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News and Results | Point Standings | 2005 Schedule | 2005 Teams | 2004 Schedule and Results
Daytona 500 - Chevrolet Post-Race Quotes
(DID YOU HAVE ANY INDICATION OF ENGINE TROUBLE?) "No, there was no warning at all. I just blew up. It's just one of those things. There's nothing you can do about it. Obviously, this isn't the way you want to start the season. We'll try to come back at California."
(ANYTHING YOU CAN PASS ALONG TO YOUR TEAMMATES?) "No. We didn't run long enough."
"He said he didn't have any warning. We broke a valve or a piston. It's nobody's fault. Mark Cronquist and all the guys in the engine shop worked real hard. I know they will come back and work real hard at California next week."
(WHAT DID YOU SEE OUT THERE?) "Someone cut what looked like a left rear tire. I don't know if it was Ricky Rudd. You know, it's hard to tell; I think it was the #21 car that cut a tire down. You've seen the tire carcass come off and the car just spun up the race track and I was in the middle. There was nowhere to go, unfortunately."
(THE GOAL IS TO GET THE CAR BACK OUT ON THE RACE TRACK?) "Without a doubt. They are working very hard. The whole Morgan McClure Lucas Oil Chevrolet team is hard at it. It's just a shame, we had a really, really good race car today and that always happens when you're running well, it seems like. The guys will get it out and we'll get the best points we can. And we'll do the best job we can for Lucas Oil and everybody on our team."
(TELL US ABOUT YOUR DAY)" I just want to thank Michael Waltrip for a great car. You know there was no warning at all. Something happened in the motor. I avoided the crash. I knew there were a couple of things that could have gone either way this whole week but you know, all I can tell you is that everything was going great. It was a really good day and had looked like everything had finally settled out. I don't know know what happened to Ricky there but we avoided that. Man, it was running and handling really good. That's what I'm excited about more than all. It sounded like it dropped a valve or something. You know, DEI makes great motors. We put quite a few laps on this motor as it's the one we ran at the 150."
"It just blew up. I broke something pretty big under the hood. Fortunately we were able to get out of the way and not cause a wreck. We can take the other car to Talladega. Man I just really wanted to run these last 25 laps. We have a very fast car. We just kept it toward the front. We did everything we needed to do to win the race, except finish it.
"It was all about conditioning throughout the middle of the race. I just followed Tony. You know you just try to make a comrade, because he was going to be a buddy of mine. I just couldn't wait, couldn't wait for those last 25 laps. It was going to be a riot. The people in the stands are going to see a heck of a show. You can make major runs out there. We had a car that was going to make some. Man! The NAPA Auto Parts, Domino's Pizza, you know all that stuff...Oh! I just...I'm trying to mask the pain. I'm just upset but understanding. A lot of people put a lot into this effort. There are a lot of parts spinning around and sometimes they break.”
(DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT BROKE?) "I'm not sure. I think it was a rod. It might have been a crankshaft. Possibly a piston."
(JEFF GORDON AND TONY STEWART SEEM TO BE THE OTHER FAST CARS OUT THERE. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANYTHING TO CHALLENGE STEWART?) "Yeah, Jeff's faster. Jeff's fast than Tony, so we'll see."
(TELL US ABOUT THE PASS ON DALE EARNHARDT JR.) "I was trying to pass so many people. I thought Tony Stewart was going to be the guy. And he held us off for so long. I had three shots at him and he drove a great race. It was fun racing him. Dale Jr. came out of nowhere. He was just hanging back there all day until it really counted. And I was worried. He pushed me a couple of times. I thought there was no way I was going to be able to keep him behind me. When he got the lead, I thought it was all over. I've got to thank Jimmie Johnson. He gave me a couple of great pushes. We were just trying to get up there. I was shocked when I got to the quarter panel of the No. 8 car when I did. It just carried my momentum and I got in front of him. I couldn't believe it. And then the caution came out and I thought, 'Oh man, please, I don't want a green-white-checkered.' This win is really dedicated to those families who were part of that tragic loss last year (plane crash). It's something we'll never forget. Days like today allow us to honor them that much more and we're thankful that we're in victory lane and can talk about them and honor them."
(ON HOLDING OFF KURT BUSCH ON THE LAST LAP) "That was the best thing that could have happened to me. There were times that that No. 8 car was so fast that you can't keep him behind you. Kurt and I worked well together all day long and I kind of knew how we stacked up with one another. He had a strong car. I just did everything I could to stay in front of him. I was looking in my mirror more than I was looking at what was going on ahead of me. I was doing everything I knew to hold those guys off. When I saw the No. 48 and the No. 8 racing side by side back there, I knew there was nothing the No. 97 could do without a push from behind and I knew we had it."
(ON THE WILD FINISH) - Finished 3rd "The car wasn't that good in the race. We made some adjustments and then I could drive it right up in there. I got the lead there with a couple of laps to go. I had enough room to pull up in front of Gordon in the middle of Turns 1 and 2 and hold him back there, but I didn't know if I had him cleared or not and he came on back by me on the straightaway. We had a good car. I don't know if it was a third place car, but it was good. I want to thank my guys for staying with it all day."
(IF YOU HAD A LITTLE HELP AT THE END, COULD YOU HAVE WON THAT RACE?) "Absolutely. It was amazing the difference in the car from then, and maybe 50 laps before then. It was really fast. The Budweiser Chevrolet sure runs good when you need her to."
(WHAT HAPPENED WITH YOU AND TONY STEWART THERE AT THE END?) - Finished 5th "I don't know. We were all trying to block and do what we can. Evidently he was upset with me blocking him like you're supposed to and kept running me in the outside wall down in Turn 1. I just tried saving my car and we bounced off each other a few times. There is no retaliation. We were wheel to wheel and it almost spun me out and I ran back into him. It was one of those deals. I'm sure he's upset. He led a lot today and didn't win the race. But congratulations to Hendrick Motorsports and Jeff Gordon for doing it."
"It's hard leading sometimes like that. We had a great car. To lead all those laps that we led. I'm so stoked about the way these guys brought this car here. It was an awesome race car. I just got caught up there on the restarts at the end."
"I think we ran about as good as a race as we possibility could of run. At least we had a car that was good enough to lead laps. You don't lead laps like that if you don't have a good race car. I'm just happy these guys did a great job over the winter getting this thing ready for the 500. We got a good start to the season. I'm ready to go."
(WHAT WAS CHAD KNAUS UPSET ABOUT?) "I think he was upset about me running into his driver after the race. I think his driver did enough running into us before we got to the checkered flag. Chad's just upset. I don't know what Chad is upset about. That's just Chad I guess. If he wants to talk about it, I'm easily accessible."
(WERE YOU CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR ENGINE WITH THE NO. 18 BLOWING UP SO EARLY?) "No, I wasn't."
NOTE: TONY STEWART AND JIMMIE JOHNSON WERE CALLED INTO THE NASCAR TRAILER FOR BUMPING EACH OTHER
(WHAT WAS DISCUSSED INSIDE THE TRAILER?)
JOHNSON: "We just got everybody together to see what can be made up."
STEWART: "We were trading cooking secrets."
(WHAT HAPPENED AT THE END OF THE RACE?)
STEWART CON'T: "You know, NASCAR more than anything wanted to make sure it wasn't something that was going to linger overnight. It's like I told Jimmy, you know, Jimmy and I are really, really good friends and this isn't something that's going to linger tonight. It's not going to be here until morning. It's over with. I think NASCAR just wanted to make sure there wasn't anything big happening out of it."
(WHAT WAS YOUR VIEW OF THE SITUATION?)
(HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR ON TRACK PERFORMANCE?) "We got a top 5. You know, that's a good start to the season. I wish we would have been up there to battle with Jeff for the win. But, you know, we just didn't have enough cars in the outside lane. It's cool to have a Hendrick car in victory lane at the Daytona 500. We're off to a good start to the season."
(IF YOU HAD MORE LAPS COULD YOU HAVE GONE TO THE FRONT?) "The first three or four cars were really disciplined to stay to the bottom. I tried to get out and make some moves on the outside of them, but I guess it was too early in the race. People weren't ready to get up there yet. At the end, that's the move that worked for Jeff. It backfired a couple times for me. In the end, it worked out for him.
"The car drove good again. It did everything I asked it to do. We had a problem with the rear end gear or something. We'll fix that. This is just one race. It's unfortunate to finish that far back with that good of a car. That's racing. You've got to keep all the parts on it."
(ARE YOU FEELING A LOT OF PROMISE WITH THIS TEAM?) "It's a good race team. We have a lot of dedicated people. We have a lot of desire and a lot of commitment. Those things will pay off."
"It wasn't exactly the kind of finish I was looking for. You know, the GMAC Chevy team worked hard and the guys worked hard. It was an up and down day. There were times that we were running really well and there were times when we weren't. We were a lap down and we made it up. We were running back to the top 15 and we got caught in that wreck. I'm not really sure what happened, who caused the wreck or if it was just a racing deal. But, it was frustrating. I'll be honest with you, this is one of my favorite race tracks. I love Daytona, I love speedway racing, I love Talladega. But, it can be just as frustrating at the same time because it can be so easy to get caught up in something that's not your fault."
WHAT WAS YOUR STRATEGY AT THE END OF THE RACE? "I was trying to figure out who to work with and who not to. Man, it was chaos. We had a run and I was just going to try to hit who was in front of me. I was hoping if it was open I could go. I'm just proud of all the guys on the Valvoline Chevrolet. They gave me a good car and I hope this is a sign of a lot of things to come this year."
(WHAT HAVE YOU DONE IN THE OFF SEASON TO IMPROVE?) "The biggest thing was, we talked about chemistry and how we need to put the right people in the right places. What's thrilling is to be able to have those guys in the right place, attract the right kind of guys and I can just see these guys come alive in the off-season. You can see this chemistry start working. Everybody is getting along and the car is getting better. You know, we figured out all kinds of things we were doing wrong last year and it's all coming together all at once."
"We never had the rhythm today. We had a couple of great runs and then I messed up by sliding through the pit box twice. We were all over the map but seemed that we were always battling back from the rear of the field. There at the end, I thought I was going to salvage this race with a top-10 or even a top-five finish, but I couldn't pick the right lane and got passed by too many cars. I really feel I let my U.S. Army team down by messing up in the pits. But considering how erratic we were today a 13th-place finish is okay, and I mean just okay. We're a much better superspeedway team than what we showed today."
"I love this kind of racing...these guys sure change their personalities in race mode. They're like Doberman Pinchers with a hand grenade in their mouths. I love it, but the bad side is that we just never had a chance to show our stuff today. We got clipped early in the race by the No. 38 and from that point we were playing catch-up. And when we got our lap back, we had a problem with the axle and couldn't take advantage of the situation. That was really disappointing because our car was flying...I mean it got so good that I really feel that we would have had a great finish had we not had the axle problem. The way the CENTRIX Financial Chevrolet performed at the end -- it was the best since we started to test in January. I really had a blast the past two weeks and I should be walking out of here feeling good. But I really wish we could have raced this car because of how good it was today. The good news is that we kept it in one piece and we'll bring it back here for the summer race."
"It was a disappointing speedweeks but we just have to roll with it and try again at California next week."
THE MODERATOR: We are joined with our third place finisher DALE EARNHARDT, JR. You had a pretty good run there at the end for the win.
We got to go in there that last time we come in put the tires on, and I got the car handling good. We just drove right on up through there the best we could. I was able to pass and get in position. I got a lot of help from Greg Biffle to get up in the Top 10. Then me and Gordon worked together to get on the outside to get into position, into the lead. I wanted to help Tony, but we couldn't really get in the same line. Plus, I mean, he was in the lead. Had a run. I wanted to try to win the race, too. We got to racing. I got the lead, then Jeff got a run around the outside and got by me. I couldn't stop him, he was going too fast.
Q. You communicated via radio with your team about passing Tony and not being able to get on the outside, yet that's how you ended up passing him.
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.: We had a restart and the 24 got a run, went to the inside of Tony, then a caution come out, put them back in second. I said to Tony, under the caution, to not let the 24 on the inside because if he goes to the inside, I'm going to the inside, push on through, get into second. If he goes to the outside, if you can get to the line, he'll go to the outside, I'll push behind him. If you watched the race, Jeff went to the outside and I jumped down in there and pushed right into second behind Tony, got Tony out back into the lead, then we got our run and I tried to race Tony on the outside. I was able to get around him.
But I didn't want to have to ?? on a restart, if the 24 goes inside and I can stick with Tony on the outside, we're just going to get trained by the rest of the field behind me. The best position for him to be on the restart is underneath Gordon. So if he wants to jump, let him jump to the outside.
