LIVE
It was always, I want to destroy that guy, I want to destroy that guy.
Who's the teammate that you have that is probably the most similar to your driving style?
Now it matters over the next 10 weeks, right?
So hopefully, hopefully I'm in a position to win many championships.
Welcome to Kevin Harvick's happy hour presented by NASCAR on Fox, and this week, we have our regular season champ, but stop by, so thanks for taking the time to join us and talk about, talk about your first 26 weeks and just everything that you went to.
I know it seems like a season within itself.
Yeah, it does. I mean, I think this year was, I mean, the schedule I thought was pretty predictable this year, like it was very kind of normal race tracks and everything like that.
So I think that we kind of were able to get a good rhythm through April and May and yeah, I think it was a good year.
I feel like we, I feel like there were some opportunities that kind of slipped away early where we could have gotten some wins and we just kind of kept at it.
We just kept building and really had good speed throughout the summer months.
Just had to kind of stay, keep our heads down, keep going.
When you look at the grind, I know you've been doing this for a few years now and I look at you and Rudy and I'm like, okay, they're both kind of calm, quiet.
So who's the leader?
Yeah.
Or do you guys share that role because it's always a unique dynamic.
I was super high strung, Rodney was mellow as can be.
You guys seem very similar in personality.
So who kind of takes charge now that you've been around this for a few years?
That's a good point.
I think it's Rudy in the shop.
It's me, you know, sort of on the weekends and at the racetrack.
And I think like it's probably, I've taken more of a leadership role through the summer months and I just feel like that was needed.
Like the guys needed to kind of hear from me and hear where my head was at.
And yeah, but he's definitely the leader in the shop.
You know, he's making all the decisions there and I'm just kind of helping with feedback and trying to help kind of steer the ship with set up decisions.
But yeah, I mean, we're, he is, I would say he's a little bit more high strung at the racetrack where I'm really mellow.
Like I just like to chill and I just do all my work in the car.
So yeah, that's kind of the difference.
How has that evolved for you over the years as you've gone through that process?
Because it seems like the process has changed.
I felt like it changed when I got into the Gen 7 car as far as what I was talking about from inside the car.
Because all of a sudden I didn't really have a clue what was underneath the car as far as springs and shocks because it was such an engineering project.
How has that evolved for you personally through the years in the way that you give feedback?
Yeah, I mean, it's, it's funny you say that.
Like I feel that this Gen 7 car has kind of given me a chance to have a clean slate and really learn about the race car.
I feel like I understand this race car way more than I did last, the last generation.
Yeah, it's probably just the way my career was kind of driven and how much testing I did with this car.
Like I, I was one of the first to test the next gen car and then I was one of the first to Hendrick to test it.
So I feel like I got a really good idea of sort of where the direction was was set up and it's evolved.
Like it's, it's evolved a lot over the last year, especially like on the road courses and short tracks.
But I mean, I'm still not, I'm not fully understanding everything about it.
But I feel like I have a general sense of like when I see things on Monday, I'm like, okay, that, that makes sense.
That's why we went this direction.
So yeah, I don't know.
It's that that's probably why there's been some more success.
I feel like I really understand this car more than I did the last one.
What was the, what was the, you mentioned going in the very beginning and doing the test.
I think you ran the very first, one of the first tests at California Speedway.
It was like the second.
Yeah.
I crashed it.
You learned right off the bat that it didn't feel as good to crash.
No, no, I definitely didn't feel good.
And, and I figured out pretty quick how, how close the edge was.
So it was, yeah, it was crazy.
When you go through that, when you go through that process now, I feel like everybody talks about that.
Everybody talks about that hundred race markers as being that mark to be able to say, okay,
this is where a young guy should be able to be successful and cup.
Do you feel like that target has, has moved changed with Gen seven?
Yeah.
Do you feel like that's different than what it was in the car that you started in?
I honestly feel like it could or should be sooner.
And the reason I say that's cause I feel like, you know, this was a clean slate
for guys like Joey or Kyle Bush or Denny, like they had to relearn as well.
