BOBBY HAMILTON, JR.-25-Team Marines Ford Taurus (Finished 6th) - IT LOOKED LIKE PIT STRATEGY PLAYED IN YOUR FAVOR TODAY? "It did. That was all Harold Holly right there. He made the right calls and got us in the right position. We needed longer runs to get where we could run with these guys. Matt and them were real good on short runs. Two of them got us on the last lap. The Marines Ford Taurus was the best it has been in a long time, so we have a lot to lot forward to." WERE YOU WORRIED ABOUT THE WEATHER TODAY, AND DID IT AFFECT THE WAY YOU APPROACHED THE RACE? "It was, but for us a log run was 20 laps after the wave of the green flag. We were just guessing on the weather and it kind of bit us and it didn't. The good thing about it was that the pits helped us this time and didn't hurt us. It crutched the car and me."
MATT KENSETH-17-Alka-Seltzer Morning Relief Ford Taurus (Finished 4th) - WHAT HAPPENED ON THE RESTART WHERE YOU SLIPPED BACK? "It was a great car. I just didn't do a very good job of getting it to victory lane. I missed a shift on a restart and I feel bad for the rest of the guys that I messed up. It went from second to first; I just missed a shift. It happened to me a couple of times this weekend. I struggled with that, and later on, I had the car a little too loose and Joe (Nemechek) was closing in and I just couldn't keep control of my car. I just tried a little too hard and got loose and spun out." YOU STILL MANAGED TO FINISH FOURTH. "It's a good car and it's not wrecked. We got a good top-five finish out of it. I sure would have liked to have won today. We had a great car, I just needed to do a better job of keeping up with my adjustments. You always get scared of being tight at Dover and my car was too loose and I should have know to tighten it up enough since we trying to stay ahead of Joe. I didn't do a very good job of that and it cost us."
SCOTT RIGGS-10-Nestle Nesquik Ford Taurus (Finished 2nd) - "It was a good run for everyone on the Nesquik Ford Taurus. They worked awful hard this weekend and gave me a great car. I was actually pretty upset in the car. The car was a little tight all day and we just kept trying to free it up. No matter what we did we just couldn't get it free. There at the end, we were just better on cold tires and could make some runs there on those short runs. My hat's off to these guys. We're racing for every weekend to have a top-five and be consistent. This team is having a great time right now."
DAVE BLANEY-31-Whelen Engineering Ford Taurus (Finished 30th) - WHAT HAPPENED? "I saw those guys in front of me spinning and going backwards. I thought I would just stay at the top of the race track because everything usually goes to the bottom here, but it didn't go quick enough so we were in it."
STANTON BARRETT-60-OdoBan Ford Taurus (Finished 12th) - "We had a top-five car, but we didn't get a break on the caution there. We pitted when we were on the verge of the tail end of the lead lap, and got lapped in the pits. We ran a long ways without getting lapped. It was a little bit tight, but it was still running good. We pitted and two laps later the caution came out and we got down a lap. Some cars that weren't that good finished ahead of us because they stayed out and stayed on the lead lap. We just need a break. We've had terrible luck lately. We've run in the top five in several races and we don't have the results to show. Hopefully we can get something to turn it around. We raced hard all day. They made good changes and I raced my butt off all day. Everybody staying focused right now and I think we're on the verge of turning the corner."
KASEY KAHNE-38-Great Clips Ford Taurus (Finished 8th) - "Pit strategy helped us a lot today. The track didn't get as much rubber down because of the rain and I guess being the first race of the year. You couldn't move around as much. It was real good right on the bottom. We were just real tight on the front and loose on the back for the first half of the race and got it better at the end. We were the best at the end, and those final two yellows hurt. We started off as tight as could be on the restarts and lost a little ground. Our car setup wasn't set up for the short runs or the long runs, it was set up to where it was comfortable for me to drive it." YOU AND BRIAN VICKERS WERE BATTLING AT THE END OF THE RACE. "I went into the corner on the final restart and I was tight and then I did it again on the next lap and he got under me. I just needed the laps to run to get better again. The 81 spun and that hurt us again. We needed green-flag laps at the end there and not the short runs."
