Martin Truex Jr. to Start First In Budweiser Shootout at Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Feb. 17, 2012) —– Martin Truex Jr. will lead the 25-car field to the green flag in the 34th annual Budweiser Shootout at Daytona on Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway. Truex secured the top starting position through the random selection process that took place Friday night at the SPEED Stage.

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The starting lineup was determined at the annual Budweiser Shootout Draw Party during which the participating drivers selected a Budweiser bottle featuring a number behind the Budweiser label. The number serves as the driver’s starting position.

THE STARTING LINEUP IS AFTER THE BREAK – CLICK READ MORE

34th Annual Budweiser Shootout at Daytona
Saturday, Feb. 18, 2012 at 8:10 p.m. EST
Starting Lineup

Martin Truex Jr.
Kyle Busch
Brad Keselowski
Jamie McMurray
David Ragan
Kurt Busch
Greg Biffle
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
A.J. Allmendinger
Joey Logano
Carl Edwards
Jeff Burton
Ryan Newman
Jeff Gordon
Tony Stewart
Denny Hamlin
Clint Bowyer
Jimmie Johnson
Kasey Kahne
Michael Waltrip
Marcos Ambrose
Kevin Harvick
Matt Kenseth
Paul Menard
Juan Pablo Montoya

Truex was the 18th driver to participate in the annual draw party and will make his second start in the Budweiser Shootout on Saturday night.
“It’s just cool,” Truex said after picking the pole position. “I haven’t been in this race in a few years. I absolutely hated being down here (those years) and watching this race, so it’s cool just to be in it and to get the pole is icing on the cake.”

“My car was really good today in practice,” he continued. “I was happy with it. It drove really good. I heard a lot of guys were having some handling issues, but my car was great, so I’m pretty excited about it. (My car) had good speed and was able to stay up in the front of the pack in the draft. We’re looking forward to tomorrow night.”

The defending winner of the Budweiser Shootout, Kurt Busch, will start from the sixth position while Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet drew the 22nd starting spot.
The 34th annual Budweiser Shootout at Daytona is scheduled for an 8:10 p.m. EST start this Saturday. FOX will provide live television coverage of the event beginning with their pre-race show that will start at 8 p.m. EST.