Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Monte Carlo SS Weekly Top 12 Hauler Chat

Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Monte Carlo SS, talked with media at Daytona about crew chief suspensions, what it takes to win at Daytona, Chicagoland Speedway and more.

STEVE LETARTE'S LOSS DUE TO SUSPENSION MIGHT NOT BE AS BIG THIS WEEK AS LAST, BUT DO YOU FEEL A LOSS OF MOMENTUM? "Not after we had a strong run last week. I think it was very important to keep the momentum going by having a strong run. And we did. We led laps and finished second with a shot at the win. So I think that is going to carry the momentum and build chemistry with Jeff Meendering and bond these guys together even tighter. We hope we can keep that momentum together. That's what is going to be important over the next five weeks."

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE HOOPLA THAT'S BEING MADE OVER THE CREW CHIEFS BEING ON THE GROUNDS, WHICH WAS ENTIRELY LEGAL? "It' depends on what NASCAR's intentions are with the whole thing. I think Kyle Petty said it best on the broadcast when he said he didn't think NASCAR's intention is to make this a team that's capable of winning into a 43rd place team. That's not the intention of it. The intention is to get the attention of the crew chief and the team and the rules package throughout the garage area. That part is crystal clear now. The spirit of what they did kept us from practicing and qualifying as well as 100 points and $100,000. So, to me, I don't see anything wrong with that.

"Now what's happened is over the years, communication has evolved to a place where the crew chiefs could still stay in decent communication throughout a weekend whether they are inside the race track or wherever they are. And that's just technology. And it's hard for anybody to stop that. All we did was ask NASCAR what we can and can't do and we were living up to the guidelines that they set. Now with that said, I think the media attention that it got has now hurt us.

"Where we could have quietly had Steve and Chad (Knaus) at the race track, I don't think that's necessarily the case anymore. And a lot of it has to do with whatever the source was or whatever, but they got to talking a lot about being out there. And maybe it was because Tony Eury Jr. was serving his last week, they didn't care so much. It seemed like they were a lot looser about it than we were. That's going to affect us going forward because we don't have those guys here this weekend and I'm not sure what we're going to do going forward."

NASCAR HAS TOLD YOU THE CREW CHIEFS CAN'T BE HERE? "No, nobody has told us anything. Nobody has said for us to do anything different. We're not trying to push the issue. We're not trying to get around anything. And if they're frowning upon it then we're going to try to lay low."

EVERYBODY WAS SAYING THAT THE RULES INFRACTION AT SONOMA WAS A CLEAR CASE OF FOREVER. GO FIX THAT AND BRING IT BACK THROUGH THE LINE. THEY ARE SAYING THAT NEVER, IF THEY CATCH SOMETHING AND MAKE YOU FIX IT, THAT YOU SHOULD BE PENALIZED. CAN IT REALLY GO ON LIKE THIS - BEING SUCH STICKLERS ON THE NEW CAR? "All I know is that they called this the Car of Tomorrow, not the Car of Forever. So, things are different moving forward (laughs), that's all I know."

WHAT IS THE CHARACTER OF THE CHICAGOLAND TRACK? "It's fast and very smooth 1.5-mile race track similar to Kansas; maybe a little bit like Texas. It's a nice race track. I love racing there. I love the transitions and the banking and the speeds and that's why were fast there last year."

THIS MORNING YOU TALKED A LOT ABOUT HOW YOU LOOKED UP TO THE GUYS LIKE A.J. FOYT AND MARIO ANDRETTI AND NOW, KIDS WANT TO BE LIKE YOU. "It's hard for me to really put that in perspective because I can't even fathom that thought process because I was that kid that looked up to A. J. Foyt and Rick Mears. As I got older and learned more about NASCAR, I looked up to Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty and David Pearson and Bobby Allison and those guys. I was fortunate to get to race against Darrell Waltrip and got to race quite a bit side-by-side with Dale Earnhardt. I have a hard time putting myself in that position and thinking of it that way. I do know that I waited on a fence at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to get Rick Mears' autograph and that was one of the most meaningful experiences I've ever had. Every time I see a kid yelling my name or have something that they want signed, that thought process kicks in. I don't always get to pull that off like Rick did, but it's certainly on my mind immediately when I see that and want to fulfill that dream when I was a kid."

WHEN MARIO WAS ASKED WHO HE'D LIKE TO SEE FROM NASCAR DRIVE IN THE INDY 500, YOU AND JIMMIE JOHNSON WERE THE FIRST TWO HE MENTIONED. YEARS FROM NOW, WOULD YOU LIKE TO TRY AN INDY 500 SOMETIME? "Never say never. I didn't know that I'd be running the 24-Hour race here at Daytona in February either. It simply peaked my interest on cars that have a lot more downforce. Indy is a tough race track. Running it in a stock car at the speeds that we run versus those Indy cars running the speeds that they're running, it's hard for me to think about what that would be like.

"I think I'd like to at least see what it would feel like to run a car around a track like that. I don't know whether I'd ever want to race it. I have too much respect for the competitors and teams out there. You don't just come in for a one-race deal and be competitive. And I'm all about being competitive. I don't like to go do things just to race - just for the fun of it. I want to go and win or have a shot at winning. If I can't, then I don't want to do it."

HOW HAS YOUR SCHEDULE CHANGED IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS SINCE YOUR BABY ELLA WAS BORN? "I haven't had the early morning feedings but your sleep goes in spurts. I'm usually waking up when she's waking up because you hear her. Throughout the day, she's eating every three or four hours. We've got her on a pretty good schedule right now so it's not too bad. I had to get up early this morning and she was up all night last night, so it's definitely got me dragging a little bit today. But I'll catch up on my sleep tonight and tomorrow and be ready to go on Saturday."

NO NEGATIVE IMPACT, PERFORMANCE-WISE? "It's still early yet to tell. But I don't see how it's going to affect us negatively. It's something I'm too excited about and enjoying too much. Even if I'm lacking a little bit of sleep, I'm on a high of life and being a father and seeing my daughter. I hate to leave, but I can't wait to get home and it only makes me get through and enjoy the weekends that much more when I am here."

ARE YOU SURPRISED THAT TONY STEWART DOESN'T HAVE A VICTORY YET THIS SEASON? "I'm a little surprised, but they are strong and they are capable of winning. Obviously Tony is a great driver. But it's just like last week when (Denny) Hamlin got his first win I felt like he should have had a win or two already this year as well. I think we're just seeing what it takes to win these days. It's a combination of things that we haven't seen as much of in the past. Track position has become more and more important. Pit strategy, fuel mileage and all those things are really playing out and becoming very important. I think it's just a matter of time before those guys are running strong enough that they're going to win. We've been strong this year and we've won races when we shouldn't have and then we've won when we should have. That's all you can do as a team is keep focusing on being competitive every weekend."

