Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS)
Michigan International Speedway
Race 23 of 36 – 400 miles, 200 laps
August 11, 2019
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Kevin Harvick*
2nd, DENNY HAMLIN
3rd, Kyle Larson*
4th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
5th, Daniel Suarez*
6th, KYLE BUSCH
18th, ERIK JONES
20th, MATT DIBENEDETTO
*non-Toyota driver
· Toyota driver Denny Hamlin (second) was the highest-finishing Camry driver in Sunday afternoon’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) race at Michigan International Speedway.
· Hamlin earned his fourth straight top-three finish.
· Toyota swept the opening stages with both Martin Truex Jr (stage one winner) and Kyle Busch (stage two winner) earning one playoff point each.
TOYOTA QUOTES
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Office Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 2nd
Talk about that last run, with everybody saving fuel.
“We were right there. Really fast car. The FedEx team did a great job adjusting from the last time we were here. First and second on these tracks that we are going back to for a second time. They are just doing a great job making those adjustments. Nothing that I could really do, just didn’t have enough speed. The 4 (Kevin Harvick) was about a half-a-second faster than us in qualifying.”
You made a choice to value handling in your setup.
“Yeah, I mean it’s balance. The fastest car won the race – speed wise. Who knows what the right thing to do is, but I feel like we had a great FedEx Camry. Just came up one spot short.”
Talk about the finish with the fuel mileage, Denny.
“We finished. We had enough. Just part of it. Wish we were just a little faster. That last run we were down a little bit on speed to keep up with those guys. I was happy that we were able to keep up, but certainly needed a long, long run for our car to come in. Proud of the FedEx team for making great adjustments from the last time we were here. Another good finish.”
MARTIN TRUEX JR, No. 19 Auto Owners Insurance/Truex 500th Start Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 4th
How did you get that car to the front from the back of the field today?
“It was a hot rod early. We were able to drive by everybody. The first couple runs of the race were really sporty. To get up there and win stage 1 was a big deal. I felt through the middle of the race we had the best car. Just those last couple restarts, we got off sequence and lost all of our track position and restarted 19th. Just could not get in the right spot. Every restart we were in the wrong lane, we lost spots.Then we would just have to pick them off one at a time. Amazing race car. Thanks to everyone back at JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing), Toyota and TRD. The Auto Owners Camry was a rocket ship today, just didn’t get to show it at the end.”
KYLE BUSCH, No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 6th
Talk about your day.
“Yeah, we won stage two and then I had to get back in traffic there. We were up to fifth on another restart, and just got shuffled back. I’d gain three spots in the corner and then lose four spots on the straightaway, and then gain three spots in the corner and then lose four spots on the straightaway. Just could never get going right with the balance of the car either. We just never felt in the racetrack all day long. It was always up on top, just sliding the back or sliding the front. Really ugly, but we persevered. Guys had to pit, and some guys ran out, and we finished sixth. We’ll take what we can get here and go on to Bristol.”
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