Monday, July 04, 2011

The Frontstretch Newsletter: July 4th, 2011

THE FRONTSTRETCH NEWSLETTER
Presented by Frontstretch.com
The Best Seat at the Track, The Best View on the Net!

July 4th, 2011
Volume V, Edition CXXVIII
~~~~~~~

Happy Independence Day, American readers! The Frontstretch salutes all soldiers, past and present, who have fought for our freedom within the United States.

Sprint Cup Race Recap:  Ragan Atones for February Blunder with First Career Win
by Phil Allaway
 
Back in February, David Ragan was in perfect position to win NASCAR's Daytona 500, taking the lead with three scheduled laps remaining. But Ragan jumped in front of Trevor Bayne too early on the first Green-White-Checkered restart that followed, a black-flag mistake resulting in a 14th-place finish and a black mark on a driver most insiders thought had to have a great season to keep his job.

Nearly five months later, those demons are now officially wiped away. On Saturday night, Ragan experienced a case of sweet redemption, taking over the lead on the first Green-White-Checkered restart - not the black flag - and holding on this time through a series of wrecks to win Saturday night's Coke Zero 400. It was Ragan's first career Cup victory, made even more meaningful considering the track and the circumstances.

"It was a tough one in February and coming back here, we knew that we'd have a shot to win," Ragan said after the race.  "Being able to run the same type of race we ran in February, and you know learning from our mistake, not making a mistake... we had a couple opportunities to do it on the last few restarts, and I didn't do it. So that's gratifying that we were able to come back to Daytona and kind of prove to the racetrack that we're better than that and we can take you."

The atonement opportunity for Ragan and Kenseth came on Lap 159, when trouble in the lead pack resulted in a caution and subsequent Green-White-Checkered drama.  Jeff Gordon, after contact with Kyle Busch and Mark Martin went through a remarkable slide in Turn 4 without hitting anything; meanwhile, Busch got into the outside wall hard with his No. 18 Toyota. Both cars would recover, finishing inside the top 6 but the stage was set for a frenetic finish.

Ragan and Kenseth got a great run to take the lead on that restart, but behind them Martin appeared to come down on Logano in Turn 2.  Martin spun into Brian Vickers, and just like that a restrictor plate "Big One" was in full effect.  14 cars were involved in the crash, including Clint Bowyer and Martin Truex, Jr. who both retired from the race because of the incident.

"I was shooting on the center, and Mark was trying to come down in front of me," claimed Logano afterwards. "It could have gone either way. I could have backed off a little bit and let him in."

The wreck set up the frantic final Green-White-Checkered, where Ragan heeded the warning from Kenseth's spotter to hold his line. Hugging the bottom, the 25-year-old had virtual assurance Kenseth wouldn't make a pass because of Daytona's tandem racing system, where losing the car behind you creates a loss of momentum so great another two-car duo will blow by at speeds up to ten MPH faster.

"It's almost like two cars are one car, so in a way, I feel like we won," Kenseth said after the race.  "When we wanted to, we were able to make a charge and get up [to] the lead.  I'm glad it worked out.  The two speedway races have been a disaster so far this year, so I'm happy to not get wrecked tonight and finish second."

Behind Ragan, Kenseth, Logano and Kahne came the duo of Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon, with Kevin Harvick seventh. Paul Menard, Juan Pablo Montoya and A.J. Allmendinger rounded out the top 10.

Much hype centered around Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne, looking for a repeat performance behind the wheel of the part-time No. 21 Wood Brothers Ford. But it was not to be; starting alongside polesitter Mark Martin, Bayne slipped back down the order to find a proper drafting partner only to get hooked by Brad Keselowski on Lap 5.  Bayne spun down the banking, hit the side of Clint Bowyer's car, then went into the outside wall hard to end his night 41st.  Keselowski, Bowyer, Jamie McMurray and Bobby Labonte picked up some damage in the crash as well; after the restart, Keselowski ended up losing the draft and was lapped in less than 15 circuits (he wound up 15th).

Trouble also came for former point leader Carl Edwards, hooked into a spin by teammate Greg Biffle's bad bumpdraft.  Edwards hit the inside wall with his right rear corner, destroying one of the crush panels in the car and sickening the driver.  Uncompetitive the rest of the night, he finished 26 laps down in 37th, handing the championship lead to Kevin Harvick (see top 12/35 below).

