March 2007 Archives

Joe Gibbs Racing had the fastest cars in qualifying, but Dale Earnhardt Inc. had the fastest cars in practice Saturday at Martinsville Speedway.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. had the fastest car in the final practice before Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race. He said his car has been awesome since qualifying Friday, but the brake situation with the Car of Tomorrow has him concerned.
"I am a little worried that we might not have these cars understood as far as ducking the brakes and cooling the brakes yet," said Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 8 Chevrolet for DEI. "That is sort of trial and error. Tomorrow is going to be a day of learning for a lot of us."
Earnhardt Jr. qualified eighth for the Cup race.
"I like to qualify good here," Earnhardt Jr. said. "It is one of my favorite race tracks actually to be honest. It is a good place when we have a good car so I am pretty pumped up."
Martin Truex Jr., Earnhardt Jr.'s teammate at DEI, was third fastest in practice and will start 15th in the race.
"This is a tough place to race," said Truex Jr., driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet for DEI. "My luck hasn't been so great lately. Seems like every time we running good, something weird happens. But we are going to give it all we got. Our Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet is really good."
Several Cup drivers have been critical of the Car of Tomorrow. But Truex said he doesn't notice that much of a difference between the Car of Tomorrow and the old Cup cars, especially at tracks like Martinsville. He said he expects the races at Loudon in New Hampshire and Phoenix will be similar.
"It really doesn't feel all that different, it is a little more top-heavy. It is a little more comfortable, has a little more safe feel with all the room around you," Truex said. "Other than that, it is not really a big change. I think it is a lot better suited to the flatter tracks like here and Loudon and Phoenix where you don't have to travel in the front as much. The bigger tracks it is going to be a handful like it was a Bristol. We kinda struggled a little bit, not bad but we struggled a little bit with the travel in front. It is going to be like that on all the banked tracks. On the flatter tracks here, it drives really good."

Denny Hamlin won the pole for Sunday's race at Martinsville Speedway and it looks like Joe Gibbs Racing will have another strong showing with NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow.
This will be the second race NASCAR Nextel Cup Series drivers will race the Car of Tomorrow. The first race was last weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Hamlin and Tony Stewart, both drivers for Joe Gibbs Racings, had dominate cars at Bristol, but ran into trouble and didn't finish the race well.
Stewart will start the Martinsville race seventh. J.J. Yeley, the third driver at Joe Gibbs Racing, earned the fifth starting spot.
Perhaps Joe Gibbs Racing has figured out the Car of Tomorrow quicker than the other teams have.
"I think they are just good teams all the way around and good drivers. They have a great combination," said Jeff Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "I think no matter what car you put out there on the track, they are going to get it figured out."
Hamlin said the key to the success of the team might be because of its Indy Racing League experience. Stewart was a driver in the IRL and a number of the crew members have IRL experience. That might give them a better understanding of how a car with a rear wing performs in race conditions.
"Not to say that is the only reason for our success, because we are on a slower track and the wings don't mean so much," said Hamlin, driver of the No. 11 for Joe Gibbs Racing. "So really, I think we are just one of the teams that has adapted to it. I am not going to say we are the best team, it is kind of conceited to say it. But we are one of the better teams right now."
Gordon said the recent success of Joe Gibbs Racing might be simply because Hamlin, Yeley and Stewart are good short track racers.
"There is no doubt they have their act together," Gordon said. "But is it because they figured out the Car of Tomorrow or is it because they are good? With the old car they may have come in and done the same thing."

Kyle Busch won the first NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race with the Car of Tomorrow at Bristol Motor Speedway. The Car of Tomorrow will be in use again this weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
Busch was critical of the Car of Tomorrow after winning the Bristol race. He said it was difficult to pass and otherwise difficult to drive. Apparently NASCAR didn't take issue with Busch's comments.
"They were open to it," said Busch, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "They want to have some criticism of it and everything like that but this week is a different week now so we want to try to get the Impala SS back in victory lane again."
A week after winning his first race of the year, Busch said he still is not a fan of the Car of Tomorrow, but he knows it's not going away.
"Everybody at Hendrick Motorsports have done their part and all the engineering staff and everybody have done an awesome job with it so far," Busch said. "We were able to come out and win the first pole and win the first race and we were the first car through the chassis inspection process and the first car to get a sticker with the Car of Tomorrow. Hopefully we can make it two for two."

Jimmie Johnson has two career wins at Martinsville Speedway and an average finish of seventh place in 10 races, the best of any active driver at Martinsville.
Jeff Gordon, his teammate at Hendrick Motorsports, has seven wins and five poles in 28 races at Martinsville, the most of any active driver.
But the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series drivers will be racing the Car of Tomorrow at Martinsville and past success might not mean a whole lot this time around.
"I know there are probably a handful of guys that were disappointed with the new car coming here," said Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "(Tony) Stewart has always had a great car coming here. Myself and the No. 24 (Gordon). I am a little bummed that we don't have the same package so we will just have to refine what we have. But it is the same for everyone. I hope that my knowledge of the track and the fact that I like this race track will help me out in the race."

Five Toyotas qualified for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, the most Toyotas for a Cup race to date this season.
Dave Blaney, Dale Jarrett, Jeremy Mayfield, A.J. Allmendinger and Brian Vickers qualified for the Bristol race, the first race for NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow. With all the complaints surrounding the Car of Tomorrow, it gave Toyota its biggest contingent in a Cup race.
The Car of Tomorrow will be used again for this weekend's Cup race at Martinsville Speedway.
“For the short tracks I don’t think the new car is going to make that big of a difference,” said Blaney, driver of the No. 22 Toyota for Bill Davis Racing. “When you come to these places like Martinsville, we always work on mechanical balance and grip, and that’s not changing much with this car.”
Jarrett said the Car of Tomorrow is creating too much of a fuss.
“They’re just race cars,” said Jarrett, driver of the No. 44 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing. “There’s a lot being said about the COT, but the only thing you need to do is find out how to make it faster.”

Regan Smith was still lamenting his pit road mistake that led to a 25th-place finish in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Smith, driving the No. 01 Chevrolet for Ginn Racing that Mark Martin put first in the Cup standings after the first four races, was happy he finished the race, his first Cup race at Bristol, but he wanted to finish better.
Martin called Smith afte the race and told him not to get too down. Finishing a race at Bristol is an accomplishment for any driver, especially a rookie driver.
"One thing about Mark -- when he tells you something he doesn't do any sugarcoating," Smith said. "And when he said he was excited for me for finishing the race at Bristol and called it a big accomplishment, that really made me feel good. I told him about the pit road mistake and he told me to shake it off and not to let it get me down. After that call I had a little extra bounce in my step."
Smith will be back in the No. 01 Chevrolet for Sunday's Cup race at Martinsville Speedway. He said heading into the Bristol race there were plenty of distractions. It was the first race Martin decided to skip, part of his partial Cup schedule he decided to run with Ginn Racing.
"Now that we got that race out of the way and did a decent job I feel more relaxed about this weekend," Smith said. "I feel we have the potential of having a pretty good performance. It's exciting to get right back into the Army Chevy."

