NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

FORD 400

HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY

TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

November 19, 2010

Team Chevy Championship Contenders Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick Qualified Sixth and 28th To Set the Stage for Sunday’s Battle for the Title NASCAR at Homestead

HOMESTEAD, Fla – (November 19, 2010) – The field is set for Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) battle for the title in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Team Chevy championship contenders Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, and Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet, qualified sixth and 28th respectively for the 267-lap/400.5-mile race.

Four-time defending NSCS champion Johnson heads into the final race second in the standings 15 points out of the top spot. Harvick is third, 31 points down to Johnson.

Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet, will start third in the 36th race of the year.

Mark Martin, No. 5 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet, posted the eighth fastest qualifying time. Regan Smith, No. 78 Furniture Row Chevrolet, was 10th fastest to give Chevrolet four of the top-10 starters in the 43-car field.

A total of 15 Team Chevy drivers will take the green flag one final time this season.

Kasey Kahne (Toyota) was the pole sitter.  Carl Edwards (Ford), Bill Elliott (Ford) and A.J. Allmendinger (Ford) complete the top-five qualifiers.

The Ford 400 is set to start at 1:00 p.m. ET Sunday with live broadcast coverage on ESPN TV, MRN Radio and Sirius NASCAR Radio Channel 128.

POST QUALIFYING PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT:

JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER BOATS CHEVROLET – QUALIFIED 3^RD:

CONGRATULATIONS ON A VERY SOLID SEASON. YOU’VE GOT ANOTHER CHANCE TO TACK ON ANOTHER WIN ON SUNDAY AT HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY

“Yeah, we unloaded really good today. You know, you show up on Friday and you just never know. People ask you throughout the week, how’s your car going to be for this weekend, and you just really never know until you get to make those first laps on Friday. We unloaded here with a little different set-up than what we have run at the other 1.5-mile tracks and the car had really good speed in it. And it even seemed like it was going to be good on the longer runs. It’s been a great weekend for us. We were racing both Kasey (Kahne) and Carl (Edwards) for the most poles so I thought it was ironic that we all ended up first, second, and third. But it’s been a really good day for us.”

WHEN YOU LOOK BACK ON 2010, IS IT OVERWHELMINGLY POSITIVE, OR DO YU FEEL LIKE YOU LEFT SOMETHING ON THE TABLE? WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE TO TOP IT NEXT YEAR?

“We’ve had really an amazing year. To come back to Ganassi’s organization and then start rolling in the (Daytona) 500 and the Brickyard 400, we’ve just had a great year. At the beginning of the season we’ve struggled a little bit with some consistency, but since Chicago, our bad days have still been pretty good. And after knocking the spoiler off the car last week and coming back in and somehow those guys taping it back on and to come back and finish 10^th, honestly I was not as happy running 10^th last week as I was winning the big races. But I thought that showed a lot about the strength of our team to be able to come back; and Phoenix is really hard to pass. It’s a really tough track to go all the way to the back; especially with a wounded car to drive back up and finish 10^th; that was a really big day for us. So I feel like we’ve become a lot more consistent and our bad days seems to be 15^th now which is really good. And so I’m just looking forward to starting next season. Our qualifying has been really good this year and really, our 1.5-mile program has been great. We probably need to work a little bit on our short track program.”

WHO IS GOING TO WIN THE CHAMPIONSHIP AND WHY?

“I would probably rather be in Denny’s (Hamlin) position because he’s leading. All he has to do is outrun Jimmie (Johnson). I don’t know. I don’t think any of those guys are out of it. I think Kevin (Harvick) certainly could be a spoiler in all that. He’s been really consistent and I don’t know. If I did, I would put a lot of money on it in Vegas, but I don’t.

IF YOU HAD A LOT OF MONEY, WHERE WOULD YOU PUT IT?

“In the bank (laughter).  I think it’s just really hard to pick one because they all have had really good years and I think any of them are capable of winning on Sunday. So, it’s just hard to put your finger on which one is going to come out the winner. I don’t think it matters where you qualified. If you can get a lucky pit selection, because honestly guys, it’s really weird, but qualifying 15^th is like the worst time to pick pits because there can be a good car that picks in front of your or behind you. When you qualify that far back, sometimes there is a good opening left. So, as long as he can get a good put pick, I think that he’ll be okay. He’s certainly not been known to be a qualifier.”

WHY AM I DOING BETTER THIS YEAR? IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW?

“For me, I feel like they do more where I am now than where I was as far as the effort that’s put in. I know that Carl (Edwards) has shown up the last 8 or 10 weeks it seems like and every week he’s in qualifying trim. We don’t do that. We show up in race trim and then put our car in qualifying trim, but there’s a bigger transition of qualifying set-up to race set-up and the amount of lead the car holds. I think a lot of it, for us, has to do with our engines. I think the ECR engines are really awesome. And you can show that when you come to a track like this and there is so much wide-open throttle. I’m with Carl (Edwards); I have never been one of those guys that on Friday (says) I think I’ve got a chance at the pole. Maybe at Sonoma I always felt like I had a shot at the pole but certainly not at a 1.5-mile. And then I came here and honestly each Friday I feel like we have a chance. You know, today, sitting out there I’m thinking I believe we have a chance to sit on the pole today if we do everything right. I feel like our organization does a better job at getting the cars prepared for qualifying.”

