NASCAR Dream Season: Xfinity opener at Daytona

Don't worry, race fans.  In due course, I will get to the outcome of my redone "Great American Race," the Daytona 500.  But right now, it's on to the races the track holds on the two days before that.

With the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series field dominated by returning drivers, the two series just below it on the NASCAR rung are filled with the millennial drivers that succeeded them at the top of the stock-car racing world.  The Xfinity Series slogan is "names are made here," and this is definitely true for the drivers I have committed to full seasons.  Consider these career numbers for some of them, in that series alone:

• Kyle Busch - 91 wins (most in series history), champion in 2008
• Kevin Harvick - 46 wins, champion in 2001 and '07
• Carl Edwards - 38 wins, champion in 2007
• Brad Keselowski - 36 wins, champion in 2010
• Denny Hamlin - 17 wins
• Martin Truex, Jr. - 13 wins, champion in 2004 and '05

And that's not accounting for what has happened to them since.  Busch, Harvick, and Keselowski are also past season champions in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, and Truex Jr. is the favorite to win it all in 2017.

Oh, and another two-time champion, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., is only a part-timer in my scenario!

I have also added returnees like Brian Vickers, Jimmy Spencer, Elliott Sadler, Michael Waltrip, Jeff Green, and Adam Petty to the mix.  Finally, there are the earliest stars of the series, including NASCAR Hall of Famer Jack Ingram.

All of that will make Saturday afternoons as exciting as Sunday afternoons most weeks for the next nine months.

February 17

Daytona International Speedway

300 miles/120 laps (stages: 30, 30, 60)

It all began with the PowerShares QQQ 300, heir to a racing tradition that began with the series' first-ever race on Feb. 13, 1982.  Dale Earnhardt won that event, and I have his son Dale Earnhardt Jr. as the winner here, just as in the first version.  Here's how it happened:

Kyle Busch won the pole but faded back quickly as he lost the draft about halfway through the first 30-lap stage.  Tony Stewart came from the sixth starting position to win stage 1; that win was based on his seven February wins, which is tied with the elder Earnhardt for the most all-time.

On lap 49, Wendell Scott - the only black driver to win a top-series race and another member of the Hall of Fame - cut a tire and three other drivers (including Trevor Bayne, the youngest winner in Daytona 500 history) were caught up in the wreck, ending their days.  Geoffrey Bodine somehow maneuvered his way to the green-white-checkered flag to capture stage 2.  (That was based on his average finish of 2.63; all eight of his NXS finishes were in the top five.)

Top 10 after stage 1: Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Randy LaJoie, Geoffrey Bodine, Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, Joe Nemechek, Chase Elliott, Michael Waltrip, Carl Edwards
Top 10 after stage 2: Bodine, Harvick, Stewart, Kenseth, Clint Bowyer, Earnhardt Jr., LaJoie, Edwards, Brad Keselowski, Kenny Wallace

More bad wrecks followed: Brian Scott and Randy LaJoie side-drafted and found the superstretch wall together on lap 78.  Then came two huge wrecks, which each caused red-flag delays.  In the first, on lap 96, Busch lost a front tire and nine drivers, including Busch, Matt Kenseth, and Jamie McMurray, saw their races end.  Part two came with seven laps to go: A battle for position between Edwards and Joe Nemechek went horribly wrong, and their collision moved into the vicinity of seven other race cars.  Those included Mark Martin (who held the career win record in this series before Busch), past champs Johnny Benson and David Green, and the late and beloved Adam Petty.

Earnhardt Jr. inherited the lead and chose the inside lane for the restart.  That almost backfired, as Stewart fought hard from the outside, but in the end "Little E" had just enough to take the #3 Wrangler Chevrolet to victory.  Harvick finished third, Waltrip fourth, and Keselowski fifth.




 Full field rundown and point totals

1. #3 Dale Earnhardt, Jr. - Wrangler Chevrolet - 0*
2. #11 Tony Stewart - Old Spice Toyota - 0*
3. #2 Kevin Harvick - Rheem Chevrolet - 49
4. #99 Michael Waltrip - Aaron's Chevrolet - 35
5. #22 Brad Keselowski - Siscount Tire Ford - 34
6. #52 Chase Elliott - Florida Hospital Chevrolet - 34
7. #21 Austin Dillon - Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet - 30
8. #55 Clint Bowyer - 5 Hour Energy Toyota - 35
9. #78 Michael McDowell - K-LOVE Chevrolet - 28
10. #16 Greg Biffle - Leidos Ford - 27
11. #20 Denny Hamlin - Hisense 4K Toyota -  26
12. #33 Paul Menard - Menards Chevrolet - 25
13. #7 Geoffrey Bodine - Brandt Chevrolet - 41
14. #87 Joe Nemechek - Leaf Filters Chevrolet - 27
15. #88 Mike Wallace - HendrickAuto.com Chevrolet - 22
16. #1 Martin Truex, Jr. - OneMain Financial Chevrolet - 21
17. #60 Carl Edwards - Arris Ford - 24
18. #8 Kenny Wallace - Alert Today Florida Chevrolet - 0*
19. #6 Mark Martin - Sam's Club Ford - 0*
20. #43 Adam Petty - Smithfield Foods Ford - 0*
21. #5 Brian Vickers - Pilot Truck Stops Chevrolet - 16
22. #44 Johnny Benson - Spectrum Toyota - 15
23. #28 David Green - WinField United Toyota - 14
24. #18 Kyle Busch - NOS Energy Toyota - 13
25. #98 Matt Kenseth - Fresh From Florida Ford - 0
26. #93 Bobby Gerhart - Sieg Motorsports Chevrolet - 11
27. #01 Elliott Sadler - JD Motorsports Chevrolet - 10
28. #42 Jamie McMurray - ENEOS Chevrolet - 9
29. #14 J.J. Yeley - Tri-Star Motorsports Toyota - 8
30. #4 Jimmy Spencer - FlexSeal Chevrolet - 7
31. #90 Scott Lagasse, Jr. - Nexteer Automotive Chevrolet - 6
32. #32 Brian Scott - ShoreLodge Chevrolet - 5
33. #48 Randy LaJoie - DC Solar Chevrolet - 16
34. #39 Rob Moroso - CarShield Chevrolet - 3
35. #40 Jeff Green - Long Motorsports Dodge - 2
36. #24 Trevor Bayne - Nikko RC/Road Rippers Toyota - 1
37. #46 Wendell Scott - Bethune-Cookman College Chevrolet - 1
38. #0 Sam Ard - FlexSeal Chevrolet - 1
39. #51 Jack Ingram - RepairableVehicles.com Chevrolet - 1
40. #07 Chuck Bown - Sea Life Chevrolet - 1

Top 12 in points after race 1

1. Kevin Harvick - 49
2. Geoffrey Bodine - 41
3. Michael Waltrip - 35
4. Clint Bowyer - 35
5. Brad Keselowski - 34
6. Chase Elliott - 34
7. Austin Dillon - 30
8. Michael McDowell - 28
9. Greg Biffle - 27
10. Joe Nemechek - 27
11. Denny Hamlin - 26
12. Paul Menard - 25

Additional statistics
Pole winner and speed: Kyle Busch, 180.467 mph
Race speed: 140.354 mph
Margin of victory: 0.226 second
Time of race: 2 hr., 8 min., 15 sec.
Cautions: 8 for 31 laps
Lead changes: 25 among 11 drivers

The Camping World Truck Series opener will be detailed in the next post.