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LIVE Daytona Blog: Day 1 Session Two

By Greg Engle
Cup Scene Daily,January 16

Last Monday's Blog

Last Tuesday's Blog

Last Wednesday's Blog

Today's Blog-->>

-8:00AM In route to the Speedway from Orlando. Expect reports to begin around 9:30AM, pictures to follow shortly there after.

-9:30AM Cars are on the track under a beautiful blue sky. New teams for 2006 mean several drivers are walking around the garage sporting new colors. Kurt Busch, Jamie McMurray and Casey Mears,also Terry Labonte is wandering around sporting 'street clothes'.

-11:30AM Robby Gordon is here testing. That is kind of big news, since earlier reports had IRL star Paul Tracy here in his place. That was in case Gordon was not able to make it back from the Dakar Rally in time to test. Since Gordon’s team dropped out early, Gordon is here. One has to wonder if Tracy, who is lobbying for a full-time NASCAR ride and has reportedly signed with a Busch team for a few races this year, will pop-up here in the garage this week.

Kurt Busch has taken his first few laps with his new team. They did conduct a tire test for Goodyear last week in Atlanta, so this is nothing new for the new team/driver combo. Busch looks pretty happy, shaking my hand and saying ‘hi’. His hot seat time is on Wednesday, so I hold all questions concerning his off track ‘adventures’ until then.

Mark Martin will run 7 Busch series races this year, 7 truck and will run the entire Craftsman Truck Series in 2007 with the No. 6 truck.

This will be my last report for Monday. Unfortunately I have urgent business back in Orlando. I will be able to attend and report on both of the next two days.

-- Pics Below

Top Five Morning Speeds:

1. Kyle Busch CHV :186.629

2. S. Marlin CHV :186.598

3. J McMurray FRD :186.486

4. S. Marlin CHV :186.413

5. S. Riggs DGE :186.305

Afternoon Speeds:

Pos.	Car	Driver	Speed
1	14b	Sterling Marlin	187.110
2	10a	Scott Riggs	186.776
3	26a	Jamie McMurray	186.494
4	01a	Joe Nemechek	186.405
5	14a	Sterling Marlin	186.405
6	25a	David Green	186.278
7	01b	Joe Nemechek	186.177
8	5	Kyle Busch	186.097
9	07a	Clint Bowyer	186.020
10	11b	Denny Hamlin	185.954
11	16b	Greg Biffle	185.954
12	96r	Terry Labonte	185.889
13	2a	Kurt Busch	185.881
14	16a	Greg Biffle	185.854
15	66	Jeff Green	185.759
16	66x	Jeff Green	185.686
17	6a	Mark Martin	185.636
18	18b	J.J. Yeley	185.578
19	10b	Scott Riggs	185.529
20	07	Clint Bowyer	185.456
21	99a	Carl Edwards	185.437
22	5a	Kyle Busch	185.433
23	88b	Dale Jarrett	185.395
24	99b	Carl Edwards	185.384
25	26b	Jamie McMurray	185.342
26	88a	Dale Jarrett	185.288
27	00b	Hermie Sadler	185.060
28	42	Casey Mears	185.014
29	45	Kyle Petty	184.850
30	18a	J.J. Yeley	184.771
31	11a	Denny Hamlin	184.748
32	55	Michael Waltrip	184.649
33	96t	Terry Labonte	184.536
34	42x	Casey Mears	184.441
35	00a	Hermie Sadler	184.381
36	32	Travis Kvapil	184.188
37	2	Kurt Busch	184.173
38	7	Robby Gordon	184.011
39	15	Paul Menard	184.008
40	6b	Mark Martin	184.004
41	52a	Larry Gunselman	183.914
42	49a	Brent Sherman	183.887
43	22a	Dave Blaney	183.681
44	29a	Kevin Harvick	183.587
45	15a	Paul Menard	183.550
46	7a	Robby Gordon	183.404
47	55a	Michael Waltrip	183.329
48	29	Kevin Harvick	183.240
49	32a	Travis Kvapil	183.191
50	52b	Larry Gunselman	182.990
51	61a	Kevin Lepage	182.934
52	09	Mike Wallace	182.793
53	09a	Mike Wallace	182.726
54	92a	Chad Chaffin	182.726
55	22	Dave Blaney	182.693
56	95	Stanton Barrett	182.526
57	89	Morgan Shepherd	182.345
58	27	Kirk Shelmerdine	181.840
59	49	Brent Sherman	180.343
60	92b	Chad Chaffin	000.000

Second round of Nextel Cup testing at Daytona begins today

Here we go again.

Round two of NASCAR Nextel Cup testing kicks off this morning and while there is a new crop of drivers/teams, the same storylines from last week still linger while new ones will be floating around.

Drivers expected to test this week are: Joe Nemechek, Clint Bowyer, Jeff Green, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Mark Martin, Denny Hamlin, Sterling Marlin, J.J. Yeley, Dave Blaney, Brian Vickers, Jamie McMurray, Kevin Harvick, Greg Biffle, Casey Mears, Kyle Petty, Brent Sherman, Michael Waltrip, Carl Edwards, Paul Tracy/Robby Gordon, Travis Kvapil, Scott Riggs, Dale Jarrett and Mike Wallace.

There will again be new team/driver combinations here this week who will concentrate less on speed perhaps and more on learning how to work together.

Another band of rookies will be taking their first laps in a Nextel Cup car at Daytona and will again be trying to make a strong statement.

The highlight of the week may very well come on Thursday however. After the normal testing sessions are done, an open test of NASCAR’s “Car of Tomorrow” will be staged. The test is open to all teams and might provide the first real feedback on the cars as they run in drafting packs for the very first time; that is providing teams actually show up. Last weeks solo car test was also open to teams but none chose to test their own version of the COT. Right now NASCAR is saying there will be between five and eight teams.

Kurt Busch will emerge from hiding. Although he did test with his new Penske Racing team last week at Atlanta, there are a lot more media hounds at Daytona. And after Busch’s off track adventures last season, including the contract dispute that ultimately allowed him into the ride being vacated by retiring Rusty Wallace and his off track run-in with the Maricopa County Arizona Sheriff’s department that led to his early dismissal at Roush Racing, Busch may have an uncomfortable three days.

Busch will face the media Wednesday afternoon, and no doubt his seat on the stage will be mighty warm.

Michael Waltrip will be making his first appearance with his new Bill Davis Racing team, while Mark Martin will be making his last.

Waltrip is a Daytona 500 winner and may be the key this year to Bill Davis Racing making another appearance in victory lane at Daytona and elsewhere.

For Martin, who was to retire last year but opted to run one more season after Kurt Busch bailed, this will be the start of not only his final season, but an ‘all or nothing’ drive as he will take one more shot at the elusive championship that has fallen just out of his reach on several occasions. Martin has already made a strong statement here, turning the fastest lap in truck testing over the weekend. His most immediate goal will be scoring a win in the Daytona 500; a feat he’s never accomplished.

Two of the hottest drivers from last year will be here, Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch. Edwards had a phenomenal rookie season making the cutoff for the Chase for the Cup and finishing third in the points for Roush Racing. Busch was the Rookie of the Year; both will be looking to get a head start on their sophomore seasons.

The stories will be flying and so will the primer gray cars again as the second round of testing continues through Wednesday.

LATE MORNING

DO NOT HOTLINK TO THESE PICTURES. TRACERS ARE ATTATCHED

EARLY MORNING

DO NOT HOTLINK TO THESE PICTURES. TRACERS ARE ATTATCHED