NASCAR CUP SERIES
ECHOPARK SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
FEBRUARY 21, 2026

Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media onsite at EchoPark Speedway in advance of NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session. The 30-year-old Dawsonville, Georgia, native returns as the track’s most recent winner in NASCAR’s top division.

Media Availability Quotes:

Chase, it’s a home race for you. You took home the trophy last summer here. Just tell us a little bit about what EchoPark Speedway means to you?

“You know, I say it all the time, but I enjoy coming down here. I’m glad we have two races. I think just the vibe is really good. I think a lot of energy is back with the track since they did the reconfiguration. And you know, just talking to a lot of people from around the area, I think they really enjoy coming down here now and camping out and having a lot of fun, especially for the night race.

I know it’s going to be a little cooler than we’d like tomorrow, but still, I think it’ll be a good race. And yeah, for me, it’s nice to have the option to go home. Still have to deal with the Atlanta traffic, but that’s okay. It’s worth it. I always enjoy being here, and hopefully, it’s a good weekend for us.”

The No. 9 team can win anywhere, but particularly on the superspeedways, as they’ve gone for you lately; being in the mix for the win last week and winning here last time out. Where do you feel like you come in here, confidence-wise, that you guys are capable of doing that again?

“Yeah, I feel good. I mean, like I said a lot going into last week, it’s large in part for just being at HMS and the boss’s commitment to wanting to win, right? That leadership trickles down all the way throughout the entire company. From my perspective and any race car driver, you know, no different than when I drove through the tunnel last week, I felt like we had a shot to win. I felt the same way, you know, driving through the tunnel here today. So, I’m always grateful for that. You know, this stuff, narratives can change quick. You can have a bad week and next thing you know, you can come back and have a good week. But just having those opportunities week in and week out are really important to me, and I’m really appreciative of that.

So, from my standpoint, we show up. I know we have a great team, the right prep and the right people on the job, and I know that if I come in and do my part to the ability that I feel like I can, I know we can go out here and have a shot, and that’s really all there is to it.

My confidence in our whole group maintains at a high level each week, and whether we’re coming off a bad week or coming off a good week, I know that we can get ourselves in the right position to go succeed.”

How are you feeling physically after that hit at the end of the day down to DAYTON 500, but also, how are you feeling emotionally processing how close you came just on both those fronts?

“Yeah, definitely just a huge, huge bummer, for sure. You know, obviously the crashing like that’s never fun… don’t get me wrong. But, it’s more just processing the how close we were as a team to win it. That can be a challenging thing, I guess. Both fortunately and unfortunately throughout my career, I have experienced other losses like that… maybe not at Daytona, but you know, certainly close calls. I think you do this stuff long enough and you just understand that it’s never over till it’s over. You know, hindsight’s always 20/20. You look back at the end of that race and run through things that you could have done differently, and certainly wish I had, right? But, you know, when you’re in those moments, you get faced with decision-making time and it happens really quick. And unfortunately, it didn’t work out in our favor. So, just hope we get another chance, at some point down the road. That’s a really tough race to just be in a position for. We kind of found ourselves in a spot to have a shot. Hopefully we get another chance at some point down the road.”

Last week was the debut of the new updated Chevrolet body. Any changes you could really tell in the draft as part of the DAYTONA 500 week that you can use to translate to Atlanta this weekend?

“Yeah, you know, I thought we had a really, a really good week all the way up to the DAYTONA 500, from a balanced standpoint. Throughout the race, I thought there were some things that we could improve upon. So, certainly, I think we challenged all of our guys to try and find a little bit that we could use to make some of those things better for this week.

But there were some high spots. Whichever side of that scenario you were on, whether you were getting pushed or doing the pushing, I thought that we did a better job of that more efficiently, which has been an area of emphasis that we wanted to improve with this new body change. So, I thought we did that well, and I think from now, it’s just like, okay, how do we fine tune our balances and get everything exactly like we want. As a race car driver, you get done with those races and you’re always going to find something to complain about. And some of it probably isn’t even attainable, but I think the more that I lean on those guys and challenge them and say, hey, you know, these are my wish list items, you never know. You might, unless you say something, that’s the only way to get better. So, hopefully we can continue to process all those small details and just make it a bit better, which I think we will.”

Looking ahead to Phoenix in a couple of weeks, NASCAR and INDYCAR are both at the same track on the same weekend. It’s happened before back at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. What do you think that does for motorsports all around the world?

“Yeah, that’s a good question. I honestly don’t know until we go experience it.

