NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

KOBALT TOOLS 500

PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

November 12, 2010

KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 SHELL/PENNZOIL CHEVROLET met with members of the media at Phoenix International Raceway and discussed racing for the championship, racing at Phoenix and other topics.  Full transcript:

ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO RACING AT PHOENIX THIS WEEKEND?:  “I’m excited.  This has been a great race track for us in the past.  Obviously I’ve raced here my whole entire career – coming up through the ranks and the track hasn’t changed a lot.  It’s something that we’ve been looking forward to in these last couple weeks they have been great race tracks for us so we’re looking forward to getting the weekend started.”

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT WHERE YOU ARE IN THE POINTS BATTLE?:  “I feel excited just for the fact that this is the worst we can finish in the points is third.  We have two great race tracks for us and we have nothing to lose and everything to gain.  Whatever it takes to gain is what you do on the race track and what you do off the race track.  There’s really nothing else that matters at this point.  Just throw it all out there and if it gets rough, it gets rough – if it doesn’t then we just go race and see where it all falls in the end.  It’s still a no pressure, no lose situation for us and I like it.  I like coming from behind.  I like when people write us off – it’s kind of like or how everybody’s been my whole career.  You just go out there and it’s fun to come up and see everybody after that.”

WHAT MAKES IT SO DIFFICULT TO PASS THE POINT LEADER WITH TWO RACES REMAINING IN THE CHASE?:  “When you get in these positions and you’re racing like the three of us are racing right now, you just exceed the expectations that everybody sets for you a lot of the times, which is what we’ve done.  You just get in this incredible zone and the team’s incredibly focused on making the cars good and everybody is just performing at the top of their game in these situations.  It’s hard to make up ground, but when you have three guys in the middle of it then you can’t – there’s no defense.  I think when you get ahead then you can play a little bit of defense to be competitive or use strategy.  With everything so close, it’s all offense.  The tone has kind of been set that anything less than probably winning a race or two in the next two weeks – you’re going to have to go take it.  I think all three teams are capable of performing.  Denny (Hamlin) did it last week – he went out and took it at the end of that race and I think over the next two weeks, it’s going to be who takes that control and there’s no room for defense.  If somebody’s going to go out and win the race, you’re going to lose points.  You just have to go on offense and take, take, take.”

ARE YOU SURPRISED AT HOW YOUR PIT CREW MOVE VERSUS JIMMIE JOHNSON’S PIT CREW MOVE ARE PORTRAYED DIFFERENTLY?:  “I think when you do it in the middle of the race, obviously it’s going to be a bit more 100 percent and there’s no hiding.  For us, it’s been very beneficial.  We hadn’t gained a spot on pit road in the Chase and we haven’t lost one since we changed so the results for us have been very simple to look at.  I’m sure they feel like they’re in the same situation and it’s different.  I think it’s something that you obviously don’t expect to have happen in the middle of a race.  It’s just very open and everybody gets to see it.”

WERE YOU SURPRISED THAT THE 48 TEAM CHANGED THEIR PIT CREW?:  “Everybody’s got weaknesses though.  I think on that particular day with the pit stall selections that you saw in that particular race – it was a very unique situation.  If I was them, if you can and if you qualify worse than the 11 (Denny Hamlin), I would pit right in front of them again just to do it all over.  We all loved watching it – it was great.  I hope it all happens the exact opposite way this week.”

HOW DO YOU DEFINE YOURSELF VERSUS THE OTHER TWO DRIVERS YOU ARE RACING AGAINST FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP?:  “I think our whole team is just a lot different.  Especially, it’s a lot different or we’re a unique bunch I guess you could say.  I guess you could categorize us as a little rough or hardcore type of racers that have come up through the ranks.  It’s just a little bit different than the other two teams.  I think you guys can figure it out.”

IS IT BAD TO TRY TO WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP FOR AN ORGANIZATION RATHER THAN AN INDIVIDUAL TEAM?:  “I think Mike (Ford, 11 crew chief) should take his own advice to his driver and not insert your foot into your mouth when you don’t do something that winds up being something that you say it should be.  I think the comments that he made after the race about being better than the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) team and all that stuff, I think he’s just trying to stir stuff up.  Whatever it takes to win is what you’ve got to do.  If there’s something wrong with that then I’m missing something.”

