NASCAR CUP SERIES
CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY
COCA-COLA 600
TEAM CHEVY POST-PRACTICE NOTES & QUOTES
MAY 28, 2021

NASCAR CUP SERIES PRACTICE AT CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY: TEAM CHEVY TOP-10
1st AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER OFF ROAD CAMARO ZL1 1LE
2nd ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY PATRIOTIC CAMARO ZL1 1LE
3rd KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 METROTECH CAMARO ZL1 1LE
4th ERIK JONES, NO. 43 PETTY’S GARAGE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
6th DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 CAMPING WORLD CAMARO ZL1 1LE
7th TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 ALSCO UNIFORMS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
8th RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 COTTONELLE CAMARO ZL1 1LE
9th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE

NCS TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 IN DRIVER STANDINGS: POST-PRACTICE MEDIA AVAILABILITY HIGHLIGHTS:
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
THE WHOLE HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS STABLE IS FAST ONCE AGAIN. DO YOU GUYS FEEL COMFORTABLE AS AN ORGANIZATION FOR SUNDAY?
“Yeah, our first run there was really loose. It was kind of normal Charlotte where you unload too free, but we got it really good by the end and we were able to kind of run the same lap times for a long time that last run. I feel like we do a good job adjusting. It’s kind of our first chance to work on the car, Rudy (Fugle, crew chief) and I together, so it’s awesome to have some time to do some things and actually influence the car. I thought by the end there, we were really, really good. I need to see what the lap times were like, but the car was good. I think we’ll be in good shape; we just have to execute. It’s such a long race and the track and the car changes so much.”

HOW IMPORTANT IS THE TIMING OF THIS PRACTICE WITH THE TRANSITION FROM DAYLIGHT TO NIGHTTIME BEING SO IMPORTANT?
“Yeah, it’s critical. I feel like everyone talks about the daytime. The daytime is usually tighter and then it frees up as the night goes on. I feel like it’s honestly just a guessing game of trying to just be decent at the beginning to have something to work with in the later part of the runs and the later part of the race. It’s really where you need to be good. You can kind of give up a little bit at the start, just to stay in the top-five or 10, and be able to have something at the end.”

YOU’RE THE CHARLOTTE KID RACING THIS WEEKEND. WHAT DOES THIS RACE WEEKEND MEAN TO YOU SPECIFICALLY?
“Yeah, it’s awesome. I love being here. I feel like every time I run this race track, it feels like déjà vu. I kind of come out there and just feel like I’ve pictured this track so much with memories and watching cars go around here, so it’s very easy for me to understand it. That’s what I love about it. I love coming here every year. I love the fact that all the crew guys are at home. Everyone is a little bit more upbeat. It’s exciting and it’s cool where we are in points to have a really good garage stall and reward the guys for all their hard work.”

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 METROTECH CAMARO ZL1 1LE
HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS LOOKS GOOD AS A WHOLE. WHERE DO YOU FEEL ABOUT WHERE YOU’RE AT GOING INTO THE WEEKEND?
“I feel good. We just kind of stuck to our game plan; not make too many ins and outs and confuse ourselves on cycled tires and balance. So, we just did one 20-lap run and then did a mock-qualifying run. I think we have to work on our car a little bit in race trim, but I think we’re in the ballpark.”

IT’S A LONG RACE. DO YOU THINK ABOUT ANYTHING? DO YOU RELAX A LITTLE BIT? HOW DOES THAT CHANGE?
“I don’t know. It’s only an extra 100 miles. I didn’t get to run it last year, so I don’t really remember what my mind is like during the race. For me, I’ve struggled in this race. So, if anything, I feel like I focus even more during this race to try and figure out what I need when it does go from daytime to night. I’ve always been really good here in the sun and then when it goes to nighttime, this place for some reason, I don’t have a good feel for it. If anything, I feel like I focus and try harder here than I do other places. Hendrick Motorsports has a really good package for this place and they’ve had a lot of success, so I think it will be different this year.”

HOW BENEFICIAL IS IT FOR YOU GUYS TO HAVE PRACTICE?
“I don’t know. Honestly, with how good we are, I would rather not have practice. I feel like with where we’re at in the No. 5 car, we’ve probably got more to lose with a practice session in just getting confused, Going out there and making a run; coming in and making a change; going out there and being on cycled tires and it doesn’t drive like you’d like. And then you freak out and throw big adjustments at it. We stuck to our game plan today and just did one 20-lap run. We’ll look at our notes and see what little adjustments to make. There’s room to be gained, but more often than not, I feel like if anything with my history, we dial ourselves out in practice.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
WHAT’S IT BEEN LIKE AROUND THE OFFICE THIS WEEK WITH THE RECORD SORT OF HANGING RIGHT THERE?
“Yeah, it’s an important thing to Mr. Hendrick and he’s made that very apparent over the last couple of years. I think when your leader cares about something that much, we all care about it equally as much and we want to achieve that for him. I’m glad last week went the way it did. Anytime you can put a company in the same sentence as Richard Petty Motorsports is a special thing and he should be very proud of that. There’s been a lot of people over the years that have had a lot larger contributions to the number than myself, but I look forward to what’s down the road. I hope we can knock the record down for him and hopefully keep it for a long time.”

INAUDIBLE
“Yeah, I think it’d be great. It’s everyone’s back yard here for almost all the teams. But, for sure. I think it’s kind of the same as any race win. They’re all too hard to get to pick and choose when and where and I think the boss knows that as well as anybody. If we can knock down that barrier as a company, I think we’d be happy to do it wherever.”

WITH YOUR HISTORY WITH TREY (POOLE, SPOTTER) RACING LEGEND CARS, DOES THAT MAKE IT FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH HIM COMING IN AS YOUR SPOTTER?
“Yeah, he’s been around our team for a long time. Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) likes how he goes about spotting in the road course races that he’s done. Having some history racing I think is a good thing in a spotter to have. It’s just different being in the car versus just watching, so he has some experience. He’s been watching this stuff forever, so he knows how it works. Like I said before, he knows what’s important and what’s not. Obviously, he knows me very well. He just fits into our group and he knows everybody. That goes a long way when you’re trying to fill a role quickly like that.”

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 – Martin Truex Jr.
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

CHARLOTTE (May 28, 2021) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Martin Truex Jr. was made available to media prior to the Charlotte race weekend earlier today:

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Red, White, Blue Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

What has it been like having new tracks on the schedule and how focused are you on success at those tracks?

“If you look at it, none of these tracks are in the Playoffs so I’m not sure that it really matters a whole lot. I think it’s going to be all about trying to gain bonus points and get wins. It’s certainly going to be a new challenge any time you go to a new race track, limited practice, you name it the way we’ve been doing things and it’s a big challenge. Then throwing new road courses into the mix that the field has never been to and it’s a big learning curve. It’s always a challenge through the summer when things heat up and the tracks are slick and we typically do well that time of the year so I’m looking forward to it, but we’ll see, should be fun.”

What makes you so good at Charlotte?

“This place here, we’ve found some things that work for us and we’ve been able to ride that horse for five, six years now. It’s getting more challenging, the track is getting rougher and the teams are all getting closer together setup-wise and what everybody knows about these cars these days. Things have really come together in a smaller box. It’s going to be tough. Had a strong run here last year and hopefully we can improve on that. The car was pretty decent in practice. I feel like we can make it better and if we can make it better, I think we’ll be really good. Just a matter of making the right adjustments from here.”

How nice was it to have a practice session?

“Yes and no. It was nice, but we’re not going to do a whole lot different. I’d say we didn’t really come here with an experiment in the car. I think the guys that really needed to find something are probably happier that we did have practice because maybe they tried some things they really wanted to. We really didn’t go down that path. We weren’t too far out on a limb. From that standpoint, I would have been fine without practice.”

What did you think of Kevin Harvick’s comments after CoTA?

