NASCAR Notebook: Daytona 500
Barry F. Hess
February 16, 2007
The Great American Race
The field is set, the seven days of pre-race festivities are coming to a close and in just 48 hours the running of the 49th Daytona 500 will be in full throttle.
After last Sunday’s pole qualifying, several practice sessions, the running of the Budweiser Shootout and yesterday’s dual 150 qualifying races it’s fair to say everyone in the garage area has a fairly good idea about just how good, or in some cases not so good, their stuff is.
And with five former winners of the Great American Race taking the green flag the competition should be more intense than ever.
Though it’s hardly a surprise to see a car with a Hendrick motor under the hood running well at Daytona International Speedway it was a bit of a surprise to see the car belong to 21-year old Kyle Busch.
Busch, who will start in the eight positions after a fourth place finish in the second dual race, has been strong both in the draft and on his own for much of the weekend.
The younger of NASCAR’s only brother tandem currently racing a full Nextel Cup schedule led several laps in his qualifying heat as well as in last weekend’s Bud Shootout, however, both instances ended when his car experienced poor handling leaving at least some question marks leading up to Sunday.
If Busch can stay clean for the entire 500 miles expect to see the No. 5 Kellogg’s Chevy near the front of the pack when the checkered flag flies.
Last year didn’t provide many positive moments for Jaime McMurray and the rest of the No. 26 Crown Royal team, in fact, it didn’t provide any.
But McMurray is beginning his second season with Roush Racing with a positive attitude and high expectations and that includes a solid finish in Sunday’s season-opener.
McMurray has consistently ran well in restrictor plate races and nearly took the checkered flag at last spring’s Talladega event.
Starting 24th on the grid may be an issue, especially considering McMurray’s handling issues in his qualifying heat yesterday but expect veteran crew chief Larry Carter to fix those issues and give his young driver a strong chance to compete for at least a top 10 if not a win.
Winning the pole in Daytona is almost bitter sweet.
The winning driver gains a week of accolades and awards as well as an early ticket to next year’s Bud Shootout but often times the pole winning driver never even leads a lap once Sunday’s 500 rolls around.
Don’t expect to see that Sunday when David Gilliland and the No. 38 M&M’s Ford leads the pack to the green flag.
Though Gilliland is not considered a rookie by NASCAR standards Sunday will be his first trip around Daytona International Speedway in a stock car, lucky for him he’ll have the best view.
Gilliland has proven his Robert Yates Ford is not just a product of strong qualifying trim as he competed for the win in his dual race yesterday.
He also proved he can handle himself deep in a field after starting last weekend’s Shootout in 17th position only to finish second.
But running 500 miles in a 43-car field is somewhat different, if he can keep his composure and limit his mistakes throughout the event Gilliland should be in prime position to compete for the first Nextel Cup win of his career and without a doubt the biggest.
Though his restrictor plate program has not been the same since winning the 500 several years ago, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his No. 8 Budweiser DEI Chevy has been strong since unloading last weekend.
With a starting position inside the top five look for Junior to run very well in the draft and lead many laps early on.
If he can keep his car clean there is no reason to believe Junior can’t contend for the second 500 win of his career.
Prediction
Since unloading the No. 20 Home Depot Chevy last weekend there isn’t much Tony Stewart has had to worry about except which way he decides to celebrate taking the checkered flag.
After a solid win in the Bud Shootout, the third in his career, Stewart took his second checkered flag yesterday in the first dual race, giving him a perfect 2-for-2 to begin 2007.
With the famed Daytona 500 trophy one of the few Stewart does not have sitting on his mantle look for Smoke to be more determined than ever to take the No. 20 to Victory Lane this Sunday.
Starting third in the qualifying grid, don’t be surprised to see the bright orange Home Depot colors coming around turn four to lead the first lap and several others there after.
With a proven pit crew and crew chief in Greg Zipadeli the stars are perfectly aligned for Stewart to capture on of the few wins that has eluded him up to this point.
Going Hard and Going Home
This year 61 cars traveled to the Daytona International Speedway with visions of taking the checkered flag in arguably the biggest race in all of motor sports.
