NASCAR Cup Series

Pony cars make debut at Daytona

Published Jun. 30, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

After Sorenson posted his fast lap of 188.111 mph in the Dollar General Stores Toyota Camry, the Braun Racing driver admitted he was on the verge of wrecking.

“They’re a handful,” Sorenson said. “But everybody is in the same boat. You’re good for about five laps and then you feel like you’re going to wreck.”

“Loose” was the word of the day — at least once drivers ran in traffic. When a driver describes a car as loose or “free,” it feels as if the back end is ready to spin out. The largest drafting pack of the afternoon was 14 cars.

Sorenson said his largest group was 11 cars, which he fortunately exited just prior to Greg Sacks' crash.

Paul Menard also lost control of his car late Wednesday. Menard spun and flat-spotted his tires. He quickly returned to the racetrack and was 16th fastest (185.488 mph) on his 29th of 31 laps.

Steve Arpin, who made his restrictor-plate debut for JR Motorsports at Talladega and qualified fourth, described his Chevrolet as “very aero sensitive."

“It’s really loose in the draft,” said Arpin, who posted the 15th-fastest lap of 185.571 mph. “By our self, it feels like you’re driving a Cadillac — or an Impala. But around other cars, it gets loose in both transitions going into the banking.”

Although 34 cars participated in the first day of practice for Friday’s Subway Jalapeno 250, there are 44 cars on the entry list. NASCAR template wizard Billy Berkheimer and his crew measured the last car at 5:00 p.m.

Kyle Busch was seventh fastest on the time sheet with a lap of 186.986 mph. Busch said while most of the cars reported being loose, he felt the No. 18 NOS Toyota “was pretty good.

“It’s the same as it ever was,” Busch said. “I’d like to be as fast as the Penske cars are. We’re just hoping for more speed.”

Ricky Stenhouse posted the best 10-consecutive-laps average with a speed of 184.964 mph in a Mustang, but Brian Ickler was the fastest Ford overall (187.903 mph), good for second on the speed chart. Justin Allgaier had the fastest Dodge Challenger (186.413mph) and was 12th fastest out of the 34 cars.