the 42 car hit the jet dryer that is what i was using my hands for. our car are is good. i left the pits too early right there and so we had to come back in and top off so we will be last on lead lap but there is still plenty of time left. it will be exciting and i don't think the wrecks are over yet if we go back racing. >> matt: do you remember the last time the daytona 500 had stoppage similar to this? >> i asked if they were asking for bondo in the garage area. i thought that might be a good omen. >> matt: mike? >> mike: thank you, matt. here is why we were under the red flag. working the 7th caution of the night for david stremme's blown engine. juan pablo montoya down the back stretch, something broke and he slid up into a safety vehicle that was carrying 200-gallons of jet fuel to run the track floor and diesel fuel in the truck. montoya limped away. the driver of the truck was helped from his vehicle. he is okay.

but the racetrack sustained a bit of damage from that fire and they are getting the residue of the diesel fuel and the jet fuel cleaned off the racetrack so we can go back racing. dave blaney is the race leader. 29 cars on the lead lap and in position to have a chance to win the 500 as we work the red flag and this 7th caution flag of the night. five time champion jimmie johnson taken out in a crash on lap two with david ragan. robby gordon out of the race. jeff gordon three time winery blown engine. danica patrick and trevor bayne, many laps down after being involved in that early incident. as we wait for track cleanup to be completed in turn number three and get these drivers back in their cars to try and win the daytona 500 tonight on fox.

♪ >> mike: an exciting and tumultous speedweeks so far. aerial coverage brought to grow you by he directv. dedicated driver channels so you will never miss a second of your driver's race. call 1-800-directv. as cleanup continues an update from nascar on the driver of the safety vehicle impacted by

montoya's car, dwayne barnes who is a staff member of michigan international speedway. the upkat update is that hat hx hospital resting comfortably and being observed. >> larry: one thing we talked to mike helton about off of camera. he said they are getting a lot of questions about letting the drivers out of the car and he said that is something they allowed the drivers. well, over an hour red flag and people relating it to the 2002 when sterling marlin got out of his car under a brief redding there. the difference, sterling pulled on the fender. you cannot work on your car. that is the reason elliott sadler's car is sitting on pit road with no one working on it. >> mike: go back to the back stretch. matt yocum. >> matt: catching up with roush fenway teammates starting first with matt kenseth. issues earlier. everything good to go now? >> i hope so. something in the water system was stuck and kept pumping wore

out until i about ran it out of water and had to pit and petty and elliott about fixed. our best buy ford is pretty fast. greg probably has the strongest car here tonight. our car is fast. it will get crazy at the end. i don't know if it matters who has the fastest car. hopefully we can keep it in position. >> matt: what impresses you most about the response from your car? >> harder than it looks to come from the back to the front. have to have guys push you and get the right runs. a little difficult. kind of like what i thought it would be on thursday. important to be up in the front and have some friends that want to work with you at least until you get off turn four. >> you had a major issue. telling your team you were hoping for frosted flakes or cheez-its. >> i can't believe you didn't have something to eat for all of us.

>> matt ordered food but nascar didn't bring it yet. we are just obviously excited to get this thing fixed and go finish this race. we got a pretty good fusion. maybe not as good as greg and matt's cars but matt is whenning with you right now. >> our car is very good. a fuel issue at one point. >> it is called focus. >> i think matt was messing with the fuel system earlier or something. once we got that worked out i think we are going to be good. going to be good. >> matt: when you try to describe the action on the racetrack from the fans at home from your cockpit, what -- it is called electronics, matt. what would you describe it for the fan at home of what you are seeing? compared to years past? >> right now, you know, there -- the cars get lined up in two rows. hard to move back up to the front. so what i'm trying to do is choose my time to go up there and charge the front and the laps are winding down so we will do it here pretty soon.

looks differently because it kind of -- the road gets blocked. can't just charge up there. not like you can get with one guy and run up on the outside and pass everybody. taking longer to go to the front. >> matt: seemed like during the duel and even in practice a lot of guys were saying that the bottom line was much more difficult to get a good run. the top line was the preferred line. seems like the reverse tonight sometimes. >> it does. for some reason the top can get a run sometimes. i have been unsuccessful to get a run in the top. i watched denny and some of the other guys they weren't even hooked up and they got the line to go and were able to get to the lead. so i don't know if our car is a little draggy or something when it get there's but it pushes good and we have been able to maintain the bottom and the car is handling good. those are three attributes you need to win the daytona 500 and i feel pretty good about where we are at. >> matt: a great call in 2003 when you won the july race here