Q. Considering how tough the race was for you, how pleased are you to come up to finish third?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: I was real, real happy. I was jumping all over the radio when we got into that position with about 15 to go. I was really surprised because, I'm telling you, man, the car was way, way off at one point. We were running pretty good there, just kind of beating and banging around in there in the middle about 10th. It was hard. There were guys going three?wide a lot. My car was really good, if I could get up against the wall, and I could really make runs off the corner. But every time I did that, the guy behind me would try to go to the middle and screw it all up.
We just kept doing that all day long, I wasn't getting anywhere. I couldn't never get to the front. I wasn't even close to the front. I don't know, that last stop, we put on a set of tires in the middle of the race and then the car just drove like it had a big hole in the nose. It wouldn't turn. Pushed real bad. I was having to lift way, way early getting down in the corner and it just pushed to the wall, I'd have to run about half throttle. We barely hung onto the draft there at the end during that whole deal.
We had two more cautions, two more pit stops. I told him, Man, you got to do a lot of stuff to get this thing freed up. They did. They did exactly what I needed them to. That was one of the best cars out there at the end of that race, thought. I just wasn't up there all day. A lot of the guys I was racing with at the end hadn't seen me all day, didn't know what kind of car I had, didn't know whether pushing me was the right thing to do or trying to pass me and get me out of the way. Most of the time, when you got a guy up there that ain't been up there all day or he's not that fast, you don't want to draft with him, you're going to try to get around him.
Q. Would you say you made the most of a bad situation, got the most out of a bad day?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: That's an understatement. Absolutely.
Q. About 23 to go, there seemed to be a lot of good racing, got pretty wild out there.
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Yeah. It was wild. But it was good, safe. I mean, when you got, like Jeff, he was bump drafting a little bit in three and four, but he knows how to do it without getting you out of control. So, I mean, the things that were going on looked wild, but they were actually totally cool with everybody, I think, pretty much. I mean, at the end of the race, you want everybody that can to push you and hit you and push you and try to get you faster and make your car go faster and send you out front. If they can, I mean, if they know how to do it, I don't mind people pushing me through the corner even doing that.
Jeff, he got on the bumper there one time and just barely laid on the bumper around three and four. He probably was about seven?eighths throttle. If he would have been full throttle, he probably would have got me loose and spun me out. He knows how to do it just right. There are a couple other guys that can do that. It was wild looking, but it really wasn't that wild inside the cars.
Q. (No mic.)
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: He committed to me last year, a two?car race. That was an easy commitment.
Q. Did you feel you should help push Tony to victory instead of go out and win yourself since he seemed to help you a little at the end of last year's race?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Yeah, I was going to push him. I told him at the caution I was going to push him the best I could. But once I got my run, you know, it was time for me to think about winning the race. I had a chance to be back?to?back Daytona 500 champ. That would have been awesome.
But I don't think ?? I mean, Tony didn't seem like ?? you know, when me and him talk about things like that, it's really kind of, Look, I'll work with you if we get the opportunity. We had the opportunity, but I wasn't going to sit on his bumper till the checkered fell. You know, that wouldn't have been a whole lot of fun.
But, I mean, last year, there really wasn't ?? I mean, you know, it's not like he pushed me to the win in front of a 15?car pack. I mean, it was just me and him there. To be honest, I was pretty much by myself in that deal, if you recall, looking back at the footage. So I felt pretty good about what I did. I felt like Tony can appreciate somebody trying to win the race.
Q. Was it tough to see your teammate finish?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Yeah, it was a surprise. I didn't expect to have the troubles they had. I think Martin and Michael both had motor troubles. So I was a little worried about my car and my motor lasting till the end. I thought Michael was going to win the race. I think he had the car that could win the race.
Q. Will you go over again how Gordon passed you the last time?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Him and Tony were side by side. I knew that the top line was coming. That was ?? I told my guys, the last couple restarts, the top was going to win the race. I saw Gordon kind of getting a run, so I pulled up in front of him as best I could. We went down into turn one, I went to the bottom. He kind of stayed to the outside. He was still getting a push from Jimmie. I couldn't tell whether I had him perfectly cleared or not. I didn't move up in front of him. I didn't want to get up in front of him and have him jack me up or anything like that. I still thought by the exit of the corner I might be able to have him still cleared and be able to put myself in position, position my car in front of him then. But that's how we got off the corner, he was on the outside of me. He had such a run, I was by myself. I mean, it was basically the same pass Michael put on me there at the 150 qualifier. He was going by so fast, I couldn't even draft off the side of his car, slow him down. He was gone. I was just fortunate. I was feeling real lucky just to be in second at that point because I could have lost a couple more spots there.
