WINSTON-SALEM (Feb. 1, 2025) – Cole Custer fired off fourth in Saturday night’s fourth and final heat race at Bowman Gray Stadium. The team was optimistic after a solid qualifying effort earlier in the evening, but an incident on lap five would prove too much to overcome, with Custer settling for a ninth-place finish. The No. 41 Team will start 16th in the last chance qualifier (LCQ) on Sunday night at 6:00 p.m. ET, and need to finish in the top two to advance to the main event.

Custer and the team struggled throughout the first two practice sessions – finishing in the 31st position heading into the four-minute qualifying round. However, the team continued to battle, and Custer climbed his way back up the leaderboard and qualified 16th, to give him the fourth-place starting spot in the last heat race of the night.

After an incident with AJ Allmendinger on lap five, Custer slipped back to the seventh position and was never able to recover. He was shuffled back after restarting in the outside lane, and dropped two more spots before crossing the finish line in ninth place.

Up Next
Custer will have a chance to race his way into the main event in the LCQ on Sunday at 6:00 p.m. ET on FOX. The top two finishers in the LCQ will advance to the Clash at 8:00 p.m. ET on FOX, and start 21st and 22nd, respectively. The 23rd and final position in the Clash is reserved for the driver who finished highest in the 2024 season points standings that did not otherwise transfer via the heat races or LCQ.

About Haas Factory Team
The Haas Factory Team is a NASCAR Cup and Xfinity program owned by Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. Beginning in 2025, the team will feature Cole Custer driving the No. 41 Ford Mustang Dark Horse in the NASCAR Cup Series, while Sheldon Creed and Sam Mayer take on the Xfinity Series in the No. 00 and No. 41 Ford Mustangs, respectively. Based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, the Haas Factory Team reflects a commitment to performance and engineering excellence, carrying forward Gene Haas’s commitment to motorsports.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
BOWMAN GRAY STADIUM
TEAM CHEVY POST-HEAT RACE REPORT
FEBRUARY 1, 2025

 Chase Elliott Takes Heat Race Win, Pole Position for Clash Main Event

• Chase Elliott and the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet team swept the top of the leaderboard in the opening day of the NASCAR Cup Series return to Bowman Gray Stadium.
• The 29-year-old Dawsonville, Georgia, native clocked in the fastest lap of 14.115 seconds in qualifying to secure a front-row starting position Heat Race One. Elliott went on to lead every lap of the 25-lap race to ultimately secure the pole position for tomorrow’s 200-lap main event.
• Joining Elliott in the top-10 starting lineup for the main event includes NASCAR Cup Series rookie Shane van Gisbergen, who drove his No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet to a top-10 qualifying effort and a third-place result in Heat Race Two.
• FOX will telecast from Bowman Gray Stadium on Sunday, February 2, starting with the Last Chance Race at 6 p.m. ET, followed by the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray main event at 8 p.m. ET. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet: Post-Heat Race Quotes

You’re one of the handful of drivers that have raced here in the K&N Series. Do you remember anything from those races, and does any of it translate to this weekend?

“No, it’s been so long ago, I don’t even hardly remember making laps. There’s been a lot of laps made since 2012 or whatever it was, which is a good thing. That means we’ve been racing a lot. But no, I kind of had to re-teach myself, I guess, or just kind of get familiar again today. That’s kind of how I’ve approached the day and what I was expecting. Fortunately, it was pretty similar to what I was kind of thinking it was going to be based on the L.A. Coliseum and the differences visually what it looks like from that.”

There’s going to be more cars on-track during the feature tomorrow night. Did we see just how important track position is going to be right off the bat in that heat race?

“Absolutely. I mean it’s going to be tough to win from the third or fourth row. I think the first couple of rows certainly have a massive advantage on the rest of the field. Obviously anything can happen. You all have been watching long enough to know that anything can happen and I’m well aware of that. But I think just in a normal circumstance of people not totally crashing each other or whatever – yeah, I certainly would want to be on the first couple of rows and, fortunately, we are. We’ll try to take advantage of that.”

When you get out on the track, the sun goes down and how much the crowd is into it, what’s it like to just get in the car and experience that atmosphere?

“Yeah, it was awesome. Everybody was fired up, which is great. That’s what they want. It looked like our heat race got kind of rough at points sometimes and the crowd reaction reflected that. I couldn’t see it, but I had a pretty good idea that something had happened that was fairly aggressive. But that’s why we’re here. This is what it was meant to be, and I think the crowd and the people that support this race track and the modified events here over the years, this is what they want. I think they’re in for a good show, so I’m looking forward to being a part of it. I’m proud of the effort from this No. 9 NAPA Chevy team today and ready to go to work tomorrow.”

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Clash at Bowman Gray Heat Races | Saturday, February 1, 2025

BUESCHER TO START ON THE OUTSIDE FRONT ROW OF CLASH AT BOWMAN GRAY AFTER WINNING HEAT 2

FORD DRIVERS ADVANCING TO TOMORROW NIGHT’S CLASH: Brad Keselowski, Noah Gragson, Chris Buescher, Joey Logano, Ryan Preece, Austin Cindric and Todd Gilliland.

Ryan Blaney did not qualify in his heat race, but since he is the highest point finisher from last year not currently in the field, he has the opportunity to claim the provisional spot and compete in the 23-car field.

Chris Buescher, driver of the No. 17 Kroger/Tree Top Ford Mustang Dark Horse for RFK Racing, led every lap to win Heat 2 tonight and will start on the front row in tomorrow night’s Clash at Bowman Gray. He spoke to media afterwards.

CHRIS BUESCHER, No. 17 Kroger/Tree Top Ford Mustang Dark Horse – THE COLISEUM IN L.A. WAS NOT KIND TO YOU. WHAT DID YOU FIND HERE THAT WORKED? “For us, a lot of things we learned about what not to do there and we weren’t good any of the times we went and we steadily found some things that were a little bit better, but ultimately needed a pretty big overhaul. I would say that Preece has been a pretty big mover for us on some of these flat short tracks. Some of the things that he’s done through the years that have worked really well. Last year they kind of excelled in this style of race and that was really beneficial to RFK as a whole, so it’s kind of one of the things we talked about a lot through media day and all that, and how we expected to be better overall and it’s already showing. We’ve got a lot of racing left to do, but it’s been a good start.”

IS THERE A COOL FACTOR RACING AT A PLACE LIKE THIS? “Yeah. I was here 15 years ago, more than that, probably almost 20 years. Geez, I’m old, but it was probably almost 20 years ago now when I raced a Legends car here and it was cool then. It was really cool and I’m not gonna lie, the track was tight in a Legends car. It’s surely snug now, but obviously through the years the history of this place, to be back here in a Cup car, we’ve all seen the Madhouse show and we all know about what goes down here. I’ve come up here as a fan and watched more fingers fly than I thought were actually in the stands. It’s just got a lot of character to it and surely it’s making it a lot of fun.”

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE NOT JUST THE RACING BUT THE ATMOSPHERE ITSELF? “I don’t think I ever can remember being heckled on a track walk in a really long time (laughing). I didn’t get it too bad. Most of it was good. I got heckled and found out that was just a friend up there, so he was just messing with me, but to have that many people here for the modified race and to stick around for all of our practice and heat races hours later is pretty awesome. We all know the energy and how well this stadium does at putting people up into the bleachers and I think they had a crazy day today with modifieds and obviously we’ve got some races to go to finish out the night, but I’m really excited about tomorrow.”

IS IT MORE AGGRESSIVE? “It was smooth from where I was at, so I will take that all day every day. We watched the first heat and obviously it was physical for the second half, but up front it was pretty smooth sailing in that one, too. If you can get away, it’s not too bad, but we’re gonna be in a lot more lap traffic too once we get in the race tomorrow.”

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO BE AT THE FRONT OF THE FIELD TOMORROW? “Yeah, it’s just gonna set you up to get going right from the get-go. We’re gonna be in the back of the field in 15 laps, maybe less, so I think you’re always gonna be in traffic of some sort and just having that little bit of gap behind you hopefully you’ve got to hang onto that to get going, but if you can have just that little bit of breathing room, that will put you in a lot better spot to where you’re not just pinballed around as much. I haven’t seen this one, but just the first heat some innocent bystanders getting spun out just from check ups and just the fact that it gets tight out there. It gets congested, so that’s definitely the place to be. It puts us in a good spot to just be safer from the get-go.”

WHAT ACCOUNTED FOR THE GAINS YOU MADE IN PRACTICE AND THE QUALIFYING RUN? “Yeah, we made big changes. The team made really good changes and just had a game plan coming in. We ran a lot of simulation leading up to this. We don’t typically do a ton of preliminary work from me as a driver in the simulator. It’s typically a lot more after races, but given my track record at these quarter miles, I figured better bite off into that one, so I ran a lot more there and went through all three of our cars and tried to pick out the good and the bad, and our team did a good job of having changes ready so that when we got here and realized we were just way too loose, we were able to make quick adjustments to get in the ballpark, so in our second session out there we were able to get on the other side of it and we were able to bring that back and then also just kind of tweak on some braking stuff at the same time and just got it to where it was a whole different race car for qualifying and for that heat race.”

WHAT IS IT LIKE WITH THESE TIRES AND WHAT IS IT GONNA BE LIKE FOR 200 GREEN FLAG LAPS TOMORROW NIGHT? “You watch the qualifying rounds. It seemed at the beginning it was three, four laps was the fast lap for the early groups. I think we’ve seen some groups at lap 10 or 11 maybe was their fast lap, given probably just spacing out one or two of those laps, so it changed a little bit through the evening. I believe it’s gonna be colder yet tomorrow, but I think we’re gonna get to the point where you’re gonna chase tire wear. We’re gonna try to take care of stuff. We tried in the heat race. We tried to get a couple car lengths out and just kind of conserve from there. I think it did work. We had something left at the end just to be able to get that little bit of gap, but I would imagine that we are gonna see it fall off. I think we just hope that you can control it as a driver. If you can make a difference in that fall off, that’s ideal. If we all fall off the same no matter what you do, then it’s hard to make a difference from behind the wheel, or as big a difference, but I feel like you can be smart about it and know when to push and make decisions at the right times that if the tire will react to that, then it’ll make comers and goers throughout the evening.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES
BOWMAN GRAY STADIUM
TEAM CHEVY TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 1, 2025

 Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media onsite at Bowman Gray Stadium ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session for the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray.

Media Availability Quotes:

Larson on the new rule that allows an elite driver in the field?

“Yeah, I don’t know.. I mean, obviously he’s (Denny Hamlin) from the ownership side, so he’s going to have a strong opinion one way or another, where I don’t really have an opinion on that. But regardless, I love to see drivers come out and try our series and our racecars. I feel like since we’ve gotten the Next Gen car out there, we’ve had multiple drivers each year from different backgrounds, countries and all that. I think that’s great for motorsports, not just NASCAR, but obviously it helps out NASCAR a lot. Yeah, rarely I feel like are you ever going to run into that 41st entry, aside from maybe the (Daytona) 500.”

You’ve had a really nice start to the 2025 season. Are you undefeated?

“No.. I lost two micro races at the Tulsa Shootout, and I lost the ‘Race of Champions’. I think I’m 50 percent, though (laughs).”

How do you feel heading into Daytona, one that you’ve not yet won but probably very much want to?

“Yeah, I don’t know.. I mean I think it doesn’t really, to me, matter how the beginning of my year kind of goes. To me, the Chili Bowl always feels like the end of the year.. end of the season. But yeah, I don’t know.. yes, it’s obviously a race that I would really like to win some day, but I try not to treat it any differently than any other race. I put the same amount of focus in as others. And I think as I’ve gained more experience, it doesn’t feel any bigger than the other races. I think, like I said, you just treat it the same and I think you go in with less.. not that I ever have nerves, but any anticipation of what might happen and stuff.

But yeah, I feel like we’ve improved a lot on superspeedways, as well. I feel like we’re contending throughout most parts of the race.. end of the stages, end of the races. It just hasn’t quite worked out, but I think if you can keep putting yourself into contention, it’ll work out someday.. hopefully. Yeah, we’ll keep trying our best and hopefully we can get that last crown jewel.”

How many races do you have on your schedule so far?

“Somewhere in the low 80s.

No mic..

“Honestly, that’s about normal. Every year, I get 85 to 90.”

So it’s down from normal?

“By a couple, maybe (laughs). But yeah, that’s still twice as many as anybody else.”

NASCAR decided not to change the playoffs for this year, but they said that they’re looking at possibly doing that next year. Do you care to give your input on that? Are you a part of the panel or anything? What would you like to see happen?

“I mean currently, I haven’t really put much thought into like – if I could recreate the format, what would I make it. I think there’s probably pros and cons to every format. It’s never going to quite please every single person that pays attention to our sport or is a part of the sport. I don’t know.. I think it could have some differences, though, but we’ll see. I would definitely like to be a part of that panel. I don’t know who is a part of that panel.. I’m assuming the driver council, which I’m not a part of. But yeah, I get into formats and stuff like that on the dirt side, so I think I would have fun trying to come up with something.”

