Speed Read: Showtime Southern 500

Showtime Southern 500 Recap
They’ve been racing at Darlington Raceway since 1950. But Saturday night’s Showtime Southern 500 will go down as one of the best in the history of the legendary South Carolina track.
While the race clocked in at just over four hours and included some long stretches of strung out racing around the treacherous 1.366-mile track, the big finish was worth the wait.
Pit road drama, tire strategy, high emotions, fights and an upset winner were all neatly wrapped up in the final stages of Saturday night’s memorable race.

But while the water cooler talk Monday will surely be about the on track and post race scuffle between Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick, the Cinderella story of Regan Smith’s win should be the center of attention.
Complete results

Somehow in this day and age of multi-car super teams and power houses like Hendrick, RCR, Joe Gibbs Racing and Roush dominating the Sprint Cup Series, a little one car team headquartered in Denver, Colorado won one of the sport’s most prestigious races.
Although the Furniture Row team does have an alliance with the Childress organization it is still very much a David battling against a sport filled with Goliaths.

“I don't think anybody realizes how much work has gone into getting this program where it is out of Colorado,” said Smith basking in the glory of his unlikely victory. “(Team presidents) Joe Garone, Barney Visser , all of them. Barney has put a huge, huge investment into NASCAR into this team. I can't be more proud to be driving it.”
Smith was almost here before when an apparent win at Talladega was taken away when NASCAR ruled he had dipped below the yellow out of bounds line and the victory was given to Tony Stewart.
But he doesn’t look at his accomplishment Saturday night as any kind of vindication. According to Smith winning at Darlington is just better.
“It feels a lot different at the end of the day when you say 'Hey, I won a race at Darlington,'” he said. “The names that have won here...the Pearsons, Yarboroughs and on and on, you name it. I was sitting behind some of those guys today and I was thinking 'Man, these guys are pretty awesome. They are legendary'. I don't know if my name deserves to be next to them, but after tonight, maybe it does."
Smith’s performance showed he most definitely belongs on the list of legends who have won at NASCAR’s top level.
It might take a little time for the young driver to believe it but it has every right to sink in even if it doesn’t happen for a while.
“We've got a neat trophy now,” he said. “Legends win this race, I'm not supposed to win this race. I've never even had a top five. I guess that shows in this series, anybody can win on any given Sunday."

Or Saturday night.

RISERS
Brad Keselowski
Finally something for the Penske Racing to feel good about on the Sprint Cup Series side of the house. While the defending Nationwide Series champion has been okay on the Junior Circuit, he’s struggled big time in the Miller Lite Dodge until Saturday night. A decision to stay out and not pit for tires at the end of the race proved to be a wise one and Keselowski came home third.
Kasey Kahne
Showed that his solid run last week in Richmond was not a fluke with a pole-winning performance to start the weekend and an effort that nearly netted him his first win of 2011. Kahne has to be considered a candidate for the Chase this year at least as a Wild Card and looks like he’ll be in the mix for wins in the coming months as he helps showcase the Team Red Bull ride for 2010.
Martin Truex Jr.
Things looked bleak for Truex when he spun trying to come into the pits, an embarrassing move in light of his radio blow up last weekend that caused a shake up on the No. 56 team’s pit road personnel. But he recovered nicely and drove a very fast race car back to the front half of the field to score a very respectable tenth place finish.


FALLERS
Joey Logano
Any memory of last year’s stellar run to close the season has been forgotten by the seemingly constant struggles of 2011. Logano got tapped and spun into the inside pit wall to ruin his night and hand him yet another disappointing finish and a 35th to show for his effort.
Jeff Burton
The veteran can share a lot of what Logano is going through with a tough opening ten races of 2011 as well. This time it was an overheating issue that cooked Burton’s engine and knocked him out with a dismal 33rd place finish.
Jimmie Johnson
Don’t usually see the five-time champion listed in this category but a painful night that was probably worse than the 15th place finish Johnson earned. Got spun out early after contact from Juan Pablo Montoya only to work his way back to the lead lap and get penalized late in the race for a missing lug nut after a trip to pit road. The radio communication between Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus was especially chippy Saturday night with all the frustration.


RADIO WAVES
(Choice comments and communications from drivers and crew chiefs)
“Sorry, I locked the front tires. He braked really early, and I locked the front trying to avoid him. Did he hit anything?" – Juan Pablo Montoya asking about Jimmie Johnson
"That boy (Montoya) can't stay away from controversy, can he?" – Tony Stewart
"It's a big old pile of @#%^. Who was that? Damn." – Dale Earnhardt Jr. surveying the damage from Brian Vickers’ car

“I'm gonna have to turn my radio off now" – a frustrated Kurt Busch
“Just can't wait to get out of here. Nature of the beast, there's no room to race at this place.” – Clint Bowyer

RACE RATING
On a scale of one to five "Pistone Pistons" I’ll give Saturday night’s Showtime Southern 500 a four. A 500-mile race at Darlington Raceway is a very long proposition and Saturday’s race as expected had long stretches of tedium. But like so many other races this year the best was yet to come and the closing laps provided enough mayhem, drama and high emotion for a month’s worth of racing. Tempers flared and a surprise winner emerged to make the 2011 edition of the Southern 500 one of the best in the storied track’s history.

DOWN THE ROAD

A week off from night racing and a Sunday afternoon trip to Dover International Speedway is next up for the Sprint Cup Series. “The Monster Mile” usually provides one of the season’s most grueling challenges and the one-mile concrete track will most likely live up to its name and make the garage area a busy place.

