The 2011 Budweiser Shootout lineup has just been set at the Budweiser Draw Party outside Daytona International Speedway's Turn 4 – and it's safe to say the fans in attendance were pretty happy with the results.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. correctly guessed the bottle that had the "POLE" flag inside it, giving him the top spot for Saturday night's race. Fans cheered loudly as Earnhardt Jr. held up the flag and received a half-hug from an excited host Kenny Wallace.
"Pretty easy," Earnhardt Jr. said afterward. "It's not much of a big deal. If you had your choice, that's where you'd want to start. But the race can be won from anywhere in the field, and it doesn't really change our strategy or make our situation any easier."
Tony Stewart will start alongside Earnhardt Jr. on the front row, followed by Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin and Kasey Kahne.
Drivers select their starting spots from Budweiser bottles lined up on the Speed stage, so the order is completely random.
Here's the full lineup:
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Tony Stewart
- Carl Edwards
- Denny Hamlin
- Kasey Kahne
- Bobby Labonte
- Clint Bowyer
- Ryan Newman
- Derrike Cope
- Michael Waltrip
- Greg Biffle
- Jeff Gordon
- Juan Pablo Montoya
- Jamie McMurray
- Jeff Burton
- Kevin Conway
- Kurt Busch
- Kevin Harvick
- Matt Kenseth
- Mark Martin
- Kyle Busch
- Joey Logano
- Jimmie Johnson
- Regan Smith