November 17, 1997
NASCAR: Chevy Drivers
Speak Out After Atlanta
After the final race of the season in Atlanta, the NASCAR drivers and teams commented on the race and their sesons. This is what they had to say:
Jeff Gordon, 1997 Winston Cup Champion
JEFF GORDON (#24 DuPont Automotive Refinishes Monte Carlo) - Started 37th,
finished 17th - "This was an
unbelievable day. I never thought we were going to do it. It certainly wasn't
the best weekend for us, but it ended up working out. This wasn't the way I
wanted to do it today, but it was what we did all year long that got us here.
We pulled it off and that's what counts. I was worried all day long. We took
off and the car felt pretty good and I felt good about things. All of a
sudden, some guys started picking up speed. It's like they adjusted their
cars. They started pulling away. This is our backup car and we didn't get to
spend a lot of time with it. Unfortunately it wasn't as good as we would have
liked. I've got to thank everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, Ray Evernham and
his Rainbow Warriors. They were the ones that got us to this level and got us
to this point and won the championship for us. We didn't do it in style
today, but we did it in style all year long. It was pretty awesome to pull
off a championship for Chevrolet. Nothing sweeter than a championship and I
think the second time around is even sweeter. We've had one of those career
years."
RAY EVERNHAM (Crew Chief #24 DuPont Automotive Refinishes Monte Carlo) - "My
congratulations to Jeff Gordon and the Rainbow Warriors. It's been a long,
hard year, and yesterday was a tough day. We hate to squeak 'em out like
this, but thank God we did it and we have a couple of days to think about it
now. I'm pretty competitive. I can't stand getting beat. There was a lot of
doubt today."
Dale Earnhardt
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DALE EARNHARDT (#3 GM Goodwrench Service Monte Carlo) - Started 6th,
finished 16th - Hit the wall in turn two on lap 176. - "We got up out of the
groove. A car ran in down under me down the front straightaway. I thought he
was under me. They were hollering low, low. I went up and got up and got a
little loose. I let up so I wouldn't spin out and I got up in the loose stuff
and hit the wall. We had wore out tires. This track is good. We just need to
get a tire good enough to run a gas stop."
Darrell Waltrip
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Darrell Waltrip (#17 Parts America Monte Carlo) - Started 43rd, finished 40th
- Retired car with ignition problem after completing 114 laps - "I was having
a lot of fun out there, and that's what it's all about. Then we had engine
problems. The 25th anniversary celebration was great, but now it's time to
focus on '98."
WALLY DALLENBACH (#46 First Union Monte Carlo) - Started 30th, finished 38th
- "We had our hands full. We thought we broke a shock, but we had to come it.
If we had stayed out much longer we would have been a yellow flag. We had to
come in and work on it to get it to handle better."
Jeff Green
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JEFF GREEN (#29 Cartoon Network Monte Carlo) - Started 7th, finished 4th -
"We just had a good combination today. We tested here and it went well. The
motor ran good. That Hendrick motor might have been the best one out there.
We chased the chassis a little bit, but we got it pretty good. We lost a
little bit on a green flag stop, but it was a good day. Top fives are what
we're after. I think our season starts for next year right here. We're
building a lot of new cars. I think if your car was off it might have been a
little hairy today, but my car drove pretty good all day. It was a dream for
me. I like new tracks. I guess new surfaces suit my driving style. I look
forward to these kind of days. These guys work hard and want to finish in the
top five. So does Jeff Green. I'm repaying 'em a little bit. I drove my butt
off all day. We ended today like we want to start off next year. We took off
at the start and ran with 'em. We stayed in the top six or seven all day. We
didn't fall into a fourth place finish. We made it happen. That's what makes
me feel good. In this competition, these guys are tough. You don't walk in
here and finish in the top 20 much less the top five. We're pretty proud of
ourselves."
Joe Nemechek
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JOE NEMECHEK (#42 BellSouth Monte Carlo) - Started 5th, finished 8th - "I
think the way we finished this race is the way we should definitely kick off
1998. My whole team is staying together with the exception of Tony Glover and
Tony is going to oversee all three teams next year. Scott Eggeleston is going
to be my crew chief next year. I'm excited about '98. It seemed like our
setup didn't match a couple sets of tires we got. One time we took on two
tires and went good but then I blistered the left sides. It seemed like you
had to be careful about the way you paced yourself. We took off at the
beginning. We knew there would be some cautions, so we hammered down. Toward
the end, we had to look at the big goal. The big goal was to get the 42 car
in the top 30 in points so we'd be eligible for plan money from NASCAR for
next year. We started racing toward that goal and we achieved that. We had to
pit a little soon a couple of times today. I picked up a real bad vibration.
The car started shaking and it got loose in the corners. I didn't know what
it was and I wasn't going to wait for a wheel or tire to come off. I had to
pit.
"It was pretty amazing to me. At the start, I was running around here wide
open and barely touching the brakes in the corners. At the end, you'd have to
let off a little bit more in the corners. It seemed like the track might have
slowed down a little bit at the end. The race track is pretty amazing. People
stayed in line, but I passed Earnhardt three or four times. I passed a lot of
people getting up to the front. You just had to get down on the bottom and
dig off the bottom. Your car had to be free through the middle and the motor
to run good. It takes the whole package to do it. Unless you have a really
killer downforce deal like those Pontiacs, they could dive in on the outside
of you and pass you going into the corner. Our Chevy was the best it could be
and we were better on the bottom than the top. Earnhardt was trying to show
me he was back there and when I got behind him I showed him I was there. At
least it's fun to be racing with the guys back up in the front."
Text by Chevrolet Motorsports
Photos and Artwork By Terry Callahan
Editors Note: The images displayed in this article (plus many more) can be viewed in the NASCAR Image Gallery and The Visions Of Speed Art Gallery.
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