Notes: Wreck makes for a tough start for Penske cars

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Two of the three cars owned by Roger Penske wrecked in NASCAR's season-opening Daytona 500, although they both returned several laps down.

A six-car accident on the seventh lap of Sunday's race collected Penske drivers Brad Keselowski and Sam Hornish Jr. The accident began when Keselowski had a problem with a tire and lost control of his Dodge.

"I must have run over something with the right rear tire," Keselowski said.

"I blew a tire going into Turn 1 and the car just took off," he said. "The tire just exploded and took the right-rear quarter panel out. It's a shame. You come here, work hard for two weeks trying to put a car together to do everything right, you study tapes, make all the right moves in the race and we only make six laps."

Keselowski was 34 laps down when he returned to the track, and Hornish was 48 behind. Penske Racing still had Kurt Busch in the field, and he had led several times.

The accident also collected Max Papis, Mike Bliss, Boris Said and Regan Smith.

Video:
• Keselowski and others tangle early

Green-white-checkered victim(s)?

Greg Biffle, the third-place finisher in the Daytona 500, was less than a mile from winning the race, had NASCAR not called a caution for a wreck in Turn 3 behind him.

Biffle was rounding Turn 4 on Lap 199 when the yellow flew for a crash involving Bill Elliott, Joey Logano and Boris Said. Had he taken the white flag under green, Biffle would have won the race.

At the drivers' meeting before Thursday's Gatorade Duel, NASCAR announced a rule change that would require as many as three attempts at a green-white-checkered-flag finish before a race could end. If NASCAR calls a caution before the leader takes the white flag and starts the final lap under green, another attempt at a green-white-checkered is required -- up to three times.

"I was thinking, 'Why do I have to be the first casualty of the rule change, to be the guy who didn't get the win?' " Biffle said.

Actually, that wasn't the case, because Biffle's winning chances came within the scheduled 200 laps, and under the same circumstances, NASCAR would have gone to a green-white-checkered under the old rule as well as the new.

It was actually Kevin Harvick, who was leading when caution flew on Lap 203 --three laps into overtime -- who suffered from the amendment. The subsequent green-white-checkered restart gave Jamie McMurray the chance he needed to win the race.

Related:
• Drivers sound off on multiple G-W-C attempts
• Harvick falls short in bid to cap solid weekend (Continued)