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT SUSPENDED CREW CHIEFS BEING ON THE GROUNDS - EVEN OUTSIDE OF THE TRACK? "I think it's a guideline set by NASCAR. The only controversy is NASCAR's decision because they are the ones who told us that they just weren't allowed in the garage area or on pit road and not allowed on the team radio. And we've made it very clear to live within those guidelines set by NASCAR. I think these days, with technology; it's going to be really hard - whether it is us or somebody in the future - to keep them away from being in some kind of contact with the team. You've got to try to figure out what the intentions of that infraction really are. What are NASCAR's intentions? And I think Kyle Petty said it best on the broadcast on Sunday is that I don't think the intentions are to make us a 43rd place team out there. Their intentions are to get the attention of the crew chiefs and the teams as well as all the teams in the garage area as to what the rule are. That messa ge has been very, very clear. And I think that also we've got enough depth in our organization that we can be strong without our crew chief; but it's the chemistry and momentum that shifts and breaks. And I'm just glad we had a strong run last weekend because it's important for us to keep the momentum going."

ARE YOU WORRIED THAT THEY WOULD TAKE IT EVEN FURTHER IF THEY DIDN'T GET YOUR ATTENTION? "They got our attention. The problem is that they got the attention of the media and the fans and everybody last weekend and for some reason Tony Eury Jr. has been at the race track just about every weekend. Nobody has talked about it and then all of a sudden our crew chiefs are there one weekend and all of a sudden it's a big story and everybody is all torn up about it. I don't quite understand that one."

AS THE DEFENDING WINNER OF CHICAGOLAND, DO YOU EVER TALK ABOUT THAT RACE WITH MATT KENSETH? "We had a test at Indianapolis the following week after that race and I went to Matt and talked to him. We might not have agreed on every part of it. But whether it was Bristol or Chicago, but I felt like we had an understanding that we agreed on and moved forward and we've been racing hard, but clean, ever since."

WHAT'S IT LIKE RACING AT CHICAGO COMPARED TO OTHER 1-5MILE TRACKS? "It's just like a Kansas or some of the other newer 1.5-mile tracks where it keeps evolving each time we go there. The groove gets wider. The surface gets more abrasive and the racing seems to get better with more side-by-side racing. We were dialed in there last year, so I'm looking forward to going back there this year. Hopefully we can find the same results."

IS THAT A TRACK THAT NEEDS VARIABLE BANKING? "Every track needs it. I'm not saying they have to have it today or tomorrow, but if you're going to go in and re-work a track and do something different on your current track; or, if you're building a new track, I think it's something that we need to continue to evolve to. It's only going to make the racing better - especially with this new Car of Tomorrow. We're punching a big hole in the air and the aero push is extremely intense. We need to make more grooves out there to race on."

STEVE LETARTE HAS MADE SOME REALLY GOOD CALLS THIS YEAR. HOW DIFFERENT IS IT TO RACE WITHOUT HIM NOW? "It's certainly not what we would wish for. But it's what we've been dealt and we have to deal with it the best way we possibly can. I'm really proud of Jeff Meendering and all the guys on this DuPont Chevrolet. They stepped it up last weekend. We're looking for the same thing in the DuPont/Pepsi Chevrolet this weekend.

"We've got to all step up as members of this team and make the best decisions and have confidence in one another, just like we do when Steve is here. Hopefully we can have good results like we did last weekend."

GOING INTO THE CHASE, AT WHAT POINT DO YOU THINK YOU MIGHT HAVE A BIT OF A CUSHION? "I wish I was that comfortable. I'm not. Right now I see Jimmie Johnson is a threat to win every weekend. He's got four wins like I have. It's very easy for someone to get on a roll like Denny Hamlin or Tony Stewart. There are other guys out there that I think area very capable of winning. And in my opinion, for as strong as we've been this year and for as big a point lead as we've had at times, I don't necessarily feel like the points right now really reflect that. Or, at least they won't when we go into the Chase."

HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THE FACT THAT TONY STEWART HAS ZERO WINS SO FAR IN '07? "Oh, don't count him out yet. Those guys are strong. He's a relentless driver and they've got a strong team that's led a lot of laps. I think there are plenty of opportunities that those guys will have to win races before it's all over."

DO THESE WINS GO IN BUSHELS WHERE JIMMIE JOHNSON WON FOUR RACES IN THE FIRST HANDFUL OF THE YEAR? "Sometimes. Sometimes a team just kind of finds something and they take advantage of it. Sometimes they're just consistent all year long. When it's their time, it's their time. I will say that when you get those wins it usually boosts your confidence and momentum of the whole team and that it usually does turn into more opportunities to win."

WHAT'S THE KEY AT FOR THIS RACE ON SATURDAY NIGHT? "This track is a little bit different here in July than it is in February. It's hot and slick even though it's a night race; handling is where the speed really comes. We were off in February when we were here. We just weren't handling good enough to stay wide open. We felt like we were getting beat by the No. 20 and the No. 2 and a few other guys were really strong. So we've made some adjustments. This is the exact same car we won with at Talladega except that we completely changed the body. We cut it up to make it a car for Daytona. Daytona and Talladega are like Martinsville versus Bristol. They are just totally different. We hope this DuPont/Pepsi Chevrolet has what it takes to be fast in the race."

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Denny Hamlin, No. 11 FedEx Kinko's Monte Carlo SS, Weekly Top 12 Hauler Chat

Denny Hamlin, No. 11 FedEx Kinko's Monte Carlo SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway. He discussed how he celebrated after winning in New Hampshire, how plate racing will change here after the transition to the Impala SS, his views on Chicago, how it would feel to win at Daytona and other topics.

ON WINNING LAST WEEKEND: "It was a big boost for our race team. Even though it's just 10 points those 10 points are very important to us. I think that's going to kind of propel us to hopefully even more wins with a little less effort."

DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE IN AN ELITE CLASS OF DRIVERS WHO HAVE A REALISTIC SHOT TO WIN? "I think so. We seem to be a little bit quieter than the rest of the guys. They seem to get a lot of the attention which is great for us because we can maybe make a mistake and no one will notice. I think we're trying to establish ourselves as one of those race teams that's a top three race team and I think we are a top three race team even though they may not get the recognition for it most of the time."

HOW DID YOU CELEBRATE AFTER YOUR WIN? "I went back to my house and saw all my friends had bought every balloon in the local Harris Teeter and it didn't matter what it said. There was a congratulations, there was a get well soon, happy anniversary. I mean every balloon they had they bought so I had a bunch of these balloons and then they also made me a cake and decided in the middle of playing poker they wanted to hit me in the face with the cake so that's pretty much how I celebrated.

"It was fun. For us it was a great night and I had a lot of good guys come and Junior came over and congratulated me. There were a lot of people there that I really appreciated to see."

IS THERE AN EXTRA PUSH TO GET THE VICTORY THIS WEEKEND DURING THE LAST RACE HERE WITH THE CURRENT CAR? "Well you definitely want to do everything you can. It's definitely going to be a different era. You could say this is the last of the era for this car but for the most part I'm excited about going to Car of Tomorrow full time. I think it's going to be a big benefit for everyone. This race track really demands a lot from a driver believe it or not so it's going to be a race that's going to be very, very tough. I think the cars are going to get extremely spread out and we'll see how it turns out."

