Lack of practice time shouldn’t make a difference during Daytona 500 qualifying
Kenny Bruce
Kenny Bruce is a three-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association's George Cunningham Writer of the Year Award. He joined Street & Smith's Sports Group in 2001.
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – It seems my esteemed colleague, Bob Pockrass, is up in arms today. Not enough practice time for NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series teams, he writes in his blog, before the biggest race of the season.
Rain washed away the better part of a Friday practice, and teams will hit the track today with barely enough laps on their cars to deem the vehicles “used.”
I’ll agree with him on a couple of points. The more on-track time the teams receive, the better. And next week’s Daytona 500 is the biggest race of the season.
But it wouldn’t make any difference if the teams had two hours or two weeks of time on the track. The top 35 teams in owner points aren’t going to miss this year’s race. Once again, it will come down to which of those who need to get in the field either on speed, or advance through next Thursday’s qualifying races, prepared the best during the off-season.
Each of those teams – and there are 18 looking to make the show – has the same opportunity. Sure, it would have been nice if the rain hadn’t washed out most of Friday’s scheduled practice time. It would also be nice if there were no “guarantees” for making the show, and everyone, from Jimmie Johnson to Norm Benning, had to go fast or go home, too. But that’s not the case.
NASCAR can’t control the weather. Until that’s the case, you do the best you can.
