"Drew, Matt and the Cat"

When a driver wrecks a couple of cars at Daytona, you could be in for a long afternoon, especially starting 39th, as did Roush Fenway Racing's Matt Kenseth. But if that driver has quick enough pit work, and can put the car in the right place at the right time, anything can happen--just ask Matt what happened when he passed then leader Elliott Sadler on lap 146 and then the last of eight cautions flew the next lap later. The 2003 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion won the 51st Daytona 500, when NASCAR called the race after 152 laps. 2007 winner Kevin "Happy" Harvick finished 2nd; A. J. Allmendinger 3rd (a popular podium finish and some say not the last one for the driver from Los Gatos, California) Clint Bowyer 4th and Sadler 5th. Rookie phenom Joey Logano was in an accident and wrecked out 43rd...Kyle Busch led 88 laps and was caught up in the "big one"--he was credited with 41st. Tony Stewart led 15 laps and came home 8th...his teammate Ryan Newman not so lucky--36th after all his woes.

We'll be catching breakfast at the Daytona 500 Experience with Kenseth (middle), crew chief Drew Blickensderfer (left) and team owner Jack Roush (right) tomorrow.

"Soggy Harley J Earl"

An mid morning shower sprinkled upon this trophy as it was hauled into the Infield Media Center for photos and presentations before the start of the 51st Daytona 500. As a reminder, the Daytona International Speedway does have lights, and you may be assured that NASCAR will pull out all the stops to get the race in today--even though it may end at midnight or later. Here's what they are facing: Local weather forecasts call for a 60 percent chance of showers today. That's not so bad if it's a sprinkle. If something more than that falls, the ServiceMaster Clean track crew will go to work to dry the track and do so for at least 2 hours and 15 minutes, as they circle the 2 1/2 mile trioval.

The US Army crew and the Office Depot/Old Spice crew of Stewart-Haas Racing are taking advantage of each minute...we just saw the Army car enter the "room of doom", a/k/a NASCAR Inspection room. Team co-owner Tony Stewart was taken out when Ryan Newman had a right rear tire explode in final practice yesterday morning. Stewart was, as you might expect, less than pleased with the official tire sponsor, Goodyear. Stu Grant, Goodyear's racing boss, had his engineers look at what was left of the tire, and said that a hole in the tire caused the explosion and subsequent crash. Mr. Stewart was not impressed, even though he won the Nationwide Series race (on Goodyears) yesterday.

Kevin "Bono" Manion likely enjoys the focus being placed on Stewart and Newman (who'll go to backup cars and start from the rear of the 43 car grid when the green flag flies) so his driver, pole sitter Martin Truex, Jr, can prepare for the race, whenever it runs.

We'll update definitely with a winner's snapshot, either in the Media Center or in Victory Lane. When, depends on the weather.

"American Hero Visits the World Center of Racing"

Sergeant First Class Samuel Potter is another one of those men and women we thank for the freedom to do what we do. He saw enough rough stuff with the 1st Infantry Division in Tikrit, Iraq (the home of the former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein) to earn an award of the Combat Action Badge, and was also awarded a Purple Heart for combat wounds. Potter is back in the States, and is assigned as a recruiter in nearby Orlando, FL. He is a senior non-commissioned officer, responsible for the supervision, education, training and welfare of his junior soldiers. His counterpart on Ryan Newman's #39 US Army Chevy Impala SS team is crew chief Tony Gibson. Gibson is getting a backup car ready for Newman on Sunday after Newman's woes in the second Daytona Duel.

I mention Sgt. 1st Cl. Potter because this morning after the Duels, many things were said about giving back by Jeff Gordon, who walks the walk and talks the talk with his foundation, and Greg Biffle, who mentioned his foundation (like Army driver Ryan Newman, Biffle has a soft spot for animals) in press conferences. That's important and appreciated.

But none of us could exercise our freedoms if it were not for the selfless service and leadership of soldiers like Sgt 1st Cl. Potter. The Army is calling 2009 the "year of the non-commissioned officer". So when you see a soldier in uniform wearing stripes, you are looking at the reason the US Army is able to do what it does every day.

Not so much to report from on-track...with practice for Sunday's Daytona 500 just concluding.

Jamie McMurray topped the charts in practice number 5 at 191.546 miles an hour. Newman did get on track to run 20 laps--his best speed 187.750 miles an hour. T'would seem that Chad Knaus used this session--by running 40 laps, the most of any of the 37 drivers--as a test by three time and defending Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson.

We'll lay low until the race, unless developments warrant a break-in.

"Daytona Duels and other short takes"

Greetings from the "World Center of Racing", where the best seats in the house--along the start finish line--are on sale. Daytona boss Robin Braig told me that the best value seats ($55) are almost sold out...and that he feels confident that the 51st running of the Daytona 500 will end up being a sell out.

Chris Browning of Darlington Raceway tells me that plans proceed for the May race at the track too tough to tame and the "all you can eat grandstand" will make its return. Remember, you read it here first.

Jeff Gordon (a multiple Daytona 500 winner if you remember) won the first Daytona Duel...the two drivers who had to race their way in were past series champion Tony Stewart (who is now a team owner) and Scott Riggs (whose team basically began operations 23 days ago). Polesitter Martin Truex led most of the laps until a tire problem relegated him to the back of the pack. No damage so the pole winning car will start up front as per NASCAR rule.

