The Nextel Cup Series returns to Daytona International Speedway this weekend, where Kevin Harvick will be looking for his second win at Daytona this season in the Pepsi 400.
Five months ago Harvick won the Daytona 500 by a fender over Mark Martin at the finish line. Harvick hasn't claimed the checkered flag on the Nextel Cup circuit since, but he does have seven Top 10 finishes and a pair of victories in the Busch Series.
The favorite in the second go-round at Daytona will likely be Jeff Gordon or Tony Stewart. Point's leader Jeff Gordon just missed his fifth win of the season at New Hampshire last weekend and had to settle for second place behind Denny Hamlin. Gordon has the most wins of any active driver at Daytona, having won there six times during his career. The last time Gordon saw the checkered flag at Daytona was in the 2005 Daytona 500, while his last 400-mile race win at Daytona came back in 2004.
Stewart has been the best driver in the Pepsi 400 the last two years, having won the auto race in 2006 and 2005. Those are Stewart's only two victories at Daytona, as his best-ever finish in the 500 was a second place in 2005. Stewart has had an up-and-down season so far and is still looking for his first victory. Despite the bad luck and sometimes bad results, Stewart is still in the hunt for the championship and sits sixth in points with nine racing remaining before The Chase begins. Stewart's chances in The Chase would be much better if he could get a few wins under his belt, considering reigning Cup champion Jimmie Johnson and four-time Cup winner Gordon both have four wins already this season.
One driver everyone will be watching out for this weekend is Hamlin, who closed the gap on Gordon in the point's standings with his first win of the season last weekend at New Hampshire. Hamlin now sits only 156 points back of Gordon, thanks to his win and NASCAR subtracting 100 points from Gordon over violations at Infineon a week earlier. Hamlin hasn't had much success at Daytona, with his best finish in three races being a 17th place, but he's been one of the most consistent drivers on the circuit this season and will likely challenge for the race lead at some point on Saturday night.
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