This was a difficult race and things definitely didn’t work out as planned. We need to improve the car for tomorrow’s race and what see what we can do to get back to the pace we had before.
Lucas Di Grassi, retired

Race fans should vote Elliott Sadler into the All-Star Race because I’m a good race car driver, I like to have fun with the fans and I’m the best looking driver out there. I’m just goofing around … kind of.
Sadler

What happened between yourself and Kyle Busch early in the race? �I�m sure Kyle Busch is going to offer to buy me dinner, since this is the second time this year he�s wrecked me (laughing)! So I�m looking forward to that. We really had a good car today before the wreck, and for some reason, we had a really good car even after the wreck. It was just one of those days where we were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Scott Speed

I’ve told my engine department, ‘bring the biggest horsepower you can. If we go up in a ball of flames, we go up in a ball of flames.
Kurt Busch

I think my first laps were really good. I was able to overtake various drivers and like this make up positions. I am very happy with the car and feel comfortable. I think we have found a really good set up. I am also happy with the pit stop, which went really well. We were able to make it up to 9th position when Maldonado, who was very fast today, overtook me. It’s a real shame about the failure on the engine safety system which happened without any previous warning. I think we could have finished in a very good position.
Dani Clos, retired

This race is famous for last-lap battles and close finishes. I think you’ll see that this year.
Denny Hamlin

What happened at the end of the race between yourself and a lapped car? �We just got run over by a lapped car that had his eyes rolled back in his head and ran over us for no reason. It�s disappointing when you run top-10 all day and you don�t really touch anybody all day for Martinsville and then have somebody spin you out. That�s hard to take, but we�ll just move on.
David Reutimann

In the beginning, we had a great car. I was very happy with it. AFS (team) did great work. I was waiting for the last moment. When they say three laps to go, I got three-wide in corner 1. I touched the wall with one lap to go. I had pretty heavy damage to my front right (wheel). After that, I just wanted to bring it home for the points. It’s a (season) championship. I was just focused on getting the points. I had the car and the equipment. Hopefully it’s our race the next time.
Sebastian Saavedra

I have to race my way in because I haven’t been in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series long enough to get voted in. That’s the way you want to do it: race your way in.
Marcos Ambrose

There are two mindsets. It’s a great opportunity to learn something for the Coca-Cola 600, but you’re also in that mindset of win, win, win. You have to win. That’s the only reason you’re there. It’s a tough balance at times because I’m sure we’re going to try some things in practice that we wouldn’t typically try during the 600 weekend. At the same time, we’re going to go for broke because when the green flag drops, we’re there to win or, at the very least, finish second so we can transfer into the main event and go win a million bucks. It’s an all or nothing deal, but we’re also going to try to learn as much as we can for the 600.
Casey Mears

It’s pretty cool to go out there and really have nothing to lose.
Kasey Kahne.

It’s an all-star event so, in my opinion, you need to do something exceptional to get into it. I think our system now works. There’s a high car count, so that’s exciting, but, in my opinion, it’s a little forgiving. I think that you’ve got to make it special and unique. We have fan votes, which is a good thing; we need to have the fans involved. But it is pretty forgiving on how people are able to get into the show.
Jimmie Johnson

It doesn’t matter to me what they do with the format. Whatever it is, the goal is still to win it. So, whether it’s 10 laps, 40 laps, it doesn’t matter to us. The important thing is that it puts on a good show for our fans.
Tony Stewart.

You can’t go out and demolish your race car, but you’re definitely more inclined to take more risks than you normally would. You still have to race smart, and you need to be there at the end if you’re going to have a chance to take home the money.
Clint Bowyer

Until I won the Daytona 500 (in 2008), the All-Star win (2002) was my greatest victory. We beat everybody on a given night in our backyard. We weren’t racing for points but racing for glory and money, and it was a great win.
Ryan Newman

On the first few laps, we were just hanging in there. I dropped a few places at the start. Just as things were starting to balance out and I was starting to get control of the car and I was making up ground, making runs on people. I was loose at the start on my own, especially in traffic. I tried to dial it in, dial it out for a few laps, and it seemed to get to a point where it was reasonable. I think (Mario) Romancini pinched me on the inside down into Turn 4, and he made a run, following me into Turn 1. I’m not quite sure what happened then. Going into (Turn) 1, I got a face full of clean air, and it just snapped around on me. Didn’t give me any warning.
Martin Plowman

Were you able to get in your own groove around Martinsville? �I have no groove – I�m just hanging on the whole time. I�ll take it. I like the bottom out there. I seem to be able to keep out of trouble out there. We finished the race intact and on the lead lap both races on the short tracks and I am pretty pleased.
Marcos Ambrose

Now this was definitely not the start of the season we expected. Both our drivers were doing a great job and I was especially impressed by Dani’s performance. This was his first race in this championship and he looked as if he never drove in any different category. It’s a real shame a technical problem ended his race as he was on the way to finish in the points. While Dani felt great with his car, Lucas struggled much more and we have to look into this now in order to make the best out of tomorrow’s sprint race.
Alfonso de Orle�ns-Borb�n, Team Principal

I really didn’t want to be leading the race toward the end, but there were enough fast cars there in the front that I tried to keep it up there for as long as I could. Wade (Cunningham) got a good run, and I thought if nothing else, I could just work with him, maybe get by him there at the end. I just picked up too much understeer when I was back in traffic. I set the car so I would be quick up front, but once I got behind guys, I just couldn’t adjust it fast enough. Great job by Wade. I’m really happy for the boys. We got back on track. I think we’re looking good in the points right now.
J.R. Hildebrand

I love this race. It gets a little crazy sometimes, but it’s always fun. Winning back in 2005, I have great memories of that night. I was driving a throwback paint scheme, which I love doing, and it was one of my last wins in the No. 6 car. That was just a great night. I would really, really like to get back up on that stage with Rick (Hendrick).
Mark Martin.

A lot of guys would say they’re patiently aggressive. That’s the best way to look at it. I guess that’s the way I thought I was a few years ago, even though there wasn’t a lot of patience involved. Now, there’s lot more involved, and I’ve gotten smarter.
Kyle Busch

I think going 10 laps at the end of the race is an exciting option for the drivers and the fans. I’m really more excited about it this year than I’ve been in years past. Some of the formats, in my opinion, were really, really boring, so this is pretty exciting for me.
Dale Earnhardt Jr

Can you talk about the end of the race and your battle with Jimmie Johnson? �I�m honored to be on the race track with guys like Jimmie (Johnson) and Jeff (Gordon) and Tony (Stewart). Those are the guys who are the best in the business. We came up short. That was short-track racing. I would�ve done the same thing to him, and if it comes back around, I will do the same. It�s just the way it is. In Martinsville, you have to battle for every inch, and I was trying to protect a spot, and he was trying to get it at the end of the race. That�s the way it goes.
Denny Hamlin