On the Brinck

A 2nd place finish, a pole, and Sprint Showdown win highlight Jamie McMurray’s 2013 turnaround. Can he catapult these results into a Chase bid?

• Daytona – 2 wins, 4 top 10s; best finish of 13th since Daytona 500 win. He either finishes up front or gets caught up in the big one.
• New Hampshire – 4 top 10s (only 1 since 2005 though; 3rd place in 2010)
• Indianapolis* – 5 top 10s, 3 top 5s, 1 win (2 top 5s in last 3 years) had a successful test earlier this week.
• Pocono – 4 top 10s – don’t expect much more than a top 15 here.
• Watkins Glen – 2 top 10s, 6th in 2010 – good road racer, but lacks the good finishes to show it.
• Michigan – 4 top 10s (headed for 5th top 10 in June before flat tire – should be a good race for Jamie)
• Bristol* – 9 top 10s – one of McMurray’s best tracks – 10th place avg finish in past 8 races
• Atlanta – 4 top 10s – only one since 2005 (2008); I expect better though, intermediate tracks have been particularly strong this season for Jamie.
• Richmond – one of McMurray’s weaker tracks, only 3 top 10s – appeared headed for 4th top 10 in April before a pit strategy gamble backfired in the last 5 laps.

He may not be running for the Nationwide Series championship, and he maybe shouldn’t have even finished in the top 10, but that didn’t stop James Buescher today.

Nationwide Series Story

The Nationwide Series heads to Phoenix next weekend along with the Sprint Cup Series.

The starting lineup for the 54^th running of the Daytona 500 is set. After the Gatorade Duel qualifying races, several drivers are left smiling while others think about what could have been. Before the races began, we knew that 39 of the 43 cars in the Daytona 500 were set. The top 35 in owner points were locked in, along with defending Daytona 500 champion Trevor Bayne, Tony Raines, and David Stremme locked themselves into the field with their qualifying speeds on Sunday. Terry Labonte was assured a spot by using the Past Champion’s Provisional if he was unable to race his way in. That left 10 cars vying for 6 spots in the two qualifying races.

In Duel #1, Tony Stewart picked up the win over Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Marcos Ambrose, as mayhem ensued behind. Danica Patrick, making her Sprint Cup Series debut this weekend, didn’t take long to find trouble as she pounded the inside wall on the final lap of the first duel after contact from other cars. Although the wreck looked horrendous on TV, she walked away and will simply start at the rear of the field on Sunday. Juan Pablo Montoya, Paul Menard, and David Gilliland were all wiped out in an early wreck, but they will all still race in the Daytona 500 on Sunday based on their owner points, however they’ll all have to start in the rear of the field. Michael Waltrip lost control soon after pitting, and slammed into the outside wall in the first set of corners. He was unhurt in the accident, but he will not be in the Daytona 500 this year, which will make for the first Daytona 500 without him in over 20 years. Michael McDowell and Robby Gordon were both able to race their way into the 500 with their top 10 finishes in the first duel, a great feat for both underfunded, single-car teams.

The second Gatorade Duel was certainly calmerand strung out as Matt Kenseth made a late pass on teammate and outside pole sitter Greg Biffle to win, which is Roush Fenway Racing’s first ever Gatorade Duel win in the team’s 25 year history. Kenseth saw the checkered flag first, followed by Regan Smith and Jimmie Johnson.

The six drivers that failed to make the Great American Race were Kenny Wallace, Mike Wallace, Michael Waltrip, Bill Elliott, Robert Richardson, and JJ Yeley.

The starting line-up for the 54^th Daytona 500:

1. Carl Edwards – 99
2. Greg Biffle – 16
3. Tony Stewart – 14
4. Matt Kenseth – 17
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. – 88
6. Regan Smith – 78
7. Marcos Ambrose – 9
8. Jimmie Johnson – 48
9. Jeff Burton – 31
10. Elliott Sadler – 33
11. *Michael McDowell – 98
12. Joey Logano – 20
13. Kevin Harvick – 29
14. Kyle Busch – 18
15. AJ Allmendinger – 22
16. Jeff Gordon – 24
17. *Robby Gordon – 7
18. Ryan Newman – 39
19. Jamie McMurray – 1
20. Kasey Kahne – 5
21. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – 6
22. Mark Martin – 55
23. Brad Keselowski – 2
24. *Dave Blaney – 36
25. David Ragan – 34
26. Martin Truex Jr. – 56
27. Aric Almirola – 43
28. Kurt Busch – 51
29. Danica Patrick – 10
30. Clint Bowyer – 15
31. Denny Hamlin – 11
32. Bobby Labonte – 47
33. David Gilliland – 38
34. *Joe Nemechek – 87
35. Juan Pablo Montoya – 42
36. Casey Mears – 13
37. Paul Menard – 27
38. David Reutimann – 93
39. Landon Cassill – 83
40. **Trevor Bayne – 21
41. **David Stremme – 30
42. **Tony Raines – 26
43. ***Terry Labonte – 32

*Outside of the top 35, raced in via the Duels
**Outside of top 35, got in based on qualifying speed
***Past Champion’s Provisional

The 54^th annual Daytona 500 gets underway this Sunday, February 26 with the green flag flying shortly after noon central time.

Kyle Busch saved it! And won the Bud Shootout?!

Carl Edwards scored his first ever Daytona 500 pole.

Trevor Bayne locked himself into the 54th Great American Race and will try to defend his 2011 win.

And these are just a few of the headlines from an already exciting Speedweeks. The Gatorade Duels later today will determine the starting grid for Sunday’s race, which is setting up to be one for the ages. The tandem drafting which dominated restrictor plate racing in 2011 seems to have taken a back seat to the pack racing NASCAR fans had grown used to. When the checkered flag falls Sunday afternoon, a Daytona 500 champion will be crowned and another Speedweeks will have come and gone.

Tune in to “On the Brinck” Monday night on Fusion 93 KMSC at 7:00 CDT as I recap the weekend with help from ThePaceLap.com’s Nathan Butler.

Until then, boogity boogity boogity boys, we’re going racing again!

(If you missed the finish to the Bud Shootout, do yourself a favor and check it out here.)