About Chevrolet

Chevrolet is a global automotive brand, with annual sales of about 3.5 million vehicles in more than 130 countries. Chevrolet provides consumers with fuel-efficient, safe and reliable vehicles that deliver high quality, expressive design, spirited performance and value. In the U.S., the Chevrolet portfolio includes: iconic performance cars, such as Corvette and Camaro; dependable, long lasting pickups and SUVs, such as Silverado and Suburban; and award-winning passenger cars and crossovers, such as Malibu, Equinox and Traverse. Chevrolet also offers “gas-friendly” solutions, such as the upcoming 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco model that is expected to deliver up to an estimated 40 mpg highway, and 2011 Chevrolet Volt that will offer 25-50 miles of electric driving and an additional 310 miles of extended range with the onboard generator (based on GM testing).  Most new Chevrolet models offer OnStar safety, security, and convenience technologies including OnStar Hands-Free Calling, Automatic Crash Response, and Stolen Vehicle Slowdown. More information regarding Chevrolet models, fuel solutions, and OnStar availability can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

1st, Kasey Kahne 7th, David Reutimann 19th, Joey Logano 20th, Marcos Ambrose 25th, Martin Truex Jr. 29th, Joe Nemechek 30th, Mike Bliss 33rd, Kyle Busch 34th, Casey Mears 37th, Denny Hamlin 41st, Scott Speed 42nd, Kevin Conway 43rd, Landon Cassill

KASEY KAHNE, No. 83 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull Racing Team Starting Position:  1st How was your qualifying lap? “We had a really good run.  The Red Bull team did a nice job.  The Toyota engine was good.  We made some gains from practice.  We were a little bit quicker there and hopefully we can do the same tomorrow and we’ll be good for Sunday.” Are you surprised with your qualifying lap? “We were pretty decent in practice.  The Red Bull Toyota was good and the guys have done a really nice job this week. Everything felt good, it was just I was too free so we tightened up there and I was actually pretty good right there, but I felt like I got a touch tight.  It was a great lap for us.  That was really good.” What will you work on during Saturday’s practice? “Just keeping the car turning.  The track will change a little bit Sunday, but we race during the day this year so it’s going to be different than what we’ve had in the past.  Just making sure you have grip, whether it’s front grip or rear grip you need it here to go fast.  You can definitely search at this track and find different spots on the track to go fast.  It’s a neat track so it’s always nice to race at Homestead.” Are you looking forward to Sunday’s race? “I’m looking forward to it.  That was the best qualifying run by far since I’ve been at Red Bull.  It was a little bit free in practice.  A little bit too loose — we ended up seventh.  They made the right changes and the team did a really good job to get the pole.  It was nice.  I look forward to Sunday’s race.  It’s gonna be exciting being up front now, being in the mix with Denny (Hamlin), (Kevin) Harvick and Jimmie (Johnson) — they’re all gonna be fast throughout the race.  I’m just glad we are so far.   Hopefully, we can stick with it tomorrow and have a good practice and be competitive and in the mix on Sunday.” How does it feel to start the final race of the season with a pole? “It feels good to be able to have a good weekend.  Those guys came down and seemed like they had a lot of confidence and have really done a nice job since we started practice.  We just went out and did the best job we could.  We had a good qualifying run and hopefully we can do the same on Sunday.  Get through Saturday and do the same on Sunday.  It’s a good group of guys.   Everybody at Red Bull does a nice job.  It’s just a matter of doing it all the time, and hopefully we do that Sunday.” Have beneficial have these five races with Red Bull been? “I think the five races have actually been really beneficial for myself.  We’ve struggled at times.  We’ve ran pretty decent lap times at times and the finishes haven’t quite been as good as we would’ve liked, but we’ve finished the races and led a few laps.   It’s been good.  I see what Red Bull’s all about.  I see how they do it and learning about their parts and pieces and race cars, and they have really good stuff, and they have good people.  It’s just a matter of a little bit of direction and some leadership and we’re working on that.  I think we get through just a little bit here and a little bit there and we can be a strong team next year, and a strong company. I think both cars can be really good.  I’m looking forward it.  We used a little bit of the 82’s (Scott Speed) stuff today, which is the first time that either team has really mixed since I’ve been there and worked together.  We used some of theirs today, and I really liked it.  They’re gonna look at what we did and probably start practice really similar tomorrow, and kind of be teammates.  And that’s good.  I think it’s been a good five weeks.  We’ll just go on and have a good day Sunday and have a great offseason.”

