The 2012 Daytona 500 Qualifying event begins at 11:00 a.m. MT and Denver-based Furniture Row Racing's Regan Smith will be the 29th racer to take part in the event. What this event actually determines is the pole position and the outside pole position for the Daytona 500 next Sunday. The top 35 racers (see below) are all qualified for the race while the 13 after them are vying for three guaranteed spots. For the rest of the qualified field, starting position will be determined by Thursday's Gatorade Duels. Those non-qualified racers will wait for the Duels, as well, for a chance to make it into the race.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the pole in 2011 and Jeff Gordon took the No. 2 spot. Regan Smith finished in 28th place, but he started in fifth place with his performance in the Gatorade Duels.
Here is the order for the 35 qualified drivers:
- Paul Menard
- Jamie McMurray
- Kurt Busch
- Casey Mears
- Carl Edwards
- Joey Logano
- Denny Hamlin
- Ryan Newman
- Greg Biffle
- Marcos Ambrose
- Tony Stewart
- Danica Patrick
- Brad Keselowski
- Aric Almirola
- Bobby Labonte
- Jeff Gordon
- Jeff Burton
- Kevin Harvick
- Juan Pablo Montoya
- AJ Allmendinger
- Elliott Sadler
- Kyle Busch
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Jimmie Johnson
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Landon Cassill
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Matt Kenseth
- Regan Smith
- Mark Martin
- Kasey Kahne
- Clint Bowyer
- David Reutimann
- David Ragan
- David Gilliland
And here are those that can pick up one of three spots based on speed:
- Joe Nemechek
- Trevor Bayne
- Michael Waltrip
- Kenny Wallace
- Dave Blaney
- Tony Raines
- Mike Wallace
- Terry Labonte
- Robert Richardson Jr.
- JJ Yeley
- Robby Gordon
- David Stremme
- Michael McDowell
For more on the Daytona 500, check out SB Nation NASCAR's extensive coverage.