
Brett Winningham
Brett has been following the sport of NASCAR since the beginning of the 2006 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Since Brett was 13, he has had a passion of chasing a job in sports that not many get the opportunity of doing. He has been in the NASCAR media since the middle of the 2010 season. Since then, he has been a part of many racing podcast shows to improve his talents. You can find him on twitter @NASCAR_Brett.
NSCS: Teams Forced to Back-Up Cars After Practice Incidents
Brian Vickers will be the only driver who will need to go to a back-up car from the first incident. Cole Whitt was going to a back-up, but when his teammate Parker Kligerman got into the second incident, team decided to repair the primary No. 26.
The second crash involved five cars that started just past the start/finish line. The incident started between Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano. Kenseth came up to block Logano, which sent him up the track into Parker Kligerman. Kligerman's car caught air and brushed the catch fence, ripping some of the fencing and a camera away, but no one was hurt. Ryan Truex, Dave Blaney and Paul Menard also was involved as a chain reaction.
"We were coming off four there and the 20 started making a move to go down. I assumed he was gonna go down there. I had the run, so I was gonna fill that hole and then he started to come back up and I was there," said Logano. "Maybe I shouldn’t have been racing as hard as I was there in practice, but everybody was in a big pack there trying to make things happen. As soon as he came back up I checked up a little bit and then the 21 hit me from behind and we spun out. It happens. That’s Daytona for you. We have another good Shell/Pennzoil Ford in the trailer that they backed out and are getting through tech now so we’ll get that out and make sure it’s good for the Duel and get through that and we’ll be fine."
This will force Ryan Truex, Joey Logano, Parker Kligerman, Paul Menard and Dave Blaney all to a back-up car. After the crash, Blaney told Fox Sports 1 reporters that Humphrey-Smith Racing has no back-up car this weekend.
Practice will resume later on tonight at the Daytona International Speedway, which can be seen live on FOX Sports 1 from 6:30-8:00 p.m. Et. It will be interesting to see how many racing teams will participate in the event.
NNS: DRIVE4COPD 300 at Daytona Preview
The NASCAR Nationwide Series will set to roll in 2014 this weekend with the DRIVE4COPD 300 at the Daytona International Speedway. This will mark the first of 33 total stops on the schedule this season.
The entry list features 49 total drivers, meaning, nine of those will go home after qualifying. Some of the drivers include, Jason White, Jeffery Earnhardt, Chase Elliott, Carlos Contreas, Tanner Berryhill, Danica Patrick, Dylan Kwasniewski, Kyle Larson, Dakota Armstrong, Chris Buescher, Johnny Sauter, Chad Boat, Bobby Gerhart, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and David Ragan.
Three drivers of Dylan Kwasnieski, Chase Elliott and Chad Boat will all make their NASCAR Nationwide Series debuts this weekend at the Daytona International Speedway. These three drivers has numerous success on many short tracks around the country but it's time to put them to the test on the high banks. Chase Elliott is probably everyone's favorite to watch coming into the opener.
The season opener has always played a favorite to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regulars at Daytona. That group this weekend will consist of Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Matt Kenseth, David Ragan and Josh Wise. These drivers will certainly be the favorites this weekend to try and claim the first victory of the year.
The Sunoco Rookie of the Year battle will be strong in the NASCAR Nationwide Series once again. These drivers to watch out for are, Ty Dillon, Chase Elliott, Ryan Reed, Dylan Kwasniewski, Dakota Armstrong and Chris Buescher. Chase Elliott and Dylan Kwasniewski will certainly be the ones to watch out for in 2014.
You can catch the season opener for the NASCAR Nationwide Series this Saturday live on ESPN at 1:00 p.m. Et. Live radio coverage of the event will be provided by the Motor Racing Network. You can listen to MRN through a local radio station, online on MRN.com, TuneIn or by dialing 1-832-999-1717 on your phone.
NCWTS: Nextra Energy Resources 250 Daytona Preview
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series will take their shot this weekend on the high banks at the Daytona International Speedway for the 15th annual Nextra Energy Resources 250. This race will be the first of 22 total events scheduled this season for the series.
A total of 38 drivers are scheduled to practice and qualify this weekend, but two drivers will miss the field after qualifying on Friday afternoon. Some of the drivers racing this weekend include, John Wes Townley, Michael Disdier, Jeb Burton, Tyler Reddick, John King, Joey Coulter, Ryan Ellis, Mason Mingus, Todd Peck, Travis Kvapil, Parker Kligerman, Charles Lewandoski, Sean Corr and Jason White.
In this race last season, Johnny Sauter led the final 15 laps of the event to score the victory. Later on in 2013, Sauter went out and also snatched the victory at the Talladega Superspeedway. If Sauter can bring home the hardware on Friday evening, he will tie Todd Bodine with the most consectutive restrictor plate wins in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Crafton will begin his quest for a back-to-back NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship this weekend at the Daytona International Speedway. No driver in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series has been able to do so. Crafton was the hottest driver in 2013 by scoring 16 consectutive top-10 finishes in the series.
Despite losing his full-time ride in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with Turner-Scott Motorsports, Jeb Burton will try to take his new ride with ThorSport Racing to a victory in the season opener. In 2013, Burton earned the most poles of any driver in the series. Though, he captured only one win at the Texas Motor Speedway and finished out the season with five top-five and 11 top-10 finishes.
The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year battle in 2014 will heat up between three different drivers going for the title. Tyler Reddick, Ben Kennedy and Mason Mingus will battle it out through 2014 and try and get the title. The favorite probably out of all of these three drivers will be Ben Kennedy.
You can catch the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season opener live on FOX Sports 1 at 7:30 p.m. Et. The Motor Racing Network will carry the live radio coverage of the event. You can listen on roughly 100 radio stations around the country, TuneIn App, MRN.com or by dialing 1-832-999-1717 on your mobile phone.
Battle at the Beach: Daniel Suarez Takes the Win at Daytona
Daniel Suarez takes it two-for-two tonight in the Battle at the Beach at the Daytona International Speedway in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East this season. Suarez led a total of a 119 of 150 laps to capture his second victory in the series this season. Suarez, from Monterrey, Mexico, became the first driver from the country to win a race at the hostoric track. He leaves Daytona with a 18 point lead over Lee Pulliam after two races in 2014.
Austin Hill scored his second career top-10 finish in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series this evening by coming home in the second position. Hill started the event from the second spot but could never catch the strong car of Daniel Suarez. He was 0.596 seconds behind the race winner when the checkers flown to end the race.
Brandon McReynolds scored his third top-five finish this evening by driving his No. 16 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota home to a third place finish. McReynolds was one of the cleanest drivers all evening long battling up front with Suarez at one point. He did not get a great qualifying effort that was 19th fastest, but once when the race started, McReynolds was able to chew his way to the front to capture his eighth top-10 finish.
Ben Rhodes night started off great after qualifying on his first ever NASCAR K&N Pro Series East pole, but later on got into an incident that heavily damaged his No. 41 Alpha Energy Solutions Chevrolet, and Rhodes went on to a disapointing 15th place finish out of 26 cars. Tonight was the second time of his NASCAR K&N Pro Series career that he started a race inside the top-10.
See below for the full race results:
Fin | Str | Car | Driver | Team | Laps | Points | B/Points | Status |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 6 | 6 | Daniel Suarez | Sunoco Racing Fuel Toyota | 150 | 48 | 5 | Running |
2 | 2 | 22 | Austin Hill * | A&D Welding Ford | 150 | 42 | Running | |
3 | 19 | 16 | Brandon McReynolds | NAPA Auto Parts Toyota | 150 | 41 | Running | |
