Posted on by Staff Report

See where your favorite driver will pit on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN)

The pit stall assignments are out for Saturday night’s NASCAR XFINITY Series Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, MRN, SiriusXM).

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Daniel Suarez scored the first Coors Light Pole Award of his NASCAR career and chose pit stall 22, which has an opening in front of him when he exits pit road.

Brian Scott (starting second) also has an opening in front of him as does David Ragan (starting third).

Brendan Gaughan (starting ninth) chose the first pit stall at the entrance of pit road.

Posted on by Staff Report

Weather cancels qualifying, setting grid by Practice 1 times

RELATED: Full lineup for Sunday’s race

Threatening weather canceled Saturday afternoon’s Coors Light Pole Qualifying at Daytona International Speedway, handing Dale Earnhardt Jr. the No. 1 starting spot for Sunday night’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

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Earnhardt, a three-time winner at the 2.5-mile track, will take the green flag first in Sunday’s Coke Zero 400 (7:45 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM). The starting lineup was determined according to the 2015 NASCAR Rule Book, setting the 43-car field according to speeds recorded in Friday’s opening practice.
 
Dark storm clouds and the threat of lightning loomed around the speedway, forcing race officials to place qualifying on hold shortly before its scheduled start time of 4:35 p.m. ET. Track officials evacuated the speedway, asking fans to take appropriate shelter. The two-round session was abandoned at 5:51 p.m. ET.
 
Earnhardt led opening Sprint Cup practice Friday with a lap of 202.284 mph in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 Chevrolet. He’ll start first for the first time since winning the pole position at Dover International Speedway in September 2013.
 
Austin Dillon, a former Daytona 500 pole winner, will start second Sunday night in the Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevrolet. Clint Bowyer, Paul Menard and Trevor Bayne rounded out the top five starters for the 17th of 36 races this season.
 
Several powerhouse teams shied away from practicing in large packs Friday, opting to avoid the risks associated with close-quarters aerodynamic drafts. While many of those avoided the crash at the 10-minute mark of first practice that involved 11 cars, their slower speeds registered in single-car runs will relegate them to the back half of the field.
 
Kevin Harvick, the defending Sprint Cup Series champion and current points leader, will start 34th in the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 4 Chevrolet. Aric Almirola, last year’s Coke Zero 400 winner, will start 36th in the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Ford.
 
Ryan Blaney and Michael McDowell failed to qualify for the 43-car field.

Posted on by Staff Report

XFINITY rookie rules Daytona qualifying for first career-first pole position

RELATED: Full starting lineup

Daniel Suarez rolled to the Coors Light Pole Award in Saturday afternoon qualifying for the NASCAR XFINITY Series at Daytona International Speedway.

Suarez, 23, will start first in Saturday night’s Subway Firecracker 250 (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM) after posting a fast lap of 180.256 mph in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota. The pole award is the first of Suarez’s XFINITY Series career, which spans just 16 races.

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"To be honest, I can’t describe with words what I’m feeling right now," said Suarez, a native of Monterrey, Mexico. "First of all, I want to thank everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing. It’s unbelievable. I mean, my car is super-fast. We felt that speed in the first practice yesterday. We knew that we had a fast car in traffic in the draft, but we didn’t know exactly what to expect with a single-car run, and the car was as fast or even better."

Brian Scott will share the front row for Saturday’s 250-miler after qualifying second at 179.827 mph in the Richard Childress Racing No. 2 Chevrolet. David Ragan, Suarez’s teammate at JGR, secured the third starting spot for his first XFINITY Series start of the season.

Joey Logano and Erik Jones completed the top five. Defending series champion Chase Elliott will start 11th in the JR Motorsports No. 9 Chevrolet for the 15th of 33 races this season.

Suarez was also fastest during the first of two rounds, posting a best lap of 180.607 mph. Current points leader Chris Buescher, driving the Roush Fenway Racing No. 60 Ford, was 13th-fastest in Round 1, just two-thousandths of a second behind Richard Childress Racing‘s Brendan Gaughan and just missing the 12-driver cut to advance into the final round of single-car qualifying.

Chris Cockrum, Jeff Green, Mark Thompson and Derek White failed to qualify for the 40-car field. Former Daytona 500 winner Derrike Cope initially was on the list of non-qualifiers, but Thompson’s time was disallowed after a post-qualifying inspection, putting Cope in the field.

Posted on by Nascar

No. 1 driver caught up in multi-car pile-up during final laps

 It’s difficult to be too disappointed with second-place when second is your best result of the season.
 
It’s difficult to be too disappointed with second when only a handful of laps earlier, your car was pinched hard against the outside wall and thoughts of seeing the checkered flag were quickly fading.

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But Elliott Sadler finished second in Saturday night’s Subway Firecracker 250 at Daytona International Speedway. And he was disappointed.
 
“Tonight was really a ‘what could have been race,’” the Roush Fenway Racing driver said after trailing Austin Dillon (Richard Childress Racing) across the finish line at DIS.
 
Sadler’s No. 1 Ford Mustang managed only two top 10s through this year’s first eight races. But Saturday night’s was Sadler’s fifth in his last seven starts.
 
After avoiding trouble in a 12-car crash with 10 laps remaining, Sadler was running second, outside of leader Brian Scott, three laps from the finish when Scott move up the track in an attempt to halt Sadler’s progress.
 
Contact sent both cars into the outside wall. Ten more cars were swept up in the incident on the 2.5-mile track.
 
“We were definitely in the catbird seat there going down the back straightaway there; we had Joey Logano pushing us and had a lot of momentum coming off Turn 2 and were making our way to the front,” Sadler said.
 
“I think either Brian or his spotter made the block too late; I was already up to his right rear tire. He made the block to late and wrecked us. It was nothing intentional, it’s just racing. It just stinks that it’s it happened to us. Two restrictor-plate races in a row we were in really good shape with less than four laps to go and couldn’t pull it off.
 
“But tonight really stinks because we were fast all night. In the top-four or five all night and then the wreck happened.
 
“Second place is a good finish; it’s our best finish of the year. But it’s not what we came to Daytona to do but we’ll have to take it and move on.”
 
Defending XFINITY Series champion Chase Elliott (JR Motorsports) finished third while teammate Kasey Kahne was fourth. Benny Gordon completed the top five.
 
Points leader Chris Buescher, involved in the first of the two multi-car incidents, managed a 12th-place finish. More importantly, he managed to retain his hold on the points lead as well. He now leads Elliott by 34 points. Ty Dillon (26th) fell from second to third.
 
Buescher said he nearly avoided the wreck, “but then got trunked from behind and at that point you are just along for the ride.
 
“The guys did a nice job fixing it and it was a good recovery considering where we were. To come home P12 isn’t bad.”
 
Scott led the most laps (84) but wound up 23rd.

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Dale Jr., Gordon: Meetings have been productive, a real highlight

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR officials and members of the drivers’ council met here Saturday at Daytona International Speedway, the second such meeting between the two since the council was formed earlier this year.

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"The meetings that we have had with them have been really good, real productive," driver and council member Dale Earnhardt Jr. said Saturday evening. "They talked about the direction they wanted to go. We talked a little bit about tires, a little bit about the changes they’re going to make, what they (want) to do with this low downforce package in the future and what they’re wanting to do at some other race tracks as well. …
 
"NASCAR has to meet with everybody so often; we just kind of get in there and get the information that they’re getting from Goodyear in the meetings they have with them; they’re meeting with the owners often … they’re busy folks and have a lot going on. We’re trying to make some good changes. I’m looking forward to seeing how this works. Whether it works or not isn’t really the question. I think that opportunity to even try it’s pretty cool."
 
NASCAR announced last month pending changes for next weekend’s Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway. Among the changes are a reduction in spoiler height from 6 inches to 3 1/2 inches and a decrease in the size of the splitter extension panel (radiator pan) from 38 inches to 25 inches. In addition, the front splitter will have 1 3/4 inches less overhang.
 
In addition to competition issues, other topics discussed included safety and marketing, according to Brett Jewkes, Vice President, Chief Communications Officer for NASCAR.
 
"I can tell you the agenda forever is going to be competition, safety, marketing and other current issues," Jewkes told Sirius XM NASCAR.
 
But, Jewkes noted, conversations with the drivers’ council is just one part of the ongoing dialog the sanction body continues to have with all of its partners.
 
"We obviously are speaking daily with our manufacturer partners at Chevrolet, Toyota and Ford," Jewkes said. "Certainly working with the team engineers and competition directors and have a lot of direct dialogue with the team owners. Our network partners and the race tracks are also having a voice.
 
"So it’s a little bit interesting sometimes to us that there’s so much attention on the driver council and a big curiosity about what happens in those meetings. We’re having meetings and discussions all the time, and the one thing that the fans need to know is that never … I’ve been working in this sport for 16 years and with NASCAR for five now, and I’ve never seen this level of collaboration and just really unified desire to create the best product we can for the race fan. That is a prevailing thing in every one of these councils, in every one of our meetings."
 
Officials met with the council for the first time earlier this year at Dover, Delaware.
 
Four-time series champion Jeff Gordon said the council, which was selected by drivers "have a responsibility to the field that’s out there to try to … contribute to the sport being the best that it can be.
 
"In all the year’s I’ve been in the sport," Gordon said, "these two meetings that we’ve had have been some of the highlights of my career. I think it’s huge. To open the lines of communication in this sense where … every manufacturer (is) represented, you have a lot of different teams represented.
 
"Basically when you get in that room you realize that everybody’s goal is to try to do whatever we can to continue to make this sport as great as it has been and possibly even better, and the racing the best that we can possibly get."

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See where every driver will start Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN

Pos Car Driver Team Time
1 18 Daniel Suarez # ARRIS Toyota 49.929
2 2 Brian Scott Shore Lodge Chevrolet 50.048
3 20 David Ragan(i) Interstate Batteries Toyota 50.140
4 22 Joey Logano(i) Discount Tire Ford 50.164
5 54 Erik Jones(i) Monster Energy Toyota 50.193
6 3 Ty Dillon Yuengling America’s Oldest Brewery Chevrolet 50.242
7 33 Austin Dillon(i) Rheem Chevrolet 50.243
8 16 Ryan Reed Lilly/American Diabetes Association Ford 50.351
9 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Chevrolet 50.381
10 1 Elliott Sadler OneMain Financial Ford 50.398
11 9 Chase Elliott NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet 50.446
12 15 Scott Lagasse Jr. Florida DOT Chevrolet 50.454
13 60 Chris Buescher Bit-O-Honey Ford 50.286
14 6 Darrell Wallace Jr. # Cheez-It Ford 50.302
15 7 Regan Smith Fire Alarm Services Chevrolet 50.306
16 42 Brennan Poole DC Solar Chevrolet 50.395
17 43 Dakoda Armstrong WinField Ford 50.412
18 26 Timmy Hill(i) JGL Racing Toyota 50.497
19 98 Aric Almirola(i) Fresh from Florida Ford 50.541
20 66 Benny Gordon SomersetRegionalWaterResources Chevrolet 50.599
21 88 Kasey Kahne(i) Ragu Chevrolet 50.692
22 8 Blake Koch Celsius Healthy Energy Cola Toyota 50.692
23 25 John Wes Townley(i) Zaxby’s Chevrolet 50.699
24 01 Landon Cassill Flex Seal Chevrolet 50.712
25 44 David Starr Zachry Toyota 50.767
26 85 Bobby Gerhart Lucas Oil Chevrolet 50.799
27 92 Dexter Bean CrashClaimsR.us Chevrolet 50.878
28 28 JJ Yeley Texas 28 Spirits Stage Toyota 50.888
29 89 Morgan Shepherd Courtney Construction Chevrolet 51.007
30 90 Martin Roy Gamache Truck Center Chevrolet 51.038
31 74 Mike Harmon FatBobsGarage.com Dodge 51.056
32 39 Ryan Sieg Uncle Bob’s Self Storage Chevrolet 51.135
33 70 Derrike Cope EvergreenFabrication&IndustrialServices Chev 51.148
34 4 Ross Chastain # Flex Shot Chevrolet Owner Points
35 0 Harrison Rhodes # Flex Seal Colors Chevrolet Owner Points
36 51 Jeremy Clements RepairableVehicles.com/BRTExtrusions Chev Owner Points
37 14 Cale Conley # IAVA Toyota Owner Points
38 52 Joey Gase FaithofourFathers/SupportMilitary.org Chev Owner Points
39 24 Eric McClure Hefty Easy Grip Cups Toyota Owner Points
40 97 Peyton Sellers # Vroom Brands Chevrolet Owner Points
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Sprint Cup Coors Light Pole Qualifying goes green at 4:35 p.m. ET, NBCSN

MORE: Superspeedway qualifying returns to one timed lap

In March, NASCAR today unveiled modifications to the qualifying format at superspeedways across all three national series. The updated format took effect in April at Talladega Superspeedway for the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Qualifying consists of the following:

·       Two rounds of qualifying, with the top-12 posted lap speeds advancing to the second round

·       Race vehicles taking one, timed lap in each round of qualifying

·       Each race vehicle will be released in a predetermined timed interval as determined by NASCAR, with the sanctioning body reserving the right to have more than one vehicle engaging in qualifying runs at the same time

·       Qualifying order for the first round will be determined by a random draw; final round qualifying order is determined by slowest to fastest speeds from the first round

·       A 10-minute break will occur between the first qualifying round and the final round

·       Upon completion of the first qualifying round, the field will be set with positions 13 and beyond determined from first round qualifying speed

·       The 12 fastest vehicles from the first round will have their speeds reset for the final round with starting positions 1-12 determined by the fastest laps in the final round

·       NASCAR will impound race vehicles following each qualifying lap; vehicles advancing to the final round will be allowed to adjust tape and utilize a cool-down unit during the 10-minute break only

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will utilize the format for the first time when the series returns to Talladega Superspeedway with the Sprint Cup Series in October.

Qualifying procedures for the 2016 Daytona 500 will be announced at a later date.

Below is the order by which the Sprint Cup Series will qualify at 4:35 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

      Track Qualifying Record: Bill Elliott, 02/15/87, 42.783 sec.
# Car Driver Team
1 62 Brendan Gaughan(i) Vydox Plus Chevrolet
2 98 Josh Wise Heat Treating Inc./Royal Teak Ford
3 83 Matt DiBenedetto # Dustless Blasting Toyota
4 26 Jeb Burton # Maxim Toyota
5 23 JJ Yeley(i) Dr Pepper Toyota
6 32 Bobby Labonte C&J Energy Services Ford
7 7 Alex Bowman Golden Corral Chevrolet
8 95 Michael McDowell KLOVE Radio Ford
9 43 Aric Almirola Smithfield Ford
10 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Ground Toyota
11 4 Kevin Harvick Jimmy John’s/Budweiser Chevrolet
12 22 Joey Logano Shell Pennzoil Ford
13 2 Brad Keselowski Alliance Truck Parts Ford
14 14 Tony Stewart Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet
15 17 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Fifth Third Bank Ford
16 35 Cole Whitt Speed Stick Ford
17 41 Kurt Busch Haas Automation Chevrolet
18 10 Danica Patrick GoDaddy Chevrolet
19 33 Brian Scott(i) Shore Lodge Chevrolet
20 16 Greg Biffle Cheez-It Ford
21 19 Carl Edwards Subway Toyota
22 24 Jeff Gordon Axalta Chevrolet
23 40 Landon Cassill(i) Snap Fitness Chevrolet
24 21 Ryan Blaney(i) Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford
25 51 Justin Allgaier TradeMark Nitrogen Chevrolet
26 20 Matt Kenseth DeWalt Made in USA Toyota
27 78 Martin Truex Jr. Furniture Row/Visser Precision Chevrolet
28 46 Michael Annett Pilot Flying J Chevrolet
29 31 Ryan Newman Grainger Chevrolet
30 42 Kyle Larson Coca-Cola Chevrolet
31 13 Casey Mears GEICO Chevrolet
32 34 Brett Moffitt # CSX Play It Safe Ford
33 18 Kyle Busch Interstate Batteries Toyota
34 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe’s Patriotic Chevrolet
35 9 Sam Hornish Jr. Twisted Tea Ford
36 5 Kasey Kahne Great Clips/Shark Week Chevrolet
37 1 Jamie McMurray McDonald’s Chevrolet
38 55 David Ragan Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota
39 47 AJ Allmendinger Kroger/Better Than Bouillon Chevrolet
40 38 David Gilliland Florida Lottery Ford
41 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Ford
42 27 Paul Menard NIBCO/Menards Chevrolet
43 15 Clint Bowyer 5-Hour Energy Toyota
44 3 Austin Dillon Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet
45 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Nationwide Stars and Stripes Chevrolet
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Confederate flags still fly at Daytona International Speedway

RELATED: Industry statement on Confederate flag

The Confederate flag still flew Friday at Daytona International Speedway, but not at the volume or frequency as in previous years.