With all the attention NASCAR rookie Juan Pablo Montoya has received in the early weeks of the Nextel Cup Series, it’s hard to believe there are any other Cup rookies.
One is actually racing as well as Montoya.
David Ragan, the rookie driver for Roush Fenway Racing, is tied with Montoya in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series rookie-of-the-year standings.
At the most recent race at Bristol Motor Speedway, Ragan finished ahead of Montoya. Ragan was 26th. Montoya was 32nd.
Each has a top-five finish after five races. Montoya was fifth at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Ragan was fifth in the season-opening Daytona 500.
In the Cup standings, both are working their way up for a Chase spot, one of the top-12 positions available for the 10-race playoff for the Cup championship. Montoya is 19th. Ragan is 39 points behind Montoya in 22nd.
Ragan said he considers it an honor to be racing Montoya for rookie of the year honors in NASCAR. But he does not consider the Colombian-born, former Formula One driver a rookie.
“I tell my buddies, remind my dad, he’s an Indianapolis 500 winner. He’s won races overseas and all,” said Ragan, driver of the No. 6 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing. “I said, that’s something pretty special. He’s not a rookie. He’s not looking at the rookie-of-the-year the same way I am.”
Ragan is very aware of Montoya’s resume. He has won a Champ Car World Series championship, the Grand Prix of Monaco and some of the most famous races in the world.
“He’s going about it in a little different way than I am,” Ragan said. “But it’s certainly cool to be on that same level playing field and it definitely gives us something to shoot for every week.”
If racing against Montoya for top rookie honors wasn’t enough for Ragan, he is also the driver who took over Mark Martin’s car at Roush Fenway Racing. The expectations for Ragan started high and they don’t appear to be getting lower.
“I think it has been tough,” Ragan said. “Certainly Jeff Gordon could get in the No. 6 Ford Fusion and it would be tough to fill Mark Martin’s shoes. Mark is a guy that’s kind of irreplaceable. He’s a great driver, champion, and you can definitely see by his new team he’s with this year, he's doing a great job with what he’s got to work with.”
Martin left Roush Fenway Racing for Ginn Racing so that he could run a partial Cup schedule. After leading the Cup standings after the first four races with his new team, Martin skipped the race at Bristol. He will miss Sunday’s Cup race at Martinsville Speedway. It was all part of his plan to pick and choose the races he wanted.
Ragan said he feels more comfortable in the race car each week.
“We'll sneak up on this thing,” Ragan said. “Fifteen, 20 races into the year when we pop up with a strong top-five run, possibly a pole, a win or something down the road, it will surprise everyone. “That’s just the way we want it to play into our hands.”

After last October's race at Martinsville Speedway, NASCAR driver Tony Stewart called David Ragan a dart without feathers.
Ragan, who is still considered a rookie in the Nextel Cup Series, answered to that criticism during a teleconference Tuesday.
"When I first heard that, I think my dad called me," said Ragan, driver of the No. 6 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing. "I said, man, that's pretty cool, at least Tony Stewart knows who David Ragan is. Six months ago I was a kid wanting his autograph; now he knows who I am."
Ragan and Stewart have talked numerous times since that last race at Martinsville. Ragan said he expects Stewart to be more critical as their careers progress. But Ragan said he hasn't lost any respect for Stewart because of his comments.
"It didn't bother me at all," Ragan said. "Things like that I think just make you a tougher guy, have more respect for the series that we're competing in now. But after I heard what he said, I was just kind of glad he knew who I was."
Later that year, during the NASCAR races at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Ragan won a charity auction to take a ride with Stewart around the track. Legend has it that was when Ragan decided to confront Stewart about the comments Stewart made after the Martinsville race.
Ragan said that wasn't exactly the case.
"They were all playing up the Martinsville thing," Ragan said. "I really wasn't looking to just do something for Tony, I was looking to do more for the charity and for the young kids that were there that was going to benefit from me spending the money."
Ragan rode in the back of Stewart's truck for a parade lap around the track before the Cup race at Atlanta. Ragan called it a win-win situation for himself and the charity.
"But I did tell Tony that he should match whatever I spent," Ragan said, "and I think he did."

Jeff Gordon, the new leader in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series standings, is coming off a hard-fought third-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway. It was the debut for NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow and Gordon said his team may have found an edge.
He used more brake than he ever has in his career at Bristol. Because of that, his team will be putting together a conservative brake package for the race at Martinsville.
“I used more brakes at Bristol trying to get the car into the corner,” said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. “This new car seems to carry so much momentum, and it was pretty loose getting into the corner at Bristol. We played it conservative and upgraded our brakes for that race."
As bad as it was at Bristol, Gordon expects it to be even worse at Martinsville.
“I expect we’ll be using a lot of brake this weekend, maybe even more so than past Martinsville races," Gordon said. "We'll go ultra-conservative on our brake package – maxed-out for brakes and cooling for this weekend’s race."
Gordon has seven wins in his career at Martinsville. Four of those have come in his past eight races. Gordon said, despite the challenges he anticipates with the Car of Tomorrow, Martinsville will be easier to adapt to than Bristol.
“We don't have the loads, the banking and the drop-off transitions here like we had at Bristol," Gordon said. "But the drivers and teams face a lot of unknowns again this weeeknd.”

NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow is here. It's next test will be this weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
Kyle Busch will go down in history as being the first driver to win a Nextel Cup Series race in the Car of Tomorrow. And he will go down in history as probably being the most disgruntled winner in NASCAR.
He had nothing nice to say about the car after winning Sunday's race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Dale Earnhardt Jr. said that the Car of Tomorrow has created a culture shock in NASCAR.
"It doesn't have the same handling characteristics as the old car, so all of the adjustments and all of the changes that you need to make are a learning experience each lap," said Earnhardt Jr., driver of the No. 8 Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt Inc. "It reminds me of my rookie year in 2000, when we came from the Busch Series and all of a sudden we had to learn how to make a much different car do the things we liked or were used to before. It takes some time, but we'll be fine. DEI has been working really hard with a lot of test sessions at places like South Boston (Va.) to try and learn what the car likes on a short track like Martinsville."
Earnhardt Jr. finished fourth in the Martinsville race a year ago. He got caught up in two accidents and had to nurse a badly damaged car to the finish.
"We've always been strong at Martinsville, and all I want or expect from my guys is that we're in the ballpark when we unload that car," Earnhardt Jr. said. "If we're close, then we're going to be all right. Get me in the ballpark and I'll drive that thing as hard as I can. The mindset at Martinsville is a lot like Bristol or at a road course: you try to stay out of trouble and survive until the last 100 laps, and then you go racin' to see who's gonna take home the trophy. Last year at this race, we got caught in someone else's mess in the first few laps and still managed to get a top-five finish with a car that was beaten to within an inch of its life. It was cool, but I don't want to have to do that again."