What has the response been taking High Limit over to Australia? You see big picture motorsports, and I’m just kind of wondering what was the effect? Now that you’ve had a couple weeks off, you’ve had time to look back on that..

“Yeah, I thought it went amazing. I think the perception from fans and competitors across the world also thought it was amazing. You can’t do it without a great facility, too, and Perth Motorplex is – I mean you guys were there, it’s probably a top-three facility. Yeah, the crowd was awesome. There were fans from multiple different countries there. A lot of competitors. It had a lot of buzz, and I feel like already, there’s teams, drivers and fans talking about going next year that weren’t there this past year. So that’s great.. I think it’s great for Australia and sprint car racing, probably more than anything. But also for the High Limit brand, as well, and sprint car racing as a whole. It was great.”

Has it helped your entry list for Las Vegas, the kickoff for the real High Limit season?

“I don’t know.. I have zero idea if it helped. I doubt that it would help, you know, because it’s as far away from Las Vegas as you can get (laughs). But yeah, hopefully it just puts more eyes on the beginning of our season. I think that’s the most important thing… maybe more fans tuning in from Australia on Flo Racing and stuff like that.”

With the new manufacturer rule, are you clear on what racing will be allowed at Daytona and Talladega?

“I hadn’t really read anything about it or heard anything about it. I’m sure I’ll get caught up on all that as we get through this event. But right now, I don’t know anything about it.”

What would you like to see with the Clash moving forward? Would you like to see it rotating on more short-tracks? Do you want to see it go international? Where would you like to see it go?

“I think all of that. I think all of that would be cool. I think going to L.A. was great. I think that was huge for our sport. It was fun for all of us involved. I think coming to Bowman Gray is amazing, as well. You know, resurrecting.. I mean you’re not resurrecting this place, but you’re still tapping into your roots a lot coming to this event here. Yeah, I think spending two or three years at a place is great. But I do think the L.A. thing was great because it proved that they could take that model to different venues, so I would like to see us tap into that a lot. But also, going to Rockingham or something like that would be cool. You know, I think seeing the Cup Series back there, whether it be a points-paying race, the Clash or something, I think that would be neat.”

What are your thoughts on the state of the sport after a tumultuous playoffs, if you will, and a lot of conversation about the format, etc. As we go into 2025, how do you assess where NASCAR is at?

“Yeah, I’m not sure.. I hadn’t put much thought into any of that, as far as where the sport is at. I think there’s a lot of good going on in the sport, as well as there’s a lot of drama behind the scenes also, as I’m sure there is in every sport. So I don’t know.. drama sometimes is OK.. it got people talking about the sport. And if change comes from it, that’s good, too. I would say, overall, our sport is in a great spot. I think from what I’ve heard, TV ratings are continuing to climb. Fan attendance has been well. Our schedule is exciting. The racing is as close as it’s ever been. So there’s a lot of positives that probably outweigh, if you want to call them ‘negatives’ going on in the sport.”

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
BOWMAN GRAY STADIUM
TEAM CHEVY TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 1, 2025

 Richard Childress Racing teammates, Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch, met with the media onsite at Bowman Gray Stadium ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session for the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray.

Media Availability Quotes:

For Austin, as someone who grew up not even a half hour south and came to (Bowman Gray) growing up, what are your emotions coming here in a Cup car and seeing the amount of buzz The Clash has created?

Austin Dillon: “It’s really special. I remember leaving Truck races on Friday night flying home and excited about coming to Bowman Gray on a Saturday night, sit in the beer garden and watch the wrecks and the race that happens around the wrecks. I always enjoy coming up here. It’s a 15, 20-minute drive from my house now. Came early to watch practice in the modifieds and then watch some of the modifieds race. It’s exciting. It’s really cool to see my grandfather and how happy and excited he is. It’s kind of the start of RCR is right here. Selling peanuts in the grandstands to buying his $10 taxicab and run races. He was talking about wrecking over in Turn 1 and 2, and had calcium in his left rear tire to try and make the car turn. I remember when he hit, it sprayed powder all through the air and stuff. Everybody wrecked behind him. Just hearing some of his stories, it was cool sitting up there with the Myers family and listening to him chat about Bowman Gray.”

Is this one of those races you feel like no matter what the end result is Sunday, the sport, the people will remember?

Dillon: “Yeah, for sure. I think it’s just special. It brings you back in time. Very special to those who have raced here, been around here and the history behind it, and the entertainment value that this place has brought to so many for so many years.”

Both of you guys were second all three years at the L.A. Clash. What was it about that track that fit your driving styles? Could that transfer here?

Kyle Busch: “I’ve had some pretty good runs the last few years in The Clash race, and was so close to picking up one of those golds out there in L.A. That would’ve been pretty cool. (Got) a couple of silvers, bronze. Not too bad, but obviously the short track, the quarter mile, the flat track atmosphere of that being a bit different than what it is here. There, it seemed like you had a little bit of runoff, that you could use the runoff as the racetrack. It was tight regardless. I anticipate much of the same here. Tight quarters, not a lot of room. Didn’t seem like the outside was very advantageous for many in the modified race, so I predict we’ll see a lot of fighting for the bottom and guys nerfing guys to make sure they’re the ones on the bottom. Nobody can fall down and get down on the bottom.”

Dillon: “I think The Clash was a lot of fun out there in L.A. We got a second and third while we were out there, and last year we kind of disappeared. We had a brake issue. Hopefully, this year, we can show that kind of speed we had at L.A. I’m excited. We worked pretty hard at the simulator trying to get a baseline for this place. We’ll see if what we did is correct.”

Austin, a couple of years ago, you said you wanted to see The Clash at Dallas Cowboy’s stadium. Is that still top of the list for you?

Dillon: “This place is pretty awesome. I regret saying that now, because it’s ten minutes from my house, 15 minutes from my house. This is pretty awesome. I think the arena style racing is interesting and can bring another fan base to the sport, and get more people involved easier, obviously, the stadiums that are in the U.S. and around the world. I think it’s always cool what we can do with this racecar. It seems to go to some interesting places and make it work. Right down the road is nice.”

How has it been with Richard (Boswell) coming over from a different manufacturer, different organization, what it’s like working with you?

Dillon: “Yeah, Boswell, I think just his leadership. You can tell his professionalism when he walks in the door. He brings a great attitude to the team. Listening to him speak to our guys is pretty cool. I think he’s going to be great for me. He’s going to challenge each and every one of us to be better. Anything he can bring is great. Last year, he had a strong season there with Chase and was able to get to Victory Lane. I think certain places he definitely can help us. For the entirety, I just think from a leader aspect, it’s going to be a gain for us.”

What do you think on the state of the sport, and from your perspective, how do you feel about the direction NASCAR is heading?

Busch: “I think you always have questions in the game. Certain situations that are happening in the moment. Things like that, calls. I think there is sort of the same thing happening on the other side of the fence with the NFL. Overall, I would say we’ve got a really good product. You’ve had a lot of good races, really close finishes the last few years, and some exciting late-race shenanigans if you will, that certainly put on a lot of talk. I feel like the attention is there. We always want to see the benefit of the race teams and the owners and the drivers and the sustainability of our sport. If we can all continue to build more fans and more TV numbers and that, it all flows down and keeps everything going in the right direction.”

Dillon: “I think it’s a tough place to be in for, I would say for the league, NASCAR, to make the right decision all the time. I feel like they do a good job of implementing change to fix problems. The willingness to make change is good. The only thing I complain about is the schedule. It’s a grind for everybody in this deal. From an aspect of racing out on the track, I think we’ve made this car better each year. You just want to see progress and I think you see it each year. The guys before us were talking about the Playoff system, and slight changes can be made, but it creates moments. We need that excitement. You want fans and the media to have as many dramatic moments as you can get, because that’s the entertainment value part comes into it. Then, pure racing also, you’ve got to balance that also.”

Is there an area that you look at that could help launch NASCAR further?

Busch: “I would say we’re doing that. I think Mexico is a cool step in that direction. The Xfinity series was there years ago and now we’re going back there with the Cup series this year. One of the questions somebody asked about The Clash and it’s rotation of different places, I’ll speak on that for a second where I really like the opportunity here at Bowman Gray where I don’t know what the budgets are. I don’t know if it’s three million, five million, seven million, 10 million, I don’t know. The fact of us going somewhere to reinvest in the future for other racing and local level racers – to be able to see a better venue, to go and enjoy and bring their sponsors and have fun and race and compete, is only going to benefit from the top. Bringing that down here to Bowman Gray, seeing the upgrades here, looking at other tracks around the county we could do some of the same stuff. There are short tracks in Florida that are cool. Pensacola is one of them that would really benefit from this opportunity. There’s a couple in Alabama that would really benefit from this opportunity. That could be a really cool thing down the road that this continues to float around. Return on investment? I don’t know, but I think the return on investment is the younger generations and the younger racers that want to be somebody and get to race at a cool place, and then can move up the ladder and someday, one day go back and race at their home track as a pro.”

Dillon: “I think that’s awesome. I think it’d be cool to join the 24 Hours one year. Each team gets a car in the 24-hour and their driver lineup gets to race in it. I think that would be a cool Clash moment as well. This car is built for road racing, so I don’t understand why we can’t run the 24-hour race, and each team gets to field a car and see what it would be like after 24 hours. It lets you get with your guys and work things out before the season starts because you’re going to be working on the car throughout the night. It’s a pretty cool team-building opportunity.”

What do you think about allowing the 41st driver in the field?

Busch: “I think it’s a unique ruling or statute that could benefit the sport as a whole. It just kind of depends on how it’s used. I’m still a little fuzzy on all of the details of it. Castroneves is a cool guy who’s won the Indy 500 and now he gets a chance to run the Daytona 500, so I think that’s neat. I think you could look at some other guys, whether a Verstappen or Louis (Hamilton), somebody like that who could come over here and do something like that. I don’t know. Sure, they could. They have the credentials to do so. I think that would be something that would be cool. Whether or not you could actually get them to do it is another point.”

You don’t have an issue with the exception?

Busch: “I don’t have an exception to that. I think there’s a money factor there too. I think that’s fine. It’s literally just to bring eyeballs to our sport, they’re fans, they’re demographic of where they come from and whether they’re from a different country, which Castroneves is, maybe makes some fans.”

Dillon: “I think it’s interesting. I think Kyle (Busch)’s on a pretty good point there. To me, I think it would be interesting if you just gave the IndyCar champion and the F1 champion those opportunities. I don’t know. You want to put eyeballs on the sport in any way possible. Either should bring some of those. The champions in the other top two forms of racing is a good place too. It’s interesting. We’ll see how it all works out. Maybe RCR will get involved in it and want to put in one of those one day.”

For Austin, going into Daytona, you look at results and stats don’t tell the rest of the story. You’ve won there. Is that a confidence builder going into the race?

Dillon: “It definitely gives you confidence when you have a Harley J. Earl (trophy) at the house. It makes you sometimes throw caution to the wind or put yourself in different positions, but still you really have to focus on that race and put yourself in the best position. You’ve got to have a good car, just like any other race. There are so many other factors that go into that weekend, but I always feel confident driving through that tunnel one way or the other, with RCR, ECR power. I think Kyle’s (Busch) got even more confident in the speedway stuff since he’s been with us because he’s been pretty dominant. He got the win at Talladega which I think was pretty much all him staying out on gas. I think our cars do a really good job on speedways.”

Kyle, is that the one trophy that’s missing on your resume that Kurt (Busch) does?

Busch: “I have a lot more cooler trophies. He doesn’t have a Driller either. Certainly, winning the Daytona 500 is top of the list. We have talked about it a long time. I feel like that would certainly be cool to win that one. Would certainly be awesome and to add that to the resume would certainly be cool. Championships and All Star wins, (Coca-Cola) 600’s, Southern 500’s, all that stuff is really, really cool. I’ve got all of those, so to be able to add to that with going to Victory Lane at Daytona for the 500 would be pretty awesome.”

Is your confidence up?

Busch: “Yes. Austin hit on it there where I feel like since joining RCR, with ECR, we’ve had really good opportunities to win speedway races. We won Talladega, but we’ve been in position to win a heck of a lot more than we have. So, having more opportunities to be in position to win, eventually you should be able to take home that trophy. I won the Daytona 500 last year, the only problem was the checkered flag wasn’t falling, it was a yellow flag. There’s certainly a good set of confidence with the team and organization when you get to go to those places. Daytona is one of those, Talladega, Atlanta now.”

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.

NASCAR CUP SERIES
BOWMAN GRAY STADIUM
TEAM CHEVY TRANSCRIPT
FEBRUARY 1, 2025

 Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media onsite at Bowman Gray Stadium ahead of the NASCAR Cup Series practice and qualifying session for the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray.

Media Availability Quotes:

What are your initial feelings of what you’re seeing here so far at Bowman Gray Stadium?

“Yeah, I raced here in the K&N Series, which I’m sure is like a lot of the guys in the garage now. That was around 12 to 15 years ago, or something. So yeah, obviously it’s been a long time ago now.. a lot of racing since then. I don’t remember a ton about it, to be honest with you. I remember it was a big deal when we did that back then, but I can’t sit here and tell you that I remember a ton. I remember the first time I came up here, I had a dead battery in our car and every time we would stop, I couldn’t get it started back up. So I was ready to forget that night. I think I did successfully forget most of that one, and then I think the second trip went about just as good as that. So I hope this one goes a little better this go around.”