KASEY KAHNE, No. 83 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull Racing Team (continued) How are your knees and what is the nature of your off-season surgery? “The knees are fine.  What happened is I was born with what I have, both knees, and the older I get, the more I stay active and run and play basketball and work out and things like that, it’s inflamed it and it’s just rubbing, I guess, a hole in my kneecaps.   So, it’s just rubbing against each other and getting to where it’s no fun.  When I get out of the car, a lot of times I limp around.   When I walk around a lot — if I go to Vegas and walk for a day, I can’t walk the next day.  It’s just a pain, is all it is.  It’s not bad by no means.  It’s very simple surgery that we’ll get out of the way and be ready to go by January 1.  Hopefully, I’ll go to the Chili Bowl and be good to go.” When are you going to have the surgery on your knees and do you know how long is the recovery period? “Tuesday morning at 5:30 AM and they say, I think, 35 minutes per knee.  Get them done, go home, lay on the couch most of the day.  By Thursday I think I will be pretty good so I will be able to eat full on at Thanksgiving.  I’m looking forward to it.  I think it will take maybe six weeks and then they will be like 100 percent or close to it.” What kind of comfort level will you have next year after being with Red Bull Racing Team for five races this year? “I think it does a lot for myself and for everybody at Red Bull.  Everybody puts in a huge effort to try to win poles and win races each week.  Toyota, TRD they did a really nice job with the engine.  It ran great there.  I think you feel good on the off-season with a pole.  Hopefully, we can put together a great run  on Sunday and carry that through the off-season too.  I think we’ll be in good shape next year.  I look forward to the off-season and being able to work with the guys and being ready to go when Daytona comes.” What have you learned from this year’s experiences that will help you in the future? “I think there’s a lot that you learn as each season goes on and this one has had a lot of downs it seems like.  Some ups and a lot of downs.  I’m actually really excited once the season gets over.  Just to look at next year hopefully having a really not so stressful, unexpected changes and things like that throughout the season.  I think this year has been difficult for a lot of reasons and we’ve gotten through it.  We’ve been able to win some poles and some top-fives and top-10s.  It will just be nice to be behind us and be able to go on to next year and think about racing again and focus on trying to make the Chase and winning races.  Doing everything we want to do and not having to worry about a lot of other things going on around the company.”

DAVID REUTIMANN, No. 00 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Starting Position:  7th Are you happy with your qualifying lap? “It was okay.  We picked up a lot from practice so I’m happy with that.  We were just a little bit loose, but overall hopefully it will hold up to be an okay lap.  We have to work on making it turn better and stuff like that – normal stuff.”

JOEY LOGANO, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Starting Position:  19th How was your qualifying lap? “The track picked up a lot of grip.  I think we picked up what we were supposed to.  We were just too tight.  Just got under and plowed the nose which we knew the track was going to tighten up, but maybe a little bit more than what we thought it was going to there.” How was your car in race trim? “We were really loose in race trim to start today and we worked on it and got it pretty good by the end of the day so hopefully we can kind of start with what we had and fine-tune it tomorrow hopefully.”

MARCOS AMBROSE, No. 47 Clorox/Kleenex Toyota Camry, JTG-Daugherty Racing Starting Position:  20th

MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 56 NAPA AUTO PARTS Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing Starting Position:  25th How was your qualifying lap? “It was okay.  I was a little skeptical about going out early, but we picked up a little bit from practice, which was good.  The guys did a good job on the NAPA Toyota today.  We were off a little bit off the trailer and kind of ran out of time in practice, so that was a decent lap for us, for sure.”

JOE NEMECHEK, No. 87 Young Eagles/HeatRedefined.com Toyota Camry, NEMCO Motorsports Starting Position:  29th

MIKE BLISS, No. 66 Toyota Camry, PRISM Motorsports Starting Position:  30th

KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 M&M’s Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Starting Position:  33rd

CASEY MEARS, No. 13 GEICO Toyota Camry, Germain Racing Starting Position:  34th

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing Starting Position:  38th How was your qualifying lap? “It was tough.  I told (the team), it looked just like Kyle’s (Busch) lap, that’s for sure.  I got a feel for it, it was just too tight right there.  The setup was quite a bit tighter than ours.  It looked just like it.  We didn’t improve, but our car is gonna be fine tomorrow.  We know that.  This is a track you can pass.  We’re looking forward to that part of it.  Friday has just never been our strong suit and so we gotta battle back again.”

SCOTT SPEED, No. 82 Red Bull Toyota Camry, Red Bull Racing Team Starting Position:  41st What happened on your qualifying lap? “I wish I could say it was exciting, but when you’re right next to the wall and touch it’s not too exciting.  It is what it is.  We probably pushed it a little bit too hard.  We knew going out first the track is not gonna be near as good right now as it will be in an hour-and-a-half.  Just tried to get a little bit more than we probably should have.”

