2012 Gatorade Duels

Background

The Gatorade Duels were a duo of stock car racing qualifiers held on February 23, 2012, in Daytona Beach, Florida, at Daytona International Speedway, Its standard track is a four-turn, 2.5 mi superspeedway. Daytona's turns are banked at 31 degrees and the front stretch (the location of the finish line) is banked at 18 degrees.

In the early years, qualifying for the Daytona 500 took various forms: one timed lap, an average of two laps, or the better of two laps. The concept of having two separate races to determine the starting lineup of the Daytona 500 dates back to the first event in 1959. The first of the two 100 mi qualification races featured Convertible class cars, while the second featured Grand National cars. The races were 100 mi from 1960 and 1967, and 125 mi in 1969. Prior to 1971, the races yielded points to the Drivers' Championship. Large well-established teams regard the races as practice for the Daytona 500, although successfully qualifying for the event would allow smaller less-established teams to compete in future NASCAR events during the season. If the team did not qualify, it risked closing until sponsorship could be secured.

The top 35 drivers were assigned to Gatorade Duel races based on their Daytona 500 qualifying positions. The first Duel featured drivers who qualified in odd-numbered positions, as well as the 2012 Daytona 500 pole winner. The second Duel featured competitors who qualified in even-numbered positions. The results of both Duels determined the drivers' starting places in the Daytona 500. The fastest drivers who did not qualify in the top 35 filled positions 40 to 42. An eligible previous champion took the 43rd spot. In the absence of a former champion, the 43rd position would be filled by the next-fastest driver. Two eligible drivers outside the top 35 qualified for the Daytona 500 by winning two transfer slots in each Duel.

After some of the cars' engines overheated while traveling in packs during the 2012 Budweiser Shootout, NASCAR increased the engines' pressure release values from 25 psi to 28 psi to help reduce overheating and mitigate the consequences of high-temperature driving.

Practice and qualification

Two 90-minute practice sessions were held on February 22. During the session, Brad Keselowski slowed to avoid Ryan Newman, forcing Bowyer to turn into Keselowski, whose car spun into the grass on the backstretch. Keselowski's car sustained minor damage, which could be repaired and he did not need to use a backup car.

During the session, which saw drivers running in packs and drafted off each other, The thirteen drivers who were not guaranteed to qualify for the Daytona 500 and were required to get into the event on speed or being the highest-placed two drivers who were not guaranteed entry were Elliott, Bayne, Robby Gordon, Kenny Wallace, Richardson, Tony Raines, Stremme, Dave Blaney, Mike Wallace, Waltrip, J. J. Yeley, Nemechek, and McDowell.

Qualifying 1 and 2 results

Races

The qualifying races for the 2012 Daytona 500 began at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time and was broadcast live on television in the United States by Speed, and by TSN2 in Canada. Commentary was provided by Mike Joy, with analysis given by former driver Darrell Waltrip and former crew chief Larry McReynolds.

Both races lasted for 60 laps over a distance of 150 mi, and attended by 80,000 spectators. The weather on the grid before start of the first race were hot and humid, with the air temperature was 82 F; a ten percent chance of rain was forecast. Dr. L. Ronald Durham of Greater Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Daytona Beach, Florida began the pre-race ceremonies with an invocation. Vocalist Catrina Mack from Orlando, Florida performed the national anthem.

The majority of the two-vehicle draft tandems observed at the 2011 Daytona races and greatly disliked by fans appeared to be absent; vehicles could not stay connected together for long periods of time until the engine in the following car overheated.

Race 1

Following the invocation and performance of the National Anthem, three-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer Ryan Lochte commanded the drivers to begin their engines. Edwards maintained the lead into turn one with Earnhardt in second. Tony Stewart took the lead on lap two by passing Edwards on the outside. Edwards, with help from Bayne, passed Stewart into turn three to recover first place two laps later. Earnhardt took the lead on the fifth lap, while Ambrose took second. Earnhardt retook the lead after Edwards briefly had it back. Bayne, who was also battling for the lead, had fallen back by lap seven. McDowell collided with David Gilliland's left-rear quarter panel between turns one and two on lap nine; Gilliland went up the track towards the outside wall and collected Menard and Montoya, triggering the race's first caution and bringing out the pace car. Keselowski's car was also entangled in the wreckage and incurred minor damage. Gilliand, Menard, and Montoya retired their cars in the garage with substantial damage. Most of the drivers, including Earnhardt, made pit stops for fuel. Earnhardt had to make another pit stop after a pit crew member went over the wall too soon, sending him down the race order.