What are your thoughts on the new rule that allows an elite driver in the field?

“I could see both sides of the fence, right?”

Like what if Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton wanted to come and race, and NASCAR would have to pick between the two?

“Well if they (NASCAR) already decided, then I guess they would have to qualify in, right?

Yeah, I don’t know.. I can argue both sides of the fence, right? You’d hate to have a Helio Castroneves, a Max Verstappen, a Lewis Hamilton or someone come in to run a race and then miss the show due to something silly. So I can certainly see that aspect of it from a promotor side of things, where you wouldn’t want to risk that because that’s obviously going to be a big deal for you. But I also think that with prestigious races, there should be some sort of integrity in making the show. I think that’s part of what makes the race prestigious. You know, it’s a hard event to make. I think you see that with the Indianapolis 500, or you see that at the Chili Bowl, right? It’s a hard race to make. It’s a big deal just to get into the show, so I can see both sides of the fence there. I think it’s totally fine.. I just don’t want to ever degrade or hurt the long-term integrity of the sport and take the prestige out of events that should be some of our biggest days of the year.”

Daytona and Talladega aren’t raced the way that Martinsville is. Rules got changed after Martinsville because of the way that the racing was there at the end. You guys met with NASCAR on Wednesday.. do you guys feel like you understand how you’re allowed to race at Daytona coming up?

“I have not been briefed yet, so this is an easy answer for me.. I wasn’t at the meeting.

I think that at the end of the day, obviously they didn’t like how some of the things went on. Look, it’s their playground and I think the best thing I can do as a competitor is try to respect that the best I can. You know, at the end of the day, there’s always going to be teammates, alliances and so on and so forth. I’m not sure how you ever totally take that out of the equation. But from my standpoint, when you simplify it as a competitor, you always want to try and be the best and do the best that you can for your team. That’s kind of how I’ve always looked at it. We will certainly, as a company and as a manufacturer, try to stay within the lines that they set for us and respect the rules that they put in place. I think that’s all we can do.”

Where would you guys like to see the Clash go to, and what would you like to see out of this race going forward?

“Yeah, I mean I think anything you can do.. I kind of like Ryan’s (Blaney) thought of potentially getting outside of the United States. I know we’re kind of testing the waters a little bit with the Mexico City race this year, but I think the real test would be going overseas and I think this race would be a good opportunity to do something like that.. where it wouldn’t be committing to a points race, you know, somewhere that’s a long ways away. I like the idea of using it as a potential stepping stone to help grow the sport. And I almost feel like if we’re not going to do that, I’m not even sure that it’s totally necessary, you know, either. I do think it’s a good opportunity to shake things down and kind of get into the groove. But we just ran a month-and-a-half ago.. it wasn’t that long ago either. I think for me, I’m not saying one way or another, I’m just saying that everything is on the table. I’d be good either way, whether it’s here or Daytona. If they want to do it in Europe.. if they want to not do it at all, I’d be fine with any of the above.”

How would you assess the state of the sport, coming off a controversial-filled playoffs, and now starting up a new season?

“Well that’s a very broad question. But look, I actually think things are in an OK place. When I look at just the state of the sport, generally speaking, I think that the leadership group at NASCAR right now has been open to more change over the past three or four years than I think it probably ever changed, you know, in the prior 30 years before that. So I think that there’s got to be some appreciation for the willingness that they’ve had to go and try new things. And also, with that being said, does that mean all of those things are going to be good? No, they’re not. And I think as long as we’re willing to say that some of the stuff hasn’t been good, then it’s fine. I think we can move forward and grow from it. I see a lot of logical things. I know this is really small thing, but them teching these racecars at Charlotte Motor Speedway before we drug them up here, it is a very logical thing to do. Really nice.. great for the teams. Somebody was really thinking with that. It’s the little things that, I think, that make things better. That’s an example of a positive change and I hope we can continue to go in a good direction.”

NASCAR has decided not to change the playoffs this year, but indicated that they’re going to take a hard look at it over the course of the season to possibly change it next year. What are your thoughts on them not changing it? Do you want to see changes moving forward?

“Yeah, I think it’s an extremely important decision.. kind of going to Jordan’s (Bianchi) question with just the state of the sport. I’m not sure there’s a more important decision that we can make in just how we crown our champion every year and making sure that we’re not ever doing that the wrong way or taking away from what that means. I just think that, long-term, whatever decision that they want to make or whatever decision that they do make, I just want to make sure, kind of what we were eluding to early, that the sport is getting better and that these prestigious moments are always prestigious and we’re never taking away from that because that, to me, is what makes this deal special and so on and so forth. I’m with Ryan (Blaney).. as a competitor, I really don’t care what they decide to do. At the end of the day, when they set the rules and you’ve come out and they say, ‘hey look – this is the path and this is how it’s supposed to work’, then I think you just have to respect that. That’s not any competitor’s fault at that juncture. That’s the rules that they make, and if you win it in that format, then you are the rightful champion. You know, I hate that there’s been questions that have taken away from Joey (Logano). It seems like over the winter, people were asking me about it, and I hate that because it’s not his fault. He just did the best he could with the format that he was handed, and he did it better than everybody else. I just, long-term, want to make sure that we’re doing the right things to not ever take away from that in a very general, broad, perspective.”

About General Motors

General Motors (NYSE:GM) is driving the future of transportation, leveraging advanced technology to build safer, smarter, and lower emission cars, trucks, and SUVs. GM’s Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC brands offer a broad portfolio of innovative gasoline-powered vehicles and the industry’s widest range of EVs, as we move to an all-electric future. Learn more at GM.com.

Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Cup Series
Clash at Bowman Gray Media Availability | Saturday, February 1, 2025

Ryan Blaney, driver of the No. 12 Menards/Great Lakes Ford Mustang Dark Horse, is looking for his first career victory in The Clash. He stopped by the infield media center at Bowman Gray Stadium to talk about opening the season at one of NASCAR’s historic tracks and his hopes for Sunday’s race.

RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 Menards/Great Lakes Ford Mustang Dark Horse – WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THE CLASH BEING HERE AT BOWMAN GRAY, AND HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE NASCAR ELECTRIC VEHICLE FORD UNVEILED EARLIER THIS WEEK? “Talking first about being here, I ran here 20 years ago or so in Bandelero’s, so it’s nice to be back. I think the reputation of this place, a lot of passionate people around the area that love Bowman Gray and a track that’s really historic. I think it’s a good race for this Clash. You have the ability to move this race around to different parts of the country, so that’s nice. At the Ford Launch Party a couple nights ago they announced some really cool stuff, whether it’s EV, different series that they want to peek into, some really neat stuff on the horizon there, and I think that’s a lot of just Jim Farley wanting to be a part of everything, so I think it’s neat to be a part of a company like that, that’s always wanting to spread their wings even more than they already are, so I’m excited to see where that goes at some point. Hopefully, I get to drive it at some point. That would be nice.”

DID YOU FEEL LIKE EVEN THOUGH IT WAS BANDOLERO’S DID YOU HAVE BRAGGING RIGHTS GOING BACK TO MIDDLE SCHOOL? “I grew up in High Point, so kind of this Triad area, so I had a lot of friends and family that came here a lot on the weekends. I had some buddies that were at that race and they thought it was pretty cool that, ‘Hey, you ran at Bowman Gray. I watched you at Bowman Gray.’ You’re just a kid and you’re like, ‘Oh, yeah. That was awesome.’ Back then in a Bandelero, this place is massive and it’s just funny putting it into perspective of what you don’t know and now this is the smallest place we go to with what we do, but it was just neat to run there back then and just kind of be overwhelmed by the people. That was the most people you ever raced in front of at that age and you saw the passion. I was getting shot the bird by kids younger than me when I was 10. It’s like, ‘OK. This is what this place is about.’ People like you or not and I don’t even think they didn’t like me. I was 10 years old What’s not to like about a 10 year old. They just did what their parents were doing, so that part was pretty funny to me. I’m sure you’ll see a lot of that tomorrow night.”

WOULD YOU STILL HAVE BRAGGING RIGHTS IF YOU WIN TOMORROW NIGHT? “Yeah, I mean this is an exhibition race. It’s the Clash, but you still want to win it and you want to win at neat places, historical places like this. Those guys who won at the Coliseum, that’s a really historic place. You can say that I won at the Coliseum in L.A. and here it’s the same way. I think to be able to have that title would be pretty cool. And, like I said, it has home ties to me, so that’s another thing that I think would be special.”

WHAT IS YOUR THOUGHT ON THE NEW RULE THAT ALLOWS AN ELITE DRIVER IN THE FIELD? “I might be biased, but I love Helio, so I was psyched when it was like, ‘OK, he’s running the 500. Oh, and he’s locked in? That’s great for Helio.’ He was in Indy Cars when I was over there at Penske for a while before he moved on, so I love Helio and I’m happy that I’m gonna be able to race against him because I loved growing up watching him run Indy Cars, and then to get to be a semi-teammate driving for the same guy for a long time with Roger, so I didn’t really have any thoughts about it, to be honest with you. I was just excited that Helio is gonna be running the 500.”

DO YOU FEEL YOU UNDERSTAND HOW YOU’RE ALLOWED TO RACE AT DAYTONA COMING UP AFTER THE MEETING WITH NASCAR EARLIER THIS WEEK? “It’s tough. What is race manipulation and what is working together as a team like at a superspeedway?”

CAN YOU MANIPULATE A RACE AT DAYTONA? “If you have four cars and maybe you run four-wide, but that’s over the top. You have to think what is logical racing. Us and the Wood Brothers, we try to find each other and get lined up because we can go forward. That is obviously just your plan and that’s racing, but if you’re trying to three or four-wide and block a track, that’s ridiculous. There are judgement calls, I think, but at the end of the day all of that stuff, I think, there have been some weird occasions that it’s gotten really blown out of proportion. Some more egregious than others like the Martinsville thing, but the speedway stuff, I don’t think you’re gonna see anything that egregious. You’re not gonna see people running four-wide to stop a track up. That’s just stupid. At 200 miles an hour, you’re gonna hurt people, but I’m happy that NASCAR cracked down on it. You have to have penalties for this stuff if it’s that egregious.”

WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE THIS RACE GO TO AND WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE OUT OF THIS RACE GOING FORWARD? “I said it earlier. This is a perfect race that you have a chance to move it around and go to different parts of the country and maybe even outside of the USA to give a different part of an area and a fan base something to watch – NASCAR and Cup cars in general. Where I would like to see it? I mean, I really don’t have a preference. I was fine with the Coliseum. I was fine with it here. I don’t really have any preference or reservations about going anywhere. For a while it was at Daytona at the speedway and everyone was upset that we were wrecking too many cars, but now we probably wreck just as many cars, but I really don’t care. Wherever you want to take it, that you can get a lot of eyes on it, I think it’s fine with me.”

HOW WOULD YOU ASSESS THE STATE OF THE SPORT COMING OFF OF A CONTROVERSIAL FILLED PLAYOFFS AND STARTING UP A NEW SEASON? “I think the sport, I mean, he and I have been around the sport watching our dads running for a long time, and like he said, they’ve been making some decisions and changing some stuff up the most that they ever have in a positive way. A lot of people crap on it for some reason, the sport, and decisions that NASCAR makes and it’s like, ‘Why?’ I really don’t understand why people take a dump on decisions that these guys and girls are making because I haven’t really seen many that are bad. Everyone has their opinion and that’s fine, but every time I look at social media they’re just like, ‘Oh my God. It’s terrible right now. It’s in an awful spot.’ And it’s like, ‘Why is that?’ I don’t really understand. As a competitor, I don’t think it is. I think it’s great right now. I do think it’s in a good place. Not everything is gonna be a homerun. Things that NASCAR does or whatever, but I really think it is moving in a positive direction and it has been for years, I think.”

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON NASCAR NOT CHANGING THE PLAYOFF FORMAT THIS YEAR AND ARE THERE ANY CHANGES YOU WOULD WANT TO SEE IN THE FUTURE? “I’m open to change. It’s been this way for, this will be the 11th year of this format with the way the playoffs are, so I’m open to change, whether you go back to I really don’t care either way. If it’s a full season points thing, if you have somewhat of a chase format, whether you’re 10 races to the end of the season, whether you’re five races to the end of the season, I don’t know, but I’m open to anything honestly, so I’m not gonna go into all the changes I’d like to see made or what I think, but I know there’s been discussion with NASCAR, like drivers and stuff. We’ve been talking to NASCAR about ideas and they didn’t do anything for this year, but I know they’re seriously thinking about it and trying to make it very entertaining and kind of give people a little bit something different. We’ll see what happens.”

Tim Brown, driver of the No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse, will be making his NASCAR Cup Series debut this weekend in the Clash at Bowman Gray. The 12-time modified track champion spoke to members of the media before tonight’s practice session and heat races.

