Latest / Kenny Wallace Media / Talking All Things Racing & Life With Rico Abreu!

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Talking All Things Racing & Life With Rico Abreu! · Kenny Wallace Media

• 0:00
  Hello everyone and welcome back to Kenny Conversation, brought
• 0:04
  to you by Jags, the leader in high performance aftermarket car
• 0:09
  parts. Remember to go to jags.com for
• 0:12
  everything you need for your vehicles.
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  This next guest is a dear friend of mine.
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  I love him so much. We talk, we get along.
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  I have a picture of him sitting in my dirt, modified actually.
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  We're going to have Charlie Marlowe drop that right now.
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  There you are, the legendary, the two time Chili Bowl champ
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  Rico Abreu. How you doing?
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  I'm good herm. Thanks for having me on bud.
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  Oh, I love that smile. So, you know, as the song goes,
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  it's the holiday season. So where are you at?
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  I'm I'm in Lincoln, NE for the week with Megan and her family.
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  We're doing Thanksgiving here. I got a busy month coming up so
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  we're scheduling everything out. So I'm spending some time here
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  with her family and then headed home for a week and and then
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  back to the PRI show and then straight to Australia from
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  there. So we got some busy, busy days
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  coming. But it's it's exciting, right?
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  I mean, yeah, very, very exciting.
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  I think the biggest thing is, you know you just stay healthy
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  through all this movement and and especially traveling across
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  the country here and and when we get to Australia, I'm taking, I
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  sent a car in August so I'm super excited to take my kind of
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  my team over there. Ricky's not coming with us, but
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  I'm going to be on the phone with them everyday.
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  Just trying to figure out. I had to go racing his way a
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  little bit and I got some close friends coming with me, so it's
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  going to be a fun trip. So how do you go about sending a
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  race car, all your equipment? How do you send that over there?
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  We we we sent it in a container and it left in August, like
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  right after the Knoxville Nationals.
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  We went home and loaded this container up in Muncie.
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  IN we we split some of the the the space.
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  The square footage was Luch Monty who's Monty farms over in
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  Australia. That that is, is him and a
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  couple other gentlemen are essentially bringing us to to
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  race over there. So it's exciting to be a part of
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  something like that. I haven't been.
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  I went to Australia in 2017 with Keith Koons and then I went with
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  Paul Silva and Trevor Canales in 2012.
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  So it's been over 10 years for me to be there in a Sprint car
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  and when I went in 2012 I literally crashed every time I
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  was on the racetrack. So I I I kind of put those
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  memories behind me, but we had a great time and lots of lots of
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  cool opportunities over there. So Rico, there was so much to
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  talk about with you. As I always teased everybody and
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  everybody else sees this as and I I act like I'm Larry Mac
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  Reynolds. I got my notes.
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  I did my, I did my studying on Rico.
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  But I I didn't really have to do much on you because I know you.
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  I know you so well. You are an incredible talent.
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  You are a great race car driver. You're not good.
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  There's a difference between good and great and you are a
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  great race car driver. But I believe this year, 2023,
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  watching you, I watched all your wins.
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  Is this has this been your best year in racing in your life?
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  Most consistent year and definitely over a a big picture.
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  Yes it is been a career season and and and I put all that back
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  to my team. You know from the bottom to to
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  where we've gotten it and and Ricky Warner being such a big
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  asset to our team and educating us.
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  Me as a race car driver and just you know where I really allowed
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  my team to do their role and not micromanaged everything and like
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  I I feel like I have in the past.
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  So Ricky's like I said been a huge asset and brought a huge
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  level of experience to to racing for me and allowed me to you
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  know really focus on showcasing you know this talent that I have
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  as a race car driver. I love racing.
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  I love being out on the racetrack.
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  It's where I find my peace in life and you know how it is
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  Herman. And it's just it's it's a
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  pleasure to get to do all this stuff and and and I did.
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  I did. I turned 31 years old this year
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  and so I feel like I've I've matured as a person a lot too
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  and it's it goes back to being around great people.
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  I find this fascinating because unlike you, you know I know your
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  family is ultra successful. We will talk about that later,
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  but I think you and I are a lot the same.
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  Sometimes early in my life I felt like that if I didn't have
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  my hands on it and I didn't do it, that I was not going to run
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  good. Then Steve Bird 1991 Birdie
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  became my crew chief and I won three Xfinity races and I got to
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  going. So.
