Stewart, Hamlin and Busch Fast in First Official Outing with Toyota
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – If pre-season testing is any indication, Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) drivers Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin and newcomer Kyle Busch will be among the favorites when the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 17 for the 50th running of the Daytona 500.During the first test session Jan. 7-9 at the 2.5-mile oval, Busch made an impressive debut for JGR in the No. 18 M&M’s/Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry. He set the fastest speed in drafting practice and was third-quick in single-car runs.
Busch’s JGR teammates – Stewart and Hamlin – participated in the second week of testing Jan. 14-16 and benefited from the information gathered by the No. 18 team.
“We’ve been making phone calls back and forth about them already changing some of the stuff on their cars from what we’ve learned here,” said Busch during a break from his test session. “A lot of the engine stuff that we’ve been learning here has been getting translated back there. They’ve been running it on the engine dyno and everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing has been working non-stop. It’s been a big deal to be able to come out here and run strong. We want to make sure we give the 20 and the 11 everything that we’ve learned.”
Stewart’s No. 20 Home Depot Toyota finished the second test session sixth-quick in single-car runs and 10th-quick in drafting practice. Hamlin’s No. 11 FedEx Toyota was 10th-quick in single-car runs and third-quick in the draft.
With the manufacturer switch to Toyota, many were eager to see how JGR would fare in its first official on-track test. Needless to say, JGR’s three-car Sprint Cup contingent didn’t disappoint.
“I’m assuming it’s a good sign,” said Stewart, who participated in Daytona testing after a three-year layoff that saw JGR test driver Mike McLaughlin behind the wheel of the No. 20 machine. “You just don’t know what everybody else is doing, so you don’t know if everybody else is showing their hand. It makes you feel good when you make a big change like what our organization has gone through this winter, and to come to the first test of the first race of the year and see so many Toyotas on top of the chart, it’s obviously a big plus for us.”
Third-year driver Hamlin was equally impressed with his team’s hard work in getting the No. 11 FedEx Camry ready for Daytona.
“We can’t tell too much from inside the car, but looking at the speed charts, we’re pretty happy,” said Hamlin, who has qualified for the Chase for the Championship in his first two years in Sprint Cup. “Looking at the speed charts during the second day, I think 11 of the top-13 cars were Toyotas. I’m very happy to be on that side of the fence, for sure.”
Much like Stewart and Hamlin, Busch was also pleased with his team’s strong testing speeds.
“I’m not surprised at all,” Busch said. “We knew that the switch was going to be good, and the reason we went to Toyota was for the pure fact that they want to go out there and compete to win races and championships. For what we’ve got going on with our program, we’re proud of the way Joe Gibbs Racing has come out of the box so strong.”
Daytona Testing Session One Speeds:
- Busch: 1st overall (47.662 seconds at 188.830 mph)
Daytona Testing Session Two Speeds:
- Hamlin: 2nd overall (47.591 seconds at 189.111 mph)
- Stewart: 8th overall (47.857 seconds at 188.060 mph)
Daytona Testing Cumulative Drafting Speeds:
- Busch: 2nd overall (47.662 seconds at 188.830 mph)
- Hamlin: 3rd overall (47.665 seconds at 188.818 mph)
- Stewart: 10th overall (47.857 seconds at 188.060 mph)
Daytona Testing Cumulative Single-Car Run Speeds:
- Stewart: 6th overall (48.624 seconds at 185.094 mph)
- Hamlin: 10th overall (48.766 seconds at 184.555 mph)
- Busch: 13th overall (48.896 seconds at 184.064 mph)
-Joe Gibbs Racing-
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