|| *Comments on the 2012 DRIVE4COPD 300:* View the most recent comment <#133> | Post a comment <#post> 1. Frank posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Undeliveable! Never seen anything like this before. For couple of secods I really thought that there will be no winner because everyone wrecked! 2. Spen posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Congratulations to James Buescher on winning in the flukiest finish I have ever seen in my life. That made Terry Labonte's 1980 Southern 500 win seem normal! But still, way to go. I'm a little surprised that he won a Busch race before winning in Trucks, but I did always think he'd be better suited to these cars. Hopefully, another win will come soon. 3. ericthenau posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Congratulations to James Buescher for getting his first NASCAR Nationwide Series victory! (P.S.: I only saw the final lap of the race and had no idea that Tony Stewart's 4-year streak of winning the Nationwide Series' first race of the season at Daytona was about to end.) Also, it was a shame that Morgan Shepherd became one of the 7 DNQs for this race after his #89 car finished 30th in the 2011 Nationwide Series' owner's standings. And it was really a disgrace that Jaff Green had to finish 43rd after using a Past Champion's Provisional to start 43rd for this race, too. Just wanted to let you know that ever since July 2010, he's been doing mainly nothing but start and parks in the NASCAR series where he won the championship in 2000. 4. 1995 Subaru WRX Sti posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Kurt hasn't changed one bit. Congrats to James. 5. Smiff_99 posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Man, I'm starting to lose count on the 'cars wreck during speedweeks' tally....holy hell, I don't know which one was messier...the Shootout, the truck race, or the NW race.... Maybe SOMEHOW tomorrow will be a little more subdued. Gotta love it for Buescher....talk about having one fall in your lap! 6. Taylor posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) WHAT AN EPIC FINISH!!!!!!!!! James Buescher was 11th going into Turn 3 on the last lap and everybody crashed in Turn 4 and Buescher gets through the wreck to win his first career Nascar win! 7. Batman posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Danica Patrick won the pole for this race becoming the second woman to win a pole for a Nationwide Series race. Shawna Robinson was the first woman to win a pole in the series (Atlanta 1994). 8. 1995 Subaru WRX Sti posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Smiff, 56 cars have been taken out, minus what happened today. 9. Cooper posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And this is why NASCAR needs to listen to the fans more often. Pack racing has made this the best Nationwide race at Daytona ever. Thumbs up to NASCAR. They have found the perfect balance between Tandem racing and Pack racing. This is what the fans want. At least what I do. Unbelievable. From 11th to 1st in a 1/4 mile. Wow. James Buescher. Kudos Oh and I believe the "Cars wrecked during Speedweeks" total has eclipsed 100. Tomorrow is going to be awesome. This is the best plate package since 2001, maybe ever? 10. Anonymous posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ESPN can suck it!!! That post race was a joke! Could they have possibly left faster? 11. posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cole Whitt scores his first career top 5 (and top 10) finish in his first start for JR Motorsports. Tayler Malsam and 2011 NWS Rookie of the Year Timmy Hill also score their first career top 10 finishes in the series. 12. potatosalad48 posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What a crazy finish with 10 cars at least being taken out. Great job to James Buescher in an Earnhardt-esque move to go from 11th to 1st and win. 13. Dion posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) just when I thought I had seen it all...this race happens. I thought to myself, no way can the NW or cup race even come close to the insanity of last night, yet somehow managed to top that truck race by a mile. Not only did James FINALLY get his 1st win, he did it from 11th place in the middle of turn 4 to first coming out of the turn. Jimmie Johnson's magic horse shoe just reappeared with James...lol 14. RaceFanX posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:49 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Danica Patrick started from the pole and led early but faded after contact with the outside wall. She crashed after a bump drive from her teammate Josh Wise but despite cussing out Wise on the radio it was just a racing deal (She got sideways and came off the bank but her resulting crash was by no means unavoidable, she made mistakes too). 15. Rusty posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:50 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Congrats to James Buescher on his 1st NASCAR win. Makes it 2 for 2 in underdog victories at Daytona. After Trevor Bayne last year, we have to wonder if we'll get a threepeat of shockers tommorrow. RCR starts off their run for a championship well. Elliott Sadler runs 3rd and Austin Dillon 5th. Kurt Busch led the most laps in this race, making it the 7th time in 13 Nationwide starts he has led the most laps, 54%. He has also led in 12 out of 13 Nationwide starts. As a Kurt fan, I thought Kurt pulled off a real brainfart move on the last lap. To me, it looks like he panicked when he lost Kyle's draft and tried to block or side draft the cars on the outside without realizing Tony Stewart was on the outside of them making it three wide. 16. RaceFanX posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In ESPN's defense they were supposed to televise a UNC men's college basketball game after this race and the Busch race ran over a bit but ESPN still interviewed the winner, several top finishers and showed several replays of the crash. The channel missed the tip-off of the UNC game to do so. 17. Dion posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) It was Cole whitt...not josh wise... and How did Stewart, Kahne, Kurt finish in the top 10? I didnt think their cars even crossed the finish line.. 18. Bronco posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Have never seen a finish like that, where the front 10 cars all crash opening up the door for someone who wasn't a factor all day to win. Very glad that Tony Stewart didn't win AGAIN, and Dale Sr's record of 5 straight wins in the 300 miler is still intact. First ever Nationwide top 10 for Whitt, Malsam and Hill. The new rules package is the best ever, it has an interesting blend of pack racing, bump drafting and two car tandems and the ability to make moves by yourself. I hope it doesn't change. This race set a record for most lead changes in a Daytona Nationwide race set at last summer's 250 mile event. I hate how a late wreck at a track means they run a bunch of laps under caution which then sets up a two lap sprint to the finish, which doesn't allow the race to play out naturally and just sets up the inevitable two car tandems. I don't know why NASCAR doesn't just stop the race, have the clean up crew attend to all the cars and repair the walls and then resume racing. If we see a new winner tomorrow in the 500, then I'm almost certain it would mark the first time in NASCAR history that all three races of a weekend were won by first timers. The 500 tomorrow is going to be a total crapshoot, it doesn't matter who the favorites are because Tony Raines has the same chance of winning as does Tony Stewart. 19. Jake posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:53 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Great runs for Tayler Malsam(6th),Timmy Hill(7th),Benny Gordon(12th),Danny Efland(13th),and Blake Koch(17th). 20. 10andJoe posted: 02.25.2012 - 5:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Madness! THIS! IS! DAYTONA!!! 21. Mrittenhouse84 posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) I'm sorry but the end of this race was a complete joke. I can understand if the accidents were cause by Nationwide drivers, But it was the Cup guys that caused them the most. If you were a fan of this you are not a true race fan. Granted I love the new package that they have, But you know if there is a caution in the last 10 laps at Daytona or Talladega, The race WILL NOT end under green. Too much carnage. I have never in my life seen so many vicious crashes in speedweeks as I have this year. It is a miracle that no one has gotten hurt. Thank You NASCAR and safety. The ending of this race looked like i was playing NASCAR the Game in an online Lobby. This made NASCAR look amateurish. If the "500" is anything like this in the end, I have a feeling something bad may happen. just my $0.02 22. NicoRosbergFan posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bueschwhacked! 23. Rusty posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:05 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, I would like to say the champion's provisional needs some tweaking of some sort. It is an absolute joke that Morgan Shepherd, despite being fast enough to make the field, is sent home for past champion Jeff Green who didn't even attempt to run 5 laps. I don't know how NASCAR can sit here and not feel embarassed when they see these teams completly exploit them like this. Jeff Green and his team should not get a penny out of NASCAR for running 3 laps simply because Green won a championship 11 years ago. 24. ch posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Busch and the others who wrecked got there positions since the yellow freezes the field, they don't have to cross the finish line. 25. 1995z71 posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Danica once again wrecks... & once again she blames someone else. 26. Anonymous posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) NASCAR needs to find a reason to impound Jeff Green's cars, this is a joke 27. ch posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I don't have a problem with Green since that money goes to fund the 44 team of Bliss which ran REALLY well today. Still wish Morgan would have made it though... 28. The Great Dave posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "ESPN can suck it!!! That post race was a joke! Could they have possibly left faster? " Speed Chanel pretty much did the same on Friday 29. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:13 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) That was an unbelievable and possibly the flukiest finish to a NASCAR race I have seen in quite a while. You come off Turn 4 ready to finish 11th, then everyone in front of you wrecks and you're the first one through who gets the win. Congrats to Buescher though, it's pretty much up to him whether this win is a springboard for his career, or the one highlight. It was also pretty obvious everyone was waiting until the end to really drive remotely close to "on the edge". We had little wrecks throughout most of the first 100 laps, then we had 3 big wrecks in the final 20. I also thought it was bogus how Green used his PCP to get into the race only to park 3 laps in. 30. DaleSrFanForever posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:15 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Congrats to James. Sure it fell in his lap, but he still survived the madness of the first 119 laps to be there which is no small feat. Like The King always said, all you can do is put yourself in position at the end and hope things work out. Its not his fault Kurt, Kyle, Ricky, and Trevor all lost their minds when Smoke and Sadler came flying on the outside. Can't believe he is only 21. Looks like a promising future. And a huge middle finger to ESPN. For their blatent favoritism of their darlings (Danica, June, KyBu), for not planning to have a long chaotic race forcing a quick ending (and this is me saying this, I bleed Carolina Blue), and most importantly for being unable to hide their disappointment that James won, not an established star. That pissed me off the most. Andy Petree, whom I normally don't mind, really pissed me off in this one. Accrediting Richardson's great save to luck wsas pure bullshit. Had KyBu done that again this week, they would have ordered NASCAR to just stop the race right there and give Kyle the win, the championship, a championship belt with thw words "greatest driver ever" on it, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 31. 10andJoe posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Busch and the others who wrecked got there positions since the yellow freezes the field, they don't have to cross the finish line. " Er - they do. The catch is, as long as they DO cross the finish line at a reasonable speed, their positions at the time of field freezing are upheld. Those who DON'T cross the finish line finish one lap down and out of the race - i.e. Kyle Busch and Ricky Stenhouse. 32. ch posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Hmmm, didn't think Kurt / Stewart crossed the line, but ESPN never showed us! 33. Rusty posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Kurt crossed the start/finish line. I remember him getting out of his wrecked car at the end of pit road. 34. 1995 Subaru WRX Sti posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I agree the race was fine, 50-50 split for pack and tandum drafting. you can get away, but not to point of like 20 car lengths (NASCAR had this last year at Talladega and people still complained). Robert Richerson know nows how Robby Gordon feels. Gets left out to dry the media for making a great save and display of driving talent, only to be forget by the media favorites. Know i'm really happy not go to any school that offers media courses, i'd be fired from my job on the first day. Its ESPN ladies and gents, what else do you expect? 35. Bronco posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Hmmm, didn't think Kurt / Stewart crossed the line, but ESPN never showed us!" Actually ESPN did show both crossing the finish line. At 1:04 you can see the light blue car of Stewart cross the finish line after the #88 car, and Kurt just rode the wall on the left with his car ruined. I think every car in this race was involved in one of the cautions, in one way or the other. Also from looking at the finish you can tell that if James had been even a fraction of a second slower while avoiding the wreck, he would have definitely have gotten nailed in the right rear while Brad was attempting to correct his car. 32 of 79 (40.5%) vehicles ended up with crash related DNFs between the Truck and Nationwide races, and if you were to include damaged vehicles, that number would easily double. And if anyone remembers, James's first NASCAR win should have been the 2010 New Hampshire truck race, where he restarted the race as the leader but for some reason chose the outside lane (at a track where the inside lane has always been the preferred line) and lost the win to Kyle Busch. 36. chris posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Another first time winner, maybe in the nascar event tomorrow will also be a first time winner. congrats to james on his win. 37. The Other RCR and Penske Guy posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DaleSrFanForever, you must have an IQ of 160! 38. The Great Dave posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsor Corrections #3 Advocar / American Ethonal #4 DERacing.com #6 Kelloggs Rice Krispies Treats/Pop Tarts #09 Family Farmers /American Ethanol #28 JPO Absorbents / Green Stuff / HTP #44 Tri-Star / UNO Chicago Pizzeria #50 Eastbound & Down only on HBO #52 Better Business Bureau / HPT #54 Monster Energy / RaceTrac #70 Foretravel / Biomet 39. 10andJoe posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Car owner corrections: #2, #3, #33 - Richard Childress 40. cjs3872 posted: 02.25.2012 - 6:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) When's the last time that a race was won by a car that was listed on the race's accident report TWICE? James Buescher's #30 was listed as being invoved in both the fourth and sixth caution periods in the race. And it appears that more than 30 of the 43 cars were involved in crashes in this race. If the Daytona 500 goes the full distance, my prediction of 12-15 cars running at the finish is unfortunately looking better by the minute. 41. OldSchoolNascarDude1 posted: 02.25.2012 - 7:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I do agree about the Richardson deal. He made an incredible save, but the booth would give him no credit. If Kyle Busch would have done that, ESPN would have had at least 15 replays of it and talked about his incredible car control. I'm not saying it wouldn't have been deserved, but Richardson deserves to get some credit, too. 42. Lugnut18 posted: 02.25.2012 - 7:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) This race further proved how much of a joke SS racing is. Rather than be anticipating a side-by-side finish, I'm waiting for the big wreck to happen. In this race, it happened 3 times. This race, the truck race, and the shootout just make NASCAR divers look like a bunch of freaking amateurs. The only time these races finish under green is when there are only 5 non damaged cars running at the end. It really is a joke. Congrats to James on his first win. 43. ch posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sponsor correction on the 40: The Motorsports Group (New Team Name) Owner correction on the 2/3/33: Richard Childress 44. matthew posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Reed sorenson has actions almost similar to Ron hornaday and joey coulter last night in big wreck with 20 to go 45. 10andJoe posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "When's the last time that a race was won by a car that was listed on the race's accident report TWICE?" Last night in the Truck Series race? ;) 46. cjs3872 posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Okay, 10andJoe, and I believe it's the third time that's happened during this SpeedWeeks, because I believe Kyle Busch might have been listed in the accident report twice in the Shootout, but prior to this year's SpeedWeeks, can anyone remember the last time a car has been listed in the accident report for a race more than once and won that same race? 47. cjs3872 posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And Lugnut18, what is "SS Racing"? 