GM Racing - Said, Pemberton, Fellows Transcript - The Glen

GM RACING      Contact: Nancy Wager

NASCAR Winston Cup Teleconference    GM Racing Communications

August 5, 2003      

 

This week's NASCAR Winston Cup Teleconference featured Boris Said, driver of the No. 01 USG Sheetrock Brand/MB2 Pontiac and crew chief, Ryan Pemberton. Additionally, Ron Fellows, driver of the No. 1 Pennzoil Chevrolet Monte Carlo, was a guest on the call.  

 

Said has competed in eight NASCAR Winston Cup races - three at Watkins Glen. He drove the 01 US Army Pontiac at Infineon Raceway in June, where he sat on the pole and finished sixth, his best career Winston Cup result. His previous best was an eighth place finish at Watkins Glen in 2001. Said, 40, is the reigning SCCA Trans-Am champion and he resides in Carlsbad, Calif. He is a native of Stamford, Conn.

 

Fellows has made seven NASCAR Winston Cup career starts.  Four of those have been at Watkins Glen. His best finish at that track was second in 1999.

 

In the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, Fellows has two wins at Watkins Glen (1997 & '99).  With his '97 victory, he became the first Canadian to win a major NASCAR event since Earl Ross in 1974.  In the NASCAR Busch Series, Fellows has score three wins (1998, '00, & '01). There again, he became the first non-American to win a Busch Series race. Fellows last competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series at Infineon Raceway in June where he started third and finished seventh.

 

A native of Windsor, Ontario, Fellows is one of the founding drivers in General Motors' Corvette sports car racing program and was responsible for the team's first ALMS victory in September 2000 at the Texas Motor Speedway. Fellows, 43, is recognized as one of North America's best and diverse road racing drivers; he has won races in every level of competition he's raced, from NASCAR to the 24 Hour of Le Mans.

 

The following are highlights of the Q&A's with the media as Said, Pemberton, and Fellows discussed the 2003 season and the upcoming Sirius at The Glen.

 

Q&A'S WITH BORIS SAID:

 

(THANK YOU FOR TAKING TIME AWAY FROM YOUR GOLF GAME TO JOIN US. FOLLOWING YOUR GREAT WEEKEND AT INFINEON IN JUNE AND YOUR LAST TWO OUTINGS AT THE GLEN, TELL US HOW EXCITED YOU ARE TO BE BACK BEHIND THE WHEEL OF THE '01 PONTIAC THIS WEEKEND) "This is a big chance for me. To have a full time team running your deal instead of just a part-time effort like I've had for the past few years is a big difference. Our results showed that at Infineon. Watkins Glen is a track I've always liked. We tested there a few weeks ago and we were running really good. Hopefully Ron (Pemberton) and the boys will have a good weekend."

 

(WHEN YOU'RE PLAYING GOLF, DOES THAT FLUSH YOUR MIND OF THE PERILS OF RACING?) "Golf is just kind of a mental challenge. One second you're great and one second you're not. I'm glad racing isn't like golf. You'd either be getting fired or going to the hospital every other week it's so hot and cold. It's just a neat challenge. And it's probably just as different as you can get from racing."

 

(IS IT DIFFICULT TO COME IN FOR JUST ONE OR TWO RACES AND TRY TO MESH WITH THE TEAM?) "Yes and no. If you were running week in and week out, you'd have much more rapport with your team. But Ryan and I have known each other a long time. To me, we're like a full-time team. We had a lot of chemistry at Infineon. I don't know for what reason. It seemed like we'd been together all year and it was really our first time. I just seem to mesh really good with the MB2 bunch. We're more than just working guys; we're all friends. It makes a difference."

 

(WHAT DOES ROAD RACING AT WATKINS GLEN MEAN TO YOU - ESPECIALLY RACING WITH THE ELITE WINSTON CUP SERIES?) "Watkins Glen has always been one of my favorite tracks, but it's more special just because you're racing in Winston Cup. And for me as a racer who is normally just known as a road racer it's special. Winston Cup right now is the most competitive form of racing in the world. It's a big challenge to be a part of that show. It's something that I'm working to be part of full time next year or the year after. That's my goal right now - to be a Winston Cup driver. I'm going to keep working on it."

 

(DOES THAT PUT EXTRA PRESSURE ON YOU TO DO WELL?) "I don't think so. Racers always have pressure on themselves. It's more self-inducing than anything because my number one fear is failure. I want to do the best job I can every time I'm in the car. I don't think anybody puts more pressure on myself than I do. But of course you want to do well."

