NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
SUNDAY, JUNE 28, 2020
PENNZOIL 150 – INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY (ROAD COURSE)
RACE WINNER POST RACE PRESS CONFERENCE
GREG ZIPPADELLI, CREW CHIEF, No. 98 Ford Mustang — DID YOU CLIMB THE FENCE? “No, I would have but I am too old to run down there with those kids anymore. I walked down and they were coming back down when I got there. I did it before. It is a really cool win, a great place. I am glad I could be a small part of him experiencing that. I know he was pretty pumped up to come here being from Indiana and a lot of his heroes race here and grew up around here.”
IS THERE ANY CONCERN TOMORROW WITH THE CUP CARS ON THE OVAL GOING OVER THE TIRE RUBBER FROM THE RACES TODAY? “I think it will all come up pretty quick. More of a question of there being only a little bit of rubber in a couple of spaces on the race track that the cup cars will run on. The rest of it doesn’t have any rubber on it. You know how tires wear here. It will be interesting to see how the first 10 to 15 laps goes with the tire wear. We have run before where five or seven laps you get cords in those tires and the race track will take rubber pretty quick and it will go away.”
WHAT DOES IT SAY ABOUT YOUR ORGANIZATION AND CHASE THAT YOU HAD TO MAKE THE CREW CHIEF SWAP THE LAST SEVERAL WEEKS AND HE IS PERFORMING LIKE HE HASN’T SKIPPED A BEAT? “I think it is pretty cool. Chase has not gotten down about it. He has dug down. He has done a really good job growing and learning and being a little more of a leader of this team, especially through this time. We have a lot of good guys and obviously in the organization and the Xfinity team. There are not a lot of them over there and these guys work their guts out. I am proud to be part of it and be able to fill in and help. I have been here anyway so it was kind of a natural plug and play.”
BEFORE THE SEASON STARTED CHASE HAD SET A GOAL OF EIGHT WINS AND A LOT OF PEOPLE THOUGHT HE WAS ASKING TOO MUCH OF HIMSELF. HERE WE ARE 13 RACES IN AND HE HAS FIVE. WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THAT AND HIS POTENTIAL FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON? “I think the potential is obviously there. You know how it is in this sport. When things are good you have to jump on it and take advantage of it. A couple weeks from now you could lose a little bit and someone else picks up and wins a couple races. You can’t get too confident and certainly can’t get cocky or you will get run over. The people we have been beating every week are working just as hard or harder to catch what Chase is doing and this team is doing. I am very proud of him. He is a good little driver, man. A lot of fun to be around.”
WE CAN ALL SEE THAT CHASE IS A GOOD DRIVER. WHAT ARE THE ATTRIBUTES IN YOUR MIND THAT MAKE HIM SO GOOD? “He is able to dig deep. There are some people that when it is time to close, I see that a lot in him, he finds a little bit extra. He has a lot of confidence but isn’t getting cocky, which I love. Most of all he is just a good race car driver. You watch guys and guys go fast and then you watch guys that go fast and can pass cars and guys that go fast and takes the driver to learn how to pass or get by guys. He just has a natural understanding of racing. He does a good job racing guys and does a really good job of passing. A lot of these race tracks with the aero and things of that nature, the good guys learn that and they carry it out. Really he is just a good hearted kid with a lot of will and want to win.”
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON WHAT THE TWO SERIES’ MIGHT DOING FORWARD IN TERMS OF THE ROAD COURSE HERE NOW THAT WE SAW THIS PLAY OUT TODAY? “This was fun. I didn’t know what to expect coming in. Nobody has really had any experience here. We saw F1 races and IndyCar races in the past, but not these bigger heavier Stock Cars. I don’t know if you could have gotten a better last 10 laps of a race. It is racey. It was fun to be a part of. I was surprised. It was a lot better than I — I didn’t know what to expect I guess. I think it turned out really well. To get both of them in one day and it is only 5:30 and have two good races, I thought that was pretty cool.”
ARE YOU READY TO GET OFF THE BOX OR HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT STAYING? YOUR RECORD IS PRETTY GOOD SINCE YOU CAME BACK: “We will go to Kentucky and play the support role next week.”
SINCE YOU HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SPEND TIME UP CLOSE WITH BRISCOE, IF AN OPENING OCCURRED ON THE CUP SIDE OF THE SHOP, WOULD YOU ADVOCATE FOR HIM TO GET A CUP RIDE? “Oh, without a doubt. I think he is still young and has a lot to learn but I am very, very impressed with how quick he is learning how to race these stock cars. I hope he is a part of Stewart-Haas for a long period of time. He is a good kid and we would love to see him on the other side with us.”
YOU HAVE BEEN A PART OF SOME GREAT EXPERIENCES HERE AT INDY OVER THE YEARS. THIS TIME IT WAS AN INDIANA KID WINNING BUT NOBODY WAS IN THE STANDS. WHAT WAS THAT LIKE? “Yeah, that is obviously a bummer but with what is going on we understand and accept it and move on. It is still a win for an Indiana kid in his hometown and it is very special to him. It is kind of cool for it to be the road course and for him to get his first win here. I believe the kid will have many other opportunities in his life.”