4 | 11 | 15 | Nick Drake * | NAPA Auto Parts Toyota | 150 | 40 | Running | |
5 | 9 | 11 | Lee Pulliam * | Don Valley North Toyota | 150 | 39 | Running | |
6 | 10 | 96 | Kenzie Ruston | Ben Kennedy Racing Chevrolet | 150 | 38 | Running | |
7 | 3 | 20 | Gray Gaulding | Krispy Kreme Chevrolet | 150 | 38 | 1 | Running |
8 | 18 | 99 | Patrick Staropoli * | PEAK Toyota | 150 | 36 | Running | |
9 | 12 | 34 | Scott Heckert | Turner Scott Motorsports Chevrolet | 150 | 35 | Running | |
10 | 21 | 31 | Kaz Grala * | OzLINK Chevrolet | 150 | 34 | Running | |
11 | 15 | 46 | Brandon Gdovic | American Messaging/Windstax.com Toyota | 150 | 33 | Running | |
12 | 23 | 97 | Jesse Little | Vanacore Homes/NTI Chevrolet | 150 | 32 | Running | |
13 | 17 | 4 | Sergio Pena | UTI/NASCAR Technical Institute Toyota | 150 | 31 | Running | |
14 | 13 | 98 | Cameron Hayley | Cabinets by Hayley Chevrolet | 150 | 30 | Running | |
15 | 1 | 41 | Ben Rhodes * | Alpha Energy Solutions Chevrolet | 150 | 29 | Running | |
16 | 14 | 42 | Jay Beasley * | Toyota Racing Development Toyota | 150 | 28 | Running | |
17 | 20 | 21 | Mackena Bell | Special Smiles Toyota | 149 | 27 | Running | |
18 | 7 | 43 | Brodie Kostecki * | Arcoplate Toyota | 148 | 26 | Running | |
19 | 22 | 71 | Eddie MacDonald | Grimm Contracting Chevrolet | 148 | 25 | Running | |
20 | 16 | 2 | Ryan Gifford | Toyota Racing Development Toyota | 147 | 24 | Running | |
21 | 8 | 1 | David Garbo, Jr. * | Garbo Lobster Toyota | 145 | 23 | Running | |
22 | 5 | 24 | Brennan Newberry | Qore24 Chevrolet | 143 | 22 | Running | |
23 | 4 | 4 | Ronnie Bassett, Jr. * | Butler Trailer Mfg. Toyota | 143 | 21 | Running | |
24 | 26 | 18 | Brandon Jones | Paragon Energy Holdings Toyota | 143 | 20 | Running | |
25 | 25 | 55 | Jerry Dawson * | EXIT Realty Chevrolet | 81 | 19 | Accident | |
26 | 24 | 89 | Cory Joyce | Kyros Ent Chevrolet | 74 | 18 | Brakes |
RACE STATISTICS Fastest Qualifier: Ben Rhodes *, Time: 18.589 Seconds, Speed: 71.655 mph Failed To Qualify: Clint King (07), Beto Monteiro (12), Nathan Russell (75), Brandon Jones (33) (Jones replace Sam Hunt in No.18 due to illness) Time of Race: 1 hrs., 9 mins, 12 secs Average Speed: 48.121 mph Margin of Victory: .596 Seconds Caution Flags: Laps 11-16; 40-44; 56-61; 64-72; 85-92; 94-100; 130-136; 140-145. 8 for 54 laps. Lap Leaders: Ben Rhodes (grid), Gray Gaulding 1-31, Daniel Suarez 32-150. Total Laps Led: Daniel Suarez 119, Gray Gaulding 31. 1 changes involving 2 drivers.
Battle at the Beach: Doug Coby Snaps the Victory in Closing Laps
Doug Coby brought home the victory this evening for the second annual Battle at the Beach at the Daytona International Speedway. This was Coby's second career win in an exhibition event under the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. Coby only ended up leading two laps of the event.
Jason Myers ended up finishing the event tonight as he did not last season. Myers started the event from the sixth spot and worked his way up to the second position when the checkers fell. He fell just short of the leader by 0.322 seconds on the final lap, however, Myers does has something to be proud of as he grabed his best finish in an exhibition event.
Luke Fleming also captured his best finish of the Battle at the Beach tonight after a third place effort. In 2013, Fleming started the event in the 13th position but brought home his No. 40 Jerry Hunt Auto Sales to a 19th place run. He started the event this evening from the ninth spot.
Tonight's pole sitter Ryan Preece was having such a good day going for him until the final laps of the race. On lap 143, with seven laps remaining, Preece got into the lap car of Dave Sapienza to send him around and then suffered a flat tire from the contact. Preece persevered and went on to a fourth place finish. The 2013 champion led all but the last two laps of the Battle at the Beach.
NSCS: Hamlin Drives to Second Sprint Unlimited Win
Denny Hamlin captured the victory this evening at the Daytona International Speedway by staying out of trouble all night long. Hamlin started on the pole and led the most laps of 27 to grab his second victory in the event. He also led the most times during the race of six. Tonight, Hamlin became only the ninth driver to score more than one race win in the event.
