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NASCAR WCUP: Dale Jarrett Quotes from Winston Preview

11 January 2001

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

DALE JARRETT (No. 88) UPS

With the start up of a new year, I'm sure you're looking forward to testing?

Yes, like everyone, I think we were all ready for a break probably the last couple weeks of the year, except for Bobby. He was probably ready to continue at the end of 2000, but we've had that break and now we're excited about getting back to work, and I leave tomorrow to go testing at Daytona. Looking forward to that. I think that it's going to be an exciting season for a lot of reasons. We've got a new car in the mix, we've got the new TV package and it seems that the racing is getting better and better and we've got two new racetracks to go to. So, we've got a lot to look forward to with 2001.

Going to Daytona, will you guys be starting where you left off at Talladega last year? Have they given you guys the same rules that you had at Talladega to start with down there?

My understanding is that the only difference is going to be the roof strip. They're going to become the same on all makes of cars. Ours with the Ford was a little bit higher especially on the ends and all of those are going to be evened up by the wind tunnel test. We knew that going into Talladega, but for some reason it didn't happen and we felt like we were at a disadvantage and I think it showed at Talladega. When the cars went to the wind tunnel after that, it showed exactly that and it seems to be the one thing that equals the cars up pretty much. I think that's the only change from Talladega.

When a driver for Robert Yates Racing goes to Daytona it's almost like the Yankees playing in the World Series. Do you feel a little bit of extra excitement and electricity with the Daytona 500 because of how well prepared Robert always is for that race?

I think definitely. We've always gotten excited ever since I went to Roberts in 1995. You can tell that the Daytona 500 was not only the biggest race from NASCAR's standpoint, but it was the biggest race from Robert Yates Racing standpoint. We realize there are 35 other races in 2001, but we get excited because we know we have an opportunity to go there and win. I can honestly say that since I've been driving at Robert Yates, there hasn't been a year truly that I didn't have a chance to win the race. We had cars good enough each and every time to win and we've either won the race or wrecked trying to do this. I think Ricky has seen that and he feels that too that we have our chance to go there and get the season started off in the right way.

When you look at this season, how many guys do you think are legitimately championship contenders, because it seems to me that there's at least six or eight that would be hard to separate them out. How many do think are legitimate guys that can go for the championship?

My number would be a little bit higher and I could probably get ridiculously high, but I honestly think there are nine or ten. I was just reading over some stuff the other day and looked and I think I actually picked out ten guys that I thought could really win the championship. I don't think it would be a stretch for any of those. I looked at another seven or eight if everything came together early for them that they could really be a part of it too. I think the one unknown there is a little bit of the Dodge factor; I think their car is really a good car. Do they have their engine and things worked out? I don't know that, and I'm sure we'll all see. I do think there are ten drivers there that really have that good shot at winning the Winston Cup championship. It should be just an incredible year from that standpoint.

You mentioned the new TV deal. Could you mention maybe a little bit more about FOX's entry first-time doing NASCAR? Your comments?

I think it's exciting for us to know that the sport has come to this point and that FOX has taken the initiative to get into this and really in a big way. I've found it pretty cool to be sitting around over the holidays watching football and what you're seeing is them talking about the Daytona 500 coming up. That's something we've never had before. That's exciting for us to know that we're gathering those new fans. There are people there who have never been able to watch us because of the races being on cable or something and they haven't had that chance. So now, they're getting that chance to watch it and really doing it in a big way. We're seeing the sport being put in a different light that ever before. Now, we have to perform and make sure we do our job so the networks can reap the benefits.

Now that you've been there, does the business of being the Winston Cup champion make it tough to win it twice in a row?

No, I don't think so. There's a lot that goes on with it. We certainly had a very busy year in 2000, but I don't think there was anything that came from winning the Winston Cup championship in 1999 that kept us from trying to repeat in 2000. We just simply didn't perform well enough. I talked a lot about the tires and it was not the tires fault. It was our fault for not finding the combination that really worked week-in and week-out like a number of the guys did, and so we've got to do a little bit better job there. But, there was nothing that came from winning the championship that kept us from being able to do that. Bobby Labonte and his team are experienced enough that they know how to handle the PR side of it and they'll be very good in 2001. They'll have a chance at the championship. Again, you could make yourself busy everyday but that still wouldn't keep you from doing your job and being able to challenge for the championship.

Obviously, you guys have to fight a constant battle to make sure that you cars are not at a disadvantage through the wind tunnels and stuff like that. Is there any concern that NASCAR might give Dodge a little leeway this year being their first year and maybe the car is not quite up to snuff and they might get enough help that they come out with an advantage?

I don't think it'll be something that NASCAR has done intentionally. I think the unknown is that they haven't been on the racetrack with other cars. They simply don't know. They're going into the season not knowing exactly what the Dodge car is going to do and how it's going to perform. I think that they don't want to be too hard on them; they've got to give them a chance coming out. If they end up having a slight advantage at the start, it's nothing intentional; I think it's just the unknown there. NASCAR will be quick to make a change if they need to. They're going to obviously pay their dues. They're not going to know either. They've been on the track with each other some, but they haven't been with other cars in racing conditions, so they really don't know what to expect. It's just simply an unknown and I'm sure if they come out with a bang and can win some races right up front then NASCAR will take a look at that.

Talk a little about Jason's career and how you try to deal with it from a dad helping him deal with some disappointments and frustrations and getting over injuries and things like that.

It's difficult. I guess the biggest thing is trying to help him fight through the disappointment of not running as well as he wanted to, the expectations not what other people have of him, but of what he had. Just trying to make him understand that he has a perfect example of things can happen later right in front of him if he'll just understand that. Trying to tell a 25-year-old kid that who wants to go to the top right now and when he sees guys that he has raced with and grew up with like Junior having the success that he's having, it makes him a little bit antsy to want to get to that point too. But, as I told him, Junior's dad was winning races and championships way before I got to that point too, so if he can just hold on and be patient. That's the one thing I've tried to stress to him.

Working through the injury part, that's difficult. You can talk and let him know that there are going to be these times when you have to work through this. There is the chance all the time of an injury. No matter what you choose to do, there are always opportunities for things to happen. This is a tough business and you have to be strong- willed and strong-minded and that's the thing I've tried to help him most with. I can only tell him so much how to drive and go about the business, but he has to get in the racecar and really want to do it and he does that. He's got himself in a good position now with this ARCA ride to really get the experience he needs and I think this will really be a confidence booster for him this year.

NASCAR fans are some of the best fans in all sports. Give us your take on fans out here camping out 24 hours trying to get in and get your autograph. What's your take on the whole deal?

We've got to love them. I don't know that there's anybody that I've ever thought I would sit out all night wanting to get their autograph or just see, but we appreciate what they do. We do feel like we have the best fans. That comes from a lot of things, certainly the TV and media coverage we get helps keep them informed, but they're just a group of people who enjoy what they watch. That's what makes it fun to go out and perform because you know they're sitting there loving every minute of it. To know that they've been here for about a day camping out waiting to see their favorite driver is pretty incredible. I'm not sure that any other sport can boast about anything quite like this happening. We're very proud of what NASCAR has done, what the people at R. J. Reynolds and Winston have done to make all of this happen.

Dale, you talked about several championship contenders in the year, what do you think about Rusty next year? I think he is certainly somebody I put in my list that could be right there. He had a tremendous season in 2000 and you have to think they're going to work through some of the problems that happened to them early in the year. He won a lot of races, ran up front and led a lot of laps, so I think he is someone we definitely have to watch. They seem to have really turned a corner. I think Jeremy has helped that and they work very well together. I consider both of them a challenge for the championship.

Dale, talk a little bit about your new sponsor this year and depending on what figures you read, it's generally believed to be the biggest sponsorship out there right now. Talk a little bit about raisng the bar on what it costs to do one of these, a championship winning Winston Cup team and the amount of money that has to come in to do that.

