Joe Gibbs Racing driver Chandler Smith was made available to the media on today as part of the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff Media Day.
CHANDLER SMITH, No. 81 QuickTie Products Toyota GR Supra, Joe Gibbs Racing
What are the ultimate expectations for your Playoffs?
“I feel like the sky is the limit for our 81 group. As you said, we’ve showed up with speed – week-in and week-out. Some weekends, we miss it, and still have speed – just the balance isn’t quite right, but we still have speed, which is good. It is just how do we fine tune the balance – some weekends, we haven’t been able to hit on the balance right, but some weekends we do, like we did this past weekend at Bristol. We got the pole, still was able to lead a good bit of laps, finished third. Those are all really good positives. We’ve been on a good streak these last few weeks, leading into the Playoffs. Every team goes through somewhat of a drought in their season – it doesn’t matter if it is Kyle Larson, Chandler Smith – everyone goes through somewhat of a drought, and we were going through ours about midway through the summer and it was just, when was it going to stop. It is one of those things that – what is it? What is causing it? Nobody can ever pinpoint, well that is what it is, business as usual, shit just happens. Luckily, slowly ours started turning around, we started picking up good finishes and started bringing better race cars, and what not. I feel like we are in a pretty solid spot heading into the Playoffs.”
What have you learned as you have gone through many Playoffs?
“It is all about understanding your situation. If you are in a situation where you are, when the Playoffs start, and you had a good regular season and had good bonus points – it is what it is – as much as I would like to say that we are going to go out every week and try to win, we say that on Monday, all the way to Friday and then we get in a situation that we might not be good enough to win, and the situation changes and it’s like, well, we have a good buffer, let’s try to maximize our day and get a good finish and get points and stay around till the end, and I feel like – for the most part – this year is very similar to two years ago when I got to the Championship 4 in the Trucks. Came out of the regular season with a bunch of points – we were really good through the Playoffs, don’t get me wrong, we just weren’t as aggressive as we could have been for sure, and it was because of the situation at hand. We knew what the task was at hand, and that was to get to Phoenix. Last year, for instance, with Kaulig Racing was able to make the Playoffs with them in our rookie season – was a little different. Didn’t come out with as many Playoff points as I did this year, but still had a good bit – just had problems in the first race at Kansas and that kind of put us on offense going into Talladega and we had a really good points day where we could go to the ROVAL and just have a solid day and advance to the second round. It is all about understanding your situation, where you exited the regular season, how many points you have from the get-go and where that reset puts you on points, and understanding where you are at.”
What have you learned about Austin Hill as you have spent many years racing him?
“Austin (Hill) will race you with respect, if you have respect for him, and I feel like we have a lot of respect for each other just with the process and the way we grew up racing, and last year, being with Kaulig Racing and being on the RCR (Richard Childress Racing) campus, we were essentially teammates, and grew a tighter knit relationship then, then we did in Trucks and we had a good relationship in Trucks as well. That plays into how we race each other compared to a person I may not have as much respect for just because we’ve raced the crap out of each other every time we race. Austin is one that I feel like – if we go to a Talladega, he is going to push me for a while, but I know that he’s not going to be the guy that will leave me out to dry and he’s not going to be the guy that will try to wreck me halfway through stage two at Kansas. That’s just not him.”
Have you started having talks with Joe Gibbs Racing for next year?
“Honestly, right now, we are just making sure that we show up week-in and week-out with fast Toyota Supras and doing everything we can do to make it to Phoenix, and we will sort the rest out later.”
What has it been like working with your teammates?
“It’s just like any other organization – you are going to have run-ins. We have good race cars, and we are all pretty much running the same speed. Good race car drivers are going to have run-ins, unfortunately, it’s just a matter of how it all gets handled.”
How have you felt about your gains with Joe Gibbs Racing this season?
“It has been great being with Joe Gibbs Racing and all of the personnel. I’m back with Toyota as well. People forget that last year when I went to Kaulig Racing, I jumped ship from Toyota to go to Kaulig Racing, which is a Chevy team. When I was with Toyota for seven plus years, whatever it was, before then. Being back home in the Toyota camp with all of my Toyota family and being in depth at Joe Gibbs Racing and all of the personnel has been great.”
Can you compare your run last year and this year?
“Joe Gibbs Racing, from where I was last year, is night and day different in its own different ways and aspects. It is hard to compare the two, because Joe Gibbs Racing has been around before the 2000’s, and Kaulig Racing has been around, I don’t know, since 2018 – whenever it has been, so obviously the notebook and depth is night and day difference. The experience at the shop is night and day difference. The wins – night and day difference. Everything is different – you can’t compare the two. I think I’m more at home at Joe Gibbs Racing, than I was at Kaulig – just because being with Toyota and how many years I was with them and how tight knit Joe Gibbs Racing is with Toyota – it obviously is a really big deal to me and that is pretty much the reason I came to Joe Gibbs Racing was because of the Toyota tie. I think that is the biggest thing – being back with a manufacturer that I’m familiar with, the one that has been behind me for seven plus years and put me in situations where I can go out and win. That’s what they did this year.”
Do you think you will make the Championship 4?
“I think if it is meant to be it will happen. Regardless of, if we are performing well. I think if we are meant to make it to Phoenix, we will find a way to Phoenix, if we are not, we will find a way not to make it to Phoenix.”
Golin for Toyota Racing PR
