The Athletic Staff
William Byron had just crossed the finish line, narrowly leading on the last lap of the Daytona 500, when a caution ended NASCAR’s biggest race to give Byron the win over Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman.
The victory came on the 40th anniversary of Hendrick making its first Cup Series start and 10 years since Hendrick last won the Daytona 500.
Byron was racing Ross Chastain and Austin Cindric when contact between Chastain and Cindric sent them crashing as the field sped toward the checkered flag. NASCAR officials called for the yellow flag just after Byron had taken the white flag, signaling the race would end either under green or caution.
Bowman was seemingly poised to pass his Hendrick teammate as he appeared to have momentum, but Byron fortuitously had the position and the win was his.
Chase Elliott won Stage 1, while Ryan Blaney claimed Stage 2.
Required reading
- Daytona 500 lineup: Ranking all 40 drivers on their chances to win
- 2024 Daytona 500 and NASCAR questions: Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney among the favorites
- 2024 NASCAR season preview: Playoff picks, top driver, best rivalry and more
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Austin Hill wins late-night Xfinity race for 3-peat in Daytona opener
We have an Xfinity winner at Daytona, and he's familiar with hardware here. Austin Hill survives a wreck-filled race to claim his third straight win in the series' season opener.
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Catch Jeff and Jordan's live Daytona 500 recap on The Teardown.
How chaotic are these races?
Alex Bowman did not know what happened to cause the Big One.
Me: "On the wreck with the bump, were you all just going for it? What happened there?"
Bowman: "Yeah, I didn't really see what started it. I feel like it started in the third lane?"
Me: "The Big One?"
Bowman: "Down the back straightaway?"
Me: "You gave a bump to Byron and Byron turned Keselowski."
Bowman: "Gotcha. I can't even see far enough to see that Byron turning Keselowski is what started it. I had William in a spot that I didn't want to have him in. We're all just kind of sandwiched up there, right? I was lifting to try to get off of him once he was aimed at the wrong place. But we're all just shoving each other; that's what speedway racing has become. Definitely didn't mean to crash anybody by any means. And I was trying to get off of William while getting shoved at the same time."
NASCAR shows a photo it used to determine William Byron's Daytona 500 win.
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Austin Cindric with a brief comment after the end of that race...
The Athletic Staff
William Byron wins Daytona 500
The race is deemed official. This is Byron's 11th career win. He's the sixth different Hendrick Motorsports driver to win the race.
Unofficial race results:
- William Byron
- Alex Bowman
- Christopher Bell
- Corey LaJoie
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Caution! Looks like William Byron MAY HAVE TAKEN THE WHITE...is this official!?!?!
William Byron is in the lead with two laps to go.
Four laps to go: Ross Chastain and William Byron are racing side-by-side up front after the restart.
OK, welp ... they're going back to green. 22 cars on the lead lap.
Byron-Chastain front row. There will be FOUR laps to go when they take the green. (Four laps in regulation, anyway).
Chastain-Byron-Bowman-Cindric-Elliott-Bell-Busch-LaJoie-Smith-Allmendinger-JHN-Ragan-Briscoe-Wallace-Larson are the top 15.
What are NASCAR's overtime rules?
Cautions are common at the Daytona 500, including at the end of the race. What does that mean for the finish?
Well, like other sports, NASCAR has overtime rules. If there's a caution late in the race, the field lines up for the restart, and then has a two-lap shootout for the finish.
If the field completes the final two laps without issue, then the race ends with the checkered flag.
If the field completes the first of the final two shootout laps and there's a caution on the final lap, then the running order freezes at the caution and the next flag — either yellow or checkered — ends the race.
There is no limit on the number of overtimes.
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Quote of the night
Joey Logano is out of his car and his night is done after leading laps.
"It's speedway racing. It's a lot of fun until it sucks," he says on Fox.
There were 18 cars involved in the pileup, according to the Fox broadcast.
There were many big names involved, including Kyle Larson, Brad Keselowski, Noah Gragson, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr. and Tyler Reddick.
Hope for Hendrick?
Not sure exactly who is left, but the cars remaining seem to include Alex Bowman, William Byron and Chase Elliott. So it's worth reminding you this is the 40th anniversary of Hendrick Motorsports' first race, and Hendrick is going for a record-tying ninth Daytona 500.
The Big One
You knew it was coming. The Big One finally struck at Daytona with nine laps to go, a crash that collected the majority of the field. It's unclear which cars are undamaged during the red flag, but we know Ross Chastain, Alex Bowman, William Byron, Austin Cindric, Chase Elliott and Christopher Bell are among those left. The wreck was triggered when Bowman gave Byron a big push, causing Byron to turn Brad Keselowski into Joey Logano.
Joey Logano leads as pit stops get underway. The leading Fords pit on Lap 20 after the Toyotas. The Chevrolets come in after.
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Kevin Harvick reflects on his transition from racing to the Fox booth
The last Daytona 500 to run without Kevin Harvick in the field came on a fateful February day in 2001. Seven-time NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt Sr. was killed on the final lap of that year’s race, and the following week, a 25-year-old Harvick — with no Cup Series experience at the time — was thrust into the spotlight as Earnhardt’s replacement at Richard Childress Racing.
That 2001 Daytona 500 was also notable for something else: It was the debut of Fox Sports’ NASCAR coverage, which Harvick is now joining after he concluded a 23-year Cup career last fall. Now 48, a NASCAR champion and a father of two, the future Hall of Famer will bring his sharp perspective and knowledge fresh out of the driver’s seat to Fox’s coverage. He’s sharing a booth with longtime play-by-play announcer Mike Joy and former driver Clint Bowyer, who spent several years as Harvick’s teammate.
Prior to his Cup broadcast debut at the Clash exhibition race earlier this month, Harvick sat down with The Athletic to discuss his approach to TV analysis, his comfort level with Fox and more.
Read the interview here.
The Rock weighs in on his Daytona 500 experience. It seems he's a NASCAR fan.
Denny Hamlin to the lead
Denny Hamlin makes a move on Corey LaJoie and takes the lead. This is the first time Hamlin — the three-time Daytona 500 winner who's considered the betting favorite — has led today. There are under 50 laps to go.
Kyle Busch has also recovered after his team's earlier mishap to contend in the top five.