Photo Credit: Noel Lanier
Ford Performance NASCAR Notes and Quotes
Axalta 400 – Pocono Raceway
Friday, June 3, 2016
Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion, met with media members Friday afternoon at rainy Pocono Raceway to discuss a myriad of topics including his thoughts going into this weekend with a new lower downforce package and how it pertains to his past success at the track.
BRAD KESELOWSKI, No. 2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion – YOU HAVE ENJOYED SUCCESS HERE OVER THE YEARS. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS HEADING INTO THE WEEKEND? “It is good to be here. Unfortunately we have to fight the rain but it is all part of a long season. It is nice to see so many people in here. I haven’t seen this place packed in awhile. I appreciate that. I appreciate everyone being here. As far as what we are looking at, it has been a good track for us. We have finished second the last few races and we have the one win here a few years back and we would like to add to that. I think the guys are ready to do that. We have had a good stretch the last three or four weeks of being very competitive and leading laps and being up front. We didn’t get the wins we wanted out of it but we did get one win and that is something. We are climbing up in points, not that it really matters, but it feels good and gives us a lot of confidence and belief in ourselves that we can go out and win this week. Along with that we tested here which was kind of interesting and I think we might have learned a few things. All in all we are pretty upbeat. Not going to let the rain get us down but ready to get on the track for more than one lap and see what happens.”
CAN YOU STRIKE A BALANCE HERE OF TRYING TO WIN RACES BUT ALSO USING THESE TRACKS TO GET READY FOR THE CHASE? “The thing about Pocono is you really don’t take much away from here for races that are in the Chase. Of course neither of the two races here are in the Chase. It is interesting how that plays out in the season. I feel like we come here when you have wins and it is a little more laid back approach because you don’t have to points race and you know this race always kind of unfolds being either strategy or a race where the restarts dictate who wins. Those things come to mind and they are a little more of a crap shoot. It feels a little more like Talladega to me than it does a lot of our other race tracks. There are some things you control and a lot that you can’t. That said, our approach for the weekend is always shifting and adjusting based on how the rules package flows and how our own team developments flow and Pocono always seems to line up where the first Pocono, we are a lot less competitive than the second Pocono for whatever reason. We are hoping we can maybe break that run for us. I guess we will see.”
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT GOING HOME TO MICHIGAN NEXT WEEK WITH THE NEWER, NEW PACKAGE? “The newer, more improved, less downforce side force package. That should be really interesting. I heard the top speeds were really, really fast but the corner speeds were down which I think should provide a really good platform for side-by-side racing and opening opportunities to pass. I think we are all really encouraged by that. It is a huge variable for our teams that they will all work through. I think it has a tremendous potential to be the future direction for our sport. That is really interesting and exciting to me personally. As far as how it is going to play out, you don’t know. It is really unknown. That always seems to make for our best racing when we don’t know what will happen. I think it will be a really good race. The interesting thing is last year we went the opposite way with the rules there and most of the garage felt it was one of the worst races of the year. On the other side, we feel like this will be one of the best races of the year.”
WHERE DO YOU FEEL YOU GUYS ARE AT PENSKE RACING RIGHT NOW AND HOW DO YOU FEEL FOR THIS WEEKEND? “I think we have been somewhat consistent. Every race team, to Dale’s point, has its ebbs and flows. Ours always seem to have this early summer kind of blah and then we get into the late summer and run really good. Hopefully we can carry that through the Chase. I think that a lot of things play into that. The team and its internal dynamics and also the overall structure of the company that you race for and how they do things plays into that as well. I think we are pretty much exactly aligned with where we have been the last probably two or three seasons and I think we will have a strong shot at running for another championship this fall. We haven’t been able to close it out the last two years but I feel like we have been right there within a race or two of being able to do that. I am ready for that opportunity and kind of want to hit the fast forward button through this part of the season to get there. I am also trying to enjoy the moment.”
WHAT ABOUT THIS WEEKEND? “It is hard to say. I thought we had incredible speed with both Penske cars in the All-Star race and not quite what we wanted to have in the 600. It seems the more we take the downforce and side force away the better we run. I feel like we have more control as a team and as a driver specifically of our destiny. I am hoping we will continue to go down that path because it is great for the racing as well. This week it is kind of back to the original lower downforce which is making its way back to, as the team develops the car, normal downforce. That is starting to slowly put us a little bit behind I think. I guess we will have to see. That is why we race on the track.”
