By TEAM Chevy
Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet– Finished: 1st
That race for you, you start on pole – how did you navigate it so well with all the lap traffic?
“First off, just thanks, everybody, for coming out. Y’all made for a really fun environment for us. We don’t race in stadiums like this, so it’s just really cool. Appreciate y’all making that moment special for me and my team. This is awesome.
I know it’s not a points race, but it is nice to win, for sure. Just really proud of our team for just continuing to keep our heads down and push forward, for sure.
It was a tough race. Ryan (Blaney) kept me honest there at the end. Denny (Hamlin) was really good at the second-half of that break. I just felt like he was kind of riding, and I was afraid to lose control of the race and not be able to get it back.
Yeah, fortunately it worked out. Great way to start the season. Huge thanks to everybody at Hendrick Motorsports; a lot of hard work over the off-season. NAPA Auto Parts, Chevrolet, some great partners. Excited to get to Daytona. It’s a great way to start the season.”
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 6th
You were towards the back in the first-half of the race. How did you keep your car clean and find yourself up front at the end?
“I have no idea.. I don’t know. We had every chance to get torn up and get spun out. We were in the middle of a lot of stuff, but we survived.”
“I had fun. A strong second-half of the race makes it more fun, when you finish the best that we’ve ran all weekend.”
Getting all three Trackhouse cars in the main event was pretty impressive. Does that give you guys confidence for the season?
“Well we were in the race, but we weren’t up front. For us to lead the way with a sixth-place finish was our strongest showing of the weekend and we ended the best that we were all weekend, so that’s promising. But we need more speed. We were proud last night driving home that we locked-in all three cars, but we want to do it up front.”
What did you think about the racing?
“It’s Bowman Gray, man. We had some history to live up to. So many legends have raced here; have put on great shows and crashed a bunch, which our cars did a fair share of tonight. But yeah, I think the asphalt being definitely a lot older than the L.A. Coliseum was, with pouring new asphalt, made it where we were grip limited.”
The concept of using the clash to renovate a short-track and extend its life for a period of time, do you think that’s an idea that can be used elsewhere in the future?
“I think we have a pretty good one here with Bowman Gray. I think when you look at the history of it and what the France family has done here, this is where the very first race was ran. This is where Jim France came here as a kid on summer vacations and with the family up here promoting races. Just hearing that history and hearing him talk about when they were paying out drivers at the end of the night and he was trying to go to sleep on the football benches in the clubhouse over there – that’s the kind of stuff that I want to hear and learn about because I’m new to the sport. My family wasn’t here and in it, so to hear a legend like Jim France talk about remembering sleeping on the bench as his family was paying the racers, that’s the kind of cool stuff I think the Clash at Bowman Gray is all about.”
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Finished: 9th
Was it as fun as it looked?
“Yeah, it was a lot of fun. I think I still put myself in bad spots and got moved out of the way. And then, I didn’t know how to get back down without making people mad. But yeah, I had a lot of fun.”
You just feel like you left the door open too much, and then once you got moved up, you were just stuck up there?
“Yeah, I felt like I could come down, but you’d just get shipped the next corner. That’s part of it, I guess.”
You looked so natural out there all weekend. What was it about this race track that suited you?
“I’m not sure. I felt comfortable in the car right from the start of practice. We had really good preparation with Stephen (Doran, crew chief) and Josh (Williams, spotter). I just felt good from the start and pushed on with it. It was pretty fun. It’s like Martinsville.. I’m good there because there’s a little bit of a road course technique, I guess. It just seems to suit me.”
How much fun did you have, overall, this weekend?
“Yeah, it was awesome. It was a good, low stress way to come back. Most of the guys on the No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevy team are new people at Trackhouse, so it was a good way for us to all settle in and have a little team bonding. Running well helps, as well.”
Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet– Finished: 22nd
It was a little tricky tonight for the No. 99 Freeway Insurance Chevy team. I thought we were going to have a little more speed. We were decent in the short run, but not too good in the long run, which was the opposite of how I thought we were going to be. Overall, it was a good event.”
