Other than crowning the champion, it’s the biggest race of the season!  Winning the Daytona 500 can be the benchmark of the coming season in a race that often becomes a  wreckers or checkers battle.

A very prestigious mark on a racer’s record, there have been only nine times that a driver earned his first career win in Daytona.

IN his first year as a Cup Series driver, Austin Cindric took home the Harley J Earle trophy last year driving the number two Team Penske car.   In doing so, he joins Tiny Lund, Mario Andretti, Pete Hamilton, Derrike Cope, Sterling Martin, Michael Waltrip, Trevor Bayne, and Michael McDowell as first time winners in the Great American Race.

As Daytona 500 first time winners, the drivers also join an eclectic list of drivers that run from hard core drivers to legends of the sport.  Eleven drivers have won the 500 more than once with Richard Petty leading the way with seven Daytona 500 wins.

After moving from the beach to the 31 degree high banked two and a half mile track eight miles away; NASCAR held the first Daytona race on asphalt in 1959 where Petty patriarch Lee Petty won the race. 

There are four drivers who went back to back with wins, two father/son duos, and two sets of brothers to win the 500.

All time Daytona 500 winners:
1959 – Lee Petty
1960 – Junior Johnson
1961 – Marvin Panch
1962 – “Fireball” Roberts
1963 – Tiny Lund
1964 – Richard Petty
1965 – Fred Lorenzen
1966 – Richard Petty
1967 – Mario Andretti
1968 – Cale Yarborough
1969 – LeeRoy Yarbrough
1970 – Pete Hamilton
1971 – Richard Petty
1972 – A.J. Foyt
1973 – Richard Petty
1974 – Richard Petty
1975 – Benny Parsons
1976 – David Pearson
1977 – Cale Yarborough
1978 – Bobby Allison
1979 – Richard Petty
1980 – Bubby Baker
1981 – Richard Petty
1982 – Bobby Allison
1983 – Cale Yarborough
1984 – Cale Yarborough
1985 – Bill Elliott
1986 – Geoff Bodine
1987 – Bill Elliott
1988 – Bobby Allison
1989 – Darrell Waltrip
1990 – Derrike Cope
1991 – Ernie Irvan
1992 – Davey Allison
1993 – Dale Jarrett
1994 – Sterling Marlin
1995 – Stirling Marlin
1996 – Dale Jarrett
1997 – Jeff Gordon
1998 – Dale Earnhardt Sr
1999 – Jeff Gordon
2000 – Dale Jarrett
2001 – Michael Waltrip
2002 – Ward Burton
2003 – Michael Waltrip
2004 – Dale Earnhardt Jr
2005 – Jeff Gordon
2006 – Jimmie Johnson
2007 – Kevin Harvick
2008 – Ryan Newman
2009 – Matt Kenseth
2010 – Jamie McMurray
2011 – Trevor Bayne
2012 – Matt Kenseth
2013 – Jimmie Johnson
2014 – Dale Earnhardt Jr
2015 – Joey Logano
2016 – Denny Hamlin
2017 – Kurt Busch
2018 – Austin Dillon
2019 – Denny Hamlin
2020 – Denny Hamlin
2021 – Michael McDowell
2022 – Austin Cindric