2013 Daytona 500 Pole Sitter: #10-Danica Patrick, 196.434, finished 8th

2013 July Pole Sitter: #18-Kyle Busch, 193.723, finished 12th

Track Qualifying Record: Bill Elliott, 210.364mph, February 1987

Track Qualifying Record with restrictor plate: Ken Schrader, 196.996, February 1989

Oldest Daytona 500 Pole Winner: Mark Martin, 51 years, 0 months, 27 days, 2/6/2010

Oldest Pole Winner: Mark Martin, 52 years, 5 months, 23 days, Daytona, 7/1/2011

Youngest Pole Winner: Jeff Gordon, 24 years, 11 months, 2 days, 7/6/1996

Fastest First Saturday Practice Speed: #27-Menard, 195.042mph, scheduled to qualify 29th out of 49 drivers

Fastest Second Saturday Practice Speed: #31-Newman, 195.346mph, scheduled to qualify 39th out of 49 drivers

Qualifying for the Daytona 500 is a different with the Budweiser Duel Qualifying Races,
see the rules on my Daytona Track News, Stats page and see the 2014 Budweiser Duel's page.

To the Back: #10-Patrick(engine); #14-Stewart(engine); #52-Labonte(engine); #1-McMurray (backup car); #15-Bowyer (backup); #34-Ragan (backup); #48-Johnson (backup); #66-Waltrip (backup); #78-Truex Jr. (backup)

Hamlin wins Budweiser Duel 2: #11-Denny Hamlin won the second Budweiser Duel qualifying race for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway followed by #24-Gordon, #41-Busch, #27-Menard and #33-Scott. The race ended when #48-Johnson ran out of fuel coming to the checked flag and slowed, #1-McMurray got into the rear of the #48, crashing the #48 into the wall and collecting outside pole winner #78-Truex Jr., #15-Bowyer (who flipped over but landed on his wheels and kept driving), #99-Edwards, #66-Waltrip and #34-Ragan. Four drivers deep in 2013 owners points or low qualifying speed, raced into the Daytona 500: #21-Bayne (6th), #40-Cassill(9th), #32-Labonte(12th) and #52-Labonte(13th). No driver needed to use the past champions provisonal. Missing the Daytona 500: #83-Truex, #35-McClure, #87-Nemechek, #95-McDowell & #93-Shepherd.
See race results on the Budwesier Duel 1 Race Results page (pdf).(2-20-2014)

Kenseth wins Budweiser Duel 1: #20-Matt Kenseth won the first Budweiser Duel qualifying race for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway followed by #4-Harvick, #5-Kahne, #9-Ambrose and #88-Earnhardt Jr. Four drivers deep in 2013 owners points or low qualifying speed raced into the Daytona 500: #98-Wise (6th), #26-Whitt(12th), #10-Patrick(14th) and #23-Bowman (15th). #14-Stewart races into the Daytona 500, finishing 11th, which assures a spot for #41-Busch at least via a past champions provisional. Pole winner #3-Dillon faded midway thru the race and finished 19th, but will start on the pole for the Daytona 500. Four drivers who didn't race into the Daytona 500 will make the race via speed or 2013 owners points (provisional spot): #55-Vickers, #22-Logano, #17-Stenhouse Jr and #18-Busch. #30-Kligerman, #36-Sorenson and #87-Nemechek could still make the race depending on the finish of the 2nd Duel. #95-McDowell will not race in the Daytona 500.
UPDATE: #4-Harvick's Chevy didn't pass post-race inspection after exceeding the split on the trackbar. So Harvick is moved to the 24th finishing spot and all the other drivers move up a spot, so #55-Vickers is now in the Daytona 500. Harvick will either have to use a provisional (11th in owners points) or get in on speed 26th fastest, which seems unlikely.
See race results on the Budwesier Duel 1 Race Results (revised) page (pdf)(2-20-2014)