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Kyle Busch dominates, denies Hamlin weekend sweep at Richmond

RICHMOND, Va. -- If there's one thing Denny Hamlin could change, he maybe wouldn't have been so forthcoming about Richmond International Racing in all those Joe Gibbs Racing team meetings.
But holding out information about his home track would make Hamlin a bad teammate, so he shared everything he knew.
Then Kyle Busch used those tips to beat his teammate Saturday night at Richmond, denying Hamlin a weekend sweep at his home track.
"I learned from Denny last fall, and I'm not going to say what I learned," Busch said after stretching his final tank of gas 107 laps to pick up his second victory of the Sprint Cup season.
It was Busch's third consecutive triumph in Richmond's spring race. Hamlin has won the past two fall races, and the last non-JGR driver to win at Richmond was Jimmie Johnson in September 2008.
So it was no surprise to see Busch and Hamlin finish first and second for a JGR sweep Saturday night. Hamlin just wished it had been him out front.
"It's tough when you share notebooks. You know those guys got exactly what you got," Hamlin said. "Just got beat by my teammate. He drove a great race. I thought he would burn his stuff up. Our cars were dead equal."
Hamlin, in an early season slump, really needed the strong finish to snap the funk that's had many wondering if last year's championship runner-up will challenge for the title again. He got off to a great start by winning his charity race Thursday night at RIR, and followed it with a victory in Friday night's Nationwide Series race.
And while he sat back in the closing laps, waiting to pounce should Busch's tank run dry, he never regretted giving Busch the information that ultimately beat Hamlin.
"If I don't tell him the things I know on short tracks, the crew chiefs don't relay information, it's not a good team," he said. "Yeah, it might cost me a race here or there because he out runs me. In the grand scheme of things, it makes me an overall better driver."
Kasey Kahne, fresh off surgery to repair a torn ligament in his knee, finished a season-best third to give Toyota the top three spots.
"We weren't quite good enough as the Gibbs cars, they were really good tonight," Kahne said. "But it's still a good run. The guys did a good job and it's nice to get a top-five."
The leaders seemed to have an easy go of it, with most of the fireworks coming far behind them in the field.
Roush Fenway Racing drivers David Ragan and Carl Edwards finished fourth and fifth in Fords, while Clint Bowyer was sixth in a Chevrolet. AJ Allmendinger was seventh and was followed by Johnson, Tony Stewart and Brian Vickers.
But Stewart, despite his top-10 finish, was less than pleased with the performance.
"We have a lot of work to do," he said. "We (stink) right now. I am embarrassed about how bad our stuff is."
That was par for the course Saturday night.
Ryan Newman and Juan Pablo Montoya were involved in two different on-track incidents. The first caused Montoya, the pole-sitter, to brush the wall. His stop to repair the damage dropped him three laps off the pace. He later ran into the back of Newman when Newman was running eighth, and Newman vowed his payback would come after the race.
There was no confrontation, though. Montoya hopped on a waiting golf cart and headed out of the track, while Newman walked to the NASCAR hauler to complain about Montoya's driving. What kind of action did he want from NASCAR?
"Just fair, I guess. I don't know that you can have that," he said. "To retaliate the way he did just didn't show much class."
There's been some history between the two, including contact that led to a fiery crash for Montoya in his 2006 Cup debut at Homestead. Newman got a dig in when asked if he thought Montoya's still mad about that accident.
"Yeah, I don't know if he could even remember back that far," he said.
Meanwhile, Kurt Busch completely lost his composure on his team radio several times during the race. Frustrated by an ill-handling car, he was pushed over the edge when he ran into Newman seconds after contact between Newman and Montoya brought out the caution.
And Martin Truex Jr., in position for a top-five finish, threatened over his team radio to fire his entire crew when he was penalized twice on his final pit stop.
All that action made the actual finish fairly uneventful, and both Hamlin and Kahne shared a knowing smirk during the post-race news conference about all the in-race excitement.
"I watch the screen ... every time Montoya has damage, you see who did it, they usually end up getting wrecked," Hamlin said. "You usually know that's coming."
Copyright 2011 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or
distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The
Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

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Pistone: Early NASCAR surprises - Four score: Early NASCAR surprises

Two races does not a season make but there are several drivers who have to like the way the 2011 Sprint Cup Series campaign has started.
After the two weeks of preparation for the Daytona 500 and last week’s jaunt west to Phoenix, some surprises not named Bayne have broken out in the early going including this quartet:
Bobby Labonte
There was some head scratching after JTG Daugherty Racing named the veteran Labonte to replace Marcos Ambrose when he bolted for Richard Petty Motorsports. After all Labonte had not been competitive in recent years and spent the bulk of 2010 with the underfunded TRG Motorsports team which was on the “Start and Park” plan more often than not. But the former series champion was not ready for the scrap heap and has made the most of his opportunity behind the wheel of the No. 47 Toyota. He was in position to win the Daytona 500 and still able to score an impressive fourth place finish. Last week in Phoenix was more of a challenge but his 21st place run kept Labonte inside the Top 10 in the standings and has given JTG Daugherty a welcome shot of confidence the first month of the season.
A.J. Allmendinger

After the way he ended last season maybe there shouldn’t be much surprise about Allmendinger’s start in 2011. The RPM driver finds himself only eleven points behind Kyle Busch for the Sprint Cup Series lead and has driven the No. 43 Ford to finished of 11th and 9th respectively at Daytona and Phoenix. “The pieces are there for this team to contend for wins and yes a Chase berth,” said Allmendinger who signed a contract extension to stay in the Petty stable last year. “I knew what happened at the end of last year wasn’t a fluke by any means and that we’d come back strong when the new season started.” With teammate Ambrose struggling Allmendinger is the flagship of the new RPM.
Juan Pablo Montoya
The JPM of 2009 appears to be back and focused on making a return trip to the Chase. Montoya was also in the mix at the end of 500 and settled for a sixth place finish. While his day was mediocre in Phoenix with a 19th for his effort, Montoya sees a difference already this season compared to the struggles of a year ago. If you look at our numbers last year, all of our averages were really good,” he said. “Our averages were way over some people who made the Chase,” Montoya said of 2010 “but when you have seven or eight DNFs, how many points did you give away? We’ve got to run good when we can run good and when we don’t, make sure we bring the car home. We’ve got to finish races for the points.” Next up for Montoya is a return to Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend where he and teammate Jamie McMurray had their controversial tangle a year ago.
Paul Menard
The concerns about whether adding a four team to the Richard Childress Racing stable would hurt the organization’s overall effort haven’t shown in Menard’s performance so far. In his first year with RCR Menard has been nearly better than all four of his established teammates Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton and Clint Bowyer. He had one of the strongest cars in Daytona and was coveted drafting partner all through Speedweeks. The No. 27 Chevrolet notched a ninth place finish in the 500. Phoenix wasn’t as impressive but Menard was able to escape the day’s early accident – more than his three teammates could say – and eventually put a 19th place run on the board helping him stay inside the top twelve in the standings. “We have great equipment and Paul’s getting comfortable with the new environment,” said crew chief Slugger Labbe , who worked with Menard last year at RPM. “The more time we’re together at the track and working together as a team the better we’re going to be.

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Speed Read: Jeff Byrd 500

RACE WRAP 

Once you get the hang of Bristol Motor Speedway – whether the “old” configuration or the current layout – you really get the hang of Bristol Motor Speedway.
Darrell Waltrip rattled off seven straight wins at the .533-mile track in his day with the likes of Cale Yarborough, Jeff Gordon, Rusty Wallace and Kurt Busch all finding “Thunder Valley’s” sweet spot over the years.
But right now Bristol couldn’t be any sweeter for Kyle Busch.
His win in Sunday’s Jeff Byrd 500 was his fifth straight at Bristol dating back to his truck series-Nationwide Series-Sprint Cup Series three-peat last August.

Throw in Saturday’s Nationwide win and his fifth career Bristol Cup triumph on Sunday and Busch completed his own personal “Drive for Five” at the track.
He did it Sunday in a patient sort of way, picking his spot to get to the front and making the most of it when the opportunity presented itself.
In the process Busch became the season’s fourth different winner, continuing the trend of spreading the wealth around early in the 2011 season. Five time champion Jimmie Johnson is still looking for his first trip to victory lane which no doubt keeps some fans happy who have tired of the five year dominance from the No. 48 team.
But was Sunday’s race enough to keep NASCAR on its early season course of momentum?
It wasn’t a Bristol barnburner by and measure and in fact at times slipped into a bit of a tedious rhythm when the field got strung out during long green flag runs.
With the NCAA basketball tournament in full swing this weekend’s television landscape was anything but barren so NASCAR was battling for many a sport’s fan on Sunday who was tied up in “March Madness.”
But Busch doesn’t care about any of that. The Joe Gibbs Racing team put the early year fears about engine issues in the rear view mirror and Busch gave the organization its first Sprint Cup win of the season.

That’s all that mattered as he swept Bristol for another weekend.
RISERS 
Carl Edwards
Continued his very stellar start to the 2011 season with another second place finish and week after week proves why he’s the favorite to unseat Johnson in the title race. Had a shot to run down Busch in the closing laps and even run into the 18 in the process but didn’t do either.
Paul Menard
There’s nothing fluke about what Menard is doing this season at Richard Childress Racing. Led early on Sunday and after getting shuffled back had a very fast car in the closing stages and knocked down another Top 10. The next few weeks with intermediate stops at Fontana and Texas will be crucial to the No. 27 team’s staying power.
Kurt Busch
The only driver to score Top 10 finishes in all four races this season, Busch remains on top of the Sprint Cup Series point standings because of that consistency. Still not happy with the way things went on Sunday and was in the middle of many heated exchanges with crew chief Steve Addington but the bottom line is the No. 22 Penske Racing Dodge was again in the front pack at the finish.

FALLERS
Denny Hamlin
Has shown none of the swagger or performance that kept him in the title battle until last year’s final race. Was caught in an early race incident on Sunday and played catch up all day long eventually limping home to a 33rd place finish. Hamlin’s 2011 fortunes have to change in a hurry.
David Reutimann
Not much to cheer about for the Michael Waltrip Racing driver that many predicted would be a Chase contender this season. Also a victim of Sunday’s early shenanigans and nothing but a 30th place finish for a long day at Bristol.
Juan Pablo Montoya
All the confidence after a third place run two weeks ago in Las Vegas disappeared with an especially trying day at Bristol. Montoya was a factor early but needs to find a way to stop the up and down roller coaster of finishes to return to the Chase form of 2009.
RADIO WAVES

(Choice comments and communications from drivers and crew chiefs)
“Its' a blast for us, wonderful.'' – Carl Edwards on Kyle Busch’s weekend sweep.
"Before the race even started it was junk.” – Kasey Kahne on his brake package.
"The worst part about this whole deal right now is I gotta piss so bad." – Brian Vickers
"Can't we just all be friends?" – Kyle Busch on the track public address system after being booed in pre-race introductions.

RACE RATING 
On a scale of one to five "Pistone Pistons" I’ll give Sunday’s Jeff Byrd 500 a three. While it certainly won’t go down in the annals of Bristol Motor Speedway’s long and storied history, I’m still a fan of the side-by-side racing the new track configuration produces. However there wasn’t enough of it to make Sunday’s race a classic. A stirring duel between Busch, Edwards and Johnson in the closing laps didn’t amount to the kind of slam bang finish fans had hoped for but let’s face it – Busch has got the place figured out.
DOWN THE ROAD
The Sprint Cup Series heads west again this time to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. For the first time the track hosts the series in late March, which bodes well weather-wise. It will be interesting to see if last fall's first 400-mile race, which was by far the best Cup race in track history, carries over to next week's fifth race of the 2011 season.

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Pistone: Las Vegas preview - Kobalt Tools 400 Race Preview

KOBALT TOOLS 400 RACE PREVIEW
Two weeks and two different winners.
The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series is off to a solid start and so far has produced good racing and interesting story lines.
All that goes on the line Sunday for race number three of the campaign at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Although NASCAR’s top division has competed at LVMS since 1998, the 1.5-mile track has only had its current incarnation for a few years. The 2006 makeover added progressive banking to Vegas and brought a new dimension to the track as well as better competition.
But the change didn’t deter Jimmie Johnson from continuing his Las Vegas success. Johnson won the 2005 and 2006 events on the old layout and found himself right back in victory lane the following season mastering the new configuration. He added another win in last year’s event after out battling teammate Jeff Gordon and comes into Sunday’s race as a winner of four of the last seven Las Vegas races.
After stumbling out of the blocks at Daytona when he got caught up in the race’s giant early crash, Johnson was back in form last week with a third place finish in Phoenix. That momentum should carry the five-time champion into Vegas as the clear cut favorite to roll into victory lane.
Johnson’s biggest competitors will come from his Hendrick Motorsports teammates. Gordon has finally knocked the monkey off his back after ending his 66 race winless streak in Phoenix last Sunday and surely remembers his 2010 Vegas disappointment. Mark Martin, who will run Saturday’s Nationwide Series race, has excelled at LVMS over the years. And Dale Earnhardt Jr. has shown new life in the early going with new crew chief Steve Letarte making a big difference in the attitude and performance of the driver in the No. 88 Chevrolet.

