NASCAR CUP SERIES
DAYTONA ROAD COURSE
GO BOWLING 235
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
AUGUST 16, 2020

CHASE ELLIOTT SCORES VICTORY AT THE DAYTONA ROAD COURSE
Team Chevy Takes Four of the Top-10

DAYTONA BEACH, FL (August 16, 2020) – Chase Elliott adds to his impressive road course resume by taking his No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Camaro ZL1 1LE to victory lane in the GoBowling 235 at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course, the NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) debut appearance at the 14-turn, 3.61-mile road course. The win is Elliott’s second points-paying victory and 13th top-10 finish of the 2020 season. It is his fourth career road course win and third in a row.

The victory, Chevrolet’s fourth triumph of the season, is the manufacturer’s 32nd road course win on tracks currently on the NCS tour and the 790th all-time win in NASCAR’s premier series. The win at the inaugural visit to the Daytona International Speedway Road Course is Elliott’s eighth career victory in 172 NASCAR Cup Series starts. Elliott, the youngest road course winner in NCS history, is now the sixth and most recent driver in NASCAR Cup Series history to win three or more consecutive road course races.

The win is the 19th NCS road course triumph for Hendrick Motorsports, which was also celebrated by Elliott’s teammates Jimmie Johnson, who finished 4th in his No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 1LE, and William Byron, who was 8th in his No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 1LE. Kaz Grala, who was the substitution driver for Austin Dillon after he tested positive for COVID-19, brought the No. 3 American Ethanol Camaro ZL1 1LE home in the 7th position in his NCS debut, giving Chevrolet four of the top-10 finishers.

Denny Hamlin (Toyota) was second, Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota) was third and Chris Buescher (Ford) rounded out the top-five finishers of the race.

The NASCAR Cup Series season continues with a doubleheader race weekend at Dover International Speedway with the Drydene 311 on Saturday, August 22, at 4:00 p.m. ET and the Drydene 311 on Sunday, August 23, at 4:00 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on the NBCSN, NBC Sports Gold app, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:

THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by today’s winner of the Go Bowling 235 at the Daytona road course, Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. I believe that’s three road wins in a row. Is it safe to say you’re becoming a fan of the road courses?

        CHASE ELLIOTT: I've just had really good cars I think more than anything. I'm not sure I did anything very special today but had a really fast NAPA Camaro, which makes everybody's job a little easier from my end driving it, from Alan's end calling the race, and then from his end on adjusting, too. Really fortunate from that standpoint. Had a really nice week of preparation, came out and executed really good race. Really proud of the day. I think we have a lot to be proud of and showing up having a car like it needed to be, it doing what I wanted, and then to take that and get the result that I felt like we deserved.

       Q. I don't know that you made a mistake today or at least it didn't look like it. I'm curious, did you expect it to go that smoothly at a track that you had never raced at before?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Well, it never goes smooth, or smooth in my eyes, at least. Yeah, I mean, obviously I look back and just ‑‑ we had that run there after the lightning break, and then I think the odds of it going green from there to the end, I think we all knew were pretty well slim to none. So, it was just a matter of when that caution was going to come out in my eyes and in my head. I had already accepted that long before it came out, and then to me the bigger question was not when but how many were going to be in a row, how many green‑white‑checkereds were you going to have to do in a row, and that's where as time goes on, just executing those is important, and the only way to get better at them is to be in those positions more often as a driver and for me personally, so really proud to be there today and to execute it like we needed to.

       Q. I'm wondering, how does it feel to make history and win this race on this first road course here?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, I mean, any win at Daytona is special, and Alan and I were joking, he said we had to change it to a road case to win a race here at Daytona. That was his first win here. This is his home track, he's from down here, so I think that was really cool. Yeah, just a great day.
       Obviously Watkins Glen has been good to us, but I was just really happy that we replaced a road course with a road course and didn't just pile something else on the schedule to check a box. I think there was a lot of effort into getting this road course done and completed in time, so appreciate Daytona and everybody that works in the facilities here to be able to turn it that fast, and did a really nice job with it.

       Q. With the late restart there, did you have any Roval flashbacks like man, I can't do this again, I've got to do something different?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Well, I certainly didn't want to drive into the barrier in Turn 1, so yes, that crossed my mind: Don't do that.

       Q. And you didn't, so you learned?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Learned. I finally learned something.

       Q. Speaking of the last restart with three laps to go, were you expecting complete mayhem and maybe to get rooted out of the lead?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: I had considered it a possibility for sure. You know, but at the same time, I think if you execute and do your part from the driver's side, you should be able to keep those opportunities from happening if you stay mistake free. Fortunately was able to get a good jump, had a good Turn 1, and then tried to just fall into rhythm there and just tried not to overdrive it. I thought Denny was being really aggressive on corner entry. I was not being as aggressive as him and was just focused in on my exits and trying to just control that gap to him, and yeah, fortunately it all worked out.

       Q. Is there any sort of lesson with the car you can take from this road course and apply it to the oval since we're going to be coming back in two weeks?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: No, unfortunately not. This is just a whole different animal, car, configuration, body, brakes, motor, you name it; nothing is really the same. This is just kind of a road course racing is a thing of its own and superspeedway racing is just not ‑‑ there's absolutely nothing you can take from today and apply it to the week after next.

       Q. And since you're becoming ‑‑ you've grown to like road courses I presume, so do you think that this Daytona road course could find a permanent spot on the, quote‑unquote, normal schedule?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: That's well above me. I don't know. I think you'd have to make ‑‑ those decisions are made with a lot of things in mind, and whether or not I like it isn't one of them. That's just part of it.

       Q. How does it feel just to win again, to sort of end a little bit of a dry spell and some of the things this team has gone through here in the summer months?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, it feels really good. I mean, any time you can win in this series, I have learned and learned the hard way in some cases that you just can't take them for granted. They're just too hard to get, and it should be, and that makes the feeling of victory feel that much better because it is so hard. You just have to enjoy them. You never know if you'll ever get another one or what tomorrow brings. I don't take it for granted, and we just tried to make the most of a really good car today. You don't have cars like that all the time, so when you do, you really want to make the most of it and try to capitalize and just really fortunate that everything went our way and we executed and did everything on our end that we could control right and had the result that, like I said earlier, I thought we deserved.

       Q. Is it also a major positive you beat one of the hottest drivers in the deal right now? Denny Hamlin week in and week out. Does that at least send a little bit of a message to those guys, we can be as good as you and we can beat you guys?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: I mean, I don't feel like we need to prove that to them, and we certainly don't need to prove that to ourselves. I think that when we have things going like we can and like we know how to do, I think we can run with whoever. I think we've proven that in the past, and that's not something that I need to sell myself on believing or sell my team. I think we're all on the same page there.

