Eligibility rules changed for 2015 Sprint Unlimited
Pardon us if you've heard this one before: The eligibility criteria for the Sprint Unlimited is changing.
Here's how the field will be composed for the Feb. 14, 2015 race:
• All drivers who made the 2014 Chase are in. There's 16.
• All drivers who won a pole in 2014 who weren't in the Chase. That gives us seven more drivers.
• All drivers who competed full-time in 2014 who have previously won a Daytona 500 pole. This fills the field out to 25 with the addition of Danica Patrick and Martin Truex, Jr.
However, Brian Vickers, a 2014 pole winner, is expected to miss the race because of complications from a 2010 heart procedure. The NASCAR release says a "minimum of 25 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers are eligible to participate in the Sprint Unlimited at DIS" and that "any remaining spots will be filled by drivers highest in 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver championship points who are not already eligible."
If the race expands to 25 to meet the minimum because of Vickers missing the race, his teammate Clint Bowyer would get in. Bowyer is neither a former race winner of the Unlimited or Daytona 500 pole winner and was 19th in the 2014 points standings. Drivers Nos. 1-18 all are eligible for the race.
Here is the original field of 25 drivers based off the bullet points above.
• Kyle Busch
• Austin Dillon
• Jeff Gordon
• David Gilliland
• Denny Hamlin
• Kevin Harvick
• Jimmie Johnson
• Matt Kenseth
• Brad Keselowski
• Kyle Larson
• Joey Logano
• Jamie McMurray
• Brian Scott
• Tony Stewart
• Brian Vickers
• Kurt Busch
• Dale Earnhardt Jr.
• Carl Edwards
• Danica Patrick
• Greg Biffle
• Martin Truex Jr.
• Ryan Newman
• AJ Allmendinger
• Kasey Kahne
• Aric Almirola
The race will once again be 75 laps. No format for the 75 laps was announced.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
