QUOTABLE QUOTES:Ross Chastain, No. 1 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL1 You have your same crew from last year. Can you talk about the significance of that? “I’m so happy to have the same group of people around me for this season. It’s so hard in this sport to keep the same groups together whether it’s because someone wants a different travel schedule, they get another opportunity at another team, or they have some other reason. We are the exact same group, from crew chief, to engineers, to crew guys, the pit crew, truck drivers – I mean everyone is the same. That’s very valuable to have in this sport and it’s rare that it happens, so I think it’s very significant that we’ve been able to do that.” Now that it has been a year since your first win, what do you think was so special about it? “Last year’s win was huge for so many people and so many different reasons. It was my first win, it was Justin’s first win as a team owner, it was my crew chief’s first win in his position, my spotter’s first win, and some of the crew guys, it was their first win. These people all put so much effort into making the car go fast and I have to execute to the car’s fullest extent, and when that happens and we win, there’s no greater feeling. I also got to share a special moment with my brother who was one of my spotters and I got to pick him up out there after he climbed over the fence, and we rode in the car together all of the way to victory lane. Those are the moments are so special. He’s six years younger than me but we are so close and he’s watched me have great opportunities and watched me have great opportunities go away.” Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 Larson on racing at Circuit of The Americas: "We’ve gotten both COTA’s I feel like. (We got) the monsoon the first year, which was my first-ever time really racing in the rain. So that was a blast. We came up a little short there because it started raining a little too hard and we had to call the race short. We were in position to win that one. Last year, I didn’t qualify well, didn’t race well and did a terrible job on restarts. I look forward to going back to hopefully do a better job behind the wheel, having a better setup under us and having a better opportunity to race for a win would be great." Kyle Busch, No. 8 Netspend Camaro ZL1 “I enjoy road course racing and COTA is really fun. It’s obviously high prestige with it being a Formula One track when Formula One comes to the United States that those guys get to race on there, so it’s nice to have a shot on a big stage like that. Our cars are really big, really heavy and makes it for a big challenge getting those vehicles around there fast. There’s a lot of rhythm sections to the esses and down through the back area in the stadium section. It really is tough to kind of get a car that is really good set up for there. Our big, heavy stock cars are a challenge to try and slow them down in the braking zones. We obviously have to brake well earlier than many other divisions that get to race there but it still makes it for a fun road course. Road course racing has definitely gotten a lot tighter and has increased on the competition level for sure. It used to be easy to kind of go to a track and think that you can come away with a top-five. Now you kind of go to a road course and you think you can come out of there with a top-10 and you’re hoping for a top-five. I think a lot of it, obviously, has to do with driver preparation. Everybody is getting more accustomed to road racing and with more road courses on our schedule plus the parity within the car and everybody running much of the same stuff. You don’t really have teams that are able to splurge on brakes or suspension components and things like that to make your stuff better than someone else’s. That makes it tough.” Was the extra track time you had at COTA in the offseason with the Goodyear tire test a big help to you as you prepare for the Cup race? “Getting to go there and run the Goodyear tire test earlier this year was really important for the chemistry of the team and just getting started off on the right foot. I think, though, with the aero changes that have now come about, we weren’t prepared for that, so we didn’t test that aero package that we’re going back to the road course with this weekend. We did get laps, but it wasn’t laps and reps in the proper setting.” Jordan Taylor, No. 9 UniFirst Camaro ZL1 Taylor on the expectations and preparation for his first NASCAR Cup Series start: "Any driver wants to be at the front and battling for the win, but I think I have to keep my expectations in check. Everyone in the Cup Series these days is good on every form of racing, whether it's a superspeedway, short track or a road course. I know that it's going to be a big uphill battle, battling these guys. I'm glad we do have an extra (practice) session to kind of understand it. From a driver's perspective, I have the belief that I can figure out how to drive the car and then it just comes down to the little details of pit stops, pit lane speed. I'm used to pushing a button on the steering wheel and it controls my pit lane speed. In NASCAR, you have to control it all yourself. So little details like that are the things that I've been bouncing off Chase (Elliott); little tricks of the trade and what to expect. Even little things like coming into the pit box, knowing how to launch the car and things like that. I know it’s going to be a big challenge, but I’m looking forward to it. I’m really grateful for the opportunity." AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Farmsmart Camaro ZL1 "Obviously last year we had a really good shot to win the race. It's a completely different year with a completely different package. Hopefully we'll unload close to what we had last year and just build off of that as the weekend goes on. New way of racing without stages there, so you have to qualify well and try to run up front because there isn't much you can do strategy wise. We know this is a weekend we can run up front, score good points and hopefully