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CUP: SPEED Talent Q&A - Auto Club Speedway
The SPEED crew previews this weekend's Sprint Cup Series race in Fontana, Calif....
Auto Club Speedway in California is up next for Sprint Cup teams. (Photo: LAT Photographic
SPEED Q&A: FROM BRISTOL TO CALIFORNIA
Q: Joey Logano hinted at retribution against Denny Hamlin in their post-race run-in at Bristol. Do you think Logano will follow through on that intimated threat, and if so, would Martinsville be the most logical opportunity?
“The minute Joey and Denny had their run-in at Bristol, I immediately thought to myself that Martinsville is just a few weeks away. I can't imagine we will see anything play out this weekend at Auto Club Speedway because it’s just too dangerous at those high speeds.”
--Adam Alexander, host of SPEED Center
“The only time Joey’s going to be able to get him back, dump him and not hurt him is at Martinsville. You don’t want to wreck someone running 200 miles-per-hour at California, so circle Martinsville on your calendars.”
--Kenny Wallace, SPEED analyst and Nationwide Series driver
“I believe he will do it at some point -- possibly Martinsville. If it were me, I’d save that payback for a time when it could have maximum impact. That might be later in the season when points are more important than they are this early. But Martinsville certainly is a place where drivers rough each other up.”
--Tom Jensen, SPEED.com Editor-in-Chief
Q: Is Fontana the final “measuring stick” for the new Gen-6 because it’s the fifth different type of track in the first five races? Does it provide the final data NASCAR wants to examine when considering any changes to the new car?
“We’ll have a pretty accurate representation of what’s going on with this car after Fontana and NASCAR and the teams will analyze everything after this weekend. We’ve got an off-weekend next week, so the timing is perfect to evaluate what we’ve seen thus far and tweak the car to make it even better.”
--Bob Dillner, SPEED analyst
“Fontana is the ultimate test early in the season for the Gen-6 car. After this weekend, I think teams, NASCAR and the manufacturers can sit back and know they have a direction on what the car likes, although not necessarily a handle on it quite yet.”
--Jeff Hammond, SPEED analyst
“I think so. The car needs some tweaking, but we have to let Goodyear do their job first. I do think, however, we’ll learn a lot at Fontana and NASCAR then can evaluate the new car at these first five and very different tracks, and possibly make some minor changes before we get to Texas.”
--Jimmy Spencer, SPEED analyst
“Fontana is the final measuring tool for the teams because it ends a string of five tracks in five different configurations ranging from Daytona’s 2.5-mile superspeedway to Bristol’s half-mile track. NASCAR will have a good handle on where they are and where they need to improve.”
--Tom Jensen
Q: What kind of race do you think we’ll see at Fontana with the new Gen-6 car?
“I think we’ll see a cross between Las Vegas and Daytona because with Fontana’s sweeping corners, they’ll carry a lot of speed. We’ll see guys not afraid to race each other from the center of the corner out. I think we’ll see them widen the track out and take advantage of its multiple lanes.”
--Jeff Hammond
“There have been some pretty good races at Fontana the last couple of years. Drivers like it because the track surface is fairly worn and has several racing grooves they can use to move around. I expect a very competitive race on Sunday.”
--Tom Jensen
Q: It’s been interesting to watch the evolution of driver spats in the past few years. Now we’ve seen one play out on Twitter between Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano. What are your thoughts on them taking it to Twitter?
“It might be good for the fans to have a front row seat as drivers share their displeasure with one another. However, I am not a fan of using Twitter as a sounding board when you don't see eye-to-eye with a fellow competitor. Take care of it face-to -face.”
--Adam Alexander
“I’m over it. Let’s stop the Twitter stuff. If you guys want to man-up, talk to each other in the coach lot and get it over with.”
--Matt Clark, SPEED analyst
“I picture Bobby Allison after the 1979 Daytona 500 saying, ‘Then he commenced to beating on my timeline with his Samsung Galaxy.’ It’s ridiculous. Talking smack on Twitter doesn’t make a driver look tough; it makes him look like a 12-year-old girl.”
Q: How impressed have you been thus far in 2013 with Kurt Busch and AJ Allmendinger’s efforts with their one-car teams?
“The No. 51 team has done a remarkable job considering how they rotate drivers in and out, not to mention challenges the new car poses for an underfunded team. If anyone doubts Kurt Busch and the No. 78 team can win a race this year, they didn't see what happened at Bristol. They made an unscheduled stop, went two laps down and then rallied for a top-five finish. Few top-level teams could accomplish that.”
--Adam Alexander
“You have to give credit to Kurt Busch and the No. 78 car. They fought all day at Bristol from the back to the front to the back to the front. Kurt got up there and maintained his position. Also a tip of the hat to the No. 51 team because they just keep putting that thing in the top 10 or top 15 week in and week out.”
--Kyle Petty, SPEED analyst
“They’ve done very well. Kurt drove a tremendous race to come back to fourth at Bristol after making up two laps, which is very difficult to do there. It was a reminder of how much talent he has. Allmendinger also has handled himself admirably at Phoenix Racing. Both teams and drivers have a lot to be proud of this season.”
--Tom Jensen
Q: Joey Logano hinted at retribution against Denny Hamlin in their post-race run-in at Bristol. Do you think Logano will follow through on that intimated threat, and if so, would Martinsville be the most logical opportunity?
“The minute Joey and Denny had their run-in at Bristol, I immediately thought to myself that Martinsville is just a few weeks away. I can't imagine we will see anything play out this weekend at Auto Club Speedway because it’s just too dangerous at those high speeds.”
--Adam Alexander, host of SPEED Center
“The only time Joey’s going to be able to get him back, dump him and not hurt him is at Martinsville. You don’t want to wreck someone running 200 miles-per-hour at California, so circle Martinsville on your calendars.”
--Kenny Wallace, SPEED analyst and Nationwide Series driver
“I believe he will do it at some point -- possibly Martinsville. If it were me, I’d save that payback for a time when it could have maximum impact. That might be later in the season when points are more important than they are this early. But Martinsville certainly is a place where drivers rough each other up.”
--Tom Jensen, SPEED.com Editor-in-Chief
Q: Is Fontana the final “measuring stick” for the new Gen-6 because it’s the fifth different type of track in the first five races? Does it provide the final data NASCAR wants to examine when considering any changes to the new car?
“We’ll have a pretty accurate representation of what’s going on with this car after Fontana and NASCAR and the teams will analyze everything after this weekend. We’ve got an off-weekend next week, so the timing is perfect to evaluate what we’ve seen thus far and tweak the car to make it even better.”
--Bob Dillner, SPEED analyst
“Fontana is the ultimate test early in the season for the Gen-6 car. After this weekend, I think teams, NASCAR and the manufacturers can sit back and know they have a direction on what the car likes, although not necessarily a handle on it quite yet.”
--Jeff Hammond, SPEED analyst
“I think so. The car needs some tweaking, but we have to let Goodyear do their job first. I do think, however, we’ll learn a lot at Fontana and NASCAR then can evaluate the new car at these first five and very different tracks, and possibly make some minor changes before we get to Texas.”
--Jimmy Spencer, SPEED analyst
“Fontana is the final measuring tool for the teams because it ends a string of five tracks in five different configurations ranging from Daytona’s 2.5-mile superspeedway to Bristol’s half-mile track. NASCAR will have a good handle on where they are and where they need to improve.”
--Tom Jensen
Q: What kind of race do you think we’ll see at Fontana with the new Gen-6 car?
“I think we’ll see a cross between Las Vegas and Daytona because with Fontana’s sweeping corners, they’ll carry a lot of speed. We’ll see guys not afraid to race each other from the center of the corner out. I think we’ll see them widen the track out and take advantage of its multiple lanes.”
--Jeff Hammond
“There have been some pretty good races at Fontana the last couple of years. Drivers like it because the track surface is fairly worn and has several racing grooves they can use to move around. I expect a very competitive race on Sunday.”
--Tom Jensen
Q: It’s been interesting to watch the evolution of driver spats in the past few years. Now we’ve seen one play out on Twitter between Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano. What are your thoughts on them taking it to Twitter?
“It might be good for the fans to have a front row seat as drivers share their displeasure with one another. However, I am not a fan of using Twitter as a sounding board when you don't see eye-to-eye with a fellow competitor. Take care of it face-to -face.”
--Adam Alexander
“I’m over it. Let’s stop the Twitter stuff. If you guys want to man-up, talk to each other in the coach lot and get it over with.”
--Matt Clark, SPEED analyst
“I picture Bobby Allison after the 1979 Daytona 500 saying, ‘Then he commenced to beating on my timeline with his Samsung Galaxy.’ It’s ridiculous. Talking smack on Twitter doesn’t make a driver look tough; it makes him look like a 12-year-old girl.”
Q: How impressed have you been thus far in 2013 with Kurt Busch and AJ Allmendinger’s efforts with their one-car teams?
“The No. 51 team has done a remarkable job considering how they rotate drivers in and out, not to mention challenges the new car poses for an underfunded team. If anyone doubts Kurt Busch and the No. 78 team can win a race this year, they didn't see what happened at Bristol. They made an unscheduled stop, went two laps down and then rallied for a top-five finish. Few top-level teams could accomplish that.”
--Adam Alexander
“You have to give credit to Kurt Busch and the No. 78 car. They fought all day at Bristol from the back to the front to the back to the front. Kurt got up there and maintained his position. Also a tip of the hat to the No. 51 team because they just keep putting that thing in the top 10 or top 15 week in and week out.”
--Kyle Petty, SPEED analyst
“They’ve done very well. Kurt drove a tremendous race to come back to fourth at Bristol after making up two laps, which is very difficult to do there. It was a reminder of how much talent he has. Allmendinger also has handled himself admirably at Phoenix Racing. Both teams and drivers have a lot to be proud of this season.”
--Tom Jensen
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