And so I felt like when I was coming in a cup, I was up against a pretty steep, you know,
learning curve of like what the car should feel like and, and all those little track notes,
like where the tracks going and where the tires going.
And I feel like, you know, with this car, you know, it's as level of playing field as it's ever been.
I feel like there, there should be more parody and, and a quicker learning curve.
I, I don't know.
I think like it helped me.
This car helped me kind of shorten the learning curve in, in cup in general.
Yeah.
When, when you go back and you talk about the learning curve and this is the third year with this car.
I think I'm saying that right, but.
Of course maybe.
I don't know why.
Yeah, you might be right.
Third or fourth year.
So 22, 23, 24, this is four.
Four.
I'm bad at math, but that's okay.
I'm old.
When you look at, when you look at the car through the year and, you know, you started in 22 with,
with this car, as you've gone through this season, obviously when in the regular season championship,
what have been the, the strengths and the weaknesses for, for you guys as, as you've gone through this season compared to what you did last year.
Because you always, you always go through a year and you're like, I sucked on the road courses or your short tracks were off.
What, what has been the strengths because you've had speed at, at a number of, of different places.
It's weird.
It's like, I feel like 23 was when we had the most speed and that showed in like the race wins.
But, but a lot of times we weren't, we weren't always up front, like leading the race as much.
Like we were kind of in the mix and then we'd capitalize and kind of win based on, you know, just, I don't know, a good, good run or something.
So I don't know.
This year has been the most balanced we've ever been.
Like the most balanced we've ever had speed at all the tracks, just more consistent, qualifying, more consistent race adjustments, like consistency throughout the race.
So I don't know.
It's just, I feel like maybe we've been a touch off on speed compared to the field, but I feel like our consistency has been better.
Do you think that this car compared to like when I look at the season, we talk about the consistency a lot in here.
And I feel like Gen 7 car is harder to have the consistency weekend and week out because it's, you can miss, you can make such a small change and have it not be right on that weekend.
Or, you know, I think back to your season, you go, you go to Pocono and lightning fast and you have the wreck and then it kind of throws the weekend off.
But you have to push that edge.
I feel like you have to be willing to go over the edge.
Go over the edge and wreck and have those moments.
How does, I mean, how do you feel like that balance needs to go making when you make those mistakes is the team like, don't worry about it.
Let's just, let's just move on.
Yeah.
Or do you feel like you missed an opportunity because now it now it matters over the next 10 weeks.
Right.
Like if you make those mistakes in practice, but you know, you got to push and I always felt like I was walking this tightrope with the, with the Gen 7 car because I knew I needed to be on the edge of wrecking.
Yeah.
But when you get to playoff time, how do you balance that?
Yeah.
No, that's a great question.
I think, yeah, Pocono 6 out.
Like what we've learned in our group is I really need to know like how I'm doing.
Like I need to, I need to understand the full picture.
Like am I on a, you know, like in that qualifying lap, it's like they probably had enough time to kind of tell me, Hey, you're, you're within a 10th of the poll here.
Like just, so I don't know.
It's just stuff like that.
I feel like you can, this car, like you have to be on the edge.
And so if you're not comfortable with that, like you're, you're just going to be slower and you're going to be giving up time.
So I don't know, like I wouldn't do anything different about that weekend, but I didn't really realize until I got out of the car, like how fast my car was that weekend.
It was fast.
Like we're, I think we were like three tenths ahead of everybody in practice.
And it's like, man, if I could just have that like one or two corners back where it's like I'm at the 99%.
Maybe I just try to get through the tunnel turn and finish the lap and start eighth or whatever.
So I don't know.
It's, but it's easy to say that.
And then you, you know, you just have to kind of figure out exactly where that edge is and also have the feedback from your team.
Like, Hey, you're, you know, you're doing a good job here or something like that.
So who's the, who's the internal person at Hendrick?
Is it, is it Rudy that, that has that conversation?
