CHEVY RACING AT POCONO RACEWAY: -- JEFF CHEW, MARKETING MANAGER,
NASCAR, CHEVY RACING: "The Corvette Racing Tour showcases the
successful history of Corvette in motorsports, and also demonstrates the
technology on the street-car version, which is directly tied to the race
cars on the track. The display includes Corvette show cars, engines,
championship trophies and a pictorial history of Corvette Racing.
It's a must-see for any race fan, and plenty of fun for the entire
family."
* Team Chevy's Silverado driver Austin Dillon will sign
autographs on Friday at 3:00 p.m. in the Display
* Clint Bowyer will hold a driver/fan Q&A on Sunday at 9:30 a.m.
at the Chevy Racing Display
* Pit Crew Autograph Session with Kevin Harvick's No. 29
Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet team will be Sunday at 10:00 a.m., also in the
Display
TEAM CHEVY AT POCONO RACEWAY -- ALBA COLON, GM RACING PROGRAM
MANAGER, NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES: "It's always fun to go to Pocono, and
it's good to head into an event with the momentum of a win on your side
from the previous week's race. The win at the Brickyard was a big one
for Chevrolet and we congratulate Jamie McMurray and his entire team for
a special victory; and Chip Ganassi for capturing the Triple Crown!
"Chevrolet has enjoyed a lot of success at Pocono. It's a favorite track
for drivers and fans alike. The unique nature of the Pocono track, with
three distinctive corners and three straights, including the long front
straightaway, is always a challenge. Each corner is different, so that
makes it hard to find the perfect compromise in the handling package for
the car. The track configuration in itself requires heavier use of the
brakes than most big tracks. It puts extra wear on the brake components
as well as on the engines, much like a road course does.
"This track is also very physically and mentally demanding on the
drivers; and presents its own set of challenges for the crew chiefs and
engineers in determining the best set-ups for the cars. When you factor
in the timing of the cautions, pit stops, fuel mileage, and horsepower,
it lives up to its name as one tricky triangle!
"GM Racing engineers have been working very closely with all our
Chevrolet teams to maximize every component of the car to ensure
reliability without sacrificing performance. This weekend marks our
second stop at Pocono this year, but the first time to return to a track
where we have data about how the cars respond with the new spoiler. There
is always the need to continually improve and we have to keep working on
technologies with our teams. Each week, our focus is to be much better
than the week before and to be the best in the field. I am looking
forward to a winning race for Team Chevy at Pocono on Sunday!"
TEAM CHEVY FROM THE DRIVER'S SEAT:
KEVIN HARVICK, NO. 29 SHELL/PENNZOIL CHEVROLET -- POINT LEADER:
"Pocono has a lot of its own characteristics, to say the least. It's a
2.5-mile triangle-shaped race track that has three pretty tricky turns.
Turn one is really bumpy, and the tunnel turn has a pretty big curb and
it is pretty easy to make a mistake there. Turn three is one of the
flattest turns we deal with on the NASCAR circuit. It definitely has its
own unique challenges. For me, the trickiest part of Pocono is the tunnel
turn. You have to carry so much speed into that turn that there is not
much room for error. The tunnel turn is so much harder to get through
now than it used to be. A few years ago, there was a flat curb there and
you could lean on it a little bit if you needed to. Now, there is a big
curb there and, if you hit it, you'll probably be forced up the race
track, and the chances of hitting the wall are pretty high."
JEFF GORDON, NO. 24 DUPONT CHEVROLET -- 2ND IN STANDINGS: "We
started off June's race at Pocono pretty good, but then we got real
loose. Then we lost a ton of positions on a double-file restart when I
lost some momentum. Everybody seemed to 'freight train' on
by. And then we lost a car in a final-lap crash. Pocono is a challenging
track because it has three unique corners. The tunnel turn (turn 2) is a
short but really fast corner, and it's a thrill to go through there
when you hit it right. But when you mess up the corner, it really kills
your momentum."
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE'S CHEVROLET -- 3RD IN STANDINGS: "Pocono
- it's a triangle. It's bumpy and rough and different and awkward. Pocono
is its own animal. I think we were a top two or three car at some points
in the June Pocono race. We were at pace to be the fastest car on track.
So I feel like we have learned a lot and have closed the gap to that 11
car (Denny Hamlin) at Pocono. I'm hopeful for another top two or three
run. Of course I want to win, but those guys seem to have a little bit on
everyone. I feel like we've closed the gap some. And hopefully we've
learned a little more. Typically that's hard because the races are so
close together it's hard to learn a lot in that period of time. But we
hope to have closed up the gap more and can give those guys a run at
Pocono."
JEFF BURTON, NO. 31 CATERPILLAR CHEVROLET -- 7TH IN STANDINGS:
"Pocono is a challenging race track. The main struggle at Pocono is one
of the three corners. A lot of teams will find two corners where they are
good and then they'll have one corner where they are not so good. But, a
perfect lap is being good in every corner and not sacrificing anything
anywhere. Pocono is a very demanding race track physically and mentally.