Setting The Daytona 500 Grid:
* The two fastest qualifiers set starting positions one and two. Those were decided on Sunday, with #3-Austin Dillon winning the Coors Light Pole and #78-Martin Truex Jr. earning starting position No. 2.
* The highest 15 finishers in each Duel race - excluding the already locked-in front row - will earn spots in the Daytona 500, filling positions 3-32.
* Based on their finishing position in the first Duel race, the top 15 line up on the inside row (odd-number starting positions).
* Based on their finishing position in the second Duel race, the top 15 will line up on the outside row (even-number starting positions).
*Positions 33-36 go to the four fastest cars from qualifying that have not already earned a spot.
* Positions 37-42 are provisional positions and go to the highest six cars in 2013 owner points that have not already qualified via the Duel or Coors Light Pole qualifying.
* The 43rd starting position will be assigned to any car owner who has the most recent eligible past Sprint Cup champion who did not make the field by any other method, providing the driver competed in the 2013 Sprint Cup season. If the 43rd spot remains unused it will be assigned to the next highest car in 2013 owner points not already locked into the field.(2-20-2014)

Dillon wins Daytona 500 pole: #3-Austin Dillon won the pole for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway with a speed of 196.019mph. Dillon is the fifth rookie driver to win the Daytona 500 pole [Danica Patrick, Jimmie Johnson, Mike Skinner and Loy Allen] and the 4th driver to win the Daytona 500 pole running the #3 car [Buddy Baker-1969, Ricky Rudd-1983 and Dale Earnhardt-1996]. #78-Martin Truex Jr won the outside pole and will start 2nd next Sunday.
QUALIFYING RESULTS (odd qualifiers start in 1st Duel, even qualifiers in 2nd Duel)

Daytona 500 qualifying at Daytona International Speedway is being run, current speeds
1) #3-Austin Dillon 196.019mph - locked in, pole winner
2) #78-Martin Truex Jr. 195.852 - locked in, outside pole winner
3) #16-Greg Biffle 195.818 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by speed
4) #99-Carl Edwards 195.712 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by speed
5) #31-Ryan Newman 195.707 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by speed
6) #2-Brad Keselowski 195.296 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by speed
7) #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. 195.211 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by owners points/provisional
8) #24-Jeff Gordon 195.042 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by owners points/provisional
9) #17-Ricky Stenhouse Jr 195.004
10) #27-Paul Menard 194.919
11) #9-Marcos Ambrose 194.894
12) #22-Joey Logano 194.852
13) #33-Brian Scott 194.776
14) #43-Aric Almirola 194.658
15) #48-Jimmie Johnson 194.637 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by owners points/provisional
16) #13-Casey Mears 194.582
17) #20-Matt Kenseth 194.574 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by owners points/provisional
18) #7-Michael Annett 194.574
19) #5-Kasey Kahne 194.544
20) #15-Clint Bowyer 194.523 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by owners points/provisional
21) #18-Kyle Busch 194.502 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by owners points/provisional
22) #11-Denny Hamlin 194.477
23) #4-Kevin Harvick 194.422
24) #42-Kyle Larson 194.410
25) #10-Danica Patrick 194.380
26) #21-Trevor Bayne 194.334
27) #47-AJ Allmendinger 194.108
28) #41-Kurt Busch 194.078 - needs to race in via Budweiser Duel, no regular provisional available, BUT could use past champ if not used
29) #36-Reed Sorenson 194.066
30) #51-Justin Allgaier 193.815
31) #38-David Gilliland 193.736
32) #40-Landon Cassill 193.732
33) #30-Parker Kligerman 193.594
34) #66-Michael Waltrip 193.428
35) #14-Tony Stewart 193.365 - locked in Daytona 500 at least by past champions provisional
36) #35-Eric McClure 192.905
37) #55-Brian Vickers 192.798
38) #1-Jamie McMurray 192.695
39) #26-Cole Whitt 192.538 - needs to race in via Budweiser Duel, no provisional available
40) #34-David Ragan 192.328
41) #95-Michael McDowell 192.291 - needs to race in via Budweiser Duel, no provisional available
42) #32-Terry Labonte 192.135, could use past champions provisional if needed and not used
43) #98-Josh Wise 192.061
44) #52-Bobby Labonte 191.493 - needs to race in via Budweiser Duel, no regular provisional available, BUT could use past champ if not used
45) #87-Joe Nemechek 190.480
46) #83-Ryan Truex 190.347
47) #23-Alex Bowman 189.685
48) #93-Morgan Shepherd 189.542 - needs to race in via Budweiser Duel, no provisional available
49) #77-Dave Blaney no speed - needs to race in via Budweiser Duel, no provisional available
See qualifying speeds on the Daytona 500 Qualifying Speeds page and the Budweiser Duel lineups on the 2014 Budweiser Duel 150's page.(2-16-2014)

