Coca-Cola 600 - Jeff Green Notes

Jeff Green Notes, Quotes: Coca-Cola 600
"Fastest in testing, now looking for luck'

Preparing for the longest event of the season, this weekend Jeff Green and the #43 Great American Bake Sale Dodge team head to the 1.5-mile Lowe's Motor Speedway for Sunday's Coca-Cola 600 twilight race. After a late afternoon start, the 600-mile (400 laps) marathon finishes well into the night and under the track's lights.

Green and the "Helping Hands" crew put together the fastest car during Cup testing at Lowe's Motor Speedway last week, and instantly became one of the teams to watch. The #43 Great American Bake Sale Dodge has qualified third in each of the last two Cup races, missing poles by fractions of a second.

Green, 41, is the only driver to have raced for the sport's biggest names. Throughout his career, he has driven for Cup's most legendary names, such as Junior Johnson, Felix Sabates, Richard Childress, Dale Earnhardt, and now Richard Petty. Green is in his first full season driving the legendary Petty Enterprises #43 Cheerios/Betty Crocker Dodge. The 2000 NASCAR Busch Grand National champion, he holds the record for the largest points margin after winning the championship by 616 points. He is also a two-time NASCAR Nextel Cup pole winner, winning poles at the Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway and the pole for the 2003 Daytona 500.

The thoughts of #43 Great American Bake Sale Dodge driver Jeff Green heading into Lowe's:

"There are a lot of different factors in the Coca-Cola 600, but basically this race boils down to a lot of racing luck. You think about all the luck you need to win a 400-mile or 500-mile race. You add another 100 or 200 miles to that and you're meditating on your Lucky Charms the morning before this race. This is not an easy race to win. We are dealing with every variable imaginable during this race. The transition from day to night, the longevity of the race, the factors that have to play to your favor on the track - it's nearly impossible to have everything go your way for 600 consecutive miles.

"It's what makes this race so great and so hard to win. This is one of the crown jewels of the season and everyone is gunning for this win. It means that you've overcome all the obstacles, adapted the best, adjusted the quickest. It takes a total team effort to win this race. The driver alone can't do it and neither can the team. It's a time like this when you're really proud of your guys that help you. This team is one of the best. I need their trust during a long night and I know these guys will give me what I need.

"Gary (crew chief Gary Putnam) and I work together well. You just have to communicate with your crew chief the entire race. The weather is changing, the track is changing, and your car is trying to deal with all these changes. The car can be tight, then loose, then tight again. It's a balancing act. The only way to stay on top is to make the right adjustments on your pit stops. You have to tell the crew what the car needs or what the car needs the most of. I just have a lot of confidence in this crew. I know that when I say what I need they will give it to me. We might be a little further ahead of everyone else in that regard.

"You need to have a fast car at Lowe's. We tested two cars a few weeks ago. We think we've got something good. They tested well and we were the fastest of them all the one day. It gives you a lot of confidence knowing that we can come to the track with winning equipment. Petty Enterprises has really made great strides on building these cars. They have been fast all season. We just need more luck.

"I guess we need to stay out of everyone's way and stay clear of their trouble. That seems to be the way things have gone during some of these races. This is a long race. We can be a little more patient and let things come to us. We want to be around at the end and get a good finish. The car was strong during testing and hopefully it will be strong again this weekend. If we can stay out of everyone's mess we have the hope for a strong race. We want to take that and build off of it for June, July and August.

"Having a good test like we did has everyone excited to get to the track. I have always liked racing at Lowe's. I've won Busch races there before and I am pretty good at getting around it. We're looking for a big weekend out of this Great American Bake Sale Dodge team. We've proven to everyone that we're fast, now hopefully we can get some good luck and have a good Sunday - and a great Sunday night."