DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- While the cars of his competition were blowing tires and shedding bodywork in a crash-filled Daytona 500, the only thing that fell off Kurt Busch's Ford was the rearview mirror.
The 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion used what should have been a disadvantage and embraced the ever unpredictable Daytona madness.
The result? Busch is the champion of NASCAR's biggest race, having held off fellow Ford driver Ryan Blaney in a crazy, fuel-starved finish. It provided a happy conclusion to what often had been a messy and frustrating race, with eight cautions totaling 40 laps and a 17-minute red flag.
What did the drivers think of NASCAR’s new three-stage race format after participating in a wild, wreck-filled Daytona 500?
Well, as you might imagine, it kind of depended on which driver was answering the question.
Those who finished well in Sunday’s 500 seemed to like it. Others, well, maybe not so much.
And they all seemed to agree that like with most things involving restrictor-plate races, there is only so much you can take from one event at a place like Daytona International Speedway.
The 500 was split up until segments of 60 laps, 60 laps and the a final 80-lap run to the checkered flag that determined the race winner.
“To me it seemed like you get five laps to go in the stage, everything would kind of amp back up there,” said AJ Allmendinger, who finished third in his No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet. “We were running single file in the second stage. Then with three to go, everybody kind of starts getting racing.”
That, of course, is exactly what NASCAR is hoping the three-stage format promotes.
But it also seemed to promote some chaos that led to the many multi-car wrecks, as Kevin Harvick pointed out.
“We just got some cars up there that didn’t need to be up there and (the drivers of them) ended up doing more than their car could do,” said Harvick, who won the second stage but got wrecked out early in the third and finished 22nd in his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.
Harvick did not win the second 60-lap stage easily, either. Joey Logano made a very aggressive move to the inside to try to pass him at the line at its completion – something Logano almost certainly would not have otherwise attempted if a stage win and the bonus points that come with it were not at stake on what was overall Lap 120 of a 200-lap race.
Even race winner Kurt Busch appeared to have somewhat mixed feelings about the racing that the stages seemed to produce.
“With the segments, that threw in another wrench,” he said. “With guys on old tires, guys on new tires, a lot of veterans were taken out. Then there was the Lap 80 wreck when it seemed like that should be the time we all settled in as a group that knows how to race at Daytona. That’s when we had the most wrecks.
“I was thankful that I got through a lot of the wrecks with minimal damage.”
"Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things." George Carlin
I will kill you if you cut me at the knees. You will drink with me when invited and stay til I say so. We only listen to American Music. I make men nervous with just my presence. I expect an apology if you hold. I throw linemen at QB's. Believe the Lore!
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Dale Earnhardt Jr. abruptly announced his retirement at the end of the season Tuesday, a decision that will cost NASCAR its most popular driver as the series scrambles to rebuild its fan base.
Colorful, candid and talented, Earnhardt has been plagued by concussions the last several years and he missed half of last season recovering from the latest head injury. It caused him to delay contract talks on an extension to drive the No. 88 Chevrolet, and the two-time Daytona 500 winner with deep family roots in auto racing appears ready to call it quits.
A third-generation racer, Earnhardt turns 43 in October, is newly married and has said he wants to start a family.
His wife, Amy, posted on Twitter shortly after the announcement: “I’m so proud of Dale for working so hard to get back and even prouder for his courage & self awareness to make the decision to retire. I’m sure God has many other great plans for him and us!”
Earnhardt has become a vocal advocate for research of sports-related brain injuries, and the hit he took last June led to months of rehabilitation that gave him a new perspective on his life. The concussions left him with nausea, double vision, anxiety and a multitude of other symptoms that he’s discussed in great detail.
"Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things." George Carlin
CONCORD, N.C. (July 20, 2017) - One year after his impressive debut with Hendrick Motorsports, the team has named Alex Bowman full-time driver of the #88 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Cup Series with a 19-race majority sponsorship from Nationwide beginning in 2018.
Bowman, 24, piloted the #88 Chevrolet SS in 10 of the final 18 Cup races last season in place of injured driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. The Tucson, Arizona, native debuted July 17, 2016, at New Hampshire and went on to earn three top-10 finishes with the team including a sixth-place result at Phoenix, where he won the pole position and led a race-high 194 laps.
In addition to Nationwide's one-year extension, Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE: AXTA), a leading global supplier of liquid and powder coatings, will increase its number of races featured as the primary sponsor of the #88 team by two for next season, bringing its total to 15 Cup events with Bowman in 2018. Axalta has been a Hendrick Motorsports corporate partner since 1992 and a sponsor of the No. 88 Chevrolet since 2016.
Hendrick Motorsports signed Bowman on Oct. 6, 2016, following his first four races driving for Earnhardt and working with No. 88 crew chief Greg Ives. In 2017, he has been an integral part of the simulation and on-track testing programs for the 12-time NASCAR Cup Series champions and manufacturer Chevrolet.
"Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things." George Carlin