Q. Will you talk about how you feel about having Pete now that you guys have been through testing, you've had a race, you're comfortable with him, the relationship you guys have?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Yeah, I think they did great today. One of the things that I really liked, their pit stops are all fast. You know, they didn't have one bad stop today. And that was a big plus for us because we needed a lot of track position throughout the race. There was a lot of times that we came in in the rear of the field and we would gain a lot of spots. We came in 14th there one time, went out 8th. When you do that, man, you can't complain.
So as far as Pete, I thought he did a great job. He made the adjustments there at the end. I didn't really follow the adjustments all day long. I pretty much left it up to him. One of the things I don't want to get in the habit of doing is him asking me what I think or if this is okay. I really want him to feel right in his mind that he's making a choice, the right choice, the choice that needs to be made. So I didn't really ?? I think for a while, I really won't follow exactly what's going on unless we just get so far out that I need to and maybe be another voice of opinion at that point.
But today, it was really good. He made a lot of changes on the car. I just discussed with him how it was handling, how it changed over the last stop and stuff like that. So it was pretty good. I mean, it's really just a super relaxed, you know, deal we got going. Not a lot of pressure. I can get up there and race. I don't feel like I'm being pressured to do everything, you know, be No. 1 all the time. I just get up there and race as hard as I can. They're pretty happy with the result.
Q. Should we be surprised how well Martin ran, even though you guys do have good cars?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Yeah. I was a little surprised. I mean, about midways through the race, you know, you get under caution, you kind of get to check out and see where everybody's at. I was real surprised. He was able to run up there pretty good. There was a couple times where all of us left him out to dry, you know. He ain't running enough races for me to dive down behind him and help him too much yet. If he's running a full season, we might work together.
But it was a good experience for him. You know, he needs to see each side of the spectrum. And I think today he got to run up front with some of them guys, he got to run in the back, in the middle. He was really everywhere. He's a great race car driver. I expected, I guess, him to be good. But I was really impressed by I guess when he gets up there, he shows some confidence. You can see people's body language in their driving style, how the cars are driving, how they're driving it. He has a lot of confidence when he's out there. He really don't look intimidated by everybody around him, which a lot of guys when they're rookies, they get out there and they look intimidated when they're out there. You can really tell they're kind of chickening out a little bit here and there, and he never really did.
Q. You know how hard it is to come back and race after a tragedy. Do you feel for the Hendrick organization?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Yeah, I don't know if ?? I don't know if you'd be human and not feel something. You know, I just ?? you know, it was a tough deal. I don't know if I could comprehend, you know, the loss of so many people at one time that had so many connections to Rick.
But, you know, we all ?? everybody has their own way of dealing with things. When I see or know somebody in the same situation that I might have been through, I treat them the way I would have wanted to have been treated at that time. So I've kind of just been on the outside, on the sideline. If Rick wants to talk to me, he comes up and talks to me. He has a couple times. You know, that's been pretty much it.
Q. The pass that Jeff took, is that just knowing the draft?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:.:: Yeah. I mean, that was ?? he had a run going. And we're going into turn one, and he's got a run coming. I was in front of him for that short chute trying to get the push that he had, he was going to give me, trying to get a push from him. We went down into turn one, he stayed to the outside. He knows if he gets behind me, he just pushes me like a beach ball between the cars. So he stayed to the outside, didn't push me. Kept building up momentum with Jimmie behind him. I knew them two got bumper?to?bumper behind me, I've been on the other side of that fence, and I know how it is. So he pushed him on around outside of me. It was the same pass Michael made on me in the 150. It's real easy to make if you have a strong car, and they both had strong cars.
Q. With the race coming down to the last few laps, did it have the feel of one of the Chase races? Did this race sort of have, with it coming down to the last few laps, did it have like a playoff type of field like last year with the Chase?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Not really. You know, it was just kind of another race, with the green, white, checkered at the end. It was a good Daytona 500. I think this was a real exciting race today. And last year was maybe pretty boring for a lot of people unless you were a DALE EARNHARDT, JR.., or Tony Stewart fan.
