“It was weird. I didn’t have much to do with NASCAR. He didn’t have much to do with WWE, but we hit it off,” Cena said. “I started watching racing. He started watching WWE. I guess the rest is history. We’ve had him on [WWE TV] three times. He was fantastic all three times. He did a backflip off the top turnbuckle and landed it with gymnast like precision. He’s more agile than I am.”

WWE’s interest in NASCAR is evident.

“I know a few [WWE] guys are into it,” Cena said. “I can’t necessarily say some money has exchanged hands [among WWE personnel] because that would be wrong, but some points go back and forth every weekend when the [NASCAR] guys race because we have a few eyes that watch very closely on the weekend.

“I’d say about 60 percent of our crew — from superstars to techs to everybody — are into NASCAR. When I tell you as a group we all watch on weekends, we all watch on weekends.”

They’ll be watching NASCAR on Feb. 26, some from the Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon. Wonder if any points will be won in that WWE locker-room if Cena drops the flag?

• Tune into the Daytona 500 on FOX at 1 p.m. EST on Sunday, Feb. 26.

• Tickets for Speedweek’s 2012 events, including the Daytona 500, are available online at daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.

• Fans can stay connected with Daytona International Speedway on Twitter (twitter.com/disupdates) and Facebook (facebook.com/DaytonaInternationalSpeedway). Fans can follow NASCAR on Twitter (@NASCAR) and stay up to speed on the latest news by using hashtags #NASCAR and #DAYTONA500.

• WWE WrestleMania 28 is Sunday, April 1 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens.

• Like ‘Facebook WWE WrestleMania 28 Miami.’