Surprising and Not Surprising: The Daytona 500
In spite of the unusual happenings that perpetually occur at Daytona, this year a six hour plus rain delay with tornado warnings, here is what was surprising and not surprising from the 56th running of the Great American Race.
Surprising: With so much focus pre-race on the return of the No. 3, formerly driven by Dale Earnhardt Sr. and now by rookie Austin Dillon, the son of the Intimidator and NASCAR’s most popular driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. instead stole the show with his second Daytona 500 victory.
This was Junior’s 20th victory in the Cup Series and, with the win, he joined Bill Elliott, Michael Waltrip, Sterling Marlin, Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson as two-time Daytona 500 winners.
“I’ll never take this for granted,” Junior said. “We’re two time Daytona champions.”
In addition to the coveted win at Daytona, Earnhardt Jr. had a big weekend overall. The team bearing his name, JR Motorsports, won the Nationwide Drive4COPD 300 race with driver Regan Smith at the wheel.
Not Surprising: In spite of several on-track incidents, the driver of the aforementioned No. 3 for Richard Childress Racing, did quite well for himself, starting from the pole and finishing ninth.
Austin Dillon was also the highest finishing rookie of the race, taking the early lead in a Sunoco Rookie of the year battle.
“That’s what this year is about — experience, trying to finish races and getting better each week,” Dillon said, “We have a long year ahead of us, I’d like to use some of this momentum going forward. I know it’s going to be a long, tough year, and hopefully we’ll be there at the end of these races and try to learn something.”
Surprising: Goodyear had a little scare early in the race when both Kyle Larson and Greg Biffle had tire problems, causing hard hits into the wall for the rookie and veteran racers.
Larson, in the No. 42 race car formerly driven by Juan Pablo Montoya, actually hit the wall twice in the opening laps, going a lap down and soldiering on to finish 38th.
In spite of his blown tire early in the race, Biffle had a much better finish than Larson, taking the checkered flag in the eighth spot in his No. 16 3M Ford.
“It was a good night,” Biffle said. “We had a really strong car but the 88 was real fast. We just couldn’t hold him off.”
Not Surprising: With the combo platter of the rain delay, potential for additional weather coming in, and the pent up energy of the first race of the season, it was not surprising that there were a number of pit road incidents that created some major mayhem for several drivers.
Early in the race, Matt Kenseth had contact on pit road and ended up spinning to pit backwards in his box. Both Kyle Busch and Aric Almirola removed equipment out of their pit boxes and had to serve costly penalties.
And then there was one of the more controversial calls, with Kasey Kahne called for speeding, all of which he did in an effort not to get hit by Michael Annett who had lost control of his vehicle coming to his pit.
Surprising: After dominating most everything during Speedweeks, from the Sprint Unlimited to the second Duel race, it was a bit surprising that Denny Hamlin did not claim the big prize. He did, however, come home in the runner up position in his No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota, which was his best finish ever in the Daytona 500.
“I thought — the Duels and the Unlimited — I felt like our car didn’t have quite the speed,” Hamlin said. “It was a solid run for us and really it was a fun race.”
Not Surprising: Given the manufacturer change to Chevrolet and a new alliance with Richard Childress Racing, it was not surprising that Casey Mears and his GEICO No. 13 team had a great run in the Great American Race.
In fact, team GEICO finished in the top-10, getting their driver and crew chief Bootie Barker off to a great start for the season.
Surprising: The Labonte brothers, Bobby and Terry, not only made the race but had surprisingly good finishes, 15th and 20th respectively.
Brother Bobby extended his consecutive start street for the Great American Race to 22 while elder brother Terry most likely ran his last Daytona 500 competition.
Not Surprising: Because it was after all Daytona, there were several big crashes, collecting many good drivers, to no one’s surprise. One of those hard hits, however, impacted the only female in the field Danica Patrick.