TIM BROWN, No. 15 Dairi-O/Jerry Hunt/Hayes Ford Mustang Dark Horse – WHAT DOES THIS MOMENT MEAN TO GET THIS OPPORTUNITY? “It means everything to me, not just to me but my family and all of our partners and sponsors that have been with me through this journey for many years. Just to be at this level to get to shine is just outstanding and I can’t wait to make the best of it.”

WHAT IF ANYTHING DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’RE EXPERIENCE HERE MAY BENEFIT YOU, AND IS JUST BEING PART OF THIS AS SPECIAL AS POTENTIALLY HAVING A TOP FINISH? “Being a part is super special as far as racing here for the last thirty-something years, and knowing the racetrack and every crack and crevice, I think, is a little bit of an advantage, but these guys drive these cars all the time and you get very limited practice here, so I think the learning curve for both of us is gonna be very short. As far as being special, it’s very special just to be here, but I’m a racer and I want to win this thing. That’s why we’re here and we’ve worked really hard to build the best car at RWR that we could build to put on a good show today.”

IS FIGHTING REQUIRED? IS IT PART OF THE RULES HERE? “You might as well say yes. I mean, let’s be real. If you race here for thirty some years, you’re gonna fight.”

HOW MANY FIGHTS HAVE YOU BEEN IN? “Ten. That’s pretty good, right? They’re good ones, though. Does that matter?”

HOW MANY OF THEM HAVE YOU WON? “All of them.”

WHY DO SO MANY PEOPLE FIGHT HERE? “Just the passion. I’m very passionate about what I do on and off the racetrack and we take a lot of pride in our equipment and our race cars are immaculate, so we don’t make a lot of money to do this at this level, so if you tear my race car up, I’m gonna come and see you.”

HOW MUCH, IF ANY, DID THOSE CRACKS AND CREVICES CHANGE WITH THE NEW WALLS? “The walls did change the view of the racetrack from what I’m used to seeing for so many years. It’s beautiful out there, but it does change the way you see the racetrack as you’re driving, so it was unique and learning to adapt to that this morning in the modified practice, and I think it’s gonna be even more unique with the Cup car with the full body and the full windshield and all that, so I’m looking forward to that.”

DID THE RACING GROOVE CHANGE AT ALL AND TAKE AWAY ANY OF THE UPPER GROOVE? “Not really. I thought from pictures and seeing the track visually I thought, ‘Man, this is way different.’ The biggest difference, honestly, is just visually. As far as the track groove, I think it’s basically the same. It is for the modified anyway. I’m not sure with the Cup car, yet.”

WHO FROM YOUR FAMILY ALSO RACED HERE? “Just my grandfather My did didn’t race.”

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE ABLE TO RACE HERE WHERE YOUR GRANDFATHER RACED AND WHAT’S YOUR EARLIEST MEMORY OF THIS TRACK? “I can remember, I don’t maybe, being five or six years old playing right over here where you go onto the racetrack around fire barrel as a little kid – like me and Burt Myers and a bunch of the other kids would hang out in the pits with our families as they were working on race cars and we would run around. There used to be trees over there and play, so I’ve kind of grown up here. That’s what makes it even more special to get to make a Cup debut here.”

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR GRANDFATHER WOULD THINK OF THIS? “He is smiling today, for sure.”

DO YOU SEE THE CHANGES HERE BEING PROGRESS AND KIND OF A NECESSARY STEP TO UPGRADE THE FACILITY? “Absolutely. Cosmetically, it’s beautiful and that’s important too for the fans that come, for sponsors to spend money to come. If you say, ‘Hey, we’re partners with teams that race here’ and you show them this race track now, they’re gonna be impressed. Now, it did have some history with the old guard rails laid over and painted and things and had some character and very historical, but it’s just a new chapter, so it’ll still have the same persona, it’ll still have the same passion of fans and it’ll still put on a great race, but it just looks great now.”

IS THERE A PART OF YOU THAT WOULD BE ROOTING FOR BURT MYERS THAT IF HE SHOWS WELL HE’S ONE OF THE GUYS HERE? “That’s a tough question to answer because the racer in me says no, but I think it’s good that both of us got this opportunity to do this and thanks to everybody involved that thinks the same way. At my age, just to get the opportunity to do this is overwhelming and it’s super special and I’ve got to thank Rick and Lisa Ware for the opportunity, and Todd Hunt at Jerry Hunt Supercenter for all that he does or we wouldn’t be here, period. I want to run well, and I want to show that we deserve to be here, that it’s just not a ‘hey, let’s give this old guy an opportunity to go ride around in a Cup car.’ I feel like I deserve to be here. I’ve dedicated my whole life to racing and I’ve worked my butt off and here we are and make the best of it.”

DO YOU FEEL LIKE CINDERELLA GOING TO THE BALL AND THEN ON MONDAY YOU GO BACK TO RICK WARE AND WORK ON CARS? “Yes, absolutely. It is that and it’s been like that for six weeks. With all the media and all of you guys have been super awesome to work with. We’ve talked about this for six months under the radar and behind the scenes when Rick knew that this deal was coming and he wanted me to run it, and I tell you the coolest thing was they wrapped the car Sunday to surprise me when I went to work on Monday and when you walk in and flip the lights on and you see that thing sitting there, it was like super emotional. And then to get to bring my family down and have the modified there to unveil it and have our sponsors there and my wife and kids, it is super special. And then I woke up this morning. I texted Todd. I woke up with the biggest smile on my face this morning and was such at peace with the Lord that I’m so blessed to be here and I’m gonna enjoy every moment of it, and I hope we put that thing up front and make a show out of it.”

DID YOU HAVE TO CHANGE YOUR LINE AT ALL IN THE MODIFIED AND DO YOU EXPECT TO? “No, we didn’t really have to change the line, it just looks different because the SAFER barrier stands 90 and the old guard rail kind of laid over. It just looks way different, but as far as changing the line, no.”

HAVE YOU AND BURT EVER FOUGHT? “Not like physically. We’ve fought with our cars a few times.”

EVEN AS KIDS PLAYING? “I don’t remember back then. I’ve been knocked out a few times, so I don’t remember that.”

HAVE YOU HAD ANY TRAINING OR SIMULATOR WORK, OR ARE YOU JUST RELYING ON YOUR MODIFIED EXPERIENCE? “Ford was gracious enough to give us a lot of sim time leading up to this race and I got to spend some time in there. I’m gonna be honest with you, I don’t know if it helped because I’ve not driven a Cup car yet, so it’s weird to see how that’s gonna correlate. If it correlates well, we should be fine because I did pretty good in there after I got used to not getting sick in it.”