JASON KELLER-57-Albertsons Ford Taurus (Finished 11th) - "We came up through the field pretty quick at the start f the race. Unfortunately, track position got us a lap down. We've really been struggling lately and sometimes you have to take baby steps to get back to where you want to go. Today was one of those days. Steve (Addington) made the car better as the race went on and the guys did great on pit road. If we can keep stepping, we'll get back to where we need to be." DID NEED ALL 200 LAPS TODAY TO MAKE THOSE STEPS? "I think so. We needed all that we got and it worked out. I'm not happy with 11th by any means because I know this race team is capable of better, but it was definitely a step in the right direction." YOU ARE KNOWN FOR YOUR PROWESS ON CONCRETE AND THE SERIES TRAVELS TO NASHVILLE NEXT WEEK, ANOTHER CONCRETE TRACK. "It used to, but it kinda got away. I can see progress and that's where we need to go."
SCOTT RIGGS PRESS CONFERENCE
"I had a good car. We knew we had a pretty good car after Happy Hour yesterday; we felt good about it. But, at the same time, I was pretty upset in the car all day wanting to free it up some. The track really tightened up like I knew it would, but we could never catch it. We tried and tried to make adjustments and really make huge adjustments to try to gain on the race track, and we just could never get the car freed up enough to really be a contender on long runs. We kept slipping back there after that first pit stop. On that second run we made, we kept falling back and couldn't do anything. We pitted under green - we were sixth - and we decided to come in and get some more tires and have some fresh tires to try to get back to the front. We were able to make a pretty good run. On cold tires we were pretty good. We picked off a couple of cars on restarts because we were able to really drive down the corner pretty hard and still make the car stick. I tried to do that with Joe and try to run after him pretty hard, but it heated up the right-front tire. As soon as it would get some heat in it, like a lap and a half, it would just start tightening up and getting worse and worse and worse. We couldn't quite have enough to make a shot at him."
TALK ABOUT HOW TODAY'S PERFORMANCE FITS IN WITH THE REST OF YOUR SEASON. "We're just doing what we wanted to do and that's just be consistent and be competitive every week. We want to come into the race and be in the top five in qualifying and we want to leave the race finishing somewhere in the top five after the race is over. If you keep on finishing in the top five, one of these times you'll be the first one in the top five and get a win under your belt. We've got one win this year, but we just want to be consistent and we're sure the other wins will come. I'm just happy with everybody. Everybody is really working well together. Right now me and my crew chief, Doug Randolph, is doing a great job with the guys. Everybody is really focused, everybody is happy, everybody is having fun and we're running well. It builds that momentum and builds that confidence in each other and the entire team."
IS THERE ANYTHING THAT HAS CHANGED RECENTLY? "I don't think so. The first of the year, we had a little bad luck for beginners. The first three races of the year we didn't finish on the lead lap just because of different circumstances taking us out. I think we've been fine-tuning our communication skills between myself and my crew chief. I think we've slowly but surely have been sharpening those skills and sharpening that communication and bridging that gap. It just goes to show how good the team is working together. I'm having great pit stops. The guys are giving me better pit stops than they every have before. We're unloading off of the trailer with better cars and we're able to make adjustments with the crew chief and understanding what I am saying and how severe I scream, he understands and makes good adjustments for me."
YOU'RE GOING TO ANOTHER CONCRETE TRACK NEXT WEEK. "Actually at the beginning of last season everyone started talking about how well I did on concrete and we came back to Nashville, a place I won at, and we couldn't find ourselves with both hands. And then we came here and struggled terribly. I think every race track gives you different circumstances and struggles, and you have different obstacles you have to overcome each and every week. Every race track is different and every one gives you a different feel and a different problem to fight. I don't think it's concrete or asphalt. As far as that goes, if they want to do it in the mud or the grass, that's fine with me just as long as we're competitive."