Daytona 500 Qualifying Fast Facts:
#3-Austin Dillon won the Coors Light Pole Award for the The 56th Annual Daytona 500 at Daytona with a lap of 45.914 seconds, 196.019 mph.
This is his first pole in 14 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his first pole and first top-10 start in 2014.
This is his first pole in two races at Daytona International Speedway.
#78-Martin Truex. Jr. (second) posted his first top-10 start of 2014 and his sixth in 18 races at Daytona International Speedway. This is the second time Truex has sat on the front row of the Daytona 500. He won the pole in 2009.
#16-Greg Biffle (third) posted his ninth top-10 start at Daytona International Speedway.
#3-Austin Dillon (first) was the fastest qualifying rookie.
Four times the #3 car has sat on the Daytona 500 Coors Light pole: Buddy Baker (1969), Ricky Rudd (1983), Dale Earnhardt (1996) and Austin Dillon (2014).
(NASCAR Statistics)(2-16-2014)

Coverage of Qualifying for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is scheduled for Sunday, February 16, 2014 at 1:10pm/et.
TV: FOX - 1:00pm/et
Radio: Motor Racing Network and Sirius XM Satellite NASCAR Radio
Qualifying Re-Air: none scheduled

Pole Progression: (who had the pole first, who got it next and who ended up with it)
#88-Earnhardt Jr., 1st out to qualify, 195.211mph, start position depends on Budweiser Duel finish
#16-Biffle, 33rd out, 195.818mph, start position depends on Budweiser Duel finish
#3-Dillon, 39th out, 196.019, starts 1st - on the pole

Hamlin wins Budweiser Duel 2: #11-Denny Hamlin won the second Budweiser Duel qualifying race for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway followed by #24-Gordon, #41-Busch, #27-Menard and #33-Scott. The race ended when #48-Johnson ran out of fuel coming to the checked flag and slowed, #1-McMurray got into the rear of the #48, crashing the #48 into the wall and collecting outside pole winner #78-Truex Jr., #15-Bowyer (who flipped over but landed on his wheels and kept driving), #99-Edwards, #66-Waltrip and #34-Ragan. Four drivers deep in 2013 owners points or low qualifying speed, raced into the Daytona 500: #21-Bayne (6th), #40-Cassill(9th), #32-Labonte(12th) and #52-Labonte(13th). No driver needed to use the past champions provisional.
Missing the Daytona 500: #83-Truex, #35-McClure, #87-Nemechek, #95-McDowell & #93-Shepherd.
See race results on the Budwesier Duel 1 Race Results page (pdf).(2-20-2014)

Kenseth wins Budweiser Duel 1: #20-Matt Kenseth won the first Budweiser Duel qualifying race for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway followed by #4-Harvick, #5-Kahne, #9-Ambrose and #88-Earnhardt Jr. Four drivers deep in 2013 owners points or low qualifying speed raced into the Daytona 500: #98-Wise (6th), #26-Whitt(12th), #10-Patrick(14th) and #23-Bowman (15th). #14-Stewart races into the Daytona 500, finishing 11th, which assures a spot for #41-Busch at least via a past champions provisional. Pole winner #3-Dillon faded midway thru the race and finished 19th, but will start on the pole for the Daytona 500. Four drivers who didn't race into the Daytona 500 will make the race via speed or 2013 owners points (provisional spot): #55-Vickers, #22-Logano, #17-Stenhouse Jr and #18-Busch. #30-Kligerman, #36-Sorenson and #87-Nemechek could still make the race depending on the finish of the 2nd Duel. #95-McDowell will not race in the Daytona 500.
UPDATE: #4-Harvick's Chevy didn't pass post-race inspection after exceeding the split on the trackbar. So Harvick is moved to the 24th finishing spot and all the other drivers move up a spot, so #55-Vickers is now in the Daytona 500. Harvick will either have to use a provisional (11th in owners points0 or get in on speed 26th fastest, which seems unlikely.
See race results on the Budwesier Duel 1 Race Results page (pdf) - note: not yet revised with Hendrick penalty.(2-20-2014)

Wednesday 2nd practice: for the Budweiser Duels / Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway is over, it started early due to the first practice being red flag and shortened. After 145 minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#11-Hamlin 199.574
#5-Kahne 199.570
#66-Waltrip 198.965
#17-Stenhouse Jr. 198.776
#16-Biffle 198.627
slowest: #23-Bowman 185.713 & #55-Vickers 189.099
40 of 49 cars have practiced.
backup cars that practiced included #27-Menard, #55-Vickers and #22-Logano.
cars that didn't practice: #4-Harvick, #9-Ambrose, #10-Patrick, #21-Bayne, #26-Whitt, #30-Klingerman, #77-Blaney, #78-Truex Jr., #83-Truex
See the speeds, laps run, 10-lao averages on the Daytona Practice 4 speeds page.(2-19-2014)

Wednesday first practice: for the Budweiser Duels / Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway is over, after about 30 minutes or so, two wrecks and a red flag, the top five, slowest and notes:
#47-Allmendinger 199.574
#55-Vickers 199.327 (wrecked)
#22-Logano 198.456 (wrecked)
#21-Bayne 198.308
#66-Waltrip 198.308
slowest: #34-Ragan 188.505 & #24-Gordon 189.203
34 of 49 cars have practiced.
no speeds for: #'s 95 87 3 98 88 40 51 33 48 31 17 36 52 32
notes: early in the practice, #26-Whitt had a tire go down and slapped the wall, #55-Vickers went down to avoid the 26 and got into #13-Mears. #55 then spun and nosed into the wall. #55 will go to a backup.
30 minutes into practice, #20-Kenseth was in the middle, moved down then back up, contacting #22-Logano, which turned sideways, collecting #30-Kligerman, #77-Blaney, #83-Truex, #21-Bayne and #27-Menard. All but the #20 & #21 are pretty damaged and looks like they will go to backups. Swan Racing has had two big wrecks in this practice session. #30-Klingerman ended up on his roof, upside down. All drivers are ok. The wreck damaged the fence on the front stretch, taking down some of the fencing, but the cables all held strong. #77-Blaney, currently does have a backup car, unless owner Randy Humphrey comes up with a backup, Blaney may not race the Budweiser Duel. The rest of the practice was cancelled to allow track workers to fix the front stretch fence. The 2nd practice is scheduled for 6:30pm/et and run 90 minutes.
See the speeds on the Daytona Practice 3 speeds page.(2-19-2014)

