Toyota Racing – Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

DAYTONA BEACH (February 5, 2021) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media via videoconference prior to the Daytona 500 this Friday:

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

Has Michael Jordan been more involved with the race team in recent weeks?
“I would say that we’ve talked more in the last couple of weeks, but he’s just excited. The involvement on the race team, he’s got a great team of people that I work with and really gives us a lot of autonomy to make sure that we’re doing stuff the way that we see fit. So it’s working well.”

What would it mean to make history and win a third-consecutive Daytona 500?
“This is a big opportunity for us and my team and myself personally, it’s just I never would have imagined that we’d be in this position by any means, especially five years ago when we didn’t have any. I always think about, in these situations and anytime you get asked, I think about all the ones that slipped away that I had in control and didn’t make the right decision at the end to finish it off. It would be by far my biggest victory of my career and one that I probably wouldn’t exchange for anything.”

Can you talk about Chris Gabehart’s role in this effort to win a third-straight Daytona 500?
“He kind of allows me to kind of do what I do on the superspeedways. He tries to give me the fastest car that he can possibly give me, but it all comes down to the end, right? It’s like is your car damaged? Can you, do you have any teammates at the end? Can you make the right moves and the right decision? For him, a lot of it is around strategy. It’s around making sure that he puts me in a good position at the end to be up front when it really counts. So that’s where our communication and our partnership really works well on these superspeedways.”

What has changed in you since the 2018 season?
“I didn’t take for granted that we win every year and that’s just part of what we do. 2013, we went down to the wire and didn’t win until the very last race at Homestead, which I think 2018 was just kind of one of those wake up years of like, I need to get better. Everything needs to get better and it just kind of went through a transition there where I really kind of worked on myself on and off the race track and really focused a lot of my efforts on getting better as a race car driver. And really Chris (Gabehart, crew chief) did a great job of getting the most out of me each and every week. And so when he came in, a lot of it was me working on the driving aspect and giving him the free reign to go and do whatever he needed to do with the race car and us trusting each other. And I think that whatever has happened, it’s clicked and it’s worked well. And we’ve gotten a lot of success from that.”

What do you know of Michael Jordan’s background with NASCAR?
“He’s (Michael Jordan) just a big fan of the sport and always has been. And so now he’s embedded in it very heavily. He’s excited obviously, about Daytona next week and he’s as excited as he’s ever been, that’s for sure.”

How does the new schedule for NASCAR this season change your team’s approach to try to make it back to the Championship Four?
“Now that’s a good question, thought out, nice question there. I just think that it does play a role. I mean, when we look at our season goals we have numbers we’d like to get to, but in the end, you know, where we’ve had success, a lot of those tracks are gone. This year you go from 20 550 races to 12. Road courses, we didn’t have any wins in the last two years. So that goes from two to seven. So the schedule hurts us as far as our historical data is concerned and kind of that success that me and Chris (Gabehart, crew chief) have had, but we find different goals, like okay, to get to the wins that we feel like we need to be at, to make the final four, to have the bonus points that we need to carry us just in case we have a bad second to last round, like we did last year, we need to get to a certain amount of points. How do we get to those points? What is the avenue that we need to take to get those points, especially with the schedule shifts. So for me, it’s working on my road course skills. I’ve got to get better at them. And I mean it’s a bigger part of our schedule now. It’s not something you can just kind of write off and say, you know, the road to the championship, doesn’t lead through these races so it’s not where I’m going to focus my effort. You’ve got to look at the numbers and say, okay, this is a significant part of our schedule. How can I get better as a driver and improve on them to give ourselves a better opportunity to win on those tracks that I historically have a low winning percentage on. I thought that we were pretty good on the road courses last year. We obviously had some great finishes, we ran up front, but I just think I need to get a little better to really be one of those guys. There’s going to be a threat at it every single time we hit the track. So the road to the Championship four, in short, is a different road for us than what it was over the last couple of years.”

Why did you feel Mike Wheeler would be the best fit for the crew chief role with Bubba Wallace and 23XI Racing?
“I thought he (Mike Wheeler) was a great person. I’ve had a lot of success with him on the race track and it was going to be a person that was going to be able to easily communicate between what I can bring to the table and the asset that I can be to the team. He’s already been a JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) guy for all of his career, been associated in the Toyota brand now for 12 years, so it was the right fit for this team. He’s done an absolutely phenomenal job. I was taking my dad through the race shop, giving them a little tour yesterday evening and he was like, ‘Who does all this? Who got all this stuff together?’ And I said, ‘Oh, well, ‘Wheels’ is a big part of that.’ He’s done a phenomenal job with the whole team, getting everything ready he just was the right fit for me on the ownership side and a lot of that goes to our past history.”

Can any of Michael Jordan’s experience with Phil Jackson crossover to the relationship with Mike Wheeler and Bubba Wallace?
“I think that you have two extremely, in the Michael (Jordan) and Phil (Jackson) thing, they both had success even without each other at times. You had two great people that were great at what they did, and when they came together, they were super great. So I think that as long as Bubba is continuing to be better as a race car driver and Wheels (Mike Wheeler) is open to new ideas on the car side — they both are great. I think the results that Mike Wheeler had with Matt DiBenedetto in 2019 was really, really good. They performed at a very high level with honestly less technology and information and, and equipment than what they’re going to be having this year. So I certainly believe that they’re set up to have good success.”

