Race Weekend Central

Running Their Mouth: 2010 Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte

Welcome to Running Their Mouth! Each week, we’ll go through media reports, interviews, PR and all of our own stuff to find the best quotes from the Sprint Cup race, capturing the story of how the weekend unfolded. It’s the most original commentary you’ll ever find: the truth, coming straight out of the mouths of the drivers, crew members and car owners themselves. This week, here’s a sneak peek at what they all were thinking following the Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway:

“The Miller Lite Dodge was money when it counted. We really had a fast racecar. It was a pleasure to drive. The segment before that, I wouldn’t have given a million bucks for it. Now, it has a million-dollar name to it. It’s an unbelievable experience. It’s something that you sit there and you look at the greats that have won this race, the ones that have had so many years go by in between the wins, just to have an opportunity to go for it tonight, I felt like our Penske Dodge was right where it needed to be at the end.” – Kurt Busch

See also
Kurt Busch Scores 1st All-Star Race Win, JGR Teammates Feud

“I do not think, with the inconsistency that we have had up to this point… we’ve ran really good, but we’ve been pretty inconsistent. We either are feast or famine. It’s been top five or we’ve been 18th to 20th. That’s not what wins championships. It’s being consistent. That’s what we’ve got to get in our racecars.” – Steve Addington, winning crew chief, on where they stand in the championship chase

“It was a lot of fun tonight. It was one of those deals where you have to be in it to win it. It was fun to get in and we put a lot of effort into this race because it meant a lot for us to come out here and not only have fun tonight, but get ready for the 600 next week. We’ve got a pretty good car here. I think we know what we need to do to be better for next week. Overall, it was a lot of fun. I wish it was a few more laps. I was actually a little better than Kurt [Busch] there at the end. We were fortunate to get second, so it was cool.” – Martin Truex Jr., finished second

“I felt like I had a good car, I’m just bummed out that we didn’t win. That is what this race is all about is about winning. Third is good and it’s better than what we did last year. We were close, we were real close and we just have to get a little better. I’m not happy with myself at the end of the race.” – Joey Logano, finished third

“We learned some things that we hope to use next weekend. It still wasn’t perfect at the end, but we made ground on it and it finally gave us a little stability. I think we’re slightly on to something. We definitely made some gains.” – Tony Stewart, finished fifth

“Being able to get into the All-Star Race helped us a lot with this car because we got a lot of adjustment both ways and we’ve got a good idea where we’re at right now, too.” – Greg Biffle, finished ninth

“The All-Star Race has such a different format to it, and I’ve been through this before, where we have led a lot of laps and then at the end, didn’t leave with the trophy. So, I knew mentally to be prepared that anything can happen at the end of this thing and I knew how important it was to restart in control of the field. I knew I lost that control when I came off pit road in third.

“I was needing a mistake and I almost had one when the No. 18 (Kyle Busch) and the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin) got together. But I was so occupied watching them and got out of the gas, I wasn’t sure where they were going to go, then the No. 2 (Kurt Busch) came blowing by on the inside. That was my opportunity there and I was just maybe a little too cautious wondering where they were going to end up.” – Jimmie Johnson, finished 13th

“We talked about it and basically Kyle was just frustrated, he felt like he had a really good car. Me, I just came from the back with no practice and got back to the front where we needed to be, and I felt like if I gave up the lead right there then I was going to give up the win. I don’t think Kyle would do anything different if he was in my situation. It’s just when you’re the leader, my feeling is that you’ve got the whole racetrack. If a guy is to the outside, then that’s when you need to hold your line.” – Denny Hamlin on the on-track incident with Kyle Busch; finished fourth

“I wish they would let the drivers start the races and give you a little bigger area to do that in. Everybody has complained for a while that the area that we start these races in is too narrow. I don’t know why, but they decided the last segment they were going to let the flagman start the race. All drivers try to anticipate what he is going to do. It caused a big pileup.

“So very frustrated, we had a fast car. It just had that accordion effect, and we were right in the middle of the accordion I believe. We had a really good car and track position is so critical. I don’t remember Charlotte being as important as it is, but it was really important tonight.” – Jamie McMurray, finished 18th

“First of all, thank you so much to all the fans. We didn’t win the million bucks, but whatever I made tonight will be donated to Speedway Children’s Charity and it’s an honor to be voted in. Our Aflac Fusion was not very good. We made some pretty big changes and were just gonna go for it on that last restart, but the problem is, I think everybody was going for it. I think I had the wreck missed, or at least I was gonna be able to stop, but somebody was pushing me from behind and then I pushed the guys in front of me, so who knows what was going on back there.

“It was just a wild night. I’m gonna go back to the motorhome and watch the finish. I don’t have my satellite hooked up yet, but I’ve got one of those new 4G phones and my wife is in there watching it on that Sprint phone, so I’m gonna go watch the finish.” – Carl Edwards, finished 21st

“In 2007, I think it was really big for us. It kind of catapulted our season. Hopefully, this will be the same start for us as a team.” – Martin Truex Jr., Sprint Showdown winner

“I was beside him (Regan Smith) about five or six times and he never gave me any room; I mean, let’s be realistic, he wasn’t going to make it. And it got to the point you know, when a guy gets there four or five times, you’ve got to let him go. And he just doesn’t understand that. That’s what happens when you start by a lottery, not by performance, and he doesn’t have any.” – Juan Pablo Montoya, finished 27th in the Sprint Showdown

“I don’t know, I haven’t seen a replay. The replay in my head says that he (Montoya) wasn’t clear and he was trying to take some space that wasn’t his. In an event like this, you aren’t going to give that up. I’m sure he has a different opinion.” – Regan Smith, finished 26th in the Sprint Showdown

“Man, I’m going to drive like an idiot out there.” – Carl Edwards after receiving the fan vote to participate in the Sprint All-Star Race

About the author

The Frontstretch Staff is made up of a group of talented men and women spread out all over the United States and Canada. Residing in 15 states throughout the country, plus Ontario, and widely ranging in age, the staff showcases a wide variety of diverse opinions that will keep you coming back for more week in and week out.

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