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  So are you saying that you backed out of the race car hands
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  on a little bit and that's why you think you're so good this
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  year? I think some of it you know I I
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  think I got spread thin there for a while and and trying to
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  manage every piece of my race team and and I was driving the
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  hauler to the races and working on the car the races I I just
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  enjoyed getting to kind of do every little roll and you know I
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  I know it took away from my my craft and driving and and my
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  focus on you know getting better as a as a physical race car
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  driver. So you know establishing a great
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  team and a loyal team and and and growing towards consistency
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  I think and and I've really focused on consistent and
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  qualifying and consistent being consistent in heat races and
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  then putting ourselves in positions at the end of the AMA
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  and and that's where you've really seen this package get
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  better and then when you do that you put yourself in position the
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  last 10 laps of the races and then you're in the hunt to win.
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  I I really like this because you know, I've been through this.
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  I can relate you. You're saying you're better this
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  year and when you look back on it, you think you know why.
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  And sometimes when we talk to racers, they're like, hell, I
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  don't know what I'm doing. It's we're doing the same of
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  everything. But I think all of us racers can
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  learn from something like you're saying right now.
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  So Rico, I feel like I want to call an audible right now.
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  I want to remind everybody about you.
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  And that's what Kenny conversation is.
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  So Rico Abreu, 31 years old, as you said from Saint, is that
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  Helena, CA? Saint Helena St.
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  Oh, I love that. It's a beautiful name.
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  Two time Chili Bowl winner 2015 2016 2014 USAC National Midget
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  Series champion. 2014 Bell Bell Midget Nationals champion Now
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  come the big boys 2013 2016 two times you are a four crown
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  Nationals Midget winner at Eldora.
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  Now that is badass, man. That's hard to do 2021 four
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  crown Nationals winged Sprint car winner and and and this is
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  something we will talk about. You've got a win in the Canon
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  Pro Series on East Win. At Columbus Motor Speedway.
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  Yes. And listen, we can go on and on.
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  We know that. When I say all that to you,
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  where does your brain go? What do you think about?
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  I I, I think about the people that helped me get to that point
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  in my career from Keith Coons with all the success, you know,
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  racing new SAC midgets and Paul Silva and Ricky Warner and you
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  know, a couple others that were huge assets to my indicating
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  family, to my Sprint Car career. And then you look back to you
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  know when I was really progressing rapidly like 2014,
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  fifteen and 16 and I started to follow that path.
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  You know with with how inspiring Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell
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  became in the dirt world. Everybody kind of wanted to
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  follow that that dream of getting to the Cup Series and
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  being a a NASCAR cup driver. And you know and and my my
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  impressions of it were I wanted to I I wasn't mature enough at
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  the time to looking back now but I wanted to to get to the Cup
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  Series through the the direction that that Kyle Larson and
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  Christopher Bell traveled, you know from Keith Coons to stock
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  cars to late models, stock cars to the Truck Series to Xfinity
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  to Cup. And I wanted to you know make
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  that investment worthy to return that to you know if it if it was
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  my family that was investing in some of that or or to our
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  partners or to these teams And and and I I got to Harry Scott's
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  and Justin Marks's East program which was an unbelievable
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  program and I was surrounded by some amazing people.
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  Marty Lindley you know amazing short track crew chief now in
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  the Xfinity Series racing for championships and you know and
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  and I look back and I wish I would have done each of those
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  platforms twice in two years and and I felt like I'm I was so new
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  to racing in each series that I was behind the 8 ball every time
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  just on my development and and you see Christopher and Kyle
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  developed a little bit faster and and they picked up on things
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  quicker than you know then myself did at the time.
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  But now we've I've gotten into I've really stuck to Sprint car
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  racing over the last decade here and it's really helped my craft
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  as a race car driver and my maturity as a race car driver.
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  And you know I just I see it as a as I've been a late bloomer in
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  these series and you know and there's nothing wrong with that
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  and it it's a great vision to work towards myself and to know
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  that like there there's still you know not the direction of
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  stock car racing. But in in the world of Outlaw
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  and Sprint car industry like I still have you know a desire
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  here to to 100% to be all committed to being a champion at
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  this as a race car driver. I want to comment on this
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  because this is a conversation. It's not so much I'm
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  interviewing you I wanted and I have been on my knees before
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  looking up at the good Lord God and saying God, why did you not
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  give me the talent that Jeff Gordon has?
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  So I think we all go through life, you know, when you look at
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  Kyle Larson or Christopher Bell, I've been there.