 

(HOW DO YOU THINK THE REGULAR WINSTON CUP DRIVERS LOOK AT THE 'HIRED GUNS' THAT COME IN FOR ROAD RACES?  HOW DO THEY TREAT YOU IN THE GARAGE AREA?) "The last four years I've probably worked with about 18 of the top guys - trying to help their road race programs whether it's been in car set-up or things a driver does that are different from oval racing. I think I'm well-received in the garage."

 

(OF THE WINSTON CUP REGULARS, WHO ARE THE TOUGHEST GUYS YOU LOOK FOR ON A ROAD COURSE?) "Well, of course Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart. Those are two of the best. But this year at The Glen, I think you're going to see a much closer field. At the test, Mark Martin was really strong. Dale Jr. was real strong. I think you're going to see a lot of people run at the front that you haven't seen before."

 

(WHAT ARE SOME OF THE ADJUSTMENTS THE DRIVERS HAVE TO MAKE TO DEAL WITH THE SUMMER HEAT IN THE RACE CARS?) "The biggest thing is that you've got to keep yourself hydrated. A Winston Cup car is a very harsh environment. It can be 150 degrees in the car at Watkins Glen. A road race like Watkins Glen and Infineon are probably the most physical races that a Cup driver has to deal with because you're so busy in the car. You just try to keep a lot of fresh air blowing on you and keep hydrated. That's the worst thing about those cars. If they were air conditioned, they'd be a whole lot better, that's for sure."

 

(HAVE YOU TALKED TO MB2 ABOUT A RIDE IN THE BUDWEISER SHOOTOUT FOR YOUR POLE AT INFINEON?) "Yeah, that conversation started about 30 seconds after they told me I had the pole. I've been working flat out trying to get a ride on any oval I can. It looks like we're going to try and do the ARCA race at Talladega at the end of the year to try and get a little experience drafting. But I'm pretty confident I'll be at the Bud Shootout."

 

(DID YOUR PERFORMANCE AT INFINEON CAUSE PEOPLE TO THINK OF YOU A LITTLE MORE AS A CUP DRIVER AND NOT JUST A HIRED GUN?) "I hope so. The big problem is that you've still got to go out and prove you can do it on an oval. I think I can, I've just got to convince some team owner to give me a chance on an oval. It definitely doesn't hurt. The performance at Infineon is definitely giving me at least two ovals this year, so I'm hoping I can prove myself there and get a full time deal in Cup."

 

(ARE YOU GETTING A BIGGER RESPONSE WHEN YOU CALL?  DO THEY RETURN YOUR CALLS OR JUST WAITING UNTIL ROAD COURSE TIME?) "In the past, it's always been that everybody is my best friend and then once August comes around and Watkins Glen is over, your phone never rings again. And now, I'm getting a lot more positive responses from the people I've been talking to."

 

(IF IT WERE POSSIBLE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO GO FULL TIME IN WINSTON CUP AND JUST DABBLE IN SPORTS CAR RACING, OR THE OTHER WAY AROUND?) "My number one goal right now it to try and get into Winston Cup full time. I'm going to try my hardest to make it happen. But if it doesn't happen, I still have a pretty unique racing career and feel lucky I get to drive all the different cool cars. I'm going to try to make it happen in Winston Cup but if it doesn't, I'm not going to kick myself over it. I'm going to just continue what I'm doing and have a good time racing. That's what I love to do."

 

(DO YOU HAVE MORE CONFIDENCE NOW WITH OVALS?) "Yes, I did the NASCAR Truck Series a few years ago for two years and I didn't understand the cars at that point. And now, I understand what makes these cars work a lot better so I think if I had another chance at ovals, I'd be a lot more prepared. So, yes I definitely have more confidence."

 

(WHAT ARE THE MENTAL AND PHYSICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DRIVING A SPORTS CAR AND DRIVING A WINSTON CUP CAR?) "The biggest thing is just the level of competition. In any other road racing series I do, there are five or six guys you're racing against. In Winston Cup, there are 43 guys and they're all competitive. There are just tiny things that separate the winners from the losers. It's just a much more competitive field in Winston Cup."

 

(DO YOU HAVE TO CHANGE YOUR MINDSET WHEN YOU GET INTO THE WINSTON CUP CAR?) "Completely. At Infineon Raceway, I did all three races: Southwest Tour, Trans-Am, and Winston Cup. When you're going back to back to back in three different cars, it's as different as golf and tennis. You need to remember when you're sitting in that car and know that you're swinging the tennis racquet or swinging the golf club.  They're three completely different driving styles."

