After numerous delays due to a very mad Mother Nature who dumped rain all over the Daytona area this past weekend, the Daytona 500 will finally get underway on Monday afternoon.
Joey Logano earned his first 500 pole with Michael McDowell alongside on the front row. Tyler Reddick and Christopher Bell won their Duel races on Thursday night to line up on the second row.
At the end of the Bluegreen Vacations Duels on Thursday night, JJ Yeley and BJ McLeod were eliminated from the field. A full field of 40 cars will start the race. Several of the drivers were caught up in a violent crash during Duel number two and had to move to a backup car for the 500.
The starting lineup for the Daytona 500:
Joey Logano
Michael McDowell
Tyler Reddick
Christopher Bell
Chase Elliott
Austin Cindric
Alex Bowman
Denny Hamlin
Carson Hocevar
John Hunter Nemechek
Erik Jones
Harrison Burton
Daniel Suarez
Zane Smith
Ty Gibbs
Brad Keselowski
Kyle Larson
William Byron
Chris Buescher
Chase Briscoe
Ross Chastain
Justin Haley
Jimmie Johnson
Bubba Walace
Ryan Preece
Kaz Grala
Martin Truex Jr
AJ Allmendinger
Corey LaJoie
Josh Berry
Todd Gilliland
Ruan Blaney
Austin Dillon
Kyle Busch
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Riley Herbst
Daniel Hemric
Noah Gragson
Anthony Alfredo
David Ragan
Stages one and two of the race are 65 laps each with stage three lasting 70 laps for a total of 200 laps around the 2.5 mile high banked tri-oval. The drivers can run 40 to 44 laps on a single load of fuel and will have to make at least one pit stop in each stage.
Kyle Busch, Noah Gragson, Ryan Blaney, William Byron and Daniel Hemric will all start from the back of the field after moving to a backup car as the result of a crash. Kaz Grala will start from the back of the field after the crew made an engine change.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is the grand marshal for the 2024 Daytona 500 and will give the command.
The Thunderbirds put on a little show as a part of the pre-race ceremonies.
Joey Logano brings the field down for the green flag start of the race from the outside lane before a packed house. With all of the rain delays, fans were told if they have a ticket for either race, they could get in for the day and see both of the races.
Now in the broadcast booth, Kevin Harvick says that his heart rate is still high in anticipation of the race.
Joey Logano edges out in front for the lead but Michael McDowell moves up to go side by side in a battle for the lead as the drivers continue to build up speed.
Lap two, Joey Logano leads the race with Michael McDowell in second; Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Austin Cindric round out the top five. McDowell and Logano continue to swap the lead back and forth.
Lap four, drivers are getting three wide back in the pack.
Lap five the first caution flag comes out for a crash involving Harrison Burton, Carson Hocevar, Austin Dillon, Jimmie Johnson, Brad Keselowski, Kaz Grala, Ryan Preece, and John Hunter Nemechek. Brad Keselowski made contact with John Hunter Nemechek who was blocking the track; Nemechek hit Harrison Burton and sent him spinning into Carson Hocevar. Burton went through the grass and back up on the track taking up more drivers. Hocevar was stuck in the wet grass.
Drivers take advantage of the yellow flag to make pit stops and top off the fuel.
After staying out on the track, Christopher Bell brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 12 and goes side by side with Ryan Blaney Blaney and Daniel Hemric also stayed out on the track.
All drivers involved in the wreck and are out of the race have been checked and released from the infield care center.
Lap 13, Christopher Bell leads the race with Ryan Blaney in second; Joey Logano, Daniel Hemric, and Michael McDowell round out the top five.
AJ Allmendinger had to serve a pass through penalty for not up properly on the restart. John Hunter Nemechek had an equipment violation penalty and William Byron stopped in the wrong pit stall in order to avoid a wreck; both drivers had to restart the race from the back of the field.
Lap 17, Christopher Bell has the lead with Ryan Blaney alongside in second; Daniel Hemric, Joey Logano, and Chase Elliott round out the top five.
Lap 22, Christopher Bell holds on to the lead with Ryan Blaney in second; Daniel Hemric, Joey Logano, and Michael McDowell round out the top five.
