TOYOTA NASCAR Notes & Quotes
Week of April 21, 2008

Upcoming Races:
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) @ Talladega Superspeedway:
Saturday, April 26, Qualifying, 11:15 AM (ET) -- Speed, MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio (Ch. 128)
Sunday, April 27, Race start @ 2:00 PM (ET) -- Fox, MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio (Ch. 128)
Race 9 of 36

NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) @ Talladega Superspeedway:
Friday, April 25, Qualifying, 5:05 PM (ET) -- Speed, MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio (Ch. 128)
Saturday, April 26, Race start @ 3:00 PM (ET) --ABC, MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio (Ch. 128)
Race 10 of 35

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) @ Kansas Speedway:
Saturday, April 26, Qualifying, 1:40 PM (ET)
Saturday, April 26, Race start @ 6:00 PM (ET) - Speed, MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio (Ch. 128)
Race 5 of 25

HISTORY HERE: The Toyota Camry will make its third trip to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) event. In 2007, three Camry drivers competed in the spring NSCS race at the 2.66- mile Alabama tri-oval -- Jeremy Mayfield (23rd), David Reutimann (32nd) and Dale Jarrett (40th), while six Camry drivers participated in the fall event at Talladega -- Dave Blaney (third), Jacques Villeneuve (21st), Reutimann (22nd), Michael Waltrip (25th), Brian Vickers (39th) and Jarrett (42nd).

MORE HISTORY HERE: The Camry will make its second NASCAR Nationwide Series (NNS) start at Talladega this weekend. In 2007, three Camry drivers competed in the race at the Alabama track -- Reutimann (24th), Blaney (32nd) and Jason Leffler (35th). The Toyota Tundra has also found success at Talladega with Todd Bodine earning the Craftsman Truck Series win last fall.

QUARTET STRONG IN QUALIFYING: Camrys occupied four of the top-five starting positions at Talladega last fall -- including the front row -- marking the first time two Camry drivers occupied the front row in an NSCS race. Waltrip started on the pole -- his first pole position as a Toyota driver -- and Blaney was on the outside. They wer e followed in the starting line- up by Vickers (third) and Reutimann (fifth). Blaney finished third in the race -- the best finish for a Camry driver during the 2007 NSCS season.

TALLADEGA TALK: "I would expect that we will have a lot of success at Talladega," says Jim Aust, President and CEO of TRD, U.S.A. (Toyota Racing Development). "I'd be surprised if we didn't have a couple cars challenging for the win. Dave Blaney ran well there last year in the fall race. If you throw in all those other guys who qualified well from the fall, then my expectation is that we will have a couple cars challenging up front all day."

WHAT ABOUT WALTRIP: "Michael's (Waltrip) confidence is always up going into these superspeedway races because that's where he's had his success," adds Aust. "If he can find a set-up on his car that he likes, I think he will run good and I feel that Dave (Blaney) will as well. Of course, we expect the Gibbs cars will run strong based on what we saw from them at Daytona."

SUPERSPEEDWAY SUCCESS: Current Camry drivers, Waltrip (2003) and Vickers (2006) have both made it to the NSCS victory lane at Talladega. Both Waltrip (three wins) and Tony Stewart (two wins) have also found success in restrictor-plate racing at another famous superspeedway -- Daytona International Speedway.

BACK IN 'BAMA: AJ Allmendinger will be back in the driver's seat of the No. 84 Red Bull Camry at Talladega after spending the past five races on the pit box working with veteran driver Mike Skinner. "I've learned a lot over the past couple of races -- observing Mike (Skinner), talking with him about the car's performance, learning what changes to make that can make the biggest differences, and i n general, just how he communicates to the crew as to what the car is doing on the track," says Allmendinger. "I feel more prepared and confident than before that I can get into my car and help my crew make the right adjustments to get the right set-up. While I can't lie and say it was easy being out of my car and watching someone else drive it, I can say that Mike tried to make the experience positive for me by making me feel like I was still a part of the team and a part of the learning process in improving our program."