“I think more than anything I am just upset because the GoDaddy car felt really good and it was the best car that I had all Speedweeks,” Patrick said. “I felt like everything was going pretty well, so it’s just upsetting.”
“It’s a bummer, but you know that is the excitement of speedway racing that anything can happen, and it was unfortunate that I was on the short end of the accident.”
Surprising: With a more than six hour rain delay, some of NASCAR’s finest were up to some surprising activities to pass the time away. In fact, several of the racer dads were busy with their children, from Jeff Gordon making Lego creations to Keelan Harvick suiting up in his dad Kevin’s fire suit.
Probably most novel, however, was David Ragan, still clad in his own fire suit, who went out to pick up pizza for his team during the break.
Not Surprising: While Junior reigned triumphant in Victory Lane, just like in the Olympics, there was some agony of defeat in this year’s running for the Great American Race.
Most agonizing were those drivers impacted by engine or fuel pick up woes, including Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex, Jr. and Tony Stewart.
“If it was going to blow up, I wish it would have blown up four hours ago,” Clint Bowyer said. “I could have been home watching. Just disappointing — the guys work so hard for this race. Everybody is out there having fun and we broke our toy.”
“It’s definitely a tough break for our team,” Martin Truex Jr. said. “I went to bed thinking this was my best chance to win the Daytona 500.”
The Cup Series moves on next to Phoenix International Raceway in Avondale, Arizona for The Profit on CNBC 500 on March 2nd.
Charlie Kimball looking for more success after biggest season to date
Last year, Charlie Kimball had his best year to date – finishing ninth in the point standings after scoring his first IndyCar career win at Mid-Ohio. Over the off-season, Kimball has spent time reflecting back on the season, letting the win soak in.
For Kimball, one of the moments that stood out about the win was the podium ceremony.
“I guess it was Wednesday or Thursday after Sonoma, the week after the next race, I got an envelope from the team with all of Floyd’s photos from Mid-Ohio. It was his last race before he passed on. For me it was very special,” Kimball comments. “For me having that vision of him pushing through the crowd to get to Victory Circle to congratulate me, it brought home how special that was, to share that win with Floyd, everything he’s done, not just for Chip, everything he’s done, all the drivers. Every time at the track he would pull me aside asking me how I was, how my family was at home, knowing that racing is important, but it’s not everything.”
One of the things that has helped Kimball grow as a driver is his relationship with Scott Dixon.
“Having Scott to learn from, he’s so very good at so many things. He’s been with Chip Ganassi Racing for so many years, he’s young as far as long-term career length. He’s going to be a competitor for a long time,” Dixon commented. “Any day I feel I can get within a couple of 10ths of him on a test or race day, I know I’m doing a good job because that will be the benchmark.
“As much as he’s taught me how to do things in the racecar, drive style, technique, fuel saving, he’s a master at that, he’s taught me as much out of the car about how to handle myself, be a member of the team, develop and build the team, and also in the public eye, handle the media, handle the challenges and pressures of being a full-time IndyCar driver and a successful one.”
Now with that win behind him, Kimball is looking for more success this year.
“All the way along Chip’s advice has been to build the foundation for a long-term career, not one year flash in the pan. Try to build a one-way street, so when I take that next step I stay there. I think that’s helped,” he commented. “Going away at the end of the season, having a little downtime, doing a lot of work with the Novo Nordisk allowed me to reflect on that and know coming into this season we’ve prepared as a team and we know we can win because we’ve done it. That lays the groundwork to have a great year. ”
He will kick off the year next month at St. Petersburg, which is an event that Kimball considers as one of the crown jewels in the IndyCar Series and compares to the first day of school.
“While you see some teams and drivers at different test days throughout the years, Media Days like that, the physicals in Indianapolis, it’s the first time you’re there all together with the team and crew members. Inevitably you have friends on different teams, throughout the paddock,” he commented. “To be in an environment where the weather is good or great, compared to the weather in Indianapolis this year, to a city that really embraces the Grand Prix, that has such a level of enthusiasm and excitement, really enjoys having us in town, it’s awesome. It’s really nice to start that way and keep that momentum building that whole year off that first springboard.”
