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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Ryan Smyth Jersey . -- Snow made NASCAR drivers Ryan Newman and Martin Truex Jr. no-shows at Daytona 500 media day. Newman and Truex missed the kickoff to Speedweeks on Thursday because a winter storm and icy conditions affected travel in the South and East. Newman posted a message on his Twitter page that included a photo of his snow-covered farm and several buffalo: "Stuck in NC. Headed out to check on Farm. Buffalo are happy this am." The weather caused several other NASCAR drivers to alter travel plans to Daytona International Speedway. David Gilliland and David Ragan were supposed to fly down Thursday morning, but instead of gambling on being able to get to the airport and take off without any delays, opted to drive Wednesday. They got on the road before the heavy stuff wreaked havoc on roadways. "If we left probably 30 minutes later, we would have been in trouble for sure," Gilliland said. "There was a lot of stuff happening. But luckily it was all a couple of exits behind us. We saw all the ice, snow, the trees breaking while we were driving down I-77 there." Parker Kligerman also ended up driving. But the Sprint Cup rookie made a rookie mistake by getting a late start and didnt get to Daytona until the wee hours Thursday. "We didnt get out til the midst of the storm," Kligerman said. "We literally hit gridlock. ... We had the car completely iced over at one point. We had to find a deicer. It was a disaster. We got stuck a couple of times. There were four or five overturned semis." Some drivers and teams arrived in Daytona a day or two early to avoid the chaos. Six-time and defending series champion Jimmie Johnson, though, decided to chance it and travel early Thursday. He said the key was moving his private jet to Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, which was better equipped to clear runways. "The trip from the hangar to the runway was pretty exciting," Johnson said. "They hadnt plowed any of that. I thought I was in an off-road truck for a while there, trying to get out to the runway." Aside from travel troubles, here are five things to know about media day: DEFENDING DANICA: Several drivers, maybe even most, defended Danica Patrick. Seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty said the only way Patrick could win a Sprint Cup race is if "everybody else stayed home." Patrick refused to fire back, politely saying everyone is entitled to an opinion. Her peers were more outspoken. Hendrick Motorsports teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. said "it was a little rough on Danica" and added that "she goes by a different set of rules because of her gender, and thats unfortunate. It seems like shes always having to answer to something like that, and thats a pain in her butt. And frankly its just got to get old." RETURN OF THE 3: The return of the iconic No. 3, the famed number the late Dale Earnhardt drove with Richard Childress Racing, was a hot topic. Childress grandson, Austin Dillon, will drive the black No. 3 for RCR. Dillon handled the attention perfectly, saying "the legend of Dale has lived on for a long time and is going to continue to live on forever. Dale Earnhardt is not just famous because of the number." Dale Earnhardt Jr., whose father died after crashing on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500, said hes "quite comfortable with how its going down and Im glad its back." STEWARTS REHAB: Tony Stewarts return to racing is down to hours. The three-time NASCAR champion has been out of a race car since crashing at a sprint-car event in Iowa last August and breaking his right leg. Stewart missed the final 15 races of 2013. He has been cleared to race and will be back in the car for practice Friday. "Its been the slowest off-season Ive ever had," he said. "Im ready to get doing something again." CHASE CHANGES: NASCAR drastically overhauled its Chase for the Sprint Cup championship by expanding the field, switching to a knockout-style format and placing more emphasis on winning. Johnson welcomed the tweaks. "I still think the way you win a championship is the same: youve got to win races," he said. "When we look around at sports, everythings changing. The Olympics look far different than they used to. The NFL is considering change. The world is changing. Our viewership is changing, so the sport has to change." GORDONS FUTURE: Four-time champion Jeff Gordon is talking retirement. Gordon said he is prepared to call it quits if he wins a fifth championship. "Go out on a high note," said the 42-year-old Gordon, who won titles in 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2001. Wayne Gretzky Jersey . Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. Esa Tikkanen Jersey . The Irish golfer, whose father Patrick died from cancer, says he underwent surgery for sun spots. The 42-year-old Harrington told Irish radio station Today FM: "Ive had a number of skin cancers removed off my face. http://www.officialoilersfanstore.com/authentic-jari-kurri-oilers-jersey/ .J. -- Fabian Johnson scored his first international goal and Clint Dempsey doubled the lead after a defensive lapse as the United States beat Turkey 2-1 Sunday in the second of three World Cup warm-up matches for the Americans before they head to Brazil.TORONTO -- James Hinchcliffe didnt know how terrible he has been in his hometown race. He was aware his history in Toronto wasnt great -- last year in particular was embarrassing for him -- but he was surprised that four years into his IndyCar career the best he has finished at the Honda Indy Toronto is eighth. "Is that the best Ive done is eighth? I knew it was bad, I didnt realize it was that bad," said Hinchcliffe on Thursday. "Hows it feel? Yeah with those stats great. I mean who wouldnt be excited?" Hinchcliffe is quick to point out how excited he is to return to the track he credits with getting him involved in racing. But all the love the Oakville, Ont., native shows the 85-lap, 2.81-kilometre street course at Exhibition Place hasnt been reciprocated with checkered flags. The 27-year-old Andretti Autosport driver could use some love. His season entering the doubleheader this weekend has been plagued by disappointing results, mechanical issues, collisions and even a concussion after being hit by debris at the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. Hinchcliffe hasnt lacked for speed. Hes started second in 5-of-12 races so far, but hasnt finished on the podium. Hes been close -- he might have won a race in Houston if he hadnt pitted late and got stuck behind yellow flags -- but with six races left Hinchcliffe is starting to wonder what else might happen before the season ends in August. "Running for a podium in Indy GP and somebody smoked me in the head with a piece of a wing. I mean, like why does that happen? Who does that happen to? Its just been one of those years," said Hinchcliffe. "It is frustrating certainly because I dont think the results match the effort in the job that the whole team is doing. But at the end of the day were sleeping well at night because were I think executing very well and its just really been a function of wrong place, wrong time a lot of the time this year." Hinchcliffes bad luck appeared to be on the verge of ending when he returned from the concussion to qualify seccond for the Indianapolis 500. Custom Edmonton Oilers Jerseys. But even that hope ended when he collided with Ed Carpenter. Barring a miracle run -- hes 11th overall in the points race -- Hinchcliffe can be forgiven for being reduced to sarcasm when asked how he can salvage the season. "Well I figure, Ill win both of these ones. And then in Ohio. And then Milwaukee, Sonoma and Fontana and I call the year a success," he said. "Really no reason to aim for anything less than that at this point because were pretty far out of it. "Like I said, were just bummed that we havent had the results that we feel we deserve for the effort weve been putting forward. I really want to get a couple of strong results in there for the guys, and for myself or (sponsor) United Fiber And Data, for everybody because I genuinely think that these guys deserve it." By default Hinchcliffe is Canadas only hope to win the Honda Indy Toronto after Alex Tagliani of Lachenaie, Que., departed IndyCar in the off-season. Torontos Paul Tracy was the last Canadian to win the event in 2003. Hinchcliffe finished third at Exhibition Place in his first season in the Indy Lights developmental series. But the IndyCar event has only become progressively worse for him, culminating in the second race last year when a stuck throttle kept him from starting on the grid and ended in a last-place finish among cars still on the track. This year he has predictably low expectations. "I just assume its going to go poorly. Its not really a superstition as much as it is a statistical thing," he said before recalling a collision with Tracy in 2011 and an engine failure that knocked him out of contention in 2012. "Ive had it all here. Maybe now finally theres nothing left to happen. I mean (I) literally didnt even make the start of the race last year. It cant get any worse than that." Hinchcliffe knocked on the table in front of him just in case. "My engineer would kill me for saying that because now Ill get hit by a meteor or something." ' ' '