NASCAR NEWS: Daytona 500 full of newcomers, past victors and cheats

The time for the Daytona 500 finally has come, the 49th running of NASCAR's season-opening gala in which the starting lineup has as many past winners as drivers who have been caught trying to circumvent the rules -- six.

Rookie David Gilliland, a bright spot in an otherwise bleak beginning to the 2007 season, will lead the grid to green Sunday some two hours after FOX comes on the air at 1 p.m. ET for pre-race pomp and circumstance.

Gilliland spotlights an all-Robert Yates Racing front row, with freshly unretired Ricky Rudd starting on the outside.

A pair of former Cup champions looking for redemption in '07 start on Row 2. Tony Stewart, who has won everything but the Florida state lottery in the year's early going, is third alongside Kurt Busch, who begins his second season in the No. 2 Dodge. Neither has ever won the Daytona 500.

Jeff Gordon has, but a fourth victory might be hard to come by after his car failed inspection following his win Thursday in the second Gatorade Duel. Gordon will start next-to-last in the 43-car field.

Seems Gordon picked the wrong day to get caught. Another former 500 winner, Michael Waltrip, whose team committed the most serious of infractions among the six offenders, raced his way into the field in the first twin qualifier -- in the backup car of Michael Waltrip Racing driver David Reutimann.

Despite having his qualifying time disallowed, Matt Kenseth will start 10th.

One driver void of car ill-tampering has been Dale Earnhardt Jr., a former winner who will start fifth.

"I couldn't be happier with my crew," Earnhardt said. "I really like all of the guys around me and we're all really focused on the racecar and motivated to go out and win another of these [Daytona 500s].

It's a race we all look forward to for months and months, and I'll be glad to get in the racecar and let it all hang out. We won the 500 in 2004, and it really set the tone and the attitude for the rest of the season."

Jimmie Johnson overcame a cheating scandal at last year's Daytona 500 to win the race, then cooly proceded to win the Cup championship.

"Our chances are good but this year's 500 is a lot different than last year's," said Johnson, who will start 21st. "The car that I would really like to have is sitting over in Daytona USA right now.

"We have been working on trying to get our car to handle but we lost too much straight-away speed in the process. So we have to find a happy medium."

Newcomer Toyota will have four cars in the Daytona 500, three of which belong to Michael Waltrip Racing. The other is the Bill Davis Racing No. 22 Camry, with driver Dave Blaney putting up the manufacturer's most consistent times in preseason tests.

"Our Toyota Camrys were fast, and we feel very confident in what we'll be able to do not only in Daytona, but for the entire season," Blaney said. "We're excited about this year, and we think we have the chance to really improve the performance of this race team right from the start of the year."

Four drivers will be making their first Daytona 500 start: Gilliland, Reutimann, Juan Montoya and David Ragan, who replaces Mark Martin after 19 years in the No. 6 Ford.

"I think we are ready for Daytona. I have mentally and physically prepared myself for this race," said Ragan, who will start 35th. "This is one of the biggest races of the season if not the biggest and I want to finish every lap and improve every lap.

"I know I have the resources to get the job done so I am going to take advantage of that and do the very best I can."

Credit for story:NASCAR.com