I don't know the figures myself. I just know that Robert knows what it takes, and the cost is going up. Especially, as we get more races and as this sport gets more technically advanced it creates more positions for more people, more engineers and to make all of this happen, the costs are certainly rising. It's amazing to go to our race shops and see what is taking place since I went there in 1995 and then in 1996 when we ran the two teams out of one very small space, the engine shop was the biggest part of the whole place. Now, it still is but we have a lot more room for everything else. It's just incredible the amount of money that it takes to make all of this work and happen. Even with the dollars that we talk about, it is still much cheaper than it is to be involved in any other major league sport, with the payrolls that they have. We're just kind of catching up in that respect, we're finally getting caught up in the TV side of it, and I think the sport is getting to the point that it's still very healthy. There are companies out there, obviously UPS has shown this is something that could be very beneficial to them and we're excited to have them on board. We realize that it makes us very high profile, but we thought we were that anyway. We had a very good sponsorship relationship with Ford over the past five years and so this is exciting for us. I think it's only going to open up doors for other sponsors, people that do have major dollars to become involved in. It takes every dollar to make all of this happen.

You and Dale Earnhardt have gone toe-to-toe every year for many 500s in the last decade. He also slipped by you this year in points. The guy is going to turn 50 in April. Can you assess what his chances are?

I think Dale's chances are very good. A number of years ago, when everyone was discussing should he be looking at retiring and he had slipped a little bit, I think most of us on the racetrack knew that this wasn't the case at all. He was taking equipment and doing things that most other people made races with and he was still running well. I think you have to consider him as a major factor in the Winston Cup championship battle. Knowing that he's going to turn 50 gives me a lot of hope that I've got six or seven more years at this. It's nice to see that, and it's great for our sport. At a time whenever the sport is still continuing to grow but at a level we've never been at before, it's great to have someone like Dale Earnhardt leading the charge, because he really gets the most support out here of all the drivers and all of it is well deserved. He's put in a lot of miles and he's given up pretty much of his life to make all of this happen and make it work for all of us.

Could you talk a little bit about your thoughts on the new expanded schedule and also a little bit about what kind of changes that's going to require for you and your crew this year?

I think the biggest thing is as Todd and Robert and myself have sat and talked about our guys, that's going to be the biggest thing is making sure that we don't wear our people totally out. When you consider here in just a few weeks when we start with the Bud Shootout, that we only have three weekends that we don't race until November 18 is almost a little bit scary to think about. What we have to do and what we have discussed is those weeks that we do have off, that we're going to try to give our road guys that whole week off, not just a day or two. There are some guys that you have to literally tell them they can't come, because they'll show up anyway. We need for them to be away from there. We're trying to get them instead of a half-day or a day each week to get them at least a day and a half and possibly the first two days of each week to take that time off to spend with their families and just to keep their sanity. As we sat and discussed, I told Todd the same thing, you can't just tell your people to do this, you're doing to have to do the same thing. That's important that he does that. We sat down and in those three weeks that we have off, we scheduled no testing whatsoever. I'm going to take the time to spend with my family during this time and we're going to make sure the guys take enough time to enjoy what they're doing. They're being paid well now for what they do, but it's not a lot of fun if they just send that paycheck home and they don't get time to enjoy it.

You mentioned the Bud Shootout, and if my records are correct, you've now qualified for the sixth consecutive year for the Bud Shootout with tremendous success there. What are your thoughts on a chance to bank a little money early and also get a little more feel for the racing, the competition, the track?

I think the Shootout is always fun for the driver because it's the first chance you have to get out and get in competition. It's a longer race this year. You should be able to put in more strategy and see a little bit more racing than we've seen before. I'm excited about it, and again, it's your first chance. It's always good because it lets you kind of calm your nerves before the 125s on Thursday and get a chance to see what the competition is going to be like and get your feel back for the draft and that's going to be very important this year because I think the draft is going to be even more important than we've seen in years past at Daytona. Last year was just incredible to be able to win the qualifying and go out and win the Shootout, too.

Text Provided By Marie Mason

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