Compared to the Daytona 500, though, Saturday night's Coke Zero 400 was quite clean.  The first 155 laps saw only three yellows, the two already covered above, and a crash involving Dave Blaney on Lap 48.  After the restart on Lap 53, there were 105 laps run consecutively under the green flag. In the long runs, the top 10 to 16 drivers (or five to eight tandems) would run away and put about five seconds on the rest of the field.  Then, they would start racing each other vigorously for the lead; the event featured a record 57 lead changes among an all-time track record 25 leaders.  The race, extended to 170 laps (425 miles) due to the two Green-White Checkered finishes, was slowed by six cautions for 21 laps.

The drafting saw some surprises make their presence known at the front of the field.  Joe Nemechek led a lap under green while being pushed by Travis Kvapil, while Casey Mears was pushed by Landon Cassill.  Both tandems stayed up front for much of the race, although none of the drivers wound up inside the top 25 by the checkered flag.

Next weekend, the Sprint Cup Series travels to Kentucky Speedway for the inaugural Quaker State 400 Saturday night.

Phil Allaway is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com.  He can be reached via e-mail at phil.allaway@frontstretch.com.
 
Tracking The Chasers: Edwards' Misfortune Gives The Point Lead Back To Harvick
by Garrett Horton

Carl Edwards entered the night as the Sprint Cup point leader, but it would be Kevin Harvick who left Daytona atop the championship standings.  Edwards, who had held the top spot ever since race No. 7 at Texas, was spun out early by teammate Greg Biffle and hit the inside wall.  The wreck didn't look too bad, but it knocked out a crush panel inside the car - that was enough to sicken Edwards and eventually trigger repairs that led to a 37th-place finish, 26 laps down. To make matters worse, it was the second time in four races Edwards finished that low, costing him both momentum and perhaps the label of championship favorite.  As for Harvick, his race has been much like his season: avoiding trouble.  Harvick was one of the few cars that didn't have damage and had a chance to win on the final restart.  However, he didn't get the best jump on the final run, forced to settle for a seventh-place result but enough to build a five-point lead over Edwards.

Kyle Busch had to overcome a poor starting position not once, but twice.  With the help of teammate Joey Logano, Busch was quickly able to work his way to the front after starting 38th.  But the driver would be tested again at the end of the race, when he hit the wall trying to avoid Jeff Gordon's spinning car on lap 159.  The No. 18 team came down pit road to make repairs, placed back in the mid-20's for the green-white-checkered ending.  Still, with a heavily damaged car Busch was able to miss the "Big One" on the following restart, then worked with Jeff Gordon on the final sprint to jump to fifth.  As a result, Busch moved up two spots in the standings and is now third, just ten points outside the lead.

Kyle's older brother and last week's winner Kurt Busch was a victim of the late-race madness, yet he was able to capitalize off of it as well.  Busch's driver side door was almost completely tore off when Mark Martin got into him on the lap 164 wreck and it looked like he was going to end the day around mid-pack.  However, with all the craziness on the last lap, another incident allowed the wounded Busch to sneak his way around for a 14th-place effort.  He remains fourth in the standings as a result.

Matt Kenseth seemed perfectly content pushing teammate David Ragan to the win rather than going for the victory himself.  Maybe part of it was that Sonoma and Daytona were two races on the calendar that had Kenseth very anxious, a history of poor performances having him hoping for solid results.  Well... mission accomplished, as an average finish of 8.0 the last two weeks has him solidly in Chase contention. He's tied for fifth in points.

Knotted up with Kenseth in the standings is NASCAR's five-time defending Cup champion, Jimmie Johnson.  Johnson and the whole Hendrick camp looked very strong in the opening laps, but eventually fell to the back for their usual play it safe routine.  It looked like the strategy would backfire, though, as over 100 laps of green flag racing had him and wingman Dale Earnhardt, Jr. too far back to compete.  They were able to get the caution with two to go, but miscommunication caused Johnson to pit and separated the duo for the final sprint to the finish. Still, both Johnson and Earnhardt had moved up on the white flag and appeared to be on their way of salvaging a decent finish until they were both collected in the "other Big One" coming to the stripe.  Earnhardt and Johnson would finish 19th and 20th, respectively.  Johnson loses the tiebreaker to Kenseth based on having fewer wins and sits sixth, while Earnhardt maintains his spot in seventh while venting, angrily about the style of competition after the event.

As for Hendrick teammate Jeff Gordon, he was placed in the exact same situation as Kyle Busch.  Any chances of a good finish looked lost when he spun out with two to go, but found a new partner in Busch and made a furious charge to sixth.  Gordon, who for awhile looked like he would have to depend on wins to make the Chase, is getting more and more comfortable each week in the top-10.  He is now 24 points to the good over 11th-place Denny Hamlin and sits in eighth.

