NASCAR: Fords sweep both 150-mile qualifying races at Daytona
Ignore the fake pole position qualifying results, the Fords are so fast at Daytona this year they will dominate and win the Daytona 500 on Sunday.
In qualifying Duel #1 Fords finished 1-2-3-4, and in Duel #2 they finished 1-2-3, but it would have been another 1-2-3-4 if Joey Logano did not crash on the last lap.
Make no mistake about it, in race trim Ford has brought the HP to Daytona in 2022 and look to clean house on Sunday
Duel No. 2
A last-lap crash opened the door for Chris Buescher to win the second Bluegreen Vacations Duel qualifying race at Daytona International Speedway, completing a RFK Racing sweep after Brad Keselowski won the first Duel.
Running second to Logano, Buescher made a move to the inside on the backstretch on Lap 60. Logano moved down to block, and contact between the cars sent Logano’s No. 22 Team Penske Ford into the outside wall, crippling the car.
The accident caused the only caution of the night, with Buescher in the lead when the fields was frozen at the moment of the yellow flag. Defending Daytona 500 winner Michael McDowell was second and Harrison Burton was credited with third after nosing into Logano’s Ford.
.@joeylogano slams the wall on the final lap in the battle for the win!@Chris_Buescher takes the victory and @RFKracing sweeps the Duels! 🧹 pic.twitter.com/1oTP2O1wrb
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) February 18, 2022
Michael McDowell, defending champion of the Daytona 500, finished second, followed by Burton, Kyle Busch and Christopher Bell. Martin Truex Jr., Bubba Wallace, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Logano and Kevin Harvick took remaining top-10 positions.
Buescher will now start fourth in Sunday’s Daytona 500 (2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), while the other drivers who finished behind him will fill out the rest of the even-numbered starting spots.
Greg Biffle claimed the final spot in Sunday’s race with a 13th-place finish, eliminating Timmy Hill, who ran 20th.
Biffle, 52, was competing in his first Cup event since 2016.
But the excitement was reserved for the final lap of the final race, with Logano acknowledging the mistake that broke up another 1-2-3-4 Ford finish.
The beneficiary was Buescher, who finished off the first sweep of the Duels by one organization since Hendrick Motorsports accomplished the feat in 2015 with Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson.
“Yeah, what a way to start Speedweeks out here, to put both RFK Ford Mustangs in Victory Lane, give Fastenal their first win on a Cup car,” Buescher said. “It’s not the big show, but we’ve got a really good hotrod here.
“Just hats off to everybody back at the shop. I know it’s been a hectic off season for everybody in our sport, but we’ve had a lot of changes going on, and it’s cool to see it play out.”
A rueful Logano gave a succinct post-mortem of the wreck that will force him to a backup car for the Daytona 500.
“Driver screwed up,” Logano said. “That’s really all there is to it. “I thought I was still clear, and the run (from Buescher) came a lot quicker than I thought it would.
“I tried to block it a little bit and just got a tag in the left rear, and off it went. It’s my fault. It stinks, because it tore up our car and kind of puts us in a spot as a race team. It’s just a dumb mistake.
The second Duel determined the order of the outside row, with drivers lining up according to finishing order behind Alex Bowman, who secured the second starting spot in Wednesday night’s qualifying session. Kyle Busch finished fourth behind the three Fords, with Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Christopher Bell and Martin Truex Jr. behind him.
Bubba Wallace ran seventh and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. eighth. Logano was credited with a lead-lap finish in ninth but will start from the rear on Sunday in his backup car.
Cup Series teams will have two more chance to tweak their race cars with Friday’s third practice session at 6 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, followed by Saturday’s final practice session at 10:30 a.m. ET on FS2 (coverage moves to FS1 at 11 a.m. ET).
Two drivers had to rally for one final Daytona 500 starting spot — Greg Biffle in the No. 44 NY Racing Chevrolet and Timmy Hill in the No. 66 MBM Motorsports Ford. Biffle ran ahead of Hill throughout the night, but a slow pit stop past the halfway point put him a lap down. But, help from front-row starter Alex Bowman helped him earn the spot, finishing 12th.
Duel No. 1
Brad Keselowski earned victory in the first race of the Bluegreen Vacations Duel at Daytona International Speedway in his first Daytona race with driving the No. 6 RFK Racing Ford Mustang.
In the first Duel, new team co-owner Brad Keselowski passed his former teammate Ryan Blaney to notch his first victory as a principle at Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing. NASCAR Hall of Fame owner Jack Roush joined Keselowski in Victory Lane after the race with smiles all around at the newly-reorganized Ford team’s first points-paying outing.
