Vegas testing shows Gibbs' strength, others struggles
SCENEDAILY.COM
Not where Joe Gibbs racing is concerned.
Monday morning's NASCAR Sprint Cup test session at Las Vegas Motor Speedway only served to confirm what Gibbs driver Denny Hamlin already believed, namely that JGR's transition from Chevrolet to Toyota would be seamless.
Hamlin also acknowledged that the switch to the full-time use of NASCAR's new racecar has made the acclimation to Toyota much smoother.
"We definitely didn't think going into this year that we were going to have growing pains by switching manufacturers," said Hamlin, who topped the speed chart at 178.265 mph in the first session of the two-day test.
"Had we had the old car, where we really don't know the aero advantages, yeah, we probably would have been a little more concerned. But we know we've got to build basically the same bodies we had last year, and all we're dealing with is different horsepower.
"So, really, there's going to be no transition for us. We're going hopefully to be as competitive, if not more competitive. And the way it's looking, we're going to be more competitive than we were last year."
In Hamlin's view, the addition of Kyle Busch (fifth fastest Monday morning at 178.042 mph) has strengthened the organization, particularly when it comes to getting feedback from the No. 18 Camry that Busch drives.
"It's been good so far," Hamlin said. "(We've) definitely been able to use a lot of notes from the 18, a lot more than what the teams have in probably the last three or four years. ... I think it's going to be good. I think we really never have had a three-car united team at Joe Gibbs Racing.
"It's always been -- our cars have been spread out. We've kind of had one up front at times, one in the middle and one in the back. It kind of alternates which car that is. Really, I think this year is going to be the first time you'll really see the three-car team of Joe Gibbs Racing."
The telltale tests
It's hard to discount the importance of the two three-day Cup test sessions at Daytona International Speedway earlier this month. After all, those tests allowed teams to prepare for the 50th running of NASCAR's most prestigious race, the Daytona 500, scheduled for Feb. 17.
This week's test sessions at Las Vegas (Monday and Tuesday) and California Speedway (Thursday and Friday) should prove more helpful to Cup teams as they approach the 2008 season, given that only four of the 36 events on the Cup schedule are contested at restrictor-plate racetracks (Daytona and Talladega).
"Daytona is its own animal," Roush Fenway driver Carl Edwards said. "The information that we get from this test is going to apply to a far greater degree than the information from Daytona. So this one's way more important. I'm not texting people in my car on pit road (as he did at Daytona)."
Green flag or diaper bag?
At least Sam Hornish Jr. has his priorities straight.
The Sprint Cup rookie will be at wife Crystal's side when their first child is born -- unless the birth falls on one of the three key dates during Speedweeks at Daytona.
"She's actually due on qualifying day for the (Daytona) 500," Hornish said of the Feb. 10 due date. "I told her, as long as it's not qualifying, the Duels (150-mile qualifying races) or the race, I'll do everything I can to be there.
"Hopefully, they don't come on the radio about halfway through the 500 and tell me I have a kid. That would be a little bit difficult to keep my mind focused, but I'm looking forward to it."
Early casualties at Vegas
Hornish, David Ragan, Dario Franchitti and Regan Smith were involved in incidents on the track Monday, as winds gusting to more than 30 mph made turning laps at the 1.5-mile speedway an adventure.
Ragan took the hardest hit, crumpling both ends of his No. 6 Ford, but he escaped injury, as did the other three drivers.
Busch keeps Toyota atop the Vegas speed chart
SCENEDAILY.COM
LAS VEGAS - One Toyota replaced another on top of the speed chart in the afternoon NASCAR Sprint Cup testing session at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Joe Gibbs Racing's Kyle Busch topped the session with a lap of 183.580 mph, just ahead of teammate Tony Stewart's 182.426 mph.
Denny Hamlin's JGR Toyota, fastest in the morning session, was 24th in the afternoon runs.
"We've been trying hard on these cars to get more grip in them," Busch said. "So far, everything has gone well. The guys have been digging in and working hard to make it faster. We are still learning and trying to make it better."
Busch was asked how he was adapting to a new team and new manufacturer.
"You go to a race track and try to make the best of it," he said. "I've got a great bunch of guys with Joe Gibbs Racing and the Toyota power underneath the hood. It's important for us to come out and look good, and ultimately make [team owner] Joe and [team President] J.D. [Gibbs] look good for picking me. This is still [Toyota Racing Development's] motor package in this car - it isn't a Gibbs motor package - so I can only assume that we will come back here with more."
Hard to get use to the #18 without Interstate Batteries on it
No kidding, you got a bunch of different stuff going in there. M &M's, Toyota and the 18. Gonna be a wierd year for sure with all the new guys from open wheel and all the other driver/sponsor swaps. I am gonna have to watch the first couple races with the NASCAR section loaded
Montoya sets fastest lap of testing
January 29, 2008
LAS VEGAS (AP) -Juan Pablo Montoya paced testing Tuesday at Las Vegas Motorspeedway, going 186.761 mph in his Dodge to post the fastest lap of the two-day session.
Montoya's mark in the afternoon session bettered Kyle Busch's fast lap of 183.580 on Monday and Carl Edwards' mark of 184.256 in the Tuesday morning runs.
In all, 12 drivers bettered Edwards' morning run, including four Toyota drivers as the automaker's fleet continued to impress in preseason testing. AJ Allmendinger was second fastest to Montoya, running a 185.752 in a Camry fielded by Red Bull Racing.
Tony Stewart was 10th fastest in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing, David Reutimann was 11th for Michael Waltrip Racing and Busch was 12th for Gibbs. The strong showings come after two weeks of solid runs in Daytona for Toyota, which struggled in its first season of Sprint Cup competition last year.
``We have been pleased with the results we have seen from our teams here in Las Vegas,'' said Andy Graves, an official with Toyota Racing Development. ``This is a much different test from Daytona and we need to understand what we have at these types of intermediate race tracks.''
Casey Mears led the Hendrick Motorsports contingent in this test, posting the third-fastest lap at 185.344 in a Chevrolet. Kasey Kahne was fourth in a Dodge for Gillett Evernham Motorsports, and Reed Sorenson was fifth to join Montoya as two Chip Ganassi-owned cars in the top five.
Elliott Sadler was sixth in a GEM-owned Dodge and was followed by Scott Riggs for Haas CNC Racing, Edwards in a Roush Fenway Racing Ford and two-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson in a Hendrick car.
The afternoon session was shortened by about 10 minutes when Jeff Gordon's car dropped oil on the track as darkness was closing in on the speedway.
In other on-track incidents, Jeff Burton wrecked his Chevrolet in the morning session, while Stewart scraped the wall in the afternoon and Michael Waltrip spun his car.
The Cup Series has Wednesday off, then moves on to California Speedway for two final days of testing before reporting to Daytona next week for the season-opening 500