WHY DO YOU THINK MIKE FORD MADE THE COMMENTS HE DID FOLLOWING THE RACE AT TEXAS?:  “The only good thing that comes from being cocky like that is you better win because if you don’t, you’re going to have to answer a lot of questions about your comments when you get done.  You create a lot more work than what you see initially when you say those things, if it all doesn’t go your way.  I think when you’re trying to intimidate the guy who’s won four championships in a row, I think you might need to go rethink your strategy and just go out and worry about racing because it’s not really something that was probably necessary.  He got all over Denny (Hamlin) at Dover for saying the things that he did about RCR (Richard Childress Racing) and the organization and how disruptive their team, in my opinion all the things that he said seem to be a disruption to his team and now Denny is going to have to come in here and answer all those questions.”

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT BEING 59 POINTS BACK WITH PHOENIX AND HOMESTEAD REMAINING?:  “My thoughts are just to go keep doing the same things that we’re doing and being in the position that we’re in right now, we’ve stepped up the finishes and things that we needed to in the Chase, but over the next two weeks it’s all about trying to win a race or two in the next two weeks.  This has been a great race track for us.  The average finish through the Chase is great, but it looks like this Chase is all about taking those wins and that’s the one thing that we haven’t done so far is win a race.  I think we have to over the next two weeks in order to keep control of our situation.”

IS THERE ETIQUETTE TO CHOOSING PIT STALLS AND DO THE TEAM MEMBERS HAVE TIME TO LOOK AT THE OTHER CREW NEXT TO THEM?:  “I think last week, when you look at the pit stop stuff, when you’re racing against a guy that’s running in about the same spot on the track, it becomes a total nightmare for both teams whether you’re in front or behind.  It becomes tough to make quality pit stops on the race track.  There is etiquette and you want to be around the slowest car that you can be around that you don’t think will be on the lead lap so they won’t be around and you can have an opening in and an opening out.  The pit stalls are a lot smaller here so who knows what’s going to happen.  I tend to get frustrated in those situations and just gas it and make sure that guy doesn’t stop too short.  It aggravates the rear tire changer because you just get a little too close to him.”

HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO BOUNCE BACK FROM A TOUGH WEEK?:  “A lot of times hard, difficult situations are very inspiring.  It inspires the team to not want to go out and fall on their face and say that was a bad move with the pit crew swap and look what it did to the performance of your team.  So the driver gets motivated, the team gets motivated, everybody gets motivated to not want to fall on their face.  This place has been really good for that particular team so it’s probably not somewhere  that they want to go other than here.  It’s going to be an interesting weekend.  Everybody’s got their own feelings about things.  Everybody’s got their own feelings about things that were said last week, we all have our own feelings about where we are and what we need to do and how we need to do it.  There’s no way to see it all play out until you start practice and you see where your performance of your car is and you see all the things that happen.  I can tell you right now that we’re paying attention to everything that’s going on whether it’s things being said, heard, everything that’s going on the race track and just look for that one opening to pounce on somebody.  Pay attention to everything and just looking for any opening to gain an advantage over the other team in these particular moments.  I think we’re in a great position because of the pressure on our team is very low.  You’re not going to finish any lower than we are in the points, we have everything to gain with winning the championship, we have those two guys obviously going back and forth with each other and we’re just kind of sitting back doing what we need to do.”

HOW HAS GIL MARTIN’S LEADERSHIP AFFECTED THIS CHASE?:  “I think when you speak of Gil (Martin, crew chief), Gil is great for me because he’s very good with the people and that can be my short fall sometimes.  He’s very motivating, he’s very good in controversial situations in guiding the team and telling them what they need to do and keeping them away from the things that they don’t need to focus on.  Gil is very good as far as racing for the championship – win or lose, it’s all about racing for that championship.  You look back and that’s easy for us to say considering where we were last year.  We weren’t anywhere even close to where we are this year.  This is what you want to do.  You want it to come down to the end, you want to be a part of the championship race and in order to win it, you have to be in it so it’s good.”

WHAT ABOUT HELPING THE FOSTER KIDS APPEALS TO YOU WITH THE CONCERT COMING UP?:  “I think it’s just a tough time of year for a lot of kids that don’t have their families and things to lean on.  The foundation has given us a lot of unique opportunities to go out and just help in different situations.  It will give the kids a chance to be around something and get their mind off of things and get some toys for the kids and raise some money.  Sara Evans is going to headline the event and that will be fun.  When you don’t have family and it’s all about creating a moment that the kids will remember that ‘s positive and something that is close to Christmas and anything we can do to help that will be good.”

