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See the full race lineup for the Daytona Nationwide event

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Pos Car Driver Team
1 43 Dakoda Armstrong # Fresh from Florida Ford
2 6 Trevor Bayne AdvoCare Ford
3 60 Chris Buescher # Roush Performance Ford
4 16 Ryan Reed # ADADrivetoStopDiabetesbyLillyDiabetes Ford
5 54 Kyle Busch(i) Monster Energy Toyota
6 11 Elliott Sadler SportClips Toyota
7 9 Chase Elliott # Napa Auto Parts Chevrolet
8 7 Regan Smith Goody’s Chevrolet
9 20 Darrell Wallace Jr.(i) Share a Coke Toyota
10 42 Kyle Larson(i) Target Ticket Chevrolet
11 22 Joey Logano(i) Discount Tire Ford
12 84 Chad Boat # Billy Boat Performance Exhaust Chevrolet
13 5 Kasey Kahne(i) Hellmann’s Chevrolet
14 62 Brendan Gaughan South Point Chevrolet
15 2 Brian Scott Shore Lodge Chevrolet
16 3 Ty Dillon # Yuengling America’s Oldest Brewery Chevrolet
17 93 Mike Wallace Smith Transport Dodge
18 99 James Buescher ToyotaCare Toyota
19 28 JJ Yeley Texas 28 Spirits Stage Dodge
20 80 Johnny Sauter(i) JMS/TACTI Toyota
21 39 Ryan Sieg # Pull-A-Part Used Auto Parts Chevrolet
22 74 Mike Harmon Dodge
23 70 Derrike Cope Youtheory Chevrolet
24 17 Tanner Berryhill # NationalCashLenders.com Dodge
25 01 Landon Cassill Flex Seal Chevrolet
26 31 Dylan Kwasniewski # Rockstar Chevrolet
27 25 John Wes Townley(i) Zaxby’s Toyota
28 29 Scott Lagasse Jr. Florida Department of Transportation Toyota
29 19 Mike Bliss Upstar TV Toyota
30 44 David Starr Chasco Constructors Toyota
31 98 David Ragan(i) Carroll Shelby Engine Ford
32 14 Eric McClure Hefty Ultimate/Reynolds Wrap Toyota
33 55 Ross Chastain(i) Watermelon.org Chevrolet
34 87 Carlos Contreras RaceTrac Chevrolet
35 40 Josh Wise(i) Curtis Key Plumbing Chevrolet
36 51 Jeremy Clements Allsouthelectric.com/BRTExtrusions Chevrolet
37 23 Robert Richardson Jr. Cornboard Chevrolet
38 52 Joey Gase VukeljaLawAttorney/SpaceShuttleInn Chev
39 4 Jeffrey Earnhardt teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet
40 97 Joe Nemechek(i) DABConstructorInc/smokeandsear Toyota

Did Not Qualify: # 91 Benny Gordon; # 10 Blake Koch; # 76 Tommy Joe Martins #; # 46 Matt Dibenedetto; # 85 Bobby Gerhart.

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Posted on by Brad Norman

Earnhardt Jr. eyes sweep; can winless driver jumble Chase field?

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Editor’s note: Driver Reports includes the 16 drivers currently in the Chase field, ranked in order of the current points standings.

1. Jeff Gordon (No. 24)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet 

Standing: Gordon leads the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings with 618 points.
Current Chase seed: 7
Past five races: 6th at Kentucky, 2nd at Sonoma, 6th at Michigan, 8th at Pocono, 15th at Dover.
Season stats: 1 win, 6 top-fives, 13 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Gordon’s average finish is 19.6 and his average running position is 14.5 over the past nine years. In 43 career starts at Daytona, he has six wins, 13 top-five, 20 top-10s and three poles.
Quick hit: Gordon’s fourth-place run in the Daytona 500 earlier this season snapped a four-race skid of finishing outside the top 10 at the track, a stretch that also included two results outside the top 30. A Chevrolet has won four consecutive races at the 2.5-mile track and Hendrick engines are awfully reliable. It’s a combination that could result in another strong effort for the No. 24 team.

2. Jimmie Johnson (No. 48)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Standing: Johnson is second in the standings with 594 points.
Current Chase seed: 1
Past five races: 10th at Kentucky, 6th at Sonoma, 1st at Michigan, 6th at Pocono, 1st at Dover.
Season stats: 3 wins, 6 top-fives, 12 top-10s, 1 pole.
Track history: At Daytona, Johnson’s average finish is 19.7 and his average running position is 13.9 over the past nine years. In 25 career starts at Daytona, he has three wins, nine top-five, 12 top-10s and two poles.
Quick hit: One year after sweeping the Daytona races, Johnson can’t accomplish that heralded feat again. But he can complete the season with two top-fives at the track, and that’s the goal as he looks to continue his three-race streak of success after a three-year stretch of futility on the high banks.

3. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88)

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet

Standing: Earnhardt Jr. is third in the standings with 594 points.
Current Chase seed: 2
Past five races: 5th at Kentucky, 3rd at Sonoma, 7th at Michigan, 1st at Pocono, 9th at Dover.
Season stats: 2 wins, 9 top-fives, 12 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Earnhardt Jr.’s average finish is 13.4 and his average running position is 14.0 over the past nine years. In 29 career starts at Daytona, he has three wins, 11 top-fives, 17 top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: Junior is attempting to become the second driver in consecutive seasons — and sixth in NASCAR history — to sweep the two Daytona races. Jimmie Johnson accomplished the feat last year, possibly setting up his Hendrick Motorsports teammate to keep the trend going in-house. It’s a realistic expectation. The No. 88 was sparkling in the Daytona 500, and it was among the best cars at Talladega before being foiled by pit strategy. The team won’t make that mistake again.

4. Brad Keselowski (No. 2)

Team Penske, Ford 

Standing: Keselowski is fourth in the standings with 560 points.
Current Chase seed: 3
Past five races: 1st at Kentucky, 22nd at Sonoma, 3rd at Michigan, 2nd at Pocono, 2nd at Dover.
Season stats: 2 wins, 9 top-fives, 9 top-10s, 3 poles.
Track history: At Daytona, Keselowski’s average finish is 20.2 and his average running position is 18.5 over the past nine years. In 10 career starts at Daytona, he has two top-fives and three top-10s.
Quick hit: Keselowski’s Daytona success has all come in the past four races, a span in which his average finish is 9.0. He’s finished every lap during that span after crashing out of three of the previous four events at the track. Expect Keselowski to again stay out of trouble — and again be toward the front when the white flag drops.

5. Matt Kenseth (No. 20)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota 

Standing: Kenseth is fifth in the standings with 555 points.
Current Chase seed: 11
Past five races: 4th at Kentucky, 42nd at Sonoma, 14th at Michigan, 25th at Pocono, 3rd at Dover.
Season stats: 6 top-fives, 11 top-10s, 1 pole.
Track history: At Daytona, Kenseth’s average finish is 15.4 and his average running position is 13.8 over the past nine years. In 29 career starts at Daytona, he has two wins, six top-fives, 14 top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: Kenseth’s best days at Daytona came while driving a Ford for Jack Roush. He showed plenty of power in this year’s 500, though, coming across the line sixth after finishing outside the top 30 in both 2013 races. A Toyota hasn’t been to Victory Lane at Daytona since 2008, a span of 11 races, a streak Kenseth and his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates have a shot at ending.

6. Carl Edwards (No. 99)

Roush Fenway Racing, Ford 

Standing: Edwards is sixth in the standings with 536 points.
Current Chase seed: 4
Past five races: 17th at Kentucky, 1st at Sonoma, 23rd at Michigan, 41st at Pocono, 14th at Dover.
Season stats: 2 wins, 4 top-fives, 8 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Edwards’ average finish is 18.1 and his average running position is 17.6 over the past nine years. In 19 career starts at Daytona, he has four top-fives, eight top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: Edwards’ once lengthy stretch of outstanding Daytona performances is a thing of the past. His average finish since 2013 is 26.3, with a best showing of 17th earlier this year. One reason for hope: Roush Fenway Racing teammates Greg Biffle and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. earned top-10s in the 2014 Daytona 500, so perhaps Saturday night will be Edwards’ time to rise.

7. Joey Logano (No. 22)

Team Penske, Ford 

Standing: Logano is seventh in the standings with 519 points.
Current Chase seed: 5
Past five races: 9th at Kentucky, 16th at Sonoma, 9th at Michigan, 40th at Pocono, 8th at Dover.
Season stats: 2 wins, 6 top-fives, 9 top-10s, 1 pole.
Track history: At Daytona, Logano’s average finish is 20.0 and his average running position is 18.0 over the past nine years. In 11 career starts at Daytona, he has two top-fives and three top-10s.
Quick hit: Logano hasn’t experienced the same success at Daytona with Team Penske as he did with Joe Gibbs Racing, but he’s starting to come around. An 11th-place finish in February marked his best performance at this track in the No. 22 Ford, and he had an exceptional car at restrictor-plate track Talladega before getting caught up in a wreck.

8. Ryan Newman (No. 31)

Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet 

Standing: Newman is eighth in the standings with 514 points.
Current Chase seed: 12
Past five races: 3rd at Kentucky, 11th at Sonoma, 15th at Michigan, 7th at Pocono, 31st at Dover.
Season stats: 1 top-five, 6 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Newman’s average finish is 19.0 and his average running position is 18.3 over the past nine years. In 25 career starts at Daytona, he has one win, four top-fives and six top-10s.
Quick hit: Newman leads a Richard Childress Racing operation into Daytona, a track at which the organization underperformed in February. Despite having powerful engines and seeing two of its three drivers lead laps — and one, Austin Dillon, start on the pole — no driver was in contention for the win late. Does that change Saturday? Going 400 miles instead of 500 won’t hurt, and Newman’s record over the past four races here (two top-fives, three top-10s) is reason for optimism.

9. Kevin Harvick (No. 4)

Stewart-Haas Racing, Chevrolet 

Standing: Harvick is ninth in the standings with 509 points.
Current Chase seed: 6
Past five races: 7th at Kentucky, 20th at Sonoma, 2nd at Michigan, 14th at Pocono, 17th at Dover.
Season stats: 2 wins, 5 top-fives, 8 top-10s, 3 poles.
Track history: At Daytona, Harvick’s average finish is 16.3 and his average running position is 19.4 over the past nine years. In 26 career starts at Daytona, he has two wins, six top-fives, 11 top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: Given his 13th-place run at the Daytona 500 in February and a top-10 at Talladega earlier this year, the No. 4 car will be among the best come Saturday night. The speed will be there, and it’s up to the crew to make sure the setup is, too, considering how much the surface at Daytona changes from February to the heat of July.

10. Kyle Busch (No. 18)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota 

Standing: Busch is 10th in the standings with 508 points.
Current Chase seed: 8
Past five races: 2nd at Kentucky, 25th at Sonoma, 41st at Michigan, 12th at Pocono, 42nd at Dover.
Season stats: 1 win, 4 top-fives, 7 top-10s, 1 pole.
Track history: At Daytona, Busch’s average finish is 18.6 and his average running position is 12.6 over the past nine years. In 19 career starts at Daytona, he has one win, five top-fives, six top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: No one needed a strong run at Kentucky more than Busch, who had finished 25th or worse in three of the previous four races. Now he needs to get back on track at Daytona. Busch won the summer race in 2008, and he’s finished better at Daytona in July than in February in seven out of nine career chances.

11. Paul Menard (No. 27)

Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet 

Standing: Menard is 11th in the standings with 488 points.
Current Chase seed: 13
Past five races: 15th at Kentucky, 5th at Sonoma, 4th at Michigan, 26th at Pocono, 10th at Dover.
Season stats: 3 top-fives, 9 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Menard’s average finish is 20.2 and his average running position is 21.0 over the past nine years. In 14 career starts at Daytona, he has three top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: Among the winless drivers who can essentially punch their Chase ticket with a victory on Saturday, Menard may be the best equipped to do so. He qualified 10th for the 500 and finished sixth at Talladega, so you know his No. 27 Chevrolet is going to have speed. Some sort of pit-road gamble may be in store if the team is close at the end.

12. Kyle Larson (No. 42)

Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates, Chevrolet  

Standing: Larson is 12th in the standings with 474 points.
Current Chase seed: 14
Past five races: 40th at Kentucky, 28th at Sonoma, 8th at Michigan, 5th at Pocono, 11th at Dover.
Season stats: 3 top-fives, 7 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Larson’s average finish is 38.0 and his average running position is 38.6. In one career start at Daytona, he finished 38th in the 2014 Daytona 500.
Quick hit: Keep an eye on Larson come Saturday night. This is the first track the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series visits for the second time this season. We’ll see just how much Larson learned from the 500, although track conditions will be much different. Expect a better showing than his 38th-place run in the 500 — much better.

13. Greg Biffle (No. 16)

Roush Fenway Racing, Ford

Standing: Biffle is 13th in the standings with 474 points.
Current Chase seed: 15
Past five races: 14th at Kentucky, 9th at Sonoma, 20th at Michigan, 16th at Pocono, 38th at Dover.
Season stats: 2 top-fives, 5 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Biffle’s average finish is 19.8 and his average running position is 17.8 over the past nine years. In 23 career starts at Daytona, he has one win, three top-fives, seven top-10s and one pole.
Quick hit: Biffle is in a snug spot. He’s on the bubble of the Chase standings, and can’t afford to see a first-time 2014 winner in Victory Lane on Saturday. Unless, of course, that 2014 first-time winner is Biffle himself. Considering the No. 16 was eighth in the 500 and second at Talladega, the possibility is there.

14. Clint Bowyer (No. 15)

Michael Waltrip Racing, Toyota

Standing: Bowyer is 14th in the standings with 473 points.
Current Chase seed: 16
Past five races: 23rd at Kentucky, 10th at Sonoma, 10th at Michigan, 11th at Pocono, 4th at Dover.
Season stats: 2 top-fives, 6 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Bowyer’s average finish is 16.4 and his average running position is 17.3 over the past nine years. In 17 career starts at Daytona, he has three top-fives and seven top-10s.
Quick hit: Bowyer remains in the Chase standings for now, despite a 23rd-place finish at Kentucky last week. It really can’t get worse for the veteran at Daytona, where he finished 42nd in February after his engine blew up. Just finishing the race and getting points is crucial, and the No. 15 team can reassess its position in the standings before New Hampshire.

17. Denny Hamlin (No. 11)

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota 

Standing: Hamlin is 17th in the standings with 455 points.
Current Chase seed: 9
Past five races: 42nd at Kentucky, 26th at Sonoma, 29th at Michigan, 4th at Pocono, 5th at Dover.
Season stats: 1 win, 4 top-fives, 5 top-10s, 2 poles.
Track history: At Daytona, Hamlin’s average finish is 20.4 and his average running position is 16.1 over the past nine years. In 17 career starts at Daytona, he has three top-fives and three top-10s.
Quick hit: Boy, that Talladega win takes on an added importance every week. Right now, it’s the only thing keeping Hamlin in the postseason. But it’s also something that points to the potential of a big weekend for the No. 11 team. A win at Talladega? A runner-up finish in the 500? Clearly Hamlin’s crew has figured out the way to make a fantastic restrictor-plate car this year.

26. Kurt Busch (No. 41)

Stewart-Haas Racing, Chevrolet

Standing: Busch is 26th in the standings with 379 points.
Current Chase seed: 10
Past five races: 12th at Kentucky, 12th at Sonoma, 13th at Michigan, 3rd at Pocono, 18th at Dover.
Season stats: 1 win, 3 top-fives, 3 top-10s.
Track history: At Daytona, Busch’s average finish is 17.0 and his average running position is 16.1 over the past nine years. In 27 career starts at Daytona, he has 10 top-fives, 13 top-10s.
Quick hit: A five-week stretch of consistency has rocketed Busch … exactly two places up the standings. It just illustrates how poor of a run this group had to start the season. Busch has never won at a restrictor-track plate, which is odd considering he ranks in the top 10 of both average finish and average running position over the past nine years at Daytona.

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Being in the right place at the right time has put many drivers in Daytona’s Victory Lane

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Daytona. Sonoma. Talladega. Watkins Glen. Those four tracks, scattered across the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular season schedule, offer a unique opportunity under the new ‘win-and-in’ rules for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. 

They’re all wild cards, with an almost unending list of potential winners.

That theory especially holds true at Daytona and Talladega – the series’ two restrictor plate tracks – which boast an abundance of surprise winners (see: Trevor Bayne and David Ragan).

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Tony Stewart explains, as the series heads to Daytona for the Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola (7:30 p.m. ET on TNT).

"Someone described racing on the superspeedways as being a combination of a science project and the luck of a casino, and it’s exactly that way," Stewart said. "You do everything in your power to take care of the science or technology side. You do everything you can to build the fastest car. If you don’t have the luck to go with it — even if you don’t have any drama with getting the car touched, nothing happens to the car — if you’re just in the wrong spot at the wrong time, it can take you out of the opportunity to take the best race car in the field and win." 

Right place, right time. That’s how Bayne won the 2011 Daytona 500. And how Ragan nabbed the July Daytona victory a few months later. 

This year, maybe more than any, it’s exponentially more important to be in the right place at the right time. It will likely mean a spot in NASCAR’s playoffs.

A win could belong to Ragan — a winner at both Daytona and Talladega — come Saturday night. 

"It’s been good to me over the years," said Ragan. "I go with an open attitude. I know that anything can happen. I know that you can get in a wreck early of someone else’s making. But I also know that if you play your cards right and you have a good strategy, you have a shot to win."

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Veteran holds points lead over JR Motorsports duo of Chase Elliott and Regan Smith

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It’s been a long time coming, but Elliott Sadler is back on top.
 
Sadler took the NASCAR Nationwide Series points lead last weekend at Kentucky, catapulting to the top of the standings for the first time since the fall of 2012, when he entered the race at Phoenix International Raceway tied with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. for the points lead.

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And now, he looks to pad that cushion, a difficult feat considering the site of the Friday night’s Subway Firecracker 250 – Daytona International Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2).
 
"Racing at Daytona is always a wild ride," Sadler said. "It really is a wild card track. Some drivers like to be in the back and avoid the early wrecks. While others think if you’re up front, all the wrecks will happen behind you.

"Regardless, Daytona and Talladega are the two tracks which one little wrong move can take out half of the field. Earlier this year we had a fast car and battled in the top three spots for the majority of the race. Unfortunately with a few laps remaining, our car was shuffled back and we ended up finishing fifth. Fifth isn’t a bad way to start the year, but it’s frustrating when you know your car is faster than a fifth-place finish. On the positive note, we can use all our notes from the first race of the season and prepare a fast car for this upcoming weekend. I’m ready to throttle down and hopefully bring home the checkered at DIS to add to our win earlier this season at Talladega."
 
