Photo Credit: Noel Lanier
NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES
HOLLYWOOD CASINO 400
KANSAS SPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT
OCTOBER 16, 2015
MARTIN TRUEX, JR., NO. 78 FURNITURE ROW/VISSER PRECISION CHEVROLET SS met with media and discussed his approach to this weekend at Kansas and next weekend at Talladega, the advantages of being a single-car team, his new sponsor, this thoughts on the 2016 rules package, and more. Full Transcript:
TALK ABOUT RACING AT KANSAS THIS WEEKEND
“It’s a big weekend for us, obviously. I’m looking forward to racing here at Kansas Speedway. It’s been a good track for us as a team. It’s been a good track for me as a driver. With Talladega looming next week, we’re hoping for a good weekend.”
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF BEING A ONE-CAR TEAM AND BEING LOCATED IN COLORADO?
“The advantage for us is that it’s easy to focus on where we’re at and what we’re doing and not worry about other teams or other cars in our stable or anything like that. We’re ultra focused on the No. 78 car and doing everything we can to try to be one of those four to make it to Homestead. So far, everything is going really well and everybody’s done a great job and we’ve got to finish it off.”
A FEW DAYS AGO, YOU SENT OUT THE FOLLOWING TWEET: ‘Most don’t see us. We’re still here’ (laughter)
“Did you like that?”
YEAH, IT WAS GOOD. CAN YOU ELABORATE ON THAT A LITTLE BIT AND JUST TALK ABOUT THE FACT THAT WHY IT IS THAT YOU THINK PEOPLE AREN’T PAYING THAT MUCH ATTENTION TO YOU DESPITE THE FACT THAT YOU’VE BEEN SO STRONG THE ENTIRE YEAR?
“I’m not sure. You’d have to answer that. I don’t have any idea. It’s pretty obvious.”
DO YOU LIKE FLYING UNDER THE RADAR? MAYBE THAT’S A BETTER QUESTION
“I love it. I think it’s great. I think it’s a perfect position for us to be in. The only pressure we have is what we put on ourselves. We know what we’re capable of, and if we fall short of that we’re going to be disappointed. There’s no outside pressure. There are no expectations for us. It’s all about our expectations for ourselves, within our group. And we know what we’re capable of. Like I said, if we don’t perform the way we know we can, then we’re going to be disappointed. We don’t have to worry about what anybody else really says or thinks about it. It’s a good position to be in. It’s a fun position for us. We’re really challenging ourselves. Cole (Pearn, crew chief) is challenging the team, the guys at the shop, and the cars we’re building. Really, we’re pretty much just doing everything we can and know how to do to try to finish this thing off as strong as possible.”
DO YOU TAKE SOLACE IN KNOWING THAT YOU’VE DONE WELL FOR MOST OF THE SEASON AND PEOPLE ARE CALLING YOU AN UNDERDOG OR THE SLEEPER?
“I think it’s kind of neat, you know? If you look at it, we are an underdog. I’ve never finished in the top 10 in points. We’ve got a rookie crew chief and a single car team in Denver. There are a lot of things that make us an underdog. We’re a small team. Like I said, I think it’s a cool position to be in and I think we don’t get enough credit for what we’ve done this year; but at the same time, we don’t have that past history or that track record in the Chase or in championship battles. So, I think it’s fair; but I think it’s kind of a fun position for us to be in.”
YOU HAD A DOMINANT CAR HERE IN THE SPRING HERE AT KANSAS. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THAT RACE AND WHAT KIND OF CAR YOU MIGHT HAVE THIS WEEKEND?
“Yeah, we did. We had a great weekend in general. We qualified well and were fast all throughout practice and had a really great race. And then it came down to pit strategy and tire strategy calls that kind of took us out of the running for that win. But I really feel good about coming back here. I think we’ve made some really good progress on our race cars since then. A lot of guys have, obviously; the competition level has really stepped-up. We’ve kind of had to follow suit. But, I was pleased with what we had at Charlotte last week and the direction we’re headed, and I think this will be a great weekend for us.”
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR NEW SPONSOR, WESTERN UNION, AND WHAT IT MEANS TO BRING IN A NEW CATEGORY AND A NEW SPONSOR TO NASCAR?