DO YOU THINK TEAMS HAVE TIP-TOED AROUND THE 48 TEAM FOR THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS?:  “I didn’t agree – when things are going good, it’s one thing to be cocky around your team, but when you want to be cocky publicly, you have one place to go and that’s to back it up and you’re not going to back it up in this sport forever.  You might back it up this year, but you’re probably not going to back it up week in and week out forever.  There’s just nothing to be gained from it as far as the team standpoint.  It’s a crew chief for god’s sake.  No reason – I just don’t understand I guess.”

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.

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES

KOBALT TOOLS 500

PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

November 12, 2010

JEFF BURTON, NO. 31 CATERPILLAR CHEVROLET met with media and discussed the altercation with Jeff Gordon last weekend at Texas, Chevrolet and IndyCar, what it takes to win at Phoenix, and more. Full Transcript:

ON RACING AT PHOENIX:

“Obviously we need to have a good weekend. We haven’t had the kind of results we’ve needed and that’s obviously been frustrating. But this is a track that’s been really good to us and we’ve been able to come here and turn things around a few times in my career and hopefully we can do that again this weekend. We’ve run really, really well as a team here. I think we finished second the last two races and this has been one of our stronger race tracks. Certainly we look forward to coming here and seeing if we can turn the ship around a little bit.”

ON CHEVROLET GETTING BACK INTO INDYCAR RACING IN 1012 AND DO YOU THINK ANYBODY IN THE NASCAR GARAGE MIGHT DO THE ‘DOUBLE’ AGAIN?

“Chevrolet is such a huge part of American motorsports. To not have an American manufacturer at Indy for the 500 is a disappointing thing. It’s great for the 500 and for Chevy to be back as an engine manufacturer back in the 500 I think is a really good deal for American motorsports. Chevy is so committed to motorsports and I think it’s a great idea. Chevy’s involvement here obviously is really, really respected. They’ve had a lot of championships and done a great job. I think it’s really cool. Some might say well, I wish they were spending that money here in NASCAR but the fact of the matter is that we need an American manufacturer for the Indy 500 and I think it’s cool that Chevrolet has stepped up to the plate.

“As far as doing the double thing, it’s just really hard to do. I think the guys that have the best chance of winning the Cup race on Saturday night, it would be a big distraction for them, you know what I mean? You just don’t hop into somebody else’s ballpark and go beat them. It takes a lot of preparation and a lot of work and effort to win an Indy race and it would just be really, really difficult to win both of them, obviously. But you never know what can happen. You would have to work on the scheduling some, for sure, to make it so it can happen. But I would be surprised to see it happen”

THIS IS THE TIGHTEST POINTS CHASE RACE EVER. I KNOW THE NO. 48 OF JIMMIE JOHNSON ISN’T AS STRONG THIS SEASON, BUT IS THERE ANY REASON WHY IT’S THIS SEASON AND NOT ANOTHER SEASON?

“I don’t know if it’s that the No. 48 isn’t as strong or if just other people have stepped their ball game up. Honestly, I think that the COT thing is starting to take affect; I think that the idea that NASCAR had about taking a lot of the things away from the teams to keep things a little more similar and create more chance for more people to win races, I think that’s started to take effect. There’s a lot of stuff going on that’s made the racing more equal. Last week after that incident (with Jeff Gordon), I went in the trailer and sat down and watched the race.

“And I’m watching the speed monitor and I’m looking at the top 20 cars. And the top 20 cars, there was like a tenth of a second difference between the fastest guy and the 18^th place guys. I mean it was just so crazy close and that’s a factor of multi-car teams. That’s a factor of people becoming more familiar with the car. It’s a factor of Goodyear bringing better tires and making the cars drive better. I think it’s all those things. It’s more people coming to similar results on the race track and that’s made for a tighter Chase.”

YOU ARE AN ARTICULATE DRIVER IN THE GARAGE AND CONSIDERED ONE OF THE MORE INTELLIGENT DRIVERS OUT THERE. DID IT REALLY KIND OF SURPRISE YOU THAT YOU WERE IN A PHYSICAL ALTERCATION LAST WEEK?

“I wasn’t surprise I was in a physical altercation; I was surprised I was in the initial altercation. When it all happened, I thoroughly expected to be in a physical altercation. The thing obviously got out of hand really quickly prior to the physical altercation and it is what it is. I hate to be 43 years old and still learning, but I am still learning. Jeff (Gordon) and I have raced together for 20 years and obviously we’ve had issues. If you race with your best friend in the world for 20 years you’re going to have issues. It’s just competition. I left the facility Sunday surprised I was in all of it, not just the physical altercation.”

WE’VE SEEN THAT BEFORE FROM JEFF GORDON AT TIMES DURING HIS CAREER. DID YOU EXPECT IT?

“I could tell by the gait in his walk and by the look in his eye that he wasn’t coming down there to talk (laughter). It’s all funny now.”

THE INCIDENT BETWEEN YOU AND JEFF GORDON MADE MANY, MANY RACING AND NON-RACING TV NEWS SHOW, FIRST IS IS OVER OR WILL IT REPLAY HERE AND THEN DO YOU THINK THAT IS GOOD FOR NASCAR? “For the first part of the question, I feel like it is over. Like I said earlier, it is a learning…it is a chance for me to learn. A chance for both of us to learn. I took the brunt of the responsibility and I will continue to do that, but as far as I’m concerned and I’m not going to speak for Jeff (Gordon), but as far as I am concerned it is race on. We’re here this weekend to win this race and obviously tensions have a possibility of being a little high because of what happened last week. But the reality is, we are here to win this race and so is he. I don’t feel like this thing will continue on.

“The whole debate about what’s good for NASCAR, what’s not good for NASCAR, I don’t know. I know that fans on the back straightaway thought it was cool. I could hear that. I’m torn between what is good for NASCAR and what is not good for NASCAR. I try to conduct myself in a way that will make me and my kids and my sponsors and everybody proud of me even when things aren’t good. You can certainly cross a line. I come to the race to race. I don’t come to the race to be part of the show. When I hear people describe these events as show, that perturbs me a little bit; I’m here to race. I understand that this is entertainment for people. I get it. I’m a sports fan. Sports are entertaining for me. But, I’m not here to create a show. I’m not here to be involved in that stuff. I’m here to race. I want the race to be the show. That’s my take on it.”

WHAT’S THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT OF RACING HERE AND THEN WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GO FAST HERE AT PHOENIX? “The difficult thing is that both ends of the race track are so different. You can see the front straightaway is downhill. If you look right there, you can already see that you are sitting perpendicular to the turn one wall. That is a very very sharp corner. That turn one happens really, really quickly. You have to transition your car from going straight to turning very, very quickly in one. In three and four you have a really, really long sweeping corner. So both ends of the race track are completely different. You brake completely different. It is a real challenge to get the driver in sync with both corners and to get the car in sync with both corners. That is the most challenging thing about the race track. That is what makes it hard. That is what makes it fun. That is what makes the people that run well here, that is their advantage is that they can do well in both corners.”

AFTER THE ACCIDENT YOU SAID YOU WERE GOING UP TO ACKNOWLEDGE JEFF (GORDON), THAT YOU KNEW WHY  HE WAS MAD, BUT THEN DURING THE TELECONFERENCE AT ONE POINT, IT SOUNDED LIKE YOU SAID YOU WERE ANGRY WITH HIM TOO: “To be perfectly honest, when the whole thing went down on Sunday, it all happened so quickly that I didn’t 100% know what happened. I obviously didn’t mean to wreck myself and obviously didn’t mean to wreck him. When Jeff came and he let me know that he didn’t like the way I raced him, I went to accelerate, like I did say Sunday, I went to let him know ‘Hey, I got it’. But also I didn’t understand why he was as mad as he seemed to be. That was just frustration. Then the rest of it was just…I honestly don’t know how to explain what happened after that, I really don’t. That is really it.”

I DON’T KNOW IF YOU HEARD THE COMMENTS THAT MIKE FORD MADE LAST WEEKEND, KIND OF THROWING IT IN THEIR FACE, KEVIN (HARVICK) WAS KIND OF OUTSPOKEN ABOUT IT SAYING THAT’S JUST NOT THE RIGHT THING TO DO, HOW GOOD IS HE AT PLAYING MIND GAMES? “I think Kevin is very prepared. I think Kevin is ready to win a championship. I think Kevin is in a great position to win a championship. I think he is ready to go. I don’t if Kevin is playing mind games; I think he is just telling you how he feels. That is the cool thing about Kevin is you know exactly where you stand and exactly how he feels. I don’t think Kevin is playing games. I have no idea what the comments were but know Kevin well enough to know that he’s just telling you what he believes to be true. He’s not a mind game kind of guy. He’s just straight at you; this is how it, this is how I feel and what you are getting from Kevin is what he honestly feels.”

