Numbers tell the story at Daytona
by JORGE A. MONDACA, FOXSports.com
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NASCAR is no different — every week, numbers help tell the story of what took place.
Here are the numbers that best explain what took place at Daytona International Speedway this past weekend:
0.092
What it is: Margin of victory, in seconds, in Sunday's 50th Daytona 500
The story it tells: Aside from Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin's stretches of domination during the middle stages of Sunday's race, The 50th running of the Great American Race will go down as one of the most competitive in history.
Ryan Newman's last lap pass of Tony Stewart was the 42nd official lead change of the race, only the fifth time since 1972 there were more than 40 lead swaps, and the 81st green flag pass for the lead.
Would things have been even closer if it was anybody but Newman's Penske Racing teammate Kurt Busch in second place? More than likely, but that doesn't change the fact that the first points race of 2008 provided significant drama.
2.67
What it is: Kyle Busch's average finish this weekend.
The story it tells: Ryan Newman was the big winner in Sunday's Sprint Cup Series race, Tony Stewart lay claim to the top spot in Saturday's Nationwide Series event and Todd Bodine held on to be victorious in Friday night's Craftsman Truck Series opener.
Want to know how each of these triumphs are related — Kyle Busch.
Arguably the best driver of the weekend, 'Shrub' competed in all three NASCAR races at Daytona International Speedway this weekend and was in contention at every single one, finishing second, second and fourth in the truck, Nationwide and Cup events respectively.
Earlier in the weekend, Busch said that he'd like to have "at least" four Cup championships and that he'd "better have 100 wins" by the time he is 36, 14 years from now — the age he thinks he would like to stop racing.
With performances like those he put on this weekend, those ambitious goals look pretty realistic.
6
What it is: The number of teams/associations included in the top 10 at the end of the Daytona 500
The story it tells: Going into the Daytona 500, NASCAR on FOX announcer Mike Joy wrote: "At some point, drivers will have to remember to 'dance with the team that brought you' and try to get together with their teammates on track and find a way to win that doesn't involve following Dale Jr." (Read his preview here).
Guess what? He was right.
With the help of Busch, Newman was able to power by Stewart on the final lap to win the first Daytona 500 for team owner Roger Penske and secure the first 1-2 finish in the history of the organization.
"Kurt was the push from heaven that made it all happen," Newman said. "Without a doubt, he could have easily gone three-wide and split us through the center and made one heck of a mess there. But he chose to be a teammate, and that was the most honorable thing that he could do.
But the Penske crew weren't the only ones to use teamwork to their advantage. Joe Gibbs Racing (Stewart and Kyle Busch) and Gillett Evernham Motorsports (Elliott Sadler, Kasey Kahne and partner Robby Gordon) each had multiple cars inside the top 10.
The remaining teams, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (Reed Sorenson), Hendrick Motorsports (Dale Earnhardt Jr.) and Roush Fenway Racing (Greg Biffle) each had cars inside the top 10 throughout the day, but accidents and mechanical problems prevented them from having additional cars fighting at the finish.
"It was total Dodge Boys teamwork," said Mike Accavitti, the director of Dodge Motorsports. "We've been telling everybody that we're working better together and the proof is in the pudding and we served up a heaping helping of Dodge Boys pudding out there today."
5
What it is: Teams who have fallen outside the top 35 in owner points after the first race of 2008.
The story it tells: Yes, it is still early in the season, but it is already time to start thinking about the points.
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Before thinking championships though, there is a more important matter for some of the smaller and newer teams in the sport — the top 35 in owner points.
Every week, the top 35 teams in the owner's standings are given an automatic starting position in the race — no matter how they do in qualifying. They keep that starting spot until they fall outside of that threshold. At the beginning of every season, the first five races use the owner points standings from the previous year to help set the field.
That's important to note after Daytona because five teams that currently were in the top 35 last season are located outside that group because of poor finishes Sunday: Casey Mears (No. 5 for Hendrick Motorsports), Dave Blaney (No. 22 for Bill Davis Racing), Regan Smith (No. 01 for Dale Earnhardt Inc.), Jeff Gordon (No. 24 for Hendrick) and David Ragan (No. 6 for Roush Fenway Racing).
These results don't say that all of these teams are in trouble, because everybody in NASCAR has a bad race, but remember to keep a close eye on this top 35 rule in the coming weeks.
170; 166
What it is: Quality passes made by Kasey Kahne and Dale Earnhardt Jr. during Sunday's race.
The story it tells: Looking back at 2007, perhaps the two biggest disappointments were two of the sports brightest stars — Kahne and Dale Jr. On Sunday, they showed that they have put their struggles behind them.
Kahne, driver of the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge, dealt with a car that clearly was not as powerful by itself as the Chevrolets and Toyotas. But just like fellow Dodge drivers Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch, Kahne was able to use the draft effectively to make 170 passes of cars running in the top 15 throughout the day en route to his seventh place finish.
Earnhardt, driver of the No. 88 AMP Chevrolet, was clearly among the best drivers at Daytona throughout Speedweeks (look at the results from the Budweiser Shootout and Gatorade Duel qualifying race 1 in case you need further evidence) and demonstrated his prowess by making 166 quality passes on race day. Had his teammates not all been wiped out by separate incidents, it could have been many more toward the end of the day. Still, a ninth place result is just the start he needs to start forgetting the disastrous 2007.
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