NEWS & STATS
Final Practice: AMP Energy 500
By Brian Polking
October 30, 2009 7:30 PM ET
At most tracks, the practice sessions leading up to the race are of vital importance. It is where drivers and teams make the adjustments necessary to turn their cars into contenders for the win. However, Talladega is not most tracks. While drivers still want to have a car that is comfortable of the drive, the main focus of the practice sessions at Talladega shift from fine tuning to staying out of trouble. Practice at Talladega probably has more risk than reward. The only thing a driver really needs to check for is whether or not their car overheats in the draft and whether or not it handles well enough to drive. Other than that, it is all about survival.
The drivers are going to be bunched up all afternoon, and there isn't a setup available that is going to allow a driver to run away from the field. Average speeds are determined more by which drivers were in the draft longer than by which drivers have the best cars. Top speeds are a reflection on which drivers happened to get hooked up in a straight line for an entire lap. The data available to fantasy owners isn't going to help much when it comes time to picking a lineup.
In fact, the practice times aren't the list owners should be looking for this weekend. They should be looking for the damage report. The damage was relatively mild during the Friday sessions. Clint Bowyer and Sam Hornish Jr. were involved in a wreck during the first session. Hornish Jr. will go to a backup car, but Bowyer's team repaired his No. 33 machine, and he promptly topped the charts in Happy Hour.
The only other notable incident occurred when NASCAR temporarily parked Michael Waltrip for aggressive bump drafting in the corners. Waltrip also caught the attention of drivers by posting the second best overall speed. Jimmie Johnson, Reed Sorenson and Kurt Busch rounded out the top five in the final session before Sunday's race.
Final Practice Speeds (sorted by Top Speed)
| Rank | Car | Driver | Team | Top Speed | Best Time | Avg. Speed | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 33 | Clint Bowyer | BB&T Chevy | 193.154 | 49.577 | 176.855 | 23 |
| 2 | 55 | Michael Waltrip | NAPA Auto Parts Toyota | 192.116 | 49.845 | 182.854 | 27 |
| 3 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Lowe's Chevy | 191.214 | 50.08 | 175.174 | 20 |
| 4 | 43 | Reed Sorenson | Liberty Medical Dodge | 191.016 | 50.132 | 179.203 | 25 |
| 5 | 2 | Kurt Busch | Miller Lite Dodge | 190.863 | 50.172 | 183.466 | 8 |
| 6 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | DuPont Chevy | 190.78 | 50.194 | 184.067 | 21 |
| 7 | 6 | David Ragan | UPS Ford | 190.761 | 50.199 | 180.916 | 31 |
| 8 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | DEWALT Ford | 190.582 | 50.246 | 181.519 | 17 |
| 9 | 44 | A J Allmendinger | Hunt Brothers Pizza Dodge | 190.325 | 50.314 | 172.692 | 22 |
| 10 | 16 | Greg Biffle | 3M / Filterete Ford | 190.162 | 50.357 | 176.757 | 25 |
| 11 | 47 | Marcos Ambrose | Clorox / Kingsford / Little Debbie Toyota | 190.136 | 50.364 | 183.823 | 19 |
| 12 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Office Depot / Old Spice Chevy | 190.128 | 50.366 | 180.344 | 18 |