 

(DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS THAT SEPARATES YOU FROM DRIVERS WHO NEVER RISE ABOVE THEIR LOCAL TRACKS?) "I don't know. It's just like there are guys at a local track looking at me and thinking I'm better, I look at Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart or Dale Jr. and wonder what they have that I don't have. If I knew the answer to that question, I would be driving as good as Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart. Normally, what makes a driver good is determination and just a physical and mental ability to keep that car at the very edge. There are some guys who have a special gift."

 

Q&A'S WITH RYAN PEMBERTON:

 

(WATKINS GLEN WILL BE THE SIXTH STRAIGHT ROAD RACE THAT YOU AND BORIS SAID HAVE TEAMED UP TOGETHER. WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE CHEMISTRY THAT KEEPS YOU COMING BACK TO BORIS FOR THE ROAD RACES?) "First of all, he's a great guy. We're friends and I think that's a big part of it. In this business, you work real hard and you dedicate your life to it. It sure helps that you really appreciate and really like the person that you're working with and working for. On top of that, he's one of the best road racers in the world. It's a good opportunity for him and we really appreciate him filling in for us this year."

 

(WHAT SETS SAID APART FROM OTHER RACERS WHO ARE TRYING TO GET BETTER AT ROAD RACING OR ANY FORM OF RACING?) "Boris has incredible car control and incredible foot work. If you've ever seen a foot cam or anything like that inside a car, the things that he does with the gas and the clutch and the brake pedal are second to none. You could almost watch the whole in-car camera footage. His awareness of things around him inside the car is incredible. He can tell me different rpm's when he comes off the corners - exactly what the rpm was - things that most drivers can't do. Most drivers couldn't tell you. Boris can tell you everything that's going on in there. Those details really set him apart. He's got the ability to do that."

 

(YOU'RE FROM SARATOGA SPRINGS IN UPSTATE NEW YORK?) "Yes."

 

(HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO BREAK INTO WINSTON CUP AND NASCAR'S OTHER SERIE, AND WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE INFLUX OF TALENT FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY VS. JUST FROM THE SOUTH?) "Maybe that was a little bit before my time, but it seems like the drivers are from all over the place. Racing has become extremely popular all over the country. There are a lot of little NASCAR-affiliated race tracks all over the country. To work your way up through the ranks - whether you're a crewmember or whatever - is not too hard. But there are limited positions on Winston Cup and Busch Series teams. You've got to work your way up through there. Most everybody in Winston Cup has worked from maybe a touring series or a modified series.  The program is working but that's basically the steps you have to take."

 

(HOW OLD WERE YOU WHEN YOU DECIDED THIS IS WHERE YOU WANTED TO BE?) "I had a definitely different situation than a lot of other people. I followed my brother, Robin, through his career and I got opportunities to do some different things and get on the inside. A lot of people don't have that luxury to get on pit road or to run tires at a very young age and wash parts and things like that. So I was very fortunate to have the doors open up for me pretty early - in high school days. I tried to take advantage of all those situations and keep my eyes open and watch and learn and learn from mistakes. My situation was a little bit different and I was fortunate to have that involvement in racing in those younger days."

 

(HOW DOES IT FEEL TO COME INTO WATKINS GLEN WITH A 'HIRED GUN'?) "When you have a guy like Boris and you're running good, they're more open to you. They want to be your buddies and they want to know everything you're doing. It's not been a problem. Boris has a great relationship with a lot of these guys. We were at VIR testing and there were about six or seven teams out there. Dale Jr. asked Boris if he would drive his car. He wanted to see how fast it would go. I thought that was kind of funny. Boris jumped in the car and his knees were all crammed up under the steering wheel and everything and he didn't even look like he could drive it. But he went out there and busted off a couple of good laps and told Jr. what he thought of his car. Jr. went back and worked on it and I think he ran extremely well. Most all of those Winston Cup drivers are very open to Boris."

 

(HOW DO YOU SEE THE HOT WEATHER AS PLAYING A MAJOR FACTOR IN A ROAD RACE LIKE WATKINS GLEN?) "No, I don't think it's going to be a huge factor in how you handle it. But it will be a big factor in qualifying if the sun is out and then goes away. That track is more temperamental than you'd ever believe. When the sun moves in and out, the track would pick up as much as seven or eight or a tenth of a second. This big different will be if it rains. There are a lot of changes there. NASCAR has toyed with the idea of running in the rain. I don't know if they'd ever do that. We're going up there prepared to run in the rain, which we've never done before. There is that chance. We had rain tires out there a few years ago. That could be a big factor in how we address the car."