This from the Associated Press:
Eddie Griffin crashed a rare Ferrari Enzo worth $1.5 million into a concrete barrier while practicing at a racetrack Monday, destroying the car but escaping uninjured.
The comedian was practicing for a charity race to promote his upcoming film, “Redline,” when he drove too fast
around a curve at the Irwindale Speedway. Video footage showed the red sports car screeching before
it ricocheted off the barrier with heavy damage to its front.
“Undercover Brother’s good at karate and all the rest of that, but the brother can’t drive,” Griffin, referring
to one his past films, said after the accident.
The film’s publicist, Wendy Zocks, said Griffin was “doing OK.”
“He walked away completely unscratched, but probably a little shaken,” Zocks said.
The Enzo, valued at around $1.5 million, was owned by the executive producer of “Redline,” Daniel Sadek, whose
exotic car collection is featured in the movie.
Sadek said that the car was damaged beyond repair and that he had “mixed feelings” about the wreck.
“I’m glad Eddie came out of the crash OK, but my dream car got destroyed,” Sadek said. “I went to my trailer for
about 15 minutes and I thought, there’s people dying every day. A lot of worse things are happening in the
world.”
Only 400 Ferrari Enzos were ever produced, all between 2002 and 2004.
Griffin’s credits include the comedies “Undercover Brother”; “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo” and its sequel; “Date
Movie”; and “Norbit.”

Doug McComb, David Beat and Joe Herold were opening night winners at Irwindale Speedway on Saturday night.
McComb, the 2004 NASCAR Late Model track champion, won Saturday night's Late Model race in a borrowed car.
Beat won the NASCAR Super Late Model division race that featured five track champions.
Herold won the NASCAR Super Trucks race on a green-white-checkered finish.
McComb, a driver from Thousand Oaks, might have won the only race he will enter this year. He was in a car usually driven by Marty Wallace. But Wallace offered to let McComb race his car. McComb won the race and now wants to continue his season. But he lacks the funding to continue racing. If he can't find the money to race, he won't be able to return to the track.
Rip Michels, one of the five past track champions in the Super Late Model race, said that his car was fast, but it was not quite ready for racing. His team has been putting together his car for the past few weeks and it still wasn't finished for opening night. Still, Michels set the fastest qualifying time. And his goal was to finish the race with the car intact and continue to work on it.
“I just want to get out of here in one piece,” said Michels, driver of the No. 12 Ford, “whether it’s first, fourth or fifth.”
He finished 27th, but kept his car in one piece.
Rod Johnson, another past track champion in the Super Late Model race, was back with a new car built by Dave Jackson.
Jackson, who has a shop based in Palmdale, has a number of cars in the Super Late Model division. Newhall’s Travis Thirkettle, Canyon Country’s Cory Fancy and defending Super Late Model champion Van Knill of Tucson, Ariz., are among those racing cars built by Jackson.
“I’ve wanted one for a long time,” said Johnson, a driver from Canyon Country.
Johnson looked a little frustrated before the races started. He said his car was giving him fits through qualifying.
“It’s been real good in practice,” Johnson said. “But it didn’t run as well as I wanted it to.”
He finished the race in 11th, the highest among the past champions.
Tim Huddleston’s High Point Racing team in the NASCAR Late Model division was off to a good start.
Chris Carmody, one of his drivers, set fast time in qualifying for the NASCAR Late Model race.
“It’s one of the oldest cars at the track,” said Huddleston. “It’s the very first car I ever raced at Irwindale.”
Huddleston, driver and owner of the four-car High Point Racing team and an Agoura Hills resident, was third fastest in qualifying.
His other two cars, driven by Scott Jenkins of Portland, Ore., and Jace Meier of Las Vegas qualified in the top 12. Jenkins was 11th and Meier was 12th.

There were five Toyotas in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway. It was the most Toyotas to qualify for a Cup race to date.
Brian Vickers, Dave Blaney, Jeremy Mayfield, A.J. Allmendinger and Dale Jarrett all started the race in Toyotas.
Vickers, driver of the No. 83 Toyota for Team Red Bull, was the highest finishing Toyota driver. He was 15th.
But his car suffered some damage during the race and presented some problems for Vickers.
“We think that a piece of the tail pipe came off halfway through the race, so heat was blowing directly onto the floor board," Vickers said. "The guys tried to put some lining in the car to protect my feet, but it didn’t really help that much. I basically had to run the whole race with my feet burning and that was just painful."
Vickers praised his crew for getting him through the race.
"I’m really impressed at how the guys kept cool heads today considering the issues we were facing," Vickers said. "We also had great pit stops all day. Without these two things combined, we could not have pulled off such a great 15th-place finish.”

Kyle Busch, winner of the NASCAR Nextel Cup series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, said he did not have the car that was the class of the field in Sunday's race.
That car belonged to Tony Stewart.
Denny Hamlin, Stewart's teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing, had a good car too. Even J.J. Yeley had his moments in the race.
All three Gibbs drivers ran into trouble in the race.
Stewart's car had a fuel pump cable break and he finished 35th.
Hamlin had a similar fuel problem and, after leading 177 laps, nursed his car to a 14th-place finish.
Yeley led for nine laps at Bristol before a bad exhaust header knocked him out of the race.
"We certainly weren't the class of the field. Tony Stewart was that," said Busch, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "Denny Hamlin was awfully strong as well and the Evernham cars were really good too. They just had bad breaks and had trouble."
Stewart's crew chief Greg Zipadelli said he was proud of the effort his crew put in to get the No. 20 Chevrolet back on the race track and finish the race.
"They kept their chins up and came back here tough and we brought back a really good race car," Zipadelli said. "But, we don’t have anything to show for it. We’ll go to Martinsville next week and try to have a better race."