(At the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course), I mean, I didn’t think it changed a ton back then, so I don’t know that it’s going to change a lot now. But certainly, it could be a good opportunity for fans to go out and experience both series, if they’re a fan of both. I think a lot of times, you have people that if you are interested in one thing, you’re interested in the other. So, if you have the core fan group that likes them both and find it on one weekend, I think that’s a really good thing, from my perspective. We’re so separate from those guys. Like I know Penske Racing, they have an INYDCAR team, so I could kind of see that being really cool for them because they could go watch their teammates that I’m sure they share meetings and stuff with. But, like for us, I don’t really have direct contact to the INDYCAR world, so we’re pretty disconnected. So, it probably just depends on who you talk to or who you ask.”

The fuel saving and the big pack at Daytona, considering the dynamics of all that, is there any kind of scenario where two or three or four cars could attempt to pull away from that and start their own little group up front? Or is that just not a possibility?

“It’s not possible because you’re relative to the people around you when you’re doing that. So, if one group strikes out and they’re making a bunch of pace, well, you’re just giving a free tow to the people behind. With us drafting in the manner that we are at these places, you either have good track position and you’re probably not so good on fuel, or if you don’t have good track position, you’re really good on fuel. You just don’t want to be in the back of the pack and be, you know, bad and have a long pit stop, right? So, you know, if you are going to be on the worst side of the fuel situation, then you certainly want to have some track position to go with that. It’s really tough when you get yourself in that middle ground because it becomes hard to get out of it. You kind of find yourself in this situation where it’s like, well, I need to save because we want to shorten our pit stop, but then you saving so aggressively, you’re not going to go anywhere on track. And then sometimes, like last week, we got three wide there; everybody’s running part throttle and there was nowhere to go. I think that that’s the challenge of just positioning yourself and being really diligent and executing those cycles well.

But no, to answer your question, I just don’t see that being a possibility. I mean, a group could go do that, but they’re putting themselves at a disadvantage by it, and everyone knows that.”

Since the reconfiguration, this track has been grouped in with Daytona and Talladega as a drafting track. But does it feel kind of the same racing here as at Daytona and Talladega, or is it its own animal?

“There are a lot of similarities. I feel like it’s just kind of a mini speedway. You know, like everything happens a little quicker. The runs are really aggressive. The straightaways, being short like they are, it just seems like things happen fast… like everything is just kind of in double time from speedways. But on the flip side of that, you have less straightaway to build runs, so sometimes the runs aren’t as big as what they would be at Daytona. But again, like the summer race here last year, I mean, the runs were so big, you couldn’t hardly block them, and that was why nobody could hold the lead for more than just a lap or two. I don’t know if that had something to do with it being night and the track being really gripped up. You know, if the sun comes out, does that impact it a little differently? I’m not sure. And then obviously, you know, another six months of age on the racetrack, how does that play into kind of the whole situation? So, I think it’s always a little bit of a moving target, and we’ll just have to get started and assess what that is this time.”

I kind of want to build on what you were talking about a while ago with the new package. When we talked with you in Daytona about it, you had run the qualifying race, but that was half the field. So, when you got into a full 40-car field on Sunday, did it react the same or what? Were there any differences? What were the advantages to it that you did find when you got into the full field?

“You know, the Duels always just have a totally different feel than the big race does, and I think a lot of that probably is because of the full field being there. Just the energy in the pack is always higher, at least after we get done saving fuel and you kind of start racing. When that first group pulls off, it really does get racy. And then at that point, the energy level is just really high. But I think the biggest factor that was different from the Duels to the 500 was that I think it was about the warmest day of the week we had down there last week on Sunday. You know, the sun was out and all those scenarios, I think the track grip level was truthfully just lower than it had been really throughout the whole week, certainly in the racing scenarios, comparing to Thursday night. The lanes started to become really important, like lane choices in the race. I think you guys saw how bad some of us were struggling on the bottom, you know, off of (turn) four in particular. That’s just a really treacherous spot to be.

It’s fun, though, because Daytona’s finally getting some age and some character. It’s hard to sit there and run three wide or really be pushing pace and doing that at the same time. So, it’s changing, for sure. I’m really curious where it goes. Certainly, those daytime races down there are always a little tougher than the rest.”

Did the new Chevrolet package work as well in the full car field? Were you pleased with it with the way it worked?

“Yeah, it was very much as we were expecting, and a lot of similarities from Thursday night. Like I said, I thought the pushing and the getting pushed side of things was a huge improvement for us, and I think from there, it’s just fine-tuning our balance and getting that dialed in exactly like we want. But yes, I do think there were some big positives for us.”

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.

GM Motorsports, including the Cadillac Formula 1® Team develops and proves advanced technologies in the most demanding environments, accelerating innovation in performance, safety, efficiency, and electrification for its production vehicles. Cadillac Racing is one of the leading manufacturers in the IMSA and FIA World Endurance Championships (WEC). Chevrolet competes in single seaters in the US IndyCar series, and in NASCAR with multiple team partners and drivers. Corvette customer teams compete in GT series across the globe including IMSA and WEC. Learn more at GM.com.

