1. Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch had a huge regular season for Toyota in 2008. He posted eight wins and dominated the sport for the first 26 races of the year. Unfortunately his team struggled during the Chase leaving Busch with a frustrating tenth place finish in points.This is a team with huge potential in 2009. Kyle Busch is the headline Toyota driver in 2009.
2. Denny Hamlin
Denny Hamlin was the top finishing Toyota in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings. He finished eighth in points and finished the season with one win. Now that Tony Stewart has moved on Denny Hamlin is the oldest and most experienced driver at Joe Gibbs Racing.3. Joey Logano
Joe Gibbs Racing welcomes the hottest rookie in NASCAR in 2009. Joey Logano will take over Tony Stewart's #20 for the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Logano comes to Sprint Cup racing in a cloud of media hype. He clearly has talent and will likely be a force in the sport for years to come. The current question is what will his learning curve be like?4. Brian Vickers
Brian Vickers drives the Team Red Bull #83 Toyota Camry.Vickers has one previous Sprint Cup victory to his credit. Brian won in Talladega in 2006 when he accidentally wrecked the two leaders on the final lap to take the controversial win.
Vickers scored Toyota's first top ten finish in Sprint Cup when he managed a tenth place effort at California Speedway in February of 2007. Brian Vickers was also responsible for Toyota's first ever Sprint Cup top five finish when he finished fifth in the 2007 Coca-Cola 600 at Lowes Motor Speedway.
5. Michael Waltrip
Michael Waltrip is the owner of Michael Waltrip Racing and the driver of his own #55 Toyota Camry.Michael Waltrip finished 29th in points in 2008 so he will not have to race his way into the Daytona 500 or qualify on speed for the next five races after that. Michael still has NAPA on board as a full-time sponsor and should continue along much as he did in 2008.
6. Robby Gordon
Owner/Driver Robby Gordon switches to Toyota in 2009 after a tumultuous 2008 which had him in negotiations to merge with GEM Racing. Through it all Robby qualified for every race in 2008 and ended the season 33rd in points which guarantees him a starting spot in the first six races of 2009.7. David Reutimann
David Reutimann will drives the Michael Waltrip Racing #00 Toyota Camry in 2009 but will keep the #44 car owner points that were earned in 2008.Aaron's will sponsor 18 races in 2009 but there is no word yet on the remaining events.
8. Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose drives the #47 for JTG Daugherty Racing which has partnered with Michael Waltrip Racing. Marcos has the car owner points from Waltrip's #00 car from 2008. Unfortunately this team finished 36th in points so they are not guaranteed a starting spot for the first six races of 2009.Little Debbie, Clorox and Kingsford Charcoal are on board for the season so this team is in better shape for funding than some others on this list.
9. Scott Speed
Scott Speed will chase the 2009 Rookie of the Year honors in the #82 Red Bull Racing Toyota. Speed took over this ride for the final six races of 2008 and seemed to find his groove in Homestead where he started second and finished a respectable 16th.Sprint Cup racing is a tough place for a rookie but Speed is racing for a fully-funded team which ended 2008 35th in car owner points. This will make Speed's transition much easier since he will not have to worry about qualifying for those first six critical races.
10. Dave Blaney
Dave Blaney drives the Triad Racing Development #22 Toyota Camry. This was the former Bill Davis Racing Team.Dave Blaney brought Toyota its first NEXTEL Cup pole position when he was the top qualifier at New Hampshire International Speedway in June of 2007.
This team ended 2008 30th in points but currently is without a sponsor or confirmation that Blaney will be back in the driver's seat in 2009.
