With last night’s drawing for the Bud Shootout starting order now out of the way, look forward to seeing Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the pole, with Tony Stewart alongside him on the front row at Daytona International Speedway.

This year’s Bud Shootout features (yet again!) new entry rules for the race, which will be seeing its highest number of racers since its inception, counting in at 24.

New qualifying rules this year will allow for anyone from the following categories, should they choose to race:

- All 12 drivers from last season’s Chase for the Sprint Cup
- Any previous Budweiser Shootout winners
- Anyone who has previously won a points-paying race at Daytona (Daytona 500 or Coke Zero 400)
- All previous NASCAR Sprint Cup champions
- The last 10 racers to have won the Sprint Cup Series Rookie of the Year Award

The full line up includes:

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Tony Stewart
3. Carl Edwards
4. Denny Hamlin
5. Kasey Kahne
6. Bobby Labonte
7. Clint Bowyer
8. Ryan Newman
9. Derrike Cope
10. Michael Waltrip
11. Greg Biffle
12. Jeff Gordon
13. Juan Pablo Montoya
14. Jamie McMurray
15. Jeff Burton
16. Kevin Conway
17. Kurt Busch
18. Kevin Harvick
19. Matt Kenseth
20. Mark Martin
21. Kyle Busch
22. Joey Logano
23. Jimmie Johnson
24. Regan Smith

Earlier today was the season opener of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway.

Jamie McMurray came out on top in his #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. Along with the win, he also received the Mobil 1 Command Performance Driver of the Race and Sunoco Diamond Performance awards. Dale Earnhardt Jr., Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer, and David Reutimann rounded out the top five finishing positions. Kevin Harvick, who led the most laps, finished in 7th. Mark Martin, who started the race from the pole position, finished in 12th.

Not so lucky were Kasey Kahne, Robert Richardson Jr., Ryan Newman, John Andretti, Mike Bliss, and Joe Nemechek who were unable to finish the race after being involved in various accidents during the race. Marcos Ambrose and Max Papis were also forced to retire from the race early on due to engine troubles, with Michael McDowell and Jimmie Johnson also unable to complete the race after Drive Shaft and Rear Axle problems respectively.

Results of the 2010 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway:

Pos  #  Driver                 Make      Laps  Status
 1   1  Jamie McMurray         Chevrolet  208  Running
 2  88  Dale Earnhardt Jr.     Chevrolet  208  Running
 3  16  Greg Biffle            Ford       208  Running
 4  33  Clint Bowyer           Chevrolet  208  Running
 5   0  David Reutimann        Toyota     208  Running
 6  56  Martin Truex Jr.       Toyota     208  Running
 7  29  Kevin Harvick          Chevrolet  208  Running
 8  17  Matt Kenseth           Ford       208  Running
 9  99  Carl Edwards           Ford       208  Running
10  42  Juan Montoya           Chevrolet  208  Running
11  31  Jeff Burton            Chevrolet  208  Running
12   5  Mark Martin            Chevrolet  208  Running
13  98  Paul Menard            Ford       208  Running
14  18  Kyle Busch             Toyota     208  Running
15  83  Brian Vickers          Toyota     208  Running
16   6  David Ragan            Ford       208  Running
17  11  Denny Hamlin           Toyota     208  Running
18 151  Michael Waltrip        Toyota     208  Running
19  82  Scott Speed            Toyota     208  Running
20  20  Joey Logano            Toyota     208  Running
21  71  Bobby Labonte          Chevrolet  208  Running
22  14  Tony Stewart           Chevrolet  208  Running
23   2  Kurt Busch             Dodge      208  Running
24  19  Elliott Sadler         Ford       208  Running
25  26  Boris Said             Ford       208  Running
26  24  Jeff Gordon            Chevrolet  208  Running
27  21  Bill Elliott           Ford       208  Running
28   7  Robby Gordon           Toyota     207  Running
29  37  Travis Kvapil          Ford       205  Running
30   9  Kasey Kahne            Ford       202  Accident
31  38  Robert Richardson Jr.  Ford       202  Accident
32  43  A.J. Allmendinger      Ford       198  Running
33  55  Michael McDowell       Toyota     195  Drive Shaft
34  39  Ryan Newman            Chevrolet  193  Accident
35  48  Jimmie Johnson         Chevrolet  185  Rear Axle
36  12  Brad Keselowski        Dodge      174  Running
37  77  Sam Hornish Jr.        Dodge      160  Running
38  34  John Andretti          Ford       117  Accident
39  78  Regan Smith            Chevrolet   90  Running
40  13  Max Papis              Toyota      89  Engine
41  47  Marcos Ambrose         Toyota      79  Engine
42  36  Mike Bliss             Chevrolet   76  Accident
43  87  Joe Nemechek           Toyota      64  Accident

The next race for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will be the Auto Club 500 held at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana on February 21, 2010.