TAKING IT TO TALLADEGA: "I'm not worried about qualifying the car," says Allmendinger, about this weekend's Talladega race. "I actually feel more relaxed because there's a little less pressure on the driver at a superspeedway than at the other tracks. I'm going to do the best job I can working with my crew during practice, turn the best qualifying laps I can and hope that we've done a good enough job setting up the car. "

MIKE MAKING A MARK: "Talladega is a good place to put AJ (Allmendinger) back in the car," says Skinner. "The handling doesn't come into play and it's just all car and driver. He'll do a good job of drafting for us. I'm not done with this race team -- I don't know if I'll be back to drive the car any this year or not, but I know I'm going to be a part of this race team in one capacity or another. It's an unfinished project -- a work in progress -- and I want to see this team get competitive."

TALLADEGA TEAMWORK: Joe Gibbs Racing teammates, Stewart and Kyle Busch finished third and fourth, respectively, at Daytona in February. Busch led the most laps that day and hopes to finish a few positions higher this weekend at Talladega. "Judging by our performance from Daytona, we're pretty happy about it," says Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&Ms Camry, about racing at Talladega. "Hopefully, we can still run as well as we did in Daytona."

POINTS PACE: Busch is second in the NSCS driver point standings heading into the ninth race of the season at Talladega. Other Camry drivers in the NSCS standings include Denny Hamlin (sixth), Stewart (seventh), Vickers (19th), Reutimann (30th), Waltrip (32nd), J.J. Yeley (35th), Blaney (36th), Skinner (39th) and Michael McDowell (45th).

FIRMLY IN THE FIELD: Consistency on the track counts and teams within the top-35 in the 2008 NSCS owner points will be guaranteed starts at Talladega Superspeedway, April 27. Currently, seven Toyota teams are within the top-35, including the three Camrys of JGR (No. 18, 20 and 11) and the No. 83 Camry of the Red Bull Racing Team. In addition, the three Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) Camrys are 29th (No. 00), 32nd (No. 55) and 34th (No. 44), after Reutimann raced his way in following a top-20 Phoenix finish. The Hall of Fame Racing entry sits 36th (No. 96) -- three points out of the 35th position. The No. 22 Bill Davis Racing Camry is 37th -- eight points out of the 35th position -- while the No. 84 Red Bull Racing Camry is currently 40th.

DISCUSSING 'DEGA: "It's just tremendously smooth," says Yeley, driver of the No. 96 DLP HDTV Camry for Hall of Fame Racing. "Even though the race track has some age on it now, I don't think the race track is going to wear out as fast as some of the mile-and-a-half tracks have. It's going to be a race -- if it's anything like the last few -- where the field is going to get drawn out, and then probably go racing in the last 50 laps. It's a race you still have to be smart in and make sure you're there at the end. To me it's just not as fun of a race as some of the other ones we go to. I think part of the reason is that guys are so worried about getting caught up in an accident that you're just not racing the entire time. That side is a bit of a downer. But, you have to look at the big picture and making sure you are there at the end. And sometimes that means getting in line and riding around."

CHANGING COLORS: Two Toyota Camrys will appear with different paint schemes this weekend at Talladega. The No. 84 Camry will take on a new silver color for the remainder of the 2008 NSCS season. The No. 99 Aaron's Dream Machine will carry a special paint scheme in Saturday's NNS race, which was designed by eight-year-old Aravia Tillman from Abbeville, SC as part of the Aaron's 'Color your way to Talladega' contest. Aravia will attend the races at Talladega along with her mother, twin sister and brother.

'DEGA DOUBLE DUTY: Four Toyota drivers will compete in both the NSCS and NNS races this weekend at Talladega. Busch and Stewart will compete in both events in JGR cars, while their JGR teammate, Hamlin will compete in the NNS event for Braun Racing in the No. 32 Hass Avocados from Mexico Camry. Reutimann will be behind the wheel of MWR entries in both series.

THREE IN A ROW: Busch earned his third-straight NNS win in Sunday's race in Mexico City, following his visits to . victory lane at Texas (4-5-08) and Phoenix (4-11-08). Camry drivers have now earned a total of five NNS wins in 2008 -- in addition to Busch's three wins, Stewart took the checkered flag at the first two races of the year -- Daytona (2-16-08) and California (2-25-08).

THREE-PEAT TALK: "Fortunately these three races we've been pretty much mistake free," said Busch, following Sunday's race win in Mexico. "The guys on pit road have been awesome and flawless each week. All in all, it's just down to smart racing and being able to be smooth and having a good car. Everybody thinks we're cheating or doing something -- when it comes down to it, this Joe Gibbs Racing team is pretty up on top of their game and I've been up on top of the wheel. With those two combinations put together it's hard to beat."

