NASCAR CUP SERIES
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL
GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
SEPTEMBER 14, 2024

 Chastain Claims First Pole Win of the Season at Watkins Glen

• Ross Chastain, driver of the No. 1 Busch Light Camaro ZL1, laid down a best-lap of 72.130 seconds, at 122.279 mph, around the 2.45-mile Watkins Glen International to claim his first pole win of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season.
• Chastain’s pole – his second in NASCAR’s top division – marks Chevrolet’s eighth pole of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season; the manufacturer’s 17th pole at Watkins Glen International; and its 751st all-time in the division.
• Five drivers from three different Chevrolet organizations earned top-10 qualifying efforts, with Chastain leading Kaulig Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen in third and AJ Allmendinger in sixth; Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman in fourth; and Chastain’s Trackhouse Racing teammate, Daniel Suarez, in eighth.

 
TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 STARTING LINEUP:
POS. DRIVER
1st Ross Chastain, No. 1 Busch Light Camaro ZL1
3rd Shane van Gisbergen, No. 16 WeatherTech Camaro ZL1
4th Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1
6th AJ Allmendinger, No. 13 Go Bowling Camaro ZL1
8th Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Freeway Insurance Camaro ZL1
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Busch Light Camaro ZL1 – Pole Win Quote

What are the emotions you’re feeling right now?

“So many. So much work has gone into this. Turning right seems simple, but it’s been something that’s been such a challenge for me. I’ve gone to Skip Barber’s Driving School to learn how to turn right. I’ve leaned on Josh Wise and Scott Speed so much. Chevrolet has taken us out to Spring Mountain and has done schooling with Ron Fellows and the instructors there. It wasn’t any one thing, it was just so many years of trying to learn how to do this.

For our No. 1 Busch Light Chevy team, it’s just a career moment, a lifetime achievement, to go faster than everyone in the Cup Series. It just unbelievable for Trackhouse Racing and myself.”

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Go Bowling at The Glen Qualifying| Watkins Glen International
Saturday, September 14, 2024

FORD QUALIFYING RESULTS

5th – Austin Cindric (P)
7th – Joey Logano (P)
9th – Noah Gragson
10th – Michael McDowell
12th – Chase Briscoe (P)
21st – Ryan Preece
24th – Chris Buescher
28th – Brad Keselowski (P)
30th – Ryan Blaney (P)
31st – Josh Berry
33rd – Harrison Burton (P)
36th – Justin Haley
37th – Todd Gilliland
38th – Kaz Grala
(P) indicates Playoff driver

AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 2 Autotrader Ford Mustang Dark Horse (Qualified 5th)

“I am happy with how practice went and the guys did a great job adjusting to the unknowns going into the weekend and we were able to execute a good qualifying session and get us a good starting spot at a place where track position is super important. A solid start to the weekend. We just have to execute tomorrow.”

WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM THE TIRE FALL-OFF TODAY?

“It is quite a bit. It is definitely going to affect strategy. We will look at the notes and see how long we can make it live.”

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse (Qualified 7th)

“It was an improvement over practice, which is nice. It feels like our long run speed is just a little bit off, so hopefully we can dial some of that in tonight. We will see what happens. The tire fall-off, it will affect the whole race for everybody. It seems like our short run speed is in the game but our long run speed is a little off, so hopefully we can adjust on that.”

NOAH GRAGSON, No. 10 Bed Bath & Beyond Ford Mustang Dark Horse (Quflified 9th)

“It felt really good on our first lap in the first session and we were able to transfer in off of that lap into the second round. We had a lot of laps on the tires there. We ran a lot of laps. They started to fall off. The first one was kind of the best and then we were at a deficit for the second round. But I am super pumped for this Bed Bath and Beyond team and Stewart-Haas and this Ford Performance Mustang is a lot of fun to drive. This is my first time here in Cup and it is a lot of fun to drive this Mustang around here.”

WHAT DID YOU LEARN ABOUT TIRE FALL-OFF FOR TOMORROW AND HOW IT WILL AFFECT THE RACE?

“It certainly is going to be hard to pass, no doubt. Even with the fall-off I don’t know if you can save and make it up on the back half of the run and be better. We are going to have to wait and see a little bit. I think track position will be key all day. It will be hard to pass and you will have to make up positions on pit road. Luckily we are in the top 10. We can see the front. We aren’t there yet but we will work hard until we get there.”