Ambrose led Denny Hamlin (both of whom chose not to pit), Almirola, Stewart, and Jamie McMurray when the race resumed on lap 14. One lap later, Hamlin passed Ambrose for the lead. Burton helped Stewart take the lead from Hamlin one lap later. Hamlin retook the lead on lap 17, while McDowell moved into second. Hamlin maintained his advantage for the next four laps while McMurray battled Stewart for second. McDowell had dropped to eighth place by lap 21, while Stewart continued in second by lap 25. McMurray was unable to complete a pass on the outside of Hamlin for the lead at turn three on the 28th lap, dropping him to eighth two laps later. Crew chiefs asked their drivers to conserve fuel as early as halfway through the race. On lap 32, the top five were Hamlin, Stewart, Harvick, Stenhouse and Ambrose. As the cars ran in single file, Edwards had dropped to 15th place one lap later. McDowell was told by his team to save fuel on lap 43.

Green flag pit stops began on lap 44 when Hamlin and Ambrose stopped for tyres and fuel, promoting Stewart to the lead with Harvick in second and Stenhouse in third. Waltrip lost control of his car on the backstraightaway after driving off the side of the track onto the high banking on the race circuit, and crashed into the backstretch wall eight laps later after leaving pit road and returning to racing speed. The incident prompted the second caution, as all drivers save Stewart, Harvick, and Edwards stopped for fuel. This allowed drivers who were not drafting the race leader and teams that were conserving fuel to finish the race to return to contention. Stewart, Harvick and Edwards led at the lap 57 restart. Two laps later, Earnhardt and Edwards temporarily moved to first and second places but Stewart retook the lead on the same lap.

McMurray drove down from the top lane after exiting turn two and collided with Almirola in the middle lane, causing Almirola to collide with Danica Patrick on the inside lane while on the backstraightaway, sending her spinning into the inside SAFER wall, which she struck with the right-hand side of her car, causing significant damage. The crash resulted in the race's third and final caution. Patrick was unharmed and was able to walk to an ambulance, which transported her to the in-field medical center. She was evaluated and released from the medical center. The field was frozen in place, with the order of finish determined by where the drivers were when the caution began. This gave Stewart the win, his third Daytona 500 qualifier win in five years. Earnhardt finished second, and Ambrose, Burton and Edwards completed the top five finishers. McDowell and Robby Gordon earned the two transfers to enter the Daytona 500. The first race saw three cautions and eight lead changes amongst five different drivers. Hamlin led the most laps of any racer with 27. Stewart took the lead three times for a total of 21 laps.

Race 2

Following the first Gatorade Duel, the Lead Category Manager at supermarket chain Harris Teeter, Steve Kravitz, commanded the drivers to start their engines. The weather was similar to that in the first Duel, During the pace laps, Kahne had to move to the rear of the order because he had switched to his backup car. and Bill Elliott—who had switched his car's engine. Biffle maintained the lead going into the first turn, followed by Casey Mears. On lap three, Kenseth moved to the outside line to prepare for a race-leading overtake and was assisted by Johnson. Kenseth took the lead on the next lap with Johnson second, and Biffle dropping to third. By the twelfth lap, the top ten drivers were separated by one second, with Joey Logano and Kyle Busch moving to the front two spots by lap 14. Elliott Sadler nearly lost control of his car between turns one and two on lap 16 but was able to continue. Kenseth attempted to pass Kyle Busch on the outside of turn four on lap 17 but was stopped by Busch.

Kyle Busch moved into the lead on lap 18, while Logano lost positions. Blaney had advanced nine positions from 14th to fifth on lap 21; Logano had advanced to third by the same lap. On lap 23, Biffle took the lead. Kenseth, who was drafting off teammate Biffle, experienced overheating issues and dropped to ninth place. Biffle and Kyle Busch began battling for the lead on lap 26 through the fourth turn, and the duo switched positions for the next two laps.  Biffle took the lead on the 29th lap. Regan Smith and Sadler had moved into third and fourth place on lap 33. Biffle reported debris in turn two, but officials were unable to locate it. Green flag pit stops began on lap 40; Kenseth, Logano, and Kyle Busch stopped on lap 42, followed by Biffle, Smith, and Jimmie Johnson on the following lap.

After the pit stops, Biffle retook the lead, Smith moved into second, and Johnson was in third. Sadler and Kenseth followed the top three drivers. Kyle Busch was drafting off Logano on lap 46 but developed engine troubles, allowing Logano to pull away. By the 50th lap, Biffle, Smith, Johnson, Sadler, and Kenseth were the top five. Kenseth had fallen to 13th but recovered to fifth after his crew chief Jimmy Fennig put him on a fuel-only pit stop. Johnson went up the track on lap 52 but regained control of his car. Six laps later, after the leaders ran single file, Johnson helped Kenseth on the outside line in preparation for a race-winning slingshot. Kenseth passed teammate Biffle on the inside of the tri-oval shortly after they began the final lap; Biffle had ignored his crew chief Matt Puccia's order to stay on the yellow line and shield the bottom of the circuit, instead veering to the outside to try to block oncoming traffic, losing momentum. Smith passed Johnson for second on the backstraightaway after both cars collided.

Kenseth maintained the lead and crossed the finish line on lap 60 to win the race. Smith finished in second and Johnson third. Sadler and Biffle completed the top five finishers. The second race saw five lead changes between four different drivers, with no cautions issues. Biffle led the most laps of any racer, at 40. Kenseth took the lead twice for a total of ten laps.

Post-race comments

After the first race, Stewart drove to the victory lane; the win earned him $55,725. Ambrose was happy with his finishing third, "We learned a lot for Sunday, we got a good result. We are smiling right now but it was very close to being the other way around." He also said he was hoping to carry his good form into the Daytona 500.

Waltrip, who failed to qualify for the Daytona 500 after crashing on lap 52, said he felt he had let everyone down, adding, "It's just really hard. I don't know what to say. It's just sad." According to Menard, who was involved in the lap nine wreck, "Somebody turned (David) Gilliland; I saw him get sideways underneath me. I was three lanes up and I tried to clear him and didn't quite make it." It took 56 minutes and 34 seconds to complete the first race; because it ended under caution, no margin of victory was recorded.

After winning the second race, Kenseth drove to the victory lane; earning $56,726 for the victory. Second-place finisher Smith stated while he would have preferred to win the race, he had no complaints, "It's good to know that we have a car capable of running up front." Johnson, who finished third, said, "It was an awesome race. We really had a shot to win that one. It was unfortunate there at the end that there were some lapped cars that were kind of mixed in with the leaders. It would have been nice if they would have let us race there; at least from the white flag on." Biffle admitted that he should have remained on the inside line. It took 46 minutes and 23 seconds to complete the second race, and the margin of victory was 0.209 seconds.

After the races, there was continued discussion about overheating engines in high temperatures. Harvick said the temperatures of around 80 °F had affected the racing, the grills were "too tight" and competitors chose to remain in a single-file formation because of overheating. Smith said he believed there was no efficient method of tackling the problem. McMurray advocated the widening of the grille, saying, "it was a little hard to race because you got too hot". One day after the second race, NASCAR announced that no further changes would be made. He conceded, "But it is what it is. It's the rules. Like I said, we don't make the rules, we just play by them, and sometimes you can't manipulate them."

Race results 1 and 2

References

References

1. "2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Schedule". ESPN Internet Ventures.
2. "The Race: Daytona 500". ESPN Internet Ventures.
3. "2012 Gatorade Duel 150 #1". USA Today Sports Media Group.
4. "2012 Gatorade Duel 150 #2". USA Today Sports Media Group.
5. "Weather Information for Daytona Beach, Florida". Yankee Publishing.
6. "NASCAR Race Tracks". Turner Sports Interactive, Inc..
7. ESPN SportsTravel. (June 27, 2011). "Daytona International Speedway". ESPN Internet Ventures.
8. "2011 Gatorade Duels 150 #1". USA Today Media Sports Group.
9. "2011 Gatorade Duels 150 #2". USA Today Media Sports Group.
10. Phillips, Benny. (March 11, 2008). "Daytona 500 Anniversary – The 50th Run". Source Interlink Media.
11. Willis, Ken. (September 19, 2015). "Daytona 500's 'twin' qualifiers will now be the Can-Am Duel". [[GateHouse Media.
12. "Daytona 500 Qualifying Races". USA Today Sports Media Group.
13. Robb, Chad. (February 21, 2012). "NASCAR at Daytona: 10 Bold Predictions for the Gatorade Duels". [[Turner Broadcasting System]].
14. de Los Santos, Brian. (February 22, 2012). "Guide to the 2012 Gatorade Duels". [[CBS Corporation]].
15. Olson, Jeff. (February 22, 2012). "Mechanic Carl? Edwards drops knowledge on overheating". [[Gannett Company.
16. (February 22, 2012). "Daytona 500 3rd Practice Speeds". [[International Speedway Corporation]].
17. Pockrass, Bob. (February 17, 2012). "Thirteen drivers vying for seven Daytona 500 spots".
18. "Gatorade Duel at Daytona Race 1 – Starting Lineup". International Speedway Corporation.
19. "Race Lineup – Gatorade Duel 2". Turner Sports Interactive, Inc..
20. McDonald, Norris. (February 13, 2012). "TSN to carry all F1, NASCAR races". [[Toronto Star]].
21. "2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Schedule". ESPN Internet Ventures.
22. Kelly, Godwin. (February 24, 2012). "Duels deliver excitement on final laps". [[The Daytona Beach News-Journal]].
23. Newton, David. (February 24, 2012). "Patrick takes hard hit in stride". ESPN Internet Ventures.
24. NASCAR.com. (February 23, 2012). "Lap-by-Lap: Gatorade Duel 1". Turner Sports Interactive, Inc..
25. Utter, Jim. (February 23, 2012). "Stewart, Kenseth win Daytona 500 qualifiers". [[The Charlotte Observer]].
26. Fryer, Jenna. (February 23, 2012). "Stewart and Kenseth win Daytona qualifying races".
27. Mejia, Diego. (February 23, 2012). "Tony Stewart wins first Gatorade Duel at Daytona 500". [[Haymarket Publications]].
28. DeCotis, Mark. (February 24, 2012). "Field locked in for Daytona 500". [[Florida Today]].
29. McGee, Ryan. (23 February 2012). "Instant analysis: Daytona Duels". ESPN Internet Ventures.
30. Long, Mark. (February 23, 2012). "Wreck ends Waltrip's Daytona 500 streak at 25".
31. Jensen, Tom. (February 22, 2012). "CUP: Ugly End To Patrick's First Race". Speed Channel, Inc..
32. Shacklette, Buddy. (February 24, 2012). "Danica shaken, uninjured by crash in final lap of Duel". [[The Daytona Beach News-Journal]].
33. Diaz, George. (February 23, 2012). "Gatorade Duels: Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth win". Tribune Publishing.
34. Gribble, Andrew. (February 23, 2012). "Trevor Bayne's help gets friend into 500". [[Knoxville News Sentinel]].
35. NASCAR.com. (February 23, 2012). "Lap-by-Lap: Gatorade Duel 2". Turner Sports Interactive, Inc..
36. (February 23, 2012). "[[NASCAR on Speed]]". [[Speed (TV network).
37. Kallmann, Dave. (February 23, 2012). "Slick move wins Kenseth a Daytona qualifying race". [[Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]].
38. Spencer, Lee. (February 23, 2012). "Duels let drivers prepare for big one". [[Fox Sports (United States).
39. "Race Lineup". Turner Sports Interactive, Inc..
40. (February 24, 2012). "Ambrose strong in Gatorade Duel". Speedcafe Pty Ltd.
41. Wackerlin, Jeff. (February 23, 2012). "Stewart and Kenseth Duel Winners". International Speedway Corporation.
42. [[Furniture Row Racing]] press release. (February 24, 2012). "Regan Smith finishes 2nd in Duel 2 race". Motorsport.com, Inc..
43. Team Chevy Racing press release. (February 24, 2012). "Chevy teams Daytona Duel 2 race notes quotes". Motorsport.com, Inc..
44. Rodman, Dave. (February 23, 2012). "Despite heated Duel, NASCAR plans no changes". Turner Sports Interactive, Inc..
45. Hood, Jeff. (February 23, 2012). "500-Bound Robby Gordon Gives Econ Lecture".