This sport is probably more competitive than any other professional sport, ... When you get behind on some things, getting caught up again is tough. We've struggled with things for a while, but we've never given up on making it better and getting back to running up front and winning races. |
This time of year is like the reverse of Christmas. You automatically assume the worst of everyone and everyone's intentions. |
This was basically a tire-management race. I know some teams had issues, but we never had any problems. |
We can make tires safer. We can make walls safer. |
We had a great, great run, ... I can't really complain. We've struggled all year. To come here and have a good run was good for us. |
We're excited about the prospects, but are we 100 percent set with the 45 car? ... No, we're not ... and that leaves us with the 43 Dodge, and the issues we have with Jeff Green, who has done a great job for us. |
We're putting the band back together. We weren't going in the right direction, but I think that's about to change. |
We've just got to start building some stuff to get better. |
What happens is the guys on the team hear what is going on, and it affects what they are doing. It can be a pretty big demoralizer. Sure, drivers come and go, but telling your crew that you'll be gone in 16-17 months can affect a lot of things between now and the time of your New Year's Eve party going into 2007. |
When we looked at it, we'd made very little progress over the last four or five years. We weren't going in the right direction, so we had to look outside our own circle. |
When you've lost a son, there's no price you can put on safety for the driver. |
Why do I like racing? I was too lazy to work and too chicken to steal. |
With these two working together, it'll take Petty Enterprises to another level, ... My job -- and it's been made clear to me by Robbie -- is to sit my butt in a race car and drive it and keep my mouth shut. |
You know, that's a hard question. You can't say the sport expanded too quickly, because it didn't expand at all for 45 years. Was Japan a stretch for us, running an exhibition race there? Yeah, I think it was. Was Mexico a stretch? Hmmm ... |