Las Vegas Motor Speedway Data
Track Size: 1.5 miles
Race Length: 400.5 miles (267 laps)
Banking/Frontstretch: 9 degrees
Banking/Backstretch: 9 degrees

Race Facts
There have been 13 NASCAR Sprint Cup Serie s races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Four drivers have participated in all 13 races: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Labonte and Mark Martin.
Dale Jarrett won the inaugural pole.
Nine drivers have poles, led by Dale Jarrett, Kasey Kahne, Kyle Busch and Bobby Labonte (two each).
Eight different drivers have won, led by Jimmie Johnson (four). Johnson has won four of the last six races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, including last season’s event.
Only five of the 13 races have been won from a top-10 starting position.
Las Vegas-native Kyle Busch became the first driver to win from the pole, in 2009.
Five of the 13 races have been won from a starting position of 20th or worse.
The deepest in the field that a race winner has started was 25th, by Matt Kenseth in 2004.
There has been one green-white-checkered finish at Las Vegas: 2006 (270/267).
Jeff Burton won consecutive races in 1999 and 2000, and has finished in the top five in two of the last three races (fifth in 2008, third in 2009). Burton has been running at the finish in all 13 of his events.
In three of the last five races, the margin of victory was under one second.
Kyle Busch made his first start and Kasey Kahne won his first pole at Las Vegas, in the same event (2004).

Who’s Hot at Phoenix
Jimmie Johnson – The five-time champion has made a living out of performing well and winning at Las Vegas during his Sprint Cup Series career. Johnson has won four times at LVMS and carries an average finish of ten into Sunday’s race over the course of nine career starts.
Jeff Gordon – If momentum means anything no one has more of its right now than Gordon, who snapped his 66-race winless drought in Phoenix last week. Confidence abounds in the 24 camp and Gordon came within a call for four tires pit stop late in last year’s race from winning.
Jeff Burton – Motivation will be high for the veteran this week after two straight weeks two start the season with trouble in Daytona and Phoenix. A former two-time Vegas winner, Burton’s career average finish in 13 starts is just a shade below ten.

Who’s Not
Juan Pablo Montoya – His stock car career at Vegas has been mostly forgettable with a 27.6 average finish in four starts including last year’s embarrassing tangle with teammate Jamie McMurray.
David Ragan – Although intermediate-sized tracks like Las Vegas are Roush Fenway Racing’s bread and butter, the desert track has been vexing for Ragan. While he does a seventh place finish in four starts there are also runs of 42nd and 34th on his LVMS resume.
Kurt Busch – The Las Vegas native hasn’t been stellar at his home track. While younger brother Kyle won at LVMS in 2009, the best big brother Kurt has been able to muster is a couple of top tens in ten starts and an average finish of 21.9

Notebook
The first NASCAR race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was a NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race won by Ken Schrader on Nov. 2, 1996.
The first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race was held on March 1, 1998, won by Mark Martin.
In 2006, the track was reconfigured to include progressive banking.
There have been 14 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races in Nevada, one at Las Vegas Park Speedway in 1955 and the rest at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (1998-Present).
19 drivers all-time in NASCAR’s three national series have their home state as Nevada.

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Bayne youngest Daytona 500 winner, ends Wood Brothers drought

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Trevor Bayne finally made a mistake. Fortunately for him, it didn't happen until he missed the turn pulling into Victory Lane at the Daytona 500.
The youngest driver to win the Great American Race gave the historic Wood Brothers team its fifth Daytona 500 victory -- its first since 1976 with David Pearson -- and Bayne did it in a No. 21 Ford that was retrofitted to resemble Pearson's famed ride.
In just his second Sprint Cup start, the 20-year-old Bayne stunned NASCAR's biggest names with a thrilling overtime win Sunday at Daytona International Speedway, holding off Carl Edwards after fan favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. crashed in NASCAR's first attempt at a green-white-checkered flag finish.
"Our first 500, are you kidding me?" said Bayne, who needed directions to Victory Lane. "Wow. This is unbelievable."
Unbelievable, indeed.
Just one day after celebrating his 20th birthday and leaving his teenage years behind, the sport's biggest race was captured by an aw-shucks Tennessean who shaves once a week and considers Rugrats his favorite TV show.
When he found himself at the front, and victory just two laps away, he never thought it would last. Bayne was content just to say he had been leading at the start of the green-white-checkered.
"I'm a little bit worried that one of them is going to come after me tonight," he said. "I'm going to have to sleep with one eye open. That's why I said I felt a little undeserving. I'm leading, and I'm saying, 'Who can I push?'"
Bayne thought for sure Tony Stewart or someone else would attempt to pass.
Nobody did.
"We get to turn four, and we were still leading the band," he said. "It seemed a little bit too easy there at the end."
The rookie had been great throughout Speedweeks, even proving his mettle by pushing four-time champion Jeff Gordon for most of a qualifying race.
"I figured they had a chance after seeing that boy race in the 150s," said Pearson, who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame in May. "I talked to him this morning. I told him to keep his head straight and not to do anything crazy. I told him to stay relaxed. I'm proud of him."

A member of Trevor Bayne's pit crew celebrates while the No. 21 takes a victory lap. (AP)