 

(HAVE YOU BEEN TOLD THAT THERE WILL BE RAIN TIRES AT THE GLEN THIS WEEKEND?) "I haven't been told that there would be any, but they've brought them up there the last three years. About three years ago it was raining and a couple of guys actually went out in the rain. Mark Martin was one. I don't know how that would work if it comes to that."

 

(DO YOU KNOW IF GOODYEAR WILL HAVE RAIN TIRES THERE?) "I don't know for sure. But we're building cars with windshield wipers and defoggers. We have for years. I'm not doing anything different. Right now, we've got to make plans for it."

 

(GIVEN SAID'S BROAD RANGE OF RACING EXPERIENCE, WHAT RESERVATIONS WOULD A WINSTON UP OWNER HAVE ABOUT PUTTING HIM IN A CUP CAR TO PROVE HE COULD HANDLE RACING ON OVALS?) "Boris has as much talent as anybody I've ever worked with. It would just take a little time. It might not take much time. He's a much better racer right now than he was three or four years ago when we first started really working together. He's more knowledgeable. He's got the ability and I hope that somebody gives him the opportunity." 

 

(DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS TO TEST JERRY NADEAU AT THIS POINT?) "No, but we're getting cars geared up.  We've got a car set aside that's a good race car but it might be a little bit outdated on a couple of body panels or something like that. But we're getting gears to start with maybe some short track stuff around here and work our way up. We'll do maybe a couple of short track tests and then go to Kentucky or a place like that. Those are our plans. Obviously he's going to start out racing on some Go-Kart tracks. I ran with him a couple of weeks ago on the Go-Cart track in Charlotte and he beat me. I feel good about that. He's got to be 100 percent when he gets back into a car. He knows that and that's what he wants. That's what we want as a race team. We're just going to take our time. We want him back in the car, but there's no pressure to put him back in the car too soon. We're going to let him get healthy and get 100 percent. We're going to get some good tests under our belt so we can come back swinging."

 

Q&A'S WITH RON FELLOWS:

 

(HOW MUCH WOULD A NASCAR WINSTON CUP WIN ADD TO YOUR RESUME?) "It would be big. We've gotten to win some pretty neat sports car races like a couple of class wins at Le Mans and overall win at the Rolex 24 Hour at Daytona, but without a doubt winning a Winston Cup race - a road race - would be the biggest in my career just because of how big NASCAR Winston Cup racing has become."

 

(HOW MUCH EFFORT HAVE YOU PUT INTO PREPARING FOR THIS PARTICULAR RACE AT THE GLEN?) "Much like a number of the teams, we were at the test last Monday and Tuesday. That was primarily it. We certainly have had a number of conversations with the DEI shop about things we need to do differently from Infineon. We feel pretty good that we'll have a good car to race on Sunday."

 

(HOW DIFFERENT IS RUNNING A WINSTON CUP CAR AT THE GLEN VS. RUNNING THE OTHER SPORTS CARS?) "They're tougher to drive than what we're used to - certainly our Corvette that we race in long distance sports car racing. It's 1,000 lbs. lighter than a Winston Cup car. It's got probably twice as much downforce. It uses carbon brakes like they use in Formula 1, and about two inches more Goodyear tire. The Winston Cup car takes quite a bit more finesse. They have tremendous power. You've got to be a little bit smoother. You've got to be a little bit more attentive to the fact that you don't have the same grip level. You can easily overheat the brakes, so you've got to be smart about that. They're a lot of fun to drive. Again, that finesse factor is much more prominent."

 

(WHEN YOU LOOK BACK AT A RACE WHERE YOU FINISHED 2ND, HOW MANY TIMES DO YOU LOOK BACK AND THINK ABOUT THINGS YOU MIGHT HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY?) "I don't know that we could have done a lot of things differently. I think the margin of victory for Jeff Gordon then was under a second. It was like three-quarters of a second. So if you wonder why you couldn't make up three-quarters of a second, the answer was probably Jeff Gordon. It was a great race. We came very close. And it's not going to be any easier, that's for sure. I watch primarily from the outside looking in, and in the previous four years Winston Cup racing has become so much more competitive. The number of guys who are going to be a factor at a road race has increased by a lot. My odds have increased as well (by) being with Pennzoil and DEI. But as we saw at Infineon, not only do you need to be leading a race, but the stars have got to be all lined up as well. Then maybe we can win one."