This is the first time someone outside the JR Motorsports camp has held the points lead; JRM teammates of Regan Smith and Chase Elliott have swapped the top spot over the course of the first 14 races. Now, Joe Gibbs Racing‘s Sadler is in command; four points ahead of Elliott and eight points ahead of Smith.
 
Statistically speaking, Sadler could very well expand on that lead this weekend. Not only does he have a win at a restrictor plate track this year (Talladega), but of the top three drivers in points, he has the best pre-race driver rating (98.6) and average finish (13.3) at Daytona.

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NASCAR.com experts offer their reviews of the season so far

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Editor’s Note: Track Smack is a weekly feature that will showcase a panel of NASCAR.com experts providing their analysis from the previous week, while also looking ahead.

1. NASCAR returns to Daytona this weekend, which marks the unofficial halfway point of the season. What’s been the biggest surprise of the 2014 campaign to date?

Alan Cavanna: The biggest surprise of 2014 to me is Dale Earnhardt Jr., if only because he’s having his best season in a decade. He’d shown plenty of glimpses of championship form, but it was hard to know if it would actually happen for him again until this year.

David Caraviello: There have been two flat-out magical nights of the season so far — Dale Jr. winning the Daytona 500 and Chase Elliott winning the Nationwide Series event at Darlington, and to me the latter driver has been the biggest surprise of the year to date. We all knew Chase had the potential to be really good, but — multiple-race-wins good? Cup talk good? The kid’s hit a few rough patches lately, but he’s still been spectacular, and I don’t know if anyone exactly foresaw that.

Kenny Bruce: Aside from the obvious (this guy’s been good, this guy hasn’t), I think the new qualifying format and how it has played out has been a pleasant surprise for all involved. It’s added some unexpected strategy to all three series for something that often used to be, well, less than exciting.

Cavanna: There goes Kenny thinking outside the box again. Great call, Kenny. Qualifying has been pleasant surprise, and often a must-watch. We’ve all been pleasantly surprised by different things. Good year so far.

Bruce: Just looking at the big picture, Alan.

Caraviello: I’ll agree, Kenny, that qualifying format has revolutionized the process and made it must-see TV. It’s light-years better than it used to be, especially at big tracks like Pocono and Talladega. And I’m a little surprised it’s turned out so well after a rough start, with all that coasting we saw the first few weeks. Kudos to NASCAR for listening to drivers and remedying that.

Bruce: Although watching 12 cars sit on pit road with the clock ticking at Kentucky last week was a bit unusual. Waiting for a cloud? Adjusting their lumbar supports? Who knows?

Caraviello: And I’ll side with Alan on Dale Jr., to a point. As someone who covered his glory days at Dale Earnhardt Inc. and remembers what that time was like, he’s always had this in him. It’s just been finding the right combination to bring it out. Crew chief Steve Letarte has been a big part of that, and next year will bring a major transition with Letarte headed to TV. It will be interesting, to say the least.

Cavanna: And it’s not just the wins, David. I think many figured he could get a win or two in Hendrick equipment. But when he’s finishing third at Sonoma, and fifth at Kentucky after a terrible weekend it shows how far the team has come. And I’ve been quite surprised by that.

Bruce: If Dale Jr. continues to run as well as he has thus far, expect several crew chiefs to announce they’ll be leaving the pit box for the broadcast booth next year.

Caraviello: Or several drivers to begin stashing wrecked race cars in their backyard. Does that comply with HOA regulations?

Bruce: OK, you guys want to talk surprises as far as drivers? I give you PM — Paul Menard. Looking every bit like a contender for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Did anyone see that coming?

Cavanna: I’ll believe it when I see it, Kenny. I’m not a Menard believer yet. But a 16-spot Chase field certainly helps his chances.

Caraviello: Man, those RCR guys are a riddle, Kenny. As I wrote this week, I wouldn’t be surprised if they all made the Chase, and wouldn’t be surprised if they all missed it. But Paul’s beard is always in championship form.

Bruce: Are you saying he makes it by a whisker, DC?

Caraviello: Either way, Kenny, it will be a close shave.

2. In a sport where just one driver reaches Victory Lane each weekend, not everyone can be a winner. So what teams and drivers have been more disappointing than expected to this point?

Caraviello: Let the piling on Roush Fenway Racing commence!

Bruce: In terms of having not won, you have to start with Matt Kenseth. The guy’s been competitive, but after seven wins last year I think we all expected to see him in Victory Lane by now.

Cavanna: RFR has two wins, and Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle in position to make the Chase. I don’t know how much more I expected from that team.

Caraviello: OK, a few things on our friends over at RFR. Edwards is really not having a bad season at all. He’s actually having a pretty good one, relatively speaking, given that he has two wins, stands sixth in points, and is certainly guaranteed a Chase berth. Usually drivers who are rumored to be looking around are in much worse shape — take a look at Kevin Harvick in 2009, for instance. So for all the teeth-gnashing over Roush’s overall performance, Carl actually has a pretty good season going.

Bruce: I certainly didn’t expect them to get spanked on nearly a weekly basis by the guys from Team Penske. Edwards has two wins, but the entire organization appears to be out to lunch more often than not. Two wins will get Edwards in the Chase, but their inconsistency will earn him a quick ticket to the sidelines if things don’t change.

Caraviello: Now Alan, I think you could argue that Biffle should be better, and that the Nationwide program should be a little more robust, and that they’re on more of an even footing with their Ford stablemates at Penske. So they have some issues, clearly. But are they as hopeless as some make them out to be? I don’t know.

Bruce: It sounds odd bashing a guy who’s won twice, but as they say down in Daytona Beach, it is what it is.

Cavanna: The bigger disappointments to me are Matt Kenseth and Kasey Kahne. Kenseth had seven wins last season, and so far nothing. But at least he’s consistent and knocking on the door. I don’t see that with Kahne. He needs to be doing better in Hendrick equipment.

Caraviello: Kahne to me is the head-scratcher. Your three teammates are 1-2-3 in points and have six wins combined, and you’re sitting 15th in the standings with a goose egg in the victory column. And to be honest, the 5 team really hasn’t been in contention that often. They’ve shown signs of life here and there, but again, how good can we expect that team to be if they get into the Chase?

