Daytona 500
The green flag waves to begin the Daytona 500 on Sunday, February 22, at 1:30 p.m. Eastern. NASCAR

Forget the groundhog, nothing says spring has arrived quite like the return of race season! NASCAR is finally back as the epic Daytona 500 is on Sunday, Feb. 22, at 12:00 noon EST, on Fox Sports for pre-race coverage. The green flag will wave to officially start the race at 1:30 p.m.

For Jeff Gordon, the 2015 Daytona 500 will probably be his last as the four-time NASCAR champ announced that 2015 will be his final full-time season, Earlier this year, the 43-year-old racing driver expressed that 2015 will be the last time he would compete for championship. NASCAR fans didn't know whether Jeff Gordon was serious about his announcement until the No. 24 Chevy SS clinched pole position during Daytona qualifying, Now at least we know that he's dead serious about the second half.

“As a race car driver, much of what I’ve done throughout my life has been based on following my instincts and trying to make good decisions,” Jeff Gordon said. “I thought long and hard about my future this past year and during the offseason, and I’ve decided 2015 will be the last time I compete for a championship.”

Following the Daytona 500 qualifying event, the Thursday night Budweiser Duel determined the order of the rest of the grid. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who won at Daytona last year, and Jimmie Johnson both won their battles to allow the Hendrick Motorsports team dominate with a perfect 1-2-3 start for Sunday's Daytona 500.

"We've had a great car all week," Earnhardt said. "I'm so glad to get through the duel in one piece because I know how good this car is. We're going to have a fun day on Sunday."

However, the Thursday event didn't go nearly as well for Danica Patrick, who participated in the second race and needed to finish no lower than 15th in order to make the grid on Sunday. However, Denny Hamlin managed to strike her car for the second time in two days. After limping back to the pit for repairs, Patrick rejoined the race in 18th with only two laps left in the race. Somehow, with the help of teammate Kurt Busch, Danica Patrick managed to cross the finish in 10th.

"There's a lot of stressing out. Obviously, for my team and everybody, but mostly for (sponsor) GoDaddy, it made me nervous, too," she said. "This is the biggest race of the year and they need to be in it."

Ultimately, the Daytona 500 lineup is as follows after the final Thursday qualifying. Car numbers are in parenthesis, followed by driver, manufacterer, and qualifying speed.

Daytona 500 lineup:

1. (24) Jeff Gordon, Chevrolet, 201.293 mph.

2. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 201.135.

3. (88) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet.

4. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 200.187.

5. (22) Joey Logano, Ford, 193.241.

6. (19) Carl Edwards, Toyota, 197.837.

7. (14) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 197.968.

8. (16) Greg Biffle, Ford, 197.477.

9. (15) Clint Bowyer, Toyota, 194.995.

10. (78) Martin Truex Jr., Chevrolet, 190.678.

11. (4) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 197.994.

12. (21) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 193.282.

13. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 199.867.

14. (44) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 194.978.

15. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 193.133.

16. (66) Mike Wallace, Toyota, 192.509.

17. (40) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 193.299.

18. (51) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 196.532.

19. (35) Cole Whitt, Ford, 194.012.

20. (10) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 197.959.

21. (27) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 198.325.

22. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 198.177.

23. (95) Michael McDowell, Ford, 195.3.

24. (41) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 197.976.

25. (23) J.J. Yeley, Toyota.

26. (38) David Gilliland, Ford, 195.346.

27. (46) Michael Annett, Chevrolet, 196.554.

28. (34) David Ragan, Ford, 194.452.

29. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 195.588.

30. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 196.962.

31. (33) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 197.507.

32. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 196.816.

33. (43) Aric Almirola, Ford, 197.2.

34. (55) Michael Waltrip, Toyota, 190.517.

35. (20) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 200.214.

36. (83) Johnny Sauter, Toyota, 198.22.

37. (6) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 197.256.

38. (9) Sam Hornish Jr., Ford, 197.243.

39. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 193.357.

40. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 198.212.

41. (13) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 197.946.

42. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota.

43. (32) Bobby Labonte, Ford, Past Champion.

Failed to Qualify

44. (62) Brian Scott, Chevrolet, 197.828.

45. (29) Justin Marks, Toyota, 194.675.

46. (30) Ron Hornaday Jr., Chevrolet, 190.791.

47. (26) Jeb Burton, Toyota, 195.004.

48. (7) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 198.229.

49. (98) Josh Wise, Ford, 193.386.

Finally, the complete Sunday schedule of live coverage for the Daytona 500 is as follows:

10:30 a.m., NASCAR Race Day, Fox Sports 1
Noon, NASCAR Race Day: Daytona, Fox Sports 1
1 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500, Fox
1 p.m., NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500, Fox Deportes
5 p.m., NASCAR Victory Lane, Fox Sports 1

Be sure to watch the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 22, at 12:00 noon EST, on Fox Sports. Don't have access to a TV? For race fans out there who will not be by a TV when the flag starts waving, be sure to catch the live stream online for free by signing up for Nascar RaceView here. You can also catch the action online via Fox Sports Go!

© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.