MICHAEL MCDOWELL, No. 34 Benebone Ford Mustang Dark Horse (Qualified 10th)

“Honestly qualifying wasn’t that great for us. We had higher expectations than that but our Benebone Ford Mustang was really fast in race trim and really good on the long run. I think some of the setup approach that we brought here knowing there was going to be a bit of fall-off probably hurt our fire-off speed a bit but I feel great about the car we have for tomorrow. Track position will be important, but maybe with fall-off it will be a little easier to pass. I feel good about what we have and I was glad we made it to the second round but we wanted to be fighting for the pole and that last run there we were not. It was a good effort though and I feel good about tomorrow.”

Toyota Racing – Martin Truex Jr.
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

WATKINS GLEN, NY (September 14, 2024) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. was made available to the media on Saturday prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International.

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

You have someone local on your team – Jaik Halpainy. Can you talk about his impact on the team?

“Jaik (Halpainy) is a great guy. He’s been great to work with. He gets along with James (Small, crew chief) and the crew. He has been a great addition. Nice guy and does a good job.”

Do you feel like you are in a must win?

“I really don’t know. We will just have to see. It is obviously a bit of a hole to dig out of, so it is unfortunate last week that we got caught up in that and got some damage. I don’t know. We will just have to wait and see. We are going to try to win, but I think we will know more after this weekend is over.”

Are there any different feelings knowing that you are done after this year?

“I don’t know. I wouldn’t say pissed off – just a little bit frustrated with how things have gone lately. No matter what we do – it is wrong, and we can’t catch a break. It has been frustrating, but the guys are working hard and a big weekend here. This is a good place for me, and I love coming up here. We put a lot of effort in, so we will see how it turns out this weekend.”

Have you studied what happened in Bristol in the Spring and have a good plan for next week?

“We will see. I think everyone understands that it was a lot different than expected going into the race. I’m sure that everyone will make changes and adapt. The tire conservation will be at the top of the list. I don’t foresee it being like it was, but there will still be some people that will have tire issues. We will just have to wait and see. It is going to be different weather, so we will see. Bristol is an interesting place – it can change a lot based on how the rubber gets laid down and the temperature is very critical. It could be warmer, and there could be less tire wear as well.”

For a veteran, does that play into your hand?

“I don’t think it hurts that we’ve had experience in doing stuff like that before and not everyone has. In the recent years, tires have never been an issue there – it has always been hammer down as hard as you can every lap, so we’ve always seen track position outweigh tires at Bristol, and that is something that we didn’t have in the Spring.”

Do you expect for Ryan to have a little more on his plate next year?

“As of now, he really has nothing. He is really working hard to try and figure some things out. It really boils down to sponsorship and what can you bring to the table. He is really working hard at that and is still doing his sim work and everything he does behind the scenes for his real job, and trying to put something together for Xfinity. We’ve got a few people that he is talking too, but nothing is done yet so we will see how it plays out.”

How do you feel about these next two weeks?

“I feel really good about it, honestly. We should be able to perform well here, and I’m excited for today. It is going to be interesting this weekend with tires that they’ve brought and the fall off that everyone is taking about. It will be interesting to see how it plays out. Can we pass – say we don’t qualify great – but we have a good long run car, can we make our way though the field? It is not something that we’ve been able to do with these cars on the road courses in a while. I’m excited about it and I’m looking forward to having the opportunity this weekend and going to have some fun at a place I like.”

What do you feel like has led to the recent struggles, because it doesn’t feel like it is a lack of speed?

“It is not a lack of speed. It is a lot of different things. You call it a slump – great players get in slumps in other sports, and that is what I feel like it is. I feel like we are doing a lot of good things – we have lot of speed and put ourselves in position, we just have to put it all together. Some days I make mistakes, some days the team makes mistakes, some days – last week we got caught up in an accident. There has been a lot of that. Just have to put it together on one day and hopefully that is this weekend.”

How does having so many solid road course racers in the field with nothing to lose?

“That is the hard part when you race with those kind of guys. For the most part, everyone is respectful of the situation and those guys have enough experience to know not to run someone over that is maybe fighting for a Playoff spot or a championship or so. They all have a lot of experience – they are great drivers, and it is not like they are new to this. You play it a little safe around them, and don’t put yourself in a bad situation because they are going to be aggressive for sure.”

Would Watkins Glen possibly be on your part-time schedule next season?

“I’m not sure. I would like to. I really do enjoy it. We will just see. I haven’t looked into my schedule yet – Xfinity and things like that. One step at a time. We’ve got nine really big races coming up to worry about, and that is the first thing on the list.”

What is it like to have Juan Pablo back at the track this weekend?

“I haven’t talked to him yet, but I’m excited that he is here. I think it is really cool. He must have gotten really bored or something (laughter) – to come back after that many years of being in a stock car, and these things are so different. He’s an exceptional talent. It was teammates with him for a while, and just raced with him a lot. Unbelievably talented at road racing, and I’m sure he will adapt quickly – but these things are a lot different, so it will be cool to see what he can do.”

What was the turning point for you in your career when you started enjoying road courses?

“Honestly, I always enjoyed them. My first racing as a kid was on road courses, and felt like I always enjoyed them and looked forward to it – even coming up here in the Busch North Series back in the day. I always had success on road courses throughout – it was kind of hard to find it in the Cup car, it took a little bit longer, but there is so much talent from the regulars to the ringers to whoever comes to the road courses. Been able to win a handful of road course races throughout my career and that has been fun.”

About Toyota

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

Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 47 million cars and trucks at our 12 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 13th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 29 electrified options.

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

NASCAR CUP SERIES
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL
GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
SEPTEMBER 14, 2024

 DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 FREEWAY INSURANCE CAMARO ZL1, met with the media in advance of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session at Watkins Glen International.

Media Availability Quotes:

How has your team been preparing for the new tire that you guys are going to have this weekend? I know you haven’t been on track yet, but how have you guys been preparing for what could be three seconds of falloff?

“Yeah, it’s a little bit tricky. I was fortunate enough to be here for the tire test a couple months ago, and I believe – I’m not 100 percent sure, but I’m 90 percent sure that all three drivers that were here, including myself, all spun out with this tire because the falloff was pretty big. But it’s going to create good racing. Obviously at the time during the tire test, we didn’t know what air pressures this tire likes. Since then, we’ve made some adjustments in the car to better. But overall, the tire is going to falloff more, which is going to create a better strategy when it comes to the stages and things like that. So yeah, we believe that we’re very well prepared. We’ll see where we stack up with everyone else.”

Juan Pablo Montoya is going Cup racing this weekend. How much are you looking forward to being on the same track as him?

“Yeah, I had an opportunity to meet Juan a long time ago. He’s an amazing racecar driver. Something I like about him is how versatile he is. He drives everything, or he used to drive everything.. from Formula 1, to NASCAR, to Prototypes.. things like that. He’s an amazing talent. I’m very happy to have him back. I had the opportunity to talk to him yesterday at the airport. But yeah, he’s excited. Obviously a lot has changed since he was here.. a lot. Not just in the cars, but with the drivers. So I’m really looking forward to see how it goes this weekend.”

Where did you meet him?

“I can’t remember.. probably at a race track somewhere. Yeah, probably at a race track when he was running full-time and I was just coming up through the series. At the time, I didn’t speak English and luckily he spoke Spanish to me (laughs).”

Where did you guys spin out during the test?

“I can’t remember where (Austin) Cindric spun out. I spun out entering the carousel and right at the entry of the bus stop with this particular tire. There were two tires that were very soft and they had a lot of falloff, and this was one of them. Yeah, after 10 or 15 laps, there was a big falloff. With that being said, maybe the cambers were not correct for these tires. Maybe the air pressure was not correct for these tires. So I’m pretty sure we’re going to be much better now. But still, a softer tire is going to falloff more. I think that’s a good thing. I like that.. a big falloff, I think, creates better racing.”

Had the track changes been made before the test, with the recessed rumble strips in turn one and the different bus stop?

“It did.. only like 20 percent of them. The reason why they increased them so much more is because we had those conversations at the time, that the two lanes weren’t doing anything. We were just going across them and it was exactly the same thing. So we had a conversation at the time a couple months ago, that if you really want to stop us, you have to do the entire thing. That’s what they did, and I felt like that was the right thing to do. So yeah, I believe that the ARCA guys and the Xfinity guys maybe have a shot to use it a little bit more than we will because they’ll have more tire and a harder tire. But I feel like in the Cup stuff, we’re going to pay a bigger penalty. That’s what I think.. we’ll find out in a couple of hours.”

How do you imagine that it changes going into turn one, since you can’t get out as wide and you’re not able to use as much of the track? How does that change your entry and approach to everything in that corner?