Off the track, one of hte unique things is about Kimball is he does have diabetes. Teammate Scott Dixon says that when they’re working together, though, that is something that flies under the radar.
“It’s only at lunchtime that you see him break out a needle. He prepares himself so well with his dietary needs or training. He does a first class job on that sort of thing,” Dixon added. “He’s done a great job in the last year. Even the tests we’ve had in the pre-season so far, he’s definitely upping his game.
“When he first started, some people might have written him off. But he’s a smart guy. If he can’t do it, he’ll look and try to achieve it. For him to get a winat a tough road course like Mid-Ohio was huge for him and the team. He’s getting stronger and stronger each year.”
Denny Hamlin Rebounding From Dismal 2013
Denny Hamlin was entangled in multiple issues during the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series last season. The problem that halted Hamlin’s charge towards his first career Sprint Cup title occurred in Fontana, California after he slammed the inside barrier and was diagnosed with a severe back injury that sidelined him multiple weeks.
However, the setback injury was just the beginning to Hamlin’s dismal 2013 Sprint Cup season. Following his return to the racetrack, Hamlin posted a horrific 17 finishes that were worse then 20th position. But, he concluded the season with a victory in the season finale at Homestead Miami-Speedway which is proving to be the only momentum Hamlin needs to rebound from the dismal season.
Budweiser Speedweeks began and it was obvious that Hamlin was back with vengeance. He easily stole the Sprint Unlimited and the Budweiser Duel victories and quickly focused on winning his first career Daytona 500.
But, Hamlin came up one position short from scoring the biggest victory and moment of his racing career. However, the second place finish proves that Darien Grubb, crew chief for Hamlin, is prepared to give his driver a chance at the 2014 NSCS championship.
The quest towards an elusive first title officially has began for Hamlin and moving towards Phoenix International Raceway and other events he’ll have to continue to improve and solidify his name in the championship discussion.
Earnhardt Jr. says winning the 500 is the “greatest feeling you can have”
As the Daytona 500 closed into the final 25 laps, Dale Earnhardt Jr. had put himself in position to win the sport’s greatest race and take home the biggest victory of them all.
The things all changed when a caution flew with 17 laps to go. It was under that caution that his Daytona 500 winning chances start to soak in.
“I’m enjoying particular pieces of it,” Dale Jr. said over the radio. “But the entire experinece is driving me crazy. It’s hard to be excited, a little nervous; this is for the big prize.”
Earnhardt said that feelings he was experiencing at the time were ones that a driver always feels in that position.
“When you’re close enough to the front to win races, there’s a lot on the line, it’s a big race, and you want to win it so badly, your team wants to win it so badly,” Earnhardt said after the race. “You realize at that moment, especially inside of 20 laps to go, you’re in the top five, you realize at that moment there’s countless people watching on television, there’s countless sitting in the grandstands with your shirts and hats on, your team over on pit wall, your crew chief, your family back home watching. There’s so many people pulling for you that want to see you win, it’s a heavy weight.”
Earnhardt Jr. was once again able to grab he lead on the restart and led all the way till the incident with seven laps to go. Under that caution as the field was getting ready to restart, a piece of bare bond (black tape) flew up from the track surface and stuck to the front grill of Earnhardt’s car. Earnhardt Jr. tried to use the pacecar to get it off, but wasn’t able to.
“I’m sorry,” Earnhardt Jr. said over the radio as the team talked about. Crew chief Steve LeTarte, quickly changed the tone, saying, “Don’t be sorry. Just stay in it. It’s okay bud. We’re going to make it.”