 

(DO WINSTON CUP DRIVERS NOT GET ENOUGH CREDIT FOR BEING ROAD RACERS AS WELL?) "I don't know if they do or don't. I have tremendous respect for a great number of them. They are a number of really great racing drivers in the Winston Cup Series. That's part of the attraction. You want to be there to measure yourself against the best. Yes, I'm more comfortable on a road course (because) that's my background. But at the same time, you want to have a chance against some guys that you admire and that you think are some of the best in the world - particularly with how popular Winston Cup racing has become. It's huge. Even up here in Toronto. It's a big deal up here."

 

(IF YOU WIN, WOULD YOU BE THE FIRST CANADIAN TO WIN A WINSTON CUP RACE?) "No, actually Earl Ross won one - I think it was North Wilkesboro in 1974. He ran one full year in what was called Grand National then. I'm not sure what the team was. It was for a Canadian beer company, I can tell you that. But I believe it was 1974."

 

(KNOWING CANADIAN FANS, THAT WOULD ALMOST BE A CANADIAN HOLIDAY, WOULDN'T IT?) "That I don't know (laughs). It would be a holiday for me, I can tell you that."

 

(DEI SAYS YOU ARE ABLE TO PASS ALONG TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE FROM THE TRACK TO THEM FOR THE CAR SET-UP. HOW HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO DO THAT?) "I guess it just comes from years of practice. Testing is something I have always enjoyed and still enjoyed. Back in the Trans-Am days with the Camaro was a big part of our success was the amount of work Chevrolet put into testing and preparation. And certainly, in their long-distance program with Corvette, testing was super critical. I've gotten to do a lot of that and really enjoy it. You've got to like it to start with. And then you test and develop a good feel for what the cars need to go faster. And that's one of the things that I've learned. It's one thing to translate what the car is doing. It's another thing to translate what you need to do for you to go faster. So it's also understanding your own driving. That's one of the things I think I'm improved at over the past few years is a better understanding my own driving and what I need the car to do for me to be successful."

 

(BY BEING WITH DEI, ONE OF THE THINGS YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT IS QUALFIYING. DOES THAT TAKE SOME OF THE PRESSURE OFF?) "Yes and no. Yeah, it's great that we don't have to worry about not being in the race on Sunday. The other thing is Jr. leaning in the window at the Watkins Glen test last week and saying, 'Just go and get the pole at Watkins Glen and that'll put you in the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona.  So, no pressure there (laughs)."

 

(JR. HAD HIS BEST TEST EVER AT WATKINS GLEN. WAS THAT BECAUSE YOU WORKED TOGETHER?) "I think so. One of the things about DEI is that they have an excellent engineering department. When these guys go to a test, they've got a lot of parameters to study the car. They load the car up for downloading every function the car has as most of the cars have. You can't use it during the race, but certainly during testing it's a great tool for testing. It also helps to speed up the process of improving the car. Certainly having the data from both cars, we both learned. That was probably the biggest asset we had."

 

(HOW DO OTHER DRIVERS IN OTHER SERIES TALK ABOUT THE WINSTON CUP SERIES? IS THAT THE PLACE TO BE IN NORTH AMERICA?) "It goes without saying, yes. Even some of the guys I race with in American Le Mans Series. Their first question is that I finished 7th and the prize money was $94,000 and they want to know if it pays that much every week.  Because of how popular it is, you get a lot of crossover when you've got drivers like myself and Boris Said and Scott Pruett have come from other forms of road racing. Certainly the road racing community watches and has lots of questions about what the cars are like to drive. It's a lot of fun to race those cars. It's so competitive and so popular."

 

(IS THE BEST RIDE WITH THE BEST OPPORTUNITY AT THE GLEN?) "Without a doubt. We were in pretty good position at Infineon Raceway back in June. We were just a little bit unlucky with that caution with about 30 (laps) to go. The resources that DEI has are a big advantage. They're a multi-car team and one of the best in the series. I never thought I'd get this kind of opportunity. I've really enjoyed working with Tony Gibson and the crew."

 

(IF IT WERE POSSIBLE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO GO FULL TIME IN WINSTON CUP AND JUST DABBLE IN SPORTS CAR RACING, OR THE OTHER WAY AROUND?) "Am I interested in doing Winston Cup full time? I'd be crazy if I said no. But again, I don't have a lot of oval experience and I'm over 40. So, I'd sure like to give it a shot, but I'd be quite happy doing what I'm doing and be able to dabble in Winston Cup with DEI and do whatever they'd want me to do."