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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- It's somewhat fitting that on Valentine's Day, NASCAR spread the love around, because on the Thursday before the Daytona 500, you don't have to finish first to be a winner.
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| Making the 500 'is gratifying' for Dale Jarrett, who will retire this year. (AP) |
After the duels were completed, it was Brian Vickers, Kenny Wallace, Dale Jarrett and
Among the four, Jarrett was the sentimental favorite. The three-time Daytona 500 champion is calling it quits after the fifth race of the season.
"It is very gratifying personally," said Jarrett, who will start 20th in the 500. "I mean, to know that you have to go out there and know what you have to do, to be able to take the car and put it up in the top five and run there for the majority of the race, especially the latter part of the race, that was very gratifying. Personally, when it comes time to get this done, yeah, I enjoy that challenge. I feel very good about what we were able to accomplish.
"I'm really happy that I got UPS and Michael Waltrip racing's third car in this thing. I know that everybody kept talking about Dale Jarrett getting into the 50th running, and it certainly is important, but I'm just kind of piggybacking on UPS. That's what I wanted more than anything."
The low-key Andretti was downright stunned by his accomplishment.
"I don't know what to say," said Andretti, who will start 22nd after missing the past two Daytona 500s. "I didn't expect to be here.
"The last lap for me was everything. I wasn't in the race till I came off Turn 4. I guess that's all that matters. I wish I would have put money on me in Vegas, on me making this race. We were definitely not somebody expected."
Vickers' day didn't start well as he was spun out by Boris Said just a few laps into the race. But he avoided hitting anything and quickly reversed his fortunes. He's hoping his Red Bull Racing team can do the same.
"[Last year] the deck was definitely stacked against them," said Vickers, who will start 23rd. "They didn't really start hiring employees until almost '07 for their first season, and then building cars and going with a brand new manufacturer. But their vision was long term. I knew that when I came on to Red Bull, that it wasn't about '07, it was about what the future holds. That's the reason they partnered with Toyota and they invested in their own team, so they could do it their own way.
"We paid the price last year. It was dreadfully painful to miss the races we did, not going to the 500, going through all the adversity we did. It built a really strong team. We learned a lot from it.
"Going into this season we have a lot more confidence. Obviously we still got a lot of growing to do, a lot of learning to do. As you see, our cars are much better. Toyota has come a long ways when it comes to power and reliability and everything. All those factors go into it and give you a lot more confidence going into the weekends."
Wallace was absolutely giddy after earning his spot in the 500.
"My story, the way I feel, just incredible," said Wallace, who will start 17th "Last year Furniture Row, they didn't know where to turn, what to do to make their team better. I don't know what it was. I don't know if they fired me or what, because they kept paying me and kept all my stuff. "So this is a moral victory for me."