“Yeah, sure. We’re really excited about it, obviously, having Western Union on there; not only a worldwide company, but based in Denver, which is really cool for Barney (Visser) and Joe (Garone) and everybody. It’s a big deal for us. We’re obviously looking for sponsors going down the road in the future and this is kind of the first step in that direction. So, I’m really proud to have them on the car. Hopefully we’ll give them a good ride and get them excited about doing more next year.”
IF THINGS DON’T GO WELL HERE AT KANSAS AND YOU HAVE TO RACE YOUR WAY INTO THE NEXT CHASE SEGMENT AT TALLADEGA, WHAT KIND OF APPROACH DO YOU GUYS TAKE?
“I don’t plan on that happening (laughs). Let’s talk about that next week. No honestly, we’re completely right now on Kansas. We know what we can get done here. I think if we can come out of here with a top 5, we’ll feel pretty good. A win, obviously, is what everybody is after. Again, we’re going to do all we can to try to get that done this weekend and we’ll worry about Talladega when we get there.”
FIVE OF THE TOP SIX GUYS IN POINTS HAVE BEEN WITH THEIR CURRENT TEAMS THREE SEASONS OR LESS. YOU ARE ONE OF THEM. IS THAT A COINCIDENCE? HOW DO YOU LOOK AT HAVING SUCCESS IN A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME?
“Yeah, that’s interesting. I think that teams and drivers and everybody in the garage is always looking for that better or best situation they can possibly get themselves into, so I think it’s just coincidence that it happened that way. A lot of this sport is about timing. You see certain manufacturers and certain teams and certain drivers; through just kind of that revolving door of who is really good at what point in the season or what season. So, I think it’s probably more coincidence than anything that’s happened that way.”
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE HALLOWEEN COSTUME WHEN YOU WERE YOUNGER? OR, WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE HALLOWEEN MEMORY?
“That’s a good question. I didn’t really get into Halloween too often. I dressed-up and went out trick or treating and all, but I don’t think I really got too-into my costume. For me, it was more about what was the least amount of effort I could put into my costume and still get candy (laughter).”
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE AERO PACKAGE FOR 2016?
“For 2016, obviously I think it’s going to be great. I think the two races we had low downforce were great shows. I think everybody was really excited about that. The drivers loved it. The fans loved it. I think everybody is looking forward to going further down that road and see what we can make out of it. There are going to be some challenges to it. Goodyear, I think, has probably got the biggest challenge. At certain race tracks it’s going to be really tough to develop a tire that does what we want it to do as drivers, but it’s going to great. I think it’s going to put it more in the drivers’ hands where cars drive better in traffic and worse by themselves. That’s really what we’re all looking for. It should be good.”
WITH SO MANY DRIVERS LOOKING FOR A WIN AT KANSAS TO AVOID THE WILD CARD AT TALLADEGA, HOW DICEY DO YOU EXPECT THE RACING TO BE ON SUNDAY?
“I don’t think it’ll be that much different than since we went to Chicago. I think if you look at all the Chase races, it’s really been intense. Just looking at the restarts and the things that have happened, you can really feel it out there. Everybody is pushing as hard as they can all the time to get every position. So, I don’t think it’ll be anything out of the ordinary for what we’ve had so far, or what we’ve seen last year in the Chase races with guys fighting after the race and all that. You’ve got to get everything you can. You can’t afford to give up a few spots here and there. Everybody is being aggressive and trying to take all they can get.”
DO YOU THINK YOUR FAN SUPPORT HAS INCREASED OVER THE YEARS? IF SO, DO YOU THINK IT’S BECAUSE YOU’VE HAD TO DEAL WITH SO MUCH?
“I guess it probably has. I think unfortunately, success on the track kind of brings more fans and more people rooting for you than anything. The things I do away from the race track are things I do because my heart’s in it. So, it’s not really to gain fans or to gain attention or gain anything like that. It’s great that I have extra attention with the runs we’re having because it helps me get that work done off the race track. But, I’ve always had a great fan base; obviously not the biggest one. But I have a lot of loyal fans and they’ve been great to me over the years.”
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