HOW DO YOU THINK PLATE RACING WILL CHANGE WITH THE IMPALA SS? "It's just going to make them like the truck races really where the guys are just all packed tight together where now our cars are so slick that they're not handling the race track that well and we're starting to spread out and you're starting to see the packs form like they did back in the old days. Now we're kind of going to take a step back and be back where we were. With the Car of Tomorrow I think they're going to suck up to each other so much that you're just going to have a huge wad."

ON WINNING TAKING THE PRESSURE OFF HIS TEAM AND IF TONY STEWART SAID ANYTHING TO HELP BOOST THEIR TEAM? "I think Tony knows that their team is right on the verge just like our team is. For sure it's a matter of time before that 20 team breaks in and gets him a win. They would have won many times if they would have had the luck that we had last week or the luck that we didn't have over the last few weeks. It's the thing where we got our lucky break first and it's just a matter of time before they break through."

ON HOW HE VIEWS CHICAGO AND HOW HE THINKS HE'LL DO THERE: "That's a great race track, mile and a half. It's a track where it's worn out to where it's better than most. As drivers we definitely like a race track where you can move and Chicago is starting to be more and more one of those race tracks. If I remember right I think we were running right on the wall and a few years ago at that track it was kind of unheard of. It's great that we get to go back to a track that's aged and nothing's changed and we know what we got when we get there."

DO YOU THINK THAT TRACKS ON THE CIRCUIT NEED TO BE CHANGED AS FAR AS VARIABLE BANKING LIKE HOMESTEAD AND LAS VEGAS? "Well I hate to see them pave any race track because these tracks are no fun when they get paved for the first couple years especially with the hard tires that we're on. They just don't stick to the race track. Yeah, it's great that Homestead has that but you're starting to see it even at the shorter tracks, the flatter tracks. Guys are starting to move around and find grip so it's tough to say that they really need to pull up all the asphalt at these race tracks and start over again."

DO YOU THINK GRIP WILL BE A FACTOR THIS WEEKEND? "Every time we come here it seems like it gets a lot worse than what it was in the past and for some reason this track ages a little bit faster than the rest of them. Even during the practice it wasn't long before we were having to lift out of the throttle and to say that a few years ago was unheard of in a Cup car around here. I don't know, when these tracks age it makes for a good racing. I think it's going to make for another great race."

ON HOW HE FELT WITH HIS CAR AFTER THE FIRST PRACTICE: "I was relatively happy with it. We were on a lot different package than what the 20 and the 18 are on so we're trying things out for the Chase. We feel like we're comfortably in a spot right now where we can experiment on things and we're kind of going to take this week and Chicago in particular and just throw something out there and see what happens."

ON HOW HIS VICTORY GIVES THEM MOMENTUM AND HOW IMPORTANT THAT IS AT THIS POINT OF THE SEASON: "It's real important, obviously we saw what it did to the 1 car. It seemed like those guys have really stepped up and confidence means a lot. In a sport where the competition is so tight if you can have any kind of advantage it's going to be big. Those guys have kind of hit their stride and they're really hitting things right now and I think this is one of those deals where I met with Mike (Ford) over the week and we said that this is going to be a great confidence booster but we could be let down here in the next few weeks because we're going to try things that have never been tried before who knows by any other race team so we're going to take the weeks that we know we can be competitive and go with what we know there and the weeks that we don't know what we have like here and Chicago just throw caution to the wind."

ARE YOU AFRAID OF EXPERIMENTING TOO MUCH BEFORE THE CHASE WHERE IT MAY SET YOU BACK? "I'm kind of a little afraid of that. We talked about that whether we can't get too excited if we run 20th to 30th one week. We can't let it get us down because we know we can run top 10 but that's not going to win us the championship. We need to go out there and find what it's going to take to win races and that's what we're trying to accomplish right now."

HOW DID GOING ALMOST A YEAR WITHOUT A WIN IMPACT YOU? "I got to a point where I was just wondering gosh would I ever win a race again. It was tough. You know you will but it's just frustrating to have to wait on that. It was good to finally get that pressure off your shoulder, you're not just the Pocono guy. That was the biggest thing is I just wanted to win at a different race track."

ON WHAT IT WOULD MEAN TO WIN AT DAYTONA: "It'd be huge for us. When I won the Shootout here last year, I couldn't believe that I won in Daytona. That was one of the biggest shocks I've had ever in my career so to win either the 500 or the 400 here is a very, very big deal and we're taking it as serious as we can and doing everything we can to win this race."

ARE YOU EXPECTING ANOTHER FINISH WITH FURIOUS RACING THE LAST 40 LAPS? "I think if it goes green it's going to be relatively calm. I think if we have a caution with 10 to go or 15 to go where guys have put on tires, it's going to be a finish somewhat just like the 500. It seems like these cars are really tightly packed for 15 laps or so then they start spreading out. I think it all depends on whether we get that late race caution or not."

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Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe's Monte Carlo SS Weekly Top 12 Hauler Chat

Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe's Monte Carlo SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway. He discussed racing a Pontiac Daytona Prototype here, his first experience at Daytona International Speedway, meeting with other Daytona 500 winners this morning, his physical fitness routine and other topics. An audio file of this recording can be downloaded by clicking the link below.

ON BEING BACK AT DAYTONA: "It's great to be back. I can say from being in that prototype, I had no idea how hot it could be in a race car. I get out and it's not too bad but inside that Daytona prototype, it's one of the hottest things I've ever been in so I'm trying to get some Gatorade in me and some stuff. My voice is a little high because I just got out of the car after practice and qualifying. Just a great experience there and I'm looking forward to getting on track with the Cup car. We didn't have the best Daytona 500. We didn't have the speed that we wanted so we've worked on some things and hopefully will have a car that will handle a lot better especially with this hotter weather and the track conditions that we see here in July. It's important to have a good driving race car."

ARE YOU SURPRISED AT HOW BIG A STORY HAS DEVELOPED OVER WHERE THE CREW CHIEFS ARE WHEN THEY'RE SUSPENDED? "Yeah, in a lot ways I am but then in other ways it's a story and it's what's going on and there's questions about it so I think as a sport we're all learning a lot and we're learning through a variety of different directions kind of what's right and wrong and just going through the motions here. I fortunately wasn't in Charlotte this week. I was up north having some fun with some friends at the beach, just chilling. I played some golf so I've luckily been out of the scene but I had some phone calls from Mr. Hendrick and from Chad and I understand that it was quite crazy in the Charlotte area relative to our sport. We'll do whatever we're instructed to do but we'd be foolish to not try to maximize and go right to the edge of the rules just like we do with the race car in this situation with the crew chiefs and we'll do everything that we can and everything we're allowed t o. That's just kind of the way it is."

ON IF NASCAR HAS TOLD HIM ANYTHING DIFFERENT ABOUT WHERE CHAD KNAUS CAN BE THIS WEEKEND: "As far as Chad, I've been so far out of the loop this week with the little vacation that I had and then coming in and getting in the prototype that I'm not sure where that whole situation stands and we'll just do exactly as we're instructed and take that from there with Chad and Steve and the situation that we're in there."