Kyle Busch won the second duel...the two drivers who had to race their way into the 500 were A. J. Allmendinger and Jeremy Mayfield. Ryan Newman had issues during his duel, so the defending winner of the 500 will have to start near the back. Both Allmendinger and Mayfield had interesting off seasons...their persistence proves that there is a silver lining in every cloud.

We'll kinda lay low until Sunday...when our work begins in earnest.

"This is NOT Carl's Car"

Ever wonder what Carl Edwards' Aflac Ford Fusion would look like if designed by the Aflac Duck? I submit the preceding photo for your viewing pleasure.

You'll see this creation in some new Aflac TV ads.

I bet the ServiceMaster cleanup crew is happy that Aflac's duck is not on the property. It might take a few of the 700 bags of speedy dry in case the duck did what ducks normally do.

Now, for the serious business--Edwards says that he wants to stay near the front in both the Duels and the Daytona 500--not necessarily in the lead--but something like what Happy Harvick did to Jamie McMurray on Saturday night. On a green-white-checker restart, that strategy changes. Edwards wants to stay on the point, because the green portion of the lap might last just a few seconds before crashing begins and the final yellow is unfurled.

Those of you who migrated here since the Daly Planet suspended operations, might like to hear about the comments of ESPN Motorsports boss Rich Feinberg. I asked Feinberg about the tendency to use all of the special effects in the television truck, to the detriment of the storytelling by Dr. Jerry Punch, Dale Jarrett and Andy Petree. Feinberg says it's kind of hard to strike a balance. He admitted that a few times last year, the Worldwide Leader went too heavily on effects and not heavily enough on the story. Bottom line: They are still and continually trying to find a good balance--and you will see that process unfold when ESPN begins their Nationwide Series race coverage on Saturday.

Also, Jamie Little told me that she WILL be back in Long Beach to defend her title in the Pro Celebrity Race at the Toyota Long Beach of Grand Prix Weekend on April 18. Jamie patrols the pits for ESPN coverage, and will miss a couple of weeks to prepare for the race. She'll start in the Pro Category.

Tomorrow, the Duels will sort the starting spots among the drivers already in the 500 (except for polesitter Martin Truex and second starter Mark Martin), and the four who will have to race their way in. Thirteen drivers will go home.

"Truex, Bono get Redemption, Daytona 500 Pole; Mark Martin Starts Second"

Despite the sturm und drang of the off season, Martin Truex, Jr and crew chief Kevin "Bono" Manion led the way for the merged Earnhardt Ganassi racing squad with a second career pole position in NASCAR Sprint Cup's biggest race. Truex qualified his Bass Pro Shops Chevy Impala with a 47.872 second lap of the 2 and 1/2 mile Daytona International Speedway, which translates to a speed of 188.001 miles an hour. Sharing the front row is Mark Martin who clocked in at 187.717 miles an hour. Some of the other notables: 2008 winner Ryan Newman ran third; last night's Bud Shootout winner and 2007 Champion Kevin "Happy" Harvick ran 49th of 56 qualifiers. Three time and defending Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson clocked in 6th.

Scanners are neat things. We had the FOX TV intercom channel up and heard the announcers (Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds) comment off air about the crowd, which was down, despite weather the rest of the United States would envy. There will likely be good seats available for Thursday's Daytona Duels...and the rest of the weekend, too.

Now the redemption--Truex's team was whacked by the lash of NASCAR justice last July here at the "World Center of Racing" for irregularities in inspection. The team wanted to show that it had something. It did.

Mark Martin is jacked up for this race...he, too has unfinished business, after the 2007 loss to "Happy" Harvick.

We're off until late Wednesday unless there's some developments.

"Happy Harvick--Bud Shootout Winner"

The 2007 Daytona 500 winner, Kevin Harvick, ended up in victory lane tonight, ending a dearth on on-track activity for the Sprint Cup cars since Homestead last November. Harvick took the lead from then leader Jamie McMurray on the last lap of a green-white-checker restart, which added three laps to the posted 75. McMurray finished second...and Tony Stewart was third. The race was punctuated by 8 caution periods, including a last lap accident which Harvick, McMurray and Stewart avoided. The race saw a record 23 lead changes among 14 drivers. The win was Harvick's first win in five tries. A. J. Allmendinger finished 5th in an RPM Dodge...and the best Toyota (as it was for most of 2008) belonged to Joe Gibbs Racing and Kyle Busch (10th). The much ballyhooed debut of Gibbs teammate Joey Logano didn't live up to the hype this evening--the rookie was involved in an early (lap 4) crash with David Ragan, Robby Gordon, and fellow rookie Scott Speed. Logano survived the ARCA event a few minutes prior...which was drawn out by some spectacular crashing...which sent drivers to Halifax Medical Center down the road from the track. Logano finished second to eventual ARCA winner James Buescher.

Tomorrow is Pole Day for the 500...when the 51 cars will take timed laps...that will take some time because cars with restrictor plates don't get up to speed as quickly. The two fastest drivers will lock in a guaranteed 1 & 2 front row. The rest is decided by a mix of results from the Gatorade Duels, qualifying results, past champion provisionals and top 35 points from 2008--that will make your brain hurt at a late hour. So, we'll get some rest, and explain it to you tomorrow morning.