Ford teams Homestead race quotes

NASCAR Nationwide Series 2011 champion Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Roush-Fenway Ford celebrates with Carl Edwards, Roush-Fenway Ford

Photo by: Eric Gilbert

RICKY STENHOUSE JR. – No. 6 Blackwell Angus/Cargill Ford Mustang – Championship Victory Lane Interview

WHAT ABOUT THE LAST TWO OR THREE LAPS? “We sure tried. That was all I had. I was really hoping for one more lap there, but Brad did a good job. It was fun racing Carl and those guys. I got a little loose there coming off four or I thought we could have got him, but the Blackwell Angus Beef and Cargill Mustang did its job at Ford Championship Weekend – Nationwide Insurance – this is a dream come true."

WHAT A CINDERELLA STORY. WHAT MADE IT HAPPEN FOR YOU? “I think first off is just relying on God. We were down in the dumps and we relied on Him and He pulled us through. That’s why we have to give him the praise for the nights that we’re on top. It was just a lot of hard work by all these guys – Jack Roush, Ford Racing, everybody at Blackwell Angus Beef and Cargill – this crew right here, they didn’t give up on me. They were with us all through last year and I’m just glad to be here."

ONE HERO IS JEFF GORDON AND THE OTHER IS YOUR DAD. WHAT DOES THIS DAY MEAN TO YOU AND YOUR DAD? “It means a lot. My family sacrificed everything they had. My sister didn’t quite get everything that she’s ever wanted. We were racing as much as we could and to do that for them, he taught me hard work and to never give up. I wish my granddad was here. He helped us out a lot through the go-kart days and worked on our cars. We had a lot of fun doing that. I wish he was here, but this is an awesome night.” TALK ABOUT YOUR NIGHT “This is just awesome what this team has done, what Jack Roush has done and everybody at Ford Racing and Nationwide Insurance for giving us this great series to run in and all the fans that come out to watch every week. We really appreciate that, especially the ones that support us."

HOW GOOD WAS THIS RACE CAR TONIGHT? “Man, this race car was awesome. It was a little tight at the beginning but we worked on it. We knocked the wall down in three and four but it seemed to maybe help it a little bit. Mike Kelly did an awesome job and we had awesome pit stops. Everybody on this Blackwell Angus Beef and Cargill Mustang worked their butts off. We had a late race charge there. I didn’t want to see that caution when we were leading but those always come out it seems like. That last restart I was giving it all I had. If I could have got a little better restart and not lost as much ground to Carl and Brad I think we could have had it. It was a great race, fun hopefully the fans enjoyed it. We do this for them."

GO BACK A YEAR OR SO AGO AND JACK GIVES YOU A CALL TO DRIVE THE NATIONWIDE SERIES. YOU HAD PROBLEMS KEEPING THE CAR OFF THE WALL. HE PUT YOU TO WORK REBUILDING THE CARS. WHAT KIND OF LESSONS DID YOU LEARN FROM JACK ROUSH? “The same lessons I learned from my Dad. He just helped me remember them. You have to work hard, stay focused and be patient and determined. Jack has his way of doing things and it has definitely worked out.”

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JAMIE ALLISON, Director, Ford Racing

“Wow. What a great moment. Unbelievable to have this championship. It is what we all race for and is a proud moment for Ford and Ford fans everywhere. We got one championship tonight and we have one more to go tomorrow.”

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CARL EDWARDS – No. 60 Fastenal Ford Mustang – Pit Road Interview

“First, congrats to Ricky. That’s huge for Ricky to win the driver’s championship. I’m so proud of my guys. Fastenal, Ford, Valvoline, NextGen oil, Wiley X, all the fans that came out here. It’s a great weekend for Ford. I’m proud to be driving a Ford. I wanted to get Brad there at the end. We were racing hard and I got up on his bumper there and I was hoping he’d get loose, but I got tight. He did a really good job driving. It was just fun racing. This is really neat and Denny raced me so clean. That was a ton of fun."

RICKY GOT YOU AS WELL. “That was funny. I thought I finished second. Ricky got me too, but he deserves it. He’s a great guy and it was just a fun race. I’m excited for tomorrow. Tomorrow in that Aflac Ford is gonna be a blast."

TAKE US THROUGH TONIGHT. “First, congratulations to Ricky and all the Blackwell Angus Beef folks. Ricky has come so far and I think he’s gonna be a champion in a bunch of levels of this sport. That was huge and my guys have done a great job all year – eight wins and we’re so proud to have Fastenal on board. Ford has been great. It’s Ford Championship Weekend and we wrapped up the drivers and the owners and that was huge. Valvoline and NextGen, Wiley X and all these fans that are here, this is cool. It did get pretty exciting there at the end. I had to remember, ‘Hey, don’t screw this up,’ and Brad started blocking a little bit and I thought, ‘Well, if he’s gonna block, I’m gonna bump him,’ and then I bumped him and it helped him and hurt me. I didn’t do a good job of that, but he did a great job racing. I thought everybody raced as aggressively as I’ve seen in a long time and everybody was real respectful. It was really fun.”

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TREVOR BAYNE – No. 16 Ford Mustang Ford (Finished )

“Well, we had a really fast race car, we just had one run where we missed it a little bit. Everyone moved to my lane and we were so fast at the top but everyone saw that and they all moved up in front of me and I had nowhere to gain on them. We were just average at the end there. We lost a right rear tire and it got us in the wall. I don’t know if it went down first or getting in the wall took it down. It is disappointing because I wanted to be out there with him doing so me burnouts. Next year hopefully we can be out there. I am really pumped for Ricky and Carl. To win championships is a big deal. It shows consistency and it shows you can be there all the time. They were fast. It is a tough series and for them to win is huge especially for Ricky. This is an awesome deal for him. I am really excited for him.

YOU’VE GOT THE 500, HE’S GOT THE NATIONWIDE TITLE. WHO HAS THE TRUMP CARD? “I don’t know man. I don’t know if you can compare apples and oranges, that is kinda what that is. I am just excited for both of us to have seasons like this and I am really proud to be a part of this Roush Fenway group.”