QUOTABLE QUOTES:ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 WORLDWIDE EXPRESS CAMARO ZL1 Can you talk about the pressure of you being locked into the playoffs and having a teammate who is still trying to get in? “Well, it’s going to be an exciting weekend for sure. Everyone has a little bit different agenda and we’re all competitors so I’m sure we’ll keep it interesting. Things can change so quickly at the superspeedways and so much is out of your control. I want to win but overall I want it to be a good weekend for Trackhouse and for Daniel to make it in the playoffs. It’s good for everyone at our team and our partners to have both cars in the playoffs.” How much does coming into Daytona with some drivers needing to win to get into the playoffs change how people race? “There’s definitely different approaches when it comes to drivers just trying to survive and being there at the end of the prescribed laps, or if you actually want to go race. Time will tell on how it’s going to work out for everyone.” AUSTIN DILLON, NO. 3 BREZTRI CAMARO ZL1 “We’re headed to the Coca-Cola Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. There’s nothing quite like going to Daytona. I enjoy the sunshine and fast racetrack. There’s nothing like drafting around that place. Obviously, I’ve got two big career wins there. The Daytona 500 and we won the August race to walk off, win and make our way into the NASCAR Playoffs last year in the Coca-Cola Zero Sugar 400. It’s shaping up for us to have the opportunity to try and do it again. I love drafting, getting in there and mixing it up, so we’ll see what it takes to put the No.3 Chevy back in the NASCAR Playoffs, hopefully.” KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 CHEDDAR’S SCRATCH KITCHEN CAMARO ZL1 How different is racing at Daytona in August versus February? “Running Daytona in August is way different than February. It’s just a hotter time of the year so the track is definitely slicker. You need to set up a little bit more for downforce for grip to make your car drive good on the long run. It’s still a drafting race, it’s still going to be close-knit, and tight action.” Teams and manufacturers plan to work together at Daytona and Talladega, but once the race starts, how difficult is that? “The manufacturers, ever since like 2015 or 2016, have really changed the way the aspects the way superspeedway races go. It’s all about trying to work together as a unit. Our key partners with Hendrick Motorsports and Trackhouse have been really good on the superspeedways this year. I feel like we’ve had good success with that and working well together with those guys. Outside of RCR and Austin Dillion, Chase Elliott has probably been the closest guy that we’ve had as an ally on the superspeedways.” Do you think the final race of the NASCAR regular season should move around to different tracks? “Daytona being the final race of the regular season, man, it keeps that wild card opportunity open, so it really puts itself at a really good spot in the season. I liked the July 4th race there because you have the family, you go to the beach, you go do stuff together and then go race at night. Before we start moving around the final race of the regular season, I would say we should move around the final race of the championship and get it to different venues.” AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 16 ACTION INDUSTRIES CAMARO ZL1 “Our cars have been really good at superspeedways this season. Daytona is a racetrack I never look forward to, to be quite honest, but I know that if we go put ourselves in position, we’re going to have a shot to win the race. We’ll take everything we can get, try to be the guy that doesn’t make the mistake and avoid the big one. If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.” JOSH BERRY, NO. 42 SUNSEEKER RESORTS CAMARO ZL1 “Making my first Cup Series start at Daytona is definitely a dream come true. It’s what every racer dreams of and I get to do that this weekend. Not long ago I thought I was going to be a career short track racer, so to know that I get to make my first start at Daytona in a Cup car just shows that you should never give up.” What are your expectations for the race? “It’s going to be a learning curve to start the race, especially without practice. These cars draft differently than the Xfinity cars do and we’ve seen drivers be able to tandem a little bit to gain momentum and move forward. If we can just keep it clean and be there at the end, that is our plan.” What has his week been like preparing for this event? “It’s definitely been a little easier preparing for Daytona