Unfortunately for 18 of those 61 drivers they will leave Florida without having even seen the green flag fly.
Qualifying for the 500 was never more intense than this year and as a result several notable drivers will be watching the event on television due to failure to qualify.
Notable Qualifiers
Sterling Marlin: As the first driver whose car sat on the outside of the top 35 in owner points Marlin and his No. 14 Waste Management crew has had two months to worry about missing the field. Obviously, however, they spent their time wisely and unloaded in Daytona with a car not only capable of qualifying on time but that can challenge for the win as well. Marlin, a back-to-back 500 winner, will start 38th.
Michael Waltrip: After being forced to qualify for the 500 in a back up car due to a failed inspection Waltrip had his back up against a wall.
As the first dual race got under way the No. 55 NAPA Toyota was in 31st position…three laps later and he was flirting with a spot in the top 10. Waltrip, who also has two 500 wins on his resume, has already leaped one giant hurdle he and his race team worried about heading into this unprecedented season and now he can sit back and enjoy the ride Sunday afternoon. Waltrip begins 15th.
Mike Wallace: Having seemingly made a career out of qualifying for the Daytona 500 in one of the Dual 150 races Wallace waited until the last turn of the last lap yesterday afternoon to take the position he needed to get into the race. After being three to four cars out of the necessary position Wallace found it in him to drive his car to the max and get into the show one more time. Wallace starts 22nd.
Boris Said: The famed road racer and his new No. 60 Sobe/No Fear Ford team desperately wanted to qualify for the 500, especially considering they took the pole and finished seventh in the July race last year. Said didn’t give his thousands of Said-heads much time to worry as his qualifying run was strong enough to earn him a spot right away. Said will start 23rd.
Notable Scratches
Jeremy Mayfield: Though Mayfield had one of the faster Toyotas during last weekend’s qualifying session he failed to make the first race in the No. 36 360 Toyota. Mayfield’s last chance to make the race was killed after Sterling Marlin dropped back in the filed during his dual race to help his teammate Joe Nemecheck get in the show
Paul Menard: After running a partial schedule last season Menard didn’t exactly get off on the right foot in his first full season in the No. 15 Menard’s DEI Chevy. Though he nearly made it in during his qualifying race yesterday he ended up missing the 500 by five positions.
Kenny Wallace: Wallace has done more than his fair share of work over the last three seasons with the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevy but when it comes to equipment you either have what it takes or you don’t and this year Wallace did not. After finishing nine positions lower than was required Wallace will miss the 500 for the third time over the last four years.
Brain Vickers: When Vickers left his comply seat in the No. 25 GMAC Chevy he knew it would be a tough road in the No. 83 Red Bull Toyota but he probably never dreamed of missing the Daytona 500. Vickers did not unload with a lot of speed and even worse yet he didn’t gain any through practice or the duals. Vickers, who earned his first Cup win at Talladega as well as a seventh place finish in last year’s 500 will sit this one out.
NASCAR Headed Back in Time To the Wild West
Just days before the running of the 49th Daytona 500 the buzz around the garage was not about handling or speed or even several of the big names that failed to qualify for the race.
Instead it was about the four, up until last night when Jeff Gordon become the fifth, victims of unprecedented penalties imposed by NASCAR after failing either pre or post qualifying inspections or in Gordon’s case post race inspection after yesterday’s second dual 150 race.
By now most are aware of the extreme penalties but in a nut shell Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne, Scott Riggs, Elliot Sadler and Michael Waltrip will all race this Sunday’s 500 without their primary crew chief.
Both Kenseth and Kahne were docked 50 points before they had even accumulated any while Riggs and Sadler were each docked 25, the difference being their infractions were found in pre-qualifying inspection rather than post.
Waltrip, however, suffered the most severe penalties.
His No. 55 NAPA Toyota was confiscated, forcing him to go with the back-up and he was docked 100 points.
The latest infraction came last night when Gordon’s car failed to meet the proper height requirements NASCAR imposes during a post-race inspection, he was not stripped of the win but will be forced to start 42nd.
His crew chief Steve Latart did not receive any penalty.
Cheating, in any sport, can not be excepted otherwise it lessens the credibility of the sport as whole and it must be dealt with quickly and fairly.