Lap 27, Christopher Bell continues to lead the race with Ryan Blaney in second; Joey Logano, Daniel Hemric, and Michael McDowell round out the top five.
After serving a pass through penalty, AJ Allmendinger lost the draft but is catching up to the field.
Lap 32, Ryan Blaney has taken the lead. He, Christopher Bell, Joey Logano, and Daniel Hemric pulled away from the field as drivers work to conserve fuel.
The drivers are running the length of a football field each second!
Lap 38, Ryan Blaney leads the race with Joey Logano in second; Austin Cindric, Michael McDowell, and Christopher Bell round out the top five
Austin Cindric’s crew have just told him that he is good to the end of the stage and put it hammer down
Lap 41 drivers come down pit road for service. Michael McDowell leads the race.
Lap 42, Chris Buescher comes down pit road by himself.
Lap 42, Chase Elliott takes the lead on the outside but he is alone and Michael McDowell retakes the lead.
Lap 47, Chase Elliott leads the race with Kyle Busch in second; Bubba Wallace, Martin Truex Jr, and Noah Gragson round out the top five.
Lap 50, there are 34 cars on the lead lap.
Michael McDowell reports an issue with his car; saying the car is slow and he can’t get fifth gear
Lap 52, there are 31 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 53, Chase Elliott leads the race with Kyle Busch a tenth of a second behind; Bubba Wallace, Martin Truex Jr, and NoahGragson round out the top five.
Lap 56, leaders come down pit road; along with several other drivers Bubba Wallace is the new leader.
Lap 57, more drivers come down pit road including leader Bubba Wallace. Noah Gragson is the new leader.
Lap 58, the top eight drivers are all Fords; ninth place driver Kyle Busch is the first driver not in a Ford.
Noah Gragson leads the race with Todd Gilliland in second; Josh Berry, Justin Haley, and David Ragan round out the top five.
Lap 60, leaders come down pit road. David Ragan is the new leader.
A month ago, David Ragan was no even scheduled to run the race.
Lap 64, Kyle Busch takes the lead.
Lap 65, Chase Elliott takes the lead.
Chase Elliott wins stage one!
The top 10 at the end of stage one:
Chase Elliott
Kyle Larson
Ross Chastain
William Byron
Alex Bowman
Kyle Busch
Denny Hamlin
Bubba Wallace
Martin Truex Jr
Daniel Suarez
AJ Allmendinger is the “lucky dog”.
Kyle Larson wins the race off of pit road.
Tyler Reddick and John Hunter Nemechek both had trouble getting their cars to refire. Reddick is moving again, but Nemechek is stopped on pit road.
Nemechek was out of gas and has gotten the car refired and moving.
This marks the 40th anniversary of Hendrick Motorsports and their very first 500.
Several drivers come down to top off.
After all of the work to get up front, Kyle Busch was charged with a safety violation – a man fell over the wall onto pit road – and will have to restart the race from the back of the field.
John Hunter Nemechek also has a penalty; his crew came over the wall too soon; he will also have to restart the race from the back of the field.
Kyle Larson brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two on lap 71 with Josh Berry alongside. Berry gets out in front from the inside lane; but Kyle Larson comes up on the outside to take to go side by side with Berry.
The third moves fast and Joey Logano takes the lead.
Lap 73, Joey Logano leads the race with Chase Briscoe on the inside; Justin Haley, Chris Buescher, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 75, Joey Logano leads the race with Justin Haley in second; Chris Buescher, Kyle Busch, and Ryan Preece round out the top five.
As the drivers move toward running under the lights, the sun has become an issue with it in their rear window on the backstretch and in their face on the front stretch.
Lap 80, Kyle Busch is the only driver in the top five not driving a Ford.
Lap 83, Joey Logano leads the race with Justin Haley in second; Chris Buescher, Todd Gilliland, and Bubba Wallace round out the top five.
Lap 85, Todd Gilliland and Joey Logano battle for the lead. Gilliland is getting some help from Bubba Wallace.
Lap 89, Joey Logano holds on to the lead with Justin Haley in second; Bubba Wallace, Chris Buescher, and Todd Gillilnd round out the top five.
