SRT Motorsports, Team Dodge & Team Pastrana Racing Press Release
Quotes from the drivers:
# 199 Travis Pastrana:
“New Hampshire was a really fun course last year and I’m looking forward to getting back in my Dodge Dart. It was torture not being able to compete in the GRC doubleheader last week but being able to race the GRC and NASCAR Nationwide series this week feels like an even better double. The fact that we won the GRC race here last year in the Dodge Dart and we’re able to test the Nationwide Series car on this track last month gives me high expectations going into this week’s events.”
# 99 Bryce Menzies:
HOW MUCH DIFFERENT IS THE COURSE LAYOUT AT NEW HAMPSHIRE GOING TO BE VERSUS THE OTHER COURSES YOU’VE BEEN TO THIS SEASON?
“I haven’t seen the course layout but I think it’s going to be different from what we’ve had so far in Brazil and Germany. It’s a real small, tight course. I think going to an oval track, we’re going to have a lot of tarmac. I know they’re going to bring in some dirt. We have a little bit bigger car so I think it’s going to help with the tarmac courses with long, sweeping turns.”
WHAT AFFECT WILL MORE PAVEMENT HAVE ON DRIVING THE CAR AND THE CAR ITSELF? ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE TO PUT A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SETUP UNDER THE CAR TO RUN WELL AND HAVE A CHANCE TO WIN?
“We change some things from track to track. Going to a track with more tarmac, we’ll have to change some things – shock setup to make the car turn a little better and maybe change front diff (differential) and rear diff to get more traction compared to the dirt setup where there’s a lot of slipping and sliding. I think it’s important that we adjust quickly, find the right setup and get ready for the heat races and be a top contender in the race.”
YOU RAN WELL AT MUNICH BUT HAD MISFORTUNE; HAS IT BEEN DIFFICULT TO KEEP A POSITIVE ATTITUDE AND KEEP PUSHING FORWARD?
“When you’re struggling to make it to the mains (Main Events), you always get frustrated. When we look back at it, I mean in Germany, we had a really strong car. The Dodge Dart was unbelievably quick and in our heat race, we showed that. We led most of the race but had a really small problem with the windshield wipers that put us out. We had more dumb luck in the LCQ. It’s just really good to see that we can run with these guys, we can be a top contender and we have the speed. We just need to put it all together and make it happen now. I think you always get down a little bit on yourself when things aren’t going the way you think they should but when you look at the big picture, we’re doing really well. This is my first full season. We’re making a lot of changes to make the car better. The rest of the season, I think throughout the rest of the season you’re going to see us getting in the main and hopefully get some podiums out of this thing.”
HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO HAVE A GOOD RUN AT NEW HAMPSHIRE? WOULD THAT BE A HUGE DIFFERENCE MAKER FOR THIS NEXT STRETCH OF RACES?
“Definitely. Anytime you get on the podium or make it to the main, it’s great for confidence alone – for me the driver and also for the team. I’m really looking forward to New Hampshire. Travis won there last year so we know what it takes to win there. I know the course is going to be great and the guys have worked really hard to get the cars put back together after Munich. We need a strong weekend.”
HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO GET THE WEEKEND STARTED OFF WELL FROM THE FIRST PRACTICE SESSION?
“It’s very important to have get a good start in practice. We have only one practice session and then we go into the heat races. It’s crucial to have a strong car right away. You need to be comfortable right away, get in the groove and get going. In these races, a lot of it is how you qualify and the start of the heat race.”
SRT Motorsports Racing Manager - Gary Johnson
“The cars showed a lot of promise in the last race in Munich and I think we’ll have a great weekend in New Hampshire. Global Rallycross is a tough sport with a lot of contact. It’s important to avoid running into people or vice versa. Hopefully we can get through the weekend without the kind of issues we had in Munich where the contact was bad enough that it didn’t allow us to finish the race.”
THE COURSE AT NEW HAMPSHIRE HAS A LOT OF PAVEMENT. WHAT KIND OF CHALLENGE DOES THAT POSE TO FINDING THE RIGHT SETUP ON THE CAR?
“It’s certainly a challenge to find the correct setup. The New Hampshire course will be very similar to Munich which had a lot of tarmac, maybe half of it. I think we’ll have a good setup for both cars.”
HAS IT BEEN ENCOURAGING THAT BOTH CARS HAVE SHOWN SPEED THIS SEASON?
“The car seems to launch really well on tarmac. Now the focus is on fine-tuning the car for cornering on the dirt and the jumps. We need to be competitive in those areas of the course.”