It's one of our toughest tests we have all year. We ran really well and
were competitive at Pocono last month. We had a bit of luck on our side
late in the race when we broke a suspension component and ran around the
track with three shocks. It was a lucky break but it was another
opportunity that slipped through our fingers. We made the decision on how
to build the shock and it ended up not being the right decision, so
that's where we have to separate luck from our doing. It's another
example of how we were fast and something got away from us that we have
control of. Those are the things we have equity in and have to take
responsibility. But, I was really happy with how we ran up until that
occurrence. We were just a touch off the (No.) 11 but we have something
we can build on."
TONY STEWART, NO. 14 OFFICE DEPOT/OLD SPICE CHEVROLET - 9TH IN STANDINGS:
"It used to be that if you ran good at Pocono then you had a good shot at
running good at Indy. I don't know if it has still correlated the
last couple years with the new car. The thing about Indy is it's
glass -- it's got a couple little bumps here and there, but you go
to Pocono and it's rough and bumpy. The setups are quite a bit
different now. The thing is you can't predict who is going to be
good each week. This sport is more competitive than it's ever been
as far as competition and organizations that are competitive. It's
a cool time to be a driver in this series for sure."
CLINT BOWYER, NO. 33 THE HARTFORD CHEVROLET - 12TH IN STANDINGS: "Pocono
is a race track where I feel we can have a top-five run. The last time
there, we led a lot of laps early and circumstances took us out of it at
the end. At one point, we were 29th, but we were fortunate enough to get
back up to where we needed to be. This is a race track where I think we
can get a good run going and help keep us locked in the top 12."
MARK MARTIN, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM/GODADDY.COM CHEVROLET -- 13TH IN
STANDINGS: "We really struggled with the handling of our car all
day (at Pocono in June). The car would be nearly perfect on fresh tires,
but as those tires wore out, we lost all grip on the track and just
couldn't hold our speed. I think we would have had a decent 10th or
12th place finish there at the end, but, as everyone saw, the competition
just got crazy on the green-white-checkered restart. When that many cars
are on the lead lap and you've got two laps to duke it out,
we're all going to run over one another. That's what
happened. It ruined our race and really hurt us in points, but it
happens. We just have to take what we learned from that race and apply it
this weekend and hopefully gain some of those points back."
DALE EARNHARDT JR., NO. 88 AMP ENERGY/NATIONAL GUARD CHEVROLET --
14TH IN STANDINGS: "I think the difference between a good finish and a
bad finish at Pocono is getting the car to turn through the center and
really being able to get down into Turn 1. The car wants to go straight
into that corner so bad. Getting comfortable enough to be able to be fast
through the tunnel (Turn 2) all day long is important. The corners are so
different it's so easy to try to improve one thing and just screw up
something that wasn't even a problem. So when we've run good, we've had
awesome race cars. Hopefully we'll have another one."
RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 39 US ARMY CHEVROLET -- 15TH IN STANDINGS: ""We're
well aware of our position (in the point standings) and well aware of
what we need to do. Indy was just another example of how this team
operates like our Soldiers. We give 110 percent all the time and never
quit. We represent more than one million Soldiers and there's no way that
we're going to disappoint them due to a lack of effort or a defeatist
attitude. We're going to keep on pounding away and fight for every point.
Don't count us out. We weren't as good the last time at Pocono as we have
been in the past. We just got caught a little bit behind, but I am
confident that has been rectified and we will be challenging come Sunday.
I have many fond memories about Pocono, including winning there in the
ARCA series. It's a special place in my book and I would like to make it
even more special by producing another strong finish."
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 AXE TWIST CHEVROLET -- 16TH IN STANDINGS:
"Pocono is a unique track that we visit twice a year and it's
the only triangular racetrack we compete on all season long. Due to the
unique layout of the track, it forces us to look at a few different
aspects of our race car for this weekend's race. Horsepower is the
key at Pocono and you need to have a fast and powerful car since there
are three different straightaways. We've had really fast race cars
this year, ECR has given us some great Chevrolet horsepower, and Juan had
a good finish at Pocono last season. So, I'm really looking
forward to seeing what we'll be able to accomplish this weekend in
our AXE Twist Chevrolet."
JUAN PABLO MONTOYA, NO. 42 TARGET CHEVROLET -- 22ND IN STANDINGS:
"Pocono wasn't one of my favorite race tracks early on in my
career but our equipment has improved so much over the years that a lot
of our good results have come in places we use to struggle at. Earlier
this year we had some handling issues but the guys made some good changes
and things turned around for us. The way things have been going for us I
just hope we can walk out of there with some solid results and not a
wrecked race car."
BOBBY LABONTE, NO. 71 TAXSLAYER.COM CHEVROLET -- 31ST IN STANDINGS:
"I had a span of about four years there where we just hit on the right
set-up of combinations at Pocono. I like the race track. It is one of the
most challenging tracks we go to because the three corners are different.
It is hard to set the car up for Pocono. It is unique. My success there
is based upon having the just right set-up on the car. Everyone points to
Turn Three as the corner where you really need the car to handle. I
don't disagree with that point. If you get Turn Three right it
helps you to carry speed down the long front straight. Turn Three is the
most important corner followed by turns two and one."
-source: gm racing
