Notes: Wimmer keen for new season with RCR (cont'd)

Pearson back, with Barrett

Veteran Busch Series crew chief and former two-time champion chief mechanic Ricky Pearson confirmed at Nationwide Preseason Thunder that he would be involved in both that series and a limited number of Sprint Cup races with team owner/driver Stanton Barrett.

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Pearson was with Barrett for both sessions in which he participated, the second Sprint Cup test and the first Nationwide session. Pearson's schedule was freed up when owner John McGill opted to put his No. 36 team in mothballs for the season while he searched for sponsorship to return to the series in 2009.

"He's got a tentative schedule of 17 [Nationwide races], or maybe even more than that," Pearson said. "And then he's going to attempt as many as four, beginning with the Daytona 500, on the Cup side.

"I'm pretty excited because I've worked with Stanton before, in the past when he drove our car at McGill's for two-thirds of a season [in 2005], where it was a lot of success for us, with the amount of sponsorship we had to spend."

Pearson said the full-time Hollywood stuntman, who has a passion for racing, might open some eyes this season.

"I think he's got a lot of talent and he's in his prime right now," Pearson said. "I watch him all the time when he runs and I think he's turned into a real competitive driver, and I think we can run in the top 10."

Leffler likes teamwork

David Reutimann and Jason Leffler were the only two drivers who last year fielded Toyota Camrys full time in the Busch Series, and they finished second and third, respectively, in the standings.

So they're enthused to be joined by several other full-time Toyotas in the inaugural Nationwide Series season, particularly two cars from Joe Gibbs Racing and another from Germain Racing.

"The fact that we have more Toyotas in the field is definitely going to help," Leffler said. "Getting Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing together is a win-win for everybody -- it's certainly good for Toyota, and certainly good for JGR [and] any information that trickles down through TRD [Toyota Racing Development] will help everybody.

"It will also help from a morale standpoint. We're looking forward to this season, especially having Nationwide come on board. I think everybody is pretty pumped up about that."

Gale fast again

Cale Gale, a former Alabama Late Model racer who once stepped up and built shocks for his owner Kevin Harvick's Busch Series teammate Scott Wimmer at Memphis last season, once again was fastest in Daytona's morning session, on the final day of Preseason Thunder. Gale was quickest Monday morning, but that session was ruled a "drafting practice" because team's were allowed to run in packs; but on Tuesday morning Gale set the five-day test's second-best single-car lap, 50.023 seconds, an average speed of 179.917 mph, in his No. 77 Kevin Harvick Inc. Chevrolet. (speeds)

In the afternoon, when only six cars remained at the track to keep running, David Stremme had the fastest lap in his No. 64 Rusty Wallace Inc. Chevrolet. Two teams, those of Kertus Davis and Brian Vickers, ran for the first time on Tuesday, making a total of 40 Nationwide teams that tested.

Miller sets up for Kahne

For being a development driver who will handle a part-time Nationwide schedule in 2008 -- splitting time with Gillett Evernham Motorsports Sprint Cup teammates Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler and Patrick Carpentier -- Georgian Chase Miller sounded like a confident veteran after he finished three days of set-up work for the No. 9 Dodge that Kahne will race during Speedweeks 2008.

After posting the 15th-fastest time among 45 cars during his first single-car session Sunday, Miller took his Charger steadily through the speed charts in both single-car runs and drafting sessions. He improved to 10th during his first-day drafting practice and was ranked in the top three in the ensuing three sessions, including the second-fastest time Tuesday morning with a lap of 49.864 seconds, an average speed of 180.491 mph.

"We're good," Miller said." I wish I was racing in this one. Kasey's going to be in the car at Daytona and we've got a good car for him. I think he'll contend for the win."

Miller ran in six events last year for GEM and impressed with an outside pole at Kentucky Speedway in only his second race.

A character builder

Michael Waltrip Racing teammates Michael McDowell and David Reutimann agreed during the second session of Preseason Thunder that Daytona's surface was certainly interesting.

McDowell said his season plans with MWR would be announced Wednesday evening on the Sprint Media Tour presented by Lowe's Motor Speedway; while Reutimann will race full time in both Sprint Cup and the Nationwide Series.

"This place is so much different than Talladega because of the bumps," McDowell said of Daytona. "The car really has to be working good here. I don't have a whole lot of experience here -- just one race in the ARCA car [so] I'm just running out there trying to get comfortable, just trying to figure out what the car wants and get comfortable in the draft."

As far as the difference in the two cars he'll race, Reutimann said Daytona really pointed it out.

"Here, they drive a little bit different," Reutimann said. "In the Cup car, you're down on the bump stops for the most part, so the ride is not exactly what you call smooth -- but Daytona is not a really smooth place -- it's got character [and] that's what makes it Daytona.

"It's not that much of an adjustment here as it will be at some other places."