The premiere event of the 2011 NASCAR season is set to kickoff today at 8:30pm EST with the Budweiser Shootout at the repaved, Daytona International Speedway. In yesterday’s Sprint Cup practice drivers reached speeds up to 203 mph. The starting grid for today’s 2011 Bud Shootout was determined through a blind draw last night and with this year marking the 10th anniversary of his father’s death at the same track, Darl Earnhardt Jr will be leading the pack to the green flag with Tony Stewart next to him in the #2 spot. The race will be run in segments of 25 and 50 laps, with a 10-minute break between. Green-flag and caution laps count toward the total.
Requirements for eligibility in the 2011 Bud Shootout:
* The 12 drivers from the previous season’s Chase
* Previous Budweiser Shootout winners
* Previous points-paying winners at Daytona (Daytona 500 or Coke Zero 400)
* Previous Sprint Cup champions
* The last 10 Rookies of year (in 2010, it was only the reigning rookie of the year)
Starting order for the 2011 Bud Shootout:
Pole: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Tony Stewart
3. Carl Edwards
4. Denny Hamlin
5. Kasey Kahne
6. Bobby Labonte
7. Clint Bowyer
8. Ryan Newman
9. Derrike Cope
10. Michael Waltrip
11. Greg Biffle
12. Jeff Gordon
13. Juan Pablo Montoya
14. Jamie McMurray
15. Jeff Burton
16. Kevin Conway
17. Kurt Busch
18. Kevin Harvick
19. Matt Kenseth
20. Mark Martin
21. Kyle Busch
22. Joey Logano
23. Jimmie Johnson
24. Regan Smith
The 75-lap race begins Saturday night at 8:30 ET on Fox.
More info at Yahoo and NASCAR.com
