At the time of this writing, the Nationwide race hadn't taken place yet.....but once it's completed, all of the attention can finally be turned to the Daytona 500 on Sunday, to bring down the curtains on Speedweeks 2008.

There's several storylines at play for the race. Obviously, we have to start with Hendrick Motorsports. Can anyone derail this operation in the Daytona 500? and more specifically, can anyone derail Dale Earnhardt Jr.? Jr. has taken the Shootout, and his qualifying race, and is now setting his sights on winning his 2nd Daytona 500. Which would be a first. No driver has ever been able to win all 3 in the same Speedweeks.

Whoever wins the race, let's think about what it'll mean. No one else, but the winner, can say they've won the 50th Daytona 500. Also, this begins NASCAR's 60th season. So there's quite a few historical notes.

 Something many people will be keeping their eyes on Sunday will be to see how the open-wheel drivers do. While Patrick Carpentier & Jacques Villeneuve failed to qualify for the race, Sam Hornish Jr. will roll off from the 19th position and Dario Franchitti starts 40th. Both of those drivers also are running for the Rookie of the Year award, 2 of 3 rookies in this race, with Regan Smith being the other.

How will the various manufacturers do? Is Chevrolet going to win their 6th straight Daytona 500? Or will Toyota be able to break the streak? Or can Dodge & Ford burst through and steal the thunder?

One of the trends the Daytona 500 has had in recent years is we've had many big name drivers DNF early and finish 43rd. Last year, was somewhat an exception. While Tony Stewart finished 43rd, he didn't go out early. He was able to complete 152 of the 200 laps, and was 2nd in terms of laps led.

However, if a person goes back, it has been rather interesting. In the 2006 race, Carl Edwards finished 43rd after completing just 78 laps. Edwards was coming off a 2005 season in which he finished 2nd in the point standings. In 2005, former Cup champion Bobby Labonte (while still driving for Joe Gibbs Racing) was the first one out, blowing an engine just 14 laps in. In 2004, Mark Martin blew an engine after 7 laps, to finish 43rd that year.

Ryan Newman finished 6th in the 2002 point standings, but when it came time for the 2003 Daytona 500, he finished 43rd after completing 56 laps. And, who can forget the 2002 Daytona 500? Tony Stewart had just completed 2 laps and KABOOM--his motor went and he was making the first exit that year. Although, what we have to remember about 2002 is after that dismal finish for Stewart, he went on to win the championship that year.

That's 6 straight Daytona 500s where the 43rd place finisher hasn't been a slouch......so will that trend continue and, if so, who will that driver be?

As I say, there's many different storylines that'll be playing itself out during over the 200 laps of the race.

As far as my pick to win the Daytona 500, I'm going to say Chevrolet's winning streak will come to an end and take Tony Stewart. And as far as a darkhorse pick is concerned, I'm looking at Ryan Newman.