“Well now, it’s going to be a real corner, you know? Now, you actually have to slow down to make the corner and make an apex. Before, if you watch the restarts – and I spent a lot of time this week trying to watch and understand the restart trends – well, everything is going to be different now. Before, if you guys remember when (Kyle) Larson won here a couple years ago; he just overdrove the entry into turn one, and then both cars just went super wide. Well now, that won’t be an option.. or I don’t think it’ll be an option. We’ll see. But if it is an option, you’re going to pay a bigger penalty than before. I just think that now, you’re going to have to really slow down to make the apex of the corner. Which before, if you didn’t make the apex of the corner, it didn’t matter because you could reshape it somewhere in the Pennsylvania and then come back (laughs).”

You’ve had a great start to your playoffs and you’re coming to a road course. How encouraged are you by everything, and what do you think about the weekend?

“Yeah, obviously it was a good start at Atlanta (Motor Speedway). It was what we were hoping for. You always want a little bit more when you’re in that situation, but besides a win, I felt like it went as good as it could have been. It was a good start. But with that being said, we have another nine races. That was just week one of the playoffs, so we have to continue to stay focused; continue to move forward. We have to continue to learn what we could have done better as a group; myself, the team, everyone. And yeah, then come here to a road course, which obviously I enjoy and do well. I believe that we’re going to be hopefully contending upfront and hopefully we can have another shot at it.”

There will be two Latinos starting in this race. What can you tell us about the diversity and inclusion in the sport?

“Yeah, of course. Obviously being a Latino in NASCAR, for me, is a huge privilege. And also, it’s a huge responsibility. When you were asking the question, I was trying to think about the last time we had more than one Latino in the race. I mean obviously we had Aric Almirola, which is a descendant of Cuba. Juan Pablo Montoya, he speaks Spanish fluently. He grew up in Columbia, so it’s a little bit different. Yeah, I feel very, very fortunate to be one of the Latinos, and be the one that’s been here for a little while. It’s been a huge responsibility and a huge privilege. The Spanish Heritage Month coming up, that’s one of the months that for me personally, is the most fun of the year. As you can imagine, I feel very blessed that here in the United States, we get to celebrate Spanish Heritage Month every single year. It’s amazing. Obviously some of my sponsors, they’ve given me an opportunity to do different things on and off the track. Last week, I don’t know if you saw, but we had a super cool design on my Quaker State racecar. It was actually designed by a Mexican artist. So things like that. I know that last week wasn’t during Spanish Heritage Month, but it was thinking ahead, right? So just feel very, very proud to be here, and I’m very proud to be recognized during Spanish Heritage Month.”

No mic…

“Oh, of course. And really, NASCAR has been welcoming diversity and inclusion for many, many years. The only thing is that now – it always takes somebody to start breaking the mold, you know? Juan Pablo Montoya did an amazing job 10 years ago. It just takes a few people – drivers, mechanics, engineers, pit crew members – to start breaking that mold. For me, I feel very, very proud every time I go to the garage and I see my friends that work at Front Row, 23XI, all these guys are Hispanic and we communicate in Spanish. So for me, they’re not part of my team, but I consider them friends because we are together on this journey of the Latinos and Hispanics in NASCAR. It’s very special. We definitely have an interesting connection, even though we are on different teams, and I hope that just continues to grow. Obviously in the last five to seven years that I’ve been here, it’s definitely grown a lot.”

You come into today 22 points above the cutline. Not knowing how much the tire will falloff, how will that effect your overall strategy?

“Yeah, I mean honestly, the points situation – I’m not trying to really pay too much attention to that. I’m just trying to do the best race that I could possibly do here at Watkins Glen this weekend. And then, in my mind, everything else is going to take care of itself. Am I going to take major risks? Probably not.. I’m not in the position that I have to win the race to be able to advance. I have to be smart, but I also have to do my race. I cannot be thinking about the points because that’s not the best way to race, in my opinion. But yeah, definitely we’re in a good position with the points, but I’m just trying to focus on the race; focus in the car and how I can maximize the potential of our weekend. If that’s enough for a top-five, great. If that’s enough for a win, we’ll take it.

So we’ll see.. we’ll see where we stack up with everyone else.”

Speaking of the points, I get you don’t really look at that or approach the race because of that. But given that you finished so well last weekend, does that impact how you guys decide to attack this race? Do you guys go through what your strategy is before the race, or is it more so you just do whatever your crew chief tells you to do and you trust him?