48. 10andJoe posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #52 sponsor: Better Business Bureau/All Sports Tailgating 49. Dinger22 posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Not a James Buescher fan, and not happy that he got the most miraculously gift-wrapped race in at least 30 years. He didn't earn it, he won by default. That race was an awful crash-fest dominated by Cup ringers, then won by one of the few Nationwide drivers that didn't deserve it. Between that and the Truck race, what a disgusting way to start the weekend. God I hope the 500 tomorrow isn't like this. At this rate, we're probably in for a 5 hour race full of cautions, won by a driver like David Stremme after a bunch of better cars are knocked out by other's idiotic driving, further deteriorating the prestige of what was once a great race. Bring on Phoenix. 50. Anonymous posted: 02.25.2012 - 8:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) What a run by Mike Bliss in Tristar equipment, it's a shame he crashed out. He almost took out his teammate McClure in that wreck too. So Timmy Hill is running for NSCS points? 51. Kyle posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) yes, timmy hill will be driving the #37 poynt.com ford for rick ware / larry gunselman in the cup series for rookie of the year. 52. Anonymous posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:02 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) First Nationwide race without Jason Leffler since mid 2005 Trevor Bayne joins Hank Parker Jr and Billy Johnson as the only drivers other than Carl Edwards to drive the #60 car since the start of 2005. Hoping this is the first of many NASCAR wins for James Buescher. He will win on the truck side sooner before later. 53. Anonymous posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Lugnut18, Big wrecks are prone to happen at Daytona and Talladega thanks to plate racing, not due to side to side racing and the lack of communication with other drivers. The other problem is NASCAR not allowing drivers to communicate with other drivers on the track. NASCAR tried to do stuff to encourage pack racing for making the fans happy and improving the odds of wrecks happening like the fans want. The "Big Ones" happen because of pack racing and no communicate with other drivers. Big Packs due cause big wrecks in different series including Indy Car. Dan Wheldon died in a "big one" that was caused by pack racing. NASCAR not allowing drivers to talk to other drivers by channel is a big problem because drivers do not know what the driver they are ahead are planning to do next. Nascar Drivers are able to do side to side racing, but the nature of Daytona and Talladega are the problem. If a driver blows a tire at Daytona or Talladega, a big number of cars will be in it thanks to pack racing. The same thing is true if a driver taps anther driver. 54. Lugnut18 posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) SS is short for superspeedway racing. NASCAR will never try to find a solution to pack racing. They had one, it was called a 2 car draft, but a majority of racing (wrecking?) fans screamed that they hated it, so NASCAR has tried to go back to pack racing. Races like these make NASCAR look like a joke to the rest of the racing world. 55. DaleSrFanForever posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Watching SportsCenter replays of Danica's wreck, radio tirade, and pounding inside her car, and I can't help but wonder: Is she Kurt and Kyle's long lost sister? Think about it! The dark hair, skinnier than a rail, huge tirades everytime something doesn't go right, off putting attitude, inflated sense of importance in the sport. Kyle was born 7 years after Kurt, a curiously long interval in a family with just 2 siblings. Danica was born between them. Is it possible she was born to Kurt and Kyle's parents who decided they weren't quite ready for another child just yet and sent her to a Mid Western adoption agency? Doesn't that make sense? At the very least concede that my hypothetical can't be disproven!!! Although, for pure hilarity, nothing tops her Indy Car Michigan shit fit. That was EPIC. 56. Evan posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) That finish was simply NUTS. Kyle Busch blocked the two car tandem of Stewart being pushed by Sadler and then causes a wreck that takes out his brother Kurt and a slew of other guys including defending champion Tony Stewart. Not saying its entirely Kyle's fault but he'll have to pay the bills to fix that bent up racecar. Others * First time Kevin Harvick Inc. is not in the Busch Series and the 33 from RCR is on the Busch side, but its still is essentially the 33 Cup team. * First time a Busch regular of any kind regular won the Daytona 300 since Randy LaJoie in 2001. * Debut of Kyle Busch Motorsports and Kurt's debut in James Finch equipment. * Re-Intro of RCR's Nationwide Program, that has been out since about 2007. * Never has there been a winning driver who has been involved in 3 accidents or more win a race, nor I have seen any driver pass more cars. * Stewart was going for a record of consecutive wins at Daytona however he could not make it to the front and crashed out after Kyle Busch blocked the way of Stewart and Sadler's two car tandem draft. * The Long, long awaited return of the number 3 on any racecar since 2001. Richard Childress owns the number and many urban legends think that the number is "retired" however Austin Dillon ran a good race and finished a respectable 5th in the iconic 3's return to Daytona. * This race loosened me up, I am ready for the Daytona 500. 57. Ryan posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Tony just missed having five straight and seven out of the last eight. He had all the momentum, too. Would have been wild for sure if he came around there and won it again. Tomorrow should be ridiculous and crazy, survival of the fittest, luckiest, and smartest. 58. Mr X posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ss racing is superspeedway racing, and agree 100% with comments 21 and 42, speedweeks 2012 has been the most frightening in years, and the drivers are making themselves look like rookies, After reading most of cjs's comments during january testing he was predicting a demolition derby, I thought he was overreacting a bit, but now I don't, this is unbelievable. Races where 60% of the field are damaged cars, 40% are crashed out, I hate to say this but ever since the 2011 repave NASCAR's most imfamous track and race is the most overrated joke of the year. Congrats to James Buescher he avoided all the wrecks, but thats it, I dont know how some of these drivers and teams can find this much satasfaction and confidence in race wins that are this flukey and gift wrapped. Bring on the intermediates. 59. AYO MAGGOTS posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:38 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Maybe if ESPN didn't waste an hour and a half before the green flag talking about Danica they could have rearranged their schedule to have more of a post race show. I personally, enjoy post race comments more because the drivers talk about what happened. In the pre race shows, they are asked the same irrevelant question every week: "What's it gonna take to win today?" Today I heard the most insane question asked by Dr. Jerry Punch, a respected pit reporter/broadcaster for nearly 30 years, to Tony Stewart: "Tony, if your coming to the checkered flag and you're pushing Danica, do you push her to the win or try to pass her? WTF! Are you serious. Get the F--K over Danica ESPN. 60. Bronco posted: 02.25.2012 - 9:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "* Re-Intro of RCR's Nationwide Program, that has been out since about 2007." No, their Nationwide program went away after the 2010 season when the Zaxby's #21 was phased out. "Stewart was going for a record of consecutive wins at Daytona however he could not make it to the front and crashed out after Kyle Busch blocked the way of Stewart and Sadler's two car tandem draft." It was Kurt that got disconnected from Kyle's front bumper and moved all the way up the track to start that mess. Kyle would have the race won but he didn't move down low enough and got hooked by Stenhouse. First time since 2004 that Carl Edwards was not in this race, since Fastenal moved up to Cup with him, leaving him without a sponsor. Steve Wallace lost 5 Hour Energy and wasn't in this race for the first time since 2006. "* The Long, long awaited return of the number 3 on any racecar since 2001." That's not true either, Dale Jr won the July Nationwide race at Daytona in 2010 with the Wrangler colors and he won this very race 10 years ago with the Oreo colors. He also drove the #3 in the 2002 May Charlotte race. 61. Cooper posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:07 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Big wrecks happened at Daytona and Talladega, long before restrictor plates. So did longshot winners and crazy finishes... Attrition has always played a big factor at Daytona and Talladega. Some people here think that this has just started recently...C'mon people. I can list all the fluke winners that won at these tracks long before the restrictor plate came along. I can also provide a mammoth of links that direct to big wrecks at these tracks from the every damn decade. So don't give me some damn sad sob story about how these races are wreckfests and that "it's not like it used to be". Daytona and Talladega has been like this forever. C'mon don't let your bias outshine your knowledge for the history of the sport. 62. cjs3872 posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mr X, if you want to know why I predicted a "demolition derby" for the Daytona 500, just look at all the plate races since the new car was instituted for the fall Talladega race in 2007. Almost every one of them has been a demo derby, including the rain-shortened Daytona 500 in 2009. A major reason has been that the cars have such a fast closing rate, that there's no way to get them away from each other. And every Daytona 500 since 2005 has been that way, and you can even include the 2004 race because of the 19 cars that were involved in wrecks in the first 200 miles of that race. Add to that the rule changes giving more cars a chance to win (double-file restarts, the wave-around, and multiple GWCs), and you've got the recipe of a terrible specatcle. And add the very likely potential of rain both Sunday and Monday, and you could have something rivaling the 1973 Indianapolis 500, just without the injuries and death, but with the possibility of needing as many as three days to get the race in, if the weather is as bad as forecasted. Whenever the Daytona 500 is run, and it might not be until Tuesday if the weather forecasts are true, it wil be survival of the fastest and smartest, and it will take a driver that is both conservative and one able to make the decisive move when needed, and that's a formula that suits Kevin Harvick, which is why I picked him to win the Daytona 500 during the holiday season. And with the Fords so dominant, but only one Ford driver (Matt Kenseth) capable of making the big moves when it counts, and the Hendrick cars not likely to contend (especially Gordon, who's ben a non-factor since he last won the race and Kahne, who has never been comfortable racing in confined spaces, which is why he struggles on short tracks), and most of the rest of the field likely to get caught up in wrecks, Harvick is my choice to win the Daytona 500, whenever it's run. 63. Dodge posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I have a solution to solve the past champion provisional......In Nationwide, get rid of it. Then the whole thing would be impossible to do. Anybody like that? In Trucks and Cup, I have no problem. Not abused in Trucks or Cup I believe. 64. Brad24 posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @#42: "This race further proved how much of a joke SS racing is. Rather than be anticipating a side-by-side finish, I'm waiting for the big wreck to happen. In this race, it happened 3 times. This race, the truck race, and the shootout just make NASCAR divers look like a bunch of freaking amateurs. " It happened during the ARCA race as well when Brandon McReynolds ran out of gas while leading coming to the checkers. But what little I saw of the ARCA race, it was way more tame than the other races this week. The problem is that everyone is driving in way over their heads. Jeff Burton said during a race at Talladega one time saying you see that kind of racing with 20 to go. But 20 to go started at the green flag. Now that pack racing is back, they need to be more careful with the bump-drafting. Especially in the turns. Somebody who is an accomplished and experienced plate racer such as Gordon, Dale Jr., or Stewart needs to step in and set these guys straight and be a leader. Now onto today's race: Props to James Buescher on today's win. It's never over till it's over and it's also about being in the right place at the right time and sure was that. IMO he should in NNS full-time this year instead of NCWTS. I only got to see that last 10 or so laps. So I can't really recap the rest of the race. @55: "Watching SportsCenter replays of Danica's wreck, radio tirade, and pounding inside her car, and I can't help but wonder: Is she Kurt and Kyle's long lost sister?" Amen to that! I get so sick of the media coverage that she gets it's unreal. ESPN/ABC is absolutely for horrible for that. They have been since she started IndyCar And not just NASCAR on ESPN, but Sportscenter, Pardon the Interruption (Or PTI), Around the Horn, and I'm sure there are more programs that is really shoving all these storylines down our throats. Even Michael Wilbon from PTI picked her the win the 500. Really Mike?! Now FOX/Speed is getting that way. I'm sure TNT will be like that too. My point is she basically got into a top-notch ride that she didn't earn. If she actually had the talent, I can understand. But 1 win (A fuel mileage win.) Indy Car in 5 or 6 years (Whatever it was) is not exactly talented in my book. There are drivers out there that have more talent in their pinky finger that her entire body that are more deserving of a ride, or a better ride than her. But unfortunately, that's the reality of the sport today. It has been for the past decade or so. It's all about money and marketing and not about pure talent. 65. cjs3872 posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) And Cooper, while I agree with you that big wrecks occurred long before the restrictor plates, it's never been anywhere near this bad. By my count, there have been 12 major crashes in the NASCAR races this week, 13 if you count practice for the Bud Shootout. Yes there have been big wrecks prior to the modern restrictor plate era, and I'll list a few of them: 1960 Modified-Sportsman race at Daytona: 37 cars Second qualifying race at Daytona in 1965: 16 cars 1973 Winston 500 at Talladega: 19 cars 1975 Daytona 500: 9 cars 1979 Winston 500 at Talladega: 18 cars 1982 Daytona 500: 7 cars 1986 Daytona 500: 9 cars 1987 Winston 500 at Talladega: 8 cars when Bobby Allison tore down the catch fencing And those are just the massive multi-car crashes that I know of, and there may have been others prior to 1988. And that doesn't even mention some of the other horrifying crashes that took place prior to 1988 (such as Maynard Troyer's horrifying crash early in the 1971 Daytona 500), or the crashes from 1988 through 1995, when plate racing was at it's most legitimate. 66. Ed posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #62: You can NEVER count out Jeff Gordon here. He was a factor early in 2006 when Tony Stewart decided to block him into the wall on lap 50. 2007 he was running 6th when he crashed on the last lap. 2008 ran in the top 5 the entire first half until a parts failure sent him to the garage. 2009 was in a position to win until an ill-timed pit stop put him back in the field. 2010 you're right, he wasn't a factor there. 2011 taken out by Michael Waltrip on lap 28. It's not his fault he wasn't a factor, he just hasn't had the luck. And since that Daytona 500 win he's won 3 times at Talladega. 67. 18fan posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:44 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Duels were pretty encouraging in terms of drivers not being dumb. There was only one wreck caused by one driver bumping another. Michael Waltrip's crash was maybe the dumbest piece of driving I've ever seen, but that had nothing to do with the type of racing. Neither did, in my opinion, the last lap crash in Duel 1. McMurray slid down into Almirola and Aric went down into Danica, but that same thing is a major possibility in tandem racing as well as pack racing. I don't think the 500 will be a total wreckfest if the drivers drive like they did in the Duels. But the end of every plate race is a wreckfest, no matter what type of drafting is happening. so there will be some late wrecks, but that's happened every year since 2007. 68. Ed posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:51 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) 42 of the 43 cars either had crash damage or car trouble. The only driver who came through unscathed: Elliott Sadler. 69. DaleSrFanForever posted: 02.25.2012 - 10:57 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "* The Long, long awaited return of the number 3 on any racecar since 2001. Richard Childress owns the number and many urban legends think that the number is "retired" however Austin Dillon ran a good race and finished a respectable 5th in the iconic 3's return to Daytona." I have been surprised at how little true emotion has been stirred from having Richard's grandson driving a black #3 car (with the stylized version of the #3 Dale made famous). Even from myself. For so long, I have been one of those "whatever the circumstance, don't bring back the #3, especially that #3, Dale made that number and nobody else can drive it" guys. But seeing that black #3 Truck the past few years and seeing it on track today I felt..... nothing. No nostalgia, no memories came flooding back, no happiness, no sadness, no introspection, nothing. And that has made me come to a realization: It was never about the black #3, or that particular stylized version. It was all about Dale. I think a lot of us (me included) have trivialized Dale by associating him with a number and a color (even though his most overpowering stretch was '86-'87 in the bright blue and yellow car). The fact is Dale transcended that number. He certainly transcended RCR. It doesn't really matter. Unless Dale is behind the wheel, that stylized #3 is truly meaningless. I know that sounds harsh, but it is the reality. At least from my perspective. Dale was not #3. Dale was Dale Earnhardt, the man we all wished we could be. The fact is when Dale died, any chance of that number having significance in the future died along with him. And speaking of numbers, Grievance #1,083 of today's ESPN telecast: When Austin was pushing Dale Jr and their ridiculous claim of "this must be a sentimental moment for NASCAR fans" garbage. Um, no. First off, we have have Dale's disappointing son who, while inheriting quite a bit of his Dad's natural skill, inherited absolutely ZERO of the intangibles (heart, pride, determination, the ability to make a freaking pit stop) of Big E. And I'm sorry, I have no emotional attachment to the Dillon boys. I don't dislike them, but they can't just draft off Dale's legacy. The pre race bit where they said that stylized #3 was "in their blood" was a bunch of crap. I give them a pass, they are young and Richard and their Dad have probably fed them that garbage their entire lives. But it is laughable. It is a number. Nothing more. The man who made it famous? Somebody who can NEVER be summed up by something so trivial. 70. Cooper posted: 02.25.2012 - 11:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DSFF, you are completely correct. A number is just a number. I think it's stupid when franchises "retire" numbers as if one man was bigger than the team and/or the franchise. It didn't matter if Dale Sr. drove the #3 or drove #94. When someone drives the #3, there is no emotion or no tie to Dale. It was just a number that he ran, just like #2 or #15. The only reason that the media seems to believe in this #3 "Aura" isn't because he was a 7 time champion, it was because he had a fatal accident. Because if the number was "sacred" because of the 7 championships, then people would complain about Bobby Hamilton/John Andretti/Aric Alimorla driving the #43 and you just don't hear about it. 71. Eric posted: 02.25.2012 - 11:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The thing with Michael Waltrip is something you have to wonder if his 10 plus Concussions he suffered in his racing career is catching up to him. Micheal Waltrip admitted that he suffered at least 10 concussions in his racing career matter of fact earlier in this week. He admitted to blocking out after suffering a practice crash at at Las Vegas in 1998 and kept it too himself without telling anyone. I brought up the amount of concussions because look what happened to boxers and NFL Players that suffered concussions or other head injuries. I do agree Michael Waltrip's crash was pretty dumb. 72. Bronco posted: 02.25.2012 - 11:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "nd the Hendrick cars not likely to contend (especially Gordon, who's ben a non-factor since he last won the race and Kahne, who has never been comfortable racing in confined spaces, which is why he struggles on short tracks)," Dale Jr and Tony Stewart have both shown plenty of speed throughout the weekend, I don't know why you think they won't contend. Although I want Dale Jr to win, I am going to pick David Gilliland to win the 500 based off his practice speeds, his drafting experience and the fact that a first time Daytona 500 winner would complete the trifecta of drivers scoring their first win this weekend. 73. 10andJoe posted: 02.26.2012 - 12:22 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "42 of the 43 cars either had crash damage or car trouble. The only driver who came through unscathed: Elliott Sadler." Wrong; Sadler got caught up in that last-lap crash. So 43 of 43? "I think it's stupid when franchises "retire" numbers as if one man was bigger than the team and/or the franchise." What about when an entire LEAGUE retires a number like MLB did with #42? 74. Trixie posted: 02.26.2012 - 12:36 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) All four of Turner motorsports Nationwide wins have come with the winning driver leading only the last lap. 75. cjs3872 posted: 02.26.2012 - 12:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ed (#66), Gordon's rarely been a factor in any restrictor plate race since the new car was introduced in 2007, because Hendrick Motorsports, as a group, has since adopted the strategy of running in the back of the field until the last 100 miles. Even in the race he won at Talladega in the fall of 2007, he ran in the back all day. But back to his recent Daytona 500 woes, which really goes back to having Steve Letarte as crew chief, he really wasn't much of a factor in the 2006 race, even before he got wrecked. His chances to contend in the 2007 ended with the tech infraction after his qualifying race win which relegated him to the 42nd starting position, and the Hendrick cars, except for Kyle Busch, were terrible that week anyway. He did have the strongest Chevrolet in the 2008 race, but a suspension failure due to the track surface kept him from having a good finish, and his problem in the 2009 race was a result of a poor chassis setup, as he pitted under green due to a tire failure caused by the setup. In 2010, Gordon's was the only Hendrick car to even threaten in the second half of the race, but his car had no speed at all. And last year, he was relegated to the back due to damage he got in the chain reaction from Kevin Harvick's blown engine, though he might have been in that huge crash, anyway. And now having a crew chief known for poor race day strategy is not going to help him, either. I really don't expect Hendrick Motorsports to be much of a factor in the race, whenever it's run, which may not be on Sunday due to the possibility of rain. On the other hand, I do expect the Stewart-Haas Racing effort to be a serious factor in the Daytona 500, especially the #14 car of Tony Stewart. And remember that Ryan Newman, Stewart's teammate, led the most laps in last year's Daytona 500. 76. Kyle posted: 02.26.2012 - 12:44 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) i never had any problem with the dillon brothers running the #3, even if one of them runs it in cup someday. any notion of number being sacred went out the window when robby gordon started start and parking the #7. at least if austin brings the #3 back to cup he'll win a ton of races with it. 77. Bronco posted: 02.26.2012 - 1:49 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "because Hendrick Motorsports, as a group, has since adopted the strategy of running in the back of the field until the last 100 miles." Not true...that strategy has mainly applied to Mark Martin, Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon at the fall Talladega race (mainly Jimmie), but Dale Jr never participated in that until last year, when you had to be paired up with a car at all times. I don't recall Casey Mears doing that in 2008 either. "He did have the strongest Chevrolet in the 2008 race, but a suspension failure due to the track surface kept him from having a good finish," No, Dale Jr was by far the fastest Chevy in the 2008 Daytona 500, he proved it with his Duel win and by finishing as the best Chevy in the field. Gordon was faster than polesitter Johnson before his suspension let go. 78. Spen posted: 02.26.2012 - 2:05 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cjs: You mentioned earlier about Kenseth being the only Roush driver who can 'make a move when it counts'. While he certainly has the best track record of doing so, don't forget that Biffle has won a Firecracker 400, and won the Southern 500 in back-to-back years. Plus, he's won two NASCAR championships, albeit in lower divisions, but unlike Carl's, they came before he started running Cup. So I wouldn't say he's unproven in big events, just not consistently reliable. Carl's a proven choker, though. However, if Edwards or Kyle Busch ever manage to win the 500, this would be the year, as you won't need to be good at deal sealing, you'll just need to be really lucky. 79. 10andJoe posted: 02.26.2012 - 2:25 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) -First career win for James Buescher. -First career top 5 for Cole Whitt. -First career top 10 for Cole Whitt, Tayler Malsam and Timmy Hill. -Also best career finish for Benny Gordon (tied - Iowa 2009) and Danny Efland. -First career start for Johanna Long. 80. Watto posted: 02.26.2012 - 2:46 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "I hate how a late wreck at a track means they run a bunch of laps under caution which then sets up a two lap sprint to the finish, which doesn't allow the race to play out naturally and just sets up the inevitable two car tandems." Bronco, the two car tandems didn't need to be set up... they ARE the way to win whether we're green for 2 laps or 20. "Busch and the others who wrecked got there positions since the yellow freezes the field, they don't have to cross the finish line." That's not true. They absolutely do have to cross the line, and using today as an example, Stewart, Kurt, & Kahne all crossed the line where they are on the results chart (with destroyed cars and all). 81. AlmrolaFan51/88/43 posted: 02.26.2012 - 6:22 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) No one said this yet, but James Buescher wins his first NASCAR race one year on the exact day after DNQ'ing for the Truck race at Phoenix. Wow. 82. ii posted: 02.26.2012 - 7:14 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The guy on SportsCenter didn't even know how to pronounce Buescher's name this morning...shows how bad ESPN can get. 83. Derek posted: 02.26.2012 - 7:15 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) First of many wrecks for little miss hothead. 84. Ferrit posted: 02.26.2012 - 7:52 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) DSFF, Cooper EXACTLY! I had to turn off the pre-race on the TV as I actually felt sorry for the BS the Dillon guys were going on about, yes I get they're related to Childress, and Austin drives a #3 (which to me is a number), if Sterling had died at Daytona instead of Dale, would there be a similar 'mistyque' around the #40? Being very, very blunt I find some NASCAR fans hypocritical with their 'OMG NOBODY SHOULD DRIVE TEH THAT WAS DALE'S NUMBER' attitude, when nobody bats an eyelid to AJ or Amirola or Rick Wilson or John Andretti running in the 43. I'll admit to pulling for the 3, but simply out of him having talent, I forgot what Austin's car number was and didn't immediately look for him. WHen they both (Austin and Danica) get to Cup, it'll be a TV network's dream come true, think about it, they'll play the 'The #3 is baaaaaaaaaaack' angle, and the Danica angle constantly, I think the way races are covered is a joke personally. As for ESPN, they need to get the F--K OVER DANICA. Does everything for them revolve around her or the big stars (Kyle, Tony for instance)? No, it does not. The Nationwide series is a second tier series, it's like having Jeter, A-Rod and Posada show up at a Yankees AAA game and the media focus on them for 8 1/2 innings, it is absolute BS. The pre-race intro also total BS with Brad getting argumentative, I wondered how staged it was and if Brad was going to say something he'd regret. 85. Ferrit posted: 02.26.2012 - 9:35 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cooper, you said... "I think it's stupid when franchises "retire" numbers as if one man was bigger than the team and/or the franchise." Gonna disagree there. Branching out from NASCAR, the obvious (and cited) example is Jackie Robinson's number 42 in baseball. That should be retired and celebrated for what he did. What about MJ's 23? Larry Bird's 33? Kareem's Lakers number? Or in football, Elway's #7, Montana's #16, Manning's Colts number, should they all be retired? It's a lot easier at a pro level to retire a number as you got 98 others to pick from, 99 if you go from 00-0-99, than it is at any other level (college, HS or whatever0 Jackie Robinson's number IS bigger than baseball. Jackie IS bigger than the teams he played for, simply for what he did. It was a turning point for society as a whole, suppose instead of being a MLB player, Jackie was a racer, would you still want #42 retired? I personally would want any number with that significance retired. Next to somebody like him, Richard or Dale pale into insignificance, they are greats of the sport, but have had next to no cultural or society impact. 86. Cooper posted: 02.26.2012 - 9:52 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jackie Robinson is a different issue. I can understand a situation like that and how he needs to be remembered. Larry Bird. No. Michael Jordan. Chicago Yes. Not league-wide (Is this leaguewide?) Elway. No. Montana No. Manning. NO. For a number to be retired, there has to be a certain criteria. I.E. Changing the World. You actually possessed a good question "If Jackie was a racecar driver, would you want it retired?" I actually don't have an answer for that one. 87. cjs3872 posted: 02.26.2012 - 10:22 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Spen, Biffle's win in the 2003 Firecracker 400 came on fuel mileage, nothing else. He had a fifth-place car, but those in front of him all had to stop for gas, but he and then-teammate Jeff Burton didn't, and that's why Biffle won that race by about 4.5 seconds. In fact, Biffle admitted to choking the 2010 Daytona 500 away because he moved on Jamie McMurray too soon. Biffle's first of two consecutive Southern 500 wins in 2005 came because he had fresh tires on the GWC restart, and leader Ryan Newman didn't, so again, Bifle didn't have to do anything special. And Biffle choked the second qualifying race away this year to teammate Matt Kenseth. Now, that's not saying that Kenseth wasn't going to pass him anyway, but Biffle made a really dumb move going to the white flag, which made it really easy for Kenseth to get around him. 88. cjs3872 posted: 02.26.2012 - 10:29 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bronco, did you watch the 2008 Daytona 500, because if you did, you would know that Gordon had the best Chevrolet in the race, as he was the only one that could run with the Joe Gibbs Toyotas before his suspension issues began to surface. Dale, Jr.'s was the best in the preliminaries, but Gordon's was the best in the 500 itself, which was (and still is) a frequent trademark of Gordon. Gordon, much like Richard Petty, would show everything he had in the preliminary races, which is why he ran second to Earnhardt, Sr. in a few qualifying races. He didn't want his competitors to know what he really had before the Daytona 500. It's also for that reason that Petty finished second in the qualifying race eight times, but only won one. Petty didn't want anyone else to know what he had until it counted. 89. cjs3872 posted: 02.26.2012 - 10:33 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) That last comment should have said that Gordon, much like Richard Petty would NOT show everything he had in the preliminaries, saving their best for the Daytona 500. I believe one reason Dale Earnhardt, Sr. had so much trouble winning the Daytona 500 was that he always showed everyone else what he had before the Daytona 500, while other drivers he was competing against, like Gordon, Dale Jarrett, and Sterling Marlin, among others would hold back in the qualifying races so guys like Earnhardt wouldn't know if what they showed in the qualifying races was all they had, or whether or not they had more than they were showing. 90. martin-n-rusty posted: 02.26.2012 - 1:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cooper, gotta disagree with you. It just does not seem right seeing some chump run around, no matter the sport, in a number that someone else made famous, either for the team, or for the sport. As for the race... I thought Bobby Gerhart was trolling by going from 5th to 1st on the last lap of the ARCA race, James Buescher just beat Gerhart for greatest troll job of the Speedweeks. 91. martin-n-rusty posted: 02.26.2012 - 1:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, AYO MAGGOTS... There WAS a red flag, and 8 caution periods... that will help in making a race run over, even with ESPN doing their Danica tit sucking 92. 10andJoe posted: 02.26.2012 - 2:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Michael Jordan. Chicago Yes. Not league-wide (Is this leaguewide?)" As far as I know, no - just Chicago. 93. 18fan posted: 02.26.2012 - 2:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I believe Jackie Robinson's #42 is the only number that is retired leaguewide in all of the major American sports. In case people are curious, Mariano Rivera still wears #42 because he began wearing it before MLB made it retired leaguewide. 94. rsh posted: 02.26.2012 - 2:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) godd race 95. ch posted: 02.26.2012 - 6:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @#93, Wayne Gretzky's number 99 is retired league wide in hockey. 96. cjs3872 posted: 02.26.2012 - 7:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Well, I guess I should put my two cents in on this number retirement conversation. What MLB did by retiring Jackie Robinson's #42 sport-wide was an idiotic thing to do and one of the worst decisions ever made by the head of any sport. The retiring of numbers across other sports should be a team/organization decision, not a league decision. There was actually a time when the NFL actually outlawed the retirement of jersey numbers. And some players who should have their jersey number retired, haven't, and some teams, like the Oakland Raiders, Dallas Cowboys, and Washington Redskins do not retire jersey numbers, but they also have no intent to ever issue those number again. A classic case here has to do with O.J. Simpson. The Buffalo Bills have never officially retired Simpson's #32 jersey, because when they would probably have retired O.J.'s #32 was when the NFL did not allow teams to retire uniform numbers. But the Bills have also pretty much made it clear that #32 will never be issued again. The Redskins also have uniform numbers that, although not retired, it's pretty well known they the Redskins will never issue them again, like John Riggins' #44. The only number the Redskins have ever officially retired is Sammy Baugh's #33. Other NFL teams, like the Raiders and Cowboys, don't retire uniform numbers, but rather reissue certain numbers to players at certain positions. For instance, the #s 3, 12, 1and 16 for the Raiders have always been reserved for quarterbacks though a WR now has the #12 for the Raiders). and for the Cowboys, the #88 has always been reserved for the team's top receiver, going back to the days of Drew Pearson. However, although I don't think it's ever officially ben retired, the Cowboys have no intention of ever reissuing the #12, Roger Staubach's number. So there have been jerseys that have been unofficially retired, much like Dale Earnhardt's #3 in the Cup series in NASCAR. But the only nymber ever retired in a NASCAR series in the #61 in the Modified series in which Richie Evans won nine championships, including eight straight, and being awarded the last one in 1985 posthumously. However, it has been said for years by IndyCar officials that, whenever his team finally leaves the sport, that IndyCar will officially retire A.J. Foyt's #14, which would be the first time a car number would be retired in any major auto racing series. But for a sport to unilaterally retire any number is, to me preposterous. That decision should be made by the individual organization, not the sport itself. And by the way, other MLB teams have retired the #42, and it has nothing at all to do with Jackie Robinson, such as the St. Louis Cardinals, who retired the number in honor of Bruce Sutter. And the New York Yankees have retired the #8 number in honor of not one, but two catchers, Bill Dickey and Yogi Berra. The decision of whether or not to retire numbers is the task of the individual team, not the sport. And in NASCAR, if a car owner decides not to use the number, he should lose the right to use the number. In fact, Richard Petty was told in 1993 that if he did not use the #43 in 1994 (he used #44 in 1993), that he would lose it. That same edict should have been given to Richard Childress years ago regarding the #3. And if another team wants to use the number 3 if Childress doesn't want to use it, then so be it. 97. Talk4Tar posted: 02.26.2012 - 8:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) Retiring numbers in racing is stupid. 98. Daniel posted: 02.26.2012 - 8:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great save by Robert Richardson Jr., even though he got no credit for it. 99. DaleSrFanForever posted: 02.26.2012 - 9:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) There are a few other unofficial number retirements that will have to wait a while to be official because they need time to heal some wounds. The Red Sox have unofficially retired Roger Clemens' #21. He was the face of that franchise for many years, but had an ugly split with them, eventually signed with the Yankees (including showing up at the All Star Game in Fenway Park for his place on the All Century team wearing a Yankees cap even though it was just his first year with them), then had the steroid scandal. They'll retire it eventually, but it will take a while. Best current example: Brett Favre and the Packers. One day they will have a very emotional ceremony at Lambeau Field where they honor Brett and retire #4. But feelings are still raw on both sides. Brett hates Ted Thompson's guts because he finally said enough is enough with Brett's retiring.... oh wait, no I don't schtick. And the Packers fans are still a little sore about the way he drug the organization through the mud in the summer of '08 then signed with the rival Vikings. Plus he takes shots at Aaron Rodgers periodically, a stark contrast to the way Bart Starr (the greatest Packer ever) embraced Favre. Also, for the record, the Miami Heat retired Michael Jordan's #23 even though he never played for them and were his first round victims in the playoffs quite often. That would be like San Diego Chargers retiring Tom Brady's number. The Heat also retired Dan Marino's #13. Seriously. That would be like the San Francisco Giants retiring Montana's #16. That would make more sense. At least he won some Super Bowls (4 to Dan's zero), that city's only pro titles with the exception of the Warriors (now in Oakland) winning the NBA title sometime in the 70's (can't remember which year) led by Rick Barry who makes the Busch brother's personalities seem polite by comparison, and the World Series win by the Giants which just recently happened. 100. Rusty posted: 02.27.2012 - 1:08 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Heat supposedly retired the #13 for Dan Marino, but it is complete BS because the number #13 is currently in use by Mike Miller. 101. Watto posted: 02.27.2012 - 3:39 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "It just does not seem right seeing some chump run around, no matter the sport, in a number that someone else made famous, either for the team, or for the sport." Well, we might as well retire every number ever then, because at some point, every number is gonna be made famous by someone. 102. Scott B posted: 02.27.2012 - 11:25 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Looking forward to watching Cole Whitt and Austin Dillon battle it out for Rookie of the Year in NNW. Both have some talent and are in decent rides. 103. Anonymous posted: 02.27.2012 - 11:32 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) How about Tayler Malsam? Crashed in one of those last cautions and avoided the carnage on the final turn to get 6th. Bliss ran really well too. 104. Kyle posted: 02.27.2012 - 12:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) i love how a lot of people are like "james buescher didn't really earn this win", but if stewart, jr, or one of the buschs made the same pass they would be saying "wow that was a move only a veteran driver and championship contender could have made." 105. DaleSrFanForever posted: 02.27.2012 - 1:19 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Agreed Kyle. Now Beuscher needs to win more races and this will be seen for what it was. A great move. 106. 10andJoe posted: 02.27.2012 - 2:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Luck is when preparation meets opportunity", which fits perfectly with what happened here. 107. Rusty posted: 02.27.2012 - 3:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Entry list for Phoenix is out. Looks like there is very little changes from Daytona. Kevin Harvick will be in the #33, the #1 team won't be there as well as the #5. But other than that, the field looks pretty similar. 108. Talon64 posted: 02.27.2012 - 5:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "And if anyone remembers, James's first NASCAR win should have been the 2010 New Hampshire truck race, where he restarted the race as the leader but for some reason chose the outside lane (at a track where the inside lane has always been the preferred line) and lost the win to Kyle Busch." Don't forget last year's IRP race where he led half the race but got beat by Timothy Peters who spun out halfway through, put on 4 tires, and then ripped through the field in that 107 lap green flag run to end the race and take the win. 109. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 02.28.2012 - 12:32 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Well, we might as well retire every number ever then, because at some point, every number is gonna be made famous by someone." Exactly, if we had to retire numbers every time a driver retired, there would be no numbers left to use. The #24 should be kept on track after Jeff Gordon retires because his legacy isn't tied to a car number in any way (even if he has driven just the #24 for his entire career). The same goes for Jimmie Johnson and #48. I also wouldn't mind at all if the #3 came back into the Cup Series, which it probably will when RC feels that Austin Dillon is ready for Cup but the fans shouldn't try and tie Austin to the #3's legacy. 110. RCRandPenskeGuy posted: 02.28.2012 - 12:34 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) And to be fair, this win DID fall into James' lap. I do give him credit for avoiding all the carnage earlier in the race though. Like DaleSrFan mentioned, he'll need to win more races in order to avoid having this win be seen as his career highlight. 111. Talon64 posted: 02.29.2012 - 6:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) James Buescher picks up his 1st career NASCAR Nationwide Series win in his 35th series start. He's just the 3rd driver to get their 1st career win at Daytona: Dale Earnhardt in 1982, the Busch Series' inaugural season, and Tony Stewart in 2005. Which makes him the first non-full-time Cup driver to accomplish the feat. Buescher's only other top 5 in Nationwide was a runner-up finish at IRP last season, and he has 3 runner-up finishes (17 top 5's) in 73 career Truck starts. It's Turner Motorsports 4th career Nationwide win, all since 2011 and all with last lap passes. Brad Keselowski gets his 11th career runner-up finish in NNS (versus 17 wins). It's his best finish in 9 career Daytona starts (3 top 5's, 12.8 average finish). Elliott Sadler's the highest finishing regular NNS driver in 3rd. It's his first top 5 in 8 career NNS starts at Daytona (21.3 avg fin), although he's a former Daytona 500 runner-up from back in 2002. Cole Whitt was the highest finishing rookie, finishing 4th for his 1st top 5 in just his 4th series start. He had just 2 top 5's in 25 races as a rookie in the Truck Series last season (11 top 10's, 9th in points, 2nd in ROTY standings). Austin Dillon makes it 2 rookies in the top 5 with his 3rd top 5 in 12 career NNS starts, his 2nd and his 4th top 10 in 5 starts since last season for KHI/RCR (7.8 average finish). Tayler Malsam, in his first Nationwide start since 2010, gets his best career finish in 12 career starts in 6th, his first top 10. Malsam has 11 top 10's in 39 career Truck starts, including 10 as a rookie in 2009. 2011 NNS ROTY Timmy Hill picks up his first career top 10 in 34 series starts in 7th. It's also the 1st top 10 for Rick Ware Racing in 151 starts. Tony Stewart's streak of 4 straight February Daytona NNS wins came to an end with his 8th place finish; it's his 40th top 10 in 93 series starts. Kasey Kahne picked up his 8th top 10 in 17 career NNS Daytona starts (20.0 avg fin), including 4 of his last 5 starts (8.0 avg fin). Kurt Busch picked up his 11th top 10 in just 13 series starts (8.1 avg fin). Benny Gordon tied his best career NNS finish in 12th (2009 at Iowa), his 3rd top 20 finish in 8 series starts since 2009. Danny Efland finished a career-best 13th, just his 3rd top 20 finish in 40 series starts since 2007. Johanna Long finished 21st in her Nationwide Series debut. Danica Patrick became just the 2nd female driver to win a Nationwide Series pole (Shawna Robinson, Atlanta in 2004). 112. Talon64 posted: 02.29.2012 - 8:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) "He's just the 3rd driver to get their 1st career win at Daytona: Dale Earnhardt in 1982, the Busch Series' inaugural season, and Tony Stewart in 2005. Which makes him the first non-full-time Cup driver to accomplish the feat." Correction: He's the 4th driver to get their 1st career win at Daytona. I forgot about Chad Little in 1995, which makes him the 2nd regular NNS driver to do it. 113. cjs3872 posted: 03.01.2012 - 11:22 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) And Talon64, we don't know who, if anyone got their first major NASCAR win in the 300-mile race at Daytona prior to 1982 either, though it's doubtful anyone did, though if they did, it's certainly guaranteed nobody ever did it, or will ever do it the same way Buescher did on Saturday. 114. Frank posted: 03.03.2012 - 2:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Special thanks to Talon64 for stat pack! Priceless if you haven't enough time and well-prepared database. Me and my friend (Ivan Balakhonov) will comment Phoenix race live on our website in Russian for hardcore Russian fans and also for newcomers who barely heard about any racing outside F1 :) MotorsTV re-established broadcasting of this series first time since 2006 and all Europe have now much easier access to watch NNS live. 115. 18fan posted: 03.03.2012 - 5:28 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Not just have all four of Turner Motorsports' 4 wins come with last lap passes, the winner has led only the final lap in all 4. 116. Brad24 posted: 03.03.2012 - 8:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm keeping a tally of drivers who win in another series where they don't receive points. It will be in this format: Cup-Nationwide-Truck. After Daytona: 0-0-1. 117. Jim posted: 03.15.2012 - 10:30 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) When was the last time the no 30 won in Nationwide ? Anybody know ? If ever 118. Daniel posted: 04.14.2012 - 9:20 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Out using the fastest 43: #4 Danny Efland, #52 Reed Sorenson, #81 Jason Bowles In using the fastest 43: #42 Erik Darnell, #73 Derrike Cope, #89 Morgan Shepherd 119. Anonymous posted: 05.21.2012 - 3:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The entire head of the lead pack crashes coming out of turn four, James Buescher is the first car to escape through undamaged and coasts across alone to collect the win 120. ericthenau posted: 06.12.2012 - 8:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Jim, before this race, car #30 last won a NASCAR Nationwide Series race in the 2004 Goody's Headache Powder 200, with driver Jamie McMurray, in what is North Carolina Speedway in Rockingham, N.C.'s last NASCAR Nationwide Series race as of today. 121. RaceFanX posted: 11.27.2012 - 10:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Prior to that Michael Waltrip won six of his 11 career Busch victories using the #30 between 1989 and 1993 (He used it up until 1996 when he left the Behari #30 Cup team and switched to #12 for his self-owned Busch series entry that year) 122. Mannoroth posted: 08.08.2014 - 7:20 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. rather wrecked Kyle Busch in the last lap, than seeing him win again, I suppose. There were 5 cars on the outside line in front of Kyle, Kyle was alone on the inside line and Stenhouse was 6th with somebody on the outside line. That first 5 cars wrecked and Kyle had clear path to the victory, but Stenhouse both avoid the wreck by turning left and right into Kyle. James Buescher just got lucky, that's all. 123. Big Mac Fan posted: 10.24.2015 - 12:07 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Can you say Crash Fest? 124. Anthony posted: 01.19.2016 - 7:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) If there's a race that sums up how much of a lottery plate racing is, this is it. 125. Anonymous posted: 03.27.2020 - 2:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) the 19 car wreck with about 15 laps to go in this race was the biggest wreck for Xfinity series since 2003. and Biggest at Daytona in that series since 1990 The Largest One for them that is. They did have another 19 car melee in 2017 as well. 126. Anonymous posted: 03.27.2020 - 2:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I misspoke 20 in 2017 at Daytona my bad. 127. Foote posted: 05.04.2020 - 11:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Me thinks Kyle's disdain for Ricky Stenhouse started here. This was KBM's first race as a full time NXS team, and when the crash happened on the last lap, Kyle Busch was staring at clear track ahead of him and the win until Ricky Stenhouse (trying to avoid the crash) turned hard into his right rear, sending the #54 into the wall at a speed that might have killed Kyle if not for safer barriers. 128. Mannoroth posted: 05.05.2020 - 12:24 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 127. I agree. That wasn't pretty at all. 129. Foote posted: 05.05.2020 - 12:59 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) I was going to say KB's impact on the last lap was the hardest head on hit we've ever seen a safer barrier take...then I remembered Eric McClure's crash at Talladega later in this season. Mike McDowell's Texas wreck is probably #1 actually. 130. Jason24 posted: 05.05.2020 - 7:13 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) I always wondered why more people didn't talk about Kyle's crash in this race. The impact was tremendous. It seemed like wrecks like that were somewhat common in the tandem draft era. Regan Smith took a huge and similar hit at Talladega in the Fall of 2011. 131. Timothy_Eklund posted: 05.06.2020 - 2:37 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Just rewatched this race. I don't remember what they did to the cars, but the combination of pack racing and tandem drafting was amazing. 132. SweetRich posted: 07.07.2020 - 9:45 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the race that marked the return of Richard Petty as a full time team to The Nationwide Series after leaving in 1996. The single car team did make a one race return at Montreal in August of 2011. 133. Jimmie4life posted: 07.07.2020 - 10:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I also noticed something: The Xfinity cars went faster in 2011 & 2012 than in 2013. Did they slow down the cars and I didn't know about it? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: