Coke Zero 400 PostQ
Should it be much of a surprise that Kyle Busch ranks as the No. 1 driver on the PostQ forecast? Well, maybe a little bit. Busch has been dominant this season but he has not had the best of luck on the restrictor plate tracks in his career averaging a 23rd place finish in 14 career starts. That, however, has not made a difference this season as Busch placed 4th at Daytona and won at Talladega. He is searching for his series leading sixth win of the season and has a good chance of taking the checkered flag. Busch ranked in the top 10 in all of the PostQ factors as he moved from 6th on the PreQ to 1st on the PostQ. Expect a solid run out of the #18 M&Ms Toyota in the Coke Zero 400.
It has been a rough couple of weeks for Tony Stewart as he has had wins in his grasp only to see circumstances go in the other direction. Stewart has had no racing luck this season as he remains winless on the season. He is looking to turn that around at Daytona International Speedway where he has been well in the last few events – with a few exceptions. Taking away the 2007 season in which Stewart recorded a 43rd and 38th place finishes at Daytona he is averaging a 4th place since the 2004 season. In the span he has two wins and seven top 10s but for some reason 2007 bit him hard at Daytona. Stewart is back on track and ready to contend with his teammate for the win. Look for Stewart to do all he can to get the #20 Home Depot Toyota to victory lane this weekend.
This could be a race where we see a ‘surprise’ winner. Not that it would be much of a surprise as Brian Vickers has won before but after the #83 Red Bull Racing’s team struggles last season it would be a great thing to see Vickers in victory lane again. He has looked solid this weekend but will have some work to do at Daytona after qualifying in the middle of the pack – a dangerous place to be especially on a restrictor plate track. He placed 12th at Daytona to start the season and fan 5th at Talladega. Vickers is hungry for a win – it will be exciting if he is near the front come the end of the night.
Elliott Sadler began the week ranked in the top 5 on our PreQ forecast. He has dropped to 20th on the PostQ after struggling so far this weekend. In the lone practice session ranking outside the top 30 and then was even worse in qualifying posting the 38th quickest time. Sadler has been running extremely well over the last few weeks but has not had a string of solid runs in quite some time. While we did like him earlier this week and he should still be able to finish in the top 20 he may not run as well as we has expected.
Another driver that you will want to avoid for this race is Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya heads into Daytona with a 19th place finish and a pair of 32nd place finishes in three career starts to his name. He did have a remarkable run in the last restrictor plate race placing 2nd at Talladega but that track, while a restrictor plate track, is a much different beast than Daytona. Montoya has looked bad already qualifying in the 31st position and ranking just a few spots better on our Speed chart. The #42 Havoline Dodge is well down on the depth chart – stay away from him for this race.
profantasysports.com
Truex's car impounded at Daytona
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -Martin Truex Jr., vying to get into NASCAR's Chase for the championship, started the weekend with a significant setback.
Truex's Chevrolet failed inspection before practice Thursday, prompting NASCAR officials to impound the car and sending Truex's crew scrambling to get the backup ready.
``Somebody made a big mistake,'' said Truex, who drives the No. 1 for Dale Earnhardt Inc. ``Shouldn't happen in this level of auto racing, but people make mistakes. We'll go on.''
Truex's car failed to fit NASCAR's roof template, and NASCAR decided to take a closer look at it. Officials planned to send the car to the sanctioning body's research and development center in Concord, N.C., and check out the roof design.
``I guess NASCAR wasn't happy with the way it fit,'' said Truex, who finished fourth at New Hampshire Motor Speedway last week. ``It's their ballgame, so it's their call.''
Truex enters Saturday's Sprint Cup race in 14th place in the points standings, 71 shy of being in position to be guaranteed a place in the Chase.
Now, though, he could be in jeopardy of falling way behind.
When NASCAR introduced its Car of Tomorrow last season, it warned teams that it would have a zero-tolerance policy for altering car bodies.
Since then, NASCAR has slapped several teams with 100-plus-point penalties for illegal body modifications. NASCAR probably won't announce penalties against Truex - if there are any - until next week.
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STEWART'S DEFENSE: Tony Stewart sharply defended crew chief Greg Zipadelli's decision to pit late in last weekend's race at New Hampshire, saying ``it's easy to be an armchair quarterback.''
Stewart dominated the race but wound up 13th when officials stopped it 17 laps early because of rain. Zipadelli called for the late pit stop - most of the leaders followed suit - and Stewart found himself in the middle of the pack when the rain started a few minutes later. Many of Stewart's fans were critical this week of Zipadelli's call.
``You see all of this criticism from people and it's people who can't even control their own lives and they want to sit here and tell us how to run race teams on the weekend,'' Stewart said. ``I find that highly amusing that people think that they've got a better solution all the time than what we do. It's easy after it's all over to say, 'Well you should've done this. What was he thinking?'
``If they were that smart, they would be crew chiefs, and obviously they're not that smart listening to the criticism. It just frustrates you as a driver knowing that you've got a crew chief that's won two championships and 30-plus races with you that people think they are a lot smarter than and they're not.''
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STILL FUMING?: Cup Series points leader Kyle Busch and Juan Pablo Montoya haven't made amends following last week's on-track altercation at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Busch said Thursday that he hasn't spoken to Montoya and doesn't plan to, either.
``It's over with. That was last week,'' Busch said.
Montoya, saying he didn't like the way Busch was racing him for position, intentionally spun Busch late in the race and ended up wrecking both cars. NASCAR eventually assessed Montoya a two-lap penalty for rough driving. Busch finished 25th, seven spots higher than Montoya.
``It's NASCAR's discretion at what they want to do to penalize people,'' Busch said. ``I'm confident in their judgment.''
Dale Earnhardt Jr. said he was surprised to see cars wreck under caution, but he also said Montoya isn't one to get pushed around.
``Juan's a little firecracker man,'' Earnhardt said. ``He's a good guy, but you just don't push his buttons. You've got to respect him on the racetrack. He has to sort of have that mentality coming from Formula One. He definitely doesn't want to get pushed around. He's not having the best season. He's obviously not very happy with how his car is running up to this point, so he's got even a shorter fuse because of that.''
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PRACTICE PROBLEMS: Kurt Busch, who finished second in the Daytona 500 in February, blew a right-front tire during the first practice Thursday and hit the wall.
Busch, who posted the fasted lap time during the session, had to switch to a backup car. He blamed the wreck on the new tire Goodyear provided for this race. There was some grumbling before the Daytona 500 about the tire, which drivers complained blistered too easily.
``No warning,'' Busch said. ``We're supposed to have a harder tire for here, and it is harder because we're sliding around a lot. But we have to have so much weight in the right side and the camber we run with these new cars, they can't build a tire hard enough to last.''
The second practice session was canceled because of rain.
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FINAL WORD: ``I think what Brett Favre is doing, a lot of people expected and some people hoped. I was one of those that hoped. I didn't expect him to come back, but I hoped that he would, just for the fact that I am a football fan and I love to see Brett Favre play.'' - New England Patriots All-Pro receiver Randy Moss, on the possibility of Brett Favre coming out of retirement.
Trading Paint: Coke Zero 400 picks
Welcome to Trading Paint, a weekly entry where a statewide panel of four auto racing "experts" will make picks on the NASCAR Sprint Cup races. This week: Saturday's Coke Zero 400 in Daytona, Fla.
The rules are simple:
1. A panelist can't pick the same driver in back-to-back weeks.
2. Standings will be calculated each week based on the actual points earned by the drivers each panelist picks to win.
After 17 races, the standings are as follows, with their pick of last week's winner in parentheses:
1. Steve Kaminski (Jimmie Johnson) -- 2,581
2. Jeff Bleiler (Jimmie Johnson) -- 2,319
3. Mike Pryson (Jeff Burton) -- 2,244
4. Antoine Pitts (Kyle Busch ) -- 2,214
Jeff Bleiler -- Jackson Citizen Patriot
So, Kaminski sours on my ability to pick winners of NASCAR races ... and then picks almost exactly the same guys as I did for the last race. He copied both my winner and sleeper pick, surely a defensive maneuver to keep me at bay. It won't work this week.
• Winner -- Kyle Busch. He had a down week on the track with that finish last week, although you can't really go by last week's race much. The rain made for a bizarre top six (when will Michael Waltrip and Reed Sorenson both finish that high again?) He rebounds at Daytona, where he was runner-up last summer.
• Sleeper -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. Always a threat at Daytona, he'll be in the hunt for a victory this weekend.
• No chance -- Ryan Newman: He's come a long way since winning the Daytona 500 ... a long way down.
