Chat Transcript: Hank Parker Jr. and Billy Parker
June 28, 2001
2:06 PM EDT (1806 GMT)
[Nascar_Host1] Welcome to NASCAR.com's chat with Hank Parker Jr. and Billy "Catfish" Parker.
[Billy_Parker] I just want to thank all of you for coming. GNC, Mega Men and ppc Racing have put in a lot of hard work to make this happen and we are looking forward to this weekend.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [GoGoulds48] Billy, what goals have you and the 15 team set for this weekend at Milwaukee? What will you consider a successful weekend?
[Billy_Parker] Realistically, we want to go out there and qualify in the top 15 and finish in the top 10, and we want to keep the car intact. That would be a great weekend. I would like to lead as many laps as I can, and definitely the last lap! It may take a while to get back into the racing and it will take some time to learn a little because it has been a little while since I have done it. We are really looking forward to doing it in this series, but I want to win. That is why I am going out there.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [pennzoil#1] Hello! It's great to be here with the both of you. Racing has such a rich history of being a family sport. Did the two of you ever figure growing up that you would both end up here?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Definitely! It was the goal. I cant say that we didn't want to do that, so it is a dream come true for the both of us.
[Billy_Parker] Growing up, I never dreamed of racing until I was about 12 years old racing go-karts. I knew we would always do something together, but I wasn't sure it would be rubbing paint on TV with each other. It will be neat to see that and look back at it.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [Noelle Dalejrfan] Hank, have you given Billy tips and info to help him on the track? Billy have you helped your brother with info that you've learned on the track? Thank you!
[Hank_Parker_Jr] It really works both ways. Bill has helped me a lot and he gives me a lot of advice because he has been on the outside looking in. I am trying to help him as much as I can, and I am telling him some of my faults from testing last week in Chicago. He takes advice well and I give him whatever I can. I look forward to racing him this weekend, and hopefully I haven't given him too much!
[Billy_Parker] He has helped me a bunch, but I haven't been able to help him much since I don't have the experience he has. I think I helped him last year when we were in Memphis. I think more than anything we talked about the track, how the cars were handling, how they turned in the middle, etc. The biggest part was he didn't want to be outdone by his little brother. He had a great car there but had some bad luck at the end with a flat tire.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [go8and36] Hank and Billy, if it comes down to the last lap and you are running 1 and 2, will you race each other clean?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Oh yeah, I will definitely race my brother clean. I like to think that I race everyone on the racetrack clean. The last thing I would ever do would wreck my brother.
[Billy_Parker] My definition of clean and some others may be different. I will race him hard and I will do whatever it takes to win.
[Hank_Parker_Jr] I like that answer! That is cool!
[Billy_Parker] ahhhhh yeah yeah…
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [wingnutm] Hi Hank and Billy. What did you think of Harvick trying to get his lap back? If you were Robby, would you have let him pass?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] You know, I was cheering for both people. They both had different thoughts. Harvick is very aggressive and drives very hard and sometimes thing like that happen. I like Harvick's driving style, but Robby was trying to prove himself. I probably would have let him go because he had fresher tires on. Kevin has a lot of ability and he is a very competitive racecar driver and those things are going to happen.
[Billy_Parker] That is a difficult decision. Robby probably felt that he would have been threatened by Tony for position. I would have let him pass since I think he probably lost time fighting him. I don't blame Kevin at all because he was doing what his sponsors and everyone else want him to do. I think it could have been done a little better, but I don't blame either of them.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [Noelle_dalejrfan] Hey, Hank and Billy, do you guys ever make each race your own competition, like betting on who will win?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] No. I never have done anything like that. I go to the racetrack to win every week. I work every week to make my car as competitive as it can be and I am not going to bet on anyone else. There are people I pull for that I want to see do well, but I am working hard on my team.
[Billy_Parker] Of course, that is what brothers do! I don't have as much to spare as he does -- rent is coming up this month, you know what I am saying!
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Hahaha! Funny guy!
[Billy_Parker] He is a liar. I heard him bet. I will make a friendly wager when we get home.
[Hank_Parker_Jr] I guess if it is going to be that way, I guess we are going to have to start.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [trouble] Hank and Billy, if you could design your own paint scheme what would it look like?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] I don't know. My first racecar was all orange. I bought it from Dale Jr. It had a white No. 03. We put new fenders and a hood on it after he crashed it. It had a mean look to it! It was cool.
[Billy_Parker] That is a tough one there. I like a black racecar and maybe some orange flames. My favorite right now is Sterling Marlin's.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [jrbabe36] Hank and Billy, who inspired you to race?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] You know, I got to be friends with Dale Jr. when I started racing the street stocks and late models and we were just good buddies. My brother and I had a lot of good times and he was really into it like I was. That was the biggest part of the inspiration. I don't know if it was really one person that got me into racing.
