Toyota Milwaukee Notes and Quotes
If the following text-only file is not easily readable, particularly any tables of numbers, try enlarging this window since every line has a forced end and there is no word-wrap. Otherwise, this report will look and print better from the following PDF file: http://www.sportssystems.com/applib/PDFload.cfm?file=/email/filehost/MD097.pdf&id=BC097MD3PE671 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. · 19001 South Western Avenue ·Torrance, CA 90501 Contact: Marc Spiegel, 414-559-7700, marcspiegel@hotmail.com Diana DeJoseph, 626-354-3084, Diana_DeJoseph@Toyota.com Toyota Notes & Quotes NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Milwaukee Mile -- June 25, 2004 THIS RACE: This will be the 10th visit to the Milwaukee Mile for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS). Seven Toyota Tundras are entered in the Black Cat Fireworks 200 in Milwaukee. LAST RACE: In the most recent NCTS race at Memphis Motorsports Park (June 19), four Toyotas finished among the top-20. Leading the Tundra drivers across the finish line was Hank Parker Jr., who was 12th in the No. 21 Innovative Motorsports Tundra. Following Parker Jr. were Travis Kvapil (13th) in the No. 24 Line-X Tundra, Robert Huffman (16th) in the No. 12 Innovative Motorsports Tundra and David Reutimann (17th) in the No. 17 NTN Bearings Tundra. POINTS PACE: After eight races, three Toyota drivers are among the top-12 in the NCTS championship standings. Mike Skinner is sixth in the standings (1067 points), 202 points behind current leader Dennis Setzer. Rookie David Reutimann is 10th in the standings (1020 points) and Travis Kvapil is 12th (994 points). Reutimann also tops the Raybestos Rookie-of-the-Year standings, leading second-place Tracy Hines by 26 points. BACK HOME I: Defending NCTS champion Travis Kvapil is returning home for the Milwaukee Mile race. A Janesville, Wis.-native, Kvapil began his racing career and competed regularly at many short tracks throughout the state. He won Late Model Rookie-of-the-Year honors at Madison (WI) International Speedway in 1995, and one year later captured the Late Model championship at the same track. BACK HOME II: "I always look forward to returning home," says Kvapil. "It's good to race in front of your family and friends. I know there'll be quite a few fans cheering for me in the Milwaukee grandstands. Milwaukee is a great track and I really enjoying race there, and the past few years I've had some success." TK IN TOP-10: In the past three years, Kvapil has recorded three top-10 finishes at the Milwaukee Mile. The 28-year-old driver has finished third (2001), sixth (2003) and tenth (2002) at the Wisconsin one-mile oval. Kvapil has completed all but one lap (602 of 603) at the track in the three races. MILE WIN ONE: Mike Skinner was the winner of the inaugural NCTS race at the Milwaukee Mile in 1995. He started from the pole and captured the checkered flag driving a truck for Richard Childress. MORE MIKE: Sandwiched around finishes of 28th in the season-opening race at Daytona, and 26th in the most recent race in Memphis, Mike Skinner registered six consecutive top-15 finishes. During the streak, he recorded a runner-up finish in Atlanta, two fifths (Martinsville and Dover), a pair of 11th-place finishes (Mansfield and Texas), and a 15th in Charlotte. -more- Toyota Milwaukee Notes & Quotes - page two NCTS DEBUT: One year ago, Hank Parker Jr. made his NCTS debut in Milwaukee. Parker Jr. started ninth, completed all 200 laps, and finished eighth. Parker Jr. also has run two Busch Series races in Milwaukee, finishing 14th (2001) and 20th (2002). HEAR HANK: "We've had some problems this year, but we're getting better every race," says Parker Jr. "My team has stuck by me and Toyota has stood behind me. They've both worked real hard to try to make things better and make me more comfortable in the Tundra." D.R. DEBUT: David Reutimann made his Milwaukee Mile debut