Toyota NASCAR Notes & Quotes - California February 2010
TOYOTA TIDBITS -- February 15-21, 2010
Here Are the Headlines:
- Can Camry Drivers Collect California Checkered Flag?
- Four in a Row in Fontana
- Peters Picks Up Daytona Trophy
DAYTONA RACE REVIEW: After three ‘green-white-checkered flag’ attempts to complete the season-opening NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) Daytona 500, two Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota drivers -- David Reutimann (fifth) and Martin Truex Jr. (sixth) -- scored top-10 finishes Sunday. Other Camry drivers with top-20 finishes at the 2.5-mile superspeedway included Kyle Busch (14th), Brian Vickers (15th), Denny Hamlin (17th), Michael Waltrip (18th), Scott Speed (19th) and Joey Logano (20th).
CALIFORNIA CALLING: In six NSCS races at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., the best result for a Camry driver has been a pair of third-place finishes by Kyle Busch (Feb. 2009) and Denny Hamlin (Aug. 2008). Toyota drivers swept the Cup pole positions in 2009 with Brian Vickers starting out front in February and Hamlin in October. Overall, Camry driers have combined for 10 top-10 finishes at the two-mile race track.
FOUR IN FRONT: Four Toyota Camry drivers finished among the top-10 in last Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) event at Daytona. Brian Vickers (fifth) was the highest-finishing Toyota driver, followed by Joey Logano (seventh), Kasey Kahne (ninth) and Steve Wallace (10th).
CAMRYS SCORE FOUR: Camry drivers have won the last four NNS events at Auto Club Speedway. Last October, Busch led early before he handed his race car over to teammate (Denny Hamlin) when he became ill, and the duo led 66 of 152 laps. Toyota driver Joey Logano also led 20 laps and made a dramatic pass with six laps to go to win the race. Last February, Busch led 143 of 150 laps en route to victory lane at the California oval. In 2008, former Toyota driver Tony Stewart won February’s race and Busch was victorious in the August event -- leading all but six laps of the 150-lap, 300-mile race.
HAPPY HOMECOMING: Two Toyota NNS team members call Southern California home. Jason Leffler, driver of the No. 38 Braun Racing Camry, is from Long Beach, Calif. The 34-year-old driver started racing quarter-midgets at area tracks at age 13 before advancing to three-quarter midgets and eventually NASCAR. Michael Waltrip Racing crew chief Jerry Baxter is from San Diego. The 52-year-old mechanic began his career driving Late Models against Ernie Irvan, Rusty Wallace and Dick Trickle before becoming a NASCAR crew chief.
TUNDRA TAKES TRIUMPH: Timothy Peters earned his second career NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (NCWTS) victory in last Saturday’s rain-postponed race at Daytona. It marks the fourth consecutive triumph for a Tundra driver at Daytona and seven straight wins for Tundra drivers at superspeedways (2007-present). Peters passed Todd Bodine (second) on the final lap to capture the checkered flag in the No. 17 Red Horse Racing Tundra. Other Tundra drivers in the top-10 included ex-Formula 1 racer Nelson Piquet Jr. (sixth) and Stacy Compton (seventh).
TOYOTA’S BACKYARD: Toyota has a rich history in America that is rooted in Southern California. The Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., headquarters are located in Torrance, Calif., and TRD, U.S.A. (Toyota Racing Development) is based in Costa Mesa, Calif. Toyota sold its first car -- the Toyopet Crown -- in its initial dealership in Hollywood, Calif., in 1957.
HYBRID PACER: This weekend, a Toyota Camry hybrid will serve as the ‘official pace car’ for the Auto Club 500. The Camry hybrid pace car debuted last year with appearances in Charlotte, N.C., Joliet, Ill., Kansas City, Kan., Loudon, N.H., Martinsville, Va., and Sonoma, Calif., and is scheduled to pace approximately a dozen race weekends in 2010.
WEEKEND RACE SCHEDULE:
NASCAR Nationwide Series @ Auto Club Speedway, Saturday, Feb. 20 @ 2:30 PM (PT), ESPN2 -- Race 2 of 35
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series @ Auto Club Speedway, Sunday, Feb. 21 @ 12 PM (PT), FOX -- Race 2 of 36
| TOYOTA 2010 NASCAR STATISTICS |
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| SERIES | RACES | STARTS (DRIVERS) | WINS | TOP-5s | TOP-10s | POLES | TIMES LED | LAPS LED |
| NSCS | 1 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
| NNS | 1 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 13 |
| NCWTS | 1 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 11 | 53 |
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