And while no teams have yet to appeal the penalties, mostly because if they did it would prevent crew from participating in the Bristol race, the first running of the Car of Tomorrow, the way NASCAR decided to act was inappropriate and inexcusable.
Firstly, the penalty given to Gordon after yesterday’s race was mind-boggling.
After such sever penalties were dished out earlier in the week Gordon was spared for the most part due to NASCAR’s belief that Gordon’s team did not actually intend to break the rule.
We feel it was unintentional, and actually fairly unsafe,” said NASCAR Competition Director Robin Pemberton. “We feel that it was a part failure, and we feel that it was unintentionally done. I think it would be marginal at best if there was any advantage.”
Which begs the question, why then was any penalty given at all?
Since NASCAR is now taking an active role in deciding which infractions they feel were deliberate and which ones were not I’ve now begun to understand why many racing fans believe the driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevy is given special treatment by his friends in the NASCAR trailer.
Moving ahead to the more sever penalties, the deduction of driver points is just downright wrong.
The penalties Kenseth and Kahne suffered also made many around the garage scratch their heads.
That was 10 times graver an infraction than this was,'' said Kenseth, the 2003 Cup series champion, comparing Jimmie Johnson’s situation of one year ago to his. “There were parts purposely built to move body panels around, all kinds of stuff[in Johnson’s car] and we had a couple covers, or one cover, come off that was covering a hole up. It's night and day difference. ...It's kind of like the difference between jaywalking and attempted murder.”
The fact that Michael Waltrip’s season, for all intensive purposes, is now over before race one on the schedule even begins after the deduction of 100 points is a disgrace and reminds me of the way the law was enforced in the days of the Wild West and many team owners are in full agreement.
Certainly, it's been unprecedented,” said Jack Roush. “But if you look and say what have been the precedents of NASCAR, what has been their history and their tradition, it has been to do unprecedented things -- when it suits their purpose. They continue to do things that are different and that are more severe as they relate to infractions than has historically been the case.”
He who has the biggest gun gets to make the law , oh and by the way, they also reserve the right to change the law to something new any time they feel like it.
Over the last several seasons NASCAR has continued to up the ante in the way they delegate penalties and it has to stop.
And while formats like the Chase for the Nextel Cup are designed to give NASCAR the look and feel of the other four major American sports they will never truly be considered a part of that league until they stop operating under such a primitive system.
Fines and penalties like this would be nothing more than a punch-line in leagues like the NFL or Major League Baseball.
The lack of any sort of Driver’s Association or Union in NASCAR ultimately allows Mike Helton and Brian France to do whatever they want, whenever they want to do it.
NASCAR can not be allowed to simply change the way they give penalties on a week by week basis, nor can they be allowed to determine which infractions were intentional and which were not.
I don't mind the rules,” said Ray Evernham. “I do want the cheating -- even the gray area -- to stop, but the way the rule book is written, it forces you to do those things. ... Now that you can be suspended or penalized heavily for presenting something that you are not sure of, now what do you do? We're going to have to say that maybe the rules have to be written a little bit more clearly.''
The entire situation is an absolute joke.
Drivers of NASCAR need to stop accepting the ridiculous treatment they have been given by NASCAR since the sport’s inception and start to fight back.
Form a union, force NASCAR to take part in a collective bargaining agreement as other sports do and this kind of ridiculous treatment will cease and desist faster than Brain France can make a million dollars…and we all know just how fast that is.
NASCAR is a great sport, perhaps the greatest sport but the way it is governed has to change.
Wyatt Earp was a great man but he enforced law in the Wild West by shooting first and never asking questions later, that type of governing worked for a while but in 2007 it should remain on the big screen and not in places like the race track.
Random Thought
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has continued to state his current contract dispute is not causing a distraction on the track, however, over shooting his pit box and causing a big wreck last weekend in the Bud Shootout would prove otherwise.
Kudos to 72-year old James Hylton on trying to make the 500, he came dangerously close to making the cut at one point in yesterday’s duel 150 race.
As a former championship crew chief himself expect to see team owner Ray Evernham atop Kasey Kahne’s pit box for at least this Sunday race.