“I honestly believe – I mean we had a conversation, but I believe that whether we’re plus-22 points or minus-15 points.. to me, we have to attack the race the same way. It doesn’t change anything because you have to continue to maximize what you have. Continue to maximize your points. Continue to maximize your finish. And you still have one more race to go. So it’s not like everything is on this race. If this was the last race.. if this was next weekend, probably you have to look at it as ‘all or nothing’. But we’re not there, you know? A lot of things can happen in two races, as you very well know. We just have to go out there and execute our race; maximize the potential of our racecar. I’m pretty sure that’s going to be pretty good. In the past, this has been a pretty good track for us. We’ve been good here in the past.. we’ve never been great. So hopefully we can be great this weekend.”

We go to Bristol next weekend and that’s been a hard track for you. How many points above the elimination line would you feel comfortable with going into there?

“Like 75 points.. so I can stay in the motorhome (laughs). No, honestly Bristol is one of my favorite race tracks. Every time people ask me, Bristol is one of my favorite race tracks. I wasn’t a fan of the dirt race there, but for whatever reason, I was good at it. We were always good.. better on the dirt than the concrete. But Bristol is one of my favorite race tracks. A few years ago, we were actually very strong there. And for some reason, the last few years have been a struggle. It’s been a struggle with the balance; tires, with this, with that. We’ve put a lot of effort this time around in Bristol, to be able to be better. We know that’s a little bit of a weakness that we have, and we’ve had as a team at Trackhouse for a couple of years. Hopefully we can be better. But when it comes to points, man honestly, I don’t know.. definitely more than 30 points, just to feel comfortable. But if we’re able to improve our package for Bristol and we can run top-15, we’re going to be plenty good, I think.”

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Toyota Racing – Juan Pablo Montoya
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

WATKINS GLEN, NY (September 14, 2024) – 23XI Racing driver Juan Pablo Montoya was made available to the media on Saturday prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International.

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA, No. 50 Mobil 1 50th Anniversary Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

What is it like to be back?

“It’s really good to be back – exciting. I have no idea what to expect – I don’t know. I think I should run pretty well, but that is all I can tell you right now. (laughter) It’s so difficult, because you come into a weekend where you get – I drove the car at VIR, and did about 40 laps, just to get comfortable – make sure the seat and everything was working. I felt pretty good with the car. I felt like it was easier to drive than the last car, and then, you talk to our teammates and the team and everyone is like, it is so difficult to drive, and you are like okay, and you talk to (Michael) McDowell, and he’s like it is much easier to drive – it is more like at GT3, and I’m like that’s what I thought, and then you talk to (Max) Papis and then you are like I don’t know. I’m just going to go out there and – it’s either going to be oh, it’s not too bad or I’m going to go, oh, shit – but we will see.”

What has it been like to adjust to who you are racing around?

“Honestly, being a one-off, it is kind of irrelevant. I want to have a clean day, a good day, and try to be competitive. If someone is quicker, they are quicker – if you are quicker, you are going to try to go by. Try to keep it as simple as possible, but you never know. If everybody races the hell out of you, then you are going to race the hell out of everybody. I have no issues with that either.”

Two years ago, could you have expected this? How did this come together?

“Honestly, the last few years I was racing P2 cars for a while. I ran WEC, ELMS, IMSA – I’ve done a bit of everything. The last year, the bronze that we raced with decided he wanted to stop for a little bit – honestly, for me it was fun, because it is like racing with no commitments, like we went to the track, we stay always in the same hotel, have dinner, go to the tracks when the bronzes wants to go to the track, so you get to the track 40 minutes before you run, and you still drive the hell out of it, and you still work but there is no sponsor commitments, there is no BS around the racing, you just go there and drive the car and go home. It is really nice. When we stopped that, I really wanted to focus on Sebastian. We did F3 this year, and we are trying to figure out next year, but hopefully the plan will be F2, and that is it. (Steve) Lauletta (23XI president) called me earlier this year, around the US GP in Miami, and a little before that, and he asked if you would be interested in doing that, and I said yeah, I would. I think it would be cool. It is kind of funny because you would ask me last year, and I would be like no, no way. Then the idea comes, and I’m like huh. I honestly think it is pretty cool. The idea behind it is pretty cool, and the cars are really competitive – so why not? I really don’t have a reason not to do it. I feel like I can still do a good job – this year, I wasn’t racing full time, but I was doing a lot of karting, a lot of shifter karts with my kid, and I’m still involved in racing fully. Will just drive the car. If the car is good, you will look good. If it’s bad, you are going to look bad. I don’t think the car is bad, but it is if I’m comfortable in it or not. I told the guys that I would be surprised if we qualified really well – like I should qualify pretty decent. When I won here, I didn’t even put it on the pole here. I finished in the top-five, I don’t know how many times in the Cup races here, and I used to qualify 12th to 15th, I don’t know. We will see.”