Is it Jeff or who, who, who do you have that balanced conversation with?
Because it's, it's always, I always felt like I needed Rodney was my guy.
It was a, Hey, I would wreck and do something dumb or, you know, he was always the one, well, I probably wouldn't have done that.
So who, who helps you balance that within the organization or do you lean outside of the organization for, for those conversations?
Yeah, it's, it's internal inside the team, but it's also kind of mentally, you know, just processing for myself.
So taking notes and, and learning from it.
But yeah, I would say our hauler is basically Rudy and Jeff Andrews and they're both really quiet guys.
So I kind of have to pry a little bit just to be, just to ask, you know, Hey, what do you guys think?
But they, they really give me the freedom to just, you know, make mistakes and just learn.
And they don't try to, they don't really step in unless I, unless I ask for it.
So I, I appreciate that, that freedom really.
Who's the, who's the teammate that you have that is probably the most similar to your driving style?
Kyle, Kyle.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We drive almost like the same setup or similar.
No kidding.
It's crazy.
Yeah.
That's, that's always an interesting balance between the team because when you don't have teammates that, that you can lean on.
And have a same driving style like myself and Chase Briscoe.
We were, I mean, you couldn't be more opposite of, of, of what you need to be.
And so when you have that, is it, is it something to where you guys are trying each other stuff in the sim?
Do you go to the sim?
How do you guys balance the, the similarities to try to help each other?
Is that, is that Cliff and, and Rudy working together as well because they know your styles are similar?
It is.
I think it's the crew chiefs working together the most.
But I feel like, I don't know if it just with this car, well, where I think it started was testing.
Like we, Kyle and I were paired together testing and we found that, you know, honestly a lot of the, our learnings with this car kind of came at the same time.
And, you know, it just, it was interesting.
Like we'd have certain tracks that I'd really click with what he had in the car.
Like he'd run day one and I'd run day two and it'd be like, okay.
That, that feels really good to me.
And then there were some tracks.
It was like, ah, that, that doesn't really feel as good to me.
And I'd have to kind of adapt or learn what I needed.
But I don't know.
I think it's definitely more to do with the crew chiefs and kind of also when I was using more sim, I feel like that was what I gravitated towards was kind of what, what our car had in it or what his car had in it.
And it just kind of built over time.
But I think it was kind of the, really the origin with this car and kind of where it started.
So as you go and you look at the last 10 weeks, what's the approach?
What do you feel like your strengths and rounds are the, I mean, are you a one week at a time guy?
Absolutely.
Okay.
That's how, that's how I was.
It was just, okay, let's, let's race this week and let's see what we need to do next week.
But so as you look towards Darlington, you guys had a lot of success.
I won't even go into the, worrying about the rest of it.
Let's just worry about Darlington.
Yeah.
As you go into Darlington and, I mean, that's a, that's a tough place to, to finish the race.
And you guys, obviously we're in position to, to do that and have done that a couple of times to be in position to run well all day and, and not, not, you know, have the result work your way.
But you've also been on the side of the fence of, of winning the race there.
When you look towards Darlington, what's the goal?
You put yourself in a good position from stage points.
Yeah.
You scored just a boatload of stage points and, and is it, I mean, do you change the approach as you go into the playoffs?
What, and if you don't, what, what do you change mentally to, to think about knowing that everybody raises their level a little bit and, and as they, as they go into the playoffs?
Yeah.
I think it's, I try to hammer that home like one, one, or one race at a time, one stage at a time.
Like that's to me, that's the best approach.
And yeah, when it comes to Darlington, I feel like, yeah, we've had some really good runs there and we've had some really good history there the last couple races.
So that's been nice.
But yeah, I don't, I think it's just like big picture.
I feel like we need to, as a team, capitalize on more stage wins and more race wins in the playoffs.
And the reason I say that's cause it still builds points, you know, to the end of the round of eight.
Like people forget that they kind of, they think, okay, you got your playoff points and, and that's it.
But if you're winning races in the first couple rounds, like you're separating yourself from the field.
