Crews work on the cars of Ricky Rudd and Jeff Green during Saturday's rain delay. Credit: Autostock

Rain wipes out Saturday's Cup practices

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- Drivers will start Sunday's Aaron's 499 with no drafting runs after heavy rain wiped out Saturday's Nextel Cup practices.

Thunderstorms rolled through the area early Saturday, soaking the 2.66-mile track. Most of the morning was dry, but at noon, rain began to fall again.

The storms turned some of Talladega's grass infield to mud. The overnight storms were severe with extensive lightning, but the track said that no fan injuries were reported.

The tams had a two-hour practice before Friday qualifying, but most cars ran only a few laps.

Ricky Rudd, who qualified sixth, says he didn't think the lack of drafting practice was a problem.

"I don't think it's a big deal now. We've run this set of rules enough to know what to do," Rudd said. "We'll wait and see how it goes, but I guess we'll get 500 miles of drafting practice tomorrow."

Sunday's Aaron's 499 starts at 12:30 p.m. ET, and conditions are expected to be much better for the 500-miler, with sunny skies and temperatures in the low 70s.