Does it blow you away that you’re poised to potentially win a third consecutive Daytona 500?
“I find the most pride in that. I think it’s harder than it ever has been. I mean, go back and watch races from 2004, 2005, like there were just five or six superior cars that could pull away from the pack or they just were better, cars were strung out more, the wrecks weren’t, you didn’t have as much attrition as what you have now. It’s harder. It is truly, in my mind, harder to win now because the field is closer. The chances of you getting in wrecks are higher and everyone’s car is so close. It’s very, very difficult. And so I just think that it is a skill game, but sometimes you get unlucky in that skill game. And I think that there’s a lot of guys that are very, very good on the superspeedways that just have been very, very unlucky in the last few years. We’ve been fortunate, we’ve been on the other side of it. That hammer hasn’t hit on us yet, but I mean, we could break out of the next five Daytona 500 wins, who knows right. We’ve been fortunate, but it’s still, in the end, a skill game and making sure you’re putting yourself in the right position. I take a lot of pride in, I really do, — they’re definitely not by chance or by accident.”

What kind of race will we see at the Daytona road course this season and what makes Chase Elliott such a strong road racer?
“I think that certainly he’s (Chase Elliott) got a lot of skill first of all, on the road courses. Ever since, was it probably two or three years ago in my mind, him and Martin (Truex Jr.) were kind of the two elite guys on the road courses. I’ve always kind of considered myself currently in the talks of like a 3.5 to six to seven guy depending on how my car is that day, but they find a way to win and be up front even when their car is not perfect. So to me, they’re kind of head and shoulders over everyone else. I hope that we see a good race. I mean, the Clash has always been a very exciting race because it’s been short, it’s been on the superspeedway, there’s been sparks flying and big crashes and things like that. You know what, everyone loves road course racing until you get too much of it. And then like, ‘Oh, well, that’s enough of that.’ Then what’s the next thing we can do. So I just hope we don’t oversaturate it and it could get strung out. I mean, at one time of the race, I mean, it was exciting at the end because there was a caution, but I mean, he had like a nine second lead over me at some point. That could happen as well. And then, you know, you’ll hear an uproar about the need to put it back on the oval.”

What is your reaction to Southside Speedway closing down and how has this pandemic impacted local short tracks and ultimately impacting the careers of young racers?
“Well, it certainly will have a long-term effect. I don’t think we’ll know that for a really long time, but it’s disappointing to say the least, but I mean, now these tracks are doing everything they can. I mean, they’ve got sanction fees out the wazoo if they want to be NASCAR affiliated. It’s a hard business to be in. I hate seeing, these tracks that have been around forever shutting down. We see it in the real world as well, right. I mean, restaurants that have been open forever shutting down, businesses, small businesses. Short tracks or small business, they’re not a big business by any means, they rely on people going through that front gate. They have to pay a purse, the guys that are racing for little money compared to what the cost of it is. It’s just, the whole thing is broken. I don’t know how to fix it, but we certainly need our short tracks to be our feeder into the Cup Series. It’s no different than any other sport. It starts in high school and then junior college and just keeps going on up and you find yourself in the pros, you know, so we need that base level to keep the sport strong in the long run.”

How have you been managing your time between driver for Joe Gibbs Racing and co-owner of 23XI Racing?
“I think from my standpoint, I’m really looking forward to going to the race track and then concentrating on one thing and that’s being a race car driver and getting the most out of it. For myself, I felt like February 1 was the date and where I’m kind of done on the day to day for 23X1 and I just think that now my focus is really on the No. 11 FedEx team and how we can win a lot of races and win a championship. That’s where ultimately is going to be the best thing for me in the long run to continue to be successful. And that would be a good thing for my race team as well, is that as long as I keep my on track to success, I can continue to be an asset and that’s something that is good for them as well. This is where my focus is now I’ll spend a day or a day and a half during the week that I typically would have off in the middle of the week, that will be my time to concentrate on 23X1, but, my preparation time, my post-race time will be unchanged here on the driver’s side.”

What is your relationship like with Ben Kennedy and what do you feel his role will be moving forward?
“I haven’t talked to Ben (Kennedy) a whole lot, but I need to grow that relationship with him. I have a lot of questions that maybe he can help me with, but he’s certainly part of NASCAR’s future. I almost picture or kind of figure him to be kind of like what Coy (Gibbs) is with Joe Gibbs Racing. Like he’s in all the meetings. He never really says a whole lot, but he’s listening and taking notes. Certainly he’s the succession plan. He’s the driver, he understands the competition side. So certainly think he can be a great asset to this sport going forward and really, I want to grow that relationship with him and have talks with him throughout the year.”