Regan Smith could not have asked for a better scenario to make his NASCAR Nextel Cup Series debut.
He was in the car, the No. 01 Chevrolet for Ginn Racing, that Mark Martin put in first place in the Cup Series standings.
But Martin decided before the season started that he was not going to race a full Cup schedule in 2007. Sunday's race at Bristol Motor Speedway was going to be the first he would skip.
Smith was the lucky driver to be in Martin's car for Bristol. Smith finished the race, but ran into some trouble late in the race and it cost him several spots on the track. He overshot his pit box on his last pit stop of the race. After a stop-and-go penalty, that mistake knocked him from 18th to 39th place in the race.
Then he was caught up in a wreck at the end of the race. He held on to his 25th-place position, but Smith clearly wanted a better finish.
"I feel it was a huge accomplishment to finish the race at Bristol," Smith said. "We are proud of that because that was the main objective. I'm glad this is over - all the hoopla about my Cup debut. I am looking forward to Martinsville next week. I want all of the soldiers to know what a great honor it is to drive their U.S. Army car."
The crash at the end of the race damaged the front end of Smith's car. He said at least the crash happened at the end of the race instead of near the beginning.
"We almost made it with a clean car, but fortunately the incident happened when it did instead of earlier in the race," Smith said. "Overall, I learned a lot today and I know there's much more to learn. But I am part of a great team and have a great mentor in Mark Martin. I am pumped about the future."
Smith will be driving the No. 01 Chevrolet next weekend at Martinsville Speedway. Martin will make his return to the Cup team at Texas Motor Speedway on April 15.

On a day when NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow became the car of today, Jeff Gordon's third-place car was good enough to put him first in the Nextel Cup Series standings.
When Mark Martin, the Cup standings leader entering Sunday's race at Bristol Motor Speedway, decided to skip the race, it gave Gordon the chance to claim the top spot in points.
But it wasn't easy.
He had a poor performing car for most of the race and had to fight his way in to the top three at the end.
He was in second when the race ended with a green-white-checker finish, three laps to determine the winner.
Gordon slipped to third when Jeff Burton passed him on the closing laps. Neither driver could catch Kyle Busch, Gordon's teammate at Hendrick Motorsports. But the third-place finish put Gordon atop the Cup standings.
"The kind of day it started to be for us, to come home third, obviously, I've got to be very, very happy," said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "I didn't really want to see that last caution. We were real, real tight on those new tires at the end. But man, we made such great ground up throughout the day, to go all the way to the back and we were fortunate to stay on the lead lap. It was certainly a lot of work; a handful for us today."
Gordon said the race at Bristol was far from fun. He had to work his way through the field, never an easy task at Bristol, to put himself in position to win the race.
"I don't even think I had anything for Kyle with my new tires," Gordon said. "We were just too tight and I knew that Jeff would be tough on that restart. I made a mistake - I went to the inside. I don't think it would have mattered. Jeff would have drove by me on the inside if I would have gone on the outside. But I'm very happy to come home third."

Casey Mears is teetering on the edge of the top 35 and a guaranteed spot in every NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race from here on out.
Mears, driver of the No. 25 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, is 32nd in points and another bad race could knock him out of the top 35. Racing at Bristol Motor Speedway, site of today's Cup race, brings no guarantees. The introduction of NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow adss another level of uncertainty.
It has Mears a little worried.
"Yeah. It's definitely in your thoughts," Mears said. "I think the best thing you can do is just not think about it. You've got to go out and just run your best race because the problem is if you go out there and - like in qualifying, if I went out there and tried to overdo it and hit the fence, our situation would have been worse. In the race, if we try to be conservative you can get caught up in something that's not your fault just because you're being conservative."
What makes things more frustrating is that his Hendrick Motorsports teammates, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch are having relatively successful seasons so far.
"You just have to go out and run a race like normal and hopefully we come out of here decent," Mears said. "Obviously we'd like to win but if we can get out of here with just a solid finish we can just pad ourselves on the points deal."

When Brendan Gaughan was at California Speedway, the Georgetown University graduate and once a guard on the men's basketball team had yet to see his team play this season. At all.
He is making up for lost time today.
Gaughan is going to Georgetown's regional final game against North Carolina today at the Meadowlands at East Rutherford, N.J.
It is Georgetown's first trip to the Elite Eight since 1996, when Gaughan was a member of the team.
"When you think of the all the storied programs in the NCAA, Georgetown and UNC are part of that – and they are definitely no stranger to each other,” said Gaughan, the driver of the No. 77 South Point Chevrolet in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. “It’s always a big game when they play."
Gaughan said he is surprised it's been so long since Georgetown has advanced this far in the NCAA tournament. The Hoyas played the University of Massachusetts in 1996.
"It’s pretty amazing to think that the last time the Hoyas were in the Elite Eight that I was part of the team on the court," Gaughan said. "Last time we were there, it wasn’t a very good run. We got beat by UMass.
“This time, we’re going to get the Hoyas back into the Final Four. I’m looking forward to a good game.”
After the game, Gaughan will head to Martinsville Speedway to prepare for the Truck Series race.
“I’m getting ready to get on a plane with my buddy who is my traveling mate for all the big Georgetown games,” Gaughan said. “We’re going to cheer on the Hoyas on Sunday, and then I’ll head to Martinsville for work next week.”

NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow in the case of Chevrolet is an Impala. But it is not the first time General Motors used the Impala model in stock car racing. It returns today for the Nextel Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The last time an Impala won a NASCAR race has a certain degree of historical significance. Wendell Scott, the only African-American driver to ever win a major NASCAR event, won a race at Jacksonville Speedway Park in Florida 43 years ago in an Impala.
"It's not known to many people that the last win by Impala was one of great significance to the sport of stock-car racing," said Ed Peper, Chevrolet general manager. "Wendell Scott's win paved the way for minority racing success."
Scott drove a 1962 Impala to victory at Jacksonville Speedway Park in Jacksonville, Fla. on Dec. 1, 1963.
Scott, a native of Danville, Va. who died in 1990, was elected into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1999.

Jeremy Mayfield and A.J. Allmendinger finally broke through. But Michael Waltrip is still struggling.
Five Toyotas qualified for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series at Bristol. Mayfield and Allmendinger qualified for their first Cup race of the year. Allmendinger qualified for the first Cup race of his career.
Dave Blaney was the highest qualifying Toyota driver. He will start Sunday's race seventh.
"When we came here for the test, we struggled pretty bad," said Blaney, driver of the No. 22 Toyota for Bill Davis Racing. "The guys went home and really got going on both my car and Jeremy’s car. We were both real good in practice today and we were hoping that when we came in here, that we would have made some big improvements.
Mayfield will start the race 23rd. A NASCAR Nextel Cup Series veteran, Mayfield will be making his first start of the season. He did not qualify for the first four races of the year, including the Daytona 500 and the Cup race at California Speedway.
“I feel like we won the race," said Mayfield, driver of the No. 36 Toyota for Bill Davis Racing. "It is just such a relief to know that we are going to get to race on Sunday. We’ve had some time to build some good cars and hopefully now we have turned the corner and things are going to start working our way. I’m just really pumped up. I just can’t wait to get out there and start the race on Sunday.”