There is no driver more excited to get out of Daytona than Clint Bowyer.  After wrecking two cars on the Nationwide side, Bowyer was a threat to win working with RCR teammate Jeff Burton.  Unfortunately, Bowyer was the biggest victim of the 15-car wreck, unable to drive his damaged vehicle back around for another lap.  Because of that, he was credited with just a 36th-place finish, falling back one spot to ninth in the standings.

Finally, Ryan Newman claims to love this new style of restrictor plate racing.  He certainly has been the man to beat at Daytona in this style, leading the most laps in both the Daytona 500 and this weekend's event.  However, it was the same poor restrictor plate result for the Stewart-Haas driver, falling victim to the second last-lap crash off of Turn 4.  He finished in 23rd, but did get the two-point bonus for leading the most laps.  That may be big down the stretch, as he is just two points to the good in tenth over Denny Hamlin.

For the first time all year, we have the two wild card seeds line up based off of wins.  Hamlin is in the 11th spot but would make the Chase easily as it stands now, armed with his victory at Michigan.  And the second driver? Saturday night's winner David Ragan would now occupy the 12th and final spot.  He is currently 17th in the standings, not a threat to crack the top 10 but would take the last spot away from 12th-place Tony Stewart, who has not yet won in 2011.

Point Standings: 1) Kevin Harvick 586; 2) Carl Edwards -5; 3) Kyle Busch -10; 4) Kurt Busch -16; t-5) Matt Kenseth -22; t-5) Jimmie Johnson -22 7) Dale Earnhardt, Jr. -52; 8) Jeff Gordon-67; 9) Clint Bowyer -81; 10) Ryan Newman -88.

Wildcard Drivers: Denny Hamlin (11th in points, one win), David Ragan (17th in points, one win)

Note:  While Brad Keselowski and Regan Smith both have victories this year, neither would make the Chase because they are not in the top-20 in points.  In order to qualify as a wildcard driver, you must be 20th or higher in the standings.  Keselowski is currently 22nd, while Smith is 28th.  Also, Daytona 500 winner Trevor Bayne is not eligible for the Chase because he is not running for Sprint Cup points.

Tracking The Top 35:  Return To Daytona Doesn't Help The Wood Brothers
 

After getting knocked out of the top-35 last week, Trevor Bayne and the Wood Brothers looked to get back on track at Daytona, the site of their historic win earlier in the year.  Things were off to a good start, with Bayne qualifying on the outside front row in second place, but by Lap 5, they were in the garage, done for the day.  After he lost his drafting partner in Clint Bowyer, Bayne hooked up with Brad Keselowski until the driver of the Miller Lite Dodge wrecked him going into Turn 1.  A 41st-place run is all the team could get, and as a result they still remain outside the top-35.  Robby Gordon Motorsports, in comparison finished seven spots ahead, a 34th-place finish by fill-in driver Mike Bliss leaving them with a ten-point cushion heading to Kentucky.

Top 35 Summary:

31) Phoenix Racing (No. 51 - Landon Cassill), +86 ahead of 36th place.
32) FAS Lane Racing (No. 32 – Mike Bliss/Terry Labonte), +47 ahead of 36th place.
33) Tommy Baldwin Racing (No. 36 – Dave Blaney), +45 ahead of 36th place.
34) Germain Racing (No. 13 – Casey Mears), +38 ahead of 36th place.
35) Robby Gordon Motorsports (No. 7 - Robby Gordon - Mike Bliss at Daytona), +10 ahead of 36th place.
36) Wood Brothers Racing (No. 21 – Trevor Bayne), -10 behind 35th place.
37) TRG Motorsports (No. 71 – Andy Lally), -12 behind 35th place.
38) Front Row Motorsports (No. 38 – Travis Kvapil), -25 behind 35th place.
39) Front Row/MaxQ Hybrid Team (No. 37 – Tony Raines), -74 behind 35th place.

Garrett Horton is a Contributor to Frontstretch.com.  He can be reached via e-mail at garrett.horton@frontstretch.com.
 
Got NASCAR-related questions or comments about 2011? John's got answers!
A new year means a new columnist to answer all your pressing questions about the sport! Our legendary flagman John Potts is taking over our Fan Q & A, so be sure to stack his inbox with plenty of queries and comments for the New Year! Send them his way at john.potts@frontstretch.com; and if you're lucky, you'll get your name in print when he does his weekly column answering back to you – the fans!