What do you feel like is going to be most different than the last time you drove a NASCAR car?

“I think the new thing and I’m glad there is two practices, but the hard thing is – you are going to go out and they are going to want to see the tires and you are going to go out and do a long run, you are never going make a qualifying sim – back in the day, you used to a qualifying sim and you would really prepare for qualifying, but now you go there and drive it and with the tire derogation that they are talking about – you are probably going to get a lap. It’s kind of tough because if you over-do it, you screw up and you under-do it, you screw up – so great. (laughter).”

How did you look back on your NASCAR career now?

“I thought it was pretty good honestly, for the cars that I was in and the equipment we were in, I think in a couple of years we were not great, but we made the Chase, we fought for the championship – we did a lot of things with a lot less than the other teams, personally thinking. I think our best run was with Brian (Pattie). When Brian was there, he was taking care of everything. When the new crew chief came in, and he stayed there until I left, it was a bit of a joke, but what can you do.”

Do you think it will open the doors to more one-offs?
“I don’t know. Let’s do this weekend and then we will see. Honestly, I probably some day – if someone comes to me one day and asks me if I want to do a one-off, I would probably say yes, but it is Saturday morning, so we will see.”

What was your workout routine now compared to what it was back when you were racing full-time?

“When I was driving, I didn’t do anything. I go to the gym now. That’s the truth. We were racing every week. I go to the gym every time that I’m home. I go – like an hour, hour-and-a-half in the gym. I do a lot of shifter karts – shifter karts are killer. That thing will tear you a part, and it is good fun. I play a lot of golf, walking – I do quite a bit. I’ve always been a big guy. When I was 25, everyone said I was big – what do you expect at 48 (laughter).”

What do you think is the next progression for these kids that want to take a F1 path?

“Connor (Zilisch) is interesting because Connor raced against Sebastian – in the last year or two of karting. We used to mainly race Europe in the Winter Series or whatever it was called in Florida – we would race against him, and they would always run together. He was good. I think Connor went a couple of times to Europe – Europe is a different animal. Europe, there is a very different driving style, so when you drive in the States in a go-kart, you struggle – because the engine is very different and the approach is very different and the grip level is very different, so it is just a different animal. (follow-up question) That is not FIA. If you go race Miami or go and race – that’s not it. That’s like saying you raced ARCA, and you call it you won in Cup. The kid is good. You see what he’s done. If he would have stayed in Europe, he probably would have had the progression to where Sebastian is. I think he is managed by (Kevin) Harvick, so they decided to come this route, and you see how good he is. The thing in Europe – most of the kids in Europe are that good. If you go to a F3 race, in a two-minute lap time, 70 percent of the grid is within three tenths. You look at qualifying in Xfinity – it is seven tenths between the top-five. Six tenths, you set 90 percent of the F3 grid at any type of race track. That is how close it is. That’s the reality of it. It is very difficult, and you get less running than here. Like F3, you get about four push laps in practice and two and three push laps in qualifying, and that is the weekend, so you need to come really well prepared. That is why everyone that comes from F2, F3 to INDYCAR performs well, because they are used to performing under pressure.”

How often do you and your son watch NASCAR racing?

“I’ll be honest with you. In my house, the person that watches the most racing is my wife. I watch some of the F1 races – I’m doing a podcast now in Columbia for racing, so I watch most – I need to watch the F1 races. I follow a little bit of the NASCAR races, but for this I focused more on this race. I focused more – the team did a tire test here, so I looked there. I did sim work. I did everything. Everyone I talk to says the give and take that there used to be back in the day is a lot less, people seem to race more for every position, but it is what it is. I think it will be hard with two, three seconds of tire derogation. If someone starts racing, they are going to blow the tires off.”

Have you noticed a difference in the people in the garage area since you left?

“Yes, I guess is the correct answer. Honestly, back in the day, you had plenty of diversity. From my eyes, it really hasn’t changed. I think what has really changed is that you are going to go and race in Mexico next year, and you are willing to explore more of that. I think it is good. I think where you can see more diversity – apart from the garage – will be the crowd watching the races. That is going to grow the sport to a brand-new market that is quite interesting, and I think the sponsors – as big as the Latino market is in the states now-a-days, is going to help a lot and bring new sponsors to the championship.”

Were there any other opportunities before this opportunity came out about with 23XI Racing?

