Q&A With Driver Jeff Green:
You haven’t had as much success at Michigan as you have some other tracks. What do you think of the place?
“I like the place. I’m not sure why we haven’t done as well here. We ran pretty well here when I drove for (Richard) Childress. I guess we’ve just never been able to get the right package at the right time.
“It’s pretty smooth, and you can run all over the place in terms of the groove – pretty much anywhere you want to. ”
You’ve had some frustrating finishes the past few weeks. What do you do to keep your mood up and get excited about coming to the track?
“Well, it would be different if our cars weren’t good. We’ve had some pretty decent race cars these past three or four races, but mistakes have taken us out of contention.
“At Dover and at Pocono, problems on pit road cost us. At Dover, it was my fault, but this past weekend, we just had a couple of bad pit stops. It’s frustrating, but the guys are trying, so it’s hard to come down too hard on them. You just have to know that there’s a fresh chance every race to perform better, and that’s what motivates you. ”
Q&A With Crew Chief Harold Holly:
What are your thoughts on Michigan International Speedway?
“I like all the speedways. The surface of Michigan is porous, so it treats the tire kind of like Darlington (Raceway) does. If Darlington is a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of being abrasive to the tires, I’d say Michigan is about a four. It grates the tire off and you lose a lot of grip. It’s a challenge to get your car balanced like you want it, but after testing at Charlotte and Nashville, and then the race this past weekend at Pocono, I feel like we’ve got something to work with. ”
The team has dropped in the points standings over the past three races. As the crew chief, what do you say to the team?
“You have to accept the reality of the situation. We had a fast car at Charlotte and were coming up through the field, but we got caught up in an accident.
“At Dover, once we got our tire issue and our pit road issue out of the way, our lap times would have put us in the top-15. At Pocono, we didn’t unload like we needed to, but that was my first trip to Pocono in a couple of years, so I had some catching up to do in terms of relearning the track.
“It’s been mistakes that have cost us, so I just emphasize the importance of trying to eliminate mistakes. It’s not like we haven’t had some fast cars, but mistakes are just killing us. The pit crew guys have been focusing on the fundamentals and drilling on those. Our pit stops are an issue, but it’s one we’re working hard to straighten out. It’s not something that’s going to fix itself overnight. ”
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