Gatorade Duel
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| Venue | Daytona International Speedway |
| Corporate sponsor | Pepsico |
| First race | 1959 |
| Distance | 150 miles (241 km) |
| Number of laps | 60 |
| Previous names | Daytona Twin Qualifiers Twin 125s Gatorade Twin 125s Gatorade 125s |
The Gatorade Duel, is NASCAR Nextel Cup preliminary event to the Daytona 500 held annually in February at Daytona International Speedway. It consists of two 150-mile races, and serves as a qualifying race for the Daytona 500. The finishing order in the two 150-mile races, held on Thursday, determine the starting lineup for the Daytona 500 held on Sunday.
Qualifying for the Daytona 500 is unique in NASCAR. Only the two front row starters (the pole position and "outside pole") are determined by the ordinary qualifying process of timed laps. After the top two positions are locked in, the rest of the starting grid is set by the finishing order of these two races. Drivers participate in one of the two races. Half the field entered for the Daytona 500 races in the first race, and the other half the second. The finishing order of the first race fills the odd positions of the starting grid (inside of each row), and the finishing order for the second race fills the even positions of the starting grid (outside of each row).
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[edit] History
The event began as twin 100-mile (40-lap) races. From 1959-1971, the races were counted with points towards the Grand National championship. Purses awarded were counted separately from those awarded in the Daytona 500. For 1968, the races were scheduled for 125 miles each, but were cancelled due to rain, and the starting lineup for the 1968 Daytona 500 fell back on the timed laps. In 1969, the races were extended to 125 miles (50 laps), which would require a fuel stop, and change the pit stop strategy.
For 1972, NASCAR's modern era commenced, and the races were dropped from the Grand National schedule as points-paying championship events. As part of Winston's changes to the series, races were required to be at least 250 miles to be included as official points events. The races continued, however, held as a non-points event. CBS began covering the race by the early 1980s, airing them tape-delayed and edited the day before the Daytona 500.
With the introduction of restrictor plates in 1988, the resulting reduction in speed and fuel consumption again allowed drivers to possibly complete the race without a pit stop. Nine times from 1988-2004, one of the races went without a caution, and without a pit stop by the winner. Starting in 2001, the races were shown live on television, as the Daytona 500 would rotate between FOX/FX and NBC/TNT from 2001-2006.
In 2005, the races were lengthened to 150 miles (60-laps), given a new name, the Gatorade Duel, and a revised format. In deference to NASCAR's new Top 35 exemption, the grids changed from even-odd qualifiers to a combination of top 35 even-odd from the previous year's owner points and then the rest of the drivers' by speed.[1]. A rain delay in 2006 saw the second race finish under the lights.
Starting in 2007, the Gatorade Duel will be shown live on SPEED, under the new broadcast agreement.
[edit] Format
2005-Present
- Bud Pole Qualifying is held on the Sunday one week prior to the Daytona 500. Each car, one at a time, makes a two-lap qualifying attempt, with the best single lap of the two counting as his qualifying speed. The fastest qualifier wins the pole position, and the second fastest is considered the "outside pole." Both front row starters are locked in to those positions on the Daytona 500 starting grid.
- The pole position winner is awarded the pole position for the first race of the Gatorade Duel. The outside pole winner is awarded the pole position for the second race of the Gatorade Duel.
- The top 35 car/driver combinations from the previous year's owner points, excluding the two drivers of the front row, are split among the two races. Odd numbered points positions are entered into the first race of the Duel, even-numbered points positions are entered into the second race of the Duel.
- The remaining entered cars that were not part of the top 35 in previous year's points split among the two duel races, in an odd-even fashion. The odd ranked cars enter the first duel race, the even ranked cars enter the second.
- After the participants are determined for the two duel races, the lineups are still based on speed rank.
- The top 35 drivers from previous season's points, along with the two drivers who qualified for the front row (if not from the top 35) are locked into the Daytona 500 starting field, regardless of finishing position in the Duel races.
- The two non-top 35 finishers from each Duel advance to the Daytona 500, with the first 39 to 41 (depending on how many front row starters were in the top 35 in previous year's owner points) starting positions determined by Duel finish. Drivers from the first Duel start on the inside and drivers from the second Duel on the outside.
- The remaining four positions (or two if the two front row starters were not from the top 35, or three if one of the front row starters was not from the top 35) are filled by the fastest non-35 cars in Bud Pole Qualifying.
Prior to 2005
- Pole Qualifying is held the weekend prior to the Daytona 500. Each car, one at a time, makes a two-lap qualifying attempt, with the best single lap of the two counting as his qualifying speed (in some earlier years, it was the combined average of two laps, or merely one timed lap). The fastest qualifier wins the pole position, and the second fastest is considered the "outside pole." Both front row starters are locked in to those positions on the Daytona 500 starting grid.
- The pole position winner is awarded the pole position for the first race of the Twin 125s. The outside pole winner is awarded the pole position for the second race of the Twin 125s.
- The top 14 finishers of each Twin 125 race (excluding the two front row qualifiers) advance to the Daytona 500 starting lineup. The top 14 from the first race (excluding the pole position winner) fill the insides of rows 2 through 15. The top 14 from the second race (excluding the outside pole winner) fill the outsides of rows 2-15.
- Starting positions 31-36 (and in some earlier years, 31-40) were filled by the fastest remaining cars going back to the original pole qualifying session. This rule was to protect fast qualifying cars that suffered an unfortunate accident or engine failure during the Twin 125 races.
- Starting positions 37-43 (some years varied widely) were reserved for provisionals, adhering to the established provisional rules.
[edit] Notes
- Dale Earnhardt set a record by winning one of the Twin 125 races ten consecutive years, and twelve times overall.
- Jeff Gordon won a Twin 125 in 1993, his rookie season. It marked his first win in a NASCAR Winston Cup event, however, it did not count as an official points-paying victory.
[edit] Past winners
- ^ Race shortened to 39 laps / 97.5 miles due to crash
- ^ 60 laps / 160 miles due to green-white-checker finish
- ^ 60 laps / 160 miles due to green-white-checker finish
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