Today, it was an exciting race. I mean, I saw a lot of it out the front of my windshield. It looked like a lot of fun. And I had fun there at the end. We got to driving up through there.
Q. This is the first time in four years you haven't won something at Speedweeks. Can you summarize your feelings? Are you disappointed? How do you feel coming out of it?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: I hadn't really even thought about that. I guess, if you want to bring it up, it's a little disappointing. Thanks (laughter)! You guys are good at that.
I'm not too disappointed. I got a third place. Did I finish third yesterday? What did I finish, third, in the Busch race? So I got two thirds, man, that's pretty good, and a second.
I know I can't win 'em all, which I'd like to. But I like to keep my average pretty high. And I think I should get some credit for that.
Q. Did you see anything or any contact between the 48 and 20 at the end?
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: I saw it in my mirror. I expected them to be crashing because when you beat and bang that hard... What I saw was coming to the checkered. I didn't see what happened in one and two till just now on the monitor when I walked in here.
I'm glad ?? if Tony was mad at all about me racing him there with four to go, I'm sure that's not on his mind any more, which I guess I can thank Jimmie for that (laughter).
Tony is a hard racer. He's not somebody that I would want to be beating on his race car at the end of the race. You know, I know guys ?? I've known guys like him, and they don't like that too well. I'm sure Jimmie was doing what he felt was right to stand up for himself. You know, I didn't see anything really going on there at the end of the race. I just saw it coming to the checkered. They were beating around a little bit. I thought they was going to wreck pretty big there.
Q. At the end there it looked like it was going to come down between you and Gordon, then Kurt Busch came in and broke that up.
DALE EARNHARDT, JR.:: Yeah, Kurt got a run. I can't remember exactly when it happened. I think it was close to the restart. But he got a push coming. You know, he don't want to finish third or second. He made a try for the win. It was a good job. I thought for a second he might ?? was going to get the outside of Gordon there going into three. It was kind of close. But he didn't. So, you know, he had room to get down there in front of me.
I was staying on the bottom. It was a good race. I mean, the last couple laps, I mean, Kurt, them guys had been up there all day, I hadn't been there at all. So I felt pretty fortunate to be in the position that I was in. You know, like I said, I had the lead there with a couple laps to go. So, you know, a few moves maybe that I could have made different, I might have won the race. But I was pretty excited, you know, just to have a chance, just to be competitive.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you for joining us. Congratulations on a nice run.
We're joined by Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Dupont Chevrolet, 2005 Daytona 500 Champion, Jeff's third. He now joins Dale Jarrett and Bobby Allison as 500 champions.
Jeff, opening comments. The restart was pretty key there at the end. Also the pass with Junior there toward the end of the race. Just take us through everything.
We got down here and, you know, had a decent run in the Bud Shootout. I knew how much better our car was for the 500. We were a little disappointed on pole day because I felt like we had a car capable of sitting on that front row. You know, we just stayed calm. I'm just so excited about this race team right now and how well put together they are and how experienced they are, but yet still have excitement of some new people in there, as well.
I felt like, you know, we stayed calm all week through the 150s, through practice, everything just seemed to work well. You know, we were kind of under the radar. Not many people looked at us. That was kind of nice. But in our hearts, I think we all knew we had a car capable of doing what we did today.
Once the race started, it was just about trying to get from 15th up there to those top four or five positions. And through great pit stops, some great strategy by Robbie, knowing when to take four, when to take two, we worked our way up there and stayed up there all day long.
You know, there were times when I knew I could make some moves on those guys, but it was too early, and I just tried to stay patient, tried to stay on the bottom, tried to make any passes I could on the bottom. And there at the end, I knew I was not going to pass the 20 car on the bottom. He was strong. He was using his mirror well, blocking it well. I knew that we were going to have to go to the outside.
I made one move out there a little early, and it looked like it was going to be a bad move for a second. Then we ended up creeping our way back up there. 8 car gave me a big shove, got me up there. Then the cautions kept falling.
I tell you, when that 8 car got that lead, I thought it was over, done. He looked so strong. I knew we had a good car, but I had no idea we'd ever get up there even beside him, let alone pass him. Jimmie Johnson gave me a big shove down the front straightaway. I had a lot of momentum. I was shocked that I not only got up beside him, but I passed him.