So yeah, I just think that's, that's the best way.
And, and when you get to the round of eight, if you're fortunate to get there, you just have to, you have to try to win one of those,
especially this year with, with Talladega, you have to have to try to win Vegas or have to try to win Martinsville and not stress about the points.
So we've been able to, we've been fortunate.
We've pointed our way into the round of, you know, championship round the last couple years, but you know, that's a tough road for sure.
Let's say you're, you're the guy, you were one of those four that go in.
If you had to pick today, who would the other three be?
Yeah, I mean, that's billboard material for sure with everybody else.
Yeah, I think if you just look at history of this year, Denny's been extremely fast.
They've been, they've been really fast this year.
And I'd say Kyle Larson and, and Ryan Blaney.
I mean, that's just kind of how the seeding works.
Those guys have been the fastest, but you never know.
You know, Christopher's been really strong.
Chase has been strong through the summer.
I mean, Chase, I think had three or four weeks in a row.
He finished top three.
So yeah, I just think it's, it's really anyone's game.
I mean, look, look at it.
I mean, Bob has been super fast through July and August.
You know, he seems like they've kind of hit their strides.
So it could kind of go any way.
But yeah, you just got to really focus on your team, you know,
and try to focus on getting the most speed out of your stuff.
This episode is brought to you by Indeed.
Stop waiting around for the perfect candidate.
Instead, use Indeed sponsored jobs to find the right people with the right skills fast.
It's a simple way to make sure your listing is the first candidate seed.
According to Indeed data,
sponsored jobs have four times more applicants than non-sponsored jobs.
So go build your dream team today with Indeed.
Get a $75 sponsored job credit at Indeed.com slash podcast.
Terms and conditions apply.
When you look at the, and I know that I assume that you're still a studier.
I am. Yeah.
You'd be surprised.
I'm not, I'm more instinct driven than I used to be,
but I think that comes with experience.
Yeah.
And I think that you can get buried in those numbers
and make yourself mentally weak just because of the fact that you can get buried in.
But when you look at the numbers, those top four seeds are the fastest in speed.
Really?
In the speed rankings through the year, it's those first four guys.
And I think that that was pretty interesting when I looked at that.
But I think when you go to, you know, these last 10 weeks,
you have, I always look at the Pinsky surprise.
Yeah.
And I don't know, I don't know how they do that,
but they have done that for the last few years.
And I think it'll be interesting to see if the,
Blaney's been consistently fast and you guys have been consistently fast.
The four guys that you named who that surprise is this year,
because you know, you do have some, you have some new teams with Briscoe
and the guys that have been through it.
When you go back and you look at everything that you've been able to accomplish in your career,
you know, you were relatively young when you got into the cup series
and that can be, that can be, yeah.
And that's a, it's a whole different world.
And I think when you look at the pressures of you can't get away from answering the questions,
you can't get away from sitting and doing these interviews.
Yeah.
There's just so many things that people don't understand.
When you go and you look at the young guy, would you do it the same?
And if you had to, if you had a clean slate of paper and said,
if I had to do this again, how would you do it different?
I think I would just figure out, you know, first and foremost,
the people I work best with on the race team.
You know, that's, that's the number one goal is to figure out people that are,
you know, like-minded with you that you can really get the most out of.
And we got that over time.
Like I had really good people to work with.
I mean, I think Chad really kind of molded the race team into, into the foundation.
And then, and then when Rudy took over, it was like, okay, that's, that's my guy.
I, you know, we gel, we can talk about the race car in the same way.
So I think that's number one.
I think I would look at a lot less social media.
I think I would look at a lot less of what everyone thinks.
It's hard when you're a kid though.
It is.
Because you just, you want to look at it.
You do.
And all your buddies are, and, you know, they send you things.
And it's just the way, the way the world is now.
And being 20, 21 years old, I would, I would just, I would just kind of block all that out.
And just, I would spend way more time with friends.
You know, I think, I think you get way too serious about what you're doing.
