2011 Coke Zero 400 Post-Practice Predictions, Picks, Tips and Preview – Favorites and Sleepers to Win Coke Zero 400: In the grand scheme of things, practice times at Daytona don’t mean all that much. Fast cars and slow cars are both equally likely to become victims of the multi-car wrecks that the track has become famous for over the years. In other words, survival has as much to do with success at Daytona as speed. That being said, bettors might as well take their chances with the drivers that posted fast laps during practice. The race is unpredictable anyway, and if you are going to go down, you might as well go down swinging.
2011 Coke Zero 400 – Post-Practice Top 5
Kurt Busch: Last week, Busch won his first career road course race. Based on the practice times, he might follow that up with his first restrictor-plate race victory this weekend. Busch posted the third-fastest lap in the lone practice session Thursday, and he also posted the third-best average speed. Coming off a fifth-place finish at Daytona in February, Busch could finally breakthrough this weekend after numerous top-five finishes.
Brad Keselowski: Busch’s Penske Racing teammate was nearly as impressive during Thursday’s practice. Keselowski posted the fourth-fastest lap, along with the fourth-best average speed. He already has a win at Talladega in his young career, and he appears to have a car capable of adding another restrictor-plate track to his list this weekend. Look for Busch and Keselowski to team up and try to dominate the action Saturday night.
Marcos Ambrose: He has struggled at Daytona in his career, but all signs point to a breakout performance for Ambrose Saturday night. He posted the fastest lap of any driver, and he recorded the top average speed during practice as well. Ambrose’s car clearly has plenty of speed. If he can stay out of trouble and pick the right drafting partners, he could pull off a big upset.
Clint Bowyer: Bowyer has emerged as one of the top plate racers in the Cup Series the last two years, and he was near the top of the charts once again Thursday. He posted the seventh-fastest lap in the only practice session, and he also had the second-best average speed. Bowyer had led a significant amount of laps in each of his last two starts at Daytona, and he is long overdue to close the deal and notch a win at the track.
Jeff Gordon: He has plenty of momentum on his side entering Saturday’s race, and Gordon was strong throughout Thursday’s practice. He put down the fifth-fastest lap of any driver, and he had the seventh-best average speed as well. Gordon looked very strong when the Cup Series last visited a superspeedway, qualifying first and finishing third at Talladega in April. He should be in the mix for the win once again Saturday night.
2011 Coke Zero 400 – Post-Practice Top Sleeper
A.J. Allmendinger: He has finished as high as third at Daytona, and Allmendinger’s car looked awful good during practice. He posted the second-fastest lap of the session and the second-best average speed. Allmendinger finished a solid 11th at the track in February, and he appears to have a car capable of improving on the result and then some.