There has to be a better way to get 43 into the 500

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- If there's a more agonizing, truly brutal qualifying format in all of motorsports than that used for the Daytona 500, I'd like to see it.

Actually, considering the notoriety of the Daytona 500 -- Sprint Cup racing's "Super Bowl" -- there's actually an equal amount of ecstasy to go with the agony.

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But when you add the frustration of knowing you had a car fast enough to earn its way into the 500, and yet there's no guarantee -- and worse yet -- more than two-dozen "welfare recipients" might make it into the season's most lucrative and prestigious race; the agony will outweigh the joy every time.

And because of the infernal "locked-in top 35" rule, most of the teams trapped in that paradox of NASCAR's corporate welfare system are truly feeling the pain Sunday night.

Two-time defending Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson won his second Daytona 500 pole at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday in his seventh season (read more).

The relaxed demeanor displayed by Johnson and his crew chief Chad Knaus, who said that winning the pole and "sitting on it" for a week until the 500 runs earned their team a lot of respect, just as much relief and changed their approach to Thursday's Gatorade Dual 150-mile qualifying races; was worlds away from that in the non-qualified camp.

But for the 15 cars that are not yet in the $18.6 million show, the next three-and-a-half days will be hours of distress, that may not be relieved after Thursday's qualifiers.

Just ask Boris Said, who turned in the ninth-best overall qualifying speed on Sunday, yet is only fourth fastest among the "go or go home" cars.

There's no guarantee that either Joe Nemechek or David Reutimann, the two fastest go or go homers, who are locked into the 500 on account, will make it into the "Great American Race" based on a top-two finish among the non-locked-in cars in their respective qualifiers, thus opening a spot for Said.

So Said, who at least twice last season was devastated by the top-35 qualifying rules, by his own admission said he would "sleep a lot better if we were third [best]" between Sunday and Thursday.

Now, he -- along with everyone else among the 15 "do or die" cars -- has two practice sessions on Wednesday to tune in their cars for a 150-mile last chance race.

If either Nemechek or Reutimann race their way into the 500, the popular Said will be in as well, on his speed. That's something Patrick Carpentier (11th), Brian Vickers (16th) and Jacques Villeneuve (17th) are also hoping -- though if one of the three past champions in the go or go home group needs to use a "past champion's provisional," only two speed cars total will make the race.

And that ain't easy on the nerves.

I'd like to be able to say the locked-in top 35 format is at the root of the overwhelming feeling of unease that's currently affecting a large chunk of the entry list; but that was always the case if your car was too slow, through the 500's 49 previous years of history.

Counting on being able to race into the 500 through the qualifying races was a tenuous bet, at best. Now, with only four go or go home cars getting into the 500 through that route -- two in each qualifier -- the prospects are even less optimistic if you're not already locked-in.

Leave it to Michael Waltrip, one of the sport's sharper wits, to sum it up in his post-qualifying media briefing for winning the second starting position, as he gave credit to Hendrick Motorsports and Johnson for their pole win.

Waltrip, who a year ago had to scratch and claw his way into the 500 through his qualifying race, claimed to be the leader in at least one category on Sunday.

"I'm No. 1 in 'happy,'" Waltrip said. "They [Hendrick's No. 48 team] woke up this morning knowing what they'd be doing next Sunday -- I woke up in a fog."

By 4 p.m. ET Sunday, a lot of the haze had cleared for Waltrip, who a year ago put all three of his cars into the 500 as a first-year team. When qualifying ended, Waltrip and his second driver, David Reutimann, had their Toyotas locked-into the field.

But for the rest of the group that's sleeping each night on a bed of nails -- including Michael Waltrip Racing's third driver, incredibly the three-time Daytona 500 winner and a past champion, Dale Jarrett -- the haze will only get thicker until Thursday.

And only at that point, will a ray of sunshine break through for five more go or go homers, along with Waltrip, Nemechek and Reutimann.

I hope the rest of the group will have the strength to persevere through the agony this week becomes, even as thousands and thousands of fans revel in the opening of the season.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer