Earnhardt Jr wins Bud Shootout

Earnhardt Jr led 47 of the 70 laps of the event, but although he stayed up front for most of the night, he faced tough opposition from Tony Stewart who looked strong all night but could not do much against the Hendrick attack.

On the last green flag with three laps remaining, Stewart led from Earnhardt with Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Reed Sorenson and Casey Mears following. Under the Shootout restart rules, cars must line up in two lines and the Hendrick teammates made the most of the situation.

Earnhardt had Jimmie Johnson lined up behind him who gave him a crucial push after the restart, to allow him to get by Stewart's Toyota. Meanwhile the Joe Gibbs car was not getting much help from Gordon who was lined up behind him.

"I had a really, really good race car," Earnhardt said. "But that was fifty percent race car, fifty percent teammate. Jimmie Johnson gave me a push there at the end and it helped me a lot. Him and Casey (Mears) were lined up there on the outside and that was great for us.

"I've got to thank those guys for the help and my team for building a beautiful race car. This is exactly what we needed coming out of the gate. I hope the fans enjoyed the race. It was fun for me."

Stewart came second and narrowly missed out on a debut win for Toyota and a second consecutive Bud Shootout victory. However, he was still happy to be beaten fairly by Earnhardt Jr and the Hendrick team.

"Dale Jr is one of the best there's ever been on restrictor plate tracks and I'm glad for him because there's a lot of weight on his shoulders this year with the switch [to Hendrick]," Stewart said.

"I'm happy for him, he deserved it. He drove his butt off and he knows how to put himself in the right places at the right time, so I can't be disappointed with second here tonight."

Jimmie Johnson was just edged out by Stewart on the finish line, coming home in third. The reigning champion also had a great race, despite starting from the back of the field after being forced to switch to his back-up car following a crash during practice on Friday.

During the first 20 lap segment of the event, he ran behind the pack along with Jeff Gordon, who was also using his back-up car. However, changes made during the first pit stop helped him move up the field once the final 50 lap segment started.

"We had a really great effort," Johnson said. "The car really drove well and that's what kept me in the game along with some smart moves and good decisions and the racing with the guys.

"That's a lot of fun racing with those guys. Tony and Jeff also had great cars and we came from the back a couple of times. I'm definitely happy for Dale Jr that he's got this victory, first time in a Hendrick car."

Jeff Gordon came home fourth, followed by Ganassi's Reed Sorenson and Hendrick's Casey Mears, rounding up a great night for the Hendrick squad.

The race saw the caution flags come out four times for 14 of the 70 laps. The first was caused by Bill Elliott crashing due to a cut tyre right before the ten minute break, while Jamie McMurray caused the pace car to come out on track again only five laps into the final segment after making contact with Denny Hamlin and crashing into the wall.

Last year's Daytona 500 pole sitter David Gilliland also crashed due to a cut right rear tyre, while Kurt Busch caused the final caution period of the race after spinning five laps from the end.

Sprint Cup teams will all be in action on Sunday afternoon again during the qualifying session for the Daytona 500, where the front row of the grid will be locked up.

Pos  Driver               Make        Laps
 1.  Dale Earnhardt Jr    Chevrolet    70
 2.  Tony Stewart         Toyota       70
 3.  Jimmie Johnson       Chevrolet    70
 4.  Jeff Gordon          Chevrolet    70
 5.  Reed Sorenson        Dodge        70
 6.  Casey Mears          Chevrolet    70
 7.  Dave Blaney          Toyota       70
 8.  Mark Martin          Chevrolet    70
 9.  Denny Hamlin         Toyota       70
10.  Kasey Kahne          Dodge        70
11.  Michael Waltrip      Toyota       70
12.  Carl Edwards         Ford         70
13.  Dale Jarrett         Toyota       70
14.  Clint Bowyer         Chevrolet    70
15.  Ken Schrader         Dodge        70
16.  J.J. Yeley           Toyota       70
17.  Ryan Newman          Dodge        70
18.  Kurt Busch           Dodge        70
19.  David Gilliland      Ford         48
20.  Greg Biffle          Ford         48
21.  Martin Truex Jr      Chevrolet    47
22.  Jamie McMurray       Ford         24
23.  Bill Elliott         Ford         15