The field would take the green flag for a green-white-checkered and Earnhardt Jr. would get the run on the inside due to a push from teammate Jeff Gordon. He would then hold off the challenge from Denny Hamlin for the win as the caution waved for a wreck behind them.
As soon as he crossed the finish line, the excitement was evident with Earnhardt Jr. and the entire No. 88 National Guard Chevrolet team as screams erupted from everyone. The win means a lot for Earnhardt Jr. as he wanted to deliver crew chief Steve LeTarte a Daytona 500 victory as LeTarte moves off the pit box and into the broadcast booth in 2015.
“Hell, yeah,” Earnhardt beamed on the radio. “I’m gonna burn this @#$%! down. What a day, what a day, can you believe this Steve?”
“I love you, man. I love you,” Steve LeTarte replied.
In the media center post-race, Earnhardt Jr. says the emotion that he spread in victory lane simply comes from this being the greatest feeling that a NASCAR driver can experience in a single event.
“Just trying to explain what that feeling is to people, I’ve been trying to tell people for 10 years what that felt like,” Earnhardt Jr. said, referring back to his first Daytona 500 win in 2004. “It’s just hard to put it into words what winning this race really means you.”
Earnhardt Jr. said that the first Daytona 500 win back in 2004 felt special due to working with his uncle Tony Eury Sr. as the crew chief, as well as his cousin Tony Eury Jr. and uncle Danny Earnhardt on the team.
This year’s win feels special due to the guys that Steve LeTarte has assembled on the team.
“He’s put an amazing team around me that we all really enjoy working together,” Earnhardt Jr. commented. “And Rick (Hendrick)’s here to make all that possible. It just seems like it’s too good to be true really.
Earnhardt said that he knew that the win was possible due to simply how strong the racecar was.
“I didn’t know it was as good as it was till tonight,” Earnhardt commented. “But in practice, a couple times throughout the weekend, I noticed it was something unique. When we got the opportunities to sort of work our way into the lead, hold it, I was able to fight guys off, like you were saying, hold the lead, hold the lead, keep moving line to line.”
Earnhardt said combining that with lessons that he had picked up in how to hold off the charge were what led him to victory lane.
Over the past couple of years, Earnhardt Jr., LeTarte and the entire team have bonded closer together, and in the process, got stronger on track as well.
“This group is unique and special,” Earnhardt commented. “That’s what makes winning this race that much more special. Obviously it’s the biggest race and most important race we run. But the people you do it with is really the icing on the cake. We really all are best friends, enjoy working with each other. We pull for each other. Lucky enough to have Amy with me, my sister Kelley, LW, my staff, Mike Hoag, Laura that helps with HMS. All those people we grind every week throughout the season. When you got great people around you, it just makes that whole experience so much more special.”
Last year, they finished off the year with a solid second place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway to finish fifth in the points standings.
“We were standing there tearing apart racecars, talking about how great the season was,” Earnhardt Jr. commented. “A lot of these guys, like Jason Burdett has been in this sport for a long time, he’s my car chief, said that’s the most fun he’s ever had in a season in the sport ever. That was the biggest compliment. I took it personally as a compliment. I know he meant he was really enjoying himself.”
Now this year with the new Chase format, Earnhardt has virtually already locked himself into the Chase and says that this is just the start of what is to come. Earnhardt compared it to when he used to go go-karting.
“You know, when you’re a kid, especially when you’re growing up around racing, me and all my buddies would go to pay to ride the go-kart ride, whatever racetrack we were at. Every racetrack, Talladega, every place would have them. We’d get a hundred bucks from daddy and go ride the go-karts till the wheels fell off, till we ran out of money,” he said. “On that last ride, you let it all hang out. You didn’t care if you got kicked off. If you didn’t get kicked off, something was wrong, on the last ride. This is Steve’s last ride. He’s going to let the rough side drag all year. He’s got a little racing left in him, I think he’s going to try to get it all out. That’s good for me. I’m fortunate to be on the ride with him.”