DID IT TAKE YOU LONG TO ADAPT TO THE SIM? “It’s really funny. When I walked into the Ford Performance Center, there’s a room full of people and they’re all laughing. I’m like, ‘What did I do?’ And they’re like, ‘We’ll just see how long it takes you to get sick,’ and it was like 15 seconds. I was like, ‘I’ve got to get out of this thing,’ so they gave me some Dramamine and the bracelets and all that stuff, but after the fourth trip to the simulator I was fine. I asked them, what’s the ticket here? What do you have to do? They said, ‘Be born after 1995.’”

Toyota GAZOO Racing – Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

WINSTON-SALEM, NC (February 1, 2025) – Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to the media on Saturday prior to practice for the NASCAR Cup Series Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium.

DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Sport Clips Haircuts Toyota Camry XSE, Joe Gibbs Racing

What did you think when you saw your hauler, and do you have any concern?

“I mean it is tough out there. Sponsorship is hard to come by, and certainly, while it is such an important time in our sport to recognize that sponsorship dollars are not flowing like they used to for sure. Everyone has had to adjust quite a bit, and there are certain aspects that JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) has to price into their pricing as well that is probably tough. I don’t know. It is part of it. Certainly, having one sponsor for 20 years, made things pretty easy and now it is all catching up. Is it concerning from my end? Maybe a little bit, but it is probably more concerning from JGR’s standpoint.”

Where would you like to see the Clash go in the future?

“I’m personally in the boat that I liked it at Daytona. It was just a really good warm up for the 500. I thought it provided tons of storylines for the 500, but it is a little bit different now-a-days. The racing on superspeedways is different. You used to, back then, if you saw someone that was really dominate in the Clash, it was like they have a great handling car – they are going to be tough to beat – doesn’t matter where they start. Now that it is such a track position race, I don’t know that you will get the direct correlation, but it could certainly bring back some hype to the 500. I’m probably in that boat or really anywhere that helps grow and get some excitement going for the season. I don’t really have a bucket list place where I would want to put it.”

What would your thoughts be on going internationally?

“Internationally – maybe just from the standpoint that there is probably more time to prepare for the race teams. It’s not in the middle of the season, and then you have the gap after that for Super Bowl for you to get back and get reset and go for the 500. Perhaps.”

What is your perspective on where NASCAR is at as a sport?

“I think it is a really crucial year all around. There is a lot of big decisions that definitely need to get made. It is a crucial year with the new TV partners – getting our fans to transition over there to the streaming platforms – that is going to be big. I think it is just a huge year. You are going to have to find a way to get everyone to transition and kind of rally around the new type of media partners that we have and hopefully rely on them to hopefully grow the sport as well. I think that it is just a crucial year – all around.”

Do you have an opinion on the new provisional rule?

“I don’t know. I just think – it reeks of desperation. I don’t know how else to say it. I don’t know how nice you can really say it. It just feels like you are really trying to get any kind of headline you can to be relevant and I don’t love it.”

Well, it exists now?

“I know – to me it is a short-term gain, long-term loss. I just think that you are premier stock car series in the US. The premier racing sport in the US; be the big boys and force people to come in here and get their credentials and do it the natural way. I don’t think it is going to be a big factor anywhere other than Daytona, but just simply put, saying that someone has a name that interests you and that they are going to have an automatic bid in the highest form of motorsports in the US – I don’t love it.”

Are there any drivers you would like to see come try?

“No. Not really.”

Has this event moved away from the racing mattering most?

“I always think that the racing itself is an important factor. While the race is going on, there is either going to be a social media buzz around – either positive around the racing or not, so I still think that is an important thing, but you have a great point. It is something else, as far as the spectacle itself, it is an exhibition type race – so I think it is just a primer to let everyone know that we are racing again, truthfully. I think LA had its own place. I thought it was really well done. Here – it looks like they did a really good job with it. I think each place has its certain relevance, and I think that this place has its relevance as well with its history. It just seems like moving it around and changing things is what is stirring the interest, not necessarily what is happening on track, which is what you are saying.”

How significant would it be for you to get your fourth Daytona 500 win?

“It would be big all around. There are lots of really good stuff that comes with it, with the bonus points and what not. There are only a select group that are really, really elite that have won those. I wish that I had a bigger role in it now than what I used to have in our results and finishes, but truthfully, in the Next Gen, I have just struggled to find the checkered flag at some point of the day. I don’t know. It would mean a lot to me personally and certainly put ourselves in a historic group there. It will be a tough task for sure.”

Is the Next Gen radically different on superspeedways than previous generations of cars?

“Mainly from the drag perspective. I learned so much from Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. and Tony Stewart, some of the bests when I was coming into the sport – Jeff Gordon – on how they created runs and then they would pull out of line and keep that run going and you just would see theme bouncing off these cars and you really saw it at the end of the 2016 Daytona 500 where we came from fourth or fifth to win it. I was just constantly using cars around me to keep this massive run going, and now – you have to stay in line. You are just really hoping your line goes forward. You are almost in a traffic jam, and you are hoping that your lane is the one that there is less congestion. It is just a different beast now. We have seen underdog type winners in it the last few years, and a lot of it is just where you are at, can you cycle good on pit road, can you save enough fuel during the green to make your cycle shorter? We still have an important role, but our role is now more off the track than it is on the racing surface.”

Has Toyota adding three additional cars at Daytona going to help with strategy?

“Yeah, it should. It certainly should. We worked really well together at Talladega until we ended up crashing each other, and then from that moment on, it was can we really all get on the same page, but certainly, the power of numbers allows us to at least create our own strategy. We were always at the mercy of the other manufacturers and trying to figure out – whether it was Ford or Chevy – that was going to pit when we wanted them to pit and we had to react to that, where I think we probably have enough numbers now that we can actually just create our own strategy, so that will certainly be beneficial, but when it comes down to the end of the race, it is a matter of who is left. I used to love being super selfish in those types of races, because I would just use anyone – I didn’t care if they were a teammate or not – to try to get a win, but so much with the manufacturer alliances now, it is really, really difficult to break through that.”

Are you clear on what is allowed or not allowed with manufacturer alliances at superspeedway?

“I think so. I think speedways would be status quo. I don’t think that I saw anything in the rules that would make me think that things would change from a manufacturer’s standpoint there. They have their own meetings, and they say don’t push this group – push our group instead, and you are not going to stop those words from being spoken, but that is just not something that you are going to be able to put back in the box now. That is just kind of what we’ve got.”

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for nearly 70 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.

Toyota directly employs nearly 64,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 49 million cars and trucks at our 14 manufacturing plants. In spring 2025, Toyota’s plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 31 electrified options.

For more information about Toyota, visit www.ToyotaNewsroom.com.