HOW DOES THE FALL AND SPRING RACES DIFFER WITH THE SUN GLARE AND VISIBILITY? “This track historically has been a difficult track for visibility with the sun setting, and getting into Turn 1. It’s very difficult. It is really, really hard to see. I know it sounds silly, but I can’t remember if it is the spring race or the fall race where it is the worst. I’ll have to go back and look through my notes. I just don’t remember. But, when the sun is setting, getting into turn one, it is very, very difficult to see even in qualifying, it is hard to see getting into turn one. That is an issue. You have got to be able to see the corner. When that sun starts to set, it is very hard to do that.”

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

Ford Racing’s three Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers held
their weekly Q&A sessions at Phoenix International Raceway on Friday.
Transcripts from Matt Kenseth, Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards follow:

MATT KENSETH – No. 17 Valvoline Ford Fusion – HOW MUCH ARE YOU PAYING
ATTENTION TO THE OVERALL POINTS BATTLE?  IT’S CLOSE FROM 1-3 AND THEN
4-10 IS PRETTY TIGHT AS WELL.  “You kind of look at it when you get
home and see where you moved up to in points or moved back to in
points, but, other than that, I don’t pay a whole lot of attention to
it.  You just try to finish the best you can every week and hope to
finish as high as you can in the points at the end of the year once
the championship is not attainable. 

WHAT ABOUT WITHIN THE ROUSH
FENWAY TEAM.  ARE THERE BRAGGING RIGHTS FOR BEING THE TOP FINISHER?
“Not for me.  Greg and Carl would have to answer for themselves, but I
want to do the best I can for our team every week.  If we had it our
way, we’d be 1-2-3 in points and battle it out.  I want those guys to
finish as high as they can, but just like everybody else in the top 12
I want them to finish behind me.  You want to do the best you can for
your respective team and car.” 

WHAT ELSE DO YOU WORK ON THESE FINAL
TWO RACES THAT YOU CAN USE AS A SPRINGBOARD FOR 2011?  “You do this
during the year as well, but every off-season you try to look at all
aspects of your program from personnel to equipment to driving to pit
stops – everything.  Certainly, the more recent races are always the
freshest in your mind, so you want  to get some momentum and you want
to get the best finishes you can the last few weeks, so you’ve got
something to look at and evaluate over the winter.  Like I say, you
want to try to win the races – you want to try to win every week – but
it’s important for us to finish strong.  We did move up to fifth in
points, so it’s important for us to finish as high as we possibly can
and get some momentum going into the off-season.” 

WHAT’S THE MOST
DIFFICULT PART OF RACING HERE?  “The hardest part is both ends are
quite a bit different, so to be good down in one and two without being
too loose off of turn four is probably the biggest thing.  There’s a
little bit of a compromise, but you want to get your car to work as
well as you can at both ends that are a lot different.” 

DO YOU LIKE
TO STAY INVOLVED IN RACING DURING THE OFF-SEASON OR JUST GET AWAY
ENTIRELY?  “I don’t really know of many races, except for the Snowball
Derby, which my son is running that again this year and it’s the same
weekend that we’re out at the banquet in Vegas, so I don’t know of any
other off-season races before we start in February.  It’s not like
we’re off a real long time and not in a car.  It’s only about a
month-and-a-half.” 

ANY THANKSGIVING TRADITIONS FOR THE KENSETH’S?
“For the last eight or nine years we’ve been spending Thanksgiving at
our cabin up in Wisconsin, so we get both of our families together and
hang out there for a few days and relax.  We eat a lot, watch some
football and play some football and that’s about it.” 

DOES THAT
RECHARGE YOU IN A BIG WAY?  “I don’t know that I really need any
recharging.  I’m good.  I could keep racing or I could have a month or
two off, so I’m not sure I really need recharging.  I feel as good
right now as I did when we came out here in the spring, to be honest
with you.  I don’t really need recharging, but I always look forward
to spending time with my family whenever I can.” 

DO YOU SEE JIMMIE
COMING BACK AND WINNING THE TITLE?  “Well, everybody is different.  I
wouldn’t beat against those guys until they lose one.  I wouldn’t have
bet against them the last four year and I wouldn’t do it this year
either until it’s over, but it’s interesting.  The three guys up there
are all quite different, their teams are different, their driving
styles and approach, I think, are different, so, in my opinion, the
chase for the championship is pretty interesting this year to see
which one of those three guys is gonna be on top when it’s all over
next week.”

ARE YOU ENJOYING THIS BRAVADO COMING OUT OF
THE 11 CAMP?  “Not really.  I wish Denny would have been careful last
week and let me win (laughing).  I would have enjoyed that more than
their bravado and winning and doing all of that.  I was happy to be up
there racing for a win last week, but, like I said, I think it’s an
interesting chase and there are a lot of good storylines for everyone
to follow.  When I get home it’s interesting to check it all out and
see what all went on.” 

