Kyle Busch won the '15 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship last night with his victory in the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, helping Toyota secure its "first Cup title since joining the sport" in '07, according to Jeff Olson of USA TODAY. Toyota officials following the race "vowed to keep trying for more" titles. Toyota National Motorsports Marketing & Communications Manager Isaka Kanazawa said, "We used to have the reputation that we would bring a lot of money, win, and then be gone. But we wanted to change that. The bosses told us that we couldn't spend too much money. We needed to continue forward with a smaller amount of money over a longer period of time. We took that approach here." Olson notes Toyota was the "first foreign-based engine manufacturer in a staunchly American form of racing," but its leaders "saw the marketing possibilities." Kanazawa yesterday "celebrated the weekend's second championship for Toyota," which also claimed the Camping World Truck Series title Friday night with Kyle Busch Motorsports driver Erik Jones. Kanazawa: "I love it here. I can feel that this is a part of our family" (USATODAY.com, 11/23). See the complete sponsorship portfolio for Toyota.
OPTION OFFENSE: MOTORSPORT.com's Lee Spencer reported Front Row Motorsports is "entertaining different manufacturing options" for '16. Front Row GM Jerry Freeze said that he is "assessing what the best opportunity would be for the three-car operation." FRM since '10 has fielded Fords in NASCAR, and Freeze said, "There's a lot of changes coming down the road with the Fords, and we need to adapt to that. So it will be a very busy off-season regardless of what we do. We just have to figure out what's best for us" (MOTORSPORT.com, 11/21).
