2012 Daytona 500 Entry List

Veh # Driver                            Mfg                   Sponsor
1- 1 Jamie McMurray            Chevrolet        Bass Pro Shops-Tracker Boats
2- 2 Brad Keselowski              Dodge              Miller Lite
3- 5 Kasey Kahne                   Chevrolet         Farmers Insurance
4- 6 Ricky Stenhouse Jr(i)     Ford                FORD ECO BOOST
5- 7 Robby Gordon                Dodge               MAPEI/Speed Energy
6- 09 Kenny Wallace(i)         Toyota              American Ethanol
7- 9 Marcos Ambrose             Ford                 Stanley
8- 10 Danica Patrick(i)         Chevrolet          GoDaddy.com 
9- 11 Denny Hamlin              Toyota              FedEx Express
10- 13 Casey Mears               Toyota              GEICO
11- 14 Tony Stewart              Chevrolet         OFFICE DEPOT / MOBIL 1
12- 15 Clint Bowyer               Toyota              5 Hour Energy
13- 16 Greg Biffle                   Ford                 3M
14- 17 Matt Kenseth              Ford                  BEST BUY
15-- 18 Kyle Busch                 Toyota              M&M's Brown
16- 20 Joey Logano               Toyota              The Home Depot
17- 21 Trevor Bayne(i)           Ford                 Motorcraft / Quick Lane 
18- 22 A J Allmendinger        Dodge               Shell Pennzoil
19- 23 Robert Richardson Jr(i) Toyota          TBA
20- 24 Jeff Gordon                Chevrolet          Drive to End Hunger
21- 26 Tony Raines(i)            Ford                  TBA
22- 27 Paul Menard               Chevrolet          MENARDS - PEAK
23- 29 Kevin Harvick             Chevrolet          Budweiser
24- 30 David Stremme           Toyota              TBA
25- 31 Jeff Burton                  Chevrolet          CATERPILLAR
26- 32 Terry Labonte              Ford                 C & J ENERGY SERVICES
27- 33 Elliott Sadler(i)            Chevrolet         GENERAL MILLS/KROGER
28- 34 David Ragan                Ford                 TBA
29- 36 Dave Blaney                Chevrolet         Ollie's Bargain Outlet
30- 37 Mike Wallace(i)           Ford                 Poynt.com
31- 38 David Gilliland             Ford                 MHP-Power Pak Pudding
32- 39 Ryan Newman            Chevrolet         US ARMY/QUICKEN LOAN
33- 40 Michael Waltrip           Toyota             Aaron's Dream Machine
34- 42 Juan Pablo Montoya   Chevrolet         Target
35- 43 Aric Almirola                Ford                 Smithfield  Homes
36- 47 Bobby Labonte             Toyota             Kroger
37- 48 Jimmie Johnson          Chevrolet         Lowe's
38- 49 J J Yeley                       Toyota             America Israel Racing
39- 51 Kurt Busch                    Chevrolet        Hendrickcars.com
40- 55 Mark Martin                 Toyota            Aaron's
41- 56 Martin Truex Jr            Toyota            NAPA Auto Parts
42- 78 Regan Smith                 Chevrolet        Furniture Row CSX 
43- 83 Landon Cassill              Toyota             Burger King
44- 87 Joe Nemechek(i)          Toyota            AM-Fm Energy 
45- 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr         Chevrolet       Diet Mountain Dew
46- 93 David Reutimann         Toyota            TBA
47- 97 Bill Elliott                       Toyota            TBA
48- 98 Michael McDowell        Ford                K-Love
49- 99 Carl Edwards                Ford                FASTENAL


(i) =Ineligible for driver championship points

Sunoco Signs To Be Presenting Sponsor Of Speed's Sprint Cup Pre-Race Show

Speed signed a multi-million dollar advertising deal with Sunoco that will see the official fuel of NASCAR become the presenting sponsor of the net's "RaceDay" broadcast. The Home Depot previously held that advertising position but dropped it last season. The show, which takes place at the track prior to each Sprint Cup race and is similar to ESPN's "College GameDay," will be rebranded "RaceDay Fueled by Sunoco."

Sunoco Dir of Brand Marketing Drew Kabakoff said, "It's their signature program, and now, from Sunoco's perspective, we start the day on 'RaceDay' before the race and present the Sunoco checkered flag at the end of the race. It brings our message directly to the consumer."

 In addition to the ad deal with Sunoco, Speed has brought on DirecTV, Geico, NAPA, Goodyear, Toyota, Golden Corral, Coors Lite and others as major advertisers during its Daytona Speedweeks programming. The cable channel will begin 100 hours of programming from Daytona tomorrow with a special live two-hour edition of "NASCAR Race Hub." 

Fox Cable Sports Exec VP/Ad Sales Todd Siegel said sales are up for Speedweeks programming from last year. Siegel: "What we've really had is a lot of people step up. Nationwide is spending more money on us than ever before. Goodyear has stepped up to double, triple what they spent historically."

Rick Ware Racing and Timmy Hill go for Back to Back Rookie of the Year Title’s

Rick Ware Racing and Poynt.com have finalized a deal to run Timmy Hill for the 2012 Sprint Cup Rookie of the Year.

“I am very excited to have our sponsor and driver make a move up to the Sprint Cup Series” says owner Rick Ware.

RWR will run the full Sprint Cup schedule with sponsor Poynt on board. Mike Wallace will drive the 54th annual Daytona 500. Timmy Hill, the 2011 Nascar Nationwide Rookie of the Year, will be at Daytona in his Poynt Nationwide Ford. Timmy will start driving the #37 full time at Fontana or Texas.

RWR has joined forces with Larry Gunselman’s Max Q Motorsports #37 for the full season. The Sprint Cup operation will run out of RWR’s new 24,000 sq. ft. facility across the street from RWR’s Nationwide and Rolex programs.

Timmy’s crew chief will be veteran Bill Henderson. Ken Glen formerly of KHI will serve as Competition Director and Larry Gunselman will be General Manager of the #37 Poynt.com Ford.

- Rick Ware Racing, Press Release

Ray Evernham Returns to ESPN as NASCAR Analyst

Three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion crew chief Ray Evernham is returning to ESPN as a NASCAR analyst for the 2012 season.

Evernham will join ESPN’s team at Daytona Speedweeks and will be part of NASCAR Countdown before the NASCAR Nationwide Series race that airs on ESPN on Saturday, Feb. 25, at noon ET. He also will appear on NASCAR Now and SportsCenter from Daytona as ESPN’s multimedia platforms surround the opening of the NASCAR season.

Evernham, who won three championships and 47 races as crew chief for Jeff Gordon at Hendrick Motorsports, will be an analyst on NASCAR Countdown for many of the 17 NASCAR Sprint Cup races that will appear on ESPN networks in the second half of the season. In addition to his work on NASCAR Now and SportsCenter, he will help call several NASCAR Nationwide Series races from the booth.

Evernham was an analyst for ESPN from 2008-2010 but left prior to the 2011 season when he took a consulting position with Hendrick Companies, a management company that oversees strategic initiatives for chairman Rick Hendrick, who also owns Hendrick Motorsports.

"I chose to take a year off from ESPN out of respect for ESPN and Hendrick Motorsports,” said Evernham. “I didn't want to create any perceived conflict of interest while I got my bearings at Hendrick and didn't want to cause distraction to either company.

"Now that I'm settled at Hendrick Performance, I don't have any involvement on the racing side of the operations and it frees me from any conflict with NASCAR teams,” he said. “Mr. Hendrick and I have worked out an agreement that allows me to return to the ESPN team.”

Evernham has a history with ESPN dating back to 2000, when he appeared as an analyst on ESPN and ABC’s coverage of the IROC Series and some NASCAR races. In 2007, he was a guest analyst on NASCAR Countdown for several NASCAR Nationwide Series telecasts and was featured in Race Wizard with Ray Evernham, a program that aired on ESPN2.

With the return of Evernham, ESPN will again have five former NASCAR champions as analysts, including 1989 NASCAR Sprint Cup driving champion Rusty Wallace, 1999 champion Dale Jarrett and two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion crew chiefs Tim Brewer and Andy Petree.

- ESPN Media Zone Press Release

Daytona launches most wide-ranging social media initiative ever for Speedweeks

Daytona International Speedway plans to make Speedweeks and the 54th Daytona 500 a memorable event in many ways, starting with the largest and most expansive social media effort in NASCAR to further engage fans at the “World Center of Racing” and at home.

“There’s a reason why Daytona International Speedway boasts the largest social media following of any racetrack in NASCAR,” said Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood III. “During Speedweeks, we’ll continue our efforts to make it easy and enjoyable for fans to get closer to the sport, while also reaching out to our younger, more technologically savvy race fans.”

Special Twitter Hashtags and Handles
• Join the conversation the DIS, media, teams and drivers on Twitter with @DISupdates, #DAYTONA500, #BudweiserShootout, #GatoradeDuel, @NextEra_Energy Resources 250, #DRIVE4COPD300, #Speedweeks
• Contact @DIS_help and #DIShelp for customer service questions on race days
• Don’t forget to also follow @NASCAR, #NASCAR

Download the free DIS Mobile App
The DIS mobile app gives race fans FREE access to daily schedules, gate policies, directions, basic event information, news articles and interactive GPS facility and parking maps with search capabilities. Fans can also stay up-to-date with Daytona’s Facebook, Twitter and RSS News feeds, as well as connect with and locate friends at the race via the “Friend Finder.” Download the mobile app to your Sprint smart phone via Android Marketplace or the iTunes Store.

QR Codes and Special NASCAR.COM Sweepstakes
QR codes will be located throughout the track, linking race fans to the DIS mobile app, as well as event schedules and the Speedway’s Facebook and Twitter profiles. Also, special QR codes will allow fans to enter a sweepstakes with NASCAR.COM to win tickets to the 2013 DAYTONA 500 and on-site discounts during their visit to Daytona International Speedway.

The Ultimate DAYTONA Experience Facebook Sweepstakes from Jostens
A celebration of the 54th DAYTONA 500 launching February 16 on Facebook, the sweepstakes invites fans of Daytona International Speedway and Jostens Racing to pick their favorite NASCAR driver for a chance to win 10 daily prizes and be entered to win the Ultimate DAYTONA Experience Grand Prize which includes 2013 DAYTONA 500 tickets, VIP passes, an autographed helmet, a piece of the DAYTONA Start/Finish Line, a DAYTONA 500 ring, a $500 NASCAR shopping spree and more!

Be on the lookout for the DIS Social Squad
Comprised of local college volunteers, the Social Squad will encourage race fans to share their race-day experience on Twitter and Facebook, and demo the DIS mobile app. Social Squad hubs will be located in the Sprint FANZONE from the Budweiser Shootout through the Gatorade Duel, and in the Sprint FANZONE, Midway and at the Pedestrian Bridge from the NextEra Energy Resources 250 through the Daytona 500.

Want updates or have a question? Send us a Text!
Fans can text DISINFO to 69050 to receive automatic updates during events with information relating to gate opening times, parking and more.

Fans with more specific questions can text DISFAN to 69050 and a live attendant will be on hand to respond.

Standard data messaging rates may apply

The Speedway had a very successful year in 2011, acquiring nearly 300,000 Facebook likes and 10,000 Twitter followers. Currently, DIS has 385,000 Facebook likes, 23,000 Twitter followers, 350,000 YouTube video views and 9,000 mobile app downloads.

Like always, fans can visit any of Daytona International Speedway’s social media platforms – Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google+ – to check-in, leave a comment, or view and share updates, news articles, pictures and videos.

- Daytona International Speedway Press Release

HendrickCars.com will sponsor 3 NASCAR teams in select races in early 2012.

HendrickCars.com will sponsor three NASCAR teams in select races in early 2012. The sponsorships will promote the new-look retail automotive website, which re-launched Feb. 1, and coincide with the HendrickCars.com "2012 Indy Dream Weekend" sweepstakes.

The program will kick off during Speedweeks in Daytona Beach, Fla., with primary sponsorship of Phoenix Racing and 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch in the Feb. 25 Nationwide Series race and Feb. 26 Daytona 500. It will continue with primary sponsorship of JR Motorsports and driver Cole Whitt in the March 17 Nationwide event at Bristol, Tenn.

In addition, HendrickCars.com will be a major associate sponsor of the Richard Childress Racing No. 33 Chevrolet with driver Elliott Sadler in NASCAR's biggest race, the Daytona 500.

"Last year's Daytona 500 broadcast alone averaged more than 15 million viewers, and we expect 2012 will be even stronger," said Rick Hendrick, Chairman of Hendrick Automotive Group, which owns HendrickCars.com. "Combined with our sponsorship in the Nationwide Series, that's tens of millions of people seeing our brand, hearing our message and then visiting HendrickCars.com. We wanted to showcase the new site, and there's no more effective marketing tool than NASCAR."

"We're proud to have HendrickCars.com as our primary sponsor for both races in Daytona," said James Finch, Owner of Phoenix Racing. "The Hendrick people know how well sponsorships like this work when they're done the right way. Daytona is a big opportunity for our team to build some positive momentum to start the season. Having a sponsor for Speedweeks means a lot to us, and we're going to do everything we can to put HendrickCars.com up front."

The sponsorship of Whitt pairs HendrickCars.com with an up-and-coming young driver and Nationwide Series rookie-of-the-year contender. In his first season at JR Motorsports, Whitt, 20, is joining a No. 88 team that finished fourth in the championship standings in 2011.

In 2009, HendrickCars.com sponsored driver Tony Stewart in the season-opening Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway. Stewart led 23 laps on his way to winning the event, which drove record traffic to HendrickCars.com.

In 2011, HendrickCars.com was a sponsor of Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott, who competes full-time in the NASCAR K&N Series East. HendrickCars.com will continue to support Elliott in 2012, along with having associate sponsor placement on the No. 5 Chevrolet of Hendrick Motorsports driver Kasey Kahne throughout the entire Sprint Cup Series season. 

- RCR Racing Press Release

Kasey Kahne to be Ready for Daytona Following Outpatient Surgery

Hendrick Motorsports driver Kasey Kahne will be ready for the Feb. 18 Budweiser Shootout, the Feb. 26 Daytona 500 and all of Daytona Speedweeks after undergoing successful outpatient knee surgery this morning.

Kahne, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolets, had an MRI Thursday after experiencing swelling in his left knee. The MRI revealed a torn meniscus, which was treated this morning with a partial medial meniscus removal. Following the common arthroscopic procedure, he was released from an outpatient facility in Charlotte, N.C.

Kahne will practice, qualify and race throughout NASCAR’s season-opening Speedweeks, and Hendrick Motorsports has no plans to have a backup driver on standby in Daytona Beach, Fla.

In April 2011, Kahne had a procedure on his right meniscus and earned a third-place finish the following race at Richmond, Va.

- Hendrick Motorsports