ON WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO BE WITH THE FORMER DAYTONA 500 CHAMPIONS THIS MORNING: "With this morning I was upset in a small way that I couldn't stick around and enjoy that experience any longer. I had to go get in the prototype for practice and to have all of those personalities and champions and heroes of mine growing up standing in the same room and as a young driver being acknowledged by a Mario Andretti and congratulated on my season, Foyt and those guys, that was really, really cool and I wish could have had some more time in there this morning."

ON HAVING A STRONG START TO HIS SEASON AND WHAT HE THINKS THE DIFFERENCE HAS BEEN OVER THE LAST RACES WHERE HE HAD SOME STRUGGLES AND WHAT ADJUSTMENTS HE FEELS HE NEEDS TO MAKE STARTING THIS WEEKEND: "Well we've been running well. There's some tracks in there where we had maybe not our best track like Sonoma but we still got out of there with a decent finish. When I think of Dover, we were running second and had a flat. I think at Pocono we were in the top 10 and had a flat so we've recognized this as a team and we're not finishing where we want and we're not finishing like we did at the start of the season but it's been crazy circumstances. Some of it's been fuel mileage, some of it's been those two flat tires, so we feel that we're doing the right things. We still feel that we have that speed that we did at the beginning of the season even though the competition I feel has caught up some and maybe some other teams are showing a little more muscle right now but we're right t here with them and last week was a great finish for us because we just needed to get back in to top 10s and top fives. We again had the speed but just haven't been there at the end when the checkered fell and last weekend was a step in the right direction for that."

ON HIS REACTION THE FIRST TIME HE CAME TO AND RACED AT DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY: "First time I came in, a lot like the other comments, just amazed by the size of the speedway. I'm sure everybody has done it but I hadn't been to a big track and experienced this yet and I went on the back straightaway and sat up against the fence and watched the cars go by in a pack and just could not believe the wind and the noise and the way the cars were thundering by.

"As far as my first time on track, my crew chief when I left, there's never been a race track that I've been on where you run wide open all the way around it especially your first lap going out. Racing motorcross my dad always beat it into my head, don't go out and try to jump all the jumps first lap. Learn the track. Find out where everything is. Never hit the track 100 percent. That's the way I was raised and I come here, one of the fastest tracks we go to, and my crew chief is saying is you better hold it wide open. I've got a computer that's going to tell me if you don't and I'm like this is so backwards from how I've been raised. One car by itself out there is really not fast. When you get the rest of the group things really pick up."

ON THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RUNNING THE DAYTONA PROTOTYPE HERE IN JANUARY VERSUS JULY: "The car that I'm in, I think they've improved their cars, so far as the grip level on the track, I'm not very familiar with the setup and what the differences may be from the (Rolex) 24 until now but the car that I'm in was the same car as the 24. It is so much faster. They've done a lot great work to that car to pick it up and I think it showed today going out there and qualifying second and running as well as we have through all the practice sessions. The biggest difference is the temperature from the driver's standpoint; it is really hot in those cars."

DO YOU KNOW IF CHAD KNAUS WILL BE HERE AND CHAD'S ROLE FOR THIS WEEKEND: "No, neither Chad or Stevie will be here. They're getting the cars ready for Chicago and Indy and all that stuff so they're at home working away. Hopefully they'll work on the weekends and find us some speed."

ON HIS PHYSICAL PREPARATIONS HE DOES: "It changes per week but I try to really get some miles on foot, anywhere from 10 to 15 miles a week on foot with two or three days of weightlifting. You can tell I'm a little buff, not, but I try (laughs). I love to cycle and if I'm home in Charlotte I can usually spend a lot more time working out but on the road you can really just take your running shoes and it's tough but cycling is great. I can get probably 80 to 100 miles in a week on a bicycle with some guys and it really helps for the duration of time that you find yourself in a race car and also with the heat and hydration aspect. It's great training mentally, physically and really is good for racing."

ON IF THERE ARE ANY SYNERGIES HE DRAWS WITH DRIVING THE DAYTONA PROTOTYPE WITH THE WING AND SPLITTER COMPARED TO THE IMPALA SS HE DROVE AT SONOMA: "I think the experience with the 24 Hours helped me going into the Car of Tomorrow, just in terms of terminology and understanding some basics with it. Granted we can't really adjust the splitter or the wing on the Cup car, I'm not sure you can on the prototypes, but the way you use the curbs and things like that have helped me with the Daytona prototype experience moving into the Car of Tomorrow."

ON IF HE IS SURPRISED TONY STEWART HASN'T WON YET THIS SEASON AND WHAT HE EXPECTS FROM HIM THIS WEEKEND: "I didn't realize he hasn't won. I just expect him to win all the time. I am shocked about that to hear that he hasn't won and coming into this race we'd be foolish not to consider him the favorite especially with how strong he was in February and then they always have the magic setup here for the hot summer July race so I think he's probably the favorite going in and we might see him climbing that fence again and doing a stage dive over into the fans."

ON IF IT'S IMPORTANT TO START UP FRONT FOR THIS RACE AND THINGS HE HAS OBSERVED SINCE THE TOP 35 RULE WENT INTO EFFECT: "From my standpoint as a team that is safe in the points, we're just going focus on the way the car drives in race trim and wherever it qualifies it's just kind of how it is. I would expect especially with so many teams that aren't guaranteed a starting spot, I would think that we would qualify 15th to 25th maybe because the teams that have to get in on speed will totally forget handling for the race and work on straight line speed which you can get away with some of that in February but for this July race, the guys that have to qualify, what they're going to do to their cars is really going to make their car unhappy come race time so really their race is Friday or Saturday and then once they get into the race I'm sure they'll be putting spring rubbers in and really working hard to get the car to turn for them."

DID YOU RETIRE YOUR DAYTONA 500 WINNING CAR? HOW MUCH OF A DISADVANTAGE IS IT TO BE WITHOUT THAT CAR FOR A YEAR? "We try to build them the same all the time so we didn't feel like it was a huge disadvantage to our team. It did cause a little bit of work for the guys to go and build a new speedway car but I believe it's sitting at the shop. I don't think we've been back in it yet. I don't think we've had it out. If I can talk Rick into it I'd love to put it in my little toy shed I have but no plans for it yet."

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Jeff Burton, No. 31 AT&T Mobility Monte Carlo SS Weekly Top 12 Hauler Chat

Jeff Burton, No. 31 AT&T Mobility Monte Carlo SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway. He discussed his thoughts on the crew chief suspensions, how bonus points will affect the Chase for the Championship, his recipe for driving this track and other topics.

ON IF HE THINKS IT IS FAIR OR NOT THAT THE SUSPENDED CREW CHIEFS ARE ON THE GROUNDS: "I don't think if you are suspended you should be suspended. I don't have any problem with anybody doing what they have been doing because they are following the rules but the rules need to be changed so that if you are suspended you should have to be off the grounds. You shouldn't be allowed to be in the facility because in all fairness, other than being able to look at the car, a crew chief being at the facility is every bit as effective as him being in the trailer. So nobody officially, to me, has been suspended."