What do you think 23XI Racing can accomplish when it comes to implementing change within NASCAR?
“Well, a lot because we have a big platform, right? This is a platform that’s a lot different. Michael Jordan has a huge following and that following is now peaking and having an interest in NASCAR. I think that you have a lot of people that have never attended NASCAR races before that will probably go knowing that their favorite guy might be there or what have you. But certainly I think that those are discussions that are ongoing with our team to figure out what is our plan for action, as far as that’s concerned. I think we’re working with our sponsors as well. It’s important to them. We’re running a race team, but you know, this is also about a bigger message and it starts from the executive side where we’re extremely diverse. And so I really believe that hopefully we can continue to push change and make the sport even more inclusive. I think NASCAR has done a phenomenal job, they did a great job last year with everything that went on, whether it be the Confederate flag ban. And they’re really pushing boundaries that they’d never really pushed before. And certainly if that opens up the fan base for NASCAR, that’s going to be better for everyone.”

How have you seen the sport move at a different pace after what happened with Bubba Wallace last season?
“There’s a lot of opportunities. Bubba (Wallace) certainly had a great relationship with the sponsors that we have this year. We have two new ones as well, that weren’t part of Bubba Wallace or this race team last year that are new to the sport. So we really feel like there’s a lot of opportunities to use this platform to definitely voice change. And it’s just going to take some time. Nothing’s going to happen overnight. Again, it’s part of our plan going forward, but we would need to be strategic with it and we need to make sure that we’re doing it the right way.”

You mentioned running a Super Late Model race in an interview earlier this year. Is that something that is going to happen?
“It’s going to happen. I’ve kind of had discussions already with some people about what I’d like to do. I don’t think that just showing up to the Snowball and being competitive, you know, for first time in a car that I very rarely run it but maybe once or twice, I’m not going to go down there and do that. So it’s going to take a few tests here and there, I’d like to run a warm-up race somewhere before. So I believe that I can work it in on off weeks and things like that where it doesn’t distract us from anything else. And truly for me, I think everyone knows that I like distractions. Distractions are good for you. You’ve got to get away from the grind of this sport at times. Even if it’s racing something else, like it’s, it takes my mind off of my daily grind of being a race car driver and a team owner. So this will be a lot of fun and it’s just something that I’ve always wanted to do for the last five or six years. And now hopefully going to make that happen.”

Do you feel the platform of 23XI Racing can help diversity efforts at the grassroots level?
“Well, I mean, certainly that’s a big goal and a lofty one and one that I’d love to do. I mean, sure. I’d love to have 23X1 in all kinds of different series and have a feeder coming all the way up to the Cup Series. It’s not on my radar right this second, but certainly it’s something that does interest me in the long-term. At this point I can tell you, a few months ago it was like, boy, let’s just get to Daytona. Can we have a car that makes circles, that’s going to be the key. But I feel good about where we are now and now as the season gets going, we start racing. Now we can start to focus on, okay, what’s our long-term growth plan. And where do we want to go with this?”

Is there a certain type of handling you’re looking for in your car for Daytona?
“There is. I would say that I typically have my setup a little bit different from my teammates simply because of how I like to drive and the positions I need to put myself in at the end of the race to make aggressive moves. I need my car to do certain things for that. And it may not always make it the fastest, but it’s over time I’ve learned I need my car to do certain things to be able to make the moves I need to make at the end of the race to win. I think it’s a little bit kind of off the beaten path of what just simulation says, ‘Oh, this will be the fastest.’ I think that I typically just say, I need the car to do this. I don’t care if it’s slower. Like if it does this, then I can make the moves I need to, and I can manipulate the air and the situation I’m around enough to make the difference.”

Is there one thing about team ownership that has really stood out to you in the last four months?
“I mean really just having trust in the people that we hired to do their jobs. That’s been the biggest help in all of this is that I’ve got a lot of people with a ton of experience over there and whenever I go by there, which is pretty often, it’s like, ‘Yep, that got done, that got done, that got done.’ And it’s just, they’re adults and they’re professionals, they know what they’re doing. And so, although it kept me up at night at times, worrying about little tiny details, you know, these guys, they got it and slowly but surely getting my confidence in the sense of letting these guys just do what they do and not have to check up behind them because I just worry about things like, what have we missed? What do you know, do we have this? Do we have that? They’re on it and just gives me the confidence every time I go by and see that all the solid stuff that’s getting done that I can trust them.”

What have your emotions been over the last few months after reflecting on last season and looking ahead to this season?
“It’s slowly built up and I’m in the excited phase now. These guys are working their tails off both at Joe Gibbs Racing and 23X1, they’re burning the midnight oil, literally. But it’s and exciting moment for me. I think I was saying the other day, I was just like, ‘I can’t believe, I would never have believed one year ago that I’d be fielding a Cup car and for the Daytona 500. It catches me off guard at times and hard to believe. And then I think about, we’ve got history here to make with our FedEx team to win three in a row. I mean, there’s just a lot of really good things going on with me personally and professionally, a lot to be grateful for. There’s been trying times, but a lot of it has been with the race team, like when you’ve got to buy everything from scratch, like, are things going to get delivered in time and there’s snow storms and there’s, COVID and it’s like this is delayed, that’s delayed. That’s where the trying times are, making sure you got everything you need to go compete. Over the last month, the confidence has gone through the roof. Everything is caught up on schedule and seeing the cars go through the shop now fully wrapped on the setup plate, getting the final adjustments, that’s exciting to me. And then when I go to JGR, it’s like, is this the car? Is this the car we’re going to lose for a year? Is this the one that’s going to make history? It’s great to see how excited my JGR team is as well.”