Bruce: It sounds as if all the Hendrick teams are leaning on each other when having issues. But for some reason, all but Kahne’s group have been able to apply that info and turn a struggling ride into something competitive. The No. 5 team has been hit or miss. And dare we ignore a winless Tony Stewart, a so-so Michael Waltrip Racing, or a struggling Furniture Row Racing outfit? I think most folks expected more out of those three by now.

Caraviello: Yeah, Kenny, when it comes to disappointments, the No. 78 team has to top the list. The Furniture Row guys have had atrocious luck, to be certain, but there’s a long fall between a Chase berth with Kurt Busch to where they are now. You feel for Martin Truex Jr., given the situation he’s been put in since last fall, and you know this group is better than that. But for whatever reason, it’s just not happening, and it’s painful to watch.

Cavanna: Bad luck and different driver make a huge difference, David. I think that situation says a lot about the abilities of Kurt Busch.

Caraviello: You’d never know that Truex was actually one spot better than Kurt in the standings. That one victory makes such a difference in this format.

3. Ten drivers have won races to earn likely berths into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. With nine races left until the playoff field is finalized, who are your favorites to round out the field?

Caraviello: Josh Wise is going to shock the world — for a second time! OK, maybe not. But someone unexpected from down in the standings is going to make it in, either via Daytona this weekend or Watkins Glen next month. You still have to think Marcos Ambrose at WGI tops the list.

Cavanna: I picked Matt Kenseth to win in this week’s NASCAR.com Preview Show. I’ll also add Kyle Larson and Marcos Ambrose to the list of winners.

Bruce: Hate to go back to the well, but Kenseth and Stewart top the list. Given that we still have a plate race (this weekend) and a road course (The Glen), we might see a surprise. But as a Wise man once said … I’m certainly not counting on it.

Cavanna: At some point the non-winners will start thinking about points again. I’m thinking drivers like Ryan Newman and Clint Bowyer get in nicely.

Bruce: Ambrose might have been a given in previous years, but the way some of these drivers and teams have elevated their road-racing game, I think Ambrose suddenly has a lot of company at the front of the pack.

Caraviello: Unfortunately, it seems our Road to 16 Winners movement has stalled out given all the repeat trips to Victory Lane as of late, which likely opens the door for more guys to get in on points. So you have to think Kenseth, regardless of whether he can pick up a W between now and Richmond. Newman has been steady all year. I’d take Larson. And Bowyer and that team are better than they’ve shown, so I’d pick Clint as well.

Cavanna: We’re running low on spots. So — Tony Stewart, yes or no?

Caraviello: That still leaves room for other guys like Kahne, Biffle, Menard and yes, Stewart. For those drivers, it’s all going to come down to how many winners we have, and how many spots are allotted on points. Right now Tony is clearly in the danger zone, to be certain. Of course, he could also win this weekend at Daytona and put all those worries to rest.

Bruce: That’s the thing, DC. As we get closer to the cutoff, and it becomes apparent that points will secure some of the 16 spots, I think we’ll see teams focus more on not losing positions rather than picking up the W. I think that’s called points racing, if I remember correctly.

Caraviello: Bite your tongue, Kenny Bruce!

Bruce: Consider it bitten.

Cavanna: I’m excited for this run to the Chase. The "win and in" scenario is really going to make things crazy.

Caraviello: That’s what we all want, Alan. Although I also remember the first few years of the Chase, when teams got very conservative down to the stretch to protect their positions. Those guys in the garage are smart. They figure a way around things regardless.

Bruce: As long as they give 100 percent, DC, it’ll be fine.

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Keselowski looks to earn first Daytona victory

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Brad Keselowski has one primary concern heading into Saturday night’s Sprint Cup Series event at Daytona International Speedway — and it’s not his hand.

"I think it’s closing out on the final restart," the 2012 champion said Thursday, after a thunderstorm rolled through and washed out a second scheduled practice at the 2.5-mile facility. "You have to close out on that final restart."

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To Keselowski, closing the deal at Daytona looms as a much more important matter than his right hand, which he gashed while trying to open a champagne bottle during his Victory Lane celebration last weekend at Kentucky Speedway. Keselowski needed several stitches at the Kentucky care center to close the wound, but still tested earlier this week with Team Penske at the Milwaukee Mile. During Thursday’s opening practice, he didn’t even wear a bandage, which wouldn’t fit under his glove.

"I mean, it hurts," Keselowski said. "But a little a bit of adrenaline, and I don’t even know it’s there."

Keselowski said he’s had no further treatment on the hand since Kentucky. The wound is healing nicely, he added, and he’s due to have the stitches removed soon. He said Thursday that he had no plans to wear a bandage under his glove for Saturday night’s race, although that could change if his stitches come out prior to the green flag. Regardless, the injury shouldn’t be a factor Saturday night, Keselowski added, "unless it cuts open."

Looking back at last weekend, Keselowski blames the injury on "flawed technique" in Victory Lane.

"I always struggle with champagne bottles, and it wouldn’t come open, and everybody else was hitting theirs on stuff trying to get it open," he said inside his No. 2 transporter. "So I thought, ‘Well, I’ll just take this ledge and pop it.’ And I popped it and I hit it right on the cord, but it just (exploded). I thought there was a possibility it might break, but not like it broke. I mean, it really broke."

Keselowski smiles and shakes his head at the interest his relatively minor injury has attracted among news media, and this weekend would like to make headlines for another reason — snapping a somewhat uncharacteristic drought at Daytona. Keselowski has never won at NASCAR’s most famous track, although he’s registered a pair of restrictor-plate victories at Talladega Superspeedway, and he’s very often in the mix at the end here.

"We’ve been really good here. I don’t think we’ve gotten the finishes I would like. That’s very clichéd, but I’ve probably never been so disappointed in my career as I have here at Daytona. The last two Daytona 500s, we’ve been running second on the last restart with three or four to go and not won the race, which is as close you can get to winning without winning. And that’s the Daytona 500," he said.

"I’ve relived those races in my mind a little too much, probably, because of how much that means. And just Daytona in general, even on the Nationwide side, I’ve had a shot at winning this race for probably five straight years and (had) seconds, thirds, wrecked while coming here for the win in 2013, finished second the year before that, finished second this year. Jeez, you know? Daytona’s always been that place for me where I’ve been this close and not won anything here."

Indeed, Keselowski has finished eighth or better in three of his last four Sprint Cup starts at Daytona, including third in the 500 earlier this season. He was fourth-fastest in Thursday’s lone practice session.

