Drivers chat before Daytona 500: ‘It’s the biggest week of my life’

As the 61st running of the Daytona 500 (Sunday, 2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) draws closer, we caught up with several drivers in the field to talk about what the biggest race in the world means to them.

Tyler Reddick

Daytona International Speedway has become, in an abbreviated amount of time, very good to Tyler Reddick. Really, it goes back to.0004 seconds, the margin of victory from when Tyler snatched the season-opening Xfinity Series race last February. However, that was then and this is now. The native Californian will look to rise to lofty expectations this weekend.

Well, not sugarcoating anything, this is a damn big week for you, huh?
“Yeah, it’s the biggest week of my life, for sure. Winning the Xfinity championship is pretty awesome, but now to follow up with things and getting right back into the swing of running in the Cup series as well, it has been an interesting experience so far. We’re going form Homestead last year and right back to Daytona again.

How has everything gone thus far with the Monster Energy Series transition?
“Obviously, everyone spends a lot of time preparing for this race. I knew a good bit before we announced all this. We knew it was going to happen, but we were just waiting for the right time to announce it. We were working at the shop to get everything ready and to make sure we were good to go.”

Limited seat time and all, how does the Cup car feel to you?
“The car actually feels really nice. I think it’s fast. Some of my teammates think it’s a little loose and a little out of control at times, but that’s really just our qualifying setup. We knew we had to qualify on time and we did. … These cars are definitely a lot quicker than the Xfinity cars.”

Clint Bowyer

After an unexpected five-year walkabout in which Clint Bowyer never caught a glimpse of Victory Lane, Bowyer lit a fuse in 2018 winning twice, finishing in the top five on nine occasions and finishing the season a solid 12th in final points. Backed by Stewart-Haas Racing, the 39-year-old from Emporia, Kansas, has designs on big things this season. His journey starts at 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, when he will make his 470th Cup start.

What will be your approach in 2019? Once again, quite a marathon, huh?
“Definitely a marathon ahead, but I am as confident as I ever have been. We improved a lot last year and we plan to keep that going for us this year. We’ve got to keep winning during the season and take that to another level when the playoffs come around.”

Who do you think and believe will be strong in ’19?
“I honestly believe that every SHR team member will be strong in 2019. Our team has a strength in numbers and having four cars is such a powerful thing.”

Clint, are you still enjoying all this as much as ever?
“You bet! I have a really great feeling about the year ahead and know we’ve put the work in to give ourselves a great chance. There’s nothing I would rather be doing then getting out there and driving the best I can. Having such a great team and crew chief by my side and pushing me to do better is something I really don’t take for granted.

Daytona 500. Love it? Special?
“Let me tell you, the Daytona 500 is still the ‘Granddaddy of Them All’ and the race everyone wants to win. You are still going to see the same wild racing and the same intensity. That’s the trophy we all want.”

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Proclaimed Ricky Stenhouse Jr. the day before the 2019 Daytona 500: “It’s our Super Bowl, so hopefully we can stay out of trouble and contend for the win. I feel like we’ve got a really good shot.” Enough said. Now entering his seventh full-time Monster Energy Series season and with 220 starts to his name, Stenhouse will start Sunday’s race fifth. Before the green flag drops, Stenhouse got us up to speed on what’s on his mind the night before America’s most prestigious and storied stock car race.

With the new Mustang and through the technical push Roush Fenway Racing is putting forth for the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, can you win here tomorrow? Can you realistically win the Daytona 500?
“Yeah, we can win here, for sure. You know, we circle five or six races that we feel, ‘Hey, we’ve got a really good shot at winning these races.’ … All the speedway races we circle; both Bristol races we circle.”

What went through your mind during the offseason? Did you evaluate yourself and/or your goals?
“Our offseason this year, I was actually kind of filled up and was really busy running around. After that, I just kind of took off a little bit and just kind of forgot about the last couple years and being a little frustrated – especially last year with not getting a win and not making the playoffs. I just kind of took some time away and showed up down here and kind of feel rejuvenated and ready to go.”

Do think some of the other cars and drivers have taken notice (of your speed) and will work with you during the 500 tomorrow? “Yeah, we’ll see. It’s funny, you know? I feel like back in the day you used to have cars that kind of helped each other out, but now you’re really out there and you’re out there by yourself. If it doesn’t benefit somebody else, forget it. They’re not going to do something to help you.”

It’s ruthless out there, huh?
“Yeah, that’s kind of the game that we put ourselves in. You’ve got to be aggressive and the way we’ve learned to drive the cars, you can do some of the stuff on your own and work your way up through the field and slow people down and be aggressive.”

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