Daytona 500 lessons, storylines to watch rest of Cup season
Kyle Busch didn’t finish with good results, but he sent a message during Daytona 500 week: He will be a factor in 2023 with his new ride at Richard Childress Racing.
Busch was in position to win both his qualifying race and the Daytona 500.
That’s not much of a surprise considering he replaced Tyler Reddick, who was a factor at many races (and won three) last season.
Here are five things learned at Daytona and five storylines to keep an eye on as the NASCAR season now finds its rhythm starting this weekend at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California, for the Pala Casino 400 (Sunday, 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX).
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1. RCR drivers strong
Not only did Busch run among the leaders, so did teammate Austin Dillon.
Dillon played a key role in bringing Busch to RCR when things fell apart for Busch at Joe Gibbs Racing. Dillon convinced his father to consider hiring the two-time Cup champion.
The hope was that Busch would elevate the entire RCR program by pushing Dillon and everyone else who works there. So far, it would be hard to argue that he hasn’t.
2. Logano, Bell primed for 2023
Joey Logano and Christopher Bell were first and third in the standings last year and finished second and third in the Daytona 500.
Logano also had edged Bell in their qualifying race. Both of them are obviously starting 2023 with momentum following solid 2022 seasons.
They both seem to have a little bit more swagger this year, so don’t be surprised if they are among the drivers with the most wins in 2023.
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Joey Logano describes the feeling of finishing second in the Daytona 500 after winning last season's Cup championship.
3. Daniel Suárez not KB’s fave
Daniel Suárez might not be Kyle Busch’s favorite driver. Suárez punted Busch into the wall during their qualifying race, requiring Busch to go to a backup car for the Daytona 500.
Then as Busch was leading on Lap 198 of the race, Suárez spun, bringing out the caution and forcing Busch to try to navigate a restart, one which ultimately cost him the lead.
While Suárez and Busch have had a good relationship, Suárez has to hope he doesn’t have an incident that impacts Busch at Fontana.
4. NASCAR learned lesson last summer
NASCAR waited for the rain to fall at Daytona last August and when it did, it was already too late as several Cup cars ended up in the wall due to the slick track.
During the truck race Friday night, any time a NASCAR spotter stationed around the track felt as much a drizzle, NASCAR seemed to throw the caution. It wasn’t taking any chances.
It would have raced in some of those conditions a year ago and probably would have been OK. But the message to NASCAR from competitors has been loud and clear: better safe than sorry.
So NASCAR chose to be safe. It ended up with a truck race that never got in a rhythm because of the mist. But better that than NASCAR being sorry about a bunch of wrecked vehicles.
5. Daytona cutoff race will be wild
Fans probably didn’t need to see the Daytona 500 to know that when the Cup drivers return in August, the race will be just as wild, if not more.
That race serves as the cutoff as far as who makes the playoffs and who doesn’t. With the cars looking a little unstable in the draft and with drivers having playoff hopes on the line, expect a similar event where half the field ends up wrecking before completing the race.
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The final stage of the Daytona 500 brought the heat as it became a caution-filled one, especially near the end of the race.
Storylines ahead
1. Last 2-mile Fontana race
This weekend marks the last race on the 2-mile configuration of Auto Club Speedway in California. NASCAR announced plans in 2020 to convert the track into a half-mile.
The original plan was to do construction in 2021 or 2022. But NASCAR ended up not going to the track in 2021 because of COVID-19, and then it was decided there should be at least one more race on the 2-mile configuration in 2022. With supply chain issues and costs rising for the project, NASCAR opted to make 2023 the last race at the track.
It already has announced there won’t be a 2024 race there due to the construction. So for fans of high speeds, don’t miss a second.
2. Can Toyotas rebound?
Travis Pastrana was the second-highest finishing Toyota in the Daytona 500. And he finished 11th. Needless to say, Toyota needs to rebound.
It had issues at Fontana last year as it worked through some issues with the new engine cooling systems and the Next Gen car. Those issues were quickly addressed.
Expect Toyota to be better this time at Fontana and for the Joe Gibbs Racing and 23XI Racing drivers to put last week behind them.
3. What more can RFK do?
Brad Keselowski (42 laps led) and Chris Buescher (32 laps led) ran well during the Daytona 500 and had the fastest cars. Buescher finished fourth, while Keselowski ended up wrecked in 22nd.
They have to be wondering what more can they do? The answer of course is to keep racing and know that the racing fate will turn good at some point.
4. When will Jimmie Johnson race again?
The seven-time Cup champion wouldn’t say when his next race would be, just that he would get back in the Cup car sometime between now and the July 2 inaugural race on the Chicago street course.
Many believe he will want to compete in the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro in mid-May.
5. Will parity continue?
One of the big questions going into this season was whether there will be as much parity as during the first year of the Next Gen car, which featured 19 different Cup race winners.
Daytona 500 winner Ricky Stenhouse Jr. likely wasn’t on a list of probable race winners entering the season, so there’s the first sign of parity. But Michael McDowell won Daytona in 2020, a year when 16 drivers won races. So it’s not a guarantee. But for those who are predicting parity, Stenhouse winning was a good start.
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Bob Pockrass talks with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. about his celebration schedule so far, what’s left to come and heading to Fontana.
What To Watch For
When NASCAR went to Auto Club Speedway a year ago, it was the first intermediate-track race with the Next Gen car. So remembering what happened there a year ago might not be a great indication of what will happen Sunday.
The tire construction (not the tread but the other parts of the tire) is different as Goodyear introduced new tires for these type of tracks last July.
The teams learned throughout last year about engine performance and cooling as well as how to get more downforce in the car.
Still, last year the fastest drivers might have been Tyler Reddick and Kyle Larson. Don’t be surprised if they’re among the fastest Sunday. Considering Kyle Busch is now driving for the team Reddick did last year, he very well could be in the mix as well.
Thinking Out Loud
It will be a little sad that this weekend is the last race on the existing 2-mile Auto Club Speedway.
The fast speeds and the glitz and glamour of a track such as this kind fits the California style. The racing has been mercurial depending on the year, but recently it has been solid and one of the more entertaining NASCAR tracks. The track has also been featured in many advertisements and commercials.
NASCAR plans to change the track to a half-mile configuration. It knows fans want more short tracks, and it figured it could make this place a special California short track (and my guess is to sell some of the property).
The first plans were revealed in 2020. No additional or new plan has been released.
The new track won’t be ready in 2024. NASCAR hopes it will be ready for racing some time in 2025.
NASCAR’s plan is to use as much of the existing grandstands and pit road suites as it can. That will make it a paper-clip type configuration such as Martinsville with a little more banking.
Using iRacing as a guide, NASCAR can continue to work on track configurations that work best with the Next Gen car. Let’s hope that the speedway that opens in two or three years is just as good as the one being torn up.
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They Said It
"It might be the pinnacle of my sports career." —JTG Daugherty Racing co-owner and former NBA All-Star Brad Daugherty on the team winning the Daytona 500
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including the past 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass, and sign up for the FOX Sports NASCAR Newsletter with Bob Pockrass.
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