Austin Prock: 'I felt pretty confident going that we were going to have the car to beat'
Paul Lee: 'It’s going to be great just to see our friends and the fans'
Jack Beckman: 'I don’t know if anyone wants to get back more than me'
Tim Wilkerson: 'I don’t think they’re ready for my attitude. It’s gonna be fun'
Kenny Delco: 'We were fast, we qualified fourth at Pomona and Phoenix'
Steve Torrence: 'You’ve got to come out and swing for every one of ’em'
Cristian Cuadra: 'I think I’m doing well, but I have a lot of room to improve'
Tommy Johnson Jr.: 'I’ve not wanted to win a championship more than this year'
Brittany Force: 'We’re ready for all this to be over so we get back to what we love'
Robert Hight: 'I can’t wait to get back and try to defend our championship'
Alex Laughlin: 'All we have to do is shove the car back in the trailer, and we are ready to go racing'
Shawn Langdon: 'I’m trying to stay as fresh as I can so we can be ready to go'
Chris McGaha: 'We’ve come up with some new ideas and we’ve beaten on some things'
J.R. Todd: 'I have all the confidence that we will be in contention when it counts'
Clay Millican: 'I can’t wait to stomp on that loud pedal ... it’s been way too long'
Bob Tasca III: 'Trust me, this Motorcraft car is going to have its day in the sun'
Antron Brown: 'I’ve been doing everything I can; I’m gonna come back hungry and ready'
Jason Line: 'It doesn’t matter what track we start with, the cars will all be ready to go when we get the call'
Fernando Cuadra Jr: 'We’re applying many of the things we learned from the first two races'
John Force: 'I’ll be ready. I know the car. I could drive it with my eyes closed'
Rahn Tobler maps out plans and goals for the NAPA Auto Parts Funny Car team
Leah Pruett: 'This is not the time to test or play; it’s time to run with what we know'
Ron Capps: 'It’s going to feel crazy the first time any of us steps on the gas for the first time'
Doug Kalitta: 'We’re all just really hungry and ready to make it happen'
Bo Butner: 'I feel like when we all come back racing we’ll be stronger than ever!'
Jeg Coughlin Jr: 'It’s time to go. Every round will be as important as the last'
Matt Hartford: 'We have a car that can run for the championship—bar none'
Alexis DeJoria: 'I just hope that everybody makes it back to the track safely'
Justin Ashley: 'Having a break like this really puts things in perspective'
Erica Enders: 'Our great start proves the organization’s hard work is paying off'
J.R. Todd: 'I have all the confidence that we will be in contention when it counts'
Current points position: Tied for 10th | Best season e.t. to date: 3.914
Early-season report card: Two middle-of-the-pack qualifying efforts and first-round losses in Pomona and Phoenix wasn’t quite the start that 2018 season champ Todd and crew chiefs Jon Oberhofer and Todd Smith were hoping for.
Looking back: “That was so long ago I’m glad to forget about all that because we definitely didn’t start out the way we wanted to. We made some OK runs, just not quick enough. We were trying some different chassis things in testing and we struggled and didn’t get down the track a whole lot, and kind of got married to the car that we tested. As time went on, we figured out some different things with it and we tested Monday after the Phoenix event and made some OK runs there, so we were positive going into Gainesville.”
Looking ahead: “I’m looking forward to getting back on track. Hopefully, it’s sooner than later but either way when we do it's probably going to be warm and I like those conditions. It seems like our team usually runs better when it’s like that, but no matter what it’s all-out because of the limited races and the limited runs for each event and you need to make every run count, especially with no Countdown.”
Shop talk: “The team already front-halved one car and got everything ready to go because we’re not going to have time to test between events, but we’re all in the same boat so it’s just gonna be a matter but who has their stuff together at the right time. I’m excited about getting back to the gym because the things I do there I feel like more beneficial for me then a practice Tree. I can get my heart rate way up and then do some eye-hand coordination things; to me, that’s more like being in the race car.”
The final word: “I have all the confidence that Todd and Jon O. and the guys will get a handle on things and we will be in contention when it counts. We need to get as many points as possible because there’s no reset, and we’re already a little bit in a hole compared to the frontrunners. We need to string together as many late rounds as we can and rack up as many points as possible.”