RON HORNADAY, JR., NO. 33 LONGHORN SILVERADO, met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway and discussed the history of the NCWTS racing at Daytona, his success at Daytona and other topics. Full transcript:
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ENTERING DAYTONA? “First of all, when the trucks first came here, I didn’t get a chance to run it. When I heard they were coming down I thought they were nuts—I thought NASCAR did the stupidest thing they ever did with trucks. The following year, I went to Ricky Hendrick and Rick Hendrick and they took a truck off their own floor, I came down here and ran the truck—I didn’t run 10 laps, got out and praised Wayne (Auton) and his whole team with what they’ve done to make these trucks so comfortable to drive at the speeds that we’re driving. What we’re doing today with testing and these new valences on the front is just remarkable of what these trucks do on big tracks. I’m just really fortunate enough to run a truck here at Daytona. This has been my dream to come to Daytona and it’s been my dad’s dream and I’m going to try to win this race for my dad. This means a lot to our family and to come to Daytona, this is our Super Bowl and I’m looking forward to Friday night’s race.”
IS IT GOOD TO HAVE TRUCKS RACING ON MORE SPEEDWAYS THAN SHORT TRACKS? “When the trucks first started they had a 10-year plan and the first two years we passed that 10-year plan so what plans do we have now—we don’t know. We’re just going to go on and make the best shows we can and we’re going to race hard. Wayne (Auton) and the guys are not any more lenient than if we had 10 trucks here or if we have 36 trucks here. We’re going to build our trucks to race every week and I know these guys are too so we’re going to put on the same show wherever we go.”
WILL THERE BE A DIFFERENT WINNER ON FRIDAY NIGHT? “I plan on winning so there’s your odds right there. I know Johnny’s (Benson) planning on winning. There’s only one guy that’s going to mess it up right here. We’ll just have to shuffle him out at the last lap. That’s what’s so funny about this race. I come across the line all day long racing with different people, I come across the line in second-place and I ended up 15th last year or seventh last year. You can be 15th coming to the end of this thing and it just depends on who drafts up to you. You seen what Kevin (Harvick) did in the race last night so anything can happen in these trucks—they punch these big holes. I’m not afraid to be in 10th-place coming across the checkered flag.”
General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), one of the world’s largest automakers, was founded in 1908, and today manufactures cars and trucks in 34 countries. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 244,500 people in every major region of the world, and sells and services vehicles in some 140 countries. In 2008, GM sold 8.35 million cars and trucks globally under the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Hummer, Opel, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM’s largest national market is the United States, followed by China, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada, Russia and Germany. GM’s OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. More information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.