TOYOTA RACING – Tyler Reddick
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes

HAMPTON, Ga. (February 21, 2026) – 23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick was made available to the media on Saturday prior to the NASCAR Cup Series race from EchoPark Speedway.

TYLER REDDICK, No. 45 Pinnacle Toyota Camry XSE, 23XI Racing

Can you tell us about your week?

“Yeah, someone could probably walk up to me and say, ‘We did an interview on Tuesday or yesterday, I’d be like, yeah,’ because, I mean, there’s just so many of them, but yeah, it’s really cool, but to your point, not a lot of sleep. That’s okay. I’m kind of used to that with an eight-month old, and there’s the occasional middle of the night wake up from Beau. It’s been a lot of fun. I think getting to go to these places and do these things, that part is cool, but, for me, what I’ve enjoyed the most is kind of having the opportunity to, whether it was going on First Things First, or just a number of the shows, getting to interact with the analyst or the anchors that didn’t know a lot about racing, that were genuinely curious about racing, whether it was because they were intrigued by the finish, and how exciting it looked, and just chaotic it was, or the number of athletes that were drawn to understand and learn more because they saw Michael (Jordan, co-owner, 23XI Racing) in Victory Lane, and he’s the owner of 45 and he won the 500. I think that for me was probably the part I enjoyed the most – is getting to like tell them about Michael and to tell them about NASCAR and like what our world is kind of like, among all else. That was probably the part that I enjoyed a lot.”

Do you have a Daytona 500 or two that stick out in your memory?

“Well, yes, unfortunately, it wasn’t a good one. I feel like one of the first ones I really sat down and watched start to finish was 2001. I know there’s a lot of great Daytona races that I watched, but, I mean, when you talk about just impactful – that one. It was a rough day, but there was a lot of other races that I got to watch, but, I mean, in that sense, the one that was the most impactful was 2001 for sure.”

Is the ring safe?

“Not really (laughter). Yeah, it’s fallen off my hand a lot (laughter). I just didn’t wear it in here today because if it starts raining, it just falls off my hand. I figured that out after I left the media center on Sunday. I got a ride back closer to the garage, or I don’t know, I think my bus driver, Tyler Clark, was like helping Alexa (Reddick, Tyler’s wife) with something. So, I don’t know. I just remember, getting back to the garage and opening the door on the rental car, and the ring just took off. I went chasing it across the asphalt, so that wasn’t be good (laughter). But, then, of course, it fell off when I went to shake Mark’s (Consuelos) hand on (LIVE with) Kelly and Mark, so, yeah, it’s fallen off a few times, but it’s got character and there’s stories behind it, so it is what it is.”

Does the Daytona 500 win start the season or is its own accomplishment?

“I feel like it’s a little bit above. Maybe it just depends if I wreck or if I run good (laughter), I would just tell myself that, but going back a couple years, we would go to Daytona and then I think, if I’m remembering it right, we just go straight to Fontana. I might be wrong, maybe I don’t remember it very well, but I think when you kind of, in today’s schedule, when you have Daytona, and then you come here, and it’s another speedway race, like, it doesn’t feel like it’s its own thing, because in a lot of ways, the mentality you have if it’s in a good place, Daytona, it’s very similar to what you want to do here. Yes, the runs happen faster, and there’s more handling in the corners, but just that mindset, when you’re drafting, like I feel like it kind of carries on. I think, for me, I’ve the last two years, but I guess that’s, those are the two race I finished well, I’ve said, ‘All right, we got a good finish. We scored some decent points. Let’s build on it.’ I think the years that I crashed out or just didn’t have a very good finish. I tried to say, ‘okay, well, it’s done. It’s in the past.’ So, I think I’ve kind of approached it both ways over the years.”

Did Michael Jordan share anything with you one-on-one on what the win meant to him?

“We talked about a little bit in Victory Lane, and, yeah, I mean, just for him as an owner, he made it very clear to us a couple weeks before the season got going, all leadership got together, drivers and whatnot, and just made sure that we had our goals aligned and everything, and he made it very clear then and he confirmed it again, Victory Lane, what he expects of us as an organization, and when we have opportunities like that it’s important for us to get the job done, and, for us on the 45, we didn’t do that last year. So, to kind of be able to right out of the gate this year, be able to capitalize on it was cool. I saw it on the Jordan Brand post, on socials, but the word I heard it say a few times was just clutch. It was cool. He thought it was cool that, in the heat of the moment, even as things seemed to kind of get out of sight, and come back into sight, like, in the closing laps, that where I was just able to make the right choices on the final lap and win the race. Just clutch.”

Can you imagine in your lifetime that there will be a Daytona 500 where there will not be a wreck in the last lap?

