NASCAR Gatorade Duels: 10 Drivers Who Impressed at Daytona

NASCAR fans were treated to the best appetizer in sports on Thursday, the Gatorade Duel races in Daytona. After last year’s two-car tandem style racing, NASCAR decided to make changes to the cars to please dissatisfied fans. The result was boring, large pack style racing (At least the Dale Earnhardt Jr. Fans are happy now).

Each race had one big wreck. The first race involved David Gilliland, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Paul Menard. Each driver was already locked into the starting field for the Daytona 500, but will have to start at the back of the pack.

The second race accident involved Danica Patrick, and Aric Almirola. Patrick hid the wall hard, but thanks to the safer barrier walls, Patrick walked away uninjured. Patrick will start the Daytona 500 in the No. 29 starting spot.

When the white flag was waived to signal one-lap-to-go, the race began. Tony Stewart was leading the first race, but had a pack of cars running him down. Just when it looked like Stewart was going to lose the race on the last lap (As he did in the Budweiser Shootout), Patrick’s wreck brought out the yellow flag ending the race.

The second race was Greg Biffle’s race to lose. He led most of the race, but with one lap to go, Biffle decided to try and block his teammate Matt Kenseth from passing him. Kenseth made a quick move to the bottom of the track and Jimmie Johnson pushed Kenseth to victory.

I thought last season’s races were more exciting, but obviously I am in the minority. The races were still exciting at the end, and some drivers looked like they are ready for the Daytona 500.

Here is my list of 10 drivers who impressed at the Gatorade Duels….

4 Go or Go Home Qualifiers

The Gatorade Duel race's purpose is to set the field for the Daytona 500. The larger organizations in the sport use the race for a test run for the Daytona 500, but for smaller teams the Gatorade Duel races are as important as the big race itself—a driver cannot win the Daytona 500 if the driver is not in the Daytona 500.

There were 10 drivers competing for the final four spots in the Daytona 500. The four drivers would raced their way into Sunday’s race almost had to make the list of drivers who impressed. These drivers had more pressure on them than any other drivers in the race. Here is the list of four drivers who qualified by their driving efforts in the Gatorade Duels:

Robby Gordon

Robby Gordon came into the race smoking. No, I do not mean he was on a hot streak or anything like that. Gordon’s car had smoke coming out of the back of it for the first five laps. It looked like his car could blow up at any time, but thankfully the smoke was only a tire rubbing against a fender.

Once Gordon got going he proved that he is still a good racer on the restrictor plate tracks. Gordon finished the race in the No. 9 position. Gordon will start the Daytona 500 in the No. 17 spot.

Michael McDowell

Michael McDowell is no stranger to trying to qualify for the Daytona 500. He failed to race his way into the Daytona 500 last year, but this year he had his good friend Trevor Bayne to help him out.

McDowell and Bayne ran together for most of the race. When the race was coming down to the end, McDowell’s Crew Chief asked him to save fuel, but Daytona is one of the only tracks where a driver has the pedal to the medal the entire race. It is almost impossible to save fuel. McDowell saved enough to finish the race in the No. 6 position, and will start the Daytona 500 at No. 11.

Joe Nemechek

The days of Front Row Joe have passed. If Joe Nemechek is going to make it into the Daytona 500 he will have to drive his way in, and that is just what he did.

Nemechek stayed in front of the drivers he was competing with for the final spot for most of the second Gatorade Duel race. He drafted with his teammate, Bill Elliott for most of the race. The two were racing for the last spot in the main event. Nemechek finished No. 17 in the Gatorade Duel and will start No. 34 in the Daytona 500.

Dave Blaney

Dave Blaney looked like the best driver of the four who had to drive their way into qualifying. Racing for Tommy Baldwin Racing, Blaney ran up front with the big boys for most of the race. Blaney finished the Gatorade Duel race in the No. 12 position, and will start the Daytona 500 in the No. 24 position.

Tony Stewart

Qualifying for the Daytona 500 was priority No. 1 for the teams without a guaranteed spot in the big race. For those already locked in, winning was everything.

Tony Stewart looked like the most experienced driver in the first Gatorade Duel race. He seemed to know when to go to the front, and when to move towards the back. Stewart won his 17th race at Daytona on Thursday. The only driver to have more wins than Stewart at Daytona is Dale Earnhardt.

Stewart has a lot of momentum going into the Daytona 500. After winning the Chase last year, Stewart has started Speedweeks by finishing No. 2 in the Budweiser Shootout, and No. 1 in the Gatorade Duel. He is also the defending Champion in the Nationwide Series race on Saturday. Stewart has won the Daytona Nationwide race in February three times in a row.

Matt Kenseth

Matt Kenseth was the other driver to win in the Gatorade Duel race. Kenseth had a good car for the race, and the Roush Fenway Racing Fords look like the cars to beat in the Daytona 500.

Kenseth’s move to the bottom of the track to pass his teammate Greg Biffle was the move of the race in the second Gatorade Duel. This is the second time Kenseth has made his way to victory lane at Daytona. He will try to make it number three on Sunday.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. is always good at Daytona, and its fun to watch him come from the back of the pack to compete for the win. That is what he did in the first Gatorade Duel race.

Earnhardt was penalized for having a pit crew member over the wall before he made his way to the pits. Earnhardt had to go to the back of the pack, and he stayed there for a while. When the race drew to a close, Earnhardt made his way to the front. He would have had a chance to win the race if the caution flag did not come out at the end. Earnhardt finished No. 2, and will start the Daytona 500 in the fifth spot.

Marcus Ambrose

Marcus Ambrose has always been known as the best road course racer in NASCAR. If he keeps racing like he has this week, he will also be known as a good driver at Daytona.

Ambrose ran at the front of the pack for most of the race. Ambrose and Denny Hamlin stayed on the track while the other cars came into the pits, but later in the race, Ambrose had to come into the pits for gas while the others stayed on the track. This put Ambrose a lap down. He was able to get his lap back and finished the race in the No. 3 position, and will start the Daytona 500 in the No. 7 spot.

Regan Smith

When NASCAR is on the “Big Stage,” Regan Smith performs his best. Smith finished No. 7 in last year’s Daytona 500 and if he drives like he did on Thursday, he may end up with a top-10 finish this year.

Smith complained of his car overheating, but was able to finish the second Gatorade Duel race in second position. Smith will start the Daytona 500 in the number six starting position.

Danica Patrick

I know there will be some Danica Patrick critics who think she should not be on this list, but she drove a good race on Thursday.

Patrick came into the race with as little experience drafting in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series as any driver in the field. She stayed out of the way of the other drivers for 59 of the 60 laps.

The accident on the last lap was not her fault. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time. It could have happened to any driver.

I was impressed with Patrick and think she will finish much higher than most people think in the Daytona 500.

Follow me on Twitter: @HuskerMagic

If you like Fantasy NASCAR, LIKE my Fantasy NASCAR Page on Facebook:

Chad’s Fantasy NASCAR Tips