DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- As the final day of Preseason Thunder wrapped, there was certainly no shortage of information NASCAR and the teams gathered during this three-day test as speeds continued to stand close to the 200-mph mark. Kasey Kahne led the morning session with a speed of 201.545 mph, with Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Jimmie Johnson also posting times near the top of the charts. Teams continued to collaborate with NASCAR throughout the day, in particular with the afternoon pack drafting session, to work toward the goal of reducing the ease of the tandem draft and making it an exception instead of the norm. "Once we leave here, obviously there will be a lot of energy spent on looking through all of the data that we've collected this week," Sprint Cup Series director John Darby said. "Looking through lap times and speeds and watching film and footage. I would like to have the final rules package out as quickly as we can just to make sure the teams have enough time to react to everything." Drivers and crew chiefs have been very positive regarding the test, the sharing of information and the adjustments being made by NASCAR. "They're [NASCAR] definitely thinking ahead and doing a lot of research and development back at their shop," Joe Gibbs Racing crew chief Darian Grubb said. "Just coming here with a pre-planned effort with some of the changes and things that they've already done has been a real positive. They've got the data being collected and have a good idea of what they want to do and what they want to accomplish. As they filter that out to us, we go out and hit the race track with it and see how that changes our cars." "A.J. [Allmendinger] and I were able to log a lot of laps [Saturday] and I feel good about our package for the 500," Penske Racing driver Brad Keselowski said. "It's getting harder to perform the two-car draft so maybe we'll see some pack racing when we come back. I had a blast running in the pack [Saturday]." The afternoon session kicked off with pack drafting for most teams. Top speed of the afternoon was 200.562 mph, posted by Gordon. NASCAR officials were also pleased with the test and will be taking this data back to the Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C., to assist in getting the final rules package together for next month's Daytona 500. "We've had a good test and gained a lot of information," vice president of competition Robin Pemberton said. "We know that when we come out of here, there will be some loose ends we have to tie up as we get all of our information together and come up with our final plans for Speedweeks. I can say that all in all everything is going according to plan."Preseason Thunder: Day 3
Morning Practice Speeds
Pos. Driver Time Speed Pos. Driver Time Speed 2. Jeff Gordon 44.655 201.545 17. A.J. Allmendinger 47.013 191.436 3. Kurt Busch 45.121 199.464 18. Aric Almirola 47.056 191.261 4. Mark Martin 45.122 199.459 19. Joey Logano 47.102 191.075 5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 45.134 199.406 20. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 47.176 190.775 6. Jimmie Johnson 45.136 199.397 21. Greg Biffle 47.188 190.726 7. Jeff Burton 45.215 199.049 22. Denny Hamlin 47.195 190.698 8. Regan Smith 45.216 199.045 23. Clint Bowyer 47.217 190.609 9. Jamie McMurray 46.283 194.456 24. Marcos Ambrose 47.260 190.436 10. Juan Montoya 46.644 192.951 25. Martin Truex Jr. 47.276 190.371 11. Paul Menard 46.721 192.633 26. Carl Edwards 47.317 190.206 12. Danica Patrick 46.868 192.029 27. Matt Kenseth 47.408 189.841 13. Tony Stewart 46.904 191.881 28. Brad Keselowski 47.534 189.338 14. Kyle Busch 46.955 191.673 29. Dave Blaney 47.739 188.525 15. Trevor Bayne 46.967 191.624 30. Joe Nemechek 47.855 188.068 Preseason Thunder: Day 3
Afternoon Practice Speeds
Pos. Driver Time Speed Pos. Driver Time Speed 2. A.J. Allmendinger 44.877 200.548 15. Aric Almirola 45.446 198.037 3. Brad Keselowski 44.877 200.548 16. Greg Biffle 45.451 198.015 4. Kasey Kahne 44.892 200.481 17. Matt Kenseth 45.452 198.011 5. Denny Hamlin 45.006 199.973 18. Marcos Ambrose 45.488 197.854 6. Joey Logano 45.007 199.969 19. Carl Edwards 45.540 197.628 7. Martin Truex Jr. 45.090 199.601 20. Regan Smith 45.541 197.624 8. Clint Bowyer 45.091 199.596 21. Joe Nemechek 46.199 194.809 9. Juan Montoya 45.190 199.159 22. Jimmie Johnson 46.462 193.707 10. Jamie McMurray 45.248 198.904 23. Paul Menard 46.560 193.299 11. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 45.310 198.632 24. Kevin Harvick 46.744 192.538 12. Mark Martin 45.368 198.378 25. Trevor Bayne 46.777 192.402 13. Jeff Burton 45.378 198.334 26. Trevor Bayne * 47.001 191.485