       Q. About a year ago when you won the Watkins Glen race, you guys were coming off several tough weeks, and you said it was good to get a reminder that you guys had the pieces of the puzzle and everything in place, that if things went correctly that you could win as you got close to the playoffs. Do you hope that this win can sort of serve in the same capacity this season?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Well, I mean, the points you can't put a price tag on the six points we earned today for the playoffs, and that to me is the biggest piece of the puzzle for as far as a championship goes. Our performance on the ovals the past month have not been what they need to be to compete for the championship, and I think we all know that, so we're working really hard on doing that and getting better, and I think a day like today where we're able to come here, have a really fast car, get some of those bonus points, I don't want to say it bides us time, but having six more points than we would have had than if we hadn't have won today makes a big difference, and especially when you're fighting to run seventh and eighth at Michigan last weekend.
       All that stuff matters, and as tight as it's going to be through these rounds and through this last 10, we needed all we could get, and those bonus points, they're irreplaceable. That has Denny and Kevin pretty well locked in to Phoenix, and that's a situation that we strive to be in each year, and those guys have put themselves in that position year and year, so it's certainly possible, and we want to do the same.

       Q. You touched on the Michigan disappointment, I guess, from a few weeks ago. You head to Dover next weekend with two chances to win, and Dover has been historically a good track for you. Do you feel like there's any momentum that you can carry in? Obviously the tracks don't compare whatsoever, but do you feel like there's any moral momentum that goes into next weekend?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, for sure. I mean, any win is great, right, and it makes everybody feel good. We should enjoy this. We should enjoy today, tomorrow, and when we go back to work this week, obviously we'll put eyes on Dover, but there's been a lot of emphasis put into Dover and trying to improve, especially after a tough month. So yeah, until we get to the racetrack and kind of see where we stack up and get our report car, obviously we don't know, but yeah, winning, you can't ‑‑ there's nothing that replaces that. Like I say, I just think it makes everybody on our team feel like they deserve to feel. I think we have a winning group. I believe that, and there is no doubt in my mind about that, and we just have to have all the puzzle pieces going together to make that happen, just like anybody else does. But I think we have what it takes to run really good and compete with these guys week in and week out.

       Q. Earlier this week you were talking about how you and your team really weren't able to keep up the momentum that you may have been able to gain from winning the All‑Star Race last month. Considering that and considering that you're back in Victory Lane today, how much of a point of emphasis is continued success from this going to be in the shop this week?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Well, I mean, we always want to do good. There's no speech that we hear when we have a bad day that makes us want to do better any more than we already do, and if we don't have that fire before you have a bad day, then we shouldn't be doing this, and I don't think that's the case for anybody on our team.

       Q. Obviously with last year's win at the Roval and then this win here, two different types of courses, but a little bit of similarity. The Roval being an elimination race, does this give a little bit of confidence knowing that you can go back there with that success on both these style of racetracks and have that potential to move on?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: I hope so. I mean, the Roval is obviously a long ways off. Everybody is going to get better from what they had today. Yeah, there's a lot of racing between now and the Roval we need to focus on. You know, a good run here I think gives us a good baseline of a few things we improved on. But it is a different track from Charlotte. That is a different animal I feel like, but some similarities, but certainly different, too.

       Q. We heard a lot of drivers talking this week about the use of the simulators and iRacing. How much did that pay off in today's race?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, a little bit. I mean, I think we had some time on iRacing and time with Chevrolet this week. Appreciate Jordan Taylor and Boris Said reached out to me this week, and I feel like offered some really nice help that made a difference today, so really thankful for that. Like I said, just had a really nice week of preparation I felt like personally and spent the amount of time I felt I needed to in certain areas to try to fire off well, and it was just super ‑‑ yeah, feels really good to know when you put the work in certain areas you can come out and have a performance like that after you put in the right amount of time.

       Q. I want to ask you, how big of a factor was the heat in the race, and during the lightning delay, were you able to cool down and rehydrate?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, I think that lightning delay was pretty crucial for a lot of guys to get a breather. I mean, I was hot for sure. I think everyone was. I mean, it was a hot day. Mid‑afternoon in Daytona is not cool and probably never will be.

       Q. Do you think NASCAR may need to make any improvements for this race when the Clash uses the road course in 2021?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: I thought the track was fine. They have a ton of 24‑hour events that they've run here over the years, so I don't think they need to do anything. I thought it was all good, no worries.

       Q. You mentioned that Arizona is the most important thing to come out of this season, and I'm right here in Dawsonville. What would you say growing up‑wise with Bill as your dad and just growing up in the pick‑your‑boot‑straps‑up‑and‑get‑it‑going in Dawsonville, what do you think it is about you that just provides that bulldog in you that focuses on the championship ahead?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: I don't know, I think everybody is ‑‑ I'm sure a lot of people are proud of where they're from and that's certainly the case for me. You want to make your hometown proud and fortunate to still call it home, which is nice. But yeah, I don't know. I mean, I've been lucky to grow up in the racing world, and not just my dad, but I've had a lot of really nice, really great racing mentors I feel like to look up to over the years who handled themselves the right way in my eyes on and off the racetrack, and yeah, there's really no other thing to say other than I just got lucky with the people around me that I grew up around and had nice people and good people, good role models to look up to.

       Q. This season we were supposed to use the low downforce package on the road courses, but of course for Daytona, being Daytona, we had the big spoiler for this race. What effect did that have on the racing today?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: I mean, good question. I don't know. I think about Watkins Glen in 2018, and I think about Watkins Glen in 2019 and it was pretty much the same race, so I'm not sure that it makes much of a difference. It seems like the good cars always find their way to the front. It might take them a little longer at certain tracks, but they tend to find their way back there whether we have an eight‑inch spoiler or two‑inch spoiler or no spoiler, so I'm just not sure that's an excuse we need to use anymore.
        THE MODERATOR: Chase, thank you for your time today and congrats on the win again.

ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 L1E PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:

THE MODERATOR: We are now joined by Alan Gustafson today, the race‑winning crew chief for the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet. Alan, just talk to us about what you had to do to get that into Victory Lane today.

        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, just obviously preparation in the shop is a big deal. Appreciate everybody at HMS Racing doing a great job and getting the car ready and in great position to go and try to win the race. So for us it was about executing, putting ourselves in position, and yeah, the car was great off the truck, and Chase is a phenomenal road racer and adapted really quickly, and it really went well for us today. Super happy about it.

