#38-David Gilliland cut his thumb on his helmet after his Lap 9 crash in the first Gatorade Duel. The cut required one stitch on his knuckle, he said. ‘It felt like someone got into the back of us in Turn 1 and away it went.’ His #38 Ford ran up the track and drove #42-Juan Pablo Montoya and #27-Paul Menard into the wall. #98-Michael McDowell and #2-Brad Keselowski were also involved in the accident. McDowell wound up finishing sixth and making the 500 with the help of a push from defending Daytona 500 winner #21-Trevor Bayne. ‘I feel like I was probably the cause of (the accident), really,’ McDowell said. ‘Trevor was on my bumper pushing me and I got to David’s bumper, and as soon as I did it turned hard left.’(Daytona Beach News Journal)(2-24-2012)
