Pole: Ken Schrader

Defending Winner: Jimmie Johnson who starts 2nd.

Best in practice: Dale Earnhardt Jr who starts 19th

Did you know fact: Dale Jr started 19th when he won in 2003.

My prediction for the top 5: Jr, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Johnson, Ryan Newman with the darkhorse being Denny Hamlin.

Kristina's prediction for the top 5: J. Gordon, Jr, Newman, Kevin Harvick, Stewart with the darkhorse being Elliott Sadler.

Due to Canadian broardcasting and the rain delay, I did not get to see the Bud Shootout so therefore this is a written article based upon the race. Topics I plan to touch on are: the winner, something that shows someone is strong and bump drafting.

The first topic will be the winner. The winner of the Bud Shootout which many of you should know by now is rookie driver Denny Hamlin. My points on the winner is this is a very emotional win. I've watched Denny race in the Busch Series and also in the Cup Series last year and he does have talent. It's a emotional first win but in the book, it doesn't count as an official first win. This race basically set the standard for Denny in his peer's eyes. They see someone who is talented and they will probably draft with him versus a rookie that they know little about such as J.J Yeley.

Second is something that shows somebody is strong. I don't mean by who they are but their car. Dale Earnhardt Jr had the fastest car in practice in his peer's eyes but on lap 15, he was caught up in the mini TBO which collected others. Even through he damaged a bunch of the pieces in the front of the car, he still managed to finish second. By doing so he is showing that he has a strong car and he has been heard saying that the Daytona 500 car is stronger. Look for that race to be a good one.

A topic that has been brought up in NASCAR as of late is bump drafting due to Tony's comments after the race. He was heard saying the following: "Someone else is going to get killed at Daytona or Talladega because of bump drafting. I just hope I'm not here when it happens.". Dale Jr also stated the fact that bump drafting is the evil part of restrictor plate racing. I think bump drafting should stay because of the fact it makes better racing. It's just some drivers have took it out of hand but not following the guidelines. Well there is no written guidelines but there are bump drafting advice out there that most should follow. And that is advice is no bump drafting in the corners. Bump drafting only works on the straightaways. By doing it in the corner you are probably not hitting the car infront of you head-on like a proper bump draft but in a corner which causes the guy to get loose which that'll probably create the big one. If we could go back to the way it was in 2000 till like 2003 or 2004, then that's the best plan.

I thank you for reading this article and look forward to writing more race reports for you.

Thanks,

Ashley M.