“I would say that I totally agree with his statement when he said that was the most unsafe he’s ever felt. Right decision, wrong decision, I don’t know. I don’t make those. I think at some point it was too hard, the rain was too much. Visibility was too low. When we crashed, I couldn’t see the side of the race track. I couldn’t see the curbs on the edges of the race track to even know if I was on the track. I could have been in the grass for all I knew. It was pretty extreme and definitely, obviously something we need to look at.”

What needs to change if we get rain at another road course?

“I think if you look at it, they’re called wet weather tires, they’re not called racing in a torrential downpour tires. If there’s standing water on the track, that’s a problem. I will say that we had restarts, we had a lot more cars on the race track than other series that run in the rain. I’m sure everybody knows what I’m talking about here. More cars, more cautions, more restarts, more side-by-side, stage breaks, we’re always just in a clump. We never get spread out unless 10 laps into the run or 15 laps into the run. We can’t race in standing water because we cannot see. It’s a different circumstance for us. You have to look at the drainage of the race track, that’s going to play a big role. I think everybody thought that CoTA, with it being a F1 track before that it was going to have some great drainage, well that turned out to be wrong. There were puddles everywhere. It’s going to depend on the race track and how much water is on it. And just how much room there is for us to get out of line so we can see where we’re at.”

What is the most challenging aspect of this 600-mile race?

“Definitely used to be that it changed so much with the old cars and old setups. These days, these cars are so scienced out with what you have, it doesn’t change as much as it used to. I think the hardest part now is that you’re literally running 100 percent every single lap, 400 laps, 600 miles. That’s the hardest part. There is no, let’s get through the first half of the race and see where we’re at. Take it easy, stay on the lead lap. You talk to guys that raced here 15 years ago and they were like, ‘we stay on the lead lap for the first 300 laps, we’re happy and we have a chance.’ Now, you don’t. You have to stay up front, you have to keep your track position. You have to have that thing on 100 percent all day long and it’s tough.”

How hard is it now to lead and win this race like you did when you led all but eight laps?

“It’s very difficult. I would say it’s harder now than it was then. With those cars with low downforce, there was more opportunity to really nail the setup and hit it right. Now, with this 550 package, everybody is so limited on horsepower and lap times are so close together throughout the field, there’s less opportunity to really get your car dialed in and drive away from the field. Big difference today from that aspect of it.”

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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 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain and directly employs more than 47,000 in North America. The company has contributed world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama that begins production in 2021.

Through its 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 – Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

CHARLOTTE (May 28, 2021) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media prior to the Charlotte race weekend earlier today:

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

In terms of races you haven’t won, where does the 600 rank for you?

“It’s the highest one left on the list – the Brickyard is no longer the Brickyard so that one got marked off the list for us so just this one left.”

Where is 23XI Racing in terms of a second car for 2022?

“Still working on some things. Obviously, there’s a lot of moving pieces that has to go into it. I think we’re still progressing. Just don’t have a timetable for it.”

If you have a second car next year, is there a certain type of driver you’re targeting?

“A good one.”

Do you feel you need a second driver with more experience?

“I don’t know. I think that I’m teammates with Bubba (Wallace) so he’s already got that. I don’t think that we necessarily have to have that because he’s got me, Martin (Truex Jr.) and Kyle (Busch) that work very, very close with him. We’re in the same meetings. I don’t know if there’s a benefit or detriment either way, but certainly I look at a lot of different things when it comes to who a prospective person could be.”

As a driver, do you think about the addition of having fans back in the grandstands?

“Yeah, its exciting just seeing them here on practice day to have a few hundred fans out here. I know they’re coming for the Truck race, but it’s great to be back and have somewhat of a normal weekend. It’s good. I like the process. I don’t know if it suits us or not to have practice. It seemed like we were doing really well without it, but I think I’m the type of driver that learns really good overnight. Hopefully, we can take advantage of it.”

Do you feel good about where you were as a team in practice today?

“There’s more I want out of my car personally, but I haven’t dived into the organizations to see whose fast or not. That’s something ultimately that I can’t control. All I can do is try to get my car to handle as fast as it can around the corners and if we have enough speed, we’ll be good and if not then we won’t.”

Did you feel a need to speak to NASCAR about last week or are you all letting Kevin Harvick speak for the group with his comments?

