“We are going to need to have a fast car and the car on Sunday is going to need to handle really well, also. I remember last year, handling was huge. It’s going to even be more so this year in my opinion. So, having a good-handling, fast Farmers Insurance Chevrolet will be key and then making the right moves. It’s hard to always know where to go, but a good spotter helps, along with just being out there and understanding what is going on throughout the whole race, learning every single lap. Hopefully, we can put ourselves in position.”
Kasey Kahne
“That would be incredible. I mean, to win the 500 at any point in time whether it is your first or your 100th, I think it still is going to mean a lot. But to have your first one, if you could do that in the 500 that would be pretty incredible. Definitely something to shoot for.”
Chase Elliott
“From a raw speed standpoint, it’s tough. You spend some time working on single-car runs and you just try to not bind the car up through the turns. There are transitions in and out of the corners that the track itself can naturally help turn the car. You can avoid putting in a little too much steering wheel input in or off the turn and let the transition of the track do that work for you and save a little time, but truthfully there is just more that you can mess up at that point than really make up. Once we get into the Duels and into the race itself, handling is such a premium. Especially the older the surface becomes, handling is more and more of an issue. If you can have the foresight to know which end of the car is going to need more grip, you can start massaging the attitude of the car, the springs that are in the car, even a little bit of the shape of the body. You start taking some of the qualifying speed out of it to achieve all of this, but in the race handling is everything. If you can run wide-open and the others can’t, you are going to win.”
Jimmie Johnson
"I’m excited for the season – it can’t get here fast enough. To be honest, I’m happy to come back here and continue to compete. I got real close to not being able to compete and it being someone else’s decision whether I competed or not. All that stuff really showed me how much I have going for me and how fun this really is. You can make it really difficult or you can enjoy it. This is an incredible position to be in and it’s an awesome sport, and driving the cars is fun. I missed competing with my guys on the Nationwide team and the bond that we’ve formed, and that’s one of the things I’m looking forward to the most this year. I think we’ve got a chance to go win races. Everybody wants to win the Daytona 500 – that celebration is unlike any other. If you want to make a statement that is the place to do it.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr.