The expected battle between the two powerhouse Sprint Cup teams of Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports failed to materialize during the Daytona 500, but drivers in Dodge’s that stole the show.

For most of the race South Bend native Ryan Newman was not amongst the leaders to capture the 50th running of the great American Race and his teammate Kurt Busch twice had to come from the back of the field.

But when a number of caution flags waved over the final 20 laps of the race it was the Penske Racing drivers that put themselves in a position to snare stock car racings biggest prize.

Tony Stewart was leading on the final lap when Newman took his Dodge to the outside and with plenty of drafting help from Busch and Reed Sorenson in another Dodge, it hurtled Newman to the biggest win of his career.

Stewart probably thought about trying to move to the front of the Dodge juggernaut, but realized it would only create a last lap melee that would cost them a strong finish at Daytona. Stewart was left to home that teammate Kyle Busch could reach him to provide a push to the finish line, a boost that never arrived.

During the sprint to the finish Dale Earnhardt Jr. lined up behind the young Busch in a Gibbs Toyota, but fell away from the draft leaving Busch and Stewart to fend for themselves.

Having tangled with Kurt Busch during practice of the Daytona 500, Stewart was probably not expecting any help from the Dodge driver. Stewart might have also seen what happened to Hendrick driver Casey Mears when he decided to move to the high side of the track to catch the draft from Stewart and Earnhardt. Mears decision was a split second late and he ended up against the outside retaining wall.

The most impressive driver of the day was Sam Hornish Jr. in the third Penske Dodge. Hornish ran among the leaders for most of the race, learning the drafting techniques and finished a respectable 15th .

The other open wheel racer making the transition to stock cars, Dario Franchitti was a known factor in the race and finished 33rd, one spot behind teammate Juan Pablo Montoya who will be remembered for spinning out race leader Clint Bowyer late in the race.

Watching the Daytona 500 with several long-time race fans, the comment was made several times that the race was boring. It was for probably 180 of the 200 laps, but the finish had several people rooting Newman on to the finish line.

It appears that Penske’s team could be in a position to challenge for a championship this year. Add to that fact that six of the top 10 finishers were driving a Dodge and it was a good day for Mopar. Another thing became obvious; Gibbs Racing will bring Toyota a Sprint Cup victory in the near future. Stewart, Kyle Busch and Denny Hamilin were all strong throughout the race. Hendrick Motorsports struggled with Jeff Gordon retiring with a suspension problem, Mears crashing and defending champion Jimmie Johnson also caught up in an incident.

In other racing news: Former Formula 1 champion Jacques Villaneuve has been sidelined in his quest to compete at stock car racing’s highest level. After failing to qualify for the Daytona 500 it was announced Craftsman Truck Series drivers Mike Skinner and Johnny Benson would take over the controls of the Bill Davis Racing Toyota.

After two years of struggling with low car counts, the United States Auto Club is putting the new Silver Crown in mothballs for the 2008 season. USAC is returning to the former pavement car for this season and will work on a remodeling of the new car.