In a Busch league of their own

Kyle Busch and Toyota are winning over very few fans at the race track

JOLIET, Ill. — Moments after eking out a dramatic, come-from-behind victory at a NASCAR race here earlier this month, Kyle Busch climbed out the window of his No. 18 Toyota and took a bow.

The crowd's reaction? A chorus of boos.

The slim, 23-year-old Nevada native acknowledges that many hard-core NASCAR fans regard him as "cocky" and "arrogant." But, among the many race-goers who are fiercely proud of NASCAR's American roots, his Japanese car is another strike against him.

"There are a lot of fans who don't necessarily like Toyota," Busch said in an interview.

Two years ago, Toyota Motor Corp. joined NASCAR's top circuit, the Sprint Cup, hoping to win over the millions of Americans across the country who flock to racetracks or tune in to NASCAR broadcasts.

Since then, Toyota's performance has attracted lots of notice. Busch's victory at the Chicagoland Speedway was his seventh this season, and he tops the Sprint Cup driver standings. Newcomer

Toyota also leads Ford Motor Co.'s Ford brand, General Motors Corp.'s Chevrolet and Chrysler LLC's Dodge in the manufacturer standings.

Toyota's success on the track comes at an awkward time, however. Detroit's Big Three auto makers, preferred by many NASCAR fans, are on their knees amid a brutal industry slump. And Toyota threatens to surpass GM as the top seller of autos in the U.S.

GM, Ford and Chrysler, meanwhile, are closing factories and laying off thousands of workers in the face of the worst market in decades. As part of cost-cutting moves announced last week, GM notified Bristol Motor Speedway that it won't renew its sponsorship of the Tennessee track.

Against that backdrop, Toyota's success on the track seems to be attracting more suspicion than loyalty.

Other auto makers and teams say Toyota is throwing money at the sport and buying titles, creating an uneven playing field at a time when U.S. auto makers are looking to cut their marketing budgets.

Busch, who recently faced a shower of beer cans after a victory in Daytona, Fla., has developed his own philosophy about NASCAR, which may have some resonance for Toyota.

"The problem with this sport," he said, "is people don't really like to give you the benefit of the doubt."

This year, Toyota got a break. It was able to lure Joe Gibbs Racing team away from a 15-year partnership with GM. That helped to vault Toyota to the top tier of NASCAR with drivers like Tony Stewart, as well as the controversial Busch.

Joe Gibbs, the team owner, declined to say how much Toyota's sponsorship was worth, but he said it was on par with what GM paid his team. Toyota declined to comment on its motor-sports budget.

In the past two decades, Toyota and other Japanese auto makers have worn down much of the antiforeign sentiment they once faced in the U.S., in part by expanding their American operations. Toyota currently operates five U.S. assembly plants and employs 36,600 workers in eight states.

Now, it is counting on its NASCAR credentials to bind it tighter to American culture. NASCAR "puts you in the mainstream," said Lee White, president of Toyota Racing Development. Toyota can "gain acceptance with millions more fans than we could've ever reached."