KEVIN CONWAY, No. 7 Extenze Toyota Camry, Robby Gordon Motorsports Starting Position:  42nd

LANDON CASSILL, No. 64 Empire Steel Toyota Camry, Gunselman Motorsports Starting Position:  43rd

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

FORD 400

HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY

TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUALIFYING NOTES & QUOTES

November 19, 2010

JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 BASS PRO SHOPS/TRACKER BOATS CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 3RD: 

ON HIS LAP: “That was a really good lap. Honestly, I felt like I got all out of that I could. I didn’t think anything left. We’ve been really quick right off the truck; we should have a good weekend.

“I went through turn one and was expecting the car to be loose and I got a little tight and then back through three and four it felt awesome and I heard (Crew Chief) Bono come on the radio and say ‘you have a really good lap’ and I knew I carried a lot of speed but it felt like off four that it felt really, really good but I am sure somebody will pull something down a little quicker but our Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet is running really good.”

JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET – QUALIFIED 5^TH:

“That was definitely a good lap for us. Carl Edwards has done a lot in qualifying trim here lately so to be there at his pace I think is a good time. Unfortunately there are a lot of cars to go yet and the cars we’re concerned about are later in the session. But either way I think that’s going to be the best starting position I think we’ve had in a while.”

ARE YOU HAPPY WITH THE CAR SO FAR IN PRACTICE?

“We came down really well organized with scenarios we wanted to work with on the car if the handling went a certain way and stuff worked as we had hoped, which was nice to see. So, I’m excited about how we’ll start the race and then I’m also looking forward to practice tomorrow. There’s some work to do there and we’ll get on top of things and have some fun.”

ON THE CLOUD COVER

“Yeah, it was a good lap for us. Carl Edwards has been the guy to beat in qualifying trim lately, so to be right there at his pace says a lot for our lap.

“I don’t really know what’s going to happen as the track cools down and what’s going to take place from here, but for the time of day and what we had going on, we’re really happy about that.”

YOU LOOK PLEASED WITH THAT QUALIFYING RUN

“We picked up a bit from our run earlier today.  We normally pick up about half as much as everybody else gets but I think I picked up more than anyone at this point especially the top several guys so we’ll see where it goes and obviously we want to be as far forward as we can and we are off to a good start.”

DO YOU THINK THE TIMES ARE GOING TO CHANGE THE DEEPER WE GET INTO THE QUALIFYING ORDER?

“It’s hard to say because it’s a bit windy now and I don’t know if the wind is going to pick up because I could feel the wind pretty bad into one and I didn’t get the line that I wanted with the wind pushing me down the back or the frontstretch I should say off the corner so it’s a tricky track right now.  You have some grip, lot of wind and we will see how those guys do.

MARK MARTIN, NO. 5 GODADDY.COM CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 8^TH

ON HIS LAP: “Good run. Good run. Within a half of a tenth of the pole so far. Mighta coulda just got that if I had been a little less conservative in three and four. I really thought because the sun was out down there, I anticipated it to be a little slicker than what it was. I’m real happy to be this close.”

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 11^TH

ON HIS LAP AND TALKING TO CHAD KNAUS: “I talked to Chad a little bit after that run. I thought it was a decent lap for the DuPont Chevrolet. With an early draw like this, we will see.. With the sun going down, not to optimistic but all-in-all, been a pretty decent day for us. I feel like the car has been good. The early draw, like I said, it isn’t helping us out a whole lot. But, been really pleased with how the car has been driving today. That was a nice little pickup. Certainly a big improvement over how we qualified the last couple of times.”

DALE EARNHARDT, JR., NO. 88 NATIONAL GUARD/AMP ENERGY CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 22^ND

ON HIS LAP: “The car drove pretty good but the car just wasn’t fast. I don’t know, we haven’t been fast all day but the car drove pretty good.”

KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 SHELL-PENNZOIL CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 28th

ON HIS LAP: “I thought we might be a little better, but not much. Everybody on the car did a really good job; we hit the chip really hard going into turn one and lost all of our timing getting into the corner in turn one because we hit it for so long, I couldn’t really judge how far I needed to drive it in there because it slowed it down so much. We’ve been talking about where we want to pit here. The same thing we do every week. Our car was very comfortable in race trim and we are ready to go.”

WHAT KIND OF CHALLENGE IS PIT ROAD HERE? “It is a lot less of a challenge here just for the fact that the pit stalls are much longer. So, even if somebody does pit in front of you, it’s not going to be a big deal where you get blocked in because you have so much room. I think we have a good plan on where we want to be as far as timing lines and what end of pit road we want to be on. So, business as usual.”

