Checker Auto Parts 500 - Rookie Qualifying Quotes

TONY RAINES, NO. 74 BACE MOTORSPORTS CHEVROLET:

"We slowed down a bunch. I don't now what to think about that." WAS THE TRACK A LOT DIFFERENT FROM PRACTICE TO QUALIFYING? "I don't think so because whatever we did, we did something wrong because it was really, really tight from the center out. I had been loose off in practice. We scuffed our tires, which was probably a big mistake. We only put a half-lap. It's disappointing. I know why I slowed down, I just don't know how. The car was really tight from the center out and we'd been loose off in practice. We'd made a couple of small changes and I didn't think it would make that big of a difference. We turned the same RPM; it just wouldn't get going off the corner. I'm really disappointed because that was a pretty good car in practice but hopefully we'll be all right, get a provisional, and be a little better in race trim."

JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 42 HAVOLINE DODGE:

"I probably overdrove it a little bit. We practiced better than that and very disappointed not to be able to go out and run faster than what I did in practice. Usually, we can pick up a couple of tenths here or there. The car's probably a lot better than where we qualified." IS THAT EASY TO DO HERE? "I didn't think it was. I didn't feel like I overdrove it, I mean, when I did it but that's the only thing that I can come up with why we didn't run better. I had a good (turns) one and two and just got into three too hard each time. We'll just start over tomorrow." DID THE TRACK CHANGE A LOT FROM PRACTICE TO QUALIFYING? "The first few cars have a little disadvantage. I think the track gets sandy or at least that's what they tell me. It looks like it's getting cooler right now so I'd say going late is definitely an advantage."

CASEY MEARS, NO. 41 TARGET DODGE:

Note: Casey Mears was the top Raybestos Rookie qualifier at Phoenix. This is the second consecutive race where he has been the top Raybestos Rookie in time trials.

"I told the guys that I thought we could run a flat and I overdrove it a little bit getting into three and we still came out with a flat. If I would have gotten in just a little bit easier but that's a real good run for the Target Dodge. I'm happy. That's another good qualifying effort. We came out here and tested and I think we have a good race package, too, so I'm looking forward to Sunday." DOES THIS PLACE FIT YOUR DRIVING STYLE? "Phoenix is a lot different than any other track. It's kind of like a Nazareth or something like that. We did a lot of testing here in Indy Lights. I've always liked the place and we qualified good here in the Busch car last year and qualified inside the top-10 in the Busch yesterday. I like it. It's a fun track. I'm real happy with that lap. Anytime you can be inside the top-10 in a Winston Cup race is huge because it's so competitive and so tough. I think the fact that it cooled down a little bit there at the end and it looked like one and two was shaded so we picked up some grip for sure from the beginning. Just to be inside the top-10, I'm really happy with that." WHAT IS THE RACE GOING TO BE LIKE HERE? "It's going to be tough to pass. This is one of those places where it's barely one groove. I think you are going to see a lot of passing off of two. Three and four is quite a bit faster and you loose your front end behind guys quite a bit because there isn't two grooves. In one and two I think the groove is going to open up later on in the weekend and you might be able to get around the outside of a guy or get a good run off of two and get him going into three." IS THIS A TRACK WHERE YOU GET BETTER WITH MORE TRACK TIME? "When we came here in the test we didn't start off that way. It took a good day and a half to get to where we were. I feel like we learned a lot here in the test, we took some things that we learned that we did at Atlanta in qualifying and applied it to our race setup and it helped a lot here when we did race runs in the test. We applied that setup to the Busch car and it seemed to be pretty good in race runs. Hopefully we can back it up with a good race on Sunday. That's the biggest thing that we need to do now." WHAT ABOUT THE NEW DESIGN OF TURN TWO HERE? "It opens it up and gives you a lot of racing room so you don't always think you are going to clip that wall coming off of two. It's still tighter than three and four so you still run it all the way out to the edge but it definitely gives you a little more racing room. I think that's going to cause a little better racing because everybody is used to running that bottom and that bottom is pretty good. It's always been worked in. Because it's more open out of two, it allows you to run a little bit higher line and I think it will create a little bit better racing." WHAT IS YOUR GOAL FOR THE RACE? "I hate to sound repetitive but that kind of is the case: if we could just have a good solid run, stay on the lead lap, no problems, we could finish inside the top-10. If we just don't have any problems and have a decent day. It just seems like we're either in one end of the spectrum or the other. We're either really good or really bad and we bounce back and forth in the race. If we could just get a good consistent car, just be there all day and stay out of trouble that would be a successful day for us. But I'd really like a top-10."

GREG BIFFLE, NO. 16 GRAINGER FORD:

"I got a little too loose on my second lap. The car was way better than that earlier in the day. It seems like our car runs really fast on a green racetrack and then when it gets a lot of rubber down, we're not as fast. I'm not sure why. On a green racetrack, our car is really, really fast. I just don't understand. I went back and forth in practice. I tightened it up then I wasn't as fast because I was having to wait on the throttle. I'd free it up but then I was too loose and I couldn't get in the gas. I was too loose to get in the gas but I don't know what else I could have done. A lot of it is handling here. You've got to have a good aero package, good body to get your car to go around the corner good."

LARRY FOYT, NO. 14 HARRAH'S DODGE:

"I've been saying it all year: any day we make a race on time is a good day for us. It wasn't looking good early in the day. We'd been fighting the car. We just made a bunch of changes and everything worked out good. We got a great draw. The sun going down helped us out a ton, I think. Everything just worked out for once (laughs)." THIS HAS BEEN A TOUGH YEAR. ARE THESE SMALL VICTORIES EVEN SWEETER? "It's so great just walking back over here. There were about five or six guys from other teams that walked over to me and said 'great job' because I think they know our situation and they kind of root for us a little bit. We're a small team and it's like a family so it means a lot to everybody because it's really like a family effort." HOW DID YOU PICK UP SO MUCH SPEED? "I went over and talked to Robby Gordon and he tried to help me out with some of the secrets to driving the place. My dad has been here helping us out. Really, a whole team effort today."

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