DENNY HAMLIN, FEDEX KINKO’S CHEVROLET: YOU ARE 10TH IN POINTS AND SOME BIG NAMES ARE TAKING AIM AT YOU. “The main thing is that we’ve got momentum coming into these next nine races or so. The past five weeks in a row we’ve been in the top-10 of points scored. We came from a long way back to get where we’re at and feel like if we just perform the way that we have all year long we’re going to get in that chase.” HOW HAS THIS TRACK TREATED YOU IN THE PAST? HOW DO YOU LIKE RACING HERE? “I definitely like Chicago. It’s a mile-and-half and we know that we excel on those mile-and-a-half racetracks. I’m really excited about it and I think we’ve pretty much led a lap on every mile-and-a-half so far this year. So that means that we’ve been competitive and I’m definitely excited about being here in Chicago.” DO YOU SEE WHERE BUSCH AND NEXTEL CUP COULD BECOME EQUAL LEAGUES? “It’s eventually going to get there. In the Busch Series, it’s almost harder sometimes to run top-five there than it is in the Cup race. It’s amazing because you’re running against the same guys anyway. It seems like whoever has the most Cup affiliation are the cars that are really running good. We went from being a 15th-place team to a fifth overnight, basically, because we said we’ve got to take information from the Cup car and bring it over there. It’s amazing how much it helps going over there. Eventually that Busch Series is going to be just as big as Cup.” DO YOU FEEL FOR THE DEVELOPMENTAL DRIVERS THAT THEIR DEVELOPMENTAL FORUM IS DISAPPEARING? “It’s so performance driven. Guys like Kyle Busch and other Raybestos Rookies have come in and they’ve been successful so that’s been the bar that’s been set to these Busch Series rookies. If they don’t go out there and run top-10 or top-15 in at least two or three tries, then owners are starting to look elsewhere because it’s been done before in the past. The only difference is that things are way more competitive than what they have been in the past. I feel like that maybe their not getting a fair shot.” WHAT IS YOUR STRATEGY FOR CHICAGO? “The biggest thing at Chicago is eliminating any problems. We felt like if we can get by Sonoma, get by Daytona without a crash or mechanical failure it was going to be smooth sailing to the Chase after that. I’m really confident that our team is good enough to do it and when they start making predictions on who is going to make it and who is not, I’m probably going to be on the outside looking in. I do know that our team is going to make it.” HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF WINNING RAYBESTOS® ROOKIE OF THE YEAR AND THE CHAMPIONSHIP IN THE SAME SEASON? “I do. When I started looking at how far we’ve come back in the points, the only person that had scored more than us at the time was Greg Biffle. Had the Chase started we’d have been second-place in points. We’ve got to think about that once we get further into the Chase. Hopefully we’re one of those 10 cars. My goals were to be top-15 in points when the year was all said and done but I’m sure if I don’t make that Chase I’m going to be pretty disappointed.” NEW HAMPSHIRE SEEMS LIKE A TRACK THAT FITS YOUR DRIVING STYLE. “I’m really excited about the next few races. I’ve got Loudon, the flat track where I finished third in the Busch car and got my best career finish. I just love the flat tracks. It seems like they suit me. Then we go to Pocono and the Brickyard and then later on in the season we go to Richmond. I can count at least half the racetracks that are coming up that I know I can run top-five at. I’m really excited about the rest of the season.” DURING THE RACE, ARE YOU AWARE OF WHERE THE DRIVERS AROUND YOU IN POINTS ARE RUNNING AT? “Usually, I like to not be able to see those guys. If I don’t, then they are behind me. I really rarely ask for updates where other cars are. But at the same time, I’m sure when it gets crunch time, I’m going to be asking what we need to do.” HAS RUNNING BOTH SERIES TAKEN A TOLL ON YOU? “It’s hard to say. I feel like we’ve gotten through the hard parts of the non-companion races. To tell you the truth, the Sonoma to Milwaukee deal was probably the hardest I’ve ever had on me, physically. I couldn’t take any more once that race was over. I know J.J. threw up a couple of times. It was really tough but hopefully next year we can cut that down.” ARE YOU HAPPY THAT YOU COULD BE IN THIS POSITION AT RACE NUMBER 26 IN RICHMOND, YOUR HOME TRACK? “Absolutely, I’m really happy about that. I’d definitely like to end this regular season at home.” HAVE YOU HAD A CHANCE TO GET ON THE TRACK HERE YET? “I haven’t been on the track yet. I went out there a few nights ago and checked it out. It definitely suits my driving style. If we can come away with another top-10 that’d be a great weekend for us.” THIS TRACK HAS BEEN FAST FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS. “I think it will be quite a bit slower. We’re brining a hard tire, which I’m not really a huge fan of. I like the soft tires where you go fast for a little bit and then you drop way off. These hard tires, it just seems like it’s really hard to pass and hard to get a grip on. I think the speeds will definitely be quite a bit slower. Hopefully the racing is going to be even better, being that the groove is going to move around quite a bit.” DO YOU STILL THINK LIKE A RAYBESTOS ROOKIE? “On the racetrack I still feel like I’m a Raybestos Rookie. I still treat the guys with just as much respect as I did early on in the year. The only difference is that I’m way more confident as a driver than I was at the beginning of the year. To me it’s more self-confidence than it is playing the other guys down.” WHAT DOES THAT ALLOW YOU TO DO? “Basically, it just helps me prepare and know that when I get to a racetrack, Richmond, Pocono, Brickyard, here, I know I can win. The right circumstance happens I know I can win. With that kind of confidence, you don’t beat yourself before you even get on the racetrack.” DO YOU START CATCHING YOURSELF THINKING ABOUT WHAT IT WOULD BE LIKE TO WIN AT INDY? “We’re going to find out exactly how good we are when we go test there next week. We’re going to be brining that same car as well [car that won at Pocono] but we’re also going to have a new car. And they tell me that the new car is going to be way better. The Brickyard is definitely a big deal. I was really confident after that win at Pocono. The first thing that I thought of is that I can’t wait for the Brickyard.” DO YOU HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE RACING FOR POINTS? “In 2003 in the late model series, I was in a really tight regional battle with a couple of guys, Peyton Sellers being one of them. It was so stressful each week to try to get top-fives because you got bonus points. I just about pulled my hair out. I even told people around me ‘These next nine weeks you’re probably going to see me become more and more agitated so try to bear with me. Once we get this over with I’ll probably be a whole lot better’ [smiles]. It’s not so much protecting as going out there and running just like you have been. We were excited about a 12th-place finish at Sonoma, even though we dropped from ninth to 11th in the points. We knew that was a great race for our team. Eventually, each one of these guys and probably myself will have another mistake before that Chase starts. Maybe if we can eliminate it, maybe we can get in there without having to go out there and win race after race. We don’t want the pressure of having to go out there and win races to get in the Chase. We want to do it by running consistent like we have all year.” WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO WORK ON TO IMPROVE AS A DRIVER? “The biggest thing that I have to work on is patience. I feel like I’m patient, but I need even more of that. Me and Mike [Ford, crew chief] were talking this past week. It seems like I run all my fast laps at the beginning of the race and everybody else runs them at the end. I definitely have to work on saving my equipment for the end of these races and the only thing that will do that is experience. It’s going to be hard to tell some Raybestos Rookie to hold back. The only thing that will be proof of the pudding is to go out there and having racing experience and once I do that, I feel like I become a better driver. It’s hard to go out here and know that your car has potential to run a lap and you’re not allowed to do it. I want to pass as many cars early in the run because I don’t know if I’ll ever get them back late in the run. The only place that I really displayed that was at Darlington in the Busch race. I knew that I had a fast car but I decided to let people go. We won that race so it’s like I know that it pays off. In my head I’ve just got to do the right thing.” IS THERE A VIDEO GAME OF THE BRICKYARD? “The Brickyard definitely has their own simulation. I’ve been running that this past week along with Chicago. I’m definitely ready for this week and the Brickyard. From what I hear from Junior, the Brickyard is probably the closet racetrack on the simulator to the real thing so that’s really good.” WHAT VIDEO GAME DO YOU USE? “I run NASCAR 2003 made by Sierra for the PC.” CAN YOU FOCUS ON YOUR CAR AND THE RACE NOT ABOUT THE POINTS? “I look at past stats big-time because I like to learn what it takes to make the Chase. I figure if I can get out of here 12th-place for the rest of the year to the Chase then I’ll be in the Chase. I’ve got the mentality of top-12, top-12 every single week. Top-10 would be a lot better, of course, but top-12 will do it.” CAN YOU HAVE A SUCCESSFUL SEASON AND NOT MAKE THE CHASE? “Absolutely. I want to be in Richmond with a chance to make the Chase. If I miss it, then hey, we’re going to go for 11th in points. At the same time, we’ve got a little bit of a lead on those guys in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year stuff. But a couple of bad races and they can jump right up there. We’ve got to be on our toes there and not let our guard down just because we’ve got a little bit of a lead. If we win Raybestos Rookie of the Year, top-15 in points that’s still a successful year in our eyes.”