| | | | | | BUT HE'S COOL THOUGH | Stewart downplays role of teammates, still lauds Busch | |
| | By SceneDaily Staff FORT WORTH, TX -- Tony Stewart says there are only few tracks where teammates are a huge benefit. But that’s not to say he isn’t plenty pleased to have new teammate Kyle Busch on board at Joe Gibbs Racing.
“He's been great. I think the public's perception of him is a lot different than the way he really is. He's a lot of fun to be around,” the driver of the No. 20 Toyota said on Friday at Texas Motor Speedway. “He's a lot of fun to deal with as a teammate.”
The 22-year-old Busch, criticized at times for displaying a poor attitude and not being a team player in his former ride at Hendrick Motorsports, seems to be gelling well with the veteran Stewart and fellow Gibbs driver Denny Hamlin since moving to the organization from Hendrick at the conclusion of the 2007 season.
Busch has also excelled on the track this year, giving JGR its first win of the season and Toyota its first Cup win every last month at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
“He brings a lot of fresh ideas and is very upbeat about things,” Stewart said. “He's one of those guys that immediately he fit in with Denny [Hamlin] and myself as well as the crew chiefs and engineers. I don't think you can ask for a better mesh than the way it has happened with him coming in.”
Still, the two-time Cup champion downplayed the notion that teammates play a major role at venues other than Daytona and Talladega, where teammates’ drafting help is often paramount to winning.
“They can't do much for you out there like they can at Daytona or Talladega. It's a totally different deal here than it is at those two tracks,” Stewart said of the 1.5-mile Texas facility. “At these tracks, it's what you can do with your car. Obviously, your teammates can work with you when you catch them and then you get in traffic with each other, but that's about it.”
| | Posted April 05, 2008 , 4:37 pm EST
Last Updated April 05, 2008 , 4:38 pm EST | | | | | | | | | | |