The field is set, the seven days of pre-race festivities are coming to a close and in just 48 hours the running of the 49th Daytona 500 will be in full throttle.
After last Sunday’s pole qualifying, several practice sessions, the running of the Budweiser Shootout and yesterday’s dual 150 qualifying races it’s fair to say everyone in the garage area has a fairly good idea about just how good, or in some cases not so good, their stuff is.
And with five former winners of the Great American Race taking the green flag the competition should be more intense than ever.
Though it’s hardly a surprise to see a car with a Hendrick motor under the hood running well at Daytona International Speedway it was a bit of a surprise to see the car belong to 21-year old Kyle Busch.
Busch, who will start in the eight positions after a fourth place finish in the second dual race, has been strong both in the draft and on his own for much of the weekend.
The younger of NASCAR’s only brother tandem currently racing a full Nextel Cup schedule led several laps in his qualifying heat as well as in last weekend’s Bud Shootout, however, both instances ended when his car experienced poor handling leaving at least some question marks leading up to Sunday.
If Busch can stay clean for the entire 500 miles expect to see the No. 5 Kellogg’s Chevy near the front of the pack when the checkered flag flies.
Last year didn’t provide many positive moments for Jaime McMurray and the rest of the No. 26 Crown Royal team, in fact, it didn’t provide any.
But McMurray is beginning his second season with Roush Racing with a positive attitude and high expectations and that includes a solid finish in Sunday’s season-opener.
McMurray has consistently ran well in restrictor plate races and nearly took the checkered flag at last spring’s Talladega event.
Starting 24th on the grid may be an issue, especially considering McMurray’s handling issues in his qualifying heat yesterday but expect veteran crew chief Larry Carter to fix those issues and give his young driver a strong chance to compete for at least a top 10 if not a win.
Winning the pole in Daytona is almost bitter sweet.
The winning driver gains a week of accolades and awards as well as an early ticket to next year’s Bud Shootout but often times the pole winning driver never even leads a lap once Sunday’s 500 rolls around.
Don’t expect to see that Sunday when David Gilliland and the No. 38 M&M’s Ford leads the pack to the green flag.
Though Gilliland is not considered a rookie by NASCAR standards Sunday will be his first trip around Daytona International Speedway in a stock car, lucky for him he’ll have the best view.
Gilliland has proven his Robert Yates Ford is not just a product of strong qualifying trim as he competed for the win in his dual race yesterday.
He also proved he can handle himself deep in a field after starting last weekend’s Shootout in 17th position only to finish second.
But running 500 miles in a 43-car field is somewhat different, if he can keep his composure and limit his mistakes throughout the event Gilliland should be in prime position to compete for the first Nextel Cup win of his career and without a doubt the biggest.
Though his restrictor plate program has not been the same since winning the 500 several years ago, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his No. 8 Budweiser DEI Chevy has been strong since unloading last weekend.
With a starting position inside the top five look for Junior to run very well in the draft and lead many laps early on.
If he can keep his car clean there is no reason to believe Junior can’t contend for the second 500 win of his career.
Prediction
Since unloading the No. 20 Home Depot Chevy last weekend there isn’t much Tony Stewart has had to worry about except which way he decides to celebrate taking the checkered flag.
After a solid win in the Bud Shootout, the third in his career, Stewart took his second checkered flag yesterday in the first dual race, giving him a perfect 2-for-2 to begin 2007.
With the famed Daytona 500 trophy one of the few Stewart does not have sitting on his mantle look for Smoke to be more determined than ever to take the No. 20 to Victory Lane this Sunday.
Starting third in the qualifying grid, don’t be surprised to see the bright orange Home Depot colors coming around turn four to lead the first lap and several others there after.
With a proven pit crew and crew chief in Greg Zipadeli the stars are perfectly aligned for Stewart to capture on of the few wins that has eluded him up to this point.
Going Hard and Going Home
This year 61 cars traveled to the Daytona International Speedway with visions of taking the checkered flag in arguably the biggest race in all of motor sports.
Unfortunately for 18 of those 61 drivers they will leave Florida without having even seen the green flag fly.
Qualifying for the 500 was never more intense than this year and as a result several notable drivers will be watching the event on television due to failure to qualify.
Notable Qualifiers
Sterling Marlin: As the first driver whose car sat on the outside of the top 35 in owner points Marlin and his No. 14 Waste Management crew has had two months to worry about missing the field. Obviously, however, they spent their time wisely and unloaded in Daytona with a car not only capable of qualifying on time but that can challenge for the win as well. Marlin, a back-to-back 500 winner, will start 38th.
Michael Waltrip: After being forced to qualify for the 500 in a back up car due to a failed inspection Waltrip had his back up against a wall.
As the first dual race got under way the No. 55 NAPA Toyota was in 31st position…three laps later and he was flirting with a spot in the top 10. Waltrip, who also has two 500 wins on his resume, has already leaped one giant hurdle he and his race team worried about heading into this unprecedented season and now he can sit back and enjoy the ride Sunday afternoon. Waltrip begins 15th.
Mike Wallace: Having seemingly made a career out of qualifying for the Daytona 500 in one of the Dual 150 races Wallace waited until the last turn of the last lap yesterday afternoon to take the position he needed to get into the race. After being three to four cars out of the necessary position Wallace found it in him to drive his car to the max and get into the show one more time. Wallace starts 22nd.
Boris Said: The famed road racer and his new No. 60 Sobe/No Fear Ford team desperately wanted to qualify for the 500, especially considering they took the pole and finished seventh in the July race last year. Said didn’t give his thousands of Said-heads much time to worry as his qualifying run was strong enough to earn him a spot right away. Said will start 23rd.
Notable Scratches
Jeremy Mayfield: Though Mayfield had one of the faster Toyotas during last weekend’s qualifying session he failed to make the first race in the No. 36 360 Toyota. Mayfield’s last chance to make the race was killed after Sterling Marlin dropped back in the filed during his dual race to help his teammate Joe Nemecheck get in the show
Paul Menard: After running a partial schedule last season Menard didn’t exactly get off on the right foot in his first full season in the No. 15 Menard’s DEI Chevy. Though he nearly made it in during his qualifying race yesterday he ended up missing the 500 by five positions.
Kenny Wallace: Wallace has done more than his fair share of work over the last three seasons with the No. 78 Furniture Row Chevy but when it comes to equipment you either have what it takes or you don’t and this year Wallace did not. After finishing nine positions lower than was required Wallace will miss the 500 for the third time over the last four years.
Brain Vickers: When Vickers left his comply seat in the No. 25 GMAC Chevy he knew it would be a tough road in the No. 83 Red Bull Toyota but he probably never dreamed of missing the Daytona 500. Vickers did not unload with a lot of speed and even worse yet he didn’t gain any through practice or the duals. Vickers, who earned his first Cup win at Talladega as well as a seventh place finish in last year’s 500 will sit this one out.
NASCAR Headed Back in Time To the Wild West
Just days before the running of the 49th Daytona 500 the buzz around the garage was not about handling or speed or even several of the big names that failed to qualify for the race.
Instead it was about the four, up until last night when Jeff Gordon become the fifth, victims of unprecedented penalties imposed by NASCAR after failing either pre or post qualifying inspections or in Gordon’s case post race inspection after yesterday’s second dual 150 race.
By now most are aware of the extreme penalties but in a nut shell Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne, Scott Riggs, Elliot Sadler and Michael Waltrip will all race this Sunday’s 500 without their primary crew chief.
Both Kenseth and Kahne were docked 50 points before they had even accumulated any while Riggs and Sadler were each docked 25, the difference being their infractions were found in pre-qualifying inspection rather than post.
Waltrip, however, suffered the most severe penalties.
His No. 55 NAPA Toyota was confiscated, forcing him to go with the back-up and he was docked 100 points.
The latest infraction came last night when Gordon’s car failed to meet the proper height requirements NASCAR imposes during a post-race inspection, he was not stripped of the win but will be forced to start 42nd.
His crew chief Steve Latart did not receive any penalty.
Cheating, in any sport, can not be excepted otherwise it lessens the credibility of the sport as whole and it must be dealt with quickly and fairly.
