Daytona 500: Drivers Dish on New Season and Other New Things
It was a rainy, cool morning as throngs of media converged on the massive tent at Daytona International Speedway to kick off NASCAR Media Day, the beginning of Speedweeks.
The expected crowd of 300 or more media representatives was there to question some 50 drivers from the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series.
It is the first event of Speedweeks and the start of the 2011 season. Even though the public was unable to attend, the questions they want addressed would be offered by those who were present.
The new track, the Chase, the simplified points system, the team and driver swaps, the new nose on the car, new fuel, the 10th anniversary of the loss of Dale Earnhardt, the Bud Shootout and all the events leading to the 53rd running of the Daytona 500 would be topics of discussion.
Five-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson was addressed in the first group of drivers at 8:00 a.m. concerning the way he and his team will go about capturing that sixth consecutive title.
From there the morning mix of drivers included the older, wily Mark Martin to many of the young guns like Ryan Truex, Justin Allgaier and Austin Dillon. The 2010 Daytona 500 winner, Jamie McMurray, of course was asked his thoughts about the "Great American Race."
Nelson Piquet Jr., Ron Hornaday, Todd Bodine and others represented the third tier of NASCAR. One of the biggest crowds of the morning session gathered around Danica Patrick, as expected.
There were lots of other racing stars to shove microphones in front of, as they predicted exciting racing on the new track surface and a highly competitive season in all three NASCAR series.
The afternoon session was kicked off with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kasey Kahne. The media crowded in around the two drivers, both of whom are in the land of the unexpected with the year that lies ahead. There was a touch of irony due to the fact Kahne would be a Hendrick Motorsports driver in 2012.
More big dogs came out for the afternoon session that included Kevin Harvick, Tony Stewart, Carl Edwards, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer and others. A.J. Allmendinger was obviously handling the spotlight as lead driver at Petty Motorsports quite well.
The plethora of drivers gave us a glimpse of not only the expectations of Speedweeks, but also goals and thoughts that affect the brand new season that lies ahead for drivers, owners, teams and the fans of NASCAR.
Let's take a look at some of the highlights of NASCAR Media Day at Daytona.
Daytona's New Surface
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The expectations on how racing will unfold on the new track surface at Daytona International Speedway was a topic that stirred a lot of conversation.
New asphalt equals iconic races if history is any indicator. Only two Daytona 500s have been run on fresh pavement.
The first race in 1959 took three days to settle with Hall of Fame inductee Lee Petty finally being declared the winner.
The other race was the first televised race in 1979, when wild racing ended with Cale Yarborough, Donnie Allison and Bobby Allison throwing punches in a muddy infield and Richard Petty sliding by for a win.
Who knows what surprises are in store for the 53rd running of the Daytona 500 with the track's black surface tempting drivers to push a little harder, drive a little wider and go a little faster?
New Fuel
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NASCAR is greening up its fuel with the Sunoco E15 ethanol blend. The catch can man will be eliminated, and a new-style gas can will be used that fills the car and vents the fuel at the same time.
It will change pit strategy, as pit stops are expected to take longer, mileage will change and the chance the car may not get filled completely could be problematic.
Like all changes, it will take practice to perfect the nuances of the new way to fuel the NASCAR racing machines. Drivers will be adapting to the change under race conditions.
The Champion
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Rick Hendrick has described Jimmie Johnson as a "machine." Johnson is working hard on his physical conditioning offseason in preparation for another run for the NASCAR Sprint Cup championship.
Mentally he is as tough and driven as ever to go for an unprecedented sixth consecutive title. He and his crew chief, Chad Knaus, remain calm, cool and confident as the 2011 season begins.
Some changes to the crew have been made, and Johnson described them as "real athletes" who are used to working under pressure.
Johnson knows competition is just getting rougher, as he saw last year with Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick trying to dethrone him. This year will be much more of the same difficult challenges for the No. 48 team.
The five-time champion said, "If it all ended today, there's no way I'd be disappointed. It's been a hell of a ride."
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Justin Allgaier
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Justin Allgaier went looking for other opportunities when he lost sponsorship for his Nationwide ride at Penske. He believes he has found strength with Turner Motorsports and his new crew chief, Jimmy Elledge.
Allgaier was the only NASCAR Nationwide regular to win a race last year. The 35 other races were won by Cup drivers.
He is definitely one to watch as the new season unfolds. He says he is "pumped" about the upcoming year.
