Toyota Fully Loaded for Bristol

Toyota seeks big gains at short track

Bristol, Tenn. | A.J. Allmendinger and Jeremy Mayfield are finally in the show, ending four weeks of futility at NASCAR's top level.

Both drivers were absolutely giddy after qualifying for today's race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Then they struggled through a pair of Saturday practice sessions and the party came to a screeching halt.

"After making the race, we thought everything else was going to be a bonus," Allmendinger said. "But when we got out here today, our mind-set changed. We just wanted to get faster. But we struggled and that's been a little bit frustrating."

Allmendinger, the former Champ Car star, has experienced his share of frustration in his first season in the Nextel Cup Series. Team Red Bull has struggled to make races this year, and Allmendinger has yet to actually make his Cup debut after failing to qualify for the first four events.

But he put the No. 84 Camry in this week and will start the race in the 43rd position - fitting because that's where he ranked on the speed chart after Saturday's final practice.

Mayfield was just a tick better, ending 38th on the chart. He also missed the first four races this season, and has only raced once since last August - the season finale in Homestead, Fla.

"I'm just happy to be here," Mayfield said.

The Toyota program has struggled mightily through its first month in NASCAR's top series. With three teams fielding seven Camrys, the Japanese automaker expected a decent start to the year.

The start was instead just the opposite, as the bulk of the Toyota drivers were sent home at the end of every Friday. But a season-high five of the seven Toyota cars will race today, with only David Reutimann and Michael Waltrip failing to qualify.

It's led many in the Cup garage to speculate Toyota pumped all of its resources into the Car of Tomorrow, which makes its NASCAR debut today. Because the COT will run 16 races this season, and NASCAR is hoping teams will ask to use it exclusively in 2008, it makes sense that Toyota wouldn't waste too much time working on the current car.

But Toyota officials insist they devoted equal time to both programs, and putting five cars in today's race reflects more on their hard work than it does on the COT.

"It's great to see what we at Toyota call 'Kaizen,' which is constant improvement," said Lee White, vice president of Toyota Racing Development. "We've had our challenges and the teams have had their challenges, and we're certainly thrilled to have five cars in the race."

Source: [url=http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2007/03/26/ap/sports/auto-racing/d8o2phso0.txt]The Casper Star Tribune[/url]