About Chevrolet

Chevrolet is a global automotive brand, with annual sales of about 3.5 million vehicles in more than 130 countries. Chevrolet provides consumers with fuel-efficient, safe and reliable vehicles that deliver high quality, expressive design, spirited performance and value. In the U.S., the Chevrolet portfolio includes: iconic performance cars, such as Corvette and Camaro; dependable, long lasting pickups and SUVs, such as Silverado and Suburban; and award-winning passenger cars and crossovers, such as Malibu, Equinox and Traverse. Chevrolet also offers “gas-friendly” solutions, such as the upcoming 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco model that is expected to deliver up to an estimated 40 mpg highway, and 2011 Chevrolet Volt that will offer 25-50 miles of electric driving and an additional 310 miles of extended range with the onboard generator (based on GM testing).  Most new Chevrolet models offer OnStar safety, security, and convenience technologies including OnStar Hands-Free Calling, Automatic Crash Response, and Stolen Vehicle Slowdown. More information regarding Chevrolet models, fuel solutions, and OnStar availability can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

CARL EDWARDS, No. 99 Aflac Ford Fusion (Qualified 2nd) “Going out early is not good. We put a lot of effort into qualifying this week because, and I don’t know if it’s true or not, but they told me if we get the pole this week we tie Jamie McMurray for the pole award. This pole would be very important for s. The clouds are rolling over though so I don’t know if it will hold up. I didn’t even practice the Nationwide car because we wanted to concentrate on this.”

ARE YOU A GUY WHO BELIEVES IN MOMENTUM? “I hate to admit it but I do now. I used to never believe in it but I do now. If the sun would stay out I think we could hold on for the pole but I’m not certain it will hold up.”

PAUL MENARD, No. 98 Menards Ford Fusion (Qualified 16th) “It felt pretty good. We have been fighting a little bit loose off of four. It had the same issues. It was a little late getting back to wide open but the car drove pretty decent so we should b okay.”

DAVID RAGAN – No. 6 UPS Ford Fusion (Qualified 9th) -“That was a solid lap. We went out early and the car felt really good. You always think there is a little more on the table. I’m proud of Drew and everyone turning this car around from Texas. It just shows how quick the process works. I know they had to do some body work and change the engine out. That should wind up in the top-10 which should be good.”

DAVID GILLILAND – No. 37 Taco Bell Ford Fusion (Qualified 40th) “We hit the splurged really hard. We only made one qualifying run in practice and never hit the splitter all day. We hit it really hard and pushed up the track. It is disappointing. We thought we had a better race car than that. In race trim it was really good and

I’m excited about racing this car on Sunday.”

AJ ALLMENDINGER, No. 43 Best Buy/Insignia Ford Fusion (Qualified 5th) – “It was alright. This isn’t my best place to qualify at. It’s a tough race track trying to figure out what line you want to go an contemplate if you want to do something different. I’m happy with it. There could have been a little more there but us race car drivers always think there could have been. That should get us in the top 10 and I think we should have a pretty good car for Sunday. Maybe we can win 43 people a Ford Fiesta.”

TRAVIS KAVPIL, No. 34 Long John Silver’s Ford Fusion (Qualified 41st) – “We really struggled with our car in practice this morning. It wasn’t looking real good. Our teammate David Gilliland was running pretty decent so we switched the whole thing over to what he had and now we are right there lap-time wise with what he was. I am proud of my guys. We were searching for it for a little bit there and changed everything on the race car going into qualifying and it drove pretty good. I am looking forward to tomorrow and working on it and trying to keep improving it for Sunday.”

MATT KENSETH, No. 17 Crown Royal Ford Fusion (Qualified 13th) – “We just missed the balance by a mile. I am glad our speed was still good because the car drove not very good. It was so-so earlier in race trim. I thought we had a really good day overall, we just missed it in our qualifying lap.”

ARIC ALMIROLA, No. 9 Budweiser Ford Fusion (Qualified 24th) – “I didn’t do a very good job there. The car was a lot better than that and I did a bad job. I am disappointed in myself because we have a much better car that that. I just missed it. We have a really good car in race trim and I think we will be in good shape come Sunday.”

GREG BIFFLE, No. 16 3M Ford Fusion (Qualified 27th) – “Going to the back-up car hurt us. We went from probably going in the front to going in the back. That lap didn’t feel very good. It was too tight and kind of slow. I would have thought the car would be better than that. This is a car we haven’t run for awhile. We just have to get it on the race track tomorrow and see how good we can make it.”

BILL ELLIOTT – No. 21 Motorcraft Ford Fusion (Qualified 4th)– “The track cooled off and the car was good. Donnie and the guys do a good job. We made some changes the very last run we did and actually slowed down a little bit. It seemed like that last 10-15 minutes of practice a lot of people picked up, but I was really surprised to pick up that much. We’ve been fighting a little bit tight rolling through the center. The car was still just a little bit tight rolling through the center, but when I was able to pick the throttle up I could get everything I had. They do a great job. My hat’s off to Len and Eddie, the Motorcraft guys, Ford – everybody – they’ve just done a super job on this Fusion.” WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT YOUR POSITION TO START THIS RACE? “I’m just glad to be in the race (laughing). You’ve got to put this in perspective. When you unload and you’re out of that top 35 in points, everything is just so critical as far as what you do. Len and Eddie have worked so hard to try and turn this deal around and it seems like we’ve made some really good improvement the last few races. I know Trevor had a really good race at Texas and that was very encouraging for the whole crew. I felt like our Charlotte was gonna be pretty good, but we had those issues during the first part of the race. Doug and the guys have come with a great motor and this thing runs awfully well. With the combination they’ve put together, it’s made my job easy.”