| 13 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Budweiser Dodge | 190.011 | 50.397 | 175.774 | 24 |
| 14 | 99 | Carl Edwards | SUBWAY Ford | 189.989 | 50.403 | 184.693 | 15 |
| 15 | 18 | Kyle Busch | M&M's Toyota | 189.962 | 50.41 | 184.04 | 28 |
| 16 | 5 | Mark Martin | Pop-Tarts / CARQUEST Chevy | 189.921 | 50.421 | 183.863 | 14 |
| 17 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | AMP Energy Get on the 88/Ntnl Guard Chevy | 189.906 | 50.425 | 185.283 | 12 |
| 18 | 39 | Ryan Newman | U.S. Army Chevy | 189.477 | 50.539 | 178.925 | 5 |
| 19 | 12 | David Stremme | No. 12 Penske Dodge | 189.447 | 50.547 | 177.248 | 16 |
| 20 | 7 | Robby Gordon | Jim Beam Toyota | 187.96 | 50.947 | 167.382 | 18 |
| 21 | 36 | Robert Richardson, Jr | Mahindra Tractors Toyota | 186.598 | 51.319 | 175.791 | 10 |
| 22 | 82 | Scott Speed | Red Bull Toyota | 184.509 | 51.9 | 174.712 | 7 |
| 23 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports Toyota | 184.168 | 51.996 | 173.8 | 15 |
| 24 | 96 | Erik Darnell | Academy Sports & Outdoors Ford | 184.133 | 52.006 | 173.712 | 11 |
| 25 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Shell / Pennzoil Chevy | 184.065 | 52.025 | 174.129 | 11 |
| 26 | 7 | Casey Mears | Jack Daniel's Chevy | 183.91 | 52.069 | 174.061 | 3 |
| 27 | 26 | Jamie McMurray | IRWIN Marathon Ford | 183.814 | 52.096 | 174.449 | 7 |
| 28 | 83 | Brian Vickers | Red Bull Toyota | 183.543 | 52.173 | 166.641 | 2 |
| 29 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Express Toyota | 183.28 | 52.248 | 177.669 | 12 |
| 30 | 13 | Max Papis | GEICO Toyota | 183.14 | 52.288 | 173.407 | 7 |
| 31 | 0 | David Reutimann | Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota | 183.115 | 52.295 | 173.789 | 7 |
| 32 | 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Chevy | 182.993 | 52.33 | 172.975 | 15 |
| 33 | 98 | Paul Menard | Zecol / Menards Ford | 182.877 | 52.363 | 172.273 | 11 |
| 34 | 19 | Elliott Sadler | Stanley Ford | 182.026 | 52.608 | 174.042 | 3 |
| 35 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Caterpillar Chevy | 182.019 | 52.61 | 174.358 | 14 |
| 36 | 37 | Tony Raines | Long John Silver's Dodge | 181.57 | 52.74 | 172.539 | 11 |
| 37 | 66 | Dave Blaney | PRISM Motorsports Toyota | 180.041 | 53.188 | 170.67 | 11 |
| 38 | 77 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Mobil 1 Dodge | 178.49 | 53.65 | 170.876 | 14 |
First Practice Speeds (sorted by Top Speed)
| Rank | Car | Driver | Team | Top Speed | Best Time | Avg. Speed | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Budweiser Dodge | 195.944 | 48.871 | 184.598 | 28 |
| 2 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Express Toyota | 195.944 | 48.871 | 177.616 | 36 |
| 3 | 98 | Paul Menard | Zecol / Menards Ford | 194.701 | 49.183 | 179.061 | 18 |
| 4 | 96 | Erik Darnell | Academy Sports & Outdoors Ford | 194.595 | 49.21 | 180.262 | 33 |
| 5 | 20 | Joey Logano | The Home Depot Toyota | 194.149 | 49.323 | 184.225 | 27 |
| 6 | 99 | Carl Edwards | SUBWAY Ford | 193.999 | 49.361 | 185.144 | 24 |
| 7 | 7 | Robby Gordon | Jim Beam Toyota | 193.83 | 49.404 | 181.393 | 15 |
| 8 | 7 | Casey Mears | Jack Daniel's Chevy | 193.827 | 49.405 | 181.543 | 17 |
| 9 | 55 | Michael Waltrip | NAPA Auto Parts Toyota | 193.588 | 49.466 | 173.989 | 25 |