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A day after the 30 tracks that host NASCAR races issued a statement asking fans not to fly the flag at races —  and offered to exchange flags if fans wanted —  just eight flags were seen in the infield Friday during the first day of practice for Sunday’s Coke Zero 400 (7:45 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM).
 
"I think it’s appropriate for this country to celebrate the (American) flag on its birthday," said Joie Chitwood III, president of Daytona International Speedway. "For us, (the request to fans) seemed like the right thing to do. From that perspective, I don’t think that’s divisive at all. I think that’s trying to provide an environment that’s inclusive."
 
RELATED: Daytona heightens safety, fan experience

NASCAR doesn’t allow teams to use the Confederate flag or the stars and bars symbol, but fans — especially at venues in the South —  have been known to fly the flag over motorhomes and campsites in the infield during races.
 
On Friday, just a handful of Confederate flags were seen in the infield at DIS, most in the campground inside Turn 3. Richard Petty, the seven-time NASCAR champion and owner of cars driven by Aric Almirola and Sam Hornish Jr., said he hadn’t noticed an increase or decrease in the number of Confederate flags being displayed on Friday at Daytona.
 
"I haven’t paid any attention," Petty said. "Even now when I come and stuff, the racetrack is what I’m interested in. A lot of times someone asks me how good was the crowd. I don’t know. I didn’t even look at the grandstands."
 
Controversy about the flag increased two weeks ago after nine African-American churchgoers were killed in a mass shooting in a church at Charleston, South Carolina. The accused shooter embraced Confederate symbols, including the Confederate battle flag.
 
On Thursday, the tracks that host NASCAR races released a joint statement that urged fans to refrain from displaying the flag, saying tracks wanted to "create an all-inclusive, even more welcoming atmosphere for all who attend our events."

 

Posted on by Holly Cain

Busch, Keselowski tangle in wreck that sparks multi-car melee

RELATED: Complete schedule for Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — It took all of 10 minutes into Friday’s opening Sprint Cup Series practice before the "big one" occurred at Daytona International Speedway.

Video replay showed contact between Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch triggered a 10-car accident that relegated eight drivers to backup cars for Sunday night’s Coke Zero 400, including three of the four Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas.

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Busch, his JGR teammates Carl Edwards and Denny Hamlin, Chevrolet drivers Martin Truex Jr., Jamie McMurray and Ryan Newman and Ford drivers Trevor Bayne and Sam Hornish Jr. all had to switch to backup cars.

"Looks like the 2-car (Keselowski) got into my left rear and he got away unscathed and crashed everybody else’s stuff," Busch said after looking at a video replay of the incident.

"It’s frustrating, it’s not at all what these guys pour all their blood, sweat and tears into preparing cars. We wreck in practice, that’s not very smart. The 2-car just spun us around. There’s room to lift but some people don’t.

"It sucks a guy that started it all got away unscathed."

But, Busch conceded, "It’s his fault he caused it, but I’ve probably been in the same boat and caused one before. It’s just not that time to go (so early in practice)."

RELATED: Danica, Dale Jr. top practices at Daytona

Following the first of the day’s two 55-minute practices, Keselowski surveyed the bodywork on his No. 2 Ford and wondered aloud if he actually made contact with Busch. He conceded it doesn’t take much, however.

"First off, it stinks seeing cars get torn up," Keselowski said. "I had a run on Kyle. … and Greg Biffle right on my butt so I wanted to go back down low. I went to go down low and Kyle started to come down. I had Greg there and I ran into the back of Kyle.

"Just flat out ran into the back of him. All the timing was off. I’m not sure if I even hit him that hard and looking at the front of my car, not sure if I hit him at all. I’m sure it looked that way, though.

"It’s just a bummer to see cars get torn up. … it stinks. It’s one of those deals here at Daytona. You race so close. This July race it doesn’t race like the February race and when you bump in the corners that’s what happens."

RELATED: What to know about NASCAR on NBC

Newman, who was helplessly caught up in the melee, spoke to Busch in the garage, curious as to what actually happened. The veteran could only shake his head as he watched his crew roll his backup No. 31 Caterpillar Chevy off the truck.

"Not sure what happened, but it doesn’t surprise me at all," the 2008 Daytona 500 winner Newman said. "We were in a different mode of going out there and practicing and learning a little bit. It doesn’t change to much for us, we’ll have the backup out there for the second session and we were going to do some single car runs anyway.

"It’s nothing spectacular other than we have a torn-up race car that didn’t need to be."

Two-time Daytona 500 winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. was fastest in opening practice with a best lap of 202.285 mph in the No. 88 Nationwide Stars and Stripes Chevy. Austin Dillon, Clint Bowyer, Paul Menard and Bayne rounded out the top five.

Another Daytona 500 winner, Jamie McMurray was as much philosophic as frustrated as he waited for the team to get his backup No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet ready to drive.

"I think it’s way harder for the team than it is the driver," McMurray said of Friday’s circumstances. "The year (2010) we won the (Daytona) 500 we were on our third car.

"I’m not really frustrated, it’s part of plate racing and hopefully it just happened today and doesn’t during the race."

Posted on by Holly Cain

Chevrolets show early strength; pileup mars first session

RELATED: Full practice results

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Danica Patrick‘s car number atop the scoring pylon is not an unfamiliar site at Daytona International Speedway and the 2013 Daytona 500 pole-winner set the fast pace again Friday in the final Sprint Cup Series practice for Sunday’s Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola (7:45 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM).

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Patrick’s No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet posted a lap of 198.133 mph to lead a Stewart-Haas Racing sweep of the late afternoon session, pacing teammates Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick and Tony Stewart.

Patrick has two top-10 finishes in six Cup starts on the Daytona high banks, including an eighth-place showing in the 2013 Daytona 500 — the best ever finish for a woman in NASCAR’s premier event.

Patrick’s speed was still slower than Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s 202.284 mph effort in the opening practice when teams did more drafting. Her speed came during mostly single car runs and she was upbeat and encouraged about the weekend.

"You’ve got what you got when you show up at a superspeedway,” Patrick said. "I’m glad we got a couple single car runs in. While guys like Tony (Stewart) have no problem going from last to first, I find it challenging so I’d like to have a good qualifying session.”

Hendrick Motorsports drivers, Kasey Kahne, Jeff Gordon, Earnhardt and Jimmie Johnson were just behind the SHR contingent in the final practice.

"I’ve had the luxury of being with a really good team and Hendrick builds a really fast engine,” Patrick said, humbly explaining her success on NASCAR’s most famous track.

"It sounds cheesy, but really, it’s great team and great engines."

A win Sunday for Patrick would gain her a provisional entry into the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship. After early season gains that kept her in the top-16 in the points standings, she is now ranked 19th entering the Coke Zero 400.

“I always like going there,” Patrick said of Daytona. "It’s where my first stock-car start was in 2010 and I actually have a lot of experience there.

"At the end of the day, you just need to be in the right place at the right time. A lot of it is out of your control. But I think we’ll be good and hopefully have a car that can compete and win.”

Aside from a handful of moderate-sized packs that formed early in the 55-minute session, teams largely focused on making single-car runs ahead of Saturday’s Coors Light Pole Qualifying (4:35 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network). Teams especially shied away from drafting in large groups after an 11-car crash in the early stages of opening practice forced several teams to utilize backup cars.

Dale Jr. avoids large wreck, paces first practice

Dale Earnhardt Jr. rose to the top of the speed charts Friday afternoon in opening NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice, a session interrupted early by an 11-car pileup at Daytona International Speedway.

Earnhardt, a three-time winner at the 2.5-mile track, landed atop the 55-minute practice with a fast lap of 202.284 mph in the Hendrick Motorsports No. 88 Chevrolet. He was among 14 drivers to clock laps above the 200-mph barrier.

Austin Dillon, a former Daytona 500 pole-starter driving the Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevrolet, was second-fastest at 202.066 mph. Clint Bowyer, Paul Menard and Trevor Bayne completed the top five.

Defending Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick, the current series points leader, was 35th-fastest in the Stewart-Haas Racing No. 4 Chevrolet. Defending race winner Aric Almirola, in the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 43 Ford, was 37th-best of the 44 drivers to turn laps.

Approximately 10 minutes after the track opened for practice, the cars of Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch tangled, sending Busch’s Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota sliding up the Turn 2 high banks. Other drivers piled in, forcing several teams to unload their backup cars.

RELATED: Early ‘big one’ hits at Daytona

Martin Truex Jr., Greg Biffle, Ryan Newman, Denny Hamlin, Sam Hornish Jr., Jamie McMurray, Trevor Bayne, Carl Edwards and Michael Annett were the other drivers involved.

Editor’s note: Zack Albert contributed to this report