on fuel mileage. looking at the race tonight counting it down as far as how many laps out when you need to make your move to head toward the front, going to tell your spotter to count you down and what lap would that be? >> my plan for tonight has been to stay as close to the front as i can. matt told me we are good on fuel right now. not planning on making any more pitstops for the race. we will go to the end from here. >> matt: good luck. mike? >> mike: you are familiar with the adhesive used on the bumpers of cars to hold them together during the races. this is a product must be its cousin called street bond. a very, very fast setting kind of sealer or filler. and it better set fast and here is why. you see the red dot as daytona international speedway and while most of the big storm cells have broken up the green

meanies there are advancing on our red do the. >> darrell: erase that one, will you? get it out of there. >> mike: since everyone wanted to see the pictures from the black straightaway brad kezelowski has now picked up tens of thousands of twitter followers since the red flag came out. >> larry: dave blaney had his phone i'm sure brad could set him up on twitter during this red flag. >> mike: 55,000 since the red flag wanted to see the pictures. there are some total mentions this weekend. twitter driver busenitz. buzz. follow us at nascar on fox on twitter or follow us on tonight's telecast individually. >> darrell: since we have been down here the last week i went over 100,000 followers and i could not believe who my twitter has lit up since we have been down here. >> mike: speaking of lit up, a couple of drops coming down as

we go side by side, hopeful of getting the daytona 500 restarted and soon.

>> mke: the man in the yellow fire suit is dave blaney. the leader of the daytona 500 having raced his way into the 500 by finishing 12 in his duel race. finished third in nascar sprint cup three times. most recently at talladega last october. back driving for bill davis. nearly won a cup race at

atlanta. had some problems, didn't make it to the flag. world of outlaws sprint car champion. his son races. he has a great outlook. he got into the top 35 in owner points last season but his owner snatched the golden ticket and applied it to a different team and said dave you will have to race your way into the 500 again. he did and he now has the lead. everybody is having a little fun with brad kezelowski's sprint phone. >> darrell: right now, blaney has a lot of friends. we had a shot of tommy baldwin up on the spotter's stand and reminded me of the song all by myself. over on an island all by himself. and of course everybody else is jealous because this man might pick up a million and a half bucks here if this doesn't go back to green. >> larry: we promoted the fact to to start the daytona 500 it as quarter of a million dollars but you if you can win the race the numbers are endless. puts you into the sprint

all-star race in may. over a million and a half dollars to win and keeps going on and on. >> mike: martin truex truex, t. already banked $200,000 for the midway payday. >> darrell: and a lot of people were really mad at tommy baldwin for making the deal with stuart haas for danica and taking that opportunity away from dave blaney. i bet they are not all that mad right now. >> mike: let's get to dave blaney's pit krista voda. >> krista: the conversations between dave blaney and what is going through your mind knowing that mother nature could be your best friend tonight? >> looking at mother nature. nascar is doing a great job of getting the track cleaned up. just that chance. watching all the drivers back there play with their phones and there is no telling what they are doing back there. amazing, they drive 200-mile an hour and have race cars and

love all the great things and their phones are some of their biggest toys. we'll see here. potentially some rain. we still got a good race care car. we had to overcome a few things and had to make a few adjustments. if we get back on i think we can have a solid finish. looking forward to it either way but a little rain wouldn't hurt. >> krista: you have been watching the weather along with your race car all night. didn't know you would have to watch a jet dryer as well. >> after you do this stuff long enough you think what is next or see some of the darndest things. that will be one of the things that everybody will remember that day when that happened on the backstretch. there is, you know, thank goodness everybody is safe and i think they will get the track. hopefully didn't hurt the track. you know, we'll just give it our best here and if we get back going there is still more opportunities for are us.

>> krista: and with that weather, too, how closely are you monitoring and what are you telling dave about what is potentially coming? >> right now if i wanted to talk to dave looks like i would have to call junior on his phone or kezelowski. >> krista: dave is not carrying his. >> i don't think dave is tweeting. he is not on facebook. i don't think he is doing any of that stuff back there. obviously a few guys are so that is probably how we have to get ahold of him right now. probably another 35-45 minutes and if the rain doesn't get us first. >> krista: and ryan talked to dave in the car and asked h him you don't have a twitter account, right and dave said that is a big 10-4, do i not. there is a dave blaney on twitter. it is not this dave blaney. he may need to get a twitter account after this. right now he is in the seat, mike. >> mike: not only blaney who is a journey veteran driver by landon cassill pretty much unheralded.

driving for a team that was just put together three weeks guy. tony raines didn't have a ride for the 500 a month ago and he is in third. and david gilliland running fourth after a surprise third place finish in this race one year ago, matt? >> matt: at the end of 2011 landon cassill was going to drive for one team. this organization came together quickly. do you believe how stout they have been early on? >> pretty impressive that bk racing made it to daytona. put a good team together for the race. this is an interesting situation we are in. it would be a very humble way to make my first daytona finish with my first daytona start. so again humbling but i'm honored to be here in this race and driving for bk racing and to be a sprint cup series driver. >> and doug told me he as we were walking out he was like man, the extra day is killing us because the team has come

together in such a short amount of time. >> it is amazing what these guys have accomplished already and it is cool to see the plans this he have been putting in place because of the delay and being here one more day. they haven't had a chance to go back home and work o on the cas for phoenix. the guys are working hard on the cars in statesville. i hope we can get to phoenix with good race cars and get through daytona with the car in one piece whether we finish it now or later. >> dick: had a chance to sit back and digest what is taking place. a.b. opportunity to plan ahead of what you would like to do to get your car are in position to win this event? >> i think it will be interesting. i don't think the drivers have really cranked it up yet. we have been running a lot of two by two and they haven't been three wide yet so they will be getting three wide the last few laps and i think there will be a wreck and i think we are going to try to take advantage of that and put our service iourselves in a positik

through the middle there after a second restart or something like that. the car is in one piece so far and that is huge. having fun here. this is cool to hang out with these guys and brad brought his phone for some odd reason but tripled or doubled his twitter followers. impressive. good to see that people are watching and really got to thank the fans that hung around through the weather and stayed an extra day and a half pretty much to watch the daytona 500. it is really an honor to be racing for these fans. >> matt: cinderella story for the truck series race and nationwide series race. some guys have been experimenting throughout the race trying different moves, have you? >> i have towards the back trying to make sure that i can protect myself and suck up through the field and get into the pack when i'm ready to make an aggressive move. just didn't want to get caught in the pack when somebody made

a mistake. feel like i can get up into a position to strike and race.ully we get to finish the if we don't the cinderella story is humbling to be in this position and be here. i want to race and make 200 laps here. >> matt: so many great stories in the 54 h. running of the daytona 500. >> mike: cassill and his teammate david reutimann took a wave around on the last caution flag. did not pit. waited out the caution. waved around the pace car are to get back on the lead lap and now cassill finds himself in second place. >> darrell: the twitter thing has gone nuts. brad kezelowski's twitter account has crashed. i got a twitter, they are having a 500 party and about to run out of dip. says can you get this thing going again, dad. >> mike: ricky stenhouse with the big 6 on his back. talking with danica patrick as

cleanup continues. and they try to get the track back in racable condition to run the final 40 laps of the 500. and looks like they may send the blower there's and send the drivers back to their cars. a huge roar from the grandstand here that remains three-quarters full. these fans have seen rain and now fire and put up with a day and a half of delays. they don't want to be denied because they know that the last laps of this race as these drivers have told you are going to be elect feeing. >> darrell: the fans arelike marathon runners. i'm going to finish this race even if i have to walk across the line. >> larry: i think the other good news is that small cell that was approaching daytona international speedway, i think it broke up so we should be good to go here. >> mike: they do run a 24 hour race here in daytona. this is more like the 36 hours

of daytona. and you see that cell is pretty much falling apart. brought a little bit of a sprinkle but behind it pretty clear skies. we'll hope for no more of the pop-up showers and get the final 00 miles of of the daytona 500 in the books tonight. >> darrell: i want to give you some history. in 1963 the first ten laps of this race were run under a caution due to rain. 65 of of it was rain shortened 1 about 3 laps. 66 shortened 198 laps. '79 shortened due to rain. '92, laps 84 and 89 run under caution due to rain. 95 red flag on lap 7 due to rain. red flag lasted an hour and 44 minutes. 2003 two red flags for rain. lap three and another one at 109 at 272.5. in 2009 the rain was -- race

shortened 152 low pressures. 380 miles. and in 2012 the race was postponed for a day as we well know. >> mike: nascar has called the drivers back to their cars, darrell and they are going to run a car pool service from pit road take one crewman from each team around to the back stretch to help each driver get strapped in and get their radio equipment hooked up and any driver cooling aids to make sure that everybody is at the ready to go and then cars should roll with 40 laps to go in the daytona 500. we'll take a side-by-side break from the great american race.

mike: welcome back, everyone to the 54th running of the great american race. the first time in prime time on a monday night and the bus is shuttling crew members out to help drivers get behind the wheels of their cars once again and for us to run the final 40 laps of the race as the crews continue to work. mikey, over the years we have seen troubles on racetracks before. seems like they were up on top of this and have the right technology and first and foremost the racetrack will be safe for the drivers. >> michael: the only thing i'm worried about is when they blow the jet dryers. i have been looking forward to the last 100 miles.

can't hardly stand it. wound up in great position to see the most amazing finish ever. >> john: take a look back at the first 400 miles of the race. seems like a long time ago as it started. elliott sadler quick tap to jimmie johnson and he is in the wall. >> michael: got hit and turned into the outside wall. watch what danica goes through. trying to squeak through sideways and takes a hit right there and tore up the rear end of her car and put her in the garage. >> john: look at the way denny hamlin was charging to the lead. hooked up with martin truex, jr. and got the lead himself. >> michael: he is the only one we have seen him push, bump draft. only place he has been happy is when is out front. >> john: four time champion jeff gordon blows up. >> michael: he put everything in the race and when it went bad for jeff we thought that is a shane. watch what happens to it juan. transmission. something broke and spun him into the outside wall. excuse me, into the truck. look at that car. it's tore all to pieces.

obviously big fire there. what is great, though, is both juan and the guy driving the truck were able to walk away. >> john: that is the road good news. even better news for the race fans that braved this for so many hours now we will go back green flag racing shortly. again, as soon as you think you have seen everything in this sport, mike. something like this happens. >> michael: thanks for hanging around. talk about pushing and bump drafting and three wide. you will see if all. this is the daytona 500. bring everything you got and you throw it on the table and you are not happy unless you walk away with the trophy. i can't imagine the emotions dave blaney is going through right now. the track is messed up. no, they fixed it. it's going to rain, no, it quit. >> john: the harvey j. earl trophy is one of the most could vetted in all of motorsports.

dave blaney is making hits 398th career start if he can stay up front and hold on that trophy will be his. that will be a tough order because there are so many great drivers who all want to win that thing. >> michael: a beautiful trophy and looks good on your mantle, too. >> john: you got two of them. i hope you have a big mantle. >> michael: i love looking at them. >> john: and the $1.5 million involved in it. the crew members back on the bus. they have gotten the drivers back into it and just when you think you have seen everything in racing. >> michael: have to have a little bit of help. said we will give you a ride to the back straightaway and make sure the han's devices are hooked up and the radios are hooked up. i predict they will need the han's devices in the last 100 miles because it will be very intense. there will be a lot of scraping

and shoving. >> john: and people on the crews these days that are called interior specialists and those are no doubt the guys that went out there to help the drivers get back in. trevor bayne did it last year. there are many drivers, well, many, what, six, seven that made the first win the daytona 500 their first win. trevor bayne was, of course, the guy that had the sin released l real will slipper on. >> michael: thought was the best day ever. that trophy is heavy by the way. 2003 a dominant car. the rains came halfway. winning the race at halfway is tough. we saw a great example of it here. dave blaney was going to steal the victor i have. he didn't have the best car. that day in 2003 we had the best car and happened to be in the front when they said okay it is over. how are you supposed to win a race when you don't know when

it will end. >> john: and the rain came at exactly the right time. this weekend friday night an unsuspected winner. a surprise saturday as bell. well. could we see another surprise? >> michael: no one has won the race twice in the last ten years and you have guys that have never won it right up there battling for the win. it will be really intense. that is the main thing. if the patch works and we are able to dry the track the next 100 miles are going to be some of the it toughest drive you have done in your whole life. that is robert pemberton. he is making sure that we can get this baby fired back off. >> john: for nascar the most important thing is the in tikrit of the racing surface and the good news is that juan pablo montoya and the driver of the safety truck are okay. nothing you can do about this situation because the safety truck driver was doing what he

was supposed to do and juan pablo montoya was doing exactly what he was supposed to do and the race car got away from him. >> michael: he was running the line he should have run. the thing just broke and spun him out of control into the truck. >> john: here on fox college football returns september 1. tune in to all the action as fox has you covered. premiers september 1, fox college football. and we are looking forward right now you to 40 more laps of white knuckle racing here are in daytona. doesn't matter if it is today, tomorrow, whatever day it happens that trophy is one of the most coveted in all of motorsports and somebody is going to walk away with it. >> darrell: i like that white knuckle raising. a great way to describe it because these guys will be on the edge and push and be all about the next 40 laps to see who gets the biggest trophy in american. >> john: the phrase was coin in the nfl and they said the pack is back. here at daytona the pack is back, once again. from what we heard from the fans, mike.

they love the pack racing better than the tandem racing we have seen last time around. >> michael: denny hamlin has been fast and greg biffle gotten to the front. matt kenseth was on with an engine that looked like it was blown up anthey get it fixed and now has found his way to the front. they have cars fast enough to win the thing and haven't been fast enough to get to the front yet. they will get there now. >> john: the rain cells have broken up. the patch is drying on the racetracracetrack and drivers s their cars. 40 to go here at daytona. stay with us, everyone. it's going to be a wild finish. a shoottng. the local actor

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