“It sums things up in a nutshell I think. I think everyone had a lot to learn from last week. NASCAR especially about making the decision and putting safety first beyond any kind of show that you want to put on. Those discussions were good and I think we’re heading in the right direction.”

Will there be something done that can reduce the spray?

“Spray comes from the tires and we needed the grip of those treaded tires, that’s what it’s supposed to do is disperse all that water so we have rubber contacting the roads. If you put on slicks, there will be no spray and there will be no grip. It’s just a fine balance of where they want to be.”

How did the meeting with NASCAR go?

“It was good. A lot of questions got answered and I feel like certainly more informed leaving there than we were going in.”

Was the meeting primarily about Next Gen?

“We just really, normal safety update meeting that we have, especially with a new car coming in. There’s a lot of questions that drivers have about the safety components and things that are different from the old car to the new car coming in that we want answers to and I think we got those.”

What does it mean to honor a fallen service member on your race car this weekend?

“It’s important and NASCAR does such a great job honoring the military anyway, but to have these names on here for people who have made the ultimate sacrifice is very important. To get to understand the story a little bit more through the weekend with the family is really special from our standpoint. Really great with everything NASCAR Salutes has done to pay tribute on the windshields and hopefully we can take ours to victory lane.”

What is a piece of advice you would give another driver looking to become a team owner?

“It’s tough to say. I think everyone is different, everyone has different agendas, different amount of time that they have to spend on it. There’s just a lot of working elements to a race team and way more than just finding a sponsor, getting a driver and putting a car on track. There’s so many different things, myself as an owner is getting educated day in and day out of the business and how it works.”

What is the best prank you’ve ever pulled or had pulled on you?

“I don’t know. Tony (Stewart) was kind of that guy back in the day when we were first teammates. A lot of things, I don’t know if they were pranks or just harsh and cruel. Little brake cleaner in the driver’s seat to set your ass on fire. He was not afraid to go all out when it came to roasting you.”

Do pranks still happen now?

“It’s different now. It’s just different, everyone is so serious now and it’s just different. Everyone is so focused and we have more information now than we’ve ever had. Normally, maybe between runs we’d be out of the car and tell the team what’s going on and we’ve got nothing to do until they fix the car so we’ll be standing next to each other in the pit box and talking to each other. Now, it’s just so much information that you have to dive into that everyone is so hyper-focused on that information that no one ever wants to give any secrets away. No one is really asking questions like the young guys used to do to the veterans, they just look it up in data now.”

What modifications would you like implemented at Charlotte Motor Speedway?

“You can go back years and years, I’ve always said these tracks are the ones that need to step up and invest the money in their facilities. People just want different things nowadays. They’re not okay sitting in old, aluminum bleachers and having terrible food. People want a nicer thing. While that’s great the state is pitching in, it’s still, when you look at the bottom line of the tracks and some of the profit had been gotten by the tracks, I wish they would spend more money upgrading their facilities.”

What specifically would you change?

“Everything from hospitality, the suites. I remember driving in here thinking, in my rookie season I remember Bruton (Smith) threatening to leave this race track if he didn’t get money from the state or something like that to upgrade it and it’s the same. They put some money in, they put the Roval in and a few million bucks here and there. Some of these tracks really need a face lift and we’ve seen ISC really spend a lot of money at Richmond, Phoenix, Daytona, Talladega. I just wish everyone was held to that super high standard.”

For 23XI Racing, do you need to have a charter to start a second team?

“I think we have to weigh our risk in that. I think people have charters that can’t even afford to race the charters they have and they really require a safety net from people leasing them and things like that. I think charters can be held hostage if they wanted to and people trying to drive the prices up on them and what not. My philosophy is, okay, go fill the car and have fun. You get a guaranteed amount of money, but the charter agreement is up at the end of 2024 and there could be so many changes that changes the business model after 2024 that I don’t know how much I want to invest in a charter right now. It would take me years to get that money back and then once I maybe get it back, the whole agreement could be different. I’m okay being patient with that. I think the short answer is no, I don’t have to have a charter.”