You know, just a fantastic day, fantastic car. Rick's fifth, our third, it was amazing.
Q. What were you feeling like in the pit box in those closing laps, Rick?
Jeff did a super job. I have to watch the tape because I think it was so exciting there at the end, I still don't know how he got around him.
Q. Robbie, take us through your thoughts, your first 500 victory? He's won it before, but you haven't. What has it been like for you? What kind of pit strategy moves did you have to make?
But by Monday, we stayed focused, we talked, and we knew we come to win the race. Mr. Hendrick, he gave me a little inspiration. He called and he said he had a Bud trophy. He said that, you know, it didn't compare to the 500 trophy. So he said, Keep focused on it, get the guys happy. That's what we did. Just feel very fortunate. I grew up here in Florida. To get the victory here, just very thankful, that's for sure.
Q. Is this race an indication for what the season is going to be like?
JEFF GORDON: Well, I'd like to hope so or think so. You know, there's some different rules that we have this year that really don't have anything to do with Daytona. But, you know, the tires and the spoiler, I think you're going to see more lead changes. I don't know if you're going to see as much side?by?side racing. But what you see here at Daytona is not what exists anywhere else other than Talladega and here.
I'm really happy with the restrictor plate and the rules that we have in store. You know, you watch those truck guys, you watch those Busch cars, and it's pretty hairy. I think we've got a package right now that allows for great racing, allows for passing, but keeps us, you know, able to control the cars as well.
But I don't think you're going to see quite this much excitement every weekend, but I'm hoping you do see, you know, some more excitement based on what rules they have for this year.
Q. Compared to your previous two 500 victories, is this more of a veteran win? How would you characterize it?
JEFF GORDON: Honestly, in how the race went, I would characterize it similar to our other two, where we had good cars and just raw desire and belief that we could do it, and you want it so bad. You know, this team, when they're on, they're amazing. And I felt like they were on all day long. We were just solid in the pits. Our communication between Robbie and myself was good. My spotter did an amazing job. Everything was just on. We never made, you know, a mistake.
Didn't mean we were perfect, it just meant we never made a big mistake. All I said to the guys earlier today is, If we're in that top, you know, five towards the end of this race, we're going to have a shot at winning this race. And that's what they did. They just kept us there all day long.
There at the end, it's just instinct of wanting it so bad and just trying to put every bit of energy into it and every bit of knowledge that you've had over the past on how you're going to pass these cars, and you know that's not going to guarantee anything.
But I was real happy with the way things went for us. I wanted that one restart where I got by Tony. That was about the best restart I think I've ever made in my life here at Daytona. Unfortunately, the caution came out. I got a little frustrated because I passed him twice, and the caution came out and we weren't ahead of him. So I was hoping the third time would be a charm. You know, it kind of worked out that way, even though the 8 car passed him before I could.
Q. Given what happened last year with Earnhardt and Stewart, are you surprised he didn't commit with Tony?
JEFF GORDON: Why, what happened last year?
Q. Earnhardt and Stewart worked so well together at the end of the race.
JEFF GORDON: (Laughing) Let me tell you, if they worked so well together, how come the 8 car pulled out and drove by him? I mean, he did it last year, too. So, I mean, you know, last year at the end of the race they were the only three or four cars that were even there capable of winning the race, and nobody was going to get by that 8 car.
This year, you know, I knew that when I pulled out, he was not going to go with me. I knew he was going to go to the 20, and he did. And then it was up to those two. And he got a run. He went to the outside. It didn't surprise me at all. What surprised me more than anything else was that I got a run and was able to even get near the 8 car, because he was really strong.
Q. Rick and Jeff, talk about how badly you both wanted to win this race in light of the tragedy.
RICK HENDRICK: Well, you know, there was a lot of talk about the motors down here, and Randy Dorton, you know, all week long we were saying, "This one's for Randy." The picture that I probably treasure with Ricky more than any picture other than the one in Victory Lane at Kansas was he was on my shoulders down here when Geoff Bodine won the race for us back in I think '86.
You know, there was a lot of fire in our hearts. Every race we come to now, I personally think about all those people. And this is the Super Bowl of racing. So to come down here, you want to do well. You want to start the year off well.
