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NASCAR is back, and the season kicks off with the Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway Saturday Night.
The Sprint Unlimited is an exhibition race that consists of drivers who won Coors Light Pole Awards during the 2013 Sprint Cup Series season, which means they were the fastest driver in the qualifying session, and former winners of this very race. Twenty drivers were eligible to participate, but only 18 will take to the track.
For the second year in a row, NASCAR is letting the fans help decide some of the rules for the race. Since this is an exhibition race, why not? Fans get to decide how the 75 laps and three segments are divided up, the method used to determining the starting lineup for the race, and how the field will line up to start the final segment. There are three options to choose from for each category. However, fans must have an account with NASCAR.com or must download the NASCAR Mobile App to be able to vote.
In my opinion, restrictor plate races are some of the most exciting events of the year. The plate bunches the field together and keeps the drivers in a pack that travels nearly 200 m.p.h. As a result, the plate levels the playing field, and big crashes are likely to occur. Every driver has a chance to win. Really, “it’s anyone’s race.”
Saturday’s race will feature the debut of the new look Stewart-Haas Motorsports, which perhaps is the most intriguing driver lineup in the Sprint Cup Series: Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Danica Patrick, and Tony Stewart. This will be Busch and Harvick’s first year with the team. In case you forgot, Busch and Stewart have a little history, including an altercation at Richmond in 2013. How will these two be able to work together?
Busch, Harvick, and Stewart are all former winners of this race. Harvick and Stewart have each won this race three times. By the way, Stewart is returning from a season-ending injury after he broke his right leg in a sprint car race at Southern Iowa Speedway on Aug. 5. Stewart is eager to get back on the track, and improve his impressive 4.8 average finish in the Sprint Unlimited.
Ryan Newman, a former Stewart-Haas Racing driver will make his debut with Richard Childress Racing. Newman will be the lone entry for Childress. Although Newman is more known for flipping upside down in the plate races, he is a previous winner of the Daytona 500. Maybe his luck will change with Childress. After all, Childress was in victory lane last year for this race with Harvick.
Another group to watch is Hendrick Motorsports. Their entries of Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, and defending Sprint Cup Series Champion Jimmie Johnson boast five wins in this race. Johnson was also the top plate racer last season, scoring two wins, and four top-five finishes in six races (this counts the two non-points races at Daytona).
Prediction: Jamie McMurray. He won the last plate race at Talladega in the fall, and he has four plate wins in his career. McMurray also had three consecutive top-three finishes in this race from 2009 to 2011. This time, he breaks through.
The Pace Car 