The Great American Race, the Daytona 500, is set to take place on Sunday with NASCAR's best drivers duking it out over 500 miles at Daytona International Speedway. From Dale Earnhardt Jr. to Enumclaw's Kasey Kahne, the field is full of star-power, gathered together to kick the 2011 season off right. Drivers start their engine early on Sunday morning and on the third lap, fans in attendance will participate in a tribute to Dale Earnhardt to mark the 10-year anniversary of his passing at Daytona.
Here's all the information for Sunday's race.
Time: Coverage begins at 9 a.m. local time, live from Daytona International Speedway.
Lineup: The full lineup can be found here. Though Earnhardt Jr. won the pole in qualifying last Sunday, a wreck during Wednesday's practice will force him to the back of Sunday's field. In his place, Kurt Busch will start on the pole, though Earnhardt Jr. is still officially the pole-sitter. Enumclaw's Kasey Kahne was slotted at 11th, but will start on the inside of the fifth row.
TV Information: FOX has the race coverage and will be with you the whole way, beginning at 9 a.m. Pacific. For the local viewers in Seattle, the FOX affiliate can be found on channel 13.
What To Watch For: As with any major speedway race, everyone is on the lookout for the big one. Most of the drivers will spend the race bunched together tightly in a wolfpack on steroids, with side-by-side and three-wide racing the norm at Daytona. One minor slip and it all goes downhill fast.
Dale Earnhardt Tribute: To mark the 10th anniversary of Earnhardt's passing, NASCAR officials are asking fans to stand in silence during the third lap of the Daytona 500. Fans will hold up three fingers are cars fly by during the third lap, with the broadcast crew sitting silent during the tribute. It should be a touching tribute for a racing legend.
It's About The Draft: After last weekend's Bud Shootout, it became clear changes were afoot in NASCAR. Drivers paired-off, two-by-two, to draft, forgoing the typical drafting lines prevalent at restrictor-plate races. The two-car draft allowed drivers to easily break the 200 mile per hour barrier, but wasn't as pleasant on the eyes for many. In response, NASCAR made some changes this week to force cars to stay away from the two-car drafts for most of Sunday's race, making it easier for the cars to overheat. Expect cars to pair-off down the stretch, though, as everyone looks to make their move late in the race.
If there's one NASCAR event to watch a year, it's the Daytona 500. It's still regarded as the biggest and best race on the series; and event race fans look forward to each year. With the rest of the SpeedWeeks events in the books -- including the Bud Shootout, Camping World Truck Series race and Nationwide Series race -- it all comes down to the main event in Daytona Beach. Tune in at 9 a.m. for all the action on FOX.
For more on the race, check out our Daytona 500 StoryStream.