Almirola and Kahne fastest in Wed. practices; Newman and McMurray find trouble
Practices three and four for the Daytona 500 took place Wednesday morning and afternoon. Each driver that has led a 500 practice session has been slightly surprising. Bill Elliott led both Saturday practices, backing that feat up by timing himself into Sunday’s race during time trials the following day. Kasey Kahne, driving a Dodge that has been slow for most of Speed Weeks and rookie Aric Almirola led Wednesday’s sessions.
Kahne led the morning practice, followed by two other Dodges in Penske teammates Kurt Busch and Sam Hornish Jr. Casey Mears and Michael Waltrip rounded out the Top 5. Georgia’s David Ragan clocked in the 11th fastest time, while Bill Elliott and Reed Sorenson found themselves further down the chart in 39th and 40th. Mike Garvey did not practice. Rookie Joey Logano ran the 6th quickest lap in the session, but scraped the wall early, forcing the No. 20 Home Depot crew to perform significant repairs on the right side of the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Ryan Newman blew a motor in the No. 39 Chevy and will be forced to go to start from the rear of the field.
Wednesday’s second practice had more excitement. Rookie Aric Almirola in the EGR No. 8 Guitar Hero Chevy ran the fastest lap, followed by Matt Kenseth, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, and Robby Gordon. Late in the session, Kasey Kahne’s No. 9 Dodge got loose while leading a pack, causing Michael Waltrip to check up. David Stremme in the No. 12 did not slow in enough time, punting Waltrip into Jamie McMurray. Waltrip and McMurray’s cars were damaged beyond repair, meaning the backup No. 55 and No. 26 cars will start at the rear of the field for Sunday’s race. Walrip’s primary car was rushed back to Charlotte, is in the process of repair, and will be hurried back to Daytona, because the No. 55’s backup car is currently their only car at the track, since their Bud Shootout car sustained heavy damage.
Georgia’s Reed Sorenson rebounded from an off morning session, to post the 7th fastest practice speed. David Ragan’s No. 6 UPS Ford was 18th fastest in the practice, while Bill Elliott and Mike Garvey were significantly further back in 41st and 54th on the charts. Garvey is a long shot to make the race in the No. 73 Jani-King Dodge, but is going to attempt the full season with his self-owned team.
Boris Said gets big break with Rick Clark
No Fear Racing, Boris Said’s self-owned No. 60 race team, is merging with black owner Rick Clark. Plans for the team include 12-18 races this season and a full schedule next year. No sponsor for the team has been announced. The team will have support from Roush Fenway Racing.
Clark announced plans to break into the NASCAR ranks a couple of years ago, but those never came to fruition. Clark becomes the first black majority owner of a Cup team since Sam Belnavis owned a team in 2003. He co-owned that team with Travis Carter. Team Belcar fielded the No. 54 National Guard Ford for Todd Bodine and achieved limited success.
Said is known for his road racing prowess and has gotten limited opportunities to prove himself on the oval tracks. He has never run more than nine races in a season before and has had not had the funding to do so the past couple of years with his own team. Said’s team made a partnership with E&M Motorsports to field the No. 60 and No. 08 Dodges. James Hylton and the No. 60 team had multiple problems and were not allowed to attempt a qualifying lap, forcing the team to go home early.
Nationwide team points swapping like Sprint Cup teams
NASCAR approved points switches for three teams Tuesday, helping those teams secure starting spots in Saturday’s Camping World 300. Owner Ed Smith and driver Kenny Hendrick have formed a partnership with Chip Ganassi to use the points from the now-defunct No. 40 team from last season. John Wes Townley and the No. 09 Zaxby’s Ford of RAB Racing are using the No. 4 points from Jay Robinson Racing. Townley’s good run in Saturday’s ARCA race helped prompt NASCAR to give him approval to run in Saturday’s race. Front Row Motorsports is fielding the No. 34 team this season with Tony Raines, but will use the points it accrued with the No. 24 team last year for this team.
Sealed to be used for Truck Series; stiff penalties for infractions
NASCAR is forcing teams to use at least one sealed motor for every three races in the Camping World Truck Series. Sealed motors are last tampered with by NASCAR officials, so teams cannot modify them. If a team breaks the rules surrounding the seals, it faces at least a 100 point driver’s and owner’s points penalty. Further infractions can lead to probation or suspension.
Georgia boys struggle in Bud Shootout
David Ragan’s new UPS digs had very little exposure Saturday night. The No. 6 UPS Ford got taken out in an early wreck. Ragan checked up after the outside line began to slow. Robby Gordon did not slow down fast enough, forcing the No. 7 into the back of the UPS Ford. Ragan hit the wall head-on and was immediately retired from the race.
Reed Sorenson stayed out of trouble for much of the race, but lost an engine during the 2nd segment, relegating the No. 43 Dodge to a poor finish. Both Ragan and Reed missed the front row during Sunday’s time trials, so their starting positions will be determined in today’s Gatorade Duels.
Tune-in to Captain Herb’s racing show for live reports from Daytona this Saturday on News/Talk 750 WSB in Atlanta and online at wsbradio.com. Download podcasts of the show and the FastCar Newsdesk on CaptainHerb.net.
