(from autosport) (How did the Toyota suddenly get so fast) Dale Earnhardt Jr kickstarted his 2008 season with a dream debut for Hendrick Motorsports, winning in dominant fashion the 30th running of the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona. Earnhardt Jr led 47 of the 70 laps of the event, but although he stayed up front for most of the night, he faced tough opposition from Tony Stewart who looked strong all night but could not do much against the Hendrick attack. On the last green flag with three laps remaining, Stewart led from Earnhardt with Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Reed Sorenson and Casey Mears following. Under the Shootout restart rules, cars must line up in two lines and the Hendrick teammates made the most of the situation. Earnhardt had Jimmie Johnson lined up behind him who gave him a crucial push after the restart, to allow him to get by Stewart's Toyota. Meanwhile the Joe Gibbs car was not getting much help from Gordon who was lined up behind him. "I had a really, really good race car," Earnhardt said. "But that was fifty percent race car, fifty percent teammate. Jimmie Johnson gave me a push there at the end and it helped me a lot. Him and Casey (Mears) were lined up there on the outside and that was great for us. "I've got to thank those guys for the help and my team for building a beautiful race car. This is exactly what we needed coming out of the gate. I hope the fans enjoyed the race. It was fun for me." Stewart came second and narrowly missed out on a debut win for Toyota and a second consecutive Bud Shootout victory. However, he was still happy to be beaten fairly by Earnhardt Jr and the Hendrick team. "Dale Jr is one of the best there's ever been on restrictor plate tracks and I'm glad for him because there's a lot of weight on his shoulders this year with the switch [to Hendrick]," Stewart said. "I'm happy for him, he deserved it. He drove his butt off and he knows how to put himself in the right places at the right time, so I can't be disappointed with second here tonight." Jimmie Johnson was just edged out by Stewart on the finish line, coming home in third. The reigning champion also had a great race, despite starting from the back of the field after being forced to switch to his back-up car following a crash during practice on Friday. During the first 20 lap segment of the event, he ran behind the pack along with Jeff Gordon, who was also using his back-up car. However, changes made during the first pit stop helped him move up the field once the final 50 lap segment started. "We had a really great effort," Johnson said. "The car really drove well and that's what kept me in the game along with some smart moves and good decisions and the racing with the guys. "That's a lot of fun racing with those guys. Tony and Jeff also had great cars and we came from the back a couple of times. I'm definitely happy for Dale Jr that he's got this victory, first time in a Hendrick car." Jeff Gordon came home fourth, followed by Ganassi's Reed Sorenson and Hendrick's Casey Mears, rounding up a great night for the Hendrick squad. The race saw the caution flags come out four times for 14 of the 70 laps. The first was caused by Bill Elliott crashing due to a cut tyre right before the ten minute break, while Jamie McMurray caused the pace car to come out on track again only five laps into the final segment after making contact with Denny Hamlin and crashing into the wall. Last year's Daytona 500 pole sitter David Gilliland also crashed due to a cut right rear tyre, while Kurt Busch caused the final caution period of the race after spinning five laps from the end. Sprint Cup teams will all be in action on Sunday afternoon again during the qualifying session for the Daytona 500, where the front row of the grid will be locked up. Pos Driver Make Laps 1. Dale Earnhardt Jr Chevrolet 70 2. Tony Stewart Toyota 70 3. Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 70 4. Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 70 5. Reed Sorenson Dodge 70 6. Casey Mears Chevrolet 70 7. Dave Blaney Toyota 70 8. Mark Martin Chevrolet 70 9. Denny Hamlin Toyota 70 10. Kasey Kahne Dodge 70 11. Michael Waltrip Toyota 70 12. Carl Edwards Ford 70 13. Dale Jarrett Toyota 70 14. Clint Bowyer Chevrolet 70 15. Ken Schrader Dodge 70 16. J.J. Yeley Toyota 70 17. Ryan Newman Dodge 70 18. Kurt Busch Dodge 70 19. David Gilliland Ford 48 20. Greg Biffle Ford 48 21. Martin Truex Jr Chevrolet 47 22. Jamie McMurray Ford 24 23. Bill Elliott Ford 15
The title shows up on the front page of fchat, kiddo. Thus the BIG ASS STICKY in this section saying don't post racing results in thread titles.
Excellent!! It seem's '62 250 GTO' woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning as another thread display's this perception also!
I think you're talking about your own post. For someone who can't spell or use punctuation, you sure do think your smart.
Dont feel bad your still have 7 level's yet to experience and one could say it's been a big day for you also!
Sorry my mistake, wasn't thinking at all. Tillmans' correct. Moderator? Andreas? I meant to make the Toyota comment my heading. Title should be; How Did The NASCAR Toyota Suddenly Become Fast?
I don't think I would say Toyota's speed happened all of a sudden. Part of has to do with the parity of the 'COT' and all teams being on a level aero playing field, another is a full year of developement that they didn't have last year. I think the biggest reason for the speed is the fact that Gibbs racing is now running Toyota, he brings a serious group of people with him, committed to winning and with previous knowledge and experience as a Championship winning team with Tony Stewart. Unfortunately I don't think Micheal Waltrip Racing had a chance last year for exactly that last reason. It takes a championship capable (proven) team to make a startup manufacturer have a hope in hell. As much as I'm most certainly not a Toyata fan...I think they're here to play hardball this year. Thanks, Noel.
You're not telling me you made it to grade ten? That has to be a lie, because by grade ten you would know what an apostrophe is and you would have learned how to spell "levels". No I'll stick with a grade three maximum for you. It hasn't been a big day for me, I haven't sold a single car yet this week, thankfully it's only Sunday.