ON IF HE HAS ANY CONCERNS AS A DRIVER THAT IF THEY DON'T IT THE WAY THAT IT WAS INTENDED THE SITUATION COULD ESCALATE: "I don't think so. I actually think the suspension is the least amount of the penalty. I think the points, that's the big part and even if they didn't suspend the crew chiefs, the effort to not go around NASCAR is going to be huge because loosing 100 points or 25 points or 50 points is a tremendous amount of points to be giving away. So I don't think the suspension acts as as much of a deterrent as the points."

ON HAVING BONUS POINTS GOING INTO THE CHASE. HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK ABOUT THAT? "We don't really think about that a lot. I mean, we are here to do the best we can every week anyway. After the race I heard his crew chief talking about how they made a gamble because they felt like they were secure in the Chase and they could try to get a win and help them out where they would start in the Chase. That is good strategy. I still think it is still too early to be declaring yourself in the Chase. I think there is a lot of racing to be done right now and for us we want to get as many wins as we can just for the sake of winning. Obviously it pays the most amount of points but we come to the race and do that every race anyway and we just do the best we know how."

DO YOU FEEL THE DIFFERENCE IN POINTS WITH A WIN VERSUS A TOP FIVE? "Well winning is winning man. I mean that's why we're here. You guys make more out of points than we do as far as the difference between five points and getting five more points and another position. Having that trophy, that's irreplaceable. They never take it away. That is what we are here to do. We are here to win races and if we can't win we finish second. If we can't finish second, we finish third and so on. So winning is huge not only from a points standpoint and from a where you start in the Chase standpoint but that is what wakes you up in the morning. The opportunity to go compete and try to win, I mean that is what it is all about."

WHAT IS YOUR RECIPE FOR THIS TRACK AND HOW YOU DRIVE IT? "Well I think handling is going to be really important. I mean we saw it in the 500. The last 50 laps got really interesting. Prior to that handling was really important and our whole focus today and leading into tomorrow's qualifying is to get the car to drive well in the traffic, get it to handle well, get it to where we can drive different grooves, the bottom, the top, the middle. I just want to be able to drive my car wherever I want to be able to drive it. The only way to be able to do that is to make it handle well."

IS IT GOING TO MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE TO YOU NOT COMING BACK HERE WITH THIS CAR? "Well it's going to add to that preparation level a little bit certainly. This is the last race with this type of car so we have to, as every team does, we have to prioritize our investment and we have to be smart about how we spend our money so the amount of preparation that we put into this race isn't as much as it would have been had we been coming back with these cars or if we had been given the Car of Tomorrow because this is it. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to spend a tremendous amount of money getting ready for this one race when we could be using that money to get ready for Talladega, be using that money to get ready for the future. So this technology that we were running here is something that we developed back in January. It is not what we developed in May. That is the biggest impact."

DOES IT SURPRISE YOU TONY STEWART IS THE ONLY DRIVER IN THE TOP 10 WITHOUT A WIN? DO YOU SEE A FACTOR IN WHAT HAS KEPT HIM OUT OF VICTORY LANE? "Well they have had some situations that have kept them out of victory lane. They have run well enough to win. They have led a lot of laps. They have been in a position to win a race. It isn't that they haven't run well. They just haven't had things go their way and that happens in this sport. You go through a period where you run well and can't get a win and then sometimes you go through a period where everything goes your way and you get wins that you don't deserve. It has a way of balancing itself out. The preparation level of that team, the speed is in that team to win races. They will get their share. I am not too worried about that for them."

DOES DENNY HAMLIN HAVE ALL OF THE MOJO WITH HIM RIGHT NOW? "I mean certainly those two teams are both very capable. This sport is about being hot at the right time. There are a lot of teams in the garage that have enough power to strike. There are several teams that may be hanging a little low right now that are flying under the radar but they can still win the championship and still get in the Chase. So there is a lot that is going to happen between now and then and I consider the No. 20 car to be a favorite to win a championship."

HOW MUCH DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE FOR YOU TO GO TO A TEST AT A NON-CUP TRACK AND NOT HAVE A TIRE THAT YOU KNOW THAT YOU ARE GOING TO RUN ON? "It makes a big difference. There are a lot of things that we do, I mean, everything that you do runs through the tire. The tire changes the way the car drives. The changes that you make in the car are usually influenced by the tire. It is way more efficient to test on the tire that you are going to be racing. There is no doubt about that. You have to have discipline. You have to test the right kind of things that are going to work with whatever tire. There are somethings that won't. There are somethings that you can be testing that on the wrong tire aren't effective at all. So it's a little bit of a guessing game to determine what you should be and what you shouldn't be testing without the right tire. When you need a test and you can't get the right tire, you just ha ve to go and do it. You have got to hope that you have got it figured out."

WHAT KIND OF THINGS CAN YOU LEARN ABOUT HAVING THE RIGHT TIRES? "I am not going to discuss that because there are some definite opinions that we have. We will keep those to ourselves."

ON CHICAGO NEXT WEEKEND: "Chicago has been a really neat race track. We had a really good run there last year. We ran second. It has turned into a really cool race track. The grooves widened out. We have got multiple grooves now. A lot different race track than it was when we first started going there. It is pretty slick. That track even though it is fairly new is pretty slick. It doesn't have a tremendous amount of grip. I think it's pretty exciting racing because the cars don't drive well. It's a handful to get your car to drive the way that you want it to drive. Handling is going to be really important."

ON THE ATMOSPHERE OF THE 26TH RACE OF THE SEASON IN RICHMOND: "Well there is maybe two or three people that feel pretty good about things. They are going into the Chase and they are racing that race for one thing and that is to learn and to try to win a race. There is about eight or 10 that there is so much pressure that you can't even describe it. That is what sports are all about. It's either get it done or go home kind of an attitude. When you have to have that attitude, you know, you don't just have it that week you have it three weeks prior to it too and it all builds and it creates a highly pressure filled situation. That is why people like sports, to have that pressure and to have that intensity. It certainly is there for that race. There is no question."

HOW MUCH HAS THE AURA OF THAT RACE CHANGED SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE CHASE? "It's pretty big. What you have today is, you will have 14 maybe 15 teams that go to Richmond with a chance of winning the championship. Obviously they have to get their business done at Richmond but if they get their business done they can move on and have a chance to win a championship. That is a great difference than what it used to be. It used to be that maybe four or five at the most, going into 10 races after going all year thinking they had a chance to win a championship. There is a sense of excitement. There is a sense of enthusiasm. There is a sense of a new beginning. There is a sense of a second chance almost. It is a completely different feel."

THIS IS THE LAST RACE ON SUPER SPEEDWAY WITH THE CURRENT CAR. DO YOU THINK THAT WE WILL SEE MUCH CHANGE? "No. I think that we will see, the way the Daytona 500 was run, I think that is a lot of what you will see. I think that we will see more packs break out. I don't think we will see a tremendous amount of three wide/four wide stuff. We will on restarts or late cautions like we did in the 500. It could get pretty interesting. I think that handling is going to be so important that it is going to be hard to have big grooves."