“With this current car, I don’t see it. Even towards when I had my time in the Gen 6 car, the runs were big, and you could really get all over the back to somebody and push hard. I think whether it’s the handling or the bubble, just kind of getting bigger, like it used to be, with previous cars, that will have to change for the wreck, a wreck or multiple wrecks, not to happen on the last lap. Just, you’re able to push pretty much at any point. I think everybody understands it’s not worth the risk pushing in the trioval early in the race. It’s not worth the risk to push if you’re not lined up well, and all that just goes out the window on the last lap, because if you check up and don’t give the car ahead of you the push, you’re just not going to have to momentum. I mean, you have the opportunity to win the race or put yourself a position to win a race or the Daytona 500, so, all the caution that you have just kind of goes out the window in the closing laps, and I think that’s why the accidents happen, but if you don’t have that aggression, you don’t have the momentum, and you’re not up there in the mix anyways.”

Is there a particular moment from all of the media this week that stood out?

“I’d say when I’ve been to Empire State Building once before. I think when we went and did PBR Madison Square Garden a couple years ago, I got to go check out the Empire State Building, but this time around, we did the 86th floor. We did 102, but they also let me up to 103, which is, open to the air, there’s rail. You just kind of out there in the open air, way up high in New York City, that was really cool. So, yeah, just leaning over that rail and seeing how far down it was, and just the city kind of out in front of you, that was really, really cool.”

What do you feel like you’ve been missing here since the reconfiguration?

“Yeah, I mean, in my opinion on that one, I don’t feel like, I mean, I understand on a consistent basis to what has happened here, but, in my opinion, for my car, my team, 23XI, I don’t feel like that one really lines up well for me. Over the years here, I feel like we’ve always had a very solid Camry and I just, more times than not, I’ve kind of messed it up here at the end of the race, whether it’s just not being too aggressive or just not being towards the front at the end of the race, but most of the time, I feel like we come here and we have what we need to win. Our best shot at it definitely was the last summer race here, and I just didn’t make the right choices at the end. I think the lessons I learned from that, the lessons I’ve learned from running the course of the 500 on Sunday, just making adjustments as a driver are in the right direction, going forward for races at Atlanta, and then Talladega, that we’ll have.”

Was there anything specific about where the team members signed the car before it went into the museum?

“Unfortunately, I can’t speak on that one at all. I wasn’t there to participate. I got to see a couple pictures of it, and I don’t know, I don’t know where the idea came from or how it started, but I kind of loved that they did it the way that they did it. If there’s a signature on the jack post, I imagine it’s my jackman, Brandon Banks. I’m guessing Dakota (Ratcliff, rear tire changer) and Hunter (Masling, front tire changer) from a signing perspective, front and back of the car, so, yeah, I wish I could have partaken in that some way, but there was a lot going on Monday, so I just kind of heard about it like you did.”

What is it about COTA that you’ve been able to have so much success there?

“Well, years ago, it was the fact that it had so many big braking zones. When the tires were harder, you’d be very aggressive and just push. I think now maybe it’s just the laps that I have there. I’ve got to run other races there, win other things there over the years, and so I think maybe at this point, it’s just the amount of laps that I have there, just kind of understanding the track. One thing I love about it, that adds to the challenge is the track gets so many laps on it throughout the year, from all the things that are racing there, or things that are just on track, track days. Every time we go there, different sections are repaved, and the grip level’s different, and that part that I really enjoy. I think, just for me, we’re able to qualify really good, and as the year went on, we needed to continue to find long run speed to keep up with Shane (van Gisbergen), and we’ve worked really hard on that in the off season, and we’re excited to see where we fall in with the gains that it looks like we’ve made. I think it’s going be really hard to be much faster than Shane, but hopefully, we just got up a little bit more.”

Do you feel like you missed out on any prep for Atlanta because of the media tour?

“No, I don’t think so. I feel pretty good about it. Fortunately, it just kind of worked out the one day we had at home, or, like, the half day I had it home, I don’t know. that’s what we normally kind of do all of our free race stuff, so we’re able to cover everything, and, like, a normal week on that day. Yeah, I haven’t been able to – I haven’t made a post-race meeting yet this year. There’s a number of things that have been out of sorts, if you will, but yeah, for the most part, it was a normal week on the prep side, so I think I’ll be good.”

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NASCAR CUP SERIES
ECHOPARK SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES
FEBRUARY 21, 2026

Daniel Suarez, driver of the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, met with the media onsite at EchoPark Speedway in advance of NASCAR Cup Series qualifying session.

Media Availability Quotes:

Last week was your first week with Spire Motorsports. You are former winner here at EchoPark Speedway. So, as we come into this second race of the NASCAR season, just tell us a little bit about your experiences last week in Daytona and what you’re looking forward to today.

