With the Daytona 500 just two days away, and the NASCAR Sprint Cup season ready to get underway, RIR decided to jump ahead a little bit and see who we think is primed to make 2016 their year. We polled all our 37 members of our staff- and the top seven vote-getters are...

Carl Edwards

 "I'm picking Carl Edwards because I love his backflip when he wins! And it doesn't hurt he's really good looking. Go Carl!!"
Suzanne, Operation

Jimmie Johnson

"Jimmie Johnson. Power of the J's"
Jeff, Operations

Martin Truex Jr

"I'll go with Martin Truex Jr. He's a Philly sports fan like me."
Mike, Sales

"Car numer 78 - because he's the only one in the football offensive lineman range."
Chris, Accounting

Dale Earnhardt Jr

"I am going with Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Jr. because like Nationwide, I'm on his side."
Courtney, Communications

"Dale Earnhardt Jr. because 8+8=16! Mathematically, it's his year!"
Kristen, Ticketing

Joey Logano

"Joey Logano. He wants that redemption from last year- and a championship would be a pretty good way to ring in Team Penske's 50 years."
Megan, Marketing

"Joey Logano, because 22 is also the name of my favorite Taylor Swift song."
Emily, Marketing

Kevin Harvick

"I pick Kevin Harvick because I love Jimmy John's and he drives the Jimmy John's car. I get it delivered to my house probably every two weeks!"
Megan, Operations

"I've got to go with Kevin Harvick. I love his nickname 'Happy Harvick,' he has an awesome wife and my favorite number is 4!"
Jacque, Administration

Denny Hamlin

"This is my first internship with NASCAR, so I decided to go with my favorite number, 11. I'm also a huge Redskins fan and he races for former coach Joe Gibbs."
Brian, Marketing

"Hamlin, because I would like to throw a big Champion's celebration in town!"
Dennis, President

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2:13 PM

Here's an inside look at 2016 NASCAR Can Am Duels:

2016 Can Am Duels


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9:08 PM
We were down in the Daytona garages this morning, and as the teams were getting ready for the action later this weekend, we got a little caught up in some of the paint schemes you'll see this weekend. Here's a few that caught our eye:

Chase Elliott
Chase Elliott
It's going to take some time to get used to seeing any name other than "Jeff Gordon" on the car, but the Daytona 500 pole winner's ride is looking fresh. We're just happy to see the No. 24 still burning rubber.

Erik Jones
Anyone else getting hungry? The 2015 Camping World Truck Series champion has a full-time XFINITY Series ride for the upcoming season. The paint-out for the Powershares QQQ 300 satisfies our craving for more Jones (and mac n'cheese).

Derrike Cope
Cope's Ice-Aid paint out was cold as "Ice Ice Baby." The Derrike Cope Racing machine's primary for the 2016 season keeps things definitely keeps things cool under the hot Florida sun.

David Ragan
David Ragan
After driving for three different teams in 2015, we're sure David Ragan is thrilled to settle in with BK Racing for the upcoming season. He rolls into the 500 with a Dr. Pepper paint out that is truly "One of a Kind."

Richmond International Raceway
Call us a little biased, but we happen to think that this particular scheme was the hottest thing to arrive in Daytona for Speedweeks. You see a light bar on any of the other cars above? I didn't think so.

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1:46 PM
Here's an inside look at whats going on at the NASCAR Sprint Cup practice sessions heading into the Can-Am Duels tomorrow night:


2016 Sprint Cup Duels Practice


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10:49 PM


As the first two rounds of practice for tomorrow's Can-Am Duels wrapped up, we decided to wander around Daytona's brand new stadium. Somehow, we managed to not trip over our jaws as they dragging on the floor across Level One Concourse of this stunning facility. What's more - we recorded the trip, and are offering up what we think are some pretty cool features at the injectors.

Sunoco Injector

Sunoco 
Located down at Turn 4, the Sunoco injector was where we began our mile-long journey. Complete with photo booths, merchandise and a pair of 24 stock cars (one of Gordon's and one of Elliott's give fans a taste of the old and new), Sunoco's injector really embodies how much it's ingrained in our sport. What really took the cake for us were a trio of interactive art pieces that gave fans the feeling of revving an engine to 10,000 RPM and kicking up some smoke in a burnout before celebrating in Victory Lane.

Toyota Injector

Toyota
A Toyota Tundra once pulled a NASA Space shuttle - and they don't want you to forget it! A true homage to Toyota's history in auto racing, their injector was complete with models, their ride and drive center, reigning champ Kyle Busch's winning car and trophy.... oh, and a scale model of the space shuttle nose suspended on the wall. (FYI...it's up on the third level, so make sure to add it to your must-see list.)

