By Roy J. Akers-www.skyviewsports.net
Hampton, Ga. — The second race of the NASCAR season at Atlanta Motor Speedway has plenty of drivers believing that Atlanta is the recipe for success. Whether it is checking boxes, top performances or another drivers respect, drivers at the ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta are enthusiastic about the 2025 season.
Corey LaJoie checks all the boxes
COREY LAJOIE, No. 01 AirMedCare Network Ford Mustang Dark Horse – HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS WEEKEND, WHERE YOU’VE HAD SUCCESS? “Daytona, like you said, we checked every box that we set down there to do and when we went down there our goal was to pur ourselves in that spot and give us a shot to win. We were about a mile away, legitimately, after 499 miles of doing that, so I can’t say enough about the guys at the shop that built that car. “
William Byron is still in a daze
Q: Is the DAYTONA 500 one of those wins where it doesn’t fully set in while you’re in the midst of that whirlwind? “Yeah, I mean it was in that moment because of the way the race played out there at the end and just sort of the shock on my face. But yeah, I think everyone’s a little bit different. But this one, I tried to take it in a lot as I went through it and thought about what it meant. I feel like the DAYTONA 500 is a win that, over time, you grow more and more fond of. So I feel like that’s unique.. I haven’t really had a win like that in my career.”
Chase Elliott on racing at AMS
Q-What has made this track more agreeable to the drivers as the years have gone on? How it’s worn or just different factors? Elliott “I can’t speak for the rest of them, but for me, living pretty close by, I hear comments and I hear opinions about the race and people that actually come and attend and watch the races — so it’s much easier, I think for me, to kind of get behind it when I see the positive reaction to a race and people kind of speaking highly of the race track because for so many years, I heard nothing but the opposite. “
Its about respect
AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 2 Menards/Delta Ford Mustang Dark Horse – ON DENNY HAMLIN’S COMMENT THAT AUSTIN CINDRIC IS ONE OF THE GREATEST SUPERSPEEDWAY DRIVERS NASCAR HAS. “For me, it is a very high compliment. It is not often times you get to earn the respect but also hear the level of respect your competitors have for you. As superspeedway racing goes, Denny has been one of the best for the last couple of decades. For him to have a high opinion like that is pretty cool. I think that is what made the end of the race significant and special to me.”
Rick Ware of Rick Ware Racing on the state of sponsorship
RICK WARE CONTINUED – WHAT ARE YOU SEEING FROM THE SPONSORSHIP SIDE OF THINGS? WHAT IS THE MARKET LIKE RIGHT NOW? “I’d say the marketing side of it is very bullish right now. We’re obviously one of the smaller teams and we’re having dramatically more conversations than we typically have had in the past. That doesn’t mean that we close them all, but the interest is there. I think that’s what’s important across the board. I think there’s so much competition out there in media and marketing opportunities that the dollar figures aren’t quite what they used to be. I think we’ve all seen that.“
Ryan Blaney is your pole winner at Atlanta
RYAN BLANEY, No. 12 BodyArmor Zero Sugar Ford Mustang Dark Horse – ABOUT HIS POLE POSITION WINNING LAP “This is a testimony to our whole group, Team Penske and the Wood Brothers, being top-four. This is a great job by them. Hey, my job is pretty easy today. I need to make sure I don’t hit the chip or overshift and the rest of it is just raw speed of what the teams build in them.”
Blaney leads eleven Ford drivers who qualified
1-11 (Kyle Busch – Chevy qualified 6th).
Roy J. Akers is a NASCAR photo for www.skyviewsports.net