“Not really. I think the two reasons that this opportunity came about – one is Steve Lauletta (23XI president) was the president at (Chip) Ganassi when I was there, for one, and two, I raced with Mobil 1. I raced with McLaren with Mobil 1, and actually my first sponsor in Columbia was Mobil 1 too.”

How will you be racing the Playoff guys?

“I will be nice and respectful of everyone that is nice and respectful for me (laughter). I don’t want to get in a pissing contest with anyone. I want to run well. If I get to you, and I’m quicker than you – I’m going to try to pass you. If you get to me, and you are quicker than me, there is reason – the race is long enough. Like always, you wait for the adjustment and make the car better – if you make someone miserable at the start of the race, they are going to return the favor later. I know I’m doing one-off. I will be respectful of everyone that is respectful of me. It is not that hard.”

About Toyota

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

Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 47 million cars and trucks at our 12 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 13th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 29 electrified options.

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

NASCAR CUP SERIES
WATKINS GLEN INTERNATIONAL
GO BOWLING AT THE GLEN
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
SEPTEMBER 14, 2024

 WILLIAM BYRON, DRIVER OF THE NO. 24 LIBERITY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 AND THE NO. 17 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO SS, met with the media in advance of racing double duty in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series at Watkins Glen International.

Media Availability Quotes:

Do you have any idea what the changes in the track will be like now that you’ve had a chance to look at them and how it could impact how you drive the track?

“Yeah, I mean it looks like, from the ARCA race; it looked like they used kind of that six feet of excess, between the curb and the rumbles. So I feel like that’s probably what it will do, especially starting out, and then we’ll kind of see from there. It looked pretty dirty within the rumbles that they cut in the track. It looked like there was a lot of residual dirt and dust. I mean yeah, we’ll just see. I think we’ll be still using some runoff, but obviously not to the level we were, probably.”

Today, Connor Zilisch will make his Xfinity Series debut. Is there a lot of interest about him from the Cup guys, or are you not worried about someone like him yet until he starts running Cup?

“Well, no – I mean I think he’s been really impressive. He’s doing all the right things and making a lot of speed out there. It’s hard to judge when you’re in an ARCA race, per say. But yeah, I feel like he’ll get out there today and I’ll be up against him, so I’m excited to see how he does.”

I think you were the first one a few years ago to note that you can only get 40 points at a road course race with the stages the way they are, and now that there are two of those situations in the playoffs this year. With the situation you’re in, are you thinking more stage points or are you thinking more about going for the win? Do you know how you’re going to play it yet?

“Yeah, I mean I hope there’s kind of a combination of both that works. I feel like for us, if we’re in position to win, we’re probably going to go for that because that’s going to mean more for us hopefully down the road. But yeah, hopefully with this tire, there could be a position where you can get Stage One points and still compete for the win, like we saw maybe way back when the stages kind of first came along. You could pit and then still get seventh or eighth place stage points and still kind of tally them up that way. Hopefully it’s not like a 40-point max day because that would be tough, for sure.”

What is it about Bristol and you that you’re either hit or miss.. podium finishes or wrecking out? Is it simply because it’s racing and unpredictable, and what can you do to help your odds when we go there next weekend?

“Yeah, I mean I don’t really feel like we’ve ever been the dominant car there. So that’s the goal; try to inch up on that and figure out what we need to be more competitive there. But yeah, we’ve had some really good runs.. like top-three’s, but never like leading laps. So yeah, I think going to Bristol, there’s definitely going to be a lot of studying this week to figure out what it is that we need to be a little bit better yet. And then you have the tire, so you’re not really sure what that’s going to do. For us, it would be nice to be under less pressure going there and hopefully have a buffer and cushion of who knows how many points or a win. So it would be nice just to race freely there. The spring was just a fluke situation. We got put into the wall there and broke the toe link. That was tough. But yeah, I think we’re usually pretty solid there. We’re usually like a top-10 car, we just have to figure out what it takes to have winning speed.”

Hendrick Motorsports has won the last five races here. Why do you feel like it’s such a good track for the organization?

“Yeah, I don’t know. I mean, I think we’ve had pretty good road course stuff for like a little less than a decade, and I feel like it just builds on itself, even though there was a car change. We actually did struggle with this car on the road courses initially.. like quite a bit. And then once we figured out what it needed; we have smart drivers and smart crew chiefs and we all contribute and get a package that we like, and then we go from there. I think that’s what it took with this car. And then yeah, Watkins Glen is just a faster place, so it takes a little bit of everything. The engine is really important, and we always have great engines. So I feel like we’ve been able to make the straightaways good; get through the braking zones and everything.”

