Top 14 at Daytona (since Feb 2011) |
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Fired up & ready for NASCAR Season to Crank Up!!!!!! Love me some NASCAR and cant wait to see the new changes throughout the NASCAR Landscape, such as Kennesth to Joe Gibbs driving Toyotas or Stenhouse Jr. looking to fill his void on the Roush team as one of many changes we will se this year. Personally, im looking for Stenhouse Jr. to make some noise in the Sprintcup, much like Keselwoski has broken out as a legit contender every week the past couple years....anyways, ready for em to get this shit started and serioiusly doubt Danica Patric finishes Daytona & say she crashes out half way before the race is over with....Daytona is always a toss up & i'd expect no different this year......Going to do a poll on who yall think will win the race & would love to hear yalls thoughts on the upcoming season as far as who your Under the Radar guy is, who yall think are legit contenders for the Sprint Cup, and who you think will have a bad season, plus anything else yall want to talk about....
Brad Keselowski: and the #2 Miller Lite Ford Fusion team will race chassis 654 in the Daytona 500 a brand new chassis for 2013. The backup chassis is 652 a brand new chassis for 2013.
Kasey Kahne: Crew chief Kenny Francis and the #5 team will unload brand new Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-768 for the first time in the Feb. 24 Daytona 500.
Danica Patrick will pilot chassis No. 10-758, a brand new chassis for the #10 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet Stewart-Haas Racing team.
Tony Stewart: Chassis No. 14-762 is a brand-new racecar that has never turned a wheel on the racetrack, but it has been wind-tunnel tested numerous times.
Greg Biffle: and the Matt Puccia led #16 3M Ford Fusion team will bring Primary Chassis RK-781 to Daytona which hit the track for the first time a year ago in the Daytona 500 and earned a third-place finish. Robbie Reiser has nicknamed RK-781 "Jake" after Puccia's pet cat.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: Chassis RK-830 is a brand new chassis for the Rookie of the Year contender. After the Daytona test in January, the #17 team went to work to build a brand new car.
Joey Logano: and the #22 Pennzoil/Shell Ford team will race chassis 653 in the Daytona 500, a brand new chassis for 2013. The backup chassis is 648 a brand new chassis for 2013.
Paul Menard will pilot chassis No. 409 for both the Budweiser Duel and Daytona 500. This #27 PEAK/Menards Chevrolet SS is a new addition to the Richard Childress Racing stable this season. Menard has 11 starts at Daytona International Speedway. His best start of first came in July 2008 and his best finish of sixth came in last year's Daytona 500. The Wisconsin native has completed 1,933 of 1,948 laps attempted at the 2.5-mile superspeedway, leading 37 of them.
Kevin Harvick: will pilot Chassis No.407 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in both the Budweiser Duel and Daytona 500. New to the fleet, this Budweiser Chevrolet SS will run its first competitive laps at the 2.5-mile superspeedway during Budweiser Speedweeks.
Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 296 in the second Budweiser Duel and Daytona 500. This Caterpillar chassis was utilized last season in the Daytona 500 by Burton and saw action at multiple restrictor-plate events during the 2010 and 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series seasons with driver Clint Bowyer. Burton's has 38 starts at Daytona International Speedway with one win (July 2000), nine top-five and 11 top-10 finishes. Burton also scored the pole position for the 2006 Daytona 500 and has led 145 laps at the historic 2.5-mile superspeedway. Pon CAT, Ring Power CAT and Toromont CAT will be featured on the deck lid of the #31 Caterpillar Chevrolet this weekend in the Daytona 500.
Ryan Newman: Chassis No. 39-664, which has two previous starts in restrictor-plate races, both coming during the 2011 season. Its first start came at Daytona in July 2011. Newman had a strong racecar, evidenced by his leading four times for a race-high 25 laps. But, in the end, he was relegated to a 23rd-place finish thanks to being shuffled out of the lead on the race's final restart and being collected in a last-lap accident. After extensive body work, the chassis returned to action at Talladega in October. Once again, his racecar was strong, but he was the victim of the two-car draft just before the race's halfway point. Newman was spun, which caused major front-end damage. The severe spin in the grass tore off Newman's front-bumper assembly and left him with a heavily damaged racecar and a 38th-place finish. Last season, Chassis No. 39-664 served as a backup car at Daytona and Talladega. Since then, the car's body has been updated for 2013, and it was wind-tunnel tested in January in preparation for the Daytona 500.
Jimmie Johnson: Chassis No. 771 serves as the primary for Johnson in the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, a brand new chassis. Chassis No. 618 serves as the backup and finished 14th in last years Sprint Unlimited event and 4th in the 2011 event..
Mark Martin: will drive MWR chassis 753 in the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: For the Feb. 24 Daytona 500, crew chief Steve Letarte has selected Chassis No. 88-773. This is a new chassis that has not been raced and will feature the blue National Guard scheme.
Carl Edwards the #99 Fastenal team will be using RK-835 for the Daytona 500. The car debuted this year as the primary for last weekend's Sprint Unlimited, when a wreck in practice forced the team to roll out a backup car and send 835 back to RFR for repairs. The #99 Fastenal Ford Fusion will continue its back to back sponsorship in Daytona where suppliers Milwaukee, GearWrench, Weiler and Rubbermaid will debut on the hood, TV panel, deck lid and B-post
Kasey Kahne: Crew chief Kenny Francis and the #5 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-636 for the Feb. 16 Sprint Unlimited event. Kahne last raced this chassis at Daytona’s exhibition event last February, where he finished 13th.