Steve Kaminski -- The Grand Rapids Press
Saturday night's Coke Zero 400 at Daytona marks the halfway point of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season, and it's time for me to release my midseason grades.
Hang on, I'm not talking about grading the drivers. I'm grading the guys on this panel for their first-half performance:
• Bleiler -- E
• Pryson -- E-minus
• Pitts -- E-minus minus
• Winner -- Kyle Busch. He had the dominant car in the Daytona 500, and this time he will finish the job.
• Sleeper -- Clint Bowyer. He has three top-10 finishes in five Daytona starts.
• No chance -- Carl Edwards. Restrictor-plate races will continue to his nemesis.
Antoine Pitts -- The Ann Arbor News
Well, let's just say I left Loudon a very bitter man. Between the rain and the illegal caution-lap bump by Juan Pablo to derail the chances of my pick (Kyle Busch), it wasn't an enjoyable afternoon. But returning to Daytona has me pumped to rebound in the standings.
• Winner -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. He'll be driving that Cammo Car into Victory Lane at the end of the night.
• Sleeper -- Kevin Harvick. He's got to make a push now to stay in the top 12.
• No chance -- Dario Franchitti. For obvious reasons.
Mike Pryson -- Jackson Citizen Patriot
First off, I've always been a Pepsi guy, so this switch to the Coke Zero 400 is a little hard for me to swallow. But, as my wife always says, "Get over it!"
Now, on to the business at hand. I may be last in this 36-race run to nowhere, but I've got Mr. Pitts right where I want him. He's got me by a few points, but he used up this week's favorite, Kyle Busch, last week. Therefore, according to the strict constitution of the Trading Paint series, he can not use Busch this week. Ha! Time to make my move.
This week, Pitts. Next week, Bleiler.
I feel like the tide is turning. Whatever happened to the Tide car, anyway? As a bonus this week, here's the top five drivers (in my book) ever to drive the Tide car in NASCAR: 1. Darrell Waltrip; 2. Ricky Rudd; 3. Scott Pruett; 4. Ricky Craven; 5. Sarel van der Merwe. Don't remember Super Sarel? Think Watkins Glen, 1990 (and then get on with your life).
• Winner -- Kyle Busch. Busch should have won at Daytona in February. This is payback time as he pulls into Victory Lane for the sixth time. Busch has three top-5 finishes in his last four trips to the famed Florida track. This is the lock of the week.
• Sleeper -- Ryan Newman. Hey, he won here in February and still is in a hunt for the top-12 in points. Newman needs a win, and he's coming to a place where he knows the way.
• No chance -- Dario Franchitti. Actually, I'm cheating a little. Everyone knows that it's tough to win in NASCAR when you don't have a ride.
mlive.com
Menard Scores First Pole
RacingOne.com
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Paul Menard gave Dale Earnhardt Inc. its first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coors Light Pole Award of 2008, scoring the top starting spot for the Coke Zero 400 with a fast lap of 185.916 mph Friday afternoon at Daytona International Speedway.
Three of the four DEI cars qualified in the top 10, including Mark Martin, who qualified second with a lap of 185.870 mph.
The pole is the first of Menard’s Sprint Cup Series career, spanning 57 starts. Menard sits 26th in the Sprint Cup Series standings heading into Saturday night’s race.
Menard's previous best starting position this season was 13th, in June, at Dover International Speedway.
"It's obviously a good position to be in," Menard said. "We didn't focus at all on qualifying (Thursday) in practice. Hats off to everyone at DEI and Richard Childress with the engines. I knew we'd be a top five, but I thought somebody would knock us off at the end, but they didn't."
The Coors Light Pole Award assures Menard's position in next year's Budweiser Shootout at Daytona.
Martin will make his 47th start at Daytona Saturday night. He's never won a Sprint Cup Series race here.
"A lot of times you don't put a whole lot of importance on qualifying here at Daytona," Martin said. "But, this tells me that we have really great engines. Kudos to the guys at DEI and RCR for the engines. We've made a lot of improvement since we were here in February for the Daytona 500."
Dale Earnhardt Jr. qualified third, followed by Joe Nemechek, Johnny Sauter, David Ragan, Boris Said, DEI’s Regan Smith, Kyle Busch and Patrick Carpentier.