“Honestly, I couldn’t be happier. Everyone at Spire Motorsports has been nothing but great to me. Not just this year, but really since last year, because all the work started the first week of November. We had a little bit of a busy off season, but I’m very happy that all the work and the work that really the team has been doing even before my time is showing. We have had very fast cars, really, since the first time I jumped in one of these things in the test at North Wilkesboro, and then the same thing in the Clash. And then at Daytona, it was the case again, so I’m super excited. I couldn’t be happier. I have a great group of guys, not just working very hard at the shop, but also traveling to the race weekends. It’s always fun to have a group of guys like this to go to battle every single weekend.”

Daniel, this track has been really good to you, with the exception of last year’s crashes. But is there anything in particular you like about this track? Just fits your style, or what? “You know, when they changed the configuration of the racetrack, I would say that 80 percent of the drivers were very negative about it. I would say that I was part of the 20 percent, just because I like new things. I like new challenges, and every time I see something new, for me, it’s a sign of an opportunity. So, that’s just the way that I approach it, and it just works out for us. You know, obviously, this is, for me personally, I don’t see this as a mile-and-a-half, and I don’t see this as a superspeedway. It’s like a hybrid, and just the fact that it’s completely different, I enjoy that a lot. And obviously, you know, this place has treated me well. Last year, we just didn’t do as good of a job as we have in the past for a few different reasons, but we know what the reasons are, and I’m making sure that we don’t make the same mistakes again.”

What is it about this track that you have had the success that you have because it’s been long going that you’ve done well here. Do you just find yourself suited to that style of racing? Is it whatever it is in the universe here in Atlanta? What do you say?

“Honestly, I don’t know. I mean, really, since before the configuration, I used to do pretty well here. I think, honestly, half of the battle is mental. You know, when you come into this place, and you’re already like, oh man, there is a high chance I’m going to crash, I feel like there is a good percentage that you’re going to crash.

So, I think I just try to enjoy it and have fun. I’ve been fortunate enough that I have had good race cars here, as well. It’s not just myself… it’s an entire army behind me. I’ve been fortunate enough to have good race cars here in the past, and we’ve been able to take advantage of that. But, like I said, we also made mistakes last year. We got a little bit too greedy, myself and our decisions last year, and it just didn’t pay off. So, it’s a balance, right? I believe that I’m good here, and last year, I don’t have anything to show for it.

So, it’s a combination that you have to have between driver and the car, and I believe that we’re going to have another shot at it tomorrow because based on everything I have seen from Spire Motorsports, they were also very, very sporty here. It’s been a lot of fun to do our homework preparing into this weekend.”

In a couple weeks at Phoenix, both INDYCAR and NASCAR will be there. Do you view that as any sort of opportunity to kind of help increase the NASCAR fan base among Hispanics who might be more in tune to INDYCAR?

“Yeah, Bob (Pockrass), I think that’s a great question. I think it’s an amazing opportunity, and I’m super excited to continue to explore these double duties or whatever you want to call it with INDYCAR. I think INDYCAR is an amazing series. I really, really love watching those guys. I have a couple good friends racing that series and it’s fun. I believe that the fan base that they have is actually quite different than NASCAR. I’m not saying that it’s better or worse, it’s just different. So, doing these double duties, I think it’s fun because you bring these two different fan bases together to watch NASCAR and INDYCAR. I enjoyed it when we did it back in Indianapolis. I thought it was a lot of fun, and I’m looking forward to do it again, and hopefully it can be the beginning of bringing new opportunities because I don’t see why we shouldn’t do it more often. INDYCAR, like I said, is a great series. They continue to grow, and they continue to get better. Obviously, NASCAR is the same way. We are the biggest motorsports in the country, and I don’t know who doesn’t want to be racing with NASCAR. I mean, it’s a no-brainer. So, I think it’s amazing that we get to do it with a series like INDYCAR.”

No Mic…

“Yeah, but it’s okay, you know? We are heavier, and we have more horsepower. It’s just different. It’s a different kind of racing. We are just a more physical kind of race. I mean, you know that. But yeah, I mean, INDYCAR’s, they are super-fast. They are super, super fast, especially on ovals. But yeah, they are going to make us look like we are running in bicycles (laughs), but it’s just completely different things. I mean, their race cars weigh maybe 25-30 percent of what ours weigh, so it’s just a completely different game.”

You’ve had to make several transitions through your career, going from one team to another. What have you learned over the course of your career that made the transition from Trackhouse Racing to Spire Motorsports easier than maybe it had been before?

“You know, the biggest thing that I have learned — I’ve been fortunate or unfortunate enough to make this transition a few times, as you mentioned. But the biggest thing I have learned is that everything is about the people. It doesn’t really matter what kind of banner or what name they have. If you don’t have the right people in place, it’s going to be tough, and that’s the one thing that, honestly, I truly, truly love about Spire Motorsports, is that they have amazing people from top to bottom and I really enjoy that. I really love to see their values and what is important for them. There is a reason why they have the word ‘respect’ on pretty much everything that they do, and that’s the biggest value that they have. That goes, like I said, from top to bottom.

