If you haven’t heard the story of Trevor Bayne winning the Daytona 500, just one day after his 20th birthday, go here to check it out. It’s the most compelling NASCAR story in quite some time and you don’t need to be a racing fan to appreciate it. But what’s next for Bayne? If you follow the sport closely, you’ve probably heard by now that he’s still sticking with the Nationwide circuit, he will not moving up to the Sprint Cup.
That was the big question on everybody’s mind, and it’s been answered. So where’s his new celebrity status/racing career going to take him now? Bayne was on conference call with the media yesterday and answered a multitude of questions on the topic.
By Paul M. Banks
Interesting column by Jeff Hammond, I highly recommend reading it, here’s an excerpt:
I think it is important that we all don’t put too much pressure on the young man to have to grow up any faster than he already has. What Trevor accomplished was truly phenomenal. It shows the potential that Trevor has.
Let’s also understand something though, this is a perfect storm. It was a new pavement at Daytona. It was a new style of racing at Daytona that has never been seen before. Fortunately for him, he was ahead of everyone when the big wrecks happened. His equipment also outlasted others that had engine problems. That young man did exactly what he had to do to beat the competition.
Bayne talked about staying grounded.
“That’s where I have to be true to who Trevor Bayne is. I don’t want to have anything to hide. I want to be as public as possible and truthful as possible and be the same person I am in the media as I am away from it. I’ve tried to do that, try to stay humble through it all.
It is crazy how much attention has been drawn to this. I never expected it. I’m so thankful for the fact that this might help our race teams be able to find partners to go on these racecars. I had that solid white suit on for the Roush Fenway Nationwide car. That thing was not looking good. I hope this draws some more interest.”
He also talked about the brand new two-car drafting situation, and how that helped propel him to victory.
“when we went out to qualify and qualified third, I think that changed a lot of drivers’ perspectives, their ability to work with us. They knew we had a fast car. I think that made them more willing. Jeff Gordon hooking up with us, letting us push him around, that rubbed off on all the other drivers. If Jeff Gordon has trust in this kid, maybe I should too. I think that’s what happened in the 500, so many drivers being able to work with us. Obviously the experience I got in the Nationwide Series on Saturday definitely translated and helped me in the Cup Series on Sunday.
I loved being the pusher. I felt like I could stay out of trouble more. I talked to Joey Logano one caution and said I’d love to push you. We didn’t end up working with each other because we both wanted to be the pusher for the same reason.
I planned on pushing till the end, but it ended up we were the ones being pushed. Definitely cool the way it played out. I loved the kind of racing it was. I loved watching it in the first Duel. I wasn’t in that. As a driver it was cool to watch because I knew how much was going on in the racecars, how the air worked.”
Finally, Bayne will be here June 4th, for the NASCAR race at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet.
“I am excited about Chicagoland. I found out today I’m running all three races there. That’s really neat. I spent some time with the promotors, the other track people today. They were really, really good people. Really happy about the fan support they’re getting now.”
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net. He is also a regular contributor to the Tribune’s Chicago Now network, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker Network, and Fox Sports.com
He does a weekly radio segment on Chicagoland Sports Radio.com and Cleveland.com
You can follow him on Twitter @thesportsbank