Practice Crash pierces hole in Daytona fence: A seven-car accident in Sprint Cup practice pierced a hole in the grandstand fence at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday. During Wednesday's first practice session, #20-Matt Kenseth appeared to spark a wreck that sent Parker Kligerman's #30 Toyota on top of Paul Menard's #27 Chevy and then along the SAFER barrier, where it tore a hole in the fence that forced the cancellation of the rest of the practice. A Daytona spokesman said the fence "performed the way it was designed to," but one steel cable and some mesh fencing would be replaced. The track has received no reports of injuries. Joey Logano blamed Kenseth for drifting up the track into the nose of his #22 Ford on Wednesday as he tried to exploit a gap. "Maybe I shouldn't have been racing as hard as I was there in practice, but everybody was in a big pack there trying to make things happen," Logano said. "As soon as he came back up I checked up a little bit and then the [Trevor Bayne] hit me from behind and we spun out. It happens. That's Daytona for you." Kenseth said Logano got too close and moved him and was spun once he corrected the car. Kligerman blamed Logano for being overly aggressive. "It's a shame. He's supposed to be a veteran," said Kligerman, a rookie. "You go up to the Sprint Cup Series and it's supposed to be the best of the best. You've got a guy in practice who's racing people like it's the end of the Daytona 500. Meanwhile, I came out of truck practice, and we were running 3 or 4 wide no problem. I don't quite understand that one. I'll have to talk him about that. I'm pretty upset about how that all went down."(ESPN), also involved in the wreck were #77-Dave Blaney and #83-Ryan Truex. The teams of #22-Logano, #27-Menard, #30-Klingerman and #83-Truex pulled out backup cars for the Budweiser Duel 150 qualifying races. #77-Blaney's team didn't have a backup car and no idea if the team will be able to fix the car or secure a care from another team to run the Budweiser Duel.
AND Four laps into the afternoon practice session, Cole Whitt scraped the outside wall after a piece of debris punctured the nose of his #26 Swan Racing Toyota. In an attempt to avoid Whitt's car, #55-Brian Vickers collected #13-Casey Mears' Chevrolet and shot nose-first into the outside wall. The impact sent parts and pieces flying, and one of the square cowl flaps from Vickers' Camry lodged edge-first into the nose and hood of Jeff Gordon's #24 Chevy. From the first wreck, Vickers went to a backup, but the teams of Whitt and Mears opted to repair their cars. Swan Racing teammates Whitt and Kligerman had but one backup car between them (NASCAR Wire Service).(2-20-2014)

2nd practice for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is over, after 110 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#31-Newman 195.346
#3-Dillon 195.211
#42-Larson 194.734
#4-Harvick 194.721
#13-Mears 194.704
slowest: #93-Shepherd 187.239 and #87-Nemechek 188.505
46 of 49 cars have made runs
notes: #10-Patrick, #14-Stewart and #52-Labonte both lost engines during this session.
All three drivers will have to fall to the rear of the field for the Budweiser Duel AND the Daytona 500.
The teams all did single car runs as they prepared for the Daytona 500 qualifying on Sunday [1:00pm/et on FOX].
Qualifying will be one car runs, not the new group qualifying, which will be used starting at Phoenix, the weekend following the Daytona 500.
See speeds and laps run on the Daytona 500 Practice 2 speeds page(pdf).(2-15-2014)

Opening practice for the Daytona 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway is over, after 120 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#27-Menard 195.042
#31-Newman 194.839
#20-Kenseth 194.561
#3-Dillon 194.334
#33-Scott 194.330
slowest: #93-Shepherd 187.719 & #23-Bowman 187.950
All 49 cars made single car runs
notes: #98-Wise had something wrong on his first lap, looked like some sort of right front hub/brake issue, only made one lap.
the teams are all doing single car runs so far as they are preparing for Daytona 500 qualifying on Sunday [1:00pm/et on FOX]. Qualifying will be one car runs, not the new group qualifying, which will be used starting at Phoenix, the weekend following the Daytona 500.
See speeds and laps run on the Daytona 500 Practice 1 speeds page(pdf).(2-15-2014)

Budweiser Duel's Starting Lineups, Results, Pit stalls, Notes

Daytona 500 Qualifying Rules

Race info at: Race Info Page

Event Entry List

Qualifying Rules

Past Champions Provisional

All Time Sprint Cup Pole Winners

Qualifying order is a random draw. Someone from the team draws a bingo like ball just before the first practice of the event.

