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'
Robert Hight: 'I can’t wait to get back and try to defend our championship'
ROBERT HIGHT | Auto Club Chevy Camaro
Current points position: 7th | Best season e.t. to date: 3.862
Early-season report card: After qualifying third in both Pomona and Phoenix with mid-3.8-second passes, the Jimmy Prock-led Auto Club team has just one round-win, over Terry Haddock in Pomona. He grabbed a good holeshot in round one in Phoenix but shook hard and had to lift after nearly crossing the centerline.
Looking back: “We went testing and did well and we’ve actually qualified well but we haven’t raced well. We made a lot of mistakes in the first two races, but the good news is that we’re not that far off. We changed the fuel system a little bit and we were dropping cylinders.”
Looking ahead: “We tested Monday after Phoenix and it ran really well and Jimmy is one of those guys who never stops thinking, so you give him a few months to think about something, look out. When you only have two qualifying runs, you have no throwaway runs, so you’re going to want to make the best of both. I’m going to predict that we might not have as many No. 1 qualifiers as we normally would because you’ve got to be a little smarter about every run. It’s really easy to have problems and take two runs before you figure it out. We’d like to test before the first race but that’s all still to be determined. If we can get back to the consistency we’ve had the last three seasons you can really get some momentum. If you put three or four wins together — and we’ve done that several times -– and if you can do that with no Countdown, you’ll be looking good.”
Shop talk: “We haven’t done a lot at the Indy shop because Indianapolis was shut down, but we’re ready to go back to work, but, honestly, there isn’t a lot to do. We were ready to race in Gainesville and we were back in the shop quite a bit after Gainesville got shut down, so we’re ready for the most part.”
The final word: “I can’t wait to hear a nitro engine run and I can’t wait to get back and try to defend our championship. I’m looking forward to straight points, no Countdown. In 2007, I would have been the champ if it wasn’t for the Countdown, so I’m excited about that. I can’t start soon enough. With baseball shut down and all of the shooting ranges here in California shut down, time is just lingering.”