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“I think that when people look back
at a season, there are a few things they remember
about it. They remember who won the championship,
who won Indy and who won the Showdown. Everything
else seems to be in second or third. People
forget who won Atlanta or Topeka. No matter
how bad of a season a team has, if you’re
able to pull off a win here at Indy, it turns
into a spectacular season for you.” — Lee
Beard, crew chief for Bazemore, reinforcing
the importance of a U.S. Nationals win to a
team’s resume
“It’s still very possible for
Force to stumble at a couple of races and go
out early. The key to this whole thing is to
be able to capitalize on his mistakes. We’re
not changing our game plan. That’s our
plan. It’s been our plan from the beginning,
it’s just the execution. We feel we have
a car, and I think that everybody else feels
that we have a car, that can win any race.
Now we’ve just to go and do it. That’s
a big thing for us. The plan stays the same.” — Scelzi
on chasing John Force for the championship,
regardless of where they’re racing
“You can’t replace experience.
I learned a long time ago how to approach this
race. I was pretty much in awe the first couple
times I came to Indy. It’s such a big
race, it’s long, all the fans and sponsors
are there. You have to pace yourself and concentrate
on focusing on different points of the weekend.” — Ron
Capps on managing the unusually long grind
of ‘The Big Go’
“The biggest challenge for us has been
the second round, that dreaded second round.
Because we don’t have the data or anything
from last year, we’re constantly having
to make our best educated guess on how to pull
enough power out when the air and the track
heat up. We’ve been making some strides
in the last few races, but we’re still
discovering some items that will enhance our
performance. Our goal is to come to Indy and
be a solid competitor.” — Tony
Pedregon on arriving at IRP for the first time
as an owner/driver
“If we win the Showdown, that would
help the budget, but if we win (the Nationals),
I might finally get a little sleep.” — Force,
referring to the $100,000-to-win special event
Skoal Showdown to be contested within the final
qualifying rounds on Sunday, before Monday’s
U.S. Nats elimination rounds, and what a win
would mean to securing his points lead
“We think that if it’s hot and
nasty on Sunday, we should go a few rounds
and maybe get the big check.” — Tim
Wilkerson, the defending U.S. Nats F/C champ,
on his chances in the $100k Skoal Showdown
for the top-eight qualifiers over the past
year
PRO STOCK
“The IRP surface looks like it’s
going to be a lot different than anything we’ve
raced on this year, and I think a lot of people
that didn’t test here are going to wish
they would have.” — Ron
Krisher explaining why he’s happy after
testing at IRP
“Our car seems to run better on smooth
tracks, and the Indy track is very smooth.” — Kenny
Koretsky on the IRP racing surface
“Indy’s just so doggone special
that it’s almost as important for us
to win this race as it is to win the championship.
Every thing about this race feels tougher,
harder, more important, it’s a marathon
unlike any other place we compete. After three
days of trying to qualify you come in here
on Monday morning feeling absolutely wiped
out. But you have to dig down deep to find
enough to get up for the eliminator. It’s
the closest thing we have to an endurance race,
and if you can win the U.S. Nationals it’s
a heck of an accomplishment.” — Greg
Anderson, a winner at Indy in 2001 and 2003,
on what it’ll take to defend his title
“We want to qualify both cars well,
because you have to qualify in order to race.
In each event, you’ve got two races:
the race to qualify and the actual race. With
two cars to share information from, I think
we’ll be in a good position to finish
well this weekend.” — Mike
Corvo on being tapped to drive a second team
car for Allen Johnson
“As the saying goes, there’s no
substitute for horsepower, so we’ve been
camped out in the dyno room seeing what we
can find. Even though we haven’t incorporated
all the changes we have planned, we’ve
made some gains, so I’m confident we’ll
be in good shape. We’ll find out when
we let the clutch out.” — Kurt
Johnson on his pre-Indy preparations
“In the last couple of races we’ve
managed to hang on in qualifying, but we hope
to move up toward the front this weekend so
we don’t have to worry about getting
into the show on our last run.” — Jim
Yates on the importance of coming out strong
“Certainly, any time you are able to
win Indy, it’s special, and this year
would not be any different. However, to be
able to add the 50th U.S. Nationals to our
wins at the 30th, 40th and 45th editions certainly
sounds enchanting. After all, it seems appropriate
that we have the complete set, and we have
our sights set on accomplishing just that this
weekend.” — Warren
Johnson, a six-time winner, on his unique collection
of Indy trophies dating back to 1984
“We’ll even have some good luck charms
with us. Dad’s Austin he raced there in
the mid-‘70s will be a part of the 50 Years
of the U.S. Nationals parade and we’re
going to have the 1927 T-Roadster I won the 1992
(Super Gas) championship with on display in our
pit. If all goes according to plans, we’ll
leave town with some more positive memories.” — Jeg
Coughlin, the 2000 and 2002 Indy P/S winner,
taking help anywhere he can find it for this
year’s race
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