 
Secret Star of the Race:  The Race You Never Saw

The last time we visited Daytona, David Gilliland left the 500 with a third-place result; 16th on Saturday seems tame by comparison, especially considering the $700,000 difference in purse money.  But considering the limited resources over at Front Row Motorsports, making it through the night unscathed, saving previous body shop time while scoring a second consecutive top-20 finish has to make this fledgling organization happy.  Through three restrictor plate races this year, the driver of the No. 34 Ford now has an average finish of 9.3 at Daytona and Talladega, tracks where this team is on par with their top-tier rivals based on the rules. Talk about maximizing your opportunities… - Tom Bowles

STAT OF THE WEEK: 5. Those are the number of full-time Sprint Cup drivers remaining (I.E. – drivers who have started every race this season) who have yet to score their first career victory. A bit of a shorter list than you expected, right? It's just Marcos Ambrose, David Gilliland, Dave Blaney, Paul Menard, and A.J. Allmendinger. – Tom Bowles

Running Their Mouth:  2011 Coke Zero 400

by Bryan Davis Keith
 
Best Quote

"Yeah, because all you guys want to talk about it on a regular basis.  I was hoping to win one a little earlier than the July 4th race here, but it's a good feeling to come back here...[it's] kind of we got one back at Daytona.  It would have been tough to lose another one.  I thought about that actually under that last caution.  I said, man, if we don't win this thing, I said I'm not going to talk to anyone afterwards.  So we were able to win.  That does ease the pain from February.  Its still nice to think about that Daytona 500 ring, but it's awesome.  This is a great race.  Coca-Cola being a partner of ours, a lot of the Ford guys are down here.  This is a race that's a total team effort, because the engine department has to do their job, the race car has to be good, and teammates helped us win.  So it does ease the pain." - Race winner David Ragan on redemption at Daytona

Nearly five months ago, David Ragan was poised to be the Cinderella story of Daytona, the leader in the closing laps.  But a well-publicized gaffe on a restart cost Ragan a legitimate shot at NASCAR's biggest race.

This time around, Ragan didn't screw up.  Running a flawless race with veteran teammate Matt Kenseth, both drivers executed a textbook restart on the second green-white-checker attempt and drove away to the win as the field wrecked itself coming to the finish.  This one meant more than being a first-time win that was years in the making; Ragan also moved to 17th in points on the strength of his first career victory, moving him into serious contention for a wild card Chase berth.

It's way too big a leap to call Ragan's job secure on the strength of this one victory, or to say the UPS sponsorship is sure to come back to the No. 6 team in 2012.  But, the way the 2011 Chase has changed, Ragan is now a player.  This team pulls out another win on an intermediate oval during the summer stretch, and boom: they're suddenly postseason contenders.  There's no real diminishing the significance of this win; scoring a first-time victory at Daytona and going from also-ran to Chase contender is about as big a holiday weekend as they come.

Worst Quote

"I can't explain what I've been through this year.  Its tough at times and it's good at times, but I just know that I've got really good people behind me and that's why I say that about Ford and everybody at the Wood Brothers and Roush Fenway on the Nationwide side.  I've got great people behind me, so that gives me confidence.  If I didn't have that and I didn't have my faith and everything else, right now that [wreck] would be a pretty bad blow, I can promise you that." Trevor Bayne, 41st, after wrecking on lap 5

Trevor Bayne has already endured about as difficult a season as a Daytona 500 champion can, and this Saturday night the track that saw him score one of the biggest upsets in NASCAR history claimed its pound of flesh (or this case, sheet metal). Bayne came within a hair of sitting on the pole for his return to Daytona Beach, but being at the front of the field proved to be of little safety.  Surrounded by teammates who had pre-arranged drafting partners up front, Bayne was dropping through the field before Brad Keselowski hooked the No. 21 in Turn 1, sending the Wood Brothers' machine hard into the fence.  Going from Daytona 500 champion and Nationwide Series title contender to part-time competitor has been the big-picture high and low for Bayne, and going from winner to 41st-place finisher at Daytona was just the latest episode.

Side note: with Ragan visiting Victory Lane and Bayne's stock having cooled, fairly or not, after his lengthy spring absence, it's not a stretch to say the chances of seeing Bayne full-time in Cup next season dropped even further on Saturday night.

Funniest Quote

"A lot of guys wrecked.  I don't know.  I felt like Marcos [Ambrose] and I were working good and we were trying to be smart and bide our time, but then it all fell apart. We lost the draft a little bit and then we got caught behind the [Nos.] 7 and 35 and by the time we got hooked back up, everybody was gone. We're not sure if we have a fuel pump issue, but we ran out of fuel when we weren't supposed to, so the pit stop took even longer.  After that, it was just survival.  I felt kind of bad because Marcos and I were racing for the Lucky Dog, but I was happy that the yellow came out twice so we both got our laps back.  After that, it was just trying to miss the wreck.  We didn't quite miss it, but I stayed wide open when it happened and kind of bulled my way through there and finished tenth." - A.J. Allmendinger, tenth, on his most unlikely result

The 'Dinger has never been one to mince words, and his was a most honest answer as to how the No. 43 came out of nowhere to score a top-10 finish. On a night that saw the Ford camp again the class of the field, Richard Petty Motorsports was nowhere to be seen, with Ambrose and Allmendinger both non-factors for much of the evening. But, another plate-race, another crapshoot, and 'Dinger at least came out on the positive side.

Most Controversial Quote

"What kind of move can you make?  I mean, man.  What kind of move can you make in racing like this?  There ain't no move you can make.  You just hold it on the mat and try not to wreck into each other.  You see how good we are at that." - Dale Earnhardt Jr., 19th, on the bedlam that was the homestretch on Saturday night

It's hardly a surprise that Junior would be frustrated in his post-race comments; after all, Daytona marked the best chance he's had in some time to break an ever-growing losing streak.  That's not really a significant revelation, but hearing one of the best plate racers in the sport actively criticize the current racing package for the second event running is a story that isn't getting enough play.  This two-car tandem racing is not racing: it's choreographed driving.  The only thing missing is the judges' table and background music.

Crew Chief Quote of the Week

"You know, when you do this two-by-two thing, you've got a partner that you come into pit road with especially in a green-flag stop.  So you get together with those guys and you figure out what they want to do.  Luckily, we got a great teammate in Matt Kenseth and Jimmy Fennig.  Jimmy and I were on the radio together deciding what we want to do, two, four, gas only and things like that.  It was real easy when you've got someone with the experience of Jimmy talking you through it.  I tell him what I wanted to do, and he said that's good.  Let's do it.  We stayed together all night.  That was a great opportunity for us to work with two veteran guys and have that leadership with us." - Drew Blickensderfer, race-winning crew chief, on a team effort at Roush Fenway Racing

Plenty's been said about the teamwork of David Ragan and Matt Kenseth, about how the veteran was calling the race over the radio for Ragan in the closing laps and how the No. 17 car stuck to the No. 6 like glue for the entire final run to the checkers.  But this master and apprentice relationship carried over to the men atop the war wagon, with Blickensderfer quick to make reference to Jimmy Fennig's contribution to Saturday's victory.  Fennig, a fixture in the Roush camp for years and a champion crew chief (Kurt Busch: 2004), has been there and seen everything the Daytona International Speedway can throw at a race team.  This time, that combination of Fennig and Kenseth, both title winners, was enough to deliver the win for Ragan and the No. 6 team.

Owner Quote of the Week

"This is fantastic.  Andy did a great job in the limited practice time to get the set-up working with Doug [Richert, crew chief] and the guys to get us up front on the grid.  The guys at Roush/Yates gave us great horsepower and we were able to parlay that into a top qualifying run.  Doug and the team have been rubbing on this car for weeks.  Seeing the [No.] 71 up on the top of the leaderboard for a good chunk of the day was awesome.  I hope that this will help us gain a little more respect tomorrow on the track and our Ford friends will draft with us.  This is a big boost for Andy's confidence and our team as we head into the second half of the season.  We are close on working with a couple of key sponsor partners for the rest of the year so this really helps!  I just want to say thanks to our TRG Motorsports partners that have hung in there with us, this is for them!" - Kevin Buckler on TRG Motorsports' top-10 qualifying effort

Andy Lally found himself the victim of the rookie shuffle early and often on Saturday night, unable to find a dancing partner and sent to the back from his eighth=place starting position almost as soon as the green flag dropped.  Lally's inability to find consistent drafting help resulted in a quiet 27th-place finish for the No. 71 team, but the qualifying results were still a step forward.  Team owner Kevin Buckler came into 2011 knowing full well that sponsorship would be hard to come by and that his driver, a former road racing ace, had a lot to learn.  Yet through signing Doug Richert as crew chief and moving this operation into the Ford camp, TRG Motorsports is still moving forward in establishing themselves on the Cup circuit.  It's hard to fault Buckler for taking such pride in his team's time trial effort.