And you forget that life is bigger than just Sundays racing.
Like you have to have a life outside of what, what this is,
or else it just, the pressure eats you alive.
And so I would just redo those things.
I think I would just kind of take it one step at a time and just enjoy what I'm doing,
however that is, and, and the success comes from really enjoying,
I think what you're doing and, and craving that sort of reward at the end of,
of race and just, I don't know, just trying to go fast.
Yeah.
You know, it's, it's, there's been a lot of guys that have sat in that chair
that have, that are done racing and talked about how they had no fun.
Yeah.
They were terrible.
They were, and the exact same thing that you're saying is what they never did.
You know, Jamie McMurray, Jimmy Johnson just sat there and told me, he's like,
Kevin, the thing that I wish I could, or Jamie said at point blank,
he said, the thing that I regret the most is not having fun.
But that circle of life is, is so hard to, to find.
And I think that you guys are all so much younger coming into the sport
that it's, that it's really hard to explain.
How that balance has to work in order to make it fun because it can really
eat you up really quick.
And I think in your situation, I look at your hat with that 24 on there.
And I think Jeff Gordon, I think William Byron now and,
and you've obviously settled into the pressure of,
there's probably no more pressure driving a car.
I would assume after two day tone of 500 wins, multiple race wins,
that's all gone.
It gets better.
But I think that's where, like that's where perspective is really important.
Like I think that's, I mean, when I say fun, it's, it's not like it's,
it's not like it's all, all fun, right?
But it's relative.
Like I enjoy what I do.
Sunday's fun.
Yeah, Sundays are fun.
And unlike, I enjoy what I do.
And I think, I don't know, like I got thrown into a lot of pressure
at a young age and didn't really realize it.
And it kind of eats you alive.
And I think, you know, just here and other athletes like here
and Scotty Schaeffler talk about, you know, what is important to him.
And I just think that that grows my perspective on, on what I'm doing.
And it's like a constant evolution.
But yeah, it's, it's just tough.
I think the 24, like the reputation of that number really never goes away.
So that pressure never, I don't think ever goes away.
Yeah.
Well, the good news is you've had your, your hands and your feet
ingrained in the concrete at, at the Daytona 500.
So, you know, I think that the, you've, you've won a lot of big races.
And now it's, it's about winning the championship.
And we talk a lot on here about Denny Hamlin not winning a championship
and have won multiple day, ton of 500s.
Is there a, I mean, winning a championship in your mind,
I always felt like I had to win a championship to solidify what I did,
who I was, my career.
And that was the pressure that I put on myself.
Do you feel like, do you feel like that that championship is a must?
I mean, yeah, I do.
I think, you know, driving for Hendrick and not just that,
but it's the expectation.
And I think just where, I don't know.
I just think about all the people that have put, you know,
a lot of effort into my career to get me to where I am.
And I just think that it's, yeah,
it's validation for all those people as well.
So, yeah, I mean, you know,
I think the more you kind of deflect it, say, hey, you know,
it's not a big deal.
It's that kind of, it's a big deal.
It is a big deal.
And it just, yeah, I would love to win a championship.
I would love it for my family.
I love it for all the people that helped me along the way.
I mean, Max, my dad, my just Dennis Lambert,
like there's so many people that helped me get to where I am
that I know those people will look back and smile if I,
if I won a championship.
So, yeah, I would love to, but it's just,
it's just, you just got to keep putting in the work.
And I mean, I just,
every time I think about the pressure of winning a championship,
I think about, man, I want to do this for another 13 to 15 years
or something like that.
I was just going to ask you that.
You signed through 2029.
How long are you going to drive?
I mean, there's some days you're like, man,
I don't know how long I can do this.
And then there's other days where you're like,
you look at somebody like Denny,
and I admire this a lot about him.
Like he's just continued to perfect his craft over the years.
So hopefully, hopefully I'm in a position to win many championships.
So, yeah, if I just continue to work at my craft,
I think those opportunities are never going to be gone.