Michael McDowell is dealing with some electrical issues and has gone laps down.
Lap 93, Todd Gilliland takes the lead on the inside but Martin Truex Jr takes the lead briefly before Gilliland retakes it with Joey Logano in second; Martin Truex Jr, Justin Haley, and Tyler Reddick round out the top five.
After being caught up in the lap five crash, Jimmie Johnson is reporting some steering issues.
It has become a battle of the manufacturers with Fords on the outside and Toyotas on the inside.
Lap 99, Todd Gilliland leads the race with Joey Logano in second; Martin Truex Jr, Justin Haley, and Tyler Reddick round out the top five.
There are 34 cars on the lead lap.
Leader Todd Gilliland is a third generation driver. Kevin Harvick noted that he feels old because he has raced with Todd, his Dad Dave, and Todd’s grandpa.
Lap 105, Todd Gilliland and Martin Truex Jr battle it out for the lead.
Lap 109, Bubba Wallace takes the lead from the outside lane with Todd Gilliland in second; Kyle Busch, Ryan Preece, ad Ryan Blaney round out the top five.
Lap 110, Kyle Busch takes the lead with Buba Wallace giving him a push
Lap 111, Ryan Preece is the new leader as a big pack of drivers head for pit road.
Josh Berry spins around coming into his pit stall after contact from John Hunter Nemechek.
Ryan Peece was caught speeding on pit road and will have to serve a pass through penalty.
Kyle Busch leads the race.
Lap 114 more drivers come down pit road including leader Kyle Busch.
Kyle Larson is the new leader.
Kyle Larson lead another group of drivers coming down pit road.
Lap 117, Kye Larson leads the race with Chase Elliott in second; Ryan Blaney, Core LaJoie, and Austin Cindric round out the top five.
Lap 121, Austin Cindric and Kle Busch battle for the lead; Ryan Blaney, William Byron, and AJ Allmendinger round out the top five.
Six laps remain in stage one, Austin Cindric and Kyle Busch continue to battle for the lead.
Justin Haley comes down pit road with fuel pressure issues.
Christopher Bell drops down to the inside to form a third lane with four laps remaining in stage two.
Ryan Blaney wins stage two.
The top 10 at the end of stage two:
Ryan Blaney/
Austin Cindric
Daniel Suarez
Kyle Busch
Tyler Reddick
William Byron
Bubba Wallace
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
AJ Allmendinger
Chris Buescher
Drivers come down pit road for service with Austin Cindric winning the race off of pit road. Several of the drivers are reporting tight conditions as the lights begin to take effect and dark settles over the track.
Kyle Busch limps back to pit road with a missing lug nut. He made it back to pit road without losing the tire and returns to the track back in 30th place.
Drivers back in the field come down pit road to top off the fuel.
Daniel Suarez was charged with an equipment interference penalty and has to restart the race from the back of the field.
Austin Cindric brings the field down for the green flag start of stage three with 64 laps to go. Austin Cindric and Bubba Wallace battle it out for the lead; Ryan Blaney, Tyler Reddick, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr round out the top five.
With 62 laps to go, Kyle Busch has already moved up to eleventh place.
AJ Allmendinger takes the lead with Chris Buescher in second; Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace, and Corey LaJoie round out the top five.
With 59 to go, Martin Truex Jr moves up the track; new Dad AJ Allmendinger continues to lead the race.
With 56 laps to go, AJ Allmendinger leads the race with Daniel Hemric in second; Denny Hamlin, David Ragen, and Corey LaJoie round out the top five.
Just 50 laps remain in the race; Corey LaJoie battles with Kyle Busch for the lead; Denny Hamlin, Alex Bowman, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
Like Todd Gilliland, Corey LaJoie is a third generation driver.
Denny Hamlin passes Corey LaJoie for the lead on the outside lane.
Lap 153, Denny Hamlin leads the race with Kyle Busch in second; Corey LaJoie, Christopher Bell, and Alex Bowman round out the top five.
Lap 157, Kyle Busch takes the lead in a battle with Denny Hamlin.