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 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain and directly employs more than 47,000 in North America. The company has contributed world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama that begins production in 2021.

Through its 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 – Kyle Busch
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

CHARLOTTE (May 28, 2021) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch was made available to media prior to the Charlotte race weekend earlier today:

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M’s Red, White & Blue Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing

How did you feel about today and getting some practice?

“Yeah, I mean it was good, we felt like we had a pretty good practice overall, just tried a couple different adjustments and changes in order to work on our balance and just trying to get right for tomorrow. Kind of a typical practice I guess you know, back to having one at least. So, you know, good to see what we could learn and pick up on and work on.”

What’s the best prank somebody pulled on you and what’s the best one that you got on somebody?

“I don’t know I wish a few of the scenarios that went down over time, were pranks, but they weren’t. I can’t really recall. I don’t know that there’s really been a very good one.”

How important though was the timing of this practice knowing that every year in the 600 the transition from day to night is so critical?

“This practice was perfect. You couldn’t have picked a better time to do it. We’re always used to coming in on Friday and practicing at 12 to two o’clock exactly when you don’t want to be on the race track and then we qualify at night. This was perfect for us anyways and you know we unloaded, we were close but, we definitely made some adjustments on it just to kind of pick at the car a little bit and try to work on it. We’ve got a few more things that we need to be able to do to the car in order to get a race ready for 400 laps.”

Do you have a different strategy for this race compared to shorter races?

“This race is very cut and dry on pit strategy and that sort of thing, with just your pit halfway between each stage and you pit at the stage. It’s pretty simple besides cautions flying and other things kind of happening that might disrupt that but, over the past few years, that’s kind of how it’s looked.”

How do you feel about practice being back from an owner’s perspective on the truck side?

“It was expensive today, that sucked today. I wish that the track knew how to put PJ1 down the same every single time, but they don’t and cost us a little bit there early on and hopefully it’s good for the start of the race. We didn’t really get in it much because we were kind of tiptoeing through what we saw earlier today and not trying to mess with it too much, waiting on those guys to groom it in.”

How do you feel about fans being back in the stands and does that matter to the drivers?

“Yeah, absolutely, it’s definitely good to have fans back in the stands. When we first got back to some of these races that fans were at and we had driver intros, the boos were back and everything felt like it was getting back to normal, you know. So that’s certainly just a part of it and part of our sport and nice having them and they enjoy coming out, and being on the big screen and waving and supporting their favorite driver.”

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 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain and directly employs more than 47,000 in North America. The company has contributed world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama that begins production in 2021.

Through its 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
Charlotte Motor Speedway Post-Practice Media Availability | Friday, May 28, 2021

BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 2 Keystone Light Ford Mustang — YOU WON THIS RACE LAST YEAR, BUT THE CHOOSE RULE WASN’T AROUND THEN. HOW DOES THAT CHANGE A TWO-TIRE CALL IF YOU ARE ABLE TO PICK THE POSITION YOU’RE RESTARTING FROM? “The choose rule definitely changed, I think, the way the strategy and the races flow because being able to pick your lane with new tires give you options to be where you want to be. I can’t say specifically how it would have played out because you don’t know what everybody would have done, but I suspect it would have been definitely harder to defend the lead position I was in.”

WILL YOU BE BACK WITH TEAM PENSKE IN 2022? “I can’t talk about that, but I appreciate you asking. When I can, I’ll tell you.”

HAS IT BEEN A DISTRACTION WITH ALL THE RUMORS AND REPORTS? “No, it’s not difficult for me. I think I’m in a spot where I’m just head down, finished second last year in points and won four races and looking for one more spot.”

DO YOU THINK IT CAN IMPACT THE PERFORMANCE OF THE TEAM? “My team is pretty tough. They’ve got a really good mental toughness and they’re in a good spot.”

WHEN DO YOU THINK YOU WILL REVEAL YOUR PLANS FOR 2022? “As soon as I’m allowed to.”

