Hendrick Motorsports heads into this weekend’s Brickyard 400 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway hoping for a strong result for their drivers. For Kyle Larson in the No.5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 it is his first time since competing in the 108th running of the Indianapolis 500 in May where he competed in the Greatest Spectacle In Racing for Arrow McLaren.
“Fans were really excited for this design to run back in May (at Charlotte Motor Speedway), and I was, too. Justin (Allgaier) did a great job driving the car (filling in for Larson), but with all the build-up and merch and everything around it, I asked HendrickCars.com if we could run it this weekend at Indianapolis and give the fans a chance to see me drive it. I’m grateful they agreed. Excited to get to run the scheme to say thanks to the fans for all the support.”
Cliff Daniels, crew chief of the No. 5 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on returning to the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway:
“It’s going to be a lot of fun. We loved the road course, but there is nothing more historic and special in all of racing than the Indianapolis (Motor Speedway) oval. To go back there with Kyle after his experience there this year will be fun and just cool to hear his feedback about the differences with the INDYCAR compared to the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet. Of course, he’s been around the oval before in a Cup car, but it will be nice to have the 50-minute practice on Friday and try to execute a great race on Sunday.”
Following a strong showing in Pocono last time out, Chase Elliott in the No.9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 goes in to the Brickyard weekend leading the regular season championship by three points from his team mate Kyle Larson.
That’s so tough because they are all a big deal. The one that is more meaningful to me is the Brickyard, just because I was old enough when my dad won to just very vaguely remember a few little things about it, and then to be in the photos and whatnot I thought was really cool. That one really hits closest to home for me, personally.”
Elliott on returning to the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway: “I totally understand why we left racing on the oval, and I think it was great to try the road course. I feel that a lot of people just felt like it didn’t have the same meaning or the same feeling as racing on the oval up there. So I’m totally good either way. I think to be able to kiss the bricks and to say you won a Brickyard event would be really cool, whether it was on the road course or on the big track.”
Alan Gustafson, crew chief of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on returning to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval this weekend:
“I’m super happy to be back on the oval. It’s a place that I love to go race. I love the history. I love the track, the facility — everything about it is just top notch. So I’m looking forward to it, looking forward to the challenge, and getting up there and racing. I think that there are a lot of unknowns and a lot of things that we’re all going to have to work out, but certainly feel like we’re in a position to do really well. All the guys and gals at Hendrick Motorsports are working hard and team collaboration is at a super high level. We’re going to bring four great cars and teams to the track and compete at our best. And if we do that, then yeah, I think we have a good shot.”
William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on his feelings of returning to the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway:
“I’m really happy that we’re returning to the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I think it’s too iconic not to run. I liked the road course, but I think the oval is the way to go and many drivers agree. I’ve had some success there, winning my first time seeing the track in the (NASCAR) Xfinity Series. It was a bit of an adjustment when I got to the Cup level but I really think we were hitting our stride before it was taken off the schedule. Things will be a bit different now racing there with the Next Gen car, but I like the challenge.”
Rudy Fugle, crew chief of the No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on what he expects with running the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway:
“I actually haven’t crew chief’d a race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the oval configuration, just the road course. I’ve been at the oval testing a long time ago but that’s it. So I don’t know a ton about all of it. I think a lot of Pocono (Raceway), like the stage lengths, the fuel mileage and the length of the track, will all be similar. The thing about Indy, though, is that the tire wear is usually higher. So we’ll have to see what that is like Friday. We’ll have a game plan for that 50-minute practice to get our car dialed in and then move forward. We’ve been studying the notes from the past few tests there to steer us in the right direction.”
Alex Bowman, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on racing the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway:
“It’s going to be cool to be back at Indy. That’s going to be a really difficult race passing-wise, so track position is going to be super key. Race strategy can play a huge role in any of that, so I’m excited for the challenge and to get back there (the oval).”
Blake Harris, crew chief of the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, on calling the shots for the No. 48 team at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with five races to go until the playoffs:
“I think this weekend at Indy will be like how Pocono (Raceway) was for us last weekend. Now that we have the win, we can take some more chances on strategy to put us in position to win. We’re also going to continue to focus on picking up stage points and continue to creep up in the regular season standings and carry a few more bonus points with us (to the playoffs).”