A weird guy showed up at Daytona over the weekend and started building a boat in Lake Lloyd. When finished it would be 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high. That's 450 feet by 75 by 45. He said his name was Junior, Noah Jr. He said NASCAR could load the Daytona 500 starting field in tandem pairs, much like his dad did in Genesis 6:15. They will remain aboard until the rain stops and the floodwaters recede.

Seriously, the rain finally stopped and the field took the green at 7:00PM, making this the first Daytona 500 to run in prime time.

Kenseth Win, Big Day for Valvoline NextGen and Roush Fenway Racing

There was something for everyone in this iteration of “The Great American Race.” No one could predict how bizarre it would be. More on that in a bit. The Valvoline NextGen Roush Fenway Fords were bad-fast all week. In the end, it was Cambridge Wisconsin’s Matt Kenseth who added another Harley Earle trophy to his collection of race hardware. Two other Roush Fenway drivers running NextGen finished in the top 10—Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards.

The bizarreness began right from the start. There was a massive crash on Lap 2 that took out Jimmie Johnson and the “Honey Badger” Danica Patrick. The only bright spot for the media darling was grabbing the pole in the Nationwide race. Other than that, she was an innocent victim of somebody else’s dumb maneuver.

The always-strong Hendrick cars, save one, did not fare well. Jeff Gordon kaboomed an engine and Kasey Kahne got smooshed in one of the big car wrecks. Dale Jr. was the last man standing at the end of the race, pushing Kenseth just hard enough to hook him up with Greg Biffle in the other Roush rocket. More...

Less than one year after the Valvoline brand introduced a revolutionary recycled motor oil that stands up to racing's demanding standards and high-quality performance, Roush Fenway has decided to switch all its Sprint Cup and Nationwide teams to Valvoline NextGen motor oil technology for the duration of the 2012 NASCAR season. RFR will kick off the shift at the 54th annual Daytona 500 race on Feb. 26, 2012.

The total shift to NextGen represents the culmination of a rigorous validation process that began last summer with drivers like Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards, and is a continued illustration of Roush Fenway Racing's commitment to going green on the track while keeping performance paramount.

NextGen motor oil is made of 50 percent recycled motor oil and delivers 100 percent Valvoline quality, offering optimum engine protection in a product that's also better for the environment. "Closing the Loop" – for professional drivers and everyday consumers alike – is a step towards reducing our dependence on foreign crude oil and preserving our existing resources by collecting and returning your used oil for recycling, and then refilling crankcases with NextGen. 

"We couldn't be prouder to have NextGen technology pumping through the engines of the world's elite stock car drivers on the sport's biggest stage at Daytona," said Darryl Gaines, NextGen brand manager at Valvoline. "Having NextGen technology running in all of Roush Fenway's racing engines is just one more way for people to be certain of NextGen quality." More...