Sprint Unlimited just a Daytona tuneup

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Sure, it will be cool to race under the lights at Daytona International Speedway. Of course everybody wants to rev up those engines. And there may even be a touch of adrenaline when the green flag drops tonight.

But to paraphrase Allen Iverson, we’re talking about practice.

The Daytona 500 – the Big One – is next Sunday. The Sprint Unlimited is practice. Competitive but nonetheless practice, broken down into two segments in a non-points event.

“It’s just practice,” said Clint Bowyer, one of 25 drivers in the race.

“I used to have the Nationwide race and things like that to get acclimated with your spotters and everything. I’ve been driving a tractor. It’s been a long off-season and nobody has tested, nobody has been in a car and nobody has been acclimated to your guys and everything else. Just to show up cold turkey and not be ready is real for the Daytona 500, and I believe that.

“Having that race under our belt with all of us able to talk and (crew chief Brian) Pattie on the box, just to get in sync with one another before the big dance is what that race is all about.”

The 75-lap race will be split into two segments, with a competition caution coming at Lap 25 to separate the segments.

Denny Hamlin is the defending champion after edging Brad Keselowski by 0.197 seconds last year.

This year’s field was expanded to 25 drivers, with those eligible including all 2014 pole winners.

Four eligible drivers chose not to participate: Brian Scott, David Gilliland, Brian Vickers and AJ Allmendinger. They will be replaced by Bowyer, Paul Menard, Casey Mears and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Gordon’s farewell

Jeff Gordon is prepped for lots of bells and whistles as he makes his final run as a full-time Cup driver in 2015.

“I don’t want to be completely naive,” he said. “I know there’s going to be a lot on my plate, so I’m going to put a lot of pressure on my team.

“We have already reached out to all the tracks to talk to them about what we would like to see happen when we get to the tracks and what they would like to see and how we can just express to them how important it is to be competitive this year.”

Almirola’s cuisine

Aric Almirola, a NASCAR Cup driver of Cuban descent, is still adjusting to the growing pains of moving from Tampa, Florida, a place that sizzles with plenty of Cuban cuisine options.

“What I miss the most is Cuban food,” said Almirola, who once studied mechanical engineering at Central Florida. “It’s very hard to get picadillo in Mooresville, N.C.”