Just the Beginning for Toyota

Lee White proudly pointed out that the world didn’t end. NASCAR hadn’t exploded. And Sunday was still race day.

Sure, Kyle Busch’s victory in last Sunday’s Kobalt Tools 500 in Atlanta, Ga. – the first in NASCAR for team Toyota – was huge.

But there were still more races to be run – starting with Sunday’s Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. And White’s vision of what Toyota’s race team can become is still a work in progress.

"First of all, there’s a lot of people working really hard at [Toyota Racing and Development], and I have to thank them," said White, senior vice president and general manager of TRD. "But without question, no one’s going to deny the key to the advance in our success this year is the association with Joe Gibbs Racing. They’re a quality, tier-one team, on a level with Hendrick [Motorsports], Jack Roush [Fenway Racing], Roger Penske [Racing] and so on."

It helps to have good drivers, too.

Big-name racers Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin carry the JGR flag, while Brian Vickers, Dale Jarrett and a host of others are adding to Toyota’s strong early season run.

As a whole, Toyota currently has three drivers – Busch, Stewart and Vickers – in the top 10 of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Meanwhile, 10 drivers sporting Toyota-made cars will enter Sunday’s Food City 500 at BMS.

According to Jimmy Makar, senior vice president of JGR, Toyota’s current success has been a long time coming.

And now the key is making sure that Toyota finishes what it’s started.

"Yeah … it’s early. But you want to start off at a position that keeps you up with the front of the pack. And we certainly feel like we are [doing that] with at least two of the cars," Makar said. "The big thing is how competitive we are, week-in and week-out. We’ve got cars that can run in the top five, six, seven, and the rest will take care of itself, and that’s where we feel like we’re at right now."

Adding drama to Toyota’s sudden emergence is the fact that many NASCAR fans loudly voiced their opposition to the idea of Toyota ever fielding a winning team.

Now, it’s happened.

And Busch feels like it’s just the start.

"I think a lot of the success we’re having is due to the fact of Joe Gibbs Racing – their equipment is just as good as anybody else’s out there, and that’s why I chose to come to this place when I did. The fact that we’ve been as successful as we’ve been has just been awesome," Busch said. "I think JGR has been really well Rrepresented with the Toyota brand and that we’ve been able to bring it up toward the front somewhat. Being the second year with the start-up teams like Red Bull and a couple others—those guys are getting better and that just makes Toyota look better."

Meanwhile, White, who proclaimed that Toyota "always stands by its drivers," said he’s proud to simply be a part of JGR’s world.

"The quality of ethics and character is probably unparalleled in this sport, based on Joe Gibbs, himself, and his family," White said. "And all of the people throughout the team, top to bottom, that they’ve brought into their team. They’re the most-remarkable organization I’ve dealt with in many years in this business."