Mark Martin
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Mark Martin, the 52-year-old veteran winner in NASCAR, is in his final year of his contract with Hendrick Motorsports. He said, "I'm not talking about 2012 until I have something to talk about."
He had some words of wisdom about Danica Patrick. Martin said, "She is definitely making progress. She has no background in what it takes to really make these cars fast." He called her "incredibly committed."
The media questioned the driver of the No. 5 GoDaddy car about the effect of the 10th anniversary of the death of Dale Earnhardt on his son, Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Martin said, "He can handle it. I think it will be additional stress and strain. I think he can handle it and shoulder it. He has the strongest set of shoulders in motorsports, and he gracefully carries the incredible weight under the circumstances. He is a strong individual."
Martin is looking forward to the upcoming season as though it was his first with Hendrick Motorsports instead of his last.
Austin Dillon
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Austin Dillon is out to win a championship in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series this year with his No. 3 Bass Pro Shop Chevy.
He spent quality time with his grandfather, Richard Childress, in Africa on a big game hunt during the offseason. Dillon enjoyed seeing Childress away from racing and admires his will to be the best whether hunting, fishing or racing.
Dillon is a serious threat to other drivers in the third-tier series of NASCAR in the run for the title. He is one of the young guns ready to take on the more experienced drivers. Dillon expressed his desire to move up through the series and eventually run Cup.
Danica Patrick
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Danica Patrick is in her second year of running part-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. After this year and the 12 races she will run, she will still only have two-thirds of a season's worth of experience.
Last year she said that early in the season, "Reality set in and it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. I started letting the results get to me."
Patrick said, "I tried to be more positive and optimistic as the year went on and not letting the results get to me so much. Oddly enough, the year started to go better too."
Patrick added, "I may eat these words, but I thought it would be fun to go to a road course in a stock car."
She said, "I want people to believe in me as a driver." It is obvious that Patrick is serious about trying to make her mark as a NASCAR driver to continue to have the media follow her and for the fans to be interested in her.
It is early in the season, but ultimately it will be her decision to decide what direction her career as a driver will go. She is just going to make the most of every weekend and see how it plays out.
Ron Hornaday
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Ron Hornaday will be driving for Kevin Harvick Inc. in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. He is always a threat to win, but he is more of an old school racer.
Hornaday was close to Dale Earnhardt and still shows a lot emotion when he speaks about him. He stated, "Dale walked around with the swagger he had, knowing he was the man."
He added, "He'd win races and worry about the consequences later." Like others have said, Earnhardt could have an on-track issue with another driver and then go have a beer with him. He had the ability to soothe ruffled feathers because of the respect other drivers had for him.
Kyle Busch
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Kyle Busch spoke of Jimmy Johnson's consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup titles. He said, "It's hard for any of us to deny they are the best in the sport."
Busch added, "We all might be a little bit jealous of him, because they just seem to be able to put it together year after year to accomplish the ultimate goal that we all want."
The driver of the M&M's Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing acknowledges he has not met his full potential in Cup racing. He recognizes the level of maturity needed to be good at NASCAR's top level and is confident with the great leadership provided by Joe Gibbs and J.D. Gibbs.
Busch likes running the other series for the experience factor even though he can't run for a title. He has fun doing it, and it makes the sponsors happy when he is the driver behind the wheel, but Cup is important, and he may cut back at the end of the season.
The young driver who is so good at winning made it clear that someone will knock Johnson off his throne, and he feels capable of doing that.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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Dale Earnhardt Jr. spoke of the tributes that will be carried out on the 10th anniversary of his father's death at Daytona.
He said, "It makes you feel great hearing all the good things that will be said. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone recognize his accomplishments and what kind of person he was, how he affected everybody."
Earnhardt Jr. was asked by a member of the media about added pressure of Speedweeks this year with the team change, the new track and the remembrance of his dad.
Dale Jr. responded by saying, "The only thing that concerns me is my performance on the race track. The only thing that affects my mood and personality is directly connected to the performance factor in the sport, and that is the thing that weighs on you."
The driver of the Amp Energy No. 88 Chevy is very optimistic about the changes with his team. He said, "Everything's new, new team, new PR guy, new truck driver, wiped the slate clean."
Earnhardt Jr. added, "I think I'm about to enter a whole new world, and I'm willing to do whatever they ask me to do."
It certainly appears this driver has regrouped and is ready to race in the new season.
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