"We’ve had the speed," he said. "We just haven’t been able to put all the pieces together. … Everything here at Daytona is always the case for me running second or third and being right there and not winning. It’d sure like to change that."

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Coke Zero 400 has a different feel than Daytona 500 — but that’s a good thing

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Rolling through the tunnel and into the infield at Daytona International Speedway, the eye isn’t immediately drawn to the high-banked turns of NASCAR’s most famous race track. You don’t initially notice the expanding steel skeleton of the Daytona Rising project, creeping ever further toward the sky. This time of year, the venue’s defining characteristic might be a more seasonal accessory — the inflatable swimming pools adorning nearly every campsite.

Indeed, we’re not in Speedweeks anymore.

If Daytona in February is all about the pressure-packed pursuit of NASCAR’s biggest event, the track’s annual July race takes the tone of the holiday weekend on which it’s stood since moving off Independence Day itself in 1988. A fireworks spectacular is planned for after the checkered flag. Military tributes are slated throughout the weekend. Drivers take their kids to Walt Disney World, or their wives to the beach. This is a race weekend which burns as brightly as a Roman candle, and is tied up in a bow colored red, white and blue.

No, it’s not the 500 — but nothing is. July at Daytona presents a shorter race and a very different atmosphere, one complete with heat and humidity that at times Thursday made it feel like 110 degrees. When asked to compare the track’s two annual Sprint Cup Series events, Brian Vickers began with a prologue: "Besides it’s really, really hot?"

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While not everyone agrees — "Wait ’til Indy in August. It’s way hotter than this," Nationwide Series driver Elliott Sadler argued — all those inflatable pools sitting at all those campsites speak for themselves. And they kind of set the tone for the weekend, which is a little bit more laid back, even for a restrictor-place event with a potential Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup berth on the line.

"We go through our majors and can argue what tracks kind of fit into that category, and I don’t feel that this July race is really in that category," said six-time series champion and three-time Daytona winner Jimmie Johnson, who last season became the first driver in 31 years to sweep the track’s two events. "But I think it’s a fun race because of the weekend it falls on, and we’re able to run patriotic paint schemes, say thank you to the men and women that defend and serve for us, and celebrate Independence Day. That definitely jazzes things up and pushes it up the list."

Daytona in July, when the beaches are crowded and the air conditioners are cranked up to the max, offers a very different environment from the same place in February, both on the track and off. On hotter, slicker asphalt, handling is always at a premium. On the Nationwide side, Sadler said there are real concerns about managing engine temperatures in traffic. The intensity and the pressure dip to slightly more tolerable levels, even though the summer race here offers a potential playoff berth just like its more famous brother.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has won both events, has seen it firsthand.

"The driver’s meeting alone will set the tone and can take you out of the race and can really intimidate you if you let it," he said of the 500. "There’s just so much happening, and so many people on pit road, and you’re bring thrust in front of all these people to shake hands and meet, and you just want to think about the race and get in your car and you don’t want any distractions. You’re just really kind of struggling through that in the pre-race. It won’t be like that for the 400. It will be a typical weekend."

The 500, he added, just offers a "different feeling" that makes competitors very aware of how big it is. "I remember when we were running there at the end of the 500, how nerve-wracking all those restarts were," Earnhardt said of his victory in February. "That’s much more of a bigger deal when it’s the Daytona 500. But winning here regardless, it’s a great feeling. You’re going to try your guts out. But I think you get much more nervous and certainly aware of how big the situation is when it’s the 500."

No, it’s not the 500, but it’s still Daytona — something summertime winners like David Ragan, Jimmy Spencer and John Andretti certainly understand.

"I think a win at Daytona is a win at Daytona," Vickers said. "This race has a tremendous amount of meaning. We always put a lot of emphasis on the Daytona 500, but to walk out of here with a trophy, and to be in Victory Lane at Daytona, I think still carries a lot of meaning regardless of which race it is."

Different races have different meanings to different drivers — for instance, Johnson is eyeing Chicagoland because his crew chief Chad Knaus is from the area, and Jeff Gordon wants Kentucky because it’s the last active track on which he hasn’t won. When it comes to Daytona, though, the prestige of the place manages to transcend the calendar. The Harley J. Earl Trophy and the Great American Race may be supplanted in July by fireworks and inflatable pools, but regardless of the time of year the essence of Daytona remains.

"Winning in Daytona is always a special thing — whether it’s an IROC race, or I’ve tried here many times in a Grand-Am car to win, if it was the six-hour event in the summer or the Rolex 24," Johnson said. "I wouldn’t mind winning a Big Wheel race in the infield. It wouldn’t bother me a bit to win in Daytona. For me, it’s up there on the list for sure."

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From emotional victories to presidential visits, let’s relive the best of the best

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The Daytona 500 carries with it the prestige of winning the sport’s biggest race. But the annual summer event at Daytona International Speedway brings something else: fireworks, and not always above the track.

Indeed, the event now known as the Coke Zero 400 has always been a real firecracker, and not just in name. The shorter distance and prime-time start have only served to enhance the atmosphere of a race that for years was contested on Independence Day itself, with a late-morning green flag designed to avoid thunderstorms and allow drivers, crewmen and their families to enjoy an afternoon on the beach. It was a summer vacation and a race weekend rolled into one.

Those days may be over, but the July race at Daytona continues to deliver some of the best moments of each season. From furious finishes to spoilers to milestones overseen by the Commander in Chief, the 400 has compiled a catalogue of achievements capable of rivaling even its more heralded brethren from February. The next edition comes Saturday night, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. tries to become just the sixth driver to sweep both annual events on the 2.5-mile track.

Fireworks — the kind that light up the sky after the checkered flag — will be guaranteed. Others may very well spark on the track itself, ignited by heated conditions and a restrictor-plate race that could be someone’s ticket to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. More potentially combustible moments surely await in this firecracker of an event — but until then, here are the top 10.

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10. Late night with Tony

He may never have won the Daytona 500, but Tony Stewart has long been a master of the track’s summertime event. Of his four career victories in the 400, the most impressive was easily the one he recorded in a 2005 race that, because of rain, didn’t start until late in the night. The green flag flew around 11 p.m. local time and the checkered fluttered at roughly 2 a.m., and in between Stewart led 151 laps from the pole to thoroughly dominate the event. Interstate 4 was still choked with post-race traffic as sunrise approached, but Stewart cruised home with a victory that would anchor his second championship run.