Related Links:
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Series Information, Schedule, Standings, Past Champions, News, Videos

Earlier today the Gatorade Duels were held at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona, Florida. Each duel included 27 drivers competing in a 60 lap race.

Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet, took the victory for the first Gatorade Duel. Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Clint Bowyer, and Regan Smith rounded out the top five.

Michael Waltrip and Jeff Burton weren’t so lucky as neither was able to finish the event, with both drivers involved in accidents during the course of the race. Newcomer, Jeff Fuller, only managed to complete four laps before the engine on his #197 Toyota failed.

The second Gatorade Duel was won by Kasey Kahne – the driver of the #9 Budweiser Ford. Behind him finished Tony Stewart, Juan Montoya, Kurt Busch, and Elliott Sadler for the top five positions. Boris Said was the only competitor that wasn’t able to finish the race, having electrical problems on the third lap.

Results of the 2010 Gatorade Duel #1 at Daytona International Raceway:

Pos  #  Driver                 Make     Laps  Status
 1  48  Jimmie Johnson         Chevrolet  60  Running
 2  29  Kevin Harvick          Chevrolet  60  Running
 3  18  Kyle Busch             Toyota     60  Running
 4  33  Clint Bowyer           Chevrolet  60  Running
 5  78  Regan Smith            Chevrolet  60  Running
 6   1  Jamie McMurray         Chevrolet  60  Running
 7  43  A.J. Allmendinger      Ford       60  Running
 8  39  Ryan Newman            Chevrolet  60  Running
 9   6  David Ragan            Ford       60  Running
10  24  Jeff Gordon            Chevrolet  60  Running
11  16  Greg Biffle            Ford       60  Running
12  11  Denny Hamlin           Toyota     60  Running
13  99  Carl Edwards           Ford       60  Running
14  55  Michael McDowell       Toyota     60  Running
15  13  Max Papis              Toyota     60  Running
16  34  John Andretti          Ford       60  Running
17 127  Todd Bodine            Toyota     60  Running
18  87  Joe Nemechek           Toyota     60  Running
19  37  Travis Kvapil          Ford       60  Running
20  46  Terry Cook (R)         Dodge      60  Running
21   5  Mark Martin            Chevrolet  60  Running
22  21  Bill Elliott           Ford       60  Running
23  38  Robert Richardson Jr.  Ford       60  Running
24 132  Reed Sorenson          Toyota     60  Running
25 151  Michael Waltrip        Toyota     52  Accident
26  31  Jeff Burton            Chevrolet  24  Accident
27 197  Jeff Fuller            Toyota      4  Engine

Results of the 2010 Gatorade Duel #2 at Daytona International Raceway:

Pos  #  Driver              Make     Laps  Status
 1   9  Kasey Kahne         Ford       60  Running
 2  14  Tony Stewart        Chevrolet  60  Running
 3  42  Juan Montoya        Chevrolet  60  Running
 4   2  Kurt Busch          Dodge      60  Running
 5  19  Elliott Sadler      Ford       60  Running
 6  56  Martin Truex Jr.    Toyota     60  Running
 7  20  Joey Logano         Toyota     60  Running
 8  47  Marcos Ambrose      Toyota     60  Running
 9   0  David Reutimann     Toyota     60  Running
10  83  Brian Vickers       Toyota     60  Running
11  17  Matt Kenseth        Ford       60  Running
12  12  Brad Keselowski     Dodge      60  Running
13  36  Mike Bliss          Chevrolet  60  Running
14  82  Scott Speed         Toyota     60  Running
15  98  Paul Menard         Ford       60  Running
16 190  Casey Mears         Chevrolet  60  Running
17  71  Bobby Labonte       Chevrolet  60  Running
18  49  David Gilliland     Toyota     60  Running
19   7  Robby Gordon        Toyota     60  Running
20 175  Derrike Cope        Dodge      60  Running
21  88  Dale Earnhardt Jr.  Chevrolet  60  Running
22   9  Aric Almirola       Chevrolet  60  Running
23  66  Dave Blaney         Toyota     60  Running
24 192  Mike Wallace        Dodge      60  Running
25 157  Norm Benning        Chevrolet  60  Running
26  77  Sam Hornish Jr.     Dodge      58  Running
27  26  Boris Said          Ford        3  Electrical

These events are not scored for points in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Championship.

The next event on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule is the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 14, 2010.

Related Links:
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Series Information, Schedule, Standings, Past Champions, News, Videos

For a second consecutive year, Kevin Harvick has won the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway. Harvick, who had been suffering from flu like symptoms earlier in the week, seemed unaffected during the race, maintaining his place near the front of the field for the majority of the race.