And while no teams have yet to appeal the penalties, mostly because if they did it would prevent crew from participating in the Bristol race, the first running of the Car of Tomorrow, the way NASCAR decided to act was inappropriate and inexcusable.
Firstly, the penalty given to Gordon after yesterday’s race was mind-boggling.
After such sever penalties were dished out earlier in the week Gordon was spared for the most part due to NASCAR’s belief that Gordon’s team did not actually intend to break the rule.
We feel it was unintentional, and actually fairly unsafe,” said NASCAR Competition Director Robin Pemberton. “We feel that it was a part failure, and we feel that it was unintentionally done. I think it would be marginal at best if there was any advantage.”
Which begs the question, why then was any penalty given at all?
Since NASCAR is now taking an active role in deciding which infractions they feel were deliberate and which ones were not I’ve now begun to understand why many racing fans believe the driver of the No. 24 DuPont Chevy is given special treatment by his friends in the NASCAR trailer.
Moving ahead to the more sever penalties, the deduction of driver points is just downright wrong.
The penalties Kenseth and Kahne suffered also made many around the garage scratch their heads.
That was 10 times graver an infraction than this was,'' said Kenseth, the 2003 Cup series champion, comparing Jimmie Johnson’s situation of one year ago to his. “There were parts purposely built to move body panels around, all kinds of stuff[in Johnson’s car] and we had a couple covers, or one cover, come off that was covering a hole up. It's night and day difference. ...It's kind of like the difference between jaywalking and attempted murder.”
The fact that Michael Waltrip’s season, for all intensive purposes, is now over before race one on the schedule even begins after the deduction of 100 points is a disgrace and reminds me of the way the law was enforced in the days of the Wild West and many team owners are in full agreement.
Certainly, it's been unprecedented,” said Jack Roush. “But if you look and say what have been the precedents of NASCAR, what has been their history and their tradition, it has been to do unprecedented things -- when it suits their purpose. They continue to do things that are different and that are more severe as they relate to infractions than has historically been the case.”
He who has the biggest gun gets to make the law , oh and by the way, they also reserve the right to change the law to something new any time they feel like it.
Over the last several seasons NASCAR has continued to up the ante in the way they delegate penalties and it has to stop.
And while formats like the Chase for the Nextel Cup are designed to give NASCAR the look and feel of the other four major American sports they will never truly be considered a part of that league until they stop operating under such a primitive system.
Fines and penalties like this would be nothing more than a punch-line in leagues like the NFL or Major League Baseball.
The lack of any sort of Driver’s Association or Union in NASCAR ultimately allows Mike Helton and Brian France to do whatever they want, whenever they want to do it.
NASCAR can not be allowed to simply change the way they give penalties on a week by week basis, nor can they be allowed to determine which infractions were intentional and which were not.
I don't mind the rules,” said Ray Evernham. “I do want the cheating -- even the gray area -- to stop, but the way the rule book is written, it forces you to do those things. ... Now that you can be suspended or penalized heavily for presenting something that you are not sure of, now what do you do? We're going to have to say that maybe the rules have to be written a little bit more clearly.''
The entire situation is an absolute joke.
Drivers of NASCAR need to stop accepting the ridiculous treatment they have been given by NASCAR since the sport’s inception and start to fight back.
Form a union, force NASCAR to take part in a collective bargaining agreement as other sports do and this kind of ridiculous treatment will cease and desist faster than Brain France can make a million dollars…and we all know just how fast that is.
NASCAR is a great sport, perhaps the greatest sport but the way it is governed has to change.
Wyatt Earp was a great man but he enforced law in the Wild West by shooting first and never asking questions later, that type of governing worked for a while but in 2007 it should remain on the big screen and not in places like the race track.
Random Thought
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has continued to state his current contract dispute is not causing a distraction on the track, however, over shooting his pit box and causing a big wreck last weekend in the Bud Shootout would prove otherwise.
Kudos to 72-year old James Hylton on trying to make the 500, he came dangerously close to making the cut at one point in yesterday’s duel 150 race.
As a former championship crew chief himself expect to see team owner Ray Evernham atop Kasey Kahne’s pit box for at least this Sunday race.
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