       Q. Chase has eight career wins now, four of them on road courses, two at Watkins Glen and two unique tracks at the Roval and on this one, which was new to everybody basically. You mentioned him as a road racer. What have you discovered in the races working with him that seems to make him adapt so well in these races?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: He's really good. I mean, he's just a very talented driver. With any good driver, they have the ability to slow things down, and when you're running a new track or running at the speeds they run they can slow it down to where it's slow and they can make the right decisions and adjustments, and he does a fabulous job of that. We knew really from the first time I worked with him at a road course, I knew he was really good and just needed some experience and needed to understand the cars.
       I've mentioned this before, we went to a Watkins Glen test his rookie year and were able to find some things that he really liked in the cars, and ever since we've been able to improve on that.
       Yeah, he's a tremendous talent. I think he's a world‑class race car driver, certainly a world‑class road racer, and just did an amazing job.
       It's a daunting task I'm sure to come here and not know anything about driving the track. You can drive the simulators all you want, but still, to understand this tire and the grip it's going to have on this surface when it's 100 degrees outside and traffic is around you and all of the above is a very difficult thing to do. He did a great job, and yeah, a lot of kudos to him.

       Q. I wondered if you could just compare a little bit if you remember the preparation that you did going into the first race at the Roval compared to what you had to do going into this race?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Well, the first Roval race we had a test, and I know there was ‑‑ I can't remember the exact sequence, but there was a few tests leading up to it, and there was split‑test days, and I know the first time we were there it was us and the 48, and they were changing configurations and bus stops and chicanes and just a lot of time at the Roval.
       I think we were much more ready for the Roval and prepared. But really all ‑‑ I don't want to say all, that's not true. But a lot of that effort was able to be used for here, right, and we could use a lot of that information and apply a lot of that to this place. They're not distinctly different. They are different for sure, more the grip in the track than I think anything, but yeah, so the Roval there was tons of testing and tons of buildup to it, and we knew everything from the gearing to the braking to the handling on the car, and here you're making some pretty big assumptions on getting that all perfect.

       Q. How does it feel to get the win at Daytona, considering it's been a track that's kind of eluded you from a points‑paying race perspective? Just describe how much determination he has on those road courses which has proven to be very successful to you guys as of late.
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, winning here at Daytona is a big deal. I think it's a big deal for everybody. Certainly a really big deal for me. I've been trying to do it for a long time and have been really, really close. The superspeedways are just ‑‑ there's just so much ran doneness or circumstantial things that go into that. It's tough, and we haven't been able to put all that together correctly. We've been really close but haven't been able to do it so it's nice to come here and win at the road course. I've come here since I was ‑‑ watched races on this road course since I was probably four years old. This is really where I started my racing here was more road racing than it was stock car racing.
       It's cool for me, and yeah, again, his ability is amazing, and his record speaks for itself. He's the best guy in the series when we go and turn left and right. He does an incredible job, and he's just really good at it, and he's phenomenal.
       It's nice to be able to come to a track and have the team support and then have the best driver on the grid climb into your car. It's an exciting thing.

       Q. You win early, and it takes pressure off you in the playoff. Those late‑season wins kind of build momentum to the playoff, and how important are wins later in the regular season heading into the playoff?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, they're all important. I think you alluded to some of the particular things when you win early it's ‑‑ you know, you slot yourself in, obviously, and there's some value to that, and when you win late, then there's some value to that momentum.
       We've all seen these races. We know that you're going to have to win and win often to be the champion. It's not going to be some situation where you're going to run fifth to tenth and make it. You're going to have to go and win and compete with the 11 and the 4 and those guys on a regular basis and win.
       It's important for us to do that, and we've kind of ‑‑ our form slipped, obviously, the last couple months, and it's important for us to get our form back. This is obviously a step in the right direction. It's a very specific discipline of racing, but there's still a road course left, so yeah, it's good. Any time you win is good. The bonus points are good. The momentum is good. The morale is good. I've never found an ill effect of winning in my career.

       Q. Alan, you mentioned the 11 and the 4. They're at the top of their games right now. Do you feel you're half a step behind those guys? Early in the season you seemed to have as much speed as they did, and now maybe ‑‑ or do you feel like it's just a matter of putting it together, you still have the speed, still have what it takes to run with those guys?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: No, at the beginning of the year I thought we were the best car for a significant part of the season. I mean, it could be my rose‑colored glasses but I certainly felt like we were in contention to win about every week. We've had some issues and slips since then, and those guys have got the upper hand on us and we don't have the pace to match them right now, and we can't consistently compete to win on all different configurations of tracks. There's certainly specific tracks that we're still really good at. Obviously Bristol and road courses. I think we'll have our chances, but I do think we've got to find some pace and some speed to match those guys when it comes to the Texases and Kansases and racetracks along those lines.
       So we're working hard. I promise you there's nobody in the garage working as hard as Hendrick Motorsports is and the 9 team is to try to reel that back in, but those guys have got an upper hand on us, and I'm sure they did it by grinding hard and working hard, and kudos to them for doing it, but we've got to find something.

       Q. Since I'm based in New York, how disappointed were you guys that you couldn't come to Watkins Glen this season? Chase did say it was good to replace one road course with another, but how disappointing is it that you couldn't make the annual trip to Watkins Glen?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, I mean, it's ‑‑ I love Watkins Glen. I love the area. It's gorgeous country. It's in August. It's so good. It's so nice. You know, you still have reasonably cool nights and it's just lush and green and beautiful. I love the area. I love going there. I love the track. Man, it's a wicked road course. It's so fast and unique. Yeah, it's great.
       I miss it, and I miss ‑‑ I really love the dedicated road course circuits like that that are ‑‑ you're like in the forest, you're out there kind of ‑‑ it's not a big concrete jungle. You kind of race through the trees and you're in a ‑‑ I don't know how to describe it. It just reminds me more of really truly dedicated road courses that I grew up on. So I love that part of it.
       But if we're not going to be able to race there, this is a great place to come and race, and I think everybody was excited to get on this track. It's so prestigious and so many good people have raced here and won, so many legends of the sport.
       You know, it's bittersweet. I would have loved to have been at Watkins Glen. I would have probably slept a lot better last night if we were going to Watkins Glen, but it was also a great challenge to come here. Daytona is my home. It's really what got me started in the sport. Any chance to come here and race is great, and certainly to win.

       Q. You noted earlier that your career started in road racing. Do you think that has helped you as a crew chief set up cars for Chase especially?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, I don't think it hurts. Yeah, I've always had a love for it. My best friends growing up still road race. They have a shop here and have raced at the highest level, in the 24 hours, and been very successful and won, and yeah, a lot of my roots are there.
       Yeah, it's always been ‑‑ it's something I've really enjoyed and loved. Any time you enjoy something, it's a huge benefit. The cars we raced back then don't have anything to do with what we race now, but I think just embracing it, enjoying it and seeing the positive side of it, all that helps, and I've always enjoyed road racing and enjoyed the challenge. I think that certainly helps when it comes to having to go do it and execute it.