give ourselves the chance to win which is the ultimate goal.” William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1 Byron on running two races at COTA: "I’m really optimistic for this weekend, especially running double duty. We’ve always seemed to run well at COTA but just need to be a step better. I think the No. 24 team has shown that this year already. The only real difference for this race is that there are no longer true stage breaks, but that just changes how we work our strategy. If we go out and execute, we should be in a good spot for both races in the end. Hopefully, we can go out and not only get Mr. (Rick) Hendrick a win in the No. 17 but also Liberty University a win in the No. 24." Justin Haley, No. 31 Celsius Camaro ZL1 "I’m looking forward to the first road course of the year. COTA was the first track that we made the final round of qualifying at last year. We showed a ton of speed in both qualifying and the race along with my teammate, AJ (Allmendinger). It’s one of those tracks I’ve enjoyed racing at in other series and have some confidence going into the weekend." Noah Gragson, No. 42 Black Rifle Coffee Company Camaro ZL1 Gragson on running at COTA: “We finished fourth last year in the Xfinity car and we have put a lot of work in this season to get better at COTA. It’s a really fun track with some awesome energy from the crowd. We have a great looking Chevy Camaro ZL1 with the Black Rifle Coffee Company partnership and I was able to make it to victory lane with them in Xfinity and looking forward to the challenge. We had a great run last weekend at Atlanta and I want to keep this momentum going.” Erik Jones, No. 43 Allegiant Camaro ZL1 With there being no stage breaks for this race, how will that affect the strategy in how you approach this weekend? “I think it opens up some more options, the old stages how we've had the last few years, you were kind of locked in to one way or the other - take stage points or take a higher finishing position. We will see how it used to be I think with running the race backwards and trying to make sure you have enough fuel to get to the end of the race. We will see how much tires matter; I think they are going to be pretty important with probably some more fall off than what we've seen in the past with the track aging and getting more slick a bit. I think it will be a fine balance between tires and trying to pit as early as you can to make it on fuel, so we will see how it plays out with our Allegiant Chevy.” Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Kroger / Blue Buffalo Camaro ZL1 “We’re excited to get to COTA. It will be our first race with our partners at Blue Buffalo and the pain scheme looks amazing. I’m excited to get there. COTA is obviously a road course with a lot of shifting and a lot of crazy things going on. Weather could be an issue with rain. We’ve had a rain race there before and it was kind of chaotic. I’m looking forward to turning left and right. COTA is a really fun racetrack and it’s in a really cool town. There’s a lot of fun things there to do and I’ve got a lot of friends coming out to the race.” Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 Bowman on pulling double duty at COTA: "I am excited to go truck racing at COTA this weekend. Last year, we had a lot of speed and I am hopeful we have the same this weekend. It would be really neat to have wins in all of NASCAR’s national series and this weekend gives me another chance to add that to my resumé. I also like running the truck because it helps me for Sunday’s Cup race." Jimmie Johnson, No. 84 Club Wyndham Camaro ZL1 Johnson on running at COTA: “This is going to be such a great weekend. I’ve had this race on my bucket list for a really long time and I’m thankful for a partner like Club Wyndham for making it possible. I’m looking forward to the challenge of the track, these NextGen cars with the low downforce, and thankful we have a practice on Friday to see what we have to work with. Todd Gordon and the LEGACY MOTOR CLUB team have prepared a great car back at the shop. From everything I’ve heard this track puts on a heck of a show, and from a venue standpoint, it’s such a great stage for this sport. I’m looking back to getting back to the track, we have spent some time in the SIM to prepare and I’m ready for the weekend.” Todd Gordon, Crew Chief, No. 84 Club Wyndham Camaro ZL1 Gordon on running at COTA: “I ran COTA with Ryan Blaney in 2021 in the rain. Neat venue, really long and lots of different facets to this place. There are high speed straightaways and some rhythm stuff through the esses, lots of short, tight 90-degree corners and it’s got some sweeping right handers through the stadium section. So, it’s really a track that has all the facets of road course racing. This track asks a lot out of the team, car and driver and it’s the first time we’ve gone there with this low downforce and the package we ran at Phoenix. It’s a really cool opportunity. I’m looking forward to the practice and see what Jimmie likes – he is a really good student - and I think his INDYCAR road course experience is going to be key because he understands how to race his way thought a road course. It’s great to have a very detailed driver who knows how he can affect the racecar. Should be a great weekend.” Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Freeway Insurance Camaro ZL1 Are you looking forward to COTA? "Yes, I feel like that track owes me one. We had a very fast car there last year and I felt like we were going to win the race if we didn't have any problems. Unfortunately, we did but Ross was able to get the win for Trackhouse. I was glad to see that, but I really thought we were going to be in victory lane." What has allowed Trackhouse to stay near the front over the last year since that last win? “That’s a very good question. I think it’s a combination of many things, starting with our people. We have great people; great engineers, good pit crews. I think that if we look back to one year ago...one year ago we were a team that was very promising. I feel like right now, Trackhouse is a reality. I think we have shown that we’re here to stay and to be competitive. Last year was a very good year and this year, so far, has gone in a very good way. We have to continue to work; not feel comfortable and not stay still because everyone is working very hard. I feel like that has been one of the keys of Trackhouse to continue to evolve and continue to move forward.” Are you excited to have Kimi Räikkönen join the team this weekend? "Of course. Kimi was a lot of fun last year when he raced with us in Watkins Glen. You can certainly see his talent. He picked up NASCAR racing so quickly last year. It's going to be interesting to see how he does this year on a track where he has won in Formula One. I think he will be very quick." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chase Purdy, No. 4 Bama Buggies Silverado RST Do you enjoy road course racing? “I used to hate it, but now I actually kind of like it -- COTA specifically. COTA is probably my favorite road course that I get to race and that I have raced. I’m actually really excited to get to Austin this week and to race COTA.” What do you think not having stage breaks will do to the flow of the race on Saturday? “I think it will affect people’s strategy -- when they come to pit road and where they want to position themselves for the end of the race. Kind of going back to how it was years ago when you didn’t have stage breaks and you just ran until there was an actual caution or the end of the race. I think there will be a lot of green flag stops, I think that opens the door for that. Just being mindful of the rules changes this weekend and positioning yourself to where you can be there at the end of the race without having stage breaks.” Evaluate how your team has performed over the first three races. “I think we are obviously figuring out how to put together races and run consistently up front. We only want to get better from here. I think that if we can continue to get better every week and just get a little bit more at a time, I think one of these days we can finish one off and lock ourselves into the playoffs. Then we can concentrate on continue to have consistent finishes and run strong every week.” Kyle Busch, No. 51 Zariz Transport Silverado RST You already have a win in trucks this year. What is your outlook on getting a second win Saturday? “I’m looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of the Zariz Silverado this weekend at COTA. We were able to get Zariz a win at Las Vegas in their first race as a primary NASCAR sponsor -- that was pretty cool, and they were pretty pumped about it. Vegas was also the first race for me working with (Brian) Pattie in trucks and a few other new people on the 51 team, so to have that much speed out of the gates shows how hard everyone at KBM has worked to make sure that we didn’t skip a beat with the manufacturer change and the other changes that we had with our crew chief lineup and such over the offseason. Hopefully we can make it two-for-two on the year with a win at COTA Saturday. The goal every year in trucks is to go five-for-five with my five truck races -- we’ve been able to accomplish that before and I don’t see any reason why we can’t do it again, just have to click them off one at a time. We had a really fast truck at COTA last year, felt like we deserved the win and kind of got one taken from us. We just need to go out there Saturday and execute our race, control what we can control and try to be the first one to the finish line this time around.”
Grant Enfinger, No. 23 Champion Power Equipment Silverado RST Though you don't necessarily consider yourself a road course racer at heart, your COTA track record may say otherwise. How well do you enjoy racing at this facility? “I would say that I've definitely put a lot of effort into my road course racing over the last couple of years, and I think COTA is one of those tracks that has a little bit of everything - there are some technical sections, there are some slow-speed corners and high speed corners. Obviously, that back straightaway is really, really fast, and it forces you to almost have to get the truck completely stopped at the end of it. But yeah, it's a place I really enjoy; I enjoy the challenge of it and I've worked really hard at learning the layout. I know [Jeff] Hensley and the rest of my guys at GMS Racing have put a lot of effort into this Champion Power Equipment Chevrolet, so hopefully we will have something to contend with." Rajah Caruth, No. 24 Wendell Scott Foundation Silverado RST You've never seen the racetrack at COTA before, so how big of a help has iRacing been to you in preparing for this weekend? "So since I've never been to COTA before, iRacing is going to be so pivotal to me this weekend. Albeit, I'm pretty much on the service all the time for any of the tracks that we go to, but for COTA, since I've never raced there before, it's going to be even more useful for me before I hop in my actual Wendell Scott Foundation Silverado RST. I'm excited to give it a whirl, and I think we will have a strong weekend, especially with all of the prep that Josh Wise and Scott Speed have us Chevrolet athletes doing, and I think the GMS Racing trucks should be pretty sporty across the board." Daniel Dye, No. 43 Dell Children’s Medical Center/Nyle Maxwell Supercenter Silverado RST COTA will be the first road course that you run with in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, can you tell us a little more about your previous road racing experiences? “Yeah, I’m looking forward to it. I mean, COTA is a whole different beast compared to Mid-Ohio, Watkins Glen, and Portland that I’ve raced at before. I loved road course racing last year in the ARCA Series. It’s going to be fun to try it out in the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series; there’s a lot more trucks and competition out there, but to go to a huge place like COTA with 20 turns is going to be super cool. It’s going to be fun; we’re just going to stay on our toes and learn all day to be the best we can be by the end of it with our No. 43 Chevy.” | 