Being a little bit more seasoned now in the playoffs, do you find yourself approaching the 10 weeks any differently? Approaching each race any differently? Is it truly just business-as-usual, like the first 26 weeks?

“Yeah, I’ve really just learned not to expect or let my guard now. I think last year, with all the bonus points that we had, I think we had 36.. I guess 41 by the time we got to the Round of Eight. But it was easy to feel like – man, we can kind of just point our way through this deal. And then you get to the Round of Eight and guys start to win, and it all really goes out the window. So I feel like for me, it’s learning from that; not letting my guard down and just really trying to show up each week and have winning speed.”

This is Rudy’s (Fugle) home race. Do you notice anything different, in terms of his preparation, his attention, stuff like that, or is it also business-as-usual?

“No, I mean it was a little bit last year. He had more family and things here. But this year, I feel like he’s just locked-in on what we need to do for the playoffs. So it’s probably, I don’t know his routine or anything like that, but he’s just focused on what we need to do, especially today. Try to qualify well.. that’s going to be important. And then see what the strategy is; see what the falloff is.”

Years ago, when we showed up at Watkins Glen, there were maybe four drivers that were going to win the race. Now, it’s so much deeper. Did you start focusing on becoming a good road course racer at the beginning of career, or is that something you’ve seen in recent years?

“Yeah, I feel like it was kind of engrained in me from early on, K&N Series level. Like we’d go do tests with that, and then go race my cart at GoPro Motorplex, and I feel like it was just engrained in me pretty early on. I don’t really feel like at the time that there were that many road courses, but by the time I got to the Cup Series, it was two. And then like the next year, it was three with the ROVAL. No.. it was three the first year, and then yeah, it just kind of kept going and expanding. So it just fit the fact that I was ready for it, but I don’t think I really did it from a young age or anything, but definitely started to up my game when I was 16 or 17 years old.”

You haven’t been on track yet, but how have you and your team been preparing for this weekend, knowing that you have a new tire that could have three seconds of falloff per lap? Are you expecting some chaos from that? Are you expecting what we saw at Bristol in the spring, or more like a Richmond situation?

“Yeah, I think the tire is going to definitely falloff more, but we’re interested to see if that curb from the test flattens out a little bit because typically it does when you get rubber on the race track.. more cars get the right tire pressures, all those things. So yeah, I think there will still be a lot of falloff and it’ll just be interesting to see if that effects qualifying, if we’re not able to re-run. Or if in the race, like I said, maybe flip the stages because you need tires. It could shakeup the way that you strategize the race, for sure, because typically you’re just trying to strategize based on fuel.”

This is the last race for Hendrick Motorsports’ Xfinity Series program. How important for you is it to run that race today, given the track adjustments for tomorrow’s Cup race? Is it going to be beneficial for you to run this race?

“Yeah, I mean I love running here, so it was just really a place where I wanted to come run. And also, more laps on a road course are always great. The last one we had was Chicago, which is very unique, so it’s just nice to have 20 minutes of practice and a full race going into tomorrow. Hopefully it’s fun and hopefully we can compete for the win and be up there with Shane (van Gisbergen) and whoever else is upfront.”

Talking about last year, Martinsville Speedway was such a struggle. We saw at Darlington, another driver have a struggle, with Tyler Reddick staying in the car with his situation. I think we can all relate to a sense of feeling uncomfortable when we’re on a drive, but we can pull off. What is that like? When you look back at Martinsville, was that the hardest day in your career and how does somebody get through that?

“Yeah, I mean you just have to distract yourself with what the task is. Tyler (Reddick) and I’s situations were different, for sure. But for me personally, as hot as I was, I was just thinking about – how do I get the next spot on the race track. If I could do that, I felt like I was going to advance. I think I had to get like seven or eight spots in the last stage, and I was running 22nd. I think we ended up finishing 13th because a couple guys pitted. It was just about getting the next position and trying to distract myself with that and not think about how I’m feeling. If I thought about how I was feeling, I was probably going to slow down.”

No mic..

“Not since maybe like late models, when I was like out of shape (laughs).”

Juan Pablo Montoya is coming back to race this weekend. Are you looking forward to being on the same track with someone as successful as he has been in his racing career?

“Yeah, I mean he was the man when I was growing up. He was really good here. He was good everywhere, just didn’t maybe win the oval races that he could have or should have. But yeah, it’ll be nice to be on the track with him. Hopefully he’s nice and respectful of the playoff guys (laughs).”

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.