IT WAS NOTICEABLE THE NUMBER OF KIDS ON THE RED CARPET AT CHARLOTTE THAT DRIVERS WERE SIGNING FOR. IT SOUNDS LIKE IT WASN’T NECESSARILY A REQUEST OF THE DRIVERS COUNCIL TO DO THAT, BUT WHERE DO YOU THINK THAT KIND OF INITIATIVE FITS INTO GETTING THE NEXT GENERATION OF FANS INTO THIS SPORT? “I think it has been really positive. This week there is a dog park and I can confirm there was no collaboration on the dog park. I just thought that was maybe something I should clear up (laughter). Not that it is a bad idea. I think it is a great idea. There wasn’t a whole group of people thinking that was the solution. I think in general we have issued a challenge – and it isn’t just motorsports or NASCAR – but the entire sports world is trying to engage a new younger demographic. I think everyone uses the term millennial which seems to be the term used when it is derogatory. My sense on that is it is an important initiative. This sport is run by a combination of interest whether it is team owners that are willing to lose money or fans that are willing to pay their money to be entertained or sponsors willing to pay their money to have opportunities for exposure. All three of those things you really hope to have functioning at the highest of levels. The struggle with keeping fans engaged as the baby boomer generation is exiting and the younger millennial generation is entering, the struggle is real. I think you see that with the technology we have today has put the sport in a spot it is easier than ever to get access to different platforms without attending. That is a lot of how the sport is monetized, through actual attendance. We have to find the value package that connects to a new generation of fans. I think in general that seems to be more that one-on-one experience and it is harder than ever to get fans to come to the race track. So if we have initiatives like that, hopefully they will turn into our future fans and I think everybody agrees that is the right direction and I am as big of a supporter as anyone for it.”
WITH LIMITED TRACK TIME DUE TO WEATHER, DO YOU THINK WE WILL SEE MORE CAUTIONS IN THE RACE AS COMPARED TO A FUEL MILEAGE TYPE RACE THAT IS TYPICAL HERE? “As far as preparing for two different races, that is why we practice so much and work so hard. We try to be prepared for any way we can see the race falling. If there is a 20 to 30-percent chance to be a fuel mileage race we make sure we are covered there. If it has a good opportunity to be a tire strategy race we make sure we are covered there. We practice for all those scenarios and try to be as prepared as possible. Of course less practice means less time to prepare for a broad spectrum for possibilities in the race. I think that just opens up doors. I am a big proponent in general of less practices making for better racing and more opportunities to mix the show up. I think that is what you will see this weekend.”
HOW MUCH OF A DIFFERENCE COULD YOU FEEL IN YOUR CAR BETWEEN THE ALL-STAR RACE AND CHARLOTTE AND IF THE RULES PACKAGES AT MICHIGAN AND KENTUCKY PROVE OUT, WOULD YOU BE A PROPONENT OF FAST-TRACKING THOSE INTO THE RULES FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR? “I think first off I will answer the second question by saying that I am 100-percent of the belief that the All-Star rules package as it pertains to some of the really technical items that control the skew on the car should immediately be implemented everywhere. I know there are a lot of technical terms in those updates that are maybe hard to understand but I think the basic explanation is that those updates or rules updates are meant to take aerodynamic performance away from the car. That is exactly what the skew does. It adds five or 10-percent aero potential in the car and in doing so dramatically increases the wake behind the car when you have more skew and taking it out reduces the wake. It is kind of similar between the difference between following a car on the freeway and following a truck. That is the easiest explanation. The difference I felt between the two races was that the aerodynamic weight that you can’t see, because it is air, was smaller and more forgiving in the All-Star race and I think that is why you saw the racing you did in that race and not so much in the 600. I think we have a really strong direction. It is great that we were able to run those two races back to back on the same track to get that comparison and hopefully everyone else in the sport can agree on that which I am sure is a zero percent possibility. I am a big time supporter of continuing to take the aerodynamics away from the car to increase the ability to pass in the race.”
ARE YOU LIKE A KID WAITING FOR CHRISTMAS MORNING TO GET HER IN TERMS OF WAITING FOR THE CHASE AND DO YOU SEE YOURSELF TAKING MORE CHANCES IN THESE NEXT 13 RACES BECAUSE YOU ARE LOCKED IN ALREADY? “I think there is no other sport where you can be locked into the playoff less than a third of the way into the season. It is a really interesting dynamic to the current format and creates this period of anticipation with acknowledgement that you just have to keep racing. Don’t get me wrong, there are still opportunities to win and we will take advantage of that but I am ready to go run for the championship right now. I am hungry for it. I think we have a good opportunity and I really want to win a second championship. I think trying to keep that pace and keep the excitement and energy up through these few months is a tough task but one that we will have to take up.”
