Keselowski wins Daytona, Dale Jr. Cup champion
NASCAR SEASON PREDICTIONS
The NASCAR season gets the green flag with Sunday’s Daytona 500. Here are a few predictions for what should be an extremely interesting season: Sprint Cup champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. was near the top of the standings for much of the 2015 season and might have advanced to the third round of the Chase but for an untimely caution that cost him a chance at winning at Talladega. He has more of a comfort level with crew chief Greg Ives now, so it’s Junior’s turn to win his first title. Xfinity champion 2015 champ Chris Buescher moves up to Cup racing, so there will be a new winner. Ty Dillon, who finished third last season behind Buescher and ’14 champ Chase Elliott, seems like the obvious choice. Talented youngster Erik Jones, who won the ’14 Truck title, will make some noise, too. Truck champion Despite six victories (and possibly because of three did-not-finishes), two-time champ Matt Crafton finished third last season behind the more consistent Jones and Tyler Reddick. Watch for Crafton to get his title back. Daytona 500 winner There’s lots of talk about how strong the Joe Gibbs Racing and Team Penske teams are at Daytona, so let’s go with Penske’s Brad Keselowski. It’s a race he has never won and he’s got the speed to do it. Most anticipated race It’s not the Daytona 500. Next week’s Folds of Honor 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway will be the season’s first using NASCAR’s muchanticipated new low down-force aerodynamic package. The hope is that the new package will introduce an era of more competitive, freewheeling action into Cup racing. Rookie of the year Winning the Daytona 500 pole isn’t necessarily a reliable measure, but Chase Elliott’s bloodlines (dad is NASCAR Hall-of-Famer Bill Elliott) and equipment (Jeff Gordon’s Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 Chevy) suggest he’ll be really good. Top open team Yes, there’s been controversy surrounding Wood Brothers Racing’s not getting a “charter” this season. But with talented rookie Ryan Blaney behind the wheel, look for the Woods’ iconic No. 21 to be in the field more often than not as one of each race’s four “open” entrants. Best new rule The “overtime line” in a green-white-checkered finish means a restart is valid only after the leader passes that spot (which will usually be somewhere on the backstretch). Comeback of the year Last season was the first since the Chase was instituted that a Roush Fenway Racing driver didn’t make the postseason. Greg Biffle will correct that.