Toyota's first attempt to qualify for a Nextel Cup race is still ten months away but the foreign car manufacturer already has established a presence in the sport. Speculation continues to rise at each and every stop on the schedule about which drivers and crew members will be moving over to the Japanese car maker for the 2007 season.
You have to hand it to Toyota, one of the best hires it could have ever made to make its entry into the sport a little easier was Michael Waltrip. Even though his success on the track has been very limited through out his career, the same can't be said about his career behind the microphone. He is a regular on several Speed Channel shows as well as being one of the most requested interviews during a Nextel Cup race weekend.
Michael is at home when he is in the spotlight and is keenly adapt at making sure he gets his point across during an interview. Even though his team is fielding Dodges this season, most of his interviews this season leaves little doubt that his real focus is on getting his Toyota program up and running for next season.
In this his first year of being a full time owner at the Cup level, Waltrip has been busy hiring people to not only field his cars for this season but to also begin building the foundation for an operation that will field two cup cars next season along with at least one Busch Series team. Crew members have been coming through his shop for months now and word is now that one of the most important hires for both Michael Waltrip Racing and Toyota may be only a week away.
Waltrip admits that he has talked to Robert Yates Racing's Dale Jarrett about the opening he has for next season and it seems that the timing could be right. Jarrett's contract with Yates ends after this season, which gives him the freedom to listen to offers from other owners.
Jarrett has struggled in recent seasons and at the age of 49 many believe he is nearing the end of a stellar career. While his age may be a negative with many owners, Waltrip knows that his experience will be a huge plus for a start up team that will have to undergo the usual growing pains of competing in the series.
Jarrett has always been one of the more marketable drivers in the garage area and the fact that he is also a past series champion will bring some instant credibility to the new team. By being a past champion, Jarrett and his team can enjoy the past champion's provisional that will assure him a spot in the first five races of next season when only the top-35 teams are guaranteed a position in the starting field.
Jarrett is being offered a two-year contract worth a reported $10 million a year even though Waltrip is yet to sign a sponsor for the team. That amount according to Waltrip is what the driver's worth would be on the open market and that he isn't trying to steal a driver by using money that isn't his own.
Waltrip and Toyota have both gone on record as saying the money to make these hires is not coming from the manufacturer. There are some in the sport that don't buy into that statement as they have said that some of their crew members have already left for more money at one of the three Toyota operations.
It's an area of concern for everyone in the sport as Toyota has a history of spending whatever it takes to become successful. Waltrip and his present sponsor NAPA can't get the job done of starting up two teams for next season as well as compete this year without getting some financial aid from another source. While we may never know for sure where those extra dollars are coming from, the speculation in the garage area is that Toyota's checkbook has already been opened.