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Toyota Racing – Kyle Busch
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

DAYTONA BEACH (February 5, 2021) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch was made available to media via videoconference prior to the Daytona 500 this Friday:

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

How much have you been meeting with Ben Beshore over the last month?
“We’ve been meeting periodically here and there, talking on the phone a little bit here and there as well, too. I’ve had my fair share of seat fittings here this off season, just to kind of get everything kind of back in order, back where I wanted it and to feel comfortable and stuff like that. So he (Ben Beshore, crew chief) was a part of each and every one of those and just being down on the floor, being with some of the guys and kind of intermingling and mixing in with what all we were doing and had going on. Besides just kind of side talk on that front, we obviously talked about a lot of different things that we did do well and didn’t do well last year, as far as the 18 team goes. So I kind of let him into my aspect of what I thought. I know also that he’s obviously been in constant contact with Adam (Stevens, 20 crew chief) as well, too with their relationship. Obviously, Adam hired him on, brought him on years ago in 2015 when I got Adam as my crew chief on the Cup side. There’s been a lot of things that those guys have been working on and the engineering groups and stuff going back and forth on how to prepare for this year.”

Are you trying for an Indianapolis 500 ride this year or is that further down the road?
“No, that’s further down the road. That’s on the back burner. Haven’t had any discussions with anybody and don’t foresee that being possible and to me, it wouldn’t make sense either until everything’s kind of all back to normal and you get the whole big hoopla of what that event’s really all about. I really enjoyed seeing my brother do it and obviously he had success and, Fernando Alonzo and last year it just kind of seemed like, you know, the Indy 500 grand, but it was kind of a lost Indy 500 if you will. So we’ll wait until things get back to normal.”

What do you think of racing on the dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway and what have you been doing, if anything, to prepare?
“I think it’s an interesting play. I think it’s definitely an interesting opportunity to go run on. I’ve obviously been on dirt when I was a kid running some Legends cars and dwarf cars and Modifieds and you know, it was a while until I got back on dirt, which was with the Prelude races at Eldora and was pretty successful there finished second, third, I won one. So, you know, there was some good runs there that I had running at the Prelude. So I would be way more optimistic about it and way more looking forward to it I think if it was in a real full-fledged dirt car, rather than the cup cars. I just don’t know that our big, heavy stock cars are cut out and made for the dirt profile. That that’s my opinion, but the tire also is not conducive to the dirt surface very well. And so to me, from my understanding, from talking to some of the other drivers that have run the Eldora truck race the last few years, well, since it started is you’re pretty much holding on the whole time, praying you’re not going to spin out or crash. And that, to me doesn’t sound like a very fun time, although it is entertaining to watch.”

Can you talk about your first Rowdy Energy athlete being announced and do you plan to continue with Brexton racing in dirt?
“For me, I feel like there’s a play there. Obviously, the Rowdy Energy play not only a sponsorship play, but also a B2B play with Brian Brown in Casey’s general store. We’ve got a relationship going there with those guys. So we’re real optimistic about that opportunity and, Brian, what he can do in the World of Outlaw ranks for us also in the ASOC ranks as well too, just the sprint car world. We had great success with Rico (Abreu) and we’re working on some things to maybe continue to partner with Rico here this year. So there’s, there’s a lot of different things that we’re working on with the Rowdy Energy banner, but as far as it relates to Brexton (Busch, son) and what his future plans are I’m not sure exactly. Obviously it just kind of feels right with the path that we’re on. You can go quarter midgets, you can go these outlaw carts. It seems like these outlaw carts have kind of picked up and taken off a little bit. It’d be nice if there was even more tracks that would run these outlaw carts around our area. We’ve got Millbridge, Mountain Creek, three or four speedways that we run around here just within a two, two-and-a-half hour radius of Charlotte. We’ve also ventured out and gone to Missouri during the winter time in order to run indoors, but that’s just what he can do right now, so is he going to be a dirt racer? Is that going to be his path? No. And you know, to me, I feel like that’s just where we are right now, where we can be right now. I don’t think you can run Bandoleros until you’re eight. Then you can’t run Legends cars until you’re 10 or 11 with Bandolero experience. So we got time, you know, that’s just kind of where we started with, where he’s at right now.”

Do you have a heightened sense of determination for this season coming off of a one-win season in 2020?
“Not really, no. I mean, for me, I’ve had one-win seasons before. I think it’s been twice or three times actually. Fortunately for me though, the following seasons, we’ve kind of come back and we’ve been able to win three, four, five, eight, whatever times it’s been, in those following seasons. Obviously being with a new crew chief, that’s going to be an interesting play. The other interesting play is still going to be the fact of no practice and what we can do and what we can get done with simulation in the simulator and that sort of stuff in order to be best prepared for when we get to these races. The whole No. 18 M&M’s team with Ben (Beshore, crew chief) and all my guys, the new guys essentially, it’s going to take a little bit of time to get used to, but also there’s not a whole lot of time for us to get used to one another working with one another at the race track. It’s just get in and go, so it’ll be interesting to see how all that plays out, but I wouldn’t say I’m any more fired up or anything than any other year getting in, getting started. I mean, obviously I feel like it’s always a five-win season is a good win season. That’s always kind of been my number of what you should have. And if you’re ever short of that, then hopefully there’s years in which you’re past that. And you have seven-win seasons, your eight-win seasons, whatever, in order to kind of rebuild those years that you were short on wins. So I feel like I’m probably behind the eight ball. I’m not having as many, five-win seasons that I would like to have had through my career. So there’s definitely some catching up to do that’s for sure.”