Kyle Busch moves up to the outside lane and slaps the wall but he saves the car and the track stays green.
With 36 laps to go, Joey Logano takes the lead with David Ragan in second; Brad Keselowski, Chase Briscoe, and Denny Hamlin round out the top five.
Thirty to go; Joey Logano leads the race but Denny Hamlin comes up on the outside to take the lead briefly before Logano moves in front of Hamlin.
The top five are Joey Logano, David Ragan, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, and Kyle Busch.
Just 25 laps remain in the race and the drivers still need to make one final pit stop.
Lap 177, a handful of drivers come down pit road to begin the cycle of green flag pit stops.
Lap 178, another group of drivers come down pit road for service.
Lap 179, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch come down pit road for service.
Lap 180, a big group of drivers come down pit road including the leaders. Ross Chastain is the new leader.
And finally the remainder of the drivers come down pit road for fuel with Kyle Larson taking the lead.
Just 17 laps to go, Melon Man Ross Chastain leads the race with Joey Logano in second; Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Brad Keselowski and Daniel Suarez round out the top five.
Fifteen to go, drivers are getting three wide with Ricky Stenhouse Jr in the lead.
Daniel Suarez takes the lead.
Thirteen to go, Ross Chastain takes the lead after William Byron and Daniel Suarez battle for the lead.
Bubba Wallace’s crew did not get enough fuel in the car and he will have to make a stop for fuel.
Drivers are three wide across the track.
Ross Chastain leads the race with Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano in a battle for second.
Ten to go, Ross Chastain gets a push from William Byron with Joey Logano on the outside.
Drivers are three and four wide back in the field.
The caution flag comes out for the Big One with just nine laps remaining in the race. William Byron and Brad Keselowski make contact after a push from Alex Bowman that started the melee. It all happened right behind leader Ross Chastain.
NASCAR has red flagged the race in order to get the track cleared and cleaned up.
A total of 18 cars were involved in the crash – Kyle Larson, Brad Keselowski, Noah Gragson, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe, Chris Buescher, Martin Truex Jr, Joey Logano, Todd Gilliland, Ryan Preece, Erik Jones, Tyler Reddick, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Ty Gibbs, Anthony Alfred, and Daniel Suarez.
All of the drivers who were unable to make it back to pit road are out of their cars and were able to walk to the ambulance for the ride to the care center
There are several cars on pit road waiting for NASCAR to pull the red flag and display the yellow. Crews have seven minutes from the time they enter pit road to the time they leave pit road to make all repairs and make minimum speed to remain in the race. The spoiler, bumpers, and roof flaps must all be on the car in order to remain on the track.
After an 18 minute red flag condition, NASCAR displays the yellow flag. Crews may now work on the cars and drivers may come down pit road for service.
There are seven laps remaining in the race with Ross Chastain in the lead.
Ross Chastain brings the field down for the green flag restart of the race with just four laps remaining in the race. Chastain and William Byron go side by side in a battle for the lead.
Three to go, William Byron edges out in front.
Drivers are three wide in the field.
Two to go, William Byron has the lead.
The caution flag comes out just after the white flag came out. William Byron is declared the winner of the race on the 40th anniversary of Hendrick Motorsports.
The unofficial results of the Daytona 500:
William Byron
Alex Bowman
Christopher Bell
Corey LaJoie
AJ Allmendinger
Bubba Wallace
John Hunter Nemechek
Chase Briscoe
Erik Jones
Noah Gragson
Kyle Larson
Kyle Busch
Zane Smith
Chase Elliott
Martin Truex Jr
Daniel Hemric
Ty Gibbs
Chris Buescher
Denny Hamlin
David Ragan
Ross Chastain
Austin Cindric
Ryan Preece
Riley Herbst
Josh Berry
Justin Haley
Anthony Aflredo
Jimmie Johnson
Tyler Reddick
Ryan Blaney
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Joey Logano
Brad Keselowski
Daniel Suarez
Todd Gilliland
Michael McDowell
Austin Dillon
Kaz Grala
Harrison Burton
Carson Hocevar
This was career win 302 for Rick Hendrick and ties him with Petty Enterprises for a total of nine 500 wins.