON. WHAT ARE YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT A FOURTH YEAR OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP RACE BEING HELD AT PHOENIX?

“I think Phoenix is a great area to host the championship weekend. It’s got a great amount of grandstands that always seem to sell out, which is good. It adds to the atmosphere. And two, again like going to the All-Star Race, I would say ‘oh it should move from city to city’. But November in some states is difficult to put a race on, so you have to think about that. There are only a handful of tracks that could really host the championship weekend and not be concerned with the weather forecast. I think that’s why it was in Florida for a long time and then they moved it to Arizona. Phoenix (Raceway) is a difficult track to pass on, but I feel like there are moments where it can be more exciting than an intermediate-style track if you get a late race caution and things like that.

I’m not sure if that answers your question, but I think it’s OK. In the future, yeah I would like to see it move around, as well. But I think there is just a small group of tracks that it could really move to.”

THERE HAS BEEN SOME BETTER RACING AT INTERMEDIATE TRACKS. THIS CAR SEEMS TO WORK AT BIGGER TRACKS. INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY IS A BEAST IN ITSELF, BUT WITH SOME OF THE SUCCESS ON INTERMEDIATE TRACKS, DOES THAT GIVE YOU ANY HOPE THAT THESE CARS COULD RUN BETTER ON THE OVAL THAN WHAT THEY HAVE?

“Well, I think Indy (Indianapolis Motor Speedway) is just a difficult track. You can look at even the IndyCar race this year – it wasn’t that exciting and those cars build really big runs. So, I still think it would be not very good racing for us. And it seems like with these cars and the way the air runs off the back, I think it could have the potential of being even worse than normal, just because it’s a flat track.

As a driver, I would love to win on the oval there. But the road course is, to me, more exciting racing. I’m not sure if more people tune into the race because it’s on the road course or more people show up because it’s on the road course. But I know, excitement-wise, it’s probably a little bit better on the road course. Prestige-wise, I think we would all love it on the oval.”

ARE YOU PLANNING TO RUN THE KNOXVILLE TRUCK RACE?

“No – Never running a dirt truck race again (laughs).”

WHAT ARE YOU DOING ON THE OFF WEEK?

“Nothing – just taking it off.”

I KNOW YOU HAVEN’T BEEN HERE, BUT ARE YOU ANTICIPATING IT TO BE SORT OF LIKE NEW HAMPSHIRE OR PHOENIX? HOW WILL THIS TRACK RACE COMPARED TO OTHERS?

“I watched a little bit of onboard from somebody who was here testing in the Chevy – I think it was (Justin) Allgaier). It kind of reminded me of a blend of New Hampshire (Motor Speedway) and Phoenix (Raceway). I don’t know until I get out there, but that’s kind of where my brain is at right now. I don’t think there’s another race track that we run that you could compare it to. I think those two are good comparisons. I feel like the pavement grip level would probably be similar to Phoenix. I think that end kind of looks more like (turns) one and two of Phoenix; and then I think this end is probably a tighter New Hampshire maybe.”

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