NASCAR Cup Series

The following statement should be attributed to Penske Racing: “NASCAR notified Penske Racing this afternoon that AJ Allmendinger was administered a drug test earlier this week."

Just shy of two before the green flag fell on the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona, NASCAR sensor vice president of racing Steve O’Donnell announced that Allmendinger has been temporarily suspended for because of a failed drug test.

Driver AJ Allmendinger has been temporarily suspended from NASCAR competition based upon notification of a positive “A” test.

Saturday evening, Steve O' Donnell, Senior Vice President of Racing Operations for NASCAR, announced they suspended Penske Racing driver A.J. Allmendinger as a result failing a random drug test.

NASCAR Nationwide Series regular Austin Dillon has returned to Daytona Beach, Fla., where he will remain on standby to drive the No. 29 Budweiser Folds of Honor Chevrolet in tonight's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coke Zero 400.

A total of 17 Team Chevy drivers will start the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway (DIS), Round 18 of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS)

For a team not assured of a starting spot, just making the field for a Sprint Cup race is a significant accomplishment in itself. But the members of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane crew, who have become accustomed to strong qualifying runs at restrictor-plate tracks

Ryan Newman, No. 39 Aspen Dental Chevrolet, was nothing but smiles after he narrowly missed placing his Chevrolet in the top spot for Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400. Newman’s lap was a mere eight one-thousandths-of-a-second off of the pole speed of 192.386 mph. The run marks Newman’s seventh top-five start of the 2012 season.

TONY STEWART, NO. 14 MOBIL 1 CHEVROLET – QUALIFIED 2nd, then time was disallowed by NASCAR. STEWART WILL START 42ND: WHAT DID THEY DO TO THE CAR THIS TIME? “You asked me if I did anything different, I said ‘I held it wide open."

The 2012 Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola marks the traditional halfway point in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, and this season is shaping up to be nothing less than exciting.