You know, in the last couple years, and I have mentioned this several times, I have seen Spire Motorsports as the fastest growing organization out there. When you’re on the outside looking in, you always wonder, what are they doing? Now that I’ve been part of this organization for a couple months, I understand what they are doing. You know, it’s everything about the details and about people. I’m just very, very proud and fortunate to be part of the journey with them.”

You were at JGR when Chris Gabehart was there. What do you see him bringing to Spire Motorsports?

“Yeah, you know, actually, Chris (Gabehart) and I, we fought for the championship back in 2016. He was the crew chief for Erik Jones, and I was with Scott Graves. He’s extremely smart and extremely competitive. At the time, he was a crew chief. I have nothing but respect for him. Obviously, you know, I never really got to work with him… only one race, actually, in 2017. I have nothing but respect for him. He was extremely fast in 2016. He was the biggest threat for us to win the championship with Erik Jones. So, I have nothing but respect for everything that he has done in his career.”

Daniel, a few of your fellow competitors have begun to be more outspoken about how tired they are of getting beat by SVG on road courses, and they’re starting to put in even more work, if that’s possible. As we look ahead to COTA next weekend and the upcoming road courses. where do you stand on that? Are you trying to do anything different?

“Yeah… listen, SVG is very good. He’s been doing road course racing for a long time. He’s very experienced, as well. So, it’s a perfect combination, right? Like, he’s been doing this for a long time. He has probably the most experience on the entire field combined in road course racing. But guess what? He’s human. So, as far as I know, every human here is beatable. So, we’re working very, very hard to get there. I know SVG actually fairly well, and I know he has a lot of strengths. But he also has weaknesses. I know that there are ways to get there, but you have to be very good, as well. I know I can get there. I have been there actually in the past.

So, it’s going to be fun. It’s a good challenge. You know, I love challenges. I think that it’s not going to be easy because he has set the bar pretty high. But like I said, he’s human, and I believe that not just myself, but there is many organizations out there, many drivers, that are working very hard to catch up on him.

And listen, he’s been doing a good job, not just as a driver, but also he has brought a lot of new ideas from Australia about how to set up the car. It’s not just about him jumping into any race car and winning. It’s not just like that. It’s him making the car do things that he’s used to in Australia.

He has done an amazing job; credit to him. But it’s just an opportunity for us to continue to learn from that and continue to get better.”

Did you learn anything last weekend with the new Chevy body about racing on the speedways that was different from last year, maybe can help you at Talladega?

“Yeah, Chris (Knight), that’s a great question. A few weeks ago, I was talking to Michael McDowell. In superspeedway racing, honestly, I felt like I was always on the verge of crashing when I was at Trackhouse Racing, and I didn’t know why I was like that. But I was always very, very edgy. Having conversations with Michael, he said, man, our cars are extremely good. You’re going to be surprised. So, going to Spire Motorsports for the first time at a superspeedway, I mean, I had probably one of the best cars I ever had, especially in the draft and getting pushed.

So, for me, it’s a little bit tricky to understand. Is it the setup package that Spire has had for a while because Michael kind of like called it before it happened, or the body, or the combination of both. But regardless of what it is, because I don’t really care, the fact is that my car drove amazing and I’m super excited for that. and I know that part of that is going to translate to here in Atlanta, as well., and obviously to Talladega. So, I’m super excited for that.”

Speaking of Atlanta, are you still OK with just coming to Atlanta on race weekends and qualifying and not having a practice session?

“Yeah, I’m OK with that. I’m OK with that because I think that even if we’re practicing, I don’t think that we’re going to really do pack racing anyway. We’re going to try to find some raw speed. So, I’m OK with that. I think that it’s a little bit tricky that teams have to travel on Friday for tech when we have to only pretty much go qualify and race, but that’s the schedule. Some people don’t love it, but it’s part of it, I guess.”

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.

GM Motorsports, including the Cadillac Formula 1® Team develops and proves advanced technologies in the most demanding environments, accelerating innovation in performance, safety, efficiency, and electrification for its production vehicles. Cadillac Racing is one of the leading manufacturers in the IMSA and FIA World Endurance Championships (WEC). Chevrolet competes in single seaters in the US IndyCar series, and in NASCAR with multiple team partners and drivers. Corvette customer teams compete in GT series across the globe including IMSA and WEC. Learn more at GM.com.

FORT WORTH, Texas (Feb. 21, 2026) – BlueHighway.ai, an integrated waterway infrastructure platform, will serve as the primary partner for Rick Ware Racing (RWR) and its No. 51 Chevrolet driven by Cody Ware in the Autotrader 400 NASCAR Cup Series race this Sunday at EchoPark Speedway near Atlanta.