SINCE THIS IS THE LAST TIME THAT YOU WILL BE RUNNING THE CURRENT CAR ON THIS SPEEDWAY, IS THAT A GOOD THING IN YOUR OPPIONION? "I don't know. Ask me after Talladega. It is too early to tell. I haven't driven the Car of Tomorrow on a superspeedway. I certainly haven't been on a race track with 42 other guys. I don't know what to expect. I don't have an opinion on that. I don't have enough information to have an opinion."

YOU TALKED ABOUT OWNERS BEING CAUTIOUS ABOUT WHERE THEY SPEND THEIR MONEY AND HOW THEY CAN SPEND IT. AS A DRIVER HOW AWARE ARE YOU OF HOW MUCH MONEY IS SPENT? "It is a balance. As a driver, you have to, what is the phrase? The squeaky wheel gets the grease? You have to demand that you have equipment that is capable of winning. You have to be part of the group that helps to determine that we have to do things better and where we are weak and in order to do that we have to spend money. So it is a balance between being completely blind and deaf to not caring what the money is. You know it is a little bit healthy to not care what it costs and just try to say we have got to have it. It is a balance between that and not worrying about it too much. You can't worry about it too much and be not aggressive enough worrying that finances can get out of hand quickly and you can be worried about that too much. As a driver I think it is important to help be part of the decision making process and where you need to be better and then the owner has got to find a way to gather the money up to find a way to do those things. I don't think it is fair to the owner for the driver to not have any awareness of it whatsoever because I don't care how much money you have you still operate within a budget. I mean if you had twice as much money as the next guy, you still operate within a budget. If you had half the money, you have to operate within a budget. The more of the budget restraints that you are under, the more important it is to be efficient as to how you operate that budget and more important it is to spend it in the right places. So even if you had the amount of money as somebody else, which not really anybody does, but if you did have that situation, you still get more benefit if you spend it wisely. I think the drivers being part of that and having some perspec tive of that helps move the ball."

DURING THE TIME THAT YOU HAVE BEEN IN MOTORSPORTS, DO YOU THINK FANS HAVE CHANGED? "I hate questions that lump everybody up in one group. I don't think that we have millions of fans that all think the same way. I think that we have millions of fans but they are all individual and they all have different opinions and some have changed and some haven't. I just hate lumping everybody up in one group."

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Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Monte Carlo SS Weekly Top 12 Hauler Chat

Kevin Harvick, No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Monte Carlo SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway to discuss what it means to win the Daytona 500, his championship hopes, the new-generation race car and spec-motor racing.

HOW HAS YOUR LIFE CHANGED SINCE WINNING THE DAYTONA 500? "It's hard to explain the difference just between, with the magnitude of the Daytona 500 and something that I really didn't understand until we won the race. Just knowing the difference between the Daytona 500 and winning a race. So it's just a huge mark on your resume and to be a part of everything that's gone on has been fun to be a part of. It's something that we've all enjoyed and hopefully we get to do it again."

WHAT'S IT LIKE TO BE HERE IN THIS GROUP OF GUYS WHO HAVE WON OVER THE YEARS? "Yeah, it's pretty overwhelming, to tell you the truth. You walk up and you see Mario Andretti and A.J. Foyt and all the guys that have won Daytona 500s in the past and just knowing the history that you get to be around when you've won the Daytona 500 is something that for me, being a race fan, is something that is pretty special. It's fun to be a part of, to see all those guys and know that it's still pretty special to them is something that's neat."

HOW DO YOU ASSESS YOUR CHAMPIONSHIP HOPES THIS YEAR? "I think we've run very strong through the whole year and we've had a couple hiccups along the way at a couple race tracks but nothing crazy bad. For the most part we've been really good performance-wise and we've just had a lot of things go wrong and hopefully we've gotten all those things out of the way. Our engines keep getting better every week and I know we have a plan getting to the Chase with our engines being better and having different packages and things like that to choose from. It seems like we keep gaining momentum. It's just been a huge strain on everyone trying to run both race teams and try to keep everything going and test and do all the things that you need to do to keep up. It's run our guys down pretty good but for the most part it seems like we get stronger every week and we get more things out of the way that have happened that don't need to happen at the end."

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE NEW CAR AT THIS POINT? "We've run well at all of them. Like I say, we've had some things go wrong but I probably the worst race we've had was last week. For whatever reason it seems like the flatter type of race track was the hardest for us to race on and you kind of were where you were running and it was hard to pass. It seemed like you could come in and put no tires on so I think we need to look at the tire situation just to see. With the corner speeds being so much slower and things we need to see if we can't make the tires a little bit softer to get us going a little bit faster. It will make the cars handle better and the tires should fall off at the end. I think you need to change tires as you get going through a run."

WERE YOU PART OF THE DISCUSSIONS TO USE THE SAME CAR THROUGH ALL THE NEW CAR RACES? "I used to ask every week just as far as what car we were running and things like that but I just don't ask anymore (laughs). They tell me that we've run the same car every time we run an oval race and I don't know if that's just to prove a point or if that's just because they think that's the best car. We have run the same car except for Infineon."

AS A TEAM OWNER, DO YOU LIKE THE REDUCED NUMBER OF CARS? "I think any time we can focus on one particular car or body, whatever we can do to have just one car is going to be better for the team owners and that's the most important thing is to know that the cars are going to be the same. The guys can work on the same stuff in the shop and be consistent as far as what you have. That's what we're working towards."

HAVE YOU BEEN KEEPING TRACK OF THE TESTING WITH THE NEW SPEC MOTOR AND HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT? "I think the spec motor would be the sorriest thing we could do to racing just for the fact of, I've talked to some of the guys that have run the spec motor and most of us depend on our manufacturers and our manufacturer is not necessarily interested in spec engine racing. From what I've heard from some of the guys and drivers that have tested is you basically just math the thing up off the corner and there's not a whole lot of technique for it so I think there are things that you can do to help the cost but if you want to make it a spec series it would probably wind up like IROC and out of business."

DID YOU HEAR THE ENGINE BLEW UP AT TALLADEGA THE OTHER DAY? "Did it? Good. I hope it keeps blowing up."

WOULD YOU RATHER NASCAR RAISE THE VALUE OF THE TRUCK SERIES TO MAKE IT EASIER TO GET SPONSORS FOR IT? "I think that there's other things we can do than go to a spec motor. We can seal the current motors that we have, we can not travel all the way to California to race in front of 50 people, we could do a lot of things to help the series whether it's travel-wise or seal the motors and make you race them twice. A spec motor is something that's great for the Busch East and Busch West Series but I just totally disagree with it on what we call a national series. It's supposed to be one of our top-three series and I just think they are pushing it for all the wrong reasons and I hope it keeps blowing up."

YOU'RE NOMINATED FOR AN ESPY AWARD - HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT? "I think it's pretty cool just for the fact that we got to be nominated a couple of times so hopefully we can win."

