Posts Tagged ‘Daytona International Speedway’

With a Last lap pass on the backstrech, Timothy Peters takes the checkered flag to win the NextEra Energy 250 Truck Series race at Daytona International Speedway.

“I can’t believe it this thing drove like a Lexus tonight,” Peters said of his No. 17 Toyota Tundra. “We just won Daytona! I was just content where I was at, but the No. 23  Jason White came up and gave me a great run.

“I can’t believe it  I’m going to Disney World!”

Peters’ only previous win in the series came at .526-mile Martinsville Speedway.

“You’re a sitting duck leading,” Bodine said disappointingly . “I saw the replay when I was sitting down there in the mud”, spinning after the checkered flag flew . “Timmy did what he had to do.”

“We’re disappointed. There’s no doubt about it. But second’s nothing to sneeze at.”

Two separate crashes on the pace laps, before the race had started promised an action-filled evening, and, indeed, before the race was a lap old, Aric Almirola took the field three-wide in Turn 3. Austin Dillon, making his first superspeedway start, broke loose between trucks and ignited a nine-truck collision that damaged the trucks of Kyle Busch and Landon Cassill, among others.

“I really don’t know what was happening,” Dillon said after exiting the infield care center. “I was sucking up to Jason White and someone got under me. Just looked like they weren’t being very patient there to start. Just caught in the middle and got banged around there a few times and tried to save it — just nothing I could do there.”

Hornaday was the victim of a 10-truck wreck after a bump from Ricky Carmichael turned him into the outside wall at the end of the backstretch on Lap 32. The same wreck ruined the winning chances of front-row starter Elliott Sadler. Skinner’s race ended early after a tap from Peters launched him into the Turn 3 wall on Lap 62.

All you can day is what a exciting race  it was action packed from start to finish. Just would have like to see the outside lane be able to pull up in the draft at the end.

It was too bad for Austin Dillon in the Tracker Boats #3. It’s nice to see that famed #3 back on the track, in the hands of RCR.

Nascar .com contributed to this report.

RESULTS: NextEra Energy Resources 250

NCWTS DRIVER POINTS: NextEra Energy Resources 250

VIDEO:  TV  Peters Wins Daytona courtesy Speed

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Tony Stewart’s stayed up front all day in Saturday’s Drive4COPD 300 Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway his KHI chevy was strong keeping him there.

This will be Stewart’s third consecutive and fifth overall February Nationwide at Dayton that he has won, and showing his dominance on restrictor-plate races in the Nationwide series getting his sixth win. Tying Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the career lead in that category.

“There were some really good cars that got mangled up Saturday,” Stewart said, referring to crashes that damaged the cars of Earnhardt, Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski, among others. “We were just lucky to be in front when it happened.”

Kevin Harvick, who owns the No. 4 Chevrolet that Stewart was driving in his only scheduled Nationwide appearance of the year, finished third in his own No. 33 Chevy. Justin Allgaier came home fourth and Brian Vickers fifth.

There was some wild racing and on lap 92, Dale Earnhardt Jr in his #88 Chevrolet went for a wild tumble flipping his car on the backstrech, after Carl Edwards tried to squeeze into a small hole in the outside lane. Edwards made contact with Brad Keselowski spinning him into Earnhardt.

“We were having a real good run, and I felt good about our chances,” said Earnhardt, whose company, JR Motorsports, also owns the car Patrick will drive in selected races this season. “I’ll have to go back and balance the books — it was an expensive day for JR Motorsports.”

After an 11-minute red flag for Earnhardt’s accident, Stewart took command for his 15th win in a stock car at Daytona, moving him into a tie with Cale Yarborough for third all time at the storied track. He now trails only Earnhardt (34 wins) and Bobby Allison (16) for most at Daytona.

“I would trade a couple of them just for a win in a Sunday race here,” said Stewart, who is 0-for-11 in the Daytona 500. He’ll start sixth in Sunday’s main event.

Patrick’s scheduled to run the next two Nationwide races, at Fontana and Las Vegas.

“We’ll go to these other tracks where she’ll literally be driving the car, it’ll be handling good or bad,” Earnhardt said. “Then people can start forming their opinions on what kind of learning curve she has. But I feel pretty confident. She’s been in a tough situation with the media and the pressure and the attention, I couldn’t have done it.”
Nascar.com contributed to this report.

Danica’s Nascar Nationwide Series debut didn’t quite go as she planned.
Just past the halfway point at Daytona International Speedway, Danica got caught up in a 12-car crash not by anything she did wrong.

The Lap 67 crash began when Colin Braun turned Josh Wise on the frontstretch, and chaos ensued behind them. Patrick, who was running 21st at the time of the crash, went low and hit debris, which sent her down toward the infield, where she turned right and went up to the outside wall.

“There’s nothing you could do,” Patrick said.

It was an eventful day for Patrick, she again showed us great car control when she avoided Trevor Bayne’s in turns one and two on lap7, then stalling her car during her second pit stop. I think she was just being really cautious after her crew chief Tony Eury Jr warned her about over revving the engine after her first pit stop.

This certainly not the outcome Danica wanted  for her Nationwide Series debut.

Danica kind of struggle the fist part of the race with an ill handling car describing it pushing a lot through the corners, and having a hard time handling the car. Tony Jr was on the radio a few times telling her she needed to get closer to the cars in front of her so that she wouldn’t loose the draft.

