Following on their breakthrough win by Kyle Busch at Atlanta on the 9^th of March, the Joe Gibbs Toyota team has asserted itself as the team to beat in the early stages of the 36 race 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup series.

Two weeks ago at Bristol it was the turn of Busch’s team mate Denny Hamlin to chase for the win, only to be denied in the last seconds of the race by a fuel pick up problem that saw him drop from first to sixth on the last lap of the race. After an unusual two week break in the busy series Hamlin made good for that disappointment by winning the Cool Orange 500 at Martinsville Virginia on Sunday (30^th March). That made it two wins out of three events for Toyota in this intensely competitive series.

Hamlin started the event, run on a circuit that is just over a half mile in length and with lap times of around 20 seconds, from second spot on the grid next to multiple championship winner Jeff Gordon. For most of the race Hamlin ran towards the front end of the 43 car field, slowly working his way to a position where a challenge for the lead was a possibility.

With 388 laps of the 500 run, Hamlin’s crew chief took a gamble that would place the Camry in a race winning position as they took on fuel only in a pit stop while other contenders, including Jeff Gordon, took on new tyres as well. On lap 427 Hamlin successfully challenged for the lead and held onto it for the next 73 laps to win from Jeff Gordon by just four tenths of a second.

The race winning performance of the Camry, with Toyota only in its second season in the top series in NASCAR, follows strong form in pre-season testing. Often battling to qualify for races in its first season, the Camry has been rapidly developed in championship winning form for 2008.

Information and Images Curtsey Toyota SA & Quickpic.