MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
DOVER INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
DRYDENE 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
OCTOBER 4, 2019
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CAMARO ZL1, met with media and discussed today’s announcement that Ally Financial has extended its contract with Hendrick Motorsports through the 2023 season, his undecided future plans, the recent progress of the No. 48 team, the upcoming race at Talladega, and more. Full Transcript:
WE SAW THE ANNOUNCEMENT TODAY ABOUT THE EXTENDED SPONSORSHIP WITH ALLY.
YOU SAID YOU WOULD ANNOUNCE YOUR FUTURE AT A LATER DATE. WHAT’S A LATER DATE FROM THIS MORNING? DO YOU THINK YOU’LL MAKE IT THROUGH 2023 WITH ALLY OR DO YOU HAVE ANY DATES IN MIND?
“No, I haven’t made any decisions at this point. I’m very, very excited that Ally has signed this extension with Hendrick. I think it speaks to the strength of our sport and strength of the relationship with Hendrick Motorsports. I know everybody would like me to be in the car to 2023 and even past that, but I just haven’t made that decision yet. So, I certainly didn’t want to it in the way of this great news coming out, either. And, as this came down the pipeline, I knew I would be in a position to answer a lot of questions that would come with it. But, I just felt like it was such great news, I supported Hendrick in getting this news out right away, and Ally as well, it’s just great for our sport and industry. I don’t have anything to say at this time and I’m going to take every day that I can get from Mr. Hendrick before I have to make my decision.”
DOES HAVING A SPONSOR ALREADY SIGNED CHANGE THE TIMELINE FOR YOU HAVING TO MAKE A DECISION? OBVIOUSLY, IF THERE WASN’T ONE, THOSE THINGS CAN POTENTIALLY GET STRETCHED OUT EVEN LONGER.
“Yeah, I guess I haven’t thought about it on that side. I’ve felt like the relationship has gone very well and I sensed that it would extend all along. But, if we didn’t have a sponsor, there could have been pressure from that side. But, I never felt it and it certainly didn’t get to that spot.”
INAUDIBLE
“I don’t have a timeline. I personally know that I would like every day that I can before I need to make that decision. There’s a lot of things to look at with the Gen-7 car coming and the way our team is performing and what we are building. And, I might want to go longer than 2023. I just don’t know. And, I have not put much time and effort into it. There have been many other things to deal with and look at. These things, in the past, a contract renewal would usually start in the spring of the year the contract would end. So, based on past experience, I would say that probably sprint next year is when I would really get pressure to make a decision if I was going to return in 2021. I hate I don’t have any good news for you. I know you’d love to have that firm timeline, but I just don’t right now.”
AFTER LAS VEGAS, YOU TALKED ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE OF BEING A NON-PLAYOFF DRIVER AND THAT YOU FELT LIKE MAYBE THERE WERE A COUPLE OF CASES WHERE YOU MAYBE KIND OF GOT USED UP AND SAID HEY, I’VE GOT TO DO A BETTER JOB OF NOT GETTING IN THAT SITUATION. HOW HAVE YOU DONE AT THE OTHER TWO RACES AND WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO DO IN ONCE SENSE, NOT BE USED UP BY PLAYOFF DRIVERS NOW?
“I think we all know and understand that you’re going to race others how they race you. And, I think some people take it to higher extremes than personally what I do, but I’m just implementing that in something I’ve done all along. If somebody gives me a hard time in a couple of different ways that I don’t appreciate, I let one slide. Two, I usually say something. And three, you really start playing the game back. That’s just the way I was kind of raised and taught. I can remember Ron Hornaday, back in the day, when that would happen, he would literally show you a one, there’s your first. And then, two. And then you never wanted to see three because it usually didn’t end well. We all handle it differently, and certainly the sport has changed a lot since I first came in and the way the racing takes place. So, I’ve had to grow with the environment on-track as well and then also defend what I need to defend out there.”
MAYBE THIS IS EARLY TO DISCUSS, BUT HAS NASCAR COME TO YOU TO DISCUSS THIS NEXT GENERATION-7 CAR AT ALL AT THIS POINT?
“Yes, they’ve brought it up in driver council meetings. I’m on a rules committee, where I try to stay up to date on that, as well. So, yeah, there is some dialogue taking place. Certainly, there’s a lot of dialogue taking place between OEM’s and owners. At the driver level, some guys are more involved than others.”
LOOKING AHEAD TO TALLADEGA, WHAT IS THE STRATEGY AT THAT RACE FOR THE NO. 48 TEAM?
“I think that’s the one race when you’re actually excited to be a non-Playoff driver (laughs). So, I’ll go and do my best to try to get a trophy and certainly try to help my teammates when I can. That’s one of the few tracks that you can….there, and Daytona. And Daytona is probably on the not-list, where you just can’t help your teammates there. So, I’ll do what I can and try to get this Ally Chevy to Victory Lane.”
IT’S THE 50th ANNIVERSARY FOR TALLADEGA AS WELL. WHAT DOES THAT TRACK MEAN TO YOU?
“I think the history of the track and the fan base and the fact that it’s kind of the roots of our sport. Wander out through the infield and see all the wildness and craziest in action is always fun. So for me, that race, the two times a year that we race there, it’s about the atmosphere and the party and it’s almost a festival of sorts. So, the racing, you try to take it as serious as you can. Just through my experience in being able to create my own luck maybe two or three percent of the time, and then be at the mercy of everybody else’s luck in 98 to 97 percent of the time, you just kind of put it in a different spot in your head and deal with it. So, it’s kind of a couple of fun days hanging out in Talladega until it’s race day, and then you hope you’re in that 2 or 3 percent that makes it through.”
DOES COMING TO A TRACK LIKE DOVER AFFECT YOUR CONFIDENCE OR IS JUST HOW THE CAR IS RUNNING PLAY INTO IT MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE?
“Yeah, car performance….there’s a few things that can out drive that. One, how it’s been going lately and two, how were you the last time you were here? So, those elements play into it. This year is a little different when you have 550 rules package to 750, so I find that whatever the opinion is, good or bad, it helps Monday when the clock starts running and in practice, and once you’re on track again, you’re in the present and the now and you really deal with those issues on-hand. So, I think an opinion or past experience at a track or past history, really gets you through the weekly and up to it, but it doesn’t really change much once you get to the track and get to work.”
WHAT DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU GUYS HAVE DONE RIGHT OR HAVE BEEN BUILDING UPON IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS OF WHAT MORE NEEDS TO BE DONE WITH THIS GROUP?
“I think across the Chevy camps, I think we’re seeing more speed in general. When I look at Hendrick Motorsports, specifically, more speed and more competitiveness. I think that we still have some areas to catch-up in. Those would be the 500 horsepower tracks with less downforce. It seems like when we need max downforce, we’re in a good spot if it’s a road course; and really for 750 or 550 package. I think that’s somewhere that we’re working hard to get better, especially as we know, this 500 package is going to stick around. And then inside the walls of the No. 48, it’s really just about executing. We have so many positive things going on inside….building new cars, new aero balances on cars, refining set-ups that have kind of been our bread and butter, and seeing evidence that that’s proving and that’s working out well. So really, it’s about execution. And that’s where my mindset is, is to try not to overthink it and don’t put too much pressure on myself or on the team. We know what we’re capable of. Let’s just take a deep breath and get out there and get to work.”
CHASE ELLIOTT SAID ONE OF THE THINGS HE ATTRIBUTED TO HIS RECENT SUCCESS IS HAVING YOU AS A TEAMMATE. DO YOU HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH YOUR OTHER TEAMMATES ABOUT WHAT TO DO HERE TO HELP THE OVERALL TEAM HAVE WINS AND TOP 10 FINISHES AND STUFF LIKE THAT?
“You know, I’m there for my teammates as much as they need me. I feel that with my history inside of the company, I have really good deep conversations with drivers; but then further than that, with crew chiefs and the engineering department and people in key areas. And, I’ve always been able to articulate what I need or what I feel inside the car. And, I’ve seen, especially in the last few weeks, I’ve seen areas where I am describing something and I see a light bulb go off with a teammate in their mind and they get their crew chief’s attention in one of our debriefs. That’s exactly what I’m dealing with or what they’re looking for. Sometimes directly and often times, indirectly. And, I even live that myself in studying Jeff Gordon as closely as I did. I would thank him for helping me and he didn’t know what he did. And, he was just being him. His knowledge and experience was just so evident that I would pull stuff out of that. So, since I’ve experienced it, I try to maybe talk a bit more and open up conversation in different areas just to help my three teammates that are in the Playoffs.”
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
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