"The best car won, that’s for sure. I can’t thank this FedEx team enough. Thank everyone from FedEx Express, this is good," said Hamlin. "We’re two in a row now. We’re building on something. Still we had a great car all weekend and got to thank FedEx and Toyota and Sprint. Thank the fans for coming out. That was survival of the fittest for sure. With three (laps) to go we’re at the tail end of a very small pack and it’s really hard to get runs, but this car was just phenomenal and you saw it those last couple laps."
Brad Keselowski had a strong showing this evening, but he was just short of the victory when Hamlin pulled away from the rest of the field on the final lap. It was Keselowski's second top-10 finish in the unofficial season opener. He lost the race by just 0.197 seconds behind the race winner.
"It was definitely a race of attrition and we survived, somewhat, to the end. We finished second," said Keselowski. "Obviously came up one spot short, which in a race like this is all that matters. It was just kind of the timing of the runs. I thought it was great racing. The cars are maybe just a tiny bit more responsive than they were last year, but, obviously, if the field gets up by the wall it’s tough to make a move, but, all in all, I thought it was pretty good racing. This format is good for plate racing and I thought it was a decent night."
Kyle Busch managed to salvage a third place this evening after being involved in a wreck 15 laps remaining in the event. Busch spun the No. 18 Camry off turn four, nearly an exact replica of what he did two years ago, from an aero tap from Keselowski. He started the event in the fourth spot and drome himself to his fifth top-10 finish in the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona.
"Just about trying to make the right moves and not having a whole lot of help to do any of it. There’s so little cars out there that you’re just kind of on your own trying to figure things out," said Busch. "That’s kind of the way the race played out tonight. It was the same race for everybody there at the end."
With 18 cars starting the event, only nine of them actually ended up finishing. Early on into the event, nine cars ended up in a crash just past the start finish line when Matt Kenseth got spun. It then started a chain reaction collecting Matt Kenseth, Tony Stewart, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Danica Patrick and other drivers. NASCAR threw the red flag to clean up from the incident for around 10 minutes.
The next race for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will be on Thursday evening for the two Budweiser Duel 150 races that will set the rest of the Daytona 500 field. The races will be live on FOX Sports 1 starting at 7:00 p.m. Et. You can also listen to live radio coverage with the call by MRN.
ARCA: Enfinger Drives to Victory at Daytona
Grant Enfinger captured his third win of this ARCA Racing Series career today in the Lucas Oil 200 at the Daytona International Speedway. Enfinger led four different times during the event to lead a total of 42 laps. This was his 22nd top-five and 34th top-10 finish of his ARCA racing career. This win is the first time a Ford has gotten an ARCA victory at Daytona since Ryan Newman's win in 2001.
Frank Kimmel fell just short of his first victory at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway this afternoon by finishing in the runner up spot. Kimmel with a new team, started the event from the 16th spot, and finished just 0.158 seconds behind the race winner. Kimmel will use it as momentum to go after his 11th career ARCA championship.
In his fourth ever career ARCA Racing Series start, Martinsville track president Clay Campbell, finished the event in the third spot for his first career top-10. Campbell was driving a car owned by Ken Schrader and will make his next start at the Talladega Superspeedway in May.
Dylan Kwasniewski led the field to the green flag after earning the pole yesterday afternoon with a time of 49.400 seconds, 182.186 mph. Kwasniewski earned the last two poles for events he has entered in. He went on to a 14th place finish and led the second most laps of 34.
Chase Elliott started the day off in the fifth position and had a interesting day. He was involved in a race incident early on with Buster Graham. Elliott went on to a ninth place finish in his first ever restrictor plate race. He was one of the three drivers with Kwasniewski and Tyler Reddick that needed to be approved by NASCAR for their season openers next week.
The next ARCA Racing Series race will be at the Mobile International Raceway for the ARCA Mobile 200 in mid-March. Enfinger is a previous winner of the event at the .5-mile oval. No television coverage of the evemt will be availible. You can follow the event live on ARCARacing.com via live leaderboard and radio coverage.
See full unofficial results below:
FIN | STR | NO | DRIVER/HOMETOWN | TEAM & CAR | LAPS | STATUS |
1 | 2 | 90 | Grant Enfinger/Fairhope AL | Motor Honey-Casite-Advance Auto Parts Ford | 80 | Running |
2 | 16 | 44 | Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN | Ansell-Menards Toyota | 80 | Running |
3 | 15 | 52 | Clay Campbell/Martinsville VA | Federated Auto Parts Chevrolet | 80 | Running |
4 | 7 | 77 | Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ | CAREGARD-AxiomWarranty.com Dodge | 80 | Running |
5 | 32 | 22 | Tyler Reddick/Corning CA | Broken Bow-Cunningham Motorsports Dodge | 80 | Running |
6 | 40 | 5 | Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA | Lucas Oil-MAV TV American Real Chevrolet | 80 | Running |
7 | 6 | 98 | Mason Mitchell/West Des Moines IA | Thermal Technology Services Ford | 80 | Running |
8 | 10 | 32 | Terry Jones/Amherstburg Ontario | Jones Group-JMC Steel Group Toyota | 80 | Running |
9 | 5 | 9 | Chase Elliott/Dawsonville GA | HendrickCars.com-NAPA Brakes Chevrolet | 80 | Running |
10 | 14 | 48 | Sean Corr/Goshen NY | Radon.com Ford | 80 | Running |
11 | 9 | 15 | John Wes Townley/Watkinsville GA | Zaxby's Toyota | 80 | Running |
12 | 11 | 17 | Bryan Silas/Stuart FL | David Ragan Ford-American Custom Yachts Ford | 80 | Running |
13 | 24 | 56 | Derrick Lancaster/Christiansburg VA | RGM Erectors-Glad Precision Dodge | 80 | Running |
14 | 1 | 4 | Dylan Kwasniewski/Las Vegas NV | AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet | 80 | Running |
15 | 13 | 19 | Brian Rose/Louisville KY | Battomi-Lawton Insurance-Xstand Dodge | 80 | Running |
16 | 29 | 68 | Chris Bailey Jr./South Park PA | Promo Specialties-Gary Yeomans Ford | 80 | Running |
17 | 25 | 3 | Tom Buzze/Statesville NC | Lane Southern Orchards Chevrolet | 79 | Running |
18 | 35 | 46 | Maryeve Dufault/Sorel Quebec | HotTVBrands.com-Tattle Tale Alarms Ford | 79 | Running |
19 | 38 | 0 | Barry Fitzgerald/Sykesville MD | OperationShoeBox-Race Against Drugs Ford | 79 | Running |
20 | 27 | 20 | Spencer Gallagher/Las Vegas NV | Allegiant Travel Chevrolet | 78 | Running |
21 | 30 | 40 | Alx Danielsson/Storvreta Sweden | Carter 2 Motorsports Dodge | 77 | Running |
22 | 36 | 97 | Tim Viens/Daytona Beach FL | Carter 2 Motorsports Dodge | 77 | Running |
23 | 22 | 02 | Mario Gosselin/Sainte-Marie Quebec | Williams-Gosselin Racing Chevrolet | 75 | Running |
24 | 26 | 86 | Bobby Grewohl/Hollister CA | 989 On Demand Chevrolet | 75 | Running |
25 | 28 | 33 | Kody Weisner/Muskegon MI | UNOH-ZLOOP Chevrolet | 71 | Running |
26 | 37 | 06 | Ed Pompa/Ballston Spa NY | Milton CAT-Double H Ranch Chevrolet | 70 | Running |
27 | 19 | 12 | Jared Marks/Napoleon OH | UNOH-Vital One Chevrolet | 68 | Running |
28 | 33 | 55 | Leilani Munter/Rochester MN | GO 100% Renewable Toyota | 64 | Running |
29 | 21 | 13 | Jeb Burton/Halifax VA | Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Toyota | 53 | Running |
30 | 39 | 10 | Dick Doheny/Ballston Spa NY | Fast Track Driving School Chevrolet | 31 | Battery |
31 | 34 | 2 | Thomas Praytor/Mobile AL | ARCA-Mobile 200/DK-LOK Chevrolet | 28 | Transmssn |
32 | 18 | 54 | Matt Kurzejewski/Mansfield PA | Costy's Used Truck Parts & Auto Parts Dodge | 28 | Accident |
33 | 20 | 7 | Scotty Hubler/Coplay PA | Advanced Mobile Power Systems Chevrolet | 13 | Accident |
34 | 23 | 11 | Benny Gordon/Dubois PA | LightninFAST.com Ford | 13 | Accident |
35 | 3 | 99 | Buster Graham/Lafayette LA | Hewes Concrete Polishing-Roulo Brothers Racing Ford | 12 | Accident |
36 | 12 | 88 | Justin Allison/Salisbury NC | HAVACOSALES.com Ford | 12 | Accident |
37 | 4 | 66 | Mark Thompson/Cartersville GA | Phoenix Air Toyota | 12 | Accident |
38 | 8 | 69 | Will Kimmel/Sellersburg IN | Messinas-Ingersoll Rand Ford | 12 | Accident |