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  I've thought, like you have thought, but I like what you're
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  saying. You've matured is what you're
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  saying. Are you at peace with yourself
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  right now? Because, I mean, I feel like
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  you're as good as you've ever been.
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  I'm 100% at peace and I'm super happy.
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  I'm I'm surrounded by some amazing people in my my Sprint
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  car team and you know our digital marketing team that
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  we've created here and our partners that believe in my
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  ability as a race car driver and my fiance Megan and my dog Gus.
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  And like we I feel like everything is in in place to
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  just keep climbing forward. And I'm in love with Sprint car
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  racing. I'm in love with racing in
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  general and following me too. Just everything our sport is has
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  has climbed so much over the last decade and there there's so
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  much potential to it and and it's a it's an amazing time to
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  be a part of spring car racing right now and and just start
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  track racing and grassroots racing in general.
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  And this is definitely the stepping stones to you know,
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  stop car racing for any young kid that wants to get involved
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  in racing. If you're from being a mechanic
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  to a crew chief to, you know, a race car driver, you know this
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  is where it all starts. I want there's two things on my
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  mind, 'cause I'm listening to you very intently I hear you
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  talking about you know that Canaan E the number 31 car I
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  believe, was that your number back then it.
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  Was 98 number? 98 Yeah.
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  So do you feel like you have unfinished business in NASCAR?
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  Not at all. Good.
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  I've had closure with it for a few years.
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  You know the the end there was was tough but I had a lot going
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  on and you know I was wanting to race my Sprint car and race with
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  Keith Coons you know and try to race in the Truck Series full
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  time and get some late model experience which I did some
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  stuff with David Gillan during that that pace and it really
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  speed up the prop my learning curve in stock car racing just
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  getting one-on-one and getting laps on track.
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  So I I just if I were to do it all over again I would do each
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  series twice and then make the jump just so you get that
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  experience and you get locked in with a great team and and I
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  think that the the the what I've understood about stock car
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  racing is it's so generated around people and team and
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  finance financial you know to push this through quickly and
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  and you look at you know gentlemen and ladies that have
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  developed extremely fast through that series and it's it is it is
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  inspiring to see that and people it just shows that their
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  learning curves are all different.
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  You know you see how quickly Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell
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  went through and and now you see Toyota really and Ford really
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  pushing you know the the youth of the female drivers and and
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  which is really which is really, really cool to see.
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  So from the outside looking in you like to see all that stuff
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  and it and it generates success in that industry.
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  It generates viewership and you know it.
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  It's it's just cool to be a part of.
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  So let's call an audible. Let's just stay right where
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  you're talking about. I had, I had this down my list
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  so we have seen earth shaking movement in the world of outlaw
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  Sprint cars and the wing Sprint cars.
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  So we don't want it to be like this, but it seems like it's
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  going that way. We've got the High Limit Series
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  owned by Brad Sweet and Kyle Larson and we have the World of
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  Outlaws legendary name Logan Shuhart has said I'm staying
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  with the World of Outlaws. Brad is going over there.
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  So you know when I look at this, I'm like, OK, we're healthy
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  because we got two series. And when I look at the world of
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  Outlaw Late Models and Lucas Oil Late Models, I feel like there's
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  always room for two series. I feel like that.
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  Give me your thought, what are you going to do next year?
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  What's your opinion on the new High High Limit series?
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  Now these are great questions and I think it's it's important
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  that this stuff is discussed you know and it's I I praise Brad
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  and Kyle and Flo for what they've created here in the
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  Sprint car world. We need it.
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  I love competition you know from these broadcasting venues Flo
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  and and Dirt Vision and and all it does is create growth really
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  I've my whole career besides I I competed for in 13 and 14 for
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  national Yusak Midget championship you know where I I
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  I legit raced you know my third year ever racing as a full time
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  as a race car driver I competed with Keith Coons the 35 race
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  schedule or 40 race schedule and in 14 we won the championship
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  together where I I was in like a points race mode but my whole
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  career I've never competed for a a title or a championship and
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  and never received any of the benefits of of the championship
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  funding and the tow packages that get created in the series.