After a late-race caution led the field to a green-white-checkered restart, Harvick, who restarted fourth, charged to the front, pulling up alongside Greg Biffle. Shortly after, Jeff Gordon drove into the back of Biffle’s car, who spun into several of the oncoming vehicles, once again bringing out the caution flag and freezing the field in place. As per NASCAR rules, the race was not restarted.

Harvick is the fourth driver to celebrate back-to-back Shootout victories. Other drivers that have accomplished this feat include Tony Stewart (2001, 2002), Ken Schrader (1989, 1990), and Neil Bonnett (1983, 1984).

Results of the 2010 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Raceway:

Pos  #  Driver              Make     Laps  Status
 1  29  Kevin Harvick       Chevrolet  76  Running
 2   9  Kasey Kahne         Ford       76  Running
 3   1  Jamie McMurray      Chevrolet  76  Running
 4  18  Kyle Busch          Toyota     76  Running
 5  11  Denny Hamlin        Toyota     76  Running
 6  83  Brian Vickers       Toyota     76  Running
 7  20  Joey Logano         Toyota     76  Running
 8  24  Jeff Gordon         Chevrolet  76  Running
 9  14  Tony Stewart        Chevrolet  76  Running
10  42  Juan Montoya        Chevrolet  76  Running
11  88  Dale Earnhardt Jr.  Chevrolet  76  Running
12  31  Jeff Burton         Chevrolet  76  Running
13  48  Jimmie Johnson      Chevrolet  76  Running
14  82  Ken Schrader        Toyota     76  Running
15  16  Greg Biffle         Ford       74  In Pit
16  17  Matt Kenseth        Ford       74  In Pit
17  99  Carl Edwards        Ford       74  In Pit
18  71  Bobby Labonte       Chevrolet  74  In Pit
19  39  Ryan Newman         Chevrolet  74  In Pit
20   5  Mark Martin         Chevrolet  74  In Pit
21  51  Michael Waltrip     Toyota     69  In Pit
22  34  John Andretti       Ford       69  In Pit
23   2  Kurt Busch          Dodge      32  Running
24  75  Derrike Cope        Dodge      15  Out of Race

The next NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race is the Daytona 500, also to be raced at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, February 14, 2010. Preceding this race are the two qualifying races (The Gatorade Duels) held the Thursday before.

Related Links:
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Series Information, Schedule, Standings, Past Champions, News, Videos

Rum Bum Racing’s Gian Bacardi and Matt Plumb took the overall victory in today’s Fresh From Florida 200 at Daytona International Speedway. The pair beat out fellow BMW M3 drivers, Charles Putman and Charles Espenlaub of Fall-Line Motorsports, by just 0.107 seconds.

Andy Pilgrim, also of Fall-Line Motorsports, was today’s top lap leader, leading the field for a total of 29 laps, in the 66 lap race. Despite this, he and teammate, Mark Boden, only managed an 11th place finish.

In the ST Class, it was Compass360 Racing’s David Thilenius and Lawson Aschenbach who came out on top in their Honda Civic Si.

Results:

POS   NO. CL  DRIVERS
  1   13  GS  Bacardi / Plumb
  2   48  GS  Espenlaub / Putman
  3   41  GS  Miller / Pumpelly
  4   37  GS  Gue / Seafuse
  5    6  GS  Bell / Bucknum
  6   45  GS  Borcheller / Hendricks
  7   60  GS  Mason / Winchester
  8    9  GS  Carter / Plumb
  9   59  GS  Caddell / Wilden
 10    6  GS  Musser / Orr
 11   46  GS  Boden / Pilgrim
 12   23  GS  Carroll / Ende
 13   97  GS  Hand / Marsal
 14   88  GS  Ellis / Wellon
 15   35  GS  Aquilante / Spaude
 16   17  GS  Ackley / DiPippo
 17   11  GS  Panzer / Snyder
 18    7  GS  Heath / Potter
 19    1  GS  Baas / White
 20   52  GS  Finlay / Michaelian
 21   79  GS  Hall / Prusinski
 22   83  GS  Cosmo / Tetreault
 23   89  GS  Abello / Armengol
 24   74  ST  Aschenbach / Thilenius
 25   81  ST  Heumann / Thomas
 26   26  ST  Carbonell / O'Doski
 27   77  ST  Theetge / Theetge
 28   75  ST  Eversley / Lutz
 29   92  ST  Gilsinger / Johnson / Schmitt
 30   42  ST  Leroux / Leroux
 31   18  ST  Battle / Dayton
 32   24  ST  Schultz / Straus
 33   28  ST  Ellis / Hacquard
 34   49  ST  Novich / Pobst
 35    8  ST  Schroeder / Smith
 36   43  ST  Nonnamaker / Sahlen
 37   67  ST  Becker / Tallman
 38  181  ST  Hurley / Stadtlander
 39  171  ST  Halpin / Sweeney
 40   25  ST  Long / Whitis
 41    0  GS  Sellers / Willsey
 42   69  ST  Harding / Milarcik
 43    5  GS  James / Nastasi
 44   12  ST  Burrows / Hopwood
 45   50  ST  Hart / Lira
 46   66  ST  Riley / Riley
 47   27  ST  Dempsey / Edwards
 48   51  ST  Buras / Corthell / Wilson
 49   16  GS  Jeannette / Montecalvo
 50   29  GS  Buford / Empringham
 51   39  ST  Collyer / Conway
 52   22  ST  Lepper / Schmidt
 53   68  GS  Kozarov / Ortiz
 54   55  GS  Atterbury / Cates
 55  197  ST  Cattaneo / Mirzayan
 56   15  GS  Foster / Maxwell
 57   54  GS  Anthony Jr. / Edwards
 58   80  ST  Clay / White
 59   76  ST  Combs / Liefooghe
 60   38  GS  Jenkins / Stanton
 61   99  GS  Hillestad / Waddell
 62   36  ST  Brown / Olson
 63   53  GS  Click / McGovern
 64   40  GS  Gutierrez / Llano
 65   57  GS  Longhi / Masessa
 66   61  GS  Johnson / Roush Jr.
 67  196  ST  Smalley / Trinkler
 68   10  ST  Jonsson / Lally
 69   86  ST  Prey / Sigal
 70   21  ST  Danyliw / Holtom
 71   30  ST  Bocchino / Lamb
 72    8  ST  Mosing / Saini
 73   96  GS  Auberlen / Dalla Lana
 74    5  GS  Altenburg / Nowicki
 75   34  ST  Giovanis / Kennedy
 76    2  GS  Click / McGovern
 77    4  GS  Kelly / Said
 78    7  GS  Hickham Jr
 79   72  GS  Longhi / Masessa
 80   78  GS  DiLeo / Foss
 81   56  GS  Click / McGovern

Jeff Gordon beat out Tony Stewart for the first Gatorade Duel win of 2009. Gordon’s teammate, Jimmie Johnson finished in the third position. A surprising end to the race by rookie, Joey Logano, saw him finish in fourth.

As for the second Duel of the day, Kyle Busch took the victory with Mark Martin coming in a close second. The only rookie in the field was Scott Speed, who only completed 44 of the 60 laps due to a handling issue.

These two races marked the last NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race until the first points event of the year, the Daytona 500, which is to be held this Sunday at Daytona International Speedway.

For the full results from the race, please visit this page:

2009 Gatorade Duels Results

As these races precede the first points race of the season, there is currently no driver standings in this series.

The first race of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series was the Budweiser Shootout, held at Daytona International Speedway. Though it wasn’t a points event, it was the first opportunity to see many of this year’s Sprint Cup competitors. The race itself saw several cautions, leaving many of the teams with a DNF. In the end, only 13 of the 28 entered cars had finished the race without incident.

Kevin Harvick took the checkered flag in his Chevrolet Impala SS, with Jamie McMurray (Ford) and Tony Stewart (Chevrolet) finishing in second and third respectively. Jeff Gordon (Chevrolet) finished fourth and A.J. Allmendinger (Dodge) ended up with the final Top-5 finishing position. The highest placing driver in a Toyota was Kyle Busch who finished 10th.

For the full results from this race, please see the following page:

2009 Budweiser Shootout Results

Since this was a non-points event, there are no standings yet for this series.

After 24 long hours of circling the road course at Daytona International Speedway, Brumos Racing finally took the checkered flag to win the 24 Hours of Daytona. Driving the winning Porsche/Riley was David Donohue, Antonio Garcia, Darren Law, and Buddy Rice. It was a close battle to the end, with the top four cars staying on the lead lap.

Finishing 9th overall and first in the GT class was the TRG Porsche GT3 machine driven by Jorg Bergmeister, Andy Lally, Patrick Long, Justin Marks, and RJ Valentine. The sister car for TRG, driven by Ted Ballou, Emmanuel Collard, Tim George Jr, Richard Lietz, and Spencer Pumpelly, finished just one lap behind for a second in class placing.

For the full results from this race, please use the following link:

2009 Grand-Am Rolex 24 at Daytona Results

The standings are available at the following link:

2009 Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series Standings

Bill Auberlen and Matt Bell worked together this weekend at Daytona International Speedway to grab this season’s first Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series victory. Auberlen was in the car for the final stint andended up leading 22 of the final 25 laps.

In the ST Class, Lawson Aschenbach and Pete Iannucci came out on top with their Georgian Bay Motorsports Cobalt SS.

The full results from race can be found here:

2009 KONI Challenge Fresh From Florida 200 Results

The standings have been updated and are available at the following link:

2009 Grand-Am KONI Challenge Series Standings