FYI WIRZ: NASCAR's Top Drivers Talk Phoenix and the Chase

The top five Chase drivers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series this week—Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth—talk the one-mile oval with 11-degree banking at Phoenix International Raceway in Phoenix, Arizona and more.

The Kobalt Tools 500, Race Nine in the 10-race Chase to the Sprint Cup, commences this Sunday at 3:00 p.m. on ESPN. 

The long NASCAR season has a total of 579 laps remaining in this Phoenix race and the finale in Homestead-Miami. The championship may be won in Phoenix or go to the wire in Homestead.

This fast series includes comments by two of NASCAR’s most popular drivers—Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. 

Driver’s thoughts about Phoenix include track analysis and Chase situations surrounding a three-man race for the championship follow. Do their words reveal expectations, apprehension, relief or confidence? It’s your take.

Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Toyota)

“For me, I’m going to race Phoenix as if I’m 33 (points) behind,” Hamlin said. “There’s no comfortable margin going into Homestead because anything can happen. So for Phoenix, being an up-and-down race track for me, I’ve got to really be focused on practice day to get Mike (Ford, crew chief) the information and just stay 100 percent focused is all I can do. I’m not going to be conservative having the (points) lead. I’m going to want to stretch that out before we get to Homestead.”

“Phoenix is a track where braking is extremely important. You’ve got to have a car that rolls the center there extremely good, especially in turn one because it’s much tighter than it is in turn three. I continue to work on how quick I can get in to the entry of the corners there. Obviously, the forward bite seems to get a little bit better as it starts to get dark, but with the change in time, we’re going to have to worry about keeping the rear tires on the car.”

Jimmie Johnson (No. 48 Chevrolet)

“I can promise you this. I am trying as hard as I can; I know my team is, and we are doing everything we can,” Johnson said. “Thirty-three points back is not where we want to be but we are going to work to get back on top. We went out and won races and the amount of wins we had in the Chase – it's not like we backed into a championship and just kind of stumbled upon four in a row. I don't want to take anything away from the stretches we've had and the races we've won. We've won a lot of Chase races.”

Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Chevrolet)

"At Phoenix, you've just got to get your car turning really well and obviously the asphalt is worn out so the tires fall off a lot and you have to find that compromise between a fast car and a car that lasts long enough to maintain that speed as you go through the run,” Harvick said. “I don’t think top-10’s are going to cut it. I think it’s going to come down to putting yourself in victory lane and capitalize on the most bonus points in the next two weeks.”

Carl Edwards (No.99 Ford)

“It’s a track where the driver can make a big difference,” Edwards said. “ Obviously, your car has to be set up really well, but once the car is perfect, that’s a track where it truly comes down to the driver. It’s such a unique track, it’s got bumps and it’s really unique. If you win that race, it’s one you can really be proud of, so I’d love to win a Cup race out there.” 

Matt Kenseth (No.17 Ford)

“Phoenix is a track that I really enjoy,” Kenseth said. “There are a lot of challenges when we race there, and we need to make sure that our Valvoline Ford handles well in all of the track’s different corners in race trim. Qualifying is really important at Phoenix because it is difficult to pass, so track position is always a focus for our team when we arrive on Friday. If we can get our car to handle well, get good track position, and have fast pit stops, I think we can get another good finish.”

Tony Stewart (No. 14 Chevrolet)

"How to race the Chase?” Tony said. “It's not a hard concept to understand. It's just a 10-race season, basically. You race in that first 26 weeks to get yourself in there and then it's a short 10-week season. So it's not like people had to learn how to do this. Everybody in this garage area raced somewhere else before they got here; and raced for championships no matter whether it's 10 races long or 120 races long like the World of Outlaws. We're not in contention so it's fun for me to watch too and watch to see who's got a chance to win this thing. It's three great guys and three great teams and organizations right now that still have a really good shot. It's anybody's ballgame right now. I'm still trying to win races this year. We're just trying to get the best finishes we can get."

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Chevrolet)

"Turns 3 and 4 have been the toughest part for me lately at Phoenix,” Earnhardt said. “Both ends can be challenging but 3 and 4 is just a longer corner and they are just so different from each other. The car will be good at one end of the track and it changes all the time. Getting around 3 and 4, getting in there hard, through the center real fast is going to help your lap a lot more than what can happen in (Turns) 1 and 2.”

FYI WIRZ is the swift presentation of pertinent motorsports topics compiled, condensed and often written by Dwight Drum @ Racetake.com. Quotes provided by NASCAR and Sprint Cup team media.

Photo credit: Dwight Drum @ Racetake.com