| 10 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Caterpillar Chevy | 193.248 | 49.553 | 173.515 | 36 |
| 11 | 47 | Marcos Ambrose | Clorox / Kingsford / Little Debbie Toyota | 193.201 | 49.565 | 178.416 | 44 |
| 12 | 43 | Reed Sorenson | Liberty Medical Dodge | 193.135 | 49.582 | 179.214 | 35 |
| 13 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Lowe's Chevy | 193.061 | 49.601 | 179.591 | 40 |
| 14 | 0 | David Reutimann | Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota | 192.641 | 49.709 | 183.583 | 40 |
| 15 | 33 | Clint Bowyer | BB&T Chevy | 192.177 | 49.829 | 167.74 | 6 |
| 16 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | DuPont Chevy | 191.865 | 49.91 | 182.044 | 21 |
| 17 | 16 | Greg Biffle | 3M / Filterete Ford | 191.463 | 50.015 | 182.127 | 31 |
| 18 | 44 | A J Allmendinger | Hunt Brothers Pizza Dodge | 191.405 | 50.03 | 178.451 | 21 |
| 19 | 39 | Ryan Newman | U.S. Army Chevy | 191.386 | 50.035 | 181.537 | 33 |
| 20 | 2 | Kurt Busch | Miller Lite Dodge | 191.206 | 50.082 | 183.066 | 47 |
| 21 | 34 | John Andretti | WindowWorld.com Chevy | 191.149 | 50.097 | 175.492 | 13 |
| 22 | 26 | Jamie McMurray | IRWIN Marathon Ford | 191.134 | 50.101 | 180.439 | 36 |
| 23 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Shell / Pennzoil Chevy | 191.126 | 50.103 | 166.082 | 7 |
| 24 | 78 | Regan Smith | Furniture Row Chevy | 191.069 | 50.118 | 180.038 | 19 |
| 25 | 14 | Tony Stewart | Office Depot / Old Spice Chevy | 191.008 | 50.134 | 178.711 | 28 |
| 26 | 5 | Mark Martin | Pop-Tarts / CARQUEST Chevy | 190.685 | 50.219 | 176.987 | 38 |
| 27 | 18 | Kyle Busch | M&M's Toyota | 190.416 | 50.29 | 177.216 | 22 |
| 28 | 77 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Mobil 1 Dodge | 190.31 | 50.318 | 165.366 | 6 |
| 29 | 6 | David Ragan | UPS Ford | 190.204 | 50.346 | 178.148 | 25 |
| 30 | 12 | David Stremme | No. 12 Penske Dodge | 190.094 | 50.375 | 178.068 | 34 |
| 31 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | AMP Energy Get on the 88/Ntnl Guard Chevy | 189.895 | 50.428 | 175.853 | 34 |
| 32 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | DEWALT Ford | 189.891 | 50.429 | 180.391 | 26 |
| 33 | 83 | Brian Vickers | Red Bull Toyota | 189.861 | 50.437 | 166.215 | 17 |
| 34 | 19 | Elliott Sadler | Stanley Ford | 189.831 | 50.445 | 171.214 | 30 |
| 35 | 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevy | 188.805 | 50.719 | 178.229 | 10 |
| 36 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Target Chevy | 188.69 | 50.75 | 180.11 | 14 |
| 37 | 9 | Brad Keselowski | Miccosukee Indian Gaming & Resort Chevy | 187.849 | 50.977 | 177.833 | 20 |
| 38 | 71 | Bobby Labonte | TaxSlayer.com Chevy | 187.434 | 51.09 | 169.34 | 9 |
| 39 | 82 | Scott Speed | Red Bull Toyota | 184.769 | 51.827 | 174.184 | 15 |
| 40 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports Toyota | 183.91 | 52.069 | 173.641 | 11 |
| 41 | 36 | Robert Richardson, Jr | Mahindra Tractors Toyota | 183.227 | 52.263 | 159.104 | 12 |
| 42 | 13 | Max Papis | GEICO Toyota | 182.738 | 52.403 | 172.448 | 11 |
| 43 | 37 | Tony Raines | Long John Silver's Dodge | 181.415 | 52.785 | 171.855 | 11 |
| 44 | 66 | Dave Blaney | PRISM Motorsports Toyota | 180.203 | 53.14 | 169.675 | 11 |
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