With the win Bayne breaks Gordon's mark as the youngest winner in Daytona 500 history. Gordon was 25 when he won the 500 in 1997.
"I think it's very cool. Trevor's a good kid, and I love the Wood Brothers," Gordon said. "I'm really happy for him. And I think it's great for the sport. To have a young talent like that -- he's got that spark, you know?"
The victory for NASCAR pioneers Leonard and Glen Wood ended a 10-year-losing streak, and came the week of the 10th anniversary of Dale Earnhardt's fatal accident on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500.
This was only the fourth win in the past 20 years for Wood Brothers, which hasn't run a full Sprint Cup season since 2006.
"When you miss a race, like the Daytona 500, it's like somebody died," said Eddie Wood, part of the second generation of Woods now running the team. "When you walk through the garage and you run into people you see every week, they don't look at you, they don't know what to say."
The rebuild has been slow, and they got Bayne this year for 17 races, on loaner from Roush-Fenway Racing, the team that snatched him up late last season when Michael Waltrip Racing -- which gave Bayne his start in 2009 -- couldn't promise a sponsor for this season.
So it was on to Roush, which plans for Bayne to run for the Nationwide Series title this season, and a deal was made to get him some seat time in the Cup Series with the Woods. It wouldn't be for points, and he wasn't eligible to run for rookie of the year.
But the stunning Daytona 500 win -- and the $1,462,563 payday -- might change everybody's plans. The team already said it will now go to Martinsville, the sixth race of the season, which had not been on its original schedule.
Bayne could possibly retract his decision to run for the Nationwide title.
"I don't even know if that's an option," Bayne said.
Sunday's race had a record 74 lead changes among 22 drivers, and a record 16 cautions that wiped out many of the leaders, including Earnhardt Jr. on the first attempt at NASCAR's version of overtime. It put Bayne out front with a slew of unusual suspects.
David Ragan, winless in 147 career starts, was actually leading the field on NASCAR's first attempt at a green-white-checkered finish. But he was flagged for changing lanes before the starting line, then an accident that collected Earnhardt in the middle of the pack brought out the caution, and Bayne inherited the lead.
But he had two-time series champion Stewart, now winless in 13 career Daytona 500s, lurking behind with veterans Bobby Labonte, Mark Martin and Kurt Busch, who had collected two previous wins over Speedweeks. All were chomping at the bit for their first Daytona 500 title, but Bayne never blinked, holding his gas pedal down wide open as he staved off every challenge over the two-lap final shootout.
"It was too easy," Bayne said.
Edwards wound up second in a Ford and was followed by David Gilliland, Labonte and Busch.
Juan Pablo Montoya was sixth, Regan Smith seventh, and Kyle Busch, Paul Menard and Martin rounded out the top 10.
Earnhardt Jr. wound up 24th.
The race was a battle of attrition, thanks to the dicey two-car tandem racing at nearly 200 mph that was the norm throughout Speedweeks.
Hendrick Motorsports had a rough start to the season as three of the team's four cars, including five-time defending Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, were involved in an early 14-car wreck.
Gordon, who started on the front row, and Martin also sustained damage in the melee.
Gordon questioned the aggressiveness of his fellow drivers, especially so early in the race.
"What I don't quite understand is why guys are doing it three-wide, three-deep running for 28th," he said.

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Copyright 2011 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or
distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The
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Duel races set Daytona 500 field with new style of racing as 'fun'

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The formula is different, but the end result is the same.
At the finish of Thursday's Gatorade Duel at Daytona qualifying races, a group of drivers found themselves with a spot in Sunday's Daytona 500 while others were forced to go home.
But it's not as easy as simply finishing up front to earn a starting position in "The Great American Race." But through a combination of Thursday's effort, qualifying, owners points and provisionals, the likes of Bill Elliott, J.J. Yeley, Joe Nemechek, Michael Waltrip and the biggest underdog story of the day, upstart Brian Keselowski, all made the biggest race of the season.

More Daytona 500

Piloting an unsponsored entry fielded by his brother Brad, Keselowski hooked up with his sibling to make his way to a fifth-place finish and in the process lock up a first career start in the 500.
"Oh my God, oh my God," Keselowski screamed on pit road after the race. "I didn't breath for the last 15 laps, I don't want to breath for the next three days but we're in the Daytona 500."
Brad, locked into the race with Penske Racing and the Miller Lite Dodge, was ecstatic about the turn of events that somehow ended with his fledgling race team making one of the most prestigious races in the world.
"What a day," Brad said. "I pushed my brother to the Daytona 500. That's pretty cool. It feels good for him. We really wanted to win, but it was nice to do that with Brian.
"I mean we wanted to come down here and go through this but knew just how difficult a task it would be to get in. But this is what this day and these races are all about, dreams and doing whatever you can to get into the 500. This is a family-owned team in the truest sense, and I can't tell you what an accomplishment this is for all of us."
The independent team finds itself in line for a big payday Sunday, with even last place netting in excess of $250,000. That will go a long way to propelling the organization to bigger and better things.
"That will help for sure," said Brian. "I can finally pay my bills. But that will also help us build this team and maybe get our plans even better for the future."
The underfunded Whitney Motorsports team has a similar story to the Keselowski effort. With veteran Yeley coming on board knowing simply making races is the goal most weekends, just a berth in the 500 is just as good as a win.
"It was a rollercoaster of emotions not knowing what was going to go on, knowing we had to race our way in," said Yeley, the former open wheel star who spent time in the Joe Gibbs Racing Sprint Cup stable. "Once I took the checkered flag in, and rolled across there and realized that we just put this thing in the show, I was beyond myself with excitement."
Waltrip, who put together a deal to race Sunday to commemorate his victory in the 2001 Daytona, was relieved to know he'll take the green flag Sunday.
"We were confident we had a fast car and things worked out with our qualifying speed to know we were pretty safely in the field," said Waltrip.
On the other end of the spectrum were those who came up short in their bid for the 500.
That group included two veterans in Casey Mears and Todd Bodine who suffered through a miserable afternoon and will be forced to simply be spectators Sunday.
Mears, the former Ganassi Racing and Hendrick Motorsports driver who landed with Camping World Truck Series team Germain Racing in its Cup effort this season, blew an engine for the second consecutive day.
"This is beyond disappointing," said Mears who may not be able to run the entire Sprint Cup season for Germain because of the lack of sponsorship.
"Just making this race would have been such a shot in the arm for us and to not get in and cost a pair of engines in the process is a pretty tough blow."
Bodine, the defending Truck Series champion who was attempting to run all three NASCAR national series races at Daytona this weekend, was swept up in an accident during the second Duel to end his dream of racing in the Daytona 500.
"It's disappointing yes," said Bodine. "We had a pretty good car that could run in the draft and we were trying to find a partner out there. But just got caught up and clipped there racing through the corner and pretty much just got wrecked."
Aside from the story of who made the 500 and who didn't, Thursday's twin 150s were concrete evidence the two car drafting phenomenon that has been the talk of Speedweeks is definitely here to stay.
Despite NASCAR changing rules impacting engine cooling systems as well as reducing the size of the restrictor plate, the same two-car tandems seen in Saturday's Budweiser Shootout were the order of the day.
Throughout both races drivers doubled up in pairs all through the field, which has proven to be the fastest way around the newly paved Daytona.
"Yeah, they don't compare to anything," said Elliott who has raced on all three of Daytona's pavement surfaces in his career. "I've never experienced anything like what these guys, what you have to do today to make this work.
"You know, when I was here testing, I tried to do this with Jeff Gordon, and it was at the very end of the last day. I couldn't figure it out. We only did it for just a short number of laps. I couldn't help him and he couldn't help me."
While the new style of racing is still taking many drivers time to get used to, others find it fun, including Juan Pablo Montoya.
"It is fun. It is different but it is fun," said Montoya. "I think people are used to restrictor plate racing, it is going to be a very different restrictor plate. It is a hell of a lot of fun restrictor plate racing."
And then there were the drivers who had the best of both worlds -- learning while racing and enjoying it at the same time.
"It was fun and we have a really fast race car and it is still in one piece," said Mark Martin. "We located a number of things we need to work on in different areas. We have a few days to get. Before today we really didn't know what we really needed to zero-in on. I am tickled to death."

