Klik Marketing is excited to announce the creation of two motorsports podcasts, “Not Another Racing Podcast” and “The Racing Table”. These podcasts are part of Klik’s venture into the motorsports industry as the Charlotte, NC based-marketing company looks to transition into partnerships with drivers, teams, sponsors, and various events in the coming years. 

“We believe this is the perfect time to jump into NASCAR. There’s a host of young and upcoming drivers and new teams that need marketing and branding services to help them standout in a crowded industry,” said Eric Fransen, founded of Klik Marketing. “Our staff has tens of thousands of hours working in NASCAR on both the team and driver sides of the industry. Our experience combined with our marketing expertise allows everybody to win.”

“Not Another Racing Podcast” will be a podcast with NASCAR drivers Matt DiBenedetto and Ryan Ellis, and co-hosted by independent NASCAR personality Konnor Fulk. The podcast will feature notable guest interviews each week in and outside of the racing industry and will debut next week.

Matt DiBenedetto, driver of the No.21 Ford for Wood Brothers Racing echoed the excitement for the new podcast. 

“I’m really excited to do something that is lighthearted, fun, and gives fans a look into the lives of racers outside of the racetrack. Ryan, Konnor, and I wanted to create a podcast that is different than any of the others out there in the motorsport’s world – we want something that people can enjoy listening to and forget whatever is going on in their lives,” said DiBenedetto. “We want to give the people a behind the scenes look into the sport through never-before-told stories from notable racing personalities.”

The second podcast, “The Racing Table” takes listeners behind-the-scenes on what it is like to work on the road in the NASCAR industry. Crew members Christopher Womack, Jesse Boyce, Willie Pelotte, and Michael Groves have spent their entire lives in racing and now all work for NASCAR Cup Series teams. The group will have a mix of new and established crew members, drivers, and other NASCAR industry personnel as guests to speak about their experiences working in the industry. The Racing Table will also release its debut episode next week.

“We want to thank Klik Marketing for the opportunity and the platform to create our podcast,” said TRT host Christopher Womack. “We hope it will give fans an in-depth look into the lives of the people who work in NASCAR, our lifestyle on the road, and some of the differences between working for big and small teams. 

For more information on these podcasts follow Klik Marketing at @klikmarketing on Twitter and @KlikCLT on Facebook and Instagram.

To keep up to date on “Not Another Racing Podcast” content, follow @NARacingPod on Twitter and Instagram and “Not Another Racing Podcast” on Facebook.

Fans can also follow “The Racing Table” at @RacingTablePod on Twitter, Instagram and “The Racing Table” on Facebook.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes

NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

Cole Custer, driver of the No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang, is this year’s Sunoco Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Cup Series after his win at Kentucky Speedway clinched a spot in the Playoffs. Custer was part of a Q&A session today to discuss his season and officially winning the yearly award.

COLE CUSTER, No. 41 HaasTooling.com Ford Mustang – CAN YOU EVALUATE YOUR SEASON? “Definitely a lot of ups and downs. I think with any rookie year it’s like that, but this year was probably to the extreme by not having practice, not having testing, not having qualifying. It definitely wasn’t an easy year to be a rookie, but I think we all made the best out of it and I think we all made a lot of progression throughout the year. I think from our standpoint to have a race win, to make the playoffs, I think we can call it a success. Did we want to run better a lot of the time? Yeah, for sure, but I think we definitely made some huge strides in making more consistent runs and I think it’s just a matter of taking it to the next level to be consistently in the next group of cars.”

WHAT DID YOU THINK WOULD BE THE MOST CHALLENGING THING GOING INTO THE SEASON AND THEN WHAT ENDED UP BEING THE MOST CHALLENGING PART? “I think one of the biggest things is just how much different the cars are. From the Xfinity cars to the Cup cars there are a lot of differences, especially when you go to the 550 package it’s all different. So to be able to do all that even before everything with Covid happened, this was the first year I think ever that rookies haven’t had any testing. There was a lot of unknowns even going into the year before Covid of how we were gonna adapt to that and how we were gonna go about that the best way, so it was just a lot of stress I guess adapting to something so new and obviously you’re going up against a lot of guys that have been doing it for a career for a very long time.”

WERE YOU HAPPY THE NEXT GEN WAS PUSHED TO 2022? “Yeah, I think so, especially just from the standpoint of everything with Covid happening, not having the time to really develop as much as we want to and go through different changes with the cars and for me to learn more I think it’s gonna be huge. It’s just without that practice or testing there are a lot of things you want to run through that you’re not able to do, so having more time and another year to kind of run through things in races will definitely help out.”

