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NTT INDYCAR SERIES NEWS CONFERENCE

September 22, 2019

Ted Klaus

Indianapolis, Indiana

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Honda Performance Development president Ted Klaus, who took the role as president back in early March, as I remember. Successful season, a championship for the engine manufacturer side. Let's talk about the gratification. I believe this is two in a row for Honda.

TED KLAUS: Yeah, thank you very much. Two in a row is extremely gratifying. We all know that everything you do in life tends to be incremental, and so I had the pleasure of joining and stepping up on top of what my predecessors have built before me, including the most recent president, Art St. Cyr. I'm just really pleased to have earned this second championship. It was very tight, so it's very gratifying.

THE MODERATOR: And to cap it with a race win to end the season and what you saw from Colton and others, obviously Scott Dixon and so forth, talk about just how gratifying it was top to bottom with your lineup?

TED KLAUS: Yeah, it's a great question. You see the skill of a Scott Dixon or the skill of an Alexander Rossi, and then you see the emerging skill, and you can't harness the rookies that really our partner teams go and excavate this talent, and they support it. A lot of them are supporting it in the lower series.

Just very, very humbled and proud to be working in partnership with our teams and to support the young next generation stars, not just drivers but really stars who can inspire even younger kids.

THE MODERATOR: Top four rookies all on Honda power.

Q. Ted, Honda is a Japanese company and NTT is a Japanese company. What does this mean for the country of Japan, and what's the reaction in Japan?
TED KLAUS: Yeah, I had the pleasure this year of -- at the Indianapolis 500, because we all know that's an amazing day in motor sport with the Monaco F1 race also happening the same day, but we had the top really five executives over from Japan. We hosted them, and that was an exciting race.

At the end of the race, it was extremely emotional to be so close and yet so far, as we know in life.

So I think the thing that's common in Honda, and I've had the pleasure in my long career at Honda to work on projects that were global projects.

Just to give you a sense of Honda, when we talk about racing, it's just about going and challenging our people and challenging our technologies, our processes, and in many ways, Honda is very similar to these race teams, Harding Steinbrenner, Andretti, Ganassi, Bobby Rahal and Dale Coyne, Michael Shank. We have a lot in common, and that drives us. But it's extremely important and gratifying. Sorry for the long answer.

Q. Your predecessor won his final championship, you've won your first. Do you feel like there's any additional pressure to repeat for next year, or is it just business as usual?
TED KLAUS: The pressure for us is to take care of our teams, to win the Indy 500 every year, and to earn the driving championship. You know, the manufacturer's championship generally is an outcome of those targets.

Q. Is it more rewarding knowing that you're replacing competition with Chevrolet and they pushed you so far this year?
TED KLAUS: Yeah, I had the pleasure of working on the other side in IMSA with Acura Team Penske, and we had the pleasure of competing against Chevy, as I've said publicly, and I'm anxious to have a third manufacturer, even more competition.

So yeah, there's no sense celebrating if it's not such an excellent competitor. Ilmor and Chevy, to win two years in a row against them with Team Penske being so strong, it's quite an accomplishment. I'm very proud of it.

THE MODERATOR: Ted, congratulations to Honda, and pressure is on for number three.

TED KLAUS: Pressure is on. Thank you, all.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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