Mikey Power

Daytona 500 Qualifying - 2/16/14
Michael Waltrip ran a half marathon this morning, then jumped in his Camry this afternoon for Daytona 500 qualifying. He ranked 34th in his #66 BlueDEF / AAA Toyota. The #66 is the product of an alliance between Michael Waltrip Racing and Jay Robinson Racing. Clint Bowyer's #15 5-Hour Energy Toyota and Brian Vickers' #55 Aaron's Dream Machine were 15th and 37th respectively for MWR.

Mikey was the 7th driver to take to the track for qualifying. He turned his first lap in 47.092 seconds at 191.115 MPH. Picking up speed the next time around the track, Mikey ranked 3rd at the time with a 46.529-second lap at 193.428 MPH.

After laying down his two laps, Mikey went to the broadcaster's booth. From there, he passed along the following words of advice to Greg Biffle prior to Biffle's run: "Be really serious when you leave, and shift the gears right on time wherever they say, and hold the car as low as you can on that second lap."

Mikey will compete Thursday night in the Gatorade Duels to determine his starting position in Sunday's Daytona 500.

"Those races are going to be very interesting for the drivers, particularly because they've got to have to figure out how to draft around other cars," Mikey said of the Duels. "They saw things in the Sprint Unlimited that they didn't know they were going to see. All the moves, the big drafts, the closing rate that the cars had... They're going to have to get out there and experience it feel that out, and try to understand, through those races on Thursday afternoon / evening, how they're going to win the Daytona 500."

The two time Daytona 500 champion has a knack for keeping up with this ever changing track. Watch Mikey take on Daytona International Speedway again on Thursday, February 20th! Coverage begins at 7pm ET on Fox Sports 1.