We feel like it's a way to honor those that we lost and we love and we miss. You know, it was a great win.
Q. Jeff, can you address that as well?
JEFF GORDON: I think Rick really addressed it well. I couldn't have put it any better. This is just an awesome win. I think everybody at Hendrick Motorsports has been motivated by, you know, trying to honor those that were lost. That's the way we like to keep them in our memories and know that, you know, they're looking down smiling. It doesn't get any better than that.
Q. Jeff, could you comment, were you surprised that Jimmie did not go with you when you first made that initial pass to the outside, the one you mentioned maybe was a bit early?
JEFF GORDON: Well, I thought it was a little early, but I thought maybe that's why he didn't go with me. You know, he's trying to win the race, too. You know, you see your teammate jump out there, and you go, "Hmm." Looked like a good idea, but maybe it wasn't (laughter).
You know, I was fortunate to get I think maybe the 10 car, somebody, then the 8 car, you know, to keep me up there. But, you know, I understand how it works with me and Jimmie because we've had ?? we've been together enough and we've talked about it enough, if he can go with me and the momentum would allow him to go with me, he's going to. If I can go with him and the momentum will allow me to go with him, then I'll do the same. Sometimes that hurts you and sometimes that helps you. You know, we do everything we can to try to work together, but we also do what we can to win the race.
It all worked out. I mean, he still helped me to win this race. It was just a little bit later than that. It wasn't able to work out that time.
Q. Jeff, are you aware of the record you're piling up, where this is putting him in the history of auto racing?
JEFF GORDON: You know, I mean, I know obviously it's number three, I know it's number 70 for me race?wise. I wanted to get to 70. That seemed like a good number, I don't know.
You know, I try not to put too much emphasis on it right now because I don't want to focus on that, I want to focus on wins and this team and give them my best effort that I can week in and week out and do what we can to win the championship. I know how fortunate I am to be a part of such an awesome team.
But, you know, every once in a while I know Rick and I or Robbie and I, we'll kind of reminisce and talk about some things that we've done, you know, maybe our fourth Brickyard 400 or different things like that. You get a little choked up. You know, it's unbelievable to know that since I met this guy like May of 1992, it's been one incredible ride. And who would have ever thought that we would have racked up the things that we have?
I'm just fortunate to, you know, be at this organization and to have had the success that we've had. I don't want to stop any time soon.
Q. Has it bothered you at all that it's been a few years, obviously since '99, that you won this race?
JEFF GORDON: You know, this is a big event. It's a tough one to win. I think I look more at how proud I am that I've won two more so than how long it's been since I won the last one. You know, I know how hard we work. I know how hard, you know, the guys on this team, how much effort they put in every single year to try to win this thing. And sometimes you get the results and sometimes you don't.
But when you've got a car like I had this week, you certainly want to take advantage of it. And I feel like that's what we did in '99. We had a car. I think we sat on the pole that year and won the race. We had an awesome car and we took advantage of it. I felt the same way for this car and this team this week is that, you know, let's take advantage of having a piece like that. You just don't know if you're going to be that good every year when you come back here.
Q. Can you talk about the 8 car a little bit. He wasn't a factor for most of the race. Did you kind of expect him to be there at the end?
JEFF GORDON: Well, I mean, I was shocked. You know, I can tell you that when the cautions came out, I'd look in my mirror, see how far back he was, look up on the board, see where he was at. The 15 was really strong. You know, I thought maybe Junior was having some problems, engine problems or handling problems. And then he flipped the switch or whatever and that thing took off there at the end, I was like, "Okay, here he is." Then it was no surprise to me at all. I was just more surprised that he was hanging back or doing whatever he was doing most of the day. But it's certainly no surprise to see him there at the end.
Q. Did you question some of the cautions that came out for debris, especially the last one, after you took the lead?
JEFF GORDON: I was only questioning whether I was leading or not. That's the only question I had. I knew I was side?by?side with the 20 car twice. You know you never know when the actual light comes on because you're not looking for it. And I knew it was close both times. That's the only thing I questioned. I never questioned why they came out. There was one time I knew I saw a wreck behind me. There was another time, you know, I mean, there was definitely debris and different things each time I saw it.
Now, at the very end, they were putting speedy dry down on the inside of three and four. I think that's why they held it a couple more laps.
THE MODERATOR: Thanks, Jeff.
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