Tony Stewart in the HendrickCars.com #80 for Daytona Nationwide Race

Daytona – Two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart will attempt to qualify a No. 80 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet prepared by Hendrick Motorsports for the Feb. 14 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. Should he qualify, the race will mark Stewart’s first-ever start for car owner Rick Hendrick.

In eight Nationwide Series events at Daytona, Stewart has posted three wins, four top-five finishes and five top-10s. Stewart also has earned one pole position and led 106 laps at the 2.5-mile tri-oval. Stewart earned the pole position and led 46 laps last February at Daytona to win the season-opening Nationwide Series race. He also won the 300-mile event in 2005 and 2006.

Lance McGrew, the 2003 Nationwide Series champion crew chief, will guide Stewart and the No. 80 HendrickCars.com team during the Feb. 14 race. The veteran crew chief won at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last season with Mark Martin behind the wheel of the No. 5 JR Motorsports Chevrolet. McGrew has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 80-533 for the Nationwide Series event at Daytona. Apart from a recent straight-line test session with driver Landon Cassill, the car has not seen track time.

The Feb. 14 event marks the first time that Hendrick Motorsports has fielded a Nationwide Series entry since 2007, when the Nos. 5 and 24 Chevys competed. Six drivers that season combined to score four wins, 24 top-five finishes, 35 top-10s and three pole positions.

Tony Stewart Q&A:

How difficult is it to win at Daytona?

“Restrictor plate races at Daytona are always a wild card race. You never know who’s going to win. We were fortunate enough to win one and then back it up the next year. To do it back-to-back like that is something we’re really proud of. Now we have another shot to get back-to-back wins.”

How do you find a drafting partner at Daytona?

“I think it’s more a situation of guys finding the fast cars, and you finding the guys that you know are going to go with you because they know you’re quick. If they go with you, they’re going to get you to the front, which is going to get them to the front. It’s kind of ‘help me help you.’”

What about previous drafting partners?

“You have a list of guys that you know you’re drafting with, and then there’s another list of guys that you’re all right with, and there’s another list of guys that you don’t want to be around. So you always know who the guys are you want to be with and who you’d rather not see anywhere near you.”

What is your strategy going in to a restrictor plate race?

“The strategy is making sure you’ve got somebody you can draft with. You have to take the opportunities as they come, but with those opportunities you have to make a very quick decision. You’ve got to think, ‘What happens if I try this and it doesn’t work? What are the ramifications going to be?’ You don’t have the luxury of sitting down and taking the time to analyze the situation. You’ve got to make a split-second decision. A lot of times it’ll work, but there are times when the decision that you made doesn’t work. But once you’ve committed yourself to doing something, there’s not much you can do about it.”

Lance McGrew on having Tony Stewart driving the #80:

“The great thing about working with a veteran like Tony is he knows exactly what he wants the race car to do. He has won the race several times and knows what it takes. Our approach to the weekend is pretty simple — give him what he needs to win the race. Hopefully, it’s perfect off of the truck, but if not, then by the end of practice it will be. This is a very important race for Mr. (Rick) Hendrick and Tony. It’s been a long time in the making, and we have put all of our efforts towards winning this race. Now it’s time to get it done.”