       Q. You seemingly go from one strong suit to another here. Dover has historically been a great place for you and Chase. How significant will it be for you guys to go in there and get good runs on a double‑header weekend, and how much does a win today help to start the week on a positive note?
        CHASE ELLIOTT: Yeah, it helps for sure, and you're right, Dover is another really strong track for us. Statistically it's certainly got to be one of the best that we run at. I'm looking forward to getting there. It's a lot of fun, too. It's certainly a different challenge and very unique.
       Yeah, we need to be able to go and win there. We need to be able to contend to win. It's that time of year. There's just no ‑‑ we've got to be able to go everywhere and contend to win, and certainly we're going to go to Dover and give everything we can to put ourselves in position to win, and I'm looking forward to going there and seeing what we've got, and like I said, we're working hard to improve our oval track stuff. Certainly that's a little different configuration with the aero package, but yeah, we're pushing hard and we're excited to go. My expectation is we want to be able to go there and win.

       Q. In regards to heading to Dover, this will be the third double‑header that we've had this season for a weekend. Is Dover going to be the biggest challenge as far as double headers? And second part of that, is there a little bit of chip on you guys' shoulders knowing that the last race you ran there you only completed eight laps?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, I think you've always got to have kind of a chip on your shoulder. You've got to find some way to motivate yourself and keep pushing yourself, and so yeah, we're ready to go.
       Dover is going to be the most difficult double‑header on the equipment for sure, to run the cars there. That's a very violent track. I don't think that ‑‑ TV doesn't do it justice or watching the race doesn't do it justice. It's the loading and the bumps into 3 and the violence the car takes, all the components on the car. I mean, they are just getting punished lap after lap after lap after lap.
       This is going to be the most difficult double‑header as far as equipment goes for sure. And yeah, the double headers are not easy. It's tight schedules and a lot of long hours. I guess if you're in the 4 at Rodney's place, it looked pretty easy last weekend, but it wasn't easy for us for sure.

       Q. How have your guys handled those double headers?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Just a lot of hard work. You've got to prep the cars and you've got to have a good game plan on what you're going to switch out, how you're going to switch it out. From the time the race is over until the time the garage is closed until the time we put the car on the grid, it's nonstop. There's very few people there to support it, and you're trying to debrief, trying to get a game plan, and it's just a lot of work.

       Q. Considering your previous sports car experience and the next‑gen car that's coming up with a lot of sports car elements with aluminum uprights, do you see the next‑gen car being more suited for road courses or possibly street circuits than the ovals like traditionally we've seen?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, for sure. Yeah, I'm curious, I think the car is more suited for road course racing and more suited for street course racing, and with the way the underbody is and the aerodynamic setup of the car, and it being symmetrical, I worried about it at Dover. I don't think it'll have any issue road racing. I think it'll be very V‑8 Supercar‑esque in my opinion. But when you go slam that thing around at Dover, the aluminum wheels and the rest of it is where that car is going to be put to a significant test, like I was saying earlier. There's nothing like Dover, period, that's it. There's no place in the world like that. There's no place that loads like that. There's nothing like that. It's a test for sure.

       Q. Do you see with the wheels growing bigger, and I'm assuming the rotors are going to grow bigger and possibly bigger calipers, do you see that helping out on certain courses?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, I think the cars will be faster. You've got better brakes; I think you'll be faster road racing where you use a lot of brakes and Martinsville and places like that, but we don't use much brake at the intermediates or high‑speed ovals. Probably won't impact that.

       Q. As far as the individual links in the rear and specifically what I've heard of the tolling speed and kind of position of the wheels, do you see that as being a vulnerability or is that more to be able to save the chassis?
        ALAN GUSTAFSON: Yeah, I mean, it's hard to say. I can't say that I've worked with the car enough to make a whole lot of educated opinions about it, so it's tough to say. I mean, I think it's just more in convention with the majority of the rest of the racing industry. That's really where I think it's gone, and that's just much more conventional to really any other race car you'd see on any other circuit.

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Team Penske NASCAR Cup Series Race Report
Track: Daytona International Speedway Road Course
Race: Go Bowling 235 at The Daytona Road Course
Date: August 16, 2020
___________________________________

No. 2 Wabash Ford Mustang – Brad Keselowski
Start: 17th
Stage 1: 18th
Stage 2: 15th
Finish: 13th
Status: Running
Laps Completed: 65/65
Laps Led: 0
Point standings (behind first): 3rd (-136)

Notes:

Brad Keselowski scored a 13th-place finish in the Go Bowling 235 Sunday afternoon at the Daytona International Speedway road course. With Sunday’s result, Keselowski is now third in the NASCAR Cup Series driver standings, 136 points behind leader Kevin Harvick.

Keselowski started 17th Sunday in the Wabash Ford Mustang and, with the exception of missing the frontstretch chicane on the third lap of the race, had an uneventful Stage 1. Crew chief Jeremy Bullins made the call to pit for four tires and an air pressure adjustment under the green flag on lap 12. Keselowski returned to the track and was scored in 18th place when the caution-free opening stage concluded on lap 15. The driver of the Wabash Mustang remained on track during the stage caution and restarted in eighth position when the race resumed on lap 17.

Stage 2 was also completed without a yellow flag. Keselowski ran among the top 10 drivers early before he made a scheduled green-flag stop on lap 26, with the No. 2 Ford taking on four fresh tires and a track bar adjustment four laps before the conclusion of the stage. Keselowski was credited with a 15th-place finish when the segment concluded on lap 30. The team once again decided to remain on the track during the stage caution and Keselowski advanced to seventh place for the race restart on lap 32.

Keselowski was running fifth when the race was halted due to lightning on lap 37. The balance of the No. 2 Mustang was similar to earlier in the race when Keselowski reported that the car lacked forward drive off the corners, especially in Turn 6.

The race restarted on lap 39 and Keselowski was in the ninth position when he pitted under green on lap 44 for four tires and a right-rear wedge adjustment. He found himself running outside the top 20 and the team knew it would be close to try and stretch its fuel window to the end as the race entered the final 10 laps.
The fourth and final caution of the race proved to be a stroke of good fortune for Keselowski. He pitted for four tires and air pressure adjustments on lap 61 and restarted 21st when the race returned to green with three laps to go. The final laps featured three- and sometimes four-wide racing but Keselowski carved his way through traffic to earn a 13th-place finish.

Quotes: “We were able to rally at the end and pick up a few spots. Our Wabash Ford took off pretty good but the longer runs were a struggle.”

_______________________________________________

No. 12 Advance Auto Parts Ford Mustang – Ryan Blaney
Start: 24th
Stage 1: 15th
Stage 2: 3rd
Finish: 31st
Status: Running
Laps Completed: 65/65
Laps Led: 0
Point Standings (Behind First): 5th (-184)

Notes:

Ryan Blaney started 24th and finished 31st in Sunday’s Go Bowling 235 at the Daytona International Speedway road course. The driver of the Advance Auto Parts Ford Mustang found his way to the front early in the race, but a pit road penalty and late-race strategy ultimately affected the race results for the No. 12 team.
The opening stage ran caution free and Blaney drove his way from 24th to 15th when the stage concluded on lap 15. After pitting on lap 12 for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment, The High Point, NC native remained on track for the start of Stage 2.

During the caution-free second stage, Blaney ran inside the top six for most of the segment and he finished the stage running third to collect some valuable points. During the stage break, the Todd Gordon-led crew went to work on the No. 12 Mustang equipping the car with four tires, fuel, and an additional air pressure adjustment.

Blaney took the green flag restart in the 23rd position as the final stage of the 65-lap event began. After Blaney worked his way up to 19th, a lightning delay and subsequent red flag halted the race. When racing resumed, Blaney restarted in the 16th position. After advancing to sixth place during the cycle of green flag pit stops, Blaney visited pit road on lap 49 for four tires, fuel, and a track bar adjustment.

Unfortunately, Blaney had to serve a drive-through penalty after a pit-lane speed violation. A late caution allowed the Advance Auto Parts Ford to remain on track and Blaney restarted the final stretch of the race in 12th place. Unfortunately, ill handling due to old tires on the No. 12 saw Blaney fall back in the closing laps to finish in the 31st position.

Blaney now sits fifth in the NASCAR Cup Series standings, 184 points behind leader Kevin Harvick heading into next weekend’s doubleheader weekend at Dover International Speedway.

Quote: “It was a long day for the Advance Auto Parts team. With the new qualifying draw, we started deep in the field, but really had to work our way forward. I sped on pit road that really cost us and I was not able to hold on the old tires late. We’ll put it behind us and get ready for Dover.”

___________________________________

No. 22 PPG Ford Mustang – Joey Logano
Start: 5th
Stage 1: 2nd
Stage 2: 17th
Finish: 9th
Status: Running
Laps Completed: 65/65
Laps Led: 1
Point Standings (Behind First): 6th (-185)

Notes:

Joey Logano started fifth and finished ninth in Sunday afternoon’s inaugural race on the Daytona International Speedway road course driving the No. 22 PPG Ford Mustang. Logano battled a lack of forward drive through the early portion of the event as the team made multiple air pressure and trackbar adjustments to try and improve the car’s performance. Logano raced inside the top 10 for most of the afternoon, despite the handling issues, and he ultimately secured a ninth-place finish.

After starting fifth Sunday, Logano ran inside the top five for the entire first stage and he finished second as several cars elected to pit just prior to the stage break. Through the opening run, Logano reported that the PPG Ford Mustang was rotating through the corners well, but it needed additional forward drive on corner exit to contend with the race leaders. Logano remained on the track at the stage break and he led the field to the green flag to start the second stage.

After his first pit stop at lap 21, Logano patiently drove toward the back of the pack as he preserved the No. 22 PPG Ford Mustang for the later stages of the race. As the race leaders began to cycle into the pits, Logano advanced back into the top 20. Under the caution flag at the conclusion of Stage 2, Logano reported that he didn’t feel much of a change in the forward drive of the car. The PPG Ford remained on the track at the conclusion of the stage.

With 30 laps remaining in the race, a lightning strike near the speedway halted track activity with Logano scored in the seventh position. As the race resumed, Logano settled back into the top 10 as the team planned its approach for the final pit stop of the race.

Logano pitted at lap 45 for an additional trackbar and air pressure adjustment, which provided the forward drive the team needed in the PPG Ford Mustang. Logano began to clock his fastest laps of the race while he worked his way back into the top 10.

During a late caution, Logano brought the PPG Mustang to pit road for four tires and an air pressure adjustment for the short sprint to the finish. Logano took the green flag restart in the 17th position and he rallied in the closing laps to secure his 12th top-10 finish of the season.

Quote: “We are starting to get some consistency. We know what we need to work on for the Roval with our PPG Mustang and we will go to work. The 9 (Chase Elliott) obviously has been really good at these road courses, especially with this tire. We have to find some rear drive. That is where he was beating everybody. We will go to work and try to find it.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
DAYTONA ROAD COURSE
GO BOWLING 235
TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE NOTES AND QUOTES
AUGUST 16, 2020

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE
4th JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
7th KAZ GRALA, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE
8th WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE
12th ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE

TOP FIVE UNOFFICIAL RACE RESULTS:
POS. DRIVER
1st Chase Elliott (Chevrolet)
2nd Denny Hamlin (Toyota)
3rd Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota)
4th Jimmie Johnson (Chevrolet)
5th Chris Buescher (Ford)

The NASCAR Cup Series season continues with a doubleheader race weekend at Dover International Speedway with the Drydene 311 on Saturday, August 22, at 4:00 p.m. ET and the Drydene 311 on Sunday, August 23, at 4:00 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on the NBCSN, NBC Sports Gold app, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY NOTES AND QUOTES:
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Race Winner
YOU MADE HISTORY TODAY AT DAYTONA. WHAT WAS THE RACE LIKE TODAY FROM YOUR VIEWPOINT?
“Our guys did a phenomenal job. We just had a phenomenal car. I don’t think I did anything very special today. I think Alan (Gustafson, crew chief) and all our guys did a really good job pitting there at the start. We made a couple really small adjustments, I felt like, there, at that first stop and I was really kind of able to leave it after that. So, I just appreciate everybody that makes this happen. Thanks to the fans. Good to see you guys back. Appreciate you all coming out. And, just thanks to all our partners and Chevrolet. I spent a lot of time with them this past week. A special thanks to Jordan Taylor and Boris Said for reaching out and being willing to help this weekend; some road course ringers. I tried to lean on them and luckily everything worked out.”

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 4th
“Good job to everyone on my No. 48 Ally Chevy team. I just lacked that rear grip at the end there. That was a really fun and a solid day, that’s what we needed and now we go to my favorite track – Dover. So proud of Chase, what a road racer he is.”

