Jun.16 (GMM)  Jacques Villeneuve has admitted he is not yet in talks with any teams about making a return to formula one.

The French Canadian, who came close to driving for the hopeful Serbian outfit Stefan GP this season, said last weekend he will make a final effort to find a seat for 2011.

“I am working on it more than ever, and for that reason I have postponed a participation in the NASCAR circuit,” 1997 world champion Villeneuve, who turns 40 early next year, said in an interview with Austria’s Salzburger Nachrichten.

Stefan GP, however, seems unlikely to be on the grid any time soon, and Renault team boss Eric Boullier said recently that he is not interested in signing Villeneuve.

Asked if there are already “concrete negotiations” with any teams, he answered: “No, nothing concrete, because it’s too early in the season.

“There are some positive contacts.  If the Stefan project had worked out, I would be driving in F1 already this year.”

Villeneuve acknowledged that a place with a top team is not initially likely.

“I have a longer term plan,” he said.  “The most important thing is to get inside, and then you can look around and find the right place.”

After a late night of celebrating their coveted victory in “The Great American Race”, yesterday, Jamie McMurray and his team handed over their No. 1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats Chevrolet to be inducted into the attraction’s Gatorade Victory Lane. The winning car will be on display until next February when it will be returned to the team prior to the 53rd annual Daytona 500.

Winning the most prestigious race on the NASCAR circuit finally started to sink in Monday morning for 2010 Daytona 500 champion Jamie McMurray, who celebrated with his Earnhardt Ganassi Racing team during the Daytona 500 Champion’s Breakfast at Daytona 500 Experience.

“It’s kind of sinking in,” McMurray said. “Every time we do something it’s a little more real. Whether it’s getting the jackets or the ring or just everything that’s a part of this, it’s just really, really exciting.”

Winning crew chief Kevin “Bono” Manion was enjoying the surreal experience.

“Everything’s been in fast forward,” Manion said. “Pictures, media center, inspecting the car, pushing the car to the trailer to come over here and then a couple hours of sleep for some of us. It’s just been so exciting.

“(On) rain delays you stay over but winning the race and you have to stay over and have breakfast — that’s pretty cool.”

Also enjoying the festivities was co-owner Chip Ganassi, who is one of only two owners to win both the Daytona 500 and the Indianapolis 500.

“Jamie showed me a text from (last year’s Daytona 500 champion) Matt Kenseth where he said, ‘You’ll never want this day to end.’ I agree completely. I don’t want this day to end.

“You have a complete flashback of your entire racing career — thinking about the possibility of something like this happening. You’re always shooting for that and you’re always trying for that. It’s just so reflective right now. Every sacrifice you made and every tough meeting I’ve had with a crew chief or a driver – the ups and downs of this business. It all seems worth it now.”

McMurray, who also unveiled the logo for 53rd annual Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 20th, is now on a whirlwind media tour making appearances on Late Show with David Letterman and Live with Regis and Kelly in New York City as well as making stops in San Francisco and Los Angeles before Sunday’s race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.

Despite his hectic upcoming schedule, McMurray knows the memory he’s going to take away from all of this.

“The thing that I’m going to remember is getting out of the car and running up and grabbing the flag and then running back down and seeing the Daytona (painted) in the infield (grass) and seeing ‘Daytona 500’. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that. That’s the memory I have burned in my head right now of the 500; that’s something I’ll never forget.”

The Daytona 500 is the only event with a unique qualifying system on the NASCAR circuit.  In the primary qualifying, only the front row (the pole position and the second fastest driver) are locked into the race positions.  Since 2005, NASCAR’s top 35 owners points standings from the previous season automatically qualifies those teams (not the drivers) into the event.  The top two teams that are not within the owners’ Top 35, automatically qualify in the Gatorade Duels, a pair of 150 miles (240 km) races. This is followed by a combination of last years’ owners points, pole qualifying speed and if needed, a past champions’ provisional fills out the field.

Qualifying

One round of NASCAR Sprint Cup Series timed qualifying will be held. Each team may run two laps with the fast lap setting the qualifying time. The two fastest qualifiers set starting positions one and two and are the only guaranteed positions, filling the front row for the Daytona 500. • The Gatorade Duels, the 150-mile qualifying races, will determine starting positions for the Daytona 500 beyond the front row. In the event of cancellation, the field will be set according to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rule Book.

The 2009 Daytona 500, the fifty-first running of Daytona 500, was the first points-paying race to open the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup season.  The race won by Matt Kenseth with car number 17 on February 15 at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach.  The Colombian, Juan Pablo Montoya finished in 14^th position, and the race was called off with 48 laps to go after a severe rainstorm that had been lingering throughout the area hit the track.

Who is your favorite for Sunday’s Daytona 500?