One of the things the Car of Tomorrow is supposed to do is create some parity in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series. Lower budgets team should have the same advantages aerodynamically and technologically as the higher budget teams with the way the Car of Tomorrow is designed.
Kevin Harvick said that won't be the case at the Bristol race.
"I think you are going to see the same guys be successful," said Harvick, driver of the No. 29 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing. "This is just one of those places where technique and just getting a rhythm are more important than anything. You still to have your car right but if you find that feel, you are going have the same kind of things happen. I think it is wrong to read in to what we think is going to happen, we are just going to have to see what happens when we race."

When Jimmie Johnson pinched Tony Stewart into the wall at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Johnson said he was impressed with the way Stewart saved the car, then proceeded to give him the finger afterward.
Stewart said he did not give Johnson the finger.
"I didn't shoot him off. I got my fist out there and that's just the heat of the battle," said Stewart, driver of the No. 20 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing. "When it was over it was over and by the time we got to the airport I'd calmed down. That shows you just how much we both want to win. Jimmie and I are really good friends and I'd rather be mad at him than any of the other guys so like I said, it was either go ahead and push the issue and both of us crash or back off and end up second."
As for the Car of Tomorrow, Stewart still doesn't have many nice things to say about it.
"I still think it's ugly," Stewart said. "They're all ugly but at least everybody's cars look ugly. We all look evenly ugly. I still don't think they look that good. I couldn't watch that Busch practice and see what a stock car is supposed to look like versus a sports car."

NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow has been met with much criticism from the drivers. But Jeff Gordon, who won the pole for Sunday's race at Bristol, the debut of the Car of Tomorrow, said his opinion of the new car is changing.
"Let me just say it's growing on me a little bit," said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "The look of the car is the look of the car. The performance of the car, I feel like we've learned a little bit. I've said the whole time that whether I liked the car or not, we were going to do all we can to be competitive - me as a driver and us as a team. And that was the goal we set out to do. I don't care what car it is. That's our goal."
With each test, Gordon said he is getting more comfortable with the Car of Tomorrow.
"At Darlington, I thought the car was a little bit of an improvement," Gordon said. "Some tracks are going to be extremely difficult to learn, like Dover. The road courses are going to be interesting. Each time I get in the car I learn a little bit more."
Even though Gordon said he is getting used to the Car of Tomorrow, it still does not compare to the old Cup cars.
"Ours was the best of the group today and that's really all that matters," Gordon said. "But there is no way you're going to get the car to feel like our current car. It has twice as much downforce. It doesn't have the limitations that this car does. It's harder to adjust and it definitely creates some more challenges from a drivers' standpoint. Any time you have something that feels good, it's hard to step backwards. But as far as the racing, and as far as competition, it's still my hope that it does everything that NASCAR set out for it to do. And until we get on some faster tracks, we won't know."

This sounds a little complicated, but if you like Coca-Cola products, Champ Car racing and am/pm stores, here's how to get free tickets to the April 13 events for the Long Beach Grand Prix.
Go to am/pm. Buy two 1-liter bottles of any Coke product. Then pick up a voucher near the checkout stands for a free ticket to all the action on Fast Friday, April 13.
The vouchers can be redeemed at any Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach ticket office location any time through April 13.
Additionally, Coca-Cola, am/pm and the radio station Power 106 are promoting a sweepstakes to win a Toyota Tundra. Fans can enter the sweepstakes when they attend the Grand Prix of Long Beach.
Fast Friday includes practice and qualifying sessions for the Champ Car World Series, Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race, Champ Car Atlantics, American Le Mans Series and the SPEED World Challenge GT, as well as the first round of action in the EZ Lube Team Drift Challenge.
The free ticket also includes a driver autograph session and admission to the Tecate Fiesta Friday concert at 6 p.m. starring Enanitos Verdes.

Roush Fenway Racing is searching for its Fan of the Year and wants to bring that fan as a special guest to the 2008 Daytona 500.
Fans can enter by going to www.roushracing.com.
Each week, one winner will be selected and featured on the roushracing.com home page. At the end of the year, the Fan of the Year will be selected from the weekly winners.
The person selected as Roush Fenway Racing's Fan of the Year will take part in a special ceremony at the 2008 Daytona 500 where the fan will be honored by Jack Roush and the Roush Fenway Racing drivers. They will also be given personalized Roush Fenway Racing Fan of the Year merchandise and a trophy with a replica trophy to be displayed in the Roush Fenway Racing museum in Concord, N.C.
They will be featured on the Roush Fenway Racing website and have their own web column, chronicling their life as Roush Fenway Racing's first official Fan of the Year. They will also receive additional gifts and prizes from Roush Fenway Racing and its sponsors and partners.

Kyle Busch has been in his share of scrapes this year. It will take a long time to get the image of him finishing the Busch Series race at Las Vegas backwards and on fire out of anyone's mind.
Busch said NASCAR's Car of Tomorrow, which makes its debut this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway, reminds him of driving in the Craftsman Truck Series.
"It's going to be difficult to go from racing the Monte Carlo and then jump in the Impala for a few races," said Busch, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "The insides of the cars are different and they don't drive the same. I would compare the Impala more to driving in the Craftsman Truck Series. It's tough. I don't know what to expect."
There is a lot of leaning and banging in the truck races. That might not be the best way to approach a Cup Series race with the Car of Tomorrow, especially with Busch behind the wheel of one of them.
Luckily for the other Cup drivers, Busch said he doesn't think the Car of Tomorrow will lend itself to such aggressive tactics.
"I don't know if we will be able to lean on each other very much going into the corners," Busch said. "I know at Martinsville the trucks beat and bang on each other a little, but I guess we'll have to see how this race goes. The way the car is designed, I don't know if we can. It's going to be an entirely different Bristol this weekend. I think the typical racing at Bristol will be a thing of the past, at least until we can get this new car worked out."

Casey Mears, driver of the No. 25 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, is 32nd in points and having some terrible luck on the race track.
Conversely, his Hendrick teammates are winning races and in the hunt to make the Chase.
Jeff Gordon is second in points and should be leading after this weekend's race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Cup standings leader Mark Martin is not going to race at Bristol and Gordon has no one standing in his way to take over the top spot.
Jimmie Johnson has won two races and has climbed solidly in the top 10 in the Cup standings.
Even Kyle Busch has put together some impressive, albeit aggressive, races and sits 14th in the standings.
The top 12 drivers in the Cup standings qualify for the Chase, the 10-race playoff to determine the Nextel Cup Series champion.
But Mears, the newest addition to the Hendrick team, has been getting caught up in wrecks and struggling to finish races.
"It's been more frustrating than disappointing," Mears said. "At Daytona and Las Vegas, we got caught up in wrecks that weren't ours and that cost us. And we've got a lot of changes to deal with this year -- new driver, new crew chief and now a new car. I want to win just as badly as everybody else and put up big results right away, but we've got to take it one step at a time and build to that."