HOW DO YOU BALANCE OUT THE PRESEASON EXPECTATIONS AND HOW THEY CHANGE AS THE YEAR GOES ON? “Like you said, that’s just part of being a competitor. You supposed to always want more, so even though we won a race and had some good things happen, we won rookie of the year, we want more. We want to run better. That’s just part of being a competitor in my opinion, but at the same time you have to kind of look back through the year and say like where we started look at it and then look at the very end to how far you came and how much more you know now. There’s a lot that you can look back on and say that we did really good, so it’s just a matter of taking your little wins and make sure that you’re still working in the right direction to get better. I know that we have a lot of things that we can get better. I wish the season started honestly next week so we’d get back going again because there were a lot of things that I think we could get better the second year.”

DO YOU EVER WATCH THE END OF THE KENTUCKY RACE YOU WON? “I haven’t watched it in a little while – ever since close to the race – so I probably should because I need to be able to do that again. You get so wrapped up in what you’re doing at the moment. You’re trying to figure out what you can do better next week and work on the next-best thing, so I think there are times when you have to look back on those things and see what you’ve done, but 90 percent of the time you’re trying to look at the next thing and trying to do better.”

ARE YOU DISAPPOINTED THE BANQUET HAS BEEN CANCELLED IN NASHVILLE AND HOW MUCH ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO RACING AT THE SUPERSPEEDWAY IN JUNE? “It is kind of disappointing that we don’t get to do the banquet in person. That’s something that’s a real privilege to go to and to win an award like rookie of the year definitely means a lot, especially with the competition we had this year for it. I mean, we had a really good rookie class this year and I think we all adapted very well, but I think it definitely is a little bit of a letdown that we have to not do it in person, but at the same time I’ll take it. It’s an award and I’m really gonna appreciate it. I’m looking forward to it. And like you said with Nashville Superspeedway coming back I think it’s awesome to come back to Nashville. I think that’s gonna be a really cool city to go to for what our sport is and that down. It’s such a cool town and also the track. I mean, I’ve only run there testing like five or six years ago in a truck, but I think it’ll be an interesting race to see who can figure it out first.”

HAVE YOU EVER RACED AT THE FAIRGROUNDS BEFORE? “I haven’t. I’ve never raced at the fairgrounds before.”

HOW IMPORTANT WAS IT HAVING THREE VETERAN TEAMMATES TO BOUNCE IDEAS OFF OF DURING THE SEASON? “It definitely helped out a ton. I pretty much talk to Kevin about three quarters of the weekends of the year, so he was a huge help throughout the whole year and I can’t thank him enough. And also being able to talk with Clint and Aric, everybody was a huge help, so to be able to have those resources around you to kind of bounce ideas off of and see what they’re thinking going into weekends and stuff like that is invaluable. At the same time, you do have to figure out your own way a little bit. Things that work for other guys isn’t gonna work for you, so you’ve got to use your resources and talk to people and ask questions and also figure out your own path of what’s gonna work for you.”

WHAT ARE YOU OFF-SEASON PLANS? “I don’t know yet. It’s Covid. Anything is possible. It’s 2020, so it’s kind of just playing it day by day and kind of enjoying the off time for now – these first few weeks. The thing is by the first month or so you’re pretty much ready to get back in the car, so you go over a lot of notes and pretty much every single race during the year and try and figure out what I could have done better. You just try and go through it with a fine-tooth comb, and I think if we do that, we have some really good ideas going into next year. I think if we can put everything together, I think we can have a really good shot at it.”

SHR WILL LOOK DIFFERENT NEXT YEAR. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR CHASE BRISCOE TO BE ABLE TO ADAPT AND WHAT HAVE YOU SEEN FROM HIM SO FAR? “I’m really excited. Chase and I have a really good relationship. We’ve been teammates before at the Xfinity level and he’s also a pretty good friend off the racetrack, so we get along pretty well and I think we can bounce ideas off each other pretty well. I’m really excited about it. I think he’ll do really well. And also I think even with our cars being able to have a full second year under our belts with this package it’s definitely helped a lot, so hopefully we can try and dial things in for him pretty fast.”

HOW READY ARE YOU FOR SIX ROAD COURSES ON THE 2021 SCHEDULE? “I’m looking forward to it. I think every driver is honestly. Whenever we go to road courses it’s something that puts it more in the driver’s hands, so I think everybody is looking forward to that and all the fans I think are excited too because we put on some of the best racing at road courses.”

New Eligibility Requirements Announced by NASCAR for Historic 2021 Event

CONCORD, N.C., (Nov. 17, 2020) – Roush Fenway teammates Ryan Newman and Chris Buescher will compete in the 2021 Busch Clash exhibition event at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course as part of Daytona Speedweeks. The field for the event was announced Tuesday, as NASCAR detailed new eligibility requirements for the exhibition event at ‘The World Center of Racing.’

