We’re just going to have to race smart

daytona beach, fla. » ou wake up on the morning of the Daytona 500 and it hits you pretty quickly that you’re about to compete in one of the most prestigious and watched sporting events in our country.

This is the race we all dreamt about winning as far back as we can remember. I watched the 500 on television as a kid and always pulled for the famous No. 3 black car. Dale Earnhardt Sr. was my favorite racer growing up and I was thrilled when he won his first Daytona 500 (1998).

So many auto racing legends have won this race, including this year’s honorary race official, Mario Andretti (1967).

There’s nothing I would like more than to be part of that selective Daytona 500 Win Club. As most motorsports fans know our Furniture Row Racing team came so close to winning last year’s 500 in our No. 78 Bass Pro Shops/ TRACKER Boats Toyota. Our runnerup loss to Denny Hamlin was the closest finish in the 58-year history of the 500. The difference at the finish line was by one-hundredth of a second. Ouch!

As bad as that loss hurt, at the same it was kind of cool to be part of that finish. It was the first time I’ve had an opportunity to win the 500. So I guess if you

Yhave to lose one before you can win one, that was my losing one. But what is so difficult is putting yourself in position to win the 500. It’s really a race in itself to try and get in position to have a shot at winning. I have said that I will have to relive last year’s finish the rest of my career unless I win the 500. So the quickest way to erase that photo finish memory is to win Sunday’s Daytona 500. It’s not the easiest task by any means, but we’re going to give it everything we have to contend for the win.

The new wrinkle to this year’s 500 is that it will be contested in three stages: 60-60-80 laps. Points will be awarded to the top-10 finishers in each of the first two stages plus one playoff point will go the winner of each stage. The overall Daytona 500 winner (final 80 laps) will also receive five playoff bonus points.

This will alter the strategy, but we also have to keep in mind that you don’t want to wreck your car in the segment races to pick up a few points and not have an opportunity to win the Daytona 500. This is something new and we’re just going to have to race smart. Furniture Row Racing’s Martin Truex Jr., driver of Denver’s No. 78 car, is keeping a daily diary for The Post through the Daytona 500 on Sunday.