Mark Martin plans on having a neighborhood barbecue and watching the race at Bristol on his television at home.
Martin, the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series points leader, will be skipping the Bristol race. Regan Smith will be in the car and Martin said he will be watching the race with family and friends on television.
"Yes, I've got a nice 42‑inch plasma and Tivo," Martin said. "So I'll be replaying the wrecks moving them back and going forward and watching them in slow motion. So I will sorely be disappointed if there isn't lots of wrecks, because it seems like there sure is every time I go ‑‑ every time I'm in the race there."
Martin said he is looking forward to see how the Car of Tomorrow performs in its first race. But he seemed happy with his decision to not be one of the drivers in the Car of Tomorrow at Bristol. On Saturday night, he will be at Columbia Motorsports Park in Lake City, Fla., to watch his son Matt and Ricky Carmichael race late models for Ginn Racing.
"Seriously, I'm just going to hang out," Martin said. "Barbecue a little bit and hang out and watch the race. But the biggest thing, I expect to be having a blast Saturday night with Ricky and Matt and everyone. And I look forward to just being relaxed on Sunday."

Regan Smith makes his NASCAR Nextel Cup Series debut amid a swirl of interest. He will be driving the car that Mark Martin vaulted to the top of the Nextel Cup Series standings. And he will driving in the race that NASCAR has decided to introduce its Car of Tomorrow.
Martin, who decided before the season started to run only a partial Cup schedule for Ginn Racing, will sit out the next two races, at Bristol Motor Speedway and Martinsville Speedway.
Smith was tabbed to be Martin's replacement in the races Martin decided to skip.
"No question, I have some really big shoes to fill," Smith said. "But the only pressure I feel is what I have put on myself. Everyone understands the situation and there has been no outside pressure from the ownership, sponsors or the guys.”
Perhaps not. Smith has nothing to lose. If he finishes well, it can be attributed to the quality of the team Ginn Racing has assembled. If he finishes poorly, he can attribute it to Bristol, one of the tiniest and treacherous tracks on the Cup circuit.
"I am only excited and pumped because I'm with a great race team and getting into a great race car," Smith said. "I also take a lot of pride wearing the Army colors and representing our soldiers. I am in a great situation.”
Smith will also be entered in the NASCAR Busch Series race at Bristol on Saturday. He will get a double dose of Bristol this weekend.
"I think everyone would agree that Bristol is not the easiest track," Smith said. "It's a tough place when you're having a good day. The mindset from our end is not to expect a win or a top-10 finish. I want to finish the race, be on the lead lap and have the car in one piece. That's a tall order for Bristol, but with some luck, I think we can deliver that result."
The Car of Tomorrow may be new to most of the Cup drivers. But for Smith, he has little to compare it to. This will be his first Cup race and has little experience in the old Cup cars.
“I look at the Car of Tomorrow as just another race car that all of us have to deal with,” said Smith. “We had a pretty good test in Bristol a few weeks ago. Again, I don’t see it being anything major, it’s a race car and we’ve all driven many different types of cars in our careers.”

Jeff Gordon is off to a strong start to the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season. He enters the Bristol race second in points in the Cup standings and should be leading when the race is over. Cup standings leader Mark Martin said he is not going to race at Bristol or Martinsville Speedway the following weekend. That will take him out of the Cup standings lead and out of championship contention.
But Gordon said there are no guarantees with the Car of Tomorrow debuting at Bristol.
"Once we get through the race and we understand that car a little bit more then we can probably answer some of those questions but it's going to be an interesting weekend from the time that truck and crews get to the track to the time we leave because it's about going through inspection," said Gordon, driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hedrick Motorsports. "It's about getting qualified in, getting our cars ready for the race and then going out and racing. I think in the race you shouldn't see too much of a difference other than if guys are way off on their setups."

Tony Stewart is not a fan of the Car of Tomorrow. After finishing second in a harrowing race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Stewart was asked if Bristol Motor Speedway, the first race for the Car of Tomorrow, can yield Stewart's first win of the season.
"I want to win every race. Next week's not a landmark race for me by any means," said Stewart, driver of the No. 20 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing. "I'm treating it just like any other race. It's the same cast of suspects and we're all out there trying to do the same thing. Any time you can win at Bristol it's big. Bristol is one of them every year that I'd like to win. I remember when I won the night race there - I've only won at Bristol one time - it's just a huge feeling when you can accomplish a win there, let alone with the challenges we have next week."

Jamie McMurray seems to have turned a corner. After a couple poor finishes, the driver of the No. 26 Ford for Roush Fenway Racing, McMurray has put together two solid races and has shown signs of improvement.
But this weekend's race at Bristol Motor Speedway could change that momentum. Not only for McMurray, but for every driver in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series.
The Car of Tomorrow makes its debut at Bristol. McMurray said this weekend will be really interesting to see how everything comes together.
"I know our team has been putting in a lot of work and overtime to get our program to where we think we will be really competitive at the COT tracks," McMurray said. "Things at the shop and at the track have gotten off to a great start this season. We had some bad luck in the first couple of races, but the last two races we have proved that this team is very competitive. The whole team has done a great job and it’s finally showing on the track for us. Hopefully, this weekend in Bristol we will continue the streak of good runs.”

All three drivers for Joe Gibbs Racing are in the top 12 in the NASCAR Nextel Cup standings. The top-12 drivers in the standings after the first 26 races of the season will qualify for the Chase, NASCAR's 10-race playoff to determine the Cup champion.
Last years, only rookie Denny Hamlin made the Chase. His teammates, Tony Stewart, who won the Chase in 2005, and J.J. Yeley were left out of NASCAR's playoff.
This year things are different. Tony Stewart has rattled off three straight top-10 finishes after finishing 43rd and last in the Daytona 500, and is sixth in the Cup standings.
Hamlin has been consistent, although unimpressive. He finished the Atlanta race in 19th place and sits eighth in the Cup standings.
Yeley, perhaps the biggest surprise of Joe Gibbs Racing, is 12th in points after a troublesome day at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He finished the race a lap down from the leaders and in 22nd place.
But it was still high enough for him to keep a top 12 spot in the Cup standings.
“It’s just these real small things that are the difference between maybe finishing 22nd and finishing 14th or 12th,” Yeley said. “We just have to make sure as a team that we can avoid having any little mistakes, because it seems like a real fine mistake can affect the outcome in a big way.”

Dave Blaney was the highest finishing Toyota driver in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He was 27th.
Dale Jarrett, driving the No. 44 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing, followed in 36th. David Reutimann in the No. 00 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing, was 40th. Brian Vickers, in the No. 83 Toyota for Team Red Bull, was 42nd.
Blaney said he expected a better result after races at California Speedway and Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
“We came out of California and Vegas pretty happy with our intermediate track program, but this weekend, we just struggled," said Blaney, driver of the No. 22 Toyota for Bill Davis Racing. "We were up and down all weekend. I don't know really what is right or wrong, but I'm sure we'll take a look at everything and try to figure it out. There was never really a point in the weekend where we got the car where we wanted it, but that's the nature of the beast. Everybody on the team has been working real hard to move us further along, but now we just need to capitalize with a good finish.”
Vickers crashed on lap 231 of the race. But he became the first Toyota driver to lead a lap in a Cup race. He led the race twice for five laps.
“I was driving down the straightaway and all of a sudden I got hit from behind," Vickers said about the wreck on lap 231. "I'm not sure what happened but my spotter said it was Reutimann that hit us. I think that's the first time I've been wrecked on a straightaway. Something happened to the motor early in the race and we don’t really know what it was, but we had a great handling car all day. I was just trying to get to the end, get a decent finish and get some more points.”

Jimmie Johnson squeezed past Tony Stewart in the closing laps of Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway to win his second race in a row.
Stewart said after the race that he wished Johnson would have given more room. Despite the close call at the end of the race, Stewart managed a second-place finish.
"Nobody ever likes to hit the wall. That's pretty much a no-brainer," said Stewart, driver of the No. 20 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing. "I don't think I ever pinched him or kept him from having room on the race track to race. He had a faster car. He's probably going to get around us anyway but I'd like to have seen him give me room to race him for it."
Juan Pablo Montoya, the Formula One convert making his full time debut in NASCAR Nextel Cup racing, was in the mix with the leaders throughout the race. It was enough for Stewart to take notice.
"I'm pretty impressed," Stewart said. "To come to Atlanta and be able to run that well here and figure this place out. I didn't figure it out in one try by any means. He did an awesome job. Every track he goes to this year will be a new track for him That shows why he got his opportunity in Formula One, because he's a great talent."
As for Johnson, Stewart said he didn't have an explanation for how the final laps unfolded.
"To be honest whatever I say is probably going to be wrong," Stewart said. "We're both racing hard with three laps to go. You don't know if his spotter told him he was clear so he just kept coming. You don't know what the circumstances are with that without talking to him. It is what it is. At the end he's in Victory Lane and we're here talking about finishing second."

Mark Martin still leads the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series standings after a 10th-place finish in Sunday's race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
And he still says he is going to skip the races next weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway and the following weekend at Martinsville Speedway.
"People might not believe it, but they'll have a hard time finding me next week," said Martin, driver of the No. 01 Chevrolet for Ginn Racing. "This thing has really been encompassing. We've worked really hard since January and we've put a lot into this. My team has and I have too. It's been a hard-working stretch and I'm really looking to taking a little break."
By missing the next two weeks, Martin will essentially take himself out of championship contention. Regan Smith is slated to drive the No. 01 Chevrolet in the next two races.
"I feel good, man. I am looking forward to next weekend," Martin said. "I want to thank all the fans that have supported me and especially this U.S. Army Chevy. This team is incredible. We were off a little with the car today, but they fought so hard and this is how I want to do it."
Martin posted his fourth top-10 finish of the year. It was his worst finish of the season so far. Martin was fifth at Las Vegas, fifth at California Speedway and second in the Daytona 500.
"We missed our setup just a little bit but what an awesome effort by the U.S. Army team," Martin said. "We battled it out there and got a pretty good finish but the car was off a little."
The last time Martin started the season with four straight top-10 finishes was 2000. He also did it in 1995. Martin will return to Cup racing for the April 15 race at Texas Motor Speedway.
"Somebody told me I was still leading the points; I don't really know but that will be gone after next week," Martin said. "At least we said we were leading when we took a break.
"It's really cool and kind of a story book to go out leading the points like this. It's the way to do it and I'm just proud of this team to finally get the recognition they deserve. These guys are awesome and I sure wish I had been driving their car a little sooner."

The Andretti Green Racing team led by Valencia driver Bryan Herta won its class in the 12 Hours of Sebring, the season-opener for the American Le Mans Series.
Acura was making its debut in American Le Mans Series competition in the LMP2 division. Herta shared driving duties with Dario Franchitti and Tony Kanaan during the 12-hour endurace race at Sebring International Raceway in Florida. The race started at 10 a.m. Saturday.
The Andretti Green team held the overall lead three times and finished two laps ahead of the Lowe's Fernandez Racing team, which was second in the LMP2 division.
"I can't put it in words. I would rate it as one of the highest emotional experiences I've had," said Robert Clarke, president of Santa Clarita-based Honda Performance Development. "So much work went into this program. It has been a long road, not just for HPD but for Acura, our teams, sponsors, drivers, everyone who is involved in the program. I couldn't have been so bold as to dream of this result."
There were three Acura entries in the race. Highcroft Racing was the highest qualifying Acura team, but ran into eletrical problems during the race.
The Andretti Green Racing team had to make two unscheduled pit stops in the last 35 minutes of the race to add gear oil. Herta was having trouble shifting gears in the closing hour of the race.
"I really couldn't catalog all the problems from the last hour," Herta said. "Right from the beginning we were having battery voltage problems so we couldn't use a lot of the electronics. Then we had problems with the gearbox and gave us troubles. I think in the last 10 laps the car shut off half a dozen times and re-fired.
"I have to take my hat off to the group," he added. "I have never seen a group that has worked so hard and put in so much effort. You wouldn't believe how many problems we had in testing and it's a testament to bring it here and to bring us this result."