[Billy_Parker] There are so many people like Harry Gant and Dale Earnhardt, but once we got into it, my brother Hank was probably the biggest to get into it and keep racing.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [Noelle_dalejrfan] Hey Hank and Billy, are you guys close friends? Has racing brought you closer together? How many years apart are you? Thanks!
[Hank_Parker_Jr] We are 2 years apart. Bill is one of those brothers that have always been a little bit crazy and I have to keep him in line. We have always been close and somebody has to keep him straight! Haha
[Billy_Parker] I think we are about 2.5 years apart, and yeah, we are close friends, probably best friends. Racing and everything we have done together has brought us closer. We are real good friends.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [go8and36] Hank and Billy, who is Hank Sr. going to cheer for?! Is he nervous?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Yeah, he is nervous! He gets to watch me race a lot in the Busch Series. He wants both of us to run well, so I don't know who he will pull for. Hopefully he will be pulling for Bill to finish second. Haha
[Billy_Parker] He lives nervous. I think he is going to be pulling for me, but I am sure Hank Jr. thinks he will be pulling for him. I am sure he will say whoever wins, "Yep, that is who I was pulling for."
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [dalefan100] Hank, despite the win at California, all the Cicci-Weliver teams are struggling this year. What do you think is the main reason for that, and what steps are you taking to change it?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] I think we got behind. There was a lack of testing at the beginning of the year. With that being said, we have a new crew chief in Mark Tutor. We have been doing some testing and Mark and I are working really hard to pull our team into being a consistently competitive race team.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [vectra] Billy, how is going to feel this weekend to be competing against Jeff Green?
[Billy_Parker] It is going to feel REAL good. I have been watching him for a while and I am going to try to take some of those things and put them into my run. He is a great racer and I hope all the stuff I learned from him will help me drive well and help in making a career out of it.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [_JEFFGORDONHUGGEDME_] You guys sound like jokers! Have you ever pulled a big prank on each other or your parents?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Lots of pranks! We are only having fun, cutting each other up. There is a whole lot! My dad has pulled more pranks on us that we are not even close to even!
[Billy_Parker] My whole life has been a joke! I can't eve tell you half the pranks I have pulled! I think we get that from our dad. If you watch us on TV we are always joking.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [dominator8budjr] Hank, love those commercials. Do you plan on doing any more of them? Also, we are cheering for you in the next race to win so we can see a complete donut this time! Just kidding.
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Hahaha! My guys called that half a bagel with no cream cheese! We have a new commercial with GNC that I got to see the rough-cut on the other day. It is awesome and really funny. It is going to be a good commercial. Thanks for the support and liking the commercials. We are working hard on them.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [WardFan22] Billy, are you going to race any other Busch events this year?
[Billy_Parker] Our goal is race as many as we can and still keep rookie status for next year, and I think that is 7 races. It really depends on sponsorship since we are struggling a little this year. Hopefully we can get that taken care of.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [colby_36] Hank and Billy, I was wondering, what kinds of music do you have in your vehicles?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] A little bit of everything, you know. I listen to a lot of rock-n-roll and alternative music. I have a very diverse taste in music.
[Billy_Parker] The Soggy Bottom Brothers, bluegrass, George Strait and Hank Williams. I think Hank listens to Britney Spears and stuff like that.
[Hank_Parker_Jr] What a redneck!
[Billy_Parker] I would say "perverse" not "diverse".
[Hank_Parker_Jr] I am going to whip you when I get home.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [77targetdodge] Hank, does having your brother racing in the same race as you make you any more nervous than you would be on any other weekend? And Billy, how does having a brother that has been in the Busch Series for a few years help you?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] No. It is just a lot of fun and he is driving a good car. They have top-notch equipment and I have a lot of belief in his ability. I look forward to giving him a hard time after the race too, so that will be fun.
[Billy_Parker] Well he has a good reputation as a nice guy and a respected driver so some people will think the same for me. He helped me out with the sponsor deal so there are a lot of ways he has helped me.
[Nascar_Host1] Question from: [Scottwires] We all know that Billy "Catfish" Parker is the best looking brother, but who is the best racer?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] How many times has Bill been in People Magazine?!
[Billy_Parker] 2 for 1 for me there.
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Of course he is going to say he is the best of both, but I am here to tell him otherwise! Haha!
[Billy_Parker] That is just because they felt sorry for him. How much did you pay for them to put you in there? Let's hear it.
[Hank_Parker_Jr] They really wanted to put him in there but I heard he was unavailable for photographs so they put me in there.
[Billy_Parker] That is right!
[Nascar_Host1] That's all the time Hank and Billy for us this evening. Thanks Hank and Billy! What are your final thoughts?
[Hank_Parker_Jr] Thanks for checking us out tonight. I had a lot of fun and thanks for all the questions. Be sure to check out your local GNC. I am taking a lot of their products and getting strong and when I get home I am going to wrestle Bill down. See you all later!
[Billy_Parker] I appreciate the time all of you gave us and taking interest in what me and Hank do -- and Hank, stop listening to Britney -- and I will see you on the track! Hahaha…
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