After getting some adjustments during her last pit stop it look as if Danica was alot more confident in her car. She did a much better job of staying with the car in front of her so they could hold on to draft.

I think even though she wrecked out early, Danica show some signs of getting comfortable in the car.

Patrick was confident with what she learned today that she will be better prepared for next year . Patrick said  “This is some really difficult racing, it really is. The cars are definitely on the edge here. As you can see, when somebody gets a little bit out of shape and everybody’s on top of each other.”

Lets hope she can do better next week at California.

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By no means was the Budweiser Shootout the start that Henricks Motorsports was looking for.
Saturday afternoon  at Daytona International Speedway, Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. took the front row for the 2010 Daytona 500, the biggest race of the season.
Just hours after the Hendrick pole sweep, the team had four of the 24 cars competing in the Shootout. But Martin got caught in an early crash and finished 20th, with teammates Jimmie Johnson (13th), Earnhardt (11th) and Gordon (8th) not finishing where they would have liked, either.

But that was then.

This week, the game will be totally  different and the Hendrick group hopes it will be much better as well, at least from a team standpoint.

At the Gatorade Duels at Daytona Thursday Mark Martin will start on the pole for the first of two 150-mile qualifying races, and Jr will start on the poll for the second  150 mile qualifier.

The Gatorade Duels don’t mean a whole lot to Hendricks from a stand point of where they finish all four teams are in the top 35 in points from last year and are guaranteed a spot on the 2010 Daytona 500. What  it is for is to see what kinda a car they have for the 500. The Duels will give them a good indication what they have for Sundays race.

I already know that Dale Earnhardt Jr fans are concerned on the way JR performed at the Budweiser shootout. It was surprising being that Daytona has always been a track for Dale JR.

All we can do is sit back and see what happens next.

Till next week, see ya.

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Tony Eury Jr. talks to his driver, Danica Patrick, during ARCA test at Daytona Friday. (Photo courtesy of NASCAR)

Danica Patrick seems to be the only thing in the racing  news. I think that the sport is putting way to much pressure on her to perform. We have seen drivers from other types of racing come over to NASCAR and fail.

I think the people and media need to let her do her thing.

Danica Patrick took her first laps in an ARCA Racing Series presented by RE/MAX and Menards stock car during a rain-shortened test session at Daytona International Speedway on Friday afternoon.

Patrick, one of 26 drivers who posted a time during the 35-minute single car run session, was 12th quickest on the charts with a time of 51.095 seconds (176.142 mph) around the 2.5-mile superspeedway.

A trio of three cars fielded by long-time ARCA Racing Series team Venturini Motorsports comprised the top three positions in Friday’s test session, led by full-time series competitor Mikey Kile (49.804 seconds/180.708 mph).

The first of the three-day open test was shortened to just 35 minutes after rain plagued both morning and afternoon hours. Patrick was able to make just four laps at full speed during the session.

“It’s still a car once you get in it,” Patrick said during a post test media center press conference on Friday. “I feel most comfortable once I’m at speed actually. Everything from getting into the car to getting the car started – that part feels quite different to me. It’s not normal to me. The car gets pulled out to pit lane and you get in the car when its in its pit stall in an IndyCar and the getting strapped in part is something that I’ve been familiar with for a long time now so everything is a little bit different but once I get out there I feel good. I feel comfortable.

“These cars can run more lanes on the track. You’re all the way to the wall and the car is good to go there. It’s easier to drive there and in an IndyCar you can’t use quite as many lanes usually. That’s just one of the first things I noticed. The gear shifter has more travel. You have to pull something and no more paddle anymore. The clutch is long. It’s just different stuff. But I wouldn’t say that there is any instinctual stuff that is different which is the best part, right? Because I just get to be a driver and I get to do what I’m used to. I feel comfortable once I get going.

“It does have a little bit of a grassroots feeling because there are a lot of cars sort of unpainted and everything but it’s still a car that I need to learn and I’m unfamiliar with. I have a lot to learn so I’m glad I’m here.”

Although Patrick garnered most of the media attention during Friday testing at Daytona, Venturini Motorsports posted the fastest time overall with driver Mikey Kile, who plans on running the entire 2010 ARCA Racing Series.

“It’s good to unload off the trailer fast,” said Kile. “It was not a sticker run. It was a run in race trim. We didn’t get a lot of laps but this team worked hard during the off season. With three Venturini cars at the top of the charts it shows how hard they worked.”

Kile was followed on the charts by teammates Steve Arpin in the No. 55 Toyota (50.098 seconds/179.648 mph) and Daytona Beach, Florida native Alli Owens in the No 15 Chevrolet (50.375 mph/178.660 mph).

Brandon McReynolds, son of veteran NASCAR crew chief/SPEED commentator Larry McReynolds, was fourth fastest with a 50.375 second/178.660 mph lap around the 2.5-mile speedway during his first laps in an ARCA speedway car. McReynolds does not plan to compete in the February 6 Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200 but will use this weekend’s test session to build his superspeedway racing resume and gain track time. He is testing with 2009 ARCA Car Owner Champion Eddie Sharp.

Joey Coulter rounded out the top-5 in his family-owned No. 16 Chevrolet with a 50.627 second/177.771 mph lap. Bryan Silas, Nick Igdalsky, Lance Fenton, Grant Enfinger and Matt Lofton rounded out the top-10.

ARCA Racing Series teams will return for two additional full days of testing on Saturday and Sunday.