Ryan Newman put his Penske Racing South Dodge on the pole for Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Altanta Motor Speedway. He will be joined on the front row by Elliott Sadler, driver of the No. 19 Dodge for Evernham Motorsports.
For Newman, it was his 38th career pole and his seventh at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The pole tied him with Buddy Baker for the most at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
“It’s gratifying, and I couldn’t think of a better person to share that record with than Buddy Baker," said Newman, driver of the No. 12 Dodge. "He’s helped me with my racing career. He’s a great friend. He still comes to the racetrack and he’s still a part of the team."
For the first time in a long time, Newman said he sees his team making marked improvements on the track.
“It is a little bit sweeter for sure based on the struggles from last year," Newman said. "We did so well our rookie year and the year after things got better. From that point on it seems like things went downhill. We got more poles, but it never seemed like we had that eight-race win season that we had in 2003."
After a disappointing season last year, when he did not qualify for the Chase, Newman said he hopes his team is on the rebound.
"You’re supposed to get better every year, and as a driver I felt that I had the performance," Newman said. "The entire package just didn’t happen and then last year hopefully was the pit of my career as far as having the struggles. I look forward to running better. This is definitely a huge step in that direction, and I’m definitely enjoying it more."
For Sadler, he credited his qualifying effort to having his team director return to his team and having one of his favorite cars at the track.
"After we went to California and struggled we made a few adjustments, and I got my team director back," Sadler said. "That made a big difference last week at Vegas. This is my favorite car here. I haven’t run it since last year at Dover. It’s an awesome racecar.
Sadler, who joined Evernham Motorsports late in the season, said he is beginning to gel with his new team and it's starting to pay off.
"Last year helped us," Sadler said. "We got all our language barriers and things like that out of the way. Now we can get down to racing. I think the first two races we struggled a little bit. Then I got Josh back and we ran well at Vegas last week the first half of the race and then we lost a little bit at the end, but we still qualified well, and we come back this weekend and qualify well again.”

There will be four Toyotas starting in Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Dave Blaney and Dale Jarrett have been the most consistent Toyota drivers to date. Both drivers have started every Cup race this year.
Dave Reutimann and Brian Vickers qualified for the Atlanta race after missing the previous race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
"Last week we knew we weren’t going to be good enough and after those laps I knew it wasn’t close enough," said Reutimann, driver of the No. 00 for Michael Waltrip Racing. "It’s a tough deal just trying to get into these deals on time. Nobody ever said it was going to be easy. We’ll just keep plugging away. The important thing is that we’ll be here on Sunday.”
Vickers will start 31st and said it's tough not being a top 35 team. The teams in the top 35 earn provisional strarting spots for races after the Atlanta race.
"I really like this race track and I’ve always run really well here," said Vickers, driver of the No. 83 Toyota for Team Red Bull. "I think we have a good car and I’m really proud of Toyota and what they’ve accomplished to this point. We’ve still got a ways to go and some gains to make, but I’m real proud of what Toyota and this Red Bull team have done so far.”
Michael Waltrip, Jeremy Mayfield and A.J. Allmendinger did not qualify for the race. It is the third race in a row Waltrip has failed to qualify.
Jarrett got in the race on his past champions provisional. He has used four such provisionals this year. NASCAR allows drivers six provisional starts for past champions.

After the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race in Atlanta, the drivers who earn provisional starting spots in races will be those in the top 35 in points.
The current standings have Kasey Kahne, Scott Riggs, David Reutimann and Michael Waltrip on the outside of the top 35.
With the addition of Toyota to the Cup mix, more than 50 cars have been showing up at race tracks and trying to earn starting spots. For the first four races of the year, the teams that finished in the top 35 in points last year earned provisional starting spots in races, regardless of their qualifying speeds. That has been a significant disadvantage for the Toyota teams, who did not compete at all last year.
After Atlanta, that all changes.
That's good news for Toyota driver Dale Jarrett, who has qualified for every race and earned enough points to be in the top 35.
It's bad news for Waltrip, Reutimann, Brian Vickers, A.J. Allmendinger and Dave Blaney, Toyota drivers who have struggled to qualify for races or finished poorly in the first three races of the year. For Kahne and Riggs, Dodge drivers who are also outside the top 35, the pressure is mounting to finish well in the upcoming races.
Jimmie Johnson, winner of last Sunday's race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was asked if NASCAR should expand the field of cars that start races to accomodate the increased number of teams.
"Well, 43 cars seems like it works out there," said Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. "At some of the smaller tracks it seems a little crowded and congested out on the tracks but I guess we're all used to it so it really doesn't affect me or bother my mindset having that many cars."
He said that with the number of quality teams competing at the Cup level, some of the good ones will have to accept the way the system is set up.
"I'm not sure what opinion I should have on it or if there was a change what I would change," Johnson said. "Again I'm just a creature of comfort and it seems to be working fine now. But I'm not in Michael Waltrip's shoes; to even have a car sent home so I'm not really living it close enough to understand it."

First it was Sunoco vs. Shell. Now it's AT&T vs. Nextel.
Sunoco, the official gasoline of NASCAR, did not appreciate seeing Daytona 500 winner Kevin Harvick covered in Shell logos while celebrating in victory lane.
It went so far that NASCAR asked Harvick to change the paint scheme on his racing helmet to eliminate the Shell images.
Now AT&T is suing NASCAR for the right to put its logo on Jeff Burton's No. 31 Chevrolet.
Burton's current paint scheme is an orange and black Cingular design. But AT&T bought Cingular. Now AT&T wants its logo on Burton's car.
Nextel, the sponsor of the Cup Series, does not like that idea.
Burton said AT&T has put a tremendous amount of effort to get the dispute resolved.
"It's got us in a situation that we certainly don't want to be in," Burton said. "Cingular has been here for a long time and I'd like to believe that reasonable people can come to reasonable solutions. I can't comment about any other company or teams' situation because I don't have knowledge of it but I have a lot of knowledge about what is going on with my situation. We have a sponsor that has been here a long time and changing a name and there has to be a reasonable way to work through that."
Burton's team might have to face a situation in which it loses its sponsorship. In the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series, that would be a death sentence. Without sponsorship dollars, there is little chance of competing with the top teams in Cup.
"From a company standpoint we can't operate without sponsorship," Burton said. "We're going to have to get it resolved. Sponsors just don't fall out of trees. We could be in the position of not having sponsorship and of course that puts me and my whole team in a position to decide what we are going to do. I certainly don't want to be in that position especially when we have a company that is willing to step up to the plate and sponsor us for many, many years in the future. It's an interesting position to be in but it has to be resolved."

The NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Car of Tomorrow makes its debut next weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee. Tony Stewart has been one of its biggest critics since the inception was brought to the race track and teams started testing them.
He said they look prehistoric, despite being touted as the car of the future. He sees nothing futuristic about them.
Stewart was asked Friday at Atlanta Motor Speedway if he expected an aggressive race at Bristol, one of the tiniest tracks on the Cup circuit.
"I wish we could crash all of them to where we don't have to drive them anymore but I think it will be the normal race," said Stewart, driver of the No. 20 Chevrolet for Joe Gibbs Racing. "When it comes to it, drivers are going to race like they are used to racing. I don't think any of us are worried about crashing cars. We drive cars every week. You know if you crash we're not going to have an opportunity to win obviously but we have the opportunity to crash cars this wee