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Pocono: Toyota NASCAR Sprint Cup Race Preview
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS)
NEWS, NOTES & NUMBERS: Toyota Camry drivers have combined for five wins (Kyle Busch -- Las Vegas, Bristol and Richmond; David Reutimann -- Charlotte; Joey Logano -- New Hampshire), 22 top-fives and 41 top-10 finishes through 20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) races this season … Camry driver Denny Hamlin has tallied two wins in seven starts at Pocono … Toyota driver Marcos Ambrose finished sixth in his first start at Pocono in June.
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DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Why does the Pocono track suit your driving style?
"It just seems like the flatter race tracks are where we excel and we seem to run our best. I have a better feel for the car on the flat tracks. Each driver has a certain style that works with a certain type of race track and mine is just the flatter, short tracks."
What do you need to do to be successful the remainder of the season?
"We need to get to the second half of the season starting now and become what I was talking about in the off-season -- about being a guy that wins races instead of contends for race wins. Obviously, at the beginning of this year we had a lot of issues finishing races where we should. We had the best car, and were not actually winning. We need to still work on that. There’s a lot of things that I need to do to help close at the end. And there’s things, other things, like pit road -- make sure we have our best stops at the very last stop of the day. It just takes a lot of good things to happen to win these Cup races nowadays."
MICHAEL WALTRIP, No. 55 NAPA AUTO PARTS, Michael Waltrip Racing
What does it take to be successful at Pocono?
"If you have a good car during the race, it is because you can go down low and find enough grip to pass someone there on the patch. The key to Pocono is being able to go wherever you need to go. You have to adjust your line and be able to drive your car wherever the competition isn’t because it makes it really hard to pass a guy if you are following them. Pocono Raceway is just really fun to drive."
JOEY LOGANO, No. 20 Home Depot Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Are you happy where your team is at in this point of the season?
"Coming off last weekend and the last stretch of races has been great for the entire team. Everyone is confident. Everyone has great attitudes and we are all having fun. We overcame a lot last weekend and finished 12th, that’s huge at a track where it was harder to pass than any place I’ve been so far. I’m really looking forward to the final half of the season and seeing what we can do as a race team."
NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS)
NEWS, NOTES & NUMBERS: Toyota Camry drivers have recorded nine wins (Busch -- California, Texas, Richmond, Nashville-2, New Hampshire and St. Louis; Logano -- Nashville-1, Kentucky, Chicagoland), 36 top-fives and 72 top-10 finishes through 20 NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) races this season … Busch leads the NNS point standings by 192 points over second-place Carl Edwards … The Nationwide Series will visit Iowa Speedway for the first time this weekend … Busch has a streak of eight consecutive top-two finishes, which is one short of the series record (nine) set by Jack Ingram in 1983.
MICHAEL ANNETT, No. 15 Northland Toyota Camry, Germain Racing
Can you compare Iowa to another race track that the Nationwide Series competes at?
"I think everybody says that it’s real similar to Richmond. Richmond is a little bit tighter off turn two than Iowa. There’s a little bit more room, but everyone keeps talking about a bump that’s on the bottom of (turn) two that’s kind of developed. I was in the first Late Model race ever held there (Iowa) and it was almost like Talladega. It was really smooth and everybody’s handling really good but when you get a track that gets a little character and gets a bump like that it separates the field and makes it a little bit more fun."
TREVOR BAYNE, No. 99 Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota Camry, Michael Waltrip Racing
Do you think you have a good chance to run upfront at Iowa since you’ve raced there before?
"I think we’ve got a good chance there. I’ve been to Iowa three times already. We’ve run two races there in the Hooters Pro Cup and ran the Camping World East Series there last year. That will be the first track that I’m going to that I’ve been to before. That’s pretty important. The biggest thing is when we’ve been going to tracks, other drivers know how to adjust before the track actually changes and that’s where we’ve been behind the eight-ball a little bit. We have to adjust as it happens instead of before it happens."
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Pizza Ranch Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Does the Iowa track compare to any other tracks that you’ve raced at before?
"It’s a funny race track because it’s not Richmond, which is a three-quarter mile, and we tend to take it as a short track. And it’s not a mile-and-a-half because it’s only seven-eighths mile. It drives like Richmond, but it feels like a mile-and-a-half. It feels like you’re going so fast there, but you’re really not. It was really good for side-by-side racing. Turn three is just a little bit harder than to be expected. It’s a little flat getting in there and then the banking picks up more as you get into the corner and onto the exits. That might be a little tricky for some guys to get used to, especially racing side-by-side on the inside of somebody -- a couple guys might get loose and hopefully not cause a handful of wrecks. To learn that place was really good and really beneficial for me. It was nice to go there and hopefully we can have a good, solid run there."
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS)
NEWS, NOTES & NUMBERS: In 13 NCWTS races in 2009, Toyota Tundra drivers have combined for six wins (Todd Bodine -- Daytona and Texas; Busch -- California and Atlanta; Mike Skinner -- Kansas; Brian Scott -- Dover), 36 top-fives and 70 top-10 finishes … Travis Kvapil, who won the first race for Toyota in the upper levels of NASCAR competition in the NCWTS race at Michigan in 2004, will be behind the wheel of the Billy Ballew Motorsports No. 51 Tundra Saturday at Nashville.
TRAVIS KVAPIL, No. 51 Miccosukee Resort Toyota Tundra, Billy Ballew Motorsports
Are you looking forward to racing at Nashville this weekend?
"I’m excited to be back in a Camping World Truck. I’ve had a lot of success in the Series and at Nashville where I won the last time I raced there in a truck (2007). I’m just glad to be back in the seat. Bristol, in March, was the last time I’ve driven this year and I’m looking forward to getting back to racing. Nashville is a unique, big 1.33-mile track with tight corners. It’s emphasized from the concrete surface of the track, making it hard to grip. You need to have a good handling truck to do well at Nashville. Billy Ballew’s trucks are capable of winning every week and I’d like to leave Nashville this week with a second guitar."
BRIAN SCOTT, No. 16 Albertson’s Toyota Tundra, Xpress Motorsports
Are you looking forward to racing at Nashville this weekend?
"I would love to win one of those Gibsons. The Gibson Guitar is one of the most sought after trophies in motorsports. ‘Miles the Monster’ from Dover is right there as is the Elvis trophy from Memphis. Ask any driver and they will tell you how much they want that guitar from Nashville Superspeedway. It would be great to win the guitar to go with my Monster trophy -- maybe the Monster can play the guitar. It would be a really good match. I would cherish it forever if I could be fortunate enough to win one."
PaddockTalk Perspective
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