39 | 17 | 8 | Cole Powell/Mt. Brydges Ontario | Copps Buildall-Empire Racing Ford | 12 | Accident |
40 | 31 | 25 | Justin Boston/Baltimore MD | ZLOOP Computer & Electronics Recycling-JACO Toyota | 12 | Accident |
Menards Pole Award Presented by Ansell: Dylan Kwasniewski 49.400 (182.186 mph) | ||||||
Margin of Victory: .158 seconds | Cautions: 3 for 25 laps | |||||
Time of Race: 1:32:18 | Average Speed: 130.011 mph | |||||
Lap Leaders: Kwasniewski 1-20, 25-31, 39-43, 50-51 (34); Dufault 21-24 (4); Enfinger 32-38, 44-49, 52-80 (42) |
NSCS: RCR Strong in Daytona 500 Practice, Hendrick Motorsports Engines Shows Issues
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series took to the track this afternoon for the first two Daytona 500 practices to prepare for qualifying tomorrow afternoon. Paul Menard was the fastest in the first, with teammate Ryan Newman fastest in the second session. Richard Childress Racing appears to be the biggest threat in qualifying tomorrow.
Bobby Labonte, Tony Stewart and Danica Patrick all blew their engines this afternoon in practice. This could be the biggest story for the Daytona 500, if the Hendrick Motorsports engines will hold up? Both Stewart-Haas Racing drivers, Patrick and Stewart, told Fox Sports 1 reporters they had no warning inside the car before they blew up. While Jamie McMurray was on pit road waiting to get on track to make a mock qualifying run, team decided to not chance the engine and came back into the garage to talk it over.
It was originally reported that Justin Allgaier had an engine issue this afternoon also, but the team looked over the car, and found an oil leak issue. Therefore, Allgaier did not need to change an engine and will keep his starting spot in the duel.
Teams are allowed one engine change until Thursday after the Duel 150 races. NASCAR will let the teams start in the Daytona 500 where they end up in the Budweiser Duels, but will have to start their duel at the rear of the field.
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will hit the track tomorrow for qualifying at the Daytona International Speedway. You can catch it live at 1:00 p.m. Et. on FOX. The Motor Racing Network will have live radio coverage of the event as well.
ARCA: Kwasniewski On Pole, Drivers Sent to Rear and DNQ'ed After Penalties, ARCA Statement
Dylan Kwasnieski won the pole for tomorrow's Lucas Oil 200 at Daytona International Speedway in a Turner-Motorsports Chevrolet. It will be his second career ARCA Racing pole in two total starts. Kwasnieski posted a fast time of 49.400 seconds, 182.186 mph. He is one of the two drivers who must be approved to run in NASCAR Nationwide Series season opener next week.
"Turner Scott Motorsports obviously gave me a great car and the ability to start up front," Kwasniewski said. "All I have to do tomorrow is do the best I can. I’m really excited. Starting on the front row at Daytona is great. Not many people get to say they’ve done that. You have to be confident that you know what you are doing when you are out there. Just to be at Daytona at 18 is pretty crazy."
Tomorrow Grant Enfinger will start on the outside of Kwasnieski with a fast lap of 49.577 seconds, 181.536 mph. Enfinger comes into Daytona with 51 total starts and hopes to increase his win count to three. In 2013, he scored his only two wins of his career. He was just 0.177 seconds off of pole sitter Kwasniewski.
Starting third will be Buster Graham in the No. 99 Hews Concrete Polishing Ford after a lap of 49.588 seconds, 181.496 mph. Graham will make his best starting position in his ARCA Racing Series career in 20 starts. He hopes to earn his best finish of his career in the season opener. His best finish came last season at the Michigan International Speedway of ninth.
