Having told the awaiting media that he couldn't really tell the different between his Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet of 2007 and his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota of 2008 Tony Stewart proved his point even further as he led the first official practice session of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.
Friday's opening practice session at the
Daytona International Speedway may have been for Saturday's non-championship Bud Shootout but to the 23 qualified teams for the event it was their first chance to strut their stuff in front of the official series timekeepers.
Tony Stewart grabbed the opportunity for a few quick headlines by setting a fastest time of 47.049-seconds (191.290mph) around the 2.5-mile Daytona oval in his #20 Home Depot Toyota as the second-year Cup Series manufacturer strives to hammer home the message that it has made big strides during the off-season.
Their point was magnified by Stewart's teammate Denny Hamlin and Bill Davis Racing's Dave Blaney, who set third and fourth fastest times respectively in their Camry's with only the Roush-Fenway Ford Fusion of Carl Edwards preventing a complete Toyota whitewash.
Behind Blaney David Gilliland rounded out the top five in his #38 Yates Racing Ford with Clint Bowyer sixth fastest in the leading Chevrolet. DEI's Martin Truex Jr and defending series champion Jimmie Johnson were next in line with the remaining three Toyota's in the field, those of Michael Waltrip, Dale Jarrett and Hall of Fame Racing's JJ Yeley, occupying positions eight through eleven.
![Denny Hamlin. [Pic Credit Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/192826.jpg)