Martin Truex Jr., the fourth DEI driver, qualified 37th. Truex was forced to go to a backup car after NASCAR impounded his No. 1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Thursday for failing tech inspection.
"I don't know the whole story of what happened yesterday, but the team built a new car for Martin and it was just off by a little bit," Menard said. "Their backup car is a proven race car. I believe they raced it at Talladega. They didn't qualify as strong, but when he gets into the draft, that won't matter. The No. 15 (Menard), the No. 8 (Martin) and the No. 01 (Smith), we did our homework, so I'm happy to see us all in the top 10."
As was Earnhardt Jr., who left DEI at the end of the 2007 season to move over to Hendrick Motorsports.
"Paul has really turned things up lately if you look at the statistics," Earnhardt Jr. said. "He's doing a lot better. Regan is showing what he was hired to do. It's been really tough for DEI to try and field four cars. But, I'm not surprised by this. It's nice to see."
Sprint Cup Series points leader Kyle Busch will start on the inside of Row 5 after qualifying ninth. Other notables include: Kevin Harvick, 14th; Denny Hamlin, 15th; Tony Stewart, 17th; Matt Kenseth, 19th; and Jeff Burton, 23rd.
Scott Riggs and J.J. Yeley failed to qualify.
Coke Zero 400: Saturday Night at Daytona
Brian Gabrielle
Last Week: It might've been a double-win, except rain came to NewHampshire and washed out Denny Hamlin's attempt to give us the straight-up win. But we did take our head-to-head bet, breaking our slide, when ClintBowyer was able to barely stay in front of Kasey Kahne, despite bringing out the caution that would wind up ending the race. It had been a bad June to that point, so we'll take it. For the week, we won 0.17 units on 1.5 units wagered, a return of 11.3%; for the season, we've profited 3.37 units on 24.5 units wagered, a return of 13.8%, and we've given you winning weeks in 13 of 17 events. (Note that if you'd eschewed the relatively conservative betting pattern we outline below, and simply bet one unit per wager we recommend, last week you'd have lost 2.33 units; for the season, that would leave you with a profit of 4.41 units on 67 units wagered, a return of 6.6%. But there's clearly a bit more week-to-week risk associated with that strategy.)
Take Kyle Busch (+500), 1/6th unit. Saturday night's race is at Daytona, under the lights, and on plate tracks this season no team has had consistently good cars more frequently than Gibbs. Busch won at Talladega earlier this season, and led 86 laps in the Daytona 500 before fading a bit at the end. He didn't perform as well as I thought he'd do last week at Loudon, but I have hopes that he'll be near the front on Saturday night, and thus avoid the Big One and be in contention at the end.
Take Tony Stewart (+400), 1/6th unit. Smoke's season has been terribly snake-bitten at this point, including a race he completely dominated last week at Loudon but wound up losing on bad pit strategy (and that pesky rainstorm). He's rumored to be leaving Gibbs at the end of this year, potentially for an ownership stake at Haas CNC, but he almost certainly has one more great summer run in him for Gibbs. Stewart led on the last lap in the Daytona 500 back in February, but got passed by the Penske cars and finished third.
Take Jimmie Johnson (+1000), 1/6th unit. Repeat after me: qualifying doesn't matter at a plate track. J.J. rolls off 30th on Saturday night, and so long as he's lucky enough to escape wrecking while he's back there, I'm assuming he'll come straight to the front. He has great drafting partners in Dale Earnhardt Jr. (+500) and Jeff Gordon (+1000), and he feels like Daytona owes him something. Since winning the 500 back in '06, Johnson has gotten wrecked three times in four races here. He's too good for that to keep happening, so his is the Hendrick car (and the sweet odds) I'll watch.
In this week's head-to-head match-up, take Johnson over Denny Hamlin (-115), 1 unit. I just got through saying Gibbs has been best on the plate tracks this year, behind that powerful Toyota engine, so why take J.J. in a dead-even match-up against Hamlin? For me it comes down to consistency; while I know Johnson has been wrecked out of a bunch of theseplate races lately, he's generally known as a steady driver who doesn'tmake mistakes. Not so Hamlin, who's been wrecked by his own teammate at this track, who leads races and blows tires, and who's been known to get a little hotheaded in his time. Each of these guys will have great drafting partners available, and I'm not going to be surprised to see either of them win the race outright. But given his profile of steadiness, I'd rather cast my lot with Johnson.