Was last year more difficult on you and your team due to how you approach race weekends with so much trial and error through practice sessions?
“Yeah, absolutely. There’s no question about that. I feel like my team Adam (Stevens), especially, they always do a really good job of preparing and getting the best prepared race car they can to the race track. But sometimes you just don’t quite read the exact information or you pick up on the exact information that you need to in simulation because the simulator — the simulation can’t tell you what the cars doing. If it’s bouncing off the tire, if it’s sliding the tire, it can’t tell you how the car is reacting to the tire, to the race track. And so I’m the best computer we got, you know what I mean? So having me be able to be behind the wheel and try to transcribe and describe what is happening in that race car during practice sessions is pivotal. And we just didn’t have that last year. We didn’t have that opportunity last year. So we had to resort to different circumstances in order to make ourselves better. We just kind of fell short on that I feel like. That’s kind of what I was talking to with Bob (Pockrass, Fox Sports) earlier was just there’s kind of had to be a new philosophy thought up if you will. And I, and I feel like that’s kind of gone across the board at JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing),not necessarily just myself and Ben (Beshore, crew chief) and Adam’s going to do the same thing that he did last year with me with Christopher Bell. I think there’s a whole new group and an opportunity for us to kind of think things through differently.”

How many new people are you working with this season and what kind of a challenge is that for you? Have you been in that position before working with a few new team members?
“Last time this all went down was 2015 when I had Dave Rogers. We were transitioning from Dave in 2014 to Adam (Stevens) in 2015. Adam, obviously he brought in kind of a whole new group of guys besides the car chief. Nate Bellows is the car chief. Same thing kind of happened again where Adam went over to Christopher Bell, took all of his guys, the number one, number two engineer, the interior guy, the shop guy, the frontend mechanic, the underneath guy, everybody off the whole team stayed with Adam besides Nate. Nate and I, we’ve kind of had a working relationship over the years. He and I have stuck together again. So Ben (Beshore) brings in himself and he’s working with the number 20 team engineer from last year, which was Erik Jones’ engineer with Chris Gayle and then the number two engineers as well from that group. And then pretty much all the 20 guys as well, too. So I kind of feel like I got fired from the 18 car and moved over to the 20 guys. With the way everything kind of played out, how it looks in the shop and they got the hauler, I have a new hauler, they kept a surface plate. I got a new surface plate. So there’s this whole thing mentally in my head that I kind of got fired and rehired. Maybe that’ll hold true with how it looked in 2007 to 2008 from Hendrick to Gibbs. And I went off and won eight races. It’s a new challenge, it’s a whole group, but looking forward to it.”

How much will working with this whole new team change your approach to races?
“Well, yes, that’s kind of the point. I feel like that’s what we’re all looking for, what we’re striving for. And I feel like there was a philosophy shift late last year, especially built around that Texas win that we had. Before that Texas car got built, Adam (Stevens) actually came to me and said, ‘Hey, what do you want to do for Texas? What kind of car do you want to build? We can go down the path that we’ve always done this whole year. Or we can go down on an entirely new path. One, we haven’t tried yet and do this.’ And I was like, ‘We’ve got nothing to lose. Like let’s, let’s go down the entirely new path and see what happens.’ And low and behold, we win Texas, you know, so I feel like there was something to that. And I feel like that kind of opened up some eyes around JGR as a whole, and hopefully what we can do in order to get ourselves back into the right frame of mind in order to go out there and have a more successful season as a group, as a four-car group, not just the 18 team, but also too seeing Denny (Hamlin) running well and myself and Martin (Truex Jr.), And obviously Erik Jones kind of struggling, we definitely want to get JGR back up on the peak to go out there and win more races. And this year’s schedule is different than last year’s schedule. You’ve got more road courses, you’ve got a dirt race in there. You’ve got less 550 races, more 750 races. All of that gets thrown into the equation too.”

What are your thoughts on so many road course races this season?
“I’ve always kind of looked forward to the road courses. I wouldn’t say that I’ve not looked forward to them. It’s been kind of trying, I guess, at a few of them where we haven’t quite seen the results that we want to be able to see, but I’m optimistic that we can kind of turn things around a little bit, but knowing there’s a couple of cars out there that are just super good at road courses right now, we’ve got a little catch up to do. I’ve never been to Road America where a lot of these guys that have come up into the Cup ranks in the last few years have been in the Xfinity Series that has gone there and run at Road America. You talk about experienced guys or veteran guys kind of having the leg up, if you will. I feel like the tables have turned. Road America wasn’t on the schedule when I was in Xfinity. So those guys have had that experience where I have not. I’m going be a rookie going to Road America. So that’s going to be a little bit getting used to, and trying to figure everything out and knowing what to do and stuff like that. COTA (Circuit of the Americas), I think a lot of us haven’t been there, run on there, seen that place at all. I think some of the other drivers that have kind of seen a little bit on social media have gone over there and run some Trans-Am races and some other stuff just to get track time, just to kind of see the track. There’s going to be a lot of stuff like that, guys have different backgrounds and are going to have different experiences once they get there.”

