Toyotas turn table from last year with solid speeds

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Ty Norris, president and general manager of Michael Waltrip Racing, darted into the media center at Daytona International Speedway Monday afternoon and smiled as he referred to the speed sheet from the day's opening practice session.

"Look," he said, "it's just like last year -- only upside down."

Norris made a good point. After Monday's morning session, Toyotas ruled the top of the chart. Led by MWR's Dale Jarrett, the manufacturer's cars posted eight of the top 10 lap times.

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Jarrett posted the first- and fourth-fastest times of the morning, with a top lap speed of 184.987 mph. Others driving Toyotas who posted top-10 times in the morning included Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing, Dave Blaney of Bill Davis Racing, Michael Waltrip of MWR and Brian Vickers of Red Bull Racing.

Blaney was the fastest of all cars in the afternoon session, turning a lap speed of 185.445 mph as Toyotas again outran most everybody else. Dale Earnhardt Jr. in his No. 88 Chevrolet was the only non-Toyota to post a lap that was among the top-nine fastest, with a fast lap of 185.426 mph in the afternoon. Vickers turned the third-fastest lap (185.307 mph), Jarrett the fourth-fastest (185.292 mph) and Waltrip the fifth-fastest (185.227 mph).

Last year, its first in what is now the Sprint Cup Series, Toyota struggled mightily in Preseason Thunder testing at Daytona. Those struggles only intensified for the manufacturer as the season unfolded, which is why the difference this year is encouraging to the Toyota drivers.

"It's a world of difference," Waltrip said. "We are very optimistic about getting everything we can out of this car."

Blaney added: "We've been happy with the car so far here in Daytona, and any time you are close to the front it's a good thing. Right now all the pieces to our program are working well together -- the engine program, the cars and the team. As long as you can be up front, stay in the draft, and run around everybody else, then you will be in a good place. And right now I feel like we are."

Of course everyone cautioned not to read too much into the testing times posted Monday, or during testing last week at Daytona. All of the times Monday were posted during single-car runs that tell nothing about how a car will handle in the all-important draft at the Daytona track.

Drivers won't venture onto the track in multiple packs of cars to try their hands at drafting until Tuesday afternoon. Nonetheless, Waltrip agreed with Norris that Monday's initial results were highly encouraging.

"Last year we just didn't have enough car," Waltrip said. "But this year it's really a comforting feeling to know that our cars are this fast now. Now it's about our team getting the cars as tuned up as we can and getting as much out of them as possible.

"Just like at Talladega in October, we should be good enough to contend for the pole and be up front when we come back [for the Daytona 500] in a month."

Blaney said that the addition of Joe Gibbs Racing to the Toyota fold already is showing some dividends for all the Toyota teams.

"I think we'll be better as a whole than we were last year and certainly the Gibbs team will be good no matter what, but I think all the Toyota teams are going to be elevated," Blaney said. "I think we saw pretty good gains [Monday] with MWR, the Red Bull team and our team as well. ... I think we'll see the whole Toyota group out front a good bit."