DAYTONA 500 NOTES Sunday, January 17, 2021
DAYTONA 500 NOTES
DAYTONA 500 WINNERS
| * | Richard Petty | 7 | 1964,’66,’71,’73,’74,’79 & ‘81 |
| * | Cale Yarborough | 4 | 1968,’77,’83 & ‘84 |
| * | Bobby Allison | 3 | 1978,’82 & ‘88 |
| * | Jeff Gordon | 3 | 1997,’99 & ‘05 |
| Denny Hamlin | 3 | 2016, ’19 & ‘20 | |
| * | Dale Jarrett | 3 | 1993,’96 & ‘00 |
*Champion & Hall of Fame
Only 2 won 4 or more Daytona 500s – Richard Petty 7 & Cale Yarborough 4 (Denny Hamlin – 3 Wins)
DRIVERS TO WIN CONSECUTIVE DAYTONA 500s
| Richard Petty | 1973 & ‘74 |
| Cale Yarborough | 1983 & ‘84 |
| Sterling Marlin | 1994 & ‘95 |
| Denny Hamlin | 2019 & ‘20 |
4 Won consecutive Daytona 500s – Denny Hamlin won last 2 Daytona 500s (No driver won 3 straight)
DRIVERS TO WIN DAYTONA 500 COMING OFF CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON
| DRIVER | CHAMPION | DAYTONA 500 CHAMPION |
| Lee Petty | 1958 | 1959 |
| Richard Petty | 1972 | 1973 |
| Cale Yarborough | 1976 | 1977 |
| Jeff Gordon | 1998 | 1999 |
| Dale Jarrett | 1999 | 2000 |
| Chase Elliott | 2020 | ? |
Daytona 500 won by defending NASCAR Cup Series champion 5 times – Last: Dale Jarrett 1999 Champ & 2000 Winner
Chase Elliott: 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion
(Last defending champion to win Daytona 500 was the son of a champion, Dale Jarrett in 2000)
3 Father-Son Daytona 500 winners – Allison, Earnhardt & Petty
Bill Elliott won 1985 & ’87 Daytona 500
Champions Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski & Martin Truex Jr. winless in Daytona 500
DAYTONA 500 CLOSEST FINISHES
| 2016 | 1-hundredth of a second | Denny Hamlin | Martin Truex Jr. |
| 2020 | 14-hundredths of a second | Denny Hamlin | Ryan Blaney |
Denny Hamlin won the 2 closest Daytona 500s (2016 & 2020)
1-hundredth of a second over Martin Truex Jr. in 2016
14-hundredths of a second over Ryan Blaney in 2020
DAYTONA 500 FIRST CAREER WIN
| Winner | Year | Career Race |
| Tiny Lund | 1963 | 133rd |
| Mario Andretti | 1967 | 7th |
| Pete Hamilton | 1970 | 21st |
| Derrike Cope | 1990 | 73rd |
| Sterling Marlin | 1994 | 279th |
| Michael Waltrip | 2001 | 463rd |
| Trevor Bayne | 2011 | 2nd |
Daytona 500 win was first career victory for 7 drivers – Last: Trevor Bayne 2011
21 Drivers won first career NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona
| Hendrick Motorsports | |||
| Age | Best Daytona 500 Finish | ||
| 5 | Kyle Larson | 28 | 7th |
| 9 | Chase Elliott | 25 | 14th |
| 24 | William Byron | 23 | 21st |
| 48 | Alex Bowman | 27 | 11th |
Denny Hamlin only repeat winner last 11 Daytona 500s (3 Wins) – 8 Others 1 win each
Denny Hamlin won 2020 Daytona 500 starting from rear after failing pre-race inspection multiple times
Denny Hamlin led most laps 3 Daytona 500s – Richard Petty led most laps 4 Daytona 500s (Most all-time)
Denny Hamlin won first Daytona 500 in 11th try – 3 Wins last 5 Daytona 500s
Denny Hamlin Daytona 500 odds – 2016: 8-1; 2019: 11-1 & 2020: 19-2
Trevor Bayne: 2011 Daytona 500 champion – 125-1 Odds
Most consecutive Daytona 500 top 3 finishes: 4 – Benny Parsons (1975-’78) & Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2012-’15)
Denny Hamlin: 3 Straight Daytona 500 top 3 finishes
Kyle Busch: 57 Career wins – 0 for 15 in Daytona 500 (Most career wins without a Daytona 500 win)
Last to win back-to-back Daytona races: Jimmie Johnson 2/13 & 7/13
William Byron won 2020 Coke Zero Sugar 400
No winner from pole last 20 Daytona 500s
Pole winner finished outside top 5 last 19 Daytona 500s
Daytona 500 was first career pole for 10 drivers
17 Different pole winners last 18 Daytona 500s – Chase Elliott won 2 of last 5
Alex Bowman: 4 Daytona 500s – 3 Straight Daytona 500 front-row starts