Cindric, Blaney and Stewart-Haas Racing’s Briscoe crossed the line three-wide 0.264-seconds behind Keselowski, giving Ford the four-car sweep.
“It sure is (a great start),” said Keselowski, who will now start third in the Daytona 500. “I felt pretty good about our car in practice on Tuesday.
“I’ve got to give credit to the other Fords. We worked really well together, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe. We had great strategy… Austin Cindric… and we stuck together and drove away and got ourselves in position where we could control the finish of this race, and I’m happy to see all those Fords up front.
“Good job to all those guys’’ said Keselowski, whose No. 6 Ford carried a sticker honoring his father Bob, a former NASCAR competitor who passed away Dec. 2, 2021.
“This is special,” Keselowski said.
Retweet to congratulate Brad Keselowski on his win in Duel No. 1 at Daytona! pic.twitter.com/sFtHpyMuc8
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) February 18, 2022
Keselowski will start third in Sunday’s Daytona 500 (2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), while the other drivers behind him will fill out the rest of the odd-numbered starting spots.
Daytona 500 polesitter and reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson led a race best 34 of the 60 laps in Duel #1 but lost the lead when he and his Chevrolet teammates took four tires on the race’s only pit stop. The Ford teams took only two tires.
So after a round of pit stops, and the Chevys too far back, it was the Ford brigade led by Ryan Blaney that took over the top spots after the group elected to take just two tires, while the Chevrolets took four.
Two open cars fought for a starting position in the Daytona 500 during Duel 1, which included Kaz Grala in the newly-formed No. 50 The Money Team Racing Chevrolet owned by legendary boxer Floyd Mayweather and JJ Yeley in the No. 55 Ford. Grala was able to make it, earning a spot in Sunday’s race after Yeley was lapped in the closing laps by Keselowski and Grala was able to pass Yeley for position.
The first Duel set the inside line of the 40-car Daytona 500—with cars lining up on the inside of the grid behind pole winner Larson according to their finish in the qualifying race. Hendrick Motorsports’ driver Chase Elliott, Erik Jones, Larson, Tyler Reddick, Kurt Busch and Ross Chastain rounded out the top 10 from the opening Duel.
Grala earned the transfer position from Duel 1 with a stunning last-lap pass of J.J. Yeley to put the No. 50 TMT Racing Chevrolet in the big show—much to the delight of Grala and his new The Money Team Racing team owner, boxer Floyd Mayweather.
“It’s a relief I can tell you that,” Grala said. “I thought we weren’t going to make it for a bit.
“But got the hiccups out the way, and hopefully will have a smooth Sunday,” he added, thanking Kurt Busch for allowing him to re-join the field’s established racing line after receiving a pit road speeding penalty with 24 laps to go.
After the penalty, Grala ran behind Yeley but said he never gave up hope and never got off the gas. He was able to make the pass coming out of Turn 2 on the final lap.
“Right down to that last lap, there was no relief,” Grala said. “The key was our line staying formed up and being able to roll by him and him not having a chance to hop down in front of anybody.
“Definitely took years off my life.”
Biffle had a much easier time than Grala, given that Hill fell off the lead lap early.
“It feels really good,” said Biffle, who returned to the Cup Series to drive for the NY Racing Team headed by John Cohen. “I’ll tell you, I have not slept much in the last couple days just trying to keep a cool composure.
“I’ve been nervous about this race because there’s so many things that can happen and so many ways it can go.”
Notes: Already locked into the Daytona 500 on speed, the Open car of Jacques Villeneuve had an issue with its throttle cable and was late to the pace laps for the second Duel. Villeneuve quickly lost the draft and fell behind, then retired from the race in 21st place on Lap 39.
Brad, you made some big changes during the off-season, took a big chance coming over, becoming an owner at Roush Keselowski Fenway Racing. Looks like it’s paid off so far. A great start to Speedweeks for you.
BRAD KESELOWSKI: It sure is. I felt pretty good about our car in practice on Tuesday.
I’ve got to give credit to the other Fords. We worked really well together, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe. We had great strategy, Austin Cindric, and we stuck together and drove away and got ourselves in position where we could control the finish of this race, and I’m happy to see all those Fords up front. Good job to all those guys. Great start for our Kohler Generators Ford team. This is special.