After qualifying concluded, ARCA officials deemed five cars illeagle and had their times disallowed. Those drivers include: Bobby Gerhart, Leilani Munter, Justin Boston, Spencer Gallagher and Tyler Reddick.
Bobby Gerhart had the top spot before his time was removed. Gerhart's time was disallowed after having a U bolt issue that ARCA officials didn't like. He will start tomorrow's Lucas Oil 200 in the 40th and last position of the field. He will try and shoot for a ninth career win in the event.
Three drivers of Leilani Munter, Justin Boston and Spencer Gallagher had illeagle springs on their cars. Venturini drivers, Leilani and Boston, will both be moved to the rear of the field in the 33rd and 31st positions based on owner points. Spencer Gallagher has been removed from the field. See details below. Gallagher was also found with a lowering mechanical device in the rear end.
Tyler Reddick time was disallowed after he was missing a shim in the truck arm portion of the car. Without this attachment, ARCA will not approve the car. Reddick will be moved to the 32nd spot to start the Lucas Oil 200.
Statement from ARCA:
"The post-qualifying inspection procedure at restrictor-plate tracks requires a minimum of the top 10 to undergo a thorough under-car inspection and a minimum of the top three to undergo a thorough engine inspection," said Ron Drager, ARCA President. "Today’s penalties are a result of that standard inspection procedure."
See full starting grid below:
1 | 4 | Dylan Kwasniewski/Las Vegas NV | AccuDoc Solutions Chevrolet | 49.400 | 182.186 |
2 | 90 | Grant Enfinger/Fairhope AL | Motor Honey-Casite-Advance Auto Parts Ford | 49.577 | 181.536 |
3 | 99 | Buster Graham/Lafayette LA | Hewes Concrete Polishing-Roulo Brothers Racing Ford | 49.588 | 181.496 |
4 | 66 | Mark Thompson/Cartersville GA | Phoenix Air Toyota | 49.603 | 181.441 |
5 | 9 | Chase Elliott/Dawsonville GA | HendrickCars.com-NAPA Brakes Chevrolet | 49.651 | 181.265 |
6 | 98 | Mason Mitchell/West Des Moines IA | Thermal Technology Services Ford | 49.670 | 181.196 |
7 | 77 | Tom Hessert/Cherry Hill NJ | CAREGARD-AxiomWarranty.com Dodge | 49.801 | 180.719 |
8 | 69 | Will Kimmel/Sellersburg IN | Messinas-Ingersoll Rand Ford | 49.849 | 180.545 |
9 | 15 | John Wes Townley/Watkinsville GA | Zaxby's Toyota | 49.861 | 180.502 |
10 | 32 | Terry Jones/Amherstburg Ontario | Jones Group-JMC Steel Group Toyota | 49.901 | 180.357 |
11 | 17 | Bryan Silas/Stuart FL | David Ragan Ford-American Custom Yachts Ford | 49.996 | 180.014 |
12 | 88 | Justin Allison/Salisbury NC | HAVACOSALES.com Ford | 50.056 | 179.799 |
13 | 19 | Brian Rose/Louisville KY | Battomi-Lawton Insurance-Xstand Dodge | 50.130 | 179.533 |
14 | 48 | Sean Corr/Goshen NY | Radon.com Ford | 50.136 | 179.512 |
15 | 52 | Clay Campbell/Martinsville VA | Federated Auto Parts Chevrolet | 50.163 | 179.415 |
16 | 44 | Frank Kimmel/Clarksville IN | Ansell-Menards Toyota | 50.176 | 179.369 |
17 | 8 | Cole Powell/Mt. Brydges Ontario | Copps Buildall-Empire Racing Ford | 50.229 | 179.179 |
18 | 54 | Matt Kurzejewski/Mansfield PA | Costy's Used Truck Parts & Auto Parts Dodge | 50.249 | 179.108 |
19 | 12 | Jared Marks/Napoleon OH | UNOH-Vital One Chevrolet | 50.394 | 178.593 |
20 | 7 | Scotty Hubler/Coplay PA | Advanced Mobile Power Systems Chevrolet | 50.399 | 178.575 |
21 | 13 | Jeb Burton/Halifax VA | Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Toyota | 50.462 | 178.352 |
22 | 02 | Mario Gosselin/Sainte-Marie Quebec | Williams-Gosselin Racing Chevrolet | 50.502 | 178.211 |
23 | 11 | Benny Gordon/Dubois PA | LightninFAST.com Ford | 50.626 | 177.774 |
24 | 56 | Derrick Lancaster/Christiansburg VA | RGM Erectors-Glad Precision Dodge | 50.723 | 177.434 |