Are you surprised with Chase Elliott’s performance on road courses?
“Yes and no. I mean, I kind of am, I’ve always felt like Hendrick has always had a good road course program. Their affiliation with Chevrolet, obviously with Pratt Miller, I feel like is a benefit to those guys. They utilize that pretty well. I’m not exactly sure what it is that makes them successful but, they’ve got a good road course racing background. I mean, we’ve seen it for tens of years of success. Jeff Gordon notably years ago. You had it with (Geoff) Bodine back in the day, that was before Pratt Miller, but anyways guys that now Chase has just kind of taken to it and has really done a good job and been fast. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do and trying to put a little bit more emphasis on some road course program in order to get up there and challenge for that victory.”

Being from Las Vegas, is there always more pressure to perform when you’re at that race track?
“Yeah, certainly, you always want to do well. I feel like I’ve won that race before and just the huge sense of relief that kind of comes off your shoulders when you’re able to do that and win at your home track is pretty awesome. Kurt (Busch) was just able to finally get it done last year so that was really awesome to see. I remember mine, I think it was 2009. It’s been a long time. Back at that time, it felt like winning the Daytona 500. I hadn’t won as many big races as I have now or have won as often as I have now. Well, except last year I only won one, that doesn’t count, scratch that. So the point though is a lot of guys look at the Daytona 500, everybody puts extra emphasis on the Daytona 500 because it is our export’s biggest race, right. Then you’ve got the guys that all go their home tracks and those guys put extra emphasis on their home track and they want to do well there. So it’s just kind of that same philosophy, I think.”

What has it been like experiencing so many racing firsts with Brexton’s racing career?
“It’s been great. It’s been a whole lot of fun. With all this COVID stuff, but I don’t think it ever would have happened if it wasn’t for all the COVID shutdowns and whatnot, but thankfully the short tracks have been able to stay open. We’ve been able to go do some of the racing that he’s been able to do. And so we went out to the track the first time just to kind of look at it, check it out, see if he liked it, wanted to do it. Then we borrowed a guy’s cart and he let him test it for about a month or so, we just made some laps and stuff. And then we went out and got our own car, and then we put them in a couple of races and it was rough in the beginning, just going two laps down in an eight-lap heat race. I mean, that was eye opening obviously, but he’s really, really grown. When we started about August September-ish and then it was, it was like six weeks in that he really, he flipped the switch. I mean, he went from getting lapped in heat races and the main events to then boom, like all of a sudden, just one race, he finished on the lead lap and he didn’t run last and stuff like that. And it was like, wow, okay. We’re getting somewhere. We’re going, there’s improvement. And that’s what I’ve always told them. I’m like, look, man, if we always have improvement and we always are going forward, it’s going to be a good thing. You can’t ever just sit there and do the same thing over and over and over again, we’ve got to improve, we’ve got to learn, we’ve got to do the next step better. He’s done that and that’s been real fun to watch. And what’s also interesting is you put out something about your kid wants to go racing and his favorite colors are green and orange and all of a sudden you have sponsors knocking on the door. That was pretty cool as well with ServPro and Crash Racers and Sheets, Laundry Club that jumped on with him in order to take his racing to the next level and get him with all kinds of colors on him. So he looks good and he’s doing good.”

How would you like to see NASCAR toughen up the eligibility requirements to compete in the Cup Series?
“That’s kind of an ongoing debate that we’ve had on the driver council with NASCAR over the last couple of years. I think they’re just continuing to try to keep as many cars and owners in the opportune positions that they can. Obviously, I feel like if you limit it too much you’ll be down less than 36 cars. There’s a point to where you’ve got to have enough cars out there, but also you want to be the pinnacle of stock car racing in the world that you’d like to have opportune talent be in the right cars or in the right position, but that’s never going to happen either. There’s guys out there that, hey, they might do a good enough job and they might be in lower budgeted teams. And then if they were in a good car, they would do a good job who knows, but life’s not always fair. So you just have to get the opportunities that you have and go race with what you got. So I think that’s kind of what they’re allowing is those opportunities that some people get.”

Have you spoken with Denny Hamlin about the Daytona 500 and what do you think makes him so successful at that track?
“So we haven’t spoken yet. We’ve kind of all been in our own isolations if you will and haven’t been around each other much, but we do have a team meeting coming up on Monday, I guess, to prepare and get ourselves ready to go for the race season. Typically we always have our post-race meetings. This’ll be kind of the first pre-race meeting if you will, of the season. We’ll have that on Monday. We’ll have that opportunity to talk then, but Denny (Hamlin) has done a really, really good job and I’m not sure how or why or what exactly has gotten them to the success level with this current generation race car at the superspeedways, but he’s done a really good job with it ever since this car kind of came out. Especially this body style, I think it was 15 or 16. He’s been the guy to beat. He’s been in the class of the field, him and a couple other guys as well, too. So they just kind of get it and understand what it takes in order to do well and be good at this body package. They’ve got one more year of it, so enjoy it while you can, because it’ll change again next year.”

