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"Mention the name Jarno Trulli and the next thought would be Formula 1. These days, Mika Salo is usually associated with a winning Ferrari F430.   But not right now. Instead, the Italian and Finnish drivers have been at New Smyrna Speedway in Florida, just a few miles south of Daytona, testing a Michael Waltrip Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Toyota. On this high-banked 1/2-mile oval, the Europeans got their first taste of what it&amp;#039;s like to wrestle a 3400-lb. 850-bhp stock car.   It was different enough for Salo, who has many miles in closed cars, but a real eye-opener for Trulli. In a distinguished career that started with karts and then 12 seasons in F1, Trulli had never before driven a race car with a roof.   Not surprisingly, both drivers were impressed by the Toyota&amp;#039;s size and power. Eighteen-year-old Trevor Bayne, who will race for MWR in the Nationwide series in 2010, dialed in the car each morning under the eye of the team&amp;#039;s tech guru, Bootie Baker, with Bayne suggesting tips about turning into the oval&amp;#039;s high banks.   After his morning session, Trulli said, &amp;quot;I&amp;#039;m enjoying it, but at the beginning it was a bit of a shock because the switch from a Formula 1 car to a NASCAR is very big...especially the mass of the car. It moves a lot and I&amp;#039;m used to a very stiff car, really on the ground. This one has a different way of reacting.   &amp;quot;In a way I would say it is easier for a Formula 1 driver because the time reaction is slower and you can figure it out. On the other hand, there are a lot of little details that can make you go slowly. Racing against 43 other cars on an oval would take time and experience.&amp;quot;   Salo smiled. &amp;quot;I was expecting worse,&amp;quot; said the Finn. &amp;quot;At the beginning I was just trying to get comfortable. I&amp;#039;ve never been on an oval before. Really good fun.&amp;quot; Asked how the Toyota compares to the Ferrari he normally drives, Salo smiled and said, &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s heavier and has a lot more power, but it&amp;#039;s easy to control the power...very driveable.&amp;quot; He would want much more practice before mixing it up with a field of stock cars, but added, &amp;quot;It must be fun with all the cars around you.&amp;quot;   NASCAR legend Mark Martin looked in on the test session and got a chuckle when he explained that the oval &amp;quot;...is really like a road course, except both turns go left.&amp;quot;   Martin figured that a good time around New Smyrna would be in the mid-18-second range during a race, and Bayne set a bogie of 18.5. Both Salo and Trulli got down to 18.7, running solo...and both came away smiling. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/news/a15262/from-formula-1-tonascar/>