Best of the Rest

"It seems like something always happens to us on the last lap at Daytona.  Ryan [Newman] and I were protecting the middle on that last restart down the back straightaway, and when those guys got a run on the outside, we disconnected and fell back.  Then, they were wrecking in front of us coming to the checkered flag and I went spinning in the grass to avoid them.  Our car was running hot all night, but when the [No.] 39 and us were hooked up... we could go to the front when we wanted to.  For me, it's disappointing that we didn't win or help the [No.] 39 win, but we salvaged a decent finish." - Denny Hamlin, 13th

"Just another typical Daytona for us.  It's just disappointing to know how strong the Bass Pro Shops/NRA Chevy was tonight and how close we've been both times at Daytona this year to win.  It's just a product of this racing, but that doesn't make it any easier to swallow.  Sooner or later, luck is going to go our way at this place." - Ryan Newman, 23rd, after wrecking on the final lap

"We ran well with Kurt as we did here during Speedweeks back in February.  Even though we got shuffled to the middle of the pack before the first big wreck happened tonight, I still felt we could have made a move and picked up a number of spots in track position.  But those wrecks and flat tire ended any hopes of that happening." - Regan Smith, 24th

"It was an unfortunate night for the Golden Corral team.  We were really looking forward to coming back here to Daytona and trying to get a top-10 finish so kids could eat free on Monday.  We started having problems with the engine just before the spin.  Unfortunately, situations like this are just a product of this type of racing." - Dave Blaney, 39th
 
Bryan Davis Keith is a Senior Writer for Frontstretch.com.  He can be reached via e-mail at bryan.keith@frontstretch.com
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TODAY ON THE FRONTSTRETCH:
  
Matt McLaughlin's Thinkin' Out Loud:  2011 Firecracker 400 Race Recap
by Matt McLaughlin

NASCAR's Lesson In Overcoming Adversity The Right Way

by Tom Bowles

Monday Morning Teardown:  Noah's Ark Crashes Hard: Two-Car Tandems Can't Last Forever At Daytona

by Ron Lemasters
 
Bubble Breakdown: The Great Equalizer Does Little To Impact Owner Points Race
by Bryan Davis Keith
 
The Big Six:  Coke Zero 400
by Amy Henderson
 
Nationwide Series Breakdown:  Subway Jalapeno 250
by Bryan Davis Keith
 
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Go to Frontstretch.com and click on "The Annual" link on the right side to order and download this special issue that includes: Track Information, Driver profiles and In-Depth Features.
 
FRONTSTRETCH TRIVIA:
 
Q:
  The Carroll family, the original owners of Kentucky Speedway, owned the now-closed Louisville Motor Speedway prior to the 1.5 mile tri-oval being built.  What was unique about Louisville's track?

Friday's Answer:

Q:  The 1992 Pepsi 400 at Daytona was won by Ernie Irvan, part of a stretch in which Irvan won three out of four restrictor plate races.  However, there is something else that this particular race is known for.  What is it?
 
A:  The race is likely best known for the fact that Richard Petty, then in his final Winston Cup season, dubbed the Fan Appreciation Tour, started from the outside pole at Daytona and actually led the race early on.  While eventually fading to 36th, retiring from the race due to fatigue those would be the last five laps Petty would lead in his great career.
 
Frontstretch Trivia Guarantee: If we mess up, you get the shirt off our backs!  If we've provided an incorrect answer to the Frontstretch Trivia question, be the first to email the corrected trivia answer to trivia@frontstretch.com and we'll send you a Frontstretch T-Shirt ... FREE!
 
Coming Tuesday in the Frontstretch Newsletter:
-- Top News from TBA
-- Sitting In The Stands: A Fans' View by S.D. Grady
-- Links to your favorite Frontstretch articles, and more!
 
Tomorrow on the Frontstretch:
 
The Yellow Stripe by Danny Peters
Danny is back with another captivating commentary.
 
What's Hot / What's Not in Sprint Cup: Daytona-Kentucky Edition by Summer Dreyer
Summer takes a look at post-Daytona numbers to see who's got the most momentum heading into Kentucky... and beyond.

Five Points To Ponder by Bryan Davis Keith
Bryan's back with his weekly edition of talking points to get you set for the Quaker State 400 at Kentucky Speedway.
 
Fact or Fiction by Tom Bowles
Tom looks at some conclusions that could be made after Sonoma and determines whether they're true or not.

TV Column TBA
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