Can Dale Jr. Pull A "Kenseth?"

It is odd how things work out in life. No two drivers' careers have been more connected than the careers of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Matt Kenseth. They battled, and became friends, in the Nationwide Series (then the Busch Series) in which both had several wins and Earnhardt Jr. had two championships. They both moved up to the Cup series in 2000 when Kenseth won Rookie of the Year. Junior may have reached a Cup win first, but a few years later, Kenseth won a championship.

All of the links between their careers won't help Dale Earnhardt Jr. accomplish what only Kenseth has done: win the Daytona 500 from last place.

In 52 years, the Daytona 500 has only been won from 43rd once, two years ago by Matt Kenseth. Although he is credited as starting 39th, Kenseth had to pull back to 43rd due to going to a backup car after a wreck in his Gatorade duel. In the 500 miles that followed the start, Kenseth raced his way into contention and came away with, no doubt, one of the most memorable victories in his career.

Prior to Kenseth's win, only three times had the Daytona 500 been won from a starting position lower than 20th. Kevin Harvick won from 34th in '07 in a finish with Mark Martin that any NASCAR fan should remember. In 1978, Bobby Allison won his first of three Daytona 500 wins from the 33rd position. And in 1975, the late, great Benny Parsons won from the 32nd position.

There is little doubt Junior had a better chance to win from his original starting position: the Daytona 500 has been won 8 times from the pole. Perhaps this is what pushed the ESPN PTI commentators to suggest a "fix." However, I doubt most commentators have taken Dale Jr. off their list of possible winners. In his seven restrictor plate starts of 30th or worse, his average finish has been 14th, but two of the seven were top 3 finishes. Without a doubt, if he avoids accidents, which has been difficult for him so far this year, he can win and be competitive.

Perhaps, if nothing else, this may silence those who would say that any success Dale Earnhardt Jr. has is pre-ordained by NASCAR and handed to him on a silver plate.

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