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NASCAR: Why you should watch Saturday’s Daytona 500 practices

By Dustin Smith

DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 26: Fans wait for drivers to walk the driver's intros before 59th Annual DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 26, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Tim Bradbury/Getty Images)
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 26: Fans wait for drivers to walk the driver's intros before 59th Annual DAYTONA 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 26, 2017 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Tim Bradbury/Getty Images) /
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This Saturday, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will have its first on-track activity to kick off the start of the 2018 season.

In the words of Allen Iverson…”we talkin’ ’bout practice” for the Daytona 500. By and large, there is a long gap of time between practice times for the Daytona 500.

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series will kick-off the on-track activity with practice beginning on Saturday, February 10th at 1:05 pm ET. The session will last 55 minutes. After an hour-long break, the cars will hit the track again at 3:05 pm ET for another 55-minute session. These two sessions will, however, be the only practice time teams will get until Friday, February 16th.

There is no doubt that what we will see on the track on Saturday will be an early preview of things to come. For many, this will be the time to see how their car handles the draft. The two 55-minute practice times on Saturday will be the only practice times before qualifying and the Can-Am Duels. Therefore, as a driver, your only real knowledge of how your car is going to run next Thursday for the Duels will be based on these practice sessions.

On Saturday, expect all of the cars to be on the track and ready to go once the green flag waves.  More importantly is the fact that not a single driver knows what to expect out of his or her car when he or she first hits the track.

What to watch for on Saturday

With practice time being very limited, Saturday’s practice sessions could get pretty interesting. It will be the first time the NASCAR Cup Series cars will be on track this season. It will also be the only time to get ready for the Can-Am Duels next Thursday. Even though we will be watching practice, it will have more of a race feel to it.

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There are two words drivers will be using during their first few laps on the track on Saturday. Those words are “loose” and “tight”. Teams won’t really know what they have for a car and how it will handle until the pack gets up to speed for the first time. This could be a recipe for disaster if the wrong handling car gets too loose and spins while being mid-pack. A tight race car could fade up the track on a turn and cause more issues as well.

The new Chevrolet Camaro cars will have their first taste of pack racing during the practice sessions on Saturday. We will get to see how the new front end works in the draft and how well it pushes the pack. Will Chevy have the upper hand this season with the new model of car?

By and large, the first two practice sessions are just around the corner. I, for one, cannot wait to see the cars on track and see how practice plays out. What makes this Saturday interesting is the fact the teams have such a limited opportunity to get the car the way their driver wants it. As the old saying goes, “practice makes perfect!” Don’t be too surprised, however, when practice makes teams roll out the back-up car.

Next: NASCAR: Top 10 drivers of all-time

Will you be watching the practice sessions this Saturday? Do you think the new Chevrolet Camaro will be better than the Toyota Camry?

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