Jeff Gordon

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Updated: Jan. 11, 2006, 7:56 PM ET

Jeff Gordon off to strong start at Daytona testingAssociated Press

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Coming off a disappointing season, four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon is aiming to build momentum in a hurry for 2006.

The three-time and defending Daytona 500 winner is off to a good start in preseason testing, taking the top spot on the speed chart Tuesday -- after running second the previous day -- at Daytona International Speedway with a lap of 188.466 mph.

Two-time Daytona 500 champion Bill Elliott, first Monday, was Tuesday's runner-up at 188.025. Both drivers improved considerably from the previous day's speeds in the low 187s.

Gordon finished 11th in the points in 2005, failing to qualify for the 10-race Chase for the Nextel Cup championship. That's his worst showing since he finished 14th as a rookie in 1993, but Gordon expects better results in the upcoming season.

"It's not that we should win a championship every year," Gordon said. "But we certainly should be contending for race wins -- and on a fairly consistent basis -- and we should be up and battling in that championship in some way throughout the year."

Missing out on the playoff-style Chase was the biggest blow to Gordon and his Hendrick Motorsports team last season.

"Yeah, it tears our confidence down a little bit and it makes us scratch our heads, and sometimes we don't always go in the right direction," Gordon said. "But we never stop searching for what we've got to do to turn it back around. Sometimes, you've got to take big steps to turn it around and, sometimes, it's just right there and you're just missing one little ingredient."

The biggest changes for Gordon's No. 24 Chevrolet team are in the crew. Steve Letarte, who took over from Robbie Loomis with 10 races remaining in 2005, is in charge of a group that returns only jackman Jeff Cook. Everyone else on the crew is either in a different position or new to the team.

Under Letarte's leadership, Gordon finished 2005 with one win, three top fives and five top 10s in the final 10 races, raising everyone's expectations.

"We made a lot of changes and then changed some cars, changed some different things," Gordon said. "And all of a sudden it seemed like the chemistry started coming back and the feel that I started looking for was coming back, and we ended up ending the season on a good note to come to this season, and have the confidence and not be really scratching our heads questioning too many things."

Elliott Sadler was third Tuesday at 187.597 in a Ford, followed by Jimmie Johnson, Gordon's teammate, at 187.582 and the Ford of Matt Kenseth at 186.982. Mike McLaughlin, filling in during the three-day test for reigning Cup champion Tony Stewart, who chose not to participate, was next at 186.614 in a Chevy, with the Dodge of Jeremy Mayfield close behind at 186.521.

All the top speeds Tuesday came in the second session of the day for teams that finished in the odd points positions in last year's Cup standings. The teams that finished in the even positions will test on the 2.5-mile Daytona oval next week.