For McMurray, Daytona win story of redemption

In the end, the 2010 Daytona 500 was about redemption.

On a day of furious racing that turned into a cold night as a hole in the asphalt threatened to swallow NASCAR's biggest race whole, the finish, surprisingly, was overflowing with redeeming qualities.

Sure, there was Dale Earnhardt Jr. charging through the pack like a driver possessed -- whipping what remained of the sellout crowd into a frenzied state. Earnhardt being in it at the finish is never a bad thing for NASCAR. After a disappointing season that yielded a career-worst finish in the point standings, Earnhardt had to be feeling a little redemption for himself Sunday. As a direct result, Daytona International Speedway was granted some on a date in which it did not cover itself in typical glory and didn't really deserve it.

But the real Kings of Redemption resided in Victory Lane afterward, and Earnhardt, despite his late-race heroics, finished second.

Winning driver Jamie McMurray was there along with car owners Chip Ganassi and Felix Sabates. The three were reunited after last season -- when McMurray found himself the odd man out at Roush Fenway Racing at the same time Ganassi and Sabates discovered themselves short one driver following the departure of Martin Truex Jr. to Michael Waltrip Racing.

"As a kid growing up, this is what you dream of -- of being able to win the Daytona 500," a beaming McMurray told reporters in the DIS media center afterward.

Reunited and it feels so good

Oddly enough, McMurray got his start in the Cup Series in 2002 with the Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates organization (which, now, because of a merger last year has been renamed Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates). McMurray first visited a Cup Victory Lane in only his second race, at Charlotte Motor Speedway, having replaced veteran Sterling Marlin following Marlin's season-ending neck injury.

While racing full time for Ganassi and Sabates in the next three seasons, McMurray never did win another race. But he did finish respectably in the point standings, finishing no lower than 13th. That included finishes of 11th and 12th, respectively, the first two years of the Chase, when 10 drivers, and not the 12 under the current format, qualified for the chance to win the title. (Continued)