A few days after the front line of the Daytona 500 was established with Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle, the rest of the starting lineup will be determined in Thursday's 2012 Gatorade Duels. The two races will feature eligible drivers split in two and battling for their spots in the lineup for Sunday's Daytona 500. it gets going at 11:19 am PT on SPEED.
39 drivers, including Jeff Gordon and A.J. Allmendinger have secured spots in Sunday's race. They have a couple of options when they hit the track. They can play it safe to avoid wrecking their primary car before Sunday's race or they can play it aggressive to get used to the race conditions. Gordon has indicated he plans on getting aggressive so he can better prepare for Sunday's race. He will be starting in the third position in Duel No. 2. A.J. Allmendinger is starting tenth in the first duel.
There are two spots in each Duel for drivers who have not yet qualified for the Daytona 500. They will be as aggressive as anybody, which should make for an interesting day of racing. With a mix of conservative and aggressive strategies, it will be interesting to see if it leads to any trouble on the track throughout the day.