Duel 1 Results
| Fin | Str | No. | Driver | Team | Laps | Status | Led |
| 1 | 9 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Kohler Generators Ford | 60 | Running | 4 |
| 2 | 11 | 2 | Austin Cindric # | Discount Tire Ford | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 3 | 7 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Menards/Blue DEF/PEAK Ford | 60 | Running | 22 |
| 4 | 10 | 14 | Chase Briscoe | Mahindra Tractors Ford | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 5 | 3 | 9 | Chase Elliott | NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 6 | 12 | 43 | Erik Jones | FOCUSfactor Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 7 | 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | HendrickCars.com Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 34 |
| 8 | 8 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | 3CHI Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 9 | 13 | 45 | Kurt Busch | Monster Energy Toyota | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 10 | 4 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Advent Health Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 11 | 5 | 99 | Daniel Suarez | Tootsies Orchid Lounge Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 12 | 2 | 24 | William Byron Jr. | Axalta Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 13 | 14 | 31 | Justin Haley | LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 14 | 18 | 77 | Landon Cassill(i) | FOX Nation Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 15 | 16 | 38 | Todd Gilliland # | First Phase Credit Card Ford | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 16 | 15 | 41 | Cole Custer | HaasTooling.com Ford | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 17 | 6 | 16 | Daniel Hemric(i) | Heritage Pool Supply Group Chevrolet | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 18 | 19 | 50 | * Kaz Grala(i) | Pit Viper Sunglasses Chevrolet | 58 | Running | 0 |
| 19 | 21 | 55 | * JJ Yeley(i) | Hex.com Ford | 58 | Running | 0 |
| 20 | 20 | 78 | BJ McLeod | NASCAR Ignition Ford | 58 | Running | 0 |
| 21 | 17 | 62 | * Noah Gragson(i) | Beard Oil/South Point Chevrolet | 57 | Running | 0 |
Average Speed of Race Winner: 185.185 mph.
Time of Race: 0 Hrs, 48 Mins, 36 Secs. Margin of Victory: .264 Seconds.
Caution Flags: 0 for laps.
Lead Changes: 2 among 3 drivers.
Lap Leaders: K. Larson 1-34;R. Blaney 35-56;B. Keselowski 57-60.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Kyle Larson 1 time for 34 laps; Ryan Blaney 1 time for 22 laps; Brad Keselowski 1 time for 4 laps.
Duel 2 Results
| Fin | Str | No. | Driver | Team | Laps | Status | Led |
| 1 | 14 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Fastenal Ford | 60 | Running | 17 |
| 2 | 11 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Love’s Travel Stops Ford | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 3 | 5 | 21 | Harrison Burton # | Motorcraft/DEX Imaging Ford | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 4 | 9 | 18 | Kyle Busch | M&M’s Toyota | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 5 | 7 | 20 | Christopher Bell | DeWalt Toyota | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 6 | 3 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Bass Pro Shops Toyota | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 7 | 8 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | McDonald’s Toyota | 60 | Running | 0 |
| 8 | 16 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Kroger/Irish Spring Chevrolet | 60 | Running | 1 |
| 9 | 6 | 22 | Joey Logano | Shell Pennzoil Ford | 59 | Accident | 33 |
| 10 | 13 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Busch Light #BUSCHRACETEAM Ford | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 11 | 15 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Built.com Chevrolet | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 12 | 12 | 42 | Ty Dillon | Black Rifle Coffee Company Chevrolet | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 13 | 19 | 44 | * Greg Biffle(i) | Grambling State University Chevrolet | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 14 | 1 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Ally Chevrolet | 59 | Running | 7 |
| 15 | 4 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Express Toyota | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 16 | 17 | 51 | Cody Ware | Nurtec ODT Ford | 59 | Running | 0 |
| 17 | 20 | 15 | David Ragan | Select Blinds Ford | 58 | Running | 0 |
| 18 | 10 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Off Road Chevrolet | 58 | Running | 2 |
| 19 | 2 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Smithfield Ford | 58 | Running | 0 |
| 20 | 21 | 66 | * Timmy Hill(i) | Bumper.com Ford | 56 | Running | 0 |
| 21 | 18 | 27 | * Jacques Villeneuve | Hezeberg Engineering Systems Ford | 34 | Electrical | 0 |
Average Speed of Race Winner: 185.98 mph.
Time of Race: 0 Hrs, 48 Mins, 24 Secs. Margin of Victory: Under Caution Seconds.
Caution Flags: 1 for 1 laps.
Lead Changes: 11 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders: A. Bowman 1;J. Logano 2;A. Bowman 3-7;J. Logano 8-9;A. Bowman 10;J. Logano 11-14;A. Dillon 15-16;C. Buescher 17;R. Stenhouse Jr. 18;C. Buescher 19-33;J. Logano 34-59;C. Buescher 60.
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): Joey Logano 4 times for 33 laps; Chris Buescher 3 times for 17 laps; Alex Bowman 3 times for 7 laps; Austin Dillon 1 time for 2 laps; Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 1 time for 1 lap.