9. Elliott by a nose

There was nobody better than Bill Elliott in 1988, the year Awesome Bill claimed his championship. But on the way he had to weather a turbulent July race at Daytona, during a season in which restrictor plates became the standard at the 2.5-mile track. Six drivers — Cale Yarborough, Alan Kulwicki and Benny Parsons among them — were knocked out in a third-lap pileup, while Elliott worked his way up from a 38th-place qualifying spot. In the end it was Million Dollar Bill against Morgan-McClure driver Rick Wilson, who dove low off the final corner and edged ahead. But as he was so much of that year, Elliott was just too strong — he moved to the high side, and in the final few hundred feet nosed out in front to win.

8. Lights and fire

The 1998 season marked a watershed moment for both NASCAR and Daytona, the latter of which completed a massive lighting project that allowed the track’s summertime event to move under the lights. CBS was also slated to broadcast the event in prime time. But Central Florida was plagued that summer by rampant wildfires that would ultimately burn through half a million acres and lick at the edges of Daytona Beach itself, forcing NASCAR to postpone the event until a Saturday night in mid-October. Jeff Gordon led the final 38 laps to win over Bobby Labonte and solidify his hold on the championship standings, while night racing at Daytona got off to a promising, if somewhat delayed, start.

7. Furious finish

Jamie McMurray won twice in his rather short stay with Roush Fenway Racing, and both victories came on restrictor-plate tracks. But easily the most stirring came at Daytona in the summer of 2007, in a wheel-to-wheel battle against Kyle Busch with a whole pack of contenders right on their heels. With the preferred position on the inside and with his older brother Kurt pushing from behind, Busch seemed to have all the momentum on the final lap. "Kyle Busch is your guy right here," TNT analyst Kyle Petty said as Busch moved ahead off the last corner. That is, until much like Elliott almost two decades earlier, McMurray surged ahead in the final few feet to claim the victory by five thousandths of a second.

6. The unlikeliest sweep

The list of drivers who have swept both annual races at Daytona is loaded with legends like Fireball Roberts, Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough, Jimmie Johnson — and LeeRoy Yarbrough? Indeed, he added his name to that list in 1969 when he won seven times in a powerhouse car fielded by Junior Johnson. Yarbrough had passed Charlie Glotzbach on the final lap to win the 500, but in the 400 used a bit of mechanical wizardry from crew chief Herb Nab, who rerouted exhaust pipes from the side to the rear of the car to disturb the air and make it hard for anyone to draft off his driver. The ploy worked, and Yarbrough led 96 laps, and following the race NASCAR instituted a new rule mandating exhaust pipes be routed to the side.

5. The ultimate spoiler

Yarbrough was also part of another Daytona 400-miler that included a bit of rules tinkering, this one in 1966. Dodges had been slow in testing at the big track, so Yarbrough and Sam McQuagg each came to the Daytona race with a one-and-a-half-inch rear spoiler peeking up from the rear decklid of their cars. The innovation was a prominent topic of discussion during ABC’s coverage of the event during "Wide World of Sports," and for the drivers, it paid off. Yarbrough, going 6 mph faster than he had in February, won the pole. Although Yarbrough went out with a suspension issue, the unheralded McQuagg surged to the front, and the ultimate spoiler led 126 laps en route to his only victory in NASCAR’s premier series.

4. Sacks pulls a shocker

And yet the biggest upset in 400 history came two decades later, at the hands of a research and development driver. Greg Sacks was a modified standout from Long Island who only weeks earlier had struck a deal to run the race for DiGard Racing, which planned to use him in an R&D capacity with the goal of helping regular driver Bobby Allison. And yet it was Sacks who worked his way through the field in the 1985 race, though he was saddled with an inexperienced crew that cost him positions on every stop. But crew chief Gary Nelson had put a few mechanical tricks into the car, and for the final pit stop the vehicle was serviced by crewmen from several top teams. Sacks won by a whopping 23 seconds to earn his lone career victory, and record one of the biggest shockers NASCAR has ever seen.

3. Pearson plays possum

It simply didn’t get any better than Daytona in the early 1970s, when Richard Petty and David Pearson went at it in almost every race. The Silver Fox and the King finished first and second respectively in three consecutive Firecracker 400s from 1972-74, with Pearson winning them all. But his ’74 triumph is the stuff of legend because of the way it unfolded, in vintage Silver Fox fashion that left even Petty snookered. Pearson led at the white flag, but then his Wood Brothers car slowed, allowing Petty to pass and move out to a seven-car lead. There was no problem — Pearson just didn’t want to leave himself open for a slingshot move. Pearson drafted back behind Petty and used the slingshot himself, passing the King in the final time through the tri-oval to win. A sly fox, indeed.

2. ‘He was with me tonight’

The months after Dale Earnhardt’s fatal crash in the 2001 Daytona 500 were dark ones, full of necessary questions about how a seemingly invincible seven-time champion could have met his end. Along the way, there were a few moments of joyful relief, such as Steve Park winning for Dale Earnhardt Inc. at Rockingham and Kevin Harvick triumphing with Big E’s old team at Atlanta. But nothing compared to the return to Daytona in July, when Dale Earnhardt Jr. surged from sixth to first over the final six laps to win the first race back at the track where his father had lost his life. Earnhardt climbed out of his car and thrust his hands skyward as his crew engulfed him. "He was with me tonight," he said, not needing to explain who. "I dedicate this win to him. No one else I could dedicate (it) to."

1. A President and a King

It wasn’t just one of the biggest races of the year, it was one of the defining moments in NASCAR history — the first time a sitting president would attend a race. Ronald Reagan gave the command to start the 1984 event, on July 4 no less, from Air Force One. The jet landed at the airport behind the track with the race in progress, and Reagan watched the dramatic finish from a VIP suite. With three laps remaining Doug Heveron crashed to bring out a caution, and the race came down to a sprint to the yellow. Richard Petty won a sheet-metal-scraping duel with Cale Yarborough, a few laps later claiming his 200th and final career victory under the yellow flag.

That afternoon, with the president on hand for a such a milestone, remains one of NASCAR’s iconic moments. And it didn’t end there — Petty first went not to Victory Lane, but up to the press box to chat with the Commander in Chief. Reagan then accompanied Petty to Victory Lane, and even stuck around for a picnic lunch after the event. The car ultimately wound up in the Smithsonian. Petty would race for eight more seasons and never win again, but his 200th and final career victory transpired on a perfect summer day in Daytona that has since progressed from reality into legend.

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Brian Scott leads NNS practice; Jamie McMurray tops opening Cup session

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SPRINT CUP SERIES PRACTICE | RESULTS

Jamie McMurray had to wait out a bit of spotty weather, but it was worth it for the Chip Ganassi Racing driver, who led the only practice for the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday. Final practice, which was scheduled to run for 90 minutes, was canceled due to inclement weather at the track.

The two-time Daytona winner topped the leaderboard during Sprint Cup Series practice — which was delayed an hour because of inclement weather — pacing the field with a best speed of 201.952 mph, attained on his 13th of 14 laps.  His CGR teammate Kyle Larson was right behind him, as the rookie ran his 15th lap around the 2.5-mile superspeedway at a 201.889 clip.

Clint Bowyer (201.839 mph), the series’ most recent winner Brad Keselowski (201.771 mph) and six-time Daytona victor and points leader Jeff Gordon (201.712 mph) rounded out the top five.

Roush Fenway Racing, which has struggled as a whole in 2014, placed its two of its winless cars in the top 10 in Greg Biffle (8th, 201.261 mph) and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (7th, 201.590 mph).

Former surprise Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne (200.553 mph) was 13th. Austin Dillon, who won the pole for this season’s 500 opener, was 14th with a best speed of 200.503 mph.

Gordon’s Hendrick Motorsports teammates struggled, with Kasey Kahne (198.965 mph) pulling in 26th, 2014 Daytona 500 champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. (198.247 mph) 32nd and Jimmie Johnson, who swept the two Daytona races last season, 42nd with a speed of 191.274 mph.

Cup cars were on track for 45 minutes on Thursday. The initial start of practice was delayed an hour due to bad weather in the area.

Coors Light Pole Qualifying is set to take place Friday at 5:10 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. The Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola scheduled for Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on TNT.

NATIONWIDE SERIES FINAL PRACTICE | RESULTS

Brian Scott set an early pace at Daytona International Speedway that could not be matched. His No. 2 Chevrolet stayed atop the leaderboard for more than 90 minutes in Thursday’s two-hour NASCAR Nationwide Series practice.

The only driver to crack 193 mph, Scott’s speed of 193.092 mph on his fourth of 10 laps was best on the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

Richard Childress Racing teammate Ty Dillon joined Scott in the top five. His speed of 192.336 mph in the No. 3 Chevrolet was good for third. Between those two was Darrell Wallace Jr., who is driving the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota this week. His speed of 192.724 in a Coca-Cola paint scheme was good for second.

Dakoda Armstrong (191.898 mph) and Ryan Reed (191.857 mph) completed the top five, with both driving Fords.

New series points leader Elliott Sadler finished 16th with a lap of 188.466 mph in his No. 11 Toyota. He’s four points ahead of Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender Chase Elliott (187.398 mph, 22nd) and eight points ahead of Regan Smith (186.714 mph, 25th).

Practice was delayed briefly twice, once for debris and once when Chris Buescher had a tire go down. Buescher finished sixth in the session with a speed of 191.853 mph.

Qualifying is scheduled for 3:10 p.m. ET on Friday, with the Subway Firecracker 250 powered by Coca-Cola to follow at 7:30 p.m.

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Johnson: "An Earnhardt winning in Daytona is huge, period."

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Dale Earnhardt Jr. will try to become just the sixth driver to sweep NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Daytona International Speedway Saturday night when the track hosts the Coke Zero 400 powered by Coca-Cola.

Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson accomplished the feat last year, winning the season-opening Daytona 500 as well as the 400 in July. His sweep ended a 30-year run of futility among Daytona race winners — before Johnson, the last to capture both events was Bobby Allison in 1982. 

Earnhardt Jr. led six times for 54 laps, including the final 18, en route to winning this year’s 500. It was his third-career victory at the historic 2.5-mile track. 

That few have managed to win both races in the same season isn’t lost on Earnhardt Jr., who enjoys the rich history of the sport.

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"I would love to sweep the races … because that is a cool thing," he said Thursday at DIS prior to the start of practice. "But I just love winning here. So to go to Victory Lane here, regardless of what we did in February, would mean a lot to me." 

He is of the series’ more successful restrictor-plate racers with eight of his 21 career victories coming at Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway. He’s enjoying one of the best years of his career, and certainly his best since joining Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. In addition to his Daytona win, Earnhardt Jr. also won earlier this year at Pocono, and he has more top-five finishes this year than any other driver. He is third in points, trailing leader and teammate Jeff Gordon as well as Johnson. 

Earnhardt Jr. would also like to make amends for a disappointing 26th-place finish at Talladega earlier this year. Strategy, which plays such a big part in determining winners and losers in NASCAR, worked to perfection for the No. 88 team at Daytona. That wasn’t the case at Talladega, where a fuel-only pit stop dropped him back in the field and kept him pinned there.

It was, he said, "embarrassing."

"The way we ran and what I chose to do at the end of that race is really uncharacteristic of anybody that is in the field and trying to compete," he said. "I just got really frustrated with the way things were working out for us.

"I lost sight of the overall … picture, what you are out there trying to do, who all is out there depending on you to do it. …"

Lessons were learned.

"And you are never too old to learn them," he said. "You are never too old to be taught a lesson either. I definitely experienced that in Talladega this year."

Johnson, a six-time champion looking for his fourth career win at Daytona, said "an Earnhardt winning in Daytona is huge, period."

While he said he’s more focused on his own No. 48 team, Johnson said he expected his teammate "to be fast."

"He’s going to be strong and have a very good opportunity to win," Johnson said. "That (sweep) stat went 30 years for a reason — it’s not easy because in plate racing anything can happen.

"He’s the one who gave me that phrase about if (you) can make it to the white (flag), and you’re in the finish line picture, you have a shot at winning. If he can make it to the white, he will definitely be a threat." 

Judging by his comments Thursday, Earnhardt Jr. doesn’t plan to go quietly into the night on Saturday. Daytona and Talladega reinforced the importance of track position in a plate race. And what measures might be necessary to take to keep it. 

"You had to run extremely aggressive (when) side drafting and try to box them in on the fence," he said.

"You wanted to make it really hard on them to take a position away." 

He understands, he said, "that if I get put in that position again … you’re going to have to play some pretty hardcore, cut-throat racing."

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