KAZ GRALA, NO. 3 AMERICAN ETHANOL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 7th
“I never thought my NASCAR Cup Series debut would come in this nature. I first want to say that I’m thankful that Austin’s symptoms are mild and that his wife Whitney and baby Ace are healthy. I hope to see him back in the car next week at Dover International Speedway. It certainly was an honor to get the call from Richard Childress and drive his iconic No. 3 American Ethanol Chevrolet. I honestly had a blast. These Cup cars have so much power, which I really enjoyed. Today exceeded my expectations. My goal was to come in today, run all the laps, not tear anything up, and get a top-30 finish so this is certainly far above my wildest dreams. Justin Alexander called an excellent strategic race, which really helped us get up there and compete inside the top-20 most of the day. We were able to lead laps in my NASCAR Cup Series debut, and it was fun to mix it up with some of my childhood heroes. Before the last caution, I made a bold, three-wide move on a restart, which got us a ton of positions. I don’t really know what I was thinking, but it worked and put us around 12th. We were in pretty good shape with some fresher tires than the guys ahead of us and opted to stay out under the last caution. We were able to pick off a few more of those guys to finish comfortably inside the top-10. I can’t thank everyone enough for giving me this opportunity: Richard, American Ethanol, and Chevrolet. Today was a dream come true and I hope I made everyone in Welcome, all of the guys on the No. 3 team, Austin Dillon and all of RCR’s partners proud. That green No. 3 American Ethanol Chevrolet is iconic and it meant a lot to be able to sport American Ethanol’s colors today. I hope to have the opportunity to be racing on Sundays in the future.”

WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 8th
“It was a good result for us today. We chose to go for the stage points and had to pass our way through the field a few times because of that strategy. I think we did a nice job of that and getting a lot of those available points. Once we got towards the front top five we kind of stalled out though. Overall, I’m pretty happy with today and getting a good result. We just need to have a couple good weeks with solid races when we go on to Dover for two races and back to Daytona. I’m looking forward to Dover next week for sure though.”

ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 AXALTA CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 12th
“That wasn’t a whole lot of fun. Started the race and tried to work our way through there and go through a cycle of green-flag pit stops and then had a flat left rear. We didn’t hit anything, so that was a big bummer. We had to pit again and then went a lap down, so we had to come back from that. We passed a lot of cars and got the lucky dog and then had to start in the back again for the third time. We drove up to 11th there before the last caution. We just had the wrong restart lane and couldn’t really go. We were down on forward drive, but pretty good by ourselves. Proud of this Axalta team for how they recovered, but a bummer to lose those four spots on that last lap.”

KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 14th
“I really enjoyed the day today, the track was a fun challenge for us. Matt McCall did a nice job making adjustments on the Monster Energy Camaro, but we burned up the tires on the last longer run and just had to play a little defense in the end. It was a really fun track and I had some fun out there today, I just didn’t have enough in the end”.

TYLER REDDICK, NO. 8 CAT APP CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 18th
“Man, the Daytona International Speedway Road Course is tough, but our No. 8 Cat App Chevrolet team kept after it, and we were able to continue to get better throughout the day. I spent a lot of time on the Chevrolet simulator before this weekend to help prepare, but there was still a big learning curve during the first stage of this race. I struggled with some wheel hop in Stage 1, but we were able to make some adjustments before Stage 2 started to help fight that. I got more comfortable with the course as the race went on and had better drive off to fight for positions. The red flag actually helped me a little bit since I was able to cool off a little bit and review some SMT data with my crew chief, Randall Burnett. We made a fuel only stop just before Lap 50, which helped me get some good track position. Unfortunately, that final yellow came out with six laps to go, and we had to pit for four fresh tires. I got boxed in on that final stop, so that hurt our restart spot, but I was able to get our No. 8 Cat App Chevrolet back into the top 20 before the checkered flag came out. Not the day we wanted, but we maximized what we could and have three more shots to get into the Playoffs, so our fight isn’t over yet.”

TY DILLON, NO. 13 GEICO FOR YOUR BOAT CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 20th
“Strong battle for us today. Our GEICO For Your Boat Chevrolet was really strong at the beginning of the race. We battled our way up to 16th and then fell back to 30th right before that final stage. We fought real hard and ended up with another top-20 finish. It was a hot day inside the race car and a hot one outside. I’m proud of our effort and we kept it on track for the first time at the Daytona Road Course.”

BUBBA WALLACE, NO. 43 DOOR DASH CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 25th
“That was not the finish that our Richard Petty Motorsports team wanted. Going into it (the DAYTONA Road Course) I thought I would finish, but to say that the No. 43 DoorDash Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE and Bubba Wallace would be top-10 finish at a road course on the last lap – man, I never would have thought it. Hats-off to my guys – they never gave up on me and brought all the confidence. Just an unfortunate ending, but our No. 43 DoorDash Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was stout. It just was not the finish that we deserved today. Onto the Dover International Speedway.”

BRENDAN GAUGHAN, NO. 62 BEARD OIL CAMARO ZL1 1LE – Finished 39th
“That isn’t quite what we wanted here today. I spent the first half of the race just trying to feel out the racecar, and get to the points that I like on the course. After the red flag, we finally got our car where we wanted and started to move up. We were getting close to that top-15 and I made a mistake. I don’t normally miss shifts but I missed two shifts to fourth (gear) and over revved the motor. When I did I lost fourth gear. We were here in Daytona to run well on this road course – not have to change the transmission just to go back out there and run around 20 laps down. We will be back here in two weeks and see if we can get a good one for the old No. 62 Beard Oil Chevy.”
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.

About Chevrolet
Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is one of the world’s largest car brands, doing business in more than 100 countries and selling more than 4.0 million cars and trucks a year. Chevrolet provides customers with 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.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
SUNDAY, AUGUST 16, 2020
GO BOWLING 235 – DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
FORD PERFORMANCE DRIVER – POST RACE QUOTES

FORD FINISHING RESULTS:
5th – Chris Buescher
6th – Clint Bowyer
9th – Joey Logano
10th – Michael McDowell
13th – Brad Keselowski
15th – Matt DiBenedetto
17th – Kevin Harvick
19h – Ryan Newman
22nd – Cole Custer
24th – Aric Almirola
30th – James Davison
31st – Ryan Blaney
32nd – Corey LaJoie
34th – JJ Yeley
35th – John Hunter Nemechek
36th – Garrett Smithley

CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 Fastenal Ford Mustang — Finished 5th

“That was just a fun day for our Fastenal Ford Mustang team. We needed that after a couple of hard weeks. Some decent runs and some bad luck and that was fun. I was able to mix it up and steadily work our way forward. We kept learning as we went and there at the end we got beat up. All four corners of this Mustang are beat up but we got the finish out of it. That was a good one. A good day.”

JOEY LOGANO, No. 22 PPG Ford Mustang — Finished 9th

“We are starting to get some consistency which is good. We tried some interesting strategy stuff today. It didn’t work but we were able to recover for a top-10. Overall, we know what we need to work on for the Roval with our Mustang and we will go to work. The 9 obviously has been really good at these road courses, especially with this tire. We have to find some rear drive. That is where he was beating everybody. We will go to work and try to find it.”

THE RACE PLAYED OUT A LITTLE MORE TAME THAN MAY ANTICIPATED IT WOULD. DID THAT SURPRISE YOU? “We are better than you think (laughing). I think this field is full of so much talent. I think with the technology that the manufacturers have with simulation and how good the teams are with getting a setup that is ballpark. I would have liked to work on my car some but I am sure everybody did. I think for the most part it is pretty similar to what you do on the simulator minus a few different things. I think everyone was pretty cautious to start. You don’t want to take yourself our right off the bat. You want to give yourself a shot to win and be smart the first few. Everyone was really cautious, especially in the braking zone and into the bus top and the chiccane.”

WHAT WERE YOU THINKING WHEN YOU GOT TIRES LATE? DID YOU NEED EXTRA CAUTIONS? “Yeah, you hope you can run a lap and a caution comes out and you can re-rack ‘em and go again. But that didn’t happen. We weren’t going to win from where we were. We were seventh and we weren’t going to win from there. To give it a shot, we were pretty far back and got back to ninth but we had nothing to lose so figured we would go for it. What the heck? Why not? I thought a lot more cars would pit. I was surprised how many cars behind me stayed out. When I saw the leader stay out I thought, ‘Heck yeah, I am pitting, this will be great.’ I can’t believe more didn’t pit.”

HOW WAS IT GOING THROUGH THE CHICCANES? IT LOOKED LIKE NASCAR WAS LETTING YOU DRIVE THROUGH THE GRASS A LITTLE IF YOU WANTED. WHAT WAS THE STRATEGY IN THOSE AREAS? “The curbing here is a lot different than Watkins Glen. There we are jumping through the curbs and you have four tires up in the air. Here, they are just really a little different texture. It doesn’t go up or down and you can drive right over them. You drive through there a lot different than what the bus stop is at Watkin Glen but I thought everyone handled it pretty well. That penalty of needing to stop and go was huge and track position was big so everyone was pretty careful with it. The biggest thing more than anything was learning how to pass cars and figure out where the passing zone were. That last chiccane as pretty tough. You can’t really get in there. It isn’t a real good spot. If I was to adjust anything I would adjust that last chiccane because it doesn’t present a passing opportunity.”

THIS WAS A LATE DEAL BECAUSE THEY DIDN’T HAVE THE GLEN, BUT COULD YOU SEE A POINTS RACE HERE? IS IT GOOD ENOUGH TO HAVE A REGULAR POINTS RACE HERE? “Yeah. We just did and it went pretty well. I guess that is kind of up to you guys if you enjoyed the race or not. I haven’t rewatched it or seen anything of how it went but it seemed there was some interesting strategy. At least what we did. I think the fastest car got out front and checked out if I had to guess. I didn’t see it but I would assume once the 9 got up there he was gone.”

PEOPLE THOUGHT THIS WOULD BE A CRAZY RACE AND IT ENDED UP BEING CLEAN. WERE YOU SURPRISED? DO YOU THINK YOU DON’T GET ENOUGH CREDIT FOR HOW GOOD YOU ARE BEHIND THE WHEEL? “Yeah, you missed that question. The answer was we are better than you think we are. The whole field is. The preparation that goes into the simulators by the manufacturers that they are able to build and get cars set up well it seems like everyone was able to kind of figure it out pretty quickly.”

THAT LATE RESTART THERE WITH THREE LAPS TO GO. ANY ANTICIPATION THERE THAT IT WOULD GET A LITTLE WONKY? “Yeah, for sure. I said it over the radio that it was going to be a mess. You just hope you are in the right lane and be the one moving forward and take everything and learn from watching other races and the laps that we have made there and just go off of that. You knew there would be bumping and banging. It is pretty tight through the infield.”

CLINT BOWYER, No. 14 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang — Finished 6th

“We did what we needed to do today. We had a great Mobil 1 Ford. I thought it was going to be even better there at the end, but we must have gotten hot. (William Byron) got me on the restart and then another car got by me. If I didn’t have anything to lose there I might have been able to get a few more back. But that was a good points day. I hope we are on a roll and we continue this at Dover.”

MICHAEL MCDOWELL, No. 34 Chicago Pneumatic Ford Mustang — Finished 10th

“It was a decent day. We had high hopes which is good. You should come to places like this where we have a lot of experience and track knowledge. Unfortunately we started really deep in the field and we were able to drive up to the top-10 there before the end of the first stage and then we talked about it and it was all about trying to win a race for us. We didn’t try to get stage points. We came in with a few laps to go and we were able to get into the top five and get to third. I saw those rain clouds coming and I thought that was exactly what I needed. I was hoping that it would rain because I have experience on this course in the rain and the others guys don’t really. We lost a little bit there at the end and got passed by guys that had fresher tires. We still managed to get in the top six or seven and then that caution came out with five to go. We knew we weren’t going to beat Chase and those guys up front on the same tires so we just took tires.”

WERE YOU SURPRISED THAT IT WAS A LITTLE LESS HECTIC OF A RACE THAN MANY PEOPLE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE? “Oh super surprised, yeah. When that caution came out there at the end, I thought if we could restart 15th and get a few more and get another caution and get a few more and get another caution we would be sitting on tires with a green-white-checker. It didn’t work out. It stayed green and we restarted 19th and we were able to get inside the top-10 which was still a good day but obviously running in the top-five, I think we could have finished a little better. I am proud of Drew. He made a great call, the same call I would have made. We needed to win the race and we weren’t going to beat those guys on the same tires so we had to try something different and it just didn’t work out.”

HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS COURSE FOR A CUP RACE? WOULD YOU WELCOME IT BECOMING A REGULAR THING? “Oh for sure. I thought it was a good race. I think it will be an even better race if we come back because people will have the opportunity to work on the car and know the setup and have some experience on the track. Road courses in particular are so much about rhythm and feel and just getting in the car and feeling comfortable and doing the things you need to do. Without practice it makes it tough and I think that is why you saw it spread out. It is hard to get in a rhythm but I thought the track raced well. I think that if we brought back a softer tire, the tire today was really hard and didn’t wear, so a softer tire would create a little more racing and passing but all in all, for our first shot at it I thought it was pretty good.”

HAMLIN, TRUEX JR. SCORE TOP-THREE FINISHES IN DAYTONA
Hamlin drives to 10th top-two finish of the season

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (August 16, 2020) – Denny Hamlin (second) and Martin Truex Jr. (third) scored top-five finishes in GoBowling 235 to lead Toyota at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course on Sunday afternoon. It is Hamlin’s series-leading 10th top-two finish of the season, and Truex’s fifth consecutive third-place finish.

Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Daytona International Speedway Road Course
Race 23 of 36 – 234.7 miles, 65 laps

TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Chase Elliott*
2nd, DENNY HAMLIN
3rd, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
4th, Jimmie Johnson*
5th, Chris Buescher*
11th, ERIK JONES
21st, CHRISTOPHER BELL
27th, DANIEL SUÁREZ
29th, TIMMY HILL
37th, KYLE BUSCH
*non-Toyota driver

TOYOTA QUOTES

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

Finishing Position: 2nd

How hard were you pushing in the final laps and was there anything else you could have tried?

“I just would have liked to have stayed closer to him (Chase Elliott) to put a little pressure on entries. My entries were the strong point against him, but I was giving him four car lengths so he could kind of drive the entries the way he wanted to make sure he got a good exit. I wasn’t quite clean enough the last few laps, but I definitely gave myself a chance. Those last couple corners, I felt like I did as much as I could to get to him and tried to do it the right way.”

What is your opinion on these cars at this road course?

“This is a made road course – this road course has been here a long time. Unlike Charlotte, where they kind of made one after years of being a race track. This was made for a road course. It’s got more braking points, more passing zones than Charlotte, it’s wider. I like this track. It’s definitely got some racing characteristics to it where if you have a good car, you can get to the front. The Roval is a little tougher where it’s more of an attrition-type race. Either way, still like road racing. It’s fun and this is another good second-place finish. I think that’s four of the last five. We’re running well.”

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

Finishing Position: 3rd

Can you describe your run today after passing so many cars during the event?

“Just a strong run for our Bass Pro Toyota. Thought we had a chance to win, no doubt about it. Just got caught speeding on pit road. Had to go to the rear and then got damage so we had to go to the rear again. We passed a lot of cars that last run. I know we had the speed at the end there, we were faster than anyone. Just ran out of time, but that’s how it goes. Proud of everybody on the team and still feeling really good about these road courses.”

How did these cars compete and feel on this road course?

“It was a lot more fun than I anticipated it to be. My opinion, this track suits our cars better than the Roval does for whatever reason. Even though the tire was really hard and not much tire wear, it was pretty slick out there. It was drivable and manageable. Charlotte kind of chatters and it’s hard to feel. This place was actually a lot of fun. I look forward to coming back.”

# # #

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 40 million cars and trucks in North America, where we have 14 manufacturing plants, 15 including our joint venture in Alabama (10 in the U.S.), and directly employ more than 47,000 people (over 36,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold nearly 2.8 million cars and trucks (nearly 2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2019.

Through the Start Your Impossible campaign, Toyota highlights the way it partners with community, civic, academic and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We believe that when people are free to move, anything is possible. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Aug. 16, 2020) – Chris Buescher and the No. 17 Fastenal team secured their second top-five finish of the season Sunday afternoon with a fifth-place run in the inaugural Cup Series road course race at Daytona International Speedway.

Buescher rolled off the grid to tackle the unfamiliar course in 21st. The first stage of racing proved to be challenging as the driver worked hard to learn how to maneuver the tricks and turns of the track. By lap six Buescher was shuffled back to 24th, where he held track position until the team pitted under green at lap 13. With reports of a tight handling Ford, the team decided to take four fresh tires, fuel, and adjustments to the track bar and air pressure. Two laps later, Buescher took the green-white checkered flag for stage one in 30th.

The team elected not to pit at the stage break and restarted 14th for stage two. As Buescher continued to clock laps, he was shuffled back to 17th by Lap 23. The adjustments from the pit stop in stage one proved to work well and five laps later the team visited pit road under green for the same adjustments as the previous stop. Without enough laps to move back through the field, the Fastenal Ford finished stage two in 23rd.

With fresh tires and fuel from the late stop in stage two, the team stayed out and Buescher restarted 13th for the final segment. With handling on the Fastenal Ford dialed in, he driver gained momentum, working his way up inside the top-10. At lap 35, Buescher was up to ninth when the caution flag waved for lightning in the area. Cars drove down pit road for a brief lightning hold.

When the hold lifted, weather cleared from the area and the green flag waved again at lap 39. Buescher restarted 10th but made quick work clocking laps on the track, driving all the way up to sixth at lap 47. The team elected to pit at Lap 48 for fresh tires and fuel to make it to the checkered flag. After the pit stop, the team got back on track 21st. Buescher wasted no time driving through the field. By lap 57, he was back inside the top-10.

When the caution flag waved with five to go, Buescher was up to ninth. Two cars pitted in front of the driver, giving him a track position advantage to restart seventh with three laps to go. Pit strategy worked to the No. 17 team’s advantage as the fresh tires allowed Buescher to drive his way to fifth in the closing laps. The team ultimately took the checkered flag in fifth, securing the driver’s second top-five of the season and first ever top-five at a road course in the Cup Series. The finish also marked Jack Roush’s first Cup Series top-five on a road course since 2014.

Buescher and the No. 17 team return to action for a double-header weekend at Dover International Speedway. The first race begins on Saturday, August 22 at 4 p.m. EST on NBC Sports Network, MRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (August 16, 2020) – In NASCAR’s first-ever Cup race at the Daytona Road Course, Ryan Newman drove his Guaranteed Rate Ford Mustang to a 19th-place finish.

After rolling off 14th based off NASCAR’s newest starting lineup procedures, Newman overcame an early issue on the 3.57-mile road course. Just five laps in Newman flat-spotted a tire, resulting in an unscheduled stop just prior to the stage end at lap 15.

The South Bend, Indiana, native pitted again under the stage break, putting him near the tail end of the field for the ensuing restart. With shortened fuel windows on the long course, Newman again hit pit road with three to go in stage two for fresh tires and a set of adjustments.

Newman would restart 25th for the final segment, which was halted three laps in due to lightning in the Daytona Beach area. The delay paused action an hour before cars hit the track again. After hitting pit road again at lap 38, Newman restarted 27th with 26 laps to go. From there, teams had one final stop to make, with crew chief Scott Graves running Newman long to the end of the pit cycle.

Newman advanced as high as seventh and ran 10th at the time he hit pit road with nine laps remaining. The yellow flag was displayed one final time with five to go, when Newman stayed out and went on to finish 19th.

Next up, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Dover International Speedway for a doubleheader next weekend, for a pair of 311-mile races on Saturday and Sunday. Race coverage for both races begins at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Both races can also be heard on MRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.