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  So I I I've never depended on that and and I've I've just kind
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  of been branded by this true outlaw racer where we just went
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  and raced for the money from when I started with Katie
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  Performance to Paul Silva five years to you know exchanging
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  interactions with different team members to racing on my own to
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  now having Ricky Warner. We've we just kind of lived this
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  true outlaw schedule and going back to these series is is you
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  see this this competition now and it just raises the bar on
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  both sides and you know each series needs needs those branded
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  drivers and and that draw those crowds to when you get to
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  certain races that don't generate a a a big fan base and
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  and you seen that with the the with the high limit weekday
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  series is is Kyle generates you know big crowds to these races
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  and and and how healthy it is for spring car racing you know
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  it it's just so cool to sit back and see that you know you see
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  the fans packed the stands packed and then you see the
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  money that's being generated into this sport now with this
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  pay-per-view stuff or from dirt vision or from flow and you
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  understand that like it's really healthy right now for Sprint car
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  racing and for us to go race for a good amount of money just to
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  show up and race and you're racing for anywhere from
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  10/12/25 fifty 100,000. You see these at Hugh sits now
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  and and then I sit here and sit back and think like where was
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  that money a few years ago. And so it a lot of it is you
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  know this pay-per-view stuff and them putting back into the sport
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  and you want to see that that's that's what we're all here to
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  see is you know is is return and investments.
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  I like that you like all of us. Back in the NASCAR days, we
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  admitted that Dale Earnhardt Senior was the man I've heard
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  the name Kyle Larson come out of.
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  Come out of your out of your voice quite a lot.
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  Brad sweet too obviously is his brother-in-law.
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  Has everyone an open will accepted that Kyle Larson is is
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  a God-given talent? Because we did.
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  We accepted Jeff Gordon. We accepted Dale Senior.
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  All of us drivers are like, man, that guy's got a gift from God.
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  Do do all the open wheel drivers accept that Kyle's great or are
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  some people jealous? I think you're you'll always see
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  jealousy and and drivers and and teams and and fans and you know
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  that's just a product of humanity is you know people
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  don't like to see people be successful and they they like to
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  see people you know at their level if they're at a lower
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  level. But I think it's it's amazing to
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  just be in this generation of racing and to see a talent like
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  Kyle go through the sport and you know what's also.
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  Great is, is you have a guy like Kyle that raises the bar in the
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  industry and it allows every makes everybody work harder to
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  to beat that competition. And you know it's extremely
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  satisfying to me the races that we do beat him straight up or be
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  any driver straight up. And that's my ultimate goal is
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  to work harder than everybody else at this on the branding
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  side, on the personality side and on the racing side and have
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  this amazing package at Rico Racing and myself, my brand, to
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  bring it to the table to when we do show up at these races is
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  we're doing the marketing better than them, We're racing better
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  than them and our personality is better than them.
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  And and that that's just how I look at it.
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  And I want to check all those off when I'm sitting on my couch
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  watching races at the end of my career.
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  So we we watched, look, we'll wrap this up, this moment here.
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  We watched Steve Kinzer, Doug Wolfgang slamming Sammy
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  Swindell. We watched those nicknames come
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  along, the World of Outlaws. And here we are, 2023.
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  And it sounds to me, and what I read is 2024 is going to be this
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  second infusion, this second phase, this second big change in
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  life for the winged Sprint cars. Do you, do you think that 2024
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  is going to be a generational change, like like one of the
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  biggest changes in Sprint Car history with, you know, it
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  sounds to me like high limits going to be like a World of
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  Outlaw deal. It's going to be big.
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  It is. There's going to be a big
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  momentum behind High Limit and and that's going to create big
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  momentum behind the World of Outlaws too.
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  Because you're going to create this rivalry now and what
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  direction people go and what direction teams go and who's
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  going to pay more money at each race.
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  And you're going to get the fans involved in it.
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  You're going to get the drivers involved and the team members
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  involved. And I think it's, it's amazing
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  for the sport and I'm all about it.
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  I'm all about the hype and I just want to go racing at the
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  end of the day and go make money.
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  Rico, thank you for discussing a difficult subject.
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  I think we did good. I don't think we're going to get
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  in trouble. We had to rough, we had to rough
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  Brad up early in the year but and he stuck with it.
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  He's a five time. Brad's doing an amazing job and
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  and it's a he's he's a great friend of mine and you know and
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  he's you know I really look up to his driving style and his
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  mannerism and his respect out on the racetrack and his respect
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  across Sprint car racing and what he's created here and
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  ultimately this is this is his vision that he's pushing through
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  and and he's he's breaking boundaries and and you you like
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  to see that and and you gain lots of respect for somebody
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  like that and you know and and ultimately it's you know Brad is
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  the the the front of this thing and it's it's really cool to
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  see. Are you going to run the full
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  High Limit series? I I don't know what I'm doing.