HOW DO YOU FEEL AT THIS POINT IN THE SEASON?
“I feel the same I felt probably the first time here.  I don’t really
feel any different.  I’m not really wore out and I’m not necessarily
ready for a break, although you always look forward to an off weekend
and the holidays to spend some time with your family, but I feel good.
We just came off a good run last week, which was encouraging, and put
a little spring in all of our step, so, hopefully, we can finish the
last two weeks like that.”

GREG BIFFLE – No. 16 3M Ford Fusion – WHAT’S THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT
OF RACING HERE?  “Probably the difference in the corners.  It’s like
two different race tracks, almost and it kind of makes it challenging
but fun.   Turn one and two are completely different than three and
four.  One and two is like more of a short track corner and then three
and four seems like it’s a lot more larger and faster because it’s a
little bit wider and sweeps.  That’s probably the most challenging
thing.” 

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GO FAST HERE?  “It takes a car that
turns really well and you can get the balance between the two ends
right.  That’s the main thing.” 

WHAT’S THE VISIBILITY LIKE?  “It’s
terrible.  It’s the worst race track we go to for visibility because
the sun goes down right over the top.  There’s a hole between the
grandstands and however it works out, it seems that the sun is in your
eyes for the longest period of time.  That makes it really difficult
to get your braking zone and get side-by-side.  It’s really, really
hard.” 

DO YOU LIKE RACING HERE?  “Oh yeah, I love it just because I
grew up in the northwest and I’ve raced here a few times in the
southwest tour.  It’s a fun race track.” 

WHO DO YOU THINK WILL WIN
THE TITLE?  “I think Jimmie can do it.  I think that Kevin can do it
and I think Denny can do it.  It’s whoever makes the least amount of
mistakes these next two races.  The least amount of mistakes on pit
road, racing room on the race track with other drivers, whatever it
comes down to – pit decisions – it’s gonna come down to obviously the
best finish, but a lot of times it’s minimizing spots on the race
track.” 

EVERYBODY IS LOOKING AT THE TOP 3 BUT 4-10 IS TIGHT AS WELL.
HOW CLOSE ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION TO IT?  “Fourth through tenth we’re
paying attention to because that’s where we’re racing for our spot in
the points.  It’s clear they’re paying attention to the top three
because we led 234 laps last week and they didn’t even interview us,
so it’s obvious they’re paying attention to the top three, which they
should – that’s the championship – but if we would have won we would
be fifth in points right now.  We were clearly on our way to winning
that race.  There was no doubt and then the shifter broke and all I
had was third and fourth gear.  That was unfortunate, but we still
finished fifth with the problems that we had, which is really good,
but to think I was 10th or 11th or 12th in points, and if I would have
won last week we’d be fifth, that’s a huge difference, so I do pay
attention to how tight the points are because we are that close.”

WHAT ABOUT AMONG THE ROUSH FENWAY TEAMS?  “We’re really tight as well
and probably the one thing that I saw that surprised me the most is
it’s like the top three and then the rest of the field.  I’m surprised
to see that it’s not kind of staggered out a little bit.  It’s the top
three within 50 points and then fourth through whatever is almost 50
points, so it’s kind of odd that there’s that big of a separation and
everybody is still so tight.”

WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE BRAVADO FROM THE 11
TEAM?  “I don’t know.  I look at last week, if you want to take last
week, we were better than all of them.  We kicked the 11’s butt.  We
kicked the 48’s butt.  All day long nobody could even challenge us
until the shifter broke and then they challenged us because,
obviously, I didn’t have all my gears to get up to speed.  Now, can we
do that every week?  That’s a different story, but you’ve got to play
some games with them and I guess that’s why I say that because last
week was last week and we spanked them the entire race.  But that’s
only one week and you’ve got to do it for 36 to win a championship and
get spots in the points and get talked about.  But if I was in that
position I’d be doing the same thing and it’s self-confidence as well.
‘We’re better than the 48.  We’re gonna beat them.’  Those kind of
things, that’s confidence.” 

HOW MUCH DO MIND GAMES PLAY A ROLE IN
THIS SPORT?  “You can only do so much, but you can get under
somebody’s skin a little bit, I guess.  I don’t really pay attention
to it.  I worry about my car and how fast my car is gonna go today and
qualifying good so we get a good pit spot and we’ll let them talk
about whatever they want.”