KEVIN HARVICK, No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang — WHAT’S IT LIKE BACK TO A NORMAL WEEKEND? “We really have been doing things for a year-and-a-half, so we’ve been going to the racetrack doing our job. It hasn’t been exactly like this, obviously, but I’ve been as busy this month as I’ve been throughout my whole career, but being here to practice is different than it has been and I’m happy to see my guys and be able to be in the garage and actually go through some things, instead of just jumping in and jumping out.”

DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’VE MADE SOME GAINS THE LAST FEW WEEKS? “I think we’ve gained a little bit of speed. I think Kansas was a good step for us as far as speed goes. I think we’ve just been grinding it out. I don’t think we’re fast enough by any means, so we just keep grinding it out and having good finishes and doing what we have to do with what we have.”

DID YOU TALK TO NASCAR AT ALL ABOUT LAST WEEK AND NOT RED FLAGGING THE RACE BEFORE YOUR ACCIDENT? “My opinion is we should have never been in the rain anyway. I think everybody is pretty aware of that as we’ve done this and it’s like I explained to those guys. I know they say we’re learning now, but in 1999 when we ran rain tires at Watkins Glen the biggest problem was visibility, so we haven’t fixed the visibility problem since 1999 we’re not gonna fix it now. We’ve put the XFINITY guys in a number of bad situations in rain races in the past and I think as you look at all the stuff that we’ve done in the past with the XFINITY cars in the rain they didn’t need to be out there, either. If you can’t see, you can’t race. Period.”

WILL THESE 600 MILES BE A GOOD TEST TO SEE WHERE YOU GUYS ARE AND WHAT YOU’VE BEEN DOING THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS? “That could go either way.”

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 BodyArmor Ford Mustang — DO YOU KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT BRAD’S PLANS? “I didn’t hear anything about it until you all did. I wish him the best. It’s definitely a change. It’s exciting for him to become an owner again. It’s cool for him, so hopefully it works out good for him.”

IS THERE SOMETHING YOU’RE LOOKING FOR IN A TEAMMATE? “I don’t know what we’re doing there yet. I’m sure they’re working on it, but you look at someone, Austin is obviously gonna be, no matter where he goes if it’s the 21 or 2 it doesn’t matter, but someone with good experience and a hunger to get better. That’s what you want in a teammate to push each other and I’m sure we’ll find the right guy.”

IT SEEMS YOU CAN GET THINGS DONE ON THE 500 TRACKS. IS THERE SOMETHING YOU’RE DOING DIFFERENTLY OR YOUR TEAM IS DOING DIFFERENTLY? “I’m not really sure. We’ve just had really good cars on 550 tracks. Todd does a good job. We have an aero package, or whatever you want to call it, that we build them to be able to run hard. We’ve never really been known for amazing straightaway speed. Other teams are kind of known for that. We make sure we handle good and that helps me be able to drive the car really hard. I think between all of our cars it jockeys back and forth on who is better each weekend on mile-and-a-halves, but I enjoy the bigger tracks. You can run cars really hard with the high downforce stuff. That’s got me in trouble a few times on some short track stuff, but it just works out for the 550s.”

DO YOU THINK YOU’RE A BETTER DRIVER WHEN THE TIRE WEAR IS HIGHER? “I prefer tracks that wears tires out. I think I like it so much because I grew up running the past stuff. We’d run 150 laps on the same set and you’d ride around for 100 laps that race in the past late models, and I think that kind of helped me save a little bit of tire from an early age and it kind of helps me now. It just kind of works out, but there are some places I don’t do great with big tire fall off like Richmond. I’m getting better at Richmond, but I like it just because I think I grew up doing so much of saving tires.”

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang — WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE BRAD NEWS AND HIM LEAVING? “I don’t think anything has been officially said, so I’m just kind of focused in on what we’re doing here right now. There’s obviously plenty of stuff to think about and talk about. At this point, we’ve got to focus in on winning the Coke 600. It’s kind of a big weekend for us.”

HOW DOES THE 550 PACKAGE PLAY OUT ON A RACE LIKE THIS? “It makes this last practice very valuable. When I saw that rain earlier I said, ‘Come on. This is like the most important practice we can ever have.’ Just trying to tune our car in and work on some things. Fifty minutes doesn’t really give you much opportunity. If you try to get your balance right and maybe you can swing at it a couple times with just some package changes and maybe some smaller things, but I don’t know if we made a whole bunch of gains yet, but I think you kind of have to look at it right now at what the other cars and what our competition is and see where we’re at. This track can be deceiving sometimes. A lot of times the guy winning the race just still doesn’t feel good. It’s one of one of those racetracks where it’s bumpy. The car is moving around a lot and dirty air is a big piece here as well, too. I’ve got to go back and kind of see where we stack up. It doesn’t feel great. I know that, but I don’t think it feels great for anybody, so kind of have to figure that out right now.”

HOW MUCH DOES THE TRACK CHANGE FROM 6 P.M. ON? “It’s gonna change a fair amount. It’s gonna change a lot in looking at the forecast. It’s gonna cool off a lot from even what it is now, so it will definitely change here some, but just in general the track has changed from one and two to three and four. The bumps that have developed, I don’t know if the garbage isn’t packed in as good over there or whatever it is. I should know more about this stuff with my dad being a garbage man, but I’d say they didn’t compact it as good over there as they did in one and two, or something is different because that track in one and two stays smooth, but three and four becomes a cobblestone road for us out there.”

WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT THIS RACE AND WHAT DO YOU HATE ABOUT IT? “I just want to win it. I wouldn’t say there’s much that I hate about it. I love racing, so I’m fine with it. I love the challenge of 600 miles. Its definitely more challenging. More points are available with the four stages, so there’s a lot on the line throughout this race. You’ve got to make sure you’re on it because 600 miles is a long one. It’s a tough one. but we’ll be up to the challenge.”

THE STATE HAS PROPOSED $10 MILLION FOR CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY AS PART OF THE STIMULUS PLAN. WHERE WOULD THAT MONEY BE BEST USED? “That’s a loaded question right there. Ten million dollars sounds like a lot of money, and it is, but when you look at a facility this big it would take added investment. You think about building a garage, doing a garage similar to others that have included more fan engagement — those type of things are gonna be a lot more than $10 million with how big these garages are, so that’s gonna be a pretty hefty investment. That’s probably the first thing that comes to mind is how do we make the fan engagement better. One of the amazing things is the TV. I think it’s fantastic that they have it here. It’s one of the best things that any racetrack can have is to be able to see everything that’s going on over the loud speakers and those type of things. I think sound is always so important at these places. What good is the guy up there talking and keeping everyone entertained if you can’t hear him, so keeping all of that stuff up to date, but without knowing off the top of my head, I don’t know. I haven’t been up in a suite in two years to know what those look like or anything, but I don’t feel like this racetrack is in bad shape, in my mind. It’s our home track. We’re here a lot, but I’m sure there will be some things they’ll find and I’ll be interested to see what they do with it.”

YOU SAID EARLIER THIS WEEK THAT AMERICA IS BACK THIS WEEK. HAVE YOU FELT THAT YET? “It absolutely feels like that. I was talking to someone earlier, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I haven’t seen you in two years.’ To see someone walking through the garage, practice, you guys all actually being able to come up and talk to us, this is a first, especially without masks on. It’s nice to see everyone’s faces again and not be zooming. I’m over the zoom. I’m over it. I like it. It’s nice that we have the ability to do it, but it’s nothing like face to face.”

A LOT OF ROAD COURSES COMING UP IN THE SUMMER, A NEW VENUE AT NASHVILLE AND THE POCONO DH. HOW MUCH CAN THIS STRETCH TEST A TEAM? “I think at this point look at what happened last year. We can adapt and do anything as a sport. You’ve got a lot of new racetracks as you said, but we did that a little bit last year. The Daytona road course, we showed up with no practice and ran it and everything went fine. Rain racing, I wouldn’t say everything went fine, but it was OK, so there are things like that that we’ve been able to do and I think as a race team we’ve got to be open to adapt and be open to trying new things and not be stubborn and just go off of that.”