How hard is it to manage Rowdy Energy with all the other obligations in your life?
“Fortunately you try to get the right people in the right places and you don’t have to do a whole lot around it. Obviously, I have been a huge part of it and been in, I don’t know, 50 something Zoom calls over the course of the last year, trying to get it into a different outlets and retailers and stuff like that in order to carry our product. And so it’s been going well, it’s been going good, but I’ve got a great CEO, Jeff Church, who is running that program for me. We’ve hired on, I think something like eight or 12 people just in the five months in order to kind of take that next step and get it into more doors coming into quarter one here this year and carry that success out throughout this year and get it into more doors next year. You know, a lot of people are taking the chance on us here as a young brand, only being a year old, but we’re thankful of that. And of course there’s others that passed on the opportunity, but they know that if we’re successful in the markets that we have and the doors that we have that they’ll pick us up as we get going here. We’re looking forward to it. It’s certainly had it’s headaches, but you put good people in good places and they can do a good job.”

When you decide to step away from racing, how will Rowdy Energy fit into your long term strategy?
“Obviously, yeah, it would certainly be something that you would like to have as an end game. Obviously racing is not going to be forever when you’re done racing, the paychecks stop, they don’t continue unless you go into doing TV or something else that’s maybe racing related that you can get paid to do. I don’t even know what to say. Some guys go into driver counseling or whatever it’s called, helping some of these younger guys, but that’s definitely not going to pay you a whole lot of money. That’s just kind of going to keep you going with your bills and whatnot, but the Rowdy Energy plays, obviously a CPG brand, consumer goods that if it’s successful, can get you to — whether you plan to sell that after five or 10 years or whatever, and cash out and go on your merry way, or whether you tend to stick with it and keep running it and be a part of the brand, which is what I would like to do. Obviously it’s my name, it’s my brand. It’s what we started here, Samantha and I and Jeff Church. And so, if I can carry that on into the future, I will, and it could happen. I know I’m not going to say it won’t happen, but obviously the goal is to one day be as successful as Monster, Red Bull. But in reality, I know that if we’re a number three, four or five brand, top five brand, then I would say that we’ve met our goals and what we know that we can achieve.”

What are your expectations for John Hunter Nemechek in the Truck Series this season?
“I would like to think that John Hunter is ready to go and get back to victory lane. Him and I, we flew together a few times last year and we talked a little bit about some of the opportunities that he’s had and what he’s done and what he feels like he’s learned and what he’s missed out on and what he wants to kind of get back to. I feel like that was a good opportunity for us to talk and to get him kind of back in the Truck Series. Fortunately, I think it all came full circle, being able to put Eric Phillips (crew chief) with him and get Eric back. If we didn’t have Eric, I don’t know where we’d be, but I feel like we’re in a pretty good spot. I’ve always kind of said, we need to get a Matt Crafton type guy at Kyle Busch Motorsports. One that can be a guy who can race year after year and, and race for wins, race for championships, compete, contend and keep our equipment running up front and doing well. Since I’m only allowed to run the five or so races a year, that only gives me the opportune time to get in the stuff, to kind of talk to the younger drivers about what they’re feeling and what what’s going on. And if you kind of look at past history, the races that I’m in, our drivers tend to run better, but the races that I’m not in, they’re kind of all off in la la land. So hopefully John Hunter can kind of help rein that in and be a part of our organization for a long time and go out there and be a guy that can race for wins and race for championships, and also help the development of some of these younger guys. And he is a young guy, but to help the development of some of these younger guys that come up and come in and if they move on and are able to go to the next level, then so be it. But I know John Hunter is going to be itching at the opportunity to have success and, if somebody calls him he would probably go back up into the Xfinity or Cup, but we’ll worry about that when the time comes.”

# # #

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.

Team:                   No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang
Crew Chief:         Luke Lambert

Twitter:                @17RoushTeam, @RoushFenway and @Chris_Buescher

Busch Clash – Tuesday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM Channel 90

ADVANCE NOTES

Buescher in the Clash

·         Buescher makes his second start in the annual Clash event on Tuesday, and first since 2017. The 2021 field is limited to 2020 pole winners, past Clash winners who competed full-time in 2020, Daytona 500 Champions who competed full-time in 2020, former Daytona 500 pole winners who competed full time in 2020 and 2020 NCS Playoff drivers, race winners and stage winners.

·         Newman is coming off a fifth-place run in the exhibition race a season ago after starting on the pole following a random draw. He has four top-five results in the Clash all-time, including second in 2005, third in 2011 and fourth in 2003.

·         The 2021 edition of the Clash moves to the Daytona Road Course, where the NASCAR Cup Series competed at for the first time last summer. Newman ran 19^th in that event.

·         Tuesday’s race serves as a primer for the newly-established second race of the NCS regular season, when the series heads right back to Daytona for a points event on the road course.

·         The random draw to determine Tuesday’s starting lineup will take place Monday night at 7 p.m. ET.

Luke Lambert in the Clash

·         Lambert makes his sixth start in the Clash on Tuesday atop the box, after four prior appearances with Newman and one with Jeff Burton.

