Race Day Pulse Special
2005 Gatorade Duel at Daytona: Race 2
60 Laps – 150 Miles
Pole Sitter: Jimmie Johnson
Command to Start Engines Given by Matt Martin (Son of Mark Martin)
Time of Green Flag: Approximately 3:05 PM
* Jeff Hammond and Chris Myers are in the Hollywood Hotel during breaks in the commentating coverage. Your commentators are Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds, and Darrell Waltrip.
Opening Lap
Jimmie Johnson leads the field down to the Green Flag, and we are underway with the 2nd Gatorade Duel at Daytona! Everyone immediately goes three wide behind the leader, though no trouble through the first turn. Johnson pulls ahead of pack down the backstretch, though Mark Martin is having trouble getting up to speed. Jimmie Johnson leads the first lap.
Caution! Lap 3 for Greg Sacks/Kirk Shelmerdine Crash
Scott Riggs cut a tire heading down into Turns 1 and 2, but I don’t think it had any effect on the crash directly behind him. It looked like, as Darrell Waltrip pointed out, that Sacks just got loose underneath Derrike Cope and lost control. It’s unfortunate to see both Sacks and Shelmerdine out of contention. Riggs, Mark Martin, and Robbie Gordon all make pit stops under the Yellow Flag. Car diagnosis by Martin’s crew: a problem with the carburetor.
Race Restart on Lap 8 – Jimmie Johnson continues to lead the race, and both Boris Said and John Andretti are sitting in the two transfer spots. Mark Martin continues to fall back, and Said gets shuffled into the middle of a three-wide pack down the backstretch and into the Tri-Oval. Martin Truex, Jr. and Rusty Wallace have now cracked the top five and are on the move. The first lead change of the race takes place on Lap 12 now, as Kevin Harvick gets some drafting help from Rusty Wallace and passes by Jimmie Johnson.
* Note: Kevin Lepage, Derrike Cope, Eric McClure, Larry Gunselman, Robbie Gordon, Andy Belmont, Kirk Shelmerdine and Martin Truex, Jr. have to race their way into the Daytona 500, because all of them failed to finish above the Top 35th in points in the previous NASCAR Nextel Cup season, and/or their Qualifying speeds from Sunday’s time trials are not good enough to get into the feature on Sunday.
Harvick is still leading past Lap 16, and the first five have broken away from the pack. The inside line really seems to be working for the leaders right now, more so than the high line. Martin Truex, Jr. and John Andretti are now occupying the transfer spots as of Lap 23.
Lead change on Lap 24! Jimmie Johnson passes Kevin Harvick to regain the lead, as the rest of the field have caught the leaders. Robbie Gordon is tight in the corners, as the whole field is two/three wide. Waltrip smells trouble up ahead (cue ominous music). Andy Belmont officially retires from the Duel and will head home for the 500 due to losing an engine. Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick finally hook up after Burton drafted with Johnson and helped push him to the lead in front of his teammate Harvick. Robbie Gordon cuts a tire entering Turn 3, but he manages to get to Pit Road without incident on Lap 30. Gordon is saved by green flag pit stops, which begin on Lap 30. Race leader Jimmie Johnson ducks in for his stop, as do Rusty Wallace, Kevin Harvick and Mark Martin. Both Tony Stewart and Bobby Labonte stay out (?) an extra lap, and don’t arrive on pit road until Lap 31. Jimmie Johnson beats Harvick, Martin and Wallace off of pit road, and Brian Vickers breaks a gear while in his pits. We’re halfway through the 2nd Gatorade Duel at Daytona, and your top five consists of Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Mark Martin, Jeff Burton, and Tony Stewart after all green flag pit stops have cycled around.
Caution! Lap 36 for the (mini) Big One!
Oh, goodness. Kevin Harvick attempts to bump draft with race leader Jimmie Johnson into Turn 2, which doesn’t end up very well, obviously. Johnson spins into the grass down the backstretch without major damage, but he parks his car nonetheless (to prevent anything from breaking on it before the 500, I’d surmise). Kevin Harvick is not so lucky, and has lost his primary car for the Great American Race. Mark Martin and Rusty Wallace are also involved in the crash, and both take especially hard knocks and are out of contention, as is Joe Nemechek. All will be in the Daytona 500, though. We cut to the garage for some reflections, and Johnson is slightly peeved, as well he should be. Nemechek calls Harvick an “idiot”, and Martin remorsefully conveys his woes to the interviewers, claiming that he could have won the 500 with that (wrecked) car, but not his backup car. Harvick defends himself to the delight of no one, though Wallace just reminisces about the hard impact. Seven cars are affected in all.
Race Restart on Lap 42 – Jeff Burton assumes the lead now that the leaders are out. Matt Kenseth is on the move, and is looking for the lead. Fifteen laps are left, and anyone has a realistic shot of winning this thing. Tony Stewart apparently hears me all the way from North Carolina, and uses drafting help from teammate Bobby Labonte to catapult into the lead past Jeff Burton. And then he hangs Labonte out to dry on the high side. Whoops…
The Final Laps
We’ve got ten to go and Stewart is leading comfortably. Everyone from Robbie Gordon and Kevin Lepage on back start to race hard for those last two transfer spots. Sterling Marlin is up to 6th place and is looking to help Martin Truex, Jr. back into the top five. 8 laps to go. Gordon is hanging on to that last transfer spot tenaciously, but Truex, Jr. is too strong, and Martin passes him with six laps to go to claim possession of the transfer spot! Kevin Lepage moves into third place and looks safe for the time being, but Burton is looking to make a run at Stewart for the victory here. Three laps to go, and Kenseth nearly loses control down the Tri-Oval! Kenseth is forced high, and Truex, Jr. tries to put distance between himself and a charging Robbie Gordon. White flag this time by! Scott Riggs is sideways in Turn 1 but keeps the car on the track, and we have three wide racing all the way towards the back of the pack. Burton cannot muster enough of a run, and Stewart is looking to win this race. Gordon gets some drafting help from Matt Kenseth, but Martin Truex, Jr. is too strong and manages to hold Gordon off. Tony Stewart takes the checkered flag and wins the second Gatorade Duel 150!
Race Winner: Tony Stewart
* After the race, Tony Stewart reflects on his first Duel win at Daytona from Victory Lane. Both Martin Truex, Jr. and Kevin Lepage and Co. celebrate on pit road after having clinched their two transfer spots. Kerry Earnhardt has officially been knocked out of the Daytona 500 following today’s Duel races.
Unofficial Results (Credit: NASCAR.com)
1. Tony Stewart (#20 Home Depot Chevrolet – 60 Laps)
2. Jeff Burton (#31Cingular Wireless Chevrolet – 60 Laps)
3. Kevin Lepage (#37 Carter’s Royal Dispos-all Dodge – 60 Laps)
4. Martin Truex Jr. (#15 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet – 60 Laps)
5. Scott Riggs (#10 Valvoline Chevrolet – 60 Laps)
6. Matt Kenseth (#17 DeWalt Power Tools Ford – 60 Laps)
7. Robbie Gordon (#7 Jim Beam Chevrolet – 60 Laps)
8. Scott Wimmer (#22 Caterpillar Dodge – 60 Laps)
9. Sterling Marlin (#40 Coors Light Dodge – 60 Laps)
10. Boris Said (#136 CENTRIX Financial Chevrolet – 60 Laps)
Rest of Field
11. #14 John Andretti
12. #18 Bobby Labonte
13. #32 Bobby Hamilton Jr.
14. #155 Derrike Cope
15. #19 Jeremy Mayfield
16. #43 Jeff Green
17. #173 Eric McClure
18. #152 Larry Gunselman (2 Laps Down)
19. #25 Brian Vickers (39 Laps – Off Track)
20. #48 Jimmie Johnson (35 Laps – Out of Race)
21. #29 Kevin Harvick (35 Laps – Out of Race)
22. #06 Mark Martin (35 Laps – Out of Race)
23. #01 Joe Nemechek (35 Laps – Out of Race)
24. #02 Rusty Wallace (35 Laps – Out of Race)
25. #07 Dave Blaney (35 Laps – Out of Race)
26. #80 Andy Belmont (24 Laps – Running)
27. #27 Kirk Shelmerdine (2 Laps – Out of Race)
28. #13 Greg Sacks (2 Laps – Out of Race)
Post Race Analysis
Transfer Spots – Kevin Lepage and Martin Truex, Jr.
Number of Cautions – 2 (Lap 3, 2 Car Wreck/Lap 36, 7 Car Wreck)
Number of Caution Laps: 11 out of 60 (1/6th of Race ran under Caution)
DNF’s: Greg Sacks and Kirk Shelmerdine (Crash on Lap 3); Mark Martin, Jimmie Johnson, Joe Nemechek, Rusty Wallace, Kevin Harvick, etc. (Crash on Lap 36); Andy Belmont and Brian Vickers (Engine).
The Pulse
If the first Gatorade Duel is half as good as this one, then we should all be in for a wild ride this Sunday at Daytona. The action never really dragged at a given point, and the whole 60-lap shootout theme really made for an entertaining race. Of course, this race pretty much puts giant question marks beside Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, and Rusty Wallace (can their backup cars run well enough to be competitive?), not to mention a giant bulls-eye on the back of Kevin Harvick. Tony Stewart and Michael Waltrip both confirmed my earlier beliefs about Chevy having the cream of the crop at Daytona this year. Now let us see if they can carry this momentum over to the 500.
Victory Lane
Be sure to check back here later tonight or tomorrow for complete coverage of the first Gatorade Duel, and check out Inside Pulse Sports over the weekend for continuing coverage of our “Countdown to Daytona” special! The Speed Addict is out.