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Pistone: Power Rankings - Power Rankings: Drivers not named J.J. getting theirs

Many of those who have been turned off by NASCAR recently point to Jimmie Johnson's dominance as one of the reasons.
Johnson's five straight championships and multiple trips to Victory Lane every year have been historic, but not everyone enjoys watching a dynasty.

Jimmie Johnson barely misses his first win of the season after Kevin Harvick steals the glory in Fontana. (US Presswire)

But although Johnson has again gotten off to a consistent start to the season and will certainly be a player for the title once the playoffs begin in September, he has yet to score a victory in 2011.
In fact, there have now been five different faces in Victory Lane through the opening five races of the season. That's a far cry from a year ago when Johnson had already claimed three of the first five wins.
Last summer there was a streak of 10 different winners in a row so there's a ways to go yet to match the run of even a year ago. Still, it's interesting to note the 2011 campaign has not only seen various drivers in Victory Lane but all have represented different organizations.
Trevor Bayne (Wood Brothers), Jeff Gordon (Hendrick Motorsports), Carl Edwards (Roush Fenway Racing), Kyle Busch (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Kevin Harvick (Richard Childress Racing) have spread the wealth around the garage area.
It's still a bit premature to make a call that the competition level in the series is completely even. Hendrick will no doubt flex its muscle with Johnson and company poised to lead the way, as the 48 team has done over the last five years. RCR shows no signs of slowing down from last year's near win in the championship race. Roush Fenway has returned to the solid form that brought multiple championships to Jack Roush. And despite their mysterious engine woes, JGR is a formidable contender to win regularly and challenge for the crown.
There's a good chance the string of different winners will continue with Martinsville, Texas and Talladega all on the schedule horizon.
That might be the trick to interest those fans that have grown weary of the Johnson dynasty.

POWER RANKINGS
Current	Driver	Previous
1	Carl Edwards	1
He wasn't as strong at Fontana as many predicted, particularly with the reputation of Roush Fenway Racing's intermediate track prowess. Still finished sixth to keep his top 10 finishing streak alive in the early season and took over the Sprint Cup point standings lead in the process.
2	Kyle Busch	4
Busch absolutely dominated Sunday's race in Fontana, leading 151 of the 200 laps. But the late-race restart proved to be his undoing and Busch could not hold off eventual winner Kevin Harvick or second place finisher Jimmie Johnson in the final nine-lap dash to the checkered flag. Still showed great poise in handling his disappointment afterward, which will ultimately be a big factor in Busch being able to contend for a championship.
3	Jimmie Johnson	5
He's been shut out of Victory Lane so far but outside of the Daytona 500, Johnson has hardly been a non-factor. He was right in the thick of Sunday's battle for the win and, despite coming up short, knocked down a runner-up finish to continue his ascension in the Cup standings.
4	Ryan Newman	3
He has three top 5 and four top 10 finishes to start the season after Sunday's fifth-place finish in Fontana. Newman continues to impress in the early going and should be in the win picture before too long. Talladega?
5	Kevin Harvick	8
Maybe the best closer in the Sprint Cup Series, Harvick charged from seemingly nowhere to steal the win away from Busch and Johnson on Sunday and score his first career win at the California native's home track. After his win at Michigan last summer, Harvick and the RCR stable must now be considered favorites at two-mile tracks. That bodes well for the organization with two stops coming up later this year at MIS.
6	Kurt Busch	2
Things have gone a bit sour for Busch and the Penske Racing team since their strong Speedweeks in Daytona. They had an ill-handling racecar Sunday on a rough day that was punctuated by a smack into the outside wall. Busch may have his hands full righting the ship at Martinsville this Sunday.
7	Kasey Kahne	10
The Team Red Bull tandem of Kahne and Brian Vickers both posted top 10 finishes on Sunday. Kahne has been in the front of the pack at every race this season and his success with crew chief Kenny Francis has helped raise the entire organization's effort.
8	Matt Kenseth	11
The stealth-like Kenseth turned in another one of his patented quiet performances Sunday with a fourth-place finish to show for his efforts. The inconsistency that plagued the No. 17 team last season has been erased in the early part of 2011.
9	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	7
Fontana is not one of Earnhardt's best tracks so a bit of a moral victory for Junior to come out of Sunday's race with a 12th-place finish. He had another weekend when the car the team started the events with was not quite right, but adjustments throughout both practice and the race paid off with a decent run.
10	Jeff Gordon	6
He was never a factor, even in the top 10 on Sunday. Gordon had a relatively fast car in practice but struggled trying to find grip during the race and the best he could muster was a mediocre 18th-place finish.
11	Juan Pablo Montoya	15
He won his first pole since Talladega of last season and finished 10th on Sunday to rebound from his Bristol disappointment. Montoya made his 150th career Sprint Cup Series start and produced his third top 10 of the year in Fontana.
12	Tony Stewart	9
Same song, different track. Stewart was running strong and in contention for back-to-back wins at Fontana until late in the going. He started third on the final restart with nine laps to go but fell back to 13th for ultimately a disappointing end to what should have been a much better afternoon.
13	Paul Menard	12
The early-year magic wasn't there Sunday for Menard, who unlike RCR teammates Harvick and Clint Bowyer, could not find the fast way around the track. However, a 16th-place finish was still one of his better career runs at ACS.
14	Mark Martin	13
Despite qualifying 10th, Martin struggled at Fontana. A 20th-place finish was about all the No. 5 car had in it on Sunday.
15	Martin Truex Jr.	NR
A very respectable showing for Truex Jr., at least in the early going Sunday when the MWR Toyota was in the front pack. Got shuffled back to wind up 21st in the final rundown but has shown some life of late and crept up to 14th in the series point standings.

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Pistone: Dover Sprint Cup preview - Dover race preview

FedEx 400 Race Preview

As the winds of controversy swirl around Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch this weekend at Dover, Jimmie Johnson and company are simply going about their business.
Once again Johnson comes into “The Monster Mile” as a weekend favorite on following the usual steady as she goes course that has served the No. 48 team well through its remarkable run of five straight Sprint Cup Series championships.

And while Harvick and Busch snipe at each other all Johnson can do is set back and smile as he sets his sights on a possible fifth win in the last six Dover outings.
“At times, yes,” Johnson said when asked if he sees the possible distraction a feud like the one Harvick and Busch are in can cause. “I remember being here in the Chase and watching the No. 11 (Denny Hamlin) and the No. 29 (Harvick) going at it. At that point in time, yes.
“But now, the championship implications haven’t crossed my mind because it’s so far from now; things seem to get rectified in 2 to 3 weeks. So I haven’t thought of it in that perspective. It was exciting seeing discussions about it in major newspapers and the social media world; it’s been everywhere. So you hate to see somebody potentially injured and the stuff on pit road is really the sore spot of all of it. But it was exciting. It gave us all a lot to talk about. If something like that happens in the Chase, It certainly will affect those two drivers there, but we’re too far away from it now."
Now don’t misunderstand Johnson. While he’s glad that he’s not the one in the middle of this latest tiff he understands the value of having such rivalries and what they mean to the overall exposure of the sport.
"Yeah, it’s so funny; we’re all around the sport enough to know that and, in your position covering the sport, that it’s real easy one week to say oh well, it’s too vanilla out there; it’s too boring and these guys don’t rough each other up and back in the day this or that would happen,” he said in Friday’s media session at Dover.
“And then damn if we don’t go to the next race and all that happens and now you’ve got to write the opposite of that. So I think we’re all confused. What do we really want? Does anybody know? It changes every week. And if you read the articles and follow the path, we’re all confused in my opinion. At the end of the day, our sport is stronger than it’s ever been. We have more lead changes, more race winners, and I guess any press is good press."
There’s a good chance the press will be covering another Johnson victory come Sunday afternoon considering his stellar track record at Dover. He has six career wins and number seven would put him in the lofty company of Richard Petty and Bobby Allison as the only three drivers to have seven wins at the Delaware track.

“It reminds me a little bit of my off-road days and controlling the vehicle through a vertical motion coming into the corner, up over the hill and trying to land,” he said explaining his approach and subsequent successes at the track. “And also control the lateral forces that we see in the car. So that dynamic I enjoy. I really like this track. Our race wins and finishes kind of back that up. So, I’m looking forward to another great weekend and I would love to hopefully get a win and get some more points.”

Dover International Speedway
Track Size: One Mile
Race Length: 400 miles
Banking/Straightaways: 9 degrees
Banking/Corners: 24 degrees


Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner: Martin Truex Jr. (157.315 mph, 22.884 seconds)
2010 race winner: Kyle Busch (128.790 mph, 05-16-10)
Track qualifying record: Jeremy Mayfield (161.522 mph, 22.288 seconds, 06-04-04)
Track race record: Mark Martin (132.719 mph, 09-21-97)


Race Facts
There have been 82 NASCAR Sprint Cup races at Dover International Speedway since the track opened in 1969.
There was one race in 1969 and 1970. There have been two-a-year since 1971.
Richard Petty won the track’s first NASCAR Sprint Cup race.
There have been 35 different pole winners, led by David Pearson (six).

David Pearson won the first pole in July 1969.

Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman lead all active drivers, each with four poles.
32 different drivers have posted victories led by Bobby Allison and Richard Petty, each with seven.
Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers, with six victories.

Hendrick Motorsports has a series-high 12 wins.
50 races at Dover have been won from a top-five starting position; 17 races have been won from a starting position outside the top 10.
13 drivers have won from the pole. The last to do so was Jimmie Johnson, in last season’s September race.
The furthest back in the field a race winner started was 37th, by Kyle Petty in 1995.
Several active drivers had their first start at Dover, including three past champions: David Ragan (finished 42nd in 2006), Kurt Busch (18th in 2000), Matt Kenseth (sixth in 1998) and Bobby Labonte (34th in 1991).

In addition, Matt Kenseth (2002) and Michael Waltrip (1991) earned their first pole at Dover. Martin Truex Jr. won his first race there (2007).

Who’s Hot at Dover
Jimmie Johnson – Can join Richard Petty and Bobby Allison as a seven time Dover winner for a trip to victory lane on Sunday afternoon. Johnson has won three of the last four races at Dover and brings a sparkling 7.9 average finish over the last five years with him to “The Monster Mile.”

Carl Edwards – Still on top the Sprint Cup Series point standings after posting another runner-up finish a week ago in Darlington to surprise winner Regan Smith. Has not finished outside the Top 10 at Dover since the 2006 season a string that includes a 2007 victory.
Kyle Busch  – In the middle of controversy with his feud still going strong with Kevin Harvick but that should not slow down his momentum at Dover. The defending race winner who also finished sixth in last fall’s trip to Dover will try for another NASCAR three-peat weekend with wins in the truck and Nationwide Series as well.
Who’s Not
David Ragan – Has not experienced as much success as the rest of his Roush Fenway Racing teammates at Dover over the years and despite the organization’s stellar record at the track, Ragan has a lofty 23.6 average finish in nine career starts.
Juan Pablo Montoya – Only one Top 10 finish in eight career starts is one reason why Montoya’s average finish is a whopping 21.9 at Dover.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. – Dover has not been kind to Junior in recent years and the Hendrick Motorsports driver has an average finish of 20th in his last ten starts. He finished 30th and 23rd in two Dover outings last season.

Notebook
The official opening of Dover International Speedway, then called Dover Downs International Speedway, was in 1969.
The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race was held on July 6, 1969.
The first two races at Dover were 300 miles. The race length was changed to 500 miles in 1971.
The track surface was changed to concrete in 1995.
The race length was changed to 400 miles beginning with the second race in 1997.
The track name was changed to Dover International Speedway in 2002.

There have been 82 NASCAR Sprint Cup races in Delaware, all at Dover International Speedway.

