DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The Sprint Cup Series officially returns to the track as events leading to Saturday night's traditional Budweiser Shootout at Daytona grow in significance, with a few twists.
This week, everything builds to Saturday's Budweiser Shootout -- the non-points precursor to the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 14.
NASCAR announced changes last year to the event's lineup format that emphasizes top performers from the previous season, plus drivers who have excelled at Daytona.
The Budweiser Shootout field now includes a collection of the sport's top drivers and top performers at Daytona. Below is the new criteria, with eligibility dependent on drivers having competed in the Cup Series during the past two seasons:
• The 12 drivers that qualified for the 2009 Chase
• Past Cup Series champions
• Past Budweiser Shootout champions
• Past Daytona points race winners
• The reigning rookie of the year
The Budweiser Shootout will be run in two segments, the first at 25 laps and the second a 50-lap sprint for the win. That's 187.5 miles on the track's high-banked, 2.5-mile layout.
Following the first segment, a 10-minute "pit stop" gives crews the opportunity to make normal adjustments to their cars. That means tweaks they would do on a normal pit stop during a regular Cup Series event.
• All work must be done on pit road or in the garage.
• Teams may not change springs, shocks or rear-ends.
• All green- and yellow-flag laps in both segments will count.
Following the 10-minute "pit stop", the event's second segment remains a 50-lap sprint for the win.
Daytona 500 qualifying will begin at 1:05 p.m. ET Saturday before the Budweiser Shootout.
2010 Budweiser Shootout
Eligible drivers
Driver Filled Criteria
John Andretti July race winner
Greg Biffle 2009 Chase
Geoff Bodine Daytona 500, Shootout winner
Jeff Burton July race winner
Kurt Busch 2009 Chase
Kyle Busch July race winner
Derrike Cope Daytona 500 winner
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Daytona 500, July race, Shootout winner
Carl Edwards 2009 Chase
Bill Elliott Series champion, Daytona 500, July race, Shootout winner
Jeff Gordon 2009 Chase
Denny Hamlin 2009 Chase
Kevin Harvick Daytona 500, Shootout winner
Jimmie Johnson 2009 Chase
Kasey Kahne 2009 Chase
Matt Kenseth Series champion, Daytona 500 winner
Bobby Labonte Series champion
Terry Labonte Series champion, Shootout winner
Joey Logano Reigning Raybestos rookie of the year
Sterling Marlin Daytona 500, July race winner
Mark Martin 2009 Chase
Jamie McMurray July race winner
Juan Montoya 2009 Chase
Ryan Newman 2009 Chase
Ken Schrader Shootout winner
Tony Stewart 2009 Chase
Brian Vickers 2009 Chase
Michael Waltrip Daytona 500, July race winner
This week, everything builds to Saturday's Budweiser Shootout -- the non-points precursor to the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 14.
NASCAR announced changes last year to the event's lineup format that emphasizes top performers from the previous season, plus drivers who have excelled at Daytona.
The Budweiser Shootout field now includes a collection of the sport's top drivers and top performers at Daytona. Below is the new criteria, with eligibility dependent on drivers having competed in the Cup Series during the past two seasons:
• The 12 drivers that qualified for the 2009 Chase
• Past Cup Series champions
• Past Budweiser Shootout champions
• Past Daytona points race winners
• The reigning rookie of the year
The Budweiser Shootout will be run in two segments, the first at 25 laps and the second a 50-lap sprint for the win. That's 187.5 miles on the track's high-banked, 2.5-mile layout.
Following the first segment, a 10-minute "pit stop" gives crews the opportunity to make normal adjustments to their cars. That means tweaks they would do on a normal pit stop during a regular Cup Series event.
• All work must be done on pit road or in the garage.
• Teams may not change springs, shocks or rear-ends.
• All green- and yellow-flag laps in both segments will count.
Following the 10-minute "pit stop", the event's second segment remains a 50-lap sprint for the win.
Daytona 500 qualifying will begin at 1:05 p.m. ET Saturday before the Budweiser Shootout.
2010 Budweiser Shootout
Eligible drivers
Driver Filled Criteria
John Andretti July race winner
Greg Biffle 2009 Chase
Geoff Bodine Daytona 500, Shootout winner
Jeff Burton July race winner
Kurt Busch 2009 Chase
Kyle Busch July race winner
Derrike Cope Daytona 500 winner
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Daytona 500, July race, Shootout winner
Carl Edwards 2009 Chase
Bill Elliott Series champion, Daytona 500, July race, Shootout winner
Jeff Gordon 2009 Chase
Denny Hamlin 2009 Chase
Kevin Harvick Daytona 500, Shootout winner
Jimmie Johnson 2009 Chase
Kasey Kahne 2009 Chase
Matt Kenseth Series champion, Daytona 500 winner
Bobby Labonte Series champion
Terry Labonte Series champion, Shootout winner
Joey Logano Reigning Raybestos rookie of the year
Sterling Marlin Daytona 500, July race winner
Mark Martin 2009 Chase
Jamie McMurray July race winner
Juan Montoya 2009 Chase
Ryan Newman 2009 Chase
Ken Schrader Shootout winner
Tony Stewart 2009 Chase
Brian Vickers 2009 Chase
Michael Waltrip Daytona 500, July race winner