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BEHIND THE HAULER CHAT WITH MARTIN TRUEX JR., NO. 01 BASS PRO SHOPS MONTE CARLO SS

Martin Truex, Jr., No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Monte Carlo SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway to discuss his first win, his status with the team, restrictor-plate racing and other subjects.

DALE EARNHARDT, JR. SAID TO YOU THAT AFTER YOU WON YOUR FIRST RACE YOU WILL RUN BETTER. IS THAT THE CASE? "I kind of understood that. I think you sit back and you don't put a lot of pressure on yourself, you just kind of let things roll, let things happen the way they are going to happen. It seems to be a lot easier racing that way."

WERE THERE A LOT OF IMPROVEMENTS THAT TOOK PLACE WITH YOUR TEAM THAT MOST PEOPLE WEREN'T PAYING ATTENTION TO? "Absolutely. I think we had strong race cars all year long. I've been saying that even before we won the race and had all these top fives. I've been real happy with my race team and happy with my race cars all year long. We had a tough time there for a while getting the finishes that we deserve but we've always had good cars all year."

WHAT DID IT MEAN TO HAVE ANOTHER STRONG PERFORMANCE AT LOUDON AFTER A LESSER FINISH AT INFINEON? "Sonoma was kind of a weird deal for us. We tested the new car at VIR and we kind of fall in the same things all weekend there that we did so that was kind of frustrating. But to come back at Loudon and to run like we've been running all year was a good feeling. It kind of solidified the fact that we can do this every weekend. I think Sonoma is not one of my better race tracks, obviously, so we didn't let that bother us all that much."

IS IT TOUGHER NOW TO ACCEPT WHEN YOU HAVE A BAD RACE? "Yeah, it's tougher but we work hard. The guys are working real hard. This is the Nextel Cup Series. We're not going to finish second or third every weekend or win. Everybody out here has bad weekends and we realize that."

WHAT DO YOU HOPE THE NEW ENGINE COMBINATION WILL OFFER THIS WEEKEND? "I think our cars have always traditionally been very good. Especially here when it comes down to handling. Where we've always struggled is qualifying, making those two fast laps. Hopefully it will help with that a little bit. We can start closer to the front and that will make it a little easier on us."

TALK ABOUT THE COMPARISON BETWEEN THE DAYTONA 500 AND THIS RACE: "The biggest thing, I think, is the temperature. The race track here at this race is a lot slicker and the tires wear out more. It's more of a handling race then it is in February when it's 60 degrees out. So the guys' cars that really handle well will be the guys you have to beat, unless it comes down to 10 laps and you're down on your tires."

WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF CHICAGOLAND SPEEDWAY? "It's a typical mile-and-a-half track. It's a really fun track. The groove's gotten really wide. I remember last year a lot of guys were running around the top and going fast and around the bottom. They're typically the kind of race tracks I enjoy. I like where you can move around and find where your car works the best and go where somebody isn't and make a pass. So it's a fun race track to race on."

HOW DOES WINNING FOR THE FIRST TIME CHANGE A TEAM? "I think the biggest thing it does for you is get rid of all the doubt that anyone has every had or the questions that anyone has every had about 'can we do this, when will it happen?', all that. You don't worry about that anymore. You know you can win and you just have to figure out how you're going to do it again, which is almost just as tough but you don't really worry about it quite as much."

DOES WINNING ADD MORE MOTIVATION? "Absolutely. Once you get it once you want it more, obviously. But you know how to do it, you've been there, you've done it before. Everybody on the race team, their confidence is up knowing that they can get it done. They can do the job as good as anybody out here. That goes a long way."

CAN YOU PHYSICALLY SEE THAT LEVEL UP? "Absolutely. In the decisions they make, in the way the team morale is, around the shop. Everybody's excited, always pumped up, looking forward to the next thing, the next challenge and it's been a lot of fun."

WAS THERE EVERY A CONCERN FOR YOUR TEAM THAT AS SUCCESFUL AS YOU WERE IN THE BUSCH SERIES, THAT MIGHT NOT HAVE CARRIED OVER HERE? "I think some people thought that way but we didn't. I never had a doubt in those guys on that team, Bono and all the guys that were with us on the Busch car. It just took us time. It was a pretty big transition for us when we went from the Busch Series to the Cup Series and quite honestly, it just took a little longer than we thought it would to get our feet wet and to find our way. I never doubted Bono for a second and I think he felt the same way. When things aren't going that great and people say 'what would you think if you had a new crew chief' I say. I think all that just takes you a step backwards. Then you've got to relearn everything plus learn what you've got to learn to win and to get better. We've just been taking it one step at a time and we've always had that confidence that we could get it done together. It was definitely a lot swee ter when it did happen."

HAS IT CHANGED YOUR OUTLOOK FOR THE CHASE AT ALL? "It just feels good that we're performing the way we should. That's the bottom line. We know we've got the stuff it takes to make the Chase. We'll keep doing what we've been doing and we'll be right there for the Championship too. It's real exciting, it's a lot of fun right now. We're having a blast coming to the race track every weekend. Once you get on a roll, man, it just keeps coming. You keep running good and everybody's having fun. It just gets so much easier, I can't even tell you. I just really look forward to each race every weekend and hopefully we just keep doing what we've been doing."

IS THERE ANYWHERE YOU'RE ESPECIALLY CONCERNED ABOUT? "No, not at all. I feel comfortable at all these race tracks. The new car has been good to us; the old car we've been fast with. We've run well at short tracks, speedways, superspeedways. I think overall we're pretty consistent as far as our abilities on different race tracks. I'm real excited about it."

WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HAVING THE SUSPENDED CREW CHIEFS AT THE TRACK EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE NOT IN THE GARAGE? "I didn't even know that was happening. It depends on how you look at it. One way or another, the crew chief, still, even though if he's not at the track or is outside the track, he still has a big part in what goes on with that race team. He's still in the shop during the week, setting the cars up, going through a game plan on what he wants his team to accomplish throughout practice, throughout the race; things to look at as far as changes on the race car and things.

"So they'll always be a part of that race team, whether they're at the track or away from it. I don't think it makes a big difference either way."

CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR ROLE AT DEI NOW? "I don't know, I never really thought about it. I was just always focused on. all I ever wanted to do was win and do the job that these guys deserve - get them wins and run up front each week. Get them what they deserve. It's just been a lot of fun. The transition that people say that I'm the lead guy and all.we keep driving like we are and I'll be the lead guy and that's just the way it is. We just need to keep performing."

DO YOU SEE YOURSELF AS A LEADER? "I think I can be. Yeah. I'm pretty easy to get along with. I enjoy working with all the guys we've got around. That's really all it takes. Good communication, being a team player and not being out for yourself. I think I've got what it takes."

WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FOR SUPERSPEEDWAYS WITH THIS BEING THE LAST RACE AT THESE TRACKS WITH THIS CAR? "I don't think you'll see a big difference, to be honest with you. I'm sure they will adjust the restrictor plate to run somewhere around the speeds we're running now. We've got all the same drivers and we're still all out there trying to win and we still got all the same teams and equipment and people. That's what it's all about. It's not about what car you've got, it's about the people around you and the equipment you've got under you. So I don't see a big change in it but these cars here are a lot of fun. I really don't know what to expect with the new car on the plate tracks. We ran it at Talladega a little bit. It was similar to the Busch car with the wickers. Punching a bigger hole, having more drag and being able to suck up better. If anything, it will make the races more exciting and bigger, tighter packs."

DO YOU LIKE THE CRAP-SHOOT NATURE OF PLATE RACES? "Yes and no. When you come out on the good side of it it feels good. It's great. There's a lot of times that you don't and that sucks too. It just is what it is."

WHAT ARE YOU LEARNING FROM MAX SIEGEL AND HOW ARE YOU GUYS WORKING TO REBRAND YOUR IMAGE? "Max is a smart guy. He knows how to approach things from all different angles as far as this business is concerned. I think he brings a lot of new ideas from the music industry. He's just got a lot of great ideas. He knows the people to talk to and the direction to send people to get done what they need to get done whether it's trying to make somebody more popular or more accessible to fans and the media or to putting the right people in place to do their job. He's a really good people person and he's got a lot of great ideas."

HOW'S HE SHAPING YOU? "I'm not really sure yet but I'll let you know when I find out."

DO YOU FIND IT THAT YOU'RE MORE RECOGNIZED WHEN YOU GO OUT? "I don't know, I don't go out much so I'm not real sure. The fans have been great. I've got a lot of good things said to me from the fans which means a lot. My driver intro seems to be a little bit louder than it's always been so that's a good feeling."

FROM A CAR STANDPOINT, ARE YOU GUYS IN GOOD SHAPE WITH WHAT YOU'VE GOT BUILT FOR THE COMING RACES? "Yeah, we've got a good fleet of cars both old and new. I told Bono I've got two cars which I really like, one's an Impala SS and one's the Monte Carlo SS. I told him I just want to wear those two out and if something happens to them then we'll take out something else but I've got two that I really like right now. Hopefully we can keep running those."

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Clint Bowyer, No. 07 Jack Daniels Monte Carlo SS, Weekly Top 12 Hauler Chat

Clint Bowyer, No. 07 Jack Daniels Monte Carlo SS, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway. He discussed the difference between racing here in July and February, racing the Monte Carlo SS here for the last time, what stands out about racing in Chicago and other topics.

ON RACING HERE IN JULY VERSUS FEBRUARY: "It's a little darker (laughs). It's the same thing. I think the handling characteristics might be a little bit different but not really. The track is wearing out and as it does I think handling is becoming more and more of an issue. We just got done with Busch practice and it's plowing worse than it did when we were here in February so definitely a lot tighter. So we'll just have to see. That was the same race car but you never know. The fenders might have been different. You never know what was different. We'll go out here, got a brand new race car, so we've got to shake it down and see what we got. That's the biggest thing. Got to go out there and put it in some situations and see how it likes it."

WHO ARE THE DRIVERS TO BEAT TO THIS WEEKEND? "It's never any surprises. The guys that win the races. Jeff Gordon's won a bunch. Tony Stewart's won a bunch. Those are going to be the guys you'll have to beat. When it comes down to it the guys that run up front. It's never any surprises."

ON WHAT STAND OUTS ABOUT RACING AT CHICAGO: "Chicago is an important race track for me because it's so close to my home track and Kansas Speedway. Usually if you run good at Chicago it's a pretty good sign you're going to run good at Kansas and that's important."

ON IF HE NOTICED ANY DIFFERENCE IN THE BUSCH ENGINE: "It ran good. The Busch car ran good. It's just really, really tight. My straightaway handling was good if that tells you anything. It wasn't a big difference. Our Busch cars have always run really good down here and I've got close to winning, we just haven't been able to get it done. I'm proud of everybody at RCR. They've been working hard. Our engine program has really picked up and just trying to get my first win on a plate track. I really enjoy this type of racing and hopefully I can get it this weekend."

ON THIS RACE BEING THE LAST HERE FOR THE MONTE CARLO SS: "It's the only thing I've ever driven on a superspeedway so I've always liked it. It's been good to me so hopefully the Car of Tomorrow will be equally as good. We've been running good in our Car of Tomorrow races. I've got a good crew, good crew chief, good sponsor. You can't ask for a better package than I got. We got all the pieces of the puzzle and we got to put them together."

WILL YOU RACE ANY DIFFERENT KNOWING YOU WON'T BE THIS CAR BACK HERE: (Laughs) "No, you still got to get to the end. Maybe the last hundred feet if you're going for the win I guess you can afford to pile it up but nonetheless you don't want to tear these cars up just because it's the last one we'll ever use. It wasn't from lack of effort. It wasn't like they put any less effort in it as the other cars. Like I said it's a brand new race car. We've got to get out there and see what it's got. I know Gil (Martin) and everybody's been working their tails off on it and hopefully it should be a fast hot rod."

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MARK MARTIN, NO. 01 PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL MONTE CARLO SS

ON RETURNING TO DAYTONA AGAIN AFTER ALL THE HIGHS AND LOWS DURING SPEEDWEEKS "First of all, let me tell you what I think. I think I had a 15th place car in the Daytona 500. I think I had an incredible team with a huge heart and great desire. And I wanted to win this race in the worst way. And I was willing to take more risks than I had ever in my career to do that. Through terrific pit strategy and a car that led the race better than any car I'd ever had before, Ryan and the team got me the lead with 27 laps to go, or 25, really. And we led the last 26 and three-quarters laps.

"Do I think that I could replicate that magic? I think it's hard to replicate that magic. But we're definitely going to try. We're trying to make the car better. We have the same race car with some improvements. We'll do our best to make the car better and do our best to not only replicate that effort, but top it. And that's all I can say. For anyone to expect me to win this race because we led 26 and three-quarters laps of the last 27 laps last time, probably doesn't appreciate the monumental effort and incredible job that we did to be in position to win that race. I think that's easily forgotten by people around me, because they just think it's just like falling off a log and we're just going to come back and close the deal this time.

"I was so proud. I didn't get passed on the restarts. I don't know how many we had. It usually happens; even the last one. I didn't get blown off on the restart. There were so many chances for me to screw that deal up. And I was proud. I was proud to be in front going into Turn 3 and I thought at that point that we were going to be able to close the deal. But when Kyle Busch spun out, my chances went way down. He was the fastest car in the race at that time and he was hemmed in behind me, so I was sitting really pretty until he spun."

HOW MUCH WOULD A WIN HERE MEAN FOR YOU ON SATURDAY? "It would be second only to the Daytona 500. Now that that 500 is behind us, and we didn't close that deal, the next most important race is this one and winning the 400 and when we get through that one, we'll focus on the Brickyard and then when we get through the Brickyard we'll start talking about the Daytona 500. The No.01 team is going to give me another shot at it in '08. So we'll try to close the deal this time."