Facilitated by Standout Management Group (SMG), the No. 51 BlueHighway.ai Chevrolet will carry “Urban Mobility. On Water.” branding as the company formally introduces its national platform vision: activating underutilized waterways as high-efficiency corridors for passenger transportation, urban logistics and automotive distribution.

BlueHighway.ai operates as a unified infrastructure platform comprised of three core services:

• Blue Journey™ – Zero-emission passenger mobility connecting airports and city centers with faster, more reliable travel.
• Blue Parcel™ – Water-based urban logistics designed to reduce roadway congestion and lower carbon emissions.
• Blue Auto Network™ – A distribution platform enabling automotive manufacturers and dealers to streamline sales and inventory movement without transporting vehicles into dense urban cores.

“Blue Highway is building a water-based infrastructure platform designed to move people, goods and vehicles more efficiently in America’s largest cities. Through Blue Journey™, Blue Parcel™ and Blue Auto Network™, we are activating underutilized waterways as high-performance transportation corridors,” said Tim Ziss, Founder of BlueHighway.ai.

“NASCAR provides a national stage to introduce this vision – a modern mobility platform that is scalable, sustainable and built for the next generation of urban growth.”

Through advanced electric hydrofoil vessels and integrated digital operations, BlueHighway.ai is building mobility infrastructure for major metropolitan regions.

“We’re proud to welcome BlueHighway.ai to Rick Ware Racing,” said team owner Rick Ware. “NASCAR gives brands a powerful platform to tell big stories, and BlueHighway.ai has a bold vision for the future of transportation. It’s an honor to introduce their vision to race fans this weekend.”

Cody Ware comes into EchoPark Speedway after a strong showing in the season-opening Daytona 500 last Sunday at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. The 30-year-old racer led two laps in The Great American Race and was a regular at the front of the field.

“It’s always great to bring a new brand into the sport, especially one focused on changing how cities move,” Cody Ware said. “We’re coming off a strong run Daytona, and I’m looking forward to having the BlueHighway.ai Chevrolet up front again at Atlanta.”

Joining BlueHighway.ai on the No. 51 Chevrolet are associate partners Flywheel, Parts Plus and Jacob Industries.

The Autotrader 400 begins at 3 p.m. EST with live coverage on FOX and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

About BlueHighway.ai:

BlueHighway.ai is an integrated waterway infrastructure platform designed to convert underutilized waterways into high-efficiency transportation corridors for passengers, logistics and automotive distribution. Through its core services – Blue Journey™, Blue Parcel™ and Blue Auto Network™ – the company delivers scalable, zero-emission solutions that reduce congestion, improve reliability and modernize how cities move people, goods and vehicles. By combining electric hydrofoil vessel technology with unified digital operations, BlueHighway.ai is advancing a new national standard for urban mobility infrastructure. For more information, visit BlueHighway.ai and follow BlueHighway.ai on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

About Standout Management Group (SMG):

Standout Management Group is a sports and entertainment talent management and activation agency headquartered at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. SMG is known as an outside-the-box agency that partners with brands and celebrities to create standout marketing experiences while leveraging advanced technology and data-driven activation strategies. For more information, visit www.standoutmg.com.

About Rick Ware Racing:

Rick Ware has been a motorsports mainstay for more than 40 years. It began at age 6 when the third-generation racer began his driving career and has since spanned four wheels and two wheels on both asphalt and dirt. Competing in the SCCA Trans Am Series and other road-racing divisions led Ware to NASCAR in the early 1980s, where he finished third in his NASCAR debut – the 1983 Warner W. Hodgdon 300 NASCAR Grand American race at Riverside (Calif.) International Raceway. In 1995, Rick Ware Racing was formed, and with wife Lisa by his side, Ware transitioned out of the driver’s seat and into fulltime team ownership. He has since built his eponymous organization into an entity that competes full-time in the elite NASCAR Cup Series while simultaneously campaigning winning teams in the Top Fuel class of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, Progressive American Flat Track (AFT), FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX) and zMAX CARS Tour.

Ford Racing Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
FR8 208 Qualifying — EchoPark Speedway
Friday, February 20, 2026

NO. 98 FORD F-150 OF JAKE GARCIA WINS THE POLE AS THORSPORT SWEEPS THE FRONT ROW AT ECHOPARK SPEEDWAY

• Jack Garcia drove his No. 98 Ford F-150 to the pole this afternoon at EchoPark Speedway.
• Ben Rhodes qualified second to give ThorSport and Ford Racing a front row sweep.
• This marks the fourth career NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series pole for Garcia and first of 2026.
• ThorSport has all four F-150s in the top 10 as Cole Butcher qualified sixth and Ty Majeski seventh.
• Ford Racing is now 2-for-2 in NCTS qualifying this year after Majeski won the pole last week in Daytona.