knowing ahead of time that I would be in the No. 42. Being able to sit in the car beforehand, get everything where I need it, is key. I have been able to lean on Dale Jr, Erik (Jones) and everyone over at LEGACY MOTOR CLUB to figure out what to expect this weekend, so I feel as ready as can be to get to Daytona.” Will you learn anything from the Xfinity Series race on Friday night that can translate over to Saturday? “There’s not too much that will translate over from the Xfinity car to the Cup car but I’ll be able to feel how the track transitions at different times of the evening and how the cars react to the weather. The line changes a little bit depending on the sun and when it sets, so it’ll be nice to see what lane is preferred on Friday before hopping in the Cup car on Saturday.” ERIK JONES, NO. 43 ALLEGIANT CAMARO ZL1 “Daytona is always exciting, especially with it being the last race of the year leading into the playoffs, it’s always a pretty wild race. I was able to win that summer race a few years ago for my first cup win and I really hope to add on there and grab a win to get ourselves into the playoffs. I am excited to get there always, and I enjoy superspeedway racing, I feel like we have been really close and just need to close one of these speedway races out, so hopefully this is the one.” RICKY STENHOUSE JR., NO. 47 BOOST BY KROGER / ENTENMANN’S CAMARO ZL1 “It will be really fun to get back to Daytona. The last time we were there it was kind of chaotic with all the celebrating, media, and stuff that we did. It will be cool to go back and go to the museum to see our race car for the first time since we won and be at the Daytona 500 Champions’ Walk of Fame reveal. It is always nice to go back to a racetrack where you are trying to defend. Sweeping the races at Daytona would be huge for us. I feel good about what we were able to accomplish at the start of the season and winning the Daytona 500. It is one that we all have circled on our calendar every single year to get the job done when we show up. That was cool to do. It is a tough race to win and one that sticks with you forever. We punch above our weight with what we have, and I think we take a lot of pride in that. We wish probably that we had more things to go to battle with, but I am happy with the tools we have and how we do battle. It has been a fun season. We know where our strengths and weaknesses are. We need to make sure that we continue to make our weaknesses less because we do have strong suits. We work hard and it has been cool to see everybody kind of hold hands and go forward together. We are okay with being under the radar going into the Playoffs. It is completely fine for us.” CHASE PURDY, NO. 4 BAMA BUGGIES SILVERADO RST How are you preparing for the Milwaukee Mile? “I’ve never been to Milwaukee, so I’ve just been watching a bunch of races on YouTube, getting on my iRacing Sim and obviously the Chevy Simulator — just using all the tools and resources so that I can be as best prepared as I can when I show up.” As you’ve prepared for this race is there anything that you’ve found to be unique about the Milwaukee Mile? “Yeah, I think it’s cool that it’s kind of a worn out surface. It looks like there are two grooves that you can race each other on, but I think that passing is going to be really difficult. So, it’ll be important to have speed early and qualify up front.” What does it mean to be a part of NASCAR’s return to the Milwaukee Mile? “It’s just really unique. I watched the old Xfinity races there as a kid growing up, so I’m looking forward to going back there. I remember actually watching Kyle (Busch) race there years ago. So, it’ll be really fun and I’m excited about it. It’s kind of like North Wilkesboro. I don’t think this return has quite as much hype as that place did, but it definitely should.” CHRISTIAN ECKES, NO. 19 GATES HYDRAULICS SILVERADO RST Eckes on racing at Milwaukee for the first time: “It’s going to be a challenge, for sure. Not many people have raced at Milwaukee recently, so there’s not much of a notebook to look at other than some visual similarities to Gateway or Phoenix. We’d love to get another win with our Gates Hydraulics Chevrolet and we’re certainly capable of that. Hopefully we can take another step forward from how we ran at IRP and Gateway earlier this year and be one of the trucks to beat this weekend. Another great points day like we had at IRP would be great to help us get close to advancing, but getting back to victory lane is the priority for our team.” GRANT ENFINGER, NO. 23 CHAMPION POWER EQUIPMENT SILVERADO RST Since you have never raced at Milwaukee before, what are you looking to gain by competing in the ARCA race before the Truck Series race on Sunday? “Any laps around a track are good laps, especially at a place that I’ve never been to. So, I appreciate Codie (Rohrbaugh, CR7 Motorsports Team Owner) for the opportunity to run their car, and more than that, it’s really fun racing in the ARCA Series. Overall, I’m looking forward to racing at Milwaukee; it’s a track that I’ve heard a lot about, and Hensley has raced there before, but I’ve never seen the place. I’m anxious to get there and get practice started on Saturday with our Champion Power Equipment Chevy, and hopefully we’ll have some good speed in the race.” RAJAH CARUTH, NO. 24 WENDELL SCOTT FOUNDATION SILVERADO RST Coming off your second top-10 finish of the season, how much of a confidence boost do you have entering Milwaukee, where you’ve raced at twice before? “I would say that the confidence lies in the prep that my No. 24 team and I are doing, not just for when it comes to this race, but the rest of the season as a whole. Most of the next tracks that we will be racing at on our schedule are ones that I’ve had the chance to race at before, whether that be in Trucks, ARCA, or Xfinity cars. It’s great to have another top-10 finish, but we have certainly been hoping for more, and in our minds there’s no reason that we can’t continue to run up front in the next six races, maybe potentially even bust off a win. I feel good in the Wendell Scott Foundation Chevy that we’ll have not just this weekend, but for the rest of the year.” JAKE GARCIA, NO. 35 ADAPTIVE ONE CALIPERS SILVERADO RST Garcia on racing at The Milwaukee Mile for the first time: “It’s always exciting to go to new tracks, especially to places with as much history as Milwaukee. You’re usually at a deficit when it comes to experience as a rookie, but not many other guys in the field have raced at Milwaukee either, so hopefully we can get to know the track quicker than most this weekend. Our trucks have had a lot of speed lately and we’ve raced inside the top five, so hopefully we can continue that this weekend with our Adaptive One Chevrolet.” DANIEL DYE, NO. 43 HAMLIN & ASSOCIATES SILVERADO RST You’re one of only a handful of drivers that has raced at Milwaukee before, so what have you learned about this track that you can carry into Sunday? “Being able to have raced at Milwaukee twice before with the Truck Series race coming up is definitely going to be helpful. It’s a unique place; it’s a little bit similar to what we ran at St. Louis, but definitely different. The surface is way older and it’s going to be a fun race in the trucks for sure. I loved it when I raced there in ARCA; we finished third both times we ran there. I’m going to try to use what I learned in those races when it comes to race around the competition and set up passes. We are excited to have Hamlin & Associates on our No. 43 Silverado, they are a new partner with our team and I think our truck looks fast, so hopefully we can replicate what we did the past two years and the success we had with them.” MATT MILLS, NO. 51 J.F. ELECTRIC SILVERADO RST Do your expectations for this race change after a top-five finish in your KBM debut at Richmond? “It certainly gives us some momentum. I really just need to go out there and have another solid weekend. If we can qualify in the single digits again and finish in the single digits, I think that would be a good weekend. It’s been more of a learning curve than I expected. Coming over here, it hasn’t just been show up and go faster, there’s been a lot that I’ve had to learn and things that I’ve had to work on. We will go into Milwaukee with some momentum and try and have another solid day in the J.F. Electric Silverado.” Having never been to Milwaukee before, how are you preparing for this race? “I’ve been asking lots of questions from lots of different drivers, spotters, and watching a lot of YouTube videos. Basically, that’s how I approached IRP last weekend since there wasn’t a lot to go off of. It worked out well for us over at Young’s Motorsports. I feel like I have more resources over here at KBM, so hopefully we can go out there and start out with some good speed and fine tune from there.” As you’ve done your research, is there a track that you’ve been to that you feel will be similar to Milwaukee? “Yeah, maybe 3 and 4 at Gateway. Honestly, growing up in the north, a lot of our racetracks are flat so hopefully that will play into my wheelhouse. Milwaukee is a little bigger, but I still have a really good feeling about it.” | 
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