Tony Stewart: After a two-year hiatus, Chassis No. 14-532 returns to action in the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona. While this car was tested at Daytona Jan. 10-12, it was the first time Chassis No. 14-532 had been on a racetrack since the 2011 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona, where it started second and led four laps before finishing 11th. It has served as a backup ever since, but was totally rebuilt this offseason. This car debuted in February 2009 during Daytona Speedweeks where it served as the team’s primary machine for the Daytona 500. After clocking the 10th-quickest time during time trials, Chassis No. 14-532’s first race of any kind was the Gatorade Duel qualifying race. There, it started sixth and led two laps before finishing second to race-winner Jeff Gordon. But during final practice before the season-opening Daytona 500, Chassis No. 14-532 was caught up in an accident. With the damage too significant to fix at the track, the team was forced to use a backup racecar for the Daytona 500. Fully repaired, Chassis No. 14-532 returned to action in April at Talladega for its first career, point-paying start. There, it qualified 29th and finished 23rd. But those numbers weren’t indicative of the car’s performance, for Stewart was able to use Chassis No. 14-532 to climb to as high as second before engine woes dropped Stewart from eighth to 23rd in the race’s last three laps. The Coke Zero 400 at Daytona marked the car’s third career start, and it was a dandy. It started first when qualifying was rained-out and the field was set by car owner points. It then went on to lead nine times for a race-high 86 laps en route to victory. Chassis No. 14-532 was used in the final restrictor-plate race of the 2009 season at Talladega, where it was caught up in a late-race accident and finished 35th, delivering Stewart’s first DNF (Did Not Finish) in 55 races. With a new body honed in the wind tunnel, it served as a backup for most of 2010 until reappearing at Talladega in October. It ran well but was handed a poor finish when it was caught up in a last-lap crash that turned a top-10 effort into a 31st-place result. With new front and rear clips, as well as a new body, Chassis No. 14-532 reappeared in the 2011 Budweiser Shootout.
Joey Logano and his Todd Gordon-led Penske Racing #22 Team will be utilizing the “651” Shell-Pennzoil Ford in this weekend’s Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway. The chassis is brand new for 20013 and did not test at Daytona in January.
Kevin Harvick: will pilot Chassis No.387 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in the Sprint Unlimited. This Budweiser Chevy has seen significant superspeedway track time making laps at Daytona International Speedway last February and at Talladega Superspeedway in October 2012. The 2013 Sprint Unlimited will mark Harvick's ninth appearance in the pre-season, non-points paying event. During his first eight entries, Harvick has earned two wins (2009 & 2010), four top-five and six top-10 finishes.
Jimmie Johnson: Chassis No. 764 serves as the primary for Johnson in the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway, a brand new chassis. Chassis No. 618 serves as the backup and finished 14th in last years event and 4th in the 2011 event..
Mark Martin: will drive MWR chassis 747 in the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: For the Feb. 16 Sprint Unlimited, crew chief Steve Letarte and the #88 engineers have chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-756, which will be adorned with the blue National Guard paint scheme. This is a brand new chassis that has not been raced.
Carl Edwards: The #99 Fastenal team will be bringing chassis RK-835 to the track this weekend for the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway. Edwards will make his seventh start in the Sprint Unlimited Saturday night. His best finish to date is seventh in 2009. He has led 54 laps in his previous six starts. Edwards’ average start at Daytona International Speedway is 16.2; his average finish is 16.6. Edwards’ best finish at Daytona is second place, captured in 2011 500 (and in July 2008).
Micah Roberts’ Top-10 NASCAR Ratings Sprint Unlimited (Formerly known as the Bud Shootout) Daytona International Speedway Saturday, February 16, 2013, 8:10 p.m. ET.
RATING DRIVER ODDS TEST* PRAC 1 PRAC 2 2012 SHOOTOUT** 1. Kevin Harvick 8/1 2nd 1st 4th 22nd Two-time winner, the last coming in back-to-back years in 2010. Childress cars look good. 2. Matt Kenseth 8/1 1st 9th N/A 21st No wins in the Shootout, but does have two Daytona 500 wins, including last season. 3. Kyle Busch 8/1 3rd 10th 9th 1st 2012 winner; comes off a fantastic final 10 stretch in 2012 with seven top-5 finishes. 4. Greg Biffle 12/1 1st 3rd 3rd 6th Hasn’t won at Daytona since 2003 Firecracker, but Roush Racing affiliation strong here. 5. Kasey Kahne 12/1 3rd 4th 7th 13th Only restrictor-plate win of career came in 2010 Duel, but car has look of a possible winner. 6. Martin Truex Jr. 15/1 3rd 5th N/A 19th Best finish in two Shootout starts has been 19th, but Waltrip cars might have an edge here. 7. Denny Hamlin 10/1 3rd 12th 1st 5th Won Shootout as a rookie in 2006, his only career plate win. Gibbs cars might be best overall. 8. Mark Martin 25/1 4th 13th N/A N/A 1999 Shootout winner with only one top-5 in last 10, but MWR car is the strength here.. 9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 8/1 4th 6th N/A 20th Two-time Shootout winner, 2003 and 2008; new car might bring plate racing edge back to him. 10. Tony Stewart 10/1 5th 16th N/A 2nd Three-time Shootout winner: 2001, 2002 and 2007; average finish of 4.9 over last 12 starts. * Best ranking on speeds charts from any of the six preseason test sessions held at Daytona Jan 10-12. ** Finish in the 2012 Budweiser Shootout, held February 18, 2012
27 of the 54 Daytona 500s have been won from a top-five starting position.
Matt Kenseth won the Daytona 500 from the 39th starting position in 2009, the deepest a race winner has started.
Nine have been won from the pole. The last to do so was Dale Jarrett in 2000.
16 Daytona 500s have been won from the front row.
17 full-length races at Daytona have been won from the pole; the last to do it was Kevin Harvick in the 2011 Coke Zero 400.
Jeff Gordon has six victories at Daytona, more than any other active driver