POINTS POSITIONS: Toyota Camry drivers occupy four of the top-10 positions in the Nationwide Series point standings following the ninth race of the season in Mexico City. Busch tightened the points chase with his third consecutive win of the season and sits third in the points -- 66 points behind leader Clint Bowyer. As the 2007 championship runner-up, Reutimann moves to fourth in this year's title chase. Other Camry drivers in the top-10 include Leffler (eighth) and Mike Wallace (ninth), followed by NNS part-timers Stewart (23rd), Hamlin (29th) and Vickers (34th).

TUNDRAS TO VISIT TOTO: The Toyota Tundra will make its fifth trip to Kansas Speedway this weekend for the NCTS event. Tundra drivers have earned the pole for the past three consecutive events -- Skinner (2006 and 2007) and Bill Lester (2005). Tundra driver, Bodine, earned the only win by a Tundra at the 1.5-mile speedway in 2005.

FULL OF SPEED: Scott Speed will begin a part-time NCTS schedule at Kansas Speedway driving the No. 27 Red Bull Tundra for Bill Davis Racing (BDR). Speed will compete in 10 additional NCTS races for BDR this season along with his full-time schedule on the ARCA RE/MAX Series driving the No. 2 Red Bull Camry for Eddie Sharp Racing. Speed looks to benefit from his veteran teammates Skinner and Johnny Benson during the year. "This is a great opportunity for me to work closely with Mike (Skinner) while I get my feet wet in the truck series," says Speed. "He knows what it takes to run well and win races, and that's a hell of a mentor to have. The more I can learn from him, the quicker my learning process will be in these trucks."

CARRYING A CAUSE: Two Tundras racing at Kansas Speedway will support charitable organizations. The No. 60 Wyler Racing Tundra will carry the Autism Speaks logos to bring attention to Autism Awareness Month. The No. 9 Germain Racing Tundra has donated their primary sponsorship to the V Foundation to help find a cure for cancer.

TUNDRA TIMES THREE: A Tundra has made its way to victory lane in three of the first four NCTS races this season. Bodine won the season-opener at Daytona (2-15-08) in the No. 30 Lumber Liquidators Tundra, while Busch, driver of the No. 51 Billy Ballew Motorsports Tundra, won races at California (2-23-08) and Atlanta (3-8-08).

BUSCH ON TOP: Busch remains the leader with a 35-point advantage over Bodine in the NCTS point standings after four of 25 events. Tundra drivers David Starr (seventh), Benson (ninth) and Terry Cook (10th) are also in the top-10 in points after Martinsville, while Ted Musgrave (11th), Phillip McGilton (12th), Skinner (14th) and Justin Marks (17th) are in the top-20.

PERFECT '10': The daughter of Jason Overstreet, crew chief for the No. 9 Tundra of Marks, won a state novice gymnast ics championship and earned a perfect 10 score on the balance beam -- the first time it has happened in that tourney since 1984.

LITTLE IS BIG WINNER: ESPN pit reporter Jamie Little held off eventual pro category champion Skinner by .324 seconds in her race-modified Scion tC to claim the overall victory in the 32nd annual Toyota Pro/Celebrity race through the streets of Long Beach, Calif. "When you interview a winning driver after the race, they always tell you how they just try to get through that last lap," said Little, following the race. "Well, now I know exactly what they're talking about."

MOTOR MADNESS: Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Alabama, Inc. is located in Huntsville, Ala., approximately 150 miles northwest of Talladega Superspeedway. The facility is the only one in North America that produces V8 engines for Toyota with 116,752 produced in 2006. In addition to the V8 engines, the Alabama facility also produces V6 engines for Toyota cars and trucks, totaling 145,290 made in 2006.

MOVING FORWARD: The NSCS and NNS will head to Richmond International Raceway for next weekend's race events, while the NCTS will enjoy another two weekends off before racing again at Charlotte's Lowe's Motor Speedway, May 16. There are three reasons why Stewart names Richmond International Raceway as his favorite race track and all three hold places on his trophy shelf as Stewart is the only current Camry driver to win at the three-quarter mile Virginia oval -- 1999, 2001 and 2002.