Now, the real season begins in NASCAR.
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At least that's what most of the Nextel Cup drivers and crew chiefs are saying as they prepare for Sunday's Auto Club 500 at California Speedway.
The Cup season always opens with the Daytona 500, the biggest prize in stock car racing.
But it is a 10-day marathon of practice, time trials, qualifying races and, finally, the big event itself. And racing at Daytona is also something of an aberration because the teams are forced to use carburetor restrictor plates to keep the cars under 200 mph on the big track in the interest of safety.
The plates sap horsepower and keep the cars bunched in packs on the 2.5-mile Daytona oval, often two- and three-wide at speeds hovering over 190.
"I think everybody's pretty worn out after being in Daytona for so long," said reigning Cup champion Tony Stewart, who finished fifth in the 500. "California means a normal routine and a chance for the crew guys to get back to their families for a couple of days before heading to another race track."
And the plates are off for the 2-mile California oval and every other race until the Cup competitors get to Talladega -- the only other plate track -- at the end of April.
"What you do at California is solely based on what you and your team can do with your race car, not what drafting line you're in or how the car behind you is going to affect your next move," Stewart said. "Once we get away from Daytona, everything kind of settles into a groove. We're back in the weekly grind.
"I enjoy going to California because I really feel that's where our season starts. That's a track where you don't really worry about what everybody else's car is doing. You worry about what your car is doing. You're racing the race track."
At Daytona, you always need buddies to help you make passes. Stewart, who now has finished in the top 10 in 20 of his last 23 starts, dating to last June at Michigan, said it's nice knowing you don't have to rely on anyone else to help you on the California track.
"Regardless of what everyone else is doing, you can find a way to help yourself out," he said. "It makes you feel good knowing that because the place is so wide, you can move around, and basically, earn your money that day."
A lot of eyes
The coverage by NBC Sports of last Sunday's Daytona 500 attracted 37.2 million viewers and drew an 11.3 household rating and a 23 share -- all records.
Those numbers made the race the most watched Daytona 500 as well as the highest rated NASCAR event in history according to information released by NBC Sports based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
The 37.2 million viewers for the Daytona 500 exceed the combined total audience of almost any three other motorsports events.
The race was also broadcast on MRN Radio to more than 500 affiliates with an estimated 7 million listeners, and by the American Forces Radio Network to 1 million men and women in uniform in nearly 180 countries.
Hopeful start
Richard Childress Racing, trying for a major turnaround of fortunes this season, is off to a promising start.
First, veteran Jeff Burton won the pole for the Daytona 500, then rookie Clint Bowyer, last year's Busch Series runner-up but driving in only his second Cup race, led the three-man team with a sixth-place finish in the main event.
Kevin Harvick, the team's key driver, finished a decent 14th, while Burton struggled to 32nd place.
Bowyer, one of eight drivers vying for Rookie of the Year honors this season, was the top first-year driver in the 500 with a sixth-place finish. The next highest finishing rookie was two-time Busch Series champion Martin Truex Jr. in 16th.
Since 1975, only eight other rookie drivers have top 10 finishes in the Daytona 500. They are Dale Earnhardt, Jody Ridley, Rick Mast, Bobby Hamilton, Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman and Scott Wimmer.
Of those drivers, only Gordon (fifth in 1993) and Wimmer (third in 2004) posted better finishes than Bowyer in their first Daytona 500 starts.
"It was very important," said Bowyer, who replaced Dave Blaney in the Cup car. "With all the changes that were made to this race team over the winter, including myself and especially (crew chief) Gil Martin, I think it's a breath of fresh air for all these guys.
"They were beaten up pretty badly last year. I think a lot of them were almost on the verge of giving up. The way we ran on Sunday renewed their hope and gives the whole team a lot of momentum heading into California this weekend."
The 26-year-old driver from Emporia, Kan., said he is a firm believe in getting things started right and building momentum.
"Last week helped me build confidence in all those guys and, hopefully, they've got a lot of confidence in me now. It's definitely a heck of a way to get things started."
Stat of the week
In 11 Cup races at the track in Fontana, Calif., about 60 miles east of Los Angeles, Jeff Gordon has won three times and has two other top five finishes. He is the only driver with multiple victories at the California track and his 12.272 average finish is the best among the 13 drivers who have competed in all 11 events.
Gordon has also led 410 laps, more than any other driver. But he has led in only one of the last six races there.