25 | 3 | Tom Buzze/Statesville NC | Lane Southern Orchards Chevrolet | 50.776 | 177.249 |
26 | 86 | Bobby Grewohl/Hollister CA | 989 On Demand Chevrolet | 50.786 | 177.214 |
27 | 20 | Scott Sheldon/Las Vegas NV | Allegiant Travel Chevrolet | 50.915 | 176.765 |
28 | 33 | Kody Weisner/Muskegon MI | UNOH-ZLOOP Chevrolet | 50.957 | 176.620 |
29 | 68 | Chris Bailey Jr./South Park PA | Promo Specialties-Gary Yeomans Ford | 51.303 | 175.428 |
30 | 40 | Alx Danielsson/Storvreta Sweden | Carter 2 Motorsports Dodge | 51.472 | 174.852 |
31 | 25 | Justin Boston/Baltimore MD | ZLOOP Computer & Electronics Recycling-JACO Toyota | Provisional | |
32 | 22 | Tyler Reddick/Corning CA | Broken Bow-Cunningham Motorsports Dodge | Provisional | |
33 | 55 | Leilani Munter/Rochester MN | GO 100% Renewable Toyota | Provisional | |
34 | 2 | Thomas Praytor/Mobile AL | ARCA-Mobile 200/DK-LOK Chevrolet | Provisional | |
35 | 46 | Maryeve Dufault/Sorel Quebec | HotTVBrands.com-Tattle Tale Alarms Ford | Provisional | |
36 | 97 | Tim Viens/Daytona Beach FL | Carter 2 Motorsports Dodge | Provisional | |
37 | 06 | Ed Pompa/Ballston Spa NY | Milton CAT-Double H Ranch Chevrolet | Provisional | |
38 | 0 | Barry Fitzgerald/Sykesville MD | OperationShoeBox-Race Against Drugs Ford | Provisional | |
39 | 10 | Dick Doheny/Ballston Spa NY | Fast Track Driving School Chevrolet | Provisional | |
40 | 5 | Bobby Gerhart/Lebanon PA | Lucas Oil-MAV TV American Real Chevrolet | Provisional |
"Insert Starting Grid"
Austin Dillon has a lot of pressure going into his rookie NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season behind the wheel of the historic No. 3 Chevrolet. In the 56th annual Daytona 500, Dillon will make his 14th start in the series.
"It's great. To be able to work for a company, every time I cross the railroad tracks in Welcome, North Carolina, it's special," said Dillon. "I've enjoyed being a part of RCR.
The other day it was really awesome to be able to be part of the kickoff luncheon. The guys were fired up. I think it's a new life at RCR."
Dillon is very modest about racing the No. 3 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series this season. He had many alternate numbers picked out such as No. 2, No. 21, No. 33 and even No. 41 but all of those were taken. Dillon left the idea to bring back the No. 3 in the Cup Series to his grandfather, and other people who were associated around the number for a very long time.
"I think Dale was so important in driving that number. He was the guy that made that number what it is today," said Dillon. "But like I said earlier, Dale Earnhardt is Dale Earnhardt not only because of the number, but because he was a hero and created so many things for this sport. The number for me, hopefully I can continue the legacy that it has and keep on moving on with it."
On a Race Hub episode yesterday afternoon, Earnhardt Sr.'s mother, Martha, said on the telecast that she has mixed feelings of seeing the iconic number return, because she was told it wouldn't ever make a come back. However, she later said that she understands it was Richard's number when he raced.
The day Earnhardt died, Dillon was sent up into a barn with his brother and some of his friends to hang out after the race ended. His mom then came to get him and his brother to take him over to the Richard Childress race shop for a bible study.
In 2013, Dillon made his first ever Daytona 500 start driving in Circle Sport Racing's No. 33 Chevrolet for car owner Joe Falk, even though it was a RCR effort. He started in the eighth position and went on to finish in the 31st spot. Dillon goes into next week still looking for that first career top-10 finish in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.