·         Lambert has two finishes of eighth – one with Burton in 2011 and again in 2014 with Newman.

QUOTE WORTHY
Buescher on racing in the Clash:
“Just getting back to the track in general is very exciting, and we’re ready to kick this thing off after a busy offseason. Hitting the road course at Daytona will be quite different for this format, but I’m a fan of road course racing and feel good about where we are, especially coming off the top five there last summer. We’re looking forward to it, and hopefully it gives us a solid plan for week two.”

On the Car
Fastenal returns to the fold at Roush Fenway for its 11^th season in 2021. They spent three years on the No. 99 before jumping to the No. 17 Cup Series entry, and were the primary partner on the No. 60 Xfinity team that captured the owner’s championship in 2011.

About Fastenal
Fastenal [Nasdaq: FAST] is North America’s largest fastener distributor and a ‘one-stop’ source for hundreds of thousands of OEM, MRO and Construction products. With more than 2,600 stores worldwide, the company supports B2B customers with tailored local inventory and dedicated personnel, who visit regularly, quickly respond to emergency needs, and provide efficient inventory management solutions. Fastenal’s service-oriented business network includes the world’s largest industrial vending program, 14 regional distribution centers, 8 custom manufacturing facilities, thousands of delivery vehicles, and industry-leading sourcing, quality and engineering resources.

Armor All Returns to NASCAR with Erik Jones

WELCOME, N.C. (February 5, 2021)—In anticipation of the 63rd annual DAYTONA 500, Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM) announced today a partnership with the Armor All® brand, a leader in car care, providing consumers with innovative products that clean, shine and protect automotive surfaces. Armor All will be the primary partner of the No. 43 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE in the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS), piloted by Erik Jones, at the Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway on Sunday, February 14.

Armor All, an Energizer Holdings, Inc., brand, will be returning to NASCAR for the first time since 2010, and reigniting its celebrated history in the sport by partnering with Richard Petty Motorsports. Some of the highlights of the brand’s involvement at the Daytona International Speedway includes a fifth-place finish with Neil Bonnett in the 1976 DAYTONA 500. In the 2008 NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) season-opener, Armor All collected their first victory for the brand with Tony Stewart.

“We are proud to showcase the Armor All brand on racing’s biggest stage,” Katina Wall, category leader, Americas Auto Care, Energizer Holdings, said. “Our sister brand, STP, has won four DAYTONA 500s on the iconic No. 43. We are looking forward to Armor All getting its first one with Erik Jones and Richard Petty Motorsports.”

The 24-year-old Byron, Michigan, native has eight starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at the 2.5-mile tri-oval in Daytona Beach, Fla. Jones posted a victory at the Daytona International Speedway on July 7, 2018, and has collected two top-five finishes and three top-10 finishes, recording 36 laps led. In addition, Jones has six starts in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and one start in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) at the Daytona International Speedway

“It is cool to have the Armor All brand on our No. 43 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE,” Jones said. “I am excited to work with them. I grew up using the Armor All brand of products on a lot of the stuff that we worked on and cleaned. I continue to use them today.”

“The Armor All brand paint scheme looks great. I have seen our No. 43 Armor All Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at the Richard Petty Motorsports shop. I think the orange and black is going to stand out during the DAYTONA 500, and hopefully we can get them to victory lane.”

A longtime partner of Richard Petty, the STP brand will celebrate 50 years of a storied partnership with the start of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. Together, STP and Petty have collected 64 victories, including four in the DAYTONA 500. Continuing to partner with Richard Petty Motorsports, STP, which delivers products that help engines run better, longer, joins Jones at the ‘Great American Race’ debuting a special 50th anniversary logo commemorating the partnership.

In addition, STP will serve as an associate partner on the No. 43 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE for the entirety of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season with Richard Petty Motorsports.

The DAYTONA 500 at the Daytona International Speedway will be broadcast live on FOX on Sunday, February 14 at 2:30 p.m. (ET). It will also broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

About Energizer Holdings, Inc.

Energizer Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ENR), headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, is one of the world’s largest manufacturers and distributors of primary batteries, portable lights, and auto care appearance, performance, refrigerant, and fragrance products. Our portfolio of globally recognized brands include Energizer®, Armor All®, Eveready®, Rayovac®, STP®, Varta®, A/C Pro®, Refresh Your Car! ®, California Scents®, Driven®, Bahama & Co. ®, LEXOL®, Eagle One®, Nu Finish®, Scratch Doctor®, and Tuff Stuff®. As a global branded consumer products company, Energizer’s mission is to lead the charge to deliver value to our customers and consumers better than anyone else.

About Richard Petty Motorsports

A performance and marketing driven company, Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM), co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneur Andrew Murstein, is one of the most recognized brands in all of motorsports. RPM is the winningest team in NASCAR Cup Series history with 273 wins and has business partnerships with national and global leaders. Today the race operation fields the famed No. 43 in the NASCAR Cup Series with driver Erik Jones. The team is headquartered in Welcome, N.C.

For additional information, news and the latest updates, please visit www.richardpettymotorsports.com or connect with RPM on Facebook (Richard Petty Motorsports), Twitter (@RPMotorsports) or Instagram (@richardpettymotorsports).