Later tonight, the infamous Budweiser Duels will take center stage at Daytona International Speedway which will officially set the lineup for the 57th running of the Daytona 500. Not only will tonight’s pair of 60 lap races decide the starting grid for the biggest race of the season, but it will also decide the fate for several teams trying to earn a spot in the Great American Race. Drivers like David Ragan, Ryan Blaney, Ron Hornaday, and others will get an opportunity to race their way into the Daytona 500 while several more popular drivers must do the same as well. For drivers already locked into the Daytona 500, the Budweiser Duels offer teams the opportunity to see how their cars will react in true race competition. Therefore let’s take this time to look at the lineups for both duel races and give a brief preview of the drivers to watch:
Budweiser Duel 1: Starting Lineup
Pos |
Car# |
Driver |
Team |
Speed |
1 |
24 |
Jeff Gordon (PC7) |
Drive to End Hunger Chevy |
201.293 |
2 |
20 |
Matt Kenseth (PC6) |
Dollar General Toyota |
200.602 |
3 |
5 |
Kasey Kahne |
Farmers Insurance Chevy |
200.691 |
4 |
33 |
Ty Dillon(i) |
Cheerios/Kroger Chevy |
200.678 |
5 |
1 |
Jamie McMurray |
Cessna/McDonald’s Chevy |
202.247 |
6 |
83 |
Johnny Sauter(i) |
Dustless Blasting Toyota |
199.574 |
7 |
6 |
Trevor Bayne |
AdvoCare Ford |
199.031 |
8 |
43 |
Aric Almirola |
Smithfield Ford |
202.37 |
9 |
2 |
Brad Keselowski (PC3) |
Miller Lite Ford |
199.062 |
10 |
22 |
Joey Logano |
Shell Pennzoil Ford |
198.812 |
11 |
23 |
JJ Yeley(i) |
MAXIM Fantasy App/Dr. Pepper Toyota |
199.256 |
12 |
27 |
Paul Menard |
Peak/Menards Chevy |
198.325 |
13 |
47 |
AJ Allmendinger |
Kroger/USO Chevy |
198.212 |
14 |
4 |
Kevin Harvick (PC1) |
Budweiser/Jimmy John’s Chevy |
197.994 |
15 |
14 |
Tony Stewart (PC4) |
Bass Pro Shops/Mobil 1 Chevy |
197.698 |
16 |
13 |
Casey Mears |
GEICO Chevy |
197.946 |
17 |
46 |
Michael Annett |
Pilot/Flying J Chevy |
196.554 |
18 |
42 |
Kyle Larson |
Target Chevy |
195.588 |
19 |
95 |
Michael McDowell |
Thrivent Financial Ford |
195.3 |
20 |
15 |
Clint Bowyer |
5-hour Energy Toyota |
194.995 |
21 |
29 |
Justin Marks(i) |
American Born Moonshine Toyota |
194.675 |
22 |
35 |
Cole Whitt |
Speed Stick Ford |
194.012 |
23 |
40 |
Landon Cassill |
CarsForSale.com Chevy |
193.299 |
24 |
30 |
Ron Hornaday Jr. |
Smokey Mountain Herbal Snuff Chevy |
190.791 |
25 |
88 |
Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
Nationwide Chevy |
0 |
The front row of the first duel features quite an interesting pair with Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth, two guys that have had several run-ins throughout their career. Kenseth has been solid throughout speedweeks thus far by winning last Saturday’s Sprint Unlimited and also showing solid speed in practices. Gordon already has the pole locked up so do not be surprised to see the #24 team play it safe especially if things get dicey. Still, this duel has several popular names that could make some noise starting with bad Brad, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, and the defending Daytona 500 champion in Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Earnhardt made a bold statement earlier in the week that the #88 team had the fastest car off the hauler. Earnhardt is not normally the guy to make those types of statements so needless to say he must be happy with the speed the car has shown thus far. Junior will start rear of the field due to failing post qualifying inspections last Sunday which disallowed his qualifying time. Therefore Junior will get the chance to show us just how much “speed” that #88 car truly has under the hood. While I think these races are a crap shoot, I am interested to see how Tony Stewart and Clint Bowyer perform. Bowyer is a solid restrictor plate racer but he is in a backup car after wrecking in the opening moments of Sunday’s Daytona 500 qualifying session. For Stewart, Daytona was once a place where he was always a threat to win but he has not performed well here in recent years. After suffering the worse year of his career in 2014, many are wondering if Stewart can find a way to right the ship in 2015 and perhaps finally score his first Daytona 500 victory.
Budweiser Duel 2: Starting Lineup
Pos |
Car# |
Driver |
Team |
Speed |
1 |
48 |
Jimmie Johnson |
Lowe’s Chevy |
201.135 |
2 |
18 |
Kyle Busch |
M&M’s Crispy Toyota |
201.216 |
3 |
19 |
Carl Edwards |
Arris Toyota |
202.315 |
4 |
3 |
Austin Dillon |
DOW Chevy |
201.108 |
5 |
78 |
Martin Truex Jr. |
Furniture Row/Visser Precision Chevy |
199.738 |
6 |
16 |
Greg Biffle |
Ortho Ford |
199.075 |
7 |
9 |
Sam Hornish Jr. |
Twisted Tea Ford |
199.119 |
8 |
17 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
Fastenal Ford |
202.334 |
9 |
21 |
Ryan Blaney(i) |
Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford |
199.084 |
10 |
55 |
Michael Waltrip |
Aaron’s Dream Machine Toyota |
201.392 |
11 |
32 |
Bobby Labonte (PC8) |
C & J Energy Services Ford |
199.067 |
12 |
7 |
Alex Bowman |
Toy State/Nikko Chevy |
198.229 |
13 |
31 |
Ryan Newman |
Caterpillar Chevy |
198.177 |
14 |
41 |
Kurt Busch (PC5) |
Haas Automation Chevy |
197.976 |
15 |
10 |
Danica Patrick |
GoDaddy Chevy |
197.959 |
16 |
62 |
Brian Scott(i) |
Shore Lodge Chevy |
197.828 |
17 |
51 |
Justin Allgaier |
Brandt Chevy |
196.532 |
18 |
38 |
David Gilliland |
Love’s Travel Stops Ford |
195.346 |
19 |
26 |
Jeb Burton |
LiveDeal.com Download the App Toyota |
195.004 |
20 |
44 |
Reed Sorenson |
Golden Corral Chevy |
194.978 |
21 |
34 |
David Ragan |
Kentucky Fried Chicken Ford |
194.452 |
22 |
98 |
Josh Wise |
Phoenix Construction Ford |
193.386 |
23 |
66 |
Mike Wallace |
Crazy Vapors/X8 Energy Gum Toyota |
192.509 |
24 |
11 |
Denny Hamlin |
FedEx Express Toyota |
0 |
The encore 60 lap race of the night in Duel #2 has plenty of talent to entertain as well with guys like Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, and Denny Hamlin. While those names sound pretty convincing, none of those drivers have been overly impressive at Daytona throughout their careers. Hamlin was possibly the most impressive car at Daytona Speedweeks in 2014. Hamlin won the Sprint Unlimited and won one of the duel races before finishing 2nd in the Daytona 500. While it may be a bit too early to tell if Hamlin has another car worthy of contending for a Daytona 500 victory, one thing that is noteworthy is that he will have two teammates to help him in duel #2. Hamlin, Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards will have the opportunity to work with each other in the 60 lap event which could be beneficial for all of the JGR teammates. However, I just have this eerie feeling that someone is going to score an upset in the 2nd duel. There are plenty of sleepers to gamble on in the 2nd duel. Michael Waltrip and Greg Biffle stand out as guys that know how to find the front at Daytona. Perhaps Ryan Blaney can make a splash in his debut with the Wood Brothers? Remember how strong Martin Truex Jr was in the #78 last week in the Sprint Unlimited? Do not be surprised if Truex makes some noise again.