Cook And Wyler Racing Happy With Martinsville Test Results

Mooresville, North Carolina (March 15, 2008) - Terry Cook will return to Martinsville Speedway for the Kroger 250 in two weeks with added confidence after a productive two-day test session at the 0.526-mile oval. Cook and the No. 60 Wyler.com Toyota were 23rd during Wednesday’s early session, but after discussing changes with crew chief George Church, Cook and crew stepped it up to be the fastest truck in Thursday’s final session. More importantly, they found speed and the feel Cook thinks will be competitive in race conditions.

Cook’s fastest lap overall during the two day test was 20.003 seconds/94.666 miles per hour with his lap of 20.113 topping the charts in Thursday’s final session.

“We don’t come to the track to be mildly competitive, we come to win,” Cook said following the test. “We tried some setups that this team used last year and for whatever reason they didn’t work. Rather than accept that and come back, we sat down and talked it out. Myself, George, (engineer) John Quinn, and (team manager) Tom Buzze all talked it out and came back with something different to try on Thursday. Instead of coming back and racing for a top ten, I think we can come back and race for the win.”

Cook believes the new tapered spacer plate being used in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will change the style of racing at the paperclip-shaped oval.

“There is no track in America that has the type of demands that Martinsville throws at you,” Cook said. “What we saw with the new tapered spacer is that you have to back the corner up even more. You want to pick up speed as soon as you can. That means you are going to be harder on the brakes to get it slowed down sooner so you can get back on the gas.

“NASCAR also mandated a gear that took out about 600 RPM out of the engine, so we can’t use the lower gear to help slow the truck down like we did last year. We saw more teams working on brakes than I’ve ever seen at Martinsville , and brakes are always an issue there. Even though they’ve changed the engine package and the track itself, it’s still the same old Martinsville .”

After the first three events of the 2008 season, Cook and his No. 60 Wyler.com Toyota Tundra sit in the eleventh spot in the overall points standings and a mere point out of the top-ten. The veteran racer is coming off two straight top-ten finishes after finishing fourth in California and eighth in Atlanta.

The Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway is the fourth round of the 2008 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season. FOX will carry the broadcast live, starting at 3:00 P.M. Eastern on Saturday, March 29. MRN Radio will offer live radio coverage on select affiliates nationwide and Sirius NASCAR Radio Channel 128.