Brian Scott, Josh Wise, Justin Marks and Ron Hornaday Jr. also miss field
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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Crashes, mechanical woes and disputes over racing room all added to the pressure cooker of Thursday night’s qualifying races at Daytona International Speedway. For an unfortunate half-dozen drivers, the bubble finally burst.
Six hopefuls were left on the outside of the 43-car field for Sunday’s 57th Daytona 500 (1 p.m. ET, FOX), coming up short of making the final cut in the Budweiser Duels. Alex Bowman, Jeb Burton, Ron Hornaday Jr., Justin Marks, Brian Scott and Josh Wise — all with varying degrees of experience in NASCAR’s most prestigious event — were the odd men out.
Bowman, Burton and Scott all fell victim to crashes in the second 150-mile qualifying race. Bowman’s Tommy Baldwin Racing No. 7 caught the brunt of the damage in the 37th-lap melee; he emerged from the infield care center unhurt but resigned to the fact that his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start with TBR will come next weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
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“I hate it,” Bowman said of the pins-needles waiting game. “Really I’m not a fan of this style of racing, and this whole week is more stressful than I wish it was. But it’s the game, and we all choose to play it.”
Burton — trying desperately to make his Sprint Cup debut in his first Daytona 500 start — wrecked for the second time in two days, right on the heels of his sustaining damage in the opening moments of Wednesday’s practice. The second-day setback sent the BK Racing No. 26 Toyota home early, causing the Sunoco Rookie of the Year candidate to echo Bowman’s sentiments.
“I hate it,” Burton said. “I just … wrong spot, wrong time. These cars are so on the edge. I was very disappointed for us. We’ll have to go get them in Atlanta.”
Scott’s misfortune came later, after Danica Patrick spun in the midst of close racing in Turn 3 with Denny Hamlin. The mishap snared Scott’s No. 62 Chevy, plus the No. 31 Chevrolet of Richard Childress Racing’s Ryan Newman
“There was just nowhere I could go,” Scott said as he walked away, shortly after learning his Speedweeks outcome. “Got us damage, got us in a bad situation. Obviously didn’t finish good enough because of it. It’s a nerve-wracking race for all those reasons. You’ve got fast cars that should be in the show that go home. It’s a show. It’s a good show for the fans, I suppose.”
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Wise’s Daytona 500 hopes failed to get off the ground before the green flag ever fell on the second 60-lap qualifier. His No. 98 Ford stalled during pace laps, forcing his Phil Parsons Racing team to work on a faulty fuel pick-up behind the wall.
Wise finally joined the race, 12 laps down after repairs, but completed just one circuit before calling it a day.
“Total disbelief pretty much sums it up,” Wise said via Twitter. “Was looking forward to racing my way into the Daytona 500 tonight. Something happened to the fuel pump and we never took the green flag. I really hate it for my team because I know how hard they work. Thanks for all the kind messages. We will bounce back and be ready to go for Atlanta.”
Justin Marks, attempting to make his first Daytona 500 start and just his second Sprint Cup appearance, needed to race his way in with a finish of 16th or better in the first Duel (thanks to Gordon placing inside the top 15). He wound up 18th in the RAB Racing No. 29 Toyota.
Ron Hornaday Jr., the four-time Camping World Truck Series champion, was attempting to make his first Sprint Cup start since 2003. His effort with The Motorsports Group start-up team went downhill shortly after his No. 30 Chevrolet lost contact with the lead pack’s aerodynamic draft. Hornaday finished below the cut line in 21st place, next-to-last on the lead lap.
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