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  I I'd love racing I I love Sprint car racing.
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  I'm going to go what makes set to races that makes sense to me,
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  you know, and my team. And it's important that you know
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  this, this brand of of this true outlaw schedule.
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  And I think it's, you know, I'll go to a high limit race and I'll
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  go to a world of Outlaw race and I'll go to a local race one day
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  if it suits our schedule. Thinking about that right now,
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  are you driving for Keith Coons at the Chili Bowl this year with
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  $20,000 on the line? I'm I'm going to be in Australia
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  on that Saturday the 13th, so unfortunately this year I'm
• 24:27
  changing it up a little bit. I did the Chili Bowl 13 years in
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  a row and I think it's it's important for my brand to get
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  over to Australia and I'm going to spend 30 days over there and
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  want to spend lots of time with the race fans at the races and
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  just kind of enjoy the trip And I am.
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  You know it's it's a good for change of pace sometimes in in
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  this lifestyle that we all live and I've dedicated.
• 24:58
  You know I'll, I'll, I'll always be a fan of the Chili Bowl.
• 25:01
  I've dedicated 13 years of you know that week long experience
• 25:06
  there which is is an amazing event and there's you know it's
• 25:09
  had so much growth over the years and I just this year I'm
• 25:13
  changing it up a little. Well, that's very emotional for
• 25:17
  me. I know as a child, I know what
• 25:20
  the Chili Bowl meant for all of you, watching all of you get
• 25:24
  older and get mature, You know Kyle Larson's yourself.
• 25:27
  See. Bell.
• 25:30
  Chili Bowl. I'm sure you'll be back there
• 25:31
  one day. So let's have a little fun.
• 25:34
  Rico. Let's let's lighten it up a
• 25:36
  little bit. So I'm a big fan of yours.
• 25:38
  So I follow you on all social. I will.
• 25:40
  I will give you my first when this goes to you for being the
• 25:45
  greatest souvenir salesman of all time.
• 25:49
  I. This goes to you.
• 25:52
  Thank you. I see Gus your your loyal,
• 25:57
  loving dog. I see that you're going to put a
• 26:02
  sticker of Gus in some of the bags When people buy a hat or
• 26:08
  shirt sticker of Gus, tell tell me about your souvenir, says
• 26:12
  Everybody started copying you. You bought and tell me about
• 26:17
  souvenirs. I see a little bit of it, which
• 26:19
  is good. I think that's great for the
• 26:21
  sport to see things like that. You know I just take a lot of
• 26:25
  pride in it and I my ultimate goal is to fund my racing
• 26:30
  through merchandising and and where it relieves a a sponsor
• 26:35
  like my family and they're able to go invest that that budget
• 26:40
  somewhere else. So you know it's just I I look
• 26:43
  at merchandising as as a form of interaction with fans and and
• 26:47
  fans having that passion to to buy items from race car drivers
• 26:51
  and support those race car drivers and it's important for
• 26:54
  me to to be really personal about it and and and get
• 26:59
  creative in how you advertise things and and we brought Gus
• 27:03
  and Megan and I brought Gus into our lives and we built this
• 27:07
  platform now through our social media outlets that that Gus is
• 27:11
  you know this this this famous racetrack dog now that everybody
• 27:15
  is comes to see and say hello and he he blows my mind at times
• 27:20
  just with his personality and how generous he is to the fans
• 27:23
  and he doesn't ever get really tired or wore out by the fans
• 27:26
  and he just loves to sit up on the trailer and get petted and
• 27:30
  you know and and just stay there and chill and it's really
• 27:35
  comforting to the race fans to to approach an animal like that
• 27:39
  and and I I I try to put myself in that same category as as very
• 27:44
  approachable person that you break that boundary and that
• 27:48
  barrier of of comfort and you know so and and that's what
• 27:53
  essentially race results and and personality is what sells
• 27:57
  merchandise and and I try to be the best of both.
• 28:02
  Absolutely brilliant. Brilliant.
• 28:05
  Because here's why. Because I have Louie Lucy and I
• 28:08
  love them and they're comfortable.
• 28:11
  They they they're cold. You hold them.
• 28:13
  So basically you're saying you have some fans that come to your
• 28:18
  souvenir trailer just to see Gus?
• 28:21
  You know, because they love. Dogs.
• 28:22
  They do, they do. And they they have a, you know,
• 28:25
  there's a connection there between the dog and the fan.
• 28:28
  And it might and it's not even through me.
• 28:31
  And they might not even be fans of me.
• 28:33
  And they're coming up to see Gus.
• 28:35
  And that's. Awesome.
• 28:38
  It's comfort zone. While we're talking about Gus,
• 28:42
  let's keep having fun on your Instagram.
• 28:47
  We see. And now I get to finally address
• 28:50
  it with everybody. We see the legendary little dirt
• 28:54
  track. I guess that's on your family
• 28:57
  property. You had the look like a Crown
• 28:59
  Victoria. Maybe it was newer.
• 29:01
  Tell me about this legend now. Is this where you learned how to
• 29:05
  race? You made a race track.
• 29:07
  Yes. And my father and Rich
• 29:09
  Stadelhoffer, a business partner of his, built this racetrack.
• 29:13
  Once I I got out, I got through. I'll, I'll speed the story up,
• 29:16
  but I got through. Once I got through middle
• 29:18
  school, into high school, I really couldn't play sports
• 29:22
  anymore. Physically, I was just it just
• 29:24
  didn't work for me. So I wrestled all through middle
• 29:26
  school and played Little League and did all the sports through
• 29:31
  elementary and middle school and then high school.
• 29:34
  I went to wrestling and to maintain, you know, my that
• 29:39
  physical, just aggressing that I always had and competitiveness
• 29:43
  and I still weighed like 80 lbs and I was supposed to be
• 29:48
  wrestling one O threes was the lightest weight class in high
• 29:51
  school. So you know I went I, I I went
• 29:54
  and did you know all the gym stuff with the team and then
• 29:58
  went to our first meet and this kid was 6 foot 103 lbs and and a
• 30:06
  half foot you know still waiting to hit my growing spurt.
• 30:09
  So so I I kind of moved on through sports and and found
• 30:13
  this connection with our neighbors that raced the Griffin
• 30:16
  family in Saint Elena locally still have involvement in racing
• 30:20
  and and following my career and you know they brought me to some
• 30:24
  go Kart races and and we convinced my father that I could
• 30:28
  get into a go Kart and and they could physically fit me in there
• 30:31
  where I was comfortable. And we built a go Kart track at
• 30:35
  our house and and and rich Doddle Hoffer and my father got
• 30:39
  all their team together and built this amazing track and we
• 30:43
  would have I would just go out there and run laps every every
• 30:45
  weekend and sometimes during the week after school and just burn
• 30:49
  as many laps as I could And that's what got me up to speed
• 30:52
  so quickly And we got the test set up stuff with two of the
• 30:57
  mechanics that work for the company that that maintenance
• 31:00
  and maintained all the equipment They on their off time they
• 31:05
  would work on the go karts with me and that's what really speed
• 31:08
  up my learning curve is is I just got thousands of laps by
• 31:12
  myself and we put fuel back in and change a little tire
• 31:15
  pressure make some adjustments and then go right back out there
• 31:17
  And then we started inviting people in the racing industry
• 31:21
  over to to race and and then I started competing full time and
• 31:26
  I was racing three classes a night twice a weekend so 6A main
• 31:32
  events and for like a 30 race schedule at cycle and Speedway
• 31:37
  and then we'd go to Lakeport on Sundays on the way home and they
• 31:41
  would I just got lots of laps and and the Kaden family came to
• 31:46
  us and and said that Brent Kaden said he could modify a Sprint
• 31:50
  car and I was 18 years old you know getting into a Sprint car
• 31:55
  Well, I love watching that little racetrack grow.
• 31:59
  I think, I think one day as we grow older, there's going to be
• 32:03
  a plaque, a gold plaque, and it's going to say that you know
• 32:07
  where Rico Abrou started. Now one thing I do see, and I'm
• 32:12
  not sure, I mean we have done some talking before.
• 32:15
  Are you and Kyle Larson childhood friends?
• 32:18
  I I saw Kyle Racing there with you and you guys just doing
• 32:23
  depth of buying moves, putting the right.
• 32:24
  We're running up on the boards because you have a wall.
• 32:27
  It's like you guys said, OK, we're not going to run the
• 32:29
  bottom of my track we built. We're on purpose going to try to
• 32:33
  just run this wall here. Tell me about you and Kyle at
• 32:37
  that track. Yeah, I was.
• 32:39
  I think I was 16 or 17 years old and I met Kyle.
• 32:43
  They were racing at Calistoga Speedway for Dave Bertullo and
• 32:48
  they came, we were doing running some go Kart stuff.
• 32:52
  He got just got out of the go karts and was getting full time
• 32:55
  into Sprint cars when I was getting into go Kart racing and
• 32:59
  so they came up. His family came up to an event
• 33:02
  we had where we invited some friends to race their go karts
• 33:06
  and he that's really where the introduction was made and you
• 33:10
  know and and it just the relationship grew from there and
• 33:13
  where I was able to just graduated out of high school and
• 33:17
  was able to kind of follow his career with him and my father
• 33:20
  and rich saddle Hoffer started sponsoring him full time and he
• 33:24
  got into one of the Sprint car teams my father owned where he
• 33:28
  was able to race a lot more and you know and not just in
• 33:33
  California but in the Midwest. So he was running races in
• 33:36
  California and the Midwest. And you know, that's when Keith
• 33:39
  Koons picked Kyle up. And I just got into Sprint car
• 33:42
  racing at that time and I was, you know, that path was
• 33:46
  definitely to race Sprint cars and midgets for Keith Koons and
• 33:51
  and and Keith Koons's program, his development program really
• 33:54
  accelerated with, you know, my father's investment there and a
• 33:59
  massive investment from Toyota Racing on developing their
• 34:03
  engine. And we were just really getting
• 34:05
  into the program at that time. And the relationship with Kyle
• 34:09
  and I really grew just those years of, you know, we spent a
• 34:12
  lot of time together. So I like that you tell that
• 34:18
  story because I have this as one of my last conversations with
• 34:22
  you, or a heartfelt person like me.
• 34:26
  We love people. We can be mean when we have to
• 34:29
  be mean. But I have seen some of your
• 34:33
  post. How much you love your family
• 34:36
  one about a week or two ago, how you made a nice post about, I
• 34:40
  believe, your brother, you love him.
• 34:43
  You said you wanted to thank him or some family member about how
• 34:47
  they carry on Abra Vineyards. And tell me about this, this
• 34:53
  Abra Vineyards and what it's all about in your love, your respect
• 34:58
  for your father and your family. Yeah, lots of respect.
• 35:03
  You know, as when I've grown older you you start to educate
• 35:07
  yourself on you know business practices and understanding
• 35:11
  family history and you know and you see the change in
• 35:17
  generations and family history and you see it things go good
• 35:21
  and go bad, you know for families that have you know
• 35:25
  businesses and and structures of inheritance.
• 35:28
  And so it's really I've really been able to see you know what
• 35:33
  my father's created in the wine industry and and Napa Valley on
• 35:37
  from the vineyard management side of the business where he
• 35:40
  maintains clients ranches for them that have passion in the
• 35:46
  wine industry. And you know and then on the
• 35:49
  other side of it there's a business of wine making and and
• 35:52
  my father being a vidiculturist his whole life from came from
• 35:57
  cattle farming to to now this amazing viticulture that has
• 36:01
  this vision in in the Napa Valley which is you know the the
• 36:05
  heart of you know of viticulture and wine industry and and it's
• 36:10
  where the the farming takes place and it's the most
• 36:13
  beautiful part of the country I feel getting to travel a lot So
• 36:18
  it's it's just amazing to see what he's created and and to be
• 36:22
  a part of it And I'm out here kind of racing and and living
• 36:25
  this you know this this vision of of life that not everybody
• 36:30
  gets to experience and and you see kind of these things that go
• 36:34
  on back at home. And my passion.
• 36:37
  The passion from my brother and sister and father for you know
• 36:41
  in the wine industry and my mother and you know it's just
• 36:46
  becomes inspiring and it's because it's not it has nothing
• 36:49
  to do with racing and and I'm lucky enough to to kind of sit
• 36:53
  back and and watch this thing build and have momentum and you
• 36:57
  see how heavily involved people family members become.
• 37:01
  And it's it's just cool for me to see.
• 37:04
  You said that so wonderfully, with love, passion, following up
• 37:10
  in that same situation. I'm thinking of Brendan Gron,
• 37:13
  the great race car driver, raced his whole life, got up into age
• 37:19
  and said, OK, I'm going home, I'm going to run South Point
• 37:22
  Casino. OK, So when you get up in age,
• 37:26
  you know I don't want you to become one of those dirt
• 37:29
  dobbers. And I know you won't.
• 37:31
  I know you won't. We see a lot of dirt dobbers and
• 37:35
  this is a nickname I give them where they they forget when
• 37:39
  they, you know, what are they going to do?
• 37:41
  Because we know racing's not real.
• 37:43
  We know it's a sport. Do you see yourself one day,
• 37:49
  this phrase I'm making up or going home to help run the
• 37:53
  family business like a Brendan gone.
• 37:56
  I see myself learning all or or gathering all of the experience
• 38:03
  and knowledge that I have in racing and and bringing that to
• 38:10
  and the marketing values and bringing that to a business like
• 38:14
  what my father's created. And you know my my father's very
• 38:18
  craftedly you know structured his vineyard management business
• 38:24
  to be the best vineyard management business in the Napa
• 38:26
  Valley and have and he and he's put someone in place to to be
• 38:29
  the best wine maker in the in the world and articulate these
• 38:35
  great amazing wines around this brand of each property that he's
• 38:40
  fallen in love with and owns. And I see myself bringing you
• 38:46
  know the the marketing level of things there to to where you you
• 38:51
  tell that you present this story to people and and and you
• 38:55
  present it through a really organic personality like mine
• 39:00
  and and that's right. I kind of see my place there my
• 39:03
  time's not ready yet because I still have major accomplishments
• 39:07
  I want in the racing industry as I'm only 31 years old.
• 39:09
  You're. Still a baby.
• 39:11
  I I want to be you know this I want to build this legacy of
• 39:16
  this successful race car driver owner and and I so so so I build
• 39:22
  those posts and and I because I see the passion that my family
• 39:26
  has internally and they and I see that they understand kind of
• 39:29
  my direction and and my placement there and you know and
• 39:34
  that that's it and I and I don't have this ego of want to come in
• 39:37
  and say this is mine or you know you get this or and you see
• 39:42
  families like that and it all disrupts everything that's
• 39:45
  flowing and you know so so so I've been able to sit back and
• 39:49
  kind of just watch things and and it it's a it's a process.
• 39:54
  I think it's wonderful. If, if you don't mind, I'd like
• 39:56
  to get I'm a little intrigued. I'm going to say it in my most
• 40:00
  redneck way, my dirt, my dirt racing way, and we're dealing
• 40:04
  with dirt. Is it to my understanding that
• 40:06
  your father is one of the smartest people in the world
• 40:09
  with soil and building a vineyard?
• 40:13
  Is that one of his services? That is his service.
• 40:16
  He will develop your ranch for you and he has a great vision on
• 40:22
  layout and he has a strong group of employees behind him that
• 40:28
  that help him with that vision and he's very he's a very loyal
• 40:33
  person. He's very passionate for you
• 40:36
  know vineyard managing and he and and building these beautiful
• 40:41
  pieces of property that become art for something somebody.
• 40:44
  And it's a piece of art for for a client that you know they come
• 40:49
  at home that that's what they come home to and he's he's a
• 40:54
  very extremely smart and knowledgeable person when it it
• 40:59
  comes to really anything and and and he's been a huge help to to
• 41:03
  where I've gotten to in in my life and my career you know as
• 41:06
  this as this platform that I've I've built as a you know race
• 41:11
  car driver and owner and salesman.
• 41:16
  It's a wonderful thing to hear how much you love your family.
• 41:20
  It's a wonderful thing to hear that you and I know our spot.
• 41:24
  You and I are the same. We're both entertainers.
• 41:27
  We both go get money. We both develop money.
• 41:30
  I'm thankful to my dad every day.
• 41:32
  And Rico, I love you. You're one of the greatest race
• 41:36
  car drivers. You're still very young, but
• 41:39
  you've accomplished a lot. At this time, I want to tell all
• 41:42
  the fans that remember, we are in podcast form, we are on
• 41:47
  Spotify, we're on iTunes, and you can listen to Rico all the
• 41:52
  way to work and then you can continue to listen to Great Rico
• 41:55
  Abreu on your way home. Rico so much to do.
• 42:00
  We know you're a hardcore racer, we know you're very young.
• 42:04
  We know you got a lot to do. But it's fun to look in the
• 42:07
  past, look in the future. Thank you so much for being on
• 42:11
  Kenny conversation. Thanks, Herm.
• 42:14
  All right, everybody. Remember Kenny, conversation
• 42:17
  just keeps on rolling. We got the greats ahead of us.
• 42:20
  We had Ricky Carmichael, Dale Junior.
• 42:23
  We've been breaking records because all of all of you, we
• 42:26
  love you. And until next time, any
• 42:28
  conversation just keeps on rolling.