How To Qualify For The Daytona 500: Qualifying for the Daytona 500 is unlike any other auto racing qualifying procedure. Drivers have multiple opportunities to qualify for the season-opening race, as opposed to the usual format of one qualifying session per event. The first chance comes via Daytona 500 Coors Light Pole Qualifying. The other chance is the Budweiser Duel at Daytona, two 150-mile qualifying races held on the Thursday before the Daytona 500. Below is a breakdown of the Daytona 500 qualifying procedure:
Daytona 500 Coors Light Pole Qualifying
" Each team may run two consecutive laps with the fast lap setting the qualifying time. The two fastest qualifiers earn starting positions one and two and are the only guaranteed positions, filling the front row for the Daytona 500 and pole positions for the two qualifying races.
" The Budweiser Duel at Daytona, two 150-mile qualifying races, will determine starting positions for the Daytona 500 beyond the front row. In the event of cancellation, the field will be set according to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rule Book.
Budweiser Duel at Daytona
" Those cars earning odd-numbered positions from qualifying will be assigned to the first Duel race. Those cars earning even-numbered positions from qualifying will compete in the second race.
" The starting positions for each Duel race will also be based on qualifying times.
Daytona 500 Lineup
" The two fastest qualifiers set starting positions one and two.
" The highest 15 finishers in each Budweiser Duel race - excluding the already locked-in front row - will earn a spot in the Daytona 500, and fill positions 3-32.
" Based on their finishing position in the first Budweiser Duel race, the top 15 will line up on the inside row (odd-number starting positions).
" Based on their finishing position in the second Budweiser Duel race, the top 15 will line up on the outside row (even-number starting positions).
" Positions 33-36 will go to the four fastest cars from qualifying that have not already earned a spot.
" Position 37-42 will be provisional positions, and go to the highest six cars in the previous season owner points that have not already qualified via the Budweiser Duel or Coors Light Pole qualifying. The cars are then set by fastest qualifying speed.
" The 43rd starting position will be assigned to any car owner who has the most recent eligible past NASCAR Sprint Cup champion who did not make the field by any other method, providing the driver had competed in the previous season. If the 43rd position remains unused it will be assigned to the next highest car in the previous season owner points not already locked into the field.(NASCAR)

Setting The Daytona 500 Grid:
* The two fastest qualifiers set starting positions one and two. Those were decided on Sunday, with #3-Austin Dillon winning the Coors Light Pole and #78-Martin Truex Jr. earning starting position No. 2.
* The highest 15 finishers in each Duel race - excluding the already locked-in front row - will earn spots in the Daytona 500, filling positions 3-32.
* Based on their finishing position in the first Duel race, the top 15 line up on the inside row (odd-number starting positions).
* Based on their finishing position in the second Duel race, the top 15 will line up on the outside row (even-number starting positions).
*Positions 33-36 go to the four fastest cars from qualifying that have not already earned a spot.
* Positions 37-42 are provisional positions and go to the highest six cars in 2013 owner points that have not already qualified via the Duel or Coors Light Pole qualifying.
* The 43rd starting position will be assigned to any car owner who has the most recent eligible past Sprint Cup champion who did not make the field by any other method, providing the driver competed in the 2013 Sprint Cup season. If the 43rd spot remains unused it will be assigned to the next highest car in 2013 owner points not already locked into the field.(2-20-2014)

Qualifying sets only Daytona 500 front row: Sunday's Daytona 500 Coors Light Pole qualifying is unique in that only the top two positions will be guaranteed. Remaining qualifiers are seeded by qualifying speed into Thursday's Budweiser Duel, two 150-mile races from which the majority of the final starting grid for the Daytona 500 is set. The front-row qualifiers and the highest 15 finishers in each Duel - excluding the front row from qualifying - will earn a spot in the Daytona 500. The next four fastest Coors Light Pole qualifiers will make up positions 33-36. Six provisional starting positions (37 through 42) will be awarded to the highest eligible car owners in final 2012 standings not otherwise qualified for the race. The 43rd position will be filled by the most recent past champion participating in a 2012 event. Should no past champion be eligible, the final position goes to the next highest owner in 2012 points. The most recent Daytona 500 pole winner to win the race was Dale Jarrett in 2000, one of two drivers (Bill Elliott is the other) to sweep The Sprint Unlimited, pole and race in the same season.(NASCAR)