Hendrick Motorsports won 5 of last 6 Daytona poles when qualifying was run (2019 & ‘20 Coke Zero Sugar 400 pole canceled)
2019 Hendrick Motorsports top 4 fastest in Daytona 500 front-row qualifying
Hendrick Motorsports: 5 Straight Daytona 500 poles 2015-‘19 – Longest all-time Daytona 500 streak
Car owners swept Daytona 500 front row 10 times – 6 Times in last 11 years
Hendrick Motorsports swept Daytona 500 front row 6 times
Hendrick Motorsports won 5 of last 6 Daytona 500 poles with 4 different drivers
Chevrolet leads all with 28 Daytona 500 poles including last 8
Toyota: No Daytona 500 poles (First season 2007)
Last to win Duel 3 straight years or longer: Dale Earnhardt 1990-’99
Joey Logano won 2019 & ’20
20 Duel races settled by last lap pass
Joey Logano won 2019 & ’20 Duel with last lap pass
Winner led only final lap in 7 Duel races
Last time both Duel races won from pole: 1996 – Dale Earnhardt & Ernie Irvan
Hendrick Motorsports leads all teams with 16 Duel wins
Daytona Duel Race #2 winner won only 3 Daytona 500s
Cale Yarborough 1977, Dale Earnhardt 1998 & Matt Kenseth 2012
Only 1 Duel winner went on to win Daytona 500 since 2005 – Matt Kenseth in 2012
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. passed for lead on final lap in 2020 Duel 1
Kevin Harvick passed for lead with 2 laps to go in 2020 Duel 2
Dale Earnhardt won every Duel he raced in 1990s (1990-’99)
Matador won 1975 Duel with Bobby Allison driving
DUEL CAUTIONS LAST FEW YEARS
| RACE 1 | RACE 2 | ||
| 2020 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2017 | 2 | 2 | |
| 2016 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 3 | 3 | |
| 2014 | 0 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 2 | 5 | |
| 2010 | 3 | 3 |
Mid-race leader won only 2 of last 28 Daytona 500s – Denny Hamlin 2016 & Denny Hamlin 2020
Chase Elliott 2020 Daytona 500 Stage 1 winner – Finished 17th
Denny Hamlin 2020 Daytona 500 Stage 2 winner – First Stage 1 or 2 winner to win Daytona 500 (Stages started 2017)
Only win of season for 14 Daytona 500 winners
Daytona 500 ended in Overtime 10 times including last 3
Denny Hamlin led at 500-mile mark last 3 Daytona 500s – 2 Wins (2019 & ‘20)
Final lead change with 13 laps or less to go in last 6 Daytona 500s – 3 of last 5 settled by last lap pass
2 of last 4 Daytona 500 winners led only final lap
12 Daytona 500s settled by last lap pass
7 Daytona 500 winners led 5 or fewer laps
First Daytona 500 win for 10 of last 15 winners
Teammates swept top finishing positions 7 times in Daytona 500
Hendrick Motorsports (1997) & Joe Gibbs Racing (2019) swept top 3 finishing positions in Daytona 500
Hendrick Motorsports won 8 Daytona 500s (2nd to Petty Enterprises – 9 Wins) with 5 different drivers
Joe Gibbs Racing won 4 Daytona 500s with 2 different drivers (Denny Hamlin 3 & Dale Jarrett 1)
Joe Gibbs Racing debut 1992 Daytona 500 & first win 1993 Daytona 500
Lee Petty 1959 & Trevor Bayne 2011 only drivers to win Daytona 500 in first try
5 Fords finished top 6 in 2020 Daytona 500 (2nd-6th)
Toyota: 3 Daytona 500 wins – 2016, ’19 & ‘20 Denny Hamlin (First Toyota race: 2007)
17 of 40 Drivers failed to finish 2020 Daytona 500 (43%) – 15 Due to crashes
Last 29 Daytona 500s, 16 crashes involved 10 or more drivers – Biggest crash: 21 involved (2019)
21 Involved in lap 191 crash 2019 Daytona 500 – Most ever
19 Involved in lap 184 crash 2020 Daytona 500 – Tied 2nd-most ever (2001)
Biggest Daytona NASCAR Cup Series crash: 26 Involved (7/6/14)
Biggest Daytona crash: 37 Involved (2/13/60) – Modified-Sportsman race
1 2-Day Daytona 500 – First 20 laps run 2/16/20 & rest of race run 2/17/20
Oldest to race in Daytona 500: Mark Thompson 2018 (66-Years-old)
Derrike Cope 62-years-old