in the Busch Series last year. He recorded his first career top-five in a Busch car when he finished fifth driving for Joe Nemechek. EDUCATION: "This year, I'm learning as we go along," says Reutimann, about his rookie campaign. "But, beginning with Memphis, we're getting to more tracks I've been to before, and actually raced at before. So, I'm encouraged by the way we've started the year, and the tracks we have coming up on the schedule." ROOKS RULE: Rookie NCTS Tundra drivers have been the top finishing newcomers in six of eight races. David Reutimann was the top newcomer in Daytona (9th), Atlanta (3rd), Martinsville (8th) and Texas (3rd). Robert Huffman was the first rookie finisher in Charlotte (16th) and Dover (11th). SECOND BEST: The best finish by a Toyota Tundra driver this season has been second-place. Bang Racing teammates Travis Kvapil (Daytona) and Mike Skinner (Atlanta) have both finished second. TUNDRA TOPS: Toyota drivers have recorded eight top-five finishes, and 11 top-10 finishes, in 57 combined appearances. Along with seconds by Travis Kvapil (Daytona) and Mike Skinner (Atlanta), David Reutimann was third in Atlanta and Texas, and Hank Parker Jr. was third in Dover . In addition, Kvapil has a fourth-place finish (Atlanta), and Skinner has finished fourth (Dover) and fifth (Martinsville). 3 MORE: In addition to Mike Skinner, three other Toyota Tundra drivers have been race leaders this season. Travis Kvapil led 15 laps at Daytona and one lap in Atlanta, and rookie David Reutimann also led laps at Daytona (7) and Atlanta (8 laps). In addition, Bill Lester led 19 laps at Lowe's Motor Speedway. POLE NO. 1: In Atlanta, a Tundra captured the NCTS pole position for the first time. David Reutimann recorded a speed of 179.452 MPH (30.894 seconds) to earn his first NCTS pole, and Toyota's inaugural pole. He set a new NCTS mark by winning the pole in his second start. BUILD IT: The Toyota Racing Development R&D and production facility is located in High Point, NC. It takes seven workers - working between eight and nine hours a day - five days to build a NCTS Tundra. It takes about 20 hours - from start-to-finish - to build a production Tundra at Toyota's Princeton, Indiana facility, where 5,004 associates work and where a new Tundra rolls off the assembly line every 74 seconds. Princeton, Indiana is the only place in the world where production Tundras are built. LINE-UP: There will be four Toyota teams and seven Tundras at the Milwaukee Mile. The line-up: Bang Racing: Travis Kvapil No. 24 Line-X Toyota Tundra Mike Skinner No. 42 Toyota Tundra Bill Davis Racing: Shelby Howard No. 23 Toyota Tundra Bill Lester No. 22 Toyota Tundra Innovative Robert Huffman No. 12 Toyota Tundra Motorsports: Hank Parker Jr. No. 21 Toyota Tundra Darrell Waltrip David Reutimann No. 17 NTN Bearings Toyota Tundra Motorsports: TV TIME: Black Cat Fireworks 200, Milwaukee Mile, June 25, 9:00 PM (Eastern), SPEED Channel NOTE TO EDITORS: High-resolution digital images are available for EDITORIAL USE ONLY at www.toyotamotorsportsmedia.com. -more- Toyota Milwaukee Notes & Quotes -- Page 3 2004 TOYOTA TUNDRA NCTS DRIVER RESULTS -- Start/Finish (Laps Led) SHELBY ROBERT BILL TRAVIS HANK DAVID MIKE DARRELL DATE / RACE SITE HOWARD HUFFMAN LESTER KVAPIL PARKER REUTIMANN SKINNER WALTRIP 2-13/Daytona 15/29 8/36 17/16 3/2 (15) 11/18 12/9 (7) 14/28 (6) 3-13/Atlanta 26/25 2/29 5/15 9/4 (1) 7/33 1/3 (8) 4/2 (68) 4-17/Martinsville 32/23 20/34 12/17 6/13 27/12 25/8 8/5 (38) 21/24 5-16/Mansfield# 22/23 DNS 20/30 31/32 35/19 33/14 32/11 5-21/Charlotte 32/33 7/16 8/21 (19) 14/8 22/22 24/36 3/15 (2) 6-4/Dover 5/6** 21/11 19/25 8/17 13/3 8/17 6/5 (85) 6-11/Texas 27/21 2/28 3/12 13/27 15/23 6/3 9/11 (41) 6-19/Memphis 25/24 8/16 23/23 5/13 16/12 30/17 11/26 6-25/Milwaukee # Qualifying cancelled due to weather. Starting lineup determined by NCTS rule book. ** Dave Blaney substituted for Shelby Howard in the No. 23 Bill Davis Racing Tundra at Dover.