The Coke Zero 400: The heat is on

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- As the saying goes, "Where there's smoke, there's fire."

That was certainly the case 10 years ago along the east coast of Florida.

This weekend marks the 10-year anniversary of what was supposed to be the first night race at Daytona International Speedway, the 1998 Pepsi 400. However, fires were burning all around the track that summer, smoke blanketed the high-banked speed palace and the race was rescheduled for October.

That was then, this is now.

Rain, not fire, is the biggest threat a decade later, though heat is still a player. Gone are late morning green flags to beat the afternoon rain, turning instead to a prime-time start on a cable network.

The Saturday night shootout (8 p.m., TNT) under the lights at the famed DIS is one of the season's highlights, and some of NASCAR's living legends regret not having raced at DIS at night.

"I did a lot of the Friday night and Saturday night races and I would've loved to run Daytona under the lights," said Bobby Allison. "The 400 in the summertime at Daytona was really, really tough."

Allison, a six-time Daytona winner, captured three July victories -- in 1980, 1982 and 1987.

"The heat was the primary deal," Allison said. "The crew really had to work hard on insulating the floor of the car because here you are on the steering wheel, but your feet might be burning because your feet are touching the floorboard.

"I did burn my feet pretty bad a couple of times."

Added Port Orange resident Marvin Panch, winner of the 1961 Daytona 500: "I wish I was 20 years younger, not only for the lights, but for the money they pay now."

Three drivers to watch for in the Coke Zero 400.

RYAN NEWMAN

No. 12 Penske Racing Dodge

Daytona wins: 1

It seems like a long time since he shocked the racing world by winning this year's Daytona 500, but it was just under five months ago. He received a boost that day from teammate Kurt Busch, but he hasn't had much since leaving the World Center of Racing as the points leader; he's slipped outside the Chase cutoff.

TONY STEWART

No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Daytona wins: 2

After his big letdown last Sunday in a race he had won if not for Mother Nature, the question has to be asked: When will Stewart win again? Now the owner of the most talked about current winless streak, Tony should be the top choice in most office pools for the 400. He won by dominating in 2005, then repeated two years ago.

JEFF GORDON

No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Daytona wins: 6

The Hendrick bunch was the best at Daytona not too long ago, but they were a non-factor in February, with the No. 24 in 39th with suspension problems and three of the four HMS cars finishing 27th or worse. A three-time 400 winner, Gordon works the draft as well as anyone and should have help at the end the night.

What to watch for

Second-half repeat?: Kyle Busch has been the best driver and most interesting story of the season's first half, and leads in points (2,496) and wins (5). The 23-year-old Toyota driver will be hard-pressed to duplicate his performance the second half of the season.

Outside looking in: A number of drivers accustomed to being part of the Chase for the Championship have been outside of the top 12 for some of the year or are currently below the cutoff line. Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick and Kasey Kahne have all hung around the line of demarcation, and former Chasers like Matt Kenseth, Ryan Newman, Martin Truex Jr. and Kurt Busch would be out of the post-season playoff if the season ended right now.

Who will make the Chase?

Predicted Chase lineup after race No. 26 at Richmond:

1) Kyle Busch

2) Carl Edwards

3) Jeff Burton

4) Dale Earnhardt Jr.

5) Denny Hamlin

6) Jimmie Johnson

7) Greg Biffle

8) Jeff Gordon

9) Tony Stewart

10) Kasey Kahne

11) Kevin Harvick

12) Clint Bowyer

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(Bill Whitehead is a sportswriter for Scripps Treasure Coast (Fla.) Newspapers, The Stuart News, Fort Pierce Tribune and Vero Beach Press Journal.)