Daytona World Center Injector

The World Center of Racing 
The official Daytona welcome center. Swing on through to share your Daytona experience with other fans on their fan engagement boards and sign the Start/Finish line that extends up THROUGH the concourse. But most importantly - come here for the view. It's out of this world. 

Chevrolet Injector

Chevrolet
Chevy's into cars... and they want you to share in that love. Much of their space is dedicated to loving your car as they give guests a look at the inner-workings of their automobiles and showcase models both classic and new.


Florida Hospital
Love stargazing? Well, you can do that under a few tons of steel in the Florida Hospital injector, thanks to their breathtaking LED canopy near Turn One on the Level One Concourse. With a setting for Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer and starry Night, it's just one piece of this tech-savvy injector. It also comes completes with interactive games in their Creation walkway, a back-lit fog projector, and serene waterfall.Yeah...count us in.

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9:19 PM
An early morning look at the midweek storylines surrounding Speedweeks in Daytona.

Rise and shine race fans! Media Day was a blast, and as the focus now turns to the track, there's been a ton of buzz and excitement heading into this weekend's Daytona 500. Here are a few things we picked up on from yesterday's time with the drivers...

 Locked and Loaded for Thursday
Don't expect the race rubbing from Saturday night's Sprint Unlimited to have any kind of effect on the on-track action for Thursday's duels. Any concerns about taking saving equipment for Sunday were quickly dismissed by 2014 Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick. "It's a race," the No. 4 driver said. "We're competitive and when that green flag drops, any kind of plan goes out the window and you just want to win." Brad Keselowski took a break from singing Rush to weigh in on his approach to Thursday's duels. "I've never been in a race where I didn't want to get out front and (race to win)."

 Singing Chase's Praises
Chase Elliott made history Sunday by becoming the youngest-ever Daytona 500 pole winner. But don't think that the rest of the field views Chase as a mere fluke. Teammate Jimmie Johnson knows that Hendrick has something special in the rookie; "He's got a very good pulse on things. We all see it, we all know it." Matt Kenseth, who as of today will start opposite of Elliott on the front row of Sunday's race, has also been impressed by what he's seen of the rookie so far. "I'm not worried about (his lack of experience) at all. He's proven his ability over the last several years." 

A Stacked Rookie Class
Chase isn't the only rookie with his hat in the ring for the 2016 Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors, with Ryan Blaney (Wood Brothers Racing), Chris Buescher (Front Row Motorsports) and Brian Scott (Richard Petty Motorsports) ready to go head-to-head. With 13 NASCAR National Series wins and three Series championships between them, drivers think this could be one of the deepest and most talented rookie classes to date.

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8:15 AM


We dove head first into DAYTONA 500 prep today, starting bright and early at NASCAR Media Day. Check out the video above, and read up on the Top 5 best moments of the day below, but you can check us out on Snapchat to get all of the behind-the-scenes moments.

1. Dale Jr. Can’t Wait for Heat Racing at Richmond 
It’s no secret Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be driving the no. 88 Hellman’s Chevy at the ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond in April – nor is he keeping his thoughts about the Dash 4 Cash heat racing setup under wraps. He likened the heat races to local track races – and said he knew fans would jump on board immediately. “In fact, I haven’t heard anyone who isn’t excited about heat races.” Same, Junior, same!  

2. Kurt Busch Autographed A Dog
Weirdest thing Kurt Busch has ever autographed? “They shaved the side of the dog, actually, and made me autograph it,” said Kurt. No word on if the dog has been bathed since. 

3. Richmond Day Racing is the Way to Hendricks’ Hearts
Winner of one of the only Sunday afternoon races at Richmond in the 2000s, Jimmie Johnson was excited to hear at the shift back to day racing in April. Said Johnson, “Our team always jokes that our performance is far better on a rained out day race on a Sunday than the night races, so when I heard the shift, me personally, and my team, all got excited. We thought, ‘Cool, we’ll really have a shot to win at Richmond now.’” Everyone else, you’ve been warned!  

4. Matt Kenseth is a Not-So-Secret Swiftie
Being dropped off at school by a NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion might seem like a dream to most kids, but Matt Kenseth’s girls really only focus on one thing. “When I drive the kids to school every morning I’m listening to Taylor Swift,” he said, laughing. That qualifies him for Dad of the Year in our book.  

5. Brad Keselowski’s Karaoke Song of Choice is “Tom Sawyer” by Rush
“There’s no other beat than that – it’s not even hard to sing along to. There’s not even that much singing,” said Brad Keselowski, after being asked what his karaoke song of choice is. We also learned he would like to learn to play the drums for this song, but this song only.

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6:54 PM
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