Eight drivers in NASCAR’s three national series (all-time) have their home state recorded as Delaware
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Pistone: All-Star preview -

By Pete Pistone

SPRINT ALL-STAR RACE PREVIEW 

There are no points and simply pride and money on the line in Saturday night’s Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Over the years that’s been a pretty good recipe for an entertaining night of racing.
Since the annual All-Star event made its debut back in 1985 it’s undergone a variety of changes, modification and tweaks. But at the end of the day it’s still all about one thing and one thing only – winning.
“Yeah, everybody amps it up so much saying there’s nothing on the line but money,” said former winner Tony Stewart. “Trust me, we all think of the trophy first and the money second. But it’s fun to know that you can take extra chances in that race and you know that everybody is going to do it so it just takes the whole level of racing and just takes it up a whole new level that we don’t get a chance to do when we’re racing (the normal schedule).”
The change of pace from the weekly grind of points racing makes Saturday night’s race special enough that in addition to the drive to succeed there’s also a “fun factor” in play.
“We’ve never been able to close the deal,” said Sprint Cup Series point leader Carl Edwards. “I’m excited to be able to go compete for a million dollars and not have points on the line. It’s just a fun weekend and I’m looking forward to it more than I have any other All Star race.”

In a bit or a rarity considering the history of the event, this year’s All-Star Race will again feature the same format used last year when Kurt Busch went to victory lane.
The Sprint Showdown preliminary event will see the first two finishers move into the main event along with one driver voted in by “Fan Vote” for an All-Star Race starting line-up of 22 cars.
A fifty lap segment opens up the All-Star Race followed by a pair of 20-lappers with a no holds barred ten lap dash to the checkered flag set to cap the night off and the $1 million pot of gold.
That all adds up to what some believe to be the best all-star event in professional sports.
“Our series, the hits are actually probably worse, harder, stronger,” said Jimmie Johnson of what takes place in the NFL’s Pro Bowl or NHL’s All-Star Game. “The intensity and commitment for our All-Star event seems to be a lot higher than others. So that mindset is the difference to me. Not to take anything away from those athletes. I should then say we’re surrounded by a steel cage so it’s easier for us to dish some stuff out and take some hits.”
 
Charlotte Motor Speedway 
Track Size: 1.5-mile

Banking/Straightaways: 5 degrees
Banking/Corners: 24 degrees

Race Facts 
There have been 26 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Races.
The first NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race was in 1985.      

25 have been held at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In 1986, the event was held at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and won by Bill Elliott. That season was also the first year for what is now known as the Sprint Showdown.      
84 drivers have run in at least one All-Star Race.      
There have been 18 different winners of the All-Star Race.      

Mark Martin has participated in 21 races, more than any other driver.      
The race has featured a field that ranged from 10 drivers in 1986 to 27 in 2002.      
Dale Earnhardt (1987, 1990 and 1993) and Jeff Gordon (1995, 1997 and 2001) are the only three-time winners of the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.
 
There have been seven different winners in the last seven NASCAR Sprint All-Star races.      

Davey Allison (1991 and 1992), Terry Labonte (1988 and 1999), Mark Martin (1998 and 2005) and Jimmie Johnson (2003 and 2006) are the only other drivers to post multiple victories in the All-Star Race. Allison is the only driver to ever win consecutive All-Star events.      
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2000) and Ryan Newman (2002) are the only drivers to win the All-Star Race in their rookie season.      

Jeff Gordon is the youngest winner of the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at 23 years, 9 months and 18 days (1995). Mark Martin is the oldest at 46 years, 4 months and 12 days (2005).      
Matt Kenseth has a 6.6 average finish in 10 appearances in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, the best of any driver in this weekend’s field; followed by Jimmie Johnson with a 6.7 average finish in nine appearances. The best average finish by a driver with more than five starts is Ken Schrader, at 6.125.      

The NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race has been won from the pole position four times; the first three came in consecutive years: Dale Earnhardt (1990) and Davey Allison (1991 and 1992). Kurt Busch posted the fourth win from the pole last season.      
The deepest in the field an All-Star Race winner has started was 27th, by Ryan Newman in 2002.    

Hendrick Motorsports drivers have won six All-Star Races: Jeff Gordon (three), Jimmie Johnson (two) and Terry Labonte (one).      
Five drivers have won the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship in the same year: Darrell Waltrip (1985), Dale Earnhardt (1987, 1990, 1993), Rusty Wallace (1989), Jeff Gordon (1995, 1997, 2001) and Jimmie Johnson (2006).

The record for lead changes in a NASCAR Sprint All-Star race is 10 in 2004. The most different leaders is nine in 2002.

Who’s Hot at the All-Star Race
Matt Kenseth – Fresh off his victory last Sunday in Dover Kenseth races to the All-Star Race with four straight Top 10 finishes in the event on his record. Kenseth is a winner of the 2004 race.
Tony Stewart – His recent rough streak could be cured with another win in the All-Star Race, where he’s run in the Top 5 four straight years including a victory lane-worthy performance back in 2009.
Kurt Busch  – A year ago Busch was the toast of Charlotte Motor Speedway with a win in the All-Star Race and a follow-up victory in The Coca-Cola 600. Things have not gone well for the Penske Racing team since Daytona but the ship would feel very righted with back-to-back $1 million paydays.


Who’s Not
Kyle Busch – You’d think the format of the All-Star Race would be perfect for Busch’s style of racing with the all-out dash to the checkered flag in the final ten-lap segment. But the Joe Gibbs Racing driver has not enjoyed the annual event very much at all and has only one Top 10 finish in five career starts.
Jamie McMurray – Charlotte is the scene of McMurray’s first career Sprint Cup win but the All-Star Race has not been a favorite of the Earnhardt Ganassi racing driver. An average finish of 17.2 in four career starts is McMurray’s performance record in the race.
Jeff Burton – The veteran has a best finish of fourth in six career races for Burton adds up to a career average finish of 14.8.

2011 NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race

Entry List
  Bayne, Trevor
  Biffle, Greg
  Bowyer, Clint
  Busch, Kurt
  Busch, Kyle
  Edwards, Carl

  Gordon, Jeff
  Hamlin, Denny
  Harvick, Kevin
  Johnson, Jimmie
  Kahne, Kasey
  Kenseth, Matt

  Martin, Mark
  McMurray, Jamie
  Montoya, Juan Pablo
  Newman, Ryan
  Reutimann, David
  Smith, Regan

  Stewart, Tony
  Fan Vote Winner
  Winner Sprint Showdown
  Second Place Sprint Showdown

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