Ford Qualifying Results:

1st – Jake Garcia
2nd – Ben Rhodes
6th – Cole Butcher
7th – Ty Majeski
19th – Layne Riggs
22nd – Chandler Smith
31st – Josh Reaume
32nd – Frankie Muniz
33rd – Clayton Green
34th – Tyler Tomassi

JAKE GARCIA, No. 98 Quanta Services/Curb Records Ford Mustang Ford F-150 – “It’s great to start out front here at Atlanta. It’s hard to pass and if you can control a lane, you can put yourself in a good position to get stage points. It’s really special to start on the pole here. It’s a home track for me and I’m excited to lead the field to green in front of a Georgia crowd.” WHAT DOES IT SAY ABOUT THORSPORT WITH THIS QUALIFYING EFFORT? “I’m not sure. We’ll see when we get to the race, but it’s definitely a good effort. We were good at qualifying last year. We worked on some things and I feel like we got some things better, so we could pick up a little bit this year. Hopefully, we can get a few more poles this year.”

COLE BUTCHER, No. 13 Atlantic Tilt Load Ford Mustang Ford F-150 – “We can’t really complain. This Ford F-150 is really good. It’s kind of wild here in qualifying because I’m not really used to it, but that’s how these speedway races work. Daytona was pretty good. I felt like we were pretty quiet and made some moves at the end that didn’t quite go our way, but we were able to still finish top 15. I can’t thank everybody at ThorSport enough and Ford Racing. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.” WHAT ABOUT THIS STYLE OF RACING TOMORROW. WHAT DO YOU THINK? “I don’t really have any opinion right now. I think it’s gonna be pretty wild tomorrow. From what I hear, it gets pretty crazy out there depending on what package you have. I don’t really know what to expect, but I know what I’m gonna do as a driver and we’ll just have to see what happens.”

BEN RHODES, No. 99 Campers Inn RV Ford Mustang Ford F-150 – “I’m super happy for the organization. Locking out the front row is pretty cool for ThorSport and Ford Racing. We’re really happy about that, but the racer in me wanted the pole. I wanted to add that to our stat column, but nonetheless we have a really fast F-150 with the ability to race for the win tomorrow. That’s all you can ask for as a driver, so I’m stoked and ready to rip.”

JAKE GARCIA PRESS CONFERENCE

JAKE GARCIA: “The qualifying lap here is one of the easier laps we have of the year. I really give most of the credit to my guys for building a fast race truck. I think we’ve got a fast Quanta Services F-150 for tomorrow, so I’m really looking forward to it. I think we’re just gonna keep it out front and execute and hopefully come away with a good finish and competing for the win at the end of the race.”

WHAT DOES IT DO TO IMPACT YOUR STRATEGY WITH WHERE YOU’RE STARTING TOMORROW? “I don’t know that it’s gonna affect it much, but you definitely want to control the race as much as possible as long as you can. But I think maybe if you were starting in the back and you needed to flip track position, you would want to pit off-sequence or something to try to get ahead a little bit, but I think with everyone running in a pack and it being so close together, you can’t really do much different than what the norm would be as the leader, but you never know. If a caution comes out towards the end of the stage or in the middle of the stage where it’s close on fuel to make it to the next stage break, you might see a split strategy, but I think it should be fairly straightforward.”

BEING FROM MONROE, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT GETTING THE POLE HERE? “This is obviously really special. This is a place where I came and watched races on my birthday and stuff like that, so I have a lot of memories up in the stands at this place. It’s really cool to be able to come here as a driver and lead the field to the green flag, so I’m really excited to be able to do that in front of a crowd of fellow Georgians. I’m really looking forward to it.”

YOU GUYS HAVE SHUFFLED TRUCK NUMBERS AT THORSPORT. WHAT GOES INTO THAT? “I think a lot of times, and the philosophy is kind of just if something is not working, we change it, whether that be with crew chiefs or truck numbers or whatever else may change up there. I think that it keeps a fresh cycle and keeps everybody on their toes certainly, but also they don’t let you be complacent if you’re not running good. They’ll change something and I think that mentality is what’s led to a lot of ThorSport’s success over the years, and I think it definitely helps drivers find the crew chiefs they’re best working with and things of that nature.”

ALL FOUR THORSPORT F-150S ARE STARTING IN THE TOP SEVEN. HOW WILL THAT HELP YOU GUYS AND IS THERE A STRATEGY TO WORK TOGETHER? “Yeah, it will definitely be important to work together in pack racing, especially here where I feel like the outside stacks up so much and it’s hard to make passes. You almost need a hole to get up in, so if you can get four trucks together where they’re nose-to-tail and not peeking on one another, then I don’t think anyone can really get by them unless the bottom lane forms up, which we have seen in the past, especially at the end of stages and the end of the race. I feel like that’s the main thing you can do to help out your position when working with teammates.”