But yeah, I just got to, got to keep focusing on that.
So you grew up iracing and did that a lot.
You've matured and gone through your career
and done all those things.
But I look at the video game for 2025
and you on the cover of that thing.
And that's got to be pretty cool.
I mean, we all have, I'm going to be 50 this year
and I still have a lot of kids in me.
And stuff like that is, I signed the old EA sports games
and different things like that.
You were the first game I played, I think, like 05 or something.
It made me feel old.
I know.
Sorry.
That was a good game though.
That's got to be pretty cool.
That's quite an honor to be on the cover of one of those games.
It's pretty sweet.
It's pretty sweet.
I think it's one of those things that your high school buddies
and stuff, they send you pictures
and they're like, look at when you were 13, 14
and you were just racing.
And yeah, so it's a really cool,
that's a full circle moment.
That's a pretty neat experience.
And yeah, it kind of gave me a little bit of chills.
And yeah, that was pretty neat for sure.
Did you have anything to do with the game development
or anything this time?
I didn't have a ton of involvement with it,
but I did play it along the way
and kind of gave my feedback based on that.
Yeah, so I played the games back in like the 90s
when all that was really first starting
and they'd send you a disk to put it in your computer
and you'd try to play it on your computer.
So it's much better than it used to be.
So, you know, we're talking about cool things.
And I think that next year as we go to San Diego
to the military base,
talk about the whole experience of going out there
to build the promotion and the race
and everything that you got to do during that time.
It was cool.
It was cool.
I mean, it was,
I just think people are going to love the weather out there
and just the whole atmosphere.
I'm just, I mean, I'm fired up about that race.
I think it's going to be awesome.
And it just is,
we have such a military presence in this sport
and do it the best.
Yeah, exactly.
And I think,
I just think it's going to be just an awesome atmosphere
for everybody.
So, yeah, I'm excited for that.
Did you fly in a jet?
Did you get to fly in a jet?
So, yeah, it's a little bit of CGI.
So I wish we did,
but I've flown in the,
what do you call it?
The, what's the one down in Daytona?
I'm blanking.
Thunderbirds?
Thunderbirds.
Yeah.
So I've flown in those,
but this was actually a brand new plane.
So they didn't want to take it out.
So you flew in the Thunderbird?
I did.
Yeah.
A few years ago.
Did you get sick?
How'd you feel?
I was super nauseous.
Yeah.
Did you get to 9Gs?
I did.
And just everything got super narrow.
It just got dark.
I was like,
I want to tell him to stop,
but I'm not stopping.
Yeah.
It was insane.
But yeah.
So that was a fun experience.
Hopefully we can,
I don't know,
maybe we have a chance to
fly in them out there
next year.
But yeah,
it was really cool.
They showed us around.
It was pretty awesome.
Flying in that jet.
I mean,
that's the kind of cool stuff that people,
that I look back on and I'm like,
man,
I would have never got to do any of this stuff.
Yeah.
If I didn't drive this race car.
Yeah.
And I just,
I got to,
I lucked into this,
this living that I got to make.
And I'm flying in jets
and going to different events
and meeting different people,
meeting presidents.
What's,
what are the,
I mean,
flying in the jet.
What are some of the coolest things
that you've had to gotten to experience
outside the car?
Yeah.
I think just,
you remember.
Yeah.
That I remember.
It's hard to remember.
It's like,
but I think,
I think doing the sort of the New York tours
and going on talk shows that you just
wake up to,
you know,
you turn on the TV in the morning,
you're like,
oh,
who's going to be on there today?
And then it's you,
you know,
so it's just stuff like that,
you know,
going to the masters,
like being on the,
you know,
on ESPN,
things like that was pretty cool.
But I think meeting artists
in music the last few years
and just meeting different artists,
I'd love to meet more.
I just love going to shows.
And so I think,
I don't know,
just stuff like that is just stuff
you don't ever get a chance to do.
Like when I brought all my buddies,
we met Chris Stapleton.
Like that was just awesome.
Like I was like,
this is one of my kind of heroes.
So are you playing an instrument?
What's that?
Are you playing an instrument?
I'm not.
I used to play piano,
but I just love music.
I just,
I love listening to music.
I always have it on.
I think that
I still have these,
these images of Jeff Gordon down there as,
as the DJ.
That's, that's not,
that's not you.
That's not me.
We're equally into music,
but he's more,
he's like house music and EDM,
which is,
which is funny.
He loves it.
It's crazy that I look at Jeff Gordon
and I cannot make myself think EDM.
It doesn't make any sense to me.
When you look at,
when you look at Jeff
and even go back to Jimmy,
is there anybody outside of the car
that you lean on?
More than your family?
Yeah.
I mean,
it's a great question.
I have a lot of different people I talk to,
but I don't know.
I feel like I have a pretty tight circle.
I feel like a lot of it's outside of the sport.
And it just kind of gives me the perspective
to just kind of balance everything.
But yeah,
I mean,
like I talked about on Netflix,
I,
I go see Joanne.
She's like a sports psychologist.
And so I go see her and we've grown pretty close
over the last few years.
Well,
I think when you look at that,
that circle of life and the network
and everything that you've done,
it's,
it's tough to,
it's tough to find those people in the garage.
I always,
I always found myself not having too many friends
in the garage,
but you guys,
you guys have a different generation of
the way that you guys came up together,
your group of drivers.
And I,
I never,
I never really had that.
It was always,
I want to destroy that guy.
I want to destroy that guy.
So what were driver intros like?
Driver intros could be,
it was,
I mean,
it wasn't much different,
but,
you know,
I think that the culture of,
of the way that,
that the garage was,
was a lot different than because
you'd go on Wednesday.
Yeah.
And you do an appearance and then you go,
do something else Thursday.
And then you had practice and qualifying on Friday.
Yeah.
So I mean, you were,
you were around those guys.
Yeah.
A lot.
So, you know,
it was,
it was just a,
the culture was just different.
Yeah.
And it was,
it was,
it was just a lot different.
And I think that the sport has evolved
into what it has evolved with.
But last,
last couple of questions outside of the car,
you talk about that,
that circle of life.
I was scrolling through all your social media stuff.
And it seems like,
it seems like you,
you like the hurricanes.
That's,
that's pretty obvious.
How many games will the Panthers win this year?
I don't know, man.
It's a,
there's a ton of hype.
There's a ton of hype around Charlotte right now.
I mean, I,
I spend, you know,
most of my time there and it's just,
yeah,
everyone's like going to the preseason games and
posting about it.
They're like all excited.
And I don't know,
I think we could win like eight.
I think I hope,
but Bryce is,
I don't know,
Bryce has really good energy around him.
And I mean,
I think he,
I think he's going to really evolve.
So who knows, maybe we'll be surprised.
And are you a golfer?
I am.
What's your handicap?
I'm a nine,
nine point five right now.
So I'm actually going to play later.
Are you?
So yeah,
I haven't played since June,
but I love it.
It's,
I don't know.
It's just golf.
It takes a lot of time for sure.
So it's hard when,
when racing gets going
and hard to keep it up with it.
Coolest place you played golf?
Oh man.
Um,
Pebble Beach.
Yeah.
Yeah.
We went out there
with the off weeks a couple of years ago in June.
And the weather was just amazing.
I mean,
it was like 65 and breezy.
It was,
it was awesome.
Have you played in a program yet?
I have.
I played at Quail.
That was the first team.
Oh my gosh, dude.
I heard every sign.
I heard every sound like I heard,
like I heard every person in the crowd talking.
And I'm like,
and I don't know,
it went straight.
So that was good.
That's good.
Well,
thanks for taking the time today.
Yeah.
I appreciate
everything that you guys are doing this year.
Obviously we're watching.
Wish you the best of luck and
thank you.
We'll see how the next 10 weeks go.
Yeah.
Sounds good.
Thanks.
Thank you.
0:00
33:00