DAVID RAGAN – No. 6 AAA Insurance Ford Fusion – WHICH IS MORE IMPORTANT TO YOU OVER THE LAST TWO MONTHS OF THE SEASON: FINISHING IN 13TH PLACE, WHICH WOULD LEAD ALL NON-CHASE DRIVERS, OR GETTING YOUR FIRST CUP WIN? WHAT’S THE BALANCE OVER THE LAST NINE RACES IN TERMS OF REACHING THOSE GOALS? “We’re 100 percent winning and 100 percent finishing 13th in points. It’s very important for us to win a race. We can’t do crazy things, but we’ve got to make sure we do the best we can to put ourselves in good position to try to win a race. But at the same time, it’s good to finish 13; that’s a sense of accomplishment, a sense of longevity for our team, consistency this year. We’ve had a good season. Not making the Chase was disappointing, but I think it’s very important for us to concentrate on trying to win races, which will lead to good finishes and good results, and ultimate will lead to top-13 in points.”
THIS IS A CONCRETE TRACK. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE ELEMENTS OF CONCRETE THAT MAKE THE RACING A LITTLE DIFFERENT? “You get a level of consistency, which I think a lot of people like, throughout a race weekend. But, it’s just something a little bit different, it never has quite the grip that blacktop has, but it doesn’t lose grip – with more rubber and the sunlight, like blacktop does. I think concrete race tracks are great. I love Nashville, Bristol, Dover, some of the concrete tracks we go to, and this one of the best places to race all year. It’s a fun, exciting place.”
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT NASCAR’S NEW SUBSTANCE ABUSE POLICY THAT WAS OUTLINED TODAY? “They could test us before every race if they want to. Also, we don’t want to spend a bunch of time every race having to go to locations – we’re busy enough with on-track activities, and the things that we do with our sponsors and fans – but, yeah, it’s no concerns. Lay the paper out in front of me and I’ll sign whatever you got, and we’ll keep on racing. Whatever they want to do is perfectly fine with me; no questions on my behalf.”
IF NASCAR COMES TO YOU AND YOU’RE BUSY WITH THE ACTIVITIES THAT YOU MENTIONED, DO YOU SEE THAT CAUSING PROBLEMS FOR PEOPLE AT ALL? “It’ll only cause problems for people that have something to worry about, not for everybody that’s clean. We have to respect NASCAR stepping up to the plate and making a little tougher policy. Week to week – I’ve been involved in NASCAR since I’ve been 18 and have only been drug tested once, I think. So, I think it’ll be great for everybody to get some type of a schedule and we get drug tested more frequently. I think we do have a very clean sport. Yeah, if they catch you right in the middle of practice or something – which I don’t think that’s the intent, they know what’s going on – but it’ll only be a problem for the people that make it a problem themselves.”