Sprint Cup Driver Quotes About New Hampshire Motor Speedway


Dale Earnhardt Jr on NHMS:
"We always seem to get tight in the center there, so we'll be trying to
get down into the bottom of the corner and be able to turn to the center
and not be real soft - that's the best way to get around there. But
there's all kinds of different grooves you can run. You can go low and
high and move around trying to find different things to make the car
better. The trick is getting the car to roll through the center of the
turns. Whoever can get the car to turn in the middle the best, wins. New
Hampshire is a lot like Phoenix and some other short tracks - Milwaukee,
places like that. It's not quite like Martinsville (Va.), but there are
similar things that work. I like New Hampshire because it's one of the
smaller tracks. I love racing on the shorter, flatter tracks, and that's
about as close as we get to it sometimes."

Clint Bowyer on the NHMS Weekend:
"The track has always made for good racing. It's a fun weekend for the
fans to go up there. They get a lot of bang for their buck. They get to
see the modifieds race, Nationwide Series racing and the East Series.
There's just a lot of racing going on there. It's an action-packed
weekend. It's a lot of fun for the fans. I go up in the grandstands and
watch two or three races myself."

Reed Sorenson on racing at NHMS:
"I don't know why I like that track so much. I guess I am just naturally
comfortable there. Maybe it's like some of the tracks I raced on growing
up or in the ASA (American Speed Association). Whatever the reason, I like
racing at that place. The Bahre family built a really cool track and the
Speedway Motorsports people will make it even better. I hope they don't
ever change the configuration. I like it just the way it is now."

David Stremme on NHMS & the Fans There:
"I really enjoy going to New Hampshire [Motor Speedway]. It is a great
track with some of the greatest race fans in the country. There are
multiple grooves on entry which give me a number of options on how to get
the car set in the corners."

Carl Edwards on racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
"The Aflac team has had a few good weeks lately and we need to continue to
build on that and continue to improve each week. Hopefully we'll have a
good run at Loudon this week and work to solidify our place in the Chase.
Loudon is the first track we race in the Chase, so we need to learn all
that we can this weekend so that we can apply it to the race in September.
Michigan is considered the home track for Ford and Jack (Roush), but with
Boston just down the road from New Hampshire, Loudon is another home track
for us at Roush Fenway. A win this weekend in the Aflac Ford would be very
special."

Matt Kenseth:
"I haven't felt like New Hampshire has been one of my strongest tracks
over the years, but yet if you look at our stats, our finishes have
usually been pretty good. We have good finishes, but we're never that
competitive. It seems like we'll run around 12 to 15th all day, have good
stops and strategy and finish somewhere between seventh and 10th. It's
always been a challenge. It's a challenge to pass here, although they've
made it better over the years after they re-configured the track a while
back, so it's just one of those tracks that's a challenge. It's a little
bit unique and it's one that makes us work hard, that's for sure."

David Ragan on racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
"Loudon is always a special place for us to visit because of our
relationship with Fenway Sports Group. There are a ton of Red Sox fans
that come out to the races when we are there and cheer us on; it's great
to have that kind of support. We took part in a Goodyear tire test earlier
this year at New Hampshire so we should be fast when we unload. I enjoy
racing at New Hampshire and have had some bad luck during the races, but
the bad luck streak has to end sometime and I'm ready to be back running
up front."

McMurray on racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway:
"I've always enjoyed racing at New Hampshire, and ever since Roush Racing
teamed up with Fenway Sports Group, racing at New Hampshire is another
'home track' for our team. It's a great feeling to come to Loudon and to
see all the great Red Sox fans who come out and support our entire Roush
Fenway organization. Loudon is a fairly flat track and those are the kinds
of tracks that are difficult to pass on, but if you go there with a great
car, you can make anything happen. We're actually bringing the same car we
ran at Phoenix earlier this season since these are pretty similar tracks,
so I expect great results for our IRWIN VISE-GRIP team this weekend."

Greg Biffle on racing at NHMS:
"We need a good run at New Hampshire this weekend after the finish we had
at Infineon. We obviously won there last year so if we can try to repeat
that performance, hopefully, we can get the 3M Ford into victory lane. If
we can get the car to turn through the center of the corner during
practice, we should have a good race. We have a few extra fans in the
northeast because of the partnership with Fenway so it would be great to
get a win up there again."

Mark Martin on why he hasn't raced at NHMS in 2 years:
"It just wasn't one of the races at the top of my list to do. When I was
looking at scaling back (in 2007 and 2008), that was one of the places
that was not up there to keep on my schedule. I've had some good runs at
New Hampshire. It's just a big short track. Definitely with the way our
cars have been at Phoenix and Martinsville (Va.) and Richmond (Va.), we
should be good. I wish I was already up there."

Michael Waltrip at NHMS:
"I just love what Mr. Bahre accomplished over the years and all the work
he did to bring NASCAR racing to that part of the country. When going up
there at this time of year, the weather is refreshing. It is just a fun
stop on the circuit. I also love the changes they made to the track. They
made it even flatter down low so you have more options. When you go into
the corner, you can try to hold it down low on the low line, but there is
also some banking up high so it allows for more options when you get down
into the corner."

Jeff Burton on NHMS:
"The track is a lot different than it used to be. It has a lot of grip and
when we were real good there, the track was real low on grip. As the track
has gained grip, rear grip has become not that big of an issue and is the
reason we haven't been as successful. (Kevin) Harvick and (Clint) Bowyer
have but we haven't. They have been their best at places like Phoenix and
New Hampshire and we tend to lean on them some when we come to places like
this."

Casey Mears quotes:
"I really like Loudon for some reason. Ever since they resurfaced the
track, I've liked it. I have learned over the last couple of years what I
need out of a short-track style car. That was my biggest struggle early in
my career. But, now that I understand what a short- track car needs and
how I need to drive them, it's made these races a lot more fun for me."

Sam Hornish at NHMS:
"I've always felt that New Hampshire and Richmond are similar to each
other. With our recent top-10 run in Richmond, we are anxious to get back
to New Hampshire and hopefully capture a similar finish this weekend. New
Hampshire demands a lot from the race car and you definitely need a strong
engine and good brakes to make the transitions from corner to straightaway
quickly."