Newman, who will make his 17th start in the Clash format, is eligible by way of his victory in the 2008 Daytona 500. Buescher, who will make his second appearance in the Clash, is eligible by way of his stage win at Talladega Superspeedway in October, one of the new eligibility requirements for the 2021 event.

The newly announced eligibility requirements for the 2021 edition are: 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 NASCAR Playoff drivers, race winners and stage winners.

New to the Clash in 2021 is also the track layout, which will feature the Daytona Road Course, a departure from the tradition 2.5-mile superspeedway track in previous events. As part of the schedule changes in 2020 due to implications from COVID-19, the NCS made a rare third visit to Daytona, hitting the road course in August for the first time in the series’ history. Buescher, a polished road racer in his young career, drove to a fifth-place result while Newman finished 19th.

Roush Fenway has one win in the Clash format after NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin won the event back in 1999. Newman – who enters his 21st season in the Cup Series – sat on the pole for the 2020 Clash after a random draw, and Jack Roush has six poles overall in the event.

The number of laps for the 2021 Clash is still yet to be determined, but will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 9, with timing and TV coverage also TBD. The Clash is the kickoff for an action-packed week of racing in Daytona, which features the Duels on Thursday, Feb. 11, leading up to the 63rd Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 14.

About Roush Fenway Racing
Roush Fenway Racing is one of the most successful teams in NASCAR history, fielding multiple teams in NASCAR Cup Series. Set to begin its 34th season in 2021, Roush Fenway is a leader in driver development, having launched the careers for many of the top drivers in the sport. Off-track, Roush Fenway is a leader in NASCAR marketing solutions, having produced multiple award-winning Social Media, digital content and experiential marketing campaigns. Roush Fenway is co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Fame team owner Jack Roush and Fenway Sports Group, parent company of Major League Baseball’s Boston Red Sox and English Premier League’s Liverpool F.C. Visit RoushFenway.com, become a fan on Facebook and Instagram, and follow on Twitter at @roushfenway.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
NOVEMBER 16, 2020

CHIP GANASSI RACING’S, KURT BUSCH, is participating in a two-day Next Gen test held by NASCAR at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Kurt Busch met with media via teleconference to discuss his thoughts after the first day of the test, what he’s learned from the test so far, and more. Transcript:

IT WASN’T ALL THAT LONG AGO THAT YOU RACED THIS TRACK. GIVE US A COMPARISON OF HOW THIS DRIVES COMPARED TO WHAT YOU HAD THE LAST TIME YOU RACED HERE?
“Today has been a fun, exciting, interesting day. It feels like the first day of school because of how different the car is. With the sequential gearbox, that’s the most fun. I love shifting through the gears. Sequentially, you have to go second, third, fourth, fifth, and then you have to go back fourth, third, second. It’s not your typical H-pattern that we’ve had. So, this gearbox is fun to drive. The brakes are much bigger and the car can stop a lot quicker. And then, we actually have a hybrid horsepower range. Right now, we’re not in the full 750hp, but we’re not the low 550hp.”

“But, overall, the car’s first impression is that it’s fun, it’s exciting and different, and I encourage everybody to dig into it to find its differences and to respect the process that NASCAR is going through to implement all these new, exciting components. A new front bulkhead, a new rear bulkhead, and, overall, the cars driving and its feel. Out on the ROVAL, it feels like I’m qualifying every lap because of how impressive the lap times are and how much grip the car has in certain spots of the race track. Overall, a lot of fun. It’s neat working with all these different people trying to sort out a car that has never been on a road course before.”

YOU’RE A GUY THAT’S DRIVEN SPORTSCARS AND MARTIN TRUEX JR. HAS NEVER DRIVEN A SPORTSCAR. DOES THIS FEEL MORE LIKE A SPORTSCAR COMPARED TO THE BIG, STOCKY STOCK CAR THAT YOU GO AROUND THIS TRACK IN?
“It’s a good marriage between the two. (inaudible) With the independent rear suspension, there’s different lingo and talk about anti-dives,(inaudible), and different ways we’re going to adjust these cars instead of your typical track bar or wedge. So, there’s a lot of adjustments and a lot of new terminology. Driver to driver, they’re going to figure it out, and then you have to go to the next level in how you translate that information to your crew and how the crew goes through the new components and finds out what’s the most effective. That’s going to make things different.”

INAUDIBLE
“It’s a one-lever, sequential gearbox shift. So, you start out in neutral and then you’ve got to go first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and down fourth, third, second, first. And so, you can’t just go through the H-pattern and go to whatever gear you want – you have to go through them all.”

HOW PROBLEMATIC WOULD THAT BE WITH TRANSMISSIONS FOR GUYS THAT HAVE NEVER BEEN FAMILIAR WITH THAT PATTERN?
“It won’t be too bad. I think a racer will figure it out. A lot of us drove Legend Cars and that’s a motorcycle, sequential gearbox. That’s the easiest comparison. It might not be the most handsome and powerful comparison, but like an Australian V8 Supercar or a Sand Rail (inaudible).”

HAVE YOU GOTTEN A CHANCE TO DRIVE ANYWHERE CLOSE TO WHERE TRUEX HAS BEEN? HAVE YOU GOTTEN A FEEL OF HOW THIS CAR MIGHT RACE?
“We’ve been on different ends of the track. The focus is to go through tires for Goodyear and finding the best combination. There’s a Watkins Glen tire here, there’s a Mid-Ohio tire, and there’s also a Sonoma tire that we need to run. I think we’re just trying to log laps on components for road course stuff and then Wednesday will be the primary focus on getting the cars out there together, seeing how they manipulate the air and if they’re less effected by the air.”

IS THIS CAR, IN DRIVING IT COMPARED TO WHAT YOU NORMALLY DRIVE, DOES IT TURN BETTER? DOES IT STEER BETTER? ARE YOU ACCELERATING QUICKER OR BRAKING LATER?
“Yes, everything. It even sounds roadier and deeper. The sound was very cool. I don’t get to hear cars a lot because I’m in the car racing, but to hear Truex go around and to hear the split exhaust – one pipes out the left, one pipes out the right – that’s an old school, Trans Am-style, thundering power feel. But the car accelerates quicker, it stops quicker, it turns quicker, it’s more nimble. All the lap time that’s been gained is through the infield section with the independent rear suspension and the ability to shift quicker. So, really the car, I don’t want to use the word ‘steroids’ – it’s just the car is more effective and the car is more sensitive to changes and to feel, even with a shorter side wall. The car is riding smooth, but you feel everything more vividly.”

SOME OF THE EARLIER TESTS, THE GUYS WERE COMPLAINING ABOUT TWITCHINESS IN THE STEERING. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE WAY THE STEERING FEELS AND WHETHER IT’S TWITCHY, HOW RESPONSIVE IT IS, OR HOW SOFT IT IS?
“So, we’re doing good right now. They still have one more change to make things firmer – to have the sensitivity turned down a little bit more. Right now, yes, it’s on the aggressive side for feel, twitchiness and movement. But, we’re at a road course for the first time and I like its movement back and forth, left to right. But, on the oval sections, it’s a little bit on edge and we need to try to perfect that and that’s more of the Wednesday focus. We will run different valving tonight to help with the steering just to see what that change does. But road course stuff, we’re in the box. Oval, we’ll know more on Wednesday.”

I KNOW YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN IN AND OUT MULTIPLE TIMES. DO YOU HAVE ANY KNOWLEDGE OF WHAT KIND OF CHANGES THEY’RE MAKING BETWEEN RUNS? ARE THEY THROWING BIG THINGS AT IT OR JUST SMALL PRESSURE CHANGES AND STUFF LIKE THAT?
“I would say we’ve done pretty good to have aggressive changes so far. Small changes and different tire compounds have been across the car. My brain is swirling about all the gears that I want to change in the gearbox, but we’re just going to leave it for today. But yeah, the car is reacting well to typical changes and to new things that we’re talking about, as far as anti-dive, anti-squat. The caster changes we haven’t done yet are much different than years’ past with the way the shocks mount to the control arms and the wishbones. So, a bunch of new stuff to learn.”

HAVE YOU GUYS BEEN RUNNING THE SAME RATIOS IN THE BOX ALL DAY?
“Yes, same ratios. I don’t know what Truex has in his, but it’s in the ballpark.”

“We’re just trying to get a lot of the big things done on NASCAR’s checklist, instead of trying to fine-tune for speed. We’ll worry about that in 2022.”

WAS THERE ANYTHING YOU DIDN’T LIKE ABOUT DRIVING THE CAR?
“So far, everything has a reason for either the twitchiness, the comfort level in the braking zones or even the feel out on the oval. It’s all had a reason for why it did what it did. (inaudible).”

WAS IT WHAT YOU WERE EXPECTING IT TO FEEL LIKE?
“You know, it was like the first day of school, honestly. There’s so much to look at, digest, and feel. Overall, though, I still have yet to even see the laps times, but they told me it’s been an impressive pickup of speed versus the traditional car. So, to me, that says Next Gen all over it – when you’re going faster, turning better, accelerating harder, braking harder and braking faster. Just faster is better, so we’ll keep fine-tuning it.”

ARE YOU PLANNING TO RUN THE SAME CAR WEDNESDAY?
“Yes. That car that’s behind me – tomorrow, they’ll switch all the components over for oval track settings and then go out there on Wednesday.”

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 75 countries with nearly 4 million cars and trucks sold in 2019. 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 www.chevrolet.com.