Live 105.3 - Toyota: Gibbs Us A Chance [NASCAR]

Toyota: Gibbs Us A Chance [NASCAR]

Trey Trenholm
Special Correspondant

Black and White. Night and Day. Dead and Alive. All things that are polar opposites. Add Toyota in 2008 and Toyota of 2007 to that list. Despite all the money they threw at their Sprint Cup program, they couldn't do anything right. Then, they did the smartest thing they could do: they bought a championship team in Joe Gibbs Racing.

I thought J.D. Gibbs was nuts to even entertain the idea. Why would you take the chance? Why ruin a great relationship with Chevy to take a chance on what had been a dismal performance in 2007. Then I heard someone make the point that this was Gibbs Racing's chance to be the big dog with a manufacturer. They were never going to be the top team for Chevy. Hendrick Motorsports kind of has that locked up at the moment and for the foreseeable future. Moving to Toyota made Gibbs the immediate recognition as the best team of Toyota, and rightfully so. Because of their expertise and resources, Toyota has shown they're going to be a dominant force in Sprint Cup racing and in the Nationwide Series as well.

Furthermore, it's not just the Gibbs team. They have made everyone who drives for Toyota better. Last year, most of the Toyota cars had trouble making a race. This year, most of them are making the race. Hell, Michael Waltrip is competitive again. Which -- like him or not -- is good for the sport. (There is not a bigger sponsor whore than Waltrip. The guy could have to run to the bathroom during an interview and he would manage to get a couple of sponsors in on the way.) So, like it or not, get used to seeing, and hearing about, a Toyota Camry in Victory Lane. Very possibly on a frequent basis.

Staying with the whole Toyota thing, I have to take my hat off to Kyle Busch. Like him or not, which I really don't, you have to give him his due. When he was looking for a new team, and chose Gibbs and Toyota, I thought he was nuts. Not only because Gibbs was going with Toyota, but because of the personalities involved.

Well, along with Toyota, they have proven they are great. Busch can simply drive the wheels off of just about anything. Now, as far as the personalities involved, I don't care how much Stewart, Hamlin, and Busch want to sell the notion that all is well and they're singing "Kum Ba Yah" together. I don't buy it. I guess that might be the case right now, but give it a few weeks. They're running too well, and when Stewart and Busch hook up, and one wrecks the other, duck.

Stewart is a hot head, he is never wrong, and he races hard. The same could be said for Kyle Busch. When they get tangled up, and they will, the love fest is over. Plus, we know how well Tony and Kurt Busch get along.