Birthday Bash

July 2, 2008 4:00pm CDT

Friday night, there will be short-tempered men driving at high speeds in heavy traffic all while tail-gating the guy in front him. What better way to celebrate our nation's independence?

On the Fourth of July, the Nationwide series gets back to restrictor plate racing at NASCAR's hallowed grounds: The Daytona International Speedway. Any race at the famed track is always special, but the fact that it falls on Independence Day will be extra motivation for every driver in the field.

With such high stakes at Daytona, the "big boys" of the Sprint Cup Series will be in force on Friday night. That puts the Nationwide Regulars at a disadvantage to the Claim Jumpers. However, this is still a restrictor plate race and one thing is certain—with the right push at the right time, anyone can win.

Claim Jumpers

No one has led as many laps at Daytona as Dale Earnhardt Jr., at least in the Nationwide series. Since 2005, he has led 167 circuits and he drove to victory lane in the summer of 2006. Since that win, he has earned two more top-10s, capped with a third this past February. Before that, he won four straight Daytona starts from February 2002 to February 2004. He has been solid in his limited Nationwide role, and fantasy owners can count on him to come through for them again.

It took Kyle Busch a while to warm up to Daytona, but now that the courtship is over, he is a regular contender. In his first seven Nationwide starts there, he had a best of 11th with an average finish of 25th. Things came together for him last July when he started 14th and cruised to his first Florida win in any of NASCAR's national touring series. He kept the ball rolling in February, picking up a strong second. To add to his mystique this weekend, he has led 165 laps in the last three years at Daytona, which ranks him second in that category.

Kevin Harvick rarely misses at Daytona in the junior circuit. Sure, he was 21st there in February, but prior to that, he had a win amid 11 consecutive finishes of eighth or better. Better yet, during that span an eighth in July 2004 was his only result outside the top-five, which means he's earned six top-fives in his last seven attempts at Daytona. Overall, the plate races have been good to him lately. His last two trips to Talladega SuperSpeedway resulted in a second in April 2006 and a sixth in April 2007.

Nationwide Regulars

Scott Wimmer remains in the No. 29 Chevrolet this week, which is good for fantasy owners. His price tag is much lower than teammate Jeff Burton's, and Wimmer has been solid in his starts this year. He was a mediocre 18th in Daytona to start the year, but his numbers have been much better since. He picked up the win at Nashville SuperSpeedway in the spring and was ninth at Daytona's sister track of Talladega later that month.

The Nationwide Regulars may be at a disadvantage at Daytona, but Jason Leffler has managed his share of quality finishes. What he does best is stay out of trouble. With so many younger drivers in the field, large pileups are plentiful. Despite that, he has finished each of his last nine starts there. During that span, he managed four top-10s, eight top-20s and a low of only 22nd. He kept plate racing momentum rolling when the series was at Talladega in April, finishing fourth in the Aaron's 312.

David Stremme had a bad day when he was last in Daytona. In that first race of the season, he went home a disappointing 42nd. It wasn't long after that he found his groove. Beginning with a fifth at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, he has rattled off eight more top-10s and 12 top-20s. What makes him an intriguing selection this weekend is that he was second at Talladega this spring and third in his previous Alabama start in April 2005. With Talladega and Daytona being so similar, it stands to reason that he will right the ship in Florida this weekend.

Power Rankings for this track
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