DAVE BLANEY, No. 38 A&W All American Food Ford (Qualified 36th) – “Qualifying went pretty well. The car was a ton better than in practice, and I probably under drove it a bit and cost us some time. But we made huge gains from practice. David Gilliland made a nice mock qualifying run in practice, so we learned some things from him and that helped us. Greg Conner and the guys were able to make some good changes and it turned out OK.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

FORD 400

HOMESTEAD MIAMI SPEEDWAY

TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

November 19, 2010

JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT CHEVROLET met with members of the media at Homestead Miami Speedway and discussed working with Jimmie Johnson, preparing for 2011 and other topics.  Full transcript:

HOW IS YOUR DAY AT HOMESTEAD GOING? “Going pretty good.  Surprisingly actually we’re up toward the top of the time sheet, which I was pretty happy about.  I hope we can keep it that way.  We drew an early number, but we just focus on qualifying so far.  We’ve got a new car here with a few new ideas that we’re trying out and so far, so good.”

WHAT KIND OF THINGS CAN YOU DO TO HELP JIMMIE JOHNSON? “I think the best thing we can do to contribute is have a fast race car so we can tell them the things that we’re doing that are working well and help them have a better race car for the race.  They seem to be running pretty good as well.  There’s very little we can do other than that.  Obviously if we’re running in 10th or 12th position and they need a position or two, then you do what you can there to help them.  Not a whole lot other than that.  We’ve done quite a bit already and we’ll do what we can.  I don’t know if there’s a whole lot more we can do.”

DO YOU THINK IT WILL PLAY INTO THE RACE THAT JIMMIE JOHNSON HAS ALWAYS HAD A COMFORTABLE LEAD COMING TO THIS RACE?  “It could.  I think the fact that they’re trailing and they’re going to have to push hard, they’re going to have to be smart and it starts here on qualifying day.  Those guys are incredible at getting results when they need them most.  I would never count them out.”

IS THERE A LEVEL OF DIPLOMACY AMONG DRIVERS IN A RACE LIKE THIS?  “I don’t think anybody wants to go to victory lane or win a championship or finish further up in the points by doing something stupid and something that you’re going to wish you hadn’t done.  If that’s what you’re talking about.  Other than that, I think it’s about racing hard, working hard to get the positions on and off pit road  and having a fast race car and earning those spots and those points.”

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT ALL THREE CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDERS SAYING THEY WILL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO WIN? “I think that those guys are hoping that they don’t get put to the full challenge of finding out what whatever is because the definition of whatever in my book might be different than theirs.  I think that you’ve got a lot of people out here still trying to win races, still have their own agenda to try to get as high up in the points as they can.  A championship is a lot on the line and I don’t think too many guys out there want to get in the way of that, but if you’re talking about winning a race, guys are going to work hard to win a race.  We’re one of those guys.  We’re going to do everything we can to stay out of the middle of the championship and do our job and be the best we can to try to win the race.  We will evaluate each situation as we go throughout the race.”

WHAT CHANGES WOULD YOU WANT TO THE SPORT? “You tell me what the fans want changed and I’ll tell you if I agree with it or not.”

DO YOU THINK EXPERIENCE IN THE CHASE IS HELPFUL?  “We haven’t won it so I can’t say that we’ve really got a strategy that works for us.  I look at the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) and the guys that have won it and they’ve just been fast and are a great race team.  The strategy that works in my opinion is have a great race team and go out there and win races.”

WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER ADVENTURE? “Trying to travel across the country with a three year old is an adventure, I can tell you that.  I guess I look at racing as my job, it’s adventurous so when I’m being adventurous, probably scuba diving or looking at doing something I’ve never done before whether it be skydiving or rock climbing or trying to run a marathon or a bike race.  A lot of things out there that I would love to do that I never get the chance or opportunity to do and maybe one day that will happen.”

DO YOU THINK DRIVERS SHOULD LEARN TO NOT PANIC? “I think none of us should ever panic.  It doesn’t matter whether you’re a race car driver or not – panic is the first thing that gets you in trouble.  Staying calm and cool under pressure, that’s how you handle adversity in situations and get through them.  You don’t have to be a race car driver to do that.”

DO YOU REACH A POINT AS A DRIVER TO SCALE BACK THINGS IN YOUR LIFE? “Especially when you start to have a family, I think it really kicks in because you look at how valuable your time is and how important it is to spend time with your family.  You can go out there and work, work, work, work and work to try to capitalize on the opportunities while they’re there, but there becomes a point where peace of mind and enjoying and relaxing and enjoying your time becomes important.  I think when you’re young like most of us, we feel like, let’s take advantage of it.  As you get a little bit older, you start thinking about which ones are important and just being a little more efficient with your time and enjoying your time to yourself or with your family more.”

CAN REDUCING THE CLUTTER IMPROVE YOUR RACING? “It can.  I think sometimes it’s important to have distractions to keep you from over thinking things.  Shoot, I’ve built houses, I’ve had projects and gotten myself into business situations.  I think those kinds of distractions can be good and positive, but being well-rested, I think that’s probably the best thing you can have and those are things that I cherish these days is really getting my rest.  I feel like I’m healthier, I feel like I make better decisions.”

HOW HARD IS IT TO GET BACK BEHIND THE WHEEL AFTER SOME TIME OFF? “I’m interested to see what happens because the off season gets shorter and shorter all the time.  We’ve got a new sponsor, we’re going to be working hard with them to get prepared for next year.  You want your team to get some rest, they’re going to be working hard to get ready for next year.  We already had some other sort of straight line testing plans so I’m not sure what’s going on with Daytona, they moved their dates a couple times.  I thought we were going to be tire testing or something there for sure and now I think we’re just planning for January.  We’re going to try to get that rest in there as well as all the busy things that are going to be coming along outside of any testing that right now is kind of not conclusive.  We don’t really know what is going on so we have to make our plans and plan ourselves out.  Championships are won the day we leave Homestead.  It’s rest, it’s preparation, it’s personnel changes, things to do with our race cars, all those things happen the day we leave Homestead.  We’ve got to focus on winning a championship and while we want to help Daytona get ready for the Daytona 500, we’ve got to weigh out our options as well as to how that plays into our schedule.”

HOW WILL A SMOOTH DAYTONA GOING TO CHANGE HOW THAT RACE IS RUN? “It’s all about the transitions in my opinion.  I still think that the size and shape and transitions from the straightaway to the corners at Daytona are just different enough from Talladega that I just have to believe that the bump drafting, while we’ll be trying to do it like we do it at Talladega, I just still believe that it’s going to be harder for it to be possible.  I know we’re going to be bump drafting, but pushing two cars around there like we see at Talladega, that’s what we’ll be interested to find out when we get to Daytona testing in January is whether or not we can do that.  If so, then it’s going to drastically change that race.”

DO YOU THINK BUMP DRAFTING WITH THE NEW NOSE ON THE CAR WILL BE DIFFERENT? “Every time we’re on the track, like you watch us at Talladega, every time we go and practice, we get better at it.  You get more cars that are going two-by-two out there because you know that’s how you can win the race.  If we can pull that off at Daytona, we want to find out in January and we’re going to start trying in January.  We’ll try to perfect it by February.”

About Chevrolet: Chevrolet is a global automotive brand, with annual sales of about 3.5 million vehicles in more than 130 countries. Chevrolet provides consumers with fuel-efficient, safe and reliable vehicles that deliver high quality, expressive design, spirited performance and value. In the U.S., the Chevrolet portfolio includes: iconic performance cars, such as Corvette and Camaro; dependable, long lasting pickups and SUVs, such as Silverado and Suburban; and award-winning passenger cars and crossovers, such as Malibu, Equinox and Traverse. Chevrolet also offers “gas-friendly” solutions, such as the upcoming 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco model that is expected to deliver up to an estimated 40 mpg highway, and 2011 Chevrolet Volt that will offer 25-50 miles of electric driving and an additional 310 miles of extended range with the onboard generator (based on GM testing).  Most new Chevrolet models offer OnStar safety, security, and convenience technologies including OnStar Hands-Free Calling, Automatic Crash Response, and Stolen Vehicle Slowdown. More information regarding Chevrolet models, fuel solutions, and OnStar availability can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Friday, Nov. 19, 2010

Dodge Motorsports PR

Homestead-Miami Speedway

Ford 400

Kurt Busch Open Interview

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

Tweets by TeamDodge

www.media.chrysler.com

KURT BUSCH (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger) WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON DRIVING THE NO. 2 MILLER LITE DODGE FOR THE LAST TIME THIS WEEKEND AT HOMESTEAD? “Yeah, it’s been a great run. It’s tough to see it come to an end, driving the Blue Deuce. It’s been a privilege to drive the car and carry on the legacy that Rusty Wallace started. Just when I started to feel comfortable in his shoes that he left me, we had to make a change. When a sponsor requests to have you drive their car, it’s really a unique opportunity with Shell/Pennzoil coming aboard and requesting me to drive their car. It’s really neat to have a sponsor want you in this day and age and go out there to compete for wins and championships, the whole deal. That’s what we’ll have to do and I hope we start off strong next year down in Daytona. It’s been a great ride with the Blue Deuce. A bunch of wins; I think the biggest of my five-year stint driving the car is probably winning the All-Star race this year and backing it up with the Coke 600. As they say, all good things must come to an end. It’s been a great group to work with in Milwaukee. Great friendships. Good people. I’ve got enough contacts to still have some beer delivered to the house, so that will work out pretty good as well.”

AS A FORMER CHASE CHAMPION, WHAT ARE THE THREE GUYS ELIGIBLE TO WIN THE CHAMPIONSHIP GOING THROUGH THIS WEEKEND? “The atmosphere that the Chase was supposed to be all about is right here, unfolding in front of us. In 2004, it was a storybook of how you write the Chase. And so these guys are definitely feeling the pressure. Every lap that you make out on the track and in practice, the intense focus is there. Those three guys are worrying themselves to death. It’s just part of the nature of how you go into the Chase…basically where it’s heads-up. If Hamlin finishes in front of the 48, he’s the champion. If the 48 finishes in front of the 11, he’s the champion. The way that I raced it back in ’04, I didn’t care that I had an 18-point lead. I just said I had to finish ahead of those guys and beat them heads-up. As luck turned out, we needed those 18 points because (Jimmie Johnson) finished second and we were fifth. Those guys are racing each other heads-up and Harvick has nothing to lose; he’s going for broke because he can’t finish worse than third in points. It’s interesting to see the three of them going at it. If I had to pick a favorite, I would go with Hamlin. His car, his team has just had more speed than the rest of the group.”

YOU’LL BE AT ROCKINGHAM FOR THE POLAR BEAR 150. WHY DO YOU PARTICIPATE IN THE EVENT AND WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT GOING BACK TO ROCKINGHAM?

”We race car drivers are crazy. With how long the season is and how we look forward to the end of the year, the first thing we do is go and jump back in a race car. I’m excited and just want to go have fun. It’s that grassroots feel of when I first started racing in Street Stock back in 1996. It’s what I’m looking forward to, go out there and just kind of rough it – change some springs around, some sway bars, just get dirty and get in the mix with all the great street racers that have come to compete at this Polar Bear 150 and to do it at Rockingham. We’re taking street stock cars that are supposed to be on half-mile tracks and we’re going to a mile race track with it. I hear that it’s really close to wide open all the way around. It’s going to be excited. It’s going to be fun. I only have one full-time employee who works on race cars for me and a bunch of volunteers. It reminds me of the old school days when you just go out there and have some fun with it.”

IS IT POSSIBLE FOR PENSKE RACING TO HAVE A BREAKOUT SEASON NEXT YEAR?

“We hope that we find the right tools necessary to find the speed that we need. Yeah, we’re competitive, but we need to be better. Right now, it’s just a process of working around the clock to find different chassis designs, chassis setups, and aerodynamic changes. You name it; we’re searching high and low. With us being as competitive as we were this year and winning a couple of races, I still just felt like we weren’t where we needed to be in the Chase. It’s been a tough Chase. Overall, just the improvements made these last few weeks give us that indication that next year could be a break-out year.”

WHAT DID YOU DO TO HELP BRAD THIS YEAR? HOW MUCH WAS HE ABLE TO HELP YOU?

“It was great to work with Brad. He’s got that youthful exuberance about him where he’s on the gas all the time. He was very focused on his Nationwide program and it’s great to see him put that all together and a championship effort. I congratulate him and our group on what they’ve done and accomplished. Now we need to get him in the Cup car with that same mindset where he’s just completely focused on it and he’s getting faster and faster with the more experience that he gains. It was nice to work with him and see what he thinks about certain race tracks and how he approaches things. Anytime that you have a stronger teammate, it makes your program better. I’m really looking forward to him feeling more comfortable in his second season. That way we can definitely lean on each other harder and competing where we’re racing each other hard every week. Right now, it’s been I’ve had a solid run and they’ve been struggling a bit.”

YOUR ONE OF ONLY TWO DRIVERS TO HAVE BEATEN JIMMIE JOHNSON IN THE CHASE. WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU GIVE JIMMIE, KEVIN AND DENNY?

“Yeah, 2004 was a perfect Hollywood ending and they way that our season went and came down here to the final race. I think those guys need to race each other heads-up. You can’t expect to finish a couple of spots behind and hang on to the championship. You’re going to have to race them heads-up, that’s the way that I approached it. We even got the opportunity when things unfolded for us in our championship run that afternoon when we pitted with (Jimmie) Johnson. They were the target. No matter what they did, we did. That’s the approach and advice I’d give.”

HOW OFTEN DO YOU PONDER THE INCIDENT ON PIT ROAD IN 2004 WHEN YOU HAD THE TIRE ISSUE?

“It’s amazing how that whole day unfolded for us. Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. The way that it all worked out, I can’t remember if we had the lucky dog back then, I don’t think that we did. So, we would have had to race our way back on the lead lap and that would have made it that much more difficult. But we had one key factory in that race that helped us win that championship and that’s Greg Biffle. He led and dominated all the laps that day. He was a teammate of mine who actually kept (Jimmie) Johnson from leading a lap. He kept those five points away from him and Jeff Gordon as well